InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Melancholy ❯ An eternity of memories ( Chapter 2 )

Melancholy

 

2-An eternety of memories

The little girl hugged herself further in her curled up position, lying restless in her bed. Her pale skin glistened with a river of tears as she tried to cry herself to sleep in the darkness of her room. An almost unbearable silence etched through the dormitory, broken only by a stray sob from the little girl. Her mind repeated over and over those two simple words, yet she couldn't believe them. She's dead, she told herself, yet it wouldn't sink in. She couldn't believe it, she wouldn't. Her mother just couldn't be gone forever.

Deep down, she knew it was true.

8 years later

`'Kagome, you need to feed the chickens!'' I heard Father call from the fields as he took care of the crops.

`'Be right there!'' I answered as I finished milking the last of our three cows, balancing the buckets as I climbed the stairs that led me to the upper floor of our barn, which we used as a storeroom. I dumped the milk in the large metal container covered in rust at the end, and after grabbing the sac with the bird's food I climbed down the stairs and ran around the barn, stopping when I reached the small yard at the back of it where we kept the chickens. I dumped all of the food in the large wooden container, the chickens gathering around me, anxious to have their daily meal. Our wolf-dog, Koga, barked happily when he saw me, forgetting about eating the chickens (something he tried a lot). We had found him as a puppy, abandoned, trying to eat them, and we decided to `keep' him since he wouldn't leave anyways.

After that I went over to the fields and helped Father untie Roran, our horse, from the plough, and took him back into the barn. He was a big, heavyweight type of horse, with a dark brown coat and a black mane, with white socks and stripe in his muzzle. He happily chewed at his food, content for finishing the day's work.

I then went inside the house to make food for both Father and I while he finished in the fields. It had always been like this since Mother had died, day after day of monotone routine. Next week I'd turn twelve years old, yet I felt so much older. I could hear Father telling the other merchants we met at the village where we traded our products that it wasn't fair that I had to grow up so fast and so soon. And, in truth, no little girl of twelve years should be forced to change her life so drastically. But I didn't complain, knowing it was necessary for our well-being for me to take upon Mother's chores.

Father always took care of the fields, taking Roran to plough them, plant the seeds and take care of the growing crops every single day, apart from managing our economy, while I cooked and took care of the barn and animals in it, feeding them, milking the cows, and grooming the horse between other chores. Sometimes Father would let me ride Roran along the grassy fields where I had usually played before Mother's death, which was a welcome activity to break the routine.

Father broke me out of my reverie as he entered the kitchen, muttering something about the heat, spring being in its peak at the moment. He walked over to me to finish cooking our meal, motioning me to put the table. When he was done, we sat across each other in the wooden table that sat in the middle of our small kitchen, eating the poorly made stew in silence.

`'You can have a rest this evening if you want to. I've finished with the fields, and the barn doesn't need much more to do. I'll be going down to the village to sell a few things'' he suddenly said, breaking the silence that etched over us like a spider's web.

`'Don't you need me to go with you?'' I asked him, wanting to help.

`'No'' he answered, maybe a bit too quickly, which had me thinking what his reasons where.

It was from that day on that things got stranger and worse.

OoO

I sat on the top of the small grassy hill, surrounded by sweet-scented lilies. The feeling of hurt spread through my chest as I remembered the last time I was here, but I tried my best to push it back. Being miserable and sad wasn't going to bring Mother back. I looked up at Roran, who I had brought with me to keep away the feeling of loneliness. I watched as he ate the tall, green grass, munching it happily. After he was satisfied, he trotted over to me, lying down lazily, his four paws spread as he lay on his side, his big belly going up and down with his breathing. I smiled to myself and lay next to him, using his long, soft neck as a pillow. He didn't seem to mind, being used to me as he was. I reached out a hand to scratch his soft muzzle, smiling to myself as he slowly closed his big dark eyes, falling asleep within seconds.

I stared up at the sky, without really looking at it, lost in my own mind as I absently watched the white clouds pass by. I thought of Father and his strange behaviour, pondering over the different reasons behind it, yet I couldn't come up with anything reasonable. I sighed and closed my eyes, unconsciously drifting away into sleep.

 

I opened my eyes in a startled way, quickly sitting up, making me feel dizzy. I rubbed my eyes and looked around myself, not recognizing where I was. Roran was gone, and so was the field, replaced by a high, windy cliff in a dark-clouded day, the roar of the sea calling from below. I got up, scared, frantically searching for something familiar in the almost black-white scene, when I suddenly spotted a woman, standing on the very edge of the high cliff. She didn't look younger than 25 or older than 30, with extremely long, black hair that shook violently in the wind after her. Her pale skin seemed to almost glow in the dark atmosphere, contrasted by the long, wine coloured dress she wore. She shook slightly from the cold as she looked down, her gaze lost into the sea. I approached her, but she didn't seem to notice me. Both of us turned when suddenly a masculine voice called out from behind, the woman startling me with stormy-blue eyes, just like mine.

A tall, handsome man ran to her, and stopped when he spotted her, panting heavily. His hair was plastered into his forehead, of an awkward white colour, yet he was as young as the woman, maybe a year or two older. He had strange, rather pointy ears, and pale green eyes looked pleadingly at the woman, her name falling painfully from his lips.

``Ren'' he said, and the woman's determination seemed to flicker for a moment. `'Don't do this'' he pleaded.

`'I have to, Ahya. As long as I'm alive, they'll find us. They can sense me; they know where to find me. And if they do, they'll kill her for what she is'' Ren said in an unnatural cold tone, which she seemingly fought to keep without breaking.

`'We can hide! The Clan will protect us! Don't leave us alone, so selfishly!''

`'Selfish?'' she asked, and seemed to ponder on that for a moment. `'Maybe. I don't know. I don't know anymore. What I know is that her chance of living is higher without me. They don't know how to track her, her strange gift hides her from them. The only thing I regret is that I couldn't spend the rest of my life with you, that things didn't go out as planned. Take care of our baby, Ahya, love'' she said, tears travelling down her cheeks, and in the blink of an eye she had stepped off the cliff, her body plummeting into the cold sea. Ahya ran over to the edge, falling onto his knees.

`'REN!!''

I woke up with a scream dying in my throat, covered in cold sweat. I sat up hurriedly, noticing it was night time already, the moon shinning up in the sky, bathing the grass in its silver light. I suddenly realized Father was probably looking for me, being so late, and I quickly got up, Roran getting up as well, woken by my scream. He trailed after me obediently as I led him into the stables, assuring he had food and water, and ran over to the house, stumbling into the main hall.

`'Father, I'm sorry I-`' I started, but was cut short when I suddenly realized that the house was shrouded in silence and darkness. I found that strange, and quickly ran up the stairs, entering Father's room, only to find it empty.

Why wasn't he home? It was so late, had something happened to him? He never came back so late. Never. I started to panic, not knowing what to do, if wait for him or go in his search with Roran. I went out and called Koga, who came obediently to me, and I motioned him into the house, deciding to wait with him for Father's return.

I woke up in a jolt as I heard the door to the house open, making Koga bark loudly. I got up quickly, rubbing my eyes as I walked over to the main entrance.

`'Father, are you ok? It's so late, I was worried-`' I began to say, but the words died in my mouth as I noticed Father wasn't alone. A tall, beautiful woman stood by his side, with long, blond hair and brilliant blue eyes, wearing an expensive-looking pink dress. Father was carrying two big suitcases, and the woman was carrying a third. Behind the woman stood with a cocky expression a girl of no more than fourteen years, looking exactly as the woman, whom I guessed was her mother. Father looked at me in a startled-guilty way, and closed his eyes, putting the bags in the floor.

`'Oh, Kagome, darling, I'm sorry I made you wait. Kagome, this is Mayuko, and her daughter, Misa. Mayuko is going to live with us now, she's going to be your new mother, and Misa your step-sister'' he said.

Have you ever felt like the world was falling into pieces around you, cutting you constantly with tiny glass? Have you ever felt like your heart was being stabbed over with a sharp knife, making you want to throw up, scream, cry, do something to make the pain go away? I was only twelve years old at the time, but there are some things that come to you no matter what the age.

And that broke something inside me.

`'That's what you've been doing all this time you were away all these days? You were with her? That's why you completely forgot about me and left me alone worried sick about you all night? AND NOW YOU SAY THAT YOU'RE REPLACING MOTHER?!'' I yelled, I screamed with my tiny voice, speaking words of an adult. I ignored the outrage and incredulous looks, and ran past them outside, running as fast as I could to the field, Koga running happily behind me, believing it was playtime.

`'Kagome!'' Father called after me, but I didn't listen. I ran and ran, until I felt the nausea hit me from tiredness, bending over and throwing up in the grass. Tears that I hadn't shed since Mother's death began to flow out like a river, taking all the bad feelings away. I moved forward to get away from the stink of my vomit, feeling dizzy, and when I reached a safe distance I let myself fall into the grass, the world turning black.

OoO

When I woke up, the first thing I felt was pain from sleeping in an uncomfortable place. My back ached in protest as I tried to sit up, my head throbbing in pain. I felt dizzy and sick, and I wondered why I was sleeping in the grass, when it suddenly hit me. Father had replaced mother, and had never told me about it. At least he could have said something; maybe I would have accepted this better. But, to just come home late, with her, and expect me to accept that...Come on, Kagome, get a hold of yourself, a voice said inside me. You can't expect Father to live the rest of his life alone, can you? and now maybe you'll have to work less, and you can play with your new sister...the voice kept telling me. It's strange, to hear yourself arguing in your mind. But I guess the voice was right. Maybe this wasn't so abs after all, right?

I got up, and woke Kouga up, who had been sleeping next to me. He yawned and stretched, and began wagging his tail, ready for action. I walked back to the house, and came in, the smell of breakfast hitting me full force. Koga wagged his tail with renewed energy, expecting to eat whatever smelt so good. I came into the kitchen, and saw Father, Mayuko and Misa eating at the table. Mayuko was talking non-stop with her daughter, and father seemed to be off in space. They didn't seem to notice me, but all instantly looked up when Kouga started growling at Mayuko. All the hairs of his spine lifted up, and he bared his fangs to her. Kouga had never done such a thing, so it also left me surprised.

`'What's this filthy mutt doing in the house?!'' she exclaimed, and Koga jumped at her. I caught him a hair away from her neck; Kouga started barking and growling in a ferocious manner, saliva dripping from his open mouth, struggling against me. Mayuko screamed, and Father got up, grabbed Kouga by his neck and threw him out of the house from the back-door of the kitchen. He walked out, kicked him hard and managed to tie him to the fence that separated the house from the barn and fields.

`'That beast wanted to kill me! What were you thinking, you stupid child, bringing him in here?! I will not tolerate this, Senkai! I want that beast killed!'' she shrieked, her eyes widened in a hysterical way which made me very scared and very angry. Who was she, to say we had to kill Kouga? If Kouga wanted to kill her, he must have his reasons. Animals are smart.

`'I'm very sorry, Mayuko, I don't know what got into him...I'll keep him chained'' father answered, shoulders sagged.

`'I WANT THAT BEAST KILLED!'' she screamed, and that's when I exploded. So much for trying to accept this.

`'Shut up! You can't kill Kouga just because you dislike him! If he got angry at you, he has his reason! Animals know when people are bad!'' I told her, and she went silent instantly, looking at me in disbelief, and all of her face changed in an angry frown.

`'How dare you say that to me!'' she said, and slapped me hard, her manicured nails cutting my flesh. I could hear Misa giggle, as if all this situation amused her. As for me, I went dead cold.

`'Go to your room and don't come out until I tell you, you little brat! No, get out of this house! Go do your filthy work! I don't' want to see your ugly face for the rest of the day!'' she yelled at me. I looked at Father, searching his eyes, trying to get his help against this evil woman.

`'Do as she says, Kagome. You must obey her as you obey me; I will not tolerate such behaviour of you'' he said, although his voice was cold and lifeless. I said nothing, biting hard on my tongue to try and keep from crying, and went out of the house; I heard Mayuko shriek when I let Kouga loose, but he followed after me when I gave him a sharp order to do so.

For the rest of the day I worked as hard as ever, trying to keep from thinking about what had happened. When I went to eat, she threw me outside, so I went down to the field with Kouga and Roran; I mounted Roran and rode along the field; I even went as far as the edge of the forest that was north-east to our house; I knew that, beyond that, lay the mansion of Lord Kuragari, the man who had wanted to marry my mother and caused her death. But, beyond Kuragari, what lay ahead was a mystery to me.

When it got dark I went back, deciding on venturing in the forest some other day. I put Roran in the barn and closed it, leaving Kouga also in there so that he wouldn't give Mayuko more reasons to kill him. I walked over to the house, and only the living room was lit up dimly by a candle. Misa was sitting in a couch; it was the first time I'd seen it. Misa was reading a book, wearing a pink, silk nightgown. She looked up at me, grinning in a way that made me uncomfortable.

`'Do you like the couch? Mother bought it with her money, because we're rich. Soon enough she'll change this filthy house in everything she can; you people are so poor it's disgusting'' she snapped. Between her looks and way of being, she was just like her mother, small size.

`'No, I don't like the couch. I prefer my old one, and I prefer being poor than rich; you're the one who's really poor, you just think that just by having money you aren't'' I told her. I remember Mother had once told me that; rich people are oftenly the poorest, in a figurate sense.

Misa's expression changed from disbelief to repulsion.

`'You people disgust me; soon enough, we'll make your life a living hell, and we'll see if you say those stupid things then, you stupid brat'' she snapped, closed shut her book and left upstairs; I checked with relief that she went into the spare room we had, and not mine. I guessed it was good they thought like that; they wouldn't take my things away, considering them disgusting.

I walked slowly up the stairs, feeling tired and hungry, went into my room, washed myself as I could in the sink I had, and went to sleep.

OoO

I remember once Mother had read a story for me, called Cinderella. I remember it was about a woman who was a slave in her own house, and had three evil step-sisters and an evil step-mother, and then something about a fairy person who turned a pumpkin into a carriage. I don't know about the pumpkin turning issue, but the part of being a slave in my own house was becoming true day by day.

`'Kagome, clean the kitchen up!'' `'Kagome, we're going to town, so do your Father's work!'' `'Kagome, what did I tell you about that stupid mutt?''

Always like that. It was a relief when they left for town, even if it was for an hour or two. I still didn't understand what a rich, needy woman like her was doing living here in a farm, but what did I know anyways?. My life seemed to had gone downhill since she came, and all I could do was work, eat and sleep. It was as if I was living in a dream, hoping to wake up to reality.

I had just finished my duties in the barn, and was, as usual, in the field with Roran and Kouga. Father, Mayuko and Misa had gone to town, and I was enjoying my little time alone. I rode Roran, and decided to head to the forest. I knew I couldn't get lost, because I could always depend on Kouga's nose to get us back. He seemed very happy to do some exploring, and was running around, stopping to smell all the trees and mark some. Roran kept moving his big ears in every direction, trying to catch as many sounds as possible, and seemed a little agitated. We walked between the trees, and suddenly came up to a clearing.

Beyond it, to my surprise, laid a magnificent house. It had two stories, and was very wide. The lower floor was strange, for it seemed to be held by many wooden posts, elevating the house half a meter or so, leaving a dark space underneath. It had a small porch that went all around the house, which was also somewhat strange. Its walls were made of wooden panels, and the roof was painted green, its corners curving up. Next to the house was a medium-sized stable; I could tell by the noises of the horses inside.

Kouga perked up his ears at the house, his expression turning serious, a soft growl coming from the back of his throat. Suddenly, the main door opened (which was actually two doors put together to make an even bigger door), and a tall man came out. His face was long and thin, with high cheekbones and small eyes. He was wearing white robes, as if he were a priest, and had sandals on with socks. He looked directly at us, and my blood seemed to freeze in my veins, paralyzing me from fear. There was something in that man that made feel dead. Suddenly, Kouga started growling a lot higher, snapping me out of my stupor, and I quickly turned Roran around and made my way back as fast as I could, Roran running even faster as he sensed my fear. Kouga went ahead of us, and soon we were back in the field. I quickly went into the barn and put Roran inside, and then bent over to catch my breath, my heart thumping madly in my chest. I couldn't explain what had happened; I could only describe it as sheer panic.

Kouga had his tongue out and was panting as well, so I gave him a bowl of water and I headed for the house. I went up to the bathroom that was connected to my room and bathed in our wooden tub after I heated the water in the fire downstairs. After that, I went into the kitchen and started making supper, trying not to think about what had happened.

Just as I was finishing, I heard the door open, and Mayuko, father and Misa came in, Mayuko talking with her daughter as usual and Father as silent as ever.

`'Oh! You're here `'Mayuko said as she saw me, as if expecting that one day when she came back I had disappeared. `'Put the table, brat, we're hungry!''

Lovely routine.

 

 

 

A/N

 

IMPORTANT!!! Ok, now that I have your attention, I have something to ask, because, you see, I'm actually writing this story original, and it's a bit of a pain to keep changing it to Inu-yasha, so please review and tell me if you would prefer to read it original in www.fictionpress.com. I'm also Deadly Crimson there; so, please tell me, ok? Next chapter I'll continue on with the story, I just wanted to make a flashback chapter for you to understand better, so please, review and tell me about that!