Setting: Alternate Universe, present time Japan.

Summary: Kagome had finally begun her life has an independent adult. She found her dream home and her dream job, but things did not start exactly as planned. She finds that the pictures she takes of certain people develop differently than what she had originally saw, beginning with the annoying boy next door - Inuyasha. Soon her life entangles with a past feud and a curse that was set upon Inuyasha when she is the one to relieve the curse from him. Once the demon inside him is released, she has to decide whether or not to help or stop his search for the ancient jewel called The Jewel of Four Souls.

Genre: Romance

Rating: T - Hinted sexual content

Pairings: Inuyasha x Kagome, hinted Inuyasha x Kikyo

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, all characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi. All I own is this simple plot )

A Picture's Worth
by Lady Bliss

Chapter One: So Much for Perfect
Part One

The whistle on the approaching train could hardly be heard over the roaring chatter in the crowded station. People began to direct their attention toward the oncoming steel machine one by one. Not long after it had grabbed everyone's attention, they all started to push and shove their way toward the tiny doors that opened to let people on and off. People yelled in frustration with one another, children began to cry from all the noise.

Kagome only sighed at the way everyone acted. She knew there would be enough seats for every person. That was one of the reason for the tickets. They counted how many people were going to be riding, and they would stop selling when no more seats would be available. That was how she thought of it, and how she always thought about things. She was reasonable and patient, unlike most who knocked down five year olds to board the train first.

"Remember to find a seat near the front," Mrs. Higurashi said, a pleasant smile gracing her aging features.

Returning the smile, Kagome wrapped her arms around her, squeezing the woman tightly. She felt her mother's arms return the embrace. She pulled away just far enough to look her in the eyes, seeing them glistening with oncoming tears. "Oh, Mom," she giggled out, "I am going to be just fine."

"You better hurry," her mom said, a smile still on her face, "and remember to-"

Kagome interrupted with a grin, "I know, 'find a seat near the front.' I got it, Mom." She pulled from their embrace completely and picked up her large blue duffle bag that laid at her feet. The final boarding call blared over the intercom, causing her to wince as she fastened the bag's strap securely around herself.

"Take care," Mrs. Higurashi called, waving to her daughter as she watched her walk away.

Taking one last look over her shoulder at her mother, Kagome waved back. She turned to face the train in front of her and waited patiently behind the last few people boarding; the only people that had patience enough to wait instead of forcing their way through. Climbing the few steps into the train, she looked around at the grumpy faces of the people crammed together. She scanned the area for a seat, biting her bottom lip when her search came up empty.

"Move your skinny ass!" a man behind her exclaimed.

Kagome did not have room to turn and see who was yelling at her. She side-stepped and moved as close to the side as she could to let the man pass, shoving a few people into the walls of the train. "I am sorry," she apologized with a nervous expression to the angry people she had accidentally pushed once the man passed her by. She held onto her bag tight and began to make her way carefully toward the back of the train to find an available seat.

She felt her nerves begin to grind from how rude the man had been. No matter, she thought, she would not let the anger from another affect her mood. She refused to let her day go sour, for that day in particular would be a fantastic day. She was leaving the small shrine she had grown up in and moving into an even smaller duplex that she could call her own.

Although the place she decided on was distant from her family, she could not turn it down. The pictures they displayed in the ad made it look cozy and it had a certain charm about it she could not describe. The place called to her, and the moment she saw it on the bulletin board outside the local grocery store she knew she had to have it. Already she was on her way with what little money she had to make it her home. The upside to its location was the fact it was fairly close to Envision.

Envision was a company that held her dream job. Magazines, newspapers, and other companies called on Envision to find a good photographer to target what they needed to print. Envision then hired people with a keen eye to capture their target. She wanted to be a freelance photographer for the company, and hoped they would begin to call on her for certain jobs that needed to be done from her skill. She prided herself in her work of photography and was confident she would be famous for her pictures.

Fame, she mused, that was what she wanted. She wanted to be recognized all over the world for her pictures. She wanted people to think her name when they needed a shot of a celebrity cheating, or a drug exchange, or a celebrity doing a drug exchange with the one they are cheating with.

Kagome giggled to herself at her own thoughts, earning a few stares from the surrounding people. Snapping back from her fantasy, a hint of pink burned across her cheeks and she began to move down the isle more quickly. She had finally realized how far she had traveled back and saw she was reaching the end of the train without a single sighting of a seat that was not taken. How could that be? she asked herself. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when she finally spotted a seat next to a young man.

He was sitting in the isle seat and his bag was placed beside him in the seat nearest the window. She eyed the boy, taking note of his long back hair and dark brown eyes. It was very unusual to see a male with such long hair. In fact, Kagome did not think she had ever seen one that looked as handsome. Usually the men that had long hair also had scruffy beards, tattoos, and leather galore.

"What are you staring at?" the young man bit out.

Kagome felt a sudden strike of familiarity run through her at the sound of his voice. She stared at him a few moments more, trying to match his face to a memory, but found that she could not. Finally she shook her head as if to shake away the feeling and gave a small smile. "Is someone sitting there?" she asked, pointed to the free seat.

Rolling his eyes, the boy grabbed his bag from the seat next to him and scooted over into it. He placed the bag in between his legs on the floor. He turned his head to look out the window and rested his forehead gently against the glass.

Taking his actions as a 'no,' Kagome removed the strap of her bag from around her and sat down in the seat, placing her bag on her lap. She looked over at the boy who was still looking out the window. "My name is Kagome," she said, giving a courteous smile. Her smile slowly faded when she realized she was being ignored.

Straightening herself out comfortably in the seat, she turned her attention to her bag. She began rummaging through it until she pulled out a rather small black case. She unzipped it to reveal a pair of headphones and a portable DVD player. She plugged the headphones into the player and turned it on. It would be a long trip, especially sitting next to another rude person. She planned on making the best of it with old movies and music videos.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Would you get off me already, Wench?"

Kagome fluttered her eyes open. Her mind was groggy and tried catching up to the scenery around her. She found herself staring at graffiti on the back of a plastic seat. Her head was cushioned and when she sat up she realized she had fallen asleep on the boy next to her. Her cheeks began to burn red with embarrassment and she scooted away from him. "I am sorry," she apologized, her eyes not being able to meet his.

"Whatever," he scoffed, standing up. He looked down at her, his eyebrows furrowing in frustration when she did not allow him room to move. "I have to pee!" he shouted.

For a moment Kagome was confused as to why he was telling her his bladder problems, but she quickly caught on. She stood and leaned back as far as she could to allow him room to pass. His body brushed against hers, giving her a good feel of the toned muscles underneath his loose white tee. Her mind began to wander once she sat back down, her eyes following the young man until he disappeared behind the small doors that lead to the bathroom.

What was she doing? she thought, removing her eyes from the bathroom door where the boy had disappeared and down into her lap. She had never been attracted to men with long hair or rebel attitudes, but then again, she had never really known any.

She could see the sunlight bounce off something white from the corner of her eye, and turned to look down in the seat the boy had been sitting in. There laid his ticket, bent from where he had been sitting on it. At first she ignored it, but her curiosity slowly began to eat away at her. She picked it up, glancing at the bathroom door to be sure the coast was clear of the long haired boy, and unfolded the ticket. She glanced at the information, coming across the name printed on the receipt stapled onto the ticket.

Inuyasha?

"What are you doing?"

Kagome jerked her head up to see him towering over her. She felt a cold sweat begin as he eyed her and the ticket in her hand. She smiled nervously, hoping he did not notice the blush on her cheeks. "I was just-" she stopped in mid-sentence when the ticket was jerked from her hand.

"Do you always snoop around other people's things?" he barked, looking at the ticket before shoving it inside his pocket. His eyebrows furrowed yet again and he had a snarl set upon his face. He bent down a little ways to get in Kagome's face.

"Do you always act like such a jerk?" she bit back, leaning upward and forward, pushing her face into his as well to show she was not threatened by his macho behavior.

He was slightly taken aback by her sudden outburst. He did not peg her to be the kind to yell out in frustration. A small flash of terror had spread over his face when she yelled, but he quickly covered it with another angry expression. "Would you just move already?" he growled between clenched teeth.

Kagome crossed her arms over her chest. She turned her head away from him and closed her eyes, planting her feet on the ground firmly. "Make me," she said.

"Don't tempt me," he said between his clenched teeth as he grinded them together.

"Is there a problem here?"

"Everything's fine!" the two bickering young adults yelled in unison at the approaching stewardess.

- - - - - - - - - -

Slowly but surely, Kagome began to feel guilty from her bits of rage as time went by. She thought about apologizing to him, but quickly talked herself out of it. Why did she need to apologize to him? she thought, she did not do anything wrong. He had been the one to snap at her first. No, she would not say she was sorry until he admitted that he was acting like a jerk.

As if on cue to burst her bubble, the boy spoke, "Don't you have something to say?" His head was still turned, looking out the window and watching the trees and bushes pass by in blurry shades of greens, browns, and yellows. He had been focusing his eyes on and off Kagome's reflection on the glass of the window. He had watched her turn to him and look as if she was about to speak before turning away once again and repeating those few actions over and over.

"Don't you?" she asked, looking at him even though his head was turned in the opposite direction.

"I was not the one digging through someone else's stuff," Inuyasha said, turning his head to narrow his eyes at the girl.

"I was not digging!" Kagome exclaimed, though keeping her voice as low as her anger would allow, "It was on your seat in plain sight!"

"So you just took it upon yourself to grab whatever you want?"

Kagome opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She racked her brain, trying to think of something witty to say. After a few moments of staring into his dark brown eyes, she growled and tossed her weight back in her seat in defeat, crossing her arms over her chest and slouching. "You know what? Whatever," she said, turning her head away and staring down at the isle floor.

A few moments of silence passed. Inuyasha kept turning his head to look Kagome and back out the window. He noticed her grab the portable DVD player back out of her bag and place her headphones on her ears before turning the screen on. "Keh," he mumbled to himself, turning his attention back out the window. But a force he could not control kept beckoning him to turn back to the girl.

Kagome caught his stares a few times and glanced over at him, but he always turned his head as soon as she looked. Finally she dug through her bag and pulled an extra pair of headphones out, plugging them into the DVD player and tossing them on his lap. She did not look at him or really acknowledge what she did. She turned the screen a bit toward him and continued to watch the screen.

Inuyasha stared at the headphones on his lap and turned back to the black haired girl who acted as if she did not offer the entertainment. Once he was sure she was not trying to mess with him, he picked the headphones up and put them on, scooting a little closer to watch the screen.

Part Two

There it was, Kagome thought, the home of her dreams. The yard needed a lot of work and love, and the trees and bushes needed to be trimmed. The paint on the gate and fence atop the porch needed a fresh coat, and so did the trim around the windows. She could tell where the duplex had once been painted yellow with green trim, and shook her head with a grimace. She would repaint that as well.

"Would you like a tour, Miss Higurashi?"

Kagome turned her head to the American man named Roger, the one who owned the duplex. "Yes," she said politely, "please."

Roger gave a large smile, brushing a hand through his short brown hair. He walked up the stairs and opened the old gate, holding it open for Kagome. "I am not completely finished inside, I still have to clean the windows and the oven," he said as he fiddled with the keys in the door. He had to force the door open with his shoulder which caused him to stumble his way inside, "And I have to fix that."

Giving an encouraging smile, Kagome followed him inside. She looked around the small home, eyes clouding over as she fell in love with it all over again. "It's beautiful," she said, spinning around slowly to gather her surroundings. It had a spacious living room and a small kitchen, which did not bother Kagome none, for she hardly cooked anyhow. There were two bedrooms, the master having a sliding glass door that led to the backyard which was shared between her and the people living on the other side of the duplex.

"So," Roger began, pulling a ring of keys from his pocket, "Rent is due the first of the month and considered late after the fourth. There is a late fee, which I really hate to charge but the rent comes from my own pocket if you do not have the money and that can really put me in financial hurt."

Kagome turned back to the man, a smile still gracing her lips. "That won't be a problem," she said, accepting the keys that he offered.

"Fantastic," he said, looking around to make sure he did not forget anything, "I'll call before I come by to finish up with the cleaning tomorrow, but I will let you get some of your things moved in first."

She was only half listening to what he was saying. Her mind had drifted off to what she wanted to hang on her walls and where she wanted to shop for furniture. She would turn the spare bedroom into her personal dark room, which would mean finding proper coverings for the window inside.

"Miss Higurashi?" Roger asked, snapping a finger in front of the girl's face.

Kagome shook her head to rid herself of her thoughts and gave a nervous expression. "Yes, your call, I got it," she said sheepishly.

"Well, I think that is it," he said, looking over the empty living room one last time, "Oh wait. I have your mail key out in the car." He turned on his heel and walked through the open door and opening the gate for Kagome once more. He practically hopped down the steps and walked with a bounce in his step toward his car. Opening the door, he leaned inside and grabbed a small key set in his cup holder.

Trying to avoid staring at the man's butt that was practically shoved at her, Kagome let her eyes wonder off to the side until he stood back up and offered the key to her. She took it from his hand and grasped it in her fist, giving him another warm smile. "Thank you," she said gratefully.

"If you need anything, you have my number," he said, giving a large smile. He offered his hand for a shake from Kagome before climbing back into his car and driving away.

Kagome waved as he drove off, her free hand still clutching her mail key. Yes, she mused, the day was perfect. It had gotten off to a rocky start on the train, but after the miserable four hour ride, things started to look up. She had a pleasant enough meeting with Roger and had just enough time to browse some furniture stores. The rest of the evening would be so wonderful she would forget all about the morning.

"Well, look who it is."

Her back stiffening from the voice coming from behind her, Kagome began to pray it did not belong to who she thought it did. When she turned around, there he stood with a half eaten red apple in his hand. The same black haired, chocolate eyed, foul-mouthed, rebel attitude, aggravating boy. "Are you stalking me?" she practically shrieked.

"Heh," he grumbled, biting into his apple, "you wish." Bits and pieces of the apple's meat flew from his mouth as he spoke, causing Kagome to recoil in disgust.

"Then what are you doing here?" she growled out between clenched teeth. She balled her hands at her hips, leaning forward on her toes, her eyes narrowed. The corner of her eye caught the open door to the home attached to hers, and she gasped. "No!" she exclaimed in disbelief, "This cannot be happening to me!"

"Happening to you? I am the one that needs to be worked up about you moving in next door!" he yelled back. He had brought his free hand in front of him and balled it into a fist as he spoke. "You are the one that goes through other people's things."

"Please, like you would have anything I would even consider interesting," Kagome scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. Just who did this guy think he was? she asked herself. He had quite a large mouth, and it started to get on her nerves.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he snapped, dropping the fist he had been holding in front of him.

"It means what it means!" she shouted back. She regained her stance with her fists at her sides and her weight leaning on her toes toward him.

"That doesn't even make sense!" he yelled back.

"You are so irritating!" she practically screamed, and then turned on her heel. She stomped up the steps toward her door and slammed the gate shut once she walked through. As she approached her door, she looked over her shoulder and gave the meanest glare she could muster, "Go sit down somewhere!" she said, closing her eyes in mid-sentence and turning back to her home and walking inside.

Part Three

Inuyasha was, for lack of a better word, confused. As soon as she spoke to him, something had happened. A force of a sort attacked him. It had pulled him from his neck and forced him down to the ground. It had been like nothing he had ever felt in a long while. He knew it had something to do with that girl. The annoying black haired woman who called herself Kagome. She had to have been the cause of it.

But how? he mused. He had been certain that power like that no longer existed. If it did, it was hidden so far inside that it has remained untapped for centuries. Although she resembled the human priestess he had once known in a past time, there was no possibly way they were one in the same. When he first saw her he thought different, but once getting a closer look into her deep blue eyes he knew it were impossible. Maybe their faces were the same, but there was something unique in her eyes, far different than the priestess he once knew. There was more life.

Her personality was far different as well. She did not seem in control of her emotions as much as Kikyo had. Kagome was more perky and forgiving, but more dense and hot-headed. He hated her.

He rubbed the dirt he collected once his face hit the ground away with the back of his hand. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, seeing only minor scraps. He cursed at the prayer beads he had around his neck. He had yet to find a way to remove them. When Kikyo had died - Kikyo, the name made his heart hurt - he had thought no one had power over him any longer. He thought he could take them off, but he was wrong. They remained, and the curse set upon him never died.

Though, after so many years, he almost forgot they were there. But now there was another, one with a power that could control him again. But perhaps she was ignorant to her power, maybe it was dormant. And if that was the case, she could be the key to releasing him for good. That thought made him smirk. What luck fate had brought him. A priestess with a true power living so close. She could lift the beads and the dreadful curse off him.

The curse Kikyo set upon him. The one that has forced him to remain in his human form.