She thought she was dreaming at first, one of those dreams that you don't know you're dreaming until after you wake up. But there he stood.

 Other than his clothing, he looked like any other collage-age kid. He was wearing a black robe with a purple sash, and carried a staff. Getup like that tends to stand out. He was looking straight at her, but /she/ seemed to be the only one who noticed /him/.

            She walked out the door and up to him, since he was still holding firm eye contact with her. She said the first thing that came to mind.

            "Hello."

            "Greetings," he replied. "My name is Miroku. I feel I should advise you that you're the only one who can see or hear me, if you're concerned about looking odd to your schoolmates."

            "I talk to myself all the time," she replied. "This would be nothing new to people that know me."

            "Well, if its all the same to you, still."

            "Alright. I know a spot." The girl lead him to a nearby wood. He seemed right at home. Crossing the street had been quite confusing for the poor guy. She supposed they didn't have cars where he came from. He now sat up against a tree, his staff leaning next to him. She took a seat across from him.

            "Before you ask," he began. "I'm not a ghost."

            "Ok," she replied. "Then what?"

            "Where I am in body, it is nighttime. I, along with my comrades, am asleep. What you see is my spirit, sent along through time to ask you a favor."

            "A favor? What, something only I can do, or did I just get lucky?"

            He laughed. "A bit of both. You see, my friends and I are searching for shards of a sacred jewel possessing great power. If it were to fall in the wrong hands, well, bad things would happen."

            "And how do I know youre not one of those bad guys?" I ask.

            "If you're asking for proof, I can provide none."

            "Well, from what I've always found to be true, bad people who manipulate others always get their comeuppance. So even if you are messing with me, you'll get yoursand the good guys will triumph."

            "Interesting reasoning," Miroku replied. "I like it very much. Well, you have access to this shard Kagome, one of our group, has sensed. But it's not in our era or the places we live."

            "Where is it?"

            "Well, uh, were not sure. All we knew before I made contact with you was that the shard was in this time, this place, and the one who could see me would be the one to help us."

            "I would help, if only I understood how."

            "I couldn't agree with you more. But tomorrow we are going to see Baril, an elder whose knowledge will hopefully help us understand what's going on. In fact, I wasn't supposed to contact you until after we talked with him. I just wanted to give you a chance to absorb the knowledge I've just given you."

            "That's very kind of you. Are you gonna pop up after class again?"

            Miroku laughed. "It would appear so, yes," he said. "But could I ask you something before I leave?"

            "Sure," she replied.

            "Whats your name?"

            "Onyx."

            "Lady Onyx. Like the stone?"

            "Yeah. It was my Dad's favorite."

            "Was?"

            "He died before I was born. Mum says she sees a lot of him in me, even when I was first born. She also loves stones in every way, so she named me after Dad's favorite."

            "Interesting. It makes sense. The onyx /is/ a beautiful stone."

            "You called me Lady Onyx. Is there something I should call you?"

            "Miroku-san, as tradition goes. But you can call me just Miroku."

            Then, I faintly heard an angry male voice. "Miroku! Miroku! You better not be doing what I think youre doing, Bouzu!" Miroku looked as if he feared for his life as he faded a bit.

            "Uh-oh," he said. "It would appear as though I'm being woken up. Until tomorrow, Lady Onyx?"

            I smiled. "Until then." He vanished, grinning like an idiot.

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

            "Miroku! What the hell were you thinking?!?" InuYasha barked.

            The monk had to blink a few times to get used to the darkness. "That we'd have a very confused person on our hands and they deserved to know about what was going on," he calmly replied..

            "Who is it?" Shippo asked. "Who's helping us?"

            "A young woman, by the name of Onyx. She looked older than Kagome, but perhaps a bit younger than Sango. How old are you again?"

            *SMACK*

            "Ow...."

            "They sure do have weird names in the 20^th century," Shippo remarked. "Er, except for you, Kagome."

            "Thanks, Shippo," the teen remarked.

            "How did you know I had contacted her already?" Miroku asked InuYasha.

            "A noise woke me up," the half demon replied. "I saw you sitting up from the tree. Usually you lie down or lean against something when you go to sleep. I thought you weren't going to do that until we spoke with Baril."

            "I figured she would think me being there a dream at first," said the monk in his defense. "In that reasoning, I thought I should just say 'Hello' first without any real information."

            "Damn."

            "What?"

            "You just made sense."

            *WACK* The girls and Shippo laughed.

            "Damnit! What are you three laughing at?!? That staff hurts!" InuYasha whined.

            "I suggest we get back to sleep," Miroku said dryly, as if he had done nothing.

            "No wandering off into other dimensions," InuYasha warned Miroku, still rubbing his head.

            The next morning, the group ventured into the Faerie woods to speak with Baril, an elder of the Fae. What they found was what looked like a very short older man with wings. They told him of their problem and asked if he could help them.

            "So you need further help locating the shard," the old man stated. "And you're certain it's in this other place?"

            "Most certain," Sango said.

            "The only advice I can offer is to bring the young lady who can sense the shards with the monk when he travels."

            Four angry faces turned on a very nervous-looking monk. "I /thought/ you said that you couldn't do that, Miroku," InuYasha growled.

            "It would have been /so/ much easier on us if you had just been honest," Kagome scoffed. Miroku laughed nervously.

            "That's what you think," he said.

            "Huh?" the other four asked.

            "Perhaps he is thinking of the compromising position it puts him and the young lady," the old man said, smiling knowingly.

            Miroku bit his lip.

            "What?!?" Sango yelled. "Normally that would make you jump at the opportunity all the faster!"

            "InuYasha glaring at me has a habit of breaking my concentration, and that's not the safest thing in spirit travel," Miroku defended himself.

            "The young monk has a point," Baril agreed.

            "Thank you for your help, Master Baril," Kagome said. "We'll be going now."

            "Farewell," Baril said, and the group departed.

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

            "How /compromising/ is this position?" the hanyou growled as the group walked.

            "Relax, InuYasha," Kagome said cheerfully. "I'm sure its nothing /too/ bad. Right, Miroku? Miroku?" The monk stared straight ahead, hunched over, dragging his staff. He looked as if he were being dragged to his death.

            "Wow, if this is enough to make /Miroku/ nervous, I cant wait!" Sango said gleefully.

            "It's actually not that bad," the monk muttered.

            "But InuYasha's temper is, right?" Kagome guessed.

            "Precisely."

            "Ok. InuYasha, you have to disappear tonight."

            "What?!?" The hanyou couldnt believe his ears.

            "You heard me."

            "How are you gonna make me do that? It's not like you can 'sit' me the entire time."

            "He has a point Kagome," Miroku said. "I guess that'll just be one less shard we'll have in our possession."

            InuYasha growled.

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

            "Alright, Miroku. What do I have to do?" Kagome asked that night. Both were alone. Sango was keeping InuYasha at a distance.

            "Sit down with your legs crossed," Miroku instructed her.

            "Like you do when you meditate?"

            "Exactly."

            Kagome sat and Miroku sat behind her, wrapping his legs around hers.

** I know this sounds like the beginning of a bad porno, but bear with me, ok?***

            Miroku brought Kagomes hands into his own. He clasped them together within his own. "Are you alright?" he asked.

            "Yeah," Kagome said. "Now I can see why you were nervous of InuYasha."

            "I didn't think claws in my throat would be very good for my health."

            Kagome giggled. "Ok. Now what?"

            "Calm and center yourself. It usually helps to close your eyes."

            "As if being close to you is enough to un-calm me."

            "Why Kagome, are you trying to bruise my ego?"

            "Sango told me to get at least one good one in."

            "I'll have to thank her personally later."

            "Miroku?"

            "Yes?"

            "This isn't gonna hurt, is it?"

            "No. You wouldnt be here if it did. Now, listen your heart's beating. Listen to your breathing. Focus on the jewel shard if you need to, but clear your mind of all other things." Miroku waited for the girls breathing to calm, then proceeded to calm his own self.

**********

When he opened his eyes again, he saw Kagome was already up and exploring the new area about them. Miroku recognized it from the day (or night) before, but the girl was having fun looking around at the new scenery. At least she had the luxury of being familiar with modernization. Then he saw Onyx walking out the building hed seen her in before. "Lady Onyx," he called out to her, gaining not only her, but Kagome's attention as well.  

            "Miroku-san," she greeted him. "Would you like to go to the same place?"

            "Please," he replied. "Kagome-chan!" Kagome trotted up to the two like a lost kitten. "Lady Onyx, this is Kagome. Kagome-chan, this is Lady Onyx."

            "Pleased to meet you," Kagome said, holding out her hand.

            "Same here," Onyx said, shaking her hand. "The place we were yesterday is just across the street." Miroku thanked the powers that the street wasn't very busy. 

            "Ah, this is more like it," he said, taking the same seat he had the time before.

            "Oh, is poor Miroku afraid of the big, bad cars?" Kagome teased.

            "Wouldn't it be more efficient for you to be trying to sense the shard?" Miroku asked, leaning back, eyes closed.

            "I already know where it is," she said.

            Miroku opened an eye. "Where is it?"

            "Onyx has it."

            "I do?" Onyx asked.

            "It must be on your jewelry somewhere."

            Onyx looked herself over. "I'm not wearing any stones."                    "It could be like it was with Kohaku," Kagome said to Miroku.

            "Kohaku?"

            "Kohaku is our comrade Sango"s little brother. He has a shard imbedded in his back. But it's also the only thing keeping him alive."

            "I hate to break it you, but if this thing is keeping me alive..."

            "Of course. We would never expect you to part with it in your lifetime."

            "Is there a way to find out? Preferably without my death involved?"

            "If it is indeed in your body, that doesnt necessarily mean it's your lifeline. A er, acquaintance of ours, Koga, has one in each of his legs, and all they do is make him run faster."

            "That doesn't answer my question." 

            "You said your mother is quite experienced with stones, correct?" Miroku asked.

            "Yes."

            "Perhaps she knows."

            "Perhaps. But is there a way to know if she knows for sure so I'm not just making myself look like a fool and get myself committed to an insane asylum?"

            "There was another we contacted in this era a time ago," Miroku stated. "What's your mothers name?"

            "Tatiana Marshall."

            Mirokus attitude turned reflective. "That was her," he said softly. She-she had a baby then, too."

            "Wait!" Onyx said. "How could you've contacted my mother when she was younger? Wouldn't that make you older than you are now?"

            "Spirit travel is a beautiful thing," Miroku stated. "We can get to any time, any place we need to without aging."

            "Do you live nearby? Kagome asked."

            "No," Onyx said, still bewildered. "I live in the school housing. I go home during vacations and such."

            "When's the next time you go home?"

            "In a month."

           " We could fast forward to that time the next time we travel, couldn't we?" Kagome asked Miroku.

            "I suppose we could," Miroku said, scratching his chin. "Would that be alright with you," Lady Onyx?

            "I need to sit," Onyx said, although it was more like dropping than sitting. The two rushed to her side.

            "Lady Onyx?" Miroku asked. "Are you alright?"

            "Perfect," the girl said in a daze. "It's just quite a bit to take in."

            "Yeah, I know what you mean," Kagome said. "When I first stumbled into the feudal era-"

            "Huh?"

            "It's a bit of a story," Miroku explained.

            "I'd like to hear it," Onyx said. "Please?"

            "Sure," Kagome said. She and Miroku took more comfortable positions on the ground for the story.

            ONE MONTH LATER

            Time passed normally in Onyx's time. She kinda hated Miroku and Kagome. They had only one day to wait. She had quite a few more. But, eventually, they passed. Soon, her mother arrived to pick her up for her two week vacation. The next day, Miroku and Kagome would be back at her house. She couldn't remember ever being so nervous. But she also prided herself on how well she hid emotion, and had plenty of other things to talk to her mother about. Eventually, Miroku and Kagome were on the back burner and she was freely chatting with her mother.

            Things changed the next day.

Onyx and Tatiana lived in the house Tatiana had been brought up in. This had been music to Mirokus ears, as he knew where that was. Onyx couldn't help wondering what kind of relationship the monk and her mother had, but she considered it far too rude to ask either of them. She figured if she was supposed to know, she would in due course.

Onyx and her mother were watching television. The girl wasn't really paying any attention, waiting for Miroku and Kagome to arrive. She decided making herself a snack might help take her mind off what was going to happen, so she went into the kitchen. A spot on the floor began to softly glow. Slowly, she saw Miroku appear in the spot. Then the glow faded and the man looked up.

"Greetings, Lady Onyx," he said to her.

"And to you, Miroku-san," she replied.

"Onyx, who are you talking to?" her mother called from the living room.

The girl entered the room. "Miroku-san," she stated cautiously. The monk followed her into the room.

"Miroku?" the woman asked.

"Lady Tatiana," he replied, and bowed slightly. The woman promptly stood up and hugged the man, tears in her eyes.

"It is so wonderful to see you."

"Hmm," Miroku smiled. "Then your feelings towards me must have changed since our last meeting."

Tatiana released him. "I was angry. Forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive, my lady."

She embraced him once more.

            "I see you've met your daughter," she added.

"I didn't want to believe you," Miroku stated.

"I hate to interrupt the beautiful reunion," Onyx said. "But his WHAT?!?"

"Onyx, Honey, this is your father."
"My father died. Y-You told me he died."

"I'm sorry, Honey. It was the only way I could think to explain it".

"I need to sit," she said, again more like dropping into the nearest chair.

Tatiana smiled at her daughter, while Miroku looked confused. "I think she just needs A LOT of time to think," the woman informed him.

"Ah," the monk replied. "I guess that's what I needed too."

"Sevanteen years? I thought I was never going to see you again."

"Niether did I, but...."

"Oh, you need the shard, don't you?" Tatiana looked crestfallen.

"Merely an excuse to see you again," Miroku assured her. "Why did you think I didn't just take it with me?"

"Really?" the woman asked. The monk nodded. She held him close to her once more.

"Excuse me," said Kagome's voice. "But why wouldnt' you want to believe her? Isn't having a child somewhat of an obsession for you?"

"Kagome!" Miroku yelped. "How--?"

"I'm a quick learner," the girl said cheekily.

"Do you realize what could have happened to you if you had done anything wrong?!?"

"Yeah. Baril- senpai filled me in."

"Master Baril helped you?"

"Yeah."

"Well, thats a comfort".

"So- Again, why didnt you want to believe her?"

"Because, Kagome, if she were to bear a son, he would share my curse.And I guess I wasn't ready to be a father at the time."

"Can't do the time, don't do the crime."

"I thought I was ready," the monk argued.

"Luckily," Tatiana stated. "The ultra sound showed she was a girl right off."

"I'm still not sure what that is," Miroku added, scratching the back of his head.

            Onyx, who had spent this entire time silent, spoke up. "Your favorite stone is onyx," she stated to the monk.

"Indeed, yes," he replied. "I told you that the day we met."

You said it was a beautiful stone, nothing more.

"Speaking of stones," Kagome stated. "I know of a sacred one that's still on Onyx somewhere."

"Of course," Tatiana said. "It's in her shoulder."

"YOURE IMMBEDDING THINGS IN ME WITHOUT MY KNOWLEDE?!?!" Onyx yelped.

"You were only a child," Tatiana said, soothing to her daughter. You didn't even notice the difference."

"Was there a reason you decided to do so?" Miroku questioned.

"Her heart was weak then," she explained. The doctors weren't sure if she'd grow out of it or not, and I remembered what you had said about the shard, so I put it inside her shoulder, and hoped for the best, knowing I had done everything I could."

"You're lucky you're a nurse," the said child grumbled. "I could sue you."

"You're not 18 yet," the woman reminded her daughter.

"Two months woman, two months." Tatiana just smiled, knowing her daughter did not mean what she was saying.

"So this shard could or could not be keeping her alive," Miroku stated.

"I suppose there's really only one way to know for sure," Tatiana agreed.

"So, are we getting the shard or not?" Kagome asked. "I lost track."

"No," Miroku said.

"Ok, then I guess you don't need me. Nice to met you," she said to Tatiana before fading off.

"I guess you're leaving now too?" Onyx asked Miroku.

"I'll stay as long as you two will have me, until morning, that is," he replied.

"You're more than welcome to stay as long as you wish, anytime you wish," Tatiana informed him.