Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.
Notes: This is in present tense; I felt it would be appropriate. And it’s really short. It is just the little epilogue, okay?

Heart of Darkness
epilogue

Sun shines through the trees. A crowded graveyard is bathed in warmth.

There is a brown haired woman leaning over a small grave, and she clutches a bucket of wildflowers. She places them on the mound of dirt and bows before the stone. It is unmarked, but the woman knows well to whom it belongs.

It has been six months since your death.

The woman sighs sadly. Her chocolate eyes have tears in them.

I miss you.

She looks up. Dark bangs shadow her eyes, and there are tearstains on her cheeks.

“Houshi-sama,” the woman says, “thank you.”

She smiles.

“I have found happiness, houshi-sama, and I owe it all to you.”

Her hands reach out and her fingertips graze over the stone.

“I left the group soon after your death.” She sniffs back tears. “It was too painful. I went with Sesshoumaru, and he has treated me well.” The woman wipes her eyes. “Do Kagome-chan and the others visit you often? I have not been in touch with them.”

“Sango.”

The woman glances up. She looks behind her, and gives a half-smile when she sees who it is, and turns back to the grave.

“I must go,” Sango says to the grave of the young monk Miroku. “But I will be back.”

Bending forward, she bestows a kiss upon the cold stone and stands. “I love you,” she says softly, and smiles sorrowfully.

She walks away to where a demon with long silver hair, maroon strips on his cheeks and a blue crescent moon on his forehead is waiting. He clasps her hand, and looks back toward the grave. A small inclination of the head is all he offers, but he was never one to show emotion.

A little human girl with a bright kimono and dark hair with a single pigtail poking out of the top of it appears. She is smiling broadly, a cheery, toothy smile. A toad-like creature hurries after her, and ends up bumping into her back. She turns around and throws her arms around the green imp, much to the demon’s horror.

He cries out and tries to push her off him to no avail. He groans and gives up. “Rin, you insufferable bother!” the imp screeches.

“Jaken-sama!” the girl squeaks merrily.

Sango’s eyes twinkle in merriment and she boldly wraps her arms around the youkai’s middle. He stiffens, and flushes. She laughs and teases him about it.

He snaps at her and she only laughs more.

“Sesshoumaru,” she says, “relax. Blushing is not a crime.”

“Blushing is for humans, and more specifically, women. Like you,” he says stubbornly.

Sango pulls away and crosses her arms over her chest. She lets out an indignant noise and sticks her nose in the air.

“Besides,” Sesshoumaru says, leaning in closer, his amber eyes narrowing, “I like it when you blush.”

Sango’s face reddens terribly and she buries her face in her hands in embarrassment.

Rin watches with interest and amusement as the two bond. Jaken turns away. He does not like this woman, or the way his lord acts around her.

As if hearing his companion’s thoughts, Sesshoumaru pulls away from Sango and boots Jaken in the head with one shiny black shoe.

Sango and Rin titter; they couldn’t help but be highly amused.

And so Sango and Sesshoumaru walk off hand in hand, closely followed by Rin and Jaken, who was grumbling and rubbing his head, out of the graveyard, out of that village, and into the woods: into their ever changing home.

oOo

Author's Note: This epilogue was added per request. I hoped you liked the present tense of it all; I thought it felt and sounded best. Peaceful. You know.
Review this final chapter please.