"This is more than a project. This will be worth ten percent of your term grade, so, if you plan on graduating, do not blow this off. I expect research, visual aids, presentation, reports, and everything has to be neat and readable."
Some of the students in the class suppressed smirks. Kaede always emphasized readability, probably because she wore an eye patch and could only use one eye.
Kagome sat at her desk with the typical silently annoyed expression she put on every time she walked into her World Cultures class. Her mom refused to let her take the class in night school or summer school insisting that her work load was already packed and "maybe she should take it easy this year." She tried to explain to her mother that colleges look for signs of "taking an easy senior year" and they would much rather see AP Latin Literature than the school required World Culture's course. Kagome had eight classes, and this was the only one that didn't hold the title of being "honors", "AP", or "gifted".
She could take the monotonous busy work, she could take the weeks of PBS videos, she could even take the pungent smell of Kaede's afternoon tea, but she couldn't stand the people. They were idiots. All of them. The second week of school, a girl, Yura, lazily asked winding a string around her fingers, "So what exactly IS a kimono?" Kagome wanted to get up and scream, "You live in JAPAN for heavens sake. Do you have to be so stupid?"
But over time, Kagome learned to keep her head down. These weren't the self-motivated hard working people that she was use to being around. These people didn't care what they did with their lives; she couldn't possibly relate to any of them. The first group project Kaede assigned, Kagome was heavily criticized for being a "project hog" and shooting down everyone's ideas. Well they got an 'A' didn't they? From then on, Kagome carefully picked whom she would work with. They had to be lazy, eager to dump loads of work on one person. It was easier if no one interfered, much quicker that way. This was going to be a big project; it was imperative she find the right people that would be comfortable with her doing…well everything.
Kaede said that there would be 4 groups; Kagome quickly divided that by the number of people in the classroom and discerned that she would need a group of five. She quickly scanned the room for potentials. Jakotsu and his/her weird brothers? No, they were way too creepy. And then she saw four people in the corner.
"Perfect," Kagome thought. They were the dregs of the school; if she were lucky, maybe they would drop out of school before the project was due. She walked over cautiously taking primary surveys of each person.
The first had dark black hair. He hardly talked, and when he did, his words had sadistic connotations.
The second matched the first's long black hair, but she was a girl. Kagome met her icy stare as she started to approach their table.
The third was extremely large and round; he had a curious soft fuzz that covered his entire body. Kagome shuddered as he licked his lips.
The last guy she surveyed appeared to the worst of all. He had a vicious inhuman snarl and appeared to be surly at all times. Kagome never knew how Kaede lost her eye, but she wouldn't be surprised if he had something to do with it.
"Could I work with you guys?"
Nobody paid her any attention, except for the round figure who gave her a sly wink.
'Well that failed miserably.' She started turning back when the dark guy said, "Don't expect us to do nothing."
'Perfect.'