InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Empty Promises ❯ Prelude - False Smiles ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Summary
AU - Ten years ago, Kikyou Higurashi died of a fatal illness. Now, her sister, Kagome, has caught the same. In a fight against time and destiny, Kagome begins to unravel the secrets behind her family especially the hanyou in the bottom of her well. With the help of a six hundred year old hanyou, a reborn demon exterminator and an amateur monk, can Kagome solve the mystery beyond her family and save herself from the sickness that took her sister's life?

Disclaimer does not belong to me nor the songs I use. This chapter's song is No More Words by Hamasaki Ayumi.

Author's Note
This is my first fic on FF.net. I won't ask you to be nice, I want your good, honest opinions. I have to admit I'm not that good at writing, so don't expect much from my stories because they mainly suck. Don't come crying to me because it sucked-I warned you.

Special Thanks
To Daniel, my wonderful beta.
To Talim and Damn for helping me plot out my story.

Happy Holidays.




        
         Sunset had painted hues of lavender and pink across the sky, like a masterpiece of art laid down across the sky so the whole entire world could see. The sun's last crimson beams of light twinkled over the land from the hills. It was almost dark, with the usual midnight blue slowly spreading across the sky as the light pink and dark purple slowly disappeared with the sun. With only the long horizon with the colors in view, the large midnight blue sky spread out, the first couple of stars began to awake from their sleep and slowly rise into the sky. The moon's silver face rose into the sky, its light twinkling down upon the Higurashi Shrine.

         The trees on top of the mountain reached up to the sky to pull the sun down for its nightly slumber, the horizon's last lights pouring in through the many branches of the trees, causing a rather streaked sunset. The afternoon breeze faded to a late night wind, a slight warm touch circling in it. The moon's silver light fell silently and serenely upon the quiet villas and shined through the tinted windows. The beautiful landscape surrounded them, the tall green mountains, the high trees, the beautiful flowers, the fading sunlight shining through the leafy branches of the trees. It was all beautiful.

         The house was nearly silent, if not for the soft voices of the television in the downstairs bedroom, and the slow, steady breathing coming from the bedrooms. It would have been all bathed in darkness, if the small, night light from a room didn't glow into the hallway, and the light from the television in the downstairs bedroom wasn't glowing dimly into the living room, in which the door was facing. It was nearly all perfect, the dense silence that showed the serenity of the household-no children running up and down the hallways, screaming 'I'll get my revenge!'-, the calm darkness showed no fear-no child screaming that 'Chucky' was going to kill him and whisper, "Hi I'm Chucky. Want to Play? "- and that was mainly it; the perfect household.

         Or so it always seemed. The Higurashi household was always a perfect household, a family that smiled brightly that never seemed to have any problems - a successful father, a kind mother, a beautiful elder daughter, a quiet middle child and a strong son. Perfect. Unfortunately, if that were the case, this wouldn't be a tale of drama and pain if the Higurashi family was all perfect, now would it? This story isn't about a happy little elf, to quote 'Lemony Snicket' in 'A Series of Unfortunate Events' , though it is very happy at some moments. To tell you the truth, this story isn't all that bad underneath the mystery, the death and all the pain it's actually a well, all in all, its not all bad. You can still leave, of course, by pressing the little 'back' button on the top of your browser, if you find my ramblings utterly stupid, just skip this paragraph, or if you hate the idea and you're just bored, there are plenty of lovey-dovey stories out there to keep you 'fluff' lovers satisfied. Anyway, back to the story.

         "Kikyou" the little girl's voice penetrated the soft, deafening silence of the home, a distant, quiet sound in the darkness. Sitting up in the small cot that was settled in the corner, she glanced softly at the huge bed in the middle of the room, which held a thin, fragile person in the center of it, her head gently rested upon a soft pillow, her hands crossed lightly on her stomach. Softly, her dark brown eyes gazed across the room and slowly, silently, she tossed her blanket at the wall and crept over to her sister's bed, her feet making the lightest creaking noises in the dense silence.

         The girl, who was on the bed, opened her eyes gently and smiled at the dark head peeping at her covers from the edge of her bed. The gray, speckled blue, eyes glittered gently with loving sparks as she addressed her sister to climb onto the bed. "C'mon, Kagome-chan," her smile was a gentle tinkle into the night, a star shooting past a rainy day, making it all better with a simple flash of her teeth. It was a comforting smile, that whenever she smiled, it made you think, even without a simple word passing her lips, that everything would be okay. Of course, that was the beauty of the eldest daughter.

         The younger one, who was a tad shorter as she clambered onto the bed, dragging a teddy bear along with her, had once tried to smile like her sister, but that had only caused her brother to cry and her mother to whap her lightly on the head as a punishment. She sighed slightly, in her own innocent way, and looked at her sister's face - the one was cold, drenched in sweat and strangely pale. Her eyes, a dull gray, with the lightest shades of baby blue twinkling in them as if it was the last tints of her youth. Her hair, once a bright, bouncy shade of ebony, was now an oily, dark color, with the barest tints of dark blue accenting them neatly. Her hands were crossed in front of her, the pale, thin, bony fingers draped lazily across each other, lining up against each other softly, her baby blue nails glittering in the soft nightlight that shined dimly in the darkness of the room. She wore a nightgown, a transparent, pink one with an inner tank top and a pair of dark blue sweatpants. "Sister you're going to get better, right?" she asked softly, her own brown eyes gazing at her sister's latest appearance - tucked underneath two soft cotton blankets, her head upon two thin pillows and her hair pulled as far away from her face as possible, drawn up in two long braids that draped up along the side of the pillow, nearly falling off the bed.

         The elder's face grew into a more serious look, one that made the younger one think twice of her question about the girl's health. However, the older girl smiled slightly at her sister's slightly shaken face and reached up to caress the girl's innocent face. "Yes, Kagome-chan. I will get better." she whispered softly, a glint of guilt that the other couldn't see flashing in her eyes. "I promise." 'Onegai Kagome-chan, gomen ne. ' She closed her eyes slowly, taking in her sister's loyal, cheerful look and sighed, taking in a deep breath, and rested her hands in their original place.

         "Sing me a song, Nee-chan." the younger of the two whispered softly, placing her head on the teddy as it leaned against the back bed stand. The teddy bear was a soft brown color, the same color as her eyes, with one of its eyes a fair blue, the other a faded periwinkle, for the color got lost in the dryer. It was small, though large enough for the youngest of the Higurashi family to have enough trouble lugging it down the stairs. The older of the two smiled gently and motioned for the girl to come closer.

         "Okay, sister." she whispered gently, her lips pressed against her forehead in a silent, kind gesture. She whispered gentle, sweet words in the little girl's ear, rubbing her head before resting her own head against the soft pillow. 'Here goes nothing'

"Things with a beginningend somedayyou can go to the nexteverythingthis world, the winners and losersit will split into twowant to be the loserwant to be a loser alwaysprobably webeautiful so much, we are sadtime passes, wecontaminated so much, we are sad."

         Before she could finish the song, however, the young one had already fallen fast asleep, her eyes shut tight against her arm, her eyelashes barely touching her skin, her breath gently touching her face. She smiled gently down at her sister, eyes glittering at the innocence that now resided right next to her. A bright smile flashed upon her lips and the silent, single words were spoken in the dead of the night, 'Everything's going to be alright.'

"What can I tell you?being such a small selfwon't tell you more nowthe words are soagainst time."

         As the last verse left her lips, she laid her head against the soft pillows, eyes slowly closing. 'A silent promise to you, Kagome, for it is a lie ' she glanced at the innocent angel sleeping beside her, the girl so gullible and loyal that she believed the obvious lie told to her. 'It is an 'empty promise', my sister' tears clouded her eyes as she gulped slightly as pain began to coil in her stomach, 'I just wish I wasn't the first one to tell you one. I wish I could have been the one to comfort you, instead of hurting you.' She gazed upon the starlit sky, 'I wish'

         I would have been happy to report that the eldest daughter did indeed get better, fulfilled her promise and returned the Higurashi family to its original happiness. Then again, if that did happen, there would be no story.



         "Mama will Kikyou be okay?" the little girl's tone was that of worry and hurt as she sat on the edge of the orange, plastic seat of the hospital waiting room, swinging her small, chubby legs over the side. In her hands was the same teddy bear, though a bit more jagged than a couple of days ago and more dirty than it had been. Her hair, a dark color with slight tints of light purple in them, was tied in a high ponytail on her head, that pooled out amongst her shoulders. Letting a small breath go as her mother hesitantly nodded, she shrugged and glanced down upon the teddy bear and the young baby boy in the baby carriage before smiling down at the baby.

         "Kagome, stay here. " her mother's voice commanded, the pale, dry, pink lips slowly forming a soft smile in her direction as she bent down to pick up her brother's carriage. She ran a shaking hand through her soft brown hair, a look of horrified tiredness upon her face as she glanced toward her youngest daughter, who bowed her head in respect and shied away from her mother's piercing gray eyes. The woman stood up, ruffled the child's hair and walked stiffly to the Room 302.

         The girl, named Kagome, looked up and down the hallway. Of course, no one would be here it was four o'clock in the morning when her elder sister had screamed and cried that she couldn't breathe. Her mother had gone into a flurry, yelling and telling her father to call an ambulance, screaming all the way while she forced the younger daughter out of the room. She sighed gently to herself, tugging at her teddy bear, aptly named Teddy by her sister, and hugged it close to her chest. 'Sister Kikyou be okay please.'

         In Room 302, Kotuku Higurashi was having quite a hard time dealing with an emotional daughter, a crying son, an astringent husband and her own wild emotions. "Mama where's Kagome-chan?" the daughter whispered softly, her pale, tired eyes glancing around the room in search of a young, dark-haired girl. She looked her mother's in a curious, hurt way that seemed to crack Kotuku's heart as she sighed slightly at her daughter's new obsession with the youngest Higurashi daughter.

         "Outside, Kikyou." she whispered gently, wishing that only her gentle voice would sooth the young teen instead of the light smile of the young seven-year-old. The bold look in Kikyou Higurashi's eyes glittered with a passion and somehow, she knew that she'd bring in that troublesome daughter anyway. The light reflected on the young girl's burning eyes made the mother turn to her husband and ask him to bring the girl in. He stood up sullenly, eyes blank and devoid of emotion, though usually they would have been flashing in anger and he would have stood up, screaming "Why can't you do it?!", and he left the room.

         "Mama you know I'm not getting well." she heard the soft whisper leave the young girl's lips as she turned her head away to look at the stars. "You know that, Mama" she blinked slowly at the girl's suddenly gloomy attitude. She grimaced slightly at the young teen's angry flash of hurt as she turned her head sharply to snap, "So why did you bring me here?" she asked quickly, the pain that jolted through her system obvious to anyone's eyes but her own.

         "I had to, Kikyou, or else you'd die! " she cried, horror lining her expression at her daughter's question, the shout echoing in the silence of the hospital. Kikyou's look of hatred pierced through Kotuku's heart and she stumbled back, amazement and fear on her features. Her daughter had never once looked at anyone that way, not even her rival in school who would have known that look would have been directed at her own mother?

         "I'm going to die anyway, Mama, no matter how much you hope I'm not. I wish you'd learn that. I'm sick , and its not the fever, or a cold, or a flu you know what it is." Kikyou whispered softly, words of hatred and anger slipping from her usually kind mouth, "So, you're giving yourself , and others , including my sister , false hope that I will get better. That the doctors can fix me. But they can't, Mama" her words fled from her mouth in a sudden explosion of pain and hurt as she looked up at the ceiling the moment her father and the youngest daughter walked through the door. "Can I speak to Kagome-chan alone? " Kikyou gave her mother a sudden look and she nodded, ushering her husband out of the room and cradling her son close to her body.

         "Why are you so sad, Kikyou?" Kagome's words were that of innocence and she did not yet understand what was happening. 'So many people told you I was going to be okay, even I told you that and I blamed Mama for giving you false hope. I'm such a hypocrite, aren't I, Kagome-chan' Kikyou's eyes brimmed with unwanted tears as she hugged Kagome closer to her body.

         "I want you to promise me something, Kagome." she whispered. There was no 'chan' to her name when Kikyou spoke. That meant something indeed. Springing up beside her sister, her hair wildly, since the rubber band had long since sprung off, pooling around her, her brown eyes serious well, as serious as Kagome Higurashi's eyes could have gotten.

         "Hai, Kikyou-chan?" she asked gently to her sister, who was shifting, as if something was hurting her.

         "I want you to live a life of happiness, okay, Kagome?" she whispered sweetly to her sister, a smile crossing over her lips. 'But you'll be there with me, Kikyou' the thought passed over Kagome's mind quickly, remembering her promise the night before. "No crying over me , okay? Because we'll always be sisters always. " she chided gently, seeing the tears forming in Kagome's eyes. "And when something happens to you go to the well. This belongs to you, my sister." she pressed around her neck for something until she drew a hidden chain, hidden underneath all her clothes from it. She undid it slowly and gave it to the younger Higurashi girl, smiling as the girl's eyes brightened at the shining, glittering tiny pink ball that rested on the chain. "Take care of it, Kagome," Kikyou's voice said softly, handing the necklace to the young girl, "and don't let anyone take it, okay? Not even Mama. It belongs in your hands only."

         "Arigato, sister."
        
 &nb sp;       "Gomen ne Kagome-chan" she whispered softly as her breathing became more labored, a soft sound of struggle echoing in the silence of Room 302. 'Let me go Stop torturing me Let me go' Kikyou's voice fell silent as her last breath left her with the simple words 'Let me go.' Her eyelids lowered gently, the gray, speckled blue eyes that Kagome once longed to have, disappeared into the soft confines of her eyelids, shutting them off forever. Her mouth opened slightly, a last labored, struggling breath leaving her pale lips for the last time. Her right hand, that had been held in Kagome's lap, felt heavy and dull, fallen suddenly as her left, which had been resting on her stomach, fell to the side lazily, and landed with a quiet 'thump' on the soft bed.

         "Kikyou? Kikyou? Kikyou?! KIKYOU?!! " Kagome's screams echoed in the hospital as nurses and doctors rushed in, trying to find a pulse in Kikyou's body, as Kotuku Higurashi and Watseka Higurashi rushed in, seeing their perfect daughter's body, which had fallen limp, being checked and being screamed at by nurses, her eyes shut, her ability to breathe seemed to have been completely ripped from her.

         "What did you do to her, you wretch?! " Watseka screamed, running a hand through his dark hair, his eyes, a deep brown, glowered down at her, tears forming in the corners of them though he desperately tried to make them disappear. He growled down upon the young girl who glanced at her sister and she smiled gently. "Do not smile at your sister's death! " he shouted, shaking her roughly as the doctor and nurses tried to revive Kikyou's fallen form.

         "I'm not smiling because she died, Papa" whispered Kagome sullenly, "I'm smiling because she escaped from the pain. The pain that made her die. The pain that would have made her die a more painful way She said 'Let me go' and then she left." Though she appeared calm, and neutral on the outside and fairly more contained than her parents, a war raged within her calm exterior. 'Liar!! You said you'd be okay you said you'd get better. You promised! ' Kagome glanced upon her sister's pale body, which everyone was shaking, crying for her to wake up. 'She won't wake up,' Kagome's mind whispered silently to them, though they could not hear her, 'She's dead.'

         'She lied to me. And she just left me. Kikyou how could you?'




Hi! Did you like it? Anyway, it was an interesting plot that I wanted to do so bad, that I was going to try and finish during Christmas Break, and look, I did! Anyway, I'll put up the Japanese thing:

-chan - a term of endearment.- please.ne - I'm sorry- big sister (i think my Japanese is a little rusty)- Yes- Thank you

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