She couldn't breathe without the throbbing ache in her chest until mid afternoon the next day.

Hanging her coat up on the rack, she slipped off her black heels, and sank onto their old couch. The day hadn't ended fast enough. Leaning back into the cushions, she rolled her stiff shoulders. Too little sleep had her yawning. Eyes closed. A nap would do her good.

Clatter.

One eye popped open, looking at the stairs. Was it Rikku's dog?

Clatter.

The dog wasn't home.

A loud crash made her move from her spot on the couch. Full of adrenaline, she crept up the stairs. Senses flared outward. Nothing unusual. She relaxed, it was probably nothing. Absolutely noth... Cold wind slapped her in the face, and she swore under her breath.

Books toppled over. Papers scattered the floor. It could have been the wind, but what broke the window?

Kagome sucked in a deep breath and slowly let it go. No trace of an aura remained, but something felt off. She turned in a small circle.

Aside from the glass, her bed was undisturbed.

Once neat notebooks were all over the floor. The creases in the paper would give her a headache later. She gathered the nearby mess and placed it on top of her desk in a heap of disarray. A sorting nightmare.

Snow blew in from the window in a little twirl to the floor. She hugged herself, rubbing her shoulders. Blue eyes stared hesitantly at the closet. The ajar door made her skin crawl. It had been closed. She was sure it had been closed.

Though she couldn't feel anyone, it didn't mean they weren't powerful enough to control their aura and prevent her from knowing. Fingers flicked the light on. Nothing but clothes. She sighed. Sweet relief.

All that remained was a mess, and one expensive window repair. "So much for a nap." Grabbing a boom from the closet, she got to work.

"I just don't understand why someone would break in, let alone break a window." Her Mother huffed as she held the thin plywood in place with Kagome, while Souta nailed it in place. It was a temporary but necessary fix, the repairman wouldn't be coming for another three days.

Souta laid in the last nail, "You're sure nothing is missing?"

Kagome shook her head, "Everything is here. If they were going to take something, you'd think it would be the laptop, everything else is pretty cheap."

"Maybe it was a student then?" He supplied.

"Hey!" Kagome snapped, "My students are all great kids, they wouldn't do this."

He rolled his eyes, "You don't think an angry kid would throw a rock at your window? Didn't have his house covered in toilet paper recently?"

Her lips pressed together, hands on her hips. "My students aren't 's students."

"Sure you didn't give one of them a bad grade? Could've been an angry parent."

With a shake of her head, she frowned, "I'm telling you no." She'd have sensed their aura. "Besides, there's no rock."

"Wait." Her Mother stood in the doorway of her closet, "Where's your new bow?"

"Downstairs in the living room, I forgot to bring it up last night."

Suddenly her Mother looked a little pale, "Ah, well, you see, I noticed that you left it there and I put it in your closet before we left the house this morning."

Kagome grimaced. That kind of weapon could do serious damage.

"Well at least we know what was stolen." Souta grunted, scowl firmly in place, "Good riddance."

"This is bad." Kagome swallowed the lump in her throat, "This is really bad."

"It's just a bow, Kagome. You can get another one." Her Mother patted her shoulder, walking her Brother out of the room before he could say something he might later regret. "Let's go, Souta."

Covering her face with her hands, Kagome groaned, "What do I do?" She ran her fingers through her hair, hands holding the back of her neck while she paced the room.

What could she do?

"Santa." She grabbed her purse and ran down the stairs. If she was fast enough, she'd catch the last bus.

"Kagome?! Where are you going?!" Her Mother called after her as she ran out the front door, practically tripping as she hopped on one foot shoving a boot on.

"I have to go to the Mall! See you later!"

Half an hour later Kagome stood at the Mall entrance with angry balled up fists. They were closed. It was only ten minutes past nine and the entire Mall had closed already. "Haven't they heard of holiday hours!?" She groaned, kicking a dirty clump of snow.

The parking lot still held a few vehicles, but none of them looked like Sesshomaru's. Her shoulders sagged as she looked around. The Christmas lights looked less magical without people everywhere enjoying them. The colorful shadows were eerie now.

She licked her lips, stepping onto the almost deserted parking lot.

Something brushed her shoulder and she spun. Slamming her fist into fuzzy white as her foot kicked a shin. "Back off!"

"Ow! Please, stop! I'm just trying to help!" It was just a man, decked out in a Santa costume of all things. Not Sesshomaru.

She huffed, adjusting her coat, "You shouldn't touch people."

"Right." He sucked in a deep breath and rubbed his fake bearded cheek, "I will remember that next time. You have a really strong punch."

She mumbled an apology, looking away from the grin on his face. This Santa was weird. Even weirder than Sesshomaru, speaking of which, "Do you happen to have any idea how I might get ahold of yesterday's Santa?"

His brow rose, "What do you mean? I was yesterday's Santa." A goofy smile stretched across his face, making the beard look even more ridiculous. "I'm Santa every night this season."

Kagome sighed, glancing up to actually look at him and it hit her. "You're one of Rin's descendants..."

"Ah," He scratched the back of his neck, "It was the eyes, right? We all have her eyes."

She grinned, a step closer to finding the bow. "Where is your Grandpa?"

"Uh..." He rubbed his hands together, the cold settling in. "I'm not sure, exactly? He usually just comes around whenever. He's a busy guy, you know. Hard to keep track of. Plus it's dragon season."

Dragon season? Her smile faltered. He couldn't be too busy. They had a dangerous weapon to track down. "Call him." She demanded.

"...Okay. But he probably won't answer." He hesitantly dug his phone out of his pocket, grinning back at her frown, "You're that girl, aren't you? The one he took to Hell?"

"Don't remind me. Just call him." Her arms crossed over her chest, blue eyes staring at him until he did as she said.

She could hear the phone ringing and ringing, until finally the voicemail picked up.

"Hey, Gramps." He glanced over at her, mouthing the word voicemail, "That girl you hung out with yesterday is wanting to talk to you. So uh, call me back... soonish."

Fingers on the bridge of her nose, she sucked in a breath before trying to talk to him again. There had to be a way to get ahold of Sesshomaru, and this guy would help her do it. She'd make him help her if she had to. This was important. "So, Rin's descendant, do you have a name?"

"The name's Ikeda, Matsu!" He extended a hand far too cheerfully.

Kagome ignored it, walking in a circle as she thought of what to do next. "Ikeda, nice to meet you. Wish it were under different circumstances, but hey, what can you do?" She tapped her fingers over her lips with her elbow resting in her other hand while she walked.

Turning on her heel, she asked him, "Why would it matter that it's dragon season?"

"Uh," Ikeda winced, "Well, he kind of breeds dragons, so..."

Kagome frowned, "Then he is where they are. Take me."

Ikeda shook his head, "I can't! I've got a hot date tonight!"

"I don't care, you are going to take me to see your Grandfather." She started walking to the only car left in the parking lot, "Get laid some other time."

"Wha..." Ikeda's face turned red as he caught up with her, "Look you can't just order me around, I don't even know you. I've got things to do and whatever you have going on with Gramps is none of my concern."

Her lips formed a thin line, "Usually I'm above forcing anyone to do anything they don't want to do, but honestly I have zero time to be nice right now. There's a weapon in the hands of some sort of criminal, who knows how powerful, and I need Sesshomaru-sama's help to get it back. The scent trail is already getting cold."

He opened his mouth and closed it. Tilted his head. "You want to use my Gramps as a bloodhound?"

Kagome rubbed her lips together, wincing, "Well...um..."

"I'm in!" Ikeda laughed, slapping his hands together, "I gotta see this!"

"Oh?" Wide blue eyes blinked at the sudden change in the guy as he sauntered over, opened her door for her, and proceeded to hop into the driver's seat.

"Well," He patted her spot, "Get in! Let's go!"