Splintered Coral – Part Four

Important: Sorry this took so long to get out... I had a rough time getting through with a few sections of this chapter, and kept rewriting it... I'd still be redoing it, but I feel you've all been waiting long enough! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Ha! Me? Own Inuyasha? FEH! If only... Then I could be rich, and famous, and... And... Heh. It'd never happen.

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This couldn't be right. It really couldn't. Miroku brought a fist to his eyes, and rubbed, blinking as he looked down again. Nothing had changed. There were still two Sangos. One was exactly the way he remembered seeing her last- clothed in her taijiya uniform and her hair bound into its ponytail. The other... With a start, he realized that she was quite... Bare. He glanced at Kagome, but she was still in a state of open-mouthed shock, not making a move to cover her friend from 'prying eyes', as she would probably put it.

Shaking his head slightly, Miroku quickly untied the knot of his kesa, pulling off the indigo square of cloth as he walked forward and knelt, carefully draping it over the nude girl. His movement shook Kagome from her trance.

"Miroku-sama, which one is... Is which? I mean, they can't both be Sango, can they? One of them must be impersonating her!" she reasoned, frowning with worry. Miroku sighed, looking down at 'Sango' as he wrapped the cloth more securely around her, his hands steadily behaving.

"That may very well be the case, Kagome-sama. Even so, I don't think that that explanation is quite it."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that both of them have Sango's ki. Only, it seems divided... Like certain elements of her are in each of them, but together, they make up all of her... I don't know quite how to explain it, if that isn't a sufficient way of putting it," he said, looking from the Sango in his arms to the one still on the ground.

"Oh..." Kagome replied, eyes wide.

"What's taking you all so long?" came an all too familiar complaint. Kagome frowned at Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha... It's... Sango." He blinked.

"What's wrong with..." He trailed off as he took in the situation. "Oh."

"Yeah."

"Right."

"Uh-huh." Miroku gave them both an exasperated glare.

"Well, as much as I'm sure we all enjoy sitting around in the dead of night making single worded conversation, can we please set up camp? Possibly get a fire going? After all, from all appearances, Sango doesn't seem to be in the best condition, does she?"

They took the hint.

"Oh! Of course. Inuyasha, do you know where Shippou-chan and Kirara went?"

"Probably still hiding where we left them," Inuyasha replied blandly.

"Okay. I'll go find them and the things that we dropped and meet you over by that stream that we passed. You help Miroku-sama with Sango-chan." Inuyasha nodded, too stupefied to argue- for once. As Kagome bustled off and Inuyasha began to collect the dressed Sango, Miroku couldn't help but think that things were about to get confusing.

Fast.

*

After a long period of confusion and strained explanation, the group had fallen into silence, each contemplating the meaning of what seemed to have transpired. Namely, Sango being split into two. They had been staring off into the lush scenery, occupied in their own thoughts, when one Sango gave a low groan.

"She's waking up! She's waking up!" Shippou said, bouncing as he pointed at the Sango dressed in her taijiya uniform. The other, still wrapped in Miroku's kesa, had also been covered with Sango's usual striped yukata to provide her some extra decency.

"Yes, Shippou, we can see that," Kagome said calmly, though she was itching to make sure her friend was up to par, preferably better than that. Both Miroku and Inuyasha looked on without comment. After a moment, Sango shifted, eyes squeezing together before fluttering open. As she sat up, blinking furiously, Kagome hurried over. "Sango-chan! How are you feeling?"

"All right, I suppose... My head hurts. What happened?" she replied, raising a hand to her temple. Kagome sat back on her heels, unsure of how to answer. She sent a glance at Miroku and Inuyasha, a silent plea for some assistance. Inuyasha refused to meet her gaze; the situation confused him as much as it did her, if not more so. Therefore, with a sigh and the reassurance that Sango's weapons were hidden to prevent any panic attacks, Miroku spoke.

"The only explanation that we have is a mere guess. One that, in itself, may take some time to make any sense at all..." he trailed off, considering the different ways to continue.

"Well, in that case, where are my other clothes? I would... like to... change..." As she spoke, Sango's had eyes fallen upon her kimono, which just happened to be serving as a blanket for someone she couldn't identify. Well, that may have been due to the fact that they had their back towards her, but, looking around, she could see that all of her friends were accounted for. So, just who was this?! You see, obviously, it was a slim chance that she actually knew this person, and they were using her clothing for some reason she wasn't quite aware of, without her permission. If that didn't qualify as unhygienic, then at the very least, it was quite rude!

With a sound that could only be classified as an enraged growl, Sango sprung to her feet, unwittingly causing a chain reaction as her worried friends did the same... Minus Inuyasha, that is; he couldn't be bothered. (Kagome, of course, took note of such, storing it away for a situation that didn't hint at impending doom...)

"Just why," the taijiya snapped, wrenching her robe from the prone figure, "are my clothes being used for someone else's blanket?!" The others had the grace to look uncomfortable. Just then, however, the other Sango decided it was time to make herself known, yawning and sitting up, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"What's going on?" Taijiya Sango whirled around to give a sharp retort, only to freeze, wide-eyed, her mouth moving soundlessly. They stared at each other for a long while until the first turned menacingly to Miroku, her finger pointed at the still sitting Sango.

"Explain this! Who is she? Why does she look like me? Where are my weapons? And most importantly, why is she wearing your robes?!"

Most importantly?

Just what did that mean?

Judging by the look on her face, now wouldn't be the time to bring that particular phrase to light.

"Hmmm... Which one did you want me to answer first again?"

"Houshi-sama-!" He raised his hands in a sign of defeat.

"Very well. I'll tell you what I can. From all appearances, she appears to be you, and vice versa."

"WHAT?!" both Sango's screeched, drawing back from him and each other. Miroku sighed.

"Yes, I know. It's quite difficult to believe. Yet still, its possible. Not to bring up a sore subject, Kagome-sama, but if you would remember Kikyou-sama, it is quite possible that a soul could be broken into two different conscious beings."

"...oh..." was the quietly whispered reply.

"So, basically, somehow, that youkai woman managed to split your soul. Or at least, that's what we think... Hopefully, that explains your first two questions." A nod. "Good. Now, as for your weapons, we merely put them away so neither of you would attack one another on sight. And, of course, the most important question, my robes." He smiled cheerily, much to both Sangos' annoyance.

"To be brief, I was merely attempting to save her her dignity. It must have been a side effect of whatever curse the youkai laid on you, but it would seem that her body appeared in the process, supplied with no clothing. As such, I didn't want her catching cold, and so covered her."

It was probably a very good thing that neither Sango knew where Hiraikotsu was. Otherwise, Miroku would likely soon resemble a rock. Kagome decided to intervene before either could find a sufficient substitute.

"Uh, Sango-chan?"

"What?" Both sitting and standing Sango looked at her. Well, wasn't this confusing...

"Erm, I was thinking... Since there are two of you, and we don't know how long this will last... Maybe one of you should... I don't know, go by a different name?"

A long pause...

"Maybe. But which one of us?" asked Sango, plucking nervously at the rough cloth of Miroku's kesa.

Silence.

Kagome fidgeted, unsure of what to say. Shippou had lost interest in the whole debate, and had settled down with a piece of candy he had stolen from Kagome's backpack. Kirara was raptly watching, unsure of what to do now that she had two mistresses. Inuyasha was still appeared to be ignoring everything, though his ears were at the alert, twitching in the sudden quiet. Miroku withheld any comment, thankful he hadn't been pummeled into the ground yet.

And the two Sangos? They were in the midst of a staring contest, thoughtful looks on their faces. Finally, the uniformed taijiya sighed.

"Very well... For the time being, I'll go by... Ansho..." Everyone nodded in agreement, save the still sitting Sango, who cleared her throat, receiving the group's undivided attention. Pursing her lips, she plucked at Miroku's kesa once more.

"Right... Now that we've gotten that figured out... Can I please get some clothes?! I'm only naked under this thing!"

As expected, a lecherous grin spread over Miroku's face, for which he was quickly punished.

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Aamalie: Shortness... Blah. I could have been soooo much better. Oh well... At least I finally finished it... But the fact someone ripped off my WSW plot sorta pisses me off... *mutters* Bringing shame to my fics. Feh.

Taena: Eh...

Maela: No comment... Too sleepy...

Aamalie: ^^; Yeah... Two hours of badminton... Not that it was bad, 'cause of... Yeah... Can't say the name. I've already given Sara enough hints... ><

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inugirl0601: Yeah. Don't use WordPad, so I wouldn't know.

Zero27: Fear the Snapple... ^.^; And update your ficcie soon! That's all I have to say... Really, we readers don't mind the shorter chapters. (At least, I don't...) It just means you'll get them up faster... (Hopefully...) And you'll get more reviews. (BELIEVE IT!) =P Yeah. I'm hyper, like always. Phwee!

LiLpsYchOwaRRioR: *huggles* ^^' There's your hug! And yes, I get to see it... Whenever Sara decides to actually GIVE it to me... --'

BombermanFanatic: O.O; You think I've got this thing planned that far? As if... I haven't got a clue!

Corisu Li: OOH! Tranquilizer gun! *aims for the mosquito that's taken refuge in her bathroom and accidentally hits Sesshoumaru* Uh... Oops?

Sarcasm 397: How do I do it? Hmmn... Good question. If I ever figure out an answer, I'll tell you.

LadyJynjr: Yes... As does everyone else that has ever reviewed... >< Hell, I want more... That way I get more reviews! ^.^

Naanaami: I'll try... But if it's not Mir/San, I'll probably take my sweet time getting to it... ^.^ If ever. Nothing personal, but I'm just a M/S addict on a tight schedule.

S@n-Ch@n: ^^; No... ST isn't a oneshot. It's a side fic I'm taking my time with... I'll be updating pretty soon... If ever. I'm a lazy bum. As you well know...

Blue Glowing Thing: The explanation as to why she calls him Miroku is simple... Viz is stupid and they're scared people will get confused. Only the unworthy would... *mutters* Well, at least I have friend who are getting me epis... Blah...

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Thanks to everyone else who reviewed, but I just want to get this chapter UP already... Which is why I've sorta ignored some of the reviewers I normally respond to... ^.^

REVIEW!!!

...please...?