Summary: Kagome Higurashi, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of York is destined to marry the Earl of Rochester's son Hojo Watanabe. While she loves him dearly she is still restless and wants so much more. Hojo and Kagome attend a Debutante Ball after she witnesses in an act of indiscretion she accepts a dance from a strange, beautiful man. The dance ends with her practically bewitched in his presence, dying for the moment to last just a while longer—and she gets her wish when the floor opens up and she's hurdling downwards in the arms of the man she had been dancing with, or the man she thought she had been dancing with. His black hair faded to silver and his brown eyes flicker to molten gold, and when she succumbs to the darkness she awakes later to realize she is far from home on a demonic plane being held captive by the vengeful demon; Inuyasha.
Preface
On March 3rd, 1759 a child was born to Duke Satoshi and Duchess Akiko Higurashi. Both of noble birth and expecting a male heir but unfortunately for them they received a female one. Due to the Duchess' condition she was advised not to have another child and being warned that the next child she gave birth to would most certainly take her life. Even with that fatal threat looming over her head the Duke who had been trapped in an arranged marriage to begin with decided to proceed with trying to father a son.
Soon the Duchess of York was pregnant with a second child which if male would be the heir. She loved her daughter Kagome and being only five years old she began to explain that she may not be around for much longer and began to prepare her for a life with her cruel, cold hearted father. Kagome wasn't yet old enough to understand what 'going away' and 'not being around' meant. In her adolescent mind she figured her mother would be going off on some prolonged trip, but would return for her.
It hurt her to have to say those things to her daughter, but with the ticking time bomb in her womb pushed her to be brutally honest.
Some nine months later baby Souta was born and to everyone's surprise the Duchess survived giving birth. She was weak and nearly void of life, but she was alive much to the Duke's discontent – but he didn't stay spiteful for long though he had the son he so coveted and his affairs. He didn't need to bother with his wife or daughter when they had each other to monopolize each other's time. Kagome didn't complain, even as a child she knew her father to be cold and callused and she was content with being with her mother.
The Duke wanted Kagome married off immediately and brought up the idea of an arranged marriage to a nobleman. The Duchess didn't favor the idea of her daughter being trapped in an unhappy marriage the way that she was so she immediately shot down the proposal. Satoshi was a man who always got his way and Akiko was a woman who was about as stubborn as a mule, so it was a debate that ensued for a long while until they finally came to an agreement.
The compromise was that they would arrange a marriage, but only if the children grew together and learned to love each other in time. Satoshi refused to withdraw the marriage if they proved unsuccessful and Kagome didn't grow to love her suitor, and Akiko couldn't argue on the matter as long as her daughter was given the chance she had not been so lucky to receive.
It took some time to find a proper boy to pair her with, but eventually they decided on their good friend the Earl's son Hojo Watanabe who was three years older than Phoebe which was rather perfect. They sent Kagome to live with their trusted friends in their summer home which was close enough so it wouldn't be too much trouble for Akiko to visit her daughter whenever she wished.
And so it began, the precarious arrangement that could quite possibly end in disaster.
