Prolouge: betrayal

Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha and don't worry, the rest of this story won't have this strange set up.

Her body strained unused to running, her swollen belly threw her even more off balance as the made her way through the branches theat seemed to reach out for her. The sound of her heavy breathing and her heartbeat was all she could hear as she went, finally she broke through the treeline and into a clearing lit by the full moon. SHe finally stopped when she nearly ran into an old well in the middle. She leaned against the stone structure trying to catch her breath, her mind racing at how quickly everything changed.

Her family was sending her to a nunnery, punishment for her affair with the dog general and destroying her value as a trading commodity. No longer a virgin and obviously pregnant she was useless to them. SHe had been grateful they had no idea her lover wasn't human until now, why else was her father's Samurai Takemaru be trying to kill her, how did he know?

"Princess." She felt like thee was ice in her veins when sh heard the voice of her pursuer. She spun around to face her attacker but instead lost her balance. Takemaru's eyes widened and he rushed to catch her as fell into the well.

"Izayoi!"

His cry was the las thing she heard as she was engulfed by magic.

Takemaru watched stunned as the woman he loved disappeared in a bright flash of blue light. He chanted his denial into the darkness, this wasn't supposed to happen, she wasn't supposed to die! He had planned to kill off her retinue and they were supposed to run away together. But she ran and now, before he could explain she was gone.

"What have you done?" A deep voice growled from above him. Startled out of his depression he looked up and into the eyes of a monster. The armored beast looked almost human but Takemaru knew it was an illusion, the markings and pointed ears were a give away but not as much and the oppressive aura.

"What are you?" Takemaru challenges, drawing his katana. The being bared his elongated canines before answering. Before the creature charged he answered.

"Death."

Izayoi was even more confused then before. She had fallen into an old well and intead of hitting the bottom she found herself floating in darkness before gently landing on the bottom. She looked up expecting to see a murderous Takemaru what she saw was inky blackness. Fear turned to panic, was sh dead? What about her baby? Pain shot through her body at that though wrenching from her a scream of agony.

Five year old Higurashi Kagome paused, her task interrupted by a strange feeling running down her spine. She figured out it coming by something outside she went to investigate leaving her mothers cookies to cool for now. SHe looked around outside and realised what ever wanter her attention was in the Well house. But she wasn't allowed in there. Thinking fast she ran back to the kitchen and up to her pregnant mother who was pulling another batch of cookies out of the oven.

"Mama!" Kagome shouted when she reached her elder. Her mother, Junko, answered her call and Kagome explained what she felt the best she could. Before she could say anything a scream cut through the grounds. Junko dropped what she was doing and ran outside, once she made it Kagome pulled her to the well house.

"Hello? Junko called as Kagome ran back in the house. After a few moments a groan came from inside the small structure. Kagome ran back to her mother and pushed a flashlight into one hand and the hammer they kept in one of the storage sheds into another. The girl then opened the door of the well house. "In here Mama!" She said when she ran back to he mother.

Junko stepped into the well house, paused, and called out again. She was answered by a strained woman's voce asking for help from inside the well. Junko turned to Kagome and told her to get help then proceeded down the small flight of stairs that went to the still sealed Bone-Eaters well.

Kagome, for her part turned and ran as fast as she could to the phone and called the emergency number. She explained the best she could what was going on. With in a little while she could hear sirens so she ran out to great the firemen as the crested the shrine steps. She led them to the well house were her mother, who had pried the seals and wood away from the tom of the well, was comforting the woman trapped inside.

Junko held on to Kagome as the firemen did their work. Soon paramedics arrived and a woman was brought out of the well house. She was dirty, scraped, heavily pregnant, in obvious pain, and terrified. Junko was given permission to ride to the hospital with the young woman, leaving Kagome with a neighbor until her father got home.