Well, here I go! Well… here you go, my first fanfic. The first chapter of my first fanfic… this only happens once so, please review, make this worthwhile! (or you'll be sorry!)

Deep pain for such a shallow cut

Kagome gently pushed the bicycle forwards, keeping in pace with the group as it rattled against the rocky path. Shippo lay sleeping peacefully in the basket at the front of her bike. Miroku and Sango quietly enjoying each other's company at her right, and Inu-yasha walked ahead of them all. She looked up at the clear sky. 'What a beautiful day!' she sighed and smiled. She had come to love the feudal era as much as her own time, after spending so much time there. The fresh water and clean air where a welcome replacement to the polluted atmosphere of her time. All the colours seemed more vigorous, shining more brightly, as if a screen had been obscuring them throughout Kagome's life, and it had been parted to reveal the truth of things, of the state her world was in. The bird songs were more popular and drifted through the clean air, and she took a lungful of sharp cold air, and it stimulated her immediately, but as she found herself checking off all the pros of the era she was now in, she frowned slightly. She had been thinking less and less about her schoolwork and family with each trip to the feudal era, and more about a certain hanyou. It had been more than three years since her 15th birthday, the day she was dragged down to the Feudal Era, and she was proud to say she was much more apt to shard hunting than she once was.

She looked down from the sky to cap eyes with the aforementioned Inu-yasha. She smiled unconsciously as she looked into his eyes, causing the blue depths to sparkle against the sunlight.

"Feh!" He muttered loud enough for Kagome to hear and turned back to look in front, as if it were her fault she had caught him staring. Kagome looked at his silver hair for a moment, debating what to do, before turning her head to her surroundings. 'I don't understand why he feels the need to guard himself from me. He sure doesn't do in Kikyo's presence." She thought, slightly irritated at the inu-youki's simple signs of disinterest, and unbidden flashes of Kiyo and Inu-yasha talking, embracing, kissing, passed through her head, and her heart plummeted as it tried to cast the thoughts aside. She looked down to the dirt and rock path they had been walking along for the past few hours with sightless eyes. 'What I really don't understand is why I get so sad when I think about the two of them together. Why I feel so lonely when I so much as picture them near each other. I don't belong with Inu-yasha. I'm just a high school girl! And I'm trying to fit with him, to break something, to savehim! But he doesn't need help!' she scowled 'He's got Kikyo!' she clenched her fists around the bicycle handles 'Why would he ever love me! Why do I love him!' she didn't gasp at the thought, for she was through with deluding herself with lies and excuses for what she felt, and another sigh escaped her lips.Oh, how easily her thoughts were twisted into thinking of Kikyo and Inu-yasha together, even when she started with the most innocent of subjects.

"Ouch." She whispered and flinched her hand back from the bicycle she had been holding and looked down at the cut in her hand. She had been gripping the edge of the used handle so tightly the metal had bitten into her soft skin and now a few crimson droplets of blood dripped off her hand. She stared at the sticky liquid. It was just a little cut but she was entranced as the light played against the red of her blood. 'You should know Inu-yasha' she thought as she shifted her gaze from the sleeve of her uniform, strangest of garbs in the time she was in, and back to the cut 'how hard it is not to belong…'

Inu-yasha looked forward, puzzled. Why did Kagome have to smile each time she looked at him? It made his heart beat faster, his senses real. All because of her smile, her shine. 'It's as if she smiles because she sees me, when no ones has ever done that before! I just can't get used to a smile instead of a rotting vegetable thrown in my direction just for the hell of it! Feh! Stupid bastards! I'll never forget the mocking, the disgust in their eyes. Kagome doesn't look like that at me. Kagome… Kagome would never look like that at me!' Inu-yasha shook his head to get rid of the thoughts, placing the usual frown upon his face. As the wind tugged at his platinum hair, making it frame his face he caught hold of a scent he hated to smell.

'Kagome's blood'

He thought as he turned to look around. He found Kagome mesmerized by something in her hand. A drop of blood fell from Kagome's hand, for a moment, a fraction in time, it caught the light and seemed to flame up with the mirror of pain, just before landing on the metal of the bicycle. He growled. 'What's wrong with her? She looks so sad… somehow she looks…betrayed…' His frown deepened. "What's wrong now, Kagome? You got that 'stupid' look on you face!" He smirked, trying to hide his concern. Kagome looked up from her hand in a sudden motion, snapping out of her trance and looked at Inu-yasha for a confused second, before her gaze fell to her hand again. She hadn't done anything to stop the bleeding and the blood had spread around her palm. Inu-yasha crinkled his nose. The smell was neither sweet nor repulsing, but he hated it more than anything else. For a moment, just a tiny moment, as Kagome looked up and their eyes locked, Inu-yasha saw them soften with pain. His heart skipped a beat as he looked into her soul, and saw something breaking inside, but the doors closed in his face and the insight was gone. Kagome narrowed her eyes and clenched her bleeding hand, making it sting. Sango looked over in alarm. 'Inu-yasha you baka! Not another fight!' She thought, but before she could intervene-

"Nothing Inu-yasha. Nothing that you would care about…" She said softly, unclenching her hand. Inu-yasha looked at her in surprise. He had been expecting a retort as sharp as his question, maybe a sit for calling her stupid, and though he wasn't one to complain, he was slightly worried by such a mild reaction.

"Feh" he said, yet again, and looked forward. Sango and Miroku traded confused glances, but sighed with relief for what had just been a fight avoided.

They stopped to eat some Ramen prepared by Kagome at mid day, and an uneventful afternoon followed, just like so many others that filled their travelling days. Finally, Just as the sun set and the sky was ablaze with colours, they found a clearing near a river to sleep in for the night. There was no town near for Miroku to 'cleanse' of demons, forcing them to sleep outside, like every other night. They settled their packages and divided tasks between each other. Kagome when off into the forest to collect dry twigs and alfalfa, if found, to use as firewood for the chilly autumn night. Shippo bounced along behind her chattering away about this or that as Kagome smiled and laughed in response.

"Shippo, hand me that piece of wood there please" She said, pointing at a stick. Happy to help Kagome, Shippo grabbed the stick and gave it to her. Kagome thanked him with a smile as he resumed the tale he had been sharing with her and they proceeded gather firewood. Kagome was just about to turn around and head back to camp when a shiver coursed though her spine, chilling her more efficiently than the bitter wind. She let the wood she had been carrying fall to the floor and slid the bow off her back, touching the feathers of one of the arrows she carried.

"And then, out of nowhere, this gi… hey Kagome what are you- Yaaah!" Shippo leaped out of the way as a nasty looking demon, resembling a large and very ugly rat slobbered it's way out of the bushed and lunged for the little kitsune. Shippo sprang to Kagome's shoulder and as soon as Shippo as out of the way she had the bow tensed with an arrow and like a flash she released it. A flare of pink and a melodic whistle later the enchanted arrow embedded itself smack-middle of the demon's forehead. It squealed in pain before it poofed into nothingness, purified by Kagome's powers.

"Woah, that was a close one Ship-clip. Better stay close." She said calmly, as if they had not just been attacked by a mutant rat. Shippo gulped as Kagome tried to sense any other demon presence. There was an unsettling feeling to the air, as if something not quite dangerous was approaching. With narrowed eyes Kagome quickly scooped up the fallen wood and headed for the camp in strides as Shippo calmed down.

"You've gotten really good Kagome!" He exclaimed as they sighted the camp. Kagome smiled at him.

"Thanks! But don't tell the others about this, ok? I don't want to worry them." She asked him. Shippo nodded his agreement.

In other words, she doesn't want Inu-yasha to throw a hissy fit!

Shippo translated in his head, but didn't voice his thoughts. Personally, he thought the group would be proud of Kagome's improvement, but, with the temperamental hanyou around…

Soon after, as they all settled down, a fire was blazing alive and were all eating the rabbit and lizards Miroku and Inu-yasha had caught. It seemed like any other night they were simply travelling because of a rumour or a scent they had caught, and they weren't too tense.

Sango and Kagome talked and laughed together with Shippo eating in the middle. Miroku looked at them, gazing at inappropriate places while Inu-yasha glared at the fire as if he had a deep grudge against it. The atmosphere was light and un-caring, a tone that could only be obtained by people who had to co-exist in close quarters for some time, like they had as they looked for the shard, but with a gust off wind the cheeriness suddenly cracked as Kagome tensed and stop laughing, her smile slipping off completely. She stayed silent for a second, as if trying to hear, or possible sense, something, and turned to look at the ominous looking forest behind her. Sango turned to look at what had silenced her friend, but saw nothing, even though Kagome was obtaining a slightly glazed look.

"What is it Kagome-chan?" She asked, slightly worried at the change of mood, but Kagome didn't answer, which only fuelled her concern.

Kagome, instead of paying heed to Sango, turned to at Inu-yasha with sad eyes. Inu-yasha looked back with questioning ones, but his head snapped to the side as, as suddenly as the change had come over the group, snake like demons flew out of the forest, beckoning. Inu-yasha tensed visibly.

'Kikyo!'

-----------------------------------------------------

I re-did this chapter, I though it was too short, it still is, but there is little I can do to amend it without completely changing the chapter. And to anyone who is new to the story, you better review! Even if it's finished (which it's not right now.) That was my typing baboons will get extra bananas, and will write more rapidly! Now shoo!

-Your loved Queen, Queen Baka-