She glanced to the side of her every now and then, a wary calculated gaze. He would never make the move to look at her through any of the four classes they had attended, which she found rather odd. He didn't even talk to her since their little conversation about the school and its works.
'I would at least expect him to talk to me again.' She thought. 'Maybe he really doesn't ask anyone on his side…no! He's a manipulating jerk! I won't let him get to me!' She nodded with a smile on her lips. Yes, she would be neutral. Nothing would make her choose either side.
At the final end of class, about two minutes before the bell would ring, she looked over at him once more. She frowned slightly when she saw the empty desk, but took it for nothing to be too worried about.
'I can find the cafeteria without that lousy, stupid…' She squealed in surprise as she felt hot breath on her neck, clinging quickly to her books as she fell over the metal leg of her stool. Her eyes remained clamped shut until she heard a small, rarely noticeable breath of laughter.
"Are you fine, Higurashi, or am I going to have to carry you all the way to the cafeteria?" Shivers sent down her spine as his baritone voice glazed over her in a wave.
Her eyes inched open slightly, her reflexes still telling her to stay where she remained. But she inched them open anyway, only to be met with blazing gold.
"Ahh!" She fell backwards even more than possible at that point, crawling away from the face that had once been so close. "What the hell were you doing?" He smirked.
"I merely wanted to see if you were alive. Perhaps you had hit something on your fall and it rendered you unconscious? Or maybe you stopped breathing and I had to perform CPR on you?" She froze as a burning rosy blush flew to her cheeks. She scrambled up from where she was sprawled, aware that he was still watching her from where he kneeled. She quickly dusted off her skirt in a manner trying to say she was not the least bit embarrassed by the whole incident, but the blush clearly spoke for itself. It spoke clearly to him in particular.
She heaved a large sigh as her heartbeat was finally returning to normal. As soon as that happened, she threw an angry heated glare at him.
"What the hell were you thinking scaring me like that?" She cried, adrenaline coursing through her veins as she yelled at the very unruffled male as he stood up. "You could have said something, or caught me before I fell completely! You undignified ASS! I should slap you for doing that!" His eyes gleamed with amusement and laughter as she threw a large fit for the whole class to see. The teacher, in particular, did nothing to stop her. All eyes seemed to be on the prince and the angry schoolgirl.
"Kagome—"
"I'm not finished!" She cried, feeling victorious as she did. She pointed fiercely at him. "I think you owe me an apology for scaring me like that!"
"Really?" He asked sarcastically.
"Yes!" He smiled sexily at her, causing her to hush up immediately. Everyone in the room seemed to be holding their breath. The only time Sesshomaru smiled, it meant you'd be jumping off the plank in a moment into the black salty depths of below. It meant serious consequences.
They stared in each other's eyes for a few moments, oblivious to the others that surrounded them. People stopped being discrete in the attempts of eavesdrop to just stand and watch the sight before them. Would she be slapped? Maybe he would shun her like he did all the others? Or will he tell her the place she was in and what he could do to her? The possibilities were endless. It was only a moment when they would see what cruel fate he had picked for her.
Everyone stilled when as he picked up the books she had clumsily dropped from her arms on the way she stood up.
"Come, the bell has rung." He paused before turning a cold glare to the crowd of students. "Or perhaps everyone would like to follow us to the lunchroom to finish our discussion?" This sent students scattering once the glare was set on their being. The glare was a warning: it meant run for the hills before he had the chance to hunt you down.
After the quick flee of the class, he looked down at the girl that had sparked his interest. Her eyes were down at the floor in embarrassment as that pretty red stained her cheeks.
"I have yet to mention that the student body is quite nosy in my business as well." He tapped her chin with his finger, raising her gaze to his. "Don't worry." He paused as he saw that she hadn't started to follow him out the door. "I hope you didn't expect to make any new friends. You won't by now." This caught her attention in a heartbeat, but he was all ready out the door. She sprinted after him in confusion until she picked up step with him. His legs were so long compared to her own. It was a struggle to keep up with the pace he set.
"What do you mean?" He slowed down as he heard her breath short and heavy. He sometimes forgot the pace he usually set during when going to the cafeteria. It was faster than the walk from school or when he was with his friends. He hated being in the hallways where the fangirls could get at him. They would never approach him if he were with a group of people he knew, such as Inuyasha, Miroku, and Sango, but alone he was defenseless. They would try to seduce him without any second thought.
"I apologize for walking too fast." He said softly as he watched her chest rise and fall before he stopped walking completely. She smiled.
"I'm not that athletic, as you can all ready tell."
"Someone as intelligent as you wouldn't find any use in athletics." He replied truthfully. She caught her breath quickly before looking up at him.
"What did you mean by me not making any friends?" He frowned slightly as he ran his fingers through his hair. If any of his fans would be around, they would have had a tizzy at this motion and fall over dead from a heart attack.
"I will try to make this understandable…no one dares to defy me." She crossed her arms with a look that clearly said she didn't get where he was going.
"So?"
"You just verbally assaulted me."
"And?"
"No one has ever done that before."
"And the problem is?"
"They are expecting me to punish you." She stared at him for a long while.
"So…you're trying to say that none of the girls will even try to be my friend because they are all desperately in love with you?" He looked around uneasily before back to her.
"Yes."
"They see me as a threat?"
"Exactly." She frowned.
"I don't even like you!" He smirked at this with a nod.
"Of course. But over the course of time, that could come to a change. And it's not like the rest of the student body knows how much you dislike me. So, they will only understand that I let you go without any sort of dirty reply or look. They will know that I take interest in you." She blushed at the sound of his works. Of course by 'taking interest' he meant he was just curious about her. She was new, after all. It's not like he wanted to kiss her senseless in a random closet and run his hands all over her. Nope. He was merely curious.
"Curiosity killed the cat, I hope you do remember?" She asked with a frown.
"Never judge a book by its cover." He replied with a pointed look. He then placed a hand on her back. "Now come. Shall we stop at your locker or have you money to spend on a lunch from the cafeteria?" She blushed again.
"I didn't bring a lunch. I didn't have time. Sango said she'd split hers with me."
"Let me get you something." She shook her head, all when trying to get her books out of his arms.
"You don't have to! I don't need any more help. Sango is enough."
"I insist." He repeated, holding the books over his head so she was out of reach. "If you let me, I'll allow you back your books." Her mouth dropped.
"That's cheating!" He smiled innocently.
"I'm trying to be a gentleman. Now I can only bribe my way into getting you some lunch." She was about to retort, maybe kick him in the groin and then dash away, but she quickly thought against it.
'He wants to get me free food, right? What harm could that do? I'd get food and my books back. It's a win-win situation. He'll be happy and I'll be full.' She thought before returning her gaze to the boy that now presently held her books out of her reach. Her arms dropped in defeat.
"Fine! Just let me have my books back. I'm not a complete weakling, you know?" He handed her the books, a smile twinkling in his eyes.
"You are not a complete weakling. I was never insinuating that you were." She snorted in a very unladylike manner as she quickly took her books away from him. She then stuck out her tongue the way a child would taunt another child.
"Come on, Mister High and Mighty. I'm hungry, and since you're buying, I'd like to see what they have." He watched her huff, amazed by the way she acted with him. When did he meet a woman who would clearly show no interest in him? It was…fascinating! She treated him like an everyday individual. Perhaps she was the right one that he was hoping to come along?
'Perhaps…' He watched the evil smile spread her lips as he watched the devious female pick whatever she wanted in the lunch line. He sighed. 'She's going to run me dry and she knows it.'
"Why, thank you, Sesshomaru, for getting me all this food. I just don't know if I can eat it all." She said with a malicious grin that told him that she wouldn't be eating it all.
"At least you will be fed. If you don't want the rest of it, give it to Inuyasha. He eats several pounds of food a day. He'll be gleeful to take it." She felt his hand on her back once more, surprised that she had gotten used to him touching her so quickly. She was silent as they walked towards the back of the lunchroom to the left corner.
"Will you be walking home alone? Or do you not live close to the school?"
"I walk." She replied with a soft sigh. "Why? Trying to insist to walk me home too?"
"It would be a wise choice to have someone with you. Fangirls are nasty business." She sighed again. Him and his arrogance!
"Not every woman is in love with you!" Kagome said loudly. "Get that through your thick skull!" He eyed her thoughtfully.
"You truly do have 'new student' marked on your forehead." He mumbled with a small smirk. "Kagome, I do not mean it in an arrogant way. It is the truth. I have seen girls throw themselves violently at each other just because one gave me a funny look. Others are shunned. It's disgusting, the female population." He paused. "With a few exceptions, such as yourself."
"You really don't like girls, do you?" He shook his head as his eyes hardened.
"I find them revolting to look at." She muffled her giggles behind her hand as she stopped to look at him. He gave her a curious tilt of his head, interested in what had made her burst.
"You…" She took in a breath before falling back into giggles. "You…hee hee…made yourself…ha…sound like you were…wa ha…queer…" She caught herself quickly as he gave her a small frown in distaste. "I'm sorry. It's no laughing matter. Besides, you probably aren't queer. And if you are, gay is okay with me." She gave him a thumb's up.
"I am not by any means queer. I just find it degrading when women grovel at the feet of men." She smiled.
"Amen to that."
"The girls at this school are fierce. There are two major ring leaders." She giggled.
"You make it sound like the mafia."
"It's worse." He replied with a small sigh. "Especially when you are the target. The two you should beware of are Kagura Kaze, a wench that changes her appearance three times a week. The other, however, is Kikyo Hizuki. You never want to encounter her. Understand?" She gave him a puzzled look as he ushered her to the table in the corner. She sat her lunch down before he sat across from her.
"Why mainly her?" She asked as she opened a bag of chips. "Care to give me an explanation or will you leave me without an answer?"
"Kikyo is Naraku's bitch. The nastiest bitch in the school, I'm afraid. We used to be close." She stared at him with a smirk.
"As in intimate close?" He shook his head.
"No. My brother found her quite the charmer, not I. She was decent at first…Naraku soon manipulated her. How he did, I can't say I know exactly. But she deceived all of the people that sit at this table. She is not to be trusted." She was silent for a few moments as she played with the bag of chips in her hands. He watched her in silence.
"You have been very kind to me, Sesshomaru." She said with a smile. "But I can't sit at this table with you. I've decided to stay neutral." She was about to stand up, but he caught her wrist.
"I'm worried about you." He stated quickly. "If those bitches got to you, I wouldn't know what I could do to help." She lingered there, the tray in her one hand as her wrist remained in his grasp.
"Okay." She whispered softly as she sat down the tray. "I'll stay if you really are telling the truth about violence." She sat down in a deep train of thought, rarely acknowledging that his hand still gripped her wrist. He watched her in amazement at the look in her eyes. She was on a different plane that he couldn't reach.
'If something did happen to her…' He wondered as he withdrew his touch. 'Would she do what she's doing now?' He watched her in pure bewilderment, merely staring at her. Her gaze was pointing down to the large amount of food on her plate.
"Hey you guys." Sango greeted before pausing to look at her silent friend. "What the hell did you do to her, Sesshomaru?" He watched Kagome blink her eyes a few times, her long lashes entrancing him. She smiled at Sango.
"I'm fine. He just told me something that made me think for a moment." Sango grinned.
"That's the famous 'Kagome off in space' look. What did you tell her that made her do that?" Sesshomaru remained silent as Kagome smiled.
"It's nothing of any importance." Sango watched her friend begin on her rather large meal that sat before her. Sango looked to Sesshomaru, whom was starting on his own meal. She smiled. So, he really was interested in Kagome?
"My dear Kagome, what a large lunch you have." Miroku said in an observant manner as he sat down besides Sesshomaru. "I like a woman with an appetite." Sango narrowed her eyes.
"You'd like anyone with a pair of knockers. Now shut the hell up!" Miroku sighed.
"Sango, you have no faith in me whatsoever."
"The day I start having faith in you is the day that Sesshomaru turns into a fairy princess." Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow in question at Sango, whom merely waved it off. "And we all know that it isn't going to happen!" Kagome smiled.
"Well, Sesshomaru doesn't like women. Perhaps he will turn into a fairy princess one day and find a charming prince to steal him away?" Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes.
"Kagome—"
"He'll be an American. He'll have wavy blonde hair and sparkling green eyes. His name will be Marco. And he speaks Spanish."
"Juan!" Sango cried. "Have him named Juan." Kagome nodded in agreement as Sesshomaru's eye twitched.
"Juan it will be. And he'll be a ruggedly handsome veterinarian who takes care of horses. We might as well make him from Spain." Kagome said with a giggle.
"And Juan will be very muscular." Sango said with a sigh.
"Can't you just imagine their wedding?" Kagome asked as the two girls sighed together, thinking of white stallions and red decorations.
"Before you go too far with this." Sesshomaru started sternly. "I am not by all means turning into a princess, NOR am I going to have a gay Spaniard as a lover. Got it?" Miroku grinned.
"That's only because Sesshomaru would go for an Italian gay lover." Miroku groaned in pain as Sesshomaru's fist connected with his head, knocking him efficiently over the edge of his seat. The girls watched, barely covering their giggles by biting their lips. "What was that for?" He yelped as he returned to his seat, rubbing the bump on his head.
"For being an idiot." Everyone chimed at the same time, no surprise that each one had been thinking the same thing. He pouted before an idea came to mind.
"You didn't hurt Kagome when she was teasing you." He whined. "Is it just because you like her or something? Do you like young beautiful Japanese girls instead of—" Sesshomaru turned to Miroku and gave him his most terrifying death glare.
"Do you want to continue with your assumptions, Tanaka, or do you want me to hang your head over my fireplace?" Miroku rubbed his head with a frown as Kagome offered a cookie to Sango.
"Why did you buy so much food?" Sango asked as Inuyasha took a seat next to her. Kagome darted her glance to Sesshomaru with a proud smug smile on her lips.
"He took my books and wouldn't give me them back until I allowed him to buy me lunch. And he said I could buy whatever I wanted." Kagome shrugged as Inuyasha laughed.
"She cleaned you out!" Sesshomaru sighed.
"So, Kagome, have you made any decision yet?" Sango asked, eyeing Sesshomaru. "About whether side you are going to remain on?" Kagome smiled.
"I suppose that either Naraku will be coming along one of these hours, or perhaps he will send Hojo to do it for him. I will trust you about Hojo, Sesshomaru, but otherwise I have nothing else to say to any of you. My decision is still undecided and will remain that way. I will be neutral and nothing else." Sango stared at her friend before giving Sesshomaru a shocked look. "But I will sit with you. After last hour, I'm going to be getting plenty of shit from the females. I can feel their glares on me now as we speak." Sesshomaru turned, surprised that there were plenty of stares directed at her. She let a mysterious smile play her lips as she rested her chin on her palm. "Hmm, I don't know if sitting with you now is making this worse or keeping me safe."
"Kagome, whatever Sesshomaru told you is true." Miroku said seriously. "These girls that follow him are ferocious. They will shred you to bits in an instant." Inuyasha grinned.
"You can't protect yourself from them, can you?" Kagome looked away as she felt his dull amber gaze burning through her. She frowned.
"No. I couldn't even if I wanted to. But it is not an issue."
"Let him train you." Miroku cut in quickly.
"What?" Kagome asked, eyeing the boy with a questioning look in her eyes.
"Sesshomaru. He has quite a large amount of information on hand-to-hand combat. He could train you properly." Kagome shook her head.
"No thank you. I find it unnecessary."
"All of us find it would be safer for you if you know how to defend yourself." Inuyasha stated plainly. "Just let him teach ya. It's not that big of a deal. You can learn to kick some serious fangirl ass!" She shook her head as her eyes slammed shut.
"No violence!" She cried. "I hate violence."
"You threatened to kick me." Sesshomaru stated insensitively. "And now you say that you are against all violence?" Kagome looked down in her lap for a few moments as tears brimmed in her eyes. She stood up quickly as a single sob shook her body. Without any thought, she dashed out of the school doors into the forests paths that laid behind it.
"Sesshomaru!" Sango whispered fiercely. "Look what you've done now! All of you!" Sesshomaru watched the doors where she fled before looking to Sango.
"What upset her?" Sango sighed as she bit her lip.
"Why couldn't you just drop it when she said no?" She stood up with a heavy glare at the three males at the table. "I won't tell you. It's very personal with Kagome." She was about to rush out to find the poor girl, whom would probably get lost on school grounds, before she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"No. I will go. Stay here and make sure those two figure worthy apologies to give her." Sango glared at Sesshomaru, smacking his hand away. He caught the threatening hand quickly in his own, squeezing it painfully.
"You are the last person she'd want to see right now." She spat. "Can't you just understand her point of view for once? Not just your own?" His glare hardened for a moment before he figured that Sango was correct. He let go of her hand, his eyes softening.
"Make sure she comes back safely. If you do, let her do whatever she wants. I will not escort her to classes. You may if she so desires. Otherwise I won't force anything upon her." Sango nodded with large shocked eyes. "And take her some food. She'll be hungry." She smiled as she grabbed the coke on her tray and a few bags of food.
"Thanks Sesshomaru." She whispered so he could only hear before she raced out to the school forest. He watched her go, goosebumps covering his skin at the thought that he had originally upset Kagome.
"Do you think I should get on one knee and ask her to forgive us?" Inuyasha asked with a rough laugh. "Perhaps she'll find it funny?" Miroku gave him a look before smacking his arm.
"Of course not! Miss Kagome is very upset right now. If you could forgive her in any other way, you should ask her to bear your child!" Miroku sighed. "The intense pleasure that either one of us could bring her. It's an apology in itself!" Sesshomaru threw them the dirtiest glare any had seen in years. The two fools stiffened into silence as Sesshomaru stared at her tray.
"Damn…"
"Damn it, Kagome!" Sango muttered. "Where are you?" She heard the fresh grass crush beneath her feet. Summer was over, school had just begun a month ago. It was falling into fall quickly, and she could imagine the oranges, reds, and yellows that would decorate their school in season.
She stopped upon hearing a sharp snap of a twig. Her coffee eyes scouted the area as her ears tuned, sure any little sound could give her a new way to go. Somehow Kagome had gotten off trail, and she didn't know where she was.
"Kagome!" She called, tucking the bag of chips under her arm as she began to grow frantic. "Where are you?" Her voice echoed among the trees, causing her to shiver. A crow cawed in the distance. Tears built up in her eyes. Where had her dear friend gone and why could she find her?
"Come on, Kags! This isn't funny!" Sango sniffled. What if other girls had gotten to her? Had they roughed her up? Was it too late to scare them away? Kagome wouldn't fight back, she knew. Would she be all right by herself?
Sesshomaru began to get antsy once fifteen minutes had passed. Miroku and Inuyasha watched in hidden amusement as they counted how many times he twitched in over two minutes. It'd be the occasional finger tap to a little leg jiggle. Then came the rare lip bite. He had managed to do all three in a matter of minutes. And it was hell of a lot funny to watch.
"Sesshomaru, if you're that nervous about her, why don't you go look yourself?" Inuyasha asked, raising his eyebrows with crossed arms. He had a very valid point to bring up.
"You heard Sango." He grumbled. "She'd dislike to see me." Miroku sighed.
"A young man in love. It's wonderful to see these days." Sesshomaru gripped Miroku by the lip of his shirt, growling in anger.
"I am not in love with her!" He smirked dangerously. "Repeat with me, Tanaka, 'you are not in love with her'." Miroku gulped.
"Haven't you ever heard of love at first sight?" Sesshomaru stared at him harshly before pushing him backwards, freeing his hold on Miroku's shirt.
"Doesn't exist." He said in a nonchalant manner.
"Then why are you so nervous about her?" Inuyasha asked. "You even said that you were interested in her. You make me sick saying you don't care anymore."
"I've known her for only a few hours!" Sesshomaru barked at him. "It's nothing more than a fling." That's not the truth, now is it? His mind asked, causing him to harden his gaze even more.
"Just go out and look for her, damn it!" Inuyasha cried, smashing his fist among his large amount of food. "If you aren't, you really are more of a bastard than I ever realized." Sesshomaru felt like curling up in a ball in the corner of a very dark room. Yes, he wanted to go and comfort her, but wouldn't it be too soon? Besides, she still found him as revolting as rotting road kill. She wouldn't want to be comforted by him, would she? Of course not. There was no possible way.
"Stop doubting yourself. And, if you can't find her, just pretend you're going for a walk. No one will know." Sesshomaru licked his lips. If he didn't leave, Miroku and Inuyasha would nag him until he left. If he left and found her, she would hate him. If he left and didn't find her…he'd look like an imbecile.
He sighed before lifting himself up from the table. 'I guess its worth the risk.'
"Do not speak of this to anyone, especially Sango. If she knows I went out to look for her, she'll—"
"Cut off you head, shove it through your foot and then do other bloody things to your limbs?" Miroku asked, causing the two brothers to stare at him in confusion.
"Okay…" Inuyasha drawled. "We won't even blab to Sango. We wouldn't want to fall under her wrath either." Sesshomaru nodded before calmly walking outside to the back of the school. Was he calm? Hell no. Inside was all in jumbles. It felt like something was constricting his heart. Was it worry? Or did his intestines managed to lose their place and wrap painfully around his heart?
His eyes scouted the area. Sango was scouting the forest. Would she be in the parking lot going to her car? But, more importantly, what kind of car did she own? And what color?
He was at a frustrating loss. If he didn't find her, she could have all ready been found by others besides the more than frantic Sango. Did Kagome understand what she was doing to herself?
'Of course she doesn't know! That damned girl is putting herself in danger!' He thought, his soon calm sense of mind evaporating as he entered the large school parking lot.
"Kagome?" He called softly, his eyes scouting through the messy parked cars. The gravel below his feet matched the color of the dread he felt. "Kagome!" He cried louder, worry eating on his insides. Dear God, please let her be all right!
He froze as he heard a piercing scream. The skin on his face drained of its color before he sprinted along the random color of cars to get to the one he knew was in trouble.
'Kagome.' His mind chanted. 'Kagome. Kagome. Kagome. Kagome. Kagome!' He pushed himself further, faster, as his breath soon left him. He searched the lot in an frenzy. No other sounds gave him any indication that he could find where Kagome was being attacked. Everything was quiet.
"Kagome!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, hoping that he could save her a great amount of pain. These girls were ruthless—if murder wasn't against the law, it'd happen.
"Shit! I think I saw someone!" He heard as a soft whisper to his ears. He pushed faster, wanting to find those thugs that had damaged his Kagome and rip them all up into shreds.
He heard a dull whimper as he stopped by a red van. She was curled in a ball, her arms hiding her face as he heard soft sobs. He was alarmed when he saw blood stain the gravel by her head.
"Kagome." He cried urgently, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. She hid further in her ball until he pulled her out as tenderly as he could. Tears streamed down her dirty cheeks. Chalk dust was thrown all over her clothes and hair as blood mixed with the chalky substance on her cheek. Her blue eyes shook with fear as she saw him before a sob racked her chest.
"Sesshomaru!" She cried before the pain had become too much to bear. She slumped over on the parking lot gravel unconscious.
"Damn it…" He mumbled as he punched the gravel himself. He was too late. Now she was hurt.
He took her limp unmoving body in his arms. Her face was tarnished from the fists of the other girls. One must have had a sharp type of ring on one of their fingers. A large gash split her forehead. He inspected it for a moment before deciding the cut wasn't too deep. Medical attention would not be needed. She had a black eye and her cut, and a small cut on the back of her head. Bruises littered her arms as her lip bled metallic blood down her chin, some flowing her mouth.
Without any hesitation he left the parking lot with her in his arms. He was stared by mothers and young children whom were being picked up from their preschools. He heard whispers of gossip of the ones who walked the street on which he lived. But he didn't care. He didn't hear. She needed to be safe. She would only be safe when he wrapped her wounds and cleaned the blood that stained her skin. Once she was put in his bed, under all the warm comfy covers, would she be safe.
This took me quite a while, ne? Well, I found it rather nice to finally be able to write something! I've had such a bad case of writer's block that it was ridiculous! Well, I still am not sure how I was able to update this in the midst of all my exams (which are rather back breaking). I hope you all enjoy and I hope you review.
Spelling. Errors. Check. Me. Can't. Spell. Correctly. Bah!