Very early the next morning, Miroku slammed the door behind him. Inuyasha peeked out from under a '73 Ford Pickup and looked at his best friend,

"Dude, What the fuck is wrong with you?" he called.

"With me?" Mioku said. "Why the fuck did you take the money you stupid fucking moron?" Inuyasha sighed, pulling himself for under the pickup. "I mean, the others don't really know what happened, but I do. How could you think of taking a 'loan' from her, why she was embezzling money from you for three years before you found out?"

"She wasn't always that bad," Inuyasha said running his hand through his hair.

"I'd say," Miroku flopped down on a stool. "That stealing money from someone you claim to love is pretty bad."

"No," Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Before that. I've known Kikyo since high school. She was always a pretty good person." Miroku scoffed. "No really man. She was sweet, humble, everybody loved her. But her sister got killed in a drive by shooting about five years back and it changed her."

"So," Miroku said "You took the money because her sister died?"

"No," Inuyasha almost yelled. "I remember who she used to be, and loaning us the money is something that the old Kikyo, The one who would help her friends." He took a deep breath and calmed himself down. "That's why I took the money, despite everything that's happened with her, I have to believe that she's still a decent person deep down."

"Sucker," Miroku said with a laugh.

"Maybe," Inuyasha shrugged.

"You've got grease in your hair."

~x~

The tension in the shop over the next week was palatable, Kagome wasn't speaking to Inuyasha, Sango wasn't speaking to Miroku, the shop was quiet except for the occasional clatter of tools being dropped, and the occasional curse shouted from someone who was mad at their work.

"Hey Kagome," Miroku called. Kagome slid poked her head out of the pit.

"What?" she snapped. She saw Miroku balk at her tone, I'm not made at him, she had to remind herself. "Sorry, what's up?"

"I gotta take a lunch, can you do the last checks on the Honda for Inuyasha?" Kagome nodded and Miroku turned around and left without another word. She stared after him, I just wish Sango would tell me what happened with him, she thought. He's been a completely different guy lately. And it was true, he really had been. He wasn't flirting with anyone, no groping, but also none of the playful chatter that she had come to expect from him. He was moping, and brooding.

Kagome sighed and pulled herself out of the pit, making her way over to the old '93 Honda Civic grabbing the file for the car as she went. Inwardly she grumbled, she hated working on Civics, it was what her Dad used to drive. She glanced over the paperwork and saw that it was in for a routine check and a strange squeaking noise. She popped the hood and went about a final check, she started the engine, checked a few connection cables and then shut it off.

She wiggled her way under the car and took a look at the brake lines, seemed fine. She was just about to sign off on it, when something caught her eye. It was nothing really, a tiny pinprick of a whole in the air lines. She glowered. It wouldn't cause a huge problem, just some discoloration on the tire rims, but if left unchecked…

She pulled herself from under the car, and stomped off to Sango's office. "Where is he?" she shouted as soon as she got in. Sango looked up at her with a start.

"Uh," Sango stammered "Where's who?"

"Inuyasha." Sango's eyes went wide with curiosity at Kagome's tone.

"What's wrong Kags?"

"Just tell me where he is." she barked.

"He's outside with the contractor," Sango said cautiously. "Kagome is there something…" But Kagome didn't listen to whatever Sango had to say. She spun on her heel and stormed out of the garage to find Inuyasha.

~x~

"So we'll be able to start construction as early as next week," the contractor said with a great big smile. "I'll have the final plans drawn up and get them to you as soon as…"

"INUYASHA!"

Inuyasha cringed, his ears flattening to the top of his head. He glanced back at the contractor who seemed to be laughing.

"Oh man," the contractor laughed, "I know that sound. My wife screams at me like that all the time." Inuyasha forced a smile and shook his hand, then turned to face the fury of Kagome.

"What do you need Kagome?" he said is tone curt. He knew that she was still angry about the whole Kikyo thing, but he really felt it was none of her business.

"You worked on the Civic?" She said throwing the file at him.

"Yeah," he shrugged. "So?" He watched as her face grew red with anger and he could feel a spark of electricity in the air, her Miko powers were rearing their head. Cautiously he took a step closer to her, "Kagome what's wrong?"

"There's a whole in the air line," she said her voice calm with a rage that he had never seen before. Inuyasha didn't understand why she was flying off the handle. It's an easy fix.

"Kagome," he said trying to sound calm but every nerve in his body screamed for him to run the other way. "It's ok, it's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal?" the calm rage was gone from her voice and she began to glow pink. "No big deal? That's what he said and now my Dad is dead because of 'no big deal'." Inuyasha stilled, her dad? Was that was this was about?

"Kagome," he whispered. "I don't know what happened, but we'll fix the air line, ok?" The pink glow around her began to retreat and Inuyasha let out a sigh of relief. He looked at her, her normally bright, cheerful face was covered in tears. "Oh Kagome," he said and he drew her into his arms. He felt her small body shiver with sobs, and his heart broke. What wasn't she telling him? Why did she completely loose it over a whole in an air line?

After several minutes he felt her body still and relax. He glanced down at her and saw that she had somehow fallen asleep, clutching his overalls. As gently as he could, he swept her up in his arms and carried her inside.

~x~

Kagome had dreamt of that day so many times. It was a bright sunny summer day, only a few days before her 7th birthday. She had woken up to her dad, gently shaking her.

"I have to take the car in for repairs today," he said with a wide grin. "Want to come with me?" Kagome nodded her head excitedly. She loved spending time with her father. It didn't matter what it was. Grocery shopping, the hardware store, picking up the dry cleaning, it was all fun. Just her and dad.

She leapt out of bed, and dressed hurriedly. She threw on her favorite frilly pink sundress, and a pair sandals. She darted down the stairs, and threw her arms around her father. He picked her up and spun her around, Kagome's cries of delight echoing in the quiet house.

"Shh," her father said gently, placing a finger over his lips. "You're mom is still asleep. You know how the pregnancy tires her out." Kagome nodded. She was so excited to be a big sister, that she couldn't wait for her little brother to be born. She told this to her father as she climbed in the back seat, of her dad's Honda civic and buckled her seat belt.

"How do you know it's a boy?" he asked laughing.

"I just do," replied six year old Kagome in the self-assured way that only little kids can. She wasn't really sure how she knew, but she did. They talked the whole way to the mechanics shop. She told her dad all about school, and her new girl that had just transferred into the school. She listened as her father told the mechanic, an overweight, sallow fellow, that he was having some trouble with the breaks and he wanted them checked out and fix. The mechanic waved his hand, dismissing them and told them to come back around six.

Her dad called a cab and they went to breakfast. After breakfast he took her to the zoo, she clutched his hand happily and dragged him around to all the different animals. She paid close attention to the tigers, she loved the tigers. When they left the zoo it was almost six, her father asked the cab to detour to the ice cream shop, and the cabbie laughed and obliged.

Her dad bought her a large cookies and cream waffle cone, and they left to the mechanics shop. She stood there as her father paid, thinking that this had been the best day of her life. They got back into the car, her father turned the ignition key and the car purred to life. Her father pulled out of the shop with a huge grin on his face. They were going home. Kagome heard a huge crash and the twisting of metal, and she wondered who had crushed a can. And then she passed out.

When she woke up, she was in an unfamiliar white room and could hear beeping. She realized she was in a hospital, she had seen enough on tv to know that. She heard her mother's voice screaming not to far away and stilled to listen.

"You're telling me," her mother cried. "That the brake line was cut on the car?"

"Well," a man's voice said. "It appears to have been an accident. Most likely the line was severed when the mechanic was replacing the brakes on the car."

"I don't care if it was an accident," her mother screamed, her voice was shrill. "He was a shoddy mechanic, and he should be arrested. It's his fault my daughter is in a hospital bed and my husband," she paused sobbing. "My husband is dead, and it's his damn fault for not doing his job right." Kagome's world spun out of control. Her father couldn't be dead, he was strong. He was fine, right?

But he wasn't. Her father was gone. She had miraculously survived the wreck, and vowed the day of her father's funeral, to never let this happen to anyone again.

Authors Note: Sorry for the long time between updates. I was working so hard on another story that I didn't do anything (you should see my laundry pile). But now, this is the only unfinished story that I have right now, so all of my attention is on this. (Well, except for once an hour when I switch the laundry) Review!