InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Dark Side of the Moon ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

By: Manderz

Disclaimer: No. I do not own the canon characters, or any connection to the feudal era. All of that jazz belongs to Takahashi Rumiko. However, the plot and any other content belong to me alone.

Summary: In a world where youkai are disbanded among humans, the Sesshoumaru and Kagura are both struggling to lead two different lives while surrounded by humans. Little does he know that Kagura's professor holds a grudge against Inu Yasha, Sesshoumaru'sunwanted hybrid of a brother. The threads of humanity and demonic power tangle while feelings are requited, and lovers avenged.

Dark Side of the Moon

Chapter Three

The instant Sesshoumaru agreed to attend the seminar...he knew it was for the worst. As he lay on his still-made bed staring up at the ceiling, he decidedly wished he could simply stay home and skip the entire function. After all, what good would it do if he were there? Well, I suppose there's always the chance that I'll be yelled at by that wretched man, he reasoned. That wretched man was the university administrator. Sometimes the older demon liked to think he had control over Sesshoumaru, even if it was just a passing theory. To think in such a way is ludicrous, of course. After all, Sesshoumaru was decidedly the most powerful demon in the region under his father, the infamous Taisho Ushida. Not that the two maintained contact, but people still associated him with his father for obvious reasons. They also associated him with his disgusting hybrid of a half-brother, Inu Yasha.

The comparison was one to be mocked. The hanyou with a human heart would never live up to be the type of heir Sesshoumaru could be. But since the wretch was supposedly Taisho's favored son, Sesshoumaru had practically disowned himself from his family. Without his mother there to keep things in order, all things had gone to the dogs. The taiyoukai grinned at the pun, knowing fully well that his father had a soft heart, especially for humans. It was as though he were fascinated by them, their entire race. He had them as colleagues, friends, and on the unfortunate occasion, lovers. Sesshoumaru had barely tolerated his father's “interests” until that woman, Izayoi, infiltrated the household. Sesshoumaru cringed at the memory of her warming up to him, her...kindnesstowards the son of her lover. It was pity, he repeatedly told himself. Chichue felt pityfor her. Like I did. Surelythat was the emotion I found in his eyes every time he looked at her.

He sat up from his spot on the bed. Of course, that hadn't been the drive behind his father's actions. There was much more to it, more passionate feelings that would only serve to ruin Sesshoumaru's life. He coldly remembered the way his father treated the woman with sickening adoration and idiotic displays of what he had said was love. The mere word was enough to make Sesshoumaru growl in contempt.

It was actually a year before that wretch was conceived. It was only then that the young inu-youkai had decided he'd had enough of his father's new “lifestyle.” Upon the vague yet treasured memory of his mother, he couldn't believe that his father fell for another woman. It was positively disgusting that Taisho could even compare this woman—this human—with his former wife. One's soul-mate should have been forlife, not until one of them died. The young demon simply couldn't comprehend the concept of life after death, not then anyway.

For a decade Sesshoumaru traveled the country of Japan in search of...well, he didn't know exactly what. He didn't tell anyone of that particular insecurity, it was something he was having trouble grasping himself. It wasn't until he finally found a profession worth pursuing that he actually found somewhere to live for more than a year. Kansai was just the place he had been looking for; it provided him a place to flaunt his knowledge and degrade innocent students while in turn teaching them the fundamentals of life. The amount of humans in the world was somewhat aggravating at first, but with time he learned to accept the fact that youkai were beginning to diminish.

Sesshoumaru gazed out the foggy window at the empty sidewalk. It was most definitelynot going to be a day filled with sunshine. There would be clouds... A wicked idea began to form in his mind, and he allowed himself a smirk as he rose from his bed. He ignored the flashing red light on the phone that indicated there was a message waiting for him. After slipping on his black boots, he didn't bother to grab the car keys on his way out. There would be no need.

.-.-.-.

Kagura hit her head on the bedside table, cursing rather loudly at the contact. I suppose this is a `good morning' from the darker forces. Rubbing her head, she sat up in bed and gazed out the foggy window. Even with the crude wake-up call, she felt surprisingly calm. She rather liked it this way, even if she did wake up during the night due to the dreams. The sorceress's mind began to churn, ready for whatever came her way today. For one, she had a seminar to go to and a professor to see. Sadly. At least she would have tomorrow devoid of work. Groaning, she stumbled into the tiny bathroom of the apartment, cursing again when she felt a rather nasty tangle in her hair. She took the brush to it and eventually unraveled it, even though she had a headache afterward. The calming cloud was soon gone, and she was back to her normal mood...angry.

Before long she was dressed in a layered skirt and a black undershirt. Perhaps she needed a jacket... She picked one out, a grey sweater trimmed in white thread. Glancing at what she thought was a surmisable reflection in the mirror she grabbed the papers she had graded the night before, not forgetting her purse and car keys. How she dreaded the day which was looming imminently over her.

Once she was on the road, Kagura pulled out the directions Naraku had created for her. Inside she hoped they were correct. This was the first year she had endured Naraku as a professor, but that didn't mean she was ignorant to what the girls said about him. Although she had never actually seen him flirt with a student, the way some of them talked made her wonder. If he ever so much as laid a finger on her, she would react so fast his head would spin. She was prepared for the worst. It's not like I'll let him get close enough, anyway. The sorceress shook her head, her ebony hair glimmering in the pale sunlight shining through the window. It was finally dawn.

Glancing at the scribbled directions, she realized she only had two more blocks before she turned. Supposedly the seminar was being held at Kansai's central campus, and she didn't know anything about it except that it was five blocks down from where she usually entered. The wing of Kansai she attended was the medical school. She finally realized it was time to turn, and her eyes widened upon the sight of the place. For some reason, she couldn't imagine the root of her school being so large. She took the keys out of the ignition, and opened the door on the silver car. Almost immediately she noticed what she had grown to assume was Naraku's car, a deep scarlet Cadillac. Looking around, her crimson eyes locked on what she hoped was the gate into the monstrous place. She eyed the passersby, trying to get an idea of exactly where everyone was headed. Not one's face seemed familiar, but still she followed the path into the auditorium, where she guessed the seminar would be held.

.-.-.-.

As the professor and student walked along the main hall, the professor decided to take a look at the bulletin board in mediocre hopes of being relieved from pure boredom and imminent annoyances. Such as this creature.He didn't even bother to look in the direction of the ningen with messy raven hair, knowing all too well that it would just earn himself another string of useless rambling. Honestly...to think that Sesshoumaru was even beginning to tolerate the company of this human was preposterous.

Miroku stood there with his arms folded, his stance giving off an air of pure impatience. He was rather eager to get to the auditorium, where he was sure many of the professors and their assistants (if they had one) had already arrived. And everyone knew the young Religion major loved to converse with his lady classmates and professors. Perhaps Ms. Akitawill make an appearance this morning... Ican only hope.

After two whole minutes, the Inuyoukai decided to take a break from his “relief.” He eyed the ningen in contempt. Over the one week (perhaps one too many) he had known Miroku, he had found that the human had a kind heart, a sharp mind, and was woefully selfless. The result was a particularly vexed Sesshoumaru, which was something one should not like to see often.

“I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I went on alone, would you?” Miroku asked. Sesshoumaru glared back emotionlessly. The cold youkai found himself very elated at the thought of Miroku leaving.

“Although...they would most likely inquire as to where you were," he continued. "I suppose I could always tell them you never planned on coming...that you saw it as a complete and utter waste of time. I wouldn't be lying, would I?” Miroku said coolly.

“Tell them what you want,” he retorted, staring into amethyst eyes. “Leave if you're going to leave,” his glare spoke. Miroku ignored it and shrugged. He sure does have a lot of issues with my species, Miroku thought.Or maybe it's just the way I smell?Consciously Miroku lifted up his arm and sniffed the fabric of his sweater. Scent was almost everything to an Inuyoukai...and if one smelled foul, they were doomed.

Sesshoumaru caressed the crescent moon on his forehead, grimacing at the slight headache that was threatening him. Normally he was rather apathetic to loud sounds and intermingled scents, but today his tolerance just wasn't at its highest. As he tapped his claws on the windowsill, he thought about the unfathomable reasons he was even there. Well, as much as he despised the job...he needed a way to earn a living. And the prideful Inuyoukai was not about to slave away in some office trying to sort out other people's problems when they needed to deal with them alone. It always did strike him odd why people chose to be lawyers and other such things. Being an 'educator' meant preparing people for the real world, where they'd be under much worse conditions than mere college life. Only then would other people deal with their problems as they saw fit. Until then, the professor was getting them used to their problems being ignored. Such a fulfilling profession, he thought.

“I wonder if the topics will be very creative. Since most of the professors are older than Methuselah, I doubt the fact,” Miroku said. Of course Sesshoumaru would be prepared for boredom nonetheless, so he did not concern himself. “What do you think?” As the ningen got no answer to his question he sighed exaggeratedly. “I wonder if anyone I know will come. Perhaps the infamous Naraku will make an appearance,” he muttered. “I would not be surprised if he does, actually.”

Sesshoumaru concluded that this wasn't the first time he had heard Naraku's name in passing conversation. However, most of the passing conversation meant that of either female associates or his...family. Of course, he didn't pay any attention to either's hearsay. Both were utterly pointless.

The human on the other hand...he wasn't so sure about. Most of the time the cheeky manwas found in the company of a woman. It seemed that he quite enjoyed every moment of it, too. Why, on the other hand...was unbeknownst to the demon.

“What do you know about him?” the Inuyoukai asked ambiguously.

“He's a clever demon who has upheld a very...interesting reputation throughout the academic arena. So far he's convinced just about everyone that his sins fall short of him,” Miroku said bitterly. The youkai didn't respond, but realized he had indeed heard his name before when he had lived at home with his father. Perhaps he had been a colleague, or an acquaintance. It was hard to remember these things when trying so hard to forget the source. “...He seems to be powerful enough, anyway. There are rumors that he can change his physical form at will. Strange, isn't it?” Fair eyebrows rose at that statement. Strange indeed.This must've been a clever (or merely well-connected) creature to exploit himself thus, then not be punished.

“I suppose one could always use that trait to their advantage, but their conscience would most certainly be clogged as a result. I wonder...do demons even have a conscience?” Miroku questioned thoughtfully. Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed, questioning Miroku's intelligence as if he had none. Sesshoumaru growled a deep rumble in his throat and walked away until he was outside the auditorium and waiting for the doors to open, the religion student behind him.

“I also heard he has a new assistant. Poor child, I will pray for their soul.” After a few moments of silence, he heard Miroku mutter something under his breath, then walk over to drop a line on a young woman standing a few yards away. He grew ever more irritable when a group of chattering wenches decided to storm through the hallway. Their snorts and giggles were not kind to his ears at all. They were loud...and horribly high-pitched. A string of rather crude curses flashed through his mind, but he chose to keep them at bay as he always did. Sesshoumaru was not one to vent his anger aloud.

“Oh dear...” Miroku sighed, depressed for the moment while the girl he had been speaking to simply walked away from him. However he was then intrigued as a few young, supple freshman girls began blushing at the sight of something, and he distinctly heard their loud murmurs. Sulkily he wondered if Sesshoumaru had. He inwardly cursed the youkai standing off to the side of him—he didn't see what the women saw in him, honestly. The man was brash, pompous as hell, and conceited if Miroku said so himself. The attractive ningen ignored the twinge of jealousy within his compassionate heart. Of course Sesshoumaru was seemingly oblivious to their woes as he stared out into the courtyard, the sunlight playing upon his ivory hair. He might as well have been a statue standing in that courtyard he was staring into; it was hard to see that he was even breathing. He was lost in his own little realm of thought and when Miroku interrupted him he would most likely be provoked into a rather violent tirade. He knew that Sesshoumaru's brother, Inu Yasha, had a habit of doing so whenever interrupted during his thoughts.

But something else preoccupied him before he could follow through with his quintessential bothering of Sesshoumaru. He squinted across the hall, where he noticed a tall, black-cloaked man staring straight back at him. His eyes widened in shock, and then narrowed. Something about that man's eyes made Miroku's very soul shiver with fright. There was a posse of people surrounding him, many of which he did not know. However, there was one person he wished he knew. A beautiful woman with rubies for eyes and shining black hair stood off to the side, glaring at anything that crossed her path. He also noted the way her slender arms were folded and scarlet lips pursed as if holding back something vicious. He heard a few names being tossed in the air around him, and suddenly realized it.

That man must have been—

“Naraku.”

Miroku turned to the smooth voice behind him. “How do you know it's him?”

“It's obvious,” Sesshoumaru replied stiffly. The finality in his voice stopped Miroku from asking anything further, and he settled for watching the superior being with unbridled suspicion.

The Inuyoukai's eyebrows furrowed as his eyes slowly traveled from Naraku to the woman at his side. The familiarity of her face and scent bothered him more than whom she accompanied today. Mere coincidence. His gaze traveled back to the other, eyes narrowing as he caught the other professor's glare. The sinister creature grinned at the youkai, sending a tremor of fury through Sesshoumaru at the mock hidden behind his eyes. It triggered something inside of him other than anger...it was something foreboding. Sesshoumaru took a deep breath. No wonder it's making me so nauseous. It's similar to Inu Yasha's.Fainter than what was normal for a half-breed, yes...but the scent of ningen still lingered in his demon blood.

Miroku watched as Sesshoumaru took a rather exaggerated sniff from the air around them. The human coughed to hide his chuckle. It had never really occurred to Miroku what species of demon Sesshoumaru was, but now he realized it with throwing impact. Not much of the population considered that kind of knowledge these days. It was in black or white: demon or human. It fascinated him to know that he was in fact...Inu. Well, perhaps fascinated was not the correct term—amused would have been more appropriate. His mischievous mind began churning, and he smiled crookedly at the images playing in his head.

Abruptly the doors were opened, and everyone flooded into the spacious room while the freshman reluctantly stayed behind. Amber turned tawny eyes were still glaring in the direction of the two familiar faces, as if he were trying to solve a 4,000 piece puzzle without half the pieces.

Meanwhile, Kagura stole yetanother sidelong glance at the white-haired youkai, unable to suppress the urge to do so. He looked disturbingly familiar, like someone she'd seen previously in her life. Maybe I just saw him at a party a long time ago or something, she reasoned. That had happened to her before; she'd think she knew someone only to find out she didn't know them at all. I think it's called déjà vu.

He sat with an ebony-haired human, and looked to be rather deep in thought. Kagura had the impression that his personality was one which displayed superiority in all the right and wrong places. She studied him for a moment. His young face was expressionless, and his eyes made her sad. She bit her lip, her own garnet irises curious. She wondered what sort of misfortune had caused him to become like so.

“Is there something troubling you?” Kagura turned to the voice, which was Naraku's. He was staring at her with probing eyes as he noticed what she was looking at.

“Not remotely. I'm just observing, that's all,” she said sharply. “Do you come to these things often?”

“I come whenever there is one to attend. Why do you ask?” he turned to face her in the metal folding chair and Kagura shifted her weight, regretfully taking her eyes off of the handsome Inuyoukai.

“You know almost everyone here,” she muttered. “So I was guessing that this was a normal routine for you or something.”

“Well, this is a rather small town, Kagura...most of the professors know each other,” as he said this he eyed something - or someone sitting behind them, a couple of rows back. “By choice or otherwise.” She didn't care to look, because he was staring in the same direction she had been previously. His words echoed in her mind as she stared at him.

“Oh, I see,” she paused, narrowing her eyes with thought. “Do you know him?” The sorceress motioned towards the fair youkai. Naraku's eyes snapped back to her at that moment.

“Vaguely,” he answered warily. “Sesshoumaru Ushida. I have not seen him since—” he abruptly stopped. “At any rate, he's not important.”

“Since what?” she inquired nonetheless. Naraku leered at her, his upper lip twitching with annoyance. “Or should I say when?”

“That information doesn't concern you,” he answered coldly. “I do not think he would remember the last time we met.” Kagura glared at her professor intently, her tongue being held back only by her teeth. There were so many retorts that were going through her head at that first statement, but she held them all at bay. Howcould it be that Naraku knew Sesshoumaru? She tried not to think about it, but instead watched as someone stood at the podium welcoming everyone as he began a presentation of some sort. She silently took out her Mp3 player, plugging in her headphones and making sure her hair was covering her ears as she shot a glare at Naraku. She glanced behind her. Her eyes met those of the ningen sitting next to Sesshoumaru, and she instantly looked back to the speaker. The way he was looking at her made Kagura want to slap him. She felt horrid for any girlfriend he might have. I doubt I've evermet a bitch so stupid, though. She wondered if the elder demon had noticed her yet, as her scent shouldn't have been new to him. Yes...the two had met before, yet the exact occasion was buried deep within Kagura and extracting it should've been the last thing on her mind.

Unbeknownst to her, Sesshoumaru was indeed glaring in the wind-sorceress's direction. Even though he was struggling to place Naraku's semblance to his own family (whom he had tried to avoid over the past few years) it was the woman's scent which sparked his curiosity. Of course, he didn't know why it was he felt this way. I should ignore it,he told himself. And Sesshoumaru told himself that exact thing every time she exhaled. He caught her gaze when she glanced backward for the second time during a 10-minute span, and he glowered at her through half-lidded eyes. The youkai could almost smell her anxiety. And if she looks in this direction again I will have to...Why did he worry himself with avoiding her? Because she was tampering with his senses, and was now sitting with that wretch. Distracting himself, Sesshoumaru looked back to the drawling speaker. He was supposed to be taking notes, but couldn't find the patience to do so. He unintentionally looked the other way when Miroku leaned toward him.

“She's agreeable, isn't she?” the voice whispered mischievously.

“I bet she is,” Sesshoumaru said inaudibly, rolling his eyes. Habitually he assumed Miroku meant some random woman sitting in the room. Little did he know it was the very one semi-occupying his thoughts.

“I'm asking for your opinion,” Miroku explained.

Sesshoumaru glared at the human with remotely inquiring eyes.

“Her,” Miroku stared in the direction of the wind sorceress. Sesshoumaru's eyebrows rose at that.

“Hn.” Miroku got no other reply, but grinned. It was a start.

Kagura yawned, looking exasperatedly in the direction of her preoccupied professor. She wanted a blanket. It was unbearably cold in that room and she found herself getting goose pimples despite the sweater and long-sleeved top she was wearing. Hopefully this would be over soon... She felt like taking a nap, but Naraku probably would've yanked that bonus away if she did. And with himsitting behind me...I can't seem to keep my mind quiet enoughfor dozing. Damn it all. She hadn't even noticed that the music in her earphones had stopped playing, so she stealthily took them out and actually listened to the last of what the man at the podium had to say. From what she could tell, he was talking about medieval Japan and the medicine they made use with.She fought the urge to glance behind her again, and began picking at her polished fingernails despite better judgment. She was nervous. Of course the prideful sorceress wouldn't admit to that, but she was. He was making her this way. She cursed vehemently to herself.

“Are you cold?” Naraku asked her. She regarded him as if he were going to arrest her. She answered with a harsh “No,” and looked away from him once more. He smirked, his deceptively white teeth gleaming. Little did she know that every single time she resisted her professor, it was all the more to his liking. With a twisted mind like his, she would have to be careful of her actions. The sinister demon then felt eyes on him, and burning ones at that. Someone was not very happy, that much he could tell. Inwardly he pondered on the fact of it being Sesshoumaru, the egotistical demon who he had “met” so long ago. It was a pity his father hadn't raised him better. Yes, he would have to speak to the Inuyoukai in time. And truthfully, he was looking forward to it.

Kagura watched in boredom as the speaker stepped down from the podium at last. The lights had been flipped back on and the projector put away. Finally! People looked to be gathering their bags, so she began to gather her own. Slipping back on her slingback shoes, she rose from her chair, hiding her eagerness to get out of this place. Spending two whole hours doing nothing, she found herself feeling exhausted...and in dire need of a restroom. She eyed the exit door as half the audience was flooding out, and slipped out...in the process loosing her professor in the crowd.

When she finished fixing her hair again, the sorceress narrowed her eyes in search of Sesshoumaru. She wanted to see him again, even if it was just a glimpse of his black slacks. Strangely she found herself disappointed that he was nowhere to be found. The hallway was now crowded with people, so she exited through one of the side doors in need of fresh air.

“Why hello!”

Kagura spun around at the smooth voice, meeting unfamiliar mauve eyes. She gazed at him through half-lidded eyes, her arms folded. “Who are you supposed to be?”

Miroku smiled warmly, ignoring her rude expression. “Miroku Saizou, nice to meet you. I—”

“Save your breath,” she cut him off. She started to walk away, but something stopped her before she could take another step. This is the same man who was sitting with Sesshoumaru.Well, perhaps she could stay for a few minutes, if not more.

“So what are you, a student? You look pretty young,” Kagura commented. He grinned uncannily and she took the time to look him over for lack of something else. “I'm a junior,” he said, sounding somewhat hopeful. His face was youthful, but his eyes looked like they would've belonged to a wise soul. His features weren't horrid, but he wasn't anything special in her honest opinion. Nothing compared to the Inuyoukai. He was gorgeous.

“I hope the university is to your liking, um...” he trailed off, staring at her inquiringly.

“Kagura,” she said shortly.

“Well, Miss Kagura, it's a pleasure to meet you.” They stood there for a few minutes while Miroku checked his watch. “Are you waiting for someone?” she asked curiously. He nodded, and then his eyes traveled to a place beyond her. A strong aura was approaching...and it didn't belong to Naraku.

“Professor Ushida, are you leaving?” The name snapped her out of the reverie, and she glanced behind her with wide eyes at the towering youkai looking back at Miroku. He raised his eyebrows at the slight blush staining the ningen's cheekbones, fighting a smirk. Apparently this woman had taught him a well-earned lesson. This woman... He scrutinized her for a long moment, taking in her exotic features and rather amusing expression.

Oh, gods...he's even better up close.The sorceress took a moment to notice how erratic her heartbeat was, and tried to ignore how shallow her breathing had become. The heat bubbled under every inch of her skin as he caught her gaze. He was regarding her with ridiculing amber eyes. She instantly felt a bit intimidated by the brashness of his stare, but immediately gained enough confidence to put up a defiant façade. She would be fine...if she kept her distance. Who knows what would happen were she to get close to him? Part of her wanted to find out.

“Yes,” he answered. He didn't want to break her crimson gaze, but it was necessary. After all, she was talking to Miroku...a clear sign that she wasn't worthhis time and effort.

“Hey,” Kagura decided to greet him. He blinked. “Are you a professor here?” she asked incredulously. With his white Oxford shirt and black slacks...he looked rather professional among other things.

“I am,” he replied shortly. “And I'm fairly sure that you're a student.” The statement was meant to make her feel inferior.

“I'm getting my bachelor's degree in medicine before I head off to law school,” she admitted. Silver eyebrows knitted together as Sesshoumaru noticed her expression. She looked disappointed.

“Yes...we saw that you were here with Naraku,” Miroku cut in, permeating the abrupt silence. Both youkai turned away from one another to glare at the human. He gulped. “Why is that?”

“Why?” she repeated dubiously. Miroku looked to Sesshoumaru, who was still glaring at the sorceress contemptibly with unblinking eyes.

“Why are you here with him?” he inquired gently.

“Is that really any of your business, kid?” This conversation was traveling to a place she didn't want to go...fast.

“It's just—” Miroku stopped, his violet eyes traveling beyond her. She almost instantly felt Naraku coming up behind her, and shuddered inwardly. Kagura watched Sesshoumaru's eyes wander away from her, giving her some breathing time. The wicked sensation moved closer and closer, until she felt a slender, bony hand resting on her elegant shoulder.

“So this is where you've been,” Naraku hissed in her ear, his cool tone betraying the underlying hostility. Kagura felt the heat rushing to her face due to the look in Sesshoumaru's eyes as he spared a glance between Naraku and her.

“I hope this one hasn't been causing you two gentlemen any trouble,” he said, turning to the silver-haired professor. With narrowed eyes they both surveyed one another. “I'm Naraku Onigumo, a professor of the medical school. You must be Sesshoumaru Ushida.” Kagura glared up at Naraku, despising the tone in his voice. It was insulting even to her, and she wasn't even the one being spoken to. “You're very popular among your colleagues, I must say.” She didn't even want to look at the look on the Inuyoukai's face. “And who is this?” he gestured to the human.

“Miroku Saizou, sir,” Miroku said.

The smirk on the hanyou's lips wider, as if to fight a scowl.

“I see you've met Kagura,” he stated. “I've managed to acquire her services as my assistant this year. It's a shame that she'll be graduating.” Kagura winced as his grip on her shoulder tightened. She tried to shrug out of it, but to no avail. Just the fact of him touching her sent bile coursing into her throat, and the sensation of his nails digging into her skin was downright repulsive. The urge to take hold of his arm and break every single bone in the limb—no, his body—was very tempting at that moment. `Let go of me you bast-'

“Yes, she's a very beautiful young lady,” said Miroku. Kagura growled reproachfully, casting her gaze to the side. Sesshoumaru took another moment to glance at the sorceress. She was radiating of anger, and the expression on her face did nothing to compliment her attractive features. The demon grinned smugly; thinking that is was very well her own fault she was in this predicament.

“If you'll excuse me, I have a class I must conduct in an hour. My regards to your brother, Sesshoumaru.”

Sesshoumaru's confusion at the mention of his brother was hidden well; for he showed no signs that he hadn't even seen his brother in a considerably long time. Naraku...what did he know about Sesshoumaru's family? How did he know that the demon even had a brother, when he never spoke of him once to anyone?

Kagura finally shrugged successfully out of Naraku's grip and gazed back at the mysterious youkai. His furious eyes fell on her briefly before he sauntered away without a second thought. She shivered inwardly.

Miroku waved a friendly farewell before following his colleague. Kagura felt an odd sinking sensation that she had to see Sesshoumaru go. His company did something to her that she couldn't quite comprehend. He was a ruthless demon, someone she could never cope with under normal circumstances. She had to admit it however—he was gorgeous. If he had been less intimidating, the sorceress probably wouldn't have paid him a second thought.

Naraku was still glaring at Kagura to follow him. She shrugged the shoulder he had been gripping, angry that the horrible sensation wouldn't go away. Inwardly she wondered if Sesshoumaru hated him as much as she did at that moment. Whatever had happened between them...Kagura was sure she would find out soon enough. The wind sorceress had a thing for being nosy, after all.

.-.-.-.

If Sesshoumaru had thought relaxation awaited him when he got home, he had been terribly wrong. After sitting at his desk for a mere hour thinking about all of the instances that had happened in that long day, he decided to permanently extinguish the image of her in his mind. Although every time he tried, it made the problem worse. The mere thought of such a being consuming his thoughts was infuriating, frustrating, and utter nonsense.

She is his aid, his apprentice. How can I possibly lower myself to this?He shifted uncomfortably in his chair.The sorceress is equally foul in the sense that she even accepts his company.Sesshoumaru inwardly battled, worrying his claw along his bottom lip while in such deep thought. Kagura obviously wasn't very content in the position she was currently in, but if she had any sense at all she would have worked for another professor. And why the hell did it feel like he had seen her before? The whole idea of déjà vu was particularly ridiculous by the taiyoukai's standards. He just couldn't accept that his sharp memory was faltering this one time over this a single stumbling point. What truly bothered him was that it hadn't even been an unpleasant memory like most of the ones floating around in his mind. On the contrary, he wished that he knew exactly when he had met this Kagura.

She is of no importance to me. Iwill forget her.

At the end of it all, he settled for pulling out one of the war novels sitting in his bookshelf. They were the only ones that interested him out of all the books he owned, and most of the time successfully pulled him out of his thoughts if he tried.

Little did he know that while he was trying to distract himself, the ultimate distraction was on their way right to his front door. First the doorbell rang. It rang once again. It rang until he decided to push the chair back with a screech and let whoever it was see that he was in a rather foul mood. He didn't want any company (not that he ever welcomed it in the first place), and he would not put himself in the predicament of killing someone today (as much as he would have liked to.) His poisoned claws were to be used only at the most desperate of times.

He looked through the peep-hole with narrowed eyes, and growled at the sight—or lack thereof. He had to look lower and lower until a raven-haired creature came into view, large brown eyes staring right back at him. Sesshoumaru rolled his as he unlocked the dead-bolt. A minuscule voice in the back of his head was protesting, but he chose to ignore it and let the child in. He was in need of a distraction, he decided.

"Sesshoumaru-sammmaaaa!" Before he could react, a small girl of age 10 hurled herself at him, latching onto his leg. He stood there with an annoyed expression as she just smiled up at him. "Sesshoumaru-sama, want to know what I did today?" All the youkai found he could do was nod once, letting her run into his living room. The first time she had come into his home, she had been dirty...scared...and thoroughly traumatized. It was a sight he never wanted to see again. He let her call him by his first name because...well...he didn't exactly know. She had added the cultural honorific on her own accord, and the name stuck. No one else called him by it.

This was the routine for every day other than Tuesdays, Thursdays, and if he was lucky...not on the weekends. But, today was a Wednesday, and for some utterly frustrating reason he could not simply ignore her. Even if he nodded the whole time, at least it wasn't shunning her. That made her cry. And frankly, Sesshoumaru couldn't stand it when a creature such as her cried and sobbed. Not only did it make him angry, but the feeling it gave him was one he couldn't ignore or push aside. So he resorted to scolding her whenever she did such things. It worked most of the time, unless she was thoroughly distraught. Fortunately, the demon had never faced her in such a state of anguish aside from when she had found him.

"I drew a dragon!" she said excitedly, plopping onto the black leather couch, which looked to be much too large for her. Before he would have scowled at a little ningen girl eventouching his furniture, but she was clean...and he supposed it couldn't hurt. It wasn't as if he ever used the couch these days anyway. He had been fastened to his chair for the fast 10 years as a result of writing his books and grading papers.

"I see,” he grumbled. She nodded anyway, babbling almost incoherently even for his youkai ears. His ears heard her words but none of them registered in his brain. Normally he would at least listen to her ramblings, but today he was rather...distracted. Normally she was the one distracting him from other worldly indecencies...but not at that moment.

"...and my teacher said that it wasn't really normal for girls to be drawing monsters like dragons. She said I should draw a cat, but I told her I don't like cats... I like to draw magical animals, like unicorns and—"

"Hn..."

"But everyone knows I draw dragons the best, even if they are a little scary...I drew it with two heads, too! This boy named Shippou said that he had actually seen a dragon! Isn't that crazy? And—"

"Quiet,” he said sternly, though somewhat tiredly. She instantly stopped, a deep breath escaping her tiny body rather dejectedly. It wasn't normal for him to be acting like this, she realized. Normally he would've let her go on and on with no ending in sight. But Rin didn't care if he didn't want her to talk; she could just observe him all day and be happy. As he sat back down at his desk, she pulled up a chair next to him like she always did. Ever since the young girl first woke up on his porch one morning after running away the previous night, she had come back almost every day since. The first few times she was questioned as to why she must stay, but that didn't diffuse her excitement. No, Rin was very determined, and uncannily stubborn at that...even foolish at points. Sesshoumaru had told her as much when she decided to interrupt his life-cycle.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, you look troubled," she said, her pure, delicate features contorting into a worried frown.

"I assure you I am not," he answered without looking at her. She watched him skeptically as he scribbled a pen across the papers in front of him, the light from his study lamp igniting the bright highlights in his hair. Rin remembered how entranced she had been the first time she had set eyes on him. The mere thought of that moment made her smile, despite the situation she had been in at the time. Her mind wandered to that night, and everything that had transpired.

When the phone rang, Sesshoumaru didn't look up at first. What was the use, anyway? It wasn't as if it would be anyone of any importance. Furthermore, who was brave enough to interrupt his evening? He frowned, staring at the caller ID for a long moment. He watched as the ringing abruptly stopped and the messaging system took hold. As Sesshoumaru reached for the receiver, he hesitated at the voice that rang out. It was one he knew all too well.

“Sesshoumaru?”

.-.-.-.

Author's Nonsense: I'm not very good a cliffies, but hey...it was necessary xD