InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Broken Horn ❯ Caged Canary ( Chapter 1 )

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

Summary: AU. Inu/Kag. Stressed and tired, Kagome just wants to get away from her life. One night, a strange boy appears at her window and offers her exactly that. But unknownst to her, there are strings attached. Soon, Kagome finds herself in a whole new place but different rules are at play. She then begins to wonder if she's just been led from one cage to another one.

Disclaimer: So I met up with Rumiko Takahashi the other day to ask her for the ownership of her Inuyasha series. You know, so then I wouldn't have to write these stupid disclaimers all the time. I'll save time and space. Also. Inuyasha's cool. And so is Miroku. Well apparently, my lunch money wasn't enough to buy it and she wouldn't let me have it from the goodness of her heart. So, no. Inuyasha is not mine. I also met up with Daisuke Moriyama later that day because his story was part of the inspiration for writing this one. I wanted ownership for his series (Chrno Crusade) so I could...well, the main character of his series is really hot. I mean, really really HOT. But that wasn't a good enough reason for him and also because I said that his series was PART of my inspiration to write this story and not the WHOLE inspiration. He found it insulting to have to stand next to Peter Pan. And unfortunately, Arakawa Hiromu (Fullmetal Alchemist) felt the same too. So. I was SO close. Damn my big mouth. And uh, what else? Oh, yes, BLEACH by Kubotite (even though his series pay little contribution to this story) because the main character of his series has this REALLY nice big-ass sword and you know, who doesn't like pretty, big-ass swords? But I guess taking a french fry from his plate (I asked first, I swear!) is considered a crime in his rule book so getting ownership for his series was an obvious no-no. He also made me pay for dinner. Grr. So as you can see, I'm not exactly on the good side of four particular well-known mangaka(s?). Yes, a very good day for Renko.

So now you ask, why in the world is Renko taking up so much space for her lame disclaimer. It's called playing it safe, sweetie. I'm just trying to cite everything because I don't want someone to make the mistake that some of the ideas that contribute to the plot of this story are mine. 'Cause they're not (grudingly admits). So, if any other events, ideas, etc. bear any simliarities to anything else, it is entirely coincidence unless stated (later) otherwise. Hmm. I might as well throw in Pirates of the Caribbean, just in case. You gotta love Johnny Depp. ^-^ This disclaimer goes for all future chapters for this story. I'm not going to be stupid and put this disclaimer on every chapter.

Author's Note: Oh dear Lord. Another new story?? Yes! And am I excited? Oh, yes I am! Just a warning, this fic is a bit darker than my other fics. It has some religious aspects but nothing offensive (I hope). There will also be parts where it can be a bit gory and violent (note the R rating which is also for language) but I'll up warning beforehand for the faint-hearted. Right, so let's get started. ^-^

Note: In Japan, their school year usually ends some time around April.

Kagome Higurashi sat quietly in her chair, her hands in her lap and glared at her Calculus homework. Because, you know, when you do that it's suppose to magically disappear which was what she dearly wanted it to do. But life wasn't that fair.

Kagome scanned over her tabletop. Textbooks with loose pieces of binder paper sticking out, folders, binders, and random colored paper littered her table. Half of it was homework, the other half bulletins, letters, and forms for clubs and extracurricular activities. Kagome rubbed her eyes tiredly.

God, I have so much to do...

Kagome tapped her pencil on the table as she looked up at the clock. 4:25PM. He should be here anytime now...

As she waited, Kagome observed her surroundings from her secluded spot. The library wasn't as crowded as it usually was but there was still quite a number of people here. Madam Narita, the librarian, was sitting at her desk, sending occasional glances around her to make sure no one was raising their voices. Groups of students were scattered around the library, sitting at tables and couches, muttering quietly to one another. There were some who were sleeping on armchairs, most looking utterly exhausted.

Kagome smiled sympathetically. They were undoubtedly 11th graders. The end of the year was closing in and final exams were approaching. The 11th year was always the hardest and the most important. Along with the unmerciful finals, there was also testing for college. Those test scores were excruciatingly crucial since they played a large part in what college or university would accept you. Easy was not a category that testing fell into. Nights grew long with the never-ending studying. It was not unusual to see seventeen year-olds trudging to school baggy-eyed.

Slowly, Kagome was starting to feel the edge too. It was difficult to get a good night's sleep with the many clubs and activities she participated in combined with the hours she needed to study. She sighed. She couldn't wait for this year to be over. Most of the difficulties would be over then.

But the quietness of the library was very soothing and calming. Sitting here (not doing her Calculus homework) and just thinking of nothing, relaxed her mind. That's why she loved libraries. It was always quiet.

That is, until her cell phone rang.

Her bag started to vibrate as her phone started jarringly to sing 'Jingle Bells' on the top of its little speakers. Kagome let out a small 'eep' as she scrambled for her bag. She quickly ducked into it and pulled her phone out, very conscious of other people's stares and Madam Narita's you-should-know-better look.

"Hello?" Kagome whispered.

"KAGOME HIGURASHI, WHERE IN THE SEVEN HELLS ARE YOU!"

Kagome cringed at the sound of Yuka's pounding scream. She pushed back her chair and saw that how she was drawing more stares now.

"Um, hold on a minute, Yuka," Kagome said into her phone.

Her phone continued to emit Yuka's screams and screeches as Kagome scurried out of the library, deliberately avoiding eye contact with anyone looking her way.

"Okay," Kagome muttered to herself once she reached outside. She held the phone a small distance from her ear.

" -NO IDEA WHAT YOU'VE DONE, HAVE YOU? I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT -"

Kagome took a deep breath and the small phone to her mouth. "Yuka, SHUT UP!"

The screaming immediately stopped. Kagome gave a sigh of relief and held the phone closer to her ear.

"Sorry about that," Kagome said. "Now, what are you yelling at me for?"

"Wha - what I'm ye - I - ooh! Kagome!" Yuka whined. "You were supposed to meet me at the mall today, remember? You were suppose to help me pick out a dress for the spring ball!"

Kagome's jaw dropped. She clapped her hand on her forehead, cursing herself for forgetting. "Oh no! Yuka, I'm so sorry!" Kagome said. "I honestly forgot -"

"How could you forget? You promised me!"

"I know, I know," Kagome said apologetically. "I just had so much on my mind today. Oh my God, Yuka, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to leave you at the mall all by yourself -"

"Oh, I'm not alone," Yuka said blankly.

"You're not?"

"No, Eri's with me."

"E-Eri's with you," Kagome stammered.

"Mm-hm."

"Ooh, Yuka!" Kagome said in frustration

"What?" Yuka said, defensively.

"Why did you call me then? If Eri's there, then she can help pick out a dress for you!" Kagome cried, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"No! I need both of your opinions," Yuka protested. "You know I can't decide on anything unless I have at least two people's opinion! Where are you?"

"I'm at the library."

"Can't you come over? Just stop studying for like thirty minutes. For me, Kagome!"

"I can't. My tutee will be here any minute. I can't just -"

"Ditch him!"

"No!" Kagome rubbed her forehead with her other hand wearily. "Okay, why don't you pick a dress with Eri, ask the store to hold it for you, and then tomorrow I'll come and tell you my opinion."

"Oh," Yuka said faintly. "I didn't think of that."

Kagome rolled her eyes. She loved Yuka, she really did, but she couldn't help but leave a little saddened by her friend's denseness. "Bye, Yuka."

"No, wait. Eri needs to talk to you."

Kagome sighed and sat down on a bench. She heard shuffling as Yuka handed Eri the phone before hearing her voice.

"Hey, Kagome?"

"Yeah, Eri."

"Um, I was just wondering - well, actually I'm now pretty sure that you forgot about the National Honors Society meeting we had today."

Kagome groaned. "Oh no...I can't believe this..." She ran a hand through her hair as she gave a heavy sigh. "And it was an important meeting today, wasn't it? Oh no...I totally forgot about that too."

"Don't worry," Eri piped. "Ayumi took notes and stuff so she'll tell you everything tomorrow morning."

"Oh, thank you so much," Kagome said weakly. "Tell Ayumi that too if you get the chance. Oh God, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

There was a pause before Eri spoke again. "Kagome..." She said tentatively. "You sound really tired and stressed. Maybe you should take a break or something...or better yet, drop some clubs and classes -"

"Are you kidding me? No way!" Kagome exclaimed. "I love all my clubs and classes. I can't possibly drop any of them."

"But Kagome, I think...I think you're doing way too much," Eri said, concerned. "Really, you're killing yourself. You're going to crack, seriously...."

"Oh, don't be silly. I'm doing just enough. Besides, if I drop anything, then I might not have a sufficient amount of things for college."

"Well, it's not going to be worth much if you die before getting into college."

"I'm not going to die, Eri," Kagome said. "Okay, I have to go now. I still have loads of homework to do..."

"Okay," Eri said softly. "Take it easy, okay? 'Bye." Then she hung up with a soft click.

Kagome held her phone back and stared at it for a moment before smiling. She appreciated Eri's concern, really, but she also found it a bit unnecessary. If she just managed her time well, everything would be all right. She wasn't going to crack. She wouldn't.

Kagome tuck her phone into her pocket and walked back to the library. Once she past the entrance, her cell phone rang again. Madam Narita tapped her pencil impatiently.

"Ms. Higurashi," She said. "Really, put your cellphone on silent if you insist leaving it on."

"I know, I'm so sorry!" Kagome wailed softly before rushing back out to take her call. If whoever was calling didn't have a good reason for doing so, she was going to make them eat their shirt.

Kagome gritted her teeth and popped her mobile phone open. "Hello?"

* * *

She stared grudgingly at her math homework. Her mind wasn't on it and it wasn't it that she was mad at. Actually, no, she was mad at it but she was madder at herself.

She couldn't believe it. How could this happen? This kind of thing never happened to her. She was always on top of things and she could never recall a time where she messed up. How could this happen?

How could she forget to go to three club meetings! Three! It was preposterous! Unforgivable! Just - just not possible!

She never missed club meetings! Never! It was just not her. Now she was going to be so behind and - God, life sucked.

Well, that didn't take away from the fact that she still had a nice pile of Calculus problems to do. Kagome rubbed her eyes wearily and picked up her pencil.

Just when she looked at the first problem, warm hands covered her eyes and a baritone voice whispered in her ear. "Guess who?"

"Um, Santa Claus?" Kagome said somewhat hopefully.

There was a low chuckle. "I find it amusing how you manage a different answer every time."

Kagome grinned. "Hi Tetsuya."

Her dark-haired and dark-eyed tutee walked from behind her and sat down next to her.

He smiled back at her. "Sorry I'm a bit late. My coach kept me longer than expected."

"It's all right."

Tetsuya Mihara leaned over to see what his tutor was working on. He cringed. "Ooh, Calculus. Yuck."

Kagome openly agreed, rubbing her face for the fifth time today.

"Are you alright?" He asked, looking concerned.

She waved him away. "Oh, I'm fine."

"You look tired."

"Er," Kagome shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I don't feel that tired."

"What time did you go to sleep last night," he demanded.

Kagome looked away guiltily. "Two in the morning..."

"Kagome!" Tetsuya threw up his hands, exasperated. "You promised me that you would go to bed early."

"I know, I know! But I had a lot a work to do that I couldn't -"

"- Hold off any more," He finished for her.

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely. "But things have been so hectic lately. My work pile has been doubling every week. I'm starting to miss crucial club meetings. My friends are mad at me because I don't have the time to hang out with them anymore. I'm barely having time to study for the upcoming exams. I -" Kagome cut herself off. She looked at Tetsuya and immediately apologized. "I'm sorry. I'm rambling off here. I'm just being stupid and dumping everything on you."

Tetsuya was looking at her with an odd expression on his handsome face. "No, it's okay. I kinda like it."

Kagome blinked. Liked what? Her complaining?

"Look Kagome, I know there's not much that I can say to change your mind. Just don't push yourself too hard; your brain will explode, and a brain-dead tutor isn't going to help me pass my English class. Now, let's start off with your Calculus," he said abruptly.

"Wait, don't you have an English test tomorrow? We should review for that first -"

"Don't worry about it," he said, scooting his chair closer to her. He gestured to her list of problems. "This stuff is easy anyways."

Kagome smiled. It was funny how their relationship now was very different than it was several months ago when they first started as tutor and tutee. Their first few sessions were rather awkward since Tetsuya was a grade above her and the tutorial program did not have any other available tutor, so they were kind of stuck with each other. After a few sessions, they discovered that Math was Tetsuya's forte as it wasn't for Kagome.

So it resulted as this: he would help her in Math as she would for him in English. They would both keep a low profile as tutor and tutee as Tetsuya was the school's soccer team's star player; and it would be hard to concentrate if any of Tetsuya's fans (mostly girls) were around during their tutorial sessions (and on the side, it was a bit embarrassing for the both of them that Tetsuya was a grade above her). Yet, how he managed to get here without any of his fans following him was something Kagome had yet to figure out.

An hour and fifteen minutes later, Kagome successfully finished her Calculus homework and prepared Tetsuya for his English test. Ah, yes. This feeling of accomplishment was very uplifting. Kagome: 1; World: 0. She was ready to run around waving banners of celebration.

"Ughhh," Tetsuya groaned as he tilted his chair back on two legs. "You fried all of my brain cells, Kagome."

"Good, that means you're prepared now." Kagome pulled him back so his chair was on all fours. "And don't do that, it's dangerous. And also, I heard Mr. Kitsugari's tests are really difficult."

Tetsuya wrinkled his nose at the mention of his English teacher. "As he himself is a slimy git."

Kagome chuckled and glanced at her watch. "It's about 5:45. Well that concludes our tutorial session. I have to get home now, I still got loads to do."

"It's Friday, Kagome. Tomorrow we only have school for half the day. Nothing important happens on Saturdays."

"You have an English test tomorrow," Kagome pointed out.

"Again, Mr. Kitsugari is a slimy git," Tetsuya said. "You'll still have a lot of time."

Kagome smiled and patted his arm. "We'll see."

She started to collect all of her loose papers and sorted them in a neat pile. She was reaching for her Math book when Tetsuya spoke up.

"So, has anyone asked you to the spring ball?"

Kagome looked up, surprised at the sudden change of topic. He was gathering his English worksheets, and he looked up at her when she had not replied.

"Um, no," she said and sighed. "But it almost seems that it almost seems that someone has considering all the work I'm doing for it."

"Ah, that's right. You're going to help with the set up, right?"

Kagome nodded. "And Yuka's pretty keen in having me help her prepare for everything," she added.

Tetsuya smiled. "Well, then you might as well attend."

"But then I would have to go with someone."

"Yeah, so?"

She gave him a funny look as she put her Math book in her bag. "Who would I go with?"

Tetsuya's smile grew wider. "You could go with me."

Kagome dropped the calculator that was in her hand and it clattered back onto the table, but she paid it no attention. "What?"

Tetsuya cocked his head adorably. "Come to the ball with me."

"W-Why?"

Tetsuya's face went blank. "Uh, because then it would be kind of weird if I went and didn't bring my date with me."

"Oh, no - I mean, why me?" Kagome said quickly, turning slightly pink.

Tetsuya gave her a cocky grin. "Because I like you."

Oh dear, how blunt. Kagome could feel herself turning pinker. Mixed emotions were fluttering like wild butterflies in her stomach. Was she flattered? Only a lot. Was she speechless? At the moment, she was totally lost for words, which was a first.

Tetsuya chuckled and as if reading her mind, he said, "You just have to say yes or no."

Kagome blushed, embarrassed. "Oh, um, right. Well - um, I-" She said, stumbling over her words. Oh, come on, she told herself. This isn't a hard question to answer. Just say yes, you nitwit! You know you want to go with him!

"Er, I guess - um, yes."

His eyes immediately brightened. "Really?"

Kagome bit her lip and nodded. Tetsuya broke into a huge toothy smile like a little kid. He looked like he was going to jump up and let out a whoop. Instead, he stood up, gathered all of the remaining of his things, and lifted his bag over his shoulder (all the while, smiling like a fool).

He gave her a breath-taking smile and said, "I'll see you tomorrow then."

Kagome nodded (having trouble finding her voice). She had expected him to leave but instead, he stood there looking at her with the same odd expression that he had on his face earlier. She was about to ask him what was wrong (once she found her voice, which was...very doubtful) when he leaned over, his face nearing hers.

Kagome blinked. What in the world was he doing? His face inched closer. She frowned. Was there something on her face?

Oh, dear. Wait, a little too close now. She have could count his eyelashes. Um, very close now, too close for comfort. What -

Oh.

Oh, my.

* * *

Once she was outside the library and a good distance from anyone who might hear her, Kagome let out a squeal of delight. She let out a joyous giggle as she danced down the sidewalk. She lifted her head high to the sky with a goofy smile. She had never appreciated how beautiful this day was.

Kagome looked cautiously around her again, double-checking that no one was close enough to her to hear her. After she established that, she let now a louder squeal.

I kissed Tetsuya! I kissed Tetsuya Mihara!

Kagome couldn't help but feel a little proud that she had just done something that she knew was on a ton of girls' wish lists. If she knew, she would be doing back flips all the way home. But she didn't know how, so she started skipping instead.

She glanced at her watch. It was nearly six. Oh crap.

Kagome just remembered that her mother had called her just after school to tell her that her grandfather had food poisoning. Mrs. Higurashi was going to stay with her father at the hospital and requested that Kagome get home as soon as possible to take care of her little brother in her absence. Souta would be home by now.

Kagome swore silently to herself, temporarily forgetting the light, silly emotions she was feeling earlier. She switched her heavy bag to her other shoulder and hurried down the sidewalk.

The bushes rustled behind her.

Kagome stopped and turned her head. The bushes had stopped rustling. Leaves fell to the ground from the disturbed bushes. Kagome backtracked and saw that nothing was there. She frowned. For a split second, she could have sworn she saw a flash of red and white...

She shook it off, blaming her imagination for getting carried away and walked quickly back home.

* * *

Souta was finally in bed.

Praise the Lord.

It took a little persuading ("Souta, turn off the video games NOW!"), but Souta obediently went to bed ("Just five more minutes, sis - Ah! Okay, okay! I'm saving the game right now! Just DON'T press that power button!"). Kagome 'hmphed' in satisfaction, seeing that Souta was tucked neatly in bed. She turned and was about to leave her little brother's room when he called out.

"Wait, sis."

She turned around. "What is it?"

"Can you tell me a story?"

Kagome raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you a little too old for that?"

"Well, it's 9:30 and I'm in bed," Souta said grudgingly. "None of that really matters now. Besides," he added. "You can never be too old for stories."

Kagome smiled. "Alright." She pulled a chair next to Souta's bedside. "What's story shall it be tonight?"

Souta's eye brightened and he sat upright. "Can you tell one that has a lot of fighting, and pirates, and demons, and shooting, and magicking and all that good stuff?" he asked eagerly.

Kagome stared blankly at her brother. She should seriously start looking over those video games he had been playing excessively. But 'pirates' rang a bell in her mind.

"Have I ever told the story about Peter Pan?"

Souta sank disappointingly back into his pillow. "I already know that story."

"Oh, well then I guess we can think of another -"

"No," Souta interrupted earnestly. "Your version might be better than the one I know," he said as he snuggled under covers.

Kagome smiled. "Alright."

She then started the story about the boy who never grew up.

Thirty minutes later, Kagome was in the midst of telling Souta that the evil Captain Hook was forcing Wendy to walk off the plank. Souta was so engrossed in the story that he jumped when the wind whistled outside of his bedroom, blowing leaves through the open window.

Kagome frowned at the window. She could've sworn she had closed it. She walked over to it and stuck her head out of it. Did she just see a flash of white? Kagome rubbed her eyes and looked again.

Nothing.

Kagome blinked. Maybe she was getting too involved with this story. She looked over to Souta's 'Megaman' clock as she shut the window closed. 10:00. It was getting late. She went back to Souta and fixed his covers.

Souta looked at her, appalled, realizing that she intended to discontinue telling the story. "You're not going to stop now, are you?"

"It's late, Souta..."

"But Wendy's just about to walk off the plank! You can't stop here! It's - it's inhumane!"

Kagome cocked an eyebrow, also a little surprised that her little brother knew the word 'inhumane.'

"I have a lot of work to do. I'll finish the story tomorrow, I promise." She pecked him lightly on the forehead. "Now go to sleep."

She turned off his lamplight; everything was dark except for the moonlight that shone through the window. She stopped by his door and turned around. She leaned against the frame and looked back lovingly at the already sleeping lump in the 'Digimon' covered bed. Of all the frustrations that he made her feel and all the arguments that they've been through, that little lump always managed to make her let go of her anger and care about him.

But, it was strange. She couldn't shake off this feeling of apprehension that was lurking in the back of her mind. She knew she was going to see him the next morning, eyes half opened and hair sticking in all directions. But something told her that wouldn't be the case.

Wait, what was she thinking? What was making her feeling those things? Kagome shook her head and sighed. She brushed it off; she was just being silly. It was late, of course she would be thinking stupid things.

She told Souta good night and closed the door. Kagome sighed. Now it was back to work. She had two projects to finish along with another nice fat pile of homework. She had to finish some paperwork for three clubs and draw some suggestions for the spring ball. The list just kept on going.

Kagome began calculating the time she would need on each assignment when she heard the phone ring. She rushed down the stairs and quickly picked it up. "Hello?"

"Hello, this is Mrs. Katsumori. Is this Kagome Higurashi?"

"Ah, yes," Kagome said, immediately recognizing her homeroom teacher's strict voice.

"I apologize for calling so late at night, but I just received some...unexpected news."

Kagome sat down on the sofa next to her. "Yes?"

"Ms. Higurashi, if you plan on missing any more club meetings, I suggest you drop them!" Mrs. Katsumori said.

Kagome jumped slightly. "I'm sorry, Ms. Katsumori, I -"

"Was there a family emergency, Ms. Higurashi? Or did you simply forget?"

"Um...I..."

"Well?" She said sharply.

"I forgot..." Kagome said quietly, feeling very small. She heard Mrs. Katsumori sigh over the phone.

"Kagome," she said wearily. "You want to get into Tokyo University, correct? And you want to major in biology as well as enter their five-year program, right? There's a reason why very few students succeed in that path you chose, Kagome. I can not stress enough how difficult and competitive it is. You can not afford to miss any more meetings. Every single thing counts. Those clubs are crucial to your college application to Tokyo University. I've even heard that you've recently been late to many of them."

"Well...yes, but I've been really busy and it's been difficult -"

"Ms. Higurashi, when you first came to me to talk about the path you chose for your college future, I told you it would be difficult - no, excruciatingly difficult. Do not tell me that you just realized that now."

"No, of course not! I just -"

"Tokyo University's five-year program only accepts the best of the best, Kagome. At the rate you are going, I can not see you in the future that you want. Unless you find a way to catch up, I suggest you choose an alternate path."

Kagome remained silent. It felt like someone had just slapped her in the face. Hard.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Higurashi," Mrs. Katsumori said, this time more gently. "But I can not be lenient in this matter. Good night."

"Good night," Kagome said in a strained voice. Mrs. Katsumori hung up.

Kagome's grip on her phone tightened as she pulled it away from her ear. She started shaking as she tried to control her anger. But, she couldn't take it anymore.

She jumped to her feet and threw the cordless phone back onto its receiver. But the impact was too great. The phone bounced off and clattered to the floor. Kagome ignored it. She wheeled around and sat back down in the sofa, breathing heavily. She made an angry sound and ran her hands through her hair.

Did Mrs. Katsumori have any idea what she was going through? Because it certainly felt like she didn't! No one understood what she was going through. No one understood the many things she had to do.

Kagome glanced at the coffee table, where the phone was suppose to be, and spotted something she didn't recognized. She reached for it.

Mom got a new picture frame, she thought to herself.

Her eyes settled on the picture itself. It was an old one, probably a couple of years old. It was of their family: her, Mom, Souta, Grandpa, and Buyo, their cat. Kagome suddenly wondered when the last time her family got together was. She frowned in disappointment when she realized that she couldn't remember. She put the picture frame back.

I've been so busy. I can't even remember these kinds of things.

Kagome fell back into the sofa and stared up at the ceiling, quietly wondering what she had gotten herself into. She then recalled earlier today when Eri had suggested that she drop some clubs and classes and she had said that she couldn't, because she loved them all too much. Did she really? Was that what she really felt? Or was that what she wanted to feel?

Despite her harsh words, maybe Mrs. Katsumori was right. Maybe she should choose an alternate path. She had nailed it so hard into her head to go to Tokyo University and get into their five-year program for biology. Had she blinded herself to other opportunities that would have been better for her? Everytime she began to feel disheartened by the day's workload, it felt more like she had to convince herself that she loved these things than anything else.

Kagome stood up wearily. She picked up the phone from the ground and placed it gently back onto its receiver. Even if she wanted to back out like she did now, it was too late. She was in too deep and she had to finish what she started.

Kagome climbed back up the stairs and reached her slightly opened bedroom door when she heard rustling coming from inside. She frowned. It couldn't be Buyo. Even though her cat was, er, slightly obese, he still managed to walk around without making too much noise. Whatever was inside was too big to be a cat.

Kagome backed away precariously and went into the nearest room: her grandfather's. She spotted a golf club. Perfect.

She grabbed it and approached her room again, cautiously. Nervous and afraid, Kagome took a deep breath, raised the golf club, and kicked the door open.

Her eyes searched the room and spotted a boy standing by her dresser. He was looking curiously at her music box and was opening it. But it only managed to open halfway. Once he saw her, he snatched his hand away letting the lid close with a loud snap. He jumped away from it and hid his hands behind his back like a child who had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

What struck her the most was his peculiar appearance. He wore a red one-strap tunic over a sleeveless black one with a white sash around his waist, along with creamy white pants and knee-high black boots. He had black wristbands on both wrists (along with a pair of very nice looking arms), and hanging from his neck was some kind of pocket watch. She wanted to give it a closer look but something else caught her attention. His long hair was gorgeous and white, making Kagome feel inferior and silly with her dark tresses. And his eyes were two pools of gold that strangely lacked any luster. On top his head (Kagome's shoulders tensed) were two white fluffy dog-ears. Living in a shrine, Kagome knew that meant only one thing.

Youkai.

"Who are you?" she demanded, trying hard not show her growing fear. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Umm." From the sound of his voice and from the look of him, the boy didn't look any older than eighteen. The boy's eyes darted around the room and settled on the lamp on her desk. "I was looking for my shadow," he said lamely.

Kagome gave him an odd look. Looking for his what? His shadow was right there - oh. White hair.

Opened window. The flash of white.

It was him. He was listening in when she was telling the story of Peter Pan. Hence, the shadow thing.

Kagome felt a cool breeze and realized that her window, too, was opened, explaining how the boy accessed her room. She really needed to start locking the windows more often...

Kagome's eyes darted back to the boy. "What are you doing in my room? You should know that there are severe punishments for youkai who break into other people's homes."

The boy looked at her strangely. "But I didn't break anything. The window was unlocked."

"That doesn't make anything better," she said angrily. "You're trespassing on my property. Get out or I'll call the police."

"Huh? Polee?" He gave her a funny look. "Oh, I suppose that's what you call your law enforcers, eh?"

Kagome stared at him, her fear slowly slipping away. Did he not know what police were? She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, feeling confused as well.

He looked at her, smiling cockily. "In that case, why didn't you call them earlier? You seemed to know that I was here," he said, gesturing to her golf club.

Good question. Why hadn't she called the police?

Kagome hastily brushed it off. Whatever, it didn't matter. Right now, what did matter was that there was a strange youkai boy in her room and she wanted him out.

When she did not answer him, the boy smirked and started walking around her room. Kagome's eyes followed him; she felt both wary and curious. He stopped at the glass cabinet near her bed. He leaned forward with a scrutinizing eye at her collection of sprite statues. He drew back, scrunching his nose in disgust, muttering something that sounded like "so girly".

As he wandered around her room, Kagome looked closer at the pocket watch around his neck. She realized that it wasn't a pocket watch. It was some kind of round bronze-colored metal case that had some kind of gold-colored bracket that sealed it closed. In the middle of the case was glass circle, like a window. Behind the glass, was an hourglass with grains of sand inside. Kagome instantly wondered why the boy carried such a trinket.

She hardly had any time to really ponder now that the boy was about to open the lid of her laundry basket.

She went over and jabbed the golf club threateningly at him. "Get out," she ordered.

The boy jerked his head back to avoid the club. "Hey, watch it," he said. "You could hurt someone with that."

He pushed the end of the golf club away from his face. Kagome pushed it defiantly back. The boy showed a hint of surprise before his lips curled into a smirk and he yanked the golf club easily out of hands, and tossed it aside. He looked back at her pompously as if daring her to do something rash.

Kagome blinked, feeling a bit dumbfounded. She glanced at his face and seeing his jaunty grin made her want to do something to wipe it right off. Then, she had an idea.

Kagome opened her mouth to scream her lungs out. But before she could even make a sound, Kagome found herself slammed against her dresser with the boy's hand clamped tightly over her mouth.

"What the fuck are you trying to do?" he hissed.

"I'm trying to cry for help," she tried to say, but with his hand over her mouth, it came out, "Mm traing ter cru fu ulp."

"Well, don't! I haven't done anything to you yet!"

Kagome just stared at him defiantly. The boy glanced at her window before swinging his gaze by to her.

"Okay, how about this, I'll let you go but you have to promise not to scream. I'll give that stick thing back too. So you'll be armed and I won't be, okay?" he tried to compromise. His voice sounded strained.

"Tir woont muter burcoo ir un yoca (It wouldn't matter because you're a youkai)!"

"Half."

"Erm?"

"I'm only half youkai. I'm a Hanyou," he said.

"Wur durferince dur irk nak (What difference does it make)?!"

He gave her an odd expression. There was a short pause before he spoke again.

"Well," he said, a little awkwardly. "If I hurt or touch you in anyway, you can scream bloody murder all you want."

Kagome gave him a skeptical look.

"Okay?" he said and slowly drew his hand away. Seeing that she wasn't making a sound, the boy backed a good distance away from her.

Kagome immediately snatched the golf club from the ground and held it between them. The boy stared at her weapon warily but didn't do anything.

"I want you to leave," she said firmly.

The boy simpered conceitedly. "Do you really?"

"Of course I do!" Kagome said incredulously. What reason did she have to not?

The boy 'hmphed' and walked casually by her desk. He peered at the pile of papers that were scattered over it.

"I see you've been busy -"

Kagome huffed, "Of course I have -"

"- and stressed, and frustrated," he said with a smug smile.

She clenched her teeth and swung the club down to her side. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah, I do," he said as he strutted around her room again, picking up some of her stuff to examine it before putting it down again. "You're always having so much to do. You always have tons of schoolwork and projects that you never have the time to do. You have all these clubs whose meetings you're starting to miss. You spend most of your time cooped up in your room doing school stuff and club shit, and if you're not in your room, you're at school for more club stuff. You don't have time for your family or your friends anymore," he smiled triumphantly. "You're a workaholic and you're at your breaking point."

Suddenly Kagome felt very angry. Normally, she wouldn't but now, she felt enraged. "Don't talk like you under -" Then she realized. "Wait, how do you know all of that? I don't even know you!"

"I was following you today," he said, shrugging as if it wasn't a big deal.

"Following...?"

For a split second, she could have sworn she saw a flash of red and white.

Kagome's eyes widened. "Y-you've been f-following me?!" she sputtered. "Y-you, stalker!"

The hanyou glared at her, looking outraged that she would say such a thing. "I have NOT been stalking you! I only started following you today!"

Oh, and so that was supposed to make the situation better then?

"Fine, why have you been following me then?!" she asked angrily.

"I - well, I was -" he stuttered. He fumed and looked away. "That's not important."

Not important?! How can it NOT be important?!

Kagome stared at him incredulously. This guy...

She sighed tiredly. She did not have the time to deal with this right now. It was 10:45 and if she didn't start working now, she'll have little to no sleep. She could make this situation less a problem than it had to be.

"What's your name?" Kagome asked.

The boy looked like he wasn't going to tell her, but instead he wheeled around and started at her stuff again. "Inuyasha," he said briskly.

"Look, Inuyasha," she said, walking to her desk. "Just leave, okay? I have a lot of work to do. If you go now, I won't report you to the police or anything. I'll forget that this ever happened. So I'm going to sit at my desk and when I turn around, you'll be gone, okay?"

Kagome sat down without waiting for his reply. She silently counted to ten and was about to turn around to see if he was still there. Before she could, his voice whispered into her ear, "I can take you away from here."

He was still here. Kagome clenched her hand into a tight fist and considered punching him. Then his words sank in.

Kagome turned around, surprised to find his face only inches away from hers. But neither of them moved away.

She stared straight into his golden eyes. "What do you mean?"

Inuyasha grinned cockily. He moved back and stood up straight, towering over her. "I can take you away from here," he repeated. "I can take you to a place where you'll never have to do any of this crap again," he said, gesturing to the workload on her desk. Then his voice started to have a hint of excitement. "There, none of it will ever matter. You'll be happy and you'll be free, totally free."

For a minute, Kagome considering jumping into his arms crying, "Yes! Yes, please take me away from this hellhole!" But...she couldn't possibly leave all of this behind. It was something that she just had to do.

Kagome snorted, "Don't be silly. I would never leave this."

Inuyasha scoffed. "Oh come on. Aren't you even a bit tempted?"

She was, but she wasn't going to give him that satisfaction...

But it seemed that by saying nothing would give him it anyhow. He smirked and walked back to her window. He turned around, his white hair glowed under the moonlight.

"Come on," he urged. "Come with me and you'll never have to think about school, clubs, or anything like that again."

His offer was tempting. Part of her was screaming at her to stand up and go with him, but the other part of her was just as reluctant. If he could take her away, wouldn't it be selfish? If she left, someone else would have to take the burden she left behind. Could she really do that to someone else?

As if reading her mind, Inuyasha said, "You've done enough already. Don't you think it's about time you did something for yourself? Just for yourself?"

It was as if her body was moving on its own. Soon she found herself walking toward him.

Inuyasha smiled triumphantly. He turned around and climbed onto the windowsill, part of his body outside.

They were going out the window? Oh, that would be the better idea. Some of the stairs creaked and the sound might wake Souta. Kagome gave a small gasp. That's right. Souta...

Kagome turned around and looked around her room. If she went with Inuyasha, she would be leaving all of this, her family, and - Kagome's heart sank as she realized this - Tetsuya.

There was a chance of something starting up between them. If she left now, she might lose that opportunity and...she really wanted to see if anything...could happen...

Kagome felt Inuyasha's breath brush her ear as he leaned in to whisper in it.

"If you don't leave now, girl, you'll break. You'll surely break," he said softly. "I'm giving you a chance to save yourself, to get away from all of this. You'll never have to come back."

"Never's an awfully long time," she said quietly as she turned around to look at him.

Inuyasha smiled and held out his hand to her. "Come with me."

"Come to the ball with me."

Kagome frowned and took a reluctant step back. "I-I can't. There's...a guy that -"

Inuyasha made a loud sound of disbelief and didn't even try to not laugh at her. "A guy?" he cried, making Kagome feel very stupid. "Oh come on. What do you think you're playing at?"

"What do you mean? I like him!" she said, blushing. "And - and he likes me, so..."

He looked at her squarely in the eye. "Really, girl, let's be realistic. How long do you really think it's going to last? You barely have time for your family and your friends. What makes you think you'll have time for a guy?"

Kagome bit her lip. She didn't want to believe it; every fiber of her body didn't want to believe it, but he was right, wasn't he?

"Besides," he continued, "he looks like the type of guy who's pretty popular, right?" He took her silence for a yes. "How long do you think he'll want to stay with you? I mean, a bunch of girls like him, right? So why should he put any effort into a relationship with girl who doesn't have the time for him when he's got a whole stack of girls who are just dying to be with him?"

"He wouldn't do that," Kagome protested. "He cares about me, so he would try and so would I -"

"Oh, please, use your brain, girl," he said derisively. "If this guy really cares about you, why doesn't he stop you from all of that," he gestured to the workload on her desk again, "when you know you want to? I mean, he's not trying very hard now is he?"

"H-He just doesn't understand completely -"

He interrupted her. "But he doesn't try to, now does he? And more importantly, you want him to, don't you?"

She wanted to slap him. She wanted to slap him so hard because...he was right.

She tried again. "Well, m-my family -"

"In the last couple of months that you've been...laboring over your ridiculous amount of workload, they didn't really try to stop you either, have they?"

That was because she never let them knew. She didn't want them to worry...

But Kagome stayed quiet.

"There's nothing for you here," he said, more gently. "There's nothing you can get out of here. Come with me and you'll be so much better off."

"So...what is this place?"

He smiled. "It's...a wonderful place." His eyes glowed with pride. "The people there are truly happy. There's no such thing as prejudice or anything like that crap." He grinned. "And there's women and drinks everywhere - er - well, the women part probably doesn't interest you. The land is rich and - no, the best part...is the open sea. Nothing can define freedom as well as the sea. You can go anywhere you want and there's nothing that can hold you back."

The more he described this place of his...the more suspicious Kagome became. This offer seemed almost...too good.

"Why are you helping me?" she asked abruptly.

Inuyasha scoffed and smiled. "Do you really need a reason to help someone?"

Kagome raised her eyebrows, showing she wasn't satisfied with just that answer.

He looked at her for a moment, contemplating something. "All right, I'll be honest with you." He folded his arms. "I'm looking for something. I was led to you so apparently, you're the person who can help me."

"How can I help you?" she asked, confused.

"I don't know. Like you said, we just met, right?" he smiled cockily. "Maybe you know or have something that can help me." He looked at her more seriously. "I don't think meeting you was by chance. I think you can really help me, and luckily, I can help you. So what do you say?"

"I don't know," she said frankly. "I think I'll need more time to think about it."

Inuyasha glanced quickly at the moon behind him and his face suddenly grew worried.

"Look," he said a bit more harshly. "I don't actually have a lot of time left."

"How do I know this isn't a trick?" Kagome said abruptly. His offer was too good. There had to be something that he wasn't letting her know.

"What?" Inuyasha's face contorted angrily at the fact that she was asking those kinds of questions now, but Kagome ignored it.

"How do I know there isn't some catch? There has to some downside -"

"I don't have time to explain everything to you, okay?" he said impatiently. "I just - all I can make clear now is that I can take you out of this shithole, okay?"

Kagome looked even more unconvinced and took another step back.

Inuyasha's eyes darted back to the half-moon before they settled firmly at her. It didn't seem like that he was willing to leave without her. Why did he need her so badly?

"Just - okay, look. Have I ever given you a reason not to trust me?" he asked in a tone that sounded like he was trying very hard to maintain what patience he had left.

"What, besides from following me and breaking into my home? Yeah, I guess not," Kagome said smartly.

Inuyasha's eye twitched. "Okay, aside from that, I didn't hurt or touch or anything like I promised, right?" He looked worriedly at the moon behind him. He thrust his opened hand in front of her. "Do you trust me?"

"What? Well, considering that I just met you," Kagome started indignantly. "I think that question is rather -"

"Do you trust me?!"

"I -"

Kagome bit her lip and her breathing started to quicken as she began to feel panicked. She couldn't answer. Not now that she couldn't think straight. She felt as if a mountain of pressure had just dropped onto her shoulders. Her mind felt jumbled and she couldn't think clearly. She squeezed her eyes shut and hoped that she was making the right decision.

Kagome slipped her hand into Inuyasha's.

"Yes."

---

AN: Well. That was an awfully long first chapter, no? Usually, my first chapters are pretty short. Oh, yes. And if you have read my fic 'The Gathering of the Lons' and hate me horribly for not updating, please refer to my bio. I have found the solution to the problem. So, yay! So if you like this chapter, the first ever of 'The Broken Horn,' please review! So then I know continuing this story is a good thing and I'm not just wasting space!

Oh, does Inuyasha seemed...I don't know...a little OOC? I mean, he's smart enough to be manipulative right?

...Right?

(is met by silence)

...Aww, man...