hi, please don't be mad at me, cuz I brought you a relatively long chapter. *Pitchforks rise* AHH! I'm sorry please don't hurt me! Since it's been so long, please notify me if you see any inconsistencies. Also I know the timing might be confusing, so let me know if I need to make it more clear also. Enjoy

Chapter 10: The Long Road

Touko couldn't bear it. Her heart seemed to burst with every pulse and no amount of assurance could stop it. She sat by the phone. After all, someone had to stay home in case the police called, in case someone called with news, and it was Touko who could hardly stand, as each heartbeat elicited a gasp of pain.

Then the doorbell. For a moment there was no pain, just suspension. Suspension of everything, time, feeling, it had all stopped in midair.

Though she wished it to be Takashi, the boy she had come to love as a son, she could only bring herself to hope at the very most it good news.

And she stood at the door, waiting to open, bracing herself for the best and the worst.

Open, and…

"Hello Fujiwara-san," said a dark-haired boy Touko recognized as Takashi's friend. Next to him a light-haired girl Touko recognized the same.

The boy was about to continue when his face already somber, grew more worried. "We heard about Natsume's disappearance…" he paused and leaned in. "How are you doing?"

She looked down and found her hand gripping the clothes in front of her heart. She let go and sighed, holding back tears. "That's very sweet of you two. Please come in." She turned away and walked them to the living room.

"Would you like anything to eat or drink?" she asked, trying to be polite. It was so difficult to smile.

"No, we're fine," said the girl, "we actually were just wondering if we could help look for him."

As sad as she was, her heart couldn't help but lighten a bit at these words. "You are good friends," she said. "We would be so grateful."

"Then we were wondering if you could tell us something," the girl continued.

Touko looked at her for a moment, then nodded, "Anything I can help with."

They looked at each other, then the boy spoke. "Did you ever see Natsume with a girl about our age and long dark hair?"

The question surprised Touko. It seemed so random, so specific. But she tried to think back, "No I don't believe I ever did."

The two guests looked at each other once again, this time with worry and confusion.

"Is there anything else I can tell you?" she wanted to be more helpful, for some reason these two children brought her hope.

They sat quietly for a moment, concentrating, but she waited patiently.

"No, thank you, we will be looking for him."

They stood up and Touko followed suit. They were disappointed weren't they? "I am very sorry, I'm not much help," she looked down. "I haven't been any help since the beginning." She felt tears coming again, but then there was a hand on her shoulder and she gasped.

"Leave it to us, we owe you for bringing him into our lives after all." The boy was smiling kindly at her, and she couldn't help but return it.

"I thought she would have seen that girl. We were betting everything on that." Taki was frowning furiously. Tanuma shook his head, also frustrated. "Well we're not going to give up."

"Of course we aren't," she snapped.

Tanuma paused, "We still know that she showed up for only one day, then transferred again, the day that Natsume went missing. We also know that an exorcist was looking for him, and it wasn't Natori."

"We've already tried finding that man and he wasn't home." Taki stared out into the bushes. She was tired of this, they'd been looking for 6 hours straight and hadn't gotten anywhere. They'd even skipped school. But she looked back at Tanuma, and he was cradling his head in his hands.

"Tanuma, what's wrong?"

He groaned softly, "Ugh, I think there's a youkai nearby."

"Where? I'll draw a circle, we can ask it about Natsume!"

"Wait," Tanuma began lifting his head, "It's going away. I think it's running!" Tanuma took off and Taki chased after him. "Wait!"

He called after the unseen youkai, "Wait! Please wait! We're trying to find Natsume Takashi!" Taki nearly ran into him as he stopped and held his head again.

"It stopped," she whispered. She looked around and finally found a stick that she could draw in the dirt with. "Please don't go anywhere! Let me draw this then we can talk to you!"

She moved quickly and looked up when she was done.

Before she could even ask it to step inside, the tall female youkai wearing a colorful kimono did exactly that.

"You have already wasted enough of my time, now tell me what you know of Natsume."

Tanuma gaped at her. Taki, however, didn't falter, "We are Natsume's friends and we are looking for him, he's missing!"

The youkai scoffed, "I know this already, if you don't have any useful information then I'm leaving."

"Wait!" shouted Tanuma. The youkai stopped once more and stayed in the circle. "You're looking for him too aren't you? Let us help you find him!"

The youkai raised an eyebrow. "If you don't know anything and you can't see youkai then how can you help?"

She was about to run off again. "STOP!" shouted Taki.

This time the youkai looked almost shocked.

"He's been taken by this exorcist, right?"

The youkai simply nodded, still slightly taken aback.

"Then he must be human," Taki deduced, "and you must be expendable to him."

She noticeably frowned at this. "What are you getting at? And hurry, we're wasting time."

"Exorcists hunt youkai, right? At least, that's what I've heard. But he couldn't hurt another human, right? Take us with you. We can at least talk to him. We have rules in the human world; he has to at least listen to us."

The youkai, was thinking, but she knew she had been beaten. "I only need one of you."

This time Tanuma jumped in. "You're taking both of us!"

The youkai laughed. "Never in my life have I encountered so many stupid humans in such a short amount of time," but then her face softened, "but then again, I am risking my life too, aren't I?"

She knelt. "Get on my back."

Walking over quickly, she spoke, "I'm Taki and this is Tanuma." The two grabbed on tightly, and the moment they did, the youkai stood

"My name is Hinoe, but don't go thinking we're friends now." And she began running once more, into the forest towards Misuzu, where no one would notice two children moving rapidly off the ground without anything beneath.

Matoba looked out of the corner of his eye. Natsume Takashi was walking next to him with a strange look on his face, but he kept moving. They were almost halfway to their destination and it had been half a day's walk. From his brief glance he gathered that the boy was tired, but also something else he recognized. He didn't know how to describe it. It was like when he'd first taken him, and Natsume had looked at him without fear, defiant. He smiled suddenly. I thought I had accidently broken him. Oh well, he was feeling a bit bored anyway. He needed something fun to do.

"Takashi-kun," said the man. Natsume flinched at the sound of his own name, but looked beside him. It was bad enough having to walk next to this man for a day, as the destination was apparently hard enough to find with other transportation, but now what did he want?

"Are you hungry?"

He had been expecting worse than a question as simple as that.

"No," he lied. He wanted to get this over with. As much as he wanted food, it would be easier to just arrive as fast as possible.

"You're lying," he said quietly. Before Natsume could argue Matoba called to the rest of his companions. "We're resting for a moment to eat."

Nanase relayed the orders and slowly people began to settle down. Natsume stood uncomfortably watching while everyone else pulled rice from they're packs.

"Please sit down, Takashi-kun." Matoba gestured to the ground, and though Natsume was tired he refused. "No thank you."

"Sit down," he said more gravely, and hesitantly the boy set his pack down and then himself. Matoba pulled out two rice balls, and proceeded to hand one to Natsume.

Again he hesitantly took it, and held it for a moment.

"Eat it," Matoba smiled.

Natsume looked from the man to his food. That smile made him think there was more to the situation.

"It's not poisoned, or drugged," he said noting Takashi's suspicion, "now eat it or I'll make you."

Natsume swallowed and decided it was better to just eat, besides, as the man had once pointed out, there was no reason for him to be dead or asleep, at least at the moment. He took it bite by bite, feeling both hungry and sick at the same time. But Matoba looked satisfied, and if that was all it took then Natsume could handle it.

Nanase watched the interesting interactions between the head of the clan and his forcibly made apprentice. The boy had certainly changed since he was brought with them, and then, so had Seiji. He had gotten sloppier, and she was beginning to regret having this boy a part of the clan. Seiji had never done so many clumsy things, he had never gotten so out of control. Yes, she had to admit, there were times when she was scared for both the boy's and the clan's safety, and there were times when she almost intervened. But she hoped that was over, that Seiji would get over his obsession, because it was an obsession, she recognized this. But she hoped he would come to see Natsume Takashi as just another part of his everyday life. Yes the boy was powerful, but he was not something to worship. Nanase watched on silently as Seiji began talking.

"I want to practice with you before we arrive."

Natsume looked up wide-eyed. "What?"

"Stand up."

"But-"

"I order you to stand." Matoba waited while the boy's expression changed from confusion to horror and he stood immediately, wincing slightly.

"Good. Now here," he reached into his kimono and pulled out the Book of Friends, "Take this, but don't use it yet, that's an order."

Natsume frowned, but said nothing and took the yuujinchou. Before Matoba could continue speaking though, Natsume asked, "What are we going to do when we get to this place?"

Matoba frowned, "It's not your place to ask me questions. Now-"

"If I am truly your student then I believe that's exactly what students do. But besides that, I have the right to know, and…" he looked down momentarily, "Either way it's not as though I can go against you." There was a bite in his words, but it only made the man smile.

"I suppose you have a point, Takashi-kun." Natsume shuddered. "Before we even make it I will need your assistance. It is nearly impossibly for a human to find this place, but you may be able to sense it."

"Sense what…?" he asked suspiciously.

"A powerful youkai. It could become a great asset if we are able to reason with it or control it."

"I see," said Natsume, trying to control his temper, by biting his tongue.

"But when we do find it, you will help me create a circle that will kill it."

Natsume bit his tongue further.

"I see you're upset," Matoba laughed. "But we won't have to kill it if you are able to obtain its name."

Natsume could hold the gasp from his lips.

The man couldn't hide his smirk even if he wanted to, at the sight of the boy's face.

"Now that that's over with, I want you to draw the circle you should have learned about, when killing youkai."

This story should be wrapped up within the next couple chapters, if not one more long one. After that I have a plot bunny for AU Darker than Black. Until next time, and pleeeaase don't get mad at me if the wait's just as long