The wind rustled faintly through the red leaves overhead. Somewhere out in the distant came a faint growl. Mizoshi wondered if she should repeat herself, but quickly decided against it. Wordlessly, half in wonderment, Naraku cupped her face in his hands. Staring into his crimson eyes, she was met with a strange, incomprehensible blankness. It reminded her of the spider's reaction when she had confessed her love to it in preparation for this moment. Like the spider, Naraku had heard her. And, like the spider, he didn't understand.

Smoothly, he rose to his feet; drawing her up with him. In the manner of a gentleman, he recovered her kimono and wrapped it around her shivering frame. He was utterly silent as he shrugged his own kimono over his broad shoulders.

Did I say the wrong thing? What could he be thinking of?

This was a bad sign. Mizoshi hadn't exactly expected him to jump for joy, but this aloofness was killing her. However, Naraku didn't seem angry. No. Instead, he simply seemed dazed.

From out of nowhere, his voice reached her ears. "You look tired, Mizoshi."

"Do I?" She was puzzled.

Snapping his head up, his red eyes started to glaze over in annoyance. "Yes."

"Well…yes. I am starting to feel rather tired." It was the truth. After their lovemaking, Mizoshi was now left with a physical and emotional fatigue she couldn't understand. It was as if something had literally sucked away her energy for the present moment. Could it be from Naraku's obvious dismissal?

"Get some rest," he advised. "I think you are sorely in need of it."

Opening her mouth in confusion, Mizoshi at last shut it. Nodding, she glanced sideways at her lover who was currently beholding the moon above. "Good night, Naraku."

"Good night, Mizoshi," he answered distractedly, his eyes still fixed upon the glowing sliver.

Leaving him to his musings, Mizoshi drifted back inside and shut the screen behind her. As soon as she was out of his sight, a sob escaped her lips. She knew she shouldn't have said it. She should've known he could never understand. In fact, he as well suggested her own fatigue had affected her ability to reason correctly. Perhaps it had. In the throes of passion, maybe she had forgotten precisely whom she was talking to.

Practically dragging her feet, she navigated herself through the wooden corridors and ducked under the covers of her bedding. Even inside her own borrowed walls, she couldn't remove the stain of humiliation from her hot cheeks.

A fool. I'm such a fool…

Naraku was lost in thought while staring at the moon. She had said it. It surprised him at first, but now it was beginning to sink in.

Strange. He couldn't recall a time where a woman had ever said that to him. Usually it was "no" or "please don't." Not with her though.

"I love you." He smirked at the remembered wantonness in her tone. Yet it both amused and disturbed him. Hadn't this what he always wanted? To discover the mystery and attraction of love? The emotion mortals lived and died for?

Not liking the answers to his own questions, he let his mind reel in wavering circles. Despite his better judgment, anxiety was starting to grab hold. How long could she possibly stay here? Didn't he have better things to do? The jewel shards were glinting; somewhere hidden, and he wasn't retrieving them. No. Alternatively, he was indulging in his obsession and wasting precious days pondering useless inquiries.

With a heavy sigh, he left the garden and moved through the girl's former chamber to the familiar hallways beyond. He could navigate every corridor by touch alone now. Indeed, Prince Kagewaki had left behind an exceedingly comfortable, majestic home.

Unsure of where to go, he stepped out onto the veranda he had grown accustomed to sitting on. Out in the distance, he could view his poisonous purple cloud of miasma. The barrier served its purpose. It kept intruders out, and his servants in. And his conquests.

Overhead, the sky rumbled. It did so unendingly in this particular atmosphere where his demons waited to be called. Forked lightening tore across the presently swelling clouds. With the surging mass of white light above, newfound revelation dawned on Naraku. The girl had appeared…different tonight. When he suggested that she move back inside the castle, she seemed to be visibly ailing. In all truth, she had appeared ill. Her skin had been unusually warm, and it wasn't just because of the abnormal coolness of his own flesh. The hurt in her steaming golden orbs had been unmistakable, but there had been a fierce fire burning within as well. Fire.

Somehow, he got the impression that the sudden heat of her body and the burning in her eyes added up to something that wasn't entirely passion. She was part phoenix after all.

Before Naraku could connect the details, a light, shuffling step alerted him. He glanced up to find Kanna standing there, her mirror gleaming from the lightening flashing above. Normally, Naraku would've been annoyed that one should dare intrude his space, but he always made an exception for Kanna. She was his first incarnation, and never wasted a precious moment on trifles or schemes of betrayal. Her words were continuously of great importance.

"What is it, Kanna?" he asked neutrally. "Has something happened?"

She gazed up vacantly into his eyes. "You are troubled, master," she whispered.

He bristled. Was he that readable?

"Shall I take her soul, master?"

Kanna knew. He knew why he was troubled.

Steeling himself, he regained his composure. "No, not yet. She is still of use to me." The little girl demon nodded and drifted away.

Silently, he growled in anger under his breath. He was starting to lose face, and his plans were going unfulfilled. Mizoshi better not have gotten too used to her accommodations. However, he could not handle the matter rashly. After what had transpired tonight, she needed to be watched. Those hot cheeks hadn't reddened because of her declaration of love alone…

Thanks for the reviews, guys! I hope this chapter wasn't too depressing, but never fear. Naraku will come to care for Mizoshi in his own way. (Writing a believable Naraku in a love story is hard. Then again, Sesshoumaru probably wouldn't be much easier.) :) And don't worry, Naraku won't kill her either. In the next chapter, Mizoshi's powers will appear.

bowwowlover: Yeah, I saw that one. That's where Kagura stole Koga's jewel shards, right? That's my favorite episode actually.

Blackwave: Mizoshi will discover her powers by accident and…that's all I'm going to say. (I love being mysterious. :)) Her powers show up in the next chapter.