"I'm sorry, dear, but right now it's the best thing for you. After the well-" Mrs. Higurashi was cut off when her daughter interrupted in a rather sharp voice.

"Don't talk about that," she told her mother sternly, who sighed and nodded. She knew it hurt Kagome to talk about it, the reason why she suggested moving. But Kagome was so against it. . . as though she wanted to stay in the place that caused her the most pain. "We're not moving! We've lived at this shrine for as long as I can remember, you can't seriously-"

Her mother interrupted this time, and her tone left no room for argument. "We are moving, young lady. That is final."

Kagome huffed and crossed her arms, storming up to her room. "You might want to pack dear. . . we leave tomorrow morning."

A startled gasp left the young miko's throat, and then a low growl. How dare she! How dare her mother force her out of her home? It was bad enough moving to a new place in the city, but she'd have to move to a new school and she'd be the new kid! This year she'd be the one to get teased and picked on by the bullies . . . so, not fun.

She sighed and began packing her things like her mother told her to do. Not willingly of course, but once her mother made up her mind, there was no changing it. Clearly she thought this was what was best for her oldest and only daughter, and Kagome didn't have any say in it at all.

Climbing into her bed once she had finished packing, she sighed and began to cry softly. She would have to seal the well so that no unfortunate girl like herself would fall into it and get transported to the other era, only to get her heart broken. She would also have to seal it so that Inuyasha couldn't follow her. . . tch, not like he would. He was happy with Kikyou now. That would be the reason why he wasn't coming back.

About three months ago it happened. They had just defeated Naraku, and Kagome had completely purified the jewel using her powers. Then, Kikyo had re-appeared. She walked over and hugged Inuyasha, right in front of Kagome, who's heart shattered when he hugged her back. When he left with Kikyo, her heart fell to the ground and someone stomped on it, completely breaking it into many more pieces.

She never saw that his eyes seemed blank, as if he were under a spell. She had ran for the well before anyone could stop her. She jumped in, never to be seen in the other era again.

Kagome sighed, shaking the memory out of her head. It was too painful to think about, but why did she? But for some reason, she thought that sealing the well would be just as painful ...

When she was sure the rest of her family was asleep, she quietly crept downstairs, making sure not to creak on the stairs as she did, though she couldn't help as the door craked when it closed. She sighed and walked outside over to the well.

"I'm sorry I have to do this.... without even saying goodbye..." Kagome spoke to the well in a soft, quiet voice, though she was sure no one was listening on the other end. "But this is for the best. I cannot go back there only to have my heart broken by the man I love. I have to move on. I hope you all understand and will do the same. My mom's moving me to another part of the city, so I'm afraid I can't go to the feudal era even if I tried. Please forgive me....but this is my final goodbye."

With that, she clapped her hands and closed her eyes, starting to glow a bright pink along with the well. "Well Seal For Eternity!" Kagome cried out, tears stinging at her eyes as she said those four words that would change her life forever. Not that her life was already changing. When the glow faded, she fell to the ground, panting softly. That had taken up more spiritual energy than she had first thought ...

She sighed and walked out, closing the doors behind her. She walked back into the shrine, quietly shutting the door behind her and crept up the stairs. Everyone was still asleep, which was a good thing for her. But she never noticed her mother watching her from the window sadly, knowing what her daughter must have just done, because she had seen the pink glow coming from the well house.

'I'm sorry, Kagome ... but you made the right choice, so that no one will fall down that well again.'

~*~

The next day arrived really quick, and Kagome was dreading it. They were already in the car, driving. It would take about two hours to get to wherever it is they were going.

"Is anyone hungry?" Mrs. Higurashi asked, turning her head to look at her two children in the back seat. They both just stared out of the window. Souta didn't like the idea they were moving either. He had put up a stronger argument than Kagome had however, but nothing changed Mrs. Higurashi's mind, just like Kagome.

She sighed and turned back to look out the window ... but it was already too late. A car was coming their way, in the same direction. Mrs. Higurashi tried to pull the car in a different direction to save them, but again, it was too late.

"Mom! Watch out!" Kagome cried, suddenly beginning to glow a bright pink color from the fear she was experiencing.

The car crashed right into theirs. Since her mother and grandfather were in front, and the car had smashed right through to the wind shield, both were almost dead instantly. Kagome had turned to look to her brother and her eyes widened. He wasn't in his seat.... he hadn't been wearing a seatbelt! She knew the fate that her brother had suffered, but didn't want to see. Wait...why was she still alive?

The car's on fire! She realized this because it was so hot, but she wasn't on fire. Her miko powers must be what be saving her. She tried to crawl out of the car, but she winced in pain. Some glass from the broken windshield was stuck in her leg and it was bleeding pretty badly. She couldn't move.

When she looked over towards the window to the other car, she gasped. The person who had been driving the car escaped! How was that possible?

"Inspector, over here!"

"This must be what we heard earlier!"

"Conan, out of the way, brat!"

Kagome blinked as she heard the voices, tears stinging in her eyes. She heard the sirens of the cops cars, and she also heard the voices of some unfamiliar people.

"That's impossible! Someone's still alive!" the one who Kagome heard them call Inspector exclaimed.

"But the car is on fire! Get her out, now!"

"Help me, please!" Kagome cried out, hoping they would hear her through the fire. "My foot is bleeding pretty badly, I can't move!"

Conan blinked as he heard the voice. It sounded scared, but she also sounded fine. How was that possible? Her family was probably burned alive right now, but she was still living.

Inspector Meguire and Richard Moore pulled the girl out of the car together, and Rachel stood next to Conan to make sure he wouldn't get in the way. Rachel gasped when she noticed the light pink aura around the girl.

"Hey, Conan.... do you see that?" Rachel asked, pointing to the girl. "She doesn't have any marks on her body at all... like the fire never touched her.."

Conan blinked again. How was that even possible? he thought to himself. Wait....what's that light? Where's it coming from? he noticed the faint pink aura around her, and blinked when Richard and Inspector Meguire seemed to be thrown off balance and halfway across the road. Woah! What the hell was that?

"Rachel, did you see that?" Conan asked, looking up at her.

"Yeah, that was amazing!" Rachel breathed out in awe. "I've never seen anything like that before....what is she?" she asked aloud.

"What's your name, my dear?" Richard asked, looking down at the frightened and teary-eyed miko. "It's okay, you're safe now."

Kagome nodded and swallowed. "I'm Kagome Higurashi."

"Do you know if you have any remaining family?" Meguire asked her, looking over at her, righting something down on a notepad. She shook her head.

"My brother, mother, and grandfather were in that car with me. We were moving to another part of the city today. My mother turned to ask us if we were hungry, then I noticed the car coming our way. Mama tried to go in another direction, but it was too late. They are the only family I had left."

Meguire nodded. "So that's what happened...." he said, writing down what she said in the notepad. Though everyone was curious as to why she was the only one who had survived, they didn't question her. She was too distraught enough.

Rachel then had a thought. "Hey Dad, do you think that she could stay with us for a while, at least until she gets back on her feet again?"

Kagome blinked, looking up startled. "You don't have to do that!" she exclaimed, shaking her head back and forth, but Rachel shook her head and smiled.

"Nonsense, it's no trouble at all.... right dad?" Rachel's voice hardened slightly as she looked over at the 'great detective'. Richard grumbled a bit, nodding.

"See, even he wants you to stay," Rachel said with a smile, hitting Richard on the back. "Even if he does have a funny way of showing it."

Kagome blinked. Did they all know each other like....really well? They all seemed so close. She looked around, taking a look at the Inspector Meguire dressed in orange, then at the strange young boy. Conan they had called him she remembered. She noticed him staring at her strangely, like he was studying her or something. She raised an eyebrow. Odd kid....

"Come with me," Rachel smiled, helping her up. "We'll take care of the glass at the hospital."

The miko nodded. "Can you come with me? I've always hated hospitals." she said truthfully. She hated being alone in them. They were so creepy.

Rachel smiled, nodding. "Of course. Come on, Conan." She called over to the little kid, who blinked suddenly and ran over.

"Coming!"

Kagome looked over at the boy as he ran over, and Rachel took his hand. "I'm Rachel Moore, that's my dad, Richard," She pointed over to Richard, who was talking to Meguire. "That's Inspector Meguire, he's in charge around this area. And this is Conan Edogawa, he's staying with us until his parents come back from overseas."

"Hi!" Conan exclaimed cheerfully, and Kagome couldn't help but smile. For some reason, she was painfully reminded of Shippo. Tears stung in her eyes as she looked at Conan, and he blinked when he saw them.

'She didn't cry when her family died.... but she's crying when she looks at me?' Conan thought to himself as Rachel helped Kagome into the car, making sure not to put too much pressure on her foot.

They drove to the hospital in silence. Conan was looking out the window, though every once in a while he stole a glance at the miko. She was looking out the window too, lost in thought. Richard was driving the car, Meguire stayed behind to check the bodies, as well as put the fire out and check for any clues.

Kagome sighed heavily as she looked over out the window. Rachel looked over to her. The three of them were in the back seats, Conan in the middle. Rachel was on the right and Kagome was on the left.

"Everything is going to be alright, Kagome," Rachel said to her with a smile. "We won't let you go to an orphanage. Right Conan?" she smiled as she looked down to the big kid detective turned small kid.

He looked up at Rachel and nodded, smling. "Yeah!" he looked over towards Kagome. She smiled a bit, looking at them with gratefulness in her eyes.

"Thank you. Both of you."

She leaned down and ruffled Conan's hair, making him blush. He had to admit it... she was cute. He was surprised Richard hadn't tried any moves. But he was even more surprised that she survived the car accident, a burning car accident, when the rest of her family was burned alive. What surprised him even more, was that there were no burn marks at all on her body, only glass had hurt her from the windshield.

'What is she...?' he thought to himself as he watched her while she was looking out the window. He thought she didn't notice him, but she saw him out of the corner of her eye and she smiled.

'He's not a normal kid...' she thought to herself. 'I wonder... if he has some sort of power too...'

Kagome had been taken care of at the hospital, and Richard took them all back home only after because Rachel refused to leave her alone there. He didn't know why, and he really didn't care. If she was an orphan, she should go to an orphanage, or so he thought. But the others didn't seem to think so, and they got angry when he had brought that up. Though Kagome just fake smiled through it all, everyone could see that she was in more pain then she let on.

'She's wearing some kind of mask,' Rachel thought, as she looked at the girl who was sitting on her couch, just staring at the tv but not really watching what was on. 'Like me, when Jimmy's not around. I act all happy when I'm around others, but when I think I'm alone... I let it all out.'

Rachel was peeking at her through her barely open door. Richard and Conan were asleep. She was only awake because she had a nightmare about Jimmy, and that got her thinking about him constantly now. She knew she wasn't going to be able to sleep, so she had gone to her room door to open it, only to find Kagome outside. Feeling the need to hide, she watched her to see what she was doing. 'Poor girl...'

"I know you're awake, Rachel, and you're watching me."

Rachel jumped up in surprise. Kagome hadn't even turned around once, she was staring right at the tv. Unless she saw the reflection somehow in the tv screen... maybe it had something to do with the pink light she saw before.

"S-Sorry, Kagome," Rachel smiled weakly and walked out of her room, closing the door behind her. Kagome turned to look at her, blinking at seeing her red and puffy eyes.

"You've been crying."

Rachel wiped at her eyes, nodding slowly. "Kagome... have you ever heard of a detective named Jimmy Kudo? You live in Tokyo, so you must have."

Thinking back, the name sounded familiar to her, but she just couldn't place it before. She nodded. "I remember hearing his name before, and that he was a pretty good detective... I think he solved a mystery where I lived or something. That's all I know about him."

She sighed and looked down. "Did something happen to him?" Kagome got worried.

"He disappeared...it's been months now," Rachel whispered. "He took me on a date to one of the theme parks-- don't look at me like that!" Rachel exclaimed, blushing as she saw the sly smile on Kagome's lips. "---and he ran off. For some reason, I thought then I wouldn't be seeing him for a long time. Shortly after that, Conan appeared with our friend Dr. Agasa, who's a great professor who makes all of these wonderful inventions... though some of them work better than others."

Kagome sweatdropped. "I see...but don't you find it a bit odd, that Conan appeared right after Jimmy disappeared?"

Conan was peeking at them now through his door. They were talking about him... or rather, the person he used to be. Jimmy Kudo. An 18 year old, great detective. He always solved the case, no matter how hard it may be. But this one was very confusing. This had never happened before. Kagome looked human, but she had some... sort of ... was it magic? He didn't know, and he had never really believed in such things since he was a detective, and liked looking at the facts rather than other worldly things.

Kagome seemed just like your ordinary teenage girl who attended high school. But there was definitely something not ordinary about this girl. That pink glow. It still puzzled him. He sighed and closed the door, going back to lay on his bed. He didn't want to hear Rachel crying, he heard it enough when she thought no one was listening throughout the night.

"Rachel.... I wish I could tell you... I really do..." Conan murmured to himself, unaware that someone was watching him. Moments passed, but Conan remained awake still.

"I love you, Rachel... I wish I could tell you, but I'd rather tell you face to face than over the phone," he said to himself. "I promise, when I get back to my old self, I'll-"

He was interrupted moments later by a voice. "Conan?" he jumped as he looked over at the door, seeing Kagome.

"Y-You didn't hear any of that, did you?" he laughed nervously. Kagome just laughed softly and smiled, nodding.

"I heard when you first mentioned you wished you could tell her."

Conan sighed, staring at the ground. She walked inside and sat down on the bed beside him. "Conan, you're not really a kid are you? No normal 10 year old boy talks and acts the way you do."

The detective turned kid looked up at her with teary eyes, and this shocked Kagome.

"I heard Rachel tell you the story...half of it anyway... I did disappear at that park we were at. I saw something I shouldn't have seen, and these thugs in black hit me over the head, knocking me out. Then they said they'd be testing their latest poison on me, in hopes that it would kill me I guess."

"But instead, it turned you into a kid?" Kagome asked, tilting her head.

"Yeah," he nodded. "At first, I really thought I was gonna die...it felt like my bones were melting... that I was on fire... I didn't know how much longer I could take it. But then, all of a sudden I heard some cops calling to each other about a little boy who was hurt."

"That must've been a shocker," Kagome commented. He nodded again.

"Tell me about it," Conan said to her. "But I've gotten used to it... the best I can anyway. Besides you, Dr. Agasa, the man Rachel told you about earlier, is the only one that knows I'm really Jimmy Kudo. He helps me keep my identity a secret, and makes all these really cool inventions for me to help bring criminal to justice."

"So I'm assuming you're how Richard got so famous?" Kagome asked with a small smirk in her voice.

Conan blinked, then laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah. Did Rachel tell you?"

"Yeah. She said that whenever he would really solve a case, he would be sitting down in a chair... almost as if he were sleeping. But his head was always bowed, so it was hard to tell."

Conan pointed to his bowtie. "This is a voice changer. It's how I imitate Richard's voice." He demonstrated it for her by turning it on and programming it to Kagome's voice, which he had only now put in. Kagome's eyes widened....her voice coming out of his small body....weird.

He then pointed to the wrist watch on his left hand. "This is a Stun-dart watch. I use it to put Richard to sleep so I can solve the case, and it's the only way they'll actually listen to me."

Kagome nodded in understanding. Of course, no one ever really listened to kids.

"So, what do you plan to do now?" Kagome asked him, interested in everything he was saying.

"Find out who did this to me, find their hide out, and bring them to justice, find an antidote as well," Conan replied with a nod. "I can't have them roaming around with that poison. If they turn more than me into kids who knows what could happen. But I can't do it as Jimmy Kudo. No one but you and Dr. Agasa must know who I am, because if word got out that I'm still alive, the Organization would come after those I care about."

Kagome nodded. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone." She smiled, and for some reason, he felt like he could trust her.

"So, what's your story, Kagome? I've told you mine," Conan stated, and she knew it was true. She sighed.

"Mine's a real fairy tale, are you sure you wanna hear it?" Kagome asked. When he nodded she continued.

"Alright. Well, everything was normal until my fifteenth birthday. I'd never once believe in magic....ghosts...demons...that sort of thing. Until then, that is. I lived in a shrine with my mother, grandfather, and younger brother, that had a smaller house with a well inside. The well was said to be the Bone Eater's well. It's original use in the Sengoku period was to dispose of the remains of slain demons, hence the name Bone Eater's Well. On my fifteenth birthday, I found Souta in the well house looking for our family cat, Buuyo. He had apparantely run inside. We weren't supposed to be in the well house, but we went in anyway to find Buuyo.

"I had my back turned to the well when all of a sudden the cat jumped out of nowhere. I was about to leave, when suddenly, the well started glowing, and something pulled me down into it, demanding I gave it something called the Shikon Jewel."

Conan blinked in surprise. "I heard about that! But I thought that it was just-"

"A myth? A legend?" Kagome asked. He nodded. "I know. So did I. Anyway, it pulled me down, away from my brother, away from my time all together. Remember when I told you about the Sengoku period?"

Conan nodded. "That was around the 1500's... right?"

"Right," Kagome nodded. "That's where the centipede was from, and it took me there. However, down the well, I put out my hand as if to push it away, but a blast of pink energy came out of it, like you saw earlier today. It happens when I'm scared. I thought I had killed it, because it wasn't moving. But when I climbed out, I met the most interesting boy. He wore a gaudy red outfit, a haori, he had long, silver hair that went way past his shoulders, and he had golden eyes. That may have been the strange thing to you- but believe me, it's not. He had dog ears. But he was also asleep, pinned to a tree."

Why did all of this sound so familiar? Like he had heard this fairytale before? The story of the miko and hanyou who fell in love but thought they betrayed one another... he attacked her, demanding she hand the jewel over to him, and took it when she was weak enough so she couldn't move. With the last of her strength, she pinned the hanyou to the tree.

He voiced his thoughts to Kagome, who blinked in surprise. "That's it exactly! The miko's name was Kikyou, and the half-demon was Inuyasha. Did you hear anything else about the story?"

Conan nodded. "Yeah. That the miko died after pinning the half-demon to a tree for fifty years. Also, that she burned the jewel with her body, and she was reincarnated into another woman who reappeared fifty some years later after her death, releasing the half-demon from his sleep."

Kagome pointed to herself, a small sad smile on her face. "I'd be that miko."

Conan's eyes bulged out of his head and he nearly fell off the bed in shock. "You're Kikyou's reincarnation!? Unbelievable! Show me proof." He needed proof to believe such a thing.

Kagome nodded, taking out something from her pocket. In her hand was a small, pink jewel that seemed to glow in the palm of her hand. "This is the shikon jewel. The one that you said burned with Kikyou's body. It came out of my body when the centipede demon that dragged me down the well bit me in the side, proving to the world I was Kikyou's reincarnation." He noticed the bitterness in her voice as she said the last two words. . . did she have a problem with Kikyou?

"Wow," Conan stared at the jewel in awe. It seemed to have some sort of power, it was like it was drawing him to it. "That's the jewel from the legend-er....story now, since it's true."

Kagome chuckled and slowly nodded. "That's right." She tucked it back inside her pocket and then yawned, looking over at the clock. "It's getting really late, we should get some sleep Conan. . . or should I say Jimmy now?"

Conan laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "You can when we're alone, just like now. Or when we're with Dr. Agasa. But other than that, call me Conan when we're with others."

"Okay, I'll remember that," Kagome smiled. This time Conan yawned. She smiled and ruffled his hair, making him huff.

"Get some sleep, I might be able to help you with that problem of yours in the morning," she winked at him, walking out of his room, leaving him confused.

Kagome climbed into bed and sighed. Looking at the bed next to hers, she saw Rachel sleeping. Good...she didn't hear anything... I hope... she thought to herself as she climbed into bed. Today had been a long day, and she needed her rest.

Kagome was the first to wake up the next day, she noticed. Rachel was still asleep in the bed beside her, and there was no noise outside in the other rooms. She sighed softly and just stayed in bed, not wanting to wake anyone up.

Her mind was zooming with thoughts of what she and Conan talked about last night. He wasn't really ba kid, but a brilliant detective poisoned, and the poison turned him into a kid instead of killing him like the men in black wanted it to do. She knew of a potion which would counteract something like that, and planned on making it, if she could somehow find the right herbs. Maybe there was a plant shop somewhere in this town she could look at. The potion wouldn't turn him back permanently, but it would turn him back to Jimmy Kudo for maybe a year or two before he'd turn back into Conan until another potion was made.

She wanted to do something for Jimmy. She felt like she had to. He wanted to be with Rachel again, really be with her as himself once more. She knew what true love felt like, and wanted them both to be happy. She knew they had only met just yesterday, and not under the best circumstances, but they were both still friends and she wanted to do something to help them... anything.

She was going to keep her promise too, to not tell Rachel or anyone else of Conan's true identity. She wasn't going to betray anyone, unlike a certain hanyou she knew. Her heart panged in her chest, it hurt so much to think about him. She had really loved him, and she just betrayed him...all for Kikyou.

Sighing, she wiped her eyes and looked over at Rachel, who was just starting to wake up. She smiled. "Morning, sleepy head," she greeted her once her eyes opened.

"Kagome...?" Rachel groaned, looking over at the clock. 8:00pm. She blinked in surprise. "Wow, you certainly are a morning person."

The miko chuckled. "I had to be, when I was traveling with my friends."

"True," Rachel smiled. She didn't know of her adventures in the feudal era, all Rachel knew was that she did a lot of traveling with her friends all over Japan and that was why she hadn't had the best of grades in school. "Are you hungry?"

"Yeah, a little I guess," Kagome smiled and just as she said this, her stomach rumbled. She flushed with embarrassment. Rachel just smiled. "How's pancakes sound?"

Kagome's eyes lit up at the mention of her favorite breakfast food. "That sounds great!" she exclaimed. Rachel chuckled and nodded, standing up and climbing out of bed. She put on some new clothes and walked out into the kitchen. Neither her dad or Conan were up yet, so she was quiet and made sure not to make any noise.

Kagome walked out of the room and over to the kitchen to help her, but Rachel instantly shooed her away. "No work for you for a while, Kagome. You were in a big car accident yesterday, you'd think I'd let you work at all?"

"But...I don't want to be a burden or anything, I want to-" Kagome began, but Rachel cut her off.

"Shoo, and go wake Conan and Dad up. Tell them it's time for breakfast," She told her. "That's the most work your going today."

"Who are you, my mother?" Kagome joked as she walked over to the guy's room.

Rachel seemed to be shocked still. Kagome just made a joke concerning her mother...and she had only died yesterday. Wasn't it a little soon to be joking? And why wasn't she like any other girl, crying over her parent's death? That's what she would do if her mother or dad ever died.

Something was definitely off here... she just couldn't put her finger on it. She just knew there was something special about her, kind of like Conan.

"Morning Rachel!" Conan smiled as he walked over, sitting at the table. Kagome and Conan both looked at each other with a smile, and this Rachel raised an eyebrow at. Did they know something she didn't? She was determined to find out! No one hid things from her.

"Good morning, Conan," Rachel smiled. "Did you have a good sleep?" she asked the ten year old detective as he sat down.

"Yeah, did you?" Conan asked her, looking up at her.

Rachel seemed to pause for a moment, and everyone noticed this -- except for Richard, of course. He just yawned. "Y-Yes, I did."

Conan frowned. Not another one of those dreams... he thought to himself, looking at her worriedly as her back was turned to him.

Kagome noticed her pause as well as her shaky voice too. She was worried. She knew she missed Jimmy from the talk they had last night, and she had to act fast.

"Hey guys, do either of you know of a flower shop that has all sorts of herbs in town?" Kagome asked, a curious tone in her voice as she looked around at the other three occupants of the house, who looked over at her in confusion.

"Yeah, I think there's one a few minutes away from here, but why?" Rachel asked.

"Oh, well..." Damn, I never thought up a good excuse, she thought to herself. "I just want to check it out. I love plants and nature, stuff like that you see." Lame, but true.

Rachel nodded. "I could take you there later if you'd like," she smiled. But Kagome could just tell that it was fake somehow. She knew very well how to fake smile.

"That'd be great, thanks Rachel," Kagome smiled and they all ate breakfast together that morning.

"No problem. Glad to help."

Kagome and Rachel, along with Conan, made their way to the flower shop right after breakfast that morning, leaving Richard behind. He couldn't care less about flowers.

Kagome was in awe of all the kinds that were there, and looked around for the right herbs to make that potion. She found most of them, all but one. She frowned.

"Is something wrong, Kagome?" Rachel asked her, noticing her frown.

"Yeah...I can't find one I'm looking for. I've found all the ones I needed except it."

"What is it? I'll help you look," she offered to help. Kagome smiled and told her, then they began looking once again.

"I found it! Over here, girls!" Conan exclaimed, holding up an herb in his hand. He had heard the conversation and wanted to help too. She was curious as to why she wanted to buy all these, but thought better than to ask her of it.

"Thank you, Conan!" Kagome smiled and walked over, taking the herb from his hands. Holding them all, she walked over to pay for them with the little money she had in her pocket. Luckily, it had survived the fire too.

'Well, goodbye for now, money,' Kagome sadly sighed. 'Maybe I'll get a job in this town... and find some other place to live instead of burdening Rachel and Richard...'

"Ready to go?" Rachel asked her, and she nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, let's go."

They all nodded and left after she paid for the herbs. Carrying them back to the apartment, she looked around.

"Do you guys have a metal pot I could use?"

Okay, now Conan was really curious as to what she was going to do with those herbs, as was Rachel.

"Yeah... what are you gonna do?" she asked.

"Er...make a sort of healing potion for my ankle," she lied to Rachel, then looked over at Conan and winked.

Eh...? he thought, blinking a few times.

This was getting more confusing by the minute.

"Sure, here," Rachel told her, putting one on the stove for her.

"Thanks!" Kagome's eyes lit up and she ran over to the stove, instantly getting to work.

It took about an hour until the herbs were cooked well enough into the potion, and then it was ready. Kagome smiled as Rachel gave her a small vial to put it in. "Thanks again."

"No problem," Rachel smiled. "How do you know so much about... the old ways of healing, I guess you could say?"

"I studied it in school, I was really interested in the subject," Kagome smiled and Rachel nodded. Not a complete lie, but not completely the truth eibther.

"Cool," Rachel smiled and Conan nodded in agreement. He'd never met anyone who was so interested in plants and herbs before. "Well, I'm gonna go take a bath. See you guys soon!"

With that, she walked into the bathroom, closing the door and locking it behind her...just in case.

Kagome grinned. "Perfect. Hey, Jimmy?"

Conan looked over to her. "Yeah?"

"I think you're smart enough to realize that this isn't for my ankle," Kagome pointed to the vial in her hand. Conan nodded to say yes. "It's a potion, but for your ... 'problem'." She didn't know what else to call it, really.

Conan's eyes widened. "Are you serious!?" he exclaimed, now quite excited.

"Yes," Kagome smiled. "I wanted to do something for you both, after all you've helped me so much in so little time. I learned from my mentor Kaede how to make a few potions, this being one of the few odd ones she found. It will turn you back to normal... but only for a year. Then it will wear off. I can make another one quite easily when it does."

Conan's eyes lit up and then he was over at Kagome's side, hugging her. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

Kagome smiled. "It's the least I could do. Here," she passed the small vial to him and he looked at it. The liquid inside was pink and bubbling. "Don't worry... it kind of tastes like bubble gum, which is odd considering there's no flavoring inside it. But that's what Kaede said it was supposed to taste like....anyway, you need to drink it all in one gulp, and don't move after you drink it."

Conan nodded and drank it quickly, while Rachel was still in the bath. He couldn't wait to surprise her. Kagome couldn't either, actually. Even though she had known them for less than a day now, she loved them like they were her own family.

Conan felt like his insides were burning, just like the time he was poisoned. It felt like his bones were melting...but this time he was growing...growing...

About ten minutes later, Jimmy Kudo stood in front of her. Kagome grinned. "It worked!" she cheered, then blinked. "Hey...your clothes got bigger too!"

Jimmy blinked and looked in the mirror in the living room. She was right. That was odd, but he wasn't complaining! He walked over to Kagome and gave her another hug.

"Thank you," Jimmy smiled at her, and she nodded, smiling back at him.

"You're welcome."

"Kagome, are you hungry? I'll make us some sup...per...now..." Rachel's voice got slower and slower until it stopped as she got out of the bathroom after drying herself off and put on a new change of clothes. Both Jimmy and Kagome turned to smile at her.

"Hey, look who showed up while you were in the shower!" Kagome smiled, patting Jimmy on the back, who sheepishly grinned and rubbed the back of his head.

"I would've come earlier... but I was-" Jimmy didn't get the chance to finish, as Rachel had instantly run over to him, hugging him tightly around the waist as she started to cry.

Rachel... Jimmy thought with a small smile, holding her close to him. "It's okay, I'm back now." He gently rocked her in his arms, feeling a peace now that he had her in his arms again after so long. His fingers ran through her hair to get her to calm down ... or try to, anyway.

He noticed Kagome had left the room, probably to give them some privacy, and he smiled. He really would have to thank her for this...somehow.

TBC