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T.Y.O.M. Chapter 11: Tricks & Nightmares
Pairing: Miroku x Kagome
Some comfort and light-hearted robbing attempt content for y’all.
He swallowed thickly but regretted how dry it left his mouth as sweat peppered his forehead and upper lip. The bob of his Adam’s apple brushed against his offending restraint and he tried to pull back. It was no good. The sharp edge of the blade slid harmlessly against his skin and he urged himself to not flinch. Curse his healthy libido. Do you have to jump at every attractive woman you see? Why, yes, I do, the fate of the Miroku bloodline is at stake. Of course, of course. He sighed at himself, his arm straining against the unnatural position it was put in.
He got tricked. Worst than the most cunning prostitute that slid in his robes and took all of the gold he stole a couple years ago. He didn’t think he’d be that careless again but the nails digging into his arm and the knife at his throat proved otherwise.
“How embarrassing.”
No response. She pushed him further into the dark with a twist of his threatening-to-snap arm. What to do, what to do indeed. You’ve snaked your way out of worse situations, come on. He glanced back at her and she pressed the blade tighter against his neck. Well then.
“Hand over your valuables, filthy monk.”
“Bold of you to assume I have valuables. I am a monk.”
“Don’t lie. Those robes of yours aren’t cheap and that staff...?” Miroku grimaced as she stripped him of his outer priest robes. Her rough ministrations left scratches on his chest as his inner wrappings tousled loose but her sultry voice continued, “Definitely gold-plated. So be a good boy and hand over the rest. No funny business either.”
He sighed, a shiver from the cool night air crawled up his spine as she cast the rich fabric aside. She must’ve been impatient, he thought, grunting at a sudden shift of balance, as his cheek slammed against a nearby wall. Maybe women can lose their charm.
“We don’t have all night---.”
“My front robe pocket.”
“Thank you, oh handsome servant of God.”
He rolled his eyes at the nickname that drew him into this mess in the first place. He could have found better women in Kaede’s hut. He pushed his chest harder against the wall and she paused. Their position was rather constricting. Her hands brushed over his body, fondling unnecessarily at intimate crevices, but she couldn’t reach his pocket. He smiled in the dark and his eyes finally adjusted. Trap for a trap. There was an exit to his right. Open space long enough for a scuffle. Boxes surrounding the two in the alleyway. No problems. The pressure against his neck budged slightly in her struggle to reach his hip pocket and he threw her off, bumping his head hard against her nose. She flinched with a surprisingly elegant yelp, at least to the tense monk before her. He cursed his subconscious women-only romanticized frame of reference.
With a quick crouch, he stuck out his leg and swept her legs off the floor. The woman stumbled and the blade went flying. There was a scrambling of hidden bodies in the room and Miroku dashed, a fistful of his ripped robe in his hand and an onslaught of angry clambering at his heels. Shoulders bumped into unfriendly corners and walls kept coming from left and right. He could only follow the dim light of the moon and the stars, his racing heart beat obscuring his other senses as adrenaline pumped through his veins.
His breathing quickened, his muscles strained, and his sides stitched. What felt like hours could have been seconds, it was hard to differentiate. Either way, he was alone. Looking down, he swiped away the sweat on his brow and sighed. His sandal was broken. How it stayed on his foot was beyond him.
“How embarrassing.”
He casually readjusted his robes and made his way back to the hut, breath slowly returning back to normal. At the sight of a sitting figure on his doorway, Miroku stepped back and tried his best to turn casually as if he wasn’t caught in the middle of the night looking like he walked into a bar fight.
“Look who’s out so early in the morning. That couldn’t be our Miroku-sama, right?”
At the sound of his name, purposefully amplified to stop him from making another step, he flinched and turned back to the scarily calm figure addressing him. He couldn’t help the nervous crack in his voice and attempted a cough.
“Nope, you got the wrong monk, Miss…?”
“Nah, I’m sure I got the right guy.”
He dropped the act and deferred to an exaggerated play at humility.
“Well, you didn’t have to stay here for little old me.”
“Ah, just spit it out. What happened to you? You look like a hot mess.”
“I… uhhh---”
He looked nervous, muscles tensed and eyes a little frantic behind a frozen half-smile, which caused her to slouch a bit from her mothering pose---arms folded with a tapping foot and a stern expression, in this case a looser, more teasing smirk.
“It’s ok, I’m just teasing. I was worried when I saw your corner empty but I guess it was nothing…?”
Adjusting the folds of his robes, he flashed a soft grin and shrugged his shoulder.
“I, uh, got ambushed…?”
The confession flew out of his mouth before he could stop himself.
“That much I could guess, you really got your shit rocked.”
Unfamiliar with the phrasing, he understood the connotation and chuckled. Looking back to her, he softened at her resigned but amused smile. Settling down at the porch edge closest to the direction of the moon, she patted the empty space without glancing back at his tense form. Plopping down as gently as he could, he followed her gaze to the full moon and loosened his posture, adrenaline slowly leaving his veins.
“Well, that’s my excuse but surely you weren’t just worried about me to be up at this time of night”, he saw her tense up from the corner of his eyes and quickly added, “But you don’t have to share, Kagome-sama---”
“Inuyasha was out too.”
His lips thinned into a firm line. This was a routine affair, and he was already too familiar with his role. He kept a level gaze on her, willing her to relieve her tension, but she continued glare at the moon. Feeling, rather than seeing the seconds and tensions slip on her shoulders, he offered the first words.
“I see.”
She sighed, jumping into the role of accepting seemingly pointless comforts, but refused to meet his eyes. “Don’t worry, it’s not like that---”, that being Inuyasha’s recent nighttime stroll in the forest, “I had a nightmare and seeing the two of you gone was a real shock for me. So I’m glad you’re back.”
He frowned softly, too soft to notice, but his shifting towards her was noticeable. She spared him a small glance and he finally noticed her sweat-glistened skin and haggard appearance. He reached a hand out to her, offering silent solace and good intent.
“May I?”
He could see her shakily exhale, then nod, and slowly pulled her into him by the shoulder. As soon as contact was made, she slumped against him. She was shivering.
“Tell me what happened.”
“Hm?”
“I need a distraction. Please. Any story about a con-man out-conning our conniving monk must be quite the story.”
“Of course. But it’s quite a looooong story, I wouldn’t want to bore you with all the details.”
She giggled a bit and he squeezed her shoulder with a soft smile, the familiar but dangerous clash of beads against flesh grounded them both.
“And it was actually a con-woman.”
“Why am I not surprised.”
“Hey, hey, be nice. I was assaulted, you know.”
She managed a small scrunch of her nose.
“Well, she matched me in wordplay and played along with my fruitless attempts of ensnarement, you know the palm readings and blessings, and she caught me fair and square in an alleyway. To my surprise she didn’t shove me in there to ravage me senselessly---”
“Ewwwww.”
She stuck her tongue out in distaste and he stuck his tongue back at her mockingly. With a sign, he fell back onto the grass and took her down with him, making sure she laid comfortably on his upper arm. She didn’t resist. Good.
“More like a disappointment on my part, Kagome-sama. She had a knife and tried to rob me, a monk, can you believe that?”
They stared up to the starry night sky and Kagome scoffed lightheartedly, shifting more comfortably against his side to fight against the sudden chill.
“I would rob you too, you look easy.”
“Oh how you wound me, Kagome-sama.”
That put a smile on her face. Good.
“Anyways, there we were, knife to my throat and arm twisted behind my back and she asked me for my valuables. Smart woman, she saw my robes and staff earlier this afternoon, and concluded that I was wealthy. And let me tell you, she fondled me so, looking for the money I left with you. It must’ve been my masculine physique or my dashing looks that caused her to slip, because when the chance arrived I was able to escape. Though, six---six, can you believe it?---men came out from the shadows and chased after me. I couldn’t tell how long I ran, escaping spears and assorted weapons and threats but after what seemed like an eternity, I found you.”
He stole a quick glance at her and jerked his head back up when he saw her looking up at him, sparkling blue eyes that reflected the stars hanging over them.
“Dashing looks, huh?”
“Indeed. Why, have I caught you as well?”
“You wish.”
“I didn’t share my embarrassment to be attacked so harshly, Kagome-sama.”
“Sorry, sorry. I’m glad you’re ok though.”
“Thank you for worrying.”
She smiled before her eyes caught a shine on his neck.
“Oh, you’re bleeding.”
“I am?”
She rose up on her elbow and assessed the wound, dark red slightly flaking and leaving a trail on the edges of his robe collar.
“Yes! Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
“I didn’t feel it, too busy fighting off 10 men.”
She quickly tiptoed inside the hut and came out with a damp handkerchief.
“Don’t you mean 6?”
“Did I say that?”
“I was listening!”
“And I was there, Kagome-sama. You can’t trick me!”
She shook her head, amused, and he rose to let her settle back next to him but she shook her head.
“Don’t move.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
He stilled and watched her from under his lashes. She caught his eyes for a second before sighing dramatically.
“What a rare opportunity for me. Seeing you act so childish, you make me feel special. Better not let the other girls see.”
She dabbed at the cut on his neck lightly and he hummed, not trusting his words to keep the atmosphere going.
“Ok, done. For now. Tomorrow morning, I’ll get a bandaid, I couldn’t reach it in the dark earlier.”
“That’s alright, Kagome-sama, thank you.”
She shivered and he cocked his head slightly at the display.
“S’chilly.”
There was a haunted look in her eyes, which he didn’t miss, before she smiled down at him.
“So it seems.”
Without another word or hint of hesitation, he gently pulled her back down into him and she let him, humming softly at the warmth radiating from him.
“Well, Kagome-sama, I’m not sure what dream dared to hurt you, but you’re not alone. We’re here and we’re here to stay.”
She flinched but there wasn’t an answer. He wasn’t looking for one. His eyes drew invisible lines within the stars but stopped when she hesitantly leaned into him.
“I--- I’m sorry just for a little bit please.”
He let her trace her fingers along the skin on his arm exposed from his rolled up robes, feeling it play along the edges of his beading and glove before resting on his inner forearm. He could feel her gaze burn across the planes of his skin but made no move to initiate eye contact. Whatever she was searching for, he needed to keep calm so he evened out his breath. Seconds turned into minutes, aimless trailing turned into invisible doodles on his arm and it was only a few more moments before he felt her ministrations stop completely. Stealing a glance, he found her asleep. Good.
“Sleep well, Kagome-sama.”
Intro | Chapter 10 | Chapter 12