Chapter 1: Why Me?

This is my first Inuyasha Fanfic, and I am SOOOO excited! I have been planning this story for, like, FOREVER. And, well, here it is, obviously!

I will try to make these intros short, so I'll stop here.

Enjoy the story!

Naraku was NOT pleased. The plan with Kohaku? That had failed miserably. Sure, maybe he added to Sango's misery and grief, amusing himself in the process. But that wasn't a success. The first time he used Kanna to try to kill Inuyasha, and that woman whose name he despised even thinking of and was the reincarnation of Kikyo, and all the others of their group, that had nearly worked—but nearly wasn't a success either. Juuroumaru and Kageroumaru had failed in their job, too. Naraku reflected on all of his other dirty schemes and his anger grew at each failure. Finally, he reached his boiling point. "AGHHH!" Naraku let out an enraged growl of fury, so agitated that his eyes began to glow a bright red and created a howling tornado all around his body that lifted him several feet off the ground. Trees, dirt, rocks, and small animals like squirrels that had been foolish enough to stick around within a mile of the contemplating half- demon were lifted easily into the air, fallen prey to the less-than-human creature whose anger was currently in control. They were quickly hurtled through the air several miles away to their certain demise.

Kagura, who was spying from afar, shuddered to herself. Even she, the Wind Sorceress, was anxious. She could feel the wind, tinted with Naraku's unrelenting fury. Better not mess with him right now, she thought. Then, to her surprise, the wind slowed and stopped. Naraku closed his eyes.

"Kukuku, mustn't lose control over my anger," he said, calmly re-opening his eyes—which were back to their normal color. Then, something in his brain clicked. An evil grin crept across his face. He had an idea. "I need to try something new," he murmured to himself. "Something I've never tried before…" His eyes gleamed with malice. "A wise demon once said, 'The best way to get rid of a pesky weed that keeps growing back is to destroy it at its source…even if it means doing so little by little…'" His terrifying, evil laughter sent chills down the incarnation's spine. She pulled a feather out of her hair, threw it to the ground, and flew away, the wicked cackle of glee echoing loudly behind her.

*Kagome's POV*

My name is Kagome. Not "hey". Not "woman". And certainly not "wench"!

"HEY!" I heard Inuyasha yell. I kept walking. Oh, of all the nerve! I thought, furiously. I was fuming. I save his sorry butt, and how am I rewarded? A tongue-lashing, that's how. It is partially your fault, you know, a small, rebellious corner of my mind protests. You're the one who got yourself into that trouble. I snapped back, Yeah, well, I saved myself in the end, didn't I? I locked the objecting portion of my mind away, and stubbornly made sure not to turn around.

Every step I took was filled with anger. How did I always manage to get myself yelled at by that willful, selfish, two-timing half-demon jerk (whose name I flatly refused to think)? Simple. I'm too weak. I'm a burden. I always manage to get myself into trouble.

That annoying half-demon can protect himself; with his claws, Tetsuseiga, and his last-resort full-demon transformation—I shuddered to myself at the memory of seeing him when he loses his soul—almost nothing can stand in his way. Miroku, the monk, with his terrifying Wind Tunnel, has learned to use his greatest burden to his greatest advantage, along with his staff and those paper oracles that he probably has a special name for but I never remember to ask what it is, is a great help to the group as well (but it is pretty annoying when he says, "There's a dark cloud looming over this house! I shall provide an exorcism!" every time we need a place to stay, and when he goes up to every pretty girl he sees with his perverted mind and asks her to bear his child). Sango, the Demon Slayer, with all her amazing fighting glory, can take down almost every enemy with her giant boomerang, the Hiraikotsu, handheld poison, and also a concealed knife-like sword. She and Kirara, the fire cat-demon that is normally the size and shape of your average household cat except with two tails but, in battle, transforms into a giant flying tiger-like demon, can usually take care of an entire army in minutes. Even Shippo, the young fox-child, can take care of most of the enemies with his Fox Fire, using his illusionary giant spinning tops and heavy-weight statue to his advantage.

As for me…

Here I am, using Kikyo's borrowed priestess powers to attempt at protecting myself. Everything I'm useful for, including my Sacred Arrows, the glowing priestess powers that randomly occur when I'm in danger that I haven't been able to re-activate since the first time I came to the Feudal Era, and my ability to "see" the Sacred Jewel are all due to Kikyo. If I wasn't her reincarnation, then I wouldn't be of any use to anyone. That's probably why that half-demon keeps running off to Kikyo every time she appears and abandoning me, leaving me vulnerable… and heart-broken… after all, who would want a copy when they could have the original?

I felt tears begin to creep into my eyes as I reflected on this. Furiously, I blinked them away. I wasn't going to break town and cry here, not in front of him. I wasn't going to show any more weakness than I already had. I was going to stay mad. I was going to go back through the well to my own time. I was going to leave him here so he could sulk for a while, and try not to…

Cry…

"Hey! Get back here! We need to gather the Sacred Jewel shards!" The half-demon's voice snapped me back to reality, and saved me the embarrassment of breaking down in tears. I finally spun around, and glared right into the gold-with-a-hint-of-amber eyes that were watching my every move. And, beneath that façade of anger and arrogance, in his eyes I could see he was studying me, as if he was trying to figure out what was going on in my head.

But I wasn't about to show him how hurt I was. I ached from his most recent visit with Kikyo- both physically and emotionally. I replayed what had happened just over an hour ago, when the morning was still fresh and the sun still hadn't decided to peek up over the horizon.

*Flashback, that morning, Normal POV*

Kagome stirred. Perhaps she'd sensed Inuyasha shifting. Maybe it was just a coincidence that her sub-consciousness decided that then was the time to wake up. Either way, her eyes fluttered open at what she would later realize was the worst possible time. As if by instinct, she looked towards the tree where Inuyasha sat. To her surprise, his eyes were no longer closed. Instead, his line of sight had shifted to the sky. Curious, Kagome followed his gaze—and immediately wished she hadn't. For up in the sky, illuminated by the light of the moon, was the cause for Inuyasha's interest- a Soul Collector. Oh, no, please, she thought, 'please. Not tonight- not so soon after our fight.

You see, that day, they had fought a demon that had snuck up on Kagome while she was in a hot spring by masking its demonic aura. It had nearly killed her. It was raising a barbed tentacle and was about to strike. If Inuyasha hadn't stopped it, she would have died. But, thankfully, Inuyasha spotted it first, and prevented it from hurting her. After her getting out of the hot spring, she grabbed her bow and arrows and, since Inuyasha had dropped Tetsuseiga and was being choked by the demon, she used a Sacred Arrow and killed it with her purifying priestess powers so Inuyasha wouldn't go full-demon. The only problem was, when it was about to attack Kagome, Inuyasha didn't have enough time to release an attack to stop it—instead, he had to jump in between the two in order to shield her from the attack. Kagome, of course, under different circumstances, would have thanked him; unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Instead, she had yelled at him, unable to bring herself to thank him (and found the excuse that she was in a hot spring, what was he doing there, he was spying, she didn't need any help, etcetera, etcetera). He'd yelled back, and the argument continued until Kagome stormed off, leaving Inuyasha's face in the dirt (quite literally). Afterwards, they had given each other the silent treatment, all the way to when they had laid down and fallen into an uncomfortable slumber.

And so, there she was, watching forlornly as he glanced at the ground, trying to make sure no one was watching but not noticing that Kagome was doing just that, hopped off his branch without making a sound, and chased after Kikyo's Soul Collector.

Kagome's heart might as well have been split in two with one of her own arrows, she was so grieved. It hurt too much. And, although she knew very well that it would just cause more pain, she slid out of her sleeping bag. She took a fleeting look at the sleeping faces of her friends, and heaved a sigh so quietly that not even Inuyasha's super-hearing would have caught from ten feet away. Without making a sound, she stood up, sighed again, and sullenly followed Inuyasha.

Kagome stumbled over fallen logs, tripped on rocks in her path, cut her arms and legs on branches, and her hair caught on some twigs and leaves along the way. But as she staggered along, she didn't stop, not once. She just blindly headed in the general direction she'd seen Inuyasha go.

She didn't think; she just permitted her mind go completely blank and let her body take control. And her body wanted to follow after Inuyasha. So she did. She decided to let her body blindly pursue the man she-

No. Thought was just a burden. It wasn't a necessary element, nor was emotion. All it did was distract from a person's goal. It was a useless distraction; it was meaningless. At the moment, if she thought, then she would just feel pain. It was better not to think. Safer. Easier. No thought. No thought. No thought. No thought… Blank… Blank… A blank mind… Complete and utter blankness…

Her mind was swept clean of any thought and she continued her journey—little did she know that later, such an action would later be repeated, and would have some consequences.

At some point, the body of the woman without a mind named Kagome tripped for what seemed to be the trillionth time—a body without a mind doesn't need to count; numbers are pointless and unnecessary—and fell against the rough back of a tree at the edge of a clearing. Her face as emotionless and unfeeling as Kanna and her body as immune to feeling pain as Inuyasha whenever his demon side takes control, she lifted her arms and began to push against the tree when she heard voices. She leaned back into the tree, and, her face completely blank, she lifted her foot off the ground and placed it on a conveniently low branch. She lifted her other leg, and that foot found purchase on the tree too. She lifted her hands once more, and began to climb without making a single sound.

She didn't lose her grip, didn't stumble, didn't fall. She was eerily silent—and fast—with her movements.

The young priestess who didn't think soon reached the top of the tree. She peered through the leaves and branches, and what she saw stirred something inside of her. Inuyasha. Inuyasha, and Kikyo. Together. Talking.

"Kikyo, what are you doing here?" Inuyasha asked this question in not an offensive tone, but a curious one.

"Is it so wrong to want to see my beloved once in a while?" came Kikyo's slightly mocking response.

Inuyasha didn't reply.

Kikyo chuckled softly, a sound unheard of for her. Petting a Soul Collector lightly on the head as it wrapped itself around her body, she said, "Yes, yes, that is not my true reason for summoning you here. The real reason is, Naraku has revealed himself once more."

At the mention of the evil half demon, Inuyasha staggered back, shocked. "B-but… How? When? When did this happen?"

Kikyo sighed. The Soul Collector uncoiled itself from around her and glided away a short distance. "I do not know. But my Soul Collectors have informed me that he has been spotted multiple times in various locations—all nearby."

Inuyasha growled. "Why, that little… Why is he… Who does he think…" He seemed unable to finish a sentence and stuttered several times, too infuriated to form a complete thought.

Kagome shivered from her tree. Not enough to alert Inuyasha to her presence, but just enough to release a bit of the fear threatening to consume her at the mention of Naraku.

Kikyo, apparently not done but slightly amused at the half-demon's antics, continued and began to walk forwards towards him. "I have decided to investigate what he is up to, and perhaps confront him."

Inuyasha ceased his mumblings immediately. "Don't! He's much too powerful. I don't want you to get-"

Kikyo silenced him from saying anything more with a kiss. Inuyasha, too stunned to react, didn't move. He just stood there as Kikyo pressed her cold, undead lips against his, his golden eyes wide with shock.

Kagome, watching from above, and felt the overwhelming pain begin to gnaw at her already damaged heart. She felt tears form in her eyes, blurring her vision. She blinked them away. She wasn't going to give in to pain and despair. Not yet.

Then, right as Inuyasha was beginning to regain control of his senses, Kikyo pulled away. With an odd smirk on her usually emotionless face, she took a few steps back, spread out her arms, and allowed the many Soul Collectors to coil themselves around her arms and legs.

As they began to hoist her away through the sky, Kikyo said, none too loudly, and the smirk still on her face, "I bid you farewell. Good luck during your next battle with Naraku. And," she added, "don't worry about me dying. Remember—I'm already dead."

Inuyasha just stood there, gaping at the sky, still stunned at what had just happened. So stunned, in fact, he didn't, no, couldn't hear or notice Kagome leaping from her tree, landing with a faint thud, and running as fast as her legs could take her back to camp until she was already gone.

*End of Flashback, Kagome's POV*

Well, there you go. What a way to wake up in the morning, huh? Yes, waking to find the half-demon who'd stolen your heart chasing after another—that happened to already be dead—isn't exactly a great start to your day. Unfortunately, that's what you have to get used to when you fall in love with a half-demon from 500 years in the past.

My anger reaching the boiling point, I glared at him straight in the eye and yelled, "SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SITSITSITSITSITSITSITSIT SIIIIIIIT!" With each "sit" his head plunged into the ground with a very satisfying THUD. I smirked. Thank you, rosary beads, I thought. I made a mental note to thank Kaede later for putting the beads on Inuyasha's neck. Still smirking, although inside I was fighting the anger attempting to resurface, I turned around again and began to walk coolly away.

Then I heard Inuyasha attempt to speak through his mouthful of dirt. It came out like this: "Ught hutt bough Nrrmkm? Ught ff e fnns oo?" Rolling my eyes, I stopped and turned around again, more slowly this time. Inuyasha emitted an irritated growl that was muffled by the dirt, since the rosary beads still wouldn't let him up. After the trusty beads stopped glowing, Inuyasha pushed himself out of his small crater, furiously spat out all the dirt from his mouth, and shouted, "I said, 'but what about Naraku? What if he finds you?'"

I involuntarily flinched. That was one of the very few subjects I was unwilling to talk about, aside from the Kikyo thing. My entire body trembling from the extremity of my anger, I screamed so loud that I wouldn't have been surprised if all of Japan heard me the following: SHUT UP! I DON'T CARE! SITSITSITSITSITSITSIT…." I "sat" Inuyasha so many times I lost track.

Apparently, though, the bystanders hadn't. I heard Miroku whistle and shout very much like a modern-era game show host, "Wow! One hundred and thirteen 'sits'! A whole new record! I'll be surprised if Inuyasha gets up from that one, guys!"

My other on-lookers, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara, stared, looking shocked, their eyes practically popping out of their sockets. "I have to say, for once, I agree with the monk," Sango managed to get out. "I don't think he's getting up. In fact, I don't even think he's conscious anymore." Shippo nodded lamely in agreement, unable to say anything. Kirara just continued to stare, her tails drooping slightly in her shock.

Turns out, Sango was right. A soft moan could be heard from his 5-feet*-deep crater, then total silence as he passed out. Shifting her gaze from Inuyasha to me, she said carefully, "I know that whatever Inuyasha did this time must have been pretty bad, but… don't you think you went a little overboard?"

Actually, I did, but I wasn't going to admit it—I was way too mad. "No," I said, slightly huffy, and swung around again. I continued to go in the direction I'd been trying to go before. I'd only taken a few steps when I stopped and said without turning around, "I'm going home for a few days. If Inuyasha tries to follow… well, for his own good, don't let him follow."

With that, I continued to walk away, hoisting my bow and arrows onto my back for protection.

*Some time later, Kagome's POV*

Saying I was in a bad mood was like saying water was damp. I had, in fact, been pursued by several demons on my way to the well, since the well was quite a ways away from our camping spot—unfortunately for them, I didn't have the time or patience to stop and play. All the demons I had seen had been pretty weak; I'd obliterated each of the demons on the spot as soon as I detected their aura with my Sacred Arrows, not even giving them a chance to attack. I hadn't even required very much effort for any of them; so little, in fact, that I could space out and think about what had happened with Inuyasha and me this morning and still be completely prepared for any demon attacks.

I'd managed to keep my anger at him high until I was standing by the Bone Eater's Well.

That's when my sadness escaped.

I collapsed against the side of the well. My head was buried in my arms; my arms were folded, resting on the side of the well. My legs were sprawled out behind me. My body racked with sobs as tears fell silently from my eyes. Tears dripped down the inside walls of the well; but there was never a splash when they reached the bottom. I didn't notice or care. I cried and cried, and cried some more.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, I felt the tears stop. My eyes, apparently, couldn't cry anymore. I lie there for a little while longer, not crying anymore, but still upset. Eventually, when I figured I'd wasted enough time, I shakily got up. My body still trembling, I placed both shaking arms on the edge of the well. I took a quavering breath in, and then jumped in.

*Moments later, Normal POV*

Just then, a figure in a baboon cloak stepped into the clearing. His expression unreadable, he took several steps forward.

His nose poking out slightly from his hood, he took a quick sniff of the well; it was drenched in Kagome and Inuyasha's scents, only Kagome's most recent path to it ended there and didn't return. It wasn't possible that she had hopped on their two-tailed cat demon and flown away, as the hooded figure would have seen them. The hooded figure thought a moment.

A slow smile crept across the visible bottom half of his face.

Hey, all you FanFiction peeps! I am a newbie to actually AUTHORING stories, although I have been reading other people's for quite a while. I absolutely ADORE Inuyasha; it is in my TOP THREE VERY FAVORITE ANIMES.

Okay, so, as this was just the first chapter, it is like an introduction that has a slight relevance to the rest of the story. I am going to have longer AND shorter chapters than this, so be forewarned :)

Is it REALLY that hard to guess who the hooded figure is? Come ON.

There is NO GARUNTEE for quick updates, but if you like this story, then you can help with that by reviewing. Reviewing gives me incentive to type faster, so lots of reviewing= fast updates!

PLEASE, NO FLAMES! If you want to flame something, go burn some firewood at a campsite somewhere, cuz no flames allowed here! I KNOW that the character personalities might seem slightly different, but, hey, I tried, and in future chapters, their personalities will be closer to their real ones. I'm sorry, but it's hard to write!

*I am too lazy to try to convert to the metric system.

Review, please.