Disclaimer:

Okay, for those of you who know me, you should assume that I hate most AUs. So…this is just as much a shock to me as much as it should be for you. This is my first Inuyasha AU!

The reason I started this is because many people have told me that writing an AU would be a challenge and I have needed a challenge for a while.

I know that many have already heard of a blind Kagome or even a blind Inuyasha in the Sengoku Jidai that came about because of poisoning or whatnot. Well, this is…a very original twist of that…which contains a lot of angst. This story is also in current times.

Before I get reviews and questions of "demon" or human identities, I'll say this now. Since there is no reason for all of the youkai to need powers or etcetera, they are all HUMAN. Don't worry much, though; I'll be sure to include some action and try my best to maintain in-character-ness.

The next few chapters will be loosely based on Helen Keller's life since watching a documentary on her is what sparked this new "project" for me.

Rumiko Takahashi is the only one who owns Inuyasha. I give thanks to Inu Youkai Wanna Be and Kagura615 for helping me edit!

Touga is the Inu no Taishou's cast name on the Inuyasha 3rd Movie though it is not his "official" name.

And without further ado, onto my very first AU! Hopefully, it doesn't suck…O.o;

Blackness

A birth of a new life requires celebration, right? What about the child's first words or steps?

For Touga and his wife, Izayoi, it was supposed to be that way.

With the birth of their new son, they should have realized that something was wrong with him when the baby had difficulty crying. The doctors waved it off as temporary, thus relieving the parents of the burden of worrying. After all, what parents would want to deal with depression and worriment on the day of their child's birth? Especially if the problem was dubbed as temporary and was experienced by many newborns in the first place…

The boy was a beautiful bundle, sure to make any mother and father proud. A light layer of black hair was on the boy's head. The infant made small gurgling noises and his newborn blue eyes gleamed with the light of curiosity the first time he had the chance to look up at his parents and older sibling.

The wonderment of the child and the small noises he was capable of making, reminded them of a small puppy. Thus, his name became "Inuyasha."

Within the first few hectic weeks of taking care of the baby, the infant's blue hues melted into the rare violet color of his father and brothers' eyes. The child acted like any other; crying when something was wrong and giggling when all was well.

By the time Inuyasha reached the age of eight months old, he began to crawl.

When he was one and a half, he began to speak his first words.

The family was happy with the exception of the small outbreaks that occurred between Inuyasha and his older brother who was six years old at the time. However, that was to be expected from a new older brother that was still adapting to getting less attention from his parents.

The next few years were fine as well with Inuyasha entering school at the age of five. He seemed normal until he caught his first illness…

"What is wrong with Brother now?" Inuyasha's eleven-year-old older brother, Sesshoumaru, demanded the afternoon he was released early from school by his step-mother. By no means was he upset for being taken out of school. However, he was concerned about his brother. Despite not being able to get along with him on a regular basis, he still loved Inuyasha.

By the tone of his voice, it meant that lately, his younger brother's condition was nothing that just happened overnight.

Unlike Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru was the product of Touga and his previous wife's marriage. After catching a rare form of cancer, Sesshoumaru's mother died, leaving Touga to cope with his two-year-old son. Since the boy was so young, he barely remembered his mother and was easily able to accept Izayoi after his father fell in love and married her.

Her dark brown eyes briefly glanced at the boy who she considered to be her biological son. "I…I honestly don't know, Sesshoumaru," she murmured, nearly choking on a sob. After making sure that both of their seat belts were on, she turned the car keys in the ignition and quickly pulled onto the road in a haste. "You know about his fever and illness not going away for the past month, I'm sure…" She took the car into a sharp turn, taking them to the center of Tokyo where the hospital was near.

"Well, it kept getting worse. This morning…Inuyasha began to throw a tantrum…" she continued, a small tear sliding down her cheek as she kept her eyes on the road.

"And how is that any different from his regular ones?" he asked, sounding skeptical. Despite only being ten, he was intelligent and understood most of the concepts that were explained to him.

"This time, he began to grab pots and pans and began to throw them around. He was making incoherent noises like he couldn't speak…and when your father arrived home after I called him, he tried to console Inuyasha…" Another tear slid down the woman's cheek. "…and…Inuyasha acted as if he couldn't even see him! He only stared straight ahead like an empty doll!"

"Where is he and Father?" the boy questioned in a sharp tone.

"They are both at the hospital of which we are heading to," came the simple explanation.

Sesshoumaru gave a nod, his shoulder-length black hair swishing behind him. "I hope he's all right…"

"I hope so, too."

After the two arrived at the hospital, they went in and asked for the room Inuyasha was taken to. Upon arriving to the small room, both were in the shock of their lives.

The young boy was strapped onto the bed set in the middle of the area. He was sleeping with one transparent tube placed in each pale arm.

Izayoi's eyes widened with sudden terror and anger. "What are they doing to him?!" she demanded to her husband, who was sitting in a chair that was next to the bed.

His face was buried in his hands. The man looked up, his expression noticeably solemn and full of sadness. It was evident that he was crying earlier based on the few streaks that were left on his face. "He…he kept struggling…" he only murmured as if his mind had already snapped.

"'Struggling'?" his wife echoed.

"Ever since he began his tantrum earlier, he hadn't stopped moving or resisting others until just an hour ago. He hasn't awoken ever since," Touga explained.

Sesshoumaru cautiously paced over to where his brother lay asleep. He grasped the unconscious boy's hand and squeezed it lightly. "Brother…" he only said.

The parents looked at the brothers with solemn expressions. Their eyes reflected sadness and frowned marred their lips, appearing more haggard than most people their age.

The moment of sudden silence was broken when a doctor walking into the room. His short, ruffled brick-red hair managed to shadow his deeply concentrated countenance. He stared at Izayoi and asked, "Are you Yamaguchi-san?"

"Yes," she replied, immediately answering and expecting the information she wanted. "Do you know what is wrong with him?"

The doctor shot her a look of sympathy. "I am sorry, but no…" he responded. He gave them all a small smile. "However, if he can keep him overnight, we may be able to figure this out. Although, I do know one thing and it is that this condition of his is not one that will take his life."

Both Izayoi and Touga let out small breaths of relief at the kind doctor's information. It was more news that they knew before he came in.

The woman cast a gaze at her son and looked up at the doctor once more. "Could you please un-strap my son from the bed? It will only make him panic more if he wakes up with them still on," she requested. "I'm sure that I'll be able to calm him down."

"Oh, of course," the doctor replied, immediately unbinding the white straps that held the boy to the bed. He was careful to keep the tubes on his arms since it kept the boy monitored and under medication for his leftover fevers.

"Thank you very much," she responded with a small smile in place. "May I ask what your name is?" she then questioned.

"Of course. You can call me Dr. Keiji," he answered. "Just buzz the red button here…" the man then instructed, pointing to said-button above the bed, "…if there is any trouble."

"We'll be sure to do so if any problems should arise," Touga managed to say in his gruff voice.

With those last words, the man nodded and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him and leaving the family by themselves.

Izayoi sank into a chair that rested beside her husband and felt another sob rack her body. "W-what are we going to do?" she demanded.

"Well, you heard the doctor," Touga said, trying his best to comfort his wife, embracing her and rubbing her back. "He said that it is not life-threatening."

"…Yes, but they still no idea what is wrong with Inuyasha," she pointed out.

While they argued, Sesshoumaru stayed on the opposite side of his brother and stared down at him. "Get up…" he commanded in a whisper as if the action would happen if he willed it to. "You're making Mother and Father worry."

The family stayed the night in the hospital. Neither Touga nor Izayoi slept while Sesshoumaru got to rest in a make-shift bed made up of two chairs placed together.

The older brother awoke to shouting made by doctors, nurses, his parents, and his sibling.

As expected, Inuyasha awoke and began to panic. Unfortunately, his parents underestimated the boy's strength and persistence, eventually needing assistance in getting the child to calm down.

After a few minutes, Inuyasha's breathing slowed and he stopped thrashing around like a fish above water. The medical personnel allowed sighs of relief to escape him. He was being less difficult to deal with.

Touga bent down to Inuyasha's ear and murmured, "Inuyasha, can you hear me?"

To this, the child gave no verbal response. He stared blankly at the ceiling.

Izayoi lightly shook her younger son in an attempt to get his attention. "Inuyasha? Please answer me!" she pleaded.

He harshly swapped his mother's hand away and remained motionless afterward.

Izayoi's eyes widened at the cruel reaction her son performed.

The same male doctor from the previous night rushed forward with a small stick with a bright light shining from the end. He quickly shone the light in Inuyasha's eyes. After getting no movement of the eyes or any physical reaction from the child, he came to a conclusion.

"He…he's blind…"

The Yamaguchi family all grew shocked as if they were all slapped across the face. How could their family member become blind?!

Izayoi and Touga both witnessed him the previous day when he stared blankly past them, but never did it register to them that he was blind!

A nurse questioned Dr. Keiji by asking, "However, would it explain his violent behavior…?"

"It would explain it if he was also deaf," the man responded in concentration. "His rash behavior is a reaction of panic and fear brought upon the fact that he is no longer able to communicate with the ones around him. His only way is to react is by violent actions until he can get someone's attention."

"But…how can you be so sure?" Izayoi could not help but ask in a quivering voice.

"He gave no response when your husband spoke to him."

"That could be for any reason!" Touga exclaimed in hysterics, desperately holding on to that last possibility. He wanted for more than anything in the world for his son to not be as limited as such.

The doctor sighed, waving a few of the nurses out of the room, leaving behind one female nurse and one other doctor. "We can run some tests just to be certain…"

"Good. Please do so, Dr. Keiji," Touga stated, his voice lowering in volume.

The doctor nodded and the remaining three hospital staff members in the room got a moveable bed into the area and placed Inuyasha on it with surprisingly little trouble. After the task was completed, they rushed out of the room, leaving behind worried family members.

Touga and his wife slumped back into their chairs. It was going to be another long night.

"H-how…?" Izayoi demanded, dropped down to her knees on the cold tile floor of the hospital. Her eyes held wild emotions within them. Sadness. Hurt. Shock. Fear.

Dr. Keiji shook his head out of sympathy for the distraught mother. "I am very sorry, Yamaguchi-san…"

In a comforting manner, Touga rested on his knees beside his wife and held her sob-racked body.

"My child…Inuyasha...h-he's blind and d-deaf!" she choked out, her hands covering her tear-streaked face.

Inuyasha's father looked up at the doctor with pleading eyes. "Is there no treatment that you can give him?" he questioned with desperation flavoring his tone.

Sesshoumaru merely stared at his brother's sleeping body in silent surprise. "He cannot see or hear…?" he whispered.

The doctor hung his head in front of the distraught father. "I am afraid not, Sir. Your son has a rare disorder that is called Usher syndrome. What is even more strange is that he had gotten the dormant type three to which there is no cure for. There is not even proper treatment for this disease," he explained, his voice heavy.

"Are you sure that it is this the 'Usher syndrome' of which you speak of?" Touga asked while still consoling his wife.

"Yes, I am certain just as much as my medical staff is," the doctor answered. "It has happened because of a mutation in one of his specific genes." He then looked at both parents with a concerned gaze. "Has there been anyone in your family that has had this condition?" he questioned.

"No…this is the first time that we have heard of this…disorder," Touga said. He pronounced the word "disorder" like dripping acid.

"Ah, very well then," Dr. Keiji mused. "Then it was caused by mere mutation…" He sighed. "This illness must have been dormant within him until this simple fever broke out…and now that the fever has receded, being blind and deaf is what is left behind."

His words rang true since the boy was no longer hooked up to tubes nor was he as pale as he originally was when he was taken into the hospital.

Izayoi stared up at the man and demanded, "Is there anything that we can do to help him?"

"Well, firstly, I would consider pulling him out of his normal school and placing him in a special communications school. Or…perhaps, even home-school him. Usher syndrome affects the retina of the eye and to treat the retina is a procedure that is still being developed!" he remarked, trying his best to give good suggestions. "As for him being deaf, no hearing aid will ever be able to work. He is about ninety-five percent deaf in both ears."

"It is that bad, already?" Touga gasped.

"Unfortunately," the man responded with a nod.

Another distraught sob escaped from the concerned mother. "H-how will we communicate with him?!"

"Through smell and touch," the man answered. "Those are your only available options…"

Upon hearing this news, Sesshoumaru cast another surprised glance at his brother. How could one pick on a brother who was handicapped? There was no fun in that! Not to mention, how could he mention this to anyone at school?

Deep inside though, the older brother knew that this meant that their relationship could never be the same again. That was what made him the most depressed.

Silence echoed through the room when everyone noticed that Inuyasha began to rouse once more. He made a tiny noise that sounded like a growl. His sightless violet eyes roamed around the room as he sat up from his bed.

"Is he going to go berserk again?" Sesshoumaru wondered out loud.

Izayoi stood up on shaky feet and calmly shook her head. "No, I don't think so. At least not this time…" she answered. She cast a gaze at the doctor and then requested, "May we check him out of the hospital since there is nothing more that you can do for him?"

"A-are you certain that you want to do that so quickly?" Dr. Keiji stuttered, caught off guard by the sudden question.

She scowled at him. "You just said that there was nothing that you could do for him so why should we waste our time here any further?"

Touga mentally cringed. It was the first time since she was pregnant with Inuyasha that he had seen her frown. Nothing was well in the world if one ever saw Izayoi Yamaguchi scowl.

The medical official was stumped by what she uttered. "Uh, if you are sure about leaving so soon." Sighing, he added, "However, I expect him to come back for frequent checkups and if something goes wrong, you can always call the emergency number."

"I understand," she nodded, her frown quickly getting replaced with a calm expression.

After an hour of further discussion, getting Inuyasha situated in the car, and signing papers, the Yamaguchi family was on their way back to their house to which was situated on the outskirts of Tokyo.

For the next six years, the family began life anew with Inuyasha's new conditions. About once a week, the boy had to be taken to the hospital and he became home-schooled.

He had to relearn how to walk on his own by merely feeling around the house and smelling the rooms. When he first returned to his home, he felt like a stranger in the place even though he lived there all of his life. It was a completely new and unfortunate experience for him.

As he grew older, his tantrums occurred less and less until they stopped completely around his parents. By this time, he was able to recognize them by their hand shapes when they touched him and by their familiar scents.

However, since Sesshoumaru became more and more distant due to his newly found teenage life and lack of communication with his brother, Inuyasha still occasionally lashed out at him. After the first few times, their ties as brothers grew thin on the prospect of liking one another.

Touga and Izayoi tried their best to make the two get along, but nothing really seemed to work. The family communicated to the boy by use of touching his arms, chest, or face in certain ways to show him what they meant. He merely learned to copy and interpret the "language" on his own.

Because of fear of people not understanding Inuyasha's condition, his parents agreed to home-school him though the boy learned very little considering how he communicated. After a year, they stopped his schooling altogether.

For these few years, this was how life was for the family. That is until the inevitable happened…

It was a dark and wet road Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha's parents drove on. They were rushing back to their home so they could be in time for Inuyasha's eleventh birthday.

The route they took was empty…or so they thought...

A rather large freight truck was rushing at an even higher speed in the opposite direction. It did not help that the street was already narrow with only one lane on each side.

The Yamaguchi's took a turn a bit too fast and was immediately blinded by the bright headlights of the truck. They collided with each other. The front of the family's red car was quickly crushed; the front window shattered.

The parents were killed instantly.

When word was released that the parents were killed, the brothers were devastated.

Well, Inuyasha did not exactly get "word" of it. Rather, he felt it in the air. There were the rare soft touches of his brother's hand on his arm. He felt the wetness of a teardrop and smelt the salt in the air. He never knew that his brother could cry. It would be the only time in his life that he would be able to have that experience with Sesshoumaru.

In return, for the first time since he was ill, Inuyasha also shed tears out of his sightless eyes. They brothers shared a long embrace before the elder brother walked out of Inuyasha's room.

Sesshoumaru said nothing to no one the entire day. It was as if his system completely shut down. After that intimate moment with his brother, he refused to shed tears for the rest of the day. It was as if he turned emotionless.

Instead, he stared out of the small window in his room. He watched the rain fall down outside—watched it hit the transparent glass hard. The rain showed the emotions that he refused to show any longer.

With them was an old woman sent there by children's services. The worker had seen the boys before when she had to check up on Inuyasha and make sure that the family's house was a good environment for the child.

Now, she had to determine whether or not it was safe for the seventeen-year-old was old enough to take care of Inuyasha. The woman knew that after witnessing Inuyasha's tantrums a few times that he would not listen to reason unless it was from his own family.

The short, white-haired woman knocked on Sesshoumaru's door and after hearing no response, walked in cautiously. "Excuse me, Sesshoumaru-san?" she called out in a solemn voice.

He gave no answer, but turned away from the window to stare at her.

The expression on his face put her on edge. His eyes almost looked empty. His countenance was that of cold ice.

She cleared her voice nervously and continued. "I understand the sadness you must be experiencing—"

He cut her off. "Truly? I am only left with a brother that cannot even communicate with me properly. I have just discovered that my parents are dead because they rushed home to see him." The style by which he referred to his brother in was chilling. He sounded regretful and hateful.

Sure, he cried with Inuyasha just a few minutes before, but it did not change the fact that he knew that deep down his parents sped to their deaths in order to see Inuyasha. Not him. His brother.

She bowed her head in a fashion of forgiveness. "I am very sorry. You are right. I cannot understand your emotions at the level you are at currently. However, there are a few issues I must discuss with you even though it may be difficult…"

"I am aware of why you are here, Kaede-san," he replied curtly. "You want to determine whether or not I am capable of raising Inuyasha on my own."

After she gave him a nod, he continued. "Seeing that I am the only one who can make limited communication with him, there is no use to assign him another caretaker."

"I see where you are getting to, but you are still underage. I still will have to check up on you often if this is allowed by my office," Kaede explained.

"Very well then. You can come and check up on us if you are doubtful," he concluded, his eerily icy tone not expressing the frustration he inwardly felt.

"It is not that simple."

"It is not?" he echoed, raising his eyebrow.

"No," she answered. "See…if it is found that you cannot take care of Inuyasha-san then he is to be taken to a special handicapped center."

He gave her a small nod of understanding. "I understand."

"It is a blessing that your parents left behind a substantial amount of money for you two to live on," the woman commented. "Otherwise, both of you would have already been taken away from here."

It was true at what she said. The Yamaguchi family was surprisingly wealthy. Touga was a top executive at the Toyota Company. It was the reason that they were able to afford Inuyasha's outrageous hospital bills and still live fairly comfortably.

"So…if you could please sign these?" Kaede requested, handing Sesshoumaru several papers.

The teenager took the papers and did as he was asked. After giving the old woman the parchment, he asked, "Is that all you came here for?"

"Yes, I believe so," she replied.

"Then, by my request, could you please leave me and my brother alone for a bit?" A flash of depression shone in Sesshoumaru's eyes for a brief moment, making Kaede realize that despite hiding his emotions, he was still greatly troubled by his parent's deaths.

She was taken aback by his sudden tone of pleading. "Uh…of course," she stuttered out, walking out of the boy's room. Before closing the door behind her, she called out, "Goodbye, Sesshoumaru-san."

He gave her no acknowledgment. He merely turned his attention back towards the window as if she did not exist to him.

Before she left the house, she paced to Inuyasha's room and softly glanced at his slumped over form in the darkness.

The boy knew that he was no longer alone in the room based on the new, foreign scent that drifted in his room. He turned in her direction and the expression that he gave her chilled her heart.

Tears trailed down his cheeks and despite not being able to see through his eyes, his expression still resembled despair. In one motion, he managed to punch his fist into the floorboards, busting out a small hole.

This simple motion made Kaede know that he did not care about her presence. He was only expressing his emotions in the only way he could—by using violence.

A single tear slipped down the old woman's face. She could feel the utter pain in the air. "You poor boys…" she sighed, backing out of the room. She walked out of the house and shut the door behind her.

Left behind in the dark house, were the two brothers, now more alone than ever.

Sesshoumaru now had no family members that were alive besides the brother he could not even talk to.

Inuyasha now had no one to communicate with that could understand his condition. Sesshoumaru was one who could interpret what he needed or wanted, but it was not as if he could get along with him.

This was merely the beginning of the darkness—the blackness of Inuyasha's life.

A/N: Yes, Usher syndrome is a real disorder. It is very rare to acquire also. In all honesty, I'm not sure if it can be acquired in Japan because it is said that the geographic location determines where the syndrome "strikes." Inuyasha has type III Usher syndrome which is even more rare than the other two types.

This is a link that tells you more about this disorder: http // en. wikipedia. org / wiki / Usher syndrome

I know that there is now such a thing where one can use sign language with blind people as well, but the main reason that no one was assigned to Inuyasha was because of his temper. He was never comfortable with others.

I am aware that this prologue is a little "dark," but it will get a little more "happy" in later chapters. However, the one problem I have with this fan fiction is that I cannot guarantee that I will update regularly. I have many other fanfic projects to work on and I uploaded this fic merely to see the reactions of my readers because this is my first ever AU fic. Hopefully, this is a good start to an awesome fan fiction.

I hope I will never have to write this much A/Ns again because I'm sure that it's annoying to the readers as well as it is for me to write them. Haha.

Please review! Criticism is welcome.

Ja ne!