1Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, or any characters of the show.

Chapter Nine: Troubles at Home and School.

"What? No way I'm sharing my room with a girl!" protested an outraged Souta. "She's gonna make it all pinky with plushy toys all over!"

"Aunt Asako, aunt Asako, Souta is being mean!" Rin complained forlornly as she looked up at her relative with large soulful eyes.

"Now Souta, it's either that or sleep with grandpa."

Souta carried on complaining for a while before finally, admitting defeat. Little girl sent the teen a wicked grin behind her aunt's back – there would be hell to pay for the thoughtless words.

"Besides, Kagome and Sesshoumaru share the same room and they don't seem to mind," Mrs. Higurashi said, in attempt to console her son.

Souta snorted. "That's because every time they're alone they…"

"We what, you ugly little brat?" Kagome entered the room followed by Inuyasha and Kikyou. Souta swallowed.

"Speak your mind and face death like a man," the older boy advised in solemn tones, patting the younger one on the shoulder.

"Kikyou, you've decided to stay? Thanks God!"

"I don't think I've ever been called 'God' before, though 'Goddess' would really be more fitting," Kagome smirked, looking smug. "So what's all the fuss about?"

"We were discussing the sleeping arrangements. Kikyou, you can stay in my room and Rin in Souta's."

"But…" the teen started.

"That's final. Don't worry, it will only last for a few months and after that... TA-DA!" Mrs. Higurashi put some sort of scroll on the table and unrolled it revealing that it was a blueprint. "I've noticed how fast you kids grow and since soon you will start your own families and have those adorable little grand-…"

"Don't go there, mom!" two siblings cried out in union.

"Well one can dream… As I was saying, I wouldn't want you to move out of the house, so I thought, why don't we build some annexes? This way we'll have enough rooms for everybody and even a couple of spare ones!"

"I think it's a wonderful idea, mom, but how can we afford this?"

"Well, we'll do most of the work ourselves, of course. I've been saving money for years now, so we can have professionals do the most complicated parts."

"Sounds like fun! You in, Inuyasha?"

"You bet I am, kiddo. I'm sure Miroku would want to help too. And Sango, if she's not busy."

"Alrighty," Mrs. Higurashi clapped her hands together. "I'll go and get the sheets and blankets. Souta, you will have to sleep on the floor."

"And just as I thought this day can't get any worse!"

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"Let's just set some rules: this is my part of the room, that is your part of the room. Don't touch my computer, CDs, or any of the video games. Understood?" Souta asked his new roommate.

"Yessir!"

"Good. I am going to bed now and I don't want to hear a sound while I sleep."

"Don't worry, you won't. Goodnight, cousin dear."

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Souta was awaken by the peaceful chirruping of the birds. Sun was shining brightly and teen cast a lazy glance at his clock.

"Wha-" the teen yelped as he sat up. "Quarter to nine! I'm gonna be late! Why the hell didn't the alarm go off?"

"Well, you said yourself yesterday that you didn't want to hear a sound while you're sleeping, so I turned it off."

"Why you little…"

"Shouldn't you be getting to school?"

"This is not over, brat!"

"Oh, the fun has just begun," Rin agreed after Souta disappeared behind the bathroom door.

"Damn it, where is my sweater?"

"Here it is."

"My school bag?"

"Here. Have a nice day, cousin."

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Souta ran down the school hall.

"Dork!" somebody shot at his back.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Souta," the teen snapped back. Geez, what's with everybody today; that was the third time!

"Higurashi, you're late," the teacher said as the boy entered his classroom.

"I'm sorry, this won't happen again," Souta automatically said the phrase he used every day.

"Make sure, that it wouldn't. Take your place."

"Dork, dork, dork..." He could hear the whispers and sniggering racing across the classroom like a wildfire as he sat down and pulled up the schoolbag. What was with everyone in this… Then he opened the bag.

"SHIT!"

Instead of textbooks and other necessary items, the teen saw flowers. Lots and lots of flowers, topped of by a gigantic monstrosity of pink fur and ribbons. The large and plush bunny-rabbit was smiling up at him (rather sadistically in the boy's opinion).

Souta thought he was going to die of embarrassment. And to make matters worse Kanna – his long-time crush – was laughing at him with the rest of the class at that very moment.

"Higurashi, stand in the hall," teacher ordered.

The teen silently picked his bag up and left.

He had been standing for about ten minutes or so, spending the time by plotting means of revenge, when the door to one of the classes opened and a girl with lavender eyes and light-violet hair came through. Souta turned away, indicating that he had absolutely no intension of talking, chatting, discussing, nodding, or engaging in any other form of communication.

"Umm, upperclassman…" the girl started hesitantly.

"What is it?" Souta asked harshly, turning to give the newcomer a death-glare. Lemme guess, she's gonna call me a dork.

"It's your sweater. The word 'dork' is sewn on its back. I thought you might not know."

"Damn it!" the teen swore pulling his jumper off. "I'm gonna kill her!"

"Kill who?"

"My little cousin. This is all her doing!"

"Oh, it's not that bad. Here, let me unstitch it," Girl offered, taking out her paperknife and skillfully cutting unneeded threads and pulling them out, without damaging the cloth. "There, all gone."

"Yeah, thanks, but none of my friends will even look at my direction now."

"Well, that means they're not really that good of friends, huh?"

"I wouldn't blame them. I mean, look what I have found in my bag," Souta showed the girl his bag filled with flowers and the plushy.

"How cute!"

"Well, at least somebody likes them," Souta sighed. "Guess, if you want it, you can have this stuff." The teen handed over the 'gifts' from his cousin. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Shiori."

"I'm Souta. Say, how did you get here? You don't look like the one to get in trouble often," Souta said, eyeing the newcomer.

"I don't," Shiori shrugged. "It's just that Miss Yukino hate me for some reason."

"That's makes two of us," the teen smiled sympathetically.

The bell rang.

"I gotta go. See you round, Souta!"

"See ya!"

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"RIIIN!" Souta roared as he entered the shrine grounds. "You are so dead! Wait till I get my hands on you, you little brat!" From the corner of his eye boy caught a glimpse of Rin's orange overcoat. "Get back here!" Souta sprinted after his cousin and jumped in front of her. "You! I don't know what am I going to do with you, but it won't be good!"

"You're not going to hurt me, are you, Souta?" the little girl asked staring at him with huge watery doe-like eyes. Slowly those Bambi-eyes began to fill up with tears, and Souta scowled.

"Argh, don't look at me like that!" he grumbled, looking down at the ground.

"I'm really... really sorry," Rin sniffed, her lips quavering.

"Damn you girl! If you ever do anything like what you did today again, you'll find yourself six feet under!" threatened Souta and then, after glaring at the girl for what he deemed a suitable amount of time, he turned around and headed into the house.

"Sucker!" Rin sniggered, when her cousin was out of the hearing range.

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Sesshoumaru watched the pathetic display from Kagome's window. Truly, the boy needed to grow a backbone. Now if a girl tried to pull something like that on him, Sesshoumaru… The demon lord was suddenly hit by a series of flashbacks: Kagome saying she has to go to school, Kagome apologizing, Kagome asking for some favor – and he'd always fallen for it!

Sesshoumaru was pissed. It didn't help that the impudent girl was late for a half an hour already. Annoyed, the taiyoukai jumped down from the balcony and took a whiff of Tokyo's tainted air – he would track the girl down this time.

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'I will not call Miss Yukino 'stupid',' Kagome wrote once again on the blackboard. Forty-three down, fifty-seven to go. Damn, my arm is beginning to hurt.

The elderly teacher slept soundly in a noisy classroom stuffed with the children in detention.

"Say, Kagome, wanna go to the movies with me tonight?"

"No, Hiten, I'm busy."

"So, when are you free then?"

"Never, I've already told you, I'm not going out with you," Kagome stated never taking her eyes off the work, though with every single word she pushed harder on the chalk. This carried on for a few moments before the class suddenly went silent. The girl looked up to see Sesshoumaru entering through the open window. "Talk about not attracting attention," she murmured. At least he didn't forget to hide his markings. Kagome folded her arms over the chest. "What are you doing here?"

"You were late again."

"You're telling me? I'm in detention."

"Let's go," the demon lord said as he took one of the girl's wrists in a firm hold, apparently ignoring her last comment.

"Didn't you hear? I can't!"

"Hey, don't touch her, you bastard!" Hiten said, gripping taiyoukai's shoulder.

"Is this a friend of yours?" Sesshoumaru asked Kagome, in a bored tone.

"No."

"I thought as much," he said calmly and then, with a curt punch in a face, sent the human boy flying into the wall. Kagome sighed. She was getting used to this.

"Look, Sesshoumaru, I can't go till I'm finished with these lines."

"How many times do you still have to write that lie?"

"Fifty-four."

"I see," demon took the chalk from the girl.

"Hey, what gives?" Kagome asked in irritation, trying to retrieve her writing instrument, but the taiyoukai didn't spare the girl a second glance.

Sesshoumaru went to the black board and began to scribble. His hand moved so fast, that soon the whole area around the demon lord was covered in a mist of white dust. When it settled one hundred lines could be seen. The ones that Sesshoumaru had written reassembled Kagome's in every detail.

"Come," demon took the girl's bag and threw it over his shoulder.

"I can't just leave cla..." Kagome began right before Sesshoumaru reached down and casually picked her up. The girl growled in outrage, earning a strange look from the demon lord. "Put me down, you jerk!"

Paying no heed to Kagome's protests, taiyoukai jumped out of the window leaving behind a sleeping teacher, an unconscious Hiten next to a small dent in the wall and a very quiet class. Many wondered that day just what was the health service putting in the school water supply.

A. n.: Rin is very OOC in this work, but I made her that way because: a) well-behaved children creep me out; b) in every fanfic I read were she is just a sweet little girl, she has no personality at all.