The truth about the truth: it hurts, so we lie – Lying to keep up a façade
She never understood why humans were so quick to trust, to believe that the only things they should suspect were demons and the evil beings bent on spreading their chaos. They were right to mistrust them of course but they forget in all their precautions that not all demons come in the form of fangs, red eyes, and grotesque faces; some demons can come in the form of a friendly face, a kind smile, a gentle laugh.
"Yuuki," the shrill, feminine voice of the miko Kagome called out. "Yuuki! Inuyasha and the others are ready to head out. Yuuki!? Where are you?" The calls were getting closer and if she didn't want the miko to stumble across her she had to think swiftly.
She scopped up a handful of nearby herbs and ducked behind a large oak as the strangely-dressed priestess stepped into the clearing, calling out her name.
When Kagome passed by Yuuki's hiding spot, the tall woman stepped from behind the tree and called out to the girl. Yuuki bit back at a laugh when the miko squeaked in fear.
"Yuuki, there you are!" Kagome exclaimed. She placed a hand on her racing heart and offered her a shaky smile. "You scared me!"
Yuuki smiled sheepishly and bowed slightly at the waist. "A thousand apologizes Kagome, I didn't mean to frighten you! I slipped away before the rest of you had risen to gather some more herbs, you can never have enough herbs!" Yuuki gestured towards the plants that were lying in her arms.
"Well the others are all packed and ready to go, Inuyasha said we should just leave – he was confident you would pick up our trail sooner or later – but I thought that you would much rather leave with us." The girl's concern was almost touching….almost.
Yuuki waved the girl on. "Don't worry, I won't be far behind. You guys go ahead and head out."
"O-okay," Kagome said, slightly reluctant. However, she was on her way all the same and Yuuki was alone once more.
When she was sure the priestess was gone, Yuuki dropped the herbs and looked to an opening in the treetops.
"It's not nice to listen in on another's conversation." She wasn't surprised when the baboon-cloaked figure of Naraku appeared in the break of foliage.
The cloaked figure chuckled humorlessly, his laugh bouncing off the trees, "Pardon my rudeness, Yuuki, I just couldn't help but find your conversation quite….entertaining."
Yuuki narrowed her eyes at the demon's sarcastic tone. "You told me you would let me handle this, no interruptons from you or your minions."
"Well that was before I started having my doubts about your attachements to this group. Tell me, how many opportunities have you let slip through your fingers? How many times has Inuyasha been within inches of your sword and you have done nothing? Tell me, Yuuki, how little do you care for you mother's life?"
Yuuki gnashed her teeth together as she bit back insult after insult. "I do things my way, Naraku, not yours."
"Your way, or my way – it matters little – if Inuyasha is not dead by the next new moon it will be your mother who pays, not you."
He was gone before she had a chance to respond.
Yuuki roared in frustration and, in a rage, toppled a tree with one blow of her sword. She cursed ever striking a deal with the demon, she cursed her soft heart, she cursed the task at hand but mostly….she cursed the gulibility of the small group of people who had stupidly fell for her façade.