HIYA!: Sphinxgirl here! Okay I'm going to apologize right now……………… I'm sorrrrrrrrry!!!!! To all of you who have been waiting for this chapter for, let me see, about a month than please except my apologies. But for those of you who have just entered the story, than no worries. Oh! And by the way, Merry Christmas to you all! Or happy………..um whatever you guys celebrate! Anyway, sorry again for the delay, and those of you who harassed me (You know who you are -_-;) thanks for inspiring me to continue!
Reader's appreciation:
Shadow Demon: Hey thanks for the review! Here's chapter three for my appreciation.
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Chico-chan: ummmmmmmmmm………..here's chapter three.
Sprout: Yes, I agree, I should be a little more descriptive with my stories, but I just can't give anything away!! Anyway, thanks for the review.
Kibo: Awwww! What a cute name! It sounds like a puppy that you just want to hug and squeeze! Sorry that you had to re-update, gomen for the delay! *ahem well, here is chapter 3 at last!
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Fluffyluv: Tehe! I can just bet that you wuv all the fluffiness between characters! Well, there will be plenty of that later!! Thanx again!
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Midnight Sparrow
"Tears of a demon child"
Inu-Yasha found himself standing in a world of utter darkness. There was obscurity all around him; it was so bad that he felt the weight of it crushing him slowly like the weight of two stones against his flesh. He felt trapped in a dark abyss that he could not escape from, because no matter where he looked, it was all the same. He looked around in curiosity, wondering if this… place that he was in could be heaven. But it couldn't be. Heaven was what humans strived to return to. Heaven was a land that was considered holy and beautiful. In other words, paradise. It couldn't possibly be this hell hole that he was trapped in right now. Then the other end of the situation crossed his mind. It was not such an improbable idea that he could very well be in the other place.
Before Inu-Yasha could tell what happened, a small white tunnel appeared before him. Its bright light was an escape from this wretched place that he instinctively tried to grab for. At the moment, he wanted more than anything to leave. Without warning the small tunnel that was so far away suddenly raced towards him. In an instant, Inu-Yasha was launched from his world of darkness to a world of light. It was then when he realized exactly where he was; and he knew right then, that he was indeed in the very depths of hell.
It was currently snowing, something that didn't happen very often, but it decided to today. He found himself in the back of a rather large group, all of which were bowing their heads in respect and sorrow. Their black suits and veils contrasted against the snow in its most dramatic irony. Slowly and surely, he made his way towards them, his feet sinking into the wet but warm snow. Oddly enough, as he made his way, he could not feel its cold. As he walked ever closer, he could hear the monotone chanting of prayer. It was apparent to him now that a eulogy was taking place, but whose he did not know.
With little force, he pushed past the crowds of men and women that blocked his path. But as he did, a strange phenomenon began to occur. With each body that he passed, he could feel himself shrink smaller in size. It was almost as if he was growing… backwards. Finally, he passed the last row of people and came face to face with the ceremony that was taking place. He had found himself in his forgotten past, something that he tried so hard to avoid. He glanced down at himself to find that he too was dawned in black attire. He also stared at his small hands that were clenched in fists at the moment. He had black hair at the time, but its length did not change from how he wore it now, long and thick. His violet eyes wandered from his tiny hands to the priest that stood before him. His tedious prayer was so plain that it would stay inside the confines of his mind forever. All of a sudden, he glanced from his bible and met eyes with Inu-Yasha. He then motioned him to wonder over to the hole that held the casket of the dead. He never knew that his legs could be as shaky as he started to carefully make his way over to where the dead body lay.
Slightly peeking over the hole, he found a mid-sized casket that was slowly being lowered into its resting place. Atop the casket's surface, there was a rather large bouquet of lilies, his mother's favorite flower. But as he watched the casket being lowered, he silently wandered to himself why he was witnessing this event take place again. Was this really a dream? Or was it the devil's cheap tricks to try and get back at him? Neither could he tell, he could only watch his mother being laid to rest.
The priest motioned for him to continue on with the ceremony, and as he was instructed to do so, he gently released the blessed grains of dirt into the hole. The grains of dirt gently floated down to the deceased and finally rested upon the precious lilies. Inu-Yasha never moved from the spot for the rest of the ceremony, but rather he just stared into the dark hole, wondering how this would all end. Many friends and family came to speak about the deceased, paying their last respects and shedding many tears.
The time finally came to burry the body. Shovel full by shovel full, Inu-Yasha's mother was buried under mother earth. At the very end of the grave, a headstone was placed in remembrance of the personnel. Inu-Yasha's eyes wondered to the words that were written on the heavy stone that read:
"Here lies the mother of one. Beloved to the very end, she will carry those on swift wings to heaven and watch over all who believe in the faith of god."
Tear drops made their way past his defenses. They cascaded down his face and landed on the soft earth. He tried to vigorously wipe them away, but it was no use. And that was when he remembered his very first time that he had cried. His sorrow slowly turned to rage at the thought of this. But he didn't cry for his mother, he cried for his fate. He cried for the very god that brought him here to this very spot. As his thoughts trailed off, he started to realize the heavy truth behind it all. God? There was no god as far as he was concerned. For no god would ever want any harm or hurt to be placed upon his head. But it did, and for the first time in his life, he could feel the stinging pain of loneliness.
It was long after the funeral had ended as Inu-Yasha still stood alone at his mother's grave. Everything that occurred around him was a blur. He simply studied the ground while the absent tears still flowed. He did not notice the two figures that were standing right behind him. One was tall, dark, and silent as he stood there, watching. The other was short, about the same height and age as Inu-Yasha, and also bore his violet eyes and hair. The tall one decided that the waiting period was over and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.
"Come Inu-Yasha it is time to go." His voice was firm, and it sounded more like a command than a gesture. When Inu-Yasha didn't respond, he gently nudged him away from the grave and towards the car that was waiting close by.
Inu-Yasha, who had a vague sense of what was going on, began to notice that he was being pulled away from the grave. The very thought of leaving his mother was something that he could not comprehend. A sudden sense of fear ran through his body like a bolt of lightning which caused him to cry out.
"N-No! Mommy! I don't want to leave! I don't want to leave mommy! No!" He yelled as he struggled. But it was no use; the tall man had lifted him up into the car and locked the door behind him. It was a little later that they drove off into the light blizzard with the sight of the cemetery fading.
"NO!" Inu-Yasha instinctively yelled as he awoke from his slumber.
He found that his senses were extremely alert and his face and body were covered in sweat. As he gained a sense of reality from his nightmare, he started to slowly observe his surroundings, finding that they were alien to him. He found that he was on a couch with many blankets on top of him. He was stripped of his clothes except for his pants. The rest of his body was covered in worn bandages that were stained with crusted blood. He was relieved to find that most of his minor cuts and bruises had either closed or disappeared. It was a phenomenon that happened when he was very young. He could not explain why it happened, it just did. Whenever he would scrape his knee or cut himself, he would leave it alone, and a couple of days later, it would vanish without a scar. This trait had certainly paid off, especially now.
Inu-Yasha glanced over to the coffee table that was placed next to the couch. He found a bushel of medicines and antiseptics that covered the table from one end to the other. Wherever he was, he was being treated pretty well. The question though, was exactly who was treating him? His golden eyes wondered to the rest of the room. It seemed very primitive, but at the same time humble.
Across the room was where the bed was set; to the right of him there was a little kitchen. As far as he could tell, it was a studio apartment. Among the walls there were pictures of various types of motorcycles, pictures of people that he didn't know, but one picture on the wall intrigued him. It was a middle aged man with a child upon his shoulders. The child, who looked no more than 5, held a rather large smile and had short, black hair. To the right of the picture, a torn out article was tacked to the wall. Inu-Yasha's golden eyes read over the article, skimming through its contents. As far as he could tell, it was an obituary, but the deceased seemed oddly familiar.
It read about a famous scientist that had died about 12 years ago. Inu-Yasha himself had also heard about him as he was growing up. The famous scientist had participated in the human genome project a while ago. But the company soon after went out of business and was never heard from again. The point that he pondered about though, was why this person would have this article in the first place. Before he could think further, the doorknob to the little apartment started to turn.
The figure started to walk in with bundles of grocery's and such. She set her keys on the table and the grocery's as well. A moment later she locked eyes with the now awake Inu-Yasha.
"Well well, so you're awake sleeping beauty?" She said while giving him a reassuring smirk. It took him a little while to respond to her sarcastic question.
"Unfortunately yes." He said as he started to feel his pain again. She simply walked over to him and reached for his bandages to change them again. But before she could lay a finger on them, Inu-Yasha scooted back on the couch as if he was afraid of her touch. She gave him a queer look that soon turned to pity.
"What is it with you anyway? I'm only trying to help you." She said. Inu-Yasha looked down, as if to hide his embarrassment from her, but there were just some things that he was extremely bad at.
"It's nothing. I just had a bad experience as a child that's all." Was all that he said. His eyes crept up to hers, just to see if she would believe it, but her expression did not alter. Instead she went to the fridge, got two bottles of beer, and offered one to Inu-Yasha. He gladly accepted it, since it had been a while since he poisoned his body with alcohol. After that, Kagome took her seat next to him again, obviously not giving in to his babyish behavior. She gently caressed the surface of the bottle in a habitual manor, for something more important was on her mind.
"You know you really scared me yesterday. If I had known, I would have never taken you to a hospital. It's just… seeing you in that condition, and seeing the blood everywhere I didn't know what else to do." Inu-Yasha sighed silently and took another sip of his drink.
"Look, what's in the past is in the past. You can't do anything to change that." Inu-Yasha glanced up to find Kagome in an uncomfortable state.
"Where are we anyway?" He said trying to change the subject.
"In the apartment right above the midnight sparrow." She said. But as she said this, Inu-Yasha gave her a quizzical look.
"You mean above the bar that you work at? You LIVE here?" Kagome simply chuckled to his surprise while setting her drink back on the table.
"Yeah, my uncle is renting it out to me until I can find a… better place of my own." She smiled at her little apartment in satisfaction.
"It might not be much, but its home."
Inu-Yasha could sympathize for her. It was hard to even find a "home" to go to; and even then it was only for about a couple of months. Since he was kicked out of the house at the age of 18, he had lived in the worst hell holes of the city. Places that weren't even fit for the bums that walked on the street. He barely survived with odd jobs that paid minimum wage, providing just enough to pay rent and eat. Yes, he definitely thought that Kagome deserved better than this, but at the same time was a little envious towards her. But he quickly put that aside, because the world worked in strange ways, and he simply got the poorer end of the deal.
He noticed her glancing towards the wall that contained all of the pictures and photographs.
"Is that your father?" He said as he motioned towards the picture of the child and the father that he saw earlier. She smiled as sweet memories returned to her mind once again.
"Yes, that's my father." Inu-Yasha sighed a little, slowly remembering his own father. Let's just say that he wasn't blessed with the most loving father in the world, being that younger brother and all, he didn't receive as much attention. He was considered the outcast, the runt, and the black sheep of the family.
"Do you love him?" As soon as he asked the question it was too late. It was something that he had to find out for himself. But as soon as he said this, Kagome's cheerful smile soon turned downwards.
"I did love him." She said. Inu-Yasha gave her a puzzling look.
"You did?"
"Yes, my father died when I was very young. This is the article of when he died." She pointed to the article that he also noticed before she entered the room.
"Your father was the famous scientist that invented cloning?" Kagome nodded in response.
"Is your mother alive, or is she gone too?" This time, Kagome gave a little laugh at his question, as if to slap it aside.
"My mother…… she's a hooker downtown." She said in an exasperating tone. Her words that were once peaceful and soft would now turn harsh and maddening. For how she felt about her mother was the exact same feeling that Inu-Yasha felt for his father.
"You see, when my father died, his company would soon fall as well. As soon as that happened, the company left every debt to our name, so we ended up owing millions of dollars. We tried as hard as we could, my mother had two jobs, and my uncle also helped out. But a little after the incident, my mother couldn't take it anymore. She lost her jobs, and we ended up losing our house as well. A couple of days later she showed up at my uncle's doorstep with me holding her hand. She asked my uncle to take care of me, and she told me to be a good girl. That was the last I saw of her before she started to sell herself like some cheap harlot, leaving just me and my uncle to pay off the debt." She walked over to the wall and took the picture of her and her father off to stare at it blankly.
"It got to the point that I had to quit school in order to work full time at the bar. And… as you know I get involved with street racing as well." She stopped in a thoughtful silence, which gave Inu-Yasha some time to think about what he had just heard.
To think that he himself had a bad childhood when he was growing up, Kagome was in the same boat as well. He never would have thought that behind her good looks, dazzling smile, and smart ass personality that she had endured such pain. He almost felt sorry for her now. He would expect her to have so much anger built up inside of her for her father when she said something unexpected.
"I'll sure miss him." Inu-Yasha gave her a perplexing look and detested to her statement almost immediately.
"You'll miss him? He is the one responsible for your pain and all that you can say is that you will miss him? Don't you think that something is a little strange about that?" Her expression didn't waver as she answered his question.
"It's hard to explain. The only things that I can remember about my father are the good times. Like when he took me to the park, or when he celebrated my birthday party. It's hard for me to think about the results of his death." A realization struck Inu-Yasha as she was saying this. What she said about her memories was true. And if he could just think of the good times that he and his mother had, then the nightmares that occurred more than he wanted too would eventually disappear. She had subconsciously found a way to cure his fears, and that was something that he found absolutely fascinating about her that only made him want her more.
There was a sudden knock on the door that made both of them jump. Kagome put the picture on the table and went to answer to door. No doubt it was her uncle that wanted something. But who she was about to find was someone entirely different. As she opened the door, three men stood, all of them with a blank stare. It only took a moment before Kagome knew exactly why they were here.
"What do you want?" She asked with an angry tone. The man that was in the front spoke first, no doubt the leader of the group.
"You know why we're here, and we want our money." He said.
Kagome was a little surprised that these three would actually expect her to give the money to them, but she decided that it was best to push them away. She didn't want any unnecessary violence inside her home.
"Look, I don't have the money right now. I'll give it to you later." She said before closing the door in front of them. Before she knew it, the door slammed back into her face, causing her to stumble backwards. The three men entered the apartment, two of them pinning Kagome down while the other pulled out a handgun from his jacket. He pointed it towards her forehead.
"Look you bitch, either we get the money tonight or I'll blow your fuckin head off!" Kagome didn't know what to say or do. There were two men that were holding her down and she was at a loss of words. She could see her life flash before her eyes.
Right as the man was about to pull the trigger, an object whizzed through the air. The object, that turned out to be a kitchen knife, plunged into the man's arm, causing him to fire the gun. The bullet narrowly missed Kagome, but instead indulged itself into one of the men that was holding her.
"What the fuck? Who threw that?" The leader said while clutching his arm in pain. All three of the men glanced over to where Inu-Yasha stood. He held another butcher knife in his hand while glaring at the three men. His golden eyes held a glare that was powerful enough to surpass the devil's. His voice was low and filled with hatred as he spoke.
"You touch her again and I swear to god that I will rip you to shreds!" The three men glanced at each other, all of them flabbergasted that a man was even in the room. The leader of the three signaled for them to exit, but not before swearing to return. The three of them left the room while leaving their trail of blood behind as well.
Inu-Yasha dropped the knife and walked over to where Kagome lay. Kagome stared into his golden eyes, unsure of what was hidden beneath them. This was a side of him that she had never seen before. And quite frankly, it scared her a little. But as he offered a hand to her, she gladly took it, and she knew that deep down, Inu-Yasha would never hurt her.
"Inu-Yasha I…"
"You know that's twice I had to save your life. You owe me big time." Inu-Yasha said as he cut her off. Kagome simply smiled and embraced him around his torso.
"Thank you." Was all that she said. But Inu-Yasha, instead of hugging her back, made weird sounds. All of a sudden thinking about his wounds, she quickly let go and laughed a bit.
"Heh heh, sorry." Inu-Yasha gave a weird look before returning a smile back to her.
"It's okay."
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YEAH!! I finally finished chapter what is this now? 2, 3? Oh well. For all of you who read my first two chapters thank you for sticking by me! Forgive me again for not updating earlier, but as you know, I was very busy, and had little time to even write a story, much less update. But anyway, just keep reviewing and it will inspire me to keep writing. I'm serious!! Well, I must go now; my nap time is long overdue, prrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!! -_-