Few weeks had made Kagome Higurashi doubt herself as much as this one. Three journal rejections, a ruined replication trial, and seemingly endless rain had her reconsidering all of her life choices.

"Nothing like starting regret your PhD at the start of your last year," she sighed as she flopped onto the sofa.

"Doesn't that mean things are progressing as they should? If you aren't regretting your life decisions by the time it's time to write your dissertation, I'm pretty sure they just give you an MS and kick you out," her roommate, Sango Horie, called from the kitchen.

"What would you know? You're in drinking school," Kagome shot back, only mildly irritated. "Also, there's no terminal master of science option in this program. I'm in it 'til the bitter end."

"First, rude. Second, it's frustrating now, but it'll work out. You have so many publications already; you can edit and use most of those for chapters, right? That should leave you plenty of breathing room," Sango soothed as she placed a mug of hot chocolate in her roommate's hands.

"You shouldn't be so nice to me."

"You helped me through my first semester last year; it's the least I can do."

That was true; though their university's MBA program wasn't exactly comparable to a pharmacology PhD in terms of academic rigor, the first semester had been difficult for Sango. Despite having just met each other via the university's off-campus roommate matching service, the two grew close very quickly and Kagome tried to make things easier by taking on extra apartment chores and meal prepping for the both of them a few times a week.

"You should stop being so hard on yourself," Sango continued. "Let Miroku and me get you out of the house occasionally. If you keep locking yourself in this apartment all day to write, you're not going to make it to defense time… like, from an emotional and physical well-being perspective."

"You're calling him Miroku now, huh? Getting serious!" She couldn't help but tease; Sango and the ex-monk had been hooking up for the last six months and somehow thought they were hiding it well.

"I said nothing of the sort. All I said was that you should let us get you out of the house," her roommate responded with a fluorescent blush.

"Ok, but let the record show that I'm not locking myself in the apartment all day. I go to the lab too."

The lab was the entire reason Kagome had come here. She had idolized her adviser, Kaede Kobayashi, since high school. She was fifteen when Kaede won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, the first Japanese woman to do so, and Kagome's world changed. From that moment forward, working with Kaede to develop world-changing cures became her singular focus.

She didn't listen when her high school teachers tried to dissuade her. "That's not a normal path for a young woman to take," they'd said. "You'll have a difficult time finding support at a university here – you don't want to take spots away from the boys," they told her. They were right. She wouldn't want to take any spot that was reserved for a boy; she would take a spot open for the taking.

She found that place for herself at Kaede's university in the United States. She arrived on campus at eighteen and marched up to the lab to present her (very short) resume to Kaede directly in hopes of landing an undergraduate lab assistant job. Apparently Kaede was impressed by her determination and offered her the position on the spot.

Her undergraduate degree program was the best four years of her life and she grew close to the other undergraduate students, the master's students, and PhD candidates studying and working at the lab. Her life changed again her junior year. A new PhD candidate joined the lab and took Kagome under her wing. They became very close, and Kagome was even extended an invitation to coauthor a journal article in her first year of her PhD - unusual had she not been fully involved with the research since it began (even if her involvement started as taking notes and washing lab equipment).

But then everything fell apart. Kagome didn't like thinking about the rest of that year.

"Okay, you. Enough moping. Go get dressed; we're going to dinner with Miroku."

Kagome heaved a deep sigh and rolled off the couch.

Inuyasha Taisho didn't want to be here.

Damn Miroku inviting him out for dinner, not mentioning where, and surprising him with an Indian restaurant. The smell of the spices was going to make him sneeze all night and there was one thing he could eat on the menu. Stupid nose; maybe he'd have to try some takeout on a human night – he'd probably enjoy it if it weren't for his heightened sense of smell.

"I'm going to make you pay for dragging me here," he groused at his friend.

"Ah, I think you'll change your mind soon enough," came the airy reply.

Not again, he thought as Miroku waved Sango and some friend of hers over to the table. He was so sick of being set up – if he hadn't had much luck at home, being who he was, he certainly wasn't going to do much better in the dating scene in an entirely different country.

"Hi guys," Sango greeted as she slid into the booth. "Inuyasha, have you met my roommate Kagome before? I feel like we've all been at events together, but I can't keep track anymore."

He did his best to ignore the sinking feeling that crept up on him as he saw Sango's friend's face for the first time. The similarities were uncanny at first glance, but he was relieved when he quickly realized that first glance was about as far as the physical similarities extended.

"Hi; it's nice to meet you – are you in the program with Sango and Miroku?" She extended a hand and he tried to ignore the jolt in his stomach as he shook it.

"Yeah; I'm a second year as well. Inuyasha Taisho."

"Kagome Higurashi. Fifth-year pharmacology PhD candidate."

The sinking feeling came back. He continued trying to forget about it.

He'd tried to ignore her. He really had. Nothing good could come from engaging.

Problem was, she didn't let him ignore her. It was maddening. He'd start to zone out, and she'd somehow reel him back into the conversation.

Maybe he wasn't trying hard enough. Maybe she was just that talented of a conversationalist.

He'd never thought himself a particularly social guy, but he always assumed the science PhD types would be the opposite of engaging. And not gorgeous.

What? Reel it in, bud.

"I can't believe that you'd admit you're from Saga! Nobody admits they're from Saga," Kagome teased.

It was true; there was a song about it.

"It's nice. Lots of space, not crowded… I like it. I'd go back in a heartbeat." How was she doing this? He was getting way too honest way too quickly.

"So then, Mr. Saga, what are you doing in this corner of the US instead of back home in Kyushu?"

It's her smile, he decided. Her smile and that way she cocked her head to the side without breaking eye contact. It was doing things to him.

"Blame my asshole brother. I work for the family business and I'm here because he's making me."

"That can't be the only reason – why here? You could go get your MBA anywhere."

"Well, none of the programs at home are ranked and Sesshomaru's kind of an elitist," he explained. "Why are you here? You could get your PhD anywhere."

"The resources and opportunities here don't compare to those offered at other universities in the US or in Japan," she responded.

"That's a rehearsed line if I ever heard one," he teased, raising an eyebrow. "Very diplomatic. Can't wait to learn the real reason."

"Well, I was already here – I did my undergrad degree here and worked in one of the labs in the pharmacy school; actually, it's the lab I'm working in today. It's been my goal since I was fifteen to work there."

Now that was impressive. "That's a lot of determination for a fifteen-year-old," he replied.

"Yeah well," she shrugged. "Did you do your undergraduate degree back home?"

"Uh yeah… I carried on the 'family legacy' and went to Keio," Inuyasha admitted, somewhat sheepishly.

"I didn't peg you as a Keio Boy!" Sango shouted, delighted. "For one thing, your hair's too long and your taste is not nearly expensive enough. You don't seem to care about your image, and…"

"You don't have to rub it in, you know."

"I was going to say that you aren't a snob!"

"Exactly! How could you think so little of Dearest Sango? She would never think poorly of you, my friend," Miroku chimed in.

"No, but I will think poorly of you if you don't get your hand off of me," Sango growled.

Time passed much more quickly than Kagome expected, and the group found themselves kicked out of the restaurant at closing time. Sango decided to go spend the night with Miroku, so Kagome said her goodbyes before throwing on her noise-cancelling headphones and starting to walk the mile or so home.

She appreciated the break that dinner offered her, and she especially appreciated the opportunity to flirt– it had been so long since she'd felt comfortable doing that and she couldn't ignore that she felt a strong connection with Inuyasha. She needed to switch tracks, though; Kagome needed to start thinking about the week ahead. She was so engrossed in her thoughts and her music that she failed to notice that she was being followed until it was too late.

Someone grabbed her shoulder and she jumped about three feet in the air.

"Kyaaaaah!"

"Gah! Be a little louder, why don't you?"

She turned around, eyes wide, only to be greeted by the sight of Inuyasha covering his ears and glaring daggers at her. She was only somewhat sorry – being at least half dog demon (it wasn't exactly polite to inquire, but she knew wolf demons and could tell he wasn't a wolf demon), his hearing had to be considerably more sensitive than her own. Regardless, this was on him for startling her; she couldn't exactly control her reaction.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked angrily, pulling her headphones down to hang around her neck.

"I should be asking you the same thing! The hell do you think you're doing, walking around at 10 PM with headphones on, all of five-foot-nothing," he barked. "Someone could sneak up on you without you even noticing! What do you weigh, a hundred pounds?"

She glared back up at him. "More than that. And I'll have you know; I do this all the time. Only once has someone ever snuck up on me without me noticing. It was you, by the way."

A pause. Kagome swore she could hear him grinding his teeth.

"Come on. I'm walking your hopeless ass home." Inuyasha started stomping his way northbound.

"Wait! You don't even know where I live," Kagome shouted as she started jogging to catch up.

The walk home wasn't as awkward as she thought it would be - as someone she really admired once said, it's only awkward if you make it awkward. So instead of walking along in silence, she did her best to engage her self-appointed chaperone in conversation.

"Are you and Miroku roommates?" she called after Inuyasha, who was still walking a solid ten feet ahead of her.

He glanced back at her and kept walking.

"Hey! Falling down on the job, aren't you? What if someone jumped out of the bushes, grabbed me, and ran off? You're leaving them plenty of opportunity."

He stopped and turned around. Kagome met his stare confidently, arms crossed against her chest.

"Much better!" She smiled as she closed the distance between them. "Anyway, are you and Miroku roommates?"

She was doing it again. He'd done his best to ignore her and the way she had gotten him to open up way too quickly, but she called him on it right away. Damn PhD. Too smart for her own good.

"Yeah, we're roommates," he finally responded as they continued walking. "We weren't last year, but Miroku invited himself to move in with me. Said I needed a 'social concierge'."

"That makes sense. I've been Sango's date to almost every event since she started the program and I don't remember ever seeing you at a single party or tailgate."

"Yeah, well, my GPA last year thanked me for it."

"Don't grades not matter in business school? Especially for you – I assume you're sponsored by your family's company… what were you doing with all of that free time you had from not having to recruit for internships?"

He shrugged. "I found some hobbies. I did some volunteering. I made it work."

"Oh… that's good! I've got to say, the rest of the graduate school don't really think 'MBA candidate' and 'community involvement' go hand in hand. Good on you for remedying that."

Inuyasha smirked. You're growing far too comfortable far too quickly, a little voice told him. He ignored it.

"So… what does a fifth-year pharmacology PhD candidate do, exactly?" he found himself asking before his better senses kicked back in.

"Well, right now? More writing than experimenting. I have a couple more replications I need to complete, but for the most part I'm working on getting my dissertation put together."

"That's cool, I guess. What's your topic?"

Kagome paused. Inuyasha started to panic – had he screwed everything up somehow already? He wouldn't put it past himself.

Not that he was invested. Of course he wasn't invested – that would be ridiculous.

"You don't have to tell me if it's secret or whatever," he conceded.

"No, it's not secret! It's just… complicated. I'm focusing on pharmacodynamics, so how a drug affects the taker. I'm continuing research from a prior colleague – she confirmed that what we were studying was feasible and I'm researching the effects, both intended and unintended." Kagome explained.

"So if a drug has a side effect of turning people into zombies, you'd discover that?" he asked.

"Yeah, I guess so! Though I don't think that's scientifically possible. You'll be the first to know if I discover any zombification risk," she winked.

He smiled before he could stop himself.

The rest of the walk passed in a comfortable silence as they both enjoyed the cool September evening. Another ten or so minutes and the pair arrived at Kagome and Sango's building.

"Well, thank you for walking me home," Kagome started, "even though you snuck up on me. I really did enjoy meeting you and getting to know you better."

He smiled. "Yeah… me too. And I didn't sneak up on you; you were doing a perfectly good job of endangering yourself on your own." He couldn't tear his eyes away from her.

Inuyasha had a great smile. It gave Kagome butterflies. He was looking at her so intensely too.

She hadn't been in a situation like this in a very long time. So long that it sent her into a mild panic. She started fishing for her keys in her bag to break the tension. After an awkward shuffle, she found her keys… and immediately dropped them.

"I've got it!" Two distinct voices rang out, and both Kagome and Inuyasha ducked down to grab Kagome's keys.

Their hands touched and Kagome was sure her face was bright red. God, how old was she? Fifteen? Certainly not twenty-eight.

Inuyasha, to his credit, didn't point it out. In fact, he didn't even remove his hand from hers. His face started to come closer.

Kagome did a mental cost-benefit analysis and quickly determined that the benefits of whatever this might lead to would definitely outweigh any costs. He was cute, for one thing (those ears!). It had been a terribly long time since she'd even gone on a date with, much less kissed, someone she'd enjoyed on a personal level (though he did have the potential to be terribly aggravating). She didn't move away.

And then his phone rang.

"Uh, sorry. I have to take that. It's probably my mom," he admitted sheepishly. "It was nice to meet you."

"Thanks. Have a good night," Kagome sighed as she unlocked the door and slipped inside. She gave him a wave from the hall window as he answered the phone and started down the front stairs.

She pulled her phone out of her bag as she unlocked the door to her unit. Only one message – from Sango.

"Seems like he's into you," it read. Oh, if only she knew.

Kagome smiled to herself as she hung up her coat and started to get ready for bed.

He couldn't believe he'd done that. What the hell had he been thinking? Was he really that desperate? It's not like he'd meant to try to kiss her. It just kind of… happened. He'd acted before he thought, yet again.

At least he'd been saved. Rescued by his own mother at thirty years old. He was pathetic.

Kagome didn't pull away, though, that small voice in his head teased. Who knows how this could've ended if that call hadn't come in?

Now was not the time to think about that. Nope. Now was the time to take Miroku to task for tricking him into a surprise double-date at what had to be the spiciest restaurant in the metro area.

Dark - it was so dark. She stumbled into the lab; her path illuminated only by the light filtering in through the window in the door. She'd been called in late – an emergency – but when she arrived there was nobody there. It was unlike her to call Kagome in and then no-show.

Kagome's hands started to shake. That sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, the feeling that had become oh-so-familiar over the past four years, had returned.

She tried to steel herself for what would inevitably come next. She opened the cabinets and closets in the main room of lab – nothing except equipment. She checked Kaede's office – locked, and from what she could tell through the window, empty.

She took a deep breath as she opened the door to the shared office she usually occupied during the day, hands shaking violently. She could barely grasp the door handle. Her teeth started to chatter.

Kagome woke with a start and checked the clock – 5:08 AM. It was the same dream for the last five years. At first it came every night, then every other, and now maybe once every two weeks. Her therapist would probably call that progress. She just wanted them gone.

At least it's a somewhat reasonable hour this time, she thought as she rolled out of bed and wandered to the kitchen, hands still shaking. She fixed herself a mug of tea and watched the sun rise from her sofa.

Author's Note:

A couple of cultural notes first.

1: What Kagome's teachers told her are versions of real things I was told by my professors in Japan. It can be very difficult to excel and succeed as a woman in the scientific and corporate worlds in general, but especially in Japan.

2: Saga is a prefecture in Kyushu; the capital is Saga City. It's seen as being kind of backwater and "country", especially when compared to larger metropolitan areas like Fukuoka. The song Inuyasha references is called "Saga-ken" by Hanawa, and the chorus calls out celebrities who try to hide the fact that they're from Saga.

3: Keio University is one of the top three universities in Japan; it is a private university with an image of very privileged and wealthy students. Whether that stereotype is true or is deserved varies depending on who you're talking to.

Now that the cultural notes are out of the way, I'm FantastiqueParfait – I've been around this site in various forms since about 2002, but I'm back after an extra-long break. I started uploading this story on another site in late December, so I'm getting the first couple of chapters up here in advance of posting chapter 3 (which should be up within a week).

You can find me on Tumblr under the same user name as my penname – I love to interact and am happy to answer any questions you might have about this fic!