Faithful By: RecklessAbandon and OtakuSailorV

Chapter 14: Aftermath

Hakudoushi wandered the halls early the next morning, rubbing his eyes. Drowsily, he walked into Kyoyume and Naraku's room, and flopped down in their bed. "Wake up!" He cried cheerily, but found the bed below him was cold, and empty. "Wha...?"

"JAKOTSU! BANKOTSU! COME QUICK!" He called frantically. They came in and he sighed. "Naraku and Kyo-san didn't come home last night!"

Bankotsu seemed slightly worried, but Jakotsu grinned. "I'll bet I know why they didn't..." He said with a laugh.

"Don't be a freak!"

"But wouldn't you think so too?" Jakotsu asked. "They didn't come home...? And Naraku certainly wouldn't have let anything happen to Kyo-chan..."

"Maybe they fell asleep outside."

"Yeah...'fell asleep'." Jakotsu laughed to himself. Bankotsu rolled his eyes. "Would you like us to search for them, or do you want to?" He asked the young boy. "I'm sure you and Entei will find them faster though."

"Sure." He said nodding, and going to his horse.

Bankotsu rubbed the back of his head as Jakotsu continued on in a gossipy kind of manner. "Wait until Suikotsu and Renkotsu hear."

"Aw, Renkotsu won't be interested, Suikotsu is off with that miko now anyway...maybe they've done that..."

"No one to tell then." Jakotsu whined. "Hey, what about those-" Jakotsu sprang down the hall happily, Bankotsu not far behind.

Hakudoushi was having trouble waking up his 'loyal stead'. "Entei wake up!" He was yelling.

The great horse opened one fiery red eye and peered at his young master. But the eye closed almost as instantly as it had opened, leaving Hakudoushi to push the enormous creature with all his might. "Hey! Come on! Kyo-san and Naraku might be in trouble!"

Finally the great horse rose to his feet, neighing with annoyance.

Hakudoushi mounted him with a smile, patting his glossy white neck. "You can sleep all you want when we find them." He promised his friend before directing him outside and taking off.

He first rode to where they had been earlier the day before, but there was no sign of the two.

"You smell them, Entei?" He asked his steed as he searched the ground for signs of their prints. 'I hope nothing happened...' He thought to himself worriedly, but would never admit he had such a thought.

They got closer to the forest and he asked Entei again, Entei neighed, which, to Hakudoushi, meant a yes.

'Ah, they must just have wandered off and fell asleep...' He thought with a sigh of relief. "Ok, Entei, take me to them." He ordered the white stallion with the flaming mane.

Entei was a little hesitant. Hakudoushi furrowed his brows. "What's up Entei?"

Entei lowered his head, shaking his mane and taking a few steps backward, a small neigh forming.

"Do you think they shouldn't be interrupted?"

Entei raised his head again, shaking his mane and giving a whiny. An obvious 'no' to Hakudoushi.

"Okay, lets go back to the castle."

With one final look at the forest, Hakudoushi directed his friend into the air.

They got back to the castle and Entei went back to sleep.

Meanwhile, back in the forest, Kyoyume was dosing softly in Naraku's arms.

Naraku stirred, his eyes opening slowly. "Ugh..." He muttered, trying to recall the events from the night before.

He was at first startled by his surroundings, but everything came back as he felt the warm bundle up against him. Kyoyume was dosing in his arms lightly, her warm breath tickling the grass around her nose and mouth, and one of her fuzzy black ears twitched in her sleep as she felt him stir.

He shook her a little. "Kyo, wake up."

Kyoyume made a soft, cat-like noise and she moved her head from side to her, her brow furrowing, and nose wrinkling. Opening her eyes against the forest light and the sun, Kyoyume stared at him for a moment before recognizing him. "Uh?" She asked, rubbing her eyes.

"...Good morning." He greeted.

"Good morning." She replied brightly, snuggling closer to him. "Where are we?" She asked as she recognized the smell of grass and the sound of birds singing.

"In the forest."

"Oh...what are we doing here?" She asked, her mind still in its morning shift, with barely any memories of the day before in her mind as she tried to make her eyes stay open.

"...Try and think..."

She sighed, stretching in his arms and yawned before she ever got around to thinking about it. "I remember racing you, and then we fell asleep, but not here, and after Hakudoushi left..." She trailed off, her eyes becoming half-lidded. Suddenly though, she smiled and blushed slightly at the same time.

He smiled a little too, pulling her briefly into a kiss. "They're probably worried."

"Yes..." Kyoyume agreed with a bright smile. "We should get back before they think we died..."

He stood up and stretched. "C'mon..."

Taking his hand, Kyoyume got to her feet slowly so that she wouldn't get dizzy from the sudden change. Smiling at him, she looked toward the direction of the castle. The sun was rising on one side, outlining the tall building perfectly. 'Home...' Kyoyume told herself.

They walked up to the castle and were greeted by Hakudoushi. "I was wondering where you were!" He snapped.

Kyoyume smiled brightly at him. "Sorry to have worried you, Haku-kun." She apologized.

"I never said I was worried." He pouted.

"Well, if you were wondering where we were, you must have been a little worried." She pointed out with a laugh.

"I was not!"

"Ok, ok." Kyoyume said, still smiling at him. "You weren't."

"Fine."

Kyoyume gave him a soft, reassuring pat on the head before entering the castle, Naraku and Hakudoushi not far behind.

Hakudoushi was grumbling. "Why am I always treated like a little kid?"

"Because you are one." Naraku grunted.

"...Am not."

"Stop whining."

"I'm not whining."

"If you don't want anyone to think you are a child, stop whining about everything all the time." Naraku informed him icily.

"I don't whine all the time!"

"You whine a lot for someone your size."

"My size? I come up to your waist!"

"Still tiny." Naraku said without amusement, patting the boy's head as he fumed.

"So? I'm strong!"

"Doesn't make up for your whining."

"...Whatever."

Glad that the boy was silent, Naraku followed behind Kyoyume, ignoring everything else.

Hakudoushi hurried behind them. "Jakotsu and Bankotsu were thinking things while you weren't here."

Naraku looked sidelong at the boy. "Typical." He commented bluntly.

"Yeah, they were talking to Kohaku about it."

Naraku's eyes narrowed briefly. "Really?" He asked, mostly to himself.

"Yup."

"Hmph." Naraku mumbled to himself, his eyes turning away from the boy.

"Just warning you."

Naraku's eyes snapped back to the boy. "Where are they now?" He asked, his voice a bit edgy.

"Training, Suikotsu has wandered off again and Renkotsu is probably with them, and Kohaku, Kanna's sleeping."

Naraku nodded, seemingly relieved. "Ah." Was all he said though.

Hakudoushi laughed a little. "I missed you daddy." He told Naraku with very fake innocence.

Naraku glanced down at the boy who was giving him puppy dog eyes. "Hmph." He said with a smirk, turning away again. "I'm very sure you did."

"...What!"

"I said, I'm very sure you missed me." Naraku repeated himself.

Hakudoushi got the 'dewy-chibi-eyes' and latched onto Naraku's leg. "Don't you love me anymore?"

Naraku kept walking, despite the heavy load on his one leg. "You're making it very hard for me to walk." He said simply.

"So?"

"So, get off." Naraku growled, shaking his leg firmly as he came to a halt. Kyoyume stopped as well and watched as Hakudoushi clung desperately, wailing at the top of his lungs as Naraku shook his leg, trying to detach him.

"Let him dangle there, Naraku." Kyoyume laughed.

Hakudoushi wailed. "Kyo-san! How could you!"

"I'm trying to keep you on his leg."

"But I'm slipping!" The boy whined, grabbing tighter at Naraku's pants. "Put me back down!" He pleaded.

Kyoyume picked up the wailing boys and set him back on the ground.

Naraku lowered his leg as the boy clung to Kyoyume now, beaming. "Thank you, mama!" He said cheerily.

"...Um...you're welcome?"

Naraku glared at him as Hakudoushi smirked his way. "Papa is so mean to me all the time!" He whined to her, to which Kyoyume sweatdropped.

"Not always!"

"Yes, always!" Hakudoushi protested.

"Not always!'

"Yes you do! Don't you think so, mama?" Hakudoushi asked, turning his head completely skyward to look at her face.

"No...he's nice sometimes..."

"Well, of course YOU think that..." Hakudoushi grumbled, crossing his arms.

"Well...Naraku, try being nicer to Haku-chan."

"Hmph." Naraku said, turning his head away and crossing his arms as well. Hakudoushi smiled, pleased with himself. "See? Even mama thinks you're mean." He taunted; not noticing that Naraku was already vexed.

"I do not."

"Eh?" He asked, looking up at Kyoyume in hopeless shock.

"He just needs to be nicer to you."

Naraku rolled his eyes. "Fine." He grumped, much to Hakudoushi's pleasure.

"Good."

Kyoyume smiled at him, and he almost instantly melted. "He just needs to make himself less of a nuisance."

Hakudoushi pouted. "I am not a nuisance!"

"Oh, please, don't start that again." Naraku growled, glaring at the boy. Kyoyume, caught in the middle, sighed wearily. "Stop fighting, please." She asked them.

Hakudoushi was silenced immediately, as was Naraku.

Kyoyume smiled at them both as Hakudoushi released her arms. "What?" She asked, noticing they were both staring.

"...You're so demanding."

Kyoyume's smile faded and she looked a bit worried. "Am I really?" She asked, fiddling with her hands.

"Just kidding!" They chorused.

She stared at them both, a sweatdrop forming. "Ah...heh..."

They both laughed a little.

"You two act more like each other than you think." Kyoyume said with a small grin.

"Do not!"

Kyoyume laughed, and, without a word, turned and walked away from them at a happy pace.

Hakudoushi followed her quickly, trying to keep up with her happy pace.

Naraku followed Hakudoushi, not willing to leave he and Kyoyume alone.

They found themselves outside watching the training going on.

Kyoyume watched with wide, enchanted eyes as they sparred, sword hitting sword repeatedly without a single blow hitting flesh once. "Wow..." She mumbled to herself as Naraku and Hakudoushi came to a halt behind her. 'Great...' Naraku thought as he spotted where they were.

"Ha! You're too slow!" Bankotsu taunting swinging his giant halberd to point at Jakotsu's throat. Jakotsu however, had an animalistic smirk on his face, and with a flick of his wrist the momentum had shifted and Jakotsutou was surrounding Bankotsu.

Bankotsu sweatdropped as he saw the sword all around him. "Yes, well..." He started, dodging around all the blades with a smirk of his own.

Jakotsu shifted the sword again, to keep them around Bankotsu as he moved. "You can't escape me."

Bankotsu went wide-eyed as he saw the sword again. "Aack!" He said, dodging around a blade behind him, and pushing away from another with Banryuu.

Jakotsu gave up. "My turn then, no?" Renkotsu asked stepping up.

"Yeah." Bankotsu said, wiping away his sweat with the back of his hand.

Jakotsu stepped out of the way, though Renkotsu was smarter, Bankotsu was faster with Banryuu than Renkotsu was with those canons.

Renkotsu smirked as he took his place. "Ready?" Bankotsu asked him, lowering his sword, ready to fight.

"Of course."

"Then stand back." Bankotsu yelled, thrusting his sword at his opponent with a look of wild glee in his eyes.

Renkotsu dodged the sword and took aim with his canon, just missing Bankotsu. "Damn." He cursed under his breath.

Bankotsu laughed heartily, dodging another round from Renkotsu, and swinging his sword. "This is fun!" He exclaimed as he dodged and struck.

"Its all fun for you, Bankotsu." Renkotsu told him, finally getting struck with Banryuu, signaling his loss.

Bankotsu laughed as he won, shouldering Banryuu happily. "There would be no point if it weren't fun."

"Yeah, whatever man."

Bankotsu smiled, laughing again before he noticed the on-lookers. "Well, look whose back." He said slyly, walking up to them.

"Shaddup."

"What? No warm welcome? No apology for staying out all night?" Bankotsu joked, Jakotsu and Renkotsu coming up behind him.

"Mind your own business, twerp."

Bankotsu stared at him for a moment blankly. "Wow, you really are in a bad mood." He said, looking Naraku over. "Get up on the wrong side of the bed?"

"...What bed?" Hakudoushi mumbled smirking.

Bankotsu raised his eyebrows at him with a smirk. "Someone knows what I'm saying." He said, bursting out laughing.

Naraku just glared at the laughing teen. "Don't make me kill you." He growled.

"Ah, you wouldn't do that." Bankotsu said with another laugh, looking side long at Hakudoushi and burst out laughing again.

"Cause if you kill him Jakotsu would go into despair and murder you." Renkotsu told him, completely serious.

Jakotsu glared at him but made no answer.

"You'd avenge me right Jakotsu?" Bankotsu asked, looking up at his taller companion.

"Of course." Jakotsu said in a huff, shifting his crossed arms.

"Then I'd kill the Commander." He said shooting a glare at Renkotsu, who glared back.

Renkotsu gave him a smug look. "Not before I killed you."

"Right you wish."

"I do wish for such things sometimes." Renkotsu said in a mock-dreamy voice.

"Renkotsu, Jakotsu, stoppit."

"Fine." Jakotsu said, turning away. Renkotsu simply shrugged.

Bankotsu sighed. "Fight, fight, fight."

"Bicker, bicker, bicker." Hakudoushi chanted after him with a sigh.

"Whine, whine, whine." Naraku mocked glaring at his brat 'son'.

"Bad temper!" Hakudoushi challenged him, shaking one small fist.

"Spoiled!"

"It's your damned fault if I am!"

"STUPID."

"Nasty hair! Nyaah!"

"Better than yours!"

"Loser!" Hakudoushi screeched at his 'father'.

"BETTER THAN YOU!"

"I'm a part of you, fool!" Hakudoushi stamped one foot irritably.

"That makes you just as much of a loser as me!"

"Growr!" Hakudoushi roared in frustration, just as a child would. "I'm not like you!"

"Are you sure about that!"

"I'm POSITIVE!"

"YEAH RIGHT!"

Hakudoushi bit his lower lip angrily. "You're just a mean old man!"

"AND YOU'RE JUST A STUPID LITTLE BOY!" Naraku yelled.

"Meanie, ugly, cruel!"

"Stupid, spoiled, weakling!"

"You're one to talk about being weak!" Hakudoushi growled at him, small dewy tears starting to form at the edges of his eyes from all the anger.

"How am I weak!"

"You can't even defeat that moron Inuyasha and his crew, let alone get your feelings straight!"

Naraku growled. "AND YOU COULD BEAT THEM! With your sword and your horse!"

"I'd do a better job than you!" Hakudoushi proclaimed angrily. "Always hiding in your castle and sending out little minions to do your bidding!"

"YOU'RE ONE OF MY LITTLE MINIONS!"

"SO!" Hakudoushi cried wildly. "SO! I'd still do a better job than you!"

"NO YOU WOULDN'T!"

"How are you so sure!"

"Because that fox demon could beat you in hand-to-hand!"

"Bah! If he'd beat ME that way, he'd beat YOU that way too!"

"The FLEA could beat you Hakudoushi!"

"He would beat me bored! Entei would squash that pitiful excuse for a demon before it knew there was a battle raging!"

"Stop it!" Kyoyume finally demanded.

Both of them looked at her, their brows still furrowed angrily. Naraku grunted, straightening, but still glared at his son. Hakudoushi, in turn glared at him.

Kyoyume sighed exasperatedly.

Naraku's eyes traveled sidelong to look at her briefly before he returned his gaze to his son. "Fine." He said, turning and strutting away. Hakudoushi watched him go, his eyes still set in a glare.

Kyoyume scowled at Hakudoushi before turning on her heal and following Naraku.

"What was THAT all about?" Bankotsu asked as he saw her trailing after him. "Weird..." He mumbled to himself, rubbing the back of his head and turning back to his sparring partners. "Anyone ready for a re-match?" He asked cheerily.

"No, wait till Suikotsu comes back and spar with him." Renkotsu grumbled. "I'm going to sleep."

"Hmph, you're no fun." Bankotsu grunted. "What about you, Jakotsu?"

"Nah, I haven't eaten all day..."

Bankotsu sighed and was about to ask Hakudoushi when he saw that the youngster was still glaring after the departing Naraku and Kyoyume. "Eh, maybe I better call it a day too." He sighed. "Don't get rusty standin' there all day, kid." Bankotsu ruffled Hakudoushi's hair as he passed with a smile.

Hakudoushi flopped down on the grass, face still set on 'super-scowl'.

'Meanie.' He thought angrily to himself. 'And what was Kyoyume scowling about? She's usually never on one of our sides when we fight.'

Hakudoushi finally got up as it began to get dark.

'It's probably just because they like each other that she was angry.' Hakudoushi scratched the back of his head in thought. 'But still...'

He went to his room and curled up with Entei. "I just don't know anymore Entei."

The horse neighed softly by his head reassuringly, and Hakudoushi smiled, hugging the great muzzle. "Thanks boy." He whispered before falling asleep.

End chapter