Self-restraint? What was his meaning?
Feeling very much like the fly, Mizoshi looked first at Kagura and then at Naraku whom was currently grinning openly.
"Mizoshi, you will need discipline on the battlefield--"
Battlefield? He didn't mention I'd be fighting.
"—and I have taken the liberty of giving you a shining opportunity to prove to us both you can control these "fierce demonic impulses." Besides, I can't have you two ladies killing each other, can I?"
"So, why is Kagura here?" Mizoshi's voice sounded weak and strained, even to her own ears.
The dark hanyou's eyes slitted playfully. "Her presence infuriates you the most, correct? This will be a sort of…test."
"And you didn't exactly tell me either what this would entail," the wind witch broke in.
"Silence, Kagura," Naraku hissed. "No one shall come to any harm."
Mizoshi was growing more and more worried. The hell demon still held that malicious grin.
No, not malicious. Sadistic would be a better term.
"Now, my child," his eyes swept over Kagura, "tell dear Mizoshi precisely what you feel about her."
The wind witch raised an elegant eyebrow. "Are you sure, Naraku? Will there be any unpleasant consequences attached?"
"Did you not hear me?" The dark hanyou's tone had dropped to a snarl. "Go on, Kagura."
The incarnation switched her gaze to Mizoshi nefariously. Then she opened her scarlet lips. What came out assaulted her senses. The words Kagura used to describe her were near forbidden. Only the men in her former village spoke such terms, and they were abusive drunks and ruffians at that. Usually, they used this particular vocabulary to describe a dishonorable woman.
Or a whore.
But, the wind witch didn't merely comment. She elaborated. Criticizing. Patronizing. Insulting. And Naraku, the catalyst of this event, went on smirking.
He enjoys this. They both enjoy doing this…
It took considerable effort, but she managed not to burn Kagura to a cinder. Her power was flaring inside her body; almost demanding to be used. Yet, the emotion that prompted it was not anger as the demon from hell had hoped. No. This time, it stemmed from a deep loss.
He hates me this much? I never knew. I never knew until now…
Still, the wind witch would not cease. She was taking perverse pleasure in letting her opinions be known and especially watching her face flush with anguish and hurt. Amazingly, those red lips closed once more. Finally. She had stopped. But, that did not cause the numbing pain in her chest to stop.
"Excellent, Kagura. But why end it there? Continue, please. Tell Mizoshi the absolute truth." That mad grin had grown wider.
Again, the incarnation launched into various expletives, using the coarsest language possible. Some were new, and some were already said.
He likes torturing me? First, the dungeon, and now this? Will I be a toy in this castle to play with and break?
Naraku has turned against me. Now, the rest of my existence will be agony. How long can I live? How long can I stand this
She wanted to cry. All the events of the past week were cropping up in her heart and she just wanted to let the tears fall.
I have done nothing deserving of this…betrayal.
The two demons leered at her. They belonged together actually. Both possessed smoky black hair and flashing vermillion eyes. Both had cruelty etched on their faces, and both were attacking. They would continue attacking for as along as she lived.
I wish I had died in the woods!
Giving in to her tears, Mizoshi turned on her heel and ran back inside the confines of the castle. She didn't slow; she didn't falter. Not until she was inside her borrowed room did she skid to a halt.
Let him find me. Let him lock me in the dungeon. Let him whip me. Let him kill me. I no longer care. My fate is sealed anyhow.
Curling under the silken sheets of her bed, Mizoshi let her emotions erupt. She felt disconnected as her sobs filled the empty chamber. It was almost as if the grief-stricken sounds were not truly emitting from her. But they were. The wetness trickling down her cheeks proved that.
The screen had been left open, but she didn't care. A flimsy screen wouldn't stop them. Nothing would.
Rubbing the tears away after several tense minutes, Mizoshi felt a peculiar hard shell starting to form over her heartbroken body. Soon enough, she knew, it would coat her very soul.
But, she no longer cared. About anything. Or anyone.
She innocently went on to wonder if she could set herself afire before a fitful sleep came to claim her.
Naraku stood alone under the miasma-filled skies. He had sent Kagura away. If she were smart, she would not pursue the girl further. At the moment, Mizoshi was capable of inflicting any form of damage.
It had come as a shock. True, his incarnation had been overly harsh, but he assumed Mizoshi could take it. How sensitive she still was…
However, he had to goad his incarnation, even though he had clearly seen the hurt in Mizoshi's extraordinary golden eyes.
In truth, he had wanted to make it hurt. Ever since Mizoshi's immature display of crackling flames that had nearly damaged his servant and living arrangements, they had both drifted apart, much to his displeasure. And after he had been so kind after gallantly rescuing her from her cell. He had even brought her to a steaming bath and gave her sanctuary in his own bed. And still she scorned him and treated him with great disdain.
Why did she have to be so…saintly?
Yes, it had been a type of vengeance. Since Mizoshi had treated him with disregard, he proved he could do the same. But, he had never expected her to react quite like that. Get livid, yes, but never run away in such a wild fit of hysterics. And, really, the lesson had been for her own good.
It's not my fault she can't fortify her own defenses. Is it that she can't take back what she gives? Her enemies won't treat her nicely.
Suddenly, it struck him. He had acted like her enemy.
Should that bother him? Weren't they enemies now anyway? Besides, what use was she now anyhow? She was more trouble than she was worth. What had possessed him to take her out of the forest in the first place? He should've just--
He was trying not to complete that last thought. Against his better judgment, he wandered into the castle. This castle was still his. Some had obviously forgotten that, not mentioning the name of a certain female brat. It was there in the hall that he caught sight of his eldest incarnation.
Kanna.
"Come here, Kanna," he spoke softly.
Obediently, she shuffled over to him. "Yes, Naraku-sama?" she whispered.
"The girl. The hanyou girl. Where is she now? Have you seen her?"
"She was running down the corridor," Kanna replied, "but, I know not where she is now."
"Then, I shall just have to find her." Naraku couldn't hide the menace in his tone.
Taking his leave, Naraku smelled the air. She was here. She had turned the next corner and took the western corridor. She must be in her own room then.
Of course. The ruffled and offended bird had flown to its own nest. A pity the spider was going to invade it, and maybe more.
Following Mizoshi's scent, he approached her room. What he saw froze him in his tracks.
She was in bed. Under the covers. As soon as Naraku stepped over the threshold, he noticed a saltiness in the atmosphere. It smelled like the breezes that blew over the ocean waves. After a few quiet moments, he identified what it was. The salt from Mizoshi's tears.
He knew not whether she was asleep or not. She had been asleep, before he woke her up for "training." Apparently, she had cried herself right back into unconsciousness.
As he looked in on her lone bundled form, Naraku felt a twinge of something in his still woefully human heart.
For the first time in several odd years, he experienced the faintest trace of guilt.
Another dark chapter, mwah ha ha! I promise, this will be the last angsty one for a while. The next few will be sweeter if any were wondering.
Sesshy-chansbestpal: I love corn and eggs:) (Not together though.) Thanks for reviewing!
Off the Beaten Path: Naraku's a bit confused about what he wants, but underneath everything, he's trying to care. Yeah, he likes her. ;)