Chapter One: ‘Something in Common’

Author Note: Okay, I have two new stories I’m putting out. (I KNOW I already have three stories going at once but I got these two ideas and I HAD to write them down before the inspiration fades!!) I’ll put out the first chapter of each and then you guys have to tell me which one you like better because I’ll only be able to update one of the two new ones constantly and the other one will be put off for perhaps a few months. And also, I know ‘Love Beyond Identity’ may seem like I could be moving along with the same plot but HOLY OH GOD, if you think that you are SOOO wrong. Besides, this story is a much more …hmmm…intense, if that be the appropriate word, romance than the other. I usually don’t write Inuyasha stories that have lots of Inuyasha/Kagome intimate thingies, ( Because I find it unrealistic and know it would never happen in the manga/anime no matter how much I wish), but BEHOLD—you all get to see how I write a more…serious romance for Inuyasha. In other words, it isn’t really WAFFY or FLUFFY really… I’d say more dramatic and emotional than your typical "Oh Kagome you’re the love of my life and the only thing I live for!" mushy fic. Do please keep in mind that you will have to decide between this story and the other new one. ‘Beyond the Water’s Edge’ is the name of this story’s competition. Read them both! Then review and tell me which you want me to continue worse.

Warnings: Well you nimrods! This is a romance that’s rated R! There will be some rather ‘intimate’ scenes that will pass through this story so don’t you dare say you weren’t expecting them. I warned you (not that it’s lemony graphic or anything…its far from that ). Some people get all finicky over just kissing scenes, so those people better not be whining about it later.

Disclaimer: These get tiring after writing them in every story I write. Oh well. I don’t own or profit off of Inuyasha or any of its characters. This disclaimer applies to all chapters that follow this one.

Itai: ouch/it hurts…

Youkai: demon

Hanyou: half demon

Inu: dog

note: did you know that ‘stubbornness’ is actually a word? It just looks so wrong when spell check told me...but yep, that's how it’s spelled! Two bs and ns and s’es!

There was an aching sensation…But it faded almost instantly. The sensation was replaced with a dizzy numbness that seemed to confuse his senses enough to where he opened his eyes. What he greeted him when he slid his eyes open was not a setting that he had expected would explain his strange feelings. Rather than help his state of mind, it either made it worse or it didn’t change anything. That he couldn’t tell.

There was white.

…Everything was white…

It took him a few moments to realize that he was staring at the sky. It was thinly clouded and the blanket of clouds across the sky betrayed it’s typical blue for a pure white nothingness. A glowing white sky illuminated by the sun that hid somewhere behind the cover of the clouds. It gave an eerie effect to the sensations he was already feeling.

His head falling to the side a bit, he was able to the treetops until his vision came more into focus. He was in a forest…a clearing in the forest apparently. What was the—

"Uuuh…" He groaned and rolled over onto his side clutching his stomach. Now that he moved, his body ached. Taking a few deep breaths, taking comfort in the grass that was mere inches away from his nose, he felt the pain slowly ebb away. Sighing softly he opened his eyes again.

He drew in his breath.

The sight that he opened his eyes to surprised him more than any of the new things he had felt. It also confused him more than anything else.

A girl lay before him, mirroring the position he had been lying in minutes ago, about three feet away. Her dark hair was tangled in a mass above her head and around her face in the grass, like a pillow. She appeared to be peacefully sleeping, as her chest rose in soft calm breaths with her sleepy breathing. He was fascinated and completely subdued by the surprise of finding her besides him. She was wearing a very different looking shirt and an extremely short skirt that couldn’t possibly be proper. But for some reason it didn’t strike him as odd. A strand of hair fell into her face and he stopped himself from reaching out to brush it away. She was lying by him so innocently and…he…wanted to know…why?

The realization that he didn’t know whom the girl lying so close to him was made his whole body tense and his fists clench. It was only when he wanted to know how she got there if he didn’t know her that he realized…He didn’t know how he had gotten there either. No…more than that… He didn’t know who he was. He couldn’t remember anything… Not before waking up to white and finding her.

The realization washed over him violently. His surprise and interest towards the girl across from him was suddenly replaced with a fear. He didn’t know who he was or how he knew her. IF he even knew her. If she knew everything about him and he didn’t remember her…then what? How could he trust someone if he didn’t even know who he was himself?

It was almost an hour later when her eyes fluttered open.

‘Wha…?’ She blinked, dazed by the pure white that entered her vision. It only took her a few seconds however, to realize she was looking at the sky. And in a forest clearing it seemed…

It wasn’t until she raised an arm to rub her eyes that she immediately groaned at how heavy the limb felt. Her body…why did it hurt so much? Her chest hurt worse than the rest of her aching body and she clutched at the fabric over where it rapid throbbed beneath her skin. "Itai…" She whispered hoarsely, biting her lip an turning onto her side.

"I…" She trailed off and willed her eyes open, only to feel the strangest feeling yet. Two golden …slitted eyes gazed back into her own and it seemed like time stopped as she noticed the man lying close besides her, in the same position as she was. It was the strangest thing to find him before her, eerie, but the thing that confused her most was that she wasn’t all that surprised that he was there. She realized that she had felt a presence near her the entire time she was observing her surroundings, and now she knew it was this… this strange boy.

He had pure white silvery hair, longer than hers, which made her unconsciously pull her own hair over her shoulder and finger through it. Atop his head was what she guessed to be dog ears, which also seemed fixed towards her and twitching cautiously, as he lacked ears at the side of his head like her own. He also had claws, wore a loose red outfit, and was without shoes, but… The most distracting thing about him was the way his piercing yellow eyes remained intent on hers, no matter where she was looking. It didn’t really frighten her, but… it made her throat dry and…

"Hi…" She chose her first word carefully. Awkward, and rather pathetic it was… But it split through the silence between them like a heavy blade.

"Yeah…" He replied, but on the other hand he was experiencing something different, being able to see her eyes opened finally. It was so strange. He could swear he had looked into her eyes before. They were so familiar…but he couldn’t even hope for that yet. If he didn’t even know himself, how the hell could he say he had met someone before?

"I…I’m…" The girl began to introduce herself, struggling to get over the confusion and awkward silence, before she broke off realizing she couldn’t continue. She couldn’t finish introducing herself because she didn’t know what else to say. Though it felt as if the words were on the tip of her tongue, her mind told her the information was unknown, and that realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

He watched, in what could almost be called interest, as she realized she was in the same state as he was; though he didn't know that quite yet. She sucked in her breath and choked on it, hands clenching tightly over her wildly beating heart as panicked tears suddenly stung her eyes, which were widened in disbelief. She didn’t know who she was….How did she get here? Why was she here? Who was the person across from her? Why didn’t she know? Did he? What if….?

"I-I…no…I can’t…What happened…I don’t know who….Who I…Oh God, please I…Can’t, I…"

She couldn’t breathe. What was happening to her? Why didn’t she know who she was!? It was too much to handle, she couldn’t…!! "Hey…." Who’s voice was that? It was only making her dizzy. "Hey!" The voice continued more forcefully. She shook her head from side to side, wondering if she was going insane. "Hey!!"

She froze when she felt herself being pulled forward into another body. Her eyes shot open wide and she looked up to see the man that had been lying next to her was looking down at her, where she was in his arms, just as surprised as herself. He seemed equally shocked to realize her position, as if he didn’t know what he had done, but he didn’t release her; nor did she pull away.

"Don’t…" The hesitant sound of his voice was enough to silence her, and she now stared at him with her full attention. "Don’t cry…" He whispered, still looking at her somewhat fearfully. Though, he really hadn’t even needed to say it. Her tears had already been forgotten in the shock of his embrace. He couldn’t feel his arms, as they seemed locked in place; and she couldn’t even seem to convince herself she should be backing away. She wanted to ask him why he did it, but instead what came out of her mouth was "Who are you?"

He blinked at the question and looked away, looking ashamed of himself and…looking incredibly lost. Maybe even as lost as herself, she thought. "I know it may seem insane…but I don’t know…" He admitted slowly. "Then…do you know who I am?" Her second question surprised him just as much as her first. He stared at her incredulously and even with a small glimmer of hope hidden in his eyes. "You…don’t know either?" He asked cautiously. She looked down into his chest instead of meeting his gaze and gave a simple "no." His arms tightened slightly. "Really?" He questioned again and she nodded.

She sat up along with him and he retracted his arms to lean back on them instead. "Do I know you?" She asked him as she sat next to him awkwardly. "I don’t know who I, or you, even are…how could I know you!?" He spat rather harshly, though his lost expression showed that he was anything but angry with her, so she ignored it. For some odd reason, even though she was scared to death of the fact she knew nothing of anything around her or of herself..

"I just…you seem familiar to me is all…Besides, I woke up next to you…and we both don’t remember anything. Couldn’t that mean we’re connected at least in SOME way?" She pointed out hopefully. Knowing nothing left a very empty nausea in the pit of her stomach, but more than anything the thought of being left alone to deal with it scared her most. She hoped he would at least stay with her awhile until she calmed…

The ears on top of his head flattened back as he seemed to be thinking deeply about what she had said. As different as they were from her own, they were…rather cute. But she couldn’t help but ask something else that had gotten her curiosity.

"What…are you?" She asked carefully, hoping not to offend him.

He regarded her suddenly with bunched shoulders and his lip curled up in a silent snarl. She just gazed back at him curiously, hoping he would answer her and not ignore what she hoped he didn’t take as an insult. Slowly, once he found that she didn’t seem to be disgusted or frightened of him in the least, his defensive posture wound down. If she wasn’t scared now, perhaps she would be when he told her…

"A hanyou. I know that much." He ‘hmphed’ and stood up, brushing himself off and turning his back on her to cross his arms. He hoped to put on the image that he really could care less how she responded, but… As he stood up the very ground beneath him seemed unfamiliar and unworthy of his trust. All of the air around him felt empty, and it seemed to carry no scent at all. Empty… He didn’t know who or where he was and… If she feared him and ran away he would be…

Alone…?

"Part…dog…demon, then?" She asked curiously, her voice saturated with an amused hope that maybe she had guessed right. His head jerked around to stare at her in shock for a moment. "How did you…" He cut himself off and stared at her, completely puzzled. ‘I thought she didn’t know me, I--‘ He blinked when she pointed to something above him; he looked up.

"Your ears…" She smiled a little sheepishly. "I kind of just…guessed."

"Oh…" He nodded dumbly and felt his arms drop to his sides as he continued to stare. Her gaze was not near as hard set as his own, but she seemed content to study him silently as he observed her as well. A strong breeze passed by them, picking up some of his white hair and dragging it forward over his shoulders in her direction as he looked down at her. Her shorter hair lifted as well and trailed behind her. It was an odd…eerie atmosphere that was created. The wind moved the plants around them, the trees, their hair, rippled their clothing, and carried new scents into the area from far away. But the air smelled bland, and he took no notice of it. And it seemed nothing else existed as he watched her watch him, the wind moving around; even though, really, nothing did. Because he knew nothing other than himself, her, and this forest clearing since his awakening; and she felt the same.

"I don’t know where to go…" She whispered, and even though the wind was blowing the opposite direction; he heard her fine. He had a feeling he knew what she was hinting at, but said nothing. Felt nothing…

"You don’t either, do you? What do you do when you wake up not knowing who you are…?" She asked, in a bit of a daze. The air felt thick, even as it moved quickly by them. Words had to be weighed carefully it seemed…

He didn’t look away from her while she talked on. What else was there to look at any way? He silently agreed with her. What do you do when you wake up not knowing who you are? And…What do you do when you wake up next to someone else in the same condition? You’re both alone, you’re both sharing the same problem, you both don’t know what to do, you both don’t know where you are, there’s no one else around to help…

…You stay together, right? That was general logic, wasn’t it?

"I…" She frowned a little, noticing he wasn’t replying to any of what she had to say. "I’m sort of afraid…" She admitted, her face coloring with a light pink in shame.

"Of what?" He asked impassively.

"Of being alone…" She regarded him carefully.

"…right now, when I don’t know who I am…" There…He finally reacted to her words by frowning and looking to something behind her before his eyes focused back on her.

"And you want…to stay with me?" He asked, accidentally letting a bit of his curiosity seep into his voice. He was careful to avoid saying ‘you want me…to stay with you?’ because he didn’t feel comfortable thinking of it that way. He could admit to himself that the thought of being alone when she was right before him asking for otherwise…seemed incredibly wrong to him. He was the slightest bit angry though. The thoughts that had angered him were that he felt he could trust this girl.

You weren’t supposed to trust someone you didn’t even know. Things like that got people killed. His gut instincts told him to trust no one, anyone could be an enemy, betray him… But his mind told him that he trusted this girl. And he did trust that she honestly was in the same position as him. But what if she had been his enemy, and they both just didn’t remember it yet? She may get her memory back before him…and take advantage of his lack there of and use it against him…

But for some reason picturing the girl before him with some sort of cruel or sinister smirk upon her lips at being able to defeat or having revenge on him…was impossible.

"It’s okay…isn’t it?" She countered his question with another. "We have nothing but each other…until we regain our memories at least… Isn’t staying together the safest? Forests are dangerous aren’t they?"

Gods, couldn’t this girl just get to the point and say she wanted to stay with him? For some reason he just wanted to hear it from her. If she said she wanted to stay with him, he would let her. He wanted her to just as much as he was sure she likely wanted to stay with him. Being alone was…

He repeated the question.

She nodded slowly at him, wondering if he would turn her down. He may be as lost as she was…but she could sense his reluctant nature and his stubbornness already. From his taut posture earlier she could tell he was upset his pride could not be sparred in their situation. Unless he wanted to end up alone as well.

"We both have something in common don’t we?" She smiled again. "That’s good enough for me, for now…" She stated calmly. She was satisfied when he nodded and she couldn’t help but breathe a relieved sigh. He smirked at it, and she blushed lightly. At least he wasn’t too mean… for a demon she was surprised; even though her senses warned her of no danger when she had first felt his presence. She sincerely hoped that she had known this man before, and once their memories were back that he wouldn’t leave her.

There was a thick, awkward, silence again. But it wasn’t nearly as unnerving as the ones before. More so, it questioned ‘what next?’

"I…" She struggled to start a conversation again, but gasped to see his sharply clawed hand inches from her face. She looked up the length of his arm to watch his eyes questioningly. He just grunted impatiently and shook his hand gently. "It won’t do any good to stay here all day, will it?" He asked softly, in a voice that clashed horribly with his annoyed expression. She realized she was the only one still sitting and nodded, lifting her hand slowly to place it in his, as he was offering to help her up.

And a split second after their hands touched his lips were suddenly crushing her own. Her eyes widened in shock and she drew in a sharp breath against the hard kiss and he didn’t seem phased at all. What did he think he was doing!? She was alarmed to feel his clawed hands find their way to her chest and she nearly screamed, but was so shocked and her throat so dry she couldn’t find the breath. Her mouth only opened in the attempt and he took advantage of it to deepen the kiss. Her eyes suddenly filled with confused tears as he pulled back to trail his lips down her neck. He had somehow pulled her to the ground… Why was he doing this? She couldn’t trust him after all… But as fierce as he took to her, it didn’t seem as wrong as it should, and that upset her the most. Her tears overflowed and poured down her cheeks, stinging with confusion and helplessness. But her brows drew together tightly when he yelled at her. "HEY!!"

"HEY!! Look at me!!" He shouted loudly, very frustrated that he didn’t know a name to call her by. And she blinked suddenly, staring up at him with fear and shock in her eyes. His hands were on her shoulders…she was standing up, not on the ground…He was looking at her somewhat frightened, but more out of concern, and…

"God you just…you just started crying, staring at nothing…" He blurted out finally, still looking at her with concern. "What the hell happened to you? Do you remember something? Are you okay…?" He trailed off, seeming to notice how much he was worrying and waited for her to answer.

She felt dizzy. All that…just a dream? She must have been hallucinating. The pressure of waking up not knowing who you are, who you’re with, and all of the included was surely too much for her fragile mind. Surely… But, she could still feel the tears drifting down her face. And his hands were safely on her shoulders, not her…

She shuddered out a breath and collapsed underneath his grip, falling onto her backside hard on the ground. She could hear him asking if she was okay repeatedly and she clutched her head. "I’m fine now…my head just hurts…" She choked out. She could sense him kneeling next to her, concerned. Concerned…? She finally looked up at him, eyes filled with bitter guilt. How could she have imagined such a thing? How could she?

Here he was, this man willing to let her stay with him so neither would be alone, when he was surely strong enough to go off on his own... A demon…part demon, willing to spend time with a human like herself. And her mind had betrayed what little trust he had in her and what little trust she had in herself by thinking he would do such a thing as take advantage of her out of the blue...? Surely he would abandon and hate her if she told him. How could she?

"You…going to be okay…?" He breathed, startled by the guilt radiating off of her. She nodded sadly and sniffled, tears still pouring sorrowfully down her face. And it hurt, to see her like this. "Don’t cry…" He said, wiping some of the tears away from her face, hesitantly. She watched his hand, with something akin to amazement; but then as fast as that had crossed her face it seemed to only make her sadder. She burst into a new set of tears and her body shook with sobs. "I’m sorry, I’m sorry…" She repeatedly gasped out loud as she cried. Did she think he was mad she was crying?

"Don’t be sorry…You just scared me…zoning off like that." He admitted, trying to grab her chin and make her see him, but she kept maneuvering her head away.

"Hey!" He said firmly, finally grasping her chin solidly in his hand. "Don’t cry." He ordered, though he wasn’t harsh in tone. "We’re…in this together right? It’s really hard not knowing who you are, but…We haven’t even left yet and surely things will be more difficult than they are now. You can’t be crying already…"

She stared at him, trying to ignore the pressure of his claws across her face and concentrate on his words. He was right, she did have to be strong. She only hoped that he would forgive her for losing herself in such a way; even though she hadn’t told him.

"Thank you." She whispered. "I guess I just…lost myself for awhile." She wiped the rest of her tears off on her sleeve and he took back his hand.

"Let’s go, uh… girl…" His face contorted in an odd expression, not knowing what else to call her. Certainly he couldn’t jut make up a name... If he were to do that she would probably end up being called ‘it.’ He couldn’t remember any names…

She stood up with him and sighed. "That’s right…I don’t know my name…" She said strangely. It felt so uncomfortable…not knowing her own name.

"It’s on the tip of my tongue…my name, I mean." He told her in annoyance. "But yeah…I can’t seem to remember my own either, dammit." He growled loudly and she tilted her head in amusement.

"Growling like that really does make you sound like a dog demon." She noted. "Otherwise you appear mostly human…"

"What did you say?" He blinked. She frowned.

"I said otherwise you appear mostly human…"

"No, before that."

"Oh, that growling like that really does make you sound like a dog …"

"That’s it!" He breathed. "What?" She frowned. "Inu youkai?" She wrinkled her nose in confusion.

"Inuyasha…" He said carefully.

"Yeah, Inu youkai. That’s what I said." She was frowning immensely at him now wondering what the heck he was talking about.

"No, Inuyasha. That’s my name. I know it. It sounds right, that must be it."

"Inuyasha?" She smiled at his overly pleased expression. "I envy you then. And it’s nice to know your name now, Inuyasha." He noticed her expression and suddenly regretted making a big deal of it.

"Oh, I’m sorry…you still don’t know your name. What do you want me to call—" She shook her head and smiled softly.

"No. ‘Girl’ is fine for now. At least until I remember my name, okay?" He nodded slowly and still looked a little apologetic. "Don’t feel sorry, Inuyasha. Neither of us can do anything about this. We can just work together, right?" She smiled.

"Yeah…" He nodded again, slowly. "Well…" He started, looking around them at the thick forest. "We just start walking I guess." He shrugged and held out his hand again. She stared at it and felt uneasy. Embarrassed, he pulled back his hand bowing his head. Not wanting him to get the wrong idea she shook her head and swallowed her fear, reaching out and grabbing his hand. When he glanced at her questioningly she just smiled. No strange thoughts this time. No strange dreams. He didn’t smile, but looked content and just tightened his grip and led them off into the forest. He was part demon after all…what could she possibly do to defend herself against other demons? Or whatever it was that lived in this forest…

To be continued

Okay! There’s the first of the two new stories you’ll have to choose from. I can only update one of them consistently. Which one will it be?

But aside from that, how did you like it? You like? A little odd maybe? The idea came to mind out of nowhere, but I liked it so I HAAADD to write it down. Hope your interested in what happens next! R&R! Review you dolls, you!