A/N: Hello, all. This is a little oneshot I wrote about Naraku and a girl whom he controlled with a jewel shard, just like Kohaku. I hope all of you Inuyasha fans like it! I find that I hate writing fanfics about main characters; I always tend to be drawn more toward the villains - mwahaha! XD If you like it, you should tell me in a review. *hint* :3
[[ Fourteen Months Ago ]]
I am to be his.
When he took me hostage, he had little kind or comforting words for me. He merely took me up in his arms and carried me away from where my fellow villagers had been slain by a woman with a fan, controlling the wind and ruining everything like a tornado. Her cold, merciless laugh had been all I was able to hear for weeks afterwards – until his laugh filled my ears.
I knew he was evil the second I lay my sights on him.
"Dear girl," he'd crouched over my nearly-lifeless body, brushing my bloodstained hair away from my bruised face and peering into my cloudy eyes. His red gaze had shocked me enough to wake my foggy mind, and even from my first glance I'd known he was a demon. His large hand had been careful on feather-light on my face, easing me into trust, and I'd fallen for it.
"You have lost everything in the destruction," he had crooned to me in a voice that simply defined velvety smooth. "I will take away your pain. I will bring you with me, and you will someday repay me for my kindness." The man worked his arms underneath me and somehow, his touch calmed me. I hadn't cried out in pain at my numerous injuries, nor had I put up any resistance.
Perhaps it had been because I merely wanted a reprieve from my pain and suffering, and so I embraced this stranger's welcome. His arms were strong around me, holding me tight to his body. I knew that had I been in my conscious state, I would've been alarmed at his lack of warmth and missing heartbeat; but I was too eager to be free from my painful bindings.
He took me to a castle; locked under the dark embrace of a powerful miasma, so strong even my human nose could smell its acrid tang. The fumes of the poison shield evaporated around my skin, stinging wildly in my open wounds and making me cry out in pain. The man merely tightened his grip and lowered his face near mine, murmuring words I could not make out above my screaming. Suddenly, the pain lessened and I felt perfectly fit; sleepy, almost. Above us I could see the woman with the fan riding on a giant gray feather, swirling and turning in the wind as she descended into the massive castle.
Eventually I was taken into a dimly lit room and laid upon a bed on the floor where the man kneeled over me, holding his hands mere inches over my body. My heart rate had increased but his hands had never made contact with my body, skimming over the air above me. The handsome man closed his eyes, murmuring words too quiet for me to understand and I suddenly felt the skin at the edges of my wounds pull together.
I'd screamed aloud and quickly lost consciousness.
When I came to, I was still lying in the dark room with the blanket pulled up to my chin. Outside the paper window, purple lights filled the room with an eerie glow, sending a shiver down my aching spine.
"So you are awake."
I'd sat up instantly, eyes widening and remembering everything that had happened. The man who'd rescued me was sitting against the far wall in the same room as I, watching me with crossed arms and a shadowed gaze.
"W-where am I?" I hadn't been able to remember too much of the past day or so, but I remembered the woman with the fan and this man's velvet voice.
"You are in my castle, Tsurina. I have spared your life." The handsome man rose to his feet, long black hair falling forward as he stood and approached me with even steps, coming to a stop and crouching near my bedside. "Are you feeling well?"
I leaned back, alert enough to feel wary that this stranger had used my name without my ever having told him it. The man smiled, but it wasn't a cheerful gesture. The sight sent shivers down my spine a second time. With him this close I could see that his eyes were a startling red, and the pupils were teal and white. He was a demon – that much I was certain.
"I'm… well enough," I said to him. "Who are you? What reason do you have for sparing my life?"
"I am Naraku." He said to me, resting his hands in his lap and fixing me with a solid red gaze. "I could not stand so see your life wasted. You have a power not yet known to you, and it was of importance that I spare your young life."
I'd felt myself listening in an almost trancelike state, unable to ignore his smoothly commanding voice.
"Power?" I echoed uncertainly.
"All in due time, Tsurina. Just know that your life has been spared, and thus belongs to me."
"My life belongs to no one but me! Especially not to a demon!" I exclaimed, narrowing my eyes and feeling just a slither of fear as his eyes hardened.
He chuckled a moment later, lowering his head.
"I can understand your hesitation of being indebted to a demon, Tsurina, but I can assure you that no harm will come to you while under my care." Naraku said to me, closing his eyes as if in affirmation. He reached inside his haori and pulled something small out, holding it tightly in one hand. "I have a gift for you," he held his fist out, pulling back his fingers to reveal a long, yet small diamond shaped jewel shard.
I'd gasped. "That's – that's a shard of the sacred jewel!" I exclaimed, leaning in to peer at the shard. It gleamed brightly in his hand with a beautiful purple light; yet a sinister violent undertone twinkled underneath the beauty. "It's for me?"
Naraku nodded, closing his fingers back over the shard before I could reach for it. "Yes. With this Shikon Jewel shard, you will get your strength back tenfold. You will feel stronger than ever before."
I had listened carefully, measuring the look on his face. The idea of strength appealed to me as I had spent my childhood years sick and bedridden. Even as I passed through my teenage years and grew older, I was always sniffling and sneezing.
"Do you speak the truth?" I asked, watching Naraku's eyes spark.
"Yes. Pull down the shoulders of your robe and reveal to me your heart. I will place the shard there, just under your skin, and you will not be disappointed."
Somewhat nervously but still anticipating the result, I'd reached up and slid my robe down to bare my shoulders and heart, keeping my breasts hidden from his sight. I couldn't help but blush when the tips of Naraku's fingers pressed into my skin, opening a small wound just above my heart. I cringed in slight pain, looking down to watch as Naraku slid the jewel shard just inside the incision, watching with morbid curiosity as the edges of the wound pulled closed and healed, looking as though nothing had ever happened.
Immediately I felt strength coursing through my sore limbs, renewing my energy and increasing. A smile spread across my face and my eyes had met Naraku's. Pleased to see my look of excitement was returned, I pulled my robe back up and pushed the blankets away, accepting Naraku's outstretched hand to aid me to my feet. My thoughts now were only on the woman with the fan, and how I would use this jewel shard to exact my revenge on her.
Suddenly Naraku's hand was on my forehead and my mind went blank.
"Calm your turbulent thoughts, Tsurina. I have had Kagura prepare a room for you, and she will take you to it." Naraku's hand lifted from my forehead and rested at his side, turning slightly as the bamboo curtain behind him was pulled aside.
A woman with similar red eyes, black hair, lips as red as blood and a kimono looking of the wind stood in the entryway. She held a fan close to her face and wore a wan smile, meeting my gaze. A spark of recognition registered in her eyes, but I hadn't been able to tell why. Did this woman with the fan know me from somewhere?
"Follow me," she instructed in a hard, yet feminine voice, turning to expose her back to me.
"Go with Kagura. I will come for you when I need you." I watched Naraku back away from me, keeping his chilling eyes on my own and vanish into the shadows, surprising me.
"Come on, then, girl." Kagura began forward, striding away from me and leaving me to follow. Alone in Naraku's room, I had no choice but to go after her, watching the feathers in her hair wave in the breeze made by her swift walk.
Kagura had lead me to a room where there was another form sleeping on the ground, completely covered by a blanket.
"You'll share this room with Kohaku for now. Make sure you don't try and run off, or I'll kill you with or without Naraku's permission." Kagura turned abruptly, striding off and leaving me standing alone.
The sleeping form rolled over, and the face of a young boy was visible. His eyes opened and he sat up, looking surprised.
"Hello," he greeted me. "I'm Kohaku. Are you Tsurina?" This boy was obviously younger than I; about fifteen years of age.
"Yes," I said, entering the room and settling in on the freshly made bed that was near Kohaku's. "How do you know me?"
Kohaku had smiled, rubbing his tired eyes. "I saw you in Kanna's mirror."
"Who?" I screwed my eyebrows together in confusion, watching Kohaku's smile grow.
"I'm sure you'll meet her later."
I had chosen not to answer, tucking myself into my bed with silence and feeling Kohaku's eyes on me curiously. I pulled the blanket up to my chin, sighing heavily and feeling heavy tears in my eyes all of a sudden.
I heard Kohaku gasp. "You have a jewel shard?"
I rolled over; my hand automatically covering the shard over my heart.
"Yeah," I'd said. "Naraku gave it to me."
A mysterious expression took over Kohaku's face, twisting his young features into one of trepidation.
"That means you're Naraku's puppet, too."
My feet echo down the hallway as I walk slowly, deliberating on whether or not I should just run. Naraku's called me into his room – which is never really a good thing – and I almost don't want to go. I hear the demons hissing foul words above me in the rafters, taunting me with cruel truths. I grit my teeth, narrowing my eyes and whispering the incantation that will burn them alive, keeping the castle safe from harm. Naraku would not appreciate that.
The demons say that I belong to Naraku – more so than his incarnations.
The hallway is dim as always. Sometimes I wish I weren't so in love with him – that stupid, incorrigible Naraku who seems not to care for me unless it is a personal gain to him.
I stand in front of the bamboo curtains that act as the door to his room, waiting to be called in. Naraku knows I'm here; there's no use drawing attention to myself. I grow impatient as I wait, picking at the sleeve of my kimono. Ever since Naraku gifted it to me I've been in love with the beauty of it: black on top, moving down and almost melting into cream white. Four large flowers with pale red petals open toward my shoulders as if to greet the sun, and vibrant green leaves wrap the stems of the flowers.
"Come inside, Tsarina. I have been waiting for you."
I push the bamboo curtain aside and step in the dark room, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darkness. I see Naraku kneeling before a potted plant, staring down at it like he expects it to burst into flames at any moment. He is handsome as always, but in a more dangerous and deadly way. Instead of the conventional top knot and dirty haori and hakama most of the women find attractive on men around these parts, Naraku's hair is long tangled, his clothing of only the most expensive and elegant.
Even now he wears a silk haori of white and gold swans in flight, and a hakama of a simple gray-purple. His hair is tied back, but it still falls down his back and touches the floor where he sits. I feel my heart miss a beat and join him near the plant, kneeling across from him.
"What do you need from me, Naraku?" I ask, folding my hands in my lap and waiting.
He finally looks up at me with his red eyes evenly, sending a thrill through me.
"I know, Tsurina." He says, confusing me. "I know how you feel about me."
My eyebrows shoot up and a nervous jolt spikes my system. I try not to blush and hope that in this dim purple light, he cannot see the color on my cheeks.
"What are you saying, Naraku?" Hopefully, he cannot hear the shaking in my voice.
Naraku laughs darkly, lowering his eyes to the plant growing before him. I, too, lower my eyes and watch as the plant withers and dies, shrinking into itself to reveal a demon talisman, wrapped in a strand of Naraku's long black hair.
The powerful demon's eyes squint at the talisman for several long moments, and then he smiles bitterly.
"It's useless to evade the subject, Tsurina. I know of your love for me. I have known everything in your heart since I placed the jewel shard above it." His eyes do not return to mine, and embarrassment creeps into my cheeks.
Damn! How could I have forgotten? I clench my fist and grind my teeth, sending my glance sideways. Next to Naraku, a thick white pelt of fur rests with a blue baboon mask atop it. It is the costume Naraku wears when he leaves the castle, hiding his identity from curious eyes. He has hundreds more for his many identical puppets, and plenty of strands of hair to spare to create them.
I can think of nothing suitable to say, so I choose silence. I feel Naraku's eyes piercing my own, but I still do not look up.
"Look at me, Tsurina." Naraku demands quietly, clenching his fist. I do so, and am alarmed to see the expression in his eyes. I cannot help but notice the uncertainty in them, mixed with… longing?
"I have something I need you to do for me."
I sense that this is now the time for business, so I shake off my emotions and throw my shoulders back, sitting a little taller to seem more confident. Naraku hates weakness and always embraces confidence, and he hates when I act small.
"What is it?" I ask. Outside the castle, the roars of many demons reach my ears. I can hear sizzling, as if those demons are slamming themselves against his barrier, trying to get in.
"I need you and Kohaku to run an errand for me," he continues, looking back down at the demonic talisman. "There is a demon in the distant hills with a jewel shard, and I need the two of you to retrieve it for me."
I nod once and stand, happy to leave. "Got it."
"Kohaku has already been briefed, and he is waiting for you on the grounds. Make haste. I do not want Inuyasha and his wretched band of ingrates getting the shard before I do." Naraku growls these words, his hatred for the half-demon evident. I very nearly shiver in fear – the expression on his face is one so intense it could shatter stone.
"I will not disappoint you, Naraku."
His eyes move up to mine and hold two different expressions: one very clearly says "you'd better not", and the other is something along the lines of "be careful". I swallow thickly and leave him with a pounding heart, wondering how it is so that a demon so malevolent and evil could have stolen my heart so effectively.
Kohaku is waiting for me in the courtyard. He is wearing his demon slayers garb; his handheld scythe dangling from one hand. The young boy's eyes have taken a glassy look, and I know he, too, is not alone in his mind when I feel Naraku's prickling aura creep into my consciousness. It seems as though he does not trust me; but, then again, my mind hasn't been completely taken like Kohaku's has. Even I know Naraku does not trust Kohaku in the least – past schemes and run-away attempts are evident of that.
Kohaku's weapon jangles loudly as we run toward the weakest point in the barrier, and I am glad my weapons are silent. I keep my twin scimitars sheathed on both hips, and they are deceivingly quiet and unassuming until I rip them through demon flesh. The blades are imbued with a slight amount of Naraku's essence, giving them both a secret demonic skill; the left scimitar can manifest lightning and the right one helps me find the jewel shards on a demon's body and keeps me from dying, so long as I have a firm grasp on it.
I love my weapons with the same amount of passion with which I hate my armor. I definitely appreciate it – don't get me wrong – it's just too bulky. Most times I don't even wear it in battle; preferring to rely on my quick reflexes and movements to get me out of the way of danger in time. But Naraku insists I wear it, and I am loathe to defy his orders.
Kohaku and I head quickly in the direction I can feel the jewel coming from; darting through the forest quickly and somewhat quietly. Already I can hear the demon roaring and smell its blood, as well as the sweat of its attacker. Kohaku and I jump nimbly into the trees, leaping from branch to branch until we come upon the scene.
The demon itself is a large red mantis, and the attacker is none other than Inuyasha. I've only seen the half-demon twice, and each time he's given me an earful of words when I'd stolen jewels from him. Kohaku stiffens near me and I see the reason why – his older sister, Sango, throwing her Hiraikotsu at the mantis with a feminine grunt. Despite Naraku's attempts to squash his memory, Kohaku's will to remember his sister is strong.
Suddenly, Inuyasha's Wind Scar attack misses the mantis by mere feet and comes crashing into our tree, knocking it down. Kohaku and I leap from the branches just in time, landing in the boughs of another and successfully grabbing his group's attention.
"Well, if it isn't Naraku's incarnation Tsurina," Inuyasha shouts brazenly, slashing at one of the mantis' legs.
"I'm not his incarnation!" I yell back, unable to help it from bursting out.
"Yeah, you're just a lousy girl who joined the wrong team," he calls back, dodging an attack from the mantis with speed.
Inuyasha never fails to annoy me. I see his group look up to where Kohaku and I are balanced in the tree, and see the look on the demon slayer Sango's face, unable to help the waves of pity that wash through me. Kohaku doesn't seem to see her, though; for he only has eyes for the demon.
"Where is the shard?" He asks me quietly, not wanting to attract attention to his question.
I grasp the hilt of my right scimitar and look to the mantis, seeing the slight purple glow coming from his mouth.
"The back of his throat," I tell him, watching the boy uncoil his scythe and swing the chain, throwing it so it circles around the mantis' neck and pulls him down. Kohaku and I swoop from the branch, brandishing our weapons as Inuyasha jumps back, startled, watching as we make quick work of the demon. The annoying half-demon charges us and Kohaku leaps at him, slicing the air in front of his nose to distract him from my work.
I quickly pull my scimitars from their sheaths, using the lighting blade to call down the electricity from the air and killing the mantis with a juicy sizzle, feeling pleasure when my electrified blade slices through the demon's neck.
"No, Inuyasha, don't!" It is the voice of Sango, protesting his attack on her hypnotized younger brother. I don't look, knowing Kohaku can handle both himself and Inuyasha, quickly slicing the lower jaw off the mantis and plucking the shard from the back of his throat.
"Kohaku, let's go!" I call to him, leaping back onto the tree branch and trusting the younger boy to follow.
"Oh, no you don't!" Inuyasha roars, jumping after us as we flee. He brandishes his sword, cutting the trees behind us in an attempt to knock us to the ground where he can engage the two of us in battle easier.
I should've known this was going to be no easy getaway.
Enraged, I drop from the tree, facing Inuyasha when he imitates me.
"You just don't know when to go away, do you?" I growl, holding my scimitars out.
"I'll 'go away' when you give me back the jewel shard you stole from us!" He yells back, narrowing his eyes in anger. His band of misfits hasn't caught up to us yet, and I'm glad for that. I know I can take Inuyasha in a fight, but the others as well?
"Stole? Not likely. This shard was still inside the demon, meaning it was fair game. It's not my fault you were too slow to get it before I did," I smile at him mockingly, watching the way his face twists in anger. Kohaku lands at my side, tilting his face skyward. I follow his gaze and see a serpentine demon twisting its way through the sky toward us – one of Naraku's, come to take us home.
Inuyasha holds his sword out in a challenge. "You stupid girl; give me back my shard!" Just as he raises his sword to attack, Kohaku's chain flies out and coils around the blade of his sword and the boy yanks back, pulling his weapon from his grasp and into the dirt.
"No, I don't think I will. It's been fun chatting with you, Inuyasha, but it's time I got back." The serpentine demon slides from the sky and lowers from the air toward us, just slow enough for Kohaku and I to jump on its scaly back.
"Come back and fight me!" Inuyasha hollers in rage, snatching his Tetsusaiga from off the ground and shaking his fist at our retreating forms.
"Until next time, half-demon!" I shout back gleefully, very pleased Kohaku and I were both able to get away without so much as a scratch.
The demon we ride upon ascends into the clouds, making its way back to Naraku's castle. I sheath my scimitars, clutching the sacred jewel shard in my hand tightly.
Naraku will be pleased with me, I think, allowing a slow smile to spread across my face. Even I cannot deny the feelings of happiness I get when his face is at the forefront of my mind, filling me with a feeling of such warmth that I cannot compare it to anything else.
I know it is pointless to harbor feelings for Naraku, but I can't help it. I've fallen in love with his voice; with his ruthless nature and with his violence and pure evil. I feel the shard over my heart thrum as it has taken to doing when I think of Naraku, leading me to believe that it is responding to my fervent love for him.
Despite my evil-infused surroundings, I still have but a woman's heart. And that heart beats for the demon I fear will never be able to return my love; but it still doesn't break me.
The serpentine demon cannot cross through the barrier, so Kohaku and I jump from its back and push through Naraku's barrier and onto the castle grounds. Sometimes I feel lonely here; as the only people in the castle are Kohaku, Kanna, Kagura, Naraku and myself. There are countless demons that surround the castle and even live inside it, but I don't count them as inhabitants. They are merely at hand for Naraku's use, and serve no other purpose but to annoy the piss out of me and tease me.
The glass-eyed look begins to fade from Kohaku face, replaced by one of sadness. My heart will always go out to the young boy who is now a fresh sixteen year-old and has no family of his own. Then again, I don't remember my life before Naraku, so I gather my family is gone as well. It frustrates me sometimes; being unable to remember anything. I get the feeling that once I'd had a past, but now I can't recall anything at all.
Naraku is waiting in his dark room, illuminated only but the purple glow from the barrier through the paper windows. He holds a second demon talisman in his hands and is winding a strand of long, black hair around it when I approach him, dropping to my knees near where he sits, feeling almost hurt when he doesn't look up.
"Well?" Naraku asks, knowing full-well of our success. He holds out his hand and I place the shard in his palm, feeling an electric tingle when our skin connects. "Very good, Tsurina." His red eyes meet mine and my heart skips a beat. I blush, registering the look on his face as one of fondness, but I do not look away.
"Naraku, may I ask you a question?" I voice, pushing my short brown hair out of my face.
The demon-man nods. "You may."
My throat suddenly closes up and it is hard to get the words out. I swallow thickly, lacing and unlacing my fingers together as I often do when I am nervous. A look of amusement passes over his face as he waits for my question, sticking the talisman he holds in a pot of soil and leaning back.
"How do you feel about me?" I blurt suddenly, fearing that if I do not ask now, I never will.
Naraku's small smile fills me with outlandish hope. "I am rather fond of you, Tsurina." His deep voice is honest, and I smile despite myself. My heart beats wildly out of control and Naraku's head turns slightly, listening to the sound of it.
I look down, unwilling to meet his scorching gaze.
"And that makes you happy?" He asks me, delicately, already knowing the answer. I nod slowly.
Suddenly, Naraku is closer to me than he has ever been before. Our knees touch and when I dare to look up, his eyes are positively smoldering with red fire.
"Tsurina, I do not feel easily. But you… you have sparked in me things I have not felt since I was just a mere mortal." Naraku's hands reach out, grasping my own tightly. His hands are warm and dry, and just this willing contact from him sets my heart turning wild flips in my chest. I barely breathe, unable to believe Naraku is holding my hands in his own.
This demon, so unemotional and cold, smiles at me with warmth I have only ever felt in my heart of hearts.
"I know of your love for me, Tsurina," he continues silkily. My pale face is flushed and feels hot, but I still cannot break my gaze from his. I would like to look away and take the edge off the embarrassment I feel, but it seems Naraku won't let me. "And I think that, I, Naraku, may finally love another."
Is he saying what I think he's saying? My jumbled mind tries to make sense of the situation.
"You love me?" I find my voice and finally ask, holding my breath and preparing for rejection. Naraku blinks a single time, slowly, and I take it as a nonverbal answer. I smile hopefully, watching his eyes. Naraku reaches up and brushes the hair from my face, holding my gaze securely.
"I love you." He murmurs, bringing his face close to mine. Naraku's fingers trail a scorching line down my jaw and his thumb brushes my lower lip. My lips part of their own accord and Naraku chuckles. He lets his hand drop from my face and takes my left hand in his, bringing it to his lips and kissing each of my fingertips in turn, sending a delicious tingle through my entire body with each touch.
"Tsurina, I love you."
When his mouth meets mine, I completely lose myself and I know he speaks the truth.