This prologue is in Kagome's point of view. Hope I don't offend the Kouga lovers out there! Gomen! No song in here, but the first part was written to Linkin Park, Meteora. Very nice background music for that scene!

Enjoy! Ja ne!

~Sabichan~

I don't own Inu and Co., but they seem to own me...

'in italics' : thoughts

"in quotations": speaking.

Prologue #2

I fell down the last few stairs and landed in a heap in front in of the door. In a split second I was back on my feet and jerking the door open. As I threw my body outside into the rain, I kicked off my remaining shoe. The damn thing had made me fall in the first place. I'm sure if I wasn't in such a hurry, I would have thrown it as far as I could.

"KAGOME!!!"

Like a whip at the back of a horse, his scream drove me to run faster than I could have imagined possible. It was so loud, I could have sworn he was right in back of me. I reached the end of the driveway and my eyes scanned the street feverishly. It then dawned on me that I had indeed not driven here. He had brought me. I glanced down, suddenly noticing the biting pain in my hand. Upon opening it I burst into an even harder sob.

I wanted to fall to my knees and thank every god I knew and then some for this blessing. There in my right hand were his car keys, which I had been clutching so hard during the chase, that the dull edges had broken the skin. He screamed again and I placed it as coming from the top of the stairs.

'he's coming!'

That got me moving again. I dashed to his car and fumbled to get the now bloody key into the lock. I jumped in just as he reached the front door.

I could see his face and the anger radiating from his eyes were enough to let loose a new batch of tears and whimpers. If I didn't get away he was going to kill me. First he would rape me. Then he would rape me again. And maybe once more for good measure.

Then he would kill me.

I don't remember starting the car. I don't remember ever being that good at driving stick-shift. I do remember him chasing me half way down the street still screaming my name.

When I got to a stoplight at a good distance away, I broke. I screamed and thrashed and beat the steering wheel. I cursed his name, his family, the car I was in, the scent of his cologne which seemed to emanate from every inch of the interior.

I couldn't help it. I was still drunk. Even if I hadn't been intoxicated, I probably still would've freaked. If I had been sober though, I would have remembered to drive when the light turned green. I was too busy wishing him to hell. When I finally stopped yelling, I looked up and wondered why the light was still red.

I finally started to drive and stalled. I tried again with the same result.

A tap on the window drew a startled scream from me. Luckily instead of a very angry young man, I saw an older policeman observing me. I let out a sigh of relief and rolled down the window.

"Evening ma'am. Everything alright here?"

"No...nothing's alright. you have to help me, please!!" I chocked out between sobs.

"Tell me what's wrong so I can help you. Just stay calm ok, miss. You're safe now."

His words did calm me and I tried to gather my thoughts that were swimming through my head.

"He...He tried to-"

Suddenly his radio broke in and he listened intently.

"Just hang in here a second honey, I need to answer my radio and then we can help you out."

I nodded and meekly sank back into the seat as he walked back to his car. I watched his every move in the rear view and side mirrors. I immediately knew something was wrong. The way the concerned look on his face dropped. He took a long look over the car, concentrating on the license plate. He nodded and answered and showed no signs of hurrying back to comfort me. In fact he looked almost...annoyed.

`I have to run' I thought suddenly.

And the thought went around in my head like a chant. As quickly as he had appeared the first time, the officer was back at the window.

"Would you mind stepping out of the car, honey. We can talk a little better out here."

Even as the alarms went off in my head, I still complied. I leaned against the car, the pavement cold against my bare feet. He gave me the once over and I could only imagined how bad I looked.

"Have you been drinking tonight, miss?"

"Yes, but-"

"Do you have any ID on you?"

"No, I left it-"

"Are you of legal age to be drinking?"

"No, I just turned 18, but please let me-"

"Is this your car, miss?"

I froze. It was all clear to me what had happened. What that voice over the radio had told him. What HE had told them. That I had "assaulted" him because I was drunk. That I had freaked out and stole his car, too. That this was all my fault. That I was the one to blame.

"No. It's not and you know that don't you.?" I said in a low voice. Suddenly I didn't feel so fuzzy.

"Then may I ask why you are driving it when you have been drinking, illegally?"

"Don't patronize me. That fucker already got to you, already told you what happened. Why don't you just arrest me, or better yet," I began to yell, "Why don't you just take me back there! Just take me and throw me back in the wolf den, huh?! Let him have his way, because either way, you'll get paid! I know how this works!"

"Calm down, or I'll be forced to restrain you."

"No! I will not calm down! Not till I've had MY say! He was going to rape me!! You take me back there and he won't just stop there! HE'S GONNA KILL ME!!!" With that I thrust my fist into the driver side window. It shattered and it felt like my hand did too. But I was so angry that I could hardly feel it.

Before I knew it, he had me pinned against the car and was handcuffing me. I tuned him out as he began to inform me of my rights. Rights that deep inside I knew meant nothing , because no words or promises were going to save me.

I was in a lot of trouble.

"Kouga...how could you..." I whispered bitterly as my tears fell. As if on cue, thunder boomed and it began to rain.

**1 month later**

"Miss Higurashi,... Kagome....this can all be solved if you just sign here. You have to understand the consequences if you don't. You'll be tried as an adult, Kagome. You'll be convicted, that is sure. And then you'll go to prison for a year. Your future will be over before you can even begin. But," he smiled cockily, "if you chose to agree to our terms, all criminal charges will be dropped. Your record will be completely clean, and we can all just put this little incident behind us. And you can go to college and live a happy and successful life. You just sign and everything goes back to normal, Kagome."

I stared at him hatefully. Oh how I wished looks could kill. Of course they'd just charge me for that too. Too bad though. The world could do without one greasy lawyer. `Yes, especially this winner right here.' I thought bitterly.

Here I was, in a tastefully done art deco office being coerced to sign my soul to the devil. The whole "incident" as he so eloquently put it, had occurred a month ago today. My life everyday since then had been pure hell. After I was arrested that night, this fine specimen of humanity had crawled out from the slimy rock he'd been living under to shut me up and shut me up fast.

You see Kouga is the only son of the richest man in town. And in town, I mean the whole damn city. His real estate corporation had turned a once desolate decaying urban cesspool into a thriving metropolis. His father was not such a bad man, despite the fact that he wasn't much of a parent. And with Kouga's mother long gone, the boy had turned out to be nothing short of a monster.

Of course when I met him I had no idea.

When a handsome young man with more money that you can possibly imagine comes calling on the grand-daughter of the local shrine keeper, you don't wonder why. You slap a pretty smile on her face and shove her in his arms.

I was not one to argue with them, though. I had to admit, he was extremely charming. He fell in love with me within the first week, and proclaimed it far and wide across the land. I was seventeen, he was nineteen, and his father was already planning our wedding.

I for one could never figure out why he had any interest at all in me. I mean I don't have low self-esteem or anything, but...I'm really kinda plain. I'm nothing extraordinary compared to the hundreds of other girls around here.

About five months into the relationship, I began to understand who Kouga really was. And it was scary. When he got mad...

Well he never hit ME. It was usually just the wall next to my head.

But I didn't leave. I couldn't. You see, you just don't leave Kouga. Once he's kissed you, he owns you. And he lets you know that every single fucking moment you're with him.

I tried my best to change him, calm him down, but to little avail. Eventually I settled for simply making the best out of his good moods, and making myself scarce during the bad.

Then came the night of my eighteenth birthday. I couldn't believe how sweet he was that night. It was like we'd gone back in time, and he'd become the boyfriend I once believed I loved. He took me to dinner and then back to the bungalow his mother had bought him long ago. Then he got me nice and drunk on what he told me was some very fine wine. I should have been more suspicious. I should have been more cautious. I should have been fucking paranoid. Maybe then I wouldn't be in this mess.

Well, after he got me wonderfully blitzed, he started talking about how he wanted to make love to me. How he wanted to be my first and my only. How he wanted to make me scream in pleasure.

How he wanted to taste my blood and feel the softness of my flesh with his teeth. How he wanted to hear me scream in pain.

`oh shit...'

Needless to say, I got scared. Not just scared. I nearly fucking pissed myself. That's when he started kissing me and touching me and licking me. When I didn't respond, he got angry. He didn't aim for the wall this time.

I know I sat there in shock for the first two times he hit me. Then I countered with my own. And a good knee to the needle he was pressing against my thigh. Oh wait, that was his penis. I think...

I ran. And I ran. And I ran some more. I swear that house was huge and twisted like a maze. I was really just lost and scared and drunk for the first time in my life. Finally I spotted the stairs. I had already lost one shoe and the remaining one tripped me on the last few steps. I still have bruises from that fall.

That brings us back to the prick sitting across from me. After my arrest and the lawyer's much unwanted arrival, I was allowed to go home. But I was watched and stalked and harassed at every moment. They covered all their bases and I must admit they did a bang up job. They threatened to stop me from getting in to college, from ever getting a job, to remove the paws of my cat one by one. They even threatened to exhume my father's grave and have his corpse neatly placed in my mother's bed while she slept.

That`s when I snapped.

I called their grease ball lawyer and arranged this meeting.

Now here I am, like I said, being convinced to sign a contract. The terms of said contract? Simple.

I say nothing really happened, that it was all a misunderstanding, that Kouga and I broke up on amicable terms, because he's such a nice guy, but I'm not ready, etc....; In return, I get no mark whatsoever against me except the suspension on my license for two and a half years for "speeding", I go on with my life like I did before I met Kouga-and I give up every ounce of self-dignity my father ever instilled in me.

Seems like a fair trade, wouldn't you think?

"....because you're such a pretty girl and you have such potential Kagome, that-"

"Don't call me Kagome. We're not friends. Just give me the damn pen."

"Certainly." He smiled.

I signed my name on the very cliche dotted line.

"Now don't ever come near me again, you hear me? Because if you ever try to threaten me again, I will not hesitate to take you all down with me. The world is not limited to just this city."

Without a second look or another word, I pushed my chair away from the table and stood. I tossed my hair over my shoulder and stuck my nose in the air and walked out the door.

In sudden anger, I slammed it closed so hard, the frosted glass cracked.

I smiled as I heard his very audible gulp.

I walked home with that smile.

Then kissed my mother's cheek and nodded reassuringly to her with that smile.

Then I walked up to my bedroom and dropped to my knees on the floor.

I didn't cry this time.

But I certainly wasn't still smiling.