These characters do not belong to me.

Choosing a Partner

Chapter 13

By Kenzie Kennedy

Kaede came home with them so she could add something to the shield to keep out Kikyo specifically. The city could just send out another inspector. Kaede left shortly after lunch. Before she left she assured Kagome that her studies would soon have her well able to defend herself against Kikyo.

Kagome sent Inuyasha into the kitchen to help her mother while she went to get Sango.

She opened the door and found Sango at the computer as usual. "Hey," she said, plopping down in her chair.

Sango tore her eyes from the screen. "Anything interesting happen?" she asked.

"I got attacked again. Kikyo is definitely the one sending the monsters. I’m not sure how to pose the question to Inuyasha and I’m not sure I even want to." Kagome wrapped up her day.

Sango sighed. "I know. Miroku will die if I don’t ‘bed him’ as your mom says. I just don’t want my first time to be with someone who…"

"Doesn’t love you, doesn’t care about you, doesn’t care about themselves, does that fit the picture?" Kagome asked.

Sango nodded. "But to know him, he’s got to know himself. To know himself, he’s got to be free which means I’ve got to marry him."

"Same here," Kagome said. "How about we do it after lunch and then meet in the library?"

Sango nodded. "Sounds okay. Is lunch ready?" Kagome nodded and they went into to eat and hopefully calm their stomachs.

***

Sango got Miroku into her room with the false statement of "I need something heavy lifted". She looked at him anxious and unsure of herself. "Why don’t you sit down?" she asked.

Miroku sat and looked at her. "I didn’t need anything lifted," she admitted. "I wanted to ask you something."

No comment from Miroku. Sango swallowed hard. "You said last night that you wouldn’t share your thoughts with me because you weren’t free. Is that right?"

Miroku nodded. "That is right, Sango. I do not have thoughts, Sango."

Sango admitted that her heart was thumping so loud she thought he could hear it from her computer chair. She bit her lip. How do I say this?

"If I marry you," she said slowly, "would you have opinions? You would be free."

Miroku said, "Yes, I would be free to have opinions, Sango."

"Then as a slave you don’t right now, but if you were a husband at this point in time all I’d have to do is ask for conversation and you’d talk to me?" Sango asked.

"Yes, Sango." Miroku said.

"Would you like to marry me?" Sango whispered.

"Yes, Sango," Miroku said.

Sango blinked. "Miroku, I’m asking if you have an opinion. You don’t have to marry me just because I asked. This is in the slave handbook, isn’t it? You can say no to some questions?"

"Yes, we can, Sango. I choose to marry you, Sango." Miroku said calmly.

Oh, great. Now how do I tell him that I’m not doing…that…with him? Just tell him, Sango.

She cleared her throat. "I’m not having a wedding night until we’re in love." There, she’d said it.

"Yes, Sango."

Oh, she was tempted to hit him with a book again! "Fine. I’ll talk with Rimiko and see when it will be. I’m going to the library now. Do what you want." Sango almost ran out of the room.

***

Kagome sent Inuyasha to his room and then showed up a few minutes later. She fidgeted with her hand as she sat on the end of his bed just like she had the night before. "Um," she said and looked up at him. He stared back at her.

Kagome’s face fell. I don’t think I can do this. I can’t marry someone like him just because I think he might turn into someone I could love.

She took a deep breath. If he could only give her a sign… "Inuyasha, would you talk to me if I married you?"

Inuyasha stared through her. Kagome waited. "You want to marry me, Kagome?"

Kagome shrugged uncomfortably. "I’ll marry you if you tell me one opinion you have. Something that’s Inuyasha not the slave."

Inuyasha watched her warily. "No, Kagome."

Kagome felt her heart fail. He couldn’t tell her just one thing. She shook her head and got up. She walked silently out of the room.

Inuyasha sat on the bed. What was wrong with that girl? She wanted him to have opinions. But if he admitted that he had them he knew she would send him back. It was a trick. They played them all the time in the center.

***

Sango looked up as the library door opened. It was Kagome. "Well?" Sango asked.

Kagome shook her head. "I couldn’t ask. He just sat there and told me he didn’t have opinions." She looked at the older girl. "I can’t ask him to marry me if he couldn’t even give me a glimmer of hope."

Sango sighed. "I’m just hoping I haven’t made a mistake. I asked him to marry me and he said yes. That’s all he kept saying. Yes, Sango, Yes, Sango. Over and over." Sango slumped in her seat. "Computers are so much easier."

Kagome walked over and sat at the table. "What do you think of this plan?" She whispered her ideas to Sango who smiled.

***

The next morning after their brothers had been sent off to school, Kaede showed up. "I’ll start giving you your lessons here," she said. "It won’t be long now. Your power grew yesterday, a considerable bit."

Kagome smiled. "All right. Sango and I are ready in the living room."

Kaede smiled back. "It will be fine, child."

"I hope so," Kagome said firmly.

They walked into the living room where Kagome’s mother had just pushed the two boys forward. Sango smiled at Miroku and stepped over to him. Kagome walked to Inuyasha. She tugged him to the side. "Look," she said calmly. "Kaede is here to marry Sango and Miroku. She’s also here to marry you and I. What do you think?"

"If it is your wish that-" Inuyasha began.

Kagome pulled sharply on one of his ears and he yelped. The four other people in the room glanced over and then went back to their conversations. "What is it going to take to get you to admit an opinion?" she whispered angrily. "I’m not marrying you until you tell me something!"

Inuyasha stared at her. Kagome sighed. "Fine." She looked at Sango and shrugged. "Maybe I can convince him if you and Miroku get married first."

Sango nodded. She turned to Miroku. "Is this quick enough for you?" she asked.

Miroku nodded. "Yes, Sango."

Sango looked at Kaede and Miroku followed her lead. Kaede did the ceremony in five minutes flat and had them signing paperwork with Rimiko and Kagome as witnesses.

After she had signed the paperwork, Kagome asked to be excused and pulled Inuyasha off with her out into the hall. She pointed back in the room. "Sango and Miroku just got married," she said quietly. "Miroku is now her husband and free. Don’t you want to be the same?"

Inuyasha glanced back at the room. "Yes, Kagome."

"Then why won’t you marry me?" Kagome asked.

"You haven’t asked me to, Kagome."

"I haven’t asked you because I don’t want to marry a slave who will be a slave his whole life. I want someone to talk to, to love, to get into arguments with. I do not want a husband who constantly says ‘Yes, Kagome’ all the time." Kagome paused over that, shook her head, and continued. "One opinion. Tell me one thing you like. Say something to me that lets me know that I’m not making a mistake."

Inuyasha’s eyes darted between the room and Kagome. His hands clenched and unclenched while he debated. To be free he had to act like he was free for one moment. He inhaled deeply. A whiff of Kagome’s natural scent floated through the air to him and his mouth fell open. He said, "You smell nice, Kagome."

Kagome stared at him. "Really?" she said blushing. He nodded. "Inuyasha, will you marry me?"

"Yes, Kagome." He noticed her wince as he said that.

She sighed and walked back into the room with him following her. She nodded to everyone in the room and stood before Kaede. Inuyasha stood with her and in a few minutes they were married. Sango and Rimiko signed the paperwork and that was that. Two couples married in under fifteen minutes.

Sango looked at Miroku. "Do you feel okay?" she asked. "You look really pale."

"I feel fine, Sango." He said automatically.

Sango smiled. "You don’t need to say my name after every sentence now."

Miroku stared. "I don’t, do I?" He frowned. "It feels wrong not to, though."

Sango laughed. "You’ll get used to it."

Kagome waved a hand in front of Inuyasha’s face. "Hello in there? Anybody home?"

He looked at her. "I’m free?" he said.

Kagome nodded. "Free as a bird. What do you want to do now?"

Kaede tapped her on the shoulder. "If you go out, make sure that you stay with him."

Kagome nodded. "What about my lesson?"

Kaede smiled at her. "Your lesson can wait until tomorrow. You just got married. He’s just been freed. You’ll want to take him outside."

Kagome nodded. "Right." She looked over at Sango. "Sango?" she asked. The girl looked over at her. "Want to make it a double date?" Sango smiled and nodded.

**********************

I just had a vision of the Muppets Take Manhattan with them singing, "They're getting ma-aa-ar-ried noooowwww….."

The rating has changed to 'R'. That is because of the mention of sex in the last chapter. I thought we needed something.

Ladies…! No fighting over Orlando Bloom.

Alia Lowe: No, I'm not killing Kikyo. She changes, though.

Ucchan: I'm sorry you're sick. I didn't get my flu shot either, so I'm guaranteed to have a bout with it. I'm working on the story now. It's called The Bridepens. It's about a quarter of the way away from the ending.

Kabby: Kouga doesn't show up. I had plans for him to but he decided he had another engagement.

Like-anyother: Yeah, there are two lemons. There's one piece that I'm unsure of, but it's vital to the plot. I'll have to ask Artemis for her opinion on it. But I'm not going to post the lemons here.

Tari Of Nargothrond: Out of sheer morbid curiosity, why would you want to be killed by Inuyasha?

Sera: No, not in this one. No pets. In the next story I'm writing, I'm considering Kirara as a pet.

TeenSpyGirl: Kagome's dad died. That's about it. I have no idea what happened to him.

Jack: I thought that the chapter about the sexual education class deserved an R rating. Sex comes into this very early because of Miroku's curse and Inuyasha's fear.

lord white wolf: I'm not mad. Just you signed your review that way. I thought it was deliberate. No, I don't hate Kikyo. She's inconvenient, but I don't hate her.

Diamond: There's a problem. Kagome/Inuyasha doesn't do battle with Kikyo. She doesn't die. She continues to live and is happy.