Konnichi wa minna-chan. I'm ba------------------------ck!!! ^^ After sooooo long!!! It feels sooooo good to be back! I'm glad that I can finally write fanfiction again. I missed everyone although I've been reading and reviewing a few fanfictions here and there.

I want to dedicate this to all the people who have been reviewing and who have supported me to continue and get well. In this chapter I kind of feel lazy so I'm not going to make any specific dedications except for two people. Rose-chan. I read the dedication you made. I REALLY appreciate it!!! Arigatou gozaimasu!!!

And for Lightning-chan. I heard about your friend and I hope you received my e-mail and card. Hope you feel better.

One last thing. I'm sorry if this chapter sucks. I haven't written in a while and my style might be getting rusty. I'm not too happy with the way this chapter came out. Oh well…

According to my dictionary, "sochi" means "my son" so I used it here k? If I'm wrong, then please tell me.

Okay, go ahead and read. And I hope you review! There also won't be an end note because of what I said back in chapter 2.

The Life of a Star

By Inuyasha-loves-Kagome (A.K.A. Inu-chan)

Disclaimer: Inuyasha…me? You must be joking. *sigh* But there is that dream…

~**~

The sun gleamed down from the sky in an intense heat that burned and scarred. Shippou shielded his eyes with one hand as he looked up at the shrine. It was actually quite large for a shrine but he shrugged it off and lowered his hand. He walked onward towards the shrine. So this is the place. I'm glad someone was able to tell me where it was located. He grinned mischievously. Well, it actually wasn't that hard since I have so many connections.

Shippou stopped at the entrance when he saw a girl dressed in the traditional miko clothes sweeping the steps. It wasn't that he was surprised or anything. It was just that he was so stunned by her beauty. She long, shiny sapphire hair and clear, deep grayish blue eyes. She was humming a lovely song as she worked and looked quite content at what she was doing. Shippou blushed and for once didn't know what to do or say.

It seemed he didn't have to because the girl noticed him and stopped sweeping. She smiled kindly and Shippou's blush deepened. "May I help you?" she asked in soft, melodious voice.

Shippou blinked, his eyes as wide as saucers. "Ano…h-hai…"

The girl didn't seem to notice his stuttering and instead walked closer to him, though this increased his stammering. "What may I help you with?"

Shippou simply stared at her, truly transfixed with her beauty and kind spirit. He had never really had any care for humans, but it seemed that this human could change his mind. "Ano…I-I was wondering if…you could help me…with something…"

The girl's smile widened, now taking notice in his nervousness but being very patient with him, something Shippou wasn't sure if he expected or not. "Help with what?"

Shippou blinked and decided to compose himself. What was wrong with him? Since when did he let a human girl get to him? He never had before and he wasn't going to start now! He cleared his throat. "I need some information on the family that lives here. The Higurashi family I believe."

Now it was the girl's turn to blink. Then she gasped. "The Higurashi family…?" she asked, as if uncertain. When he nodded, her eyes became sad and she balled a hand in front of her mouth. Shippou could see that tears threatened to form at the corners of her eyes. He could also smell their salty scent. "No one has mentioned them since that day…"

How many times could someone blink in surprise? "Since that day? What's going on? Are they home?"

The girl looked at him as if she couldn't believe what he was asking. Her eyes scrunched up in pain as she remembered what she had been told. But she had to tell so that he wouldn't need to ask again. The more people that knew, the faster it would be for the Higurashi family to finally be at peace. She sighed and closed her eyes, her gaze moving towards the floor. "Iie. They are not home. They…will never be home again."

Shippou narrowed his eyes, not understanding what she was trying to tell him. "So are you trying to say that they moved away?"

She looked up at him again. I should just say it. "Iie. They were…killed a few years back."

Shippou's eyes widened, not believing what he was hearing. They were dead? Now he understood Kagome more. He had always watched her concerts and seen how when she danced the life didn't seem to be there in her songs. "How did it happen?"

Remembering that day made the girl sniff back tears. She didn't want to cry. She had already cried enough when she had learned. "I'm not quite sure. Jake-san, a friend of Kagome's, told me though that she was the first one to find them dead in their house. It's was…very terrible."

Shippou nodded in understanding. "I can imagine. To love your family but then to be the first to find them dead in your house."

The girl only nodded, willing herself not to cry. "If you'll excuse me. I need to go tend to the garden."

She didn't even wait for him to say anything. She dropped the broom and ran through the front door and out of sight. Shippou could swear he heard sobs escape her as she ran. He shook his head and was about to walk away when he felt something. It was actually quite powerful, like a spirit trying to communicate with him. He turned his head in the direction it came from and looked up at what it was.

The branches of the tree swayed in the gentle breeze…

What?! Is that tree trying to talk to me?

As a boy, Shippou had learned from someone that in the olden days, nature communicated with living things. Someone could sit four hours on end, talking with a tree and telling it secrets, and the tree would actually answer back and say that the secret was well kept. And he knew that as a youkai, he could feel the connection a whole lot stronger than humans.

The tree was the most majestic thing he had ever seen. It was taller than any building and thicker than any man. Around the base was a white prayer string (A/N: sorry! I don't know what they're called!).

Shippou just stood there, calmly looking at the tree, before coming up with a conclusion. His eyes widened. That tree knows who the murder of Kagome's family is!

He turned and ran down the steps towards his car. He climbed inside and made a grab for his phone. Inuyasha needs to know about all this!

~**~

The car lurched forward the from the power of the brake and Inuyasha sighed in relief. Finally in Tokyo. Now I can stop riding in this thing like some damned servant!

His phone vibrated and he turned to get it from its pouch on his hip. He was lucky that all the men riding with him were asleep or else he wouldn't have been able to talk.

"That was fast," Inuyasha said, not even bothering to ask who it was since he knew that no one else but Shippou would call.

"Inuyasha, you'll never guess all that I found out!" Shippou excitedly said from the other side of the line.

"What?"

"As it turns out, Kagome's family was killed! That's why she's the way she is! That's why she didn't really want to talk about her family with you."

Inuyasha's eyes widened. He had NEVER expected it to be THAT! He had expected it to be something like "the family didn't want her becoming a famous singer so they disown her and shun her". Not that they died!

"And that's not all," Shippou continued, pulling Inuyasha from his stupor. "There a sacred tree here that knows who killed them. I'm—"

"Hold it," Inuyasha interrupted. His voice held a little bit of humor. "Are you seriously trying to tell me that the tree tried to talk to you?"

"INUYASHA!!" Shippou screamed so loud that Inuyasha fell over in surprise. Shippou wasn't one to yell at him. Or sound this angry. "You, more than anyone, should know that in the days of our ancestors, nature actually talked to us! And this tree was trying to tell me who killed Kagome's family!"

Inuyasha didn't say anything for a while. He remembered. Oh how well he remembered. When he was a kid, his father had told him that they all could talk to nature so Inuyasha tried it out by talking to a flower. He told it many things and the surprising part was that when he done talking, the flower actually spoke and told him that it wouldn't tell anyone else his secrets. He sighed. "All right. I remember. I'm sorry."

Rather than accept his apology, Shippou told the rest. "I plan on staying here at this shrine as an…apprentice you could say, and try to communicate with the tree spiritually. Hopefully I'll be able to hear the tree's voice and it'll tell me who killed her family."

Inuyasha nodded, forgetting for a second that he was talking to a phone. He shook his head to stop the rush of memories that were returning; memories that he had forgotten since they were so long ago. "All right. Try your best. If I can somehow convince people that I figured out who the murder was on my own by doing some detective work, then I can get Kagome to trust me and I'll be in her good graces."

"Inuyasha, is all of this really that important?"

Inuyasha was so stunned by the question that he wasn't able to answer at first. "Of course it is baka! I'm doing all of this for my hahaue! It was her final wish before she died!"

"All right, all right! Sorry! Mou…you always explode like a little kid."

"Feh," he grumbled."

"Anyways, I should go. I need to go talk with the shrine maiden and tell her I'm staying."

"Okay. Try to get it to talk ASAP."

"Hai. Sayonara."

"Sayonara."

Inuyasha clicked off the phone and sat, totally ignoring the people outside as he remembered the day his mother died…

------

"Sochi-chan…" his mother called weakly from the bed as he and his father stood next to it. His mother looked so old and sickly, unlike his father who didn't look a day older from when he had first met his wife.

A 10 year-old Inuyasha approached his mother's beside and took her weak hand in between his two clawed ones. Large tears were streaming down his face. "Hai, Hahaue?"

She turned her head to look at him, and although she was dying, love clearly shone through her eyes and made her seem as young as ever. "Promise me…something."

"Anything."

"Promise me that you'll…(sharp intake of breath) guard the Shikon no Tama…find it…don't let evil people get their hands on it…"

Inuyasha tried not to cry. "H-Hai…"

She took another sharp intake of breath before continuing. "And when you find the Shikon no Tama, you'll find the one you were meant for. Protect her and love her like your father did me…"

By then, Inuyasha's father had come to hold his wife's other hand and Inuyasha had to admit that he had never seen his father look this sad. He had never even seen him cry.

He loves hahaue so much…

"Promise me…Sochi-chan…"

"Shinyaku (I promise (?))…"

She smiled lightly before her hand when limp in his…

-----

The door to the back of the truck opened and Inuyasha was knocked out of his stupor by the loud noise of the doors. Finally out of Tokyo and out of this damn truck!

Inuyasha got out and faced the one who had opened the doors. "Is Kagome staying in one of the suites?"

"Hai Inuyasha-sama."

Not needing anymore information, Inuyasha headed over towards the grand hotel that was reserved for stars and very rich people. And although he was in one of those categories, it still disgusted him to the core. Being in a "group"! How stupid is that! I'm already in a group that shunned by both the humans and the youkai!

He decided to ignore those thoughts. Well, he had to because once he reached Kagome's room, he ducked under the corner. There was a man at Kagome's door. He looked like he could even be richer than his own dad.

Then Inuyasha remembered who it was. Naraku…the richest man in Japan! Inuyasha's brow creased. What is he doing here?

He saw Kagome's room door open and then a surprised Kagome showed up at the door. Naraku smiled at her softly, although Inuyasha could tell that there was something hidden in his look. "Naraku…?" Kagome asked in disbelief. She didn't seem too pleased with his sudden appearance but either way she smiled at him. "What a pleasant surprise." She stepped a little from the door. "Would you like to come in?"

Inuyasha could have sworn that Naraku's smile turned slightly smug for a second there. "I'd love to." He stepped through and Kagome closed the door behind her.

Now, Inuyasha didn't really care what Naraku wanted with Kagome or anything, he was just curious. So he stepped up to the door and let his human guise down so he could use his sensitive ears to hear what they were saying.

"Good job on your last concert Kagome-chan."

Inuyasha tensed when he heard that term. Why is that bastard calling her so tenderly?!

He heard Kagome giggle a little nervously, though she did a good job of hiding it. "Arigatou gozaimasu Naraku-sama. I really appreciate it."

Inuyasha smiled when she called him by a respectable term. That meant she didn't feel the same way towards him.

Naraku chuckled. "Kagome, don't use such a term on me. There's no need for the formality."

"Gomen, Naraku-san."

Naraku sighed. "Well Kagome, the reason I stopped by is because I want to invite you to my party held in your honor."

"In my honor?"

"Hai. I've always wanted to throw a party for you, but I haven't had the opportunity to. But when I learned that you were going to come to Tokyo, I decided to throw it for you."

Inuyasha leaned even more into the door. He couldn't hear anymore of the conversation and he hit his ears to make sure they were working.

It turned out that it wasn't his ears that were wrong. It was just that Kagome hadn't answered (^^;;). "A-Arigatou Naraku-san. I'm honored, although I don't think I deserve something like that."

"Nonsense." Inuyasha heard him take a few steps and then heard a gasp. He tensed again. What is that bastard doing?! Did he just kiss her?!

However, when he heard Naraku head towards the door, he bolted out of there and hid around the corner again. He appeared not too long after that at the door and smiled at her. "I expect you there tonight at 8." When she didn't respond, he took her hand and kissed it. "I shall see you then Kagome-chan."

Then he walked away.

Kagome was rooted to the spot and looked down at her hand, blushing slightly, and Inuyasha tried to read any sort of pleasure on her face from the "kiss" or his visit.

He found none.

Kagome looked his way and Inuyasha "eep"ed because he had been caught in the act. She frowned at him. "What are you doing here?" she asked coldly.

Inuyasha tried to stay composed, although it was hard because she gave him a weird feeling. He couldn't explain it. She made him feel all fuzzy and warm inside, although he tried so hard to ignore it. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I-I've been thinking about the talk we had a while back. And about your family. I think that if you tell me what's wrong, you'll feel better."

She only frowned deeper at him and not closed, but SLAMMED the door in his face, HARD.

Feh! Wench! He complained and stomped away in anger. I want to make her feel better and yet she slams the door in my face! The nerve of that girl! Who does she think she is?!

A girl you like…

Inuyasha halted. Where had THAT come from?! He shook his head and continued onward.

One thing was for sure. He was going to that party top try again.

And to make sure that a certain bastard didn't lay so much as a finger on Kagome!

To be continued in part 5…