Disclaimer: I can't say I own Inuyasha. Can you?

A/N I'm back! Thanks for the awesome reviews, guys; I really, really enjoyed them!

I'm also glad to see that most of you are now baffled and dying of curiosity. Excellent! That's just what I wanted! ;) Now, I don't intend to keep Kagome and Inuyasha's complete pasts from you guys for too much longer, so hang in for just a little bit more!

Now, my Thanksgiving present to you, the next chapter! (Though, in the States, it isn't Thanksgiving yet...meh, it is here!)

The whispers. The stares. That's what Kagome noticed the most as she walked down the hall. It had been a week since her outburst in the cafeteria and to Sango in the hall. During that time, she'd kept to herself, not talking to anyone but her brother, and finally being able to eat alone at lunch.

But every time she walked down the halls, the hushed comments reached her ears, the eyes burned at her back, and her self-consciousness grew. This was no different from her old school...it was starting all over again.

She entered the cafeteria only to encounter the same curious or disgusted looks she had been receiving for the past week. This time it was too much for her to bear, and she walked resolutely back out of the busy lunch room. Sighing, she made her way outside with her lunch tray, and found her way to the tree she had sat under a week ago.

She picked at her burger, but found that she wasn't really that hungry. She set the tray aside and stared blankly down at the grass in front of her, distantly wondering when Inuyasha would show up to reside in his favourite spot for the lunch break.

Kagome didn't have to wait long. Inuyasha soon walked up, slowing down as he approached her. He seemed unsure as to whether he should stay and just ignore her, or to turn now and walk away. Before he had a chance to make up his mind, however, Kagome spoke up.

"...Have you ever been called a freak?" she asked, cruel irony in her voice.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "More times'n I can count..."

Kagome let out a short laugh that was filled with anything but humour. "And it makes you feel like you're lower than scum each time doesn't it?"

Inuyasha let out a low growl. "Actually, it makes me want to rip their freakin' throat out each time."

Kagome lifted her head and stared into his golden eyes, a wry, mocking smile on her face. "Yeah...that's what you'll tell everyone who asks, isn't it? But the truth is...no matter how much you don't want to, you start to believe that you might be...that you are...a freak. Heh...such a simple word...so much power...freak."

Inuyasha snarled as Kagome's words hit home. "Is there a point to this little chitchat?!"

Kagome leaned back, her palms supporting her as they pressed into the soft grass behind her. "You and I have both been called freaks, Inuyasha. But there's a difference that makes my situation slightly worse than yours."

"Oh?" Inuyasha inquired, a dangerous note to his voice. "How would you know if your situation's worse than mine?"

The mocking grin slipped from Kagome's face as she assumed a serious expression. "You're called a freak on what you are and what you look like...you're judged before people know you..."

"And that's supposed to be good?!" Inuyasha asked, his ire rising.

"Well...once people do know you, it's not so bad, is it?" Kagome asked with a careless shrug. "It's better to be called a freak because of what you are than because of what you do... Wouldn't you say?"

Inuyasha's anger dissipated and he was left baffled. "Huh?"

Kagome lowered her face and gazed at the short blades of grass springing up from the ground. "It's because of things I've...done that get me labelled as a freak. I deserve the title...which makes it stings all the more."

"What a load of crap!!" Inuyasha shouted, jerking Kagome out of her reverie and causing her to look up at him in shock. "You've been called a freak for a different reason so it somehow makes your predicament worse than anyone else?! Do you even know what others have gone through or are you too caught up with your own self-pity?!"

Kagome's eyes flashed as she shot up to confront Inuyasha face to face. "I can bet anything in this world that what you've been through isn't half as bad as what I've had to go through!"

Inuyasha snarled and dashed up until his face was an inch from Kagome's. In a low, dangerous voice he said, "Then obviously you don't know me very well." With that, he abruptly spun around, his silver hair whipping Kagome's face as he stalked off in the direction of the school.

Kagome stood there shocked for a moment as she watched his retreating figure. Seeing that look on his face... She regretted her words already... He had been right. She had been too concerned with her own affairs to think of others. Just exactly what had Inuyasha been through? She hadn't given it a second thought before deciding it was inconsequential compared to her own past. What a fool she was...

Kagome flopped dejectedly back on the ground, hanging her head.

Then obviously you don't know me very well.

I guess not, Kagome thought gloomily to herself. How many secrets of your own do you have, Inuyasha?

Kagome was instantly reminded of that strange poem Inuyasha had written about himself the first day they met. Something about...five years ago...a tragic incident... Maybe that had something to do with it...

The more she thought about it, the more Kagome's interest was piqued. There was something about Inuyasha; something different. The whole school except her seemed to know about it, and gave the boy wide berth. Kagome didn't dare ask Sango about it after what she'd done to her...and it wasn't as if anyone else wanted anything to do with her... How could she...? Wait! There might be a way...if the 'incident' had been big enough...

But...would Inuyasha like her to go behind his back to find out something personal about himself? Kagome already knew the answer to that. She could see his angry and yelling face in her mind as she asked herself the question. But at the same time...if the rest of the school already knew what his secret was...what was the problem? If she had been there at the time whatever it was happened, she would know what 'it' was too!

...So there was nothing wrong with it. No moral wrongs would be weighing down on her conscience. But in order to put her plan in action, she'd have to wait for the weekend. Three more days to go...

..:V:..

"Sango?"

Sango lifted her head to see Miroku approach her questioningly before sitting down across from her at their regular lunch table.

"Why do you keep sitting with me, Miroku?" Sango asked hollowly, picking at her food. "Kagome's not here anymore. You can go back with all your flaky girl admirers now. It's fine."

"But you're not fine, are you, Sango?" Miroku asked, concern laced in his voice.

Sango gaze flickered to his face for a moment before turning resolutely back to her food. "I'm just fine, Miroku. Just leave me alone."

"If you were fine, Sango, I believe you would be sitting with your other lovely friends over there," Miroku said, lifting a hand to indicate the girls Sango had been sitting with before Kagome's arrival at the school.

"Hmph," Sango said, though there was hardly any emotion behind it. "What would you know anyways, Miroku?"

"I'd know a great deal of things," Miroku answered the rhetorical question. "I know how hurt you are because of Kagome's words, I know how guilty you feel for pushing Kagome to that point and last of all, I know how you're questioning how good a person you are and wondering if you actually deserved what she said to you."

"Oh, yeah?" Sango asked nastily. "And just how would you presume to know all this?"

"Because I know that if it had been me instead of you she had been saying those things to, that's the way I would feel," Miroku said, reaching out with one hand to grasp Sango's chin and force her to look up at him.

Sango took a sharp intake of breath at the emotion she saw in Miroku's eyes. They were dead serious, but open and honest, compelling her to trust them. At the same time, they held a sharpness that Sango knew would see through any feeble lie she presented to them. With a sigh, Sango gave up her struggle and gazed back down at her food as Miroku's hand returned to his side.

"Oh, Miroku, I'm just so confused!" she admitted, stabbing the soggy cafeteria cheesecake with her fork. "I don't know what I should do... I can tell that Kagome's not a bad person...but there's something about her that we don't know... She's struggling with it, but won't let anyone help her... But I want to help her, Miroku! Should I keep trying to be her friend, even though she said those cruel things...or should I just let it go and give up; pretend she's not there when I go back to my dorm? Pretend I don't see her ravaged and tear-streaked face every morning when I wake up? And pretend...that I don't want anything more to do with her?"

Miroku massaged his forehead with one hand. "It's a complex problem to be sure... I...I think the best way to go about it for now would be to not push her and force her to be friends...but not to completely ignore her either... We have to find a balance somewhere... So that Kagome knows we're available for her to talk to, but that we're not in her face and making her feel cornered. Maybe this way she'll come to us on her own terms, and we can be ready to accept and help her if she does..."

Sango nodded thoughtfully before gracing Miroku with a smile she hadn't worn on her face for the past week. "Thanks, Miroku...that really helps."

"Any time, dear Sango," Miroku said, flashing a lopsided grin. "Besides, I'd much rather hang out with you than any of those 'flaky girl admirers,' as you so eloquently put it."

A blush sprang to Sango's cheeks. "Miroku...!" she admonished, though her voice lacked any venom whatsoever.

..:V:..

Kagome shivered and hugged her arms tighter around her body. It was quite chilly for mid-October and Kagome had felt the need to put on her winter jacket before venturing outside. This was the first time she had actually left the school grounds since coming to Madison and since she didn't know the layout of the city, a map was gripped firmly in one of her hands.

She had finally made it to the weekend, waiting impatiently each day and barely paying attention to any of her classes. Her curiosity was gnawing at her and the thought of finally knowing about Inuyasha's mysterious past made it virtually impossible for her to sit still for too long.

Souta had suggested going with her on her trip to the city library, but Kagome refused him, seeing how he had made new friends and not wanting to rip him away from them. Now she was blindly walking the large city, trying to make sense of her map. With Souta and her searching together, they had found the little symbol indicating the library, and now her eyes were trying to sort through the jumbled of lines to find proper streets that would guide her to her destination.

Finally, after taking about three wrong turns, Kagome ended up on a highway that branched off onto a large bridge. A sign beside it read: Closed nights. Please use alternate bridge.

Kagome shrugged. Well, it was open now, and if her poor ability to read maps was anything to go by, she should be able to reach the library shortly after crossing the structure. Making up her mind, she quickly crossed the highway at the next set of lights and made her way over to the bridge.

As soon as her foot touched the concrete of the bridge, however, Kagome felt a slightly queasy feeling in her stomach. Suppressing and ignoring it, she pushed on, assuming it was nothing more than nervousness.

But as she walked further across the bridge, her uneasiness grew, leaving her with a sinking feeling in her stomach. She glanced around herself, but saw nothing but normal city traffic; cars racing across the bridge and pedestrians and cyclists travelling along the guarded sidewalk off to the side. Nothing was unusual or out of the ordinary; so why was she being overcome with this horrible sense of dread?

As Kagome approached the centre of the large bridge, an intense chill went up her spine, stopping her dead in her tracks. No matter how much she tried to shake the horrible feeling, it stayed with her and began to make her feel nauseated. She tried to continue walking, but stumbled instead as a wave of dizziness overtook her. Staggering over to the side of the bridge, she grasped the concrete supports and tried to steady herself.

Though she tried to even out her breathing, her queasiness was unabated and soon she felt horribly sick to her stomach. With a lurch, she flung her upper half over the side of the bridge support wall and retched violently.

"Oh, you poor dear!" someone exclaimed from behind her. "Are you alright?"

When Kagome's stomach had been emptied, she turned to see a middle aged woman with a concern expression on her face. Kagome coughed a few times, but didn't feel any better. "I... I... need to get out of here!" she cried, spinning and running desperately for the other side of the bridge.

As soon as her foot left the last bit of the bridge, her stomach sickness suddenly vanished, and Kagome was left with a huge sense of relief. Puzzled, Kagome wiped her mouth on her sleeve and glanced back towards the bridge. Everything was normal, nothing out of the ordinary. So what had made her react that way? It was almost frightening...

Still feeling unsure about her reaction to the bridge, Kagome uneasily looked back down at her map, which she had crumpled in her fist. Straightening it out, she discovered she wasn't too far from the library now. She decided to set out again, telling herself that on the way back, she'd be sure to take the alternate bridge.

..:V:..

"Stupid girl..." Inuyasha muttered, kicking his dorm room door shut. Ever since his conversation with her three days prior, he could get her out of his head. It bugged him to no end that she automatically thought that whatever her past had been like was so much more horrible than anyone's else's. She didn't even know what others' pasts were like. Self-righteous bitch.

"What're you moping about now, dog-turd?" Kouga's annoying voice drifted to him.

Inuyasha growled. "None of your damn business."

"What, are ya gonna cry again about how much of a dumbass you are and how you can't keep up in school?" Kouga mocked him.

"Shut up!" Inuyasha yelled. "I did not cry..." he added sullenly.

"Pretty damn close," Kouga sneered. "Such a whelp... You know, I wish you'd never woken up."

Inuyasha snarled. "You know what? Me too. That way I wouldn't have to live with the likes of you!"

"Why don't you go and cry about that too?" Kouga said.

Inuyasha's eyebrow twitched. "You'll be the one crying if you keep this up."

"Heh, whatever, dog crap," Kouga backed down. "I'm going to the library anyways."

"Thank god," Inuyasha said snidely as his roommate pushed past him and out the door.

..:V:..

"Souta..." Shippo began hesitantly. "What...what's up with your sister...?"

Souta lifted his head up from his math homework. "Huh?"

"Well...why does she come in some nights crying...?" Shippo asked in a shaky voice. "It's freaky..."

"Uhh..." Souta glanced around the room uneasily for a second and scratched the back of his head thoughtfully. "I can't really...say, Shippo. It's kind of a secret. But, it's not her fault or anything; things have just...happened to her. And I'm the only one who can comfort her. I can't say much more than that," Souta finished apologetically as he turned back to his homework.

Shippo didn't look satisfied. In fact, almost a frightened expression was on his face.

..:V:..

Kagome had already searched around the library for a good fifteen minutes before she realized she would never get anywhere on her own. She needed some help.

"Um, excuse me," she said hesitantly as she approached the librarian. As the woman glanced up from sorting something out on her computer, Kagome continued, "I'm looking for possible newspaper articles...from five years ago?"

The woman smiled. "Ah, yes. Newspaper articles from so long ago we don't tend to keep. But since they're so important, we scan them and keep them in our newspaper slide system. Shall we go take a look?"

Kagome nodded enthusiastically and followed the kindly woman as she bustled towards the back of the library. On the way, the librarian asked, "Now, what was it you were specifically looking for, my dear?"

"Oh! Um...I was just wondering if there was anything concerning...uh...Inuyasha Reijiro?" Kagome said uncertainly.

The librarian's face immediately saddened. "Oh, dear...the Reijiro incident. That was a tragedy..."

In opposition to the woman's face, Kagome face brightened. "So you know about it?!"

"Oh, yes," the woman said sadly. "What a terrible event that was; the whole city was aggrieved. Here we are." They had arrived at a machine at the back of the building, and the librarian switched it on and typed "Reijiro, 5 yrs. ago" in a little search box. Then she turned and placed a hand on Kagome's shoulder. "I hope this helps, dear. Are you doing a project or something on this?"

"Oh, no," Kagome was quick to say. "I'm new to this city and I just...heard rumours about it and was curious as to what happened..."

The lady shook her sadly. "Well...good luck, I suppose. You won't like what you find out, though..." With that, she turned and made her way back to her desk, muttering something like, "Poor Inuyasha..."

Kagome blinked and looked in confusion at the librarian's back as she walked away. What happened to Inuyasha was so big that the whole city knew of it? She felt a pang of guilt. Maybe she truly had misjudged him...

She turned back to the newspaper database to see it finish searching and bring up a newspaper article on the screen. One glance at the headline was enough to make her gasp out loud.

Slaughter At Reijiro Home

..:V:..

A/N Oh! What's this?! What happened to Inuyasha? Why did I have to cut it off right there? How many of my dismembered limbs thrown in a ditch will the police find tomorrow morning for doing so?

Hmm...well...it felt like a good place to end it...next chapter you'll be able to read the article! So don't kill me just yet!

And sorry for making Kouga somewhat of a jackass...but it's necessary for later on... Those little excerpts of Kouga with Inuyasha and Shippo with Souta were also necessary for later on, so they weren't as pointless as they seemed!

And I'm aware this chapter was slightly shorter, but I ran out of things to happen in it; the chapters can't all be long or a set length...that's just the way this story works. But I hope you liked this chapter and I'll try to get the next one out as soon as possible!