A/N: First off, I apologize that the image I used for this story isn't Rin with glasses -_- I tried looking for one, but unfortunately modern-day drawings of an older Rin are hard to come by. The girl I found was the closest I could find who was also wearing glasses. It was a tough order to begin with, so I wasn't sure how lucky I'd be at finding one. Either way, I hope you enjoy the read! Thanks, as always, for your support! =]

Rin fumbled with her bag at her hip as she followed behind a group of students making their way to the Architectural Museum. It was her first day of classes, and she was terribly nervous. Being an incoming freshman at a well renowned university wasn't easy, especially for Rin.

Rin wasn't the most outgoing person around, especially after barely making it through high school. The school she had come from had shoved her at the bottom of their priority list, based solely on the fact that she had little income coming in to pay for tuition.

Because of their negligence, no one raised a finger to help her when she started getting bullied. Even when she reported the bullying, the teachers never took her side. She couldn't have done much anyway, being the poor orphan girl barely able to pay for tuition every year.

Eventually, Rin stopped saying anything at all, for fear that the bullying would get worse. Girls had already been harassing her about her cheap wardrobe and hairstyle almost everyday. She didn't need them to use her words against her, too.

In between all the madness, she had been lucky enough to make friends with Kagome before she graduated. Kagome had been her guardian angel, who had offered her a place to stay so she could save up enough money to pay for her senior year tuition. She had even been nice enough to recommend her into the same university that she went to.

The school offered her a variety of scholarships after she was accepted because of her grade point average alone. The fact that she had practically raised herself after her parents died gave her even greater access to claiming awards. The last thing she needed to do to make sure that her entire tuition would be covered was to land an assistant-ship with a professor.

The job wouldn't pay much, but it would cover the last of the tuition bill with enough left over so she could spend a little on herself. With Kagome's support, Rin wouldn't need to pay too much rent and Kagome was always willing to treat her if she was out of money.

I'll have to thank her after class, Rin thought with a small, downcast smile, I know she's probably tired of hearing it, but I'd be out on the street without her, literally.

"Excuse me," a voice murmured impatiently, and Rin jumped before she hastily bowed her head in apology to a student she had almost bumped into by accident. She readjusted her glasses which had slid to the edge of her nose before she paused when she spotted the museum.

It was far bigger than she had expected. It was a highrise that stood a good five stories high, its dark brick walls eye-catching in the sunlight. It looked like it belonged in a city rather than in the country.

Rin looked around nervously when the group of students she had been following continued past the museum. She had really hoped they would have been the students in her class. They had looked nice enough, and had talked so freely that Rin could only gaze at them enviously. She missed being able to speak without fear. After being bullied through most of high school, Rin had barely uttered a word in three years. Many had thought that she had gone completely mute. Everyone except Kagome, of course.

Rin blinked out of her thoughts at the sight of a man making his way out of the museum. He had thick silver hair that looked like it had been in a ponytail, but had partly come loose. His face was pulled back into an angry snarl as he stomped down the stone steps. Rin thought that she knew the man, but she couldn't place him. It was only when his golden eyes came up to meet hers that she knew.

Inuyasha! She inwardly cried out in excitement. No words came out of her mouth, of course, but the man took notice of her friendly expression and smiled back.

"Hey Rin!" Inuyasha called out with a big grin before he made his way across the street to meet her, "what are you doing here? Is this your first day of classes?" he asked. Rin opened her mouth to answer, but paused with a blush, before she shut her mouth and nodded instead.

"You don't have it in the Architectural Museum, do you?" Inuyasha asked as he snaked a glare at the building, "Well, I hope my pompous half-brother isn't your instructor. That would be the worst, without a doubt," Inuyasha huffed.

Rin froze as she ranked her brain for the name of her instructor. She knew that she was taking a history class about the Feudal Era, but she hadn't memorized the professor's name just yet. She unzipped her bag and frantically dug through it for her class list.

"You ok, Rin?" Inuyasha asked, puzzled by her behavior. Rin smiled when she found the elusive piece of paper before she brought the list up to Inuyasha's eyes so he could see. He blinked in surprise at having her class list shoved in his face before he studied the writing printed on it.

A look of dread overcame his features suddenly before he let out a defeated sigh.

"I'm sorry to break this to you, Rin, but you definitely have my brother as your instructor," Inuyasha stated gravely, "if I were you, I'd start looking for a class you can switch into instead of sticking with this one. My half-brother is not worth the grief he'll put you through. I should know, I'm related to him," Inuyasha practically seethed.

Rin gulped nervously before she clumsily put her list back in the bag that rested against her hip. Inuyasha seemed to note her nervous body language before he let out a slightly nervous laugh of his own.

"Don't take all of this to heart, Rin! Maybe he's nicer to his students than he is to flesh and blood. I've never tried sitting through one of his lectures. I'm sure he'd ask me to leave if I tried," Inuyasha replied with a slight roll of his eyes.

Rin let out a quiet giggle before she nodded her thanks and hurried towards the museum. She couldn't be late on her first day. If Inuyasha's half-brother was as tough as Inuyasha was making him sound, then she'd have to make a great first impression.

Inuyasha watched her go with a look of slight surprise. Unbeknownst to Rin, that was the first time Inuyasha had heard the young woman utter a sound at all.

Sesshomaru withheld a growl as he watched his half-brother leave in a storm of growls and curses. He refused to let Inuyasha see what type of effect his behavior had on him. Of all the things to ask for, he wanted Sesshomaru to just hand over one of the prized swords he had on display. He hadn't kept his collection of Feudal era artifacts for over five hundred years for nothing. It was the only link he had left to a better time. A time when he wasn't forced to hide his demonic lineage from humans.

While he was able to keep his hair and eye color the same by claiming they were cosmetic changes done through dyes and contacts, he couldn't show any of his demonic markings or his pointed ears. His claws and tail were also masked from view. It was not difficult for one such as he, but it did prove a nuisance to constantly be checking if his illusion had worn off or wavered throughout the day.

Another rather bothersome development in this futuristic time was his need for a human occupation. It was the best way for him to stay under the radar. Luckily he had been able to use his knowledge of demonic folklore and Feudal Era culture to become a college instructor. While he wasn't very enthusiastic about sharing his knowledge with groups of humans, he did enjoy the freedom it gave him to keep his collection close without being questioned.

By becoming a lecturer at the museum, he was able to store his collection there free of charge. He was also able to check any new items donated to the museum. That right alone kept him from finding a less human inhabited profession. If the wish to increase his collection of Feudal Era artifacts was a weakness, then so be it. He wasn't going to give up on it anytime soon.

The sound of the front door being pulled open again caught Sesshomaru's attention as he mentally prepared for Inuyasha to storm back in demanding for his sword again. His expression drew back in slight surprise when a young woman walked in instead. Her dark brown hair flowed down to her slim hips in messy waves while part of her thick tresses were held up in a small ponytail on the side of her head.

Her large brown eyes grew even wider when she spotted him staring at her before she shielded them away with her glasses. Based on her rather plain attire, Sesshomaru could reasonably assume that she was a new student of his. A white tank top layered under a black vest with dark jeans to match hugged her thin frame. Multiple strapped black sandals covered part of her exposed feet and he rose a slight brow when he spotted the bright yellow nail polish that decorated her toenails.

He would never understand the trends that women followed as the times changed. They seemed to change with the seasons, and just when Sesshomaru would get used to one it would change yet again. After a couple of years, Sesshomaru had stopped paying much attention to them unless something caught his eye.

Like this young woman's yellow nail polish.

Perhaps it was the sharp contrast of the nail polish in comparison to her rather dark outfit. Either way, he did not need to dwell on such minuet details. He had a class to teach in a few minutes.

"Are you here for my class?" he asked, and the girl paused to study him for a moment before she hesitantly nodded. His silvery brow rose yet again at her quiet demeanor, finding it odd that he had expected her to answer him and then try to strike up a conversation. But perhaps he had just become accustomed to the rather outgoing female students who often threw themselves at him.

"The classroom is this way. Follow me," he instructed, and didn't check to see if she was following him as he made his way to the lecture hall at the end of the museum.

When he reached the double doors that led to his classroom, he glanced back slightly to spot the girl right beside him. She had moved so quietly that he hadn't even heard her feet plant themselves against the wooden floor.

He was getting too accustomed to the human illusion of himself. He would have to keep his demonic senses in check or he could very well lose them altogether if he wasn't careful. His eyes again found the bright yellow nail polish on her toes as he eyed them for a moment before he turned away and swiftly opened the door.

The lecture hall was full already, and Sesshomaru noted a good number of the female occupants move forward in their seats at his arrival. He could sense a wave of nervousness overtake the girl beside him, and he glanced back to see that she had hidden her eyes behind her glasses once again. Instinct told him that she did that often, and he watched her make her way to the back of the lecture hall.

He noted a few jealous looks from the girls sitting in the first few rows follow the girl as she passed. Sesshomaru cleared his throat to get their attention. He didn't know why he cared whether the girl he had met earlier was negatively regarded by her classmates. It takes away too much of their attention. They won't learn if their thoughts are elsewhere, he inwardly reasoned.

"Good afternoon, class," Sesshomaru greeted levelly as the classroom chatter died down and all eyes turned to face him, "Let's get started. My name is Dr. Taisho and I will be your instructor for this course. I will begin by listing off the rules. Anyone who walks in late will get an absent mark and be asked to leave. I do not tolerate tardiness, and neither shall you,"

One of the students near the front raised his hand, "Excuse me, Dr. Taisho, but what if we're running here from another class across campus? Wouldn't it be OK if we only came in a few minutes late?"

"My rule remains the same. You will simply have to run faster," Sesshomaru replied nonchalantly. The student lowered his hand reluctantly before he mumbled something under his breath.

"If you don't like the rules, then you can switch to another course," Sesshomaru pointed out before he glanced at the other students gathered around the lecture hall, "that goes for anyone else as well. If at any time you do not agree with my teaching methods, you are free to leave," he added to the group at large. The students looked around nervously, but no one moved out of their chairs.

Sesshomaru spotted the girl from earlier sitting in a chair at the very top and towards the back of the room. She sat back on her chair with a notebook out and a pen in hand. While the other students were still shuffling in their chairs nervously, she looked surprisingly calm. There was even a slight smile on her face. The fact that she found this situation comedic both agitated and interested him.

While he never liked being laughed at, he did find her friendly ease in his presence rather off-putting. He preferred when students feared him, much like the fear he could sense in the rest of the students in the room. He was even content with the intrigued caution he would receive from many of his more outspoken female students every semester. But friendly ease? That was a new one.

She seemed to take notice of him and quickly hid behind the rim of her glasses with a faint blush. Now that was a look he came across a lot. Quickly losing interest in the young woman, Sesshomaru continued to list off the rest of the rules to the class.

Rin held her breath as she waited for Dr. Taisho to turn his gaze away from her. When he did, Rin release the breath she had been holding with a heavy sigh. It felt like her brain had shut off completely and her body ceased functioning during those few seconds that they had maintained eye contact.

Rin could admit that her professor was an attractive man. Beautiful, in fact. She had never seen a man look so angelic, but act as authoritative as he did. It always seemed that a man was either one or the other, never both. Rin buried her nose in her journal as she listened to him list off the remaining rules they all needed to follow. Her pen scribbled down key points as quickly as she could, but she refused to look up in case she'd catch him staring again.

"You will also have to take part in classroom discussions for a grade," Rin froze as she picked up the worst possible phrase she could have ever heard leave her professor's lips. Take part? In classroom discussions? For a grade?

Rin felt her body begin to tremble as anxiety suddenly took hold of her lungs and she had trouble breathing. She hadn't talked in a class for years. Heck, she didn't even know if she could muster up the courage to speak in front of such a large crowd.

"Hey, don't sweat it," she heard someone whisper beside her. Rin glanced to her right to spot a boy smiling back at her with shoulder length brown hair pulled up into a high ponytail. Long bangs fell over kind brown eyes that softened at the sight of her terrified expression.

"Are you a freshman?" the boy asked, and Rin hesitantly nodded, "Me too. Although, I transferred in from another college, so technically I'd be a sophomore if you counted by credits," he added with a soft laugh, mindful to keep his voice down as Dr. Taisho continued talking.

"I'm Kohaku," the boy introduced himself with a smile and an outstretched hand, "what's your name?" he whispered back. Rin felt her throat close up as she looked away nervously and tried to convince her brain to work so she could tell him her name. He was being nice enough to her, so why was she hesitating?

"I'd appreciate it if you saved any small talk for after class," the two heard Dr. Taisho command rather harshly. Rin blushed profusely as all the eyes of the student body whirled around to stare back at them curiously. She pushed the rim of her glasses back up the bridge of her nose as she hunched lower in her seat, trying her best to disappear.

"I'm sorry about that!" Kohaku replied confidently with an apologetic wave, drawing all the eyes to him, "It's my fault, not hers," he added as he gave Rin a supportive smile. Rin's eyes widened slightly at his act of kindness. His friendly smile also reminded her of one of Kagome's smiles, and she felt her fear of the situation begin to subside.

"Don't let it happen again," the professor remarked dismissively before he caught Rin's gaze for a moment. She blushed again at being the center of his attention, but then she noted something close to remorse in his golden gaze that caught her off guard. It was as if he could sense her anxiety and fear, and didn't like that he had drawn unwanted attention to her. She gave him a shaky smile that she hoped looked confident enough in return.

He seemed content with it, for he quickly changed the subject and started lecturing on the beginning of the Feudal Era. Rin slowly relaxed as she continued to watch him as he spoke, finding his ease with public speaking alluring. Not only did his good looks catch her attention, but the richness in his voice felt like a gift to her ears. It sounded cheesy, but that's all Rin could think of that would do his voice any justice.

She inwardly wished that she could speak in such an effortless way. With that kind of voice, she would be willing to talk endlessly to anyone willing to listen. She hadn't noticed it when he had talked to her briefly before class started or while he was listing off the classroom rules. Had she simply not been paying enough attention?

She quickly shook her head to clear her thoughts before she focused her attention on the material that he was presenting rather than on the melodic sound of his voice.

The sound of squeaking chairs and zipping backpacks resounded in the lecture hall as Sesshomaru brought the first day's lesson to a close. Many of the student rushed out, while others stayed behind to exchange numbers or wait for their friends to collect their things.

Sesshomaru found his gaze drifting up as he caught a glimpse of the girl from earlier. She was coming done the steps with the boy who had talked to her during class. He felt a slight pang of guilt pass over him at the terror he had instilled in her after calling attention to her. His rather stark comment had been meant for the boy talking beside her, not towards her directly.

His nose twitched as he remembered the strong smell of fear that had come from her body in waves when the entire class had turned to look back at her. While he quite enjoyed the smell of fear that came from humans, he didn't like the smell of it on her.

He debated on going up to her and apologizing for making her a spectacle, but paused when he noticed the boy next to her say something that made her smile. The smell of fear was gone from her scent, and she looked...happy.

He quickly withheld his apology at the sight, and figured the girl didn't need any more unwanted attention drawn to her. He turned away as he moved to collect a few things from the classroom. With his back turned to her, he didn't see the slight look of disappointment that passed over her features as she left the room.

"So, you're done for the day?" Kohaku asked curiously as Rin nodded while looking straight ahead. He smiled slightly before he angled his head so he could look her in the eye.

"You don't talk much, do you?" he persisted gently as Rin blushed before she hid her eyes behind her glasses and mildly shook her head. Rin really didn't need to wear glasses, in fact the pair she was wearing weren't even prescribed to her. They were a cheap pair that she found at a local convenient store back home. She just liked the security they brought her. If she felt nervous or scared, she could just hide her eyes behind the rims of her glasses.

"That's a shame," Kohaku mused with a slight frown before his smile returned, "I bet you would have a lot to say if you opened up more. But don't feel pressured to talk, just start when you're ready to," he added with a shrug.

Rin inwardly thanked him for being so understanding. No one besides Kagome and Inuyasha had ever been comfortable with her silence. It was nice to find another person that she could rely on who wouldn't feel uncomfortable around her.

"Well I have to head over to the opposite end of campus. I have to run a few errands for my sister before I go back to my apartment. You're free to come along if you like. To run errands, I mean," he offered with a slight blush. Rin felt her cheeks flush in return at his invitation, and she was about to shake her head when another thought occurred to her.

This boy had been nice to her despite that fact that she hadn't talked to him, and had offered to hang out with her outside of class. When Kagome had done something similar in high school, Rin had agreed and gained a trustworthy friend in the end. She couldn't pass up making another friend like Kagome.

With a confident nod, Rin accepted his invitation. A grin spread across Kohaku's face as he inclined his head in the opposite direction.

"Then follow me," he offered as he led the way downtown. Rin had experienced the campus downtown a couple of times while visiting Kagome while she had still been in high school. She curiously followed after Kohaku as she wondered what their destination would be, and what his sister would be like.

A/N: So this is a good start! I hope everyone who read this enjoyed this little taste of the new story swirling in my mind. I know I have so many unfinished stories that I need to complete, but this new idea just wouldn't leave me alone! Let me know what you think! =D Until next time!