Um… yeah

Lucky for you I can't think of anything stupid to say before this chapter.

Mhm.

Chapter 41: Love and Downfall

The rising sun painted a once dark sky with an orange hue that became brighter and brighter with each minute that past. The trees were dark shadows, reaching into the dimming darkness with their many branches that acted as hands. Faint lights from a faraway village could be seen in the distance, becoming a guide for those who had poor vision in the darkness. A cool air blew through the tall grass as daytime animals came out of their burrows and tiny homes to start a new day.

Aun grew tired of walking and sat down, unable to go any further. On Aun's back were three persons: Rin, Jaken, and Bo, who were all fast asleep. Bo slept sitting up, leaning against one of Aun's necks. Rin slept on her stomach on Aun's back, Jaken behind her. Sesshomaru turned around and glared at Aun, pulling at his reins. Aun immediately stood up and kept on walking. The demon was not used to pulling Bo around instead of Hanako, who was much lighter and easier on Aun's back.

Hanako and Sesshomaru had both remained silent throughout the night, but it had not been an awkward silence that had been between them. It had been a comforting silence that rested in their company, as if they had been speaking to each other the entire time, but had not said a word. With their hands still clasped, they walked onward, toward the rising orange sun.

A ray of light cast itself upon Rin's face. Her brown eyes fluttered open. She brushed away clumps of thick black hair from her face. Looking around, and seeing how early it was, she did not want to be awake yet. She rubbed her eyes and curled back up into a little ball, only to see an unfamiliar body in front of her. She lifted her weary head, and stared at the sleeping face of Bo.

Bo-chan…? she thought in surprise, …what's he doing here? Where did he come from…?

She sat up further, about to call out to Sesshomaru and ask him. As soon as she saw him, she stopped herself, and gazed with widened eyes at the scene before her.

Sesshomaru and Hanako stood close together, their shadows cast behind them, holding hands. Rin smiled to herself. She thought they looked adorable. With that picture in her mind as a fading image, her fatigue struck her again. She closed her eyes and fell back asleep, a small smile dancing upon her lips for a few moments more.

Sesshomaru came out of his deep thinking, and shifted his amber eyes toward Hanako next to him. The sunlight lit her face, outlining every feature, orange colored shadows spread about it. Her white hair glittered behind her, with a few strands cast about her shoulders. He never thought something so simple could be so beautiful.

Breaking him out of his trance, she spoke.

"I'm sorry."

The tone of her voice was more whispery than usual. She sounded tired. "Why are you sorry, Hanako?" he answered her, the sound of his own voice sounding out of place in the middle of the morning's silence.

She looked upward to the sky. "I should not have invited Bo to stay with us… I knew how much you did not approve of it. And… I treated you disrespectfully…"

He sighed. Would she ever change? "You apologize too much…" he said quietly, remembering others were sleeping behind him. He looked down at her face, wanting to see it in the sunlight again, but much to his disappointment, she was looking the other way. He gazed at the back of her head.

She did not speak anymore. The silence once more overrode their need to talk, filling their ears with the sound of the wind, and the sound of each other's breathing. Hanako focused on the feeling of his lean hand in hers, their fingers still laced together. She closed her eyes, letting her true emotions overcome her sense of reality, which she let herself do once in a while. Her love for him had not wavered. It was no laughing matter, no joke, and no farce. It was for real. The man she held hands with now was the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. She would do anything physically possible for him.

But her reality stabbed her back. He did not feel the same way. He would never feel the same way. And he did not know that she felt this way, and he never could know. If he ever did know, she would most likely lose her life and then never see him again. She had envisioned herself telling him on her deathbed, as she would die much before him as well, which was a whole other matter she never let herself think about. But in the meantime, she would do whatever she could to please him, to at least win his approval…

But… she thought, we are holding hands right now… and… we did kiss once… and he lets me hug him, and he got jealous over me… I think I already have his approval… what if…

Her mind ran wild with possibilities. What if he liked her too? If he were not her lord, she would most definitely think so. Or does he treat every woman like this? She peered at him for a moment and then looked away. No. It was too much to believe. She also knew him well enough that he would never feel or show any sort of emotion like that. Tears formed behind her eyes, but she did not cry. He was there with her. What was there to cry about?

"Hanako…" he said suddenly, breaking the silence as she had done before.

She turned her head. "What is it, Lord Sesshomaru?" He was not looking at her. His eyes looked painful.

"…I do find it more favorable that you are in my company."

Her eyes widened for a moment. She recalled asking him if it mattered at all if she was with him after he had said that he would not hesitate to leave her there. She looked down and smiled. She had indeed won his approval. Her heart soared…

"Agh! I'm so sorry Lord Sesshomaru! I have overslept!" squawked an annoying voice from behind them.

Sesshomaru recognized it and let go of Hanako's hand immediately. He spoke to Jaken with his back turned to him.

"Yes… you are long overdue Jaken…" Sesshomaru said, his voice returning to its normal, cold tone. He had not even noticed how late he had overslept. Normally, if Jaken had done so, he would get the pleasure of retrieving some large, heavy object and chucking it at him, but he had had a new and better pleasure that morning…

Jaken grabbed his staff and waddled up to him. "Please forgive me sire! I… I didn't mean to!"

"Silence, Jaken. You are lucky that I had no use of you while you slacked…"

Jaken sighed. This cannot be my life…

Hanako gazed down at her hand that had once held Sesshomaru's. Making sure he was not looking, she touched her own face with it, smiling as she did so. She sighed again, ashamed of her own foolishness.

Lord Sesshomaru…

"Hanako! What are you doing awake so early?"

Hanako jumped out of surprise, and turned her head to see Bo, standing beside Aun. He had awoken.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" he said, coming up closer to her, "I didn't mean to scare you like that!" He smiled warmly and put his hand on hr shoulder. "Are you okay?"

She smiled back shyly and nodded. "Mhm… I'm fine…" She was barely listening to him. In her mind, she envisioned her and Sesshomaru holding hands again. She wished they would all go back to sleep so they could be alone…

(…)

Far off into the darkened woods, an evil aura enveloped. Its evil was so evil that flowers wilted, animals choked, and a black mist formed around its source: Naraku.

Normally, Naraku's aura did not cause such terrible damage, but it did now since he had to enclose it so Sesshomaru would not sense it, therefore allowing him to watch Sesshomaru and Hanako from a far and safe distance. He smirked at the fact that their relationship was coming along so perfectly. He had so many plans to use it with, oh so many. When Naraku had first met Hanako, never had he dreamt that she would be so useful…

Naraku stood in the room with vines all around, slipping the red bead into his pocket. He was now officially hers.

"Get up," Naraku said with an irritated voice. He looked down at the zombie-like girl before him, completely bare on the ground, observing the room around her, and then looking down at her own hands.

"Hanako, eh?" he pondered her name. Somehow he did not recall that being the name of the insane priestess who harbored that curse that was so famous all those years ago. He kicked her.

"I said get up."

She wobbled upward, her hands hiding her breasts. Naraku could tell that she was gaining more self-awareness. She was beginning to understand that she was nude.

"Blanket…" she said in a monotone voice, "This Hanako… is in need of a clothing…" She pointed to a quilt in the corner of the room. "This… is a quilt. It will work?"

Naraku observed her low level of intelligence. She stared at him now with a dead expression. She waited for an answer.

"Fine. Take it."

She walked slowly with stiff steps to the other side of the room, picking up the quilt and wrapped it around herself. Naraku approached her.

"Do you know who I am?"

She looked up at him with blank eyes. Her expression changed, and it looked as if she was thinking hard.

"You are… man with long black hair and have red sphere and kick this one very hard and give quilt."

He raised an eyebrow. Why was she so… stupid? Why wasn't her speech correct? Why didn't she just simply ask his name? Her legend told that she went insane, so that may be the reason…

"I am now your master," he said with a smirk, "You obey my every command."

"…man with long black hair and have sphere and kick this one is master who this one obey…?"

"…Sure."

She smiled and pointed at him. "Master!"

He narrowed his eyes. She was like a small child learning to talk. He had a suspicion, and it was not a good one.

"…Tell me about yourself, Hanako…"

She stopped smiling. She looked down at the ground and her face was strained. She closed her eyes, and then opened them again. She looked back up at him with the saddest facial expression he had ever seen. She spoke to him like it was the end of the world.

"…This one cannot answer question of Master. This one knows not answer of question of Master. This one know not Master of speak… This one feel sorry…"

His eyes widened in anger. It was true. She did not remember any of her past. Then how was he supposed to possess himself with the power she harbored if she did not remember how to use it? How was he supposed to use her for anything…?

…

But that had been then. Naraku watched her eye Sesshomaru with a mystified expression. He had done so before as well. From what he could see, Hanako had succeeded in weakening Sesshomaru's heart…

…but he wanted more proof than just an assumption.