InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ In the Beginning ❯ Part One ( Chapter 1 )

Inuyasha fought back a growl of frustration. The day had not been a very good one. Due to a fight with Kagome the night before, he'd slept in the Goshinboku tree . . . where one of the branches had bored into his back. He had awakened to a sharp, stiff pain just above his buttocks, and it limited his mobility, no matter which way he stretched. Then there'd been no breakfast waiting for him when he'd returned to Kaede's hut. Not that he expected to waited upon hand and foot - that was for whiny, arrogant nobles too lazy to get off their own asses to feed themselves - but some food would have helped his already sour disposition. As it turned out, because he was grumpier than usual, he and Kagome got into another argument with him being sat as the end. Things had rather rapidly escalated after that . . . or had gone downhill. Inuyasha wasn't sure which. All he knew for certain was that his back had begun to hurt even worse after Kagome had sat him, said girl was giving him the cold shoulder, they still hadn't located any fragments of the sacred jewel or Naraku, and, to make matters worse for him, they'd had yet another run-in with Kouga, the fifth one within the last week. The latest incident and the wolf's words still echoed in his mind.

 

“You filthy, half-breed mutt! You can't do anything right, can you? You nearly got Kagome killed! I swear, if it weren't for the fact that she cares for you, I'd teach you a lesson you wouldn't forget!”

 

`Keh, like he's one to talk,' Inuyasha groused to himself, his arms folded and eyes narrowed. `He's never around when there's danger. He's not the one protecting Kagome from every fucking youkai that attacks her. He just shows up whenever he thinks he might have a chance to get her to run off with him. Besides, she barely got a scratch on her!'

 

The wolf, of course, had shown up at the exact moment that Sango had taken down a rather nasty centipede youkai. No jewel shards but still very nasty. He'd barely managed to get Kagome out of the way in time, nearly ending up with a huge gash on his back, but it was all the taijiya had needed to kill the damn thing. The centipede had barely nicked Kagome on her leg. Kouga had seen the blood on her then had gone ballistic, accusing of him endangering Kagome and how he was unworthy to even be around the young miko. Inuyasha nearly took his throat out for his accusation. However, Kagome, like always, had stopped him and sat him for the second time that day, something that didn't help his mood any.

 

`Like I care,' he told himself, suddenly shaking his head from the direction his mind was taking him. Whether he liked to admit it or not, Kouga's words, especially the insults towards his heritage, bothered Inuyasha and they threatened to send him into the deepest pit of self-loathing and self-recrimination. The fact that no one had said anything in his defense didn't help. He'd long ago quit asking himself why. Inuyasha felt he already knew the answer.

 

Letting out a soft snort, Inuyasha tore his gaze away from the setting sun and began to make his way back towards the village, unaware of the eyes that were watching him.

 

* * *

 

Red eyes flickered with delight as the silver-haired half-demon walked away and began to head back towards Edo. A rosy tongue glided along pale lips at the delicious sight. For the first time in quite a while, a male hanyou would be in her ranks. And not just any male hanyou. A male inu hanyou. She studied as he strode away.

 

`Strong, lithe form . . . fiery amber eyes . . . wild spirit . . . quite the good-looking one . . . he'll do quite nicely. Of course, I'll have to break him of his spirit first. Shouldn't be too hard. Most males break within the first day or so . . .'

 

Of course, she couldn't grab him. Not yet, anyway. For being a half-demon, as she had noted, the boy had a considerable amount of strength to him and he had confidence in his skills. She could tell by the way he walked. He'd have no difficulties in killing her off. But when she finally caught him - and she knew that she would - the fun would begin.

 

`I can't wait to taste you, my pet. I simply cannot.'

 

She licked her lips again. Time made all things possible. She could wait. For a little while longer.

 

* * *

 

“You filthy, half-breed mutt!”

 

“Get over here!”

 

A hand connected with his cheek as another set of hands grabbed him by the waist and roughly shoved him onto his hands and knees. Not that he was too far from the ground. His wrists and neck had been shackled, and the chains were short. He tried breaking them but couldn't. They'd been enchanted with some kind of spell, a spell that would ensure his . . . compliance with the paying clientele.

 

Before he could retaliate back, a task that was becoming more and more difficult, the chains shortened to the point where he couldn't move. His hands were locked in place. Pain erupted in his back as a woman's laughter filled the room . . .

 

* * *

 

Inuyasha awoke with a start, his breathing laboured, sweat trickling into his eyes, and his claws extended. For a moment, his eyes fixed on the opposite wall but he didn't see it. He wasn't even aware of his surroundings. Then a strangled squeak reached his hearing and his sleep-induced fog began to dissipate. He looked around and saw Shippou staring at him, wide-eyed and, thankfully, out of his reach. Just barely.

 

“Shippou . . .” he began.

 

“What's wrong with you, Inuyasha?!” the kitsune shrieked, quite obviously rattled at being so close to his claws. “You could've killed me!”

 

Inuyasha growled and leapt to his feet. He nearly pounced on the kit . . . until his lower back protested his sudden jumping up. He hissed through his teeth, causing Shippou's bout of “indignation” to disappear.

 

“Are you all right?” Shippou crept forward, his eyes nearly bugging out his head. As he didn't show pain very often and never after waking up, his behaviour was taking the child by surprise.

 

“I'm fine,” he growled, attempting to straighten his back. If he were to be honest with himself, the pain seemed to have increased within the last day.

 

“Really?” a female voice murmured. “Ye don't look fine.”

 

Inuyasha groaned as Kaede came into his line of sight. She was one of the last people that he wanted to see at that moment. Why, he didn't really know. Out of all the humans that he knew, Kaede was the one he trusted the most, especially with his injuries . . . yet, for a reason he couldn't quite identify, he didn't want her to see him like this, hunched over in pain. He had his pride, after all.

 

“I'll be all right,” he ground out, finally standing straight. Pain hummed throughout his back but he chose to ignore it. The pain would subside eventually. He was a demon and demons healed quickly. Far quicker than any ningen. Still, he didn't have to like it and he could always relieve the pain without anyone knowing. If it got too bad, he knew he could always talk to Kaede in private.

 

“Ye sure, Inuyasha?” the old priestess murmured. “Ye don't look so well . . .”

 

“I said I'm fine,” he snapped, causing the miko to raise her hands up in a placating manner. Pain always made him be unusually grumpy and the priestess was somehow aware of that.

 

“All right,” Kaede replied. “No need to yell. It was just a question.”

 

“Whatever,” he grunted, trying to discreetly relieve the pressure that built up in his lower back. “I'm going for a walk.”

 

Before either Shippou or Kaede could say anything, he breezed by them and headed for the forest named after him. Whether he realized it or not, his dream - and the pain in his back - had him severely rattled. He needed to get away from everyone, needed to get away to think. As he did so, he idly rubbed at his back, the pain dulling to an ache for a brief moment. He cast a quick at the sky, wondering exactly this day would bring.