Author's note: Sorry for taking so long, I've had this typed for a while, but just wouldn't let me update.

Chapter 7: Festivals and Fire Cats (Part One)

"I'm so sorry about that, I was...um...sick."

Inuyasha stopped outside the door that Miruk had indicated to be Kagome's. Why is she talking to herself?

"Yeah, you can just ask my mother, I was asleep for most of the evening."

Inuyasha cautiously nudged the door open. From the crack in the doorway, he could see Kagome's profile, chatting away to midair. No, not to midair... He could now hear another voice. It was very faint, which was why he couldn't hear it through the door. Communing with spirits?

"Well, unless you're going to be helping your grandfather at the festival next week, maybe we could go together."

"Sure, sounds fun." Kagome moved out of view. "I'll see you at school tomorrow then." There was a faint click. "Alright, no more distractions...I need to sit down and-"

Inuyasha twitched as he slammed into the floor.

The door opened and Inuyasha could see Kagome's slipperd feet appear in front of him. "What are you doing outside my door?"

"Owww..."

"Get up and get in here before jii-chan or mama comes around."

Inuyasha limped into her room and Kagome shut the door.

"I'll ask again, what were you doing outside my door?"

"Why were you talking with a spirit?" Inuyasha replied.

"Huh?" Kagome looked puzzled for a moment. "Oh...I was just talking on the phone."

"Fone?"

Kagome picked up a rectangular object that was connected to a stand of some sort by a piece of curly rope. "Phone, a thing that allows you to talk to other people over a great distance."

"Is it magic?"

"No, its...well, never mind," Kagome put the phone back on its stand. "I answered your question, now you answer mine."

Inuyasha pulled a crumpled sheet of paper out of his shirt. "Miruk wants you to put these around the ne-bor-od." Inuyasha pulled a crumpled sheet of paper out of his shirt.

"The what?"

"Ne-bor-od. He says it's like a village."

"Oh, the neighborhood," Kagome took the flyer and skimmed it. Apparently Miruk and her grandfather were going to be doing free exorcisms during the festival. Miruk must've talked him into it, jii-chan never does anything for free.

"...me, also."

Kagome looked up. "What?"

"Miruk also said you should take me."

"What?! I thought we weren't supposed to let you out."

"Something about needing to know what Japan is like now."

Kagome tried to get out of taking the hanyou with her. "But what about your looks? Everyone will ask questions."

Inuyasha shrugged. "Miruk said something about a bass-ball kappa and I was welcome to his clothes."

Slightly annoyed, Kagome didn't even bother to correct his pronunciation. "C'mon then," she said, grabbing his elbow and leading him back to Miruk's room.

A little while later, Inuyasha was pulling at the sleeves of a red shirt, grumbling how he didn't have anywhere to put his hands. "I don't like how tight these are compared to my normal clothes," he complained, indicating the shirt, jeans, and sandals.

Kagome grinned slightly. He looks pretty cute like that, she thought to herself. Realizing what she was thinking, she mentally added, kawaii cute, not bishi cute.

She looked at his hears and handed him a baseball cap she had borrowed from her brother.

"I can't hear as well," Inuyasha complained. "It's as if I were human."

"How would you know how well a human can hear?" Kagome asked, "I've been able to get along fine without super ears."

"What if something tries to attack us?"

"You've got your nose, don't you?"

Inuyasha grumbled some more as Kagome grabbed the stack of flyers Miruk had left and the two set off.

"No running off," Kagome said as they headed down the shrine's front steps, "and don't take that hat off, I don't know how to explain a dog eared boy running amok."

"Yes, Kikyo," the dog eared boy in question sneered, knowing it would strike a nerve.

Kagome whipped around and seemed to look in front of him. "DON'T CALL ME THAT!!"

"Kagome-chan?"

The looming stopped when a quiet voice sounded behind Kagome. She turned around.

A girl her age stood at the base of the steps, her long brown hair was pulled back in a pony tail high on her head. Kagome recognized her from her class.

"Sen-chan? Umm...what are you doing here?"

Sen was a girl who normally kept to herself. She was excellent at sports, but didn't like competing in games and races. She lived only a street away from Kagome, so she saw Sen on the way to school, but they didn't talk much.

"I need an exorcism," Sen answered, head down, "Is your grandfather or the other priest here?"

I never really thought of Miruk as a priest, but...

"They left a while ago," Inuyasha jumped in.

"Oh, well...thanks anyways..." Sen peered at Inuyasha's eyes. "Are those colored contacts?"

"Huh?"

"Yes!" Kagome interrupted, before Inuyasha said anything stupid. "He's...uh...also working here temporarily."

"Oh," Sen continued to stare at Inuyasha. "Is-"

"Yes, that's hair dye."

"-he able to do exorcisms?"

"Oh, no...he..." Kagome was getting better at thinking quickly, "he mainly helps keep the place in shape." She suddenly remembered the flyers in her hand. "If you can wait a week, you don't even have to pay for it."

Sen took the flyer Kagome offered and thanked her. Without another word, she started to head home.

When he was certain the other girl was out of hearing distance, Inuyasha said, "She smells like a demon."

"Sen?" Kagome laughed as she started down the sidewalk. "I highly doubt that. She's just a bit superstious and probably thinks she's possessed."

"I've never heard of a cat demon possessing people." Inuyasha replied.

"Can we just stop with the demon talk? I want to get this done so that I can try and fix my textbook!" She snapped.

Most of the job passed in silence, interrupted only by Kagome having to explain what "Kars," "bykes," and "trane stashuns" were, among other modern items.

As Kagome was taping the final flyer at the nearest station entrance, she glanced outside to make sure Inuyasha wasn't chasing after "metal demons" again.

"Gah!" Eri, Arimi, and Yuki were gathered around him. She bolted towards them.

"Are you sure you aren't going out with her?" Arimi was asking the hanyou.

"You are living with her, and it would explain why she stood up Houjou," Eiri added.

"What are you all doing here?" Kagome interrupted before Inuyasha could open his mouth.

"We were going into the city to do some shopping, but then we saw you walking with him," Yuki said as she pointed at Inuyasha.

"I have a name you know."

"Well, it's been really nice seeing you, but we've got to get going," Kagome grabbed Inuyasha's arm and started to drag him off before her friends questions were directed at her.

"So what's your connection with this Inuyasha?" Eri had stepped in front of her to block her escape.

"Nothing! He just works at the shrine!" Kagome tried to edge around her, but this time Arimi cut her off.

"Then why didn't you go on your date with Houjou?"

"I was sick! Just ask my mother."

"But-"

Inuyasha suddenly grabbed Kagome by the waist and took off running. Kagome was stunned as their surroundings zoomed by. After a few seconds, they were several blocks away and Inuyasha slowed to a stop and set Kagome down.

"What..."

"It seemed like you wanted to get way from those three," Inuyasha answered simply.

"No normal person could pick up a school-girl and run off that fast."

"Hey, I got you out of a situation you didn't like!" Inuyasha snapped. "You should be thanking me!"

Kagome fumed. "I was in the process of getting away from them."

"Fine job you were doing."

"Osawari baka!"

A large crack appeared in the pavement.

"Why you-"

Ignoring the curses hurled at her, Kagome headed back home.

"...miyaki?"

Kagome jumped, "Huh?"

"Do you want some okonomiyaki?" Houjou indicated the nearby food cart. It was a week later at the festival.

"Oh, um, sure."

After ordering the Japanese style pizza and giving it to her, Houjou asked, "So what were you lost in thought about, Kagome-chan?"

Inuyasha for some odd reason, she thought.

"Umm...just worried about the test coming up in the next few days."

"If you're that worried about it, I could help you study if you want," Houjou suggested, smiling.

Kagome thought about the offer. Eri, Arimi, and Yuki were always too busy discussing the social life of the entire school; the last time she asked Miruk to help he "accidentally" groped her; her grandfather would start rambling on about how math doesn't apply to running a shrine (his way of saying he didn't know anything about whatever the assignment was); her mother was usually busy doing something; and she didn't think Inuyasha quite understood the concept of why school was important.

"I think that would be a very good idea," Kagome replied happily.

"Great," Houjou replied, putting an arm around her shoulder.

Kagome, about to pull the same thing she had done to Miruk a while back except with her okonomiyaki, tried to calm down. Relax, this is a date...

The evening passed and Kagome couldn't help enjoying herself, she loved festivals, especially fireworks.

Fireworks?!

Kagome slapped a hand to her forehead. Her mother had asked her, despite much protest, to take Souta with her to watch the fireworks.

"Maybe I could tell her I forgot him..." she muttered to herself.

"Forgot who?"

"Eh, my mother wanted me to take my little brother with us so he can see the firework display, even though I told her this is a date."

"Well, we've had several hours to ourselves, and I would hate to be the cause of a child missing something good." He started heading in a direction that would take him to the Dusk shrine.

"But..."

"Do you want to miss the display also?" Hojou asked, grinning over his shoulder.

He really is a great guy, Kagome thought, as she followed Hojou.

"She's back."

Miruk looked up from reading a young girl's palm. He didn't even inquire who Inuyasha meant by "she."

"And you'll live a rich and happy life," Miruk concluded quickly.

The girl headed off, slightly disappointed that the romantically talking young man had stopped so abruptly.

"I would think you wouldn't care whether Kagome was back or not," he told the hanyou.

Miruk had been taking a break from all the (real and fake) exorcisms that his idea had seemed to bring. He had come up with the scheme so he could practice and develop his spiritual powers now that he was 100 sure that powerful demons existed.

Inuyasha on the other hand had just escaped the clutches of a small child. Miruk had also come up with the idea of how to keep the hanyou occupied. He passed Inuyasha off as a friend of his who would "dress up" and "pretend" to be the demon from in the tree. Kagome's mother and grandfather had thought this was a wonderful idea.

"Feh, I don't care if she jumps off a cliff," replied the hanyou, "I was just telling you so you could go tell that sibling of hers that she's back."

Miruk blinked. "I thought he was helping you get away from those twin boys who wanted to 'banish' you."

"No, that was about an hour ago."

Miruk twitched. Mrs. Higarashi had asked the two of them to keep an eye on Souta while he was outside. "Alright, he's probably lost in the crowd...I'll distract Kagome and you can sniff him out."

Inuyasha stalked off, mumbling something about the difference between dogs and dog demons.

It was distracting with all the crowds of people there, but Inuyasha eventually pinpointed Souta's scent and followed it to the God Tree.

Souta wasn't there.

Inuyasha may not have been able to help Kagome with her "Gi-o-mi-tree," but he could easily figure out what was going on.

Earlier in the week, Miruk had come across a spell in the old scrolls that prevented anyone from focusing on an object. As long as he recharged (as Kagome put it) the spell, anyone's eyes would just slide away from the tree, not noticing the missing vines.

"You're sister's back," Inuyasha called out, focusing on a spot to the right of the Tree.

Souta suddenly seemed to pop out of nowhere. "But I like scaring people," Souta said, following Inuyasha back to the front of the Shrine, "some girls thought I was the demon."

"Feh," Inuyasha replied, not sure how to respond.

Pushing though the crowd, the two eventually spotted Kagome, Houjou and Miruk near the Shrine's staircase.

"...same prayer beads I used to get into a good high school." Miruk seemed to be telling Houjou about various good luck charms. Houjou seemed interested.

Kagome however seemed slightly annoyed. "We just came to get Souta before heading to the fireworks."

"Souta? Yes, Souta is..." Miruk caught sight of Inuyasha, "...right here!"

As the three headed back down the stairs, Miruk turned to Inuyasha. "So where was he?"

"Hiding next to the Tree and spooking people," Inuyasha explained. Suddenly he cocked his head and sniffed. "Remember that girl with the cat demon scent I told you about?"

"Yeah."

"Turn around."

Miruk turned around. A girl had just stopped behind the two young men, a small cat's head and front paws poking out from over her kimono's sleeves. Inuyasha felt his lips curl back in a silent snarl, but Miruk on the other hand had reverted to ultra-charmer mode.

"Anything we can help you with?" he asked, flashing the girl one of his best smiles.

"Are you still offering the free exorcisms?" the girl asked, blushing very slightly at Miruk.

"Of course, a beautiful young lady such as yourself doesn't deserve to be plagued by demons and spirits." Miruk moved closer to her. "Now why don't you tell me what it is that needs to be purified..." He trailed off, waiting for her name.

"It's Sen, and it might be better if I showed you," the girl looked around. "Is there a spot that is secluded from the crowds?"

"Behind the storehouse." Inuyasha interrupted, having a staring contest of sorts with the cat.

"Uhh...yes, behind the storehouse," Miruk said, slightly taken by surprise. He had forgotten that Inuyasha was still there. Reassuming his charming mode, he placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "This way. Now maybe you could tell me a little bit about the problem."

"Well, a little while ago, I found Honouneko here. She is a bit odd looking, but I thought it was a birth defect or something."

Miruk looked at the cat, who was staring unblinkingly at the hanyou following them. Besides markings he had never seen before and a mane of fur around its neck, he didn't see anything resembling a birth defect. Maybe it's missing a hind leg or something, he thought, due to the fact that most of the cat was hidden behind the Sen's wide sleeves.

"About two weeks ago, she started...doing unbelievable things," she paused. "What are you doing?" She asked, a vein twitching on the side of her head.

"Hand slipped," Miruk said quickly, moving his hand from the girl's rear.

By now they were behind the storehouse. The girl placed her cat on the ground, "Don't stand too close," she advised.