Naraku's Phoenix: Fear not, dear readers! This project is not dead! (Full Author's Note at the end.)

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Haruhi groaned at the stiffness in her back that led to her eventually waking up. She rolled onto her stomach and stretched across the full length of the bed listening to the little pops of relief crackling from her joints. The warmth of the sun was pleasant and it was only when nature called that she forced herself to get out of bed. So as she swung her legs onto the floor, she only briefly registered that Nekozawa's bed was empty before slipping some shoes on and going outside to relieve herself. Once back in the house, she peeked around the corner from the kitchen.

"Kaoru-san," she called, "Hello, anyone here?" Only silence responded. She glanced around, once more, to make sure before going back to the bedroom. Sure enough, Kaoru had packed up and left. Haruhi sighed a breath of relief for having one less problem to deal with.

She turned around and saw a folded piece of parchment next to an emerald laying on her nightstand. Curious, she moved the trinket aside and opened the letter.

Haruhi,

I cannot apologize enough for the trauma I inflicted upon you, yesterday. I can only hope that I have your forgiveness and will trust you to please, please, keep this incident between us. Since Umehito kept you hidden during my previous visit, he obviously doesn't want us to meet each other, yet. I've no doubt that your "Neko-sensei" will introduce me at a later date, but for the sake of my head and your safety it would be best if he didn't know of our encounter - at all.

Another thing, I will not apologize for inquiring how you and Umehito became housemates. He may be one of my best friends, but that means I know how truly dangerous he can be. Though you and I are only acquaintances, I want you to have this broach. It may not seem like much, but it will provide some extra protection, if only a little. Keep it with you, if you can, or at least when you feel uneasy. Watch yourself, ok?

I look forward to meeting you, again, whenever that may be.

-Kaoru

Haruhi sighed and stretched her leg out to examine the bandaged calf. Gingerly she lifted her leg on the bed and slowly removed the wraps. She gasped.

'It's like it never happened,' she thought.

Meeting Kaoru wasn't something she'd soon forget, and it terrified her that someone besides Nekozawa could enter the property. Who else knew about the blind spot in the barrier? But what terrified her the most was that she wasn't prepared to protect herself. If someone less kind than Kaoru had been the one to attack her…well, she didn't want to think about that. Shaking the thought from her head, Haruhi took Kaoru's gift and hid it in the bottom of her trunk. She sighed and tore the note to pieces. She would add it to the fire, later.

Kaoru's visit wasn't entirely unwelcome, though. Circumstances aside, it had been nice to spend time with someone other than Nekozawa or Bereznoff, for a change. She could have taken advantage of his company and talked more, but he was an uninvited stranger whose trustworthiness was still up for debate. Regardless, Kaoru's worrying tone and "good-luck" emerald watered the seed of doubt she was trying to bury, and it bothered her that Nekozawa could still ignite fear in an old friend.

'Am I doomed to always be afraid of him, too?' she thought.

Haruhi had been working on making the best of her situation, and that included upholding her end of the deal as best she could and, also, working to stay on good terms with Nekozawa. She figured it would be best to establish some kind of positive relationship as soon as possible to make her stay with him more comfortable in the long run. But then Kaoru came along and made her question Nekozawa's intentions. Sure, he had agreed to her deal of simple servitude and even offered to tutor her in academia and magick, but at the end of the day she was essentially a slave, if he wanted her to be. He had given her comforts and privileges she hadn't expected to receive, and just as he had given them he could easily take them away. This was part of the reason she returned his kisses two days ago. The other part was because…well, she wasn't exactly sure. Nekozawa had a habit of consuming her thoughts, lately. Unfortunately, so did Bereznoff.

Haruhi was beginning to learn that any meanness from Nekozawa was because of his specter. Bereznoff was the one who threatened and abused her, but Nekozawa's handsome face would always be at the front of those memories.

Suddenly, Kaoru's voice echoed in the back of her mind.

'Bereznoff came to Umehito at a very young age…'

How long was Bereznoff part of Umehito's subconscious? After all those years, why hadn't her sensei managed to fully control him? Just how dangerous was he that not even a full grown wizard could contain him? Was there anything more powerful than him that could get the job done?

'Maybe if I knew more about him,' she thought, 'I could understand him.'

After her daily chores were complete, Haruhi would start researching Nekozawa's black magick books.

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Back in Haruhi's village, Nekozawa had risen with the sun and made sure all of his belongings were securely attached to the cart. He smiled at the thought of Haruhi's face when he showed her the prizes he collected.

'I can't wait either,' said Bereznoff, 'I like it when she cries.'

'Tears of happiness,' retorted Nekozawa.

'She isn't the type who can be bought with gifts - I can tell. But by all means, shove the life you took away from her back in her face.'

'Are you beginning to contradict yourself? It sounds like you're starting to care about her feelings.' Nekozawa chuckled at the thought. Bereznoff did not offer a reply as they exited the barn. Nekozawa was about to enter the forest path toward home when a jittery aura caught his attention. He turned around.

"May I be of service to you?" he asked.

The young, sleep-deprived man standing in front of him was absolutely trembling. He removed his cap and was fidgeting with it while staring intently into the ground.

"I…I j-just wanted to, um, a-ask you s-something…" When Nekozawa did not reply, the young man continued, "D-during your last visit…a friend…of mine…di-disappeared."

Nekozawa kept his composure and calmly stared at him.

"Pity," said Nekozawa, flashing a smile, "I hope you find him."

Arai stood rooted to the spot until Nekozawa had disappeared, from sight and sound, into the foliage.

Arai ran to the Fujioka house.

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By the time Nekozawa returned home, it was well past evening. The rolling clouds cast themselves across scattered moonlight, and the light whistle of the breeze made him feel completely at peace. He parked his cart out back, unloaded a few of the bags, and entered his home through the kitchen. Given the time, he wasn't surprised that there was no candlelight to greet him. He conjured his floating ball of fire, and a soft, flickering blue blanket illuminated his surroundings. The first thing he noticed was a bowl of cold stew on the table, covered with a cloth. He smiled.

Nekozawa removed his dirty boots and set them by the back door. He stretched his back and headed toward the bedroom, but he never made it.

Sitting in the living room, under the pale glow of a dying candle, was Haruhi. She was sleeping on a bed of cushions that were usually kept in storage, and she had several books scattered on the floor around her. Nekozawa knelt down to examine the mess and was taken aback when he saw all of her books were from his black magick collection.

'Why was she researching the dark arts?' he wondered.

'To look for your weaknesses,' replied Bereznoff.

He ignored his specter and dared a glance at Haruhi's sleeping face. She looked so peaceful. His eyes then trailed down the rest of her form and realized that she was using one of his cloaks as a blanket. He didn't remember the last time he felt so touched, so…happy. And he was going to savor this feeling.

Coming to a decision, Nekozawa dropped his bags on the opposite side of the room and removed his cloak, vest, and pants, leaving behind his loose, long-sleeved tunic and undershorts. He carefully crawled next to Haruhi, under his cloak, and extinguished his blue fire. He then wrapped his arms around her torso and pulled her close, relishing the feeling of her warm body against his. He nuzzled his cheek into her hair.

'I could get used to this,' he thought.

'You'll regret it, if you do.'

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Naraku's Phoenix: Yikes! It's been a LONG time, hasn't it? I've had a lot going on in my personal life since my last update, and all I can say is how thrilled I am to be writing, again. For every Follow, Favorite, and Review, I can't tell you how much your continued support means, to me.

I can't say, for sure, how often I will update now that I'm back in the saddle, but just know that I haven't given up and will continue this story as my free time permits. I have an entire world to share with you, filled with twists and turns, love and glory. I've also been thinking about making some accompanying fan art to go along with this story, as I've done with my Naruto reboot, "Donna Sakura." Would you like that?

Thank you for reading. Stay tuned for the next chapter.