AN: In response to some reviews, and tenacious by the way, this setting is in the cowboy era of the wild west! There might be some modern tings in it cause I really don't know what they had back then, lol.

Also, yes, I plan on making Kagome some kind of fighter. She's not going to be some weak, poor little girl D

Chapter 3

"Good Morning"

'

Oh no, I'm late!' Kagome thought as she hopped from the bathroom to the bedroom pulling one sock on and holding the other in her mouth.

It had been the most animated, not to mention loud, morning she'd experienced in her entire life.

It all started when Inuyasha had scarfed the majority proportions of the breakfast she made down in two seconds and then decided he was going to make more. The only problem was, he didn't know how to cook. Kagome, not knowing this minor detail, decided to go take a shower and get ready for work.

In mid-scrub of her hair, she began to smell the faint scent of smoke just as Inuyasha busted into the bathroom holding the pan of what looked like a mash of pancake mix and scrambled eggs, which was on fire.

She immediately began screaming because she was naked and for all she knew, he could've burned the whole apartment down by now. She grabbed the shower curtain to cover herself, only to succeed in tripping out of the tub. Inuyasha was screaming because he was holding a pan that was on fire and just because Kagome was screaming.

After much yelling and shoe throwing, they had finally gotten everything cleaned up, and Kagome left Inuyasha to wash all of the burnt dishes he'd made. And that was a half hour ago.

Now, she didn't know where he had gone off to and she really didn't care. She was only glad to have him out of her way for a little while. Maybe work won't be so bad today, she wouldn't have to baby-sit the outlaw at least. He was worse then a two year old!

She walked out the front door, still tying her corset in the front while eating a piece of toast, since Inuyasha ate everything she'd made earlier, when her ears picked up the voice of a man who sounded like he was pleading.

She groaned, morals never do anybody any good. She turned the opposite direction from the saloon and followed the pleas as they got louder and louder.

Just as she turned the corner, the piece of toast she was holding onto fell out of her hand from pure shock.

There was Inuyasha, holding up the local Drug Store merchant by the collar against the stone wall, threatening him for something about the wrong change? And, to top it all off, he was wearing all his hair up in a cowboy hat with a bandana around his mouth.

Without thinking, Kagome waltzed right up to Inuyasha and the merchant. As he turned, he received a stingingly hard slap to the face. He dropped the man to hold his cheek that was now throbbing.

"What the hell was that for?!" He yelled at her accusingly, completely forgetting about the merchant who'd ran inside.

"For harassing that poor man! You can't just go around doing that anymore Inuyasha!"

"But he cheated me on my change!"

"He's old, he's going to make mistakes! And that's not nearly as bad compared to the 'mistake' you made this morning." She crossed her arms in front of her chest angrily.

"Listen, If you're going to take up an alien residence with me and stay undercover, then you're going to have to act like a local, and locals DON'T act like outlaws!" She was at an angry whisper, just so no one would overhear.

Inuyasha took a step forward as if challenging her.

"Listen wench, that's what I am, and I ain't changing nothing for you or your stupid town!" Inside he knew she was right though.

He was going to have to change if he wanted to not look suspicious. He'd never admit to that aloud though, as long as he knew what he really thought right?

"And what in Mary mother of Jesus are you wearing?!" His eyes bulging in disbelief.

"Is this how you get business in your bar, wearing…a ripped table cloth and a bra?" He added, picking at the sad excuse for a skirt.

She scowled at him, about to reply but then remembered that she was supposed to be at work right now. Well, more like an hour ago.

"Ah! I'm supposed to be at work!" She began to take off but then stopped and turned around.

"Stay out of trouble!" She warned Inuyasha before running off as fast as she could in her spiky black heels.

Sango propped herself up on her elbows and leaned over the counter, watching Kagome with mild amusement. Since Kagome had shown up this morning, she'd been totally out of it. Saying and doing things that made people question her mental stability.

"Watchya making there Kag?" Sango caulked her head to the side.

"Making an amaretto sour.. What's it look like?" She snapped irritably.

"With Smirnoff?"

Kagome looked down to see that Sango was right. She'd been like this all afternoon. And she only had one person to thank for the mess she was in right now.

She threw her hands up in the air irritably and fell face first on the counter top.

"I give up Sango, I should just quite right now." She mumbled from the counter.

"Well why are you in such a daze?"

Uh oh, she hadn't thought of an excuse to why Inuyasha was with her now! And wouldn't you know it. Just as the thought crossed her mind, in comes the trouble maker himself. He busted through the doors like he was walking onto a yacht.

Kagome grunted, what an arrogant vain man. Sango looked in the direction Kagome was starring in and noticed Inuyasha walking their way.

Sango stumbled to the side as he came up and pushed beside her and scowled at him, but he just ignored it pressing onto more important issues.

"Kagome! You the apartment door and now I can't even get in!"

"Well I don't want to get robbed ya know!"

"Oh please, like anyone would even think twice about robbing that dump."

"If you hate it so much then move out!" Oops, too late, she'd already said it, and now Sango was eyeing her suspiciously.

"You mean to tell me this guy is living with you?"

"Umm, well you see…. It's like this…" She stumbled over her words in an effort to cover up Inuyasha's real identity.

"I'm her brother, got a problem with that?" Inuyasha covered up for her. She sweat dropped, it wasn't a very good cover up though. Now she'd have to go around pretending this guy was family. Great.

"Wow Kagome I didn't know you had a brother."

"I don't…" She mumbled too quiet for Sango to hear, but apparently Inuyasha did since he snapped his head in her direction and glared at her.

"I don't talk about them much!" She gave a fake smile as he got up to leave, pushing the stool over.

"Keh!" Inuyasha grunted and headed towards the backroom, shoving and pushing people out of his way.

Sango watched in mild amusement as he walked off. How could someone like Kagome have a brother like him? It really didn't add up. She'd have to talk to Miroku about it later.

Kagome sighed and ran in suit of Inuyasha to the back. When she busted through the back door she found the delinquent sitting in a chair, with his feet up on the counter, eating a giant, cold turkey leg.

"What do you think you're doing?!" She stomped over snatching for the leg in his hand, but he swung it to the side out of reach and she fell face forward to the floor.

"I am eating food. Defined as being edible without causing bodily harm, unlike the garbage you attempted at this morning."

"You're the one that ate all that so called garbage." She mumbled getting up from the floor.

"Duh, I was only starving to death. I would've eating a dishrag if I had to."

He had picked off the last scrape of meat off the bone, picking it in his teeth before throwing it at Kagome's head. Luckily she ducked in time, why did these unfortunate events always happen to her?

"Don't you have any parents you can bum off of? What do they do?"

"Yah, my dad's a circus clown and my mom grows a beard." He gave her a dry, sarcastic look.

She only looked at him innocently, truly thinking that's what they did by her silence. He rolled his eyes and stood up.

"Look, both my parents are dead! Happy, now you know."

"I'm so sorry…. I…I honestly had no idea or I would've.." She became embarrassed and ashamed for pushing such a sensitive issue.

"Save it, does it look like I care?"

"Well you should! They were your parents!"

"Well where are yours!?"

She immediately became silent after that little comment. Inuyasha immediately regretted letting those words leave his mouth. By her sullen look, it was obviously a touchy subject.

She lowered her head and shaded her face with her bangs to hide the tears that threatened to fall.

That didn't do any good, since Inuyasha could already smell them coming.

"Kagome I…" He reached out to touch her shoulder when she popped her head up to meet his puzzled gaze.

"What? Nothing's wrong, at least I got you calling me by my real name now." She gave a fake smile. Inuyasha just scoffed at her. She was the worst liar.

"Listen, I'll give you the apartment keys if you promise not to shoot, threaten, steal, or burn anything down, got it?" She dangled the keys in front of him persuasively.

"Yah yah, whatever." He grabbed them from her hands greedily and began to walk off.

"I get off at nine tonight, so make sure you're home to let me in, ok?"

"Yah whatever!" He waved his hand at her dismissingly before leaving.

"I bet, five dollars!"

"I'll raise you ten."

"I'll meet that bet."

"Are your sure Miroku? Feeling confident today eh?"

He smirked at her confidently.

"Sango, I am always confident in what I do, my outcomes are always positive. Like in pursuing you!"

"That's what you said yesterday, and you ended up losing two hundred dollars because of it."

"True. But one day I'm bound to win it all back!" He threw his cards down on the table.

"Two pair! Beat that!"

Sango just shook her head.

"Royal Flush." She gathered the money on the table, letting Miroku gather himself up.

"So, what do you think about Kagome's brother?" Sango questioned, thumbing threw the wad of cash.

"Miss Kagome has a brother? I've never heard of him before, why do you ask?"

"Well, because he's in town…"

"Wonderful! A family reunion, Kagome should spend more time with her family, I'm sure they're great!"

"Well, don't be so sure. He's the complete opposite of Kagome. Always grumpy, threatening people….he doesn't even drink!"

"Hmm, well that is a little far fetched from Kagome's personality, that girl can get pretty wild after a beer or two!" He smiled cheerily at some of the memories of Kag's table dancing days.

"Stop smiling like that you perv!" She slapped him out of his daze.

"I just think we should keep an eye out for her, something's up."

"Now Sango, you know it's not right to spy on people, but if you insist, I'll spy on Kagome and you can have Inuyasha!"

"Yah right." She stated dryly, glaring coldly at him.

He smiled.

Kagome stood behind the bar counter in a sort of daze. She wore a worried look as she rubbed the glass furiously with the rag. Inuyasha worried her. He had total access to her home and all her belongings. Now he was running around the town, unsupervised, with her keys.

Oh the havoc to be reeked.

Unnoticed to Kagome, who was wearing the glass thin, sat Kouga at the counter, watching her in amusement. She had yet to notice him as he continued to stare at her. So he finally spoke up.

"I think the glass is clean now Kagome dear."

"Ah!" She jumped, tossing the glass around in midair before catching it again.

"You scare too easily, what's got you all jumpy today?"

"Oh…nothing. Just stressed from work." She tried to make herself look as calm and serene on the outside, but on the inside she wanted nothing more then to chew her finger nails right down to the bones.

"Right! You have that big gambling tournament to prepare for tomorrow night! Can't wait, it's going to be a blast. And I reckon you'll be there as part of the entertainment act like you always are?"

Oh crap. She'd totally forgotten about that! That stupid tournament was just a poker game that lasts that's just an excuse for men to stay drunk and lose money for thirty six hours.

"Well isn't this turning out to be a daisy day. And you know I'm not intentionally entertainment, but if I am to you, so be it."

AN: Thank you so much for the reviews! They're greatly appreciated! Sorry for the wait! I got my new computer and word program! Cheers! This chapter's a little smaller, but the next one will get juicy! Toodles