Aljan Moonfire does not own Inuyasha in any way, shape or form

"Speaking."

'Thinking.'

.-. - scence break or POv change

Chapter 1: Disowned

A Year Later…

Kagome groaned lightly as she woke, biting her lip to muffle the noise as she sat up. Despite her efforts Inuyasha easily heard her from where he was crouched in the middle of the room, poking at the fire to keep himself busy. Almost immediately he was by her side hovering over her in a way that might have annoyed her if she didn't know how much he blamed himself for her injury.

As far as Kagome was concerned though, that wasn't the case at all. Inuyasha had always been her protector, her best friend, and her first love. She didn't see the healing wound she now sported on her right side as his fault in any way. If anything, it was her own mistake that had gotten her injured.

It had been their most major fight for a while with many of their allies on their side of the battle and quite a few of Naraku's incarnations on the other. Of course, in way that had become almost typical over the past couple of years, the man himself had not partaken in any aspect of the fight except though said incarnations.

Kagura, of course, had been there, as well as Kanna, Hakudoshi, and a pair of identical children that looked to be around the age of the last two. They had been called, rather unimaginatively, Kira and Kinra. For a change, one that had led to tragedy, Kohaku had also been there, his eyes blanked of all emotion and will.

On their side, as always, had been herself, Inuyasha, Miroku, and Sango and Kirara. Shippo had been there as well but hadn't participated in the thick of the fighting as Kagome had managed to place him behind a basic barrier anchored by an arrow before the fight really began. Koga had also been there, having followed Kagura's scent to the site of the battle.

The twins had started off by introducing themselves, and then immediately attacking, along with Hakudoshi. Apparently connected in some sick way Kagome really didn't want to imagine, the two could see through each other's eyes and hear each other's thoughts (They even finished each other's sentences, which was quite creepy), but that wasn't their real power. Though physically weaker than many of their predecessors, the two were, upon skin contact, able to absorb the spiritual energies of their enemies.

The type of energy was irrelevant to the two and they could absorb and twist the energies of a priest or miko to their uses just as well as a yokai's yoki. Not expecting such a thing they were put on the defensive for most of the fight. With ever present Saimyosho hovering about, just waiting for Miroku to use his Kazana, he was unable to get rid of them that way, and Inuyasha and Koga were kept busy by Hakudoshi and Kagura.

As Kagura and Koga, and Inuyasha and Hakudoshi battled towards one end of the field, she, Miroku, and Sango had faced the other three. Kanna had done as she once had before, and attempted to take Kagome's soul from her body, locking it within her mirror. With no other souls besides Kagome's currently imprisoned in the void mirror, she had almost succeeded. In fact, had it not been for the part of her that now resided in Kikyo's clay body miles away she had no doubt that she might have died.

As was, it wasn't until the battle had been almost finished before she had managed to gather enough strength to use that connection to pull the rest of her large soul from the mirror, once again cracking it. She had managed to wrest the details of the part of the fight that she'd missed from her most perverted companion after the battle so most of the rest she only knew from what he had seen from his own point of view.

With Kanna able to mostly keep Kagome out the fight altogether with her mirror and Sango unilaterally distracted by her younger brother, he had had to deal with the twins by himself. His fight with them had been frustrating to the extreme. Though he had managed to hold them off for the most part, he had known that he was quickly failing.

Seeing no other option, he had risked the poison of Naraku's demonic wasps to open his Kazana, swiftly suck in the twin incarnations and a few of the Saimyosho before he was able to close it again. He had immediately collapsed, but as he had taken to having one of Kagome's antitoxins on him at all times after having learned how to use them from said miko, he had quickly dosed himself with it.

Knowing he'd be pretty much useless for the rest of the fight he had tugged Kagome's by then almost comatose body from the center of the battlefield to where she had placed the barrier around Shippo. Quickly settling himself and the young woman as comfortably as he could manage, he had turned his attention to Sango, the love of his life, who was currently facing her little brother.

At that point Kohaku had been practically unscathed; his elder sister unable to muster the will to wound him. He on the other hand, then completely under the control of Naraku, had no such compunctions. Sango had barely been able to stand, her body so torn by her brother's kusari-gama* anyone could see she was about to pass out from the immense loss of blood.

She had pleaded with him as she staggered from the blows, begging the boy to remember, and even though he gave no sign of doing so, every blow he rained down upon his sister failed to hit a vital organ. When she had finally collapsed to one knee before him, she something softly enough that Miroku couldn't hear and Kohaku had suddenly begun to fight Naraku's compulsions with everything he had.

Sango had watched on hopefully, praying that her precious brother, the last part of her family, would succeed. Then, suddenly, one of the Saimyosho had appeared behind the boy. Just as the female demon-slayer had made to call out a warning, the large bug had pierced the boy's back and pulled out a small shard of darkly shining jewel.

As the large demonic bee had swiftly flown away, jewel shard in tow, the boy had immediately collapsed, his weapon falling to the ground beside him. Miroku had told her that all he could remember thinking as he'd struggled to his feet was that it seemed Naraku had cut his losses there. He also admitted that he was most likely in shock at the time as well.

Sango had stumbled over to her once again dead brother as stricken tears had trailed silently down her cheeks. He had reached her just as she had sunk down to her knees before the corpse. He had collapsed beside her as well, still suffering from the remnants of the wasps' poison and helped her turn the body over to lie on its back.

Immediately he had realized that there was no hope. The boy was well and truly dead this time. Sango on the other had seemed unwilling to accept it and spent the rest of the battle, which honestly didn't take much longer, as well the aftermath, trying to wake the young boy, as if he were just sleeping. As her cries grew increasingly frustrated, grief stricken, and hysteric, he had sat beside her through it all, offering his silent support.

The battle that hey had mostly forgotten at this point by those two had still continued however, and almost immediately after Miroku had left her side, Kagome had awoken, and freed her own soul in the process. Her mirror broken once again, Kanna had retreated, vanishing quickly into the distance on the backs of several lesser demons. In doing this she also left Kagura and Hakudoshi to battle the rest of the group on their own as Kagome watched on.

The battles between the other four had continued in their typical fashion. Hakudoshi and Inuyasha were almost evenly matched, his speed on the demon horse Entei evenly matched by Inuyasha's raw power. Still, Inuyasha had gradually gained the upper hand and they both knew it, as did anyone who watched.

Koga's battle had gone the other way, with Kagura quickly gaining and holding the upper hand over the wolf prince. In the beginning of the battle he had even managed to land a few hits but it hadn't lasted long. As Kagome had turned her attention to that battle she had quickly deduced that he wouldn't be able to win without assistance.

And so, drawing her bow for the first time in this battle, she had focused her sights on Kagura, knowing that the wind witch would be unable to block or avoid the holy arrow. Just as she had gathered her remaining energies and prepared to fire, Kagura managed to trap the wolf demon in a particularly vicious tornado that lifted him off the ground and threatened to tear him to pieces should the attack last much longer.

"Koga-kun!" she had screamed in alarm, losing focus at the sight of her friend being mauled in such a manner. Unfortunately this had the added side effect of drawing the attention of the remaining combatants. Inuyasha had been distracted, earning him a vicious, but relatively shallow, injury on his left arm, but Kagura, seeing the miko all but unguarded, sent a blast of cutting wind at the priestess.

Kagome had managed to avoid the worst of it, but her cry of pain when it clipped her side and left a rather deep wound (one that would leave her with yet another scar), distracted Inuyasha yet again. This time the distraction was almost fatal, but on smelling the young woman's blood in the air, Inuyasha became enraged, and somehow managed to drive off the other two as Koga lay moaning on the ground, somehow still alive.

Seeing that her friends were all still alive, at that point Kagome had finally lost the will to stay conscious and passed out. When she next woke it had been all too brief, and she stayed awake for only a few minutes before passing out again where she was lying on Kirara's back.

The next time she woke she managed to stay conscious longer and found herself back at Kaede's hut, having her wounds rebound by said woman. Soon Inuyasha had come in and they had talked for awhile about what had happened while she was unconscious.

Apparently they had done some quick first aid on the worst of their wounds and then hurried back to Edo so Kaede could hopefully do the rest. Kagome had, as far as he knew, been unconscious for almost a week; thankfully the battle hadn't happened all too far from the small village so they were able to get here quickly while traveling as fast as they could in their condition.

She had also spoken with Miroku, and far too briefly with Sango, eventually managing to wrest the story of Kohaku's death from them. She had quickly tired though, and eventually fallen asleep again.

Now that she was conscious of her injury though, she was able to direct some of her quickly recovering power to the wound, causing it to heal faster than it would have other wise, as she slept. It had now been almost a week since then and she was mostly healed, but moving too quickly still caused her pain.

After assuring the hanyou that she was alright, she settled herself more comfortably against the wall of the hut and looked back at Inuyasha. She could see that something was troubling him but before she could ask Shippo bounded into the room and cheered in excitement as he rushed to give Kagome a hug.

Before the small kitsune could reach her though, Inuyasha restrained him by grabbing onto his small tail. Kagome made a brief sound of protest as he raised the boy up to eye level but he quickly silenced her with a serious glare, his eyes so appearing to be so dark a gold they as to be almost brown. He turned his attention back to the now whining kit and shut him up with the same look.

Shippo suddenly seemed to remember something and became very still. Then Miroku carried Sango in and settled her on the other side of the hut. His attention solely focused on the distraught woman, he practically ignored the other members of the group as he settled the still seriously injured woman on a futon, acknowledging their presence but nothing else.

Seeing that those two were hardly paying attention, Kagome turned back to the two serious boys and asked, "Guys? What's wrong?"

Now noticing that her adopted son's eyes were lightly rimed with red, as if he had been crying, she began to grow worried and asked again, "What's wrong?"

Inuyasha drew the majority of her attention back to himself when he replied, "Kagome…" He bit his lower lip in nervousness and continued. "We," he shook the hand that still held Shippo hostage and then set him on the floor, indicating that this was the small demon's opinion as well, "have come to a decision."

She gulped slightly in nervousness, she had never seen Inuyasha act this way before and Shippo wasn't behaving as he normally did as well. "What do you mean?" she asked rather helplessly, a bad feeling burning in her gut.

"That recent fight we had…" he trailed off before somewhat gaining the courage to continue, "You almost died." He said starkly. "When you were unconscious for so long we were unsure if you'd ever wake up. I talked to Shippo and Miroku over that period of time and we all agreed." He hesitated, as if anticipating her anger before continuing. "It's too dangerous for you here Kagome."

"What?" she asked incredulously, "You can't be serious…" she trailed off looking around the hut. Miroku had all of his attention focused on Sango, who was unconscious, and Shippo and Inuyasha just waited out the reaction, pure stubborn determination clouding their eyes.

They were going to send her away? They wouldn't…couldn't…could they? Her tear filled eyes turned back to Inuyasha's honest features that were drawn in almost as much distress, though no tears were in the offing. "Why?" she asked as one of the tears left her eyes, hoping this was some kind of horrible joke, "Am I that much of a liability?"

"Do I get in the way that much?" she continued, "Why…Why are you sending me away?" she asked almost incoherently now, tears pour in streams down her cheeks.

At this Inuyasha began to almost panic and he hastily tried to correct her, "No!" he almost yelled, and then quieter, "You're not a liability in any way Kagome!" he said waving his clawed hands in front of him, a mannerism he had picked up from her over their travels.

As Kagome calmed down slightly he stopped the motion and sighed, continuing to speak, "It's just… we don't want you to die Kagome. We realized it when you almost didn't dodge that last attack." He placed one of his hands on the floor in emphasis as he continued. "We can't always be there to protect you. So, we decided that you'd be safer in your own time." He concluded.

When she made to protest he held up his other hand to forestall it and continued to speak, "We can't afford to be distracted during battle, Kagome. And trust me, when you screamed and were injured we were very distracted. Please go back to your own time and seal the well. We would feel better knowing you were safe, back in your own home…" he trailed off running out of words and trying not to think of how much this would hurt the innocent girl.

She looked down, staring at where her fists were clenching in her skirt and now silent tears fell from her chin to splash against them. Then she looked up and the sheer pain and loss that was apparent there made his heart stop in shock before continuing at an accelerated pace.

She looked away to glance around the room. Shippo would meet her gaze and Miroku wouldn't look at her at all, still staring at the taijiya sleeping next to where he sat. "Miroku, Shippo? What do you say?" she asked in a last ditch effort, hoping they would realize their mistake and take back the horrible words.

If only she could turn back time, maybe then this wouldn't be necessary… she almost laughed through her tears at the irony inherent in her thoughts.

Miroku just shook his head and turn away slightly, indicating his indifference to the subject as Shippo replied, breaking her heart as he did, "Just go, Kagome." He said, his childish voice ripping into her like a blade.

When he said her name, said it in such a cold way she could barely stand it, her hand actually came up to clutch at her shirt. She was almost surprised to feel no blood. There was no physical wound, certainly, but how could anything that caused such pain be anything but?

"Sh-shippo?" she asked, eyes wide with uncertainty and pain as grief clouded her vision until the only thing that was real were his words.

"Go back to your own time Kagome." He said again. "I accepted you as my mother, but no mother of mine would put herself in danger all the time. No mother of mine would make me worry so much that she won't come back from her fights. Kagome," he repeated, his voice like arrows to her heart every time he said her name, "Just leave. This isn't your time, and it isn't your fight. Just go."

As his defiant gaze left hers she struggled to her feet, a hand still clutching at her chest as if her heart were struggling to beat. Stumbling to the door she grabbed her bow and quiver, as well as her bag (Which was somehow all packed and ready to go), she went. She left the hut as quickly as she could, no longer wanting to hear a thing they said – she didn't think she could handle anymore without breaking completely.

Walking blindly in the direction of the well, she was lost in a renewed and revitalized sense of grief as she stumbled along the familiar path. As soon as she reached the edge of the clearing and saw the old well through the veil of silent tears trailing down her face, she collapsed to her knees, finally breaking.

As her body shook with the force of her sobs all she could think of were the last words said in that familiar hut. Her son… her son had disowned her. Her adopted brother had listened and done nothing as her sister slept peacefully through it all. And…and…her best friend; her once love… She didn't want to think about it. She didn't want to think at all.

Forcing herself to her feet again she stumbled over to the innocent seeming well, eventually collapsing next to it. Her back resting on the wooden side as she continued to cry, her face lifted up to the sky, she tried to reason with herself. It wasn't their fault… They didn't know, she hadn't told them about the fire, or about her family. Again her heart was stabbed with a now familiar pain at the thought.

She drew up her knees and rested her forehead on them, the tears never stopping. There was no way she was going back to her time. She had long since finished high school, and this era had long since ruined her for a simple, peaceful life. And her family… the tears fell faster and pain grew to be so great that she didn't even notice the other presence as it entered the clearing until it was right beside her.

Looking over absently, she saw her… Kikyo. Kikyo slowly moved to stand before her reincarnation, her face not as cold as usual, and sunk down to her knees before her. Taking the young woman into her cool arms, as she held her Kagome's sobs began anew as she cried her heart out into Kikyo's white clad shoulder.

When the younger woman finally settled down, Kikyo pulled back to look Kagome in the eyes, "What happened, Kagome," she asked, concerned.

"They want me to go back Kikyo, they say I'm a distraction, that when I was nearly killed in the last fight that I distracted them from their own battles." Tears began to fall again as she recounted this. "Kikyo," she said, heartbroken, "Shippo called me Kagome…he hasn't done that in -" a sob broke past her lips as she remembered her adopted son and the happiness he had radiated the first time she said he could call her mother if he wanted to, "- he hasn't called me that in, at least…ten months."

Again she buried her head in the older girl's shoulder letting the shuddering sobs break over her once again as Kikyo again soothed the girl, feeling her anger grow at Kagome's supposed 'friends'. So much had happened in the past year. After Kikyo had agreed to train her she had asked her not to tell anyone (as if she had anyone to tell), explaining that everyone was distracted enough without finding out about and worrying on her and her problems.

Kikyo had reluctantly promised but told her that they would find out eventually. Whether it was when she no longer returned to her time or Inuyasha went searching for her was anyone's guess. But Kagome soon fixed that; she took back Inuyasha's beads under the pretence of friends not hurting friends. Without the link to her he couldn't go through the well to her time.

The other problem was quickly taken care of as well. Kagome would occasionally say she was going back to her time but she would only buy supplies and gifts before she returned to spend her remaining time with Kikyo, learning how to become a proper priestess. She didn't tell her friends about those lessons either. Her reason were that if her friends didn't know then neither did Naraku, and if she could surprise him in the final battle it may just win them the fight.

"Will you go back?" Kikyo asked quietly. She didn't want the girl to leave, not after she and Kagome had grown so close. In fact she had come to love the younger woman like a sister; she had come to love Kagome as much as she loved Kaede.

What she had said had made sense so Kikyo hadn't argued with her too much. Now she regretted it; if her friends had known that Kagome was now a miko (and a powerful one, even more powerful than herself), then maybe they wouldn't have broken Kagome like this. She suddenly realized that Kagome had calmed down and was in deep thought.

"What are you going to do then, Kagome?" She asked again. This time Kagome's eyes cleared and she smiled weakly at Kikyo, once again amazing the other miko with her strength. How could someone who was betrayed like that find any strength left to smile?

"Well, they asked me to seal the well. No doubt Miroku will come to check later; he can feel the well's power, even if he can't use it… I guess I'll seal it from this side and then…just…leave… It's partially what they wanted, so it'll have to make do." She said, biting her lip at the remembrance of said monk's indifference.

"They'll think I'm on the other side of the well and…" she trialed off before sighing and looking up at Kikyo again, "Do you have a miko outfit I could borrow for now? They'll know I'm still here if they hear rumors of a priestess dressed strangely traveling around." She licked her lips as she thought again. "I suppose I'll have to change my name as well, for now at least…" Kagome's attention turned inward again as she contemplated everything she would have to do.

Kikyo felt a surge of sadness and regret at the bleakness behind her thoughtful gaze. How and when had Kagome become so strong? Her family dying a year ago hadn't stopped her in her quest… She had even hid her pain so well not even her supposed friends suspected anything, and Kikyo had heard that the woman named Sango was quite perceptive when it came to anything about Kagome. Sighing, she contemplated the challenges Kagome had ahead of her.

"Yes," she replied, "I have a spare miko garment. You may have it Kagome, and if you wish you may accompany me as well…" Kikyo smiled slightly at Kagome but she shook her head in refusal, her eyes sad.

"No, Kikyo. My frie… the others will come to look for you, and they'll need you to locate shards for them. And Kikyo, please don't be angry at them, they don't know anything –" Holding up a hand Kagome stopped Kikyo from interrupting at that last.

"-I know that what they did and the way they did it was… ('Horrible and so painful' she thought to herself)…not very nice, but they don't know…anything, about anything. They probably didn't even mean to hurt me; they just want to protect me…" Sighing slightly Kikyo nodded, the mask she had created long ago stopping the emotions that Kagome had granted her from showing through.

Why did her and her reincarnation have such horrible lives? Was it simply the fate of some souls to have such painful existences? "Very well Kagome, I will assist them in their search, should they ask, but what shall you do? The well is very powerful; sealing it will no doubt be not only dangerous to you but have other side effects as well."

Kagome stood shakily before she replied, Kikyo standing with her, holding her steady. As she did so Kikyo quickly contacted her soul stealers, worried that her surrogate sister's friends may come to check on Kagome soon. For the moment it seemed they were leaving Kagome to her task though.

'How nice of them.' she thought snidely to herself, angry for Inuyasha's part in this.

Kagome carefully dusted herself off and wiped away the last traces of her tears before answering Kikyo. "I'll keep on searching for jewel shards as a traveling miko. I doubt Naraku will show himself anytime soon though, he hasn't been around much over the last year anyway…" worries about said hanyou fluttered through her mind like angry birds before she shunted them off to the side for the moment.

Sighing Kagome focused back on Kikyo who was watching her through slightly worried eyes, her mask hid a lot, but not all. Shaking her head at herself she continued, "As for the well… don't worry about it too much. I'll deal with it."

"I shall have to leave soon Kagome," Kikyo stated suddenly, her soul stealers alerting her to Inuyasha's entrance of the forest, "Inuyasha is coming. I will distract him for as long as possible, so hurry."

As she walked towards the trees Kikyo took out her spare miko shihakusho and handed it to Kagome, who had followed her. "Good luck…" Kikyo looked down and back into Kagome's eyes, worried about her reaction to what she said next, "and good bye, my soul-sister."

Kagome started a bit. Although she had long since come to see Kikyo as a sort of elder sister, she hadn't realized that the feeling was reciprocated. Smiling a true smile for the first time in the last hour she threw herself at Kikyo and hugged her happily, temporarily forgetting her situation.

"You too, my sister." She responded. Releasing the startled miko, she smiled once again. The smile soon dimmed though, and as she turned to face the well, she heard Kikyo leave behind her. A whispered good-bye floated to her ears and she whispered one back before striding towards the well.

Soon reaching it, she put her new outfit and her bag to the side where they wouldn't get in the way before laying her hands on the well. She felt the power encased within it pulse upwards to her, as if in greeting. Smiling grimly Kagome took one of the arrows from her quiver and swiped the tip across her palm, drawing blood.

She flinched at the sharp pain. She had known this day would come, so she had researched the sealing powerful objects in her time and through questions to other miko she had met on her travels.

Placing her now bloodied palm on the well she could practically feel her holy blood seeping into the wood. The wound she had inflicted on herself would be a gateway to the power inherent in the well. Kagome had learnt that to truly seal something away, was to actually take it's power into oneself. The most dangerous thing about such sealings was that once started they couldn't be stopped. If the object was too powerful it could easily overwhelm the attempted sealer.

Kagome wasn't too worried. Through all the times she had traveled using the well she had felt a very limited amount of energy actually residing in it. She had eventually come to the conclusion that the well drew upon the energy of the bones it consumed and the Shikon Jewel to transport her through time. As such, she theorized that it did not have much energy in and of itself, and it was only that energy that she had to take.

Gritting her teeth, Kagome forced her powers through the cut in her palm and used her energy to grip a small portion of the well's power. Ever so slowly, she pulled it into herself, quickly getting used to the feeling. As soon as the first tendril energy entered her, Kagome felt the energy start to pick up at its own pace, flowing into her like water from a tap into a bucket. Kagome could feel it begin to fill her up with power.

It didn't take long for her to realize her mistake. The energy just kept coming, ever stronger and more powerful. She couldn't even attempt to stop it; it would be like stopping a river from following its natural course with a brick. Searching through the power she suddenly realized just how much energy the well kept stored within it.

She had been right, it did use the bones of nearby demons to transport her through time, but it then used the huge well of energy kept within itself to bring the bones to itself and keep the link through the times. Not only that, but it seemed to create its own energy so it would never, ever, break that link with time. It was as if the well was endless, and didn't hold water but energy.

Taking in a shuddering breath, Kagome spread her feet and grimly let the energy fill her to the brim. Soon it was overflowing around her, making itself known as a visible blue aura that surrounded her. The power swirled around her, growing so thick she couldn't see through it, and making her feel as if she were underwater.

Finally the last bit disappeared inside her and she had to viciously fight the fluctuating power; tamping it down until it was contained within her and not exploding around her body.

Bending down to grab her things, it felt as if she were moving through sludge, her body slow to obey the commands she gave it. Gripping the miko garment, as well as her bag and weapons, she made her way into the forest, and away from the village. She had no idea where she was going, but she knew she had to get away before the others found her. If she saw them she didn't know what she'd do, and they mustn't know she had sealed the well whilst still in the Sengoku Jidai.

Stopping by a large tree, she leaned against it breathing hard, feeling as if her pack, bow and quiver suddenly amazingly heavy, as if they'd gained 20 kilos instead of the meager ten or so they really were.

As she rested for a moment amongst the tree's large roots, she wondered what she should do now. She hadn't really thought it through before, despite the confidence she'd displayed for Kikyo. Now that she did, it finally hit her how hopeless her situation was. Sure, she'd trained and she could now aptly defend herself, but even walking a few hundred yards had been hard for her with the added weight of the wells energy weighing her down.

Added on to that, she knew she wasn't far enough away yet either. If the wind changed direction Inuyasha would still be able to smell her. She just couldn't find the strength to go on though, especially with the strong feeling of betrayal still lingering in her heart.

How could they do that to her? Sure, they didn't know really know her circumstances on the other side of the well, but they knew that she considered them her second family. Yet despite this still they decided to send her back, as if she would be happy and safe in the future knowing that in the past her friends were fighting for their lives every single day.

She could feel her heart break all over again as she replayed Shippo's words over in her head. She knew what he had done; despite his age Shippo was very smart and he knew that no matter what any of them said she would have continued to fight their decision. He knew that the only way to get her to leave would be to break her. So he did, he had completely and utterly broken her.

The sobs tore from her throat again as his and Inuyasha's words spun through her mind, tearing into her heart like sharp claws. As the tears once more rained down her cheeks, Kagome leaned into the tree and felt the emotions build up in her. She remembered far too late just how tied her miko powers were to her emotions. She felt the wall she had built within herself to hold back the well's power fall and the energy leapt from her grasp, spreading around her body it started to rush out of her in an immense force.

With a strangled scream Kagome gripped it tightly, trying to stop it from getting any further from her. Even as the power wrenched and battered against her will, she knew that if it got free all the demons in the surrounding area would be purified before they even knew what hit them. Unfortunately, that included Inuyasha, Shippo and Kirara.

Trying desperately to reign in the power and her own emotions at the same time, she gritted her teeth against the very physical pain it was causing her. Attempting to pull it back within herself, she didn't notice the presences nearby until something scaly rubbed along her arm. Nearly screaming in shock, Kagome forced her eyes open and stared in surprise at the soul stealers that had surrounded her. She vaguely wondered what they were doing here, so close to being purified, before her power gave another powerful wrench and she strangled a scream as it gained a few inches.

She felt the soul stealers brush against her again and started when she finally realized what they were doing. They were taking the extra energy! Sure, she had known they were parasites and that some soul stealers followed Kikyo around to help her find souls, but she hadn't realized that they actually fed on energy!

As more and more of the stealers brushed against her, she felt the power within her start to withdraw, until finally she could fit it within her without it fighting against her hold. Sitting back on her heels wearily, she vaguely wondered at what point she had fallen to the forest floor.

Then looking around, she saw ten, or even more, soul stealers flying around, one or another occasionally brushing up against her skin. They didn't take any more energy, but they seemed to enjoy the physical contact. Examining her surroundings more, she suddenly realized how dark the forest really was.

She hadn't noticed before because of the luminescence of the soul stealers, and looking at all of them she realized they were definitely brighter than normal. Did they change the energy that they took into light?

Fascinated, she watched as they flew through the air around her, seemingly content to stay with her for now. She didn't mind at all, because even now she could feel the well creating more energy as it was supposed to. She could also feel the link it had with time, but whenever she tried to touch that link her mind or miko powers shied away, as if there was something missing in order for her to connect. Some kind of catalyst (her science teachers would so be proud) was needed for her to use that link again.

Standing up, Kagome picked up her things. Feeling decidedly lighter, she smiled, enjoying the soft light the soul stealers projected. With a bounce in her step, she headed away from her second home, knowing that more space was needed between her and them.

Glancing around, she noticed almost happily that the soul stealers had continued to travel with her, one or another brushing up along her to take new energy from her before it could attempt to fight her control again. Making her way ever deeper into the ever darkening forest, she kept herself on the move for most of the night before settling down, her physical energy having finally run out.

She leaned up against yet another large tree wearily as the day's exhaustion finally caught up with her. She fell asleep like that, simply leaning against the tree, content in the knowledge that the soul stealers would stop the well's energy from escaping her grasp as she slept.

* - A sort of hand held sickle attached to a chain. It can be used for both close and mid-ranged attacks, and is Kohaku's primary weapon.

~ Author's Note ~

Here we are: the first chapter of Disowned (Because the last one was really a prologue). Things have started to get interesting for Kagome, and the plot as begun to move as well. So, how do you like it? I'm rather proud of this chapter (Over 6400 words!) so I hope you like it too.

As always, if you have questions, or just want to compliment me or urge for an update or feed my numerous plot bunnies, (even flames are welcome so I can laugh at them) Review! The button to do so is below…

~ Aljan Moonfire ~