Disclaimer: I DON'T own Inuyasha! This wouldn't be a FANfiction then, would it?

A/N: Well, I've got yet ANOTHER idea! Yes, yes, I know I should be working on my other fics, but I can't help it! I was really inspired for this story. This is basically a take on apartheid in South Africa, except Inuyasha style! This is partly based on the book Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane. For the first time romance won't be the key factor, but it will be there later, Inu/Kag of course.

Here's the warning: this is NOT a happy fic. There are cruel situations, inappropriate language, and rape implied in the text. There will be blood and there will be gore. So if you are not comfortable with any of the things listed above, kindly leave now. This is a rated R fic. But for those I have not scared off (^^), I hope you enjoy!

Summary: Kagome Higurashi lives in an impoverished sector of the human-demon segregated country of Northern Japan. When she gets the chance to escape to peaceful and bountiful Southern Japan, she must seize the opportunity to help out her family. But she never counted on meeting Inuyasha Taisho.

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Into the Darkness

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Prologue

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A shrill scream tore through the morning air. Soon, others even louder joined the first. Loud snarls and gunshots sounded and the screaming continued. The cries of children and the stomping of masses of fleeing people added to the pandemonium.

A five-year-old child, Kagome Higurashi, hid frightened in the dilapidated shack of her family. It was them again. The Yu-Hellions.

Throughout Northern Japan, the system of the segregation of humans and demons affected the lives of countless people. Humans, once the dominant race, had been forced to live in sectors outside major cities. These sectors were areas of land that housed thousands of humans in the space that was meant for only a small fraction of that number. Seas of shacks made of tin and cardboard covered every available inch of land. Poverty struck the hearts of every family.

Demons, the currently dominant species lived in the cities and governed the country. Three centuries ago, they had fought and conquered the humans in a deadly war for power. Not women, nor children were spared in that total war. Humans were stripped of their rights. Many became slaves for the demons. Rebels were thrown in jail. And slowly, resistance melted away. The demons took over control of the country and coerced the humans to live in the sectors.

To keep control over the humans, the Yu-Hellions, a police force of sorts, were put in charge to watch over them. The Yu-Hellions were squads of a hundred or more assorted demons. They were the most notorious criminals of all. The humans were forced to suffer constant raids and beatings. The Yu-Hellions went where they pleased. They stole, they raped, and they killed, but nothing could be done to stop them. The government didn't care; they encouraged them. The Yu-Hellions were known to repeatedly burst in on homes and demanding to see the license books of the family members. If the papers were not in order, the humans faced arrest. Sometimes, the Yu-Hellions took valuables in compensation, and they were constantly on the lookout for bribes.

It was a horrible way to live. Money was extremely hard to come by and most was spent on food and bribes. Many resorted to squandering their meager savings on gamboling and drinking to forget their losses. The average life expectancy was 35.

Southern Japan, however, lived in relative peace. Humans and demons had no qualms about living together. Because of the two drastically different ideas, Japan split into two different nations, each with its own government.

Kagome covered her ragged blanket over her head. She was shaking like a leaf. She could still hear the screaming and the shouting from outside and she was terrified that their shack would be next.

As if on cue, the door burst open. Automatically, a scream ripped itself from her throat. The shoddy blanket was torn from her sweaty hands and a bright flashlight temporarily blinded her eyes.

"Where are your parents, girl?" The Yu-Hellion barked.

Trembling, she replied, "I d-don't know, sir." She knew her mama's papers weren't in order.

"Don't lie to me, you bloody human! Tell me where your damn parents are!"

"I d-don't know!" She repeated.

He backhanded her harshly across her face. She cried as the pain exploded in her cheek. A trickle of blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. She fell to the ground and the demon kicked her in the stomach.

"Search the rooms," he ordered to his men.

Kagome was left curled on the ground, clutching her cheek and stomach pitifully as the police crashed through the house, searching for her mother. Her little brother, Souta, who had miraculously been asleep up to this point, awoke to the crashes through their small shack. He was only a year old. Immediately, he burst out in sobs, shrieking horrendously. Kagome rushed over to him and fruitlessly tried to quiet him. She was terribly afraid that the noise would attract the Yu-Hellions and they would come back to beat her.

"Quiet! Please!" She pleaded tearfully to the deaf ears of her brother. In a desperate attempt to get him to quiet down, she tied his small blanket around his mouth as a gag. He continued to cry, but the screams were muffled effectively.

She listened carefully to the sounds of the shack and was aware that it was unusually silent.

Then, she heard a scream. She gasped, it was her mother!

Cautiously, she crept to the door of her mother's bedroom and inched it open slowly. In the tiny room, stood the Yu-Hellions in a circle around her mother.

"Your papers are not in order, bitch!" The head Yu-Hellion lashed out at her, his claws catching her upper cheek.

Her mother gave a cry of pain. "I'm sorry, my Lord! I'll get them in order! I promise! Please, don't take me away!"

"It's the law, human, if your papers are not in order, you are to be arrested." He said coldly.

"No, please! My family! I'm the only one my children have! If you take me, they'll starve!" She begged, grabbing onto the hem of his tunic.

"That's not my fucking problem." Roughly he pushed her away, sending her crashing from the bed onto the cement floor.

"Please, Lord! I-I'll pay you! I'll pay you, but please! Don't take me away!"

Kagome closed the door and ran back to her brother. She didn't want to hear her mother like that. She was usually so strong, but just a few threats from those stupid Yus could turn her into a puddle of blathering nonsense.

More than anything in the world, she wished she could just get away.

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"Another police raid has befallen the Goshinboku, the sector on the very borderline of Southern Japan and Northern Japan…" The TV droned. Mrs. Taisho watched the television attentively as the news reporter showed a tape of the police raid. She clicked her tongue in disapproval at the violence.

"Mama, what is that?" A small voice asked.

Mrs. Taisho looked up, startled, to see her five-year-old son staring at the TV. "Oh! You shouldn't be watching this, Inuyasha!" She hurriedly clicked the off button on the remote.

Inuyasha turned his curious amber eyes to his mother, "Why not?"

"Because it's bad and it's too violent for someone your age to watch." She replied.

"Is it a movie?" He asked.

"No, it's real life."

"Why are those bad men hitting those people?"

"Because that is how they live. They don't believe in humans and demons living together." Gently, she pulled him into her lap.

He looked up adoringly to his mother, "How come we don't live like that?"

"Because good people like your father fought against the separation of the two races so that we could live how we are now."

"Where is that place then?" Inuyasha asked.

Mrs. Taisho smiled, "You asked too many questions, you know that, Inu-chan?" She gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Where, Mama?" He persisted.

"In Northern Japan, not fifty miles from where we are now."

Little Inuyasha sat up straight and puffed out his chest, "When I'm all grown up, Mama, I'm going to go there and fight against separation just like Papa!" He vowed.

His mother laughed at the comical image of her son, "I'm sure you will, Inu-chan, I'm sure you will."

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A/N: Well, what did you think? Short, yes, but it's just the prologue. Next chapter, I'll skip to when Kagome is 15 years old. Please review, people! I'd really like to know what you think. Thanks!