A/N: This is my second Inuyasha fic, so I really hope you enjoy it. Ummm, if u like Kikyo then I wouldn't recommend you reading this, 'cause I bash her a lot (I hate her!) In fact, if you like Kikyo at all I'd clear off if I were you :P

CHAPTER ONE: And so it begins...

She said she'd be back soon, so where is she? Eight-year-old Kagome thought desperately to herself as she sat huddled in a corner of her house, listening to the screams and shouts from outside. Mommy...mommy where are you? Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and remembered what her mother had said before she left.

"Kagome, darling, listen to me now as well as you can," the dark-haired woman whispered anxiously to her daughter, squatting down and taking the little girl's hands in her own. "I don't know what's going to happen tonight. I may return, I may not, but no matter what happens you must not tell anyone our secret. Kagome, never tell anyone that you are a miko, do you understand?"

"Yes mommy," Kagome whispered back, her eyes flooding with tears. Kissing her forehead gently and whispering "I love you," her mother then left the house, never to return.

"I will keep our secret mommy," Kagome whispered to herself, holding up the small bottle of the Sacred Jewel shards. Tucking it back down her shirt, she then hugged her knees to her chest and prayed for her mother. She tried desperately to ignore the horrible sounds she heard, but to no avail. Her body was shaking out of fear. Would she survive this demonic attack on the village? Suddenly, the door burst open, causing her to jump. Five beings that she did not know entered her home and looked around.

"It looks like this one's empty too," one of them said.

"No, there's still a child here," another remarked, spotting Kagome, who was shivering against the wall, and pointing at her.

"What should we do with her, Koga?" Four of the figures looked at the figure in the middle, who appeared to be their leader. He walked over to Kagome and bent down to her level.

"What's your name, girl?" he asked gently.

"K-Kagome," she answered in a rather quiet voice.

"How old are you, Kagome?"

"Eight."

"I see. Tell me, are you a miko?" Kagome gulped and stared back at this man. His hair was tied behind his head in a ponytail and his eyes were cold and menacing. Kagome noticed that his ears were pointed and he was wearing furs, meaning he must be a demon of some sort. Not the type of being she could trust her family's secret with.

Gathering up her courage, she answered him in the strongest voice she could manage. "I'm not a miko."

Koga nodded then smiled at her. "Then you must become part of our pack or else we will kill you. Your village is destroyed now, and everyone is dead." Kagome let out a small wimper of pain. Gone? Everybody? They'll kill me if I don't go with them? Fighting back tears, she looked back up at him.

"Are-are you a d-demon?" she asked.

"We are all wolf demons and your new family. You have no choice in this matter. Come, from this moment on you are one of us." Koga stood up, then turned towards the door and called "Ayame!" They waited a few minutes until a young girl, about Kagome's age, with red hair and green eyes came running in. She looked rather pale and sad as though she had suffered something terrible. As soon as she came in, she threw herself at Koga's feet.

"What is it, Master?" she asked in a quiet voice.

"We have a new addition to our pack. Kagome, this is Ayame. She'll show you the ropes and things like that." Ayame got up, walked over to Kagome, and held out her hand.

"Come with me and I'll get you some clothes. All of us wolves have to wear the same type of clothing." Kagome nodded, took her hand, and followed her outside. Her eyes began to burn with tears again as she walked with Ayame through what was once her town. The houses were all burnt down or in flames and bodies were scattered everywhere. Kagome felt herself getting sick, and put her free hand to her mouth so that she wouldn't vomit. She looked at Ayame to see if the feeling was mutual, but the young wolf demon walked right by everything as though it were something she saw on a daily basis.

How can she just walk right by it with no sign of remorse? Kagome thought to herself. I wonder if she's used to things like this. The poor girl, she looks like she's suffered for so long, but has been unable to do anything about it. And look at those scars on her body, what happened to her? Ayame caught her staring at the scars and pulled her furs over them.

"We're almost to the cave, keep up now," she said in the quiet voice as before. Kagome nodded and picked up her pace so that she walked beside Ayame. They walked on in silence for about an hour until a cave came into view. The young demon entered the cave, then came out holding a bundle of clothing in her arms. "Put these on, then burn your old clothes in that clearing over there." Kagome obeyed, then began to change her clothes. The wolf fur was warm, but she didn't feel too comfortable wearing it. Tossing her old clothes into the clearing, she then used the stones that Ayame had given her to strike together and create a spark. With a small pang of sadness, she watched as flames engulfed the clothing, reducing it to ashes.

"What do I do now?" Kagome asked. Ayame threw her a bit of raw meat.

"Eat it, you must be hungry," she answered, gnawing on her own piece. Kagome looked from Ayame to her own piece of meat, shrugged, and took a bite. It was hard to chew and rather cold and slimy, but at least it was food, and she was indeed quite hungry. "Tomorrow you will begin to train in the ways of the wolf. It'll be hard, but you won't regret it later on."

"Was that man who was bossing you around the leader of the pack?" Kagome inquired, attempting to make conversation. She thought she saw Ayame tense a bit, but the wolf demon just nodded.

"Yes. Koga is our leader. I'll warn you now though, stay clear of him and watch what you say around him. Trust me he knows how to make one's life a living hell." Kagome watched as the girl's hands tightened on her skirts.

"Something wrong, Ayame?" she asked in concern.

"N-no I'm fine," Ayame answered, giving her a small smile. "It's late, we should get to sleep." Kagome nodded, and followed the girl into the cave. Ayame led her over to a corner of the cave where there was a small pile of fur blankets. She picked one up, tossed it to Kagome then chose another one for herself. Spreading it out on the ground, she then curled up in a ball on top of it. Kagome followed suit. "Sweet dreams, Kagome."

"Good night, Ayame." In just a few minutes, Kagome heard the slow breathing of the young wolf girl. She, however, couldn't sleep. So much had happened that day. Her mother and everyone in the village had been killed and the village itself had been raized to the ground. As Kagome stared at the dark ceiling of the cave, everything finally sunk in. She was alone in the world, and now forced to live among demons that wouldn't hesitate to kill her if they ever found out what she was. Maybe Ayame would be her only friend. Koga seemed kind as well, and for a moment she considered asking for his help. But then she remembered Ayame's warning.

"He knows how to make one's life a living hell." Does that mean that he's done something terrible to Ayame? I wonder what he did that makes her look like that whenever she thinks about him. Though her head was still swimming with thoughts, Kagome soon grew tired and eventually drifted off to sleep, filled with disturbing nightmares.

A/N: Please let me know what you think so far!