Disclaimer: As usual, see the first chapter
A/N: Here's my final chapter before I take my leave for a few weeks * sniff * It's been great keeping up such a habit…I've never updated a story so frequently in my entire writing career! And I have all you reviewers to thank…which I will do at the bottom because I'm finally responding! So Season's Greetings, Happy Holidays, and hope everyone has an awesome New Year's! Watch out for that champagne ~__^
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Chapter 6: Taking Care of Business~^~^~^~
There was just something about the morning that raised Kagome's spirits beyond the gloom that she had been feeling the past few days.
Perhaps it was the icy blue sky that had finally taken control from the clouds. Or the glitter that sparkled around her feet, even in the darkest patches of snow. Whatever it was, it had brought a bright glow to the veterinarian's face.
Humming to herself, Kagome unlocked the front door of her clinic, smiling at the snowflakes that Kaede had painted on the front windows.
"So what if it's not Christmas?" The old woman had said. "We still need to make these windows cheerful."
'What would I do without her?' Kagome wondered as she turned on the power for the clinic, watching the lights flicker to life. The telltale beeps of the computers signalled that all was working well.
Even the daunting pile of paperwork that Kagome had tried to cut down over the last few nights didn't dim her smile. A little confused at this sudden good mood, she started the coffee maker, and dumped off her piles of winter clothing. The room was peaceful, and Kagome realized she still hadn't taken down the various Christmas cards and decorations that hid in every available nook and cranny.
She dug out a cardboard box and began to dump all her seasonal decorations into it, grinning as she placed the small Santa figurine on the top of the pile.
"Ah! I almost forgot!" Kagome cried—not caring about talking to herself. When you spent your entire day surrounded by animals, talking to yourself was almost a given.
Kicking the box back into its corner, she dug into her satchel and withdrew a silver picture frame, with a small flower in one corner and a butterfly in the opposite one. She ran a finger over the smiling faces in the picture, unknown to her that a soft smile broke her face.
Kaede, of course, didn't miss anything. She had taken the back entrance and had arrived just in time to hear her boss cry out. Worried for the vet's safety, she had darted up the stairs to see what was the matter.
But when she saw her face, the old woman could not help but smile herself. The memories that a picture could contain were a cherished thing, especially in a day and age when people constantly struggled to forget their past.
"Is everything alright, Kagome?"
Startled, Kagome nearly dropped the frame, but Kaede's wizened hand was there to steady it. "Is this your family?"
The veterinarian nodded, and pointed out the various grinning faces to her friend. She wondered why she had never brought in a picture before, but passed it off as forgetfulness. "There's my mother, and that's my brother, Souta, holding the family cat. He's going to university next year to study law."
"And who is that?" Kaede pointed to a short, old man, holding up various charms in his hands as if warding off the camera's evil flash.
"Oh, that's my grandfather. He's the main caretaker of the shrine, and the most superstitious man you'll probably ever meet. " Kagome chuckled suddenly. "And probably the man with the most fertile imagination. Once he believed that the old well on our property was trying to suck him down. It took us weeks to convince him otherwise, short of throwing him down there to prove our point."
Kaede smiled—not at the story so much as the nostalgia she could see written plainly on her friend's face. "It must be hard to live so far from them."
"Sometimes. Then I remind myself I only need to jump in my car and drive for two hours, and I'll be able to see them." She placed the picture frame on her desk where the Santa had once stood. "But there are some days when all I want to do is go home for dinner, curl up with the family cat and listen to Grandpa's silly stories."
Kaede gave her shoulder a quick squeeze. She understood exactly how the young woman felt, except that when she wished to be with her family, she was wishing to be with ghosts. Such was the trouble of outliving your family; all memories were kept in the mind rather than in pictures and papers.
"Shall I get ready for the day?"
Kagome nodded, breaking out of her reverie. "And it looks like it's going to be a busy day too."
"It's always a busy day," Kaede replied as she disappeared out the door, prying herself away from her own reminiscence to occupy her mind with other things.
But Kagome didn't throw on her white coat just yet, nor did she don her stethoscope. Instead, she took one more moment to trace the faces of her beloved—albeit odd—family.
Yes, it was hard to be so far away. Especially on beautiful days like the one outside.
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"Bloody claws."
Kagome winced as she ran her bleeding arm under the tap, trying hard to determine just how deep the scratches were. Who knew an eight-week old kitten could be so vicious?
"That's it, I'm recommending a de-clawing operation for that little one," She muttered under her breath, hissing as she applied the anti-bacterial ointment.
That wonderful, cheerful attitude that Kagome had discovered this morning was slowly dissipating, and she had only seen her third patient. So far, the first puppy had managed to piddle over every carpeted surface the clinic had, and the second dog had collided into her table and sent her jars of various things flying all over the examination room while trying to avoid his annual shots.
And now the bloody kitten had ripped open her arm.
She doubted the sun was shining very brightly now.
"Oh my, that doesn't look good."
"Don't worry, Kaede-sama, it's just a scratch."
Kaede simply stared at her disbelievingly, but Kagome forced a smile as she finished bandaging up her arm. "What do you need?"
"There's a man in the waiting room, saying he has a special delivery for you."
Confused, Kagome finished up with her report on the kitten, resisting the urge to put down 'monster' in the characteristics box. "I haven't ordered anything lately. Can you tell him to come back at lunch?"
"He insists it's urgent." Kaede decided to omit the fact that it wasn't just any man waiting for her, but that friend of hers that had taken her away on Christmas Eve. One couldn't forget a charmer like that, even an old woman like herself.
Kagome sighed, put away her clipboard and removed her blood-splattered coat for fear of giving some of her elderly clients a heart attack. Wishing that she had paid more attention to what she wore this morning, Kagome emerged, saw the "delivery boy" and soon found herself suffering from a mild heart attack.
"What are you doing here?" She hissed quietly, trying not to startle her clients waiting patiently in the room.
"I need you to take my pet for a few nights, Doc," Miroku said at a normal level. "He needs someone to look after him while I take care of some important business."
Miroku flinched inwardly at the glare he was receiving currently, but stood his ground. He had opted for a casual outfit this morning rather than his usual suit and tie, and was thankful for that decision. The look he was getting from the people in the waiting room was bad enough without the image of his businessman style.
"As I recall, your pet can take care of himself."
"But his walker is busy this week, and he needs someone to keep him company. Please?"
Kagome debated whether the clay cat figurine on the counter would shatter too quickly once it came into contact with Miroku's head. But it had been a present from one of her favourite clients, and she didn't want to waste it on her soon-to-be-killed friend.
"Look, bring him through the back door, the third door down in the alley, and we'll talk there," Kagome finally said, trying hard to ignore the odd looks she was getting from her clients. It was no good starting a scene in front of all those who respected her. She turned to Kaede, trying to hide her anger. "Please apologize to everyone, but I may be a little delayed."
Kaede nodded, and carried on her duties as if nothing had happened at all. Kagome would have hugged her if there hadn't been any prying eyes watching.
Instead, the young vet found herself waiting by the opened door, trying to fight the chill of the winter air. The sun's rays—which she would have described in golden detail earlier—were now dull and cold, a true sign of the season. A scowl was permanently etched onto her face as she watched Miroku approach dragging a none-too-willing hanyou behind him.
"How could I have guessed that this was the pet you were referring too?"
"You called me a PET?! AGAIN?!" Inuyasha yelled. He would have begun even more of his profanities, but Miroku's hand clapped over his mouth in time.
"Will you can it already? What do you want to do? Alert the whole neighbourhood you've arrived?"
Inuyasha's eyes pierced into his, and Miroku discovered that it wasn't fun to have two people staring daggers at you. He tried to grin at Kagome. "Look, I know this is a lot to ask—"
"Why me?"
Kagome's question caught him off guard for a second—giving Inuyasha enough time to wrestle free of his grasp. But the hanyou didn't run away from his friend, or the offending veterinarian. He and Miroku had talked and yelled long enough in the car about this, and Inuyasha had to admit, grudgingly, that his friend did have a point. Still, there was no way he was going to help the young man out in convincing that vet to take him in. No way in hell.
"Kagome, please. I once said you were his only hope, and I was right. Now we need your help again because you are truly the only person I can trust with this."
Miroku's pleading was something the veterinarian was not used to. In all the years she had known him, Kagome had never even once seen him this…humbled. It was enough to put the gaping crack in the defences she was trying to build up ever since she had seen him in her waiting room. 'Damn him for it.'
"We're in more trouble than I had first thought," He continued, "And all I ask is that you keep our friend here with you for the next few days, at least until everything's been sorted out. We've made a deal, so he shouldn't be too much trouble."
"A deal?" Kagome asked suspiciously. There was something about the way he said it that made her wonder…and his sudden paranoia was another factor in this whole situation that worried her. But she wasn't about to voice her worries to the two thickheaded dimwits in front of her. They probably wouldn't understand.
Miroku truly grinned this time, ignoring the narrowed golden eyes boring into the side of his head. "Nothing big, and nothing that concerns you. Just this one last time, Kagome. One last time."
Kagome looked from Miroku to Inuyasha back to Miroku again, and her shoulders sagged in defeat. Damn Miroku for those trusting words, words she had never thought would emerge from his mouth. Damn herself, for being too soft-hearted to kick him out into the slushy snow. And damn that hanyou for having such piercing eyes and fuzzy ears that her fingers suddenly itched to rub.
The day had slid from bad to nightmarish, and it wasn't even lunchtime.
"Fine, he can stay with me. But before you dance for joy, Miroku, I want you to promise me one thing."
Miroku stopped midway in raising his arms in celebration. "Anything you want, oh sun of my cloudy sky!"
"Get your car out from in front of mine. I'd like to be able to drive home without having to knock down a telephone pole."
Miroku planted a kiss on her cheek spontaneously, surprising both himself and Kagome. Her eyes widened as she watched the joyful figure jogging down the alley, car keys jangling from his hand.
"And he told me to shut up," Inuyasha grumbled, then turned to look at the rather flustered woman. "What, you didn't like the kiss did you?"
Kagome's stunned haze instantly faded at the sound of that obnoxious voice. "I'm not going to go moon about and write his name on all my papers, if that's what you mean. He's a good friend, that's all, and he took surprised me. And why am I explaining myself to YOU?!"
Frustrated, Kagome threw her hands up in the air and stomped back into the warm confines of her clinic, still muttering under her breath. Inuyasha could only watch with just a little fascination at how she managed to continue talking even though she couldn't be sure anyone was listening. Must be a vet thing or something.
"Are you going to stay out there all day and freeze?" Her voice called back, and Inuyasha caught himself before he could grin. What was it about this girl that made him want to sit down in a corner and think her over until he came up with an answer? He'd never felt this way before that was for sure.
"So now you do care about me! What would Miroku think of that?"
Her sudden cry of no doubt highly frustrating irritation did something that he had never thought possible.
Inuyasha's usual scowl was suddenly replaced by the tiniest, itsy-bitsyiest smile. A genuine, meaningful smile, and one that—although smaller than the average one—lit up even the darkest corners of his eyes.
If only Kagome had turned around once and poked her head through the door into that desolate alley, then she would have seen something that could only be described as a miracle.
And perhaps then, her day wouldn't have looked so evil after all.
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"Mew."
"You don't like milk? What kind of cat doesn't like milk?"
"Mew."
Miroku studied the two tails, the red eyes, and the impossibly sharp teeth. "Never mind. So what do you want, little one? You're going to have to eat if you want to get better for your mistress."
The demon cat didn't say anything, just curled deeper into her pile of pillows. Rolling his eyes, Miroku decided to make his lunch, and wait for the cat to show some interest in eating. Dumping the contents of the bowl into the sink, the young man reached for his other best friend—besides the remote control—and scanned the refrigerator's contents for something that piqued his interests.
"Look, if you're afraid I'm going to poison your food or something, you're mistaken. I wouldn't hurt you," Miroku said as gently as he could, grinning in satisfaction as he found the leftover chicken. He had realized hours ago that if anyone walked in on their boss talking to a tiny demon cat, he would most likely be thrown into some crazy house and never let out. But it was strangely comforting to have the cat around, even if it was bait for its mistress.
The animal in question gave a small purr, and Miroku peered over the kitchen counter to make sure that she hadn't shifted herself off of the chair. Luckily, the mound of pillows and odd blanket that he had used created a makeshift barrier to stop the injured demon from falling.
He noticed—with strange pleasure—that she seemed to be dozing off, and suddenly Miroku felt as though he had accomplished a small miracle. It was common knowledge that demons needed half as much sleep as humans, and when they did sleep, they only did so in places free of worry.
Smiling to himself, Miroku realized that the cat must feel extremely comfortable if she was falling asleep in his company. Well, she had every right to feel that way. He wasn't out to hurt her—in fact, he wanted her in best spirits when her mistress finally decided to take her back.
And she would be back, that the young man was certain. No one with that kind of fire in their eyes let their comrades go that easily. He hoped she wouldn't disappoint him.
Settling down onto the couch as quietly as he could, he dug out the remote from beneath the pillows and switched on the TV. He had cancelled all appointments and meetings for the next few days. Catching this assassin was more important than the projected costs for the resort, or the gleaming reviews the Silver Fan had received.
"Mew."
Miroku found two red eyes focussed intently on the sandwich that was halfway on its journey to his mouth.
"What? This is your idea of a lunch?"
"Mew."
Miroku sighed as he felt those red eyes pouring out all their affection to him, the demon cat equivalent to a begging dog.
"For the love of…fine, here you go. I've got enough for another one." He watched the cat leap up beside him despite her injured leg, and gobble the chicken concoction down in a few swift bites.
Suddenly, Miroku understood why people got pets. And he understood how Kagome felt whenever she saw a hurt animal—demon or mammal.
'Maybe I really should get a dog after this mess is over,' He thought, and gave the cat a pat on the head. 'After all, how bad could it be? They can't be that hard to deal with.'
Of course, he refused to think about Kagome and Inuyasha and the tortures they would inflict on each other in that small confining space of her clinic. Oh well, it was for the best. He couldn't have the half-demon hanging around here, not if he wanted his plan to work.
The cat burped suddenly, then leapt back to its previous place, leaving Miroku with a clean, shiny plate. As he reluctantly got up to make another sandwich, he hoped that this plan would work. If it didn't, then they would all pay for his mistakes.
And Miroku refused to let anyone get hurt on his behalf, even if it meant sacrificing himself…and his lunch.
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To be continued soon enough…And here goes the reviewer responses…candy canes for all! Well, not really, but imaginary ones for sure…I'm not too sure how to send real candy canes through email…
Moonlight Storm: Thanks for sticking by through all these chapters, and I hope Kagome's reaction was what you were hoping for! It can only get more interesting from here : ) Once again, thanks for the review!
sailor-scribe: Finals? Ack! Horrible things those are * shudders * I've got my finals in January…I'm glad the chapter helped (even if it was for procrastinating ;)) and hopefully this one helped too ^__^ Thanks for the reviews…I love em!
Lunar Kitty: Demon squirrel? * evil laughter * Hmmmm….you know what? That's the best idea I think I've ever heard! I love squirrels! This story might take a few new twists ~__^ I want to thank you so much for the reviews and of course, you've put me on author alert, which is probably the greatest honour an author can ever get. Thanks so much and hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Azura Dea: You again? Geez, you don't know when to go away…lol j/k I do enjoy having you around! I'll have to see how inspired I get to write while I'm in BC, but we'll see ;) And thanks for the reviews even though you could easily tell me in class ^__^
drake220: well at least poor Kirara is with Miroku…I think she's being taken care of rather well ^__^ Thanks for reviewing!
wolfite: Take your time reading! The story will be around for a while yet ~__^ Glad you liked it and thanks for the review!
squeakyinuears: First of all, let me say that I think you have the greatest name I've ever seen! So creative! So original! So appropriate ~__^ Secondly, your amazing review made me go at least five shades redder… so many comments! And it was probably the longest review yet! You should probably get an award or something for it…and as for the child under blanket thing, I can safely say that was entirely from past experiences…recent and not so recent…my genius was delayed when I was a child ^__^ (come to think of it, it still is…)…well, I hope the rest of the story lives up to your hopes, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thank you SO much for your time and your review!
Mysticnight: Hopefully over my vacation I'll still get some writing done…just, sadly, not on a computer…anyway, thanks so much for reviewing and I'm glad you liked the story!
Ninjachicks: * sighs * it never ceases to amaze me how puppy dog eyes get me every time…dogs and humans too…so here's an update for you ~__^ Enjoy! And thanks for your review!
Lunatic Pandora1: If only Kirara when she's not transformed existed in real life, because I'd have entire house full of them…and she is such a cutie too! Thanks for your many reviews! They're truly appreciated ^__^
slvrstarlight: Here's an update for you! Sadly, I won't be able to update too soon for a little while, but keep an eye out after New Year's! Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Twil: Thanks for the comments and the time you took to review! Hope you enjoyed the chapter : )
Flamingtoad: I know… but I had to give poor Miroku some way of meeting Sango, and I figured the only way she'd go back was if Kirara was there, even if Inuyasha wasn't there…LOL congrats on being a psychic too…either that, or I hope I'm not too predictable ~__^ Anyway, Sesshomaru's a character I need to focus on soon, so your questions should be answered then…and if not, just tell me! Anyhow, thank you SO MUCH for sticking with me through this story! I look forward to your reviews every chapter, and it's great to know that I've got a few permanent supporters ^___^ Again, a big gigantic THANKS for all your time and reviews!
Allen-918 : Thanks for the great review! Hope the update keeps you happy!
Jadegoddess: Well, hopefully the posting of this chapter has answered your question…~__^ But now I'm really leaving for two weeks, so I can't update anymore…hope you like the chapter and thanks for your wonderful support! Have a great holiday!
hAdOwCat: no worries about timing of review! All that matters is that you cared enough to take your time and review! And for which, might I add, I want to thank you so much for following my story and thank you for all the wonderful support! Oh yeah, and Miroku thinks well…but I'm not sure if it's his brain he's using ~__^
Animeturtle932: * blushes * well I always try to be creative! Thanks so much for reviewing and your great comments! Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Hekiru Kamanchi: Well I managed one more update before I leave so I hope you enjoy and thanks for all the amazing support and reviews! ^__^