Disclaimer: Inuyasha and all of its characters are property of the brilliant Takahashi-sama and I claim no ownership of them.

Title: Deceitful miko and Fascinated youkai

Author: Hairann

Prompt: Spectrum Challenge - Orange

Genre: Friendship, Angst, Comfort

AU/CU: CU/Divergence

Rating: T for now

Warnings: Set in past tense.

Word Count: 6137

Summary: Kagome and Inuyasha began their new life, unaware a guest is on the way.

Full story summary: Sometimes in order to correct the mistakes of the past, you have to start over from the beginning. Sometimes in order to achieve what you wish for most in the world, you have to be willing to give up everything else. Join Kagome as her wish throws her further back in time, to the moment she is needed the most.

Part 2 of Rewriting History.

Once I began running my fingers through his long, white hair, he had begun to relax, though his body remained slightly tense in my arms. I glanced up at the sky, deciding it would be too late to start out, though it would be best to have everything ready to leave first thing in the morning. "Inuyasha," I started, waiting until he was looking up at me before continuing, "Was there anything in the village you wanted?"

He thought to himself for a moment before finally nodding his head. "My momma had some hair combs. She told me father had given them to her when he found out she was going to give him a son. It was the last thing he gave her, but the village head refused to let me have them," he explained sadly as he looked toward the village longingly, though for the combs or for his lost home I was unsure. I followed his gaze for a moment before sighing softly.

"Really? Well how about this Inuyasha, if I can get the combs for you, will you trust me enough to travel with me?" I questioned as I began running my fingers through his hair again, having had stopped when he turned around to me. He stared at me for a few moments in silence, seemingly trying to judge if I was being truthful about getting them for him, before finally deciding that, at the very least, I believed my words even if he still seemed a bit dubious.

"I guess, but he won't give them to you. He refused to give me anything of momma's after she died, said her belongings were too valuable to end up in the hands of an abomination," he told me, shaking his head sadly. I fought the urge to rip of the man's head and gave him a reassuring smile before I helped us both to stand, turning toward the village. Taking his smaller hand in mine, I walked toward the huts in the distance as everyone began coming out after finishing their dinners.

"I may say somethings that sound mean, Inuyasha, but I do not mean them, alright?" I promised him as I glanced down, seeing him nod in response. "Which hut are they in?" I questioned, gesturing toward the huts around us. Inuyasha pointed to the largest one, in the center of the village, and with a nod, I steeled myself as I began heading toward it. When we reached the bottom of the steps leading up to its door, a large, burly man came out and stopped in front of me.

A sour look marred his face when he noticed Inuyasha's presence. "Are you the village head?" I inquired, even though I already knew the answer judging by the way Inuyasha squeezed my fingers at his arrival, as I glanced up so I would be able to look the tall man in the eyes. He gave me the slightest of nods before turning to scowl at Inuyasha, who moved to hide behind me. "Good evening sir," I greeted with a respectful bow before gesturing toward the hut behind him. "Might I have a word with you?"

"Of course, miko-sama, the half-breed, however, is not welcome in my home," he told me with a sneer directed at Inuyasha. I ran my thumb across the back of his hand to help reassure him and to keep myself calm, fighting against the urge to scream at the man before me. This man was supposed to be the leader of this village and by his own actions, he was teaching them to treat children like trash simply because they had demon blood.

"Understandable sir, however, if I leave him out here he might scare the other villagers. This will only take a moment and surely you would not deny the request of a priestess, especially when she simply has the well being of your village in mind," I replied as politely as I could manage, giving the undeserving man another bow, hoping to hide the scowl that marred my own face. He seemed to think about it for a moment before he gave me a slight nod, turning to head back into his hut.

As I followed after him, I glanced down to give Inuyasha a reassuring smile before the door was closed, rather forcefully, behind us, causing both Inuyasha and I to jump slightly. Turning my attention back to our 'host', I watched as he took his seat at the head of his low table, not bothering to put forth the effort to extend the invitation to me as well. I decided to ignore his rudeness and lack of hospitality and jumped right into the conversation.

"It has been brought to my attention that you currently hold in your possession a set of hair combs that belonged to this half-breed's mother," I told him as I gestured at Inuyasha, who remained pressed tightly against my side, his claws slightly biting into my hand when I referred to him as a half-breed. Hoping he would remember my earlier promise, and as I could do little more at that moment than squeeze his hand to reassure him, I turned my attention back to the host.

He sneered once again at Inuyasha before he turned back to me. "Yes I have my late aunt's combs, as I have the right to. As the eldest male relative and village head, everything she owned was left to me. You don't expect it to have been left to the half-breed do you? Half-breed's hold no claim over possessions or property in a human village, that is why even my aunt's hut was left to me even though he had been living in it," he told me as he sent a glare at Inuyasha.

After a moment I realized just what 'everything' pertained to, apparently Inuyasha had also been left to him, though a lot of good that had done my future friend. "Please forgive me, kind sir, I did not mean to imply that you had kept something you had no right to. It is just that there is a problem with the combs. Were you aware, sir, from where your aunt received the combs?" I questioned, watching as he shook his head, his expression clearly stating he did not see the importance of it.

"It would seem, sir, that Inu no Taisho was the one that gifted them to her and, as I am sure you remain unaware, the combs are made from demon bones. Unfortunately, their craftsmanship was poorly done, as they were not properly cleansed. I can feel the negative energy radiating off of them from here. This, of course, causes a major problem for your wonderful village," I told him, summoning my best 'it is the end of the world' voice.

"How so?" he questioned, clearly unable to connect the dots in his mind, but at the same time worried about the safety of his village or, at the very least, his own. It was the oldest trick in the book, or at least it would be in about two hundred years, but I figured if it worked for Miroku, why not for me as well? I put on my most worried, and slightly afraid, expression before staring him in the eyes and continuing on with my blatant lie.

"You see, sir, the negative energy from the combs is calling demons toward your village. It is, in fact, what brought me here as I have already fought three demons just on the outskirts of town and found myself wondering what was drawing them here. After having spoken to the half-breed, I realized that the combs were in fact the cause. Truthfully, I am surprised you have not already had demons attacking your village."

"Well we did have a couple of attacks this season, ruined half of our crops. Destroyed two huts as well, that we are still rebuilding. Thankfully everyone got away unharmed. We just figured that it was the half-breed that was drawing the demons to us," he spat as he glared at Inuyasha, causing the small boy to hide further behind me, his slight shaking only noticeable by me as I felt it through the hand I held in my own.

"Oh I am sure that it did not help to have him around, but I must warn you, sir. The longer you keep those combs around the more the demons are going to be attracted to it. Next time, it may not just be a couple of huts or this year's harvest that get in their way," I told him, letting more worry, for the village, than I truly felt seep into my voice. He stopped glaring at Inuyasha finally, as it was no longer effective since Inuyasha was completely hidden behind me, and turned toward me.

"Of course, you are correct, miko-sama. I shall have them destroyed at once," he assured me as he jumped to his feet and I could feel Inuyasha tense behind me. I sent him another reassuring smile over my shoulder, not entirely sure he could see it from his position, as I began to rub my thumb across the back of his hand again to calm him. I had not put him through all of this just to let him watch as his mother's possessions were destroyed.

"Excuse me, kind sir," I called out to get his attention and as he turned back to me, I transformed my expression into one of worry and apprehension, hoping he would not see through my bluffs before everything was said and done. "Just destroying them will not work. You see, you need to remove the negative energy first or it will remain behind even after they have been destroyed, leaving your village tainted by the evil, demon aura.

"Allow me to take them with me as I can remove the negative energy elsewhere myself before destroying them. I would offer to do it here, but I am afraid it would take a least a week to complete and that would mean another week for demons to be drawn to your village. For the safety of yourself and the villagers, I beg you allow me to remove them at once. We must hurry as I can already feel other demons heading this way.

"To make up for any unease that this ordeal has caused you, I shall even take the half-breed with me, as you and I both understand that they have no place within a human village. His presence here would only bring more demons to your door and next time, you may not be so lucky to have a priestess passing by to end their abominable existence," I warned him, doing my best not to spit out the words that caused me to feel dirty just by saying them.

"Of course, I shall be right back, miko-sama," he assured me hurriedly as he rushed from the room and after a moment, I could hear him rummaging through his stuff in another room. Feeling Inuyasha's anger filled aura, I glanced down to find him glaring at me with a look of betrayal marring his face. Not wanting to give him the chance to have second thoughts about trusting me, I quickly smiled at him as brightly as I could.

I leaned down to whisper near one of his fuzzy ears, assuring him, "I do not mean any of it, Inuyasha. People are more likely to do what you want if they feel they are in danger or that you share their views. I am merely saying these things since they will work to our advantage. Do not believe for a moment that I am like him or that I believe any of this trash to be true, demons and half-demons are not the abominable ones, people like him are."

"Here are the combs, miko-sama. There was also a necklace that I do not know its origins and fear it might have been from that demon as well," he told me, spitting the word demon, as he walked back into the room. Thankful he had not overheard my conversation with Inuyasha, I watched as he held them out for me to inspect. Feeling Inuyasha squeeze my hand tighter at the sight of the necklace, I knew instantly what my answer would be.

"Oh yes, kind sir, this has negative energy as well, though it is faint so it has not drawn any attention to itself yet. You must be very wise indeed if you were able to realize its significance with such a weak energy coming from it. Do you wish for me to destroy it as well?" I inquired as I glanced back up at him, having to fight the urge to laugh at his expense when he nodded his head vigorously. "Very well, I shall take care of it as well.

"I must take my leave now, as I can already feel demons coming too close to your lovely village for my liking. I shall dispatch of them quickly," I told him as I turned and started for the door, after he had handed me the combs and necklace. I could hear him hurry to the door to open it for me and bowed to him as I made my way across the threshold. Inuyasha carefully stayed to the other side of me, keeping himself out of the man's direct line of sight.

"Of course, of course miko-sama. Many thanks to you for ridding my village of these monstrosities," he obliged me with a sneer aimed at Inuyasha, obviously referring to him as well as the jewelry, before he began bowing to me repeatedly. After I had made my way back down the stairs, I turned back to give him one last respectful bow before heading out of the village. Once we were back at our small camp, I decided it would be best to move a little ways away from the village.

I figured it would be best to make them believe I was off dealing with the 'demons' that were heading their way in case any of the villagers came looking for me. "So will you be joining me, Inuyasha?" I questioned after I had thrown my bag over my shoulder and walked far enough away to be safe to set up another camp. I handed him his mother's belongings, watching as he glanced back longingly toward the village before turning back and giving me a slight nod.

"Good, we will make camp here tonight and start out first thing in the morning. You should get some sleep while I take first watch," I suggested with a smile as I laid my sleeping bag out and sat down on it. I reached my arms out to him, pulling him into my lap and covering him up. As I ran my fingers through his hair, I hummed softly to him and could feel his body begin to relax. Within minutes he was sound asleep and I wondered how long it had been since he had a decent night's sleep.

I knew in the future he barely slept outside of a village, though it was more like he rested his eyes than actually sleeping, and something told me it was the same when he was young. Not for the first time, I felt my heart ache for him and what he had to suffer. At least in the future, I could pretend that his hatred toward the world stemmed from when he was older, but now I could no longer hide from the truth. Even when he was so young, the world was already against him.

***

About an hour before dawn would be there to greet us, I carefully got out of my sleeping bag without waking Inuyasha and set about making breakfast. I had let Inuyasha sleep the whole night through and was extremely tried, though I doubted it was anywhere near as much as my future friend was and had decided it would be better for him to get the rest he needed. Especially since I had no idea when the last time he slept was.

Soon breakfast, consisting of ramen of course, was finished and Inuyasha awoke, no doubt due to the aroma of cooking food. "Good morning, Inuyasha, here you go," I told him with a smile as I handed him his bowl and began eating my own. He seemed confused for a moment, even as he took the bowl, and I hid my smile, at how cute he looked first thing in the morning, behind my bowl as I shoved some noddles in my mouth to stop myself from giggling.

"Why didn't you wake me? I thought you wanted me to guard last night too," he questioned around mouthfuls of ramen and I briefly wondered if I would be able to fix his horrible eating habits as he held out his bowl for more. I watched as the second bowl disappeared as quickly as the first and he was asking for thirds. As I wondered if the ramen would even last long enough for us to reach the well, so I could go back for more, I refilled his bowl with the remaining food.

"You looked like you needed the sleep more than I did. I will give you first watch tonight though," I assured him with a smile as I began packing up camp, since we were both finished eating. It was not long before everything was back in my bag, which I quickly threw over my shoulder and began heading away from the camp with Inuyasha at my side. As I got my barrings, I headed in the direction I knew the well to be in.

"So where are we going anyways? What are we going to do?" he questioned after a few minutes of silence had settled over us. I realized then that I had not really thought much passed getting us near the well so return trips would be easier. Since I had arrived in this time, I had only thought about finding Inuyasha and getting him away from the village. As I glanced around, I remembered how close to winter it was and what we needed to take care of first came to mind.

"We are going to find a place to build a hut for the winter or perhaps a cave to stay in, if we can not find a clearing suitable. We will have to gather everything we need to hold us over through the winter and once we are done with that, we can begin training," I told him as I glanced down at him with a smile as I began to imagine the area near the well, wondering where there was a good place to set up that would not bring us too close to Kaede's village.

"What do we need for the winter? And what'cha mean training? Training for what?" he questioned as he threw me a look that clearly expressed his confusion. I could not help but smile at his expression until I realized why he was so confused. There was no one there to teach him what it meant to be a half-demon, his father had died the day he was born, it was doubtful his mother understood any of it herself and there was no way Sesshoumaru would ever explain things to him.

This, of course, made me wonder how he eventually learned his demonic attacks, but filed it away to worry about later. "Well for starters, we will need the materials to build the hut, hids for bedding and clothing, meat to dry for when hunting is hard. And I mean training our skills, like I will be working to improve my archery and other priestess abilities and you will work on your demonic attacks, so you will be able to defend yourself in case you are ever attacked."

"I'm not allowed to use my powers, momma said only bad people hurt others. And why would I need to defend myself if you are going to be there? Or do you mean to say that you will leave me too?" he inquired, his last question almost too quiet for me to hear it. As I saw his heartbroken expression, though I am unsure whether it was at the thought of me leaving him or because his mother did, I dropped to my knees before him, turning him to face me.

"I am not going anywhere and even if I did, I would return quickly. I am not saying that I will not protect you, simply that in case there is a time where I can not, you will not be left defenseless. I do not want you to make the same mistake I did. I traveled around the land with my friends for three years, fighting against the evils of this world, but I never took the time to learn how to use any of my powers other than sacred arrows.

"At the beginning of my last battle, I lost my bow and could do nothing more than stand there, watching as my friends were killed. I do not know if things would have turned out any different if I was better trained, but at least I would feel like I had done everything I could rather than that I let them all down. I depended on them to protect me and now they are gone. I will not let you suffer the same fate as I did. Your mother was not wrong though, only bad people hurt others, but that is not the same thing as protecting yourself.

"Your mother taught you about your human half, but you are also half demon, Inuyasha, and have the right to understand that part of yourself as well. I may not know everything there is to know about demons, but I can at least teach you what I do. I want you to truly understand just how blessed you are to be a half-demon," I told him laughing as he responded with a shocked expression before turning somber when he shook his head sadly.

"It's not a blessing, it's a curse. I'm neither human nor demon and belong to neither world. Humans hate me for my demonic blood, demons hate me for my humanity. I exist on the edge of the two worlds, welcomed by neither side, despised by both. I have no family, even though both my parents have relatives who are still alive, none of them want me as they believe my creation is an abomination," Inuyasha told me, forcing his way out of my hold.

"Idiots, the lot of them," I told him with a shrug, watching as he turned back to me confused. "Do you have any idea what I would give to be a half-demon? I could extend my life without losing my humanity, I could survive injuries that could easily kill a human and I would have more power to protect my friends. They do not understand Inuyasha, but you are not on the edge of the two worlds, you are a combination of them.

"The beauty and intelligence of a demon, the heart and soul of a human. Strength and power mixed with the ability to overcome anything and unconditional love. A half-demon is not cursed, but blessed, far more than any other could ever truly understand. Never think of yourself as worthless or unwanted because even if they do not understand what a miracle it is to know you, I do. And I will always want you in my life, there is nothing you could do to change that."

Seeing he was not going to argue further, at least for now, I stood and took his hand as I began walking again. The silence quickly settled over us causing the hours to pass by slowly as we treked across the land, finding ourselves within spitting distance of the well a few hours after dinner. I decided it was too late to do anything that night and instead had set up the sleeping bag before crawling into it.

Inuyasha sat down next to me, covering himself with the sleeping bag as he kept an eye on the clearing around us. I made sure my bow was within reach before instructing him to wake me in a few hours and closed my eyes for some much needed rest. The sound of Inuyasha's breathing and strong heart beat lulled me off to sleep and that night, I dreamed of a time where I stood before his motionless form, staring at an arrow that had pierced his chest.

***

The days we spent building our small, one room hut went by quickly, the two of us too busy to notice the hours passing us by. We had finished just as the temperature began to drop, marking the coming of winter. Knowing we were only a week or two away from the first snow, I had stocked up on dried meat, but I knew that I would have to travel through the well to restock on other supplies especially since we were completely out of ramen.

As I began to wonder if the well would not only let me back to modern day, considering I now further back in time than it had ever taken me, but also return me to this time when I was ready to come back, I noticed Inuyasha was beginning to get antsy off in one corner of the hut. I set aside my worries, deciding the wish would have added this into its calculations, and made my way over to him to inquire about what was wrong.

"Inuyasha?" I called out softly to him as I reached my hand out to push his bangs back out of his eyes, only to have him shrink away from me. Confused by his actions, I followed his line of sight, noticing he was staring out the window at the darkening sky. I did a quick calculation in my head and smiled when I discovered the problem, "It is the night of the new moon, is it not?" I inquired, watching as he turned toward me in shock.

"I already know about your human night, Inuyasha. I will insure you are protected tonight, you need not worry about it," I assured him as I once again reached my arms around to him and this time pulled him unresisting into my lap. "In fact, tonight is perfect timing. I need to go home for just a few hours," I added quickly when he tense in my arms at the thought of me leaving, "and while you are human, I can drop you off in the nearby village.

"They will not know that you are actually a half-demon, so you will not have to worry about them being mean or attacking you. It is impossible to take you with me or I would, but I need to go back since, at the very least, we are out of ramen. I have traded some of the meat I caught with the village head and he is a very friendly man. I have already told him that my little brother was living with me so he will not be surprised when I drop you off there.

"Just do not mention anything about being a half-demon and you will have no problems, you have my word," I assured him as I softly ran my fingers through his long hair. Seeing he had relax, I was about to release him until I felt him tense in my arms once again. Confused, I glanced down to see his transformation begin and held him tighter until it was complete. "See now you really look like my little brother," I joked holding up a lock of his black hair against my own.

Once he had given me his nod of approval, I helped us both to our feet, grabbed what he would need to keep him busy for the next few hours and began leading him toward the village. I handed him off to the village head, once again assuring him I would be back quickly and made my way to the all too familiar well. I said a quick prayer that the well would have no problems transporting back and forth to the correct time periods, as I held on tightly to my backpack and jumped into its dark depths.

Instantly I felt its magic flow over me and soon found myself at the bottom of the modern day well, knowing I was in the right time by the roof above me. Quickly I had made my up the ladder and out into the yard and, seeing nothing out of place from what I was used to, I headed toward the house. Soon as I had opened the door, the smell of my mother's delicious home cooking was upon me and I could not help but smile.

It had been far too long since I had the chance to eat a meal with my family, as even on my last few trips through the well, the older Inuyasha had insisted I come right back. I made my way into the kitchen to find my mother setting the table as Souta and Grandpa sat in anticipation. Noticing my presence, she turned to me with a smile. "Kagome, you're home. Just in time too, dinner's ready," she said, stating the obvious as she grabbed another plate for me.

"Guess I got lucky today. Unfortunately I can not stay for too long, I will explain things over dinner," I assured her when she gave a crestfallen look at the thought of me leaving soon after finally coming back. Soon as we were all sitting at the table, our full plates in front of us, I jumped right in, "Long story short, we completed the jewel and I made a wish on the jewel to give Inuyasha a positive influence in his life when he was going up, hoping it would stop everything bad that happened.

"Apparently the fates decided I would be the influence as the wish sent me back further into the past, to when Inuyasha was a little kid. I would guess roughly 20 years-old, though he looks about three or four in human terms. Tonight is his human night so I can not stay away too long even though I have a villager watching him right now, he does not know that Inuyasha is really a half-demon. Once I know the well is going to continue to work correctly, I should be able to come home more often.

"But right now, even when it is not his human night, he does not know how to defend himself as there was no one around to teach him how to be a demon. And I do not want to leave him alone when he can not protect himself if something was to happen. I hope we have stocked up on ramen since he is going through it as quickly as his older self, if not faster. But I can not really blame him, it had been a month since his mother died before I found him and I doubt the villagers fed him at all."

"Yes, Kagome dear, I just went shopping this morning and bought plenty. I will make sure I keep extra on hand at all times in case you come back. But if you are further back in time, doesn't that mean that none of your friends are there? You are taking care of such a young Inuyasha all by yourself? Are his ears as cute as they are on his older form?" my mother questioned, causing me to laugh, our shared obsession with his ears definitely proved we were mother and daughter.

"Thanks, I appreciate that. Yes it is just me taking care of Inuyasha, even if I was to seek out the demons I knew, that would be alive already, they would not know who I was. It is not too hard taking care of him by myself, though he may not be happy-go-lucky, his attitude is no where near as bad as what I am used to. And his puppy ears are even cuter at this age," I told her with a laugh as I finished off my plate and stood to rinse it off in the sink.

"Do we still have any of Souta's old winter coats? I have never been sure if Inuyasha does not get cold or just pretends he is fine and want to have a coat for him for winter," I said as I turned back to my mother before moving to the pantry to begin refilling my bag. She nodded her head, before heading out of the room, no doubt to get the coat. Just as I finished refilling the bag with ramen, a large bag of rice and lollipops, she returned with two coats.

"Figured you would want yours as well," she explained with a smile as I threw my bag over my shoulders and took the offered coats. "Oh wait, I have something for you," she said as she headed back out of the room before returning a few moments later with a coloring book and box of crayons. "They were originally for Shippo, but I am sure they will be perfect for little Inuyasha," my mother insisted, her mind wandering off, no doubt to thoughts about his ears.

"Thanks mom, I should be going though, I do not want to leave him in the village any longer than necessary. There is no telling what kind of trouble he will get himself into," I said with a smile as I added the coloring book to my bag and threw it back over my shoulder. "I will visit again as soon as I can," I assured them as I gave each one of them a hug before turning and making my way back toward the well. Stepping into the well house, I jumped over the edge without looking back.

***

At the same time Kagome had been traveling through the well into modern day Japan, an unexpected guest arrived on the outskirts of Inuyasha's old village. He stood silently, watching as the villagers scurried about below, calling their children in for the night, grouping up amongst themselves to speak about whatever it was human men spoke about. Ignoring those that he believed beneath him, he scanned the area as he searched out one specific form.

Not finding it, he tilted his head up slightly toward the dark sky, taking a few quick sniffs of the air around him. Realizing the scent he was seeking was a few weeks old, confused as he knew the half-breed had no where else he could go, he began searching the area for any signs of where he might have gone. Spotting two sets of tracks, preserved by the hardening ground due to the cold, he inspected them both carefully.

"Inuyasha's," he decided quickly about the first, smaller set of tracks before turning his attention to the second. "Female, not the half-breed's mother," he insisted, knowing the tracks were too fresh to have been made by a woman who died well over a month ago. "Human by the scent, reeks of holy powers. Unafraid," he decided, as the two sets of tracks were side by side, close enough the two could have been touching as they walked.

"Why would a priestess lead Inuyasha away from this village in such an informal manner? She if sought his death, she would have simply killed him here. So woman," he began as though she was standing there before him, "where have you taken my little brother?" Knowing no answer would be forthcoming, Sesshoumaru did not bother to wait for one as he began following the trail left by Inuyasha and the priestess.

Summoning a cloud of his demonic powers beneath his feet, deciding he did not wish for his journey to take any longer than necessary, he quickly sped his way across the landscape. Almost an hour later, he reached his destination, finding himself just outside of a small clearing housing a single hut. As he watched from the treelines, Inuyasha and the priestess appeared, her laughing as he spoke animately about something Sesshoumaru could not hear. As he watched in silence, he saw a smile light his half-brother's face for the first time. Inuyasha's dark hair and lack of demonic aura, did not go unnoticed by him.