Author's Notes: I promise to one day complete all stories, just please review this one!
Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha
Chapter One: Mistaken Identity
A cold chilling air spiked that day. The morning aura was unsettling, but no one knew what. The leaves were already turning different colours, proof that fall had come to declare the soon to come death of the trees.
Summer was coming to an end, along with something else, but nothing could quite figure out what. Even the spirits and animals were disturbed.
The wind seemed so chilling, travelers, adventurers and messengers could feel an eeriness of death, a foreboding end, something scheming.
Forest contour surrounded these times. So much forest still existed and had a breath so purified, it made the flowers bloom so beautifully, though soon knowing they would perish and make room for the lives of new plants.
The life in existence without the putrid air of power plants or toxic waste. Life where no building of concrete stood, no bustling cars going by, no electrical waste from the 20th century. The years of life where even demons ruled and ravaged the lands.
A place and time where humans feared demons and had nothing but to depend on their own survival with minimal technology to aid them. War was still a constant factor and continuously frustrated the earth with its dead bodies, but no atomic bombs or guns had been created yet. They had begun to be traded in with traders across the sea, but Japan had yet to utilize it to its full potential.
Villages were built with the hands of a prided man who could afford to feed his family, the rich lay waste on the poor, and the poor suffered from famine. Disease was greatly in existence and could travel fast destroying many in its path of carnage and life taking, with no search in the fields of science, healer's could still go by and try their best to heal the wounded, other's used "magic", or more pressingly, spiritual energy.
Humans fought countless battles among themselves and demons, spiritual energy over time, had become the mortals best advantage at defeating the inhuman apparitions. Mousashi was no exception, the villages were always tormented by monsters because of their normal mortal strength.
Continuously they fought without mercy on each other, and so on.
Deep within the confines of wilderness in a large forest away from the mainstream cities, crackling noises could be heard, then a bursting light blasted through the folds of the building that had been destroyed, knocking back a few trees here and there.
And so, here our story begins...
"It's her! She's come to kill us all!"
"It's
the half-ling! She wants the jewel!"
She was use to hearing the same thing all the time, just this time it was different. She'd felt the same eeriness this morning, something wasn't right. That sinking feeling had haunted her the entire night, barely sleeping at all for the nightmare that had stolen away her dreams. If she had known waiting for something that she could only dream of accomplishing during noon that day..., she wished that she had never come upon this village.
The fear that had stirred in the back of her mind was
right to have awoken her inner demon instincts, if she had not been
second guessing something wrong was going to happen, maybe she could
have avoided this scenario. No, not even that, if only she had not
handed her heart so blindly.
She had been fooled for the last
time, by a mere mortal man no less, never again.
Never again would she trust anyone but herself, never again would she love anyone but herself. Closing off everything from her heart as she had before so many times overcoming difficult situations, she'd do it again, get out of this mess, and flee from this treacherous village. Make life a new.
With a smirk, she jumped from her perch in the tree, the blast a few moments ago had been from a young priestess in training, a bright young woman she had to admit, but naïve. Only yesterday they had been the best of friends, now here she was, shooting spiritual arrows at her. Though she couldn't understand what was going on or why the girl had tears in her eyes while shooting at her, she was even more confused by her words. "Why did you betray us?! Are you not half human, or did you forsake that when you relentlessly attacked my brother?!"
She couldn't understand her words, she thought for once before replying, HE was probably the one who had filled her thoughts with lies as he had done to her, stolen her heart even, demolished every wall of protection she had ever created, then he had... she trailed off on the last thought coming back to the realization that her opponent had already gathered another arrow from the basket behind her.
More tears shed as the girl put her arrow to bow, as she readied it, she stopped to look and gasped when the half demon had moved closer bearing her fangs and claws growling menacingly.
"Move Kaede, or I'll be forced to strike you down!"
When Kaede didn't budge but only tightened her grip on her arrow she growled fiercer this time intimidating the trainee to back away, but not back down. "Why should I move out of your way?! You betrayed everything I believed you to be, and all this time, you were only after the jewel! I ask you again, why did you betray us, why did you betray me?! Answer my questions traitor, and I might let you live until my brother finishes you off!"
That hurt, though it never showed on her face, she had to admit, that would leave a bigger dent then it was suppose to. More scars she could put in the past just like the humiliation she had suffered earlier that day from Kaede's older brother. She felt guilty the first few steps she took, but then she rid herself of all emotions concerning the girl in front of her who was blocking her path to everything she'd ever wanted.
She would push the pipsqueak aside, and just take the jewel like her original plan had been before she was deceived by Him. Neither backed down, so she decided to take action and moved forward smiling already knowing the outcome but not caring should her words hurt Kaede. After all, had she not just torn her heart asunder a few moments ago shattering their trust and accusing her for something she did not do? "You, take me down?! You're barely even trained, don't make me laugh! What I don't know is when you became an idiot and started falling for your brothers pathetic lies. Anyway, what's the difference between shooting me with an arrow now and killing me, you obviously didn't care about my life when you shot arrows at me screaming "Die"!
Kaede gasped but refused to submit to her, what she was saying wasn't true, this half-breed was the one that was lying, not her brother, her brother would never lie to her! She thought more carefully before speaking this time, trying to hold up the demon in order for the rest of the village guards to get to the place they were at now and help save her. From what her brother had told her, his half demon "friend" had descended and had wounded him, he told her to go after her, waste her time until he got there to finish off the demon. "Yes but that was different, I was sent in rage after discovering from my brother that my trusted onee-sama had deceived us all, the wound on his left shoulder is proof enough of your treachery!"
She tried to calm down her beating heard, but the harshness of her words still remained. The half-ling left Kaede with a long moment of silence, then she averted her gaze from space of thought and glared pure daggers of hatred at Kaede. Her eyes transformed into deeper slits and she looked more ruff and wild then before, claws lengthening, she bared her fangs once more growling with more threats then before.
Kaede took another step back, not recognizing her former acquaintance. She could only stare in disbelief and what seemed to be shame. Had she misjudged the situation? No, she put those thoughts at the back of her mind intently listening to the next thing the demon had said. Which brought more pain to her all ready destroyed heart.
"You disgust me, every last one of you mortals I will despise for the rest of my existence! Perhaps your reasoning should be considered, but your so blind to what happens around you that you let your elder brother manipulate you into doing whatever he desires of you. Besides, that's still no excuse for trying to kill me, you instantly jumped at the chance to kill me, your no different from your brother, I bet even you were deceiving me. Hear me out for you of all people should know by now how much I love to repeat myself, the moment you heard I had done something wrong, you enjoyed the idea of seeing me die at your hands, didn't you?"
Kaede had no response to that, but she did react strongly, the half-ling was able to cunningly insult her enough to clear her of rational thought, good strategy she had declared to herself. Kaede had taken the bait, she'd went back for her arrow, but meanwhile all during their words of display, the half-ling had gotten close enough to predict Kaede's anger and immediately rich for her arrows.
While the youngster had fallen into such an obvious trap
that her elder brother would have plainly seen through, she jumped. Kaede didn't even have time to put arrow to the bow string before she
was pounced upon.
Pushed to the ground, Kaede tried shielding
herself. It was the perfect opportunity! The half demon then grabbed
the chain which the shinning allurement of the jewel was handled in
and jumped over Kaede stopping a speedily turning around to make sure
the girl was still down for the count.
Smirking triumphantly at Kaede, the las looked at her former friend horrified before looking at the location of where the jewel had once been. Her eyes traveled slowly from the nicely furnished wooden floor to the stand. The more she looked up, the wider her eyes opened in pure terror.
There stood nothing, the jewel was absent, she quickly reverted her hateful and scared face to the half-ling. The she devil stood there smirking. (Oh how she wanted to beat the smirk off her face.) There in her hands stood the Jewel of Four Souls, Shikon No Tama! Everything her and her brother had endured to protect, lay in the hands of a half-demon so deceitful it made her want to puke.
There she stood in the doorway, she looked at her life's ultimate goal, the jewel, now she had it in her possession, now she had everything she ever desired, now she could become a full fledged demon!
But before that, she had a few words of "sentimental farewells" to say to the little bitch who had dared betray her like her brother.
"Kaede, you really are a moron, I purposely pumped you up, what you didn't realize is that I was goading you into coming closer. You fell for it hook, line and sinker! Your brother would have never fallen for it, it goes to show that you'll never be good enough for anything. Hey kid, welcome to my world! Before I go, I'd like to thank you for handing me the jewel, without your blind hatred and ager, it wouldn't have been that easy to get it from you. Farewell!"
She jumped living the door mat flying and halfway unhooked from where it had been strung up. Kaede was now pissed. She had done it this time, that wench would pay! No one insulted her like that, no one!... And yet she just had, she'd fail to do what she'd promised him. She punched the floor breaking tissue of skin on her knuckles, she was bleeding. Kaede didn't care anymore though, she could never forgive herself now, she sank more into her own self pity.
The half-ling was running away, she was out of the village and almost free from the outskirts. Soon enough, it was only a matter of moments before she would rid herself of everything horrible that had happened to her. Her heart ached, but she would move on, but never would she trust another man in her life!
Jumping, she'd stopped only for a moment or two, at least that's what it was only suppose to be. She looked at the one tree. The God tree. Goshiboku, it was called? The tree where she had first laid eyes on the beautiful man with a heart as cold as ice. She looked at the jewel, it lay sprawled in her hand, a look of deep melancholy and forlornness struck her face.
All that, for this stupid thing that would grant her more then her most wildest dream. She had everything, yet she was left with nothing. She started walking. She reached a the top of a small stone stairway. She felt the memories over whelming her, she had to leave! Now! Jumping in front of the God tree, she could sew the clearing, it was right there! She was so distracted, here heart froze when she heard the one male voice she never wanted to hear again, no, the voice she was running away from.
It slowed her pace as she was about to pass the God tree. It was the voice of a man who held malice, anger and extreme acidness toward her. That was how the sound her name coming from his lips sounded like.
"KAGOME!!"
Her body had only reached the direct middle of the Goshiboku before she felt inexplicable pain shooting through her chest. Her hand shot instinctively to the wound, no blood, but an arrow with dark wood she only knew of one person who would use it. She couldn't believe it. The arrows was shinning bright with crackling green energy. Kagome recognized the colour and force of energy he'd used, it was the sealing energy. He planned to seal and really kill her! She was bound to a tree, and there he stood, the man she despised...the man she was in love with, the one man she'd ever fall in love with.
He would always be handsome in her eyes, his eyes filled with rage, a beautiful violet that trapped you in them when you gazed and looked underneath the exterior. His hair past his waist flowing in the winds, she remember hos soft his gaze once was. She forgot all the pain he'd just given her, all the hatred. She looked at him longingly.
Her distraction was her downfall. The hand in which she'd been holding the jewel was loose, her attention all on him. She'd dropped it. Noticed as it fell from her grasp, she looked at it reaching for it before whispering. "Ahhhhh, no the jewel!" She didn't really care about it anymore, she felt drowsy, a void full of sadness and emptiness hit her. She gazed at him one last time reaching out for him, the scent of blood was thick in the air, she couldn't concentrate long enough to figure where it was coming from. "Sesshomaru, I thought we... what I...I..."
Her hand dropped and her eyes closed. There she stood, her body unable to reach the long roots of the trees, hanging there lifelessly as Sesshomaru was now the one to look at her longingly. She was quite the vixen, and had the deceitful personality to go with it.
He still felt betrayed, but he would never forget her, their love had been forbidden, yet in the end, he hadn't cared. He'd broken the laws, and was now paying for it, he would die this day. He saw the jewel on the ground. He dragged his withered and deeply wounded body shaken from the massive pain that Kagome had struck him with in his left shoulder. She was a half demon, born to the cruelties of the world, that much he understood of her, in return, he'd broken her destructive barrier and claimed her. Though she was a demon and would forever sleep in that Goshiboku for the rest of eternity, he was merely human, and he would die from this retched injury.
He grasped the jewel with the deep rich brown soil, plants would grow, but he would not see another summer. His gazed turned from longing to pure hatred as he looked at the jewel shaken. "All this, because of the jewel, you did indeed suffer. Kagome..."
He dropped the basket of bows behind him, it felt to heavy now to carry. Kaede had just arrived with six villagers. "Master Sesshomaru! Nee-san! Lord!" He barely registered their voices, his head was growing foggy and his vision was dimming, he had to hurry. Kaede fell in front of her beloved brother with the most worried expression. He would always remember her face. He grabbed her hand before speaking, everyone quited. "Kaede, burn the Shikon No Tama with my body, then no demon will ever possess the opportunity to use it's powers for evil ever again!"
Kaede could only nod dumbly before speaking her worries.
"Brother, do not speak of such things! We need to cleanse your wound. Please hang in there brother!"
Sesshomaru could only smile at her. Kaede was awestruck and baffled. His vision went black as Kaede's face when from blurry to black. Her brother cringed before falling to his death. Kaede had yelled her longs, demons and humans alike not even from the small village having heard her cry of sorrow.
"SESSHOMARU!!"
...
Tokyo Japan, September 1st,1996
"So G ramps, whadya buy for my birthday, huh, huh? I'm sixteen now! Could it be a Driver's license test, or maybe a new car?"
"Oh Inu Yasha, I wasn't planning on giving you this yet, but apparently your density and impatience has won today, but think nothing of it!"
The old man bold ding, and who looked around the age of 75, handed his sixteen year old grandson and small present. The young lad grabbed it from his grandfather's hands selfishly before ripping it apart and looking at his present disappointedly. "Granps...Your disappointing... Here Buyo..." With a look of mock sadness, he handed the Imp arm to the cat. His grandfather was furious! "WHAAAAAAAAT?! Why you ungrateful child! I should have given you up for adoption!" Inu Yasha rose from his position. He was a handsome young lad, fine looks, but no brain to back up his brawn. He wasn't stupid, he could just be dense, he was more of the kind of person who would act more upon whim then think of strategy first. He wasn't too fond of girls, they always flung themselves at him, sometimes, woman even scarred him.
He wasn't in high school yet, but pretty close, only one more year, at least he had the intelligence to keep going to school right? Right? He'd lived in the Higourashi shrine his entire life, and he had to admit, it was huge!
While he was walking by outside pondering things, he stopped when he noticed the well house opened. Venturing inside he saw his little brother Sota. Both his and Sota's parents had died in a car accident, living them both in the care of his grandfather. He was a prude, very strict, but they learned to be honest people from his teaching, though Inu Yasha still had some bratty and childish qualities.
Souta was standing on the stairs, he jumped once he
heard Inu Yasha's voice. "Hey squirt!"
He laughed when he saw
that he'd frightened his little brother. "Oh! Inu-Inu Yasha, it's
only you!" His brother ran up to him and kicked his foot. Inu
Yasha reeled back holding his abused foot before yelling out.
"Oi! What was that for you little brat!" Sota looked up at him angrily." For scaring me you big oaf!"
They both began chasing one another until the boards of the well burst open. They both stopped dead in their tracks. Inu Yasha dared a peek in the well, before he knew it, s flash of green had burst, he'd fallen in, no, he'd been sucked in by something. He felt a strange sensation as he landed. For some reason, he couldn't find Sota.
"Hey Sota! Help me up would ya!" He yelled up after seeing the sky suspicious that he had hit his head somewhere and hadn't noticed. He climbed the vies "Strange, random vines, I don't remember this being here before.
Reaching the top-, he was now lost, no well house. "Just where the hell am I?" Before he could think, he looked around, heard something in the bushes, on instinct, looked around for anything he realized and saw the old God tree high in the distance. He ran for his life, when he reached the tree, he looked on baffled at the sight before him. There stood, a woman, the most beautiful she creature he'd ever seen. He went closer to her.
"AHHHH!" As e soon realized, the young woman had cat like ears. She wasn't human! Instantly his hart raced had gone down, but he's fear raised once more when Kagome's eyes shot open. "You, you killed me!" He just stood there unable to speak. "What? Come again?"
She looked at him angrily. "Oh don't play stupid you
bastard! You shot this damn arrow at me! You traitor, now face me
like the worthless human mortal that you are!"
She yelled. Now
he was really confused, she gasped when he got into her face. "Listen here ,girl, or whatever you are, I don't know where the
heck am I, so do you mind explain-" She cut him off rudely kicking
him. "Get this arrow out of me would you!"
He was confused, he saw the arrow, he must have not been thinking because it had been like her voice had guided him, no, he was under the vixen's spell!
Green light burst through as the arrow dissolved. She began laughing, a look of pure hatred in her eyes. Now that I'm free I'll kill you Sesshomaru!" She jumped, eyes once again turned to slits, fangs and claws longer and bared. She pounced on him,about to kill him,she stopped dead in her tracks.
"Your not Sesshomaru, explain?! Why do you smell so similar and look like him, are you perhaps a lost relative?" Before she could keep questioning him. He flipped there positions over, Kagome blushed. But her face soon turned to anger when she noticed his not so innocent hand on her breast.
She threw him off of her, she sensed it now, she couldn't figure out why before, but now she definitely knew he had it. "You have the Shikon No Tama with you?1 Don't you?! Hand it over now, or it's your life!"
He backed away still blushing that his hand had chosen THAT spot to rest on her.
