A/N: Sorry for this being a day later that it should and for not being as long as I usually post. We had a slight family crisis (nothing big) mid-week, then we went to the National Story Telling Fest in TN. So, didn't have as much time to flush this out as I like. Oh well, you get some new information here. Thanks for R&Ring.

Miroku felt the world around him dissolve and reform as the time altered inside the well. It did not feel like he changed position or moved, but that the world shifted around him to suit his needs. He felt his heart race and he tried to keep his breathing in check to keep himself from having another occurrence as before. He felt himself grasp his chest as the lights around him dimmed. He calmed his chest and took a moment to look straight up from the bottom of this unfamiliar side of the bone eater's well. There was a roof covering the well. He breathed in deeply before watching Kagome grab onto a ladder and hoist herself up. Inuyasha looked at the monk as he continued to grasp the jewel in his right hand. His friend looked concerned. Perhaps his breath was still not quite under control.

"Do you want help up?"

Miroku was about to protest but thought better of it and slowly nodded that yes, he would indeed like some help. He felt his friend gently guide him onto his back—the monk was only too happy the dog didn't chose to carry him bridal style—and quickly leapt out of the well and into a dimly lit building. The two males beat Kagome up. Sliding off his friend, the dark-haired man combed a weak hand through his bangs. He felt alright, under control actually.

Kagome swung her bag and leg over the side of the well and sat up with a slight puff. Miroku envied her ease of breath. "Alright, let's go up to the house."

Miroku noted that the hanyou quickly shouldered Kagome's battered yellow bag, taking the weight for himself. He followed the two out of the small well house and into an afternoon sun. He found himself shielding his eyes with the hand that still held the jewel and he had to take careful steps to avoid tripping. The well building really was very dark.

His friend turned to him with a small smile. "Well, this is home."

Miroku nodded with a small smile. "It is an honor, Lady Kagome."

She grinned and took his unoccupied hand to pull him toward a rather large home by the monk's standards. The silver haired young man trailed behind.

When the three entered the side door, Kagome let go of Miroku's hand, plucked the jewel from his other, and hopped quickly into the kitchen as she looped the necklace around her head. "Oh Mom! I have someone for you to meet."

Miroku stopped in place while Inuyasha placed the luggage on the mat just inside the door. From around the corner, a woman with shorter hair appeared and smiled warmly at him. She was a lovely woman with an open face and soft features. Kagome didn't look much like her mother, but there was a similar aura that simply radiated from both women. Miroku would have known Kagome's mother anywhere.

He stepped forward and bowed politely. "Thank you for accepting me in your beautiful home." When he rose back upright he felt the new acquaintance hug him energetically. She pulled back with her arms on his shoulders and eyed him warmly.

"Miroku." She smiled. "I am so happy you've been able to make it through. I thought I might never get to meet you."

He felt himself nearly pulled to flirt, but pushed the urge away. "I am very glad to finally met you and visit your time as well."

She nodded. "Consider this your second home, dear."

Inuyasha chuckled behind him. "Careful, she'll have you running errands."

The woman's eyes shifted to the hanyou and she let go of the monk. She reached out both hands to catch his ears before he had the nerve to back away and managed a few tweaks before Inuyasha batted her hands away and let her hug him instead. "Welcome home, dear."

Miroku watched as his friend hugged Kagome's mother and blushed at the "home." He knew that was indeed how his friend viewed this place, but it seemed Inuyasha had not yet admitted it out loud to himself. He was probably still a little unnerved by having such a place he'd longed for so long. Miroku smiled and griped the beads he still wore around his right hand. Inuyasha actually had two places he could call home now, and the hanyou probably didn't know what to do with himself.

He had never had even one home before.

Kagome's mother quickly let go of her adopted son and smiled as Kagome came out from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel. "Well, dinner won't be ready for another couple hours—" she looked at Inuyasha. "We are having a roast."

Inuyasha smiled happily. "I can smell."

Miroku couldn't smell anything yet, but he was sure it would be wonderful.

"If you get hungry before then, feel free to call the fridge your own, and get Kagome to help you if you need to microwave anything."

Miroku didn't follow most of the sentence, but understood he was to make himself at home. "Microwave?"

Inuyasha placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Dude, it rocks."

It was soon after Miroku learned where Inuyasha had learned the term "dude" when he met Souta. After that, he learned that the microwave did indeed rock his socks off. Though, he wished he knew what socks were.

Kaede had made them a wonderful stew, and there was plenty to go around since she had expected a hungry dog, a monk, and perhaps a slayer. Sumi took to the older woman a bit easier than either Miroku or Inuyasha earlier, not that she had mistrusted Shippo's judgment yet. The girl seemed thrilled she had a continuing source of food to fill her belly. Shippo really wanted to get to know her more. Did she have any interests beyond eating and brushing her hair? Shippo for one loved music Kagome brought back from her time. Souta, who he still had never met but might now if Miroku had made it through the well, had sent him "Christmas" gifts yearly for about four years. Shippo attempted to make some hand crafted things with youkai magic in return and from what Kagome said, her brother liked them much more than Shippo had hoped. Two years ago it had been a CD player. Shippo's world had expanded beyond belief.

Now the fox owned a small sack he carried from his belt at all times which expanded (thank you fox magic) into what could only be described as a small library of CDs without walls. There were several books thrown in for good measure, his favorite of which were two picture books about something bad that had happened about a half decade before Kagome's time and four hundred years into his future. Kagome called it the "holocaust" and the books were called Maus.

Shippo wondered if Sumi could even read in her language. Shippo wouldn't have learned if his father hadn't put high importance on education—even for youkai—and he had no clue how Inuyasha could read. Perhaps she liked art. Shippo still sketched quite often, but nothing more. He didn't paint or attempt anything that required a higher skill. Did she like sport? Shippo liked to play and have fun, but he wasn't much for the restrictive quality of most sports. He also wasn't as competitive as one needed to be to love sport. Maybe she would like movies? Kagome sometimes brought a small box and showed him movies on it. Even Sango liked the movies.

He heard a clatter as Sumi put her bowel down rather roughly and he looked up in time to catch her straighten up so quickly it was as if someone had shocked her.

"Sumi?" Shippo scooted forward to reach out to her with his hand. His fingertips barely brushed her shoulder before she was gone.

Before his eyes lay her clothes—the priestess garb she had been loaned—and nothing more. Shippo's fingers twitches and his words faltered.

"Wh-where…"

Then there was a quick movement from the small bundle of clothes. The young fox blinked and regained enough control of his limbs to quickly pinch a bit of fabric between his two fingers and lift it from the pile. He had removed the white robe and when he did and saw what was beneath it, he nearly fainted.

Sitting straight backed in the center of the red fabric was the small animal he had begun to believe he had mistaken as the woman who had been "visiting" with them that day. Sumi was still there after all, and she looked up at him with black eyes and let out a little cry as his trembling fingers lost their hold on the white cloth, and it dropped on top of her small stature.

Shippo puffed. "What's going on here?"