Summary: Kagome Higurashi's life is about to change when she meets the mysterios Inuyasha, a half-demon from another world. Soon she is the prophesized savior of Madrien and must fight to master her powers before Naraku destroys them all. But she finds herself falling for the land she has come to live in and falling in love with the one person that she thought she would never find.

---Rated R for violence, language, and sexual situations in later chapters

To the Readers: Hi there! The name's Winged Shadow and I'd like to thank you all for taking the time to read this fanfiction. This is my first time posting any stories anywhere and all I ask is: (1) that you review when you are finished reading and (2) please be gentle with your criticism. I accept only constructive criticism. I'm not that good a writer when it comes to anime related subjects, but I decided to write one anyway. So if you must criticize, please tell me what I can improve on so I can make this story more enjoyable to all you readers. Alright enough ranting and now onto the infamous:

Disclaimer: As you all may know, I do not own any of the Inuyasha characters. They belong to their creator Rumiko Takahashi and on these grounds you have no right to sue me, so there. . Oh, and by the way... plagerism is illegal and downright dishonest so please do not take any of my work for your own. Thankies for your cooperation!

Chapter 1: Unexpected Meeting

"I'll never get this right!" screamed seventeen year old Kagome Higurashi. Disgusted, she crumpled the piece of paper she was working so dilegently on and threw it at the wall. She slumped back in her chair wondering why she even bothered with school work. She released a gusty groan and placed her aching head into her hands. Nothing was making any sense to her muddled mind.

The door to her room opened and her mother, Hitomi, stepped in. A frown creased her pale forehead at the unwelcome interruption in her work schedule.

"What on earth is going on here?" she demanded. The words was meant to be intimidating, but they came out slurred. Kagome stared at her, realizing that her mother wasn't sober. It didn't look as if she had only one glass either- she had had maybe five or six of them. And from where Kagome sat, it was most likely all at once. With bloodshot eyes, Hitomi surveyed the room; the floor was strewn with crumpled papers of all sizes and colors. Kagome immedietly turned her chair to face her mother.

"I just can't figure out all this homework for school. Could you help me please, Mom?" Kagome asked. She looked at Hitomi, pleading to her silently. Her mother let out a sigh of frustration. She had no time for this. There was paperwork to be done.

"No, Kagome I can't help you right now, but just try your best, okay?" her mother encouraged as she placed a hand to her throbbing temple. She needed another drink fast; her head felt like it was splitting in two. The door shut noisely behind her. Kagome glared at it with all her might, willing it to bring her mother back.

"Thanks mom for all your support," muttered Kagome under her breath. Even though her mother was constantly drunk, Kagome still tried to interest her in their lives; to make her see that they were much more important than her work or the bottle. Tired of staying in the house any longer, she grabbed a coat and left the room.

She descended the stairs with all the grace of an elephant wearing tap shoes. A stunt to steal her mother's attention. Before leaving she shouted over her shoulder, "Mom, I'm going out for awhile."

Kagome stood there, listening intently for a sign that Hitomi had heard and cared where her daughter was going. Kagome pictured her mother running to the door and demanding to know when she would return, lecturing her on not to talk to strangers or hitch a ride with them. Minutes ticked away on the cat-shaped clock that hung on the wall next to the door.

There wasn't an answer so Kagome walked out the front door. After all these years, she should have known better. Her mother never cared where her daughter went. All she thought about was her work and accomplishing everything for her boss. The family's feelings and needs could be put off for awhile. Before she had taken any steps to put distance between herself and the house, her younger brother came rushing toward her.

"Kagome! You can't go out now; it's really late, nii-chan!" he reasoned. Kagome smiled lovingly at Souta. Even though he was seven years younger than her, he acted like she was the younger sibling. He worried and took great care in making sure that she was safe. She kneeled before him, until they were at eye-level. She studied him as if she had never seen him before. This precious life that was both adult and child, that resembled her and at the same time did not. His chocolate brown eyes swam with loving concern for the person before him.

Kagome smiled again softly and whispered, "Don't worry, Souta. I'm only walking to the garden to think. I won't stay long, alright?" She ruffled his black mop of hair affectionetly. He gave her a sad look, but said nothing in response. He knew it would do no good to argue with her.

She stepped away from her two-story house and into the cool, evening air. On the exterior, it was an imposing white clapboard house with bulky black shutters on every window except Kagome's. In the main part of the house a wide central wall and sweeping staircase seperated the living room and family room from the dining room and kitchen. Beyond the family room was a hallway that led to Hitomi's spacious office. A modern house by Japan's standards, but around it sat her family's age-old shrine that was taken care of by her grandfather. After her grandmother died, they had moved into the house to comfort his lonely heart. In time, he came to accept her death, knowing that she wanted him to be happy. He opened up to his family once more, becoming the fiesty old man he had been before. He cared for the shrine, filling their ears with unending tales of the many mysteries and folk tales that surrounded it. That is, until he died about a year ago. He went peacefully, without suffering, but his memory still lived on in their hearts and in the shrine itself.

Kagome began her brisk walk toward her favorite spot in all of Japan: the Tsugunai Garden. Souta watched her receeding figure, until she no longer could be seen. Sighing with disappointment, Souta closed the door behind him, but not before sending a prayer to the heavens to watch over his sister. She was one of the few people that he kept close to his heart. For one as young as he, Souta knew things that he shouldn't. He knew loneliness, hurt, sadness. But Kagome helped him forget those things. He loved her more than even his own mother for Kagome was his true mother in everyway that mattered to him.

A rush of cool wind blew past her and Kagome wrapped her denim jacket tighter around her. It wasn't the cold that bothered her, though. She could no longer feel its biting slap. She had grown used to the absence of warmth in her life. She had to live without it for seven dreadful years. The only person that kept her flame of life alive was Souta. But it was never enough; she needed more.

Her thoughts wandered back to her open binder and the pile of papers lying crumpled on her bedroom floor. Man, life is tough enough without school. Don't they get that? she said to herself.

She threw her head back to gaze at the vast sky above her, its face a scatter of twinkling stars. Its midnight hue mocked her very soul with the peace that it possessed, the peace that she could not seem to find.

But her thoughts were interupted when she heard voices. Her eyes settled on the couple who were holding hands in front of her. The boy whispered something in his girlfriend's ear and she started to giggle. Suddenly they stopped by a green iron bench; Kagome walked slowly by them. The couple leaned closer to each other kissing passionetly. The young man's hand strayed from her shoulder to her cheek, stroking it gently. He softly eased his girlfriend down onto the bench with him. All the while his mouth never leaving hers.

Kagome's cheeks grew warm and she was grateful for the night that covered her embarassment. Kagome walked as fast as her sandals would take her, passing lamp posts and more couples seeking privacy in the night. She tried not to look at them, but it was too hard. She needed to know and see what it was like to be loved. Finally, the gate of the Tsugunai Garden loomed over her.

She opened the gigantic iron door, stepped inside and shut the door behind her. Kagome could always come to this magnificent place to sort out her thoughts because no one thought to enter the garden. Leisurely she walked across the orchird grass in the direction of the cherry blossom trees. Slowly she inhaled the enticing scent of the garden. The evening was beautiful, the air cool and crisp and scented with wildflowers of every kind. Finding her favorite tree, a knarled old cherry tree that still produced the sweetest scented blossoms in the whole grove, Kagome sat against its withered trunk peacefully. Kagome leaned her head against the shiny reddish-brown bark and let loose a breath of content. But something caught her attention. A dim light shown clearly from under the garden's bushes. The light cast an eery glow upon the grass. Curious to see where it might be coming from, Kagome slowly got to her feet and followed it.

A small voice in the back of her mind warned her to turn around and not continue further. The curious part of her human nature, though, urged her on. What was the worst that could happen? It wasn't like she was trespassing on private territory. This was a public garden and she had every right to be here, just as much as the birds and the butterflies. Then why was she so hesitant? That small voice spoke to her again. Curiousity killed the cat, it told her. Well, so what? She was not a cat, so it couldn't kill her. At least...she hoped it wouldn't.

She made her way through the various bushes and flowers that populated the garden. Never had Kagome been that deep into the garden; her uncertainness gone, she stopped to admire the neverending beauty of it. Even at night when the flowers had all closed their petals for their nightly slumber, the meer beauty of them brought wonder to Kagome's eyes. Her hand reached out and touched a fragile bud.

She didn't stop for long and was on the light's trail again. After endless minutes passed by, she finally neared a clearing and slowed to a cat-like walk. As she came closer a ripple passed through her body. She did not know what it was or where it came from, but it was as if she could sense another's presence, someone's karma. The presence was ominous, the very fiber of it pricked Kagome's eyes and made her want to weep. Before Kagome could comprehend it, the feeling disappeared as quickly as it had come. Waves of chills washed through her, traveling up her spine. The fine hair on the back of Kagome's neck stood on end. She shook the sensation away, wanting to forget it.

Kagome cautiously parted bushes laden with violet blossoms and found herself staring at a calm, crystal-clear lake that she never knew was there. The crescent moon, brilliantly set across the velvet sky, launched a stream of glossy luster upon the inland sea. There was more beauty there in that small clearing, then in all the forests of the world put together.

She had expected someone to have lit a small bonfire and camped there for the night. She was not prepared for the sight before her. There in the middle, perched upon a high rock, sat the most magnificent creature Kagome had ever laid her eyes on. A breath-taking man stood listening to the sounds of the night under the crescent moon; his pure silver hair gleaming beautifully in the moonlight. A soft breeze rippled his silvery mane. Underneath his clothing, Kagome could make out well-built muscles that were as taut as corded steel. He was perfect in every aspect. In the shadowy night his whole body glowed silver. From where she stood, he was one of the fallen angels of lore, come down from the heavens to walk this stretch of earth, eternally young. Eternally damned.

The awareness that she had felt earlier returned as swiftly as the breeze. It infuldged her almost to the point of suffocation. So he was the presence that she had felt. But how could she have felt him?

Suddenly he turned his lordly head as if he sensed her. Kagome was now staring into a pair of molten gold eyes and in them there reflected sorrow of the deepest kind. Their eyes locked and they stared into eachother's souls, each feeling the other's greivings. His eyes were like windows that led to his innnermost thoughts. Kagome knew that whatever the emotion, she would be able to see it through his eyes. He narrowed his eyes dangerously at her as if she was not supposed to gaze upon him and the small thread of contact between them snapped into two pieces. The pain was masked leaving only calculating coldness. The creature lept from sight and Kagome watched him leave, finally releasing the breath she had been holding. Maybe she had imagined it, him, whatever. She emerged from the surrounding bushes, studying the sight before her and letting her mind wander back to that strange boy.

A twig snapped behind her and she twirled around, her silken hair falling gracefully atop her shoulders. Kagome's mouth opened in a scream, but no sound came out; there stood her angel from before. Only this time his glow was gone and what was left of the vulnerability that Kagome had witnessed was not there. His face, half covered by the shadows of the trees, contorted maliciously, his fangs glowing with the light of the moon. He raised his hand and Kagome could make out razor sharp claws attached to slender fingers that he cracked mercilessly. He took a menacing step forward, toward her. The young girl realized that those claws were meant for her. She gasped audibly, shakingly stepping back at his advance.

In that split-second, he growled, "Now you are mine!" and sped after her.

Kagome found her voice, screaming with all her might and ducked, feeling his body brush past her cheek. She scrambled away on all fours, turning to see where he had gone. The demon pursued her clearly angered at her impudence. Kagome continued to move away until her body collided against something. She managed a glance behind her and found that it was a sturdy oak tree, blocking her only means of escape. She scanned the landscape before her searching for another way out. But that would mean getting past her predator and at that moment would not be possible. Dread consumed her as she turned her attention back to her attacker; he drew closer still, bent on ending her life. She closed her eyes to the oncoming tears, awaiting the inevitable. Across her face his breath caressed and his claws came to lay on her throat, pricking the delicate skin slightly. The cuts left thin rivers of blood trailing and disappearing into her shirt. A small sob burst from her lips as his fingers tightened around her neck.

Please, stop...

A/N: Dun, dun, dun! There's the first chapter for you and I hope you enjoyed it. Yes, not much of a cliffie, but hey what else is new...? I CAN'T DO CLIFFIES! ::sniff:: Sorry that it was kinda short, but I promise that the next chapter will be longer. And let me tell you, IT'S LONGER! Please review now because it would really mean a lot to me to know your opinions and thoughts. Thankies again for reading this fic! Gomen Arigotou! ::makes a bow::

Translation:

-Tsugunai: atonement

-Nii-chan: Big Sister; it is usually used with -san (the equivilant to Mr., Mrs., Miss, etc.) but my younger sister calls me by this and I decided to use it; thank you for the inspiration Ria-chan!

-Sakura: japanese cherry blossom trees