Author's Note: Hallo, yes, it's me, sorry for the people who are waiting, but it's kind of hard to keep two fics going at once! I could do one, then start on the other, but I have so many ideas, I don't know what to do! Now, I'm just going to continue on, and thank you for reviewing the last chapter, I truly appreciate it.

Disclaimer: I, Candide Avedo do not own anything that has to do with Inuyasha.

-

Blissful Illusions

-

'It's so cold.'

Sango couldn't help resist getting the thought to her head as the chills went up her spine. She was still drowsy, weakened from her encounter with Naraku. Her eyes remained closed, for they felt as though they had permanently glued themselves shut. Her body felt numb all over, and she could have sworn that nothing she could do to get her body functioning properly.

The whole scene kept replaying into her head.

Demons. Kagura. Naraku's Castle. Naraku.

"Argh." Sango gritted her teeth, grinding them in exasperation. She was there. She got inside Naraku's castle, and yet...and yet she was too weak to do it.

Damn.

Sango forced her eyes to open, but it didn't take a while to make them get used to the dark. It was positive that Naraku had left her in some sort of chamber, with only a small barred window with faint light that is able to filter through.

Looking at herself, Sango found that she had been lying on her side, face down on the floor. She was still wearing her torn and tattered slayer suit, and the blood both from her and the demons that were slayed were crusting and peeling on her skin. The damage Naraku had done to her while she tried to take him on was unknown as of yet.

Sango gingerly moved her arm, grateful that it didn't hurt as much as she thought.

'That's a start.' she scoffed, moving the her other arm. 'Now all I've got to do is try to get out of here.' Sango sighed, gathering up the courage to push herself off the ground to a kneeling position. It took her a while, but she did it. Now all that was left was her legs, and if they could support her.

"Going somewhere, taija?"

Sango froze, twisting her neck to see Kagura, standing in the doorway, with hands on her hips, nose crinkling in disgust.

"No, I'm just trying to get up, Kagura, I don't think that's going to be a problem for you, is it? Or are you so scared that I might pull a trick out on you?" said Sango, glaring at her, relaxing on the floor once more.

Kagura sneered. "Better watch it, taija, I can't be responsible for my actions, you know."

Sango snorted, making Kagura scowl in annoyance. "Why don't you just kill me now, and be done with it? I wouldn't really care either way. I just don't want to have to see Naraku's ugly face again."

"My, my, look who's talking. Your face is grimy from all the blood, and your foul stench is taking up the whole place. Naraku wants you to clean yourself up, and once you're done, we are going to go see what he have in store for you..." Kagura slid the door open, and stood aside, waiting for her to move.

Sango burned holes in Kagura's head with the glare in her eyes. There was really nothing that she could do. Either way, she had to do something. If Naraku did have something in store for her, then maybe she could trust Kagura with the bath. Sango definitely didn't protest about it. A bath was definitely a priority at the moment. Grudgingly Sango followed Kagura out of her cell, with Kagura carefully watching her out of the corner of her eye.

Struggling through the dark, empty halls, Sango couldn't help but feel watched. Of course, there was Kagura, who was making sure she didn't pull anything; but there was something else. It left a tight feeling in her gut, and it made it as an extra struggle for her to breathe. Her body was beginning to express it's strain, and all Sango was left to do was bite her lip in pain as to make sure she didn't make a sound. If anything, she wouldn't give the wind-user the satisfaction in seeing her in pain.

"You know, exterminator, I don't know why you insist on living like this." Kagura spoke up suddenly, making Sango pause in mid-step.

"I have aspirations in life, not that you wouldn't know anything about it." grunted Sango, as she limped, leaning on to the wall for support.

"That's where you're mistaken." whispered Kagura, waiting for her again to catch up. "Hurry it up, I've got no time to waste on you. What with your pathetic physical capacity-We're almost there."

Sango felt herself weakening once again. 'Useless body.' "Damn it."

Kagura paused in front of a plain wooden door. Then, she turned to Sango, who was heaving slightly and leaning against the wall for support. "In there. The bath is all ready for you, and some robes as well."

Sango didn't answer, but instead she walked past Kagura, sliding the door open. A soft glow from a lamp overhead was it's only source of light. She had to squint to distinguish the recognizable shapes.

"Don't try to escape, taija. You won't get far." called Kagura, as Sango made to close the door.

Heavily Sango pulled the door closed, and slid against it. How can she do this? No matter. She'll just have to work with it for the mean time, that's all. Continuing to survey her current surroundings, Sango could only make out a stone tub in the middle of the room, with nothing more than a bar of crushed mint and honey, mixed together with milk, and then molded as soap. Close to the tub, was another bucket of water. Once again, and not to her surprise, there was no window.

'At least they have soap.' Sango thought, never thinking about how lucky she was that Kagome used to bring scented soap bars and hair cleaners from her era.

With much effort she took of the remenants of her slayer suit, wincing as the chilly air hit her marred and injured skin. There was already water in the tub, but none that would fit to her taste. The water was ice-cold. Doubting that she could come out of this room without being slightly clean, Sango tucked her stomach in as she dipped her feet into the tub. Gradually, she entered, gasping at it's coldness. She then took her hair out of it's ponytail. Crusted flecks of blood dissolved in the water. Despite it being cold, Sango revelled in the cleansing. She took the bar of soap and began to rub it vigorously on her skin. In the deep silence Sango couldn't help but start to think.

'How are Kagome and the others? Did they get out okay?' wistfully she dropped the soap in the water, sitting in the tub, where the water only came up to her neck. 'I hope the did.' she tilted her head back, using her hands to untangle her hair. 'Shippo; Please be okay. Kagome; I'm sorry I wasn't there to help out. Inuyasha; Maybe you're right. I'm human. Miroku; Oh, Miroku. What I'd give to be with you-all. Be with you all.' Sango caught herself blushing. Thinking that way was not recommended at the moment.

But what would she give to be held in his arms. Sango blushed again, feeling foolish at the thought. 'It must the the miasma that surrounds this place. I'm sure it can drive anyone crazy.'

She let her arms rest at her sides. Sango couldn't help it. Any sort of distraction she thinks would be perfect from this.

Sango made to cleanse her face.

'My arms. I can't move them.' Sango tried, but her arms felt like they were strapped to her arms. She struggled, trying to lean forward and loosen whatever it was that was holding her, but she couldn't. Something invisible was holding her down. Sango leant forward again, and she felt the hold loosen, and her hands were free.

Then, a force pushed her neck back, making her gasp from the sudden loss of her breath, and she began to sputter, and cough. It felt as though an invisible hand was choking her. It's fingers flexed on her throat, and pressing upwards to her jaw bone. Sango tried to grasp at the hand that was slowly cutting off her breath.

"...huh...Let...go..." Sango gasped, as she clawed at the hand that held her. The uncomfortable feeling of vulnerability knawed at her, and she struggled harder, ignoring the rough strains on her muscles.

She fell silent, as she felt hot breath by her right cheek. Sango looked around in the dark, but she couldn't see as well anymore. The room was rimmed with darkness, closing in on her by the moment. The unknown was now filling her vision with nothingness. She tried to cry out, but nothing came out. An empty space now replaced the tub, and Sango fell, but how far, she didn't know. Nothing came.

-

As sudden as it came, everything stopped. Sango felt her eyelids open, and she looked around.

"Wh-where am I?" Sango whispered, as she studied her surroundings. She wasn't in Naraku's castle anymore. In fact, she was lying on a grassy meadow, her head resting on a patch of cheery daisies. The sun bore down lightly on her, reflecting itself on the nearby pond, blinding her with it's brightness. Trees surrounded them, but they didn't look threatening. The calm serenity of the place brought her spirits rising a few feet.

Sango got up, and dusted herself off. Only she realized that she didn't seem to be in pain anymore. She checked her arms for the bruises she knew was there, but they were replaced with the natural creamy colour of her skin.

"What's going on here?" she couldn't figure it out. How could she have gotten here? Has Naraku let her go? It was highly unlikely, surely the demon would not let an opportunity to use her as a pawn.

'This place looks familiar.' Sango only realized it then, but this scene looked oddly familiar to her, like she had been here before. Like a deja vu. Her feet began to move, but Sango didn't know where. Just familiarity telling her that everything was okay, and that she was going somewhere good. Into the forest her feet led her, through the many bushes, and undergrowth. Nothing seemed to be out of place. The birds were still there, dancing high amidst the branches of trees, and the insects were innocently eating at the other insects that were there. Soon, a clearing was in sight, and Sango felt her heart skip a beat.

There, sitting on a bench in front of her home was her mother.

Cautiously Sango stepped forward, as the woman sat quietly, staring up at the sky, with a dreamy look on her face. A twig snapped under her footstep.

"Sango?" her mother asked, looking at Sango with uncertainty.

"Yes, mother, it's me. I'm back." Sango smiled, wanting to rush into her mother's arms. 'Please let it be real.' She studied the woman in front of her. It made quite a bit of sense. Her mother was now at least into her late thirties, judging by her facial texture and expression on her face. It felt like eternity since she'd seen her mother...But her mother had been dead a long time ago. Then, what was this?

"So, did you find anything interesting in your walk?"

Sango blinked. "Excuse me? My walk?"

Her mother smiled. "Of course, you told me this morning after breakfast that you've decided to take a walk, and that you're going to be back before it gets dark. Well? Anything new?"

"Everything was fine. I think I fell asleep, though." Sango smiled back, giving her mother a hug. The woman looked startled.

"Well, I don't know what's gotten into you, but I'm glad you're okay." her mother's face lit up. "How about some tea? You promised to help me yesterday, but you ran off again. Do you think you can help me this time?"

"Of course."

She led Sango into the house, which was quite small, with only a few rooms. A fire had been lit, dancing merrily without air. Clay pots were right on a wooden table, where a large tub of water was beside it. What looked like leftovers was stowed away in one corner, covered by a bowl. The signature smell of cooked food in their home was all over-this, this was truly her home.

Sango sat herself down on the mats next to the fire, as her mother fetched the water in a metal pot, and the tea. Quietly she observed her surroundings once more.

'Could Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo only be a part of my dream?' Sango pondered on it for a while, absent-mindedly watching her mother stir the tea, while humming a soft tune. Her aged face gently glowing from the fire's light. Her nimble fingers that were used to mending kimonos and haoris was intently stirring, making ripples in the boiling water.

"M-mother! I forgot to help you, I'm sorry." Sango said, as she realized that she had been staring a good deal of time over nothing. She was expecting her mother to get mad, but once again, just as she remembered her, her mother smiled at that.

"It's all fine. I'm sure your thoughts are much more interesting than making tea." Sango's mother knelt beside her, filled a cup, then handed it to Sango, who took it gratefully.

"Thank you, I was so thirsty." Sango frowned before she took her sip. Where was her father and Hohaku? "Hey, mother, have you seen Kohak-"

"Oh, dear, look at that, the clouds are darkening. I think it's a good idea to take in the clothes that are drying outside, don't you think?" said her mother quickly, placing her cup abruptly to the ground, and straightened up. "Sango, dear, do you mind if you cleaned up? I have to hurry, or the clothes are going to get wet."

"Alright." Sango nodded, and began to clean up. Before that, however, she looked outside, where her mother was hastily heading towards the rear part of their house. Looking up at the sky, she could see that the clouds were indeed making a move towards their way, and in fact, it looked as though there was going to be a storm.

Adding wood to the fire for some extra warmth, Sango waited patiently out the window for her mother to arrive. The sun was almost going to sleep, but the clouds had yet to come. She hoped her mother would come back before the storm came.

Sure enough, after a few moments later, her mother's form came into view, hobbling with the many blankets and clothes. The door opened clumsily, and she dropped them on the floor. Sango hurried to help out, but her mother reached out for her arm.

"Sango." her mother said, silently, looking avidly into her eyes.

"Yes, mother?" asked Sango curiously. There was something in her mother's eyes that she couldn't put. They burned with something like uncertainty, anguish, and confusion. "Are you alright?"

"I feel wonderful. But..." her mother pressed on. "I was wondering if you could tell me something."

"Okay, sure, anything." Sango replied brightly, hoping that her mother would release some of this weird tension she was feeling. "Go on."

"Sango...I want you to tell me...Why...Why did you let your father and brother die?"

She felt her breath cut short. 'What? What was she talking-What did she mean?' "Mother, I don't-"

"Why?" her mother repeated, holding onto Sango's arm tighter. Sango pulled hard on her arm to get it away from her mother's grasp. She backed away, shaking her head in earnest.

"Mother, I swear, I didn't do anything-"

"Tell me the truth, Sango. Only the truth can save you." her mother whispered, staring at her reapproachfully.

"Mother, I don't know what you're talking about-You weren't there when they died!" Sango said quickly, backing away to the front door, and stepped outside.

But outside there were unexpected visitors. A samurai stood at the ready, waiting for orders. Apparently, orders from her mother.

'The samurais from the lord's castle!' Sango thought, feeling as if she was in for some trouble. "I don't get it-Mother, why are they here!"

"I think you know why." her mother said solemnly, her face impassive. "Tell me the truth, Sango, the truth can set you free."

Sango shuddered. This was wrong. So wrong.

The clouds continued to cover the land below, casting long shadows. The sun was dimmed, and vision was almost a challenge. A thunder rang in the distance, and the dark clouds flickered with light. Birds scattered in the distance, looking for a safer place.

She looked at her mother again. Only this time, her father's head replaced hers, his head rolling around on her shoulders uncontrollably, his eyes focussing on her as his head rotated. A sneer was present on his usually stoic face.

"Tell them the truth, Sango. How you just stood there..." the head resembling her father's smiled. "You let the monster take control of your brother...You weren't looking after him..."

Thunder boomed again. This time, it was accompanied by the light droplets of water.

"I couldn't do anything." said Sango in earnest, as she watched the army surrounding her and her 'mother', who was advancing. "I tried, really, I did."

"If you tried, then why did they attack me with the arrows, sister?" Kohaku's voice came, her father's head slowly morphing into her brother's. The hairline was changing, and so was the aging skin. His youthful face was stained with sadness towards his sister.

"Kohaku." Sango called out. "You know me. You know that I tried. If it were different, I would have gladly taken my life for your own."

"So be it." Kohaku's voice laughed, and Sango's mother's face was shown once more.

At once, all of the samurai charged, and Sango braced herself for inpact. There were too many of them. There were at least thirty men, and she was the only one there. Nothing made sense. Sango frantically searched for an escape route, as the men drew their swords. One man was much closer to her, but she dodged it easily, and was ready for the next man to attack. The one after that she managed to disarm with a high kick-also with the possibility that she had broken his wrist. Sango continued to back away, but she knew that she can't keep fighting back without her hiraikotsu. Worst thing was, that even when she didn't have the injuries that she thought she had, she was still tired.

A lucky samurai managed to graze her left shoulder with his knife. Blood and water mixed, and fell to the ground.

"This-is-insane!" Sango shouted, pulling together all of her energy, with all the force she could muster-which she thought would make even Inuyasha-and pushed through one of the weak cluster of samurais.

Almost losing her balance, Sango ran as fast as she can to the forest, with the men all heavily on her tail. She did not dare look back. Grasping her shoulder from the pain, her feet snapped and cracked on the twigs that were still safe and dry from the rain. The kimono that she was wearing was weighing her down, and she could not run any faster. Close-knitted trees made it impossible to run flat-out, but if she remembered correctly about her old village, it would be that a clearing is nearby.

Faint rustling up above made her look up.

'Great. Just wonderful.' Sango groaned in her head as she spotted a couple of samurai chasing her through up in the tree tops. Like monkeys they hopped from branch to branch, keeping their swords in a firm grip. The rain made the forest floor wet by now, and it was harder to maintain a proper speed while holding a good balance. She slipped a couple of times, got the hem of her kimono double of that, and her breath was getting very raspy-yet they still chased her. As a matter of fact, they seemed to be getting closer. Her hair was now sopping wet and almost completely obscuring her vision. But before her spirits began to decline, a view between the trunks of the trees made her heart skip a beat.

"Hah-hah-I'm almost there." she panted, as the clearing came closer. Sango glanced behind her. Sure enough, the were coming closer, too.

In a couple of seconds, yes, she made it. Sango made it in one piece all right, and now she just wanted to turn around and run the other way.

She got herself trapped by heading towards a cliff.

"This-is-ri-dic-u-lous!" shouted Sango, coming to a halt a few feet from the edge. "Nothing is as cliched as this!" she turned around to face the army that caught up to her.

They all had their swords out once more, and by the expressions on their faces they were sure that Sango won't get away this time.

"End of the line." one of them spoke tonelessly, the sword poised in his hand, ready to strike. All the others followed suit.

"It can't be." Sango muttered. "This has to be fake. My own mother can't hand over her own daughter like this. Plus, she's dead-ARGH, I can't believe I've been so stupid." It was so obvious, she wanted to smack herself for being fooled.

Facing the approaching samurai, Sango backed farther until she was teetering at the edge of the cliff. Her left shoulder was throbbing slightly, and she felt desperate to find out the truth. The rain beat heavily down on her as she sorted out her thoughts carefully.

Then, closing her eyes, she jumped.

-

At first Sango thought she was dying. From the time she 'jumped', everything went black, and she saw nothing more. Then, her body began to regain her consciousness, which meant that now she could feel the pains in her body as it was before. Panic then arose as she awoke, submerged in the tub. With a big heave, Sango surface, breathing heavily. The presence that she felt on her neck was gone, replaced with dull numbness.

For several moments Sango stayed immobile, until she could get back to reality. There was one thing she was certain about. She had to get out of here.

Sango got briskly out of the tub, ignoring the sore feeling of her body. Then, she scrubbed herself with the soap, and took the jug of water, gradually pouring it out, rinsing her hair in the process. The smell of honey and mint now radiated off her skin. She didn't really know what to think; that she should hate it because if Naraku used the same kind of soap that she used, or even took a bath, now she smelled like him; or hating the face that if either of them bought the damn bar of soap, and now she was starting to like it.

Tired of listening to her rambling thoughts, Sango fitted on the peasant-like robes, and tied up her hair. The robes were a plain creme of colour, two-toned, where one part made up the top, and the darker creme made up the bottom.

Picking up the remains of her suit, Sango straightened herself out once again, and placed a determined look on her face.

Haphazardly she slid the door open, coming face to face with a confused Kagura.

"Took you long enough." she said, crossing her arms. "At least you don't stink as much. Now you only stink like a human."

Sango ignored the comment, and instead turned her back on Kagura, her hair swinging dangerously from side to side as she began to walk back.

"Go on, Kagura. Lead me on." said Sango flatly.

"What?" asked Kagura, more confused. "What are you talking about. I just lead you to your shower."

"Lead me on. Lead me on to Naraku." repeated Sango as she stopped, and waited for Kagura to show her the way.

-

C.A.: Hello, um, yes, I know, it's late, but I'm posting it up now, I hope you like it. Took me a while to rethink things over again, but the idea came when my head bumped into a hanging plant at home. Mind you, it was pretty low, since I'm only about four feet eleven inches...Bad for someone my age...But yes, thoughts? Comments? I am very grateful that some of you have placed so much faith in me. Thank you.

Oh, exams are in five days! Wait...What am I doing, writing fanfiction?

So...yeah. Oh, thanks for reading, and reviews do keep me very happy.