A/N: I TOLD you!

The buzzing of the alarm clock broke through Kagome's dream. She didn't even bother hitting the snooze button, but chose to unplug the thing instead. She had learned a lot in a week. She burrowed deeper into the pillow, trying to get back to her wonderful dreams of the Sengoku Jidai.

No such luck.

"Damn it, we have to go to that class today." Becca grumbled.

"Doesn't that mean we get to sleep later? The class isn't until eleven." Kagome pointed out, pulling the blankets over her head.

"Yeah right," Becca scoffed. "We have to check in before we do anything. So, we have to go to school, on time, and then we can leave." Kagome shot her an odd look.

"You guys have weird customs." She said, muffling a yawn with her hand.

"Not really. We used to be able to just call in, but some assholes kept skipping the classes, and the rest of us got screwed." Becca grouched, hauling herself out of bed. Kagome finally gave up and sat up.

"That's rude." She observed.

"Yeah, I know." Becca said, finding some clothes in the closet before changing in the confines of the closet.

"So what are you going to do for two and a half hours?" Kagome asked, running a brush through her hair.

"We can go get breakfast, and I can show you around where I work, if you want." Becca offered, opening the door, revealing her dressed in jeans and a white sweater.

"Sure, that sounds good. Going a little anti-punk today?" Kagome teased. Becca made a face at her.

"Shove it." She said, brushing her hair out. Kagome got up and walked to the closet, shuffling through the hangers. "I'm warning you, though. It's a little different than where normal people work." Becca warned as the closet door closed.

"And I don't call shooting flaming pink arrows normal, either." Kagome's muffled voice pointed out from the other side of the door. Becca laughed.

"Good point." She said, pulling her hair into a high ponytail. Kagome emerged wearing jeans and a black sweater, similar to Becca's.

"Going a little anti-miko today are we?" Becca teased.

"Shove it."

XXXXXXXX

A half an hour later, the crew arrived at the school, and everyone seemed to scatter. Kagome and Becca went to their lockers to grab notebooks before going to hunt down Miroku, Shippo, and Sango. They found them standing around Shippo's locker. "I heard you're coming back to work today." Miroku said as soon as he saw the two.

"Unfortunately, yes. Though, Paul's been good. I thought for sure I was going to get called in for that mugging last Monday." Becca said, watching as Shippo produced a stick of chocolate pocky from his locker.

"It's been oddly quiet these days. Only minor crimes." He said, munching on the cookie.

"So I've heard. I hope it stays like that." Becca sighed, and the other three nodded in agreement.

"Knowing you, it would get worse once you got back." Miroku teased.

"Shut it, monk." Becca growled, and Kagome laughed. After a couple of minutes, the crew straggled in from different parts of the school.

"Well, Kagome and I have to scram…we get to go to college." Becca said cheerfully, earning death-glares from the rest of the crew.

As the two got into the car, Becca turned to Kagome. "So, does picking up breakfast and heading to my work sound good?" She asked. Kagome nodded.

"Sounds fine to me." She said, looking through Becca's various CDs. She started laughing suddenly, and held up a CD.

"You own a Morning Musume CD?" She giggled.

"Yes, I do. Don't tell anyone." Becca grinned before starting the car and pulling out of the parking lot.

"So, where do you guys work?" Kagome asked once she had finished giggling.

"It's called DR, or Demon Relations. It's like a youkai police department." Becca explained.

"That's cool. So you get to solve murders and stuff?" Kagome asked.

"Only when there's a youkai involved. We have a couple of sources from the humans that tell us if we need to be called in or not." Becca told her.

"Wow. How did you get this job, anyway?" Kagome asked.

"Umm…it's a long story. What do you want to eat?" Becca asked, praying that it would veer Kagome off the subject. Luckily for her, it worked, and Kagome looked over the Dunkin' Donuts menu as they waited in the line at the drive-thru.

XXXXXX

Becca and Kagome walked into the DR building with cups of vanilla chai and breakfast sandwiches. "Hey Bec! How's the hunting life?" Called an old cat youkai who was being escorted in handcuffs down a hallway by a burly-looking bear youkai.

"Benny! What the hell are you in here for?" Becca demanded, striding over to the youkai.

"Got busted for 'nip. Where the hell've you been?" Benny questioned.

"Japan. Didn't I tell you to stay offa that crap?" Becca demanded.

"I am! For two years! Some little bastard put it in my coat." Benny defended himself.

"Who's your P.O. again?" Becca asked.

"Clarke. I've got a job now too!" Benny said with a toothless grin.

"Great! Okay, I've gotta go, but I'll talk to Clarke. Stay away from the 'nip! If I see your ass in here again, you'll be in deep shit, got it?" Becca said, heading up the stairs, Kagome following behind.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. See ya, detective Becca." Benny shot back.

"You know him?" Kagome asked as they went up the flight of stairs.

"Yeah, Benny was my first bust ever when I was a rookie. He's been clean and everything for two years. I know he didn't do it. He's given me his word. He was so heartbroken when he'd seen what he'd done to his family, he quit cold turkey. He's been clean ever since." Becca explained as they neared the top.

"Wow." Kagome said airily.

"Yeah, he's scary lookin' but he's so sweet. He comes to visit every once in a while." Becca explained.

"Becca! Hun! How've you been?" asked a red-haired woman from behind the desk.

"Maggie!" Becca exclaimed, walking over to the desk.

"I haven't seen you in ages, dahlin'!" Maggie said in her Texan accent, and walked out from behind the desk to envelope Becca in a hug.

"Now, who's this pretty little thang?" Maggie asked, looking Kagome over.

"This is Kagome. She's a friend of mine." Becca explained.

"Awww…nice to meet ya, hun. I'm Maggie." Maggie said, extending a hand.

"You too." Kagome said, a little shyly, taking Maggie's hand and shaking. Maggie slipped back behind the desk and eyed the two.

"Shouldn't you be in school?" She questioned suddenly, giving both girls a critical look-over.

"Yes, but we're attending an observation at UMass. So, we're excused for the day. The class doesn't start till eleven, so I thought I'd come by to see how things were." Becca explained.

"Oh! Well then why don't you two go see the ol' bear? He's in his office." Maggie said, shooing them away. Becca nodded, and pulled Kagome in the direction of her boss' office.

"Ol' bear?" Kagome repeated.

"Yep, Carl's a bear youkai. More like a teddy bear youkai." Becca said, walking to a huge office door that read, 'Carl Sanders'.

"He's the head of DR. He's a really nice guy, even though he tries to be intimidating." Becca added, knocking on the door before walking in with Kagome following behind.

"Why aren't you in school?" Were the first words out of Carl's mouth.

"Good morning to you too. I have something to do at UMass. I brought someone for you to meet. Plus, a donut." Becca said, plopping the small Dunkin' Donuts bag on the desk.

Carl stood up and walked over to Kagome. "Hi, I'm Carl Sanders." Carl said, offering Kagome his hand. She took it, smiling politely.

"Kagome Higurashi." She introduced herself, vaguely remembering to switch the order of her name around.

"She's Inuysaha's miko." Becca added, causing Kagome to blush a healthy shade of pink.

"Inuyasha's miko? You mean you're the one in all the legends?" Carl inquisited. Kagome could only nod sheepishly.

"Holy crap. Wait, that means you'll be able to identify something." Carl said, flipping through the files that were piled on his desk.

"Here we go. These markings were found at a crime scene. One of our detectives said it looked like a certain attack marking. Can you agree to that?" Carl asked, handing Kagome a picture. Kagome looked at it and gasped.

"This is---these are Tetsusaiga marks." Kagome said, dropping the photo on the desk in surprise. Becca peered at the picture, and then glared a Carl.

"I told you so." Becca said flatly.

"That's Inuyasha's attack. Kaze no Kizu." Kagome said in shock.

"The Wind Scar penetrated the brick wall and we assumed the suspect was disintegrated." Carl put in.

"There is no need to assume. That suspect was disintegrated. Anything that was in the path of that attack is now dust. If it had been Inuyasha's strongest Kaze no Kizu, the building would have been gone too." Kagome stated matter-of-factly. Carl's eyes nearly disappeared into his bangs.

"Carl, just eat your donut. You have to be there to see it." Becca said. Carl bit into his maple-frosted donut and tried to imagine an attack that strong.

"He can really do it. Inuyasha may be hanyou, but he's strong." Kagome assured him quietly.

"Why didn't you ask Sango, Miroku, and Shippo?" Becca asked, plopping down in one of the chairs that were in front of Carl's desk.

"They were on another case. There was a ring distributing 'nip." Carl explained.

"What's 'nip?" Kagome asked suddenly.

"Ummm…Catnip. It's like ecstasy for cat youkai." Becca told her.

"Really? So Benny was set up with Catnip?" Kagome was suddenly piecing everything together.

"Benny? Where did you meet Benny?" Carl questioned.

"He was busted for possession. He told me some punk slipped it in his pocket. I believe him. He gave me his word. He even has a job." Becca explained.

"Really now? I think you were the only one to ever set that guy straight." Carl said, shooting Becca a smile.

"That's because you didn't get to know them. You sent out detectives and rookies like they were ants. That's why when I had my first case, I evaluated them too. I think it was because I felt sorry for them." Becca said.

"But," She said, standing up. "I need to go see Clarke. Maybe Benny can help us pin the perp." Kagome made to follow her, but Becca shook her head.

"Have a seat and chill with Carl. He doesn't bite." Becca said, leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

XXXXXX

It's amazing how far she's come." Carl sighed, leaning back in his chair.

"How far she's come?" Kagome echoed.

"You didn't know her back then, did you?" Carl asked. Kagome shook her head.

"Bec used to be really quiet…well, until she got arrested."

"She was arrested? Why?" Kagome gasped.

"She had just killed the bastard who had murdered her mother. She killed him out of pure revenge. Fae's killer had been wanted for months for other killings and rug selling. When Becca killed him single-handedly, we hired her and erased her of her charges. That was four years ago, and she's been here ever since." Carl told her.

Kagome sat heavily into the seat that Becca had previously occupied. Before she could reply, though, the door flew open behind her. "Sorry I'm late, Carl. My son took his claws to his sister's stuffed animal." Said a cool male voice. Kagome's eyes widened in recognition and she jumped out of her chair to pin the newcomer with a surprised look.

"Sesshoumaru?" She asked in surprise and confusion. Sesshoumaru stood there in pressed khaki pants and a silk white button down shirt. His long hair was tied back in a long braid.

"Ahh…miko. I was wondering when I was going to see you." Sesshoumaru said calmly, striding over to the chair opposite her, sitting down.

"What---you---you have kids? With Rin?" Kagome managed to choke out.

"Yes. Makoto and Sakura. Seven and five." Sesshoumaru said proudly. Kagome blinked in surprise at the tai-youkai. He actually had a smile on his face.

"Wow…umm..congratulations…' Kagome said, awestruck.

"Thank you." Sesshoumaru said, reverting back to his stoic tone.

"Benny's all set. He's going to be released." Becca announced, walking back into the office. Upon seeing Sesshoumaru, her expression turned cold.

"Lord Sesshoumaru." She greeted icily.

"Hunter." Sesshoumaru greeted, just as coldly.

"Carl, I'm going to go see Paul. Kagome? You coming?" Becca asked slowly.

Kagome nodded and got up, following Becca out of the office. "What was up with the Ice Queen?" Kagome asked as she tried to catch up to Becca, who was nearly running down the hallway.

"That bastard is mocking me. He knew I was here and he knows that I know he has Inuyasha and Kyoinu's whereabouts locked away in that bishounen head of his. Stupid prick!" Becca snarled, throwing open the door to her office. Paul, who had been asleep on the office couch, woke up with a yelp.

"What the hell crawled up your ass and died?" he grouched.

"Lord Fluffy." Becca said flatly. Paul chuckled and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

"Who're you?" He asked, trying to bring Kagome into focus.

"I'm Kagome Higurashi." Kagome said slowly, analyzing the raccoon youkai.

"Paul Hachie." Paul said, extending his hand. Kagome took his hand and shook.

"You're Hachie's grandson, aren't you?" She said in realization.

"Yeah, how do you know?" Paul questioned.

"I traveled with Miroku, Sango, and Shippo for four years." She explained.

"Really?"

"Yes. I love them all to death. Even Miroku…sometimes." Kagome grinned. Becca strode over to her desk and plopped down in her chair, picking up the file that had been placed on her desk.

"Donna Sutherland, 42, Ferret Youkai, strangled to death. Fingerprints found. Oh great." Becca grimaced as she read the cover sheet out loud.

"She was found on Burton Ave. last night. Addie says she wants you to go see her about the fingerprints." Paul told her, sitting back down on the couch.

"So that's why you were passed out on the couch. Well, I can't see Addie right now. I have to head up to UMass. Want one for the road Kagome?" Becca offered a Tootsie Pop out to Kagome, who took it.

"Thanks. Bye Paul. Nice meeting you!" Kagome said, following Becca out of the building and into the car.

"You know, I'm almost afraid of what this class is going to be about." Kagome said with a smile as she fastened her seatbelt.

"I'm excited. I might not teach right away, but I want something to do after hunting." Becca admitted.

"Eri and Yuka still haven't decided what they want to do for college. Ayumi's the only one who knows, and she's actually coming here on a scholarship." Kagome explained. She had called the three Saturday while Becca and Sango had gone to train Sandra. Becca had come home a little bumped and bruised, not to mention grumpy.

"That's really cool. She can even stay with us if she wants to. It's not her I mind, it's Eri and Yuka." Becca admitted. Kagome stared at her, shocked.

"That's...nice of you. I'll tell her that." Kagome said slowly, shooting her friend an appreciative smile.

The two lapsed into compatible silence as Becca turned onto the highway. "You've been feeling a little better, haven't you?" Becca piped up.

"Yeah, but I still miss him." Kagome replied.

"Well, it figures. Potential mate, gone for 500 years. That's why I left you alone for a week before even talking to your mom about coming here." Becca didn't even have to look at Kagome to know her face was beet red at Becca's implications.

"H-How do y-you know all that stuff?" Kagome stammered nervously.

"Well, if you live in a wolf youkai den for two years, then become a youkai hunter, you learn a thing or two." Becca said, grinning.

"Oh, so I could've been Inuyasha's mate? Kagome asked, a hint of disappointment in her tone.

"Hun, you pretty much are Inuyasha's mate. Kyoinu on the other hand, probably has a mate with cute little pups running around." Becca said, offering Kagome a lifeless smile. Kagome shot her a knowing grin that Becca just so happened to miss. But that didn't stop Kagome from noticing the tinge of pink on Becca's cheeks.

A/N: Tada!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Thank God for keyboarding class.

Thanks for all the reviews guys!!! They're awesome, and very much appreciated.

And didn't I tell you I was back? P

I've been putting updates on my profile, so check 'em out!!!

Bec