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In a New Light	By : Sylean Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > Naraku/Kagome Views: 17606 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 4
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any profit from this story.

Chapter List
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In a New Light

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any profit from this story.

Warning: There will be lemons in this story, some non-con as well.

Chapter 38: Meiro, Demon of the Nightmare Maze

'Kikyo's arrow went after Naraku, and it disappeared as well,' Kagome realized distraughtly. 'But how will I know if Naraku is unharmed. I hope I didn't hurt him. I know my powers wouldn't, but Kikyo's might…' They retrieved the shard and left, following Sesshomaru out of the Gate in the Realm of Fire. Inuyasha kept barking about "how the hell did you manage to get through alive?" only to be met with Jaken's bragging about how his Lord Sesshomaru can do many things that the weak half-breed could not. It was a rather noisy trip outside the cave.

In the abandoned temple clinging to a mountainside cliff that Hakudoshi had been using as a hideout, the demon boy lay hovering in a barrier when a second barrier burst in from the side, bringing with it a strongly charged arrow that struck him in his chest and the pieces of flesh that used to be Naraku's body. 'This arrow,' Naraku speculated, dismayed over the projectile that cast Hakudoshi out of the barrier and to the floor, 'Kagome was the one who shot it, but its spiritual power belongs to Kikyo.' He could still feel her powers rippling over his skin, and strangely, giving him the strength to meld his body together. 'Hakudoshi's barrier connected me to this world, and if Kikyo's powers had left that arrow and come after me, I would not have been able to return. I guess I haven't run out of luck just yet. But Kagome, why would she…'

"This is only the beginning," the jewel took this opportunity to plant doubts. "Kagome will only continue to impede you, she may even end up killing you in the name of duty."

'Her powers gave me strength; she has not turned on me. Now be silent,' he commanded disbelievingly, not liking those thoughts one bit. 'The only reason she feels obligated to the jewel is because of those around her. If I get rid of them, she won't feel a need to uphold their expectations.'

Later that night, and Hakudoshi had still not recovered from the arrow, whereas Naraku had pieced himself together hours ago from far greater wounds. Was it because of Kagome's powers lending him strength, of because the arrow that struck Hakudoshi had not thought to protect him? Perhaps both.

"That very same arrow broke my barrier once before you know," the boy told him smartly. "You should go immediately and kill Kikyo, as well as that other priestess."

'I cannot sense Kikyo's presence, perhaps she is trying to hide herself,' Naraku pondered. 'That would suggest she is not fully recovered than. I must now lure her out and destroy her, before she becomes even more of a hindrance. Kikyo is the problem, not Kagome.'

It was a pleasantly warm day, but Kagome was having a hard time finding anything to brighten her mood. She still didn't know Naraku's fate and hadn't seen any of his incarnations or Siamyosho to draw conclusions about his state of health. They weren't even out looking for him, an activity that would at least afford her less time to stew, but no, instead they were sitting around and waiting for Inuyasha.

"I wonder where Inuyasha went in such a hurry," Shippo remarked.

"He went to find Kikyo; he went to the spot where he last saw her," Kagome told him solemnly.

"That stupid-" his insult was stopped with a lollipop.

"He can do whatever he wants," Kagome remarked off-handedly, still buried in her own thoughts and as misdirected as it was, was mad at Inuyasha for that. If he wasn't off chasing after her, they could be moving by now. She wasn't even sure if she should be grateful of angry at Kikyo, since she didn't know if her arrow hurt Naraku of not. All this not knowing was driving her insane.

"Shouldn't we have gone with him?" the kit persisted, even with a lollipop in his mouth.

"He probably wanted to talk to Kikyo alone, Shippo," she was getting tired of answering these questions.

"How come you're not upset about any of this, Kagome?" he asked, having no idea the annoyance he was being.

"I don't know," she answered mechanically. 'Because he's not the one I'm worried about,' her mind supplied the truth.

"He's such an idiot," Shippo just wouldn't quit.

"Hakudoshi, go lure out Kikyo, and take along, Kohaku. Do as Hakudoshi tells you," Naraku commanded. He had a feeling something was up with the boy. Normally, he never showed emotion, but lately, he had a constant glare on his face. It was likely that he had regained his memories by now. "How you go about it is up to you. Just make sure that Kikyo cannot stay in hiding."

"Right," Hakudoshi grinned, thinking of which method would serve both ends; bring both Kikyo and Kohaku out of "hiding."

'While Hakudoshi flushes out Kikyo, I will get rid of a few other hindrances,' Naraku grinned to himself, rose to his feet, and took to the air in his barrier. His impressive speed soon had him standing at the entrance to an unnaturally dark, foreboding forest; Naraku knew this was the location he sought. What lay within was what nightmare's were made of; the perfect place for Inuyasha to meet his end. Stepping over the threshold, he walked in boldly, knowing exactly what to expect, and exactly what these nightmares were. Nothing would surprise him here, because he was expecting everything; this forest's keeper would hold no sway over him.

Inuyasha finally got back, and much to Kagome's relief, they were travelling again, aimlessly, but at least they were moving. A burst of wind from nowhere had them covering their faces in protection, and just as suddenly as it came, it dissipated.

"Kagura," Inuyasha growled and pulled Tessaiga, "what are you doing here?"

"I have been instructed to tell you were Naraku is," Kagura stated with amusement.

"Really?" Kagome gasped in shock. 'That must mean that he is okay.'

'Why would he suddenly want us to find him?' Miroku thought quickly before speaking aloud, "This is probably a trap."

"You're probably right," Kagura acknowledged, still not losing the amusement in her voice, "but do you want me to show you or not? You always have the option not to hunt him down." Despite it being a very obvious trap, she was not opposed to sending Naraku's enemies to him; they just might manage to kill him.

"No way, tell us where he is," Inuyasha growled.

"As you wish," Kagura pulled a feather from her hair and took off, leading the group to Naraku's location.

"I wonder what Naraku is planning?" Sango commented as they followed quickly, so as not to lose their guide.

"As do I," Miroku agreed from behind her on Kirara. "We must remain on guard."

It took less time than expected, but the forest finally opened up to him and he found himself in the central core. All that preparation paid off.

"How did you breach my labyrinth?" a less than happy voice echoed.

"Meiro, the Demon of the Maze," Naraku addressed and watched as the clump of vines in the center writhed and twisted into the rough shape of a man, "you will assist me." Any who could breach the maze, and all its nightmares, would automatically gain this demon's services, however, it was a rare feat, only every century or so would one get through.

"How may I be of service?" the voice was now more singular, pinpointed to the figure. The maze was Meiro's only defense; in the core as they were, he was defenseless.

"He's in there," Kagura pointed to the forest's only entrance as she landed on the ground gracefully.

"How do we know he's actually there?" Sango questioned skeptically. Kagura was still Naraku's incarnation, she could be just telling them some random forest housed Naraku when he wasn't actually there.

"I can sense the jewel; its Naraku's shard for sure," Kagome verified.

"That's how," Kagura nonchalantly picked at her nails, leaning against the wall of vines.

"I've heard of this forest before," Miroku informed. "It's a labyrinth that houses a demon at its core, but few ever make it through. Its said that it will test you with nightmares you dare not even dream of."

"So if we go in, we might not come out again?" Sango summarized.

"We could just wait out here until Naraku comes out," Shippo suggested hopefully, really not wanting to go in.

"No way, he's in there, and I'm going to hunt the bastard down," Inuyasha declared rashly as always.

"Well, what's it going to be; are you going in or not?" Kagura urged.

"Why are you still here, Kagura?" Miroku asked, her prolonged presence not something she would do of her own accord. "Do you have additional orders?"

"Yes, monk, but I don't think I'm supposed to tell you," she stated tiredly. At the suspicious looks and weapon-readied stances, she elaborated. "You do not need to worry; my orders are not to harm any of you."

"How do we know you are telling the truth?" Sango pried, her hands gripping tighter to Hiraikotsu's sash.

"Please," she scoffed sarcastically, "if I wanted to, I could have killed you all by now. I'm simply instructed to follow, and if I disobey, he will kill me."

"Fine, but if you make one false move, Kagura," Inuyasha glared harder, "I'll kill you. Ya got that?"

"Yeah yeah, whatever," she brushed off the threat. 'There is nothing you can do to me that would be worse than what I've already gone through.'

With caution, they entered the darkness, none aware of what they would soon find.

Naraku sat back and watched through Meiro's mind as the demon skillfully split apart the group, each time he would break one from the others, he would replace them with copies of their friends until they didn't even realize they had all been split up in the first place. Using these copies, he then directed them toward separate corners of the maze, isolated, and just waiting for this demon, Naraku, to do as he wished with them. The conversations in each group were identical, using the original's words in each of their copies and essentially keeping them completely oblivious. Sango and Kirara remained together, as did Shippo and Miroku, but Inuyasha was without any of his real friends and all Kagome had with her, besides the copies, was Kagura.

"Perfect. First, I shall pay a visit to Kagome," Naraku grinned mischievously.

It was odd, despite the forest canopy being completely covered and just as firm as the walls and floor, interwoven with vines, there was almost always enough light to see just in front of them. Every now and then, it got pitch black and not even Shippo's foxfire could light the darkness. The forest sucked up the light itself just as it would expel it at intervals; it felt like it was alive, beyond that of the foliage. Inuyasha led the group, ears and nose twitching constantly in preparation for the fight they were bound to wander across, Kagome was directly behind him, protected from the front by Inuyasha, and from behind by Sango holding Kirara, and Miroku with Shippo on his shoulder. The biggest oddity was Kagura, as she walked alongside Kagome in the center of the group. She was being watched very closely by those behind her, but hadn't done anything suspicious. If anything, she looked unbearably bored by the task and was as neutral as possible. The conversation was kept to a minimum, with a stranger at best and enemy at worst in their midst, none of them were particularly comfortable.

'Something feels off, about this place; its not normal. Its far too quiet,' Kagome thought uneasily, and decided to break this tension. "If this is Naraku's trap, why hasn't anything happened?" she asked aloud.

"Oh, but something has happened," the voice of the very one she spoke of radiated around them and his form materialized directly in front of the group. Kagome gasped and looked around at each of her friends, searching for reactions, but found none. Could they not see him? Kagura was looking intensely at Naraku, like she was excited about a battle, but not even Inuyasha was yelling. She walked forward and looked into his face, but it too, was neutral.

"Umm, what happened?" she asked tentatively, playing into his mind game for an explanation.

With a wave of Naraku's hand, the true forms of the copies was revealed to be nothing more than knots of vines that then sank down into the living ground on command, leaving only Kagome and Kagura. Even Kagura had been fooled, but didn't seem to care much. Annoyed was a more accurate description of her mood; she thought Inuyasha was going to have a chance to beat Naraku. But at least Kagome was still here; Kanna had predicted she would be the one after all.

"What happened to them?" Kagome queried frantically, panic seeping in for their expression.

"They are unharmed, simply separated. Those were only illusions," he explained and she calmed slightly. Turning his attention to the glaring demoness, he addressed, "Kagura, you are to protect Kagome in this place. I trust you remember the consequences should you fail."

Swiftly, his previous orders flashed through her mind, "Kagura, follow Kagome and protect her. If any harm should befall her, your punishment in the past will feel like the freedom you so long for in comparison to what I will do to you." His words contained far more threat than ever before and she couldn't help as the fear crumpled her to the ground. "I will not hurt her, I promise," was her trembling response, but even without his threat, it was true, 'After all, she's supposedly the only one who can kill you, Naraku.'

Kagura was only able to get out another terrified gasp at the repeated order, followed by a fearful nod.

'So this is why he had Kagura follow us,' Kagome mused.

"Kagome," he spoke her name upon approach, movements swift and deliberate as he pulled her to him in his arms. The kiss that landed on her lips was fierce and demanding, but she had no inclination to resist, even with the sharp inhalation from Kagura's total shock. His kiss, it always made her so pliable to him and she returned it with just as much desire. "I will return for you shortly. Enjoy... a leisurely stroll, while you wait." At his suggestion, his form began dissolving back into the shadows, losing substance and sight as he literally slipped through her fingers.

"Wait," she called out pathetically, not wanting their contact to be over with yet and having a very bad feeling that it would be the last time they kissed. "Where are you going? What are you going to do? Naraku?"

"He's gone. Would you cease that shrill screeching?" Kagura berated. Kagome only whimpered.

(A/N: Let the downward spiral begin.)
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In a New Light