A/N: Here would be my second attempt at a story. Let's hope it doth not sucketh. Also, I have nothing against Sesshoumaru. I'm just writing this story in Inuyasha's point of veiw and maybe a couple of chapters in other people's perspectives. So no flames please, as I've come to know Sesshoumaru fangirls are normally veeeery vicious when defending thier Fluffy-sama.

On with it already! -----

Oh great. Just wonderful. It was his stupid brother's 27th birthday. That meant a huge festival in Sesshoumaru's honor. A parade that all of the royal family were required to go to. That is, unless they were dead. The concept of being six feet under suddenly didn't seem so unappealing to Inuyasha. Any way to escape those annoying girls that chased him around seemed appealing, though. Those stupid little girls...always running after him and giving him puppy-dog looks and screaming his name...His ears flattened against his head at the thought of the high pitches those girls were able of reaching. The worst news was that he'd have to be married to one of them. Within the next eight months, no less. He sighed deeply and wondered why it was him who had had to be born into one of those very few families who, after all this time, still upheld ancient traditions.

Hell, at least he'd be able to get his pick of any girl he wanted under the age of twenty. He chuckled to himself. That was more of an option than Sesshoumaru had gotten. Their parents had still been alive to pick out whichever princess would be the lucky, or in Inuyasha's opinion, unlucky bride. Sure, she'd inherit half of the lands Inuyasha's family owned, have countless riches and treasures, and get a say in the decisions that would affect both of their kingdoms, but she'd have to be stuck with him. She would also, eventually, have to make an heir with him in case one they both died and Inuyasha couldn't take the throne...at the thought Inuyasha started gagging.

Inuyasha remembered back to when his parents where finding the right suitor for his brother. Inuyasha hadn't really seen a point in being there, but after backmouthing his father a couple of times and getting multiple time-outs for it, he finally realized that it would be better if he would just go and get it done with. He had been stuck sitting in that hot and stuffy room for ten hours and only three bathroom breaks with a mere fifteen minutes to scarf his lunch down. The rest of the time had been spent listening to his father, well, interrogating the girls and his mother staring rather blankly at them. His parents would then dismiss the princess and discuss economic gain as well as if she would be a good queen for the future king. Inuyasha didn't really realize how important this would be to him in the future, as his parents had told him, so all he'd do was stare at he table, count the cracks on the walls, or just stare into space.

Finally, after about...hmm...forever, the King and Queen made their decision on who was to become their daughter-in-law. Her name was Kagura, from a kingdom in the mountains that controlled passes to the interior lands. She was a kaze youkai who was independent and somewhat arrogant. Perfect for Sesshoumaru, his parents said. The two were married, and Inuyasha, much to his relief, saw less of Sesshoumaru and his new wife. One or two years later, the couple had a girl, who they named Rin. She looked every bit like her mother except for the fact that her eyes were a deep brown instead of crimson. Once she was in her toddler years, Rin was a bubbly, hyperactive, overly curious little monster who incoherently babbled non-stop to herself. Everyone agreed a nanny was needed, so Jaken, a grumpy, annoying, overly anxious littlegreen nuisancewho incoherently babbled non-stop to himselfwas hired.

No one really liked Jaken, so Sesshoumaru decided to fire him. Jaken got pissed and told Sesshoumaru off. Or so he thought. He was punted back to his village, a royal footprint firmly implanted in his small green toushy as a souvenier from the family.

There had been a new babysitter hired for Rin: a young girl named Sango. She was about thirteen or so, just around Inuyasha's age. Her brother and father had moved in as well, so Inuyasha now had not only one, but two new friends to play with. If he chose to play with them. Which he normally didn't. In fact, Inuyasha didn't really have many friends. That is, until two people moved into the castle. A man and his son. Their lives had been changed drastically; they lost their fortune, home, and most importantly, a beloved wife and mother when thier castle had burned down. At first, Inuyasha stayed away from the boy, favoring solitude. One day, though, they just kind of...began to talk about a couple of things. Inuyasha soon found Miroku to be his best friend. Miroku was still his best friend, even after years had gone by, though Sango seemed to keep coming up in their conversations more and more often. When her father and Kohaku had died of a horrible fever, Miroku was the first one to offer his sympathies and attempt to comfort her. He even bought her a small cat (named Kirara), who would soon become her closest companion...

An extremely loud shout and a smash on the door turned Inuyasha's attention from his memories to the outer walls of his room.

A/N: That's all for now. Left off with a bit of a cliffhanger...would have added more to this chapter but:

1) This is veeeery long compared to what I thought this chapter's length would be

2) I reeeeally don't feel like explaining Inuyasha's life and companions and whatnot since he was eight

3) My creativity has been temporarily drained this past week...drawing request after request after request and I'm so frustrated because Adobe photoshop is confusing and driving me effing insane.

4) I AM A LAZY BUM, OK! Deal.

Well then...with my crappy little excuses said, I'll go sit in a corner and wait for something to smash into my brain and get rid of my writer's block.