A/N: I also pre-wrote this story for a project at school. I know it won't make sense in places, but it's the only one out of three that I have finished. I hope you like it!

CHAPTER 1

"Mom, we haven't visited Aunt Rose in centuries," Kagome whined. "Why do we have to now?"

Kagome was in the back of her mother's new emerald-green Eclipse. She and her family were driving all the way toVirginia to see her Great Aunt Rose.

" That's exactly why we're going to see her," Kagome's mom, Sonya, answered. Kagome narrowed her eyes and glared at the back of her mother's seat.

"Please spare me that lame excuse," Kagome growled. Sonya chuckled in the front seat. Kagome rolled her eyes and pursed her lips.

" Please don't make that face, honey," Sonya said turning onto the left lane."It's very unattractive."

Kagome looked at her reflection in the rear-view mirror. Her mother was right; her face was very unpleasant right now. She quickly cleared her face and stared blankly at her expression. Kagome was fourteen, and she definitely looked the part. She was a typical teenager, with long unruly black hair, and dark blue eyes, not to mention the most easily annoyed attitude a girl could have. She wore a simple black T-shirt and torn-up blue jeans. Her hair fell across her shoulders. Sonya smiled triumphantly in the front seat.

Kagome didn't look at all like her mother. Sonya had short, curly, reddish-black hair, and twinkling brown eyes. Her cheeks were always rosy, which matched her personality. Sonya was always very cheerful, and she was never cross with her children. She was always wearing plain clothes, like white shirts or black pants. Even now, she wore a white collared shirt and black spandex pants. Her shoes were black and boring. Kagome's mother was attractive, but her plain attire often gave men the idea she was as dull as her clothes.

"So, how much longer until we get to...Wherever it is we're going?" Kagome asked crossing her arms across her chest.

" Just take a nap and when you wake up, you'll be at Auntie Rosie's," Sonya answered. Kagome sighed and looked over at her brother, Souta, who sat next to her. He was sixteen and really annoying. He was lying across the seat, with his legs half on the seat next to her. His mouth was hanging open and a little dribble of drool dripped down his chin. Souta was wearing an old AC/DC shirt and faded jeans (the same outfit he had been wearing all week). His shoes were off, revealing his holey socks. His short black hair was wild and unwashed (just like it had been all week).He snored loudly and scratched his head. Kagome grimaced and slapped his head.

" Wake up shag-rug,"she ordered." You're totally grossing me out!"

Souta sat up, his eyes fluttered open.

" What the heck?" he yawned rubbing the back of his head. "Why'd you do that for?"

"I did that because you were drooling so much, the car was gonna flood!" Kagome snapped. Souta shrugged and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Better?" he asked. Kagome rolled her eyes and looked out the window.

"You really shouldn't roll your eyes, honey,"Sonya warned. "They might get stuck that way."

Kagome sighed.

" I looked it up. Your eyes won't get stuck if you roll them, Mother," Kagome explained. "That's just something parents made up so their kids wouldn't do it anymore."

Sonya sighed and kept driving. Souta had taken a sudden interest in his shirt sleeve and was smelling it. He looked up at Kagome.

"Hey," he said showing her his sleeve." Does this smell like fish to you?"

" Eew! You freak!"Kagome shrieked. "Mom, make him stop!"

" Souta, please leave your sister alone,"Sonya sighed.

" Yes, ma'am," Souta said still sniffing his shirt. Kagome rolled her eyes, again, and looked out the window. A sign they passed read: 135miles:Richmond

Kagome frowned.

"Mom, I haven't seen a single sign saying anything about Borkins," Kagome said. Sonya looked around at the road signs.

" Huh, you're right," Sonya said. "Good thing I know the way by heart."

Kagome leaned her head against the window and shut her eyes. Before she knew it, she was asleep. She was out cold, but she could still feel her head bumping against the window. The thud was soft at first, then grew violent and she was thrashing around in her seat. She woke up and looked around. It was dark outside and her brother had his head out the window. They were driving down a dark, dirt road, with trees lined up and down the path.

" Mom, where the heck are we?" Kagome asked. Sonya rubbed her eye with her right hand and yawned.

" Almost there," Sonya said. " I know exactly where we are."

"Uh, Mom, this road wasn't on the map, was it?"

"Um...Not exactly, but I do know where I'm going."

" Great, we're doomed!"

" A-wooooooo!" Souta howled. Kagome looked over at him and gasped.

"Souta! What are you doing?!" Kagome yelled. Her brother was hanging halfway out the window, howling like a wolf.

" I'm talking to your kin," Souta said, his head never turned in her direction. Kagome balled a fist and punched his backside. Souta jerked forward, but quickly regained his form.

"Souta, get inside this car before you fall out," Sonya said squinting through the darkness ahead of them. Souta let out a disappointed sigh and sat back down in the car properly. Kagome shook her head and turned to look out the window.

Suddenly, so quick she wasn't sure she had seen it at all, a blur of brown and black zoomed past the car. Kagome yelped in surprise. She blinked and looked out the window again, turning her head in every direction.

" What's the matter sis' ? Lose something?" Souta asked leaning across her lap to look out the window as well.

"Did you see that?" Kagome asked, still searching.

" See what?" Souta asked. Kagome put her hands on her face and blew out a long, exasperated breath.

" I think I've been around you too long," Kagome said into her palms. Souta back-handed her head and sat up straight.

" A-WOOOOOOOOOOO," howled something from outside. Souta let out a startled squeak and grabbed his sister without thinking. At the moment however, Kagome didn't seem to care. She was too busy being frightened herself.

" What the hell was that?!" Kagome asked noone in particular.

" It was probably just a dog," Sonya said waving her hand. Kagome

shook her head.

" There's no way a dog made that noise," Kagome said.

" A-WOOOOOOOOOOOO," The creature howled again. Kagome

shivered and looked out her brother's window. For a split-second, she saw the brown-black blur rush by again.

" There it is again!" Kagome squealed pointing out the window. Souta looked and saw nothing.

"Kaggy, I think you've finally cracked," Souta said pulling himself back to his upright position. Kagome narrowed her eyes at her brother.

" Wait till we get out of this car, Souta,"Kagome threatened. "I'll make sure you never talk again!"

" Mo-om!" Souta whined like a three-year-old." Kagome's being mean to me!"

"Kags, be nice to your brother," Sonya warned. Kagome

folded her arms across her chest and looked at the back of her mother's seat. Soon, her eyes began to droop, and then, they closed tight, leaving her somewhere between sleep and consciousness. Her head felt heavy and she tilted it toward the smooth glass surface beside her. In her sleep, her body felt numb and useless, so she didn't move it. She just lied there.

" Hey guys," someone called." We're here!"

The last words echoed in Kagome's head and caused her to stir. She felt herself being shaken by her shoulders. Her eyes snapped open and she found herself looking up at her brother. Kagome groaned and looked away.

" Good to see you too, Sunshine," Souta said sarcastically. Kagome

grumbled in response. She felt groggy and tired, like she had only slept for a few seconds. Her head was aching from lack of sleep. Souta was looking outside excitedly. Kagome sat up to see what the fuss was about and groaned when she saw what it was. A small cheer-leading squad was having a fund raising car wash at the local gas station. Kagome turned her attention to the town that they had arrived in. It was daytime now, but it didn't help this place seem any better.

The town itself was a little gloomy. Most of the buildings were gray or white, with the occasional exception of a tan house. Every car was small and either silver, black, or white. It was as if the town had a dress code for everything. The town of Borkins was quiet except for the giggling coming from the car wash. Kagome couldn't see any theatres or malls, only small grocery stores and a gray building that had the words, " Dr. Romain's Office" painted on it in plain black letters. The gas station was a dull yellow color and it had tiny gray and black gas pumps. The cheerleaders' posters were the brightest things in this town, and to Kagome, that wasn't saying much considering the posters were baby-blue and white. All the girls' swimsuits were either black or white, and none of them wore make up. Kagome was about to make a rude comment, when something caught her eye.

A boy, about seventeen based on his appearance, was walking down the sidewalk. He-unlike everyone else in this town-was wearing a rather bright outfit. He had on a bright tie-dye shirt, and baggy jeans. He had a pair of bright blue sunglasses perched on top of his shaggy black hair. His skin was sun-kissed and golden, and his eyes were a shockingly bright shade of blue. He definitely stuck out in this dull depressing town.

As they drove by, the boy looked up and for a fraction of a second, his eyes met Kagome's. She flushed quickly and looked away. The car drove farther away and Kagome turned to look at the boy again. He was smiling, and turning a corner putting his hands in his pockets. Just as she sat down, her mother turned down a dirt road to the left.

Kagome pulled the road map out of the glove compartment and looked for Borkins. She searched up and down the map, hoping to find some source of information that could tell her anything about where her mother was driving. She looked over the map several times, and she found no sign of Borkins anywhere. An uneasy feeling churned in her stomach.

" Hey, Mom," Kagome called wearily. " Why isn't Borkins on the map?"

Sonya shrugged form the front seat, but didn't turn to answer her. Kagome looked around her. Tall oak trees surrounded the road and blocked out most of the sunlight. Kagome tried to remember coming this way before, but her memory seemed to grow foggy every time she tried to think about the last time she had seen her Great Aunt Rose. She looked over at Souta and saw that he looked just as confused as she was. She opened her mouth to ask her mother if she was sure she knew where she was going, when they pulled up to an old pale green house.

The house was two stories high, but it didn't seem like it would stay that way for long. It didn't seem very stable, and some of the wood on the front porch had rotted away and fallen off. The windows were caked in dust and were pretty much impossible to see through. Paint had chipped off everywhere on the house, revealing the moldy wood underneath. The front door had a picture of a very large dog carved into it, and the brass knocker on the front of the door was rusted and carved into the shape of a dog's muzzle, except the teeth were jagged and sharp like daggers.

Kagome stepped out of the car and looked around. Souta got out too, and they examined their new surroundings. More oak trees were forming a border around the house, and reaching so high it seemed as though no-one could ever reach the tops. Red and brown leaves were scattered around the yard, which was actually not all that big. Hardly any sunlight made it past the trees, and it gave the house an eery, shadowy look. Souta and Kagome

grabbed their suitcases and walked up to the house.

"This place looks like it jumped out of a horror movie," Souta said softly. Kagome nodded in agreement. Sonya was smiling so wide, it seemed as though her face would fall apart. Kagome followed her to the front porch, stepping lightly so she didn't cause anymore of it to fall apart. They stood on the porch and waited for Sonya to knock, but instead she opened the door quickly and walked inside.

"Uh, Mom," Souta said akwardly." Shouldn't we knock before we come in?"

Sonya kept walking through the house, smiling brightly.

" Mom," Kagome said loudly. " Shouldn't we have knocked first?"

Sonya turned to face her children and stared at them as though she had just noticed they were there with her.

"You okay?" Souta asked putting a hand on Sonya's shoulder.

" Oh, I'm fine," Sonya said cheerfully. " Your aunt isn't here. She went out of the state for a few days."

" Then why did we come here?" Kagome asked in utter confusion.

" We're going to suprise her when she gets back,"Sonya said. "Won't that be nice?"

" If Aunt Rose is as old as this house is, we might end up giving her a heart attack instead of a surprise, " Souta said looking around the inside of the house. Kagome looked at Souta; He obviously didn't know who Aunt Rose was either. She shrugged it off and looked around the inside of the house.

The inside wasn't much different from the outside. The green paint on the walls was peeling in places and parts of the roof was falling apart. All the furniture was covered with sheets and the floor looked like it hadn't been swept in years. Kagome dropped her suitcase at her feet and a cloud of dust rose from the ground and made her break into a sneezing fit. Sonya turned around and walked past her to go up the stairs that led to the second floor. Kagome followed her reluctantly, leaving Souta to explore the downstairs rooms alone.

Like the first floor, the top floor of the house was ancient and decaying. Old paintings lined the walls of the hallway, and an old faded red carpet was on the floor. Kagome stared around. There was four rooms on this floor. Three of the doors were open. Two of those three were bedrooms, the other was a bathroom. Kagome walked up to the closed door and reached her hand out to open it.

" Don't touch!" Sonya snapped slapping Kagome's hand. Kagome jumped back and stared at her mother in disbelief. Sonya had never struck her in her life. Kagome walked backwards, holding her hand as she did. Then, she walked down the stairs and went to find Souta.

A/N: There, the first chapter. If you liked it then tell me, if you didn't then tell me. I need to get some kind of feed back here!