As they came upon the Higurashi threshold, Courtney and Kagome soon quickly burst through the door, startling Grandfather, who had been sitting at the kitchen counter.

Kagome thrust Courtney towards him, and ran over to the kitchen cabinets. Filling her backpack with a random assortment of foods, she quickly nodded to her grandfather, and addressed him. “Grandpa, I need you to tell Courtney everything.”

Grandfather scratched his head, and looked at the confused American.

“Everything?”

Kagome nodded, still stuffing food into her backpack. “Tell her EVERYTHING.”

“Are you sure, Kagome?”

“GRANDPA!!”

Grandfather bristled, and started mumbling under his breath. “No respect nowadays for their elders, no respect…”

Courtney, finally reviving from her current state of confusion, tapped him on the shoulder.
“Grandfather? I…I would like to know.”

Grandfather turned to Courtney, and stuck his hands in his sleeves, looking very wise as he did so. “Now would you really?”

Courtney nodded. “Yessir.”

He looked at her, and his eyes softened slightly. Taking a storyteller’s pose, he started, in his best narrator’s voice. “Long ago, in Feudal Japan, there was a strong power in the land. This power came in the form of a sacred jewel, the Shikon No Tama…”

As Grandfather related the story of the Sacred Jewel, Kagome finished her packing and was now running to her room to gather a few items. She grabbed a blanket, and some soap from the shower, and running over to Courtney’s bag, she grabbed a t-shirt and a frayed pair of cut offs, figuring Courtney would be more comfortable in her own clothes than in her uniform. Then, grabbing a hoodie for her in case it was cold, she folded it and put it in the backpack. After getting the essentials, she ran back into the kitchen, where Grandfather had just finished his long narration about what really happened to Kagome when she was away.

Grandfather looked up at the packed Kagome, and left the stunned Courtney to speak to his granddaughter. “She knows everything up to you going back and forth into the well.”

Kagome kissed him, and smiled. “Thanks Grandpa. Hey! If people ask where Courtney is, say we both fell sick with a nasty case of….well, use your imagination.”

Grandfather’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “You’re taking her with you?”

Kagome nodded.

“You can’t do that! Kagome, we are responsible for this girl! She is not of our family, what does she know about fighting demons?”

Kagome hugged her grandfather, and walked away. Grabbing the still silent Courtney, She walked out the door.

Finally, Courtney found her voice. “You’re…you’re taking me with you?”

Kagome nodded yet again.

Courtney’s eyes got really wide, and she let out a squeak of excitement. “NO WAY!”

Kagome laughed, and handed Courtney the clothes she had picked out. Courtney grabbed her sneakers from the porch, and they both started walking towards the shrine.

~-~
When they walked into the shrine, Kagome nodded to Courtney. “You might want to change now. If you change in the Feudal Era, God knows Miroku would be trying to steal a peek.”

Courtney quickly pulled off the blouse and tugged her t-shirt over her head. She then quickly pulled her skirt off and slipped on the jean cut-offs. The jeans were knee length and comfortable, and the t-shirt fit her body in all the right places. Looking herself over, she smiled at Kagome, and gave her a hug. “Thank you!”

Kagome blushed as Courtney let go, and started watching the Mississippian slip on her sneakers. “You ready to go?”

Courtney smiled, exhilarated at the thought of a coming adventure. Breathless, she nodded. “Yeah.”

Walking gingerly down the old steps of the shrine, Courtney looked at the famous Bone Eater’s well. “So….I just jump in?”

Kagome threw the backpack in the well, and climbed in, motioning for Courtney to follow her. Grabbing Courtney’s hand, Kagome pulled her in, and they both fell into the darkness…

THUMP.

Courtney landed roughly on the well floor, ancient demon bones crunching under her back. “Ow…”

Kagome got up, and dusted herself off, then helped Courtney stand upright. Dusting her off too, she noticed something odd about Courtney. Her grip was stronger than it used to be. Thinking it was just the pressure, Kagome threw the backpack out of the well, hearing a soft thud where it hit land.

She quickly climbed up the vines lining the walls of the well, motioning for her friend to follow suit. As they both pulled themselves out, Kagome got a good look at Courtney since they had jumped in. Nearly falling over in shock, her eyes went wide at the site of her friend. “Y..Y…y…you’re a demon?”

Courtney looked at her inquisitively, her furry ears twitching on top of her head.

Wait…..EARS?

Courtney quickly pulled a compact out of her pocket, and checked her reflection. Her brown hair had grown to her waist, with furry brown ears peeking out. Her eyes, formerly brown, had turned bright amber, like a wolf’s. And was that…..a TAIL? Courtney screamed, and dropped the mirror. She looked normal but…her eyes, her ears, hair, her TAIL!

Her eyes wide, she looked at Kagome. “Wha…what’s happened to me?”

Kagome went up to Courtney cautiously, and looked her over. Her surprise was real; she really didn’t know beforehand that she was a demon. Looking hard at her, Kagome squinted, trying to figure out her type. “Hmm…I think you’re a coyote demon.”

Courtney’s eyes went real wide, her jaw hanging slack. “I’m a COYOTE?” Noticing her tail, she held it in her hands and stroked it, kind of whining from the back of her throat. As she reached for her necklace to comfort her, she noticed it was gone. Gasping, she got on her knees and searched for it on the ground, slightly panicking.

Kagome knelt down beside her, and spoke quietly, “You won’t find it in this Era. It’s in the well back home.”

Courtney looked confused, scratching her head with a back foot before realizing what she was doing and putting it down.

Thinking hard, Kagome explained. “That necklace apparently kept your true state hidden. I would guess that your parents were both demons, or you had a parent who was human, making you a hanyou, or half-demon. The well has a filter for all hidden magic, it simply removes it. When did you get that necklace?”

Courtney put her fist under her chin, sitting cross legged on the grass. “I got it when I was born…my momma gave it to me.” Finally, realization dawned on her. “So, she gave it to me so I could live among humans and never know!”

Kagome stood up and dusted herself off again. ‘Well, we won’t solve anything just sitting around. Now that we know the reason, let’s continue on. Usually Inuyasha and the group wait for me at Kaede’s hut.

Getting up, Courtney took a mock adventurer pose, putting on foot on a stump, and her fists on her waits. Pointing ahead with a rigid arm, she yelled out, “ONWARD!”

Kagome had to admit, with her fuzzy tail and ears, she looked ridiculous. Giggling, she pulled Courtney off the stump and started walking along the path. “C’mon, silly!”