Disclaimer - InuYasha is mine!!! Stay away, evil demons!! He's mine! Wait, get back! Noooo! Evil demons stole Inuyasha away from me, so I no longer own it. *pouts*

AN: I've gotten a couple of reviews asking if the Feudal gang will be entering the story again. I haven't really decided yet. I'm not sure if they'll fit in the story. I'm curious as to what my readers reactions are to this. It might not affect my decision if there is not a good place to bring them in, but I might be able to squeeze them into flashbacks or something. Please tell me!

It took me forever to write this chapter. I got stuck about halfway through and couldn't figure out where I wanted to go with it. ^_^'

Thanks for the reviews everyone. And thanks so much to Loona for your great review. You guys are the best!

'Blah' - Thoughts/Dream (At the end after the break line)

'Blah' - Flashback

Chapter Ten.

Kagome's world had once again fallen into a routine. It was almost strange how her everyday life seemed to be a mix of her days in the Feudal Era and her days in her own time. She still went to school, still bickered with Souta, still got frustrated over homework, but it was different. It was different because he was now an intricate part in her life.

Katashi Fukuda had indeed been around her the entire year so far, but now that they were friends...it was almost like having Inuyasha back again, in some strange sort of way. The absolute similarity between the two of them was uncanny, but at the same time it gave Kagome a feeling of relief, of normalcy, of contentment. It was almost like things were normal again.

Almost.

As her friendship with Katashi flourished, Kagome's thoughts started flickering back to the friends she had left behind. She wondered how they were doing. Had Sango and Miroku finally gotten together? Had Shippo grown up? Was Kirara still as cute and vicious as ever? More then once Kagome considered slipping through the well and seeing how they were doing. But she never did. She told herself it was because she didn't want to bring back old memories. She didn't want to deal with having to reforge those broken bonds with her friends. But really, on an unconscious level, she knew it was because she was afraid. Afraid that they had forgotten her, afraid that the world would be too cold, too lonely without Inuyasha there, afraid that she wouldn't even be able to go through the well anymore. Afraid she couldn't ever get back to what she considered her real home.

Her world was a confusing mess. Every night she would lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling and running theories about Katashi through her head. Was he Inuyasha? A reincarnation of him? A ghost of him? Was he just someone who bore a frightening resemblance to the boy she had fallen in love with? What about his dreams?

Those stupid dreams! What were they? Katashi couldn't just be some random guy off the street if he had those dreams. Just like he couldn't be a simple reincarnation if he had memories of Inuyasha. Kagome herself never had memories of Kikyo's life. It was a freak accident combined with fate that led her to discover the world in the well. The world of the past. Her past. Her home.

I'm going to have to tell him, Kagome thought as she turned on to her side, unable to sleep despite it being nearly four in the morning. One of these days I'm going to reach a breaking point and I'm going to have to tell him. Or he'll discover something, figure something out, and I'll have to tell him anyway.

Jeez, Kagome, don't you ever lighten up?

I want to stop worrying about this. I'm not trying to be uptight.

You think too much.

I'm sorry. I know I do.

Kagome rolled over, Inuyasha's voice still ringing clearly in her mind. She needed to relax, and let things go the way they were. Whoever and whatever Katashi is, she was going to find out. Eventually.

"So then Kagome shouts out, right in the middle of class, 'that's not right!' The teacher turned to stare at her, and said, 'and how would you know? Were you actually there to see it happen?' And Kagome blushed, and then sat back down."

The occupants of the table burst out laughing as Kagome reddened.

"It's really not that funny," she muttered, her hands covering her face.

"Yes, it is," snorted Yuka. "It really is."

Katashi snickered.

Kagome took her head away from her hands and glared deeply at him. "Okay mister I'm-so-cool-I've-never-done-anything-embarrassing. I bet there's something that you've done that would have you moving to another country to escape our laughter!"

"No," said Katashi flatly, sounding completely confident in his judgment.

"That's impossible," scoffed Kagome. "I'm sure there's something."

"Yeah," Ayumi chimed in. "There's gotta be something."

"But if there is, he's probably not going to tell us," reasoned Eri.

Katashi smirked, leaning back in his seat with his hands behind his head.

Hiro, a boy in their class who had become close friends with Katashi, spoke up. "If you want to find out embarrassing stories about Katashi, all you have to do is ask his siblings!"

Kagome stilled, looking at Hiro surprised. Katashi had...siblings?!

Katashi set a wounded look in Hiro's direction. "Traitor," he said, pointing a finger at him accusingly.

Hiro just grinned.

"I didn't know you had any siblings," commented Eri.

"Yeah, well..." Katashi shrugged.

"They argue a lot," whispered Hiro conspiratorially. "He and his brother, Shinji, fight like their lives dependon it. I swear that if they had swordsor something they would've killed each other off long ago."

"Hey, I can hear you, y'know!"

Kagome glanced at Katashi, the image of him and Sesshomaru battling it out with Tetsusaiga and Tenseiga in her mind.

"That's just like me and my sister," Yuka was saying. "We fight all the time. It drives my mom crazy!"

"Yeah, well, my sister is annoying too. I swear that her goal in life is to make sure I die at a young age and that the epitaph on my tombstone says 'Died of Excessive Hyperventilation Caused By Annoying Pest Sister.' Or something just as bad!"

Kagome's brow furrowed as she glanced from Katashi to Hiro and back to Katashi. "You have a brother and sister?"

Katashi nodded, rolling his eyes slightly. "Yeah, Shinji's older by two years and Chikako's younger by three."

"Ooh! I bet they know all sorts of dirty stuff about you!" exclaimed Yuka eagerly as she leaned forwards. "I want to meet them!"

"No, you don't," said Katashi vehemently.

"Yes, we do! Hiro, make sure we meet them. I want to know every naughty detail about Katashi's life!" ordered Eri.

Hiro grinned. "Order taken and will be completed with the utmost pleasure."

Katashi groaned and buried his head in his hands. "I can't believe you," he said to Hiro, his voice muffled. "Betraying me like that."

Hiro patted Katashi on the back sympathetically. "Don't worry," he said, winking conspiratorially towards the girls. "I'll make sure they avoid all incidents that happened before the age of twelve."

Katashi raised his head and glared at Hiro. "Thanks," he said sarcastically. "That makes me feel all better."

"Have you met Kagome's brother?" asked Yuka. "Souta's pretty cute. How old is he now?"

"Eh? Kagome has a brother?" Katashi looked over at Kagome, a smirk evident on his face. "Payback for talking to my siblings?"

"Oh, you don't need to talk to Souta," said Eri cheerily. "We'll tell you everything!"

"Yeah!" chimed in Ayumi happily. "We'll tell you all of Kagome's little secrets as well!"

"I don't suppose you three have siblings?" asked Hiro in an interested tone.

Eri shrugged. "Yuka and I don't, but Ayumi has a sister who is like...fifty billion years old."

"She's thirty-five!" corrected Ayumi. "She's my step-sister."

"Well, that's old," said Eri decidedly. "So, Hiro, do you have any secret stories on Katashi right now?"

"No, unfortunately. I haven't known him long enough. But I could tell you about a prank we pulled on some guys in our class. I swear they still think they're being haunted by Shinigami."

Yuka giggled. "I should tell you about the time Eri got caught making out with her boyfriend on her couch...by her grandparents!"

"I heard that things were getting pretty heated too," snickered Kagome.

Katashi winced. "Ouch, that sucks."

Eri reddened. "Shut up!" she hissed. "Maybe I should tell them about the time Ayumi's shirt fell open at the theme park."

"I was on a roller coaster!"

"Her sister still has pictures." Eri said. "The roller coaster camera caught it."

"I found out her boyfriend has one," said Yuka. "It's hilarious, but slightly weird."

"Yeah, well, at least my boyfriend's not a delinquent!" said Ayumi heatedly.

Katashi's eyebrows immediately raised.

"Oh, yeah, who is this delinquent boyfriend I keep hearing about?" demanded Hiro.

"It doesn't matter," said Kagome, not meeting Katashi's eyes. "We broke up a couple of years ago."

"Yeah, but Kagome was in lurve with him," teased Eri.

"I thought he was kind of a bastard at first," admitted Ayumi, forgetting about her own embarrassment in favor of a more interesting topic. "He was two-timing Kagome with another girl."

"We met him a couple of times though and he was really nice."

"Yeah, and handsome too," Yuka said, agreeing with Eri.

"Guys, can we drop this?" asked Kagome quickly, but the others payed no attention.

"He actually kind of looked like you, Katashi," observed Yuka. "Except his hair was long...and white...and he had golden eyes..."

"And always wore this weird red clothing," Ayumi said thoughtfully. "And had a bandanna or cap on his head."

"Bad boy," muttered Yuka under her breath.

"What was his name?" Hiro asked. "I'm rather annoyed that I didn't get to meet this guy. He seems like he's the type to own a motorcycle."

"Or a Lamborghini." Katashi wiggled his eyebrows. "Imagine that."

"Better." Hiro nodded happily.

"Inuyasha," supplied Eri. "Kind of a strange name, but he was a delinquent, right?"

"Yeah, but he was sweet too. Kagome used to miss a lot of school because she got sick a lot, and he was there often to take care of her." Yuka sighed dreamily. "When I get a boyfriend again, I wish he would do that for me."

"We used to never see Kagome cause she got sick so much," Ayumi told Katashi. "It hasn't happened in forever though."

Katashi's eye suddenly sharpened. "Where did you meet him, Kagome?"

Kagome looked surprised. "Hmm?"

Eri frowned. "Hey, where did you meet him? I never thought about that. You were sick so often...when did...?"

"Uh..." Crap, thought Kagome frantically. Why do they always have to be so interested in my love life?! "History convention," she said, suddenly inspired. "My mother took me to one since she thought I was getting behind in school and I ran into him there. We started hanging out, and then dating." No more questions, I might let something slip! I can't tell Katashi anything! Not yet.

"Weird," commented Hiro. "He doesn't seem like the type of guy to enjoy history conventions."

"He wasn't," responded Kagome, grinning at the thought of Inuyasha at a history convention, staring with a baffled look on his face at all the strange artifacts surrounding him. God, he probably would've destroyed a lot of priceless objects. "He was with his girlfriend. They broke up soon after."

"I wish my ex-boyfriend was like him, actually," said Eri suddenly. "At least Kagome's boyfriend wasn't a complete asshole."

"I know! For all his reputation was worth, Inuyasha was actually a decent guy!"

The girls got caught up in a discussion of boyfriends, and when Hiro threw in a derisive comment, they pounced on him angrily and dragged him into an uncomfortable discussion about dating rules.

Katashi looked at Kagome dryly. "Ex-girlfriend?" he asked quietly.

Kagome returned his look coolly. "Yes," she said evenly. "He loved her very much. Things didn't work out though."

An eyebrow raised. "Two-timer?"

Kagome flushed. "Hardly. It was...complicated. They had a misunderstanding and his ex tried to..." an image of Kikyo flashed into Kagome's mind. What had been her objective exactly? Kagome could never tell. Inuyasha had always chased after her but had she ever truly wanted him back? Sometimes, Kagome wondered. "It was complicated," she repeated lamely. "But I knew that Inuyasha cared for me." Not like Kikyo though. "And I cared for him." Even though he probably would've chosen her in the end.

Katashi studied her intently, his indigo eyes searching her face. "Did you love him?" he asked suddenly.

Kagome jerked back as if she had been slapped. The words stung. More than she had been counting on. Her friends' conversation was long forgotten, just a slight blur of noise in the background. Loved him? Loved Inuyasha? Did she really love him?

Yes.

She did love him. More then she wanted to admit.

A half-breed. They're disgusting creatures. They don't belong anywhere. They're not fully human, so the human race rejects them. They're tainted with human blood, so the demons scorn them. They're outcasts.

Inuyasha. Tears threatened to spring up in Kagome's eyes but she kept them in forcefully, refusing to cry in front of this Inuyasha-clone...this fake image of the half-demon that she had loved.

"I'll always protect you, Kagome. And I won't leave you, not if you need me. I won't be able to stop loving Kikyo but..."

But what, Inuyasha? asked Kagome desperately, the dream that she had only a few months ago coming back fully into her mind. Did you love me enough that you were willing to leave Kikyo? Would you have stayed with me if Kikyo had invited you? Did...did you really love me at all?

"I promise, Kagome, I'll protect you with everything I have, and if I leave...I'll find a way back. I promise."

Don't lie to me! You're dead! You died in front of me! Don't you dare lie to me! Don't give me fake promises, and don't tell me things that will give me false hopes.

I guess I have a sorry pet too. It's not even a purebreed.

Maybe you should get a new pet.

If you're going to come back than do it already! Don't leave me alone! Don't leave me waiting. Inuyasha...I love you!

Cocky grin. Obnoxious voice. Red clothing. Annoying words. White hair. Deadly sword. Gold eyes. Inuyasha.

I love you, you idiot!

I love all you guys. Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kirara, even Koga and Ginta and Hakkaku. I love you all and I miss you. Hell, even Sesshomaru, the cold ice bastard. I miss you all. I love you all. You guys were home to me.

Home.

What was home? Home was her group. Her friends. Her family. Home was with those five beings she had grown so close to. Home was with Shippo, protecting him and fighting for him, teaching him and playing with him. Home was hiding from Miroku and shrieking at him when he took his perverted ways too far. Home was playing Kirara, flying on her, and cuddling with her. Home was talking to Sango about the two idiotic boys that they had the misfortune of falling in love with. Home was having do deal with Koga's pointless flirting and dealing with Ginta and Hakkaku's annoying background commentary. Home was yelling awful things at Sesshomaru and trying to provoke a reaction from him. Home was watching Jaken try to impress his lord and always fail miserably. Home was getting jealous over Kikyo whenever she appeared and then feeling guilty about it. Home was popping in to say hi to Kaede and hearing her laugh at Inuyasha. Home was battling with Naraku and furiously ranting about his evil deeds. Home was searching for the jewel shards and running into Kagura, and Kanna, and Hakudoshi. Home was arguing with Inuyasha and yelling "SIT!!" whenever he did something out of line.

Inuyasha. Sango. Miroku. Shippo. Kirara.

Home.

Those eyes, staring into her. Piercing her. It was him. He was here, around her, standing right in front of her. She felt safe, secure, invincible, because he was there. Always would be there. Those gold eyes promised protection, and spoke silent words that wouldn't be said aloud. "Kagome." Inuyasha. "Kagome, I..." Inuyasha. "Kagome. You worry too much." Inuyasha. "Kagome? Kagome? Kagome?"

"Kagome?"

Kagome gasped, startled out of her thoughts and memories, her eyes immediately focusing onto those familiar indigo eyes across from her. Those eyes that she saw only saw during the new moon. His eyes. Inuyasha.

"Kagome, are you alright?"

Katashi.

Katashi. Katashi Fukuda. Inuyasha look alike. A pretender.

"Kagome, are you listening? Hello? Kagome?"

Yuka's sharp voice cut into her world. It shattered, dropping and scattering like broken glass shards.

Or like my heart, thought Kagome grimly.

Broken. Cracked. Fractured. Destroyed. Ripped out and stomped on by a raving Band of Seven member.

"Oi, Kagome!" snapped Ayumi loudly, as a hand connected solidly with the back of her head.

"Ow!" moaned Kagome, turning indignantly to stare murderously at Eri. "What was that for?"

"You were blanking out," said Hiro. He was practically leering over her. When did he stand up? "It was like you were in some intense form of meditation. Are you a ninja or a monk or something?"

Close, but not quite hitting the target. A priestess.

"I was just thinking." Kagome waved her hand carelessly, looking as though she believed people zoned out from the rest of the world all the time.

"What about? A boy, maybe?"

Stop thinking about my love life! shrieked Kagome mentally. "I was thinking about my past," Kagome said, trying to look as out of it as possible. She tried to contort her face into a dazed expression. "About the love I once shared, and the battles I fought. About...back then." She bit her lip, and lowered her head slightly, feeling rather proud of her dramatic over-the-top performance.

A hand found it's way onto her forehead. "Are you sure you're okay, Kagome?" asked Eri, looking rather concerned.

I'm either a really bad actor so they think I'm delirious or a really good one...so that they still think I'm delirious, thought Kagome irritably. "I'm fine." She paused, and looked over to Katashi who had remained silent during this exchange. "Actually, I think I might be coming down with something. I should probably head home."

"Do you need someone to walk you home?" asked Katashi abruptly.

Kagome paused. "No," she said firmly. "I'll be fine." She stood up quickly, and said good-bye to the five other teens. Katashi gave her a hard look as she left the small ice cream shop. She blew some hair out of her eyes.

He's not going to give up on this, Kagome realized. He wants to know what's going on.

Kagome shivered slightly from the wind as she walked down the sidewalk. You need to be more careful, she told herself sternly. No one can find out the truth about Inuyasha. Not even Katashi. Especially not Katashi.

I'll find a way back. I promise.

Darkness. Never ending darkness.

Chains. Unbroken chains.

Lock. A lock with no key.

Prison. An inescapable prison.

He turns, desperate, the chains draped around him clanking loudly in the eerie silence. It's cold...too cold. He shivers. He can't see anything. There's only darkness. Everywhere. He doesn't know where to turn. It goes on for eternity. Never ending.

It's suffocating. He can't breathe. Panicked, indiscernible thoughts race through his mind.

What kind of prison is this?

He can't see anything but the darkness. He feels a lock gripping in his chest. It's restraining him, keeping him petrified, frozen. He's trapped inside something, hidden behind a wall, cut off from the rest of the world.

So why does he feel so exposed? Why does he feel like millions of eyes are on him? Why does he feel like he's being watched...being judged?

This makes no sense.

What am I feeling?

Where am I?

"You're a half-breed."

He hears a voice echo. The voice is nothing, but everything. It has no gender, no sound, no feeling, no emotion, no texture, but it exists.

"You're a vile creature."

Who is this? Is it real? What is happening?

He works his jaw and scrambles to find his voice.

"W-who are you?" he croaks out. "W-who am I?"

"Half-breed!" the voice says. It sounds disgusted now.

"What's happening?"

"Why do you exist? You're nothing. You belong nowhere. You shouldn't be here."

"I d-don't understand." His head starts hurting, and he begins to hyperventilate.

"Why do you try to continue? Why don't you just...end it?" The voice is smooth, soothing, suffocating.

He suddenly stands free of chains, but he can still feel the metal surrounding him. A sword is gripped in his hand.

"End it!" the voice whispered.

End it? He stares, confused. What is wrong with him?

"It'll make the world better. Free. Free of trash."

End it? It sounds...inviting.

"This world is better off without half-breeds like you."

End it? It is strange that those two words make so much sense.

"You know you want to. Do it!"

End it? Why on earth hadn't he thought of that before?

"Think of those who you will make happy."

End it? The sword rises slowly from his side.

"They want you gone. Do them a favor."

End it? His hand slowly twists, aiming the sword in the direction of his heart.

"You were hated your entire life. Accepted nowhere."

End it? The metal blade is brought forward until the tip touches his skin. His hand does not tremble.

"What a fitting end for one such as you."

End it? His eyes stare blankly ahead as he drives the sword in.

"One less mongrel to look after."

End it? Strange how it doesn't hurt like he thought it would.

"A filthy half-breed."

End it?

"Disgusting."

Blood seeps from the wound.

Darkness. Never ending darkness.

Chains. Unbroken chains.

Lock. A lock with no key.

Prison. An inescapable prison.

I'm actually not completely happy with this chapter, but I figured that if I didn't get it out soon I would have to hire body guards so I wouldn't get murdered by my readers. I'm only fourteen! I don't have the money!! Don't kill me!!!

For anybody who likes to reread stories, I will eventually be revising the first chapters. I reread some of them and immediately thought "oh my god they're horrible." I think I've improved since I started this story so I will be revising. Don't worry, this won't effect my irregular updates! ;) I probably won't even start doing it for awhile. Maybe. Who knows?

There shouldn't be too many OCs in this story, and I brought Hiro in since I figured Katashi needed a friend. I'm not sure if he'll stick around or not...we'll see!

And of course, just in case it's not clear, the ending is one of Katashi's confusing dreams. Poor bewildered Katashi!

Anyway, please review and tell me your thoughts on this chapter. I'd love to hear some constructive criticism. :)