I knew I was going to be able to shell out a whole second chapter! I have to congratulate myself for keeping the procrastination off of me so far! I cannot improve for the life of me when it comes to procrastination so this is a VERY big deal for me. Anyways, in this chapter, you'll meet the main character of the entire story! :D

Onto the show! c:

I do not own any part of InuYasha, except any and all of my ocs and story ideas. All original story concepts belong to their rightful owner, Rumiko Takahashi!

Latest Update: 11/10/2018

Enigma;

/iˈniɡmə/

noun

noun: enigma; plural noun: enigmas

a person or thing that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand.

In other words: her.

She could never be understood.

They always say, "Never judge a book by its cover!" but that's always what they end up doing. Nothing changes, the human people in her time are always the same. They're all somewhat...startled by her outward appearance. Her confidence is practically shot due to that plain and simple fact.

She was often talked about within the confines of her school. Her peers don't approach her because they're too focused on assessing her physical appearance. She'd hear the whispers, the sniggering, the insults, the jokes. She'd see the smirks on their lips or the confusion in their eyes and it'd kill her inside even more.

The girls would reveal their hateful fear towards her and leave notes in her shoe locker at school. They'd take her clothes in her gym class and drop them in the bathroom toilet. Before class would start, she'd go to use the bathroom and they'd take and hide her bag, though there weren't many places to hide it.

She was a half-demon. She accepted that a long time ago. She just couldn't accept that humans refused to interact with her and demons probably wouldn't even bother to acknowledge her presence. This is one thing in her life that would never change. They'd always have feelings of disdain for her. Both humans and demons.

All she seemed to be was a weak-willed half-demon. She was an abomination to anyone who pegged her as different from the rest.

There's a different life for me somewhere. I'm not supposed to be here. I'm older than all of these people and as long as I can heal properly, I'll outlive them as well.

And now here she was, standing in front of forty-three pairs of judgmental eyes that were packing layers of pressure on her conscience. "Class, this is Kyomi Sukomashi..." She tuned out the teacher's voice as she looked into the class. I wish they'd all stop staring at me like that. It's...annoying.

People fear what they don't understand. And fearing the unknown usually leads to distaste and repugnance within. I can already sense their distaste in me, it's slowly growing.

"...and please, make her feel welcome." The teacher finished, gesturing to her. Kyomi bowed, closing her eyes tightly shut. This is it. If I don't last here, I'm never attempting human school again. I'll just work on unlocking and developing the power I inherited from Dad's bloodline.

She stood straight again, looking out at the class. There was one particular human girl in her class that was different. She's human, but her aura was blazing, it was strong, it was purifying.

A priestess! Kyomi thought, inwardly shocked. A human priestess with strong spiritual powers in the Modern Era! Her purifying aura is burning me and I can smell the dirt of the Bone Eater's Well coming from her.

"Ms. Sukomashi, you may take your seat next to Kagome Higurashi. She'll raise her hand so you'll know where to sit."

She did so, and Kyomi took her seat next to her. Kagome looked over and gave a friendly smile before going back to taking the notes on the board. Kyomi was still staring at her out of the corner of her eye, analyzing her within every second. She somehow found a way to go through the passageway to the Feudal Era. There's only two ways that I know of: Dad's power, or the Shikon Jewel. And from what I sensed so far, it doesn't exist here in the Modern Era.

A farfetched thought sprouted in her mind. Unless...I can sense the same spiritual powers that the priestess Kikyo had when I was an infant. It cannot simply be a coincidence. Kyomi frowned slightly, piecing her thoughts together. If the girl has the same powers as the former priestess then that means that the priestess Kikyo has passed and her soul has been reincarnated in a different body, the girl's body. I need to find out more and see if I can go back.

The bell rang, abruptly startling her out of her thoughts. I should follow her to her home and see if the entrance to the Feudal Era is there, but Mom will want to know about this.

As fast as she could, she left the school and rushed to her abode not too far from the school. Luckily, her mother was already home from work so she could share the important news. Kyomi jumped on the roof of the car in the driveway and pulled herself on the section of the roof near her bedroom window. She slid it open and slipped her slender body through the opening, throwing her backpack on the floor in a hurry.

Suddenly her bedroom door flew open, revealing her human mother with a glare on her face. "Kyomi Kazue Sukomashi! I told you to use the door and try to blend in! The neighbors are already spooked enough as it is!"

"Sorry," she apologized, holding up her hands in defense. "But I've got some weird news for you. It'd probably be best if you sit."

Her mother sat in her desk chair, despite being somewhat confused. "Alright, what is it?"

"While the teacher was introducing me to the class, I sensed strong spiritual power coming from a human girl. And not just any regular spiritual power, it was the same spiritual power that I remember that human priestess Kikyo having when we passed through her village to get to the Bone Eater's Well. I also smelled the dirt of the well coming from her. I came to the conclusion that Kikyo must've died and the girl who possessed her same powers must be her reincarnation in this time period. I knew something strange was going on but I wanted to check with you before deciding to find out more."

"No," her mother blurted, standing up and crossing her arms over her chest. "You mustn't go near that well. We've done a good enough job of protecting ourselves in a place where your deranged grandmother cannot get to us. Once you set foot in the Feudal Era, you will be immediately sought out and killed by her."

"Why? What does that old bat have against me? I deserve to at least go back and explore my place of origin!"

"I said no."

"Why?" Kyomi asked demandingly. "Dad would've wanted me to go!"

"Because your father gave his life to protect ours! Relish the fact that you're still alive from that ordeal! Otherwise, we'd both be dead and your father wouldn't have been able to live with that."

Kyomi shot up from her seat on her bed and glared fiercely at her mother, eyes beginning to darken from the change. She emit a low growl from within her throat, followed by a warning hiss to the woman standing in front of her. "You're so damn stubborn."

"Oh no," she murmured, covering her mouth. She pulled her daughter's hand and quickly head toward the bathroom. She hurriedly pushed Kyomi into the bathtub, turning the shiny metal knob that controlled the flow of cold water. She filled a plastic cup with the water and doused her daughter's head, trying to reawaken Kyomi's half-demon soul.

Soon enough, Kyomi's arms began flailing wildly, trying to prevent the human woman from pouring any more of the cold water on her. "Shh, you'll be okay. I'm sorry."

Kyomi began spluttering under the stream of water being thrown on her. "Okay, okay! I'm fine now! Get off me!" She began coughing uncontrollably, suddenly feeling the effects from water going down the wrong pipe. She instantly threw a glare at the woman before her

"Arm's up," Kyomi's mother instructed, pulling the top of the sailor uniform from over her head and throwing it on the tiled floor beneath them. She reached under the sink for a towel and some spare clothing she kept for days like these. "Look, I'm sorry. But you must unders—"

"Save it," Kyomi interrupted, not pulling away when her mother tilted her head to dry the back. "I get it. Grandma Hiromi is a dangerous person and I'm not allowed to go near the well. You don't have to tell me again." Too bad I have Dad's redeeming quality of a rebel.

When her mother finished drying her off, she slipped on the clothes and headed back to her room. Hours passed before she finally found a resolve. I don't care about Grandma Hiromi. I don't care if she wants to kill me. I don't care if I get killed. I just want to find a purpose for my life. And I'm never gonna find it if I stay here. She buried her head in her pillow face first, trying to suppress her sorrow. Damn...

She abruptly sprang from her bed and grabbed for an unused backpack from under her desk, beginning to stuff it with belongings she assumed she would need to survive in the Feudal Era. Extra clothes, a pocketknife, shampoo, a lighter, bug spray, a medical kit for injuries, and a sewing kit just in case. I'll probably grab some bottles of water and some snacks from the kitchen. Yes! I can do this! Little does she know, the well has been calling for me since the day I turned 15. I should've gone after it a long time ago, but I decided to be an obedient child and follow the rules. No more. I do what I want.

She shouldered on a black knit sweater with a hood and a violet scarf, concealing her raven colored hair and violet eyes. Kyomi pulled on a pair of black knee-high socks on, then slipped her feet in a pair of dark brown loafters. She softly and slowly opened her bedroom door, carefully slipping through the opening and lightly stepping down the stairs toward the kitchen. She reached the refrigerator and grabbed an arm full of bottles of water, then tiptoed to the wooden cabinets and snagged packs of cookies and chips. Almost ready to go. Just need to get back in my room.

While trying to tiptoe carefully, Kyomi stepped on the wrong floorboard and an audible creak came from it. Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at her mother's door, waiting for her to come out and ground her for attempting to sneak out. That, however, didn't happen. Her door stayed closed, which gave her the opportunity to lightly sprint back to her room and finish packing before she really got caught.

"Phew," she said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "That was really close."

Kyomi slung the backpack onto her back and began her escape to the Feudal Era. She climbed out of her bedroom window and hopped onto the roof of her mother's car, trying carefully to not leave dents, and dashed into the night.

Wow, I'm horrifically late with the chapter. School started back up and I actually hit a creativity block a couple of times... I'm probably the most sporadic author on the entire site. I definitely want to write more, and I'd hate to wait months to update again. I've already got part of the third chapter written out, I just need to finish it and edit it.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, and see you in the next chapter!

-Vertan Yamamoto