Long ago, in a time no longer present, lived a girl who was neither Human nor Yokai. Her name was Naomi, for she was truly above all other beauty. Her hair was any color she wished it to be, which now happened to be jet black with crimson streaks. Her eyes gleamed a dark blue and ran deep as the ocean itself.

She traveled to and from her legitimate time and to the future, where she found dramatic changes. In merely 500 years, the Yokais would completely disappear. This seemed to hurt her most. Maybe the weak passed on, yet the strong adapted to human ways in order to survive in this new world. Whichever it was, she just hoped that the loss wouldn't be too great. For this meant loosing her sense of herself.

While in the future, Naomi adopted the last name of Ashida. It was simple and elegant all in one, which pleased her beyond belief. She loved to be able to fit in her surroundings by taking on the appearance of a wild 18 year old in the new Japanese Era. She even wore the baggy pants sporting chains, the tight black shirts, the spiked boots and accessories, and even the music they listened to. The sound of it was enough to bust someone's eardrums, but she somehow found it soothing.

Naomi Ashida found her way through the crowd of humans and down the paved streets. She neither fought the crowds, nor ran from them. She seemingly went with the flow to wherever it would take her. This time it led to a beautiful park in the middle of the city of great Tokyo. The buildings stood like mountains all around her, yet she neither stared nor shied away from these lifeless giants.

She felt only boredom in this time. She had been here well over 12 human years and she tired of never being in trouble. She tired of the constant rules; don't kill, go to school, listen to your elders, don't do this, don't do that. RULES!

She sighed and decided that it was well past time that she found her way back to her own time. She had given up so much to come here, only to be going back with nothing more than a morbid sense of reality to show for it. She had deliberately kept out of contact with her family and never given out her name as so no one would grow attached to her in the Past.

Now she almost regretted not having anyone to go back to. Yet looking on the brighter side, she could make a fresh start with nothing but her good looks, personality, and powers. Now that was something to go by. She was all too beautiful, powerful enough, and she had a quiet personality that seemed to beg people to pry into. She ran back to her apartment and grabbed up anything of sentimental value. She was going home!

(500 years Past)

Naomi pulled herself through the familiar well that belonged partly to the family of a girl named Kagome, and partly to the demon world. Upon finding no one nearby, she whisked herself away to make camp.

The night was a chilly one, with the North wind billowing over the plain and the dampness the came after a cold rain. She shivered despite her heavy Future jacket, and cuddled up to the fire pit.

"I'm such a softie," she whimpered between shivers. She decided that she wouldn't feel cold if she didn't think about it, so she didn't. Instead, Naomi stared listlessly into the crackling flames of the fire. The oranges mixed with the reds and yellows, as it all became a blur of burning color.

The girl was no longer looking into the fire, yet almost past it as she remembered her heritage. She was half light, half darkness, whatever that meant. She mother had explained that her breed was named the 'Shadow Demons' and that she in particular is special. They had used a term, what was it? Yes… Her mother had called her a Shadow Princess, for her powers would be the most lethal against the others if she desired to take rule over them.

Others? She remembered the mention of others like herself, but there were few left, if any at all. Her powers, under minimum use, would consist of conversing in the thoughts of animals, having wings if she so wished, the powers over light and dark, elemental associations etc.

Naomi pressed her personal thoughts and wanting to the back part of her mind. She yawned audibly and let the flames flicker into the nothingness that was night. Before the girl could lie back, she was fast asleep.

The next day dawned a misty hue of purples as the sky was overcast with clouds. Such weather threatened to exalt itself before the end of the day. Nonetheless, Naomi forced herself to awaken and to stand to her feet. Unwillingly she patted her sore hindquarters and stretched until her bones popped with the effort.

She found her way to a stream, intending on bathing her sorrows away. Obviously it was interrupted as she found a young child, a girl, crying near the water's edge. Sighing, Naomi approaches the girl and puts a warming arm around her shoulders.

"What troubles you, little one?" she asks sweetly. The girl looks up and stares into Naomi's Blue eyes with her own brown ones. Hers are weary with fear and sadness, as Naomi's are blurred with pity and longing to help the child.

"My Lord...he's…he's…" she began to say, but erupted in a fit of sobs that rocked her tiny body. When she finally was able to speak, she seemed to have lost the confidence in her words.

"He's hurt. I cant help him, and he's bleeding badly," she finished.

"Where is he?" the older girl asked hopefully.

"In that cave over there, why?" The girl pointed to a cave that loomed near the far end of the stream. Its depths were dark with the lack of light, but not scary at all.

"I might be able to help him," Naomi states simply and makes to leave for the cave. The child grasps hold of the older girl's pant leg and begins crying again.

(Naomi's POV)

I am getting tired of this child's foolishness. Her Lord is dying nearby and she only holds me back. I pry her tiny hands from around me and place her softly on the ground.

"No, he wont like it if you help him," she cries. Sobs engulf her once again, rendering her helpless once more.

I pat her on the head sensibly and decide to take my chances. Upon entering the cave, I get a strong whiff of demon coming from the back. After wandering for a few minutes, I come upon the child's Lord, a tall handsome yokai with long silver hair. His eyes are shut tightly with pain so I can't tell what color they are. He has deep wounds across his chest and arms. His face is a bit scratched, but would heal quickly.

I manage to dig out some peroxide that I brought will me from the future. I rip open his kimono top and trace a finger gently over his wounds. He doesn't seem to be awake… Wait, yes he is. As I dabbed a cloth in the alcohol and brought it to his chest, his eyes flew open and he reached a hand towards mine. He grasped my hand in a bone-crushing hold. I could hear the bones cracking with the effort not to break.

(End POV)(Sesshomaru's POV)

I heard someone enter the cave on light feet. I thought it was Rin come to bug me about letting someone help me, but I was wrong. Her scent was sweet like a rose's, yet tainted with years of emptiness like rain. I willed my eyes to open, but they refused my order.

I kept still as her soft hands traced my wounds with such gentleness that it did not hurt. She opened a bottle of stuff that burned my nose by just smelling it. I could tell this was going to hurt.

She reached a hand towards me, and I intercepted it a bit too harshly. I expected her to run away screaming; yet she did not. I hissed at this girl and still she stayed where she sat.

She was beautiful, I'll give her that, but she was stupid for coming near me. She grimaced at my attempts to scare her away, them pulled her hand away from mine. She did so with such strength that she was able to pry my grip from hers.

"Be still if you want to live," she commanded.

"I need no ones help," I said as icily as I could.

"Doesn't look that way to me. Now, either be still or I will get rough with you." With that, she began dabbing the stingy-stuff on my open wounds. It hurt a bit, but she rubbed a gentle hand over it to minimize the pain. All in all, her touch sent shivers of pleasure down my spine, but I wasn't going to say so to her. But why did I feel so attracted to her? Was it her unconditional beauty? Maybe her sent that rocked my world? Or was it the way she touched me and willed me to live for something that did it…. who knows?

(End POV)

Before long, Naomi had finished cleaning and bandaging the wounds. She sighed and sat back to scrutinize her work. It was well done for a novice like herself, but she just hoped he would heal quickly like most demons did.

"Look, I can see you have a lot of pride, so I'll make this easy on you. No one has to know I helped you. I will tell the girl outside that you refused my help, and somehow began to heal yourself. If you so wish it, when you are stronger you may come find me and kill me." With that, she got to her feet and began to exit the cave. She left her wondrous scent floating in the air behind her as she continued right back into the sunshine.