A/n: I was a bit unsure whether or not to post this because I have two other stories still ongoing. I mentioned it a while back and since then I have gotten a few reviews and PM's asking about it. So, I decided to post it to see how it is received.

WARNING: Character Deaths! It is a bit dark and kind of sad but I am a big believer in HEA. I really, really hope you enjoy and I apologize for any grammatical errors.

Chapter 1

As she ran the cold hit her face like needles, making her eyes water and her lungs burn; her duffle bag slapping against her back and her heart racing in fear. She skidded to a stop a few blocks away from the shrine where they had agreed to meet up. She waited and watched with steadily growing terror as the shadows cast by the setting sun began to grow, slowly stealing away the time they had left to be safe. She let out a small sigh of relief when Hojo turned the corner from the left and Eri came in from the right.

The miko turned to look in the opposite direction and waited, the longer the wait the more she regretted allowing her little brother to go out on his own. She should have told him no when he requested that they split up. Eri ran up to her and clung to her arm, "Where are they?"

Kagome lifted the two-way radio to her lips and pressed down on the side button, "Sota, where are you? Are you alright?"

There was no answer. She tried again, "Sota? Please, answer me."

When she received nothing but silence tears began to ooze from Kagome's eyes as she slowly shook her head and whispered, "My brother."

Her breathing became choppy as she struggled to fill her lungs but despite the big gulps of air she was taking she felt as if she was suffocating. The Shadows began to close in, narrowing their escape route further. Hojo grabbed her hand and tugged, "We have to go Kagome, if we wait for much longer we're gonna die. Come on."

Kagome shook him off, "Take my bag. Go."

Both Hojo and Eri gaped at her in horror before Eri grabbed hold of Kagome's arms in a painful grip, "The hell we will! You are coming with us Kagome!"

The young miko raised her arms up and knocked Eri's grip loose, "He's all I have left, everyone else is gone," her brown eyes dimmed and her voice was tight with pain, "without him…without Sota I have nothing. Take the bag Eri, take it and go."

Kagome grabbed the strap of the bag and swung it off her before settling it over Eri's shoulder and turning away from them, "I have to find my brother."

She ran with nothing but her flashlight and radio, ignoring the calls of her friends and ready to sacrifice herself for the chance that her brother was alive. Each minute that passed was like another nail in her coffin and the small glimmer of hope that she would find Sota began to fade. She let out a cry of despair and then jerked when she heard her name being called in reply. Her brother and his friend Kyou were running towards her and behind them was a man with a familiar bandana wrapped around his head; even from where she stood she could see the beginning of an ugly bruise on the side of Sota's face and Kyou's busted lip. The man chasing them was a member of a group who risked nothing except to prey on others to survive, and he had thought to kill and steal from the only family Kagome had left. She ran towards her brother and then past him as she raised her metal flashlight above her and with a battle cry, brought it down on the bastard's head. The man fell to his knees with a groan but Kagome had no sympathy as she brought the flashlight back down on him once more. She didn't check to see if he was dead or alive as she turned and yelled, "Run!"

The Shadows began to close in on them and when they heard an agonized half scream from the man behind them their flashlights clicked on. The shrine stairs came into view but it would be foolish to feel relief until they were safe in the Higurashi living room. As the three raced up the stairs behind them and as the sun set the Shadows that followed the end of the day raced towards them.

The Goshinboku that held so many memories for her was soon behind them. The well house that housed the well that had failed her thousands of times for the last three years was next. Before her voice could be drowned out by the roar of the generator inside, Kagome screamed for her friends. The door swung open and Eri stood there with wide relief filled eyes just as the generator rumbled and lit up the living room. Her friend rushed Kyou and Sota inside before reaching out her hand for Kagome; Eri flung Kagome in and the miko turned around to offer her a breathless 'thank you' but her face instead twisted in terror when Eri's hand that was on the door handle was engulfed in black.

None of them could have moved fast enough to save their friend and Eri realized it before they did. She was only able to close her eyes and whisper, "It's okay," before they were showered in red. Kagome made no sound as she stared out into the night where the Shadows hid, waiting as they always did. They had taken her world and torn it apart and her spiritual powers had proved useless against whatever the Shadows were—she was useless. Her friend was dead.

She whispered Eri's name, her nearly silent cry filled the room and tore everyone out of their shock. The first to scream was Yuka who stood a few feet behind Kagome, covered in the blood of one of her oldest friends. Hojo fell to his knees and stared just as silently as Kagome out the still open door, his hands clenched in fists on the ground. In the corner sat the youngest of them; seven-year-old Reika clutched her teddy bear to her face as she sobbed in fear until Kyou reached out to comfort her though the boy was pale from shock and fear himself.

Sota kneeled down in front of her, a piece of cloth in his hand that he used to gently wipe the blood from her face. She hardly acknowledged his presence, her eyes empty as they remained locked on the doorway that dripped red. Sota whispered her name, grasping her still slightly bloody cheeks in his hands and forced her to look at him. Kagome didn't cry, she didn't scream—Kagome broke down in the calmest and emptiest way she possibly could.

"How much longer are we going to live like this? How much longer are we even going to live? Even after three years of routine and surviving Eri was still killed; for three years we survived and in the end it didn't matter. Sota, we're gonna die."

Sota's hands tightened around her face, "Shut up Kagome, just—just stop it."

He let her go and turned away, taking a deep shuddering breath before turning back to his sister, "You're right. I know you're right but I also know that I'm gonna keep trying to survive—if I have to carry the burden of forcing you to survive too, then I will."

She could hear him and part of her knew he was right but all she could see was the unnerving frightened acceptance in Eri's eyes. It was like she knew it was going to happen…and Kagome didn't know how to process it. When the Shadows first came, her home had become a base for survivors. The house had been full of people; it had been full of strangers who thought that they might find some salvation in a place considered holy—and then one by one they had been picked like ripened fruit. Her mother died horrifically in an attempt to save one of the last children and still Kagome could hear her shrill scream of pain. Her grandfather had disappeared one night and later Kagome and Sota had found a letter of apology and goodbye. He had felt that he was endangering them; lowering their chances of survival—he could not have known how much guilt and sorrow he had left in the wake of his suicide. The last before Eri were Ayumi and her little sister. Her friend's final words as Ayumi threw herself over her sister as if to shield her were of love for her sibling. Now that Eri was gone, her houseful of survivors had dwindled down to six, including her. It didn't matter if it was three years or ten, the Shadows would always come for them.

Her brother shook her, "You're not allowed to give up Kagome. You still have me, you still have to try for me. I can't do this alone."

He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her neck as he sobbed, "I don't want to die! I need you to tell me that we're gonna be alright…please Kagome."

One by one the others wrapped themselves around her and each other, crying for Eri and for themselves.

~oOo~

When the sun rose and the Shadows dispersed Kagome went upstairs and took a shower. Her tears were lost in the gentle cascade of water but they continued to fall as Kagome watched the red tint of Eri's blood swirl down the drain. When she was finished, her eyes were even more swollen than they had been when she woke up.

She wrapped a towel around her and mechanically made her way to her bedroom. She dressed in a pair of yoga pants and was putting on a simple black V-neck shirt when Yuka silently walked in. Her last female friend sat down and patted the bed and began to silently braid Kagome's long hair.

Yuka broke the silence, her voice hoarse from her screams and sobs from the night before, "My entire family is gone Kagome. My parents and my brothers are dead and all I have left to cling to is in this house. You are my family now—I need for you to promise me that you will never speak like you did last night. If you give up then what hope do we have to survive, especially when it is only because of you that we have survived this long. Eri…Eri looked up to you so please—please don't let her down."

Kagome turned to look out the window and stared at the branches of the Goshinboku. She felt as trapped as Inuyasha had once been to the tree; unable to move and lost in the darkness just waiting to be set free. She was realizing now that this was her life and the people she had left looked to her to keep them alive. Her brother looked to her…she closed her eyes in shame. She had shown her brother a part of her she hadn't wanted anybody to see. Most of the time she walked around feeling weak but she needed to be strong for not just Sota—they all needed to be strong for one another. Kagome wiped away another tear and nodded, "Okay."

Yuka tied off Kagome's braid and gave her a hug, her cheek pressed against Kagome's temple as she whispered, "Good."

Kagome put on her running shoes and followed Yuka downstairs. They survived mostly off of canned foods and it seemed that corn was on the menu for the morning. After their breakfast, everyone went about their daily chores. Hojo made sure the generator was full of gasoline for the coming night while Yuka braided Reika's hair and whispered soothingly in the girl's ear. Sota and Kyou were quietly cleaning away the blood from the doorframe and the floor. Kagome went through the supplies they had managed to find and took a little of everything but food so she could put it away in a separate bag upstairs. When she was done, she went outside to do what she did every day without fail. She prayed beneath the Goshinboku and then made her way to the well.

Two years ago, they had torn down the front wall of the well house. The Shadows were still a threat in the day in places with little light and so to ensure Kagome's safety the wall was ripped away. Other than Sota, no one knew why she visited the old well every day but none of them questioned her. They all needed something to cling to and if the well was of some comfort to her they would not judge her for it.

She stood before the old wooden structure and closed her eyes and whispered, "Another friend was taken from me last night and for a moment I showed everyone how truly weak I am; for a moment, I gave up. When my mom was killed, I pushed on and when grandpa left us I told myself I needed to be strong for Sota because I was all he had left."

She looked to the tree once more, her eyes falling to the spot where Inuyasha had spent 50 years of his life and the longer she stared the stronger her will became. She turned back to the well and tightened her fist around the radio on her hip, needing something to hold onto as she came to a decision.

"It isn't about surviving anymore, we can't keep doing this—I can't keep doing this. I need to figure out what the hell this evil is and find a way to destroy it. We have endured long enough; if I am to die then I want to die knowing I did everything I could to destroy these Shadows."

She closed her eyes and bowed her head, "Even if you never open for me…for us; I am going to try."

She suddenly felt a soft breeze brush against her face and her eyes popped opened. Her breath hitched and a trembling hand rose to cover her mouth as she stared down the well to the blue sky below. She was torn between disbelief and elation before she was overtaken by a sudden rush of urgency. She didn't know how long the well would stay open—she needed to save her friends while she still had a chance. She lifted the radio and whispered urgently into it, "Sota?"

White noise mixed with his voice as he answered, "Yeah?"

"I need you to get the bag beside my bed, get the lights and bring everyone to the well. And Sota, hurry."

He didn't respond, they both knew that to question her was to waste what time they were given. She could hear the commotion from inside as she whispered to the well that had after three years, finally answered her prayers, "Please let them through, I need them. Please."

Sota led the others to her, the bag on his shoulder while the others ran behind him with scared and confused looks on their faces.

Hojo reached her first and asked, "What the hell is going on?"

Kagome turned to her brother instead of answering and flicked on the portable work light he had in his hands and took the bag before frantically whispering, "I don't know if you can get through Sota but I need for you to go first. Take the light and don't let go, understand?"

She grabbed hold of Reika and placed the girl in Kyou's arms, "Take Reika, hold her to your chest," she turned to the confused little girl, "Reika, you hold onto Kyou real tight okay. Don't let him go."

Kagome looked between the three and nodded more to herself than them, "If this doesn't work stand back to back and hold the lights high above you. We will get you out."

Sota looked down at her, "This will work Kagome, I know it will."

Before he climbed the lip of the well to jump she grabbed his hand and whispered, "I love you Sota."

His smile was watery and hopeful as he returned her sentiment, "I love you too Kagome. See you on the other side."

Kyou was staring down the well with scared eyes but with an encouraging word from his best friend the two boys jumped with Reika. Despite Sota's faith that the well would let them through Kagome gasped in fear and threw herself to the well terrified that they would be at the bottom where the Shadows might thrive. She saw a blue flash and then nothing but sky. She sobbed with relief and turned to the others. By then her friends were already looking down the well with bewildered and disbelieving faces.

"Yuka and Hojo, you guys go together."

Hojo turned his eyes to her, "Kagome, I don't understand."

"All I need for you to understand right now Hojo is that our best chance is down that well."

Yuka grabbed the bag from Kagome's shoulder and handed it to Hojo before pressing a light in Kagome's hands. She gave Kagome a quick hug before reaching out for Hojo's hand, "She's rushing us for a reason Hojo. Let's go."

They glanced back to her with trust in their eyes before jumping. Kagome checked to make sure they had made it too before turning back to her home. She whispered to those who she loved and lost, "I will find a way to fix this. I promise."

She stood at the lip of the well and jumped but before she could be engulfed in blue—her light fluttered and died.

a/n: I'm nervous but I really want to know what you think! I really try to be as original as possible and I am hoping that I succeeded and that you enjoyed it despite the darkness of it all. I would love if you left a review or some constructive criticism but a note to those who may not like this fic, I do not accept flames.

~Inari