AN: This fanfiction is dedicated to DarkAngel048 because without the prompts I never would have put Kagome and Dark in the same story.

Disclaimer: I don't own DNAngel or Inuyasha.

CHAPTER ONE

The dark feather twisted and twirled between my fingers as I lay there, my four poster bed almost swallowing me in its soft mattress and sheets. The feather matched the dark tendrils of my hair that were splayed out across my pillow, as if a toddler had dumped a paint can upside down on my bed and left a giant splatter of dark colour there.

The second feather. What could it mean? I sighed wistfully, confused. Ever since the well had closed over and slapped me away like a hormonal teenage girl, I hadn't been able to get back through. Inuyasha was gone. Everyone was gone. I was alone.

They were all figments of imagination – that's what my psychiatrist said. Bullocks. I knew they'd all been real.

When I'd described of the thrilling adventures and experiences I'd had with Inuyasha, my psychiatrist's mellow brown eyes had become so round, you could see more white than you could brown. What can I say? I know how to tell a story.

I may have added in as many gory details as I could from when Inuyasha sliced open a demon or two but hey, that was part of the story as well, right?

"Kagome?"

Oh, go away…

"What Souta?" There was a small intake of breath followed by a frustrated sounding sigh.

"Why have you got your hand in the air?" He asked. I brought the feather down to my face and brushed it along my cheek, sighing quietly as it tickled my skin. Souta stared at me as if I had suddenly sprouted tentacles, and I looked at him. Could he really not see it?

"What do you want?" He blinked and rubbed his arm – he always did that when he was uncomfortable.

"Mum wants you."

"Mum can come up here and get me herself." I tore my gaze away from Souta, angry. Nobody bought my story anymore; the well house, Feudal Japan, Inuyasha – even though they'd seen him. They were trying to make me forget. Trying to force me back into a normal life. Mum was concerned about my future. She wanted me at school and passing with flying colours. She wanted me to get a job and settle down with a nice boy.

Bully for her.

Souta squirmed at my bedroom doorway, rubbing his arm more vigorously. "Fine," I huffed. My brother shut my door with a clunk and I heard him scatter up the hall like a mouse running from a hungry cat. Typical Souta couldn't handle a little bit of friction.

I swung my legs over the side of my bed and slid my way over to my desk. Recently I had come across a really beautiful mirror, tucked away in the corner of a dusty antique shop. The store owner was happy to be free of it, and since it was cheap I bought it. The mirror was as clear and shiny as water, and around the edges were swirly patterns and various flowers with jewels lining the petals; of course, since the mirror was so cheap, there was no way the jewels were actually real. Just glass.

I think some part of me was hoping the mirror was like a gateway to Narnia, except in my case it would be Inuyasha's world. So far, it had only been a mirror and that was probably how it was going to remain, but to believe that completely would mean casting away all hope of seeing everybody again, and so a small part of me never believed, but always hoped.

I pulled my hair into a messy bun on the back of my head, and as an extra touch I threaded the black feather into the bun; I twisted and stared at my reflection, trying to view it from a few different angles. The feather seemed to glimmer, and I smiled as the sun caught it, sending various greens and blues ricocheting off the glass. The feather was indeed beautiful.

I'd kept the first one, too, but it lay somewhere under my bed, forgotten. I wouldn't be surprised if it was crumpled and wrecked now. Oh well.

I turned on my socked heel and trudged down the steps to the kitchen. I was really not looking forward to this. My mother often thought it best to have little chats with me about my "imagination". I figured her giving me another pretty black feather that shone bright colours was her way of saying sorry; pretty pathetic apology present. I would've gone for a laptop computer or a time machine. Come on mum, buy my love.

"Kagome." I let a smile ghost across my lips before I folded myself into a chair. I stared at my mother cooking soup over our stove when she looked over at me again, the crinkles around her eyes in full-throttle as she smiled sadly at me. Really, it killed me when she did that. I was angry at her for trying to stamp Inuyasha out of my life, but when she looked so damn sad it was hard to be irritated with her.

"Hi," I said awkwardly.

"You look lovely," she complimented. I was wearing a long, utterly-too-big-for-me t-shirt and a loose pair of shorts. Accompanied by, of course, a pair of knee-high socks. My hair wasn't done, I hadn't brushed my teeth and I hadn't got any makeup on to hide the bags under my eyes. Not exactly my definition of "lovely" but I'd roll with it.

"What's up?"

She bit her lip. "Actually, I was hoping you'd take over making dinner," she said. I stared at her, waiting for the punch line.

"I have a date and I need you to look after Souta tonight." Well, not the punch line I was expecting, but it was enough to choke me with surprise for a moment. My mum? Dating?

"It's just soup… it's not that hard…" She was beginning to go all jittery. It was what happened when she was uncomfortable or nervous. It was only now that I realised she was wearing a nice outfit and had actually applied makeup to her face, giving it a glow that I didn't realise was possible. I should have felt happy for her. Happy that she was getting over the grief of her past – over dad – and trying to move on… But somehow, all that I felt was my stomach as it flopped uncomfortably and suddenly made me feel sick.

"I'll do dinner." My voice sounded slightly strangled as I took over the stove. Mum passed me the soup ladle and briefly our hands brushed against one another; she jumped away in shock, as if suddenly electrified.

"What was that?" Her eyes were wide – even wider still thanks to the mascara on her lashes – and she looked a little fearful as she stared down at my hand. I'd felt nothing.

"What are you talking about?"

She swallowed and steadied herself. "It was nothing. I'm probably just nervous," she laughed apprehensively. There was a knock at the door which abruptly distracted her, forcing her attention away from me. I sighed, staring down into the soup as I stirred it. It was almost ready - so much for "cooking".

"Hey mum," I called after her. She turned back to me, slightly confused. "The, uh…" I used to be so close to my mother. It was hard to believe that I'd driven a wedge between us. Guess I was just stubborn – or I wasn't willing to forget Inuyasha, the first boy I'd fallen for. (And wouldn't ever forget.)

"Thanks for the feather." There. I said it. I had acknowledged the fact that she had sent me an apology present. We were on the road to recovery.

She paused. "What feather?"

Or not.

I pointed somewhat dramatically at my head where the feather stuck obviously out of my hair. She followed my pointing finger and her face suddenly became worried. "The feather in my hair," I said.

She shook her head and walked backwards to the front door, unlocking it with a click. "I didn't give you a feather, darling," she answered. Then, as an escape from the conversation, she turned to meet the man waiting for her at the door with a smile, leaving me standing behind her pointing at my head as the soup began to bubble on the stove.

The feather couldn't be seen, by either Souta or my mother. It shone colourfully when the sun hit it, and yet it was solid midnight black to the naked eye. Weird would be a slight understatement.

"Bye Kagome, make sure to feed Souta and put him to bed." She left with her date and the door closed behind her with a neat click.

"Bye," I called back weakly. I stared down at the soup on the stove and let the rhythm of stirring hypnotise me. Silence settled on my shoulders like a heavy weight, and I was suddenly aware of the pounding noise that my heart was making against my chest. I hadn't felt like this since I was in the Feudal Era. The fear, the adrenaline, the magic.

"Kagome?" Souta's voice shocked me as if I'd just clenched my fist over a naked electrical wire, and I jumped, dropping the soup ladle to the kitchen floor. I ignored its clang, but he winced in surprise.

"Is dinner ready?" He said quietly, eyes wide and ready for me to yell at him. He seemed surprised when I just nodded and held an empty bowl out to him; he took it and busied himself with dinner.

By the time I got to the bottom of the stairs, my legs were shaking and my hands were trembling. I managed to scale them and reach my bedroom before I collapsed to my knees, the rough carpet digging into my skin. I tore the feather out of my hair and let it go, watching it float as if caught in a breeze as it finally landed gently on the floor in front of me.

My lip trembled. I stared at it. I was the only one who could see it – touch it. Maybe I was crazy.

Sobbing silently, I crawled over to my bed and pulled myself up onto it, curling into a ball on my side as I cried into my pillow. Inuyasha was gone, everyone was gone, I couldn't get back to the Feudal Era. I couldn't access my magic anymore – if it even existed in the first place. Some part of me, deep down inside, believed that maybe I had in fact imagined it all. What was there to back up my memories? Just a couple of mental images, no photos, nothing.

But I refused to let that dark part of me take over, because if it did I would drive myself crazy. Inuyasha was real. I loved him. He couldn't be a figment of my imagination.

I lay in bed, still curled in a ball and rocked myself to sleep, not caring about anything except the past.

AN: Well, that's chapter one. :) REVIEW. Because reviews are awesome.