Chapter Ten : Trust Me

As soon as he arrived at his fortress, Naraku deposited Ishiru in a room, hidden from any other eyes. He left the room, summoning Kagura. The wind-witch met him outside.

"Your new charge is in the west wing." He said, then turned to Hakudoshi, who had arrived with Kagura. "You are to ensure that the western lord does not find his way here for some time."

The two siblings bowed, one somewhat more earnestly than the other. Kagura, though she was grateful to be rid of Hakudoshi, wasn't too happy to be babysitter to some new charge.

Sesshoumaru followed Ishiru's scent to her room, then to the dojo. There, he found the little white silk parcel, pinned to the wall with Ishiru's dagger. He pulled the dagger from the wall, unwrapping the silk. The cloth fell to the floor.

Sesshoumaru stared at the comb in his hands. The delicate silver quivered in his hands, the wings fluttering unsoundly. The one frivolous thing he had ever given her. He enjoyed catching her admiring the craftsmanship of the little comb. The way her eyes would catch and reflect the twinkling silver light from the metal and tiny gems.

Some days he set her loose in his study to explore his books. Almost immediately after she gained her sight, he had taught her how to read. Ishiru learned very quickly, her "clean-slate" mind picking up verbal concepts even faster than Rin.

But, every time, eventually he would find her by the door from his study to the gardens, turning the comb in the light.

Her trinket, her treasured piece of silver workmanship, was here. And yet, she was not. Sesshoumaru's eyes clouded, anger bleeding red in the corners of his eyes. He knelt to pick up the square of white silk. A red stain caught his eye.

Two symbols, both drawn in blood... The hiragana read "Goodbye, Betrayer."

OOO

Ishiru woke, too sore to move. She blinked the spots from her eyes, finding a pair of curious red irises staring back at her. Had Ishiru been able to move, she would have jumped to her feet. But, seeing as she was unable to do so, the demon girl was content to jerk to the side a bit.

"I'm not going to bite you..." Kagura told her. "Now sit up, eat." She commanded. Ishiru struggled to sit up, but her torn abs wouldn't allow it. Kagura rolled her eyes and helped her to lean against the wall at the head of the sleeping pallet. Ishiru managed to swallow and keep down the food she was offered.

"Who are you?" Ishiru asked. "And where am I?"

"I'm Kagura. You're at Naraku's palace." The wind-witch told her.

"Is that anywhere near the western lands?" Ishiru asked. She knew nothing of Naraku, or his deeds. Kagura looked at her quizzically. The wind-witch had been told nothing of Ishiru's identity, or where she came from, only that she was to take care of her.

"No... Why?" Kagura asked, prodding. Ishiru looked down and away.

"No... No reason." Ishiru brutally shoved a thought or fifteen out of her mind. 'Not now... I can't deal with that now.' She thought vehemently.

Kagura watched the girl, barely catching the sadness that flew across her face for less than an instant. The wind-witch put that information into storage as she got up to leave.

OOO

Hakudoshi erased Naraku's scent from the place that Ishiru had fallen unconscious, and both scents that would have marked a trail to Naraku's palace. Then, he waited, to make sure that Sesshoumaru would not find his way to Naraku. Also because he wanted to see what the western lord would do once his wench's scent vanished.

We waited until nightfall and Sesshoumaru still hadn't arrived. It was then that he had an idea. Naraku needn't know, and it ultimately would help his cause. He patted Entei's neck and the two sped off.

OOO

Shippou woke up slowly, stirred by the removal of one of his magic leaves. He saw Hakudoshi leave, Entei's light drifting out of sight. Still half-asleep, he dismissed it as just some low-end demon and went back to sleep. If it was anything bad, Inuyasha would be awake and attacking it.

OOO

Sesshoumaru didn't move for a time. Inside him was the emotional equivalent to Hiroshima. Something, far down deep in his soul, once protected like nothing else, was clenched in a tight vise. A thousand thoughts ran through his mind before he settled on one.

He had to find Ishiru.

He followed her scent back outside. He became truly concerned when her trail left the fortress grounds. Her scent gathered at the base of a tree, then stopped. Sesshoumaru knelt, examining the base of the tree where her scent was the strongest.

He suddenly froze. A scent reached his nose. The red that had only tinted his irises before now flooded his eyes from the sides. A murderous growl spilt from his lips.

"Inuyasha..."

OOO

Inuyasha's ear twitched, an aura tingling at his senses not too far off. In an instant he was wide-awake. He breathed in, trying to catch the scent of whoever was approaching. It registered and his eyes widened.

Inuyasha's thoughts were in turmoil. His brother's jyaki was disturbingly high. All of his instincts were telling him to run. Foreboding filled the air.

"Everyone wake up!" He shouted, jumping down from the tree he had slept in. He shook the slower of the group awake. "It's Sesshoumaru." He said.

Just as the words left his mouth a clawed fist connected with Inuyasha's jaw. The hanyou was flung backwards, through two trees to slam into the third one in. Sesshoumaru followed him, his hand nearly crushing his neck against the tree trunk.

"Where is she?" Sesshoumaru growled, venom hissing from his claws. The other members of the little group had fully arisen.

"Sesshoumaru! Let Inuyasha go!" Kagome shouted.

"Where is she...?" Sesshoumaru snarled. Inuyasha was, for lack of better phrase, freaked. Sesshoumaru's eyes were bleeding red. The demon lord was about an inch away from loosing it. 'Who the hell is he talking about?' Inuyasha thought. The hanyou growled when Sesshoumaru's venom bit into the flesh of his neck. He grabbed the demon lord's wrist and tried to pull it off him. He didn't even get close.

"Who the hell are you talking about?" Inuyasha growled, again, trying to throw Sesshoumaru off him.

"Sesshoumaru-sama." Miroku spoke, his voice forcibly calm. "It may be best to figure out if Inuyasha is truly responsible before you accuse him."

"Please Sesshoumaru-sama, just tell us who you mean." Kagome pleaded. Sesshoumaru ignored them. He utilized a tendril of his youki, reaching into Inuyasha's mind.

After a moment, he released the hanyou. The baka hadn't any idea who Ishiru was. 'Someone is setting a trap for this Sesshoumaru.' The taiyoukai thought, watching Inuyasha leap away to his group. The hanyou drew their father's fang and shouted something about taking him on.

"Sesshoumaru-sama." It was the tajiya who spoke this time. "Who are you looking for?"

Sesshoumaru regarded them coldly. He walked to the edge of the clearing

"Ishiru." His youki gathered at his feet and the taiyoukai rose into the sky.

OOO

That afternoon Naraku approached Ishiru. He had to be careful, lest he unsettle her fledgling sense of security there.

Ishiru was awake and propped up against a wall when he entered the room. She was staring out a window, lost in thought. He knocked lightly on the doorframe so not to startle her.

"You didn't need to knock. I heard you across the palace." Ishiru said, not looking away from the window. Naraku was a bit surprised. So he had underestimated the girl.

"Palace? What makes you think that there's anything but a few other rooms beyond this one?" Naraku asked, deciding to play with her a little. This time Ishiru looked at him, her eyes hard.

"I can hear. Footsteps are on nothing but wood for several rooms. I could give you a precise floor plan if you wish." Her voice was bitter. Naraku's expression hardened for a moment. She would take work to bring around. He hadn't expected this much rebuttal, despite what he'd inflicted upon her.

"My my. So hostile. Why is that, little demon? I have been nothing but kind to you. I rescued you, brought you here and healed you. Yet this is all the thanks I receive?" He said mildly.

"It will take more than that to change my heart hanyou." She spit the word as though it were poison. Sesshoumaru's teachings had left her with a similar hate for impure half-demons. Naraku's eyes narrowed for an instant at her tone, then returned to their previous, friendly appearance.

"Trust me." He said, waiting a moment for his words to sink in before standing up and leaving.

OOO

Ishiru stayed at Naraku's castle. After a month she had healed and was moving about. She made friends, oddly enough, with Kagura and Kohaku. No matter how much she tried, she could not make herself befriend Hakudoshi or Kanna. Their soulless, and in Hakudoshi's case wicked, eyes chilled her every time she was fixed with their gaze.

Naraku, oddly enough, trained her muscles back into shape and taught her how to use a special weapon. It was something like a flail combined with a whip. A spiked steel ball was fastened to a long strip of tough demon hide.

Ishiru often thought of her former home, wondering what had happened to Rin. She avoided thoughts of Sesshoumaru entirely, determined to forget.