Prologue- Who could ever love a half-demon?

Once upon a time…

...in a castle, buried deep within a forest... there lived a prince. His name was Inuyasha and he was born a half-demon. His father had died when he was still a baby and his mother died just a few years later. Ever since she had died, Inuyasha didn't experience the joys of being loved. He was half demon… half human… and he had no place to belong… and by the time that he realized that… he was all alone.

He grew up believing trust and love was weakness and weakness must be disposed of immediately.

And so he remained cold and distant. He ignored those around him and if he did talk he was rude and hurtful. Then one freezing, winter night an old beggar woman came to his door. It was dark and cold for it was late at night during a storm. There, stood a hunchback hag, her body was short and plump, curved around because of her hunchback and her crooked neck. She wore peasants clothes made of very scratchy material, (he figured it was scratchy because she could not stop scratching herself) her dress was an ugly green and she had a very simple shawl, which was really just a cloth of purple, draped over her shoulders.

She had hair growing in her ears and had a big crooked nose with a wart on it and her skin was a nasty yellow color, but there was a very strange thing about her eyes. Her eyes contrasted completely with the rest of her appearance; they were remarkably beautiful, such a beautiful glowing blue, and without any imperfection to them.

She beseeched him to allow her shelter until the storm was gone. "For you kindness I offer this. Something that could change your life…" she then pulled out a jewel no bigger than a large marble and glowed with a soft pink light.

As soon as he laid eyes on the little jewel he did something she did not expect. He laughed. Not a kind gentle 'come in and warm yourself' kind of laugh. No this was a cold harsh laugh, a mocking sound at her suffering.

After he finished he spoke in a cold voice, "What use do I have for a marble? I have everything I need right here. Why should I help you? You have nothing of value and you're nothing special. Leave before I force you to."

The woman's eyes turned a mixture of sadness and pity, and then anger swept over them as her eyes beaded, "Fine then, but are you sure? For you must know that things aren't always what they seem. Appearances can be deceiving, for true beauty lies within," she asked kindly.

"Yes, I am very sure that I don't want a creepy wench in my castle to scare the life out of me and to poison everything I own by her simple touch." With that he abruptly shut the door in her face. He had not gotten more than a few steps before the door blew open as if by a powerful wind. He swiftly turned around, the old woman was standing there and was chanting magic words that he thought sounded like a priestess chant, and then the old woman's ugliness had melted away until, there was not a hag there anymore, but an impossibly beautiful woman remained there.

She had long, black hair in a ponytail, beautiful fair skin, and wore the red and white attire of a priestess. But the prettiest thing about her was her eyes, such beautiful glowing blue eyes with no imperfections in them, wait! Were those the eyes of the hag he had just seen? Was she the very same woman? She couldn't have been! Surely he was just imagining it! But then...

"Hello, Inuyasha," she spoke in calm, soothing voice. "I am Head priestess Kikyo, I am the hag that you had just spoken to. You see I am a priestess and as you saw… a very old one. I have learned many things in my life. Many of which involve the deaths of demons and half-demons as yourself."

She smirked a little when she saw the color drain from his face. "I came to your castle because I was curious if you were someone who does not care about how others look, but for who they are. I came here to test you and now that I have, I can see that you failed, you judged me for how I looked, not who I was, and now I shall punish you for your behavior."

Inuyasha stood back, crouching down, preparing for an attack, but she didn't even raise a finger. "I am not a cruel person," she said calmly. "I am not eager to judge death and punishment… not even the wisest nor the most powerful beings know everything. My heart tells me that there is something, deep inside you that has yet to become free and I intend to bring it out."

"What the hell are you talking about?" he shot back.

"You don't have to fear death but you still have a lot to worry about. Being the kind person I am, I have decided to give you another chance. From this moment forward you will be a true demon. You will act mainly on instinct. Your demon blood will control most of your actions. You will still maintain your thoughts but for most of the time… you will not be in control. Also the members in the castle will turn into demons too. Each fitting their own personalities. They on the other hand will always be in control."

She sighed in pity as she saw the look of horror on Inuyasha's face. She went on, "I now give you this. It is but a small fragment of the jewel you scoffed. Slowly it will become whole. If you can learn to love another, and earn her love in return, by the time the jewel has become complete… then the curse will be gone and you will revert back to your normal selves. I wish you luck until then." With those final words she left him.

And as soon as she left, the beautiful palace had turned into a dark castle, surrounded by dead trees and an enchanted mist which hid the castle from view. And of course, just as she had said, Inuyasha, was now a pure demon; his eyes had turn a blood-red color, his fangs and claws grew painfully long, and purple, jagged stripes had appeared on his face. The transformation was painful and he curled up on the floor, shaking and cringing, trying to block out his pain. All of the people who lived in the castle had also changed into demons, although they suffered no pain.

And so he waited… it was all he could do, for sometimes the pain from his face and hands where so terrible there were periods of time where he couldn't move. Only curl up into a ball and wait for his pain to pass over. As the years passed, he fell into despair… and nothing that anyone would say to him would ease the pain in his heart… for how could anyone fall in love with a monster?

(I decided to do a quick revision of the prologue.)