Hope~ Once again.. I had posted this before, but I became a better writer and felt the need to try it again. I'm going to try keeping up on this, but please bare with me.. I draw more than I write. And I know I'm not perfect at this, but you can flame away, if you feel the need to. I really donot care. Well, please enjoy~

Hope

Chapter One: Prologue

Part 1: Three More. ((POV-Kag))

The back of his hand hit my cheek. Once again, knocking me to the ground I just raised myself off of.

It was just another bruise to try and erase before school tomorrow.

Three months, I kept telling myself; three more months until I could leave. In three months, it would be my eighteenth birthday.

I had lived through this hell for fourteen years. For fourteen years, I had lived without my mother. And for eight, I had lived without my little brother.

My brother's body couldn't handle the pain of daily abuse. 'Daddy' killed him the day after his eighth birthday.

A year later, I almost tried following him.

I'm Higurashi Kagome, this is my hell.

Part 2: Letter ((POV-3rd))

A year after Kagome's younger brother, Sota was killed by her 'daddy', she planned on putting one of his guns to her head.

That day, the day she decided would be her last, Kagome went to find her mother's necklace. Kagome barely remembered her mother, who died when she was only four years old. But in the couple pictures she had seen of her mom, she always wear a necklace that she knew was in her mom's old jewelry box.

One day, while 'daddy' was out, Kagome found the old box. At the bottom of it was the necklace from the pictures.

But an envelope with her name written in sloppy hand writing caught her eye.

When she read it, she didn't know how to react. It was a letter from her real father or so the letter said.

Part 3: Not Daddy. ((POV-Kag))

I was in shock when I found that letter.

The man who would send me to bed very night with bruises wasn't my father.

I had another father, a real one somewhere that loved me just for being me.

I memorized that letter the first night.

My dearest daughter,

I asked your mother to give this to you on your eighteenth birthday. Hopefully, she doesn't decide she's still mad at me by then.

My dear Kagome, I can't say sorry enough for not being there to watch you grow up. I can't explain now, but maybe someday. That is, if you don't hate me for not being around.

I'll always love you, my dear. Never forget that. And maybe one day I can try making up for not being there.

Forgive me,

Your father.

Part 4: This Place Is Not A Home ((POV-Kag))

I woke up to the buzzing of my alarm clock and the morning sun trying to creep into my dark room.

But that wasn't my room, nor was it anywhere near my home. It was just a place I spelt, the place I was beaten.

Part 5: Lonely, Loud Halls. ((POV-Kag))

I had no friends, I didn't talk to anyone. If by some odd chance someone did notice me, they would have thought I was a mute.

The teachers learned long before that I just refused to talk. If I said something wrong, I would just get in trouble with 'daddy'. There was no point getting more bruises if I could avoid it.

I walked down the halls with my backpack over my shoulder. The halls where filled with teens looking for books and talking to friends while they waited for the bell to tell them to go to their first class of the day.

I had no friends, so I just went straight to my first class.

Along the way, an elbow hit my bruised side. I couldn't help the hiss of pain that slipped out of my lips.

"Watch where you're go-"

The owner of the elbow stopped when he noticed my pain, despite my effort to hide it.

"Hey, are you okay?"

His voice changed from anger to worry.

"I'm fine." I said in a harsh voice. So hard it made him flinch ever so slightly.

As I walked off, I felt his gold eyes on my back.

"Hey, are you okay?"

I couldn't get his voice out of my head.

Takahashi Inuyasha, the same Inuyasha I had a crush on from third grade to ninth.

Part 6: When She Stopped Smiling. ((POV-IY))

My eyes stayed on her back as she walked away.

Higurashi Kagome. I had been in the same school and most classes as her since elementary school.

The echo of her pain ran through my head.

Ever since the first time I had seen her, she looked like she was in pain. And many times I smelt blood on her.

I had always been drawn to her. After a couple years of school together, I wanted to go talk to her. Despite being in pain, she was always happy.

But before I got the chance, my mother died and I didn't talk to anyone out of my close circle of friends for a long time.

She started to change, very slowly. She started to keep more to herself, talking less and less. Than when she was twelve, she stopped talking all together. She would try getting away with just nodding whenever she could.

And she stopped smiling.

Part 7: Thoughts Filled the Night ((POV-Kag))

That night after my beating I lied in bed with new bandages, finding myself thinking back to school.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Inuyasha's voice ran through my head for the millionth time that day.

It was a really annoying sentence to have running through your head non-stop; especially, when it came with so many questions.

It would have been so simple for anyone else, but for me it was so much more.

People didn't talk to me anymore, even if they did run into me.

Someone didn't just talk to me, that someone seemed worried.

Not only that, but it was a very hot someone.

I remembered when I was in elementary school I would sometimes watch him play. I remembered him with a fake sword, chasing after his friend, Koga. Koga was always faster than him, but I always thought of how cool Inuyasha was.

When I got a little older, I started wondering if he would ever want to be my knight.

But I was too old for fairytales.

Inuyasha would never be my knight; I would have to be my own.

'Daddy' knocked something over down stairs and I started thinking about the letter from my father.

I wondered if I would ever find him and where he was.

I wanted so bad to know why he left, why he left me here alone.

I closed my eyes only to see Inuyasha's face behind my eye lids.

I groaned in frustration at myself. I didn't want to think about him, I shouldn't have been thinking about him.

I dug my face into my pillow. Why was I thinking in the first place? What was the point?

Part 8: Just Another Day ((POV-3rd))

The next day was normal for Kagome. She went straight to her classes, quietly sitting in the back.

She wasn't really paying attention to the teachers. Her mind was once more on Inuyasha.

She sighed softly as she looked out the window.

At lunch, she sat alone as always. She would eat whatever she could grab from the poor excuse of a kitchen that morning under the same tree.

Today was an old apple. She wondered if it would kill her as she looked at it, turning it over in her hands.

Part 9: Bad Apple ((POV-Kag))

I stared at the core of the old apple, wondering if it was really wise to have eaten that.

"Well, if I die from it, no one will miss me." I said quietly to myself. My voice almost scaring me, I heard it so rarely.

"How do you know that?" A voice said from my side, making my head snap around.

I stared wide eyed at Inuyasha, standing near me with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Inu … Ya … Yasha?" I stammered out.

"So, you know my name? How'd that happen?" He asked as he sat next to me crossed legged.

My voice changed to annoyance, it seemed as I replied.

"What of it?"

He just shrugged, not paying attention to my annoyed answer.

"Calm down, bitch."

I looked at him, wondering why he was here.

I didn't even pay attention to the 'bitch' part. I was used to it, 'daddy' called me it every night.

"Sorry," I said softly, not really sure why I was apologizing. "I guess I'm not used to someone talking to me without an insult attached."

Part of me wanted to leave. I didn't want to be around people. After so many years of dealing with 'daddy', I forgot how to trust.

How could I trust Inuyasha? How did I know he wasn't just like 'daddy' when no one was looking?

Part 10: Dog Demon ((POV-3rd))

Inuyasha looked at her with surprise and asked with some humor hinting his voice, "You don't count 'bitch' as an insult?"

Kagome shrugged, not really looking at him. "I hear it too much. Now, it's more like a nickname."

Kagome didn't know why she kept telling him anything, but she couldn't seem to stop.

"I'm part dog-demon so, it's not really an insult from me." He said after a moment. "But you don't seem to be around many demons or anyone else, really."

Kagome knew he was a demon, from the first time she saw him.

'Who couldn't tell with those cute little doggy ears on top of his head?' She thought, than tried to hide her blush as she realized what she thought.

Than he added without looking at her, "But you seem to be in pain."

"Why do you care?" She asked him in a whisper, almost sounding afraid.

Inuyasha was quiet for a moment, before he replied softly, almost more to himself. "I don't know …"

He continued his voice stronger. "But I do know that you've been in pain for a long time."

Kagome looked at him in surprise, 'Didn't he just notice me yesterday?' She thought.

"And I know I don't like seeing you like that …" He added as Kagome looked at him, not really understanding.

"I want to help."

Part 11: A Want to Help ((POV-IY))

I glanced at her, she looked surprised and confused.

I don't know why I said all that, I'm defiantly not the kind of guy to talk like that.

But than again, Kagome was special.

I caught her eyes than said again, "I want to help."

I wondered if I put her in shock, she just kept staring at me.

I figured I wouldn't wait around for her to come out of shock, we might be sitting here all week if I did.

"Can I ask you something?" I asked.

"You just did." She teased, making me smirk at her with a playful growl.

She nodded and her eyes seemed slightly brighter or I was imagining things.

"What keeps you going?" I stared at her as I waited.

She looked away from me and said softly, "A letter."

"A letter?" I repeated, I was curious. A letter didn't seem like much next to how much she seemed to be in pain.

"A letter from my real father, I found it a couple years ago." She replied softly, seeming unsure about telling me. But she continued anyhow, "The man I live with is my step dad. I didn't now until I found the letter."

I didn't know how to respond and after some silence, she continued again. "My real father said that he had to leave, but he didn't say why. Knowing that he was out there stopped me from taking the easy way out."

I didn't ask what she meant by 'the easy way out'. I already knew the feeling.

I didn't say anything. But she seemed as surprised as I did when I wrapped my arm around her shoulder, pulling her to me.

I was careful not to hurt her, but I felt her tense against my side.

Before she tried to pull away, I started talking, partly to stall her.

"My mother died went I was seven. I might still have my dad physically, but I lost him to his work when Mom died. My friends kept me going."

I felt her relax some against me and I carefully pulled her closer.

Part 12: One Minute of Safely. ((POV-Kag))

I didn't know why, but I felt safe with him.

Somehow for a minute, I didn't care about 'daddy'. For a minute, I wasn't scared.

I slowly relaxed more against him. I didn't really care if I couldn't trust him right than, I just didn't want the safe feeling to leave yet.

But it did, all too soon the bell rang.

"I'll walk you to class." He whispered before he stood up and offered his hand to me.

I carefully slipped my hand into his.

TBC

Chapter one! Done and posted~

I hoped you liked it.

~BK~