This Alternate Reality story is (as of now) far from complete… I do have an ending in mind, and I could always skip ahead to it, but… where would the fun be in that? All characters belong to Takahashi-dono (bow, bow), except for those I may invent along the way. Enjoy!

"A Twist in Time", Chapter 1: Chaos Theory

"Inuyasha!"

The shrill whistle of an arrow in flight cut through the noisome tumult of the burning village he had just plundered.

THUNK. Inuyasha gasped as the Shikon Jewel slipped from his hand. Its chain jangled as it bounced once before rolling to a stop.

"Kikyo, I thought… why, Kikyo?"

The young half-demon couldn't believe his eyes. He watched in horror as the woman he had grown to love staggered and fell, blood oozing from horrific gashes in her left shoulder. "Kikyo!" He tore madly at his fire-rat robe, but the tough fabric would not give. Of all the times… He untied the sash that bound it around his waist, and dropped to the ground beneath the Sacred Tree.

No… how could I have missed him? That sudden breeze threw off my aim… where did it come from? Kikyo drew a last ragged breath as she knelt down.

"Kikyo? How… what happened to you?" Inuyasha raced to his love, and gently placed his clawed hand over her wound. What do I do?

Kikyo could not keep the tears from her springing to her eyes. Visions of a dream that would now never come to fruition swam before her. "Damn you, Inuyasha… damn you forever!" she whispered. Her weary heart stopped, and her body went limp in his arms.

He fell to his knees, stunned. What happened? Who did this to her? He looked up to see Kikyo's little brat sister standing over them in stunned silence.

"You foul demon!" she screamed suddenly. "You saved my life, and claimed to love my sister, and this is how you repay her??"

He scooted back frantically. "I didn't do anything!" he insisted. "She shot at me a few minutes ago by the meadow, and I assumed she had betrayed me! So I came here to steal the Jewel from the shrine."

"My sister took the Jewel with her, you liar!" The proud young girl held a beaded necklace up between her index fingers, and glared menacingly with her one good eye.

"What… what is that?" stammered Inuyasha, suddenly very uneasy. Kaede responded by closing her eyes and chanting softly under her breath. Then she opened her eyes wide, and the necklace burst into streamers of light.

The streamers wound their way through the air, leaving afterimages on his retina. Inuyasha rubbed his eyes to clear them, and found the necklace had reappeared, whole, on his own neck. "What is the meaning of this, brat?!"

"They are beads of subjugation, Inuyasha. Kikyo warned me that if you ever became violent, I was to use them on you if nothing else would contain your fury."

He eyed her suspiciously. "And they're supposed to stop me how?"

"With a word."

"A word?"

"Aye. A word of my choosing. And I choose… kokuzoku!!"

The necklace pulsed, and Inuyasha found himself pulled to the ground violently. He gingerly pushed himself off the ground as the spell's effect faded.

"Damn! What did you do to me?"

"Nothing you didn't deserve, kokuzoku."

Inuyasha thudded to the ground again. At least it didn't hurt as much this time… but it would suck to have to crawl everywhere…

Kaede retrieved the Jewel from where it fell, ignoring his plight.

"Hey, just hear me out!"

"Why should I listen to you?" She turned on him, tears spilling from her cheeks.

"Because I didn't kill Kikyo! I stole the Jewel, yes, but I'd never harm her… I… I loved her… but something hurt her, that's for sure."

"Obviously," she snorted. "Now get out of here."

"Not until I figure out what happened to her, dammit!"

"Fine. You go do that. I have to make arrangements for my sister's cremation. And don't you dare come around here again, Inuyasha!"

"Feh." He dashed away.

Kaede knelt by her sister's corpse. Already the warmth had fled from her body. She wept silently while the villagers gathered around her to offer their comfort. But she would have none.

xxxxx

Inuyasha slalomed through the trees, searching for the spot where Kikyo had shot at him. He backtracked his own scent, but the winds had shifted, and it took some time before he reached his destination.

There they were, the three arrows meant for him. He stood before the tree, and cautiously reached out to pluck one out.

"Huh?" He was shocked when it came out with no argument.

If these arrows were from Kikyo, they would have had at least a little spiritual power in them… but the aura surrounding these arrows seems almost… demonic!

He puzzled over this mystery for a while, then made his way back to the village. From the edge of the woods, he could see Kikyo's funeral pyre being constructed. The river flowed lazily through the village, blissfully unaware of the tragedy that had just occurred. Just yesterday, we were on that river together… I was going to become human today… and now…

It was too much for him to bear. His dream of being with her, of living out his days – however short they might be – in peace, had been ripped from him by an unknown malignant force.

The scream ripped from his lungs and he collapsed to the ground in sobs. It was a scream of neither fear nor anger… it was the sound of a soul wallowing in the depths of a custom-made hell.

"KIKYO!!"

xxxxx

Kaede snuffled loudly as the flames devoured the body of her beloved sister. She didn't care if anyone heard. Not that anyone could; the roar of the flames drowned out her sorrowful noises. But to Kaede, the sounds she produced were louder than anything in the world right now.

The crowd that had gathered to pay homage to Kikyo slowly drifted away in twos and threes, until Kaede was left alone before the glowing coals. She was weary from standing for so long, but she didn't feel she had the right to rest until the deed was done.

And so she waited. Her wounded right eye itched terribly, but it was trivial compared to the ache in her heart. Kikyo… you were all I had left. And now, I have to carry on without you. She gazed at the Shikon Jewel, still glowing a bright violet. At least the Jewel is still pure. But what do I do with it now?

She thought back to the day the Jewel of Four Souls had come into their lives. When those demon-slayers gave it to Kikyo, it was tainted with evil. They said they got it from a demon that called itself Mistress Centipede, whose body they cast into the Bone-Eater's Well. Kikyo had come back inside the hut they shared, and declared that she had been chosen to make and keep the Jewel pure. Pure? Impure? What is the Shikon Jewel, anyhow? Kaede wondered. It seemed like such a small thing, yet Kikyo said it was capable of greatly increasing the natural abilities of humans and demons alike… enough, even, to make Inuyasha a human… or a full demon.

Kaede had seldom heard of half-breeds… hanyous, Kikyo had called them. They were outsiders, shunned by both their human and demon kin. Inuyasha was a hanyou.

I never saw much of him, but he did save my life that one time… he seemed nigh invincible then. Only Kikyo could ever stop him. Why does he desire the Jewel so? I think I should learn some more about these hanyous.

She sighed heavily as the last coal on the bier burnt itself out. But I cannot leave the village now… I am but a novice, but I am the closest thing they have to a priestess now. I cannot shirk my responsibilities. She slowly began to scoop up the ash from the bier into a clay urn. She thought of the empty hole on top of the hill that would soon be filled. She fills that hole even as she creates one in my heart… will all the holes in this world ever be filled?

The Jewel around her neck sparkled silently. I need help, she decided firmly. I cannot protect both the Jewel and the village on my own. I must try to find another priestess to keep the Jewel pure. She wracked her brains as she climbed the steps to the shrine on the hill. There's that priestess with a spear… but didn't Kikyo say Tsubaki placed a curse on her? I don't know of any others. I guess I'll have to take my chances.

She placed Kikyo's ashes into the small hole, and pushed the dirt around the edges inside, sealing away her sister for all time.

xxxxx

From above the shrine, a sinister voice hissed in frustration. Things had not gone according to plan! Kikyo was gone, to be sure, but the Jewel remained pure despite her demise. "She was supposed to kill him, and wish herself to stay among the living… her malice would have tainted the Jewel beyond even her ability. As it is, I still cannot touch it, or it will purify me! I must find someone else willing to steal and taint the Jewel for me…"

The demon skittered down the back of the shrine on its eight legs, and disappeared without a trace into the night.

xxxxx

A/N: If you didn't know, kokuzoku means "traitor". I have edited this first chapter after realizing belatedly that several characters I use when typing (asterisks, etc.) do not transfer properly. The "xxxxx", therefore, denotes a change in the POV, where there used to be a row of asterisks. Also, bold words are sound effects or emphasized dialogue, and italics are used to indicate a character's thoughts, original Japanese terminology, a brief flashback, or emphasized dialogue. Hope that clears things up. I will endeavor to correct these flaws as soon as possible in all currently published chapters of both this and my three other fics.

- JediHanyou