Rated T
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Authors note: Sota is a little more mature in this story. Being the man of the house next to grandpa and everything. I know I keep adding things to the story but if I don't then it won't make sense in future chapters so please bare with me. the poem in here is not mine it was a piece from a famous poet Lord Byron named she walks in beauty. This story is a little slow but i hope it's not boring. Let me know what you guys think in the reviews and have fun reading!
Kagome looked up at the well house ceiling with a gentle breath, hearing small thuds against the walls of the house. Someone was in the well house with her. 'Probably Sota." She thought to herself. Kagome lodged her foot in the holes grandpa and Sota had dug out for her when they realized she could go through the well back in time so she could get in and out easier without hurting herself, lifting her body up as she reached for a good hand grip in the stones. The yellow bag weighing her down more, making it that much more difficult to haul herself out of the slippery well. Kagome let out a low grunt of exertion before she could stop it. Immediately, Sota's head came into Kagome's view.
"Hey, Sis! I didn't know you were coming back so soon." Kagome quickly handed her bag to her brother before heaving herself over the side of the lip. "Yeah, I have a test Thursday and I need time to study for it. What are you doing in the well house, Sota? You're almost never in here since the first time." They both visibly cringed at the mention of the centipede woman coming through the once sealed well entrance and dragged Kagome down. "I was kinda hoping you would come home early. It's been a while since you've been home. I wanted to see you when you came back." Sota had dropped his soccer ball he was using against the inside of the well house and stepped on it, keeping it from rolling away.
Kagome smiled to her brother and dove for him when he was caught off guard, holding him in a headlock and rubbing her knuckles across his scalp sharply, ruffling his already messy hair even more. "Hey, Kagome!" Sotas hand shot out to Kagomes side and tried to tickle his way out of her steel grip to retrieve his roll away ball. Her time in the feudal era had made her stronger than before. She easily dodged his attacks on her side and finally let go once she saw it would take him days to get that knot out of his hair.
Sota glared at his sister as he did his best to flatten the upheaval on his sore scalp but couldn't help the smile while looking at her beaming face, eventually laughing along with her. "I'm glad you're back, Sis." Sota walked over to the stairs where the ball stopped and rolled his foot under the soccer ball and kicked it slightly upwards, catching it swiftly on its way back down.
"come on, let's go inside." Kagome went to pick up her backpack when Sota snatched it from her grip. "Nah uh, you carried this thing all the way home. The least I can do is carry it for you to the house." Kagome stood stunned at Sotas behavior. Running through all the scenarios in her head that he could have possibly done to try and butter her up like that. Did he break her lamp? Maybe he lost Bouyo again? His behavior was mysterious and Kagome wanted to know why, but she also didn't want it to end. Between Inuyasha's griping and Mirokus groping, it was nice to be treated like a queen.
"You coming, sis?" Sota was not in the house's mudroom while Kagome had stopped half way to the house to think more clearly. "Yeah I'm coming!" Kagome picked up her feet and ran towards the front door, immediately bombarded by her friends waiting for her in her kitchen. Eri, Yuka and Ayumi asked question after question as to why she was out of bed if she had Tuberculosis or if her shingles are flaring up again.
Kagome struggled to answer most of their questions truthfully while the questions about Inuyasha were less stress inducing. The fact that he acted like a dog half the time could be easily overlooked if it wasn't accompanied by a bad attitude. Sometimes he had a good streak sometimes, it was really evident when the new moon was out. Her friends had mixed feelings about her bad boy, as did Kagome. "Kagome, did you hear us?!" Kagome was pulled from her daydreaming back to reality. "Uh, yeah. Maybe?" Yuka's shoulders dropped a fraction at the sight of Kagome. "Are you sure you're okay? Maybe we'll just see you tomorrow." Yuka started to gather her things before Ayumi joined her. "Kagome, if you want, we can get Hojo to come give one of his baskets to you. He's been dying to see you." The girls laughed at that, seeing Kagome redden from embarrassment only spurred them on more. "Maybe he'll take you on a date, finally." Yuka piped up over the giggles.
"Thank you for coming over, guys. I had fun tonight. I'll see you guys tomorrow." Kagome stood to walk them to the door until Eri stopped her. "Oh, no you don't. You need to go to bed, I can tell a mile away you don't feel well." Kagome smiled to her friend. Eri, despite being the less mature of the friends was more of a mother hen to her than anyone of her friends.
"Kagome dear, I ran a bath for you. Go relax in the tub." Kagome's mother walked in just then, catching everyone's attention. "Mom, is that makeup you're wearing?" Kagome couldn't help but comment on the subtle eyeshadow and slightly pinker lipstick she had adorned on her lips. Her hands went to her cheek, trying to hide it. "Oh, I thought I would look nice today." Her mother's cheeks redden just a shade darker than her blush. "It was silly of me, really."
"No." Kagome smiled to her mother. "It looks nice. I like it." Her mother smiled back as Kagomes friends snuck out the door after whispering goodbyes to Kagome.
"Mom met a guy today, He walked her home!" Sota blurted, unable to keep it in any longer. "Sota!" Both Kagome and her mother yelled at him for the personal details being left to the open. "That was for Mom to tell me, not you!" Kagome carried on, thinking that she oddly sounded just like her own mother. She did want to know more about this 'man' she met, though. The thought of not knowing who was interested in her mother was killing her, but it was her private life and she is not to divulge herself in it any more than she would want her mother in her own love life.
"Your bath is ready, Kagome." Her mother dismissed her to the bathroom easily and without fuss from her daughter. "Thanks, mom. I appreciate it." As Kagome walked past Sota, she swung out to connect the back of her hand with the back of his head. A sharp yelp from her brother let her know that her message was received. "Kagome! I was just joking." Sota pouted as he rubbed his other sore spot given by his sister. Kagome made her way up the stairs, noting that the creak in floorboards was still there if she stepped on it just right. This house was so old, she wouldn't be surprised if there were bats in the attic. As Kagome got closer to the bathroom door, she could hear the water running, racing to fill the tub. The thought of a nice bubble bath made her feet walk faster.
Steam swirled around the room as Kagome opened the door, letting small clouds escape above her head and into the hallway. The scent of lavender soothingly invited her in towards the white tub. Kagome undressed and slowly slipped into the hot bath water, lowering herself until she felt warm ceramic under her aching body after she turned the knob of the faucet off. "Aah…" she let a small noise escape her lips. Kagome felt her back slowly pop back into place the longer she sat there, enjoying the aromas around her.
"they definitely don't have this in the feudal era." Kagome scooped a palmful of milky water up to her chest and slowly let the water run down her blushing skin in between her breasts, half submerged by the murky bathwater, sending a blazing trail down in its wake shortly before the cooler air calmed her nerves again.
Thinking of her hanyou friend made her skin crawl. His abrasive nature towards things was wearing her patience thin, along with her sanity. But, somehow, she was still drawn to him, like a moth to a flame. She knows she'll get burned alive but she still keeps moving forward whispering 'pretty light.' She would drop everything for him and she doesn't understand why, she's gotten over her crush towards him. Is it because she's invested so much time trying to get him to where he is now that she would do anything just to keep him from reverting back to his old ways- killing people and taking whatever he can because nobody will offer it to him freely.
Kagome thought about taking the beads off Inuyasha but swiftly threw the thought away. Who knows what he'll do once he's been freed from the bonding spell. Kagome had seen his dark side many times and, frankly, it's scared her. It hurts her to say it but she doesn't trust him fully without the beads. When he grabbed her out of anger that morning, it startled her but she masked it with anger so to not hurt his feelings. He's always protected her from danger, but what he'd done to those demons like they were practice dummies- Kagome didn't want to think about it anymore. The water was growing colder around her the more she thought and if she waited any longer the whole tub would be cooled.
Kagome reached over for the drain at the bottom to release some of the water so it won't overflow on to the tile below when she added new hot water to the lavender milk bath mixture.
An odd sensation came over Kagome, the sensation she gets when she senses a jewel shard near. 'That's odd. That's never happened before.' She thought to herself, reaching for her loofa and her favorite soap. Kagome lathered her skin with the sweet-smelling soap as she pondered further about Inuyasha and the situation she's put them in. Still keeping an eye out for more signs that the jewel shard she had sensed earlier was still in the area.
Kagome mindlessly massaged small circles into her sore shoulder trying to at least relieve the tension in her muscles from the earlier trek home. She wanted to pass this test mostly because that would mean she wouldn't need to haul that lump of luggage all around Feudal Era Japan. It was bad enough Kagome brought food for them all, she didn't need 12 pounds of textbooks to carry as well. Studying by the campfire was second to none when she was surrounded by her friends but it was still a hassle to read by fire light, shadows always dancing across the pages and playing with her eyes.
A knock on the bathroom door dragged Kagome out of her stupor. "Kagome, dinner is waiting for you when you get out." Kagome's mothers soft voice rang through the door.
"Thanks, mom!" Kagome continued washing her body, Faster now. She had been so focused on the jewel shard and Inuyasha that her mind forgot she was, in fact, very hungry.
Kagome saw a dark shadow flash outside the bathroom window causing her to dip further down into the water in attempt to cover herself. It was too dark to see colors but she could see shapes, and it looked human. 'Oh, my god-' "Inuyasha?" Kagome called out to the window. No response came, which frightened Kagome more. Goose pimples grew across her skin as she wrapped herself in her favorite fluffy towel before standing from the water completely, still watching the window for more movement.
During her time in the Feudal Era, Kagome learned to hone her senses for survival, so when the shadow made a small shift to the left of the window frame, she was both anticipating it and terrified of it. 'Peeping Tom.' Kagome chastised while wasting no time in closing the blinds to the window and wrapping herself in a new towel.
Now dry, Kagome stepped out into the hallway, the faint noise from the television downstairs calmed her nerves as did the soft carpet under her feet. With a deep breath, Kagome walked to her room, feeling the tufts run between her bare toes and under the arch of her foot as she went. 'That's odd.' She deliberated. Her door was ajar, not how she left it.
As Kagome pushed her door open with a quick creak of the hinges, she notices with praise that her room had been exactly how she left it the last time she came back. She walked in more towards her bed and noticed her closet was the same messy hell hole she had left it, too busy packing for more supplies to properly put her clothes away. As she turned back to her bed, she noticed the small jar with her jewel shards inside were gone. Shoulders stooped, her blood ran cold. "Inuyasha is going to kill me."
Unwrapping herself from her cozy towel and placing the damp cloth on her foot rest, Kagome walked over towards her messy closet and fetched a pair of cute kitty pajamas from a hanger along with a pair of underwear and bra not bothering if they match or not. "I have got to clean this up tomorrow." Kagome disdainfully looked at her messy room, swearing it was mocking her. 'No wonder nobody wanted to come in here.' Kagome looked out her window just then to see a small glint in front of the house. "What in the world?" Kagome hurriedly pulled her top the rest of the way down her body before racing out the door to the front door, ignoring the surprised questions and the occasional shout from Sota.
Kagome came upon the glinting object and gasped. It had been her jar of shards. The jar had shattered but the shards remained intact. "How did you get down here?" Kagome looked around, squinting to see her surroundings as she picked up the shards one by one. Nothing was out of the ordinary for her to be suspicious.
The jar wasn't sitting on the window sill so it couldn't have fallen off. Even if it had, the window was closed. There was no way for the shards to be outside the front door. Her mind went back to the shadow lurking outside the bathroom window. She hastily ran around the corner where the bathroom would be and looked up at the old tree next to the house. No sign of the peeping tom or any of the sort.
Now determined to find out what was happening, Kagome marched back into the house, only to come to a room fully silenced but for the news lady on the television giving the newest report on something. "Guys, what's wrong?" Kagome was immediately silenced by her mother, holding a wooden spoon covered in sauce in one hand while the other holding her mother's favorite china, she'd only ever seen her mother use that set for when good company came around and when Kagome's father was still alive. Her attention was focused on the television, as was everyone else's. Even Sota, the boy who despised watching the news and opera, Grandpa's two favorite shows, was watching with severe concentration. Grandpa grabbed the remote and turned the volume up more for everyone to hear.
"Authorities say it is the biggest murder investigation since the Tsuyama Massacre. The subject is still at large and considered to be armed and dangerous. Please stay indoors at all times with the doors and windows locked, and dial 110 or 119 if anything suspicious or dangerous occurs and wait for authorities to arrive. A man to be believed of Caucasian descent, around 6'5, and wears a red hoodie depicting the words 'feral insanity' written in bold white letters on the front."
The piercing sound of shattering ceramic rang through Kagome's ears and frayed her nerves even more. She looked to her mother, seeing the tears in her eyes as she looked blankly at the mess around her. Slowly, Kagome's mother bent to pick up the pieces delicately, as if she's afraid to break them more. Hurriedly, Kagome tried to join her but stepped on a sharp edge before she could reach her. Kagome lifted her foot to look at the offending wound as pain shot up her leg. Blood was smeared on the kitchen tile as it was on her skin. A disgusting red flower pattern formed by the pressure of her body. The ceramic plate shard still stuck slightly into Kagome's skin. Her fingers lightly grasping the offending shard and pulling. With another sharp pain, the shard was out and what was left was an open wound, now stopped bleeding.
"Stay back Kagome, don't come closer. Let me clean this up." Kagome's mother looked up briefly before going back to work on the shattered china. Crouching lowly to have the best vantage to reach the pieces without moving.
Kagome was thinking about her shattered jar out front when she remembered what the news woman had said. "Keep all doors and windows closed.' Kagome quickly looked around and her eyes landed on the front door still open from her retrieving the jewel shards earlier. With a swift movement, Kagome took large steps and grabbed the edge of the door and sliding it back into its doorframe before she locked the door in place, watching for more sharp pieces on her way back to the counter. Kagome grabbed a towel from the drawer and wet it just enough to help clean the blood from the floor and her foot. She was remembering the layout of the house, where all the windows are. Bathroom is secure, Sota never opens his window anymore when he got in trouble the last time for climbing on the roof and almost falling, Grandpa's room was secure.
A horrible thought occurred to her, her bedroom window. Kagome has always kept it unlocked for Inuyasha to come and go as he pleased. The other reason she always kept it unlocked was simply because it didn't have a lock on it. Sota had broken it years ago, trying to get to the roof to retrieve his soccer ball.
Kagome was about to run to her room when a loud thud came from upstairs, more importantly, from her room. Kagomes heart was a million beats a second as she looked to her mother, who had finished picking up the rest of the plate, looking like she had come to the same realization.
A rush of adrenalin ran through Kagomes veins and she had the courage, for just a few minutes, to go upstairs and confront the intruder by herself. Without a second thought and before she lost the nerve, Kagome ran upstairs with her mother's hiss for her to come back behind her. Half way up the stairs, Kagome accidentally stepped on the creaky spot on the stairs. Everything stopped for what felt like hours, listening to any movement from above. No more noises came from her room. Either the intruder left after hearing someone was home or they were waiting to hear something else just like Kagome was.
Everything happened at once, Kagome ran upstairs when she heard a lamp knocked over and Sota jumped up to grab the baseball bat that was always housed at the front of the living room and ran after Kagome.
Kagome slowly rounded the corner at the top of the stairs, as not to creak the floorboards below the carpet anymore. A familiar light glowed from her room, the door more open than before. A soft creak from the bathroom alerted her of the intruders' presence. The hallway smelled of her soap and the air was still a little damp from her hot bath, making her nerves calm a little. A shadow appeared in front of the door way, all she saw was red and white causing Kagome to let out a gut wrenching scream and turn to run.
Kagome's eyes widened as she spun and ran the other direction. The person behind her let out an irritated growl that should have sounded familiar, but in Kagome's panicked state, she couldn't hear anything passed the blood rushing in her ears. A large hand landed on her shoulder, gripping tightly and pulling back towards the shadows. Kagome flailed and connected her elbow with what she thought was a metal plate. The hand let go, their grip loosening just enough for Kagome to continue running. "Kagome, stop!" They called out to her. Irritation laced in their deep voice. "What the hell?!"
Kagome reached the bottom of the stairs in record time, running into Sota on the way down. "Go! Run!" She called, Sota skidding on the floor boards before turning and matching her speed back to the living room. "What was that, Kagome?" Sota bent over, hands on his knees and gasping for breath. "You really need to work on your cardio, Sota." Her only response from her brother was another big breath and an 'I know'.
"Was it the killer?" Grandpa whispered from the couch. Hugging the back of it like it was his final defense. "I don't know, Grandpa. All I saw was red and white and a hand grabbed me from behind." Kagome barely got the last of her sentence out when she saw movement at the top of the stairs. Sota raised his bat again and stepped in front of his sister. "Don't come any closer!" Sota's voice wavered minutely.
"Save it kid, you can't scare me." The same voice rang out. Kagome heard the voice this time. "Inuyasha?" She timidly called his name.
"Who did you think it was? You sounded like I was gonna murder you." Inuyasha's sarcastic tone fueled Kagomes anger ever so slightly. "I thought you were going to murder me!" Kagome put her hand on Sota's bat, lowering it for him. "why were you outside my bathroom window, why didn't you just come in through my bedroom?" Kagome walked up to him, meeting him half way.
"What are you talking about? I just got here when you screamed in my ear and elbowed me in the jaw." Inuyasha tenderly rubbed his jaw and chin while thinking, his ear twitching at the memory. "Wait, what do you mean? Who was at the window, Kagome?" Inuyasha looked at Kagome fully, forgotten about his face.
"There was a guy, I think, staring at me when I was taking a bath. I thought it was you so I just closed the blinds. He was wearing-" Kagome froze at the thought. "Red." She slowly looked towards her family then back to Inuyasha. "So, that wasn't you who threw the jar of shards out the window?" She tried to hold the fear from her facial features but could tell she didn't succeed. "Kagome, I just got here." Inuyasha furrowed his brow as he looked at her closer. "Are you alright?" Kagome couldn't hear him through the blood rushing through her veins again. She felt lightheaded as she turned around towards the living room bay window, slowly walking towards it to look out into the dark shadows. "Oh, my God." She whispered. "He's watching us." Kagome turned back around to face the rest of her family.
"Oh, my." Kagome's mother fainted. Inuyasha caught her before she could hit the ground. "What is going on he-" Inuyasha cut himself off as he sniffed the air. He made his way to the couch were Grandpa was so he could lightly set Kagome's mother down. Her head lolled to the side a little as she was set on her father's lap. "Someone's here." Inuyasha made a hushing noise and quickly turned the lights off. No one made a sound as Inuyasha crept to the window, keeping low. "They are coming up the steps. He's holding- are those flowers?" Inuyasha looked back towards Kagome for an explanation, even though he knew she could not see him until her eyes adjusted.
A sharp knock at the door erupted everyone out of their panicked stock-still. "Hello? I'm here for Ms. Higurashi?" A voice called out from the other side of the thin door. Every one stayed silent, no one dared move in fear of alerting the stranger of their presence. After a few more knocks, the man finally left but not before placing the bouquet on the welcome mat.
Inuyasha made sure the strangers scent was no longer in the air before unlocking and opening the front door to reveal the bouquet of orchids along with the man's calling card with a quote written in pen on it.
Kagome picked up the card, leaving the flowers outside. She read the card aloud to everyone in the room when Sota flashed the lights back on. "my darling Misaki, you walk in beauty, like the night of cloudless climes and starry skies; and all that's best of dark and bright meet in your aspect and your eyes; thus mellowed to that tender light which heaven to gaudy day denies."
"It's a poem. For mom." Kagome looked to Sota before retrieving the flowers from outside and placing then in the empty vase that had always sat in the center of the table, whether there was something in it or not. "She'll see those when she wakes. She'll be happy to see them."
"Kagome, you need to come back with me. There's something killing villagers at Kaede's place." Inuyasha had been trying to figure out how to word it correctly and decided to just say it.
"What? Inuyasha, if you haven't noticed, there's a murderer on the loose here. I just can't leave! What if-" Kagome stopped herself but Sota finished it for her. "You mean if that guy decides to murder us all?" Kagome's surprised face gave Sota his answer. "Kagome, you can't do anything against someone like him. Yes, you kill demons but humans are different. We have the police, and SWAT." Kagome still held her resolve despite Sotas speech. "No, Sota, police and SWAT are busy helping other people, what if they don't reach you in time to stop it?"
"I have some pistols in the shed out back." Grandpa piped up. Everyone but Misaki, who was still fainted, looked at him with wide eyes and suspicious expressions. "What? I'm old fashioned, not a moron." He exclaimed in his defense. "Grandpa, what are you doing with weapons in your shed?"
"A sales man came to me claiming they were antiques, said they'll be worth millions in just a couple of years. I was going to sell them until your father told me what they were. I never got around to getting rid of them, I just stored them in the back in a black bag and forgot about them until now." Kagome looked to Inuyasha, who just shrugged and looked back to Grandpa.
Slowly, Kagome nodded her head, thinking. "Fine, but I'll only be gone for a day. then I'm coming back, okay?" Sota shook his head, "You're safer there. Don't come back until it's safe, we'll be fine here." Kagome was about to interrupt when he turned to Inuyasha, ignoring his sister. "Inuyasha, can you smell anyone outside?"
"Um, no. Why?" Before anyone could stop him, Sota had grabbed his bat and unlocked the door, stepping outside and quickly shutting it behind him. Kagome screamed for him as she saw his shadowed form dart for the shed through the bay window. "Sota!" She watched as his body slipped behind the shed doors only to emerge a few minutes later with a bag over his shoulders. Relief flooded her system when Sota came back through the front door, locking it again. "Sota! What the hell?!" Kagome rushed her brother after he put the heavy bag down and embraced him. "What were you thinking?" She quickly looked down at the black long bag by their feet. "Uh, Grandpa, how many pistols did you say you had?"
"Well, the sales gentleman said there were only four small antique hand guns. Who knows if that was a lie as well. Why do you ask?" Kagome opened the zipper with a quick pull and a sharp gasp escaped her lips. "Grandpa! These are military grade weapons?!" She picked up an AR- 15 by the stock and turned to show the family. "Did you look inside the bag before you bought it?" Kagome chastised her grandfather. "This could be illegally obtained!" Kagome gently set it back in the bag with the rest of the weapons. "You can't use these! You'll get in trouble!" Kagome looked to Sota for support but got none. "Kagome, we're already in trouble. There's a crazy guy going around killing people! What do you want us to do? Just sit around on our backsides? At least with these, we'll have a fighting chance." Sota yanked the zipper harder than needed, making the bag jump slightly. He walked over to the couch and plopped it on the floor next to Grandpa. "Do you even know how to shoot one of those things?" Kagome pointed her hand at the offending bag behind her as she followed him to the kitchen.
"What's wrong with you? First you were all about the idea but now you want nothing to do with them? Did you think they would be water guns? That small pistols are less deadly than military grade? They're weapons, Kagome." Sota whirled on his sister after he reached a cabinet. "Guns kill people, Sota!" Kagome shot back furiously. "No, people kill people. There's a person out there killing people right now! Do you want me to be the next person he kills? Or mom? Or Grandpa?"
"Sota, Kagome. Stop arguing." They both left their arguments to look at their mother who was holding her head delicately. "Kagome, why are you so mad?" Sota turned back around to pour his mother a glass of water from the faucet. "Sota brought in the guns from Grandpa's antique shed. He wants to use them against the murderer." Kagome huffed as Sota handed the glass to their mother. "I don't see you coming up with a better plan." Sota shot back without thought. "Sota, that's enough." Their mothers stern voice silencing him and Kagome's bitter comeback. "Sota has made the executive decision to protect this family at any cost, Kagome. You must understand where he's coming from."
"Inuyasha, I understand you want to take Kagome back. May I ask why?" Misaki looked Inuyasha in the eyes. Sipping her glass of water slowly. "Looks like murder is the trend of the night. Kaede's village is terrorized by a girl in a white fur cloak. They are saying three villagers vanished because of her. There might be jewel shard involved if it's true." Kagome gave a large defeated sigh. "I'm sorry Sota, I'll go back with Inuyasha. I'll be back in two weeks. I promise." Kagome hugged her brother tightly. Her arms wrapped around him like it was the last time she would see him. Sota buried his head in her neck, breathing deeply. Remembering her scent. "Bye, Sis. Love you." Sota pulled back and wiped a small tear before it could fall. "Love you, too." Kagome went to go pack with the request of Inuyasha's presence.
When they entered her room, it looked like a tornado had flown in and trashed the place. Papers were on the floor, her chair was moved to the opposite side of the room, and her bed was completely turned over; bottom of the mattress facing up and blankets strewn about. "Did you do this, Inuyasha?" Kagome couldn't take her eyes away from the scene in front of her. "No, all I hit was a lamp. The cord tripped me." Inuyasha pushed passed her into the room. He sniffed the air and the floor. "I can't smell anything." Inuyasha tried harder as Kagome stepped into her room, careful of the mess on the floor. Her gasp alerted Inuyasha. "What is it, Kagome?" She ran towards her work area and stared at the small glass shards placed neatly on her desk. "It's my jar."