((Hello again! Well, here's more to the story. ^_^ hehe. While writing
this, I had planned on making a HUGE combination of the chapter you are
about to read, the next chapter, and the next one after that! A total of
three chappies in one!!!!!! It looked great, but finally my brain pointed
out that it would be too much for someone to read all at once. So, instead,
for your benefit, I have split the chapters into three parts. I hope that
you truly enjoy each and every one of them as much as I have.))
Chapter One: Memories of the Past- Kagome's Reflections of Time
The dark purple (almost black) carriage rattled and swayed like an infant's crib as it continued on down the dirt road. Kagome sighed slightly to herself in severe boredom. The velvet, silk golden lined insides of the buggy were dazzling, but when one had been traveling in it for as long as she had, the extravagance of the nice accommodations had faded soon enough.
She decided to look towards the outside world instead, the only serene place that never tired her eyes. The fields that passed by the windows on either side of her were magnificent in the final showy and flourishing beauty of springtime. Wildflowers bloomed all along the hillsides in an uncountable abundance, making a sea of endless color and awe; bees, butterflies, and other insects were collecting their fill of the nectar that spilled generously from their petals; the skies of her own country never seemed to rain unless needed and were clear and windy; on an occasion she would spot a faun and her young moving behind a bush for protection of the buggy's noise; and all together, everything brought a smile to her fair face.
"I guess I had forgotten how much I've been missing my home." She turned her gaze back inside so that she was looking at her properly folded hands resting on her lap. She could tell that that they had been, and still were, slightly shaking from the torn piece of cloth that they had been holding. "Wh-why am I so nervous? Is it because.. because.." she blushed deeply and quickly set her belonging to the side.
Though the thought had been banned from her mind and though she knew it was wrong in her family's discernment, Kagome's world slowly drifted back into the past, to her first sweetheart love. "..is it because, of. InuYasha?"
**(flashback)**
"Thank you, Lady Kirei. You are doing the right thing. Your son shall be well provided for; I give my word on that." A tall, muscular man with a highly decorated crown stood from kneeling at the bedside of a young woman. Though her extremely pale, sweaty, and frail body signaled that her coming of death was too near, she somehow managed to maintain her delicate grace and beauty. She weakly opened her mouth as if to talk, but nothing came. "Oh, no, m'Lady. Please. Do not try to speak. It will only make matters worse." She was determined.
She forced herself up so that the finely made quilts didn't rest so high upon her and she was in a propped position. "I. I waNt. T-t-to say.. good-bye t-to m-m-my son." The king looked down into her eyes; she defiantly looked back. Finally, he sighed and gave in. "Bring the boy here." he said in a quiet tone towards his guard. "Right away, sir!"
A moment later, a small boy no older than the probable age of six came running in quite ahead of the guard, with his doggish ears folded back and tears in his yellow eyes. His silver-white hair that came to the top of his knees swayed at his violent and hurried movements. "Mommy!" He pulled himself up onto the tall bed and flung his arms around his mother's waist crying all the more. She made and effort to smile at her dear only child and placed a hand on the top of his head in a stroking motion.
"There, there, my little one." She whispered sweetly in a comforting tone, "Do not cry." The boy had his eyes closed too tightly to see that she was crying as well. "But-but. You're not going to be here any more.." he sniffled hard, trying his best to be strong like she had brought him up to be and keep himself from falling apart, "And.. I'll never get to see you again!!"
His sobbing voice eventually broke out, but was muffled as he moved his mouth into the covers. The lady used what strength was left in her to pick him up into her arms. "Yes.. y-yes you will." He looked up into her loving face with a questioning gaze. The world saw her smile a final time. "For I shall always.. be a part of you. InuYasha, when you're sad.. o-or lonely.. or need someone to comfort you.. look inside yourself, and I will.." his eyes widened as he felt her grip slipping. The king jumped up and yelled, "Lady Kirei!" she rested her head against a large pillow and closed her eyes, "..be there to guide you."
"MOTHER!!!!"
Kagome looked up from her favorite spot, underneath the largest oak tree on a small hill in the palace's garden. A bouquet of various types of flowers was in her right hand. She wondered what the noise she heard had been and decided to investigate. She got up and dusted off her cute, typical five-year-old pink dress (though it didn't need to be wiped in any way for the blanket she had been sitting on; it was just the principal of it all. She practically worshiped the ground that all of her older cousins walked on and had picked up the habit after carefully monitoring their every move at an evening ball her mother and father had once thrown) before walking towards the palace's side doors.
The doors opened to none other than the hall leading to the royal prayer room (a place where her family would come to worship as well as where the Shikkon Jewel was kept). When she was inside the halls, she at once heard the sounds of someone crying silently to himself. It just so happened that this particular part of the palace was very dimly lit for sacred purposes, so it was next to impossible for her to see exactly who was there.
She didn't like the sound of someone crying, much less in a dimly lit corridor, but she gulped and bravely began to take several steps closer anyway. Finally, when she came to the room's large door, she looked to her left and found a small boy hiding behind the statue of a large eagle. She smiled in relief and took a step towards him.
The boy's head shot up angrily at the sound of her foot- to Kagome's dismay. The surprise sent her back and made her land on the cold ground with an 'umph'. When he realized that it wasn't another grown person trying to coax him to move from the spot and play again (as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened), his face lessened its nasty hue. "Oh. It's just a stupid girl." He thought out loud.
Kagome blinked several times in wonder, trying to ignore the fact of his rude insult and even more rude audacity to not offer a lady a hand to help her from the floor. After waiting several moments she concluded that he wasn't going to assist her and began to get up herself. She picked up her flowers and once again, fluffed her dress. She looked up just in time to see the boy roll his eyes. She gave him a look, but loosened her angry hold quickly; she knew that a young miss wasn't supposed to get flushed.
She pretended to cough, then smiled sweetly. "Um, who are you?" Her voice was tender, soft, and made him feel a little better; however, he still wouldn't let his guard down and wanted to act robust. "What's it to you?" He folded his arms together. "Oh, well. I've just never seen you around the palace before and you look like you've been crying and if you-" He cut her off sharply, "Hey! Let's get one thing straight. I haven't been crying, ok?!" he pretended again by wiping away at his face, "I just got something in my eye, that's all."
Kagome smiled even wider. "And, if you come out of there, I'll give you a flower since you WERE crying." She looked at her beautifully arranged bouquet and picked out the reddest, most lovely rose she saw. "Here." She held it out for him. He was shocked; her sweet kindness towards a complete stranger (and a half-demon stranger to boot) was so touching that he could neither move nor speak.
When he didn't accept the bargain/gift, Kagome repeated her words incase he did not hear. "I said, this is for you if you come out. My name's Kagome, by the way." The boy blinked. "Ka-go-me?" He liked the way her name rolled off the tip of his tongue, and he began to repeat it over and over again in his mind. "Well?" She made him come back to the world again. He looked at her flower once more, blushed, and turned his face the other way. "Keh. You're wasting your time, trying to bribe me like that. I'm not moving."
That was more than she could take. Never had anyone been so rude towards her. "Alright. That's it, pal. You're getting up from that spot right now!" He turned to her with narrow eyes. "Oh, yeah? Then make me!" Kagome searched him over many, many times. She had long since noticed his demon-like characteristics, and was now trying to think of a demon repealing spell that she could use. He twitched his dog ears and chuckled, "Ha! I bet you can't even get me to move an inch, much less offa this dumb statue!"
~His ears! That's it~ she thought to herself. ~I know how to handle dog demons!~ Kagome blinked and focused. A purple light slowly surrounded the hanyou's neck and turned into a beaded rosary. She grinned. "Hmph. We'll see who's laughing now! SIT boy!" An instant later, the boy found himself meeting the floor face to face. "OW!! What- what did- what did you DO?! What IS this thing?!!" But, he had no time to get up. Kagome twirled her finger in the air and in another sparkle of purple light, an invisible thread was formed, connecting her finger and his neck like a leash. "C'mon puppy!" She giggled and began to drag him out of the door. "Wh-what?!?"
Kagome did not stop until she had reached the garden again and they boy had become quite acquainted with every single rock along the way. "Now then.." She said turning around with another giggle. His head was full of small lumps and he looked as if he was going to explode. When she twirled her finger again, letting the unseen thread fade away, he got up. "..what exactly were you saying about me not being able to move you?"
"YOU!" Kagome screamed as he tackled her and sent them both tumbling down the small hill. They eventually landed in a large mud puddle the gardeners had made from watering the fields with more a thud than a splash. The next thing that Kagome knew, she was covered in a squishing brown, dirty liquid. "Why YOU!!" she yelled back at the boy and slung a handful of mud into his face. It didn't make a large difference because the two were both completely covered from head to toe. He gave her a still angry look. Both glared for the longest time.
"Here." Kagome, in spite of everything that had happened to her, had been able to keep her hold onto the rose. It was just as filthy as her hair, but she handed it out to him now just the same. "Are you going to take this or not?" The boy lifted an eyebrow, wondering if she was just angry or perhaps joking or if she really meant it, and then looked from the flower to her face. It was dirty enough to make a hog jealous. He slowly cracked a smile.. then began to laugh uncontrollably.
Kagome's stern face tried to stay consistent, but as everyone knows, laughs are one of the most contagious diseases in the world. The two laughed and giggled and chuckled until their sides could handle it no more. They stared at each other no longer as enemies, but as good friends. The boy rubbed one of his eyes filled with tears from laughing so hard (which cause mud to rub off onto him even more) with a large smile spread across his face. Kagome did the same.
"Hello. I'm InuYasha." He took her dirty rose, making Kagome blush. "N-nice to meet you.. InuYasha." She couldn't let him see her being so coy, so she looked down at the ground. She loved the way his name sounded- so stark and yet so warm at the same time. "Hey. Look!" She looked up and grinned once more. He began to sniff the flower, getting dirt all into his nose. The laughter fell all over them again.
**(End flashback)**
((And that's all folks for this chapter! It's still pretty big with 2,222 words! Lol. I don't know what I was thinking. Anyway, I'll but putting up the next two chapters within a matter of hours, so stay tuned and don't even think about touching that mouse. it gets even better! BunnyGal over and out for the moment.
Oh, one last thing- The Lady Kirei is InuYasha's mother. I couldn't find her real name anywhere, so I looked up the Japanese name for beautiful on my online dictionary: Kirei! ^_^ hehe))
Chapter One: Memories of the Past- Kagome's Reflections of Time
The dark purple (almost black) carriage rattled and swayed like an infant's crib as it continued on down the dirt road. Kagome sighed slightly to herself in severe boredom. The velvet, silk golden lined insides of the buggy were dazzling, but when one had been traveling in it for as long as she had, the extravagance of the nice accommodations had faded soon enough.
She decided to look towards the outside world instead, the only serene place that never tired her eyes. The fields that passed by the windows on either side of her were magnificent in the final showy and flourishing beauty of springtime. Wildflowers bloomed all along the hillsides in an uncountable abundance, making a sea of endless color and awe; bees, butterflies, and other insects were collecting their fill of the nectar that spilled generously from their petals; the skies of her own country never seemed to rain unless needed and were clear and windy; on an occasion she would spot a faun and her young moving behind a bush for protection of the buggy's noise; and all together, everything brought a smile to her fair face.
"I guess I had forgotten how much I've been missing my home." She turned her gaze back inside so that she was looking at her properly folded hands resting on her lap. She could tell that that they had been, and still were, slightly shaking from the torn piece of cloth that they had been holding. "Wh-why am I so nervous? Is it because.. because.." she blushed deeply and quickly set her belonging to the side.
Though the thought had been banned from her mind and though she knew it was wrong in her family's discernment, Kagome's world slowly drifted back into the past, to her first sweetheart love. "..is it because, of. InuYasha?"
**(flashback)**
"Thank you, Lady Kirei. You are doing the right thing. Your son shall be well provided for; I give my word on that." A tall, muscular man with a highly decorated crown stood from kneeling at the bedside of a young woman. Though her extremely pale, sweaty, and frail body signaled that her coming of death was too near, she somehow managed to maintain her delicate grace and beauty. She weakly opened her mouth as if to talk, but nothing came. "Oh, no, m'Lady. Please. Do not try to speak. It will only make matters worse." She was determined.
She forced herself up so that the finely made quilts didn't rest so high upon her and she was in a propped position. "I. I waNt. T-t-to say.. good-bye t-to m-m-my son." The king looked down into her eyes; she defiantly looked back. Finally, he sighed and gave in. "Bring the boy here." he said in a quiet tone towards his guard. "Right away, sir!"
A moment later, a small boy no older than the probable age of six came running in quite ahead of the guard, with his doggish ears folded back and tears in his yellow eyes. His silver-white hair that came to the top of his knees swayed at his violent and hurried movements. "Mommy!" He pulled himself up onto the tall bed and flung his arms around his mother's waist crying all the more. She made and effort to smile at her dear only child and placed a hand on the top of his head in a stroking motion.
"There, there, my little one." She whispered sweetly in a comforting tone, "Do not cry." The boy had his eyes closed too tightly to see that she was crying as well. "But-but. You're not going to be here any more.." he sniffled hard, trying his best to be strong like she had brought him up to be and keep himself from falling apart, "And.. I'll never get to see you again!!"
His sobbing voice eventually broke out, but was muffled as he moved his mouth into the covers. The lady used what strength was left in her to pick him up into her arms. "Yes.. y-yes you will." He looked up into her loving face with a questioning gaze. The world saw her smile a final time. "For I shall always.. be a part of you. InuYasha, when you're sad.. o-or lonely.. or need someone to comfort you.. look inside yourself, and I will.." his eyes widened as he felt her grip slipping. The king jumped up and yelled, "Lady Kirei!" she rested her head against a large pillow and closed her eyes, "..be there to guide you."
"MOTHER!!!!"
Kagome looked up from her favorite spot, underneath the largest oak tree on a small hill in the palace's garden. A bouquet of various types of flowers was in her right hand. She wondered what the noise she heard had been and decided to investigate. She got up and dusted off her cute, typical five-year-old pink dress (though it didn't need to be wiped in any way for the blanket she had been sitting on; it was just the principal of it all. She practically worshiped the ground that all of her older cousins walked on and had picked up the habit after carefully monitoring their every move at an evening ball her mother and father had once thrown) before walking towards the palace's side doors.
The doors opened to none other than the hall leading to the royal prayer room (a place where her family would come to worship as well as where the Shikkon Jewel was kept). When she was inside the halls, she at once heard the sounds of someone crying silently to himself. It just so happened that this particular part of the palace was very dimly lit for sacred purposes, so it was next to impossible for her to see exactly who was there.
She didn't like the sound of someone crying, much less in a dimly lit corridor, but she gulped and bravely began to take several steps closer anyway. Finally, when she came to the room's large door, she looked to her left and found a small boy hiding behind the statue of a large eagle. She smiled in relief and took a step towards him.
The boy's head shot up angrily at the sound of her foot- to Kagome's dismay. The surprise sent her back and made her land on the cold ground with an 'umph'. When he realized that it wasn't another grown person trying to coax him to move from the spot and play again (as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened), his face lessened its nasty hue. "Oh. It's just a stupid girl." He thought out loud.
Kagome blinked several times in wonder, trying to ignore the fact of his rude insult and even more rude audacity to not offer a lady a hand to help her from the floor. After waiting several moments she concluded that he wasn't going to assist her and began to get up herself. She picked up her flowers and once again, fluffed her dress. She looked up just in time to see the boy roll his eyes. She gave him a look, but loosened her angry hold quickly; she knew that a young miss wasn't supposed to get flushed.
She pretended to cough, then smiled sweetly. "Um, who are you?" Her voice was tender, soft, and made him feel a little better; however, he still wouldn't let his guard down and wanted to act robust. "What's it to you?" He folded his arms together. "Oh, well. I've just never seen you around the palace before and you look like you've been crying and if you-" He cut her off sharply, "Hey! Let's get one thing straight. I haven't been crying, ok?!" he pretended again by wiping away at his face, "I just got something in my eye, that's all."
Kagome smiled even wider. "And, if you come out of there, I'll give you a flower since you WERE crying." She looked at her beautifully arranged bouquet and picked out the reddest, most lovely rose she saw. "Here." She held it out for him. He was shocked; her sweet kindness towards a complete stranger (and a half-demon stranger to boot) was so touching that he could neither move nor speak.
When he didn't accept the bargain/gift, Kagome repeated her words incase he did not hear. "I said, this is for you if you come out. My name's Kagome, by the way." The boy blinked. "Ka-go-me?" He liked the way her name rolled off the tip of his tongue, and he began to repeat it over and over again in his mind. "Well?" She made him come back to the world again. He looked at her flower once more, blushed, and turned his face the other way. "Keh. You're wasting your time, trying to bribe me like that. I'm not moving."
That was more than she could take. Never had anyone been so rude towards her. "Alright. That's it, pal. You're getting up from that spot right now!" He turned to her with narrow eyes. "Oh, yeah? Then make me!" Kagome searched him over many, many times. She had long since noticed his demon-like characteristics, and was now trying to think of a demon repealing spell that she could use. He twitched his dog ears and chuckled, "Ha! I bet you can't even get me to move an inch, much less offa this dumb statue!"
~His ears! That's it~ she thought to herself. ~I know how to handle dog demons!~ Kagome blinked and focused. A purple light slowly surrounded the hanyou's neck and turned into a beaded rosary. She grinned. "Hmph. We'll see who's laughing now! SIT boy!" An instant later, the boy found himself meeting the floor face to face. "OW!! What- what did- what did you DO?! What IS this thing?!!" But, he had no time to get up. Kagome twirled her finger in the air and in another sparkle of purple light, an invisible thread was formed, connecting her finger and his neck like a leash. "C'mon puppy!" She giggled and began to drag him out of the door. "Wh-what?!?"
Kagome did not stop until she had reached the garden again and they boy had become quite acquainted with every single rock along the way. "Now then.." She said turning around with another giggle. His head was full of small lumps and he looked as if he was going to explode. When she twirled her finger again, letting the unseen thread fade away, he got up. "..what exactly were you saying about me not being able to move you?"
"YOU!" Kagome screamed as he tackled her and sent them both tumbling down the small hill. They eventually landed in a large mud puddle the gardeners had made from watering the fields with more a thud than a splash. The next thing that Kagome knew, she was covered in a squishing brown, dirty liquid. "Why YOU!!" she yelled back at the boy and slung a handful of mud into his face. It didn't make a large difference because the two were both completely covered from head to toe. He gave her a still angry look. Both glared for the longest time.
"Here." Kagome, in spite of everything that had happened to her, had been able to keep her hold onto the rose. It was just as filthy as her hair, but she handed it out to him now just the same. "Are you going to take this or not?" The boy lifted an eyebrow, wondering if she was just angry or perhaps joking or if she really meant it, and then looked from the flower to her face. It was dirty enough to make a hog jealous. He slowly cracked a smile.. then began to laugh uncontrollably.
Kagome's stern face tried to stay consistent, but as everyone knows, laughs are one of the most contagious diseases in the world. The two laughed and giggled and chuckled until their sides could handle it no more. They stared at each other no longer as enemies, but as good friends. The boy rubbed one of his eyes filled with tears from laughing so hard (which cause mud to rub off onto him even more) with a large smile spread across his face. Kagome did the same.
"Hello. I'm InuYasha." He took her dirty rose, making Kagome blush. "N-nice to meet you.. InuYasha." She couldn't let him see her being so coy, so she looked down at the ground. She loved the way his name sounded- so stark and yet so warm at the same time. "Hey. Look!" She looked up and grinned once more. He began to sniff the flower, getting dirt all into his nose. The laughter fell all over them again.
**(End flashback)**
((And that's all folks for this chapter! It's still pretty big with 2,222 words! Lol. I don't know what I was thinking. Anyway, I'll but putting up the next two chapters within a matter of hours, so stay tuned and don't even think about touching that mouse. it gets even better! BunnyGal over and out for the moment.
Oh, one last thing- The Lady Kirei is InuYasha's mother. I couldn't find her real name anywhere, so I looked up the Japanese name for beautiful on my online dictionary: Kirei! ^_^ hehe))