Servant By: OtakuSailorV

Chapter 10:: Abandoned?

Hakudoushi frowned at his new assignment. 'Escort' the young hanyou servant to some remote forest and dump her but make sure that she was unconscious and that he left no trail behind for her to follow? Was Naraku out of his mind?

His empty eyes danced still with bloodlust, though he smothered the emotion successfully after a moment of trying to force it down. Disgruntled that he was being given such a pointless mission, he shouldered his scimitar and walked back to Entei to give the demon horse the news. He didn't question why Naraku had not assigned Kagura to the job, for he understood the mind of Naraku in a way. Sending the wind sorceress would only prove problematic, as she might take her time to visit a certain demon Lord while she was out and about.

The horse reared when Hakudoushi came within his view, and let out a neigh that shook the foundation of the castle in that area. "Entei, be still." Hakudoushi ordered icily.

Entei came crashing down on all fours, sending a ripple of shock wave to flow out from under his hooves, something akin to an earthquake. His red eyes blazed and whirled with anger and anxiousness to be back in battle. Though he calmed, the muscles in his powerful limbs twitched every now and again with the need to move as his tiny master came forward.

"We have been assigned a 'special' mission." Hakudoushi informed him with a sneer-like smirk. Entei let out a guttural neigh, snorting at his rider's sarcasm. "We'll be dropping off a 'package' in the forest to the north. This shouldn't take long, and then we can go back and destroy what remains of that village."

Entei seemed pleased with this news, though a hint of anger still shown in his bright eyes. Shifting uneasily, he was ready to go upon Hakudoushi's word.

"Be still, I say." Hakudoushi ordered sharply as he saw the demon horse start to grow anxious. "We wait until the 'package' arrives."

Almost as soon as he had finished his senses, something in the back of his mind told him of a new presence behind him and he turned his head to one side in a careless fashion to gaze out of one eye at the intruder on their conversation. Spying Kohaku with a limp Yuhi in his arms, he smirked. Well, at least Naraku was sane enough to get rid of one of the two useless wards so far. But why he didn't just kill her off instead puzzled him. Deciding that he truly didn't care one way or the other for Naraku's business, Hakudoushi moved to one side so that Kohaku could place the hanyou on Entei's broad white shoulders.

Without a word, Kohaku moved back, his eyes seemingly empty, though Hakudoushi spied some form of remorse hidden in the brown depths. It would not be long before the boy came to himself and knew what was going on around him.

Hakudoushi smirked again before his lips fell into a thin line, and he turned and mounted Entei, sitting behind Yuhi to make sure she did not slip off in the flight. Then, giving Entei the signal, the horse flamed brightly before kicking off into the air, his hooves beating the thin air as he headed for the far off Northern forests.

Her mind seemed to be swimming back into consciousness. She felt drugged and heavy, and several times her mind started to recede back into dreams and long awaited sleep. Though some thought that she wanted to know where she was kept stirring her back to wakefulness. Groaning audibly, her stone-heavy eyelids twitched, but did not flutter open immediately. Finding that her whole body felt as if she were floating on water, she twitched her fingers and feet first to try and wake herself that way. And it did work, for as soon as she willed some part of her body to move, the sleep-laden mist that seemed to hang in her mind suddenly lifted, if slowly. Still, she felt sluggish as she tried to open her eyes once again.

Yuhi's eyes finally fluttered open, and as they did, the world swayed in and out of focus, swirling into multiple versions of itself and dizzying her. Shutting her eyes again, Yuhi brought one arm to her eyes and laid it over them to try and press out the feeling. Groaning again, she decided to use what little youkai senses she had to figure out where she was, since what brief glimpses she had gathered of the world outside her eyelids was foreign to her. Sniffing the air casually, her nose twitched at the somewhat familiar scents that entered.

Moss, damp, but not rain soaked; leaves, fresh and new; in all, a very earthy smell to everything about her. But what startled her most was the lack of miasma in the air. Jerking straight up, she instantly regretted the movement as a sharp pain shot through her forehead, but she was too overcome with shock to take much notice. Her vision was blurred and unclear initially but as she stared harder and longer, it focused almost at her will.

Yuhi gasped as her suspicions were confirmed. This forest – and she had spent much time in forests – was far different than any other she had been in so far. The trees here were mostly all pines, and the air was chill, leaving her nose and fingertips numb. What few trees she did recognize were still not like any she had seen near Naraku's fortress, proving that she was far from the castle. The strangest of all emotions overcame her at that time. Not loneliness, which should have been the initial reaction, nor even confusion at her situation. No, the first thing that crept into her heart was despair.

Rubbing at her eyes that were filled with stinging tears, Yuhi sat on her knees and took in the new area she was in. Gulping down a knot in her throat, the other emotions that come when one finds oneself in a foreign and strange place suddenly set in.

Confusion. How had she gotten here? The last thing she remembered was that she could not breathe for some reason in her compartments. She had been sleeping when suddenly she had been unable to breath properly, her body had broken out in a cold sweat, and frantically she had tried to rise, but to no avail. Her eyes had drifted shut, welcoming the black sleep that took her. And the next thing she knew, she was awake here in this strange forest. Was this a dream? She confirmed that it was not by pinching herself repeatedly.

Frustration. What had she done to be back out here now? Had she done something to offend Naraku? The thought struck her then for the first time of that young Lord of hers. Blinking she looked from side and shakily tried to get to her feet.

She stumbled forward, grasping at the nearest tree trunk for support. The tree bark met her hand roughly, biting into it. For her still half-sleeping body, the shock of sudden pain – even miniscule – was a cause for white shock to flow through her body and paralyze her for a moment. Her legs felt wobbly and uncertain, as if she had never walked before. 'The effects of miasma.' She told herself as she tried to take another step, still grasping the rough bark of the tree. Wincing at the pain in her scraped palms, she limped from the spot she had been, navigating herself through the forest at a slow pace.

'I have to get back.' She told herself, though she wasn't sure where she was going back to. The only thing she knew was the desire to go somewhere, and for some reason, the image of Naraku stuck in the back of her mind.

Her eyes lowered suddenly and she stopped, half way between one tree and the next. She put her full weight down on her legs, and they trembled un-surely beneath her, though she paid them little attention as her mind wandered to something else. Gin and Kai. Their images had stuck up out of her mind almost as soon as Naraku's face had come to mind. 'I can't go back to him.'

The thought left her in another paralyzed state of shock. She had nowhere to go back to. . .She couldn't go back to Naraku, he had hurt her dear friends, no – he had killed them. There was nothing in her mind that refused the fact that that was an awful crime. Still, no matter how much she knew what he had done was horrible, some part of her still reminded her that he had saved her and for that she owed him everything. Caught between these thoughts she stood, useless and forgotten in the cold forest.

Naraku's narrowed eyes watched with hidden interest as the hanyou woman awoke from her slumber. She was groggy, he could tell from her movements. Thinking back, he wondered if too much miasma had been used to make her sleep, but he waved the thought away. Why should he care?

Kanna held the mirror obediently still until he bayed her leave him, he had seen enough.

Content that he had gotten the distraction as far from him as possible, he leaned back into his usual sitting position as he looked out the shouji doors of his room. Dim light showed through them and highlighted his features in an eerie way. Even as he sat there, assured that he had no fear of ever being distracted by the hanyou girl again, her face still loomed forward in his mind, smiling and bowing. Frowning, he shook his head to clear her away. This would not do, it was like having Onigumo fully in control of his mind, and that he would not stand for. Growling to himself, he got to his feet and paced to the door.

Sliding it open, he exited and walked down the hallway to prepare for his upcoming trap for Inuyasha and his elder half-brother Sesshoumaru. This plan was sure not to fail, and with Yuhi out of sight and mind he had complete confidence that nothing could disrupt his ingenious or his bloodlust now. There were no soft eyes to watch him with innocent tears of betrayed trust anymore.

Songs for this chapter::

Enya – 'Only Time'

'May it Be'

Only ones that I found really worked with this chapter since they are kinda depressing. 'Only Time' has become a bit of a theme for this story, so if any of you have Enya's CD – "A Day Without Rain", this song really emphasizes the story to me.

This chapter was kinda depressing to write, since Yuhi is supposed to be depressed by the end. sigh

Well, anyway, thanks for the reviews minna-san, I appreciate it truly. I'm glad you guys like this story so much.

Speaking of reviews. . .Guess what Nara-chan? You got some threats! Looks like one of the fans plans on kicking your ass for getting rid of Yuhi. You're in trouble, Nara-chan.

Naraku: careless glare Ningen no baka.

Tee-hee, well, that's all for now. Thanks again and see you all soon! Ja'ne!!

Review Please.