A/N: OMG!!!! I am back. I am SOOO sorry! I have no excuse other than losing heart. A lot of my writings had been deleted, so I lost interest in writing, but after looking through the reviews, I have decided it's been way too long. For the people who have stuck with me this long, you have my undying gratitude. This chapter is for my adorable readers!!!

Disclaimer: I do not of the own Inuyasha persuasion. That goes entirely to Rumiko Takahashi a'ight?

Chapter 5

Of Gardens and Herbs

His hand instinctively reached out to grasp the doorknob and quickly opened it as to make a startling crack, even to his own ears.

Kagome, having heard the loud bang, jerked her head towards the sound and her eyes locked with his.

They stood there for a few minutes, both confused as to what was going on. Kagome looked at the hanyou with a quizzical expression. "N-Naraku…." She stood up from her seated position and faced him.

At a loss as to what to say, Naraku just stood there. He stared at her, taking in her radiance inside this sunlit room. There was an ethereal beauty to her. He took a few steps into the room and finally spoke. "I see you've found the sun room. Does it please you?"

Kagome, not being able to look into his eyes, settled for looking next to him as she replied. "Yes. It's very beautiful."

Naraku noticed her eyes avoiding him just like earlier. He didn't like it. He walked up to the miko and seized her chin, forcing her gently to look at him.

"You've been avoiding meeting my eyes, Koishii. Is there something the matter?"

Startled at the gentle touch, Kagome gasped and looked into his eyes instinctively. A slow smile graced Naraku's features in victory. "See? That wasn't so hard now was it?" Kagome blushed as she looked into his crimson eyes. She could get lost in such eyes. She stared at him for what seemed to be hours, their eyes locked. Naraku moved first.

His lips locked with hers in a forceful kiss. It was a kiss that made Kagome's legs melt. His kiss was demanding. It made her latch to him in desperation. She kissed him back fervently in return. Naraku chuckled and broke the kiss.

"This was punishment for avoiding me. Be careful, koishii, unless you want an even greater punishment"

Kagome wanted to know what a greater punishment would entail...? Maybe something akin to what she had experienced in the bath?

"Come Kagome, let us dine." Silently Kagome observed that she hadn't eaten through the time she woke up til now. She followed the hanyou until she realized she had left Aikonichi without a word. She exclaimed and doubled back.

"Gomen, Aiko-chan!" she exclaimed with a bow.

Aiko smiled and shooed her mistress and friend. "Go to your breakfast. Don't dawdle on me."

Kagome bowed once more and ran back to where she had left Naraku. He was still there waiting for her. He raised an eyebrow at the young miko and she bowed in apology (once again). "Gomen, Naraku."

He just turned and continued forward. Kagome once again followed behind him and they eventually made it to the dining room. They were promptly served and ate in silence. After they finished their meal Naraku spoke up.

"Would you care for a tour of my mansion, Kagome?"

Kagome thought for a few seconds and decided it would be best to take up his offer. After all, she might find something to relay to her comrades. She nodded and followed Naraku out of the dining room. He showed her the different rooms and Kagome was surprised at the sheer size of the mansion. One place she had found particularly interesting was the gardens outside. Like the sun room she had wandered into earlier it was a beautiful area. There were flowers of all kinds and trees of all shapes and sizes.

She ran to a particularly beautiful patch of blossoms and sat on her knees in the middle. It was absolutely gorgeous. There were even some herbs mixed in with them. She got up at the sight of a particular tree and made her way to it. When she was right in front of it she glanced back at Naraku.

"What type of tree is this, Naraku?" she called.

Naraku walked to where she was and looked at said tree. "I'm not quite sure."

There were small yellow blossoms on the tree. She studied it for a few minutes, looking through her mental database of plants and she found what she was looking for. The tree hosted the Muira Puama herb- an herb normally found in India. It puzzled her as to why it would be here in Japan. The herb was a kind of erotic stimulant or aphrodisiac when smoked or ingested. Her hands itched to try it out. She grabbed a few sprigs of the herb to grind later and make a tea out of it.

Naraku looked at her in question. "I know what it is! Don't worry, it's nothing dangerous. I'll show you later." She gave him a wink and dismissed herself to grind her finds. She was grinding it through the afternoon and by lunch she had fully prepared her tea material. She stored it away for later use and went to the sun room once more.

The beauty of the inside garden even still made her loose her breath. Kagome decided to further examine it and walked on the stone path. As she made her way though the "room", she took a mental inventory of every identifiable herb in the mass of flowers that scattered themselves in the grass. She found many that had various properties. Most of the herbs she found had different kinds of healing abilities- burn remedies, stress relievers, and some that speed up the healing process and cure poisons. Others she found did things like make people go to sleep when ingested or some that had very deadly effects.

As she walked, Kagome bumped into another person. "Ah, gomen!" she apologized as she looked to the person she had collided with. That person just had to be Kagura, Naraku's incarnation.

A/N: So there you have it! A new chapter! Please leave a review and let me know how things are going! Did you like it? Was it meh? No flames please cuz fire burns! Anyhow, Those who leave a review GET A COOKIE!!!

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