A/N: Hi, this is my first fanfic, and yes, you may applaud. Just kidding.
FYI: My writing style is rather detailed and metaphor dense, so I apologize if you like concise stories. Either way I appreciate it if you read it.
I try my best to proofread, so if you catch any grammar mishaps or have any criticism to share, please do! Thanks. :)
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Note #1: Boredom is one of the few negative things with an often positive outcome for humans: creativity, philosophy, and perhaps most important of all, pointless banter.
(This is the more important one) Note #2: Flighty is to Reckless as Kagome is to Inuyasha.
There are two scientific theories of cause and effect that are often mistaken to be the same thing, yet are in fact opposites in the nature of their concepts. The "domino effect" is the theory that one event causes another which goes on to form a strictly chronological chain of events. On a visual stance, the theory derives from a single domino that knocks over another, which knocks over the next, and the next after that one continues to cause the downfall of the next.
Kagome arched her back against her chair and stretched out her legs, sighing out what could only be the exhausted disdain of the mentally overworked. Here she was, spending over seven hours into a beautifully clear and cool early October evening attempting to catch up on all the work she had missed in school in over a week, frying her neocortex over numerous taxing assignments just so she could at least have Sunday for relaxing. Not that she trusted that part of her brain much, which just so happens to be the part of the brain responsible for emotions, perception, and working memory, the latter which she didn't seem to have. She was a terrible studier, and she would be doing so much better if she could actually learn in class instead of cramming, but of course her reward for risking her life on a regular basis is her crippled education. Oh yeah, that's right, homework! Her very last assignment for language arts was a topic she found rather interesting: writing a detailed paragraph on the difference between two theories of cause and effect. She suddenly remembered what she was doing- curse her slipshod ability to focus- and took a quick glance at the clock. 21:14...not too bad! If she could just finish this within the next five or ten minutes, maybe she could even check out that new show her friends kept pestering her to watch!
Many people in society tend to look at events in the perspective of the domino theory. However, it is actually the "butterfly effect" that tends to be the most often realistic. Its theory is significantly more complex, but it's basically the idea that a very small detail or difference has the ability to eventually create a significant discrepancy in its initial system. The "butterfly" part comes from the notion that the fluttering of a butterfly's wings may set off currents that will grow into a large storm.
Satisfied with her writing, it was only to her disappointment that Kagome found on her homework sheet that she had missed the last part of the task.
c) What other two concepts that are thought to be opposites do these two cause and effect theories most represent? Bonus on the graded practice midterm if you get this correct!
What the…? What the hell sort of question is this? Kagome just stared at task c as if she'd just witnessed a majestic pony ride a banana split boat into the land of rainbow stickers and colorful candy wrappers, which, if the reader dwells on this description, sounds pretty trippy and extreme for a side affect reaction of confusion. Then she remembered that she does have midterms in two and a half weeks, and that task c contained the very bolded words bonus and graded practice midterm. She was going to figure this out now if her freaking brain imploded, forget about her neocortex! And so began her brain storming as she embarked a grade-boosting journey among the clouds of distorted haze and a chimerical sky adorned with countless dull stars without constellations. Yes, it was a fantastical world inside her intelligent teenage brain that could only be reminiscent of the scientific concept of one's mind drawing a blank. Basically, Kagome had no idea what she could possibly gain from being stuck in the ideal state of "I don't know" if wracking her brains waiting for some answer to form out of nothing wasn't working, and after a good ten minutes of this she was already becoming extremely frustrated, one of the only negative emotions she is quick to resort to. This was only worsened when she was suddenly startled by the sound of her bedroom windows open abruptly, which always made a profound squeak so that it was pretty much impossible to enter her room soundlessly from the window, and there's only one person she knows who does that. Great, just what she needs right now.
"What's wrong with you? You look like you just saw a ghost or something," Inuyasha remarked nonchalantly as he stepped through her window, referring to Kagome's rather paler-than-usual face, wide eyes, and somewhat messy hair. No one really tries to look extremely decent when they're going to do homework all day after school, not that he understood much of anything at all about school stuff, or that he even cared how she looked for that matter. He was perfectly aware that he had unintentionally startled her because of those stupid squeaky-creaky windows, and had only made such a remark just to overtly tease her for his own amusement. It's funny how worked up she can get sometimes, whether it was an eye roll or a bothered glare.
It was at this time tonight that Kagome decided to bestow him the honorable glare of immense irritation, especially because she knew he was being a semi-jerk on purpose, as Inuyasha invited himself to sit on her bed with his legs crossed. She stared at him for a few seconds while turned around in her desk chair before turning her back to him as she started cleaning up her desk, since she really didn't need any of her textbooks anymore for now, and while putting away her history textbook, she decided there would be no harm in at least some social interaction at almost ten in the evening, because why not?
"I'm sorta busy, Inuyasha. How come you're here and not assaulting high tree branches while making dandelion chains in like five hundred years ago or something?" He snorted at this, and she simultaneously could feel him rolling his eyes behind her.
"I think you and Shippou make enough of those to circle around the 1,391,000 kilometer diameter of the sun. Twice." Kagome raised her eyebrows at this and once again turned around in her chair.
"That's one heck of a hyperbole, Sir Smart Aleck. And that was ONE picnic. On that note, would you happen to know where my science textbook has been for the past two days, and why you stole it?" As if out of nowhere, he pulled out a rather thick textbook that seemed to contain the true secrets of How the Universe Sort of Works for dummies, which is what we generally recognize as an Earth Science textbook, in which some semi-important astronomy facts, like the size of the planets in our solar system and that one star they all revolve around, are printed on the inside of the back cover, much like a standard composition notebook.
"You're the one that left it in like five hundred years ago, and unlike you, at least I didn't waste my free time making silly flower chains and actually bothered to bring this to you like a good person. After reading some of the weird stuff in this thing, of course." To be honest with himself, he actually did take it on purpose just before she left just so he could have an excuse to barge directly into her room, but she obviously didn't need to know that. Kagome was pretty sure she saw it in her backpack just before she had taken her leave, but on the other hand, she wasn't about to prod him for any more information than the answer he gave her, since she knew very well he's just as stubborn as she is. She gave him a questionable glance as she took the textbook from him, to which he just looked the other way, pretending to be focusing on the still open bedroom windows. The brilliant reds and sour oranges were muted to grey below the clear black night sky, which was freckled with stars and the soft glow of the moon. Inuyasha actually really liked the moon, it isn't all in your face like the sun is with its blinding ego and boiling heat. The moon was Just There, and it didn't mind being that one large rock that did nothing but tell the water what to do. He just really hated it when it wasn't there, and thought it was stupid that the moon just couldn't always be there. Back to focusing on the trees, he noticed that with some squinting, he could actually discern the lemony yellow leaves despite the lack of light, and subconsciously wondered that if he looked hard enough, he could eventually pick out the brown or purple leaves.
"...came here for?"
"Huh. What?" Realizing that he had accidentally spaced out and caught off gaurd, his head snapped up and looked her directly in the eyes with an unreasonably intense gaze. Kagome blinked, and realized she had just forgotten her question within a matter of seconds. In the midst of recollecting her thoughts, she noticed Inuyasha raise an eyebrow, and realized that she had been staring straight at him the whole time, and her face flushed a light rosy color in mild embarrassment. That damn neocortex.
"Sorry, um… what are you doing here at this time?"
"Being here. Breathing. Twiddling my fingers or something." She narrowed her eyes at this. He was being especially sassy tonight, not that she had a right to complain, since he was probably picking it up from her anyway. Along with "Twiddling Your Fingers or Something," mimicking his tone of voice inside her mind.
"You know that's not what I meant. Giving me back my textbook most likely isn't all you came here for."
"I told you- you forgot about it."
"Uh huh, sure. That's besides the point. Am I not correct in this assumption?"
"What do you care? It's not like you're busy or anything." He began to develop a sour look on his face, obviously not appreciating her persistence.
"I actually am, sort of. But you're dodging my question yet again. What do you want?" He's always one tough nut to crack, and perplexingly, this time she cracked it rather quickly.
"So what if it is the only thing I came for? Is there a written law that I can't walk in and return your god damned book full of lethargy-inducing wordy information because, god forbid I even come in for no reason at all! Do you need answers for everything?" His words were thick with sarcasm and held a bitter flavor. Having a reserved, introverted personality seemed to be equivalent of a cataclysm to all of his friends, since one of them ever allowed him to value his own personal privacy. Yet, for some strange reason, he felt that he would prefer their nettling, nosy attention rather than if they never bothered with him at all.
So that was it. Just a visit? Oh. Okay.
Come to think of it, she ended up prodding him anyway after telling herself she wouldn't, how nosy of herself. And he did have a point- she always seemed to need answers from him especially; though Inuyasha is sort of an enigma in his own way, so he attracted questions to himself. However, that still didn't justify her prying. And he definitely no longer needed a reason for visiting, they knew each other more than well enough for that. Look at yourself, Kagome, and your occasional ability to empathize with others, why don't you ever do it before accosting people with your nosy antics? She inwardly sighed and mustered an apology.
"You're right. I apologize, Inuyasha, I get sort of nosy sometimes. You're always welcome here."
His expression only grew more sour as he muttered a "keh" and turned towards the window to his left and rested his head on his right hand so he could yet again focus on the evening landscape to distract himself. He found the orange leaves quicker than he expected, or maybe it was just because he felt his face tinting a warm color.
Kagome felt somewhat guilty for putting him in a bad mood, somewhat because he was always in a bad mood, and decided continue talking to him just because it was the only thing she could think of that might actually make him feel less irritated. Maybe.
"Aren't I sort of boring, though?"
Inuyasha didn't shift his position, staying focused on the opened windows. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, don't Miroku and Sango keep you company? They're as busy as you are when I'm not there to travel with you, which isn't very busy at all, and even Shippou just colors and eats snacks, annoying as you may find him. I'm always preoccupied when I'm here, and I can't talk to you much."
He paused for a moment before replying. "Well, I see them about as much as you do, and while I continue to talk to them sometimes while you're at home, they, uh… have their own issues to address."
Although her face took on an already-knowing, suspicious expression, she dared to ask anyway. "Pardon?"
"Sango is still having trouble keeping Miroku from his usual dirty hobbies. I have no idea how it's still working after a month, but they actually still spend a lot of time with each other. And I always happen to run into them half of the time when they'd rather not be bothered, so I tend to avoid them unless they approach me. And Shippou is himself, 90 percent extremely annoying little kid, 10 percent occasionally tolerable." Kagome giggled at this and how extremely predictable her friends are, and the fact that it was adorable how Sango and Miroku's "new couple" antics were still going on.
"So I'm not boring?"
He shrugged. "I would say you're better than nothing. Weren't you 'sorta busy'?"
"Oh, you're right." Kagome turned back around in her chair and looked back at her assignment sheet again, and in less than five minutes she yet again found herself in the ideal state of "I don't know." Maybe she was thinking about it too much. Yes, that must be it. After working for so long it was no wonder she could barely think anymore, she probably just needs a break and then maybe it'll come to her later. It's not like she had any other homework left to do, she thought as she leaned back in her chair, pushing against the wall with her feet so that the front legs would raise about an inch and hit the floor again when she relaxed.
"Actually, I'm really not busy at all. All my work is pretty much done for once, since I've been working for nearly eight hours today."
Inuyasha turned around at this, albeit he was staring at the back of her head, watching her fiddle around with her desk chair. Eight hours of extra work after school following fighting smelly demons and fending off a pompous magic jewel shard whore with greasy tentacles for a week or more? This girl is freaking ridiculous.
"Are you stupid? Do you ever do anything here that's not school or baths?"
"I do, but you usually don't see it when you're here because you're extremely distracting and a total nuisance about 90 percent of the time, and the other 10 percent you don't act like an insomniac and actually take a nap or something." Kagome tilted her chair back a little bit farther before letting the it fall back into its original position again.
While he knew there was a substantial amount of truth in at least the latter part of her statement, Inuyasha didn't let that keep him from countering this, and started off his next remark with a snort. "And you're 90 percent flighty recklessness, if I didn't sit with my eyes half open on a nightly basis who knows what you'd get yourself into, let alone the oth-"
"Hey, I don't get myself in trouble that mu-ah!" This time she had pushed back too far, and found herself falling backwards in her chair because gravity granted mercy to no one unless they had parachutes. For a split second she realized she would hit the back of her head and braced herself for the impending painful impact and feelings of stupidity, which was interrupted by a sudden cease in motion. Eyes squeezed shut, Kagome had somehow maintained normal breathing and a somehow mostly unaffected heartbeat until she opened her eyes and realized what had happened and where she was: she was still sitting in her chair, which was tilted at an approximate 150 degree angle, which was possible only because there were hands grasped on both sides of the back of the chair that supported it at the said angle and the same person holding her at this position was directly over her, with the same stark amber eyes looking directly into hers, as if they were about to say something. This instead is what caused the rate of her heartbeat to fluctuate so rapidly when she realized it was Inuyasha staring at her so intently yet again. Staring at her. Directly over her. With his eyes.
Oh my god.
Only fifteen or twenty seconds had transpired, which had felt more like an eternity all on its own, if you would allow Kagome to have her own fair share of hyperboles, before he actually did say something out of general concern in the only way he can.
"You need to be more careful, flighty reckless. And stupid." With a look of great displeasure as always, he gently set the chair back its normal position on the floor, and sat back down on her bed, leaving Kagome in a state of of mental paralysis for a minute or so. She then stretched out her legs, stood up, and paused for a moment while looking down at her cleared desk since for whatever reason she couldn't bring herself to focus her vision on anything else, especially him, before saying anything.
"Um, I'm going to go and brush my teeth or something."
Inuyasha, who was again sitting with his legs crossed and happened to be Twiddling his Fingers as a distraction for whatever reason because he couldn't bring himself to focus on anything else, barely heard this as she began to walk out of her room, but nevertheless acknowledged it.
"Thanks for the warning. You might want to brush your hair, too." Tugging her pajama shirt down, which had had been riding up her back from her prolonged sitting position, she was obviously bothered by his blunt comment, muttering under her breath audibly, "Since when did such an arrogant jerkface arrogate that it was his job to be a nagging mother…!" This only managed to make him smirk, she was so easily flustered. Not that he wasn't one to mention- he could barely keep his mind straight himself, and it hadn't even been five minutes yet.