Will my stories ever make sense? Will I ever continue what I start? (Possibly not) Shall I ever stop doing titles as metaphors????!!! The world shall never know, so stay tune for the latest broadcast of . err . my stories? (Real Question: Will I EVER know what I'm doing?! Again, possibly not. That answers everything, which is sad.)

Chains

It was a beautiful sunset, the sun sparkling fiery red, spreading the last of its warmth all over, such peaceful endings. Yet the sun's rays didn't have quite the same effect on the weary travelers, resting after yet another battle against Naraku's henchmen.

"Lie back down!"

"I'm fine ." Sango's tone was laced with pain, nearly undetectable. Unfortunately Kagome heard and saw the great strain her friend was putting herself through.

Biting her lower lip in indecision, Kagome furrowed her brows deep in thought. "But Sango-chan, you're all wrapped up - like a mummy!"

"A what?" Sango leaned over in curiosity, a mummy? She'd never heard of it, it was probably from the future as well. Kagome was always introducing them to new things - like ramen in a cup that took a short time to heat.

"Oh never mind. It doesn't matter, the point is you're covered up entirely you can't even walk!" Kagome nearly shouted, anger towards Naraku inadvertently seeping out into her speech. "You'll rest here the whole day to get better, okay?"

"Y-yeah Kagome-chan," Sango said quietly, sometimes the younger girl scared her with those odd looks. Normally she could have refuted Kagome's words but she was too weak. Her body was sore and burning.

Kagome smiled down at her brightly as if nothing had happened, which only made Sango a bit nervous, and all but skipped out the door. "See ya later Sango-chan!"

Such enthusiasm, Sango thought to herself, are all the people in the future as strange as she? Sighing softly she lifted a hand to her cheek feeling a thick gauze patch on her left cheek and a "band-aid" on her right.

Lowering it she noticed her hands were also wrapped in white cloth, as well as her feet. How much else of me is wrapped up like this?

Padded footsteps behind her alerted of a presence, the jingling of the staff gave Houshi-sama away.

"Houshi-sama."

Kagome sat next to Inuyasha by the fire, worried over Sango's condition. Shippou and Kirara gazed at the building in concern, although quite young he understood that she was hurt.

"I wonder if Sango is okay. It looks like she got bitten badly by the rats."

Shippou's words voiced their uneasy thoughts. Inuyasha busied himself breaking a branch to feed it to the hungry fire.

"Her body'll probably be okay. For a human, she's tough." He stated.

Sango fought a battle within herself that was by far the toughest. The Houshi had gone, which was for the best. She didn't really want anyone around to see her cry or be so devastated.

Kohaku.

My dear little brother. None of this was ever meant to be. My sweet younger brother, so caring and shy. You were too gentle to ever be a true slayer. Mayhap you could have been good, but your heart is too tender, or rather was. You have no heart anymore because of Naraku. How I wish I could destroy him at this very instant. If not to avenge our village then the other innocents he has destroyed in his greedy ever-continuing quest for the Shikon jewel fragments. The bastard already has nearly the entire jewel. Only one shard prevents him from his malicious intentions. We guard that one shard with our lives, lest others perish and be destroyed by such an evil being.

He destroyed our lives, Kohaku, our futures. Why can't you see .? You could leave and die in peace and see chichi-ue--! The other villagers are waiting for you, and me as well. Even though you are a puppet now, resurrected for evil with no memories of your own, I would still protect your half-life with my own. I have done it in the past and I know I will do it again. I'm so afraid of losing you again Kohaku, couldn't you hear the tinkling of my heart shattering and breaking when Naraku employed you to murder chichi-ue and the other taiji-ya? You make an excellent killer in this state, but you will remain at that stage forever, never surpassing it because there is no heart behind it. It is only obeying an order, nothing more. I fear you would have become the same if our home had not been destroyed, slowly the true Kohaku, my gentle-hearted brother, would die and monotonous creature take his place.

Yet we are not the only ones whose lives were torn, there are others less fortunate in a way. Such as Houshi-sama. His family has been cursed with the Kazaana for three generations; it will not go on to the fourth. No child of mine shall be cursed. Though I'm not too certain I will be the one to bear them. He says he loves me, though he would prefer not have such affections, but his eye wanders so much! Lately I've been keeping an eye on him, the Houshi will not flirt with others after he, in a roundabout way that made me cry, proposed.

Kohaku, you know me well. I've never been one to handle emotions as thus, trained all my life to be a demon slayer I haven't been raised to be a docile housewife. I beat him to a near-bloody pulp if he lays a hand on me, as I would to any of the men in our village. -- Has chichi-ue spoiled me? After all, he was in charge of our village and feared by the others. Nobody was there to scold me. Mother wasn't there either to balance out the roughness with the refined traits of being a proper lady. Despite it all I have a future now with someone I love (though won't admit, we both have issues like that). I have a chance at it, but I know I would give it all up if, in exchange for my own life, you could live your precious life.

Inuyasha and Kagome, their histories are forever colliding, just as their souls are forever intertwined apparently. Kagome, the priestess Inuyasha loved reincarnate, brought the Shikon jewel back to this world when it was to be destroyed. She couldn't know it, and possibly couldn't control it as well. It was most likely fate that brought her into our time, trading her cozy and familiar life for a hard uncertain existence in our feuding times. She and Kikyo share the same soul, but it does not make them the same person either way. The soul is their backbone, the raw material they share. Each have shaped it into their own imitation of their lives, both extending in opposite directions. Inuyasha's soul is drawn to every facet of that singular soul, as is Kagome's. Their love is apparent yet they dance around it, never acknowledging the other's blatant love. Each is plagued by self-doubt, Kikyo is Kagome's main fear, and Inuyasha, well he's just a big idiot with great power.

So you see, Kohaku, all of this is by Naraku's doing. I can't say that he didn't bring some good with the bad, but it far outweighs it. Without Naraku, Inuyasha and Kagome would never have met, and neither would the Houshi and I. Our fates are chained together, that can't be changed I know, everything happens for a reason. All for the greater good, speeding the world to imminent destruction. This is the point of the world, to destroy itself and be resurrected.

I felt like writing a short story after finding out about those crazy rats because, in my sole opinion, Takahashi-san did not go into great detail when doing the scene of Miroku and Sango talking inside the hut (which I excluded because I did not want to rewrite that entire scene though did vaguely mention the whole concept of the talk: Sango's undying love for her younger brother.). I know it would have meant much more work and possibly another issue or so which is tons of work, I should know, I can't even get ONE page to look right much less so many as she does a WEEK. Anyways. I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. I love getting into the character's mind and finding things about them to expose to make them more human. Hopefully someone will like this one-shot. To clear up any confusion (which I had while writing it ._.'), near the end Sango is talking to her brother.

Life is TOUGH!!!! Honors is killer *whimper* . I think this is full of angst because my English teacher's son, who is only nineteen is dying of cancer. The doctors say he'll die very soon, it could be within a few days like this week or next week. I feel really bad because Michael, that's his name though I don't personally know him, is too young to go. He hasn't had any time to live, he'll never have a family either. (Which I think is a tremendous joy cause babies bring such happiness to a household, and a whole lot a' raccoon eyes) He's had cancer since he was seventeen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Ai-chan
A Girl of A Thousand Masks

RANTING SECTION, if y'all don't like to hear me complain, don't read.

After three months of having the same pain in my foot, which I received from a jumping accident during the final rehearsal for a play (Of which I was the star, but don't ask how I got hurt cause nobody knows, I was jumping rope and then excruciating pain.). My mama thought I was faking it to get out of practice for cross-country so for a month I couldn't go to a doctor. Then the coaches and the school trainer told me to go see a specialist. X-Ray says I'm developing a stress fracture, JOY. (For those of y'all who don't know, a stress fracture is when too much pressure in concentrated on one area causing a crack in the bone and eventually all the stress on the crack will cause it break) He gave me a month to wear orthotics things (stiff green soles with a hard part for the talon.) but they didn't help cuz I've got low arches, damn hereditary genes, and they gave me even more pain. Finally after three months of hobbling around (it's no picnic to forever have radiating pain in your foot that sometimes makes you cry cuz its so bad) he says (after looking at my foot for ten minutes, with a shoe ON) I have to get a boot-walker. It's a giant ski- boot thing, mine goes mid-calf, and I gotta wear it for a month. Argh!!!!!!! Such inept uncaring doctors!