InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Curse Of The Shikon No Tama ❯ Prologue ( Prologue )

A huge group of people dressed in black stood over the grassy plains in the cemetery as the rain poured over them. Among the sea black one man stood out. This man, dressed in a brilliant red haori and hakama. A simple passer - by would mistake him for something right out of a history museum. He looked so out of place.

Inuyasha clutched the completed Shikon no Tama in his hand as the priest droned on. How did this happen? How? He raised his eyes to the urn that was set next to the rambling priest. There was her remains, her ashes. Kagome. Never again would he hear her laughter, see her smile, or smell her gentle scent. She was gone. Gone! Inuyasha felt a wetness slide down his cheek. A tear. When was the last time he had cried? Even after the last battle when Kikyou was laid to rest he had not cried. The last time he had cried… The last time he had cried was when his mother had died.

She was killed for being a human, a human mate to a powerful taiyoukai. The six year old Inuyasha had fled the palace where he had spent his life. Spent his life being shunned by the youkai, nobility and servants alike. Being shunned by his mother's human handmaidens. While fleeing after seeing his mother butchered by the nobles just because she was human. He had fled for his life, only allowing himself to cry for a brief moment before freezing his heart up to the world.

So many years had passed since the death of his mother and father. His father he barely remembered. His mother…he would always remember her just like he would remember..Kagome.

~~~~

No one approached the odd - looking young man in feudal attire. No one except for those that had been Kagome's immediate family and friends knew who he was. Some would whisper about him as they passed the young hanyou to leave. Wondering about his odd appearance, his old-fashioned clothes, and the strange dog-ears that were perched atop of his head. Ever now and then Inuyasha's ears would concentrate and the insults, but never for long. His hands were folded into the sleeves of his haori. His amber eyes donning a glassy look as he stared out of the windows of the Higurashi shrine. The rain poured down with a vengeance. Washing away everything: sorrow, happiness, her scent. Washing away everything that was important to him. Washing away…the sad hanyou paused. It was happening again. His heart was once again freezing up to the rest of the world.

Inuyasha's sensitive ears suddenly picked up a soft sound coming from above him…in a room that used to be Kagome's. Inuyasha removed himself from his current location, and headed towards Kagome's room one last time. He didn't even know why he was going there. Ever since he had found her there Inuyasha had done all he could to avoid the room. Yet, here he was again. Heading towards her room. He didn't know why, but for some reason the noise was beckoning to him. Calling to him. Telling him to come to her room once again. The noise was calling to him just like her scent always did.

Inuyasha stopped at her doorway. They were all there. Kagome's friends, her brother, and the damn boy called Houjou. The girls were sobbing, holding each other. Each one trying to take away the pain that the other had. Houjou was standing by Kagome's window, looking out. Souta, the boy that worshipped the ground Inuyasha walked on, was sitting on his sister's bed sobbing into Buyo's fur. The cat just laid there allowing the boy to let out all of his pain. Buyo and Houjou were the only one's who acknowledged Inuyasha's presence. Houjou nodded over at the hanyou. Normally, Inuyasha would be ready to be at the boy's throat. Kagome was his! ~Was she really yours?~ He asked himself as the possessive thought once again crossed his mind. ~You couldn't even protect her. Like Kikyou she died because of you. Do you even have the right to call her yours.~

Inuyasha walked over next to Houjou. Her scent still lingered in the room. Inuyasha could feel tears threaten to fall once again.

"So," Houjou said, "What do you plan to do after this?"

Souta and Kagome's three friends looked over at the hanyou expectantly. By now everyone knew who Inuyasha was, where he was from, and went he had meant to Kagome. For a moment Inuyasha just stared out of the window in utter silence, then he spoke.

"I'm going back. I'll protect the Shikon no Tama in Kagome's stead. It's what she would want. We couldn't kill him. Even after all of the pain that he has caused all of us we still couldn't kill him."

Everyone stayed quiet. They all knew who Inuyasha was talking about. After her death, Kagome's family had told all of her friends why the girl had been constantly missing school. Not one of them had been surprised. The story of the well, the Sengoku Jidai, and the Shikon no Tama was more believably than the lies that Kagome's grandfather had told everyone. Souta stopped whimpering and looked up at Inuyasha.

"Will you be able to stop the bad guy that killed nee-chan, Inu no ni - chan?"

Inuyasha looked over at Souta in mild surprise. Inuyasha was only just beginning to realize how much the kid looked up to him. He nodded silently at the kid. He watched silently as fresh tears welled up in Souta's eyes yet again. That's when the filling hit the hanyou like a ton of bricks. Pity, Inuyasha couldn't help but feel a great amount of pity for the poor kid. Naraku would definitely pay for this. Kagome's death was something that definitely could not be for given. Inuyasha sat on Kagome's bed and put his hand on the kid's shoulder. Souta sniffled twice before standing up and leaving the room. Shortly, afterwards Kagome's friends followed. Houjou followed the before giving Inuyasha's shoulder a tight squeeze. It was only after the group left the room that Inuyasha realized that he was crying. Tears slowed freely down his cheeks and for the first time in his life, Inuyasha didn't care.

~~~~

Sakura Higurashi nodded good bye to the Kagome's friends and joined her father and her son in the family room. She knew Inuyasha hadn't left yet. Somehow Sakura knew that the hanyou would not leave without saying goodbye. She sank into the couch next to Souta before pulling the boy onto her lap. The day had been an emotionally exhausting day for all of them, but she Sakura would not allow herself to shed any tears. At least, not until tonight. Tonight she would what she had done when her husband died. Sakura would sit alone in her room and cry herself to sleep at the loss of her daughter. Sakura never allowed herself to shed a tear of emotion around her family.

A creak on the stairs made the woman push off her son and get up. Moments later Inuyasha appeared in the doorway of the family room. Sakura looked into Inuyasha's amber eyes briefly before leaving the room.

~~~~

Souta ran to Inuyasha the moment his mother left the room.

"Don't go Inu no ni - chan! Stay here! I want you to stay here!" The boy wailed as he clung to the startle dog youkai.

Inuyasha blinked, startled momentarily before kneeling down to look at the boy in the eye.

"Look kid," he said his voice husky with emotion, "I hafta go. I can't stay here. This isn't my time. Besides I hafta to worry about the Shikon no Tama. If I stayed here what happened to Kagome could happen to you." Inuyasha paused a moment as his voice cracked as the image of finding Kagome dead, flashed through his mind. "I gotta protect the tama. It's what Kagome would want."

His words didn't seem to have the effect that he was hoping they would. Souta continued to cry. The thought of never seeing Inuyasha again was too much for the young boy. The elderly Higurashi walked over to the boy and gently removed him from Inuyasha.

"Go into the kitchen." The old man said, his voice bearing the burden of lost loves. "My daughter wants to see you before you leave."

Inuyasha just nodded numbly before compiling.

Sakura sat at the table a small urn and four small books set before her. She looked up at the young man that had started to consider a son.

"Inuyasha, here." She pushed the book and urn towards the person in question.

Inuyasha blinked, startled. He knew what the urn contained, but the books were a complete mystery to him.

"I want you to have these. I know that back there you won't have a lot of things to help you remember my daughter so I thought that these would help. The urn contains her ashes. Don't give me that look." Sakura said at the startled look on Inuyasha's face. "Kagome wanted you to have them. She and I talked about it. As for the books, they will help everyone remember the good times that you all had together."

Inuyasha just stood there, frozen to the spot. Kagome wanted her remains to be in the Sengoku Jidai?

"B-but.."

Sakura shook her head before Inuyasha could even finish his sentence. "Please take them. It's what she wants. Now go!…and remember if you need a home you're always welcome here." That said the woman who used to be Kagome's mother left the kitchen.

Inuyasha looked numbly at the urn and the books. Somehow he knew that even if he went after the woman that in the end he would be forced to take these five tokens back with him. With out saying a word, Inuyasha stuffed the four books into his haori, gingerly picked up the delicate urn, and headed to the well house. Back to his time.

He sighed inwardly as he prepared to jump into the well. ~How am I going to tell the others? How?~ His friends had yet to find out the reincarnated miko of the Shikon no Tama, and their dear friend, was dead.

A/N: How was that? Did ya like? Did it suck? Please R/R. Flames are welcomed. Gomen, everyone was a little OOC. More to come.