InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Eerily Familiar ❯ It begins ( Chapter 1 )

The country side was eerily quiet, as if it was waiting for something... Though there was one sound, running feet.

He hadn't been able to sleep since he had first heard it. It was too entrancing to ignore. He was sure his master would not mind if he looked around.

If you tried to watch this boy you would notice how he would disappear into the air, or that he was going too fast to be an average human boy. Or perhaps you would notice his unnatural silver hair. But if you looked closely you would be able to see the small dog like ears on his head.

She could not hold it off any longer, the forest needed her music as much as she did. She was only fighting herself not playing. Her kimono brushed the ground as she knelt to pick up the neglected instrument. It was time, and the forest became completely silent. The music finally started its haunting melody.

There it was the music which had not let him sleep in so long. Though as much as the music soothed him, he could not let it go on. This night he would kill the person who tormented him for so long a time.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

Kagome slowly pulled the bow across the strings, the notes coming to her naturally.

*Why do I try to deny my destiny? I was chosen to play this instrument, and I will do so. Unless I am killed...*

She sighed, if only someone would do so. It would finally ease her spirit.

Kagome had never believed that she could ever be chosen for a life as this. A life with no purpose other than to soothe the souls of the forest. This was the duty of an imp, so why her?

Tears came to her eyes as she remembered that she could never have a normal life, she would always be the soothsayer for the forest.

And that was the scene the boy came upon, the person he came looking to kill crying. How could he ever kill someone so...

Kagome could feel another presence, another sense she had never wanted.

Her sad brown eyes met those of amber and all thoughts of killing this woman were driven from Inuyasha's mind.

*Her eyes... they're so empty. Almost as if she's given up on her life.*

"Is there a reason you have sought me out?" her voice sounded somehow, hopeful.

"I've come to kill you wench." He almost faltered on the sentence seeing her expression change.

Her eyes were strangely joyful, yet still held some of the previous sadness.

"Thank you! But can you please tell me your name before you do so?"

*Is she crazy? What kind of person thanks their assassin then asks for their name?*

He couldn't kill someone that was out of their minds, if someone found out his master would most likely kill him.

So being Inuyasha he did the only thing he could think of.

He grabbed the girl and ran.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

*What is he doing? I thought he was going to kill me. Well at least I'm not playing.*

"What are you doing?!"

She got no answer.

Kagome then noticed that they were flying high above the ground.

"You must be a demon; a human could never get this high. But why would you?..."

Her answer was a grunt and nothing more.

She wondered what her captor looked like since it was much too dark to see anything but his eyes.

His eyes that were an amazing shade of amber, hadn't she notice how inhuman they were? But if he was a demon how had he gotten past the incantations put on the borders of the forest?

As Kagome thought this through Inuyasha noticed that she still held firmly to her instrument. How had she produced such music from that thing? And more importantly where was she going to stay? Kikyo would never allow another person to stay with him. And she wasn't going to allow some girl he found in a forest become one of her house slaves.

She would just have to stay a secret until he figured something out.

Then the village came into view, the one where the villagers cower in fear whenever someone comes close. They were still very afraid of Inuyasha since he wasn't as well `trained' as some of the other slaves.

A soft sound from the girl refocused his attention on her, she was snoring.

*I didn't know playing an instrument was such tiring work...*

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

How had he slipped away under her nose like that? But the better question was, where had he run off to? He was definitely not in the village, where could he hide? Well if he doesn't confess in the morning he would be getting one of the worst beatings of his life.

Her face registered only sadness where in any other case there would be joy. It was true that she loved the hanyou at one point but he could never love her. It would only cause them both pain and suffering.

But being the hard, cold soul that she was Kikyou ironed out her face and headed off to gather some of the villagers to keep a look out for Inuyasha. And she would make sure that he wouldn't be able to get away again.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

Joji had never wanted to be some old woman's helper; he had always imagined himself in a samurai suit of armor. But at least he didn't have to help any of the ill tempered women around the village, after all Kaede had never snapped at him. Not even when he had almost poured hot tea water all over her lap.

But here he was watching guard outside Lady Kaede's hut, and trouble just comes bounding in.

The trouble being Inuyasha, with something in his arms that looked like a body. Joji just hoped that the hanyou didn't take any notice in him, yet Joji's luck wasn't with him that night.

"Is the old bat in there?"

Joji could only nod, but stood in the way of the door.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at him, then swiped him aside using hardly any strength yet tossing the boy away.

That was all that Joji knew of what Inuyasha did that night, other than he noticed that Inuyasha left the `body' inside the hut with Kaede.

After his encounter though Joji reconsidered becoming a samurai, he hated dealing with just Inuyasha. How could he handle whole hordes of demons?

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

Kagome woke up to a strange, almost irritating smell.

"Are you awake child?"

Kagome nearly screamed at the site that met her newly open eyes. Instead she settled for staring like a fool.

"Can you speak girl?" the woman's one eye was staring hard at Kagome.

"Yes, I can speak... But where am I?"

The woman just muttered something to herself about how someone didn't have any brain.

And then they heard the most awful sound any woman could imagine... the sound of a staff hitting the ground, and swish of robes.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

Kaede couldn't believe her luck, first having to baby sit this girl, then having to go look at a villagers simple cold, and now that perverted monk was going to try to do something with this girl.

That monk should know his place by now, why couldn't he just go around actually ridding the villagers of their ailments?

"May I come in, Kaede sama?"

"Perhaps later, the girl is still confused about last night and I need some time to sort things out."

Miroku was discouraged, but would just have to try his luck later. This girl certainly looked worth the wait, though there was something wrong about her. Perhaps she was already taken and bound by an incantation to her husband.

Or maybe Inuyasha had taken his advice and found a woman. Just the thought made Miroku smile, maybe they would have a daughter. Yet it was only a dream...

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

*Damn, Kikyo looks like she wants to kill me.*

"Inuyasha, do you know why you are here? Or must I explain it to you?"

*If I agree to everything she says she'll probably let me go.*

"Yes, Kikyo sama,"

"Then you know what you must do?" she gave him a look that suggested that she thought of him as an idiot.

*What the hell?! What could she possibly want me to do? Beat myself?*

"Yes, Kikyo sama."

She only glared at him, challenging him to try something.

*She wants me to do something, but what?*

Luckily our little Inuyasha was saved by his little secret.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

"It is surely the work of a demon."

"My son said he saw the hanyou drop off food for the thing."

"It must be his pet."

"Maybe it devoured Kaede sama?"

Inuyasha pushed his way through the crowd that was completely oblivious to him. Although they were including him in a lot of their conversations.

"Look, it's Kaede sama!"

Kaede's bent form came forth from the hut, just as the villager had said.

"Kaede, how is-"a withered old hand clamped over his mouth.

"We must not speak of this here, though you may go inside. But ask her not of her origins, it may distraught her."

Inuyasha as eager to see the girl as he was to get away from the hand that had covered his mouth had instantly ran in.

"Are you in here wench?"

Suddenly a sharp pain hit his lower back, and then there was dirt.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

Kagome's eyes widened when she saw a man with white flowing hair enter the hut. She had done the thing Kaede sama had told her to, hit a stranger as hard as she hard as she could.

Too bad she hadn't recognized his voice in time to stop herself.

"What the hell was that for wench?"

"I'm sorry, it's just that Kaede sama told me to hit any strangers that came in here."

"That old bat set me up for this." A low growl escaped his throat.

"I didn't hurt you did I?"

"How could a weak human hurt me?"

Kagome was momentarily shocked by his attitude change.

"You're not human, are you?"

Her answer was him flicking his ears at her, his dog like ears.

And with that little flick Kagome felt herself reaching to touch them, and couldn't stop herself.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

*What the hell is she doing?*

Though he hardly bothered to move away from her touch, it was so soothing...

"What are you doing wench?"

Kagome flushed a deep scarlet, and she had to hide her eyes.

"I'm sorry."

If he had seen her eyes he would have seen the deep longing to just be cared about by someone in them.

A tear drop fell, a single one and then there was no more.

*Who is this girl? What can she possibly be hiding?*

Then his mind drifted back to the first time he had heard her play...

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

"Inuyasha! You must go ahead of the carriage and make sure the path is clear!"

"Keh." He had always despised Kikyo's personal guards, they always messed things up.

He ran ahead any ways, just to get away from them.

That was when they passed by the Goshinku Forest, that was the first time he had heard the haunting tune.

Yet when the humans passed it they only continued as if they couldn't hear anything. Except one young man who had a pained expression on his face, it looked like he was dieing. And he soon had collapsed and not one of his comrades tried to help him.

The only conclusion Inuyasha could come up with was that the weaker humans couldn't stand the sound of the music and died from the effort of trying to stay alive.

Though the humans could obviously forget the melody as soon as they away from it, but for him it haunted his dreams and soon he didn't dare sleep.

His only comfort those sleepless nights was that he would soon be able to kill the creature which produced the sound.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

But if the other humans could barely stand the sound then how could she withstand playing it?

He didn't care what Kaede had warned him about, he needed to know about this girl.

ã'ã'㈜ã'ã'

She noticed how he had been staring at her for the last few minutes and she didn't like the look of determination on his face.

"Do you want something, Inuyasha?"

He let himself look bewildered for a moment before making his face into a scowl again.

"Do you live in that forest?"

*He's asking me about the forest? What can I possibly tell him? That I've lived there since I was 11? That I hadn't seen another living being in so long I almost forgot what they were like, until he came? There is nothing I can tell him that won't make me seem pathetic… or strange. Though that is what I have always been called through out my time in the village, with momma and Souta and Grandpa…*

Her eyes filled with tears from the memories of almost forgotten family members. The family that she had been wrenched apart from. She missed them so much, how could she have pushed the memories from her mind so easily?