AUTHOR'S NOTES: Sorry about missing a day. Real life intruded with a vengeance and left Sentinel a sleepy otaku. I'll make it up to you readers by giving you a double shot of Inu-Yasha silliness over the next 24 hours.

Now read on...if you dare...

THE EXORCIST

Naraku walked through his castle. He was not a happy hanyou. For months he had prepared his most darkest magics, planned his strategy, and awaited the day he would destroy his enemies. Naraku actually had only a few enemies: until recently, he had regarded Inuyasha and his little band as mere irritants. That had changed after Kagome had demonstrated that she was as capable as Kikyo of doing him severe harm. Miroku was from a family he knew well. Sango wanted revenge, and Naraku knew only too well that revenge was a powerful factor. Nonetheless, he had been confident that his plans would remove the Inu-tachi's thorn from his side permanently.

And now it was coming apart. He had managed to discover where Kagome was from, exactly–or perhaps the better word was when she was from–and sent Kagura through time to eliminate Kagome there. There had been no word from Kagura since.

Reversing the plan to send Kagura forward in time, he had searched the universe for the most powerful and demonic serial killers. In Jason Voorhees, he had found one who was unstoppable and who killed because he could. Unfortunately, Sango had put Jason into a coma; rather than have that maniac running around the Sengoku Jidai, Naraku had sent Jason back where he came from. In Freddy Krueger, he had found a demon not unlike himself, though Freddy was not interested in power so much as he genuinely enjoyed killing people with all the panache of an artist. He too had fallen–though Naraku had been able to ascertain that Freddy had attacked Kagome in her dreams, Kagome was still alive and he could no longer sense Freddy presence. Naraku cursed himself for a fool; Kagome was a miko, after all.

Naraku shrugged inwardly. One plan had failed; fair enough. He would hatch another. This time he wouldn't rely on outside help. And if Kagura should return empty-handed, he would punish her as he had never punished anyone before. He would even use the oven mitts this time.

Naraku was about to allow himself an evil laugh when he smelled something coming from his kitchen. Curious, he turned and began walking in that direction. Though Naraku kept a small army of ensorcelled servants and minor demons bent to his will, all the cooking was done in a separate building from the castle. In any case, Naraku ate sparingly, and then only raw meat or perhaps some rice. Eating was a secondary task for him, something he did because his body required it on occasion, not out of any pleasure in the act or in the food.

But whatever was cooking smelled...good. He walked into the castle kitchen and, in a most uncharacteristic thing for Naraku, his mouth dropped open in shock.

Kanna's mirror lay on the table. Kanna herself was just pulling something from the oven, wearing the very oven mitts Naraku planned on using on Kagura. She leaned over and delicately blew on whatever was on the wooden spatula, then gently set the food she had cooked on the bricks lining the oven. Noticing Naraku, she bowed politely and gave him a happy smile, which in itself nearly gave him heart failure.

"Hello, Lord Naraku!" she chirped.

Naraku leaned back against the wall, his mind racing. Kanna had no emotions; that was part of her purpose. The strong emotions he had wanted purged went to Kagura. Kanna existed for three reasons: spying on Naraku's enemies, ripping their souls away into her mirror, and allowing him to watch free cable. She did not exist to cook. And she certainly didn't smile or sing a little song as she puttered around the kitchen.

"Kanna..." he began, for once unsure of what to say, "what are you doing?"

"Baking a cake," she replied, as if Kanna baked cakes every day.

"I...see," Naraku said at length. "Why?"

"Because I felt like it!" She reached onto the low counter, picked up a bowl, and padded over, offering it to him. "Have some, Lord Naraku!"

Wondering if it was poison, Naraku hesitatingly put a little of whatever it was on his finger and tasted. It was fermented bean paste, and it was surprisingly excellent. Before he could stop it, his stomach rumbled audibly. Again, he cursed silently–more of Onigumo's weaknesses, no doubt, for he, Naraku, couldn't be actually enjoying food. It didn't stop him from sampling more of the bean paste.

"Is it good?" she asked.

"It is adequate," he said.

"Just adequate?" Kanna looked insulted, then she suddenly sniffled and began to cry. "Lord Naraku hates my cooking! I'm a failure to my lord!" She picked up the butcher knife from the table. "I must commit ritual suicide for displeasing my lord!"

"Stop!" Naraku commanded her. He needed Kanna far more than any of his other minions. "You may not commit suicide, Kanna, I forbid it."

She did not put down the knife, and instead used it to cut off a hunk of the cake. "Please taste it, Lord Naraku. If it is not good or merely adequate, please let me kill myself. I cannot live with the shame of bad cooking."

Naraku took the piece and ate it. It was excellent, sweet and yet filling as well. "It's good," he remarked. Thinking quickly, he added, "The bean paste was good as well, Kanna. I was merely testing you."

Kanna blinked at him for a moment, then giggled, putting down the knife. "Oh, Lord Naraku, you tease your servant so!" Without further comment, she began preparing some rice, again humming her song.

Suddenly, the truth hit Naraku like a thunderbolt, filling him with rage. "You!" Kanna turned around, her eyebrows raised in question. "You are not Kanna! Who are you–and what have you done with her?"

She said nothing for a moment, then her eyes seemed to change. She smiled slowly–not maliciously, as Kagura might have done or even Naraku himself, but a sweet smile that was all the more terrifying. "I am no longer just Kanna, Lord Naraku," she said in a voice that most assuredly not Kanna's.

"Then who are you, demon?"

She laughed, which chilled Naraku's blood. "You can call me...Chiyo-chan." Then she returned to her task. "Cooking is so fun...cooking is so fun..."