Author's note: Hello everyone. Trying to get the creative juices flowing for my original fiction, so I'm back with another story about Inuyasha to just have some writing fun again. Enjoy.

Author's Note v2.0: This chapter was edited and uploaded on 10/24/17. Please bear with me as I slowly update each chapter. My goal is to have a final edit by the time the final chapter is posted.

Awesome Betas: Penthesileia, Not_Towa_Wakasa, Jennie Johnson

Disclaimer: I wrote my first Inuyasha fanfiction years ago. And still, I own none of the Inuyasha series or its characters. So sad.

.

.

Chapter 1: Legend of the Mirror.

.

.

Kagome

Hey, I had fun last night. :) Do it again?

Kagome Higurashi smiled down at her cell phone. She let her hair fall down around her face as she cupped the small handheld device in her hands. Phones weren't technically allowed on the tour, and her teacher would confiscate it if he saw her with it. But she'd had to ignore museum instructions to turn off all cell devices, because Hojou might text her.

And didn't it always come down to a boy in the end?

Quickly, her thumbs moved to text back, eyes flicking back up to see if anyone noticed her. Oh, Sango was giving her the evil eye. She watched her best friend mouth for her to put her phone away quick.

It's Hojou! Kagome mouthed back. Sango rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the tour.

I had fun last night too. :) Kagome typed, I'd love to do it again. This weekend, maybe? She shut her phone and pushed it into the back pocket of her jeans, eagerly awaiting the next little vibration telling her he'd texted back.

"Okay, if you'll all just follow me now – this way! Yes, stay together – gather around."

Kagome pushed her way through the throng of her history class and scooted up next to Sango, who rolled her eyes again at Kagome's giant, beaming grin.

"Oh God," she muttered, "Could you be any more smug?"

"I'm not smug," Kagome said, feigning insult. She couldn't help the giant grin from taking over her face.

"You have it bad." Sango, whispered, shaking her head. "How the heck did you get him to ask you out anyway? Hojou is super popular."

Kagome just shrugged. "I don't know, lucky I guess?"

It was true; luck seemed to follow Kagome around wherever she went. She liked to think it was because she was a good person, and she believed she put good karma out there. Her grandfather, ever the dedicated shrine priest, liked to think it was the petrified mummy's hand he kept trying to pawn off on her. He was old and, she was beginning to think, senile to boot.

"You do seem to have nothing but luck," Sango muttered, although it was said with a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

Kagome knew Sango was just teasing. In truth, her best friend since middle school wanted good things for Kagome. In fact, when Kagome initially called Sango in a panic because Hojou had just asked her out, she'd come rushing over so they could pick out an outfit to wear. She didn't let Sango do her makeup though, Kagome thought less makeup was better; Sango was a fan of the smoky-eyed look. She was rocking that look now, her winged eyeliner on point.

"This chamber we're about to walk into is old – so old in fact, that it was here before the museum was even built." The guide continued. "The artifacts we have on display down here date back to the Edo period, which is the period between which dates?"

Various hands shot up in the group and the guide pointed to someone closer to the front. "1603 and 1868," a female voice rang out, although Kagome's couldn't see her face through the crowd.

"Correct, very good. These artifacts are some of the most interesting because of the magic abilities they were believed to have had in those days," the guide smiled at the collective scoffs and eye rolls of the students. "Of course, we realize today that these pieces are not, in fact, magic, but try to let them take you back to a time where people truly believed that these artifacts granted great power, or gave wishes, or caused plague and curses."

The class followed the guide through the giant, arched, cave-like doorway and down the stone steps. The farther down they went, the colder it got and the darker it became. The only light source was the yellow, flickering spotlights illuminating the dozens of authentic, prehistoric torches lining the walls. They cast eerie shadows against the entirety of the walkway.

Someone bumped into Kagome from behind, pushing her roughly into Sango's side.

"Watch it," Hiromi sneered as she shoved by with a flip of her long, bleach-blonde hair.

"You watch it," Sango snapped back, her fists clenching at her side. Hiromi paid her no mind as she weaved between other students, her friends following alongside.

"Great," Kagome muttered under her breath, just loud enough for Sango to hear, "Hiromi's been out to get me for a few days now.."

Sango shook her head and nudged at Kagome with her shoulder, "Ignore her, she's just jealous because word got around that you and Hojou are dating. You know she's had a thing for him since freshman year."

"Yeah, but everyone's had a thing for Hojou since freshman year."

"I haven't."

Kagome shrugged, "You don't like anyone."

"I like you," Sango said with a wink.

"Aww," Kagome looped her arm through her best friend's, "I love you too!"

The museum had transformed into a cave as the girls stepped out of the walkway, with a handful of artifacts scattered around the room. A few other people outside of their tour wandered around from piece to piece, taking their own time, pointing and conferring their museum pamphlets.

The guide ushered the class forward until they stood in front of a giant mirror. The glass looked almost black, sitting inside the dark cave, and the thick, golden frame was inscribed with letters – at least, what Kagome thought were letters. They were artfully etched around the entire edge and completely unrecognizable.

"This," the guide said, in a theatrical, breathless manner, "is the Mirror of the Youkai," her eyes lit up with excitement, and Kagome wondered idly if she would ever have a job she enjoyed so much herself. "The Mirror of the Youkai is very exciting because of a few reasons," she continued, "the most intriguing, however, is the story behind it."

"The Mirror of the Youkai is said to be a cursed mirror. The legend goes: there was once a great Youkai, powerful, strong, and vicious. He raged through villages, killing off anyone who crossed his path, even devouring children. No one could stop him, he was said to be the bringer of death – the end of the world, so the speak."

The guide smiled, knowing she held the classes' interest now, which was hard to do with a bunch of rowdy seventeen and eighteen-year-olds. "Then one day, a priestess appeared. A powerful priestess. And she stood against the Youkai. It's said that their battle raged for ten days and nights, constantly warring with each other, never resting."

"The battle was intense and horrific, and just when all seemed lost, when it looked like the priestess might lose, she wove a spell. One so powerful and so intricate, that it overpowered the Youkai and trapped him inside this very mirror." She paused for dramatic effect. "It's said that the priestess must visit him every night at midnight to re-weave the spell, or his entrapment is broken, and he will be free to cause destruction again."

The class stared up into the deep, dark glass, and Kagome was no exception. There was something a little… off about it. She almost believed there was a three-hundred-year-old demon sleeping within, ready to execute his revenge on a world that had confined him and held him captive for so long.

Something about that mirror drew her in. She took a step towards it... another one…

"Kagome!" Sango hissed from off to her left. Shaking her head to clear the fog that had gathered, she realized the class was moving on to the next artifact. She hurried to catch up.

Two artifacts later, and Kagome was bored again. The mirror had been the only real interesting thing down there. She was in no way a history buff, her grandfather had seen to that by constantly shoving her own history down her throat. Kagome shared some similarities with the woman from the guide's story, in the fact that she, too, was a priestess. Although in these modern times, the title of priestess no longer carried the same mysticism or weight that it did back in the Edo period.

Heck, even in her grandfather's heyday, the title brought him more respect. People had caught onto the fact that there were no such thing as youkai, and Kagome's title of priestess was now more kitschy than real. However, that didn't stop her grandfather from wishing otherwise, and despite Kagome's obvious disinterest in her so-called 'priestess duties,' he insisted on filling her head with all the nonsense that came with her title. Shrine priestess this, and shrine priestess that… She'd much rather be spending her days shopping with Sango and flirting with Hojou than learning about her lame history.

It's not like being a priestess gave her any sort of actual power, like in the story the guide had told them. Maybe if life were truly that exciting… she thought.

Her hand unconsciously moved to touch her phone in her back pocket. She resisted the urge to whip it out and look at it again. It hadn't vibrated yet, she knew he hadn't text her. Nothing to do but wait.

Her eyes kept sliding back to that mirror.

A couple more artifacts later, Kagome had to use the bathroom. Telling Sango of her predicament, she moved through her class towards her teacher.

"Itou-Sensei," she said. "I have to go to the bathroom."

He peered at her through his thick glasses, "Fine Higurashi, quickly now."

She smiled, "Yes sir." It paid off being somewhat studious; a teacher's trust was great on field trips. She followed the dimly-lit signs to the bathroom, the only one down in this section of the museum.

When she made it to the doorway, she realized that the bathroom was actually at the very end of a long passageway.

Sighing loudly at the inconvenience of it all, she started down the hall. The only other door she passed was a janitor's closet. She reached out and grasped the door handle of the woman's bathroom, then let out a loud groan, her eyes falling on the yellow 'out of order' sign on the door.

Just great, she thought. Suddenly that giant iced tea she'd had during lunch seemed like a terrible idea. What had she been thinking?

...Ugh, she couldn't hold it. No way would she make it all the way up the stairs on the other side of the cave and make it to a different bathroom. She had to pee now.

Making her choice, she opened the door and stepped inside.

The bathroom was just as dark as the rest of the cave. She felt for a light switch and flicked it on, frowning at how the lights flickered two or three times before finally buzzing to life.

Creepy...

She ignored the yellow 'caution' sign propped up on the floor and stepped around it to open a stall. It wasn't the cleanest bathroom she'd ever seen, but it wasn't the worst, either. As long as she didn't touch anything, she should be okay.

As she settled in to do her business, the bathroom door opened and closed again. She heard the shuffling of feet. Strange.

Didn't they see the sign outside? She thought, then rolled her eyes. She'd seen it too, and it hadn't stopped her. Maybe someone else couldn't hold it in, either.

Finishing up, she stood and used her foot to push the handle down.

It didn't flush.

Sighing, feeling skeevy about leaving the toilet as it was, she stepped out from the stall.

And froze.

Hiromi and her gang of friends had crowded inside the bathroom. And now they stood between her and the door.

Great.

Why did she think the aggressive shove Hiromi had doled out earlier would be the end of it? Kagome had tried over the last few days to avoid Hiromi at all costs, and it wasn't working as well as she'd hoped. It didn't help that they shared a majority of classes together.

Hiromi and her friends were popular, just like Hojou was popular, but while Hojou was well-liked by his peers for his personality, Hiromi bought hers with her CEO father's money.

"What, no flush Higurashi?" Hiromi sneered, ever the polite one.

Kagome flashed her best please-don't-try-to-start-a-fight-with-me smile. ..It wasn't Kagome's fault that Hojou liked her better.

"It's out of order," Kagome replied as sweetly as possible. She could probably take Hiromi in a fight if it was one-on-one, but seven-on-one were odds she knew she was going to lose.

"Whatever," she replied with a nonchalant hair flip. She jutted her nose into the air. "I heard that you went out with Hojou last night."

Kagome felt her back stiffen. Here it came. "Ah, yeah, he took me out last night. It was nice. We played some pool and had dinner..." she didn't mention that she'd purposely played worse at pool than she knew how. Not that she was all that good, but she'd wanted a reason for Hojou to put his arms around her. Which he did, thank you very much!

"Oh, was it nice?" Hiromi sneered. Kagome was getting pretty damn tired of that sneer. "Did you guys have a nice time and eat nice food?"

She bit her lip, trying desperately to keep herself from saying something to make the situation worse.

"Did you fuck him?" Hiromi asked, her tone flat, her gaze hard.

Taken aback, Kagome couldn't help herself. "What? No! Not that it's any of your business!" she snapped, feeling anger building on the inside. What a total bitch. "Even if I had slept with him, it wouldn't be any of your business."

A wicked grin spread across her face. "See, that's where you're wrong, Higurashi," she said. Kagome struggled to hold her ground. She refused to take a step back, refused to show weakness. "It is my business if you're fucking him or not, because he's mine," she folded her arms across her chest. Then, to her friends: "Get her."

All six lunged at Kagome at the same time. Her hands came up to protect her face, but she couldn't do much against the sheer number of girls grabbing at her. Her hair, her clothes, her arms. They turned her around and shoved her face up against the bathroom stall, hard. They pushed her head against the metal, her arms twisted behind and pushed against her back. She tried to kick out, but they held her in a solid grip. She couldn't move.

"Now, now, what to do with you?" Hiromi purred from over her shoulder. Her gang of girls chuckled. "I could let you go," she continued, "if you promised not to go near Hojou again."

Kagome tried to hold her tears at bay. It just wasn't fair. He had finally asked her out, and they'd had an amazing time together. She laughed, he kissed her, she'd been happy. She didn't want to promise not to go near him.

"…No." She finally said, steeling herself against the onslaught Hiromi was sure to release.

It was at that very moment her traitorous cell phone decided to vibrate.

"Hey!" one of the six girls called, "I think she's got a text!"

She felt a hand slip into her pocket and pull out her cell phone. Please let it be Sango wondering where I am, she prayed, please, please, please let it be Sango.

She heard Hiromi flip open her phone. A long pause followed. Kagome couldn't move, couldn't turn to see Hiromi's face. She closed her eyes, hoping some of her natural good luck had come through at last.

"'We'll have to get together this weekend for sure,'" Hiromi read aloud. "'What do you want to do? Bowling? A movie? Anything you want, beautiful,'" Hojou's last word was a taunt falling from her lips.

Dammit, Hojou! she thought, your timing sucks.

Hiromi's red, scrunched up, angry face took up her field of vision. "You fucking liar. You did sleep with him! You're going to fucking regret the day you were born when we're done with you." She turned to her gang. "Find some rope or something in the janitor's closet, we'll tie her up."

Kagome felt her stomach drop. What the hell were they going to do to her? She knew that Hiromi was a little off her rocker, but she had no idea the girl was certifiably insane.

"Are you crazy?" Kagome cried, trying to struggle against the five pairs of hands now holding her down. She didn't do much better this time around. "What are you doing to do, tie me up and hang me by my feet?"

Hiromi stepped into her field of vision again, that wicked smile twisting her face into something inhuman. "The thought is tempting, but…. I think a little time to mull over everything you've done is just what you need. Right, girls?"

They chuckled again, muttering a 'that's right!' here and there.

"Something tells me," Hiromi continued, "that not a lot of people come down this way."

That was it; Kagome Higurashi's luck had run out.

She was screwed.

.

.

As always, comments and critiques are welcome. I'm excited about this one. Hope you've enjoyed! See you soon for the next chapter.

~SugarRos