Hey it's Symphony of the Masked Faces bringing you my newest story, Time This follows Sango and her life after she marries Lord Kuranosuke. This will fill up some gaps within the timeline and gives you a bit of a hint of what to expect when it comes to Inuyasha's story. I do have a bit of a twist, one that will be explained in the story with Inuyasha. This story goes alongside Desolate and Half Empty. If you want background information, I suggest reading those two stories. If you don't there's a bit of a spoiler to what happens in Desolate. Anyways enough explaining. Onward! Forgive me, this is my first story focusing around Sango. Enjoy!

Symphony of the Masked Faces

p.s. I suggest you read my authors note at the end if you still have questions.

Title: Time

Rating: T

Pairing: Sango/ Kuranosuke, Sango/ Miroku, Sango/ Inuyasha

Full Summary: Time passes and she forgets everything.

"I love you." He says to her, shifting so his armor would lie more comfortably against his broad shoulders. He sits on top his horse, a smile on his strangely handsome face. Sango smiles at him softly, but she cannot return his sentiments. Secretly, she feels terrible. Here he is, going off to war- a war he may not even survive- and she cannot give him the words he wishes to hear. He may die, knowing his wife, his lady, never loved him. She wishes she could be the type of woman who could say these words without much thought. But she is not. She wishes she could be perfect, not so much for herself but for him. However, she was born a warrior, not a princess. She cannot turn back time, she cannot purposefully change who she is, not even for her husband. She is Sango, demon slayer, a woman who played a role in ending Naraku's life.

"Kuranosuke..." She starts but he interrupts her before she can ever finish.

"I know Sango. I won't force you to say what you do not wish to. I just wanted you to know." He picks up the reigns and presses his horse onward. Tossing his head backward he calls out "Think of me my love, for I will think of you every moment I am away from you." He laughs before joining the general of his army. He doesn't look back.

So he leaves her again, sitting... waiting, waiting for some sign that would tell her he was alright. They never came. For weeks, she would sit at home, biting her nails till her fingers bled. She did not love him- but that did not mean she was not worried for him. There were times when the paranoia got to her and she swore he was dead. She'd cry for days. But he always managed to make his way home, each time a little more dead inside. Each time searching for something to make him feel human again. A little more to eat. A little more to drink. A little more to smoke. A little more sleep.

He is lost.

She sits in the corner gathering dust.

They barely talk anymore and she finds the solitude she craves at the shore. It reminds her of the times she spent with her rag tag group. Kagome, Inuyasha, Miroku, Shippo, Kirara. They have all gone their separate ways-leaving nothing more than loose ends and misplaced resentment. The friendship that had survived so many trials had lost against the ultimate obstacle... time. Time steals everything. It stole her happiness, it stole her love and it would steal her life and her legacy. She would be nothing more than a legend, a fairy tale. Grains of sand clutch to her heated back, she tries to swat them away no matter how much she enjoys the feel. She is a lady. She must be perfect.

She can never be perfect.

But she tries her best, for Kuranosuke's sake. He had a war to worry about, he doesn't have time to care about his wife's appearance as well as her attitude. She wears the elaborate gowns, hosts all the right parties, speaks all the right words... when she's allowed to speak that is. She is a demure, self-sacrificing wife, everything she should be. Inside she is conflicted. She was born a fighter, she had clawed her way into this world, fighting for her life. She had spilt blood, she had lost everything. She had found love and had discarded it without a second glance. She had had happiness in her hands and she tossed it away. Her father had taught her that duty came before everything, that honor meant more than life. She had to build up her home once more and if the kami's had given her this opportunity she would take it, whatever the cost.

She had fallen in love twice in the time she had traveled with that mismatched group.
Once over the man with the purple eyes. He was always a joker.

Miroku, the monk. She had loved him unconditionally, had been willing to toss away her pride, her duties, her dignity. She had been willing to bare his flirtations, as long as she had been first in his heart. For some time they had been happy. They had planned the wedding and the children and the home they would live in. It had been magical and then it had fallen apart. She had finally seen Inuyasha and Miroku, well, he had seen Kagome. She wasn't bitter. He was.

The second time she fell in love had been an accident.
It was over the man in the red robe. He was always a fighter.

Inuyasha, the protector. He had loved her but he had loved her third best. She could still remember the day she had been struck by him. It was early morning, so early, blots of darkness still littered the sky. She had escaped to the God tree, looking for a place to think. So many people came there to find peace, why couldn't she? Settling underneath the great tree, she rested her head against the bark, finding comfort in its woodsy scent.

"What are you doing out here?" a voice called out from above her. Lifting her head up, she had spotted a blur of red. Inuyasha. She was far too tired and far too stressed to play along.

"To think Inuyasha, something you should try." She grumbled out knowing he heard her.

"Bitch" he whispered, loud enough for her to hear. She didn't even bother to respond. She closed her eyes and heard a shuffling of leaves before she felt a presence settle next to her. Peaking from underneath her eyelashes, she studied the profile of her long time companion.

"What're you thinkin bout?" He asked her after a few moments of silence.
"What's going to happen after all of this."
"Aren't you going off with Miroku?"
"...Yes...I mean, I guess...sure"
"That sounds convincing."
"Oh shut up. What would you know about relationships, or commitment?" He didn't answer and Sango got the feeling she made a mistake.

"I may not know everything about relationships but I know something about commitment. My problem is that I'm too committed. You and Miroku have been planning this shit...well forever, and now you're having doubts?" He asked. She swatted at him.

"It's normal to have doubts."

"If you ask me, I think that means something's wrong."

"Well good thing I didn't ask." She replied snobbishly. Silence passed before curiosity got the best of her. "Do you really think that something is wrong?" She tried keeping the worry out of her voice.

"I think that you even asking me about it, means there is."

"Why are you so calm this morning?" She asks. He shrugs. "It's a nice change." Silence stretched on and even though it wasn't awkward, she wanted to keep him talking, she wanted to experience more of this Inuyasha. "What are you going to do after we defeat Naraku?" He shrugs again and Sango gets the idea that he doesn't know the answer.

"What're you gonna do about Miroku?"

"I don't know... I hate time. It steals away everything. It stole my village. It stole my brother and now it's stealing my feelings for Miroku away. What will it do next? I don't even want to know."

"Time steals a lot of things away from us..." His eyes cloud over and Sango knows he's remembering his past. She loses him and it scares her for some reason. Before she knows it, she is clinging to him, trying to will away his memories...and her own. He doesn't move away from her, instead he clings to her just as tight and Sango gets the feeling that she's doing something very very bad. She lets him go and tries to move away, he kisses her and she is lost. Time cannot steal this away. Time will have to bend for them. She kisses him back and she doesn't know why. She is supposed to marry Miroku. She is supposed to give him children. She is supposed to be build a home with him and live an ordinary life. She realizes she doesn't want to and this realization both brings her down and builds her up. He smells like trees and tastes like warm sap. In the distance she hears the shuffling of feet and a gentle "Inuyasha, where are you?" Kagome. The voice seems to register in both their minds and they shuffle away from each other. She runs to hide behind a nearby tree, but not before their eyes meet and the message 'we'll talk later' registers through both of them. She watches as Kagome enters the brush, a smile on her face. Sango feels invigorated. She feels mysterious and secretive. 'This is what Kikyo must feel like.' she thinks giddily before chastising herself. Tonight, she'll tell him that what they did was a mistake and how no one will know for the better. As she makes her way back to camp, this is what she vows.

Instead, they kiss and lay in each others arms till the sun rises. She feels guilty and giddy and terrible and alive.

The man with the purple eyes. Miroku.
The man with the red robe. Inuyasha.

Both had fought their way through life.
They could understand her.
Both yearned for her.
The man with the purple eyes offered her love.
The man with the red robe offered her passion.
The man she had married offered her power.

They carry along their love affair. Miroku has no idea.

One day Kuranosuke shows up and asks her to marry him. He reminds her of her village and those bittersweet lessons she had to swallow as a child. Duty, honor, they came first. Love was fleeting. She tells him she'll answer him another time. The spirits of her ancestors torment her dreams and the next day she says yes.

She tells Miroku. He doesn't say a word.

She tells Inuyasha. He threatens to kill Kuranosuke. But he knows better.

She asks him if he will give up Kikyo and Kagome. He doesn't say a word.

So now...she wasn't unhappy, that much was true. She was content, healthy, rich, powerful. She had her home, a home that had started to mean less and less as time passed by. She wasn't going to complain though. This was her life. This is what the gods had provided her. This was her destiny and she would take it. Not everyone lives happily ever after.

One day, her curiosity gets the better and she learns about the fate of the two men she loves. What she learned was not gratifying.

So the man with the purple eyes married a girl he never loved. Poor Rin.
The man with the red robe wanders through the forests. Poor Inuyasha.
And the man she had married fades more and more away from her. Poor, poor Sango.

The wars had started out small. Small uprisings. Rebels. Easily taken out. They had grown swiftly and had spread like wildfire. Soon kingdom turned against kingdom and the blood of those unnamed souls stained the rivers black. Kuranosuke...he cries at night, but only when he thinks she's sleeping. Even with her, he has to pretend that he is always strong. He cries because too many have died. He cries because he can do nothing about it. He cries over the fact that he can sleep without fear while children are slaughtered in their dreams.

The shift from a warrior to a lady went unnoticed.

The calluses on her hands remain although she hasn't picked up her hiraikotsu in years. She barely remembers the sound it makes as it swipes through the air. She barely remembers the sound it makes when it slices through her enemies. She regrets growing lax in these easy years, but really, there isn't anything she can do. She has far too many responsibilities and not enough time. Her nails are growing out. She must have them cut.

Weeks turn into months. Months into years. She has not talked to members of that group she traveled with so very long ago, since the day they parted. She has new companions now.

She forgets her friends from years ago. So when she hears one of them has died, it barely touches her.

'What was that girls name again? Ka- Ka- Kagome. Oh yes.'

Kagome.

She murmurs a half hearted prayer and goes off to change.

She doesn't feel guilty. She barely remembers the girl.

She is full of rage. She is sick and tired of his tears. She is tired of him fading from her. She is tired of cold, lonely nights and somber days. She wants lights and parties and laughter. She wants to feel herself again. She doesn't want to hear about battle strategies. She wants her tea and her husband. She wants treats and gifts. She wants attention.

She is his queen.

Her companions are all at other engagements and Sango finds herself aching for some type of activity. She tries to go lay on the sand again, thinking it will bring back happier memories. Nothing happens. She can feel each individual grain of sand pressing against her and she hates it. The water is murky. It is too windy. The sun is too bothersome. Why did she even come out here anyway? She hears the gentle bell of the merchant passing by the castle. She lifts up her skirts and runs to meet him. 'The simple pleasures are gone,' she admits. She doesn't think about it twice.

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed!

Author's note:

Well, Sango certainly did change. For some reason I felt that I had to make her this way or else it wouldn't come out right. Well now you know that something went down between Inuyasha and Sango before she leaves him for Kuranosuke. She is a cheater, unfortunately- I didn't plan it that way but within the time line I am working in, I couldn't fit it in any other way. The story starts out with a conflict between remaining herself, being Sango the demon slayer or conforming and trying to be the wife she believes Kuranosuke wants her to be. However, things would have turned out differently, if she had decided to remain herself rather than try and change herself to please everyone else. I really didn't mean to turn Sango into some lax, selfish woman but really it just came out that way. Sango deep inside still holds a piece of her former self. Her duty and honor to her family is very important, it is what motivated her to leave the two men she loved. She has to console herself with this artificial happiness. She does have some feelings towards Kuranosuke but they are overshadowed by her selfishness. She desires to be pampered- she had to give up love why should she have to give up what is entitled to her as his wife? She has to be with him during a time of war- something which scars Kuranosuke and puts a strain on their relationship. The change in Sango is seen in the contrasting scenes at the shore. One where she enjoys herself and the other where every aspect of it bothers her. Like she says, simple pleasures are gone. Like I've said before, all the characters end up unhappy in some way or form- although Sango does make the decision on her own. She doesn't follow her heart- she chooses responsibility over love- which is a decision that is an excruciatingly hard one to make. Inuyasha and Sango's relationship is based mostly on passion and the understanding that something always keeps them from finding total happiness. While they are having a relationship, she is still leading Miroku on- mostly out of fear of hurting him than anything else. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask them. I'm in a hurry to post this and I might have skipped over something you believe is important or something you want clarified. Up next...Inuyasha's story.

Symphony of the Masked Faces.