Beyond the Darkness
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A/N: This is the InuYasha fanfic I've had in my mind for a million thousand years and I've finally written it out! Huzzah! I hope you enjoy it. I've got the entire story built in my mind. It's pretty good, if I do say so myself. I hope I can present it, just as well. ^____^ R&R please!! Muchas gracias! -Michele

::Prologue::

The fox-demon tribe was under attack. What was once a safe haven for the foxes was now a hellhole. Fire swallowed up the homes—the dens—of the foxes, burnt the trees and the grasslands, destroyed their village. Many fox-demons were killed. The fox-demon tribal ground was no more.

The Thunder Brothers were destroying everyone in their path. Hiten, the handsome demon with long, black braided hair and glistening eyes, and Manten, the younger brother with the horrid, lizard body rather than the handsome humanoid like his brother, were killing every fox-demon they came across. They were intending on leaving no survivors, and by the looks of things, it seemed their intentions were coming to a success.

A fox family, however, managed to escape from the destruction. Fear swallowed them whole as they hid behind a brush outside of their village, crouching and keeping quiet.

"Why are we stopping?" whispered the fox-demon woman frantically, holding her small, seven-year-old son in her arms. "We have a chance to run! We must take it!"

"You take Shippo and go ahead," the fox-demon man replied. The fox-demon woman and their son widened their big, topaz eyes.

"Tairoku!" she cried. "No! I won't let you!" Her eyes were so wide with fear. She grabbed hold of his hand tightly, looking into his handsome face and amber eyes. The small fox-demon child's eyes became watery.

"Pa, you can't leave us," he whimpered in protest to his father's decision. The fox-demon man smiled at him and ruffled his son's auburn hair, the same auburn hair that his mother bore. The fox-demon woman's long, auburn hair flew widely to the side as the wind blew past them. The fox-demon man's golden hair also whipped in the wind, only to be held together with an elastic band.

"Take care of your mother, Shippo," he said and kissed him on the head. The fox-demon woman tightened her grip on his hand and gritted her teeth, her eyes swimming in tears.

"No!" she cried. "You can't do this! You can't!"

The fox-demon man looked into the fear-filled eyes of his beautiful fox mate. Her body was flawlessly curved and draped with a short kimono with the same pattern as his son had on his own kimono. Her tail was long and golden, just like his son's, and small, pointy ears poked out from the top of her head.

Then, he glanced at his son, whom he adored so much, since he was birthed from such a beautiful woman. His son bore many of the features his mother had, including the big, sparkling topaz eyes and the soft, auburn hair. However, he did not bear his mother's little fox ears on top of her head, but rather the short pointy ones his father had on the sides of his head.
"Why? Why must you go? Why must you leave us?" asked the fox-demon woman.

"Because, Nikala, I am a warrior of this tribe. I must protect it," the fox-demon man answered.

"But there is nothing left to save! There is nothing left to protect! You will die for nothing! You will die in vain!"

The fox-demon man yanked his hand away from her grip, startling her. He then pulled her close to him by her shoulders so that their faces were inches apart.

"How will dying for my family be dying in vain?" he whispered very softly, and then pressed her face into his for a long, passionate kiss. The fox-demon child climbed out of his mother's arms so that he can let his parents be. The fox-demon woman wrapped her arms around her mate's neck and kissed him back, just as long and just as passionate.

And then, finally, the fox-demon man pulled away from the fox-demon woman. Her eyes were bloodshot from her many tears.

"Please don't go," she pleaded one last time, but the fox-demon man was not backing down from his decision.

He shook his head. "I'm sorry Nikala. I am not staying. I must fight for my village," he said. The fox-demon woman's eyes were still tear-filled and wide with horror. The fox-demon child looked up at his father with those same eyes.

"I love you, Nikala, Shippo," he said before he readied himself to jump out of the brush. "Go!"

The fox-demon woman nodded, grabbed her son, and ran. As she looked back, she saw her loved one transform into a beautiful golden fox and jump out into the open, running towards the Thunder Brothers.

"Ma, we can't leave Pa out there by himself. I'm a warrior of the tribe too," said the fox-demon child. His mother scolded him as she suddenly came to a halt.

"Don't say that! You are a child, Shippo! You cannot fight in war!" she cried. As she looked out into the distance, she could see her mate trying to fight off the powerful Hiten, now single-handedly. Her heart wrenched with pain; he had no chance.
The fox-demon child peered out of his mother's arms and watched his father fight for his family as well. He gulped, watching the older Thunder Brother brutally beat the poor golden fox.

"Pa," he whispered, quivers in his voice. The fox-demon woman felt tears drop onto her arms and realized her son was once again crying. She couldn't help but burst into tears herself. She knew she shouldn't be just standing there, watching now both Thunder Brothers beating her mate, but she couldn't move. She was so struck with fear and worry that there was nothing she could do.

And suddenly, Hiten had struck the fox-demon man with his lightening rod and the golden fox fell to the ground for good. After one last yelp, the fox was gone.

The fox-demon woman screamed and shielded her crying son's eyes. No, that couldn't be. He couldn't be dead. He just couldn't be.

He hadn't stood a chance against them anyway, just like she had said. Why hadn't he listened to her? Why had he just gone? They could have been starting a new life somewhere far away from the Thunder Brothers.

The fox-demon woman fell to her knees in constant sobbing. This couldn't be. How could he have died like that?

"I'm a warrior of the tribe. I have to protect my village."

Rubbish.

Sure, he was a warrior, but there was no village to protect, not anymore. And now there was no more of him. He was gone. Forever.

The Thunder Brothers could hear sobs off into the distance and immediately knew that there was a fox that hadn't been killed off. They instantly went and searched for it and soon spotted a fox-demon woman and a small fox child.

The fox-demon woman gasped and ran as fast as she could, squeezing her son with all of her might. Hiten, flying in the air with magical devices at his feet that allowed him to levitate, caught up to her instantly and smacked her across her back with his rod. She yelped and fell to the ground, the fox-demon child falling out of her arms.

"Run! Shippo, run!" she cried quickly, before Hiten slammed a foot onto her back to shut her up. She groaned in pain, and, as much as it killed him to leave his mother, he obeyed her wish and ran as fast as his little legs would let him.

"Manten! Make sure the fox child does not escape and kill him! Nobody escapes from the Thunder Brothers," Hiten ordered his younger brother, who nodded and obeyed, running after the fox-demon woman's little boy.

"No! You can't do that!" she cried. Hiten kicked her in the side and she yelped again, falling limp and weak. He rolled her over on her back to examine her.

Hiten licked his lips. He liked what he saw. Such a beauty, this fox-demon was, the most beautiful of all the other fox-demon women. And what a body she bore. A fairly large, perfectly round bust and nicely shaped hips with long, slender legs. Her auburn hair was fair and felt like silk in his hand and against his face.

"You are indeed a beauty," he murmured, grinning. The fox-demon woman gulped and widened her eyes in horror. She knew exactly what the Thunder Brothers did to beautiful women. "And you will taste exceptionally good."

They ate them.

As if that weren't terrifying enough. She'd rather be killed and left to rot than be somebody's chow.

"I won't taste like anything because I won't let you eat me," she coughed, trying to stay strong. Hiten merely laughed and slammed his foot on her stomach this time, making her gag and almost cough up blood. He leaned down towards her face, putting more pressure on his foot.

"Nobody speaks that way to me, my love," he whispered. She growled and spat on his face.

"Nobody calls me love unless they are my Tairoku!" she exclaimed, and suddenly she felt strong again because she was angry. She was extraordinarily angry. The fox-demon man had fought against the Thunder Brothers for his family. Now, it was her turn to return the favor.

Hiten's eyes glowered at her as he aimed his rod for her throat, but the fox-demon woman was surprisingly quicker. In an instant, she transformed into an auburn fox with angry red eyes and spewed out fire from her mouth into Hiten's face. He unintentionally removed his foot to block his face and she rolled out from underneath. Then, she got up on all fours and lunged toward him in a spiral, fire spewing from all directions. Hiten blocked her with his rod and aimed a bolt of lightening straight at her, only the fox-demon woman dodged it just barely and lunged for him again. She managed to get him from behind and gnawed at his neck. She tore off a chunk of his throat, making him bleed profusely, and he fell to the ground.
She knew it wouldn't be the end of him, but it was enough to stall him and make a quick getaway to finding her son. However, before she ran after her little fox boy, she ran over to her mate.

He lay lifeless in his fox form, not able to return to his man body. She whimpered and licked his face, praying for him to just get up and lick her back. But he wasn't going to. He never would. She suddenly burst into a loud, long howl, almost a roar, a cry of sorrow for her lost mate.

She wished to stay longer, but she could hear Hiten's groaning and rustling in the burning brush. Taking one last look at her mate, the fox-demon woman quickly ran. She knew that it was her duty to find her son. Her mate would always look after her and guide her through the way. He would guide her on her new journey.