Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha and I don't own the poem Longing by Matthew Arnold

Come to me in my dreams, and then

By day I shall be well again!

Fo so the night will more than pay

The hopeless longing of the day.

Chapter 1

Once upon a time there were two cousins. They lived in a great kingdom. One was the daughter of the king her name was Sango, she was a great warrior. The other was the daughter of the priest of the local shrine. The king's sister had married the priest and had given up her title so her daughter, Kagome though of royal blood had no title. Both girls were considered great beauties. Sango had the beauty of the willow, with soft brown hair, eyes that reflected the trees leaves in autum, and skin kissed by the sun. Kagome had the beauty of the night, her hair was like the darkest night sky, with eyes like a fire had burned out leaving only living embers burning in the black and her skin the color of the pale moon.

The cousins loved each other like sisters and would constantly be found in the others company. When Sango's mother passed away after Kohaku's birth, it was Kagome that helped her through although she was younger than Sango, by bringing her home with her to spend time with her own mother to ease the pain. A few years later after Kagome's own brother's birth when her father dissapeared, it was Sango who helped Kagome through the pain and to find a strength she never new she knew she had.

On Kagome's fifteenth birthday she had expected Sango to show up with the sun, with all that they had planned. But when noon had passed and she still hadn't arrived Kagome went looking for her friend. She found her on the practice field attacking several of the practice dummies several of which had already been destroyed by her actions.

"Sango" Kagome called out.

Her friend stopped for a moment to turn her attention to her friend. There were bags under her eyes speaking of a sleepless night. It was then that her cousin's sword dropped from her hand and Sango dropped to her knees, sobbing.

Kagome rushed over wondering what could possibly be the matter. When she came close and wrapped her arms around her, Sango let lose shaking and sobbing uncontrollably. She cried for a long while being held by Kagome, unable to speak. After what seemed like hours Sango was finally able to speak. She told Kagome how last night after dinner her father announced that he was going to remarry. She could not believe that he would to her betray her mother like that.

Kohaku was too young to remember their mother but, Sango remembered her warm smiles and kindness to her. Kagome did all she could to comfort her cousin and promised that she would always stand by her no matter what happened.

It was the next week that the King's bride Kuromiya to be came to the kingdom, bringing with her a daughter, Akina who as close to Kohaku in age but a plain girl. The king and her were married shortly after their arrival. Causing Kuromiya to be the new queen. Kagome's mother the king's sister was uneasy around the new queen but unable to find fault with the new queen, but still not sure why. So all she could do was warn her daughter to be careful and to take care of Sango.

Sango though had roused the queen's jealousy as her daughter was approaching a marrigable age all the suitors that she had arranged to come and meet her daughter Akina, ended up trying to court Sango instead. Much to Sango's chagrin. Sango had made a promise just after her mother died, to a boy her own age who had come with one of the many diplomatic groups that had come to show their symptathies for the passing of such a gracious queen. The boy she remembered his violet eyes shining with mischef the whole time. He had managed to get into plenty of trouble when there, but before he left he gave Sango her most beloved gift a small two-tailed fire cat, extracting a promise from her at that time to let him come back and see if she would marry him when they both came of age. That was over ten years ago and she still remembered her promise.

Kagome though many of the village men tried none could capture her heart. Though her most persistant suitor Hojo had yet to understand her polite repeated refusals of his courtship, and would continuely present her with unwanted practical gifts. Kagome's heart was not taken by anything that could be seen, she was convinced that her perfect match was out there somewhere and would accept nothing less.

For a year, Queen Kuromiya was able to keep her jealousy on behalf of her daughter in check, but as more and more sutiors would bypass her daughter in favor of Sango, she could not hide her contempt very much longer. When she realized that. she went to the local henwife who was suspected to have ways to resolve her problem that the local priests and priestess shun.

Queen Kuromiya went to the small dark hut that housed Tsubaki the henwife. She found an old crone huddled in front of the fire stirring a caludren.

"And what would my gracious queen wish of me today?" the wrinkled old crone asked with out even turning around.

"You should look at me when you address me, Tsubaki" Kuromiya said haughtily unnerved by the old woman's perception.

Tsubaki turned her long white hair framing her wrinkled skin and kimino. "My lady queen seems out of sorts, what may your humble servant do to assist you out of your troubles" she smiled wickedly at the woman causing the queen to shutter.

"My daughter-in-law Sango has become haughty of late. So overconfidant in her beauty that she turns away suitor after suitor. This is what is troubling me as until she has married, my own daughter Akina will not be able to accept any suitors herself." Kuromiya replied. " I wish to find a way to teach her to not be as confidant in her beauty, without causing her too much harm" she quickly added sensing that a poison would have been suggested if she had not.

"My dear Lady Queen, I know of a spell that would satisfy your needs, but I need you to send the Princess Sango to me tomorrow morning before she has eaten anything." Tsubaki replied, "and my lady as payment for this service I will require that 2 coppers be paid for my eggs instead of the one you are currently giving me"

"Done, Sango will see you first thing tomorrow morning" the Queen then rushed away from the small little hut.

Meanwhile in another kingdom a thousand leagues away the young man that our princess was currently pining about, was talking to his best friend. His black hair was pulled back with a gold band into a short ponytail. With black and purple robes indicating his status as a buddist monk, and his violet eyes shinning, he watched the fields they were passing through on their horses. After hearing his friend snort following the line of his sight.

"What?" he turned to the silver hair youth next to him.

"Don't you ever quit?" he said with a laugh.

"What can't I appreicate the site of beauty, like the young ladies in front of us" the young man replied.

"Miroku, what will you do when you get married?" the silver haired youth smirked.

"I have never met one worthy enough to by my bride, though" Miroku mused "there is one that would be, if she grew up to her potential"

"What? When did you meet this beauty, surely she doesn't live around here." His friend said shocked that his letch of a friend would spend more than a few moments thinking about a girl.

"Well, my Prince Inuyasha" Miroku smirked knowing he hated to have his friend refer to him with his title "It was just before I came here. About ten years ago, I was attending the funeral of a great queen who had ruled next to my fathers lands. I met the most beautiful girl, I believe she was the daughter of the former queen. With eyes like the willow tree at the begining of the season, and her hair was the shade of the bark of the oak."

Inuyasha stared at the dreamy look that his friend's face had taken on. "She must have made quite an impression" he thought to himself, outloud he said "Geeze, you really sound like you fell in love"

"It was ten years ago, I am sure she forgot about me." he sighed

"Well, are we going hunting or not" Inuyasha spurned his horse and raced toward the forest with Miroku following on his heels.

A few hours later they were chasing a large stag through a thick part of the forest. Inuyasha had been able to follow their quary better than Miroku and the two were soon seprated in a mist that they had chased the white stag into. Inuyasha had followed his nose unwilling to loose such a hansome prize, only to find the stag waiting for him in front of a hill when his horse reared casting him to the ground. The next thing that the young prince knew his friend was bending over him trying to shake him awake.

"Wha...What happened" his groggy voice shook when adressing the concerned monk.

"Well we got seperated when this unnatural mist came up and you kept following that accursed stag, even after I called out to you about the possible danger, baka" Miroku answered. "and when the mist cleared your horse found me and I followed the trail of broken branches to find you here on the ground unconcious. Do you remember what happened after we got seperated?"

"All I remember is catching up with that damn beast here, then it is standing there like it wasn't about to die and then my stupid horse rearing scared and then nothing, just blackness till you started shaking me" Inuyasha seemed unusually subdued when answering him, and just kept staring at a rock next to the hill in the center of the clearing they were at the edge of.

"Well we better be getting back to the castle, we will have to use all our speed to get there though." Miroku decided to go to the safe line, "If we aren't back by full dark you know your mother will send a battlion with you the next time you want to go hunting."

"Oh, geeze" Inuyasha smacked himself on the forehead, "couldn't you have found me sooner? The sun is setting now" The monk helped the prince get to his feet and they both mounted their horsed and raced with all their might back to the castle.