~ Children of the Well ~




Author's note, fun! Well, let's get this over with, disclaimer: No, we don't own InuYasha, however much we would love to, we aren't going to lie to ourselves. Rumiko Takahashi has them. We are in the process of 'persuading' her that it would be better in our hands, but . . . Hey, we DO own Midori and Sesshomika. Anyway, on with the show!


Chapter One

Of Mothers, Fathers, and Daughters


Midori slammed the door shut behind her as she stomped out of the house. She was so angry she couldn't even speak, which, for her, was very strange. She was hardly ever quiet or at a loss for something to say, a trait that, ever since she could remember, her mom had blamed on her father.

That was the only thing Midori ever remembered hearing her mom say about her father, other than that the subject was closed. Her mom would go all cold and silent if she was questioned any further. It was really creepy. It was almost like he had dropped off the face of the earth or something, and with all that mystery and so little imformation, her mom couldn't blame her for being just a little curious. He was her father, after all, didn't she have a right to know? And, anyway, it was her own fault really for not saying anything about him.

She shook her head angrily. She didn't like this train of thought. It was doing nothing except reminding her of the conversation she had with her mom earlier.

It had begun so simply, just like every other morning since fifth grade. The only thing she had done wrong was ask a question about her father, a small, insignificant question, and her mom had overreacted, as usual . . .

"So, Mom, are you going to tell me the truth today?" she had asked as she came into the kitchen. "Am I some kind of Jesus child, or do I actually have a father? You know, like normal kids?"

"Well, dear," Kagome began, "I had hoped to keep this from you, but I guess you would have found out sooner or later. You were born of a virgin." She quickly turned around and began washing the dishes again.

"Uh huh. Riiight, Mom. Do you really expect me to believe that? Well, here's a newsflash. I stopped believing the stork brought me when I was six. Tell me the truth, Mom! Why won't you talk about him? What, did he leave you barefoot and pregnant or something?"

"Midori, I will not talk about him. How many times do I have to tell you that!?"

"Hmm, well, let me think . . . ONE! This is the first time you've ever even admitted I had a father!"

And, while she was more angry than anything else, she was also amazed. She had actually gotten her mom to admit it! She had actually said the words! She stared quietly at her mom, wondering if she would say more.

"Well, of course you have a father!" Kagome had yelled then, exasperated. "How in the hell do you think I had you!? Gods, Midori, you are exactly like your father!"

The last comment made Midori hesistate, but only for the smallest part of a second. Time enough to think about that later. "According to you, I was 'born of a virgin,'" she said, hoping to get more information out of her. She shook her head. "Wow, Mom, you're a living miracle. A virgin one moment, not the next. So, which is it?" she asked lightly. "Are you a virgin or not? Do I have a father or not?"

Kagome threw down the plate she had been washing. It shattered on impact with a sharp tinkling sound on the floor. She whirled around to face her daughter. "Midori, don't you have to be leaving for school? I mean . . . you don't to be late again, do you?" And she quietly walked out of the kitchen.

"Fine. If you want to get rid of me, that's just fine," Midori muttered as she grabbed her bag off of the table and swung it easily over her shoulder, "but you can't run from the subject forever, MOM!"

And so, here she was, walking down the steps that led from the house to the shrine with the wind blowing her hair annoyingly into her face.

So, she acted like her father, huh? Good. She didn't want to be like her mom in any way, shape, or form. Who in their right mind would? She certainly didn't look like her, that was for sure. There had been times when she was growing up that she wondered if maybe she had been adopted, the two looked so different, but, unfortunately, no such luck. She was slightly taller and lighter than her mom, and while Kagome had long, black hair and dark brown eyes, Midori wore her strange thick silver-white hair shoulder length and her eyes were the color of pure amber. She was also stronger and faster than anyone else she knew. She was on the track team and could run the hundred meter in less than two seconds; she had beaten the school record her first day there.

She had always supposed these were things she had inherited from her mysterious father. She couldn't think of anyone else she could have picked them up from, since her grandma and Uncle Souta were both like her mother and, of course, she had never met anyone from her father's family . . .

Although, she reminded herself suddenly, she couldn't really say she had never seen anyone that looked a little like her, and Midori found herself remembering an incident she hadn't thought about in years.

She couldn't have been more than four years old at the time, which was probably why she had almost completely forgotten about it. She remembered playing outside with her mom, they had been bouncing a huge red rubber ball back and forth, when Kagome threw the ball a little too hard and Midori missed catching it. It rolled down the steps to come to a perfect stop right in front of the well house.

Laughing, she had ran down to get it as her mom watched her closely from the top of the stairs. She grabbed her ball, a sudden shadow falling in front of her, and looked up to see a tall, slender man standing just inside the doorway. He was dressed in a strange red outfit - to this day she hadn't seen anything else like it - with a sword tied to his waist, but mostly she remembered his hair and eyes. Long, thick, and messy, his hair had been the same color as hers, and his eyes were a cold, glinting golden amber . . . except they hadn't seemed cold at all when he had looked at her. He had smiled then, and it softened his face, making him look gentle, nice. She had liked him instantly.

He held out a hand to her, they had been clawed, she remembered now, but she had taken in without hesistation, tucking the ball under one arm and letting him lead her up the steps.

"Look, Mommy," she had said proudly when they reached the top, "I have a new friend!"

Kagome didn't seem to hear her; instead she stared at the man, a mixture of pain and anger in her eyes, which were glittering with tears. "Inuyasha," she whispered. "We promised."

The man's hand had tightened protectively around Midori's even as his eyes narrowed in fury. "You think I don't remember that!?" he yelled. "I'll leave you in peace just as I promised I would, Kagome, but there is no way in all the hells I am going to go without seeing my child once."

Midori looked back and forth between the stranger and her mommy, wondering who he was talking about. It couldn't be her. Her father was a bad man, not nice like her friend. Her mommy wouldn't be afraid of him if he wasn't mean . . . but she was acting a lot like she was afraid of her new friend, too . . .

She stared up at him, her eyes wide, afraid now, although she didn't pull her hand back.

"Inuyasha," Kagome finally said, "we . . . you can't. We did this for her safety. But . . . I want . . ." She sighed, her eyes closed. "You should see her."

"Thank you, Kagome," he whispered with a nod of his head, then he knelt down to Midori's level. She started to draw away from him, but he smiled, and her fear of him evaporated. He couldn't be mean. Mean people didn't have nice smiles. "Hello, Midori," he said. "I'm Inuyasha."

"Hello!" she replied cheerfully, smiling back. She looked him over again. Now that he wasn't towering over her anymore, she could see all of him, and she suddenly noticed the pointed, furry ears nestled in his hair. She pointed to them. "How come you have kitty ears?"

"It's just the way I am."

"I like 'em!" she told him. "They're like my kitty cats ears!"

Inuyasha grinned at that. "And what is your kitty's name?" he asked.

"Neko!"

Kagome came up behind Inuyasha and laid a hand on his shoulder. She was actually smiling. "She's a lot like you, isn't she?" she said, then, seeming to realize what she was doing, let go and turned away from him. "You had better go," she whispered. "For both of us."

Inuyasha stood. "Come back with me, Kagome," he pleaded as he took her hand, making her face him. "We can make this work. Naraku is dead now. He isn't a threat to us anymore."

"Yeah, Mommy, can we?" Midori asked excitedly, taking her mom's other hand.

Kagome glanced away. "No," she whispered. "There's no way, Inuyasha. It's just too dangerous for her." She looked back at him again, a small, tired smile on her face. "You know we can't," she said quietly as she placed her hand gently against his cheek. "I'm sorry. More sorry than you'll ever know."

Midori saw Inuyasha jerk back, his face hardened as he said, "I am too, Kagome. I'll leave now."

He began to jump down the steps, but, not wanting to lose her new friend, Midori ran after him. She grabbed his hand. "Don't go, I . . . Inu . . . Inuyasha," she pleaded.

He didn't answer right away; he met Kagome's eyes, his own sparkling. "I have to," he said, running a hand through her silky hair once. "I'm sorry."

Once again, he turned to go; this time it was Kagome's voice that stopped him. "Wait!" she called. She moved closer to him, then, reaching her arms around his neck, took the command rosary. "So we always have a piece of you with us," she whispered, her voice choked with emotion.

Inuyasha stared at her for a long moment, then gave her a small nod, and with that he was gone in a blur of red. Kagome and Midori watched after him, Midori with tears in her eyes.

After a few minutes of silence, Kagome slowly bent down to Midori and placed the necklace around her neck, then suddenly Midori found herself in her mom's arms. "I love you so much, Midori," she sobbed.

Confused, Midori hugged her mom back, saying uncertainly, "I love you, too, Mommy."

It was strange, she thought to herself as she fingered the black and white beaded necklace that she still wore after all these years, that she had never stopped to wonder more about Inuyasha. It was obvious her mom had cared about him a lot; he was the only man she ever remembered her mom letting touch her, or even near her for that matter. Could he really be her father? And if he was, where was he now? Had he left them again? Well, obviously. He wasn't around; for some reason, her mom hadn't wanted him there. Why was that? He hadn't seemed dangerous to her. Where had he gone to so fast? And . . . what was the deal with the ears? Or had she just imagined them?

A soft, constant creaking sound interrupted her thoughts. She looked around, annoyed. It was coming from the well house door, which was hanging open and blowing in the wind.

That's weird, she thought. The well house was always kept locked, ever since the day Inuyasha had paid them a visit fourteen years ago. Kagome said it made her feel safer. Who in their right mind would want to break in there? she wondered warily, even as she went toward it.

Slowly, carefully Midori pushed the door open all the way and stepped inside. She had never been inside the well house before, her mother had forbidden it, and she had obeyed, since it really didn't mean that much to her. Now, she wished she had never come in at all. It was creepy and as cold as ice inside, not to mention too dark to see anything except black outlines. She shivered, from the cold or some thing else, she didn't know; what she did know was that she got the distinct feeling she shouldn't be in there.

She started to back out, but by then her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, and she saw the well, and . . . she couldn't . . . just couldn't. Instead, she found herself walking in further, down the two wooden plank steps, toward the well, until she stood over it.

Then, before she even got a chance to stare into the void beneath her, something pulled her in . . .