Oh my gosh!!!! Seven people reviewed! Yay! *Does a little happy dance*That's seven more than I thought would get! I expected everyone to blow me off, but they didn't! I'm so happy! *Huggles reviewers* Thank you! ^^

And I redid the first chapter, you know, added a bit to it; I just hope it loaded…I don't really know how to use this quite yet and am wingin' it and have been VERY lucky so far!

         Correct me on anything; characters, weapons, powers, personalities, heck I'd even take grammar and spelling!

Oh, and I forgot this on the last chapter:

Disclaimer: sadly, I don't own Inuyasha. If I did, I would make him dump that frickin' zombie kikyou and he and Kagome would be all happy! And kikyou would burn in hell! Eheheheheh…*ahem*

And just in case you haven't figured this out yet:

"…" = talking

'…'= thinking

~o~O~o~= scene change

~*~*~= dream or flashback

*****= end

Twisting Paths of Fate What She Never Expected

'Doesn't this road cross into ANY villages?' Kagome let out a frustrated sigh, it was hours after her little run in with Hiten.

How long had she been walking? Seven, maybe eight hours? It was no small wonder that her feet hadn't fallen off yet with such abuse. It had taken at least half the day to navigate and leave Kyuusei. All that she knew was that she need to find a place to stay before Hiten could catch up to her, and that the sun ws starting to dip lower in the sky. She couldn't even see it anymore, the tree branches had concealed it for quite a while.  But she estimated that it would be at least three hours until sunset

The only way that she knew it wasn't all the way set was the bright blue of the sky high above. She thought that she could see dark clouds to the west through the spreading limbs of the tall trees. She only hoped that the reason that they were so dark was the late afternoon shadows, and not an impending storm.

Suddenly she realized that there was a dull ache in her stomach. She hadn't eaten since a small breakfast that morning, which was two hours or so before dawn. She had been so preoccupied with running from Hiten and keeping an eye out for anything remotely along the lines of a youkai that she had completely forgotten about eating.

A small break wouldn't put her in danger, and she was at least and hour ahead of Hiten. Probably more like two or three.

Sighing, she made her way over to the side of the dusty road, where she sat down, leaning against a tree. She opened the small bundle that she kept her belongings in, and broke off part of the small loaf of bread she had brought. Her eyes immediately landed on a rather full satchel; she closed them in guilt.

'I have absolutely no reason to feel guilty. After all, that money was paid for me, so I should be the one to do what I please with it,' she, once again, rationalized to herself, not believing a single thought. She broke off another piece of bread, trying to force her mind off the subject.

Why did her father have to send Hiten, of all people, after her? The guy gave her a bad feeling, there was just something not right about him…

Then again, she felt that way about most of the servants in her father's house, how strange…

These thoughts gently lulled her to the soft oblivion of sleep.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Kagome, I want you to keep this safe. Make sure no one finds it," she whispered, handing her six-year-old daughter the necklace. She sat at the side of her daughter's futon; it was well past midnight, all the servants were dead asleep in their quarters, she had made sure to drug their sake, and her husband would return from a business trip early in the morning. She was pressed for time.

"Not even Daddy?" Kagome asked, eyes wide with curious innocence. She started to examine the small necklace; it was of simple design, almost rosary-like, hanging off of it was a small ball wrapped in sutras.

"Not even Daddy. And don't ever remove the sealing charms on that ball understand?"

"I understand, but why, mommy?"

"Because, if you did, then many bad people would come after it. And if one of them got a hold of it, then they would become very powerful."

"And lots of bad things would happen?"

"Yes, Kagome, they would do many evil things. But if something happens, anything at all, and you need to get away from here, then go to the Higurashi shrine. Your grandpa is there; it's far away, to the west and the north, but you should be safe there."

"Okay, mommy. I love you."

"I love you too, never forget that." She planted a small kiss on the top of her daughter's head and hugged her tight; she knew that this would be, more than likely, the last time she ever saw her daughter, unless, by some odd twist of fate, their paths happened to cross again. She got up from the side of the futon and made her way to the door.

"Mommy?"

"Yes, Kagome?" she was paused in the process of sliding open the shouji.

"Is this dangerous?" she held up the necklace.

"Yes, I'm afraid it is very dangerous." There was such an ominous and foreboding tone in her quiet response.

"Then why are you giving it to me?" Kagome's small voice was scared and confused.

She gave her daughter a small, sad, yet still hopeful grin, "Because you're the last place they would think to look for it, little one."

The shouji slid closed, and the distraught mother put her face in her hands, despair and regret etched into her weary voice, "Oh Kami-sama, what have I just done?

~o~O~o~

That afternoon, Kagome, dressed in a black kimono, stood with her father, her mother's side of the family, and her mother's servants, watching a priest, also wearing black, lower her mother's ashes into the small family cemetery. There was snow everywhere, making the entire scene look like a hallucination, dreamlike, not real.

Oh how she wished it wasn't real.

Yet another tear slid down her face as she silently fidgeted with the last gift her mother gave her inside of her kimono sleeve, where no one could see it. He breath came out in small clouds, that slowly glided and curved away with the wind, and quickly disappearing into the air, vanishing. Just like her mother had.

"I'll make you proud, mommy. I'll keep it safe, I promise." She quietly whispered to herself as she stared into the gray winter sky above.

"I promise…"

Then everything faded into blackness, and she was enveloped by warmth.

Such a kind warmth, like the embrace of a friend long lost.

The whispered words, "Keep it safe…I love you… never forget that…" echoed from everywhere.

Whatever she had been standing on gave way and she was tumbling, falling through oblivion. Suddenly, a gigantic shaft of pure white light manifested itself in front of her, floating in the middle was the necklace her mother had given her years ago.

She literally flew to it, stretching, reaching out her fingers to grasp the sutra-covered orb. As she was nearly there, her fingers just millimeters away, she heard her mother's voice again only louder and more commanding, desperate, "Keep it safe!" and the sutras yellowed then floated away like dead autumn leaves to reveal a pale pink gem, perfectly round, glowing with a rose aura of it's own power.

And for just a moment, everything was still.

Then the column exploded outwards, she lost sight of the ball; the blinding light reflected from every direction.

Covering her.

Nothing could be seen

She couldn't breathe.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Kagome gasped awake, grabbing the chain around her neck. She sighed with relief when her fingers found the sutra-covered orb, hidden beneath the folds of her yukata.

She leaned back against the tree. She had fallen asleep, it was just a dream.

Why? Why did she have to dream of that? Why that night? And the funeral?

Especially the funeral.

She had been told when she woke up the next morning that a burglar had attempted to break into the house, and that her mother had valiantly tried to stop him; she had succeeded, but had died in the process.

She doubted that was the true story. No, scratch that, she flat out didn't believe it.

What about that last part? It didn't make any sense.

She let the ball drop onto her kimono, the large green and white squares were damp from the mist of the heavy evening fog.

Evening? How long had she bee asleep?

The small red obi seemed to be almost too tight as her gasping and ragged breaths slowly evened out, but she did nothing about it.

It was a miracle in itself that she had been able to keep the necklace a secret for so long, she had never taken it off since the day of the funeral, always somehow managing to keep it hidden from sight.

She glanced at the small orb again and closed her eyes, only to slam them back open and stare in panic at the ball lying on her chest.

The normally white paper sutras that always seemed as though time held no sway over, were now crinkled and yellowed, they looked as if they were several decades old.'

'How could they have aged that fast? This is like what happened in the dream…'

This couldn't be good, something was terribly wrong.

If the sutras fell off, then that would mean there would be no end to trouble for her.

"Oh no," that was the only thing she managed whisper to before a cold, familiar voice greeted her.

"Hello Kagome-sama. Nice to see you again."

This was not happening.

She started to berate herself for being stupid enough to fall asleep.

"Now if, you would come with me," Hiten's eyes fell upon the satchel of money, perhaps flattery would have an affect on the girl, "So that's where it went. Your father was quite worried," his eyes met hers again.

"After all, that money is worth the equivalent of ten thousand golden toris. That's more than the price of a prime war stallion would be sold at from the royal stables. That gentleman must have thought quite highly of you to pay such and extensive amount of money. I'm sure you'll be very happy with him."

She had looked him strait in the eye the entire time, while she had slowly and silently rolled up her bundle. She was going to have to run, again.

"Hiten, I'm never going back. And absolutely nothing you can say will persuade me otherwise."

"So, goodbye!" she abruptly stood up and tried to dash past him.

But he had been expecting this, and jumped in front of her, "The only place you're going is back to Kyuusie! I was given orders to bring you back no matter what!" he sprang forward.

She dodged to the side, "Too bad!" little bits of aged paper floated in her wake, exposing the pale pink surface beneath the sealing charms.

It seemed to glow with a small strange aura.

Her eyes widened as se stared down at it, 'Just like in the dream,' then looked up to man in front of her.

Hiten stopped dead in his tracks, "Th-that's the Shikon no Tama!" he stared at it wide eyed, his body tense and rigid, "Give it to me, there's no reason for you to have it,"

She cautiously took a step backwards, then another, until there was a good distance between them; more of the decaying paper floated to the ground.

"I said give it to me!" he shouted. His brown eyes were starting to take a crazed reddish hue.

"No," she croaked out, 'What am I going to do? Oh Kami-sama help me!'

"Look, if you give that to me, I'll let you go. And you won't ever have to worry about being followed, okay?" he was shaking, trying his best to constrain himself; his now-red eyes never straying once from the glowing pink orb dangling from her neck. Sweat dripped down the side of his face, his breathing had become ragged.

She would have immediately agreed to that and thrown the necklace at him and run for all she was worth, if her mother's words weren't echoing through her mind, "Keep it safe…"

Then her own voice, "I'll make you proud, mommy. I'll keep it safe, I promise…"

'I can't let him have it. Who knows what he might do? It's obviously got some kind of power,' her courage went up a few notches at this thought.

"No," her voice had a new confidence to it

As if on cue, sudden gust of wind shook off the last of the remaining sutra off of the jewel. And the full sight of it was too much to bear for Hiten,

"Fine," the word came out like a deep, decisive growl. He tensed and crouched into a fighting stance, looking as though he were a coiled snake about to strike. His pupils became slits, almost catlike, and his eyes were a bright blood red. His fingers ended in frightening sharp claws, long and deadly; and his ears were becoming pointed. Bits of electricity ran over his skin at random intervals.

That's when her mind fully realized what was happening. She lost all of the courage she had before, confidence shattered. Her eyes grew wide in terror.

"You-you're a-a" she couldn't get the word out, her throat felt as though something was blocking it.

"A youkai?"

She nodded mutely, her face pale.

His face twisted into a sick sadistic grin, "Yes, what a smart little girl. Too bad, you won't live to see tomorrow!"

That's when he leapt at her with inhuman speed, claws tensed and ready to tear into her flesh.

She barely managed to dodge out of the way, sprinting like mad in the opposite direction.

He jumped with ease in front of her again, "What's the matter, Kagome?" the way he had said her name made it sound as though it were a twisted, taunting insult, "Afraid of a lowly servant?" he leered at her.

She backed away from him, eyes wide with fright, until she tripped over a stone and scrambled away from him, until she was backed against a tree.

He didn't follow, but stood with his glare trailing her trembling form, "You damn humans forced us into hiding, made us cover up what we are," he started to walk towards her with that sick grin, a crazed glare in his eyes, " But with that jewel, we could put you filthy, pathetic wastes of life back in your place. And then you would be the ones that are in hiding."

 He was standing right in front of her now, his gleaming psychotic eyes boring into hers with an accusing glare.

Then a look of pure hatred took the place of the twisted smile, "Prepare to die, bitch!"

He raised a clawed hand, lightning sparking around it.

The next few moments were a blur to Kagome.

His hand came down to strike, tongues of electricity eagerly licking outwards for the taste of human blood.

She feebly lifted her arm up to block the attack; eyes squeezed shut, braced for the worse.

Then there was a flash of light. A searing pain beyond words. A tortured inhuman scream.

Then nothing.

**************

AN: Oops, would that be considered a cliffhanger? I'm not quite sure, oh well, thanks for being patient! First I was grounded from the computer (my dad caught me on it at midnight, which was an hour after he told me to get off) then the day after my last day of punishment we went to Galveston for four days, and then we came back and I finally finished the chapter! Yay!

And does anyone know what Kyuusei means? Yes, I know what it means but do any of you know what it means?

Sorry if Hiten's a lil' OOC, and I was too lazy to go back and read exactly what his powers were, so I'll just say I took creative license.

And I give a big thank you to Mary, Sadistic Shadow, Shortee, Moonlight Shadow4, Kitty Katana (if you need a rabid squirrel, there are plenty around here; I could probably use a good whacking!) Animeart2, and Me (haha, love the name!)

I'm probably going to go back and redo this later, it seems a bit rushed to me, but my neck is killing me right now.

You know what to do! Just press the lil' button! Ja ne minna-san!