"My lord, you know the ritual requires pink roses..."
"My lord, how long ago was the dove killed? This blood does not appear to be fresh; over three minutes have passed..."
The woman was angering Naraku. He had obliged to her requests, and each time he returned, she had some silly comment, which prevented her from proceeding. One last time. He would not put up with such an annoyance. She was still convinced he was Sesshomaru, and had even embraced him out of excitement when he returned. It was entertaining; to have the woman look at him with such adoration, but his patience had worn thin. She would not call the shots, nor would she enjoy her time. In her idiotic haze of smiles, the woman offered to give him a massage, and claimed it was natural for her to comb his hair. Of course, Naraku thought it ridiculous, but did not protest. It was nice to have somebody pamper him, and if Sesshomaru got such treatment all the time, he would not mind pretending to be Sesshomaru for a while.
Being an evil lord was a lot of hard work. He needed a form of stress relief. After the woman worked all of the tension from his back, and cared for his hair, he took his leave again to find the ingredients once more. At least nothing was wrong with the candle. Nevertheless, Naraku would try once more. If she had an issue with the items, he would simply take what he desired.
The only thing Nazoki could find in the room was nearly withered leaves she had grabbed as she was sucked into the portal. Though her wounds ached, and she wished to sleep, the imposter Sesshomaru was bound to come back again and expect her to do something with dove blood. Needless to say, she didn't know what could be done with such a substance. He had already returned twice. She feared one more chance was all she had. She needed to move quickly, yet her only choice was a painful one. Grabbing one of the leaves on the floor, she tucked it under her hair. Her form would not be as stable as a fresh leaf would provide, but as long as she did not stop, or waste time, she was bound to escape. Who would suspect a fly on the wall? Nazoki shifted into a lizard, and moved to the door. She managed to crawl beneath it, and examined the hallway. It was identical to that of which she had seen in the dream. Bamboo paneling and multiple doors.
Natural light could be seen coming from around the corner. In a matter of seconds, Nazoki was approaching another crack in the door. As far as she could tell, the house was empty. The crack in the door provided an easy escape. Just as she thought she could breathe a sigh of relief, a cup was placed over her tiny body. There was no way to escape. Sitting over her was a man with black hair and red eyes; cruelly smirking down at her. She would be forced to shift again. It was already tedious, her body was sore, and morphing it agitated her wounds. Immediately returning to her original form, the vixen clutched her stomach and winced. The glass, which had been over her shattered, and she felt some of the shards digging into her legs. Surprise crossed Naraku at the sight of the woman, and she peered up at him through her pained squint.
"You thought you could escape?" The man asked, and a wide grin curled his lips. The question sounded more like a humorous observation, and Nazoki carefully pushed herself to her feet. Before she could complete the motion, something shot from the man's body and shoved her back to the ground by her neck.
"Stay down." The man commanded, and Nazoki stared at the large tendril of demonic flesh, which had wrapped around her neck. It had come from the man's arm, and was as wide as her body. She had never seen anything like it before in her life.
He started towards her, a calm scowl tugging his features. Panicked, the vixen remained in place as he crawled over her.
"Did you think that I would be so easy to deceive?"
Crimson eyes locked to Nazoki's and she managed to shake her head.
"No, my lord... I simply wanted to see the real you..." Reaching towards the man, she gripped his dark kimono. He stared down at her, obviously not believing a word of her lies.
"Y- You do not have to take another form to please me- I- Find you handsome as you are..." The man's grip around the throat tightened, and she pulled at his sleeves, hoping he would release her. But then she felt it. A prying hand on her chest. Moreover, if the thing around her neck was the man's other arm, then what was snaking up and around her thigh? That was not acceptable. While she may have been trying to seduce the man, she definitely did not want to bed him. Placing a hand to his face, she shot flames over him. He cried out, yet barely moved. His grip tightened around her throat once more, and Nazoki knew she could not withstand the man's force.
She only had one choice.
Though she had promised herself she would never do such a thing, desperation led her to believe it was necessary. A connection never works one way. Sesshomaru had drained her plenty of times, unknowingly, but he still had. The lord could handle far more then Nazoki, and recuperate faster. Vowing to be as minimalistic as possible, the vixen mentally reached for her mating ring.
Scowling at the man over her, Nazoki gripped his hair. She pulled him within inches of herself, and gazed into the windows of his eyes. A deep scowl had taken him, and he calmly watched her.
"Release me..." Before the man could respond, or show any expression, Sesshomaru's lightening danced from Nazoki's hands. The tendril around her neck retracted, and the vixen scrambled to her feet as Naraku was forced back. He yelled in surprise, and cursed her, but before she could make it any farther than a meter from the steps and shift, another tendril gripped her ankle. The vixen fell, and was dragged along her elbows, and one knee as she was pulled back.
"That will not-"
"You wish me to remain? Very well... I will return to you... I give up..." Peering at the man over her shoulder, Nazoki studied the victorious grin displayed on his face. He knew she was no match for his power. She narrowed her eyes at him, noting the sudden halt of his actions. Maybe he believed she would. The expression was pure malice, and as he started to chuckle, she turned, grabbed the tendril, and channeled a burst of her own flames, and Sesshomaru's electricity. The burst was enough to disintegrate the flesh around her ankle, and stall the man who seemed to feel no pain. She quickly shifted into a fox, and took to the skies. A small cluster of birds scattered as she flew through them. The surrounding area was entirely dark. Though the sun shined upon the world, the ground itself was covered in wreckage, sparse foliage could be spotted from above, yet it was nothing capable of concealing oneself behind. Except in the distance. A forest was close enough to set her sights on, only a few kilometers away.
Of course, fleeing would not be as easy as that. In less than a minute there were multiple wasps, and demons trailing behind her. Glancing back, Nazoki weaved one last illusion. Well, two, but that was splitting hairs. Multiple foxes joined her in the air, all identical to her. Nazoki weaved around the images, blending into the troop. In her haste, she had managed to conceal few birds, which were in flight behind her.
From where Naraku stood, he watched the multitude of kitsune in flight. It was a nice trick, but he would no doubt be victorious. The foxes all started to part ways, and his youkai were hot on their trail. Naraku grinned as his demons attacked some of the foxes, only to have them disappear. However, they were soon replaced. As the group neared the forest, a shriek filled the air. In the jaws of one of his many demons, Naraku spotted a limp fox. Tens of the foxes dropped to the ground, including the one in question. When the illusions died, one thing remained; a very bloody, immobile vixen. Satisfied with the unexpected turn of events Naraku recalled his youkai. They brought him the body, and the man smirked down at the would-be bait. Though he now had no advantage over Sesshomaru, he could still appreciate small game he had engaged in. With a wave of his hand, the man stalked back inside his hideout. The youkai would devour her, and return to him. He would have her advanced power of illusion to add to his own, and anything else she had to offer.
Perhaps tentacle sex wasn't for everyone. Well, he didn't care, they just didn't know how amazing he could be with those things. His only regret was that he could not partake in such an entertaining chase once more. That and the fact that he would never know what the woman did with the dove blood.
"Where is Naraku?"
Demanding the information, Sesshomaru glared at Kagura. She stood before him, tucking her feather into her hair.
"Why do you ask?" The woman smirked, gazing at the hand the lord held. The man tucked it into his pocket, and eyed her. Though the lord constantly maintained no expression, he seemed to be increasingly angry. By chance, they had crossed one another outside of an old shack in the mountains. The entire clearing of the forest was dark, despite the fact that it was day. A thick fog hung in the air; blocking the sun and making it difficult to see one another. Kagura knew exactly what Sesshomaru was on about, but she did not care. She had a job to do. Seeing the man's obvious irritation, she smirked.
"If you really want to know, you'll do me a favor." The woman offered, and Sesshomaru remained in place. He proudly stood, resting his hand on his sword. His eyes could have easily sliced through stone.
"This Sesshomaru will not play your games."
Kagura's widening smirk led the lord to believe she knew why he was asking. He could smell Nazoki on the woman. The scent was faint, yet still there. Days had passed since her capture, and with each passing hour, his patience wore thinner. Two days earlier, Sesshomaru had been searching for the proper mountain, only to find himself tired. There was no explanation behind the event. His only clue was that the ring on his finger grew cold, and tightened around him. Never before, had Nazoki's ring done such a thing. Needless to say, it only led Sesshomaru to assume the worst. It had not pulsed since then, and remained a lower temperature than usual.
Chuckling, Kagura covered her lips with her fan. She darkly stared at Sesshomaru, and lowered her chin.
"It's the fox, isn't it?" The woman mused, extending her fan to the right. Upon hearing the accusation (which translated as an insulting hint at weakness), the lord tightened his jaw.
His cold expression was enough to answer Kagura's question, and she chuckled once more, moving her fan back to her lips.
"There is no need to search for her." She stated, smirking with her eyes. The woman studied Sesshomaru's reaction- he did not appear to be pleased, or amused.
"She did not even last three days; tried to escape, and for that, Naraku ensured that she would never do so. Her corpse was absorbed. Probably after he had his fun with her, that is."
Upon hearing the information, Sesshomaru scowled. He offered no warning before charging towards Kagura. He slashed at the woman with his Tokijin, and she found herself unable to do anything but leap away. Startled, Kagura cried out at the burst of energy, which she was positive, would rip her apart. What was wrong with the man? He never cared about anything! Though he may not admit it, it was obvious that he felt something for this woman. Luckily, Sesshomaru was not intent on killing her. Just lashing out. She was not injured too badly from the blast. Almost immediately after the blow, Sesshomaru charged through the dust, which had risen, intent on striking once more. Evading another lethal swing of the man's blade, Kagura sent a counter attack at the man. With her fan, she proclaimed her dance of blades, which he easily dodged. As the woman attempted to jump on her feather, she was grasped from behind, and slammed to the ground.
Firmly held in place, Kagura gripped Sesshomaru's arm as he tightened his grasp on her neck.
"Where is Naraku?" The man demanded once more, not caring if his eyes were flashing between his states. The woman gazed up at him, through her pained cringe. His reaction to her bluntly stated news shocked her. That and the fact that through his snarl, she could tell his face was threatening to elongate into a snout.