Second Place

Chapter 1

I'm sorry if this sucks. I wrote it on a whim. Please please please review.

By the way, I don't hate Kikyou that much because she was good when she was alive. Yeah, so, if Kikyou being mean offends you, it's just that I needed someone for Kagome to compete with and Kikyou was the logical choice.

And if you go to my school, you would know whom I mirrored the characters off of. Haha.

-

Kagome rolled her eyes as she stared down at the school newsletter. Kikyou, apparently, had won something again.

She shoved the piece of paper to Sango, who had thrown away her own copy, deeming it useless. Sango read the first paragraph quickly, then, raising an eyebrow, handed it back to Kagome.

"Did Kikyou win the speech contest again, or was that a week ago?" Sango asked.

Kagome frowned. "No, I think this time it's the spelling bee."

God. Kikyou was so perfect. She seemed to have no flaw whatsoever. But if there was, she sure didn't show it. She was popular, rich, perfect, and athletic.

Compared to her, well, compared to anyone, Kagome was no one. She was boring, terrible at sports, and wasn't that smart either.

I'll never win anything, she thought, shouldering her backpack. Because all teachers have their favorites. And I'm not one of them.

Well, to first period I go.

And I go as a loser.

-

"And last of all, the food in the ocean includes the shrimp, shark, fish, seaweed, tuna, and—"

"Um, excuse me?" Mrs. Feathergrass interrupted, her voice like a normal person sucking up helium.

Kagome sighed, frustrated. The stupid teacher had only butted in about ten times in five minutes.

She glared at Mrs. Feathergrass, staring at the disgusting wart on her eye.

"What?" she snapped quietly to herself.

"Did you do any research?" Mrs. Feathergrass snapped.

"Yeah," Kagome muttered, defiantly. Of course she had.

"Do you think that the tuna live around in the same area as the shark and the shrimp? You obviously did no work on this!" The teacher droned on and on about something-or-other related to tuna. Kagome didn't listen. She stared blankly at the back wall, refusing to meet anyone's eyes.

The class was silent. They all felt Kagome's mortification, especially since they all knew how hard she had worked. They had all bugged her when she was researching and had paid dearly for it: she had snapped at them like a rabid dog. She had yelled at them online for annoying her. She had recited her speech so many times to Sango, Sango was sure she could have memorized it.

Kagome's face flushed. How unfair could a teacher get? Come on, Kagome thought. I mean, she spends ten minutes lecturing me about tuna.

She hazarded a glance at her classmates' faces, looking for signs of sympathy. Sango gave her a pitying glance, and some other girls did too.

Inuyasha and Miroku were playing cards in the back, not paying any attention at all. But of course Mrs. Feathergrass hadn't noticed them.

Mrs. Feathergrass gave a long, dramatic sigh. "Very well, continue," she exhaled noisily, raising an eyebrow as she wrote something down.

Kagome reddened, her face crimson and hot with embarrassment.

"Uh...I'm done," she mumbled.

Mrs. Feathergrass nodded. "Sit."

Kagome ran to her seat and kept her head down, blinking back tears. She didn't look up.

The class clapped for her, but even she could tell that it was done half-heartedly. It was much too awkward, really.

Mrs. Feathergrass, as if thinking, "What did I do to deserve such a student?", frowned. Then she smiled, showing her crooked teeth.

"Ah. Kikyou, you next."

Kikyou beamed and smiled sweetly at the teacher, causing Sango to roll her eyes. Kagome didn't care anymore. She failed the project and was too busy moping. She had no energy to make fun of Kikyou.

Kikyou began, "I am doing my project on the desert."

Mrs. Feathergrass nodded enthusiastically.

"The climate there..."

Kagome tuned out. She was basking in her own thoughts...

A five-year-old Kagome and her friends Sango and Kikyou were playing in the playground. Sango wanted the other two to race. Kagome smiled. She had been practicing for about a month now. She was sure she could win.

They began running...running...Kagome was behind. She couldn't catch up.

Kikyou had beaten her.

Once again.

Kagome sighed. She didn't know why random flashbacks were appearing in her mind, and quite frankly, she didn't care. She just wanted them to stop.

Frustrated, she figured that the only way to stop the flow of thoughts was to listen to Kikyou.

Too bad.

"And last of all, I would like to tell you some fun facts..." Kikyou continued.

Last of all? Did Kikyou even mention the animals? Mrs. Feathergrass had said that they definitely needed to talk about the wildlife.

Kagome raised her hand.

Kikyou looked at her, sighing. "Yes, Kagome?" she asked, as if talking to a little kid.

"What kind of animals live there?" she asked.

Kikyou looked startled. "Uh...animals?"

Kagome nodded. And smiled. Kikyou would get yelled at, Kagome was sure.

Kikyou stuttered, "Um, well..."

Mrs. Feathergrass cleared her throat.

Kikyou looked terrified, while Kagome and Sango were on the verge of jumping up and down laughing.

"Some animals there include the mice, the wild eagle, the camel, and the donkey," Mrs. Feathergrass said.

Kikyou's sighed in relief. "Of course. Yeah, the mice, the eagle, the camel, and the donkey."

Kagome's jaw hung. While Mrs. Feathergrass had given her a lecture about tuna, Kikyou got her answers fed to her.

"Are you done, Kikyou?" Mrs. Feathergrass smiled.

Kikyou nodded, her eyes cool but sparkling with pride.

Pride for her incomplete project, Kagome thought angrily. She knew how much time Kikyou had spent on her project. She had done it the day before it was due, and had printed a webpage to read off of.

Kagome sighed. She was sick of it all. Sick of Kikyou, sick of her teacher, sick of her own loser personality.

Why couldn't she be the one that the teachers favored? Why couldn't she do something right?

Just once, Kagome would like to win something.

Just once, she wanted to see Kikyou go down.