Title: Forget Me Not
Rating: PG
Note: I don't know how university level education is handled in Japan, so I'm not about to even pretend. Just overlook it, eh? Thanks. I know I said I was gonna let you guys decide whether not it would be a oneshot or chapter fic, but… well, dammit! I couldn't help myself. I never can when Sesshoumaru is involved. *grin* Falling Stars (for those of you who are reading that fic as well) should be updated soon. I only started at this one again because I can't get some dialogue right at the very end of 16c. Oh, well! Maybe enlightenment will come tomorrow! Keep your fingers crossed for me.
Oh! I'm starting to like this fic… Yay! Whatcha think?
-Celyia
Chapter 2
The thing about university is that while lower level classes for popular courses like Archaeology and Astronomy are filled with students, once you get to the upper division courses, a lot of the classes are remarkably empty.
"Fui," Kagome whispered to the tall woman sitting next to her, one of the few faces waiting in the lecture hall, "did you take the archaeology of Japan mythology class this morning?"
The woman nodded, the brightly coloured pink spikes she referred so lovingly to as her 'do bobbed up and down with the abrupt movement. "Yeah, hot professor, too."
Kagome just rolled her eyes as she nudged the girl in the ribs. "Houta-sensei? Damn, Fui-chan, your taste has actually become even odder during the break."
Fui laughed in delight, her humour obviously tickled as pink as her hair by Kagome's appraisal.
"Houta-sensei? Didn't you hear? They finally put the old guy out to pasture, babe. Well, okay, fine. He retired, but it's basically the same thing."
"So suddenly?" the younger woman asked, her eyebrows raised as she remembered the elderly man's kindly eyes. "That's a shame. He was one of the few professors around here who actually taught their classes instead of passing it off to an assistant."
The woman shrugged her frail looking shoulders.
"The replacement, guy named Maru, seems to be intent on lecturing for his classes himself. Doesn't have the enthusiasm old Houta did, but he really seemed to know his stuff. You know how Shinji is?"
Kagome nodded, taking the time to roll her brown eyes in annoyance.
"Yeah, well, Shinji decided to try to put the professor in "his" place, as he likes to say. Oh, Kago, you so should have been there!" The woman laughed, her hand covering her mouth as she looked around. Satisfied that lecture had yet to begin, Fui continued.
"So Shinji is all 'From your perspective, as a professor at this university… while I do see the significance of majors in archaeology taking a course in the archaeology of Japan mythology, why is this class a requirement (as opposed to being an elective) in order to gain a bachelors in archaeology and why are there so many prerequisites needed in order to take this class? It would seem to me that a class of such, well, let's be honest, little significance to this science as it only relates mere fairy tales, would be a course best suited to dabblers instead of serious students.'"
Kagome blinked, uncertain of which surprised her more- Shinji's attempt to trip up a new professor or Fui's rather dramatic retelling. (The girl missed her calling, Kagome thought as she looked at the shining brown eyes and bright pink lips of her friend. The girl should have gone into acting, instead.)
"Yeah, I know it," Fui chuckled as she slapped Kagome on the back, oblivious to the young woman's wince and consequent rubbing of her now-sore muscle, "I couldn't believe him! You should have seen it! My jaw just dropped. I could not believe it! I mean, he's always been a pain in the ass, but to try to embarrass the new professor? The very first day? No. No matter how good Shinji thinks he is, he's not good enough to get his Bachelor without this class. I mean, every archaeology student… hey, why weren't you in there today?"
Kagome giggled nervously, but Fui seemed to be completely uninterested.
"Anyway, so the professor just looked at Shinji… I mean, you should have seen the look! Maru-sensei looked at Shinji as if he were the most stupid thing to have ever evolved from the primordial sludge, Kago. It was so damn amusing. Anyway, he looks at him and nods."
"'Your name?' Maru-sensei asked, his voice all quiet and stuff. For a moment there, I was scared witless. I mean, the guy sounded all dangerous. Even for a dumb professor. Anyway, Shinji is all 'Fujimoto Shinji, sensei.' In his most humble voice. LIKE he's fooling anyone. I mean, Maru-sensei didn't fall for it. He was all 'So, Fujimoto-san, this is your first semester as an archaeology student?'"
"I just wanted to laugh SO hard because Shinji turned bright red and just shook his head. I mean, you know how he is with how gifted he thinks he is at archaeology. Maru-sensei says then 'Are you certain, Fujimoto-san? I do not think I've heard a question so inane since I made the mistake of teaching Archaeology 101. I advise you to leave your Indiana Jones dreams at the door, or, if you are unable to do that, then perhaps you need to find another class that is more suitable: like Film Making 101.'"
"Indiana Jones? Oh, that's harsh," Kagome whispered, a part of her intensely embarrassed for her classmate.
"Yeah, I know it. But it was sooooo good. I mean, Maru-sensei is damn ruthless (so not the kind of guy you want to run across at night in an alley), but he does know what he's talking about. After that, he explained the reasons for taking the course, he went over the things we were going to cover. You'd enjoy it given … say, why aren't you taking it?"
Kagome sighed, allowing her body to lean completely back against the chair. "I am. I was… well, I sorta missed the first class, though."
Fui winced, her compassionate gesture only alarming Kagome more.
"Man, Kago, you really… you better talk to him. Gimme a sec," Fui said, as she shuffled through the mess she called her folder. Chortling in pleasure, she pulled out a piece of paper and squinted at it. "Aha. Here it is. Anyway, his office is in room HS315 and his hours… oh, damn. Um. You better get your ass over there RIGHT after this class is over. His hours end at 10.50."
Kagome shook her head. "But this class doesn't end until then…"
"Yeah. So if I were you, I'd position myself right by the damn door so you can run the hell out. Don't worry. If there are any handouts at the end, I'll pick some up for you."
Thanking the woman gratefully, Kagome grabbed her trusty backpack (four years of university and it hadn't fallen apart yet. Technically. Duct tape is truly a marvelous thing) and scooted to a seat closer to the door.
"Ah, Hiragashi-san," a young man with a constant smirk called out. "I'm glad to see you. After not seeing you this morning, I was afraid you had finally dropped out…"
Kagome politely laughed, the tone as fake as the young man's forced concern. Sighing as he settled himself right next to her, he stretched his legs out until his knees were pushing at hers.
The little creep!
"So I heard," Kagome started as she 'accidentally' dropped the corner of her book into the man's thigh, "that you were changing your major to film making, Fujimoto-san." Smiling sweetly as the man jerked his leg away, Kagome slowly took out her notepad and pen. "Good luck in that. I'm sure you'll do well."
"You wish," Shinji Fujimoto snarled, all pretenses dropped as he rubbed his leg instinctively. "The only reason you are here now is because you won that dumb award, Hiragashi. And the only reason you won that was because I had a bad day. It … "
"Do you mind?" Kagome asked pleasantly as she patted the man on his head, only to blink innocently as he recoiled from her. "Class is about to begin and I would hate to miss Nobuto-sensei's lecture."
"Go on. Pretend you aren't scared, Hiragashi," Fujimoto spat, his watery brown eyes glaring daggers at the girl. "But I'll tell you this: watch your back, bitch. And watch your step."
"Funny. Didn't you say exactly the same thing last semester?" the girl asked, her eyes dancing with amusement as the man choked on a reply. There was one point in time that Shinji had been interested in her.
It hadn't lasted long. In fact, it had died the first time she scored higher than he had on an exam. For that, Kagome was certain, the archaeology student would never forgive her.
Kagome grinned as she watched the petite Nobuto-sensei walk gracefully to the front of the room; the old woman's heavily lined face ever curved in humour.
There was something just intangibly cool about the ancient woman. Perhaps it was because Nobuto-sensei had achieved a full education in an era when women were meant to be seen and not heard or maybe it was because the woman's strange sense of humour reminded her so much of Kaede-baa-chan.
Some days she just really missed that woman.
Every once in a while, when the loneliness got to her, she played with the idea that little Naoko Nobuto was actually Kaede's reincarnation. After all, if Kikyou could be reincarnated (into Kagome's body, no less!) certainly the friends she missed so much from Sengoku Jidai could be reincarnated, too.
Too bad her common sense would shoot down the idea every time. While there were some slight similarities in the way both women appeared, it wasn't enough to be considered a reincarnation.
Her own experiences with Kikyou, after all, taught her that, as amazing as it sounds, reincarnated souls tend to take on the same appearance.
But the good thing was that Kagome knew exactly what her friends would look like when she found them.
If she found them.
Shrugging off the dreary thought, Kagome continued listening to the old woman, only to chuckle at a really poor joke. The hour passed by quickly, even though Shinji remained seated next to her.
"Hiragashi-san," the professor called at as she bid the young woman to approach at the end of the class, oblivious to Shinji's brutal glare. "I'm glad to see you return to class this semester. "
"Thank you, sensei," Kagome smiled, the look almost shy.
"I heard you had activity over the break," the woman said, her voice low and compassionate. "Was there any change?"
Kagome allowed herself a sad smile as she shook her head. "No. There was a time we thought he might wake up, sensei, but…"
Nobuto-sensei just nodded, placating her own sense of compassion with a kindly pat on the girl's back.
"Kago!" Fui hissed loudly as she pointed at the clock. "Kago!"
Her eyes shot open as she looked at the elderly professor.
"Very well. Go on, young woman. Go on. Life refuses to wait, even for one such as you."
"Thank you so much, Nobuto-sensei. For everything."
With a grateful smile and a low bow, the former miko jogged out of the room and into the chaos of university life.
He hated locks.
The damn things refused to be forced and unless you had exactly the right key, you had no hope of opening it. He could call for the janitor to unlock the modest office but that would complicate matters immensely as there were items in the room he would prefer others would not see.
He fumbled with the key ring jingling in his hand, extremely tempted to break down the wooden door.
Nice way to draw attention to himself, he decided as he shoved yet another key into the hole and twisted.
"Damn," he muttered, wondering how long it would be before his temper got the better of him.
If he already didn't have troubles enough, he thought as he tried the next key. He knew intimately what the inside of a laboratory looked like: the last thing he wanted was to see one again from the wrong angle- that of the specimen instead of the scientist.
"Sir?"
Grumbling, he ignored the voice as he continued fiddling with the door.
"Sir?"
"I'm busy," he grunted.
"Maybe I can help?" the voice offered, the sound light and delicate.
Just great, he thought impatiently as he lifted his head to look at the owner of the voice. This is exactly what I …
The resemblance was astonishing, his thoughts stopping midway as he carefully schooled his face to show no emotion.
Absolutely amazing.
"What do you want?" he growled, unable to keep his eyes from tracing over the lines of her beautiful face. Strangely enough, he never considered the possibility that he would consider a human attractive, but…
It must be from the years of contamination, he rationalized. It would be enough to pervert anyone's taste.
"Would you happen to be Maru-sensei?" the girl asked, stepping closer as she cocked her head.
Her undoubtedly vacuous little head was probably trying to figure out why a professor would wear sunglasses and a trench coat indoors. Most people did, but he simply didn't have time for this nonsense, he decided as he started to fumble with the lock again.
"I am he."
Even where he stood, he could hear the girl exhale in relief.
"Oh, good. I was so afraid I missed you, sir," she explained as she tried to subtly shift into his line of sight. Determined not to allow the girl to distract him, he knelt upon the ground in order to stare into the keyhole.
"By all rights, you should have. Speak to me during my office hours," he bit off, his voice a little harsher than he had intended. But in all honesty, what did he care?
"It will only take a moment, sir. Please!" the young woman insisted, a tenacious note in her tone as she knelt next to him.
Stubborn, he thought as he turned his back to her. There even was the same glint of… something he really wasn't sure of in those brown eyes. And if there was one thing that was as true now as it was back 500 years before, Sesshoumaru did not like to be unsure.
Really, his mind, as one-track as always, returned to his previous idea. The similarities are too incredible for this to be mere coincidence, he thought as he tried yet another key. This would make it the third incarnation of the same woman he had met then, he thought, his nose wrinkling distastefully at the idea.
Had the gods not punished him enough?
"My name is Hiragashi, sir," she started as she pushed her head towards his. "I would like to inquire about your archaeology of Japan mythology class…"
"It's closed," he grunted, pleased that he could deny her. It had been over five hundred years and the woman was still as disagreeable as ever.
"Sir, I wasn't… well, I was enrolled in that class but I… well, by the time I arrived, the class had already ended."
"Well, Hiragashi-san, buy yourself a watch and find another professor who is more willing to overlook your inadequacies for I simply am not," he said, barely able to restrain a victorious grin as the door finally swung open.
"But sir!"
"That is all, Hiragashi-san. Now leave."
The girl looked startled, her eyes filling with a panic as she rose to her feet.
Graceful, Sesshoumaru thought, only to banish the thought nearly instantly.
"Sir, I need this class to graduate!" Hiragashi said, her voice choked with what he expected would soon become a fountain of tears.
Boo bloody hoo.
"You should have thought of that before you missed the first class. Good day, Hiragashi-san," he growled, pleased at the way his voice echoed through the hall.
"But sir! I won't be a problem, I promise. I am a good student, you can ask nearly anyone," she gushed, her hands clutching to an old backpack as if it would save her from her predicament. A part of him was somewhat impressed that the girl hadn't yet broken down into tears. "I love Japanese mythology and I can't imagine how great it would be to take a class in it."
"You will just have to imagine, Hiragashi-san, because you will not be entering my class."
"Sir, please! I'll …" the girl stopped, her face a bright red from the exertion. "Please. I know a lot about mythology, sir. I would be an asset, truly."
Just what he needed, he thought as he leaned against the small desk in his office: another all-knowing human like the one from earlier today.
"If you know so much then you obviously do not need to take this class. Why don't you just challenge it to receive credit at the end of the semester?" he mocked, his sarcasm ringing in his own ears.
Hiragashi looked stricken as she stared at him, her wide eyes shining with unshed tears.
Spoiled little beast he thought as he slammed the door in the girl's face, enjoying the sound even though it did hurt his own ears a little. No one has probably ever told that thing no before.
Perhaps he could no longer kill, Sesshoumaru thought as he folded his arms across his chest, watching the shadow of the girl as she fled past his window, but he can still do some damn good damage.
Life is good, he decided as he reached for the doorknob. It was a minor victory, certainly, but he hadn't had very many victories for a while so it was probably best if he enjoyed them when he could. After three of the miko's lifetimes, he finally was able to return just a hint of the annoyance she had bestowed upon him. Life can be so good.
He frowned as he pulled at the old door, only to look down at his empty hands.
"Bloody hell," he muttered as he tried to figure out a way to grab the small ring of keys that were locked outside of the door that now locked him in.
Response to Reviews:
Char: Thank you (angel that you are) for being the first to review! I'm glad you like it. Your wish is my command! (That's what you get for being the first, you know.) I've spent the last couple hours worrying to death how such a fic will be received. Oh, the anticipation!
Abacus: Thanks for the flattery. *GRIN* If it helps, I agree 100% with you. Stories, if at all possible, should have happy endings. Life can be so sad sometimes that it can be nice to turn to something as trivial as a story where you know that, in the end, everything will be okay. Hope this chapter made up for the last one!
Vernal Equinox: You've always been so cool, Vern. J Make me feel all welcomed and stuff. Yeah, I've been out of the country for the last few months. Unfortunately, I had assumed that I was going to have internet access that I didn't actually get. Bummer, huh? Oh.. me want to add Sess? What gave you that idea? *grin*
Bishonen no Hime: Thanks! Sess added and awaiting further instructions! I'm glad you liked the chapter. (And yeah, a little bit of Sess goes a LONG way with making girls giddy. *drool*)
Phoebemoon: Will do! Yay! So glad you approve! I hope you like what happens next. Oh, I do feel terribly evil! Thank you SO much for taking the time to review. It means a lot!
Note: Poor Sesshoumaru. He's not having a very good day. Next chapter- Sess learns the meaning of persistence.
Rating: PG
Note: I don't know how university level education is handled in Japan, so I'm not about to even pretend. Just overlook it, eh? Thanks. I know I said I was gonna let you guys decide whether not it would be a oneshot or chapter fic, but… well, dammit! I couldn't help myself. I never can when Sesshoumaru is involved. *grin* Falling Stars (for those of you who are reading that fic as well) should be updated soon. I only started at this one again because I can't get some dialogue right at the very end of 16c. Oh, well! Maybe enlightenment will come tomorrow! Keep your fingers crossed for me.
Oh! I'm starting to like this fic… Yay! Whatcha think?
-Celyia
Chapter 2
The thing about university is that while lower level classes for popular courses like Archaeology and Astronomy are filled with students, once you get to the upper division courses, a lot of the classes are remarkably empty.
"Fui," Kagome whispered to the tall woman sitting next to her, one of the few faces waiting in the lecture hall, "did you take the archaeology of Japan mythology class this morning?"
The woman nodded, the brightly coloured pink spikes she referred so lovingly to as her 'do bobbed up and down with the abrupt movement. "Yeah, hot professor, too."
Kagome just rolled her eyes as she nudged the girl in the ribs. "Houta-sensei? Damn, Fui-chan, your taste has actually become even odder during the break."
Fui laughed in delight, her humour obviously tickled as pink as her hair by Kagome's appraisal.
"Houta-sensei? Didn't you hear? They finally put the old guy out to pasture, babe. Well, okay, fine. He retired, but it's basically the same thing."
"So suddenly?" the younger woman asked, her eyebrows raised as she remembered the elderly man's kindly eyes. "That's a shame. He was one of the few professors around here who actually taught their classes instead of passing it off to an assistant."
The woman shrugged her frail looking shoulders.
"The replacement, guy named Maru, seems to be intent on lecturing for his classes himself. Doesn't have the enthusiasm old Houta did, but he really seemed to know his stuff. You know how Shinji is?"
Kagome nodded, taking the time to roll her brown eyes in annoyance.
"Yeah, well, Shinji decided to try to put the professor in "his" place, as he likes to say. Oh, Kago, you so should have been there!" The woman laughed, her hand covering her mouth as she looked around. Satisfied that lecture had yet to begin, Fui continued.
"So Shinji is all 'From your perspective, as a professor at this university… while I do see the significance of majors in archaeology taking a course in the archaeology of Japan mythology, why is this class a requirement (as opposed to being an elective) in order to gain a bachelors in archaeology and why are there so many prerequisites needed in order to take this class? It would seem to me that a class of such, well, let's be honest, little significance to this science as it only relates mere fairy tales, would be a course best suited to dabblers instead of serious students.'"
Kagome blinked, uncertain of which surprised her more- Shinji's attempt to trip up a new professor or Fui's rather dramatic retelling. (The girl missed her calling, Kagome thought as she looked at the shining brown eyes and bright pink lips of her friend. The girl should have gone into acting, instead.)
"Yeah, I know it," Fui chuckled as she slapped Kagome on the back, oblivious to the young woman's wince and consequent rubbing of her now-sore muscle, "I couldn't believe him! You should have seen it! My jaw just dropped. I could not believe it! I mean, he's always been a pain in the ass, but to try to embarrass the new professor? The very first day? No. No matter how good Shinji thinks he is, he's not good enough to get his Bachelor without this class. I mean, every archaeology student… hey, why weren't you in there today?"
Kagome giggled nervously, but Fui seemed to be completely uninterested.
"Anyway, so the professor just looked at Shinji… I mean, you should have seen the look! Maru-sensei looked at Shinji as if he were the most stupid thing to have ever evolved from the primordial sludge, Kago. It was so damn amusing. Anyway, he looks at him and nods."
"'Your name?' Maru-sensei asked, his voice all quiet and stuff. For a moment there, I was scared witless. I mean, the guy sounded all dangerous. Even for a dumb professor. Anyway, Shinji is all 'Fujimoto Shinji, sensei.' In his most humble voice. LIKE he's fooling anyone. I mean, Maru-sensei didn't fall for it. He was all 'So, Fujimoto-san, this is your first semester as an archaeology student?'"
"I just wanted to laugh SO hard because Shinji turned bright red and just shook his head. I mean, you know how he is with how gifted he thinks he is at archaeology. Maru-sensei says then 'Are you certain, Fujimoto-san? I do not think I've heard a question so inane since I made the mistake of teaching Archaeology 101. I advise you to leave your Indiana Jones dreams at the door, or, if you are unable to do that, then perhaps you need to find another class that is more suitable: like Film Making 101.'"
"Indiana Jones? Oh, that's harsh," Kagome whispered, a part of her intensely embarrassed for her classmate.
"Yeah, I know it. But it was sooooo good. I mean, Maru-sensei is damn ruthless (so not the kind of guy you want to run across at night in an alley), but he does know what he's talking about. After that, he explained the reasons for taking the course, he went over the things we were going to cover. You'd enjoy it given … say, why aren't you taking it?"
Kagome sighed, allowing her body to lean completely back against the chair. "I am. I was… well, I sorta missed the first class, though."
Fui winced, her compassionate gesture only alarming Kagome more.
"Man, Kago, you really… you better talk to him. Gimme a sec," Fui said, as she shuffled through the mess she called her folder. Chortling in pleasure, she pulled out a piece of paper and squinted at it. "Aha. Here it is. Anyway, his office is in room HS315 and his hours… oh, damn. Um. You better get your ass over there RIGHT after this class is over. His hours end at 10.50."
Kagome shook her head. "But this class doesn't end until then…"
"Yeah. So if I were you, I'd position myself right by the damn door so you can run the hell out. Don't worry. If there are any handouts at the end, I'll pick some up for you."
Thanking the woman gratefully, Kagome grabbed her trusty backpack (four years of university and it hadn't fallen apart yet. Technically. Duct tape is truly a marvelous thing) and scooted to a seat closer to the door.
"Ah, Hiragashi-san," a young man with a constant smirk called out. "I'm glad to see you. After not seeing you this morning, I was afraid you had finally dropped out…"
Kagome politely laughed, the tone as fake as the young man's forced concern. Sighing as he settled himself right next to her, he stretched his legs out until his knees were pushing at hers.
The little creep!
"So I heard," Kagome started as she 'accidentally' dropped the corner of her book into the man's thigh, "that you were changing your major to film making, Fujimoto-san." Smiling sweetly as the man jerked his leg away, Kagome slowly took out her notepad and pen. "Good luck in that. I'm sure you'll do well."
"You wish," Shinji Fujimoto snarled, all pretenses dropped as he rubbed his leg instinctively. "The only reason you are here now is because you won that dumb award, Hiragashi. And the only reason you won that was because I had a bad day. It … "
"Do you mind?" Kagome asked pleasantly as she patted the man on his head, only to blink innocently as he recoiled from her. "Class is about to begin and I would hate to miss Nobuto-sensei's lecture."
"Go on. Pretend you aren't scared, Hiragashi," Fujimoto spat, his watery brown eyes glaring daggers at the girl. "But I'll tell you this: watch your back, bitch. And watch your step."
"Funny. Didn't you say exactly the same thing last semester?" the girl asked, her eyes dancing with amusement as the man choked on a reply. There was one point in time that Shinji had been interested in her.
It hadn't lasted long. In fact, it had died the first time she scored higher than he had on an exam. For that, Kagome was certain, the archaeology student would never forgive her.
Kagome grinned as she watched the petite Nobuto-sensei walk gracefully to the front of the room; the old woman's heavily lined face ever curved in humour.
There was something just intangibly cool about the ancient woman. Perhaps it was because Nobuto-sensei had achieved a full education in an era when women were meant to be seen and not heard or maybe it was because the woman's strange sense of humour reminded her so much of Kaede-baa-chan.
Some days she just really missed that woman.
Every once in a while, when the loneliness got to her, she played with the idea that little Naoko Nobuto was actually Kaede's reincarnation. After all, if Kikyou could be reincarnated (into Kagome's body, no less!) certainly the friends she missed so much from Sengoku Jidai could be reincarnated, too.
Too bad her common sense would shoot down the idea every time. While there were some slight similarities in the way both women appeared, it wasn't enough to be considered a reincarnation.
Her own experiences with Kikyou, after all, taught her that, as amazing as it sounds, reincarnated souls tend to take on the same appearance.
But the good thing was that Kagome knew exactly what her friends would look like when she found them.
If she found them.
Shrugging off the dreary thought, Kagome continued listening to the old woman, only to chuckle at a really poor joke. The hour passed by quickly, even though Shinji remained seated next to her.
"Hiragashi-san," the professor called at as she bid the young woman to approach at the end of the class, oblivious to Shinji's brutal glare. "I'm glad to see you return to class this semester. "
"Thank you, sensei," Kagome smiled, the look almost shy.
"I heard you had activity over the break," the woman said, her voice low and compassionate. "Was there any change?"
Kagome allowed herself a sad smile as she shook her head. "No. There was a time we thought he might wake up, sensei, but…"
Nobuto-sensei just nodded, placating her own sense of compassion with a kindly pat on the girl's back.
"Kago!" Fui hissed loudly as she pointed at the clock. "Kago!"
Her eyes shot open as she looked at the elderly professor.
"Very well. Go on, young woman. Go on. Life refuses to wait, even for one such as you."
"Thank you so much, Nobuto-sensei. For everything."
With a grateful smile and a low bow, the former miko jogged out of the room and into the chaos of university life.
He hated locks.
The damn things refused to be forced and unless you had exactly the right key, you had no hope of opening it. He could call for the janitor to unlock the modest office but that would complicate matters immensely as there were items in the room he would prefer others would not see.
He fumbled with the key ring jingling in his hand, extremely tempted to break down the wooden door.
Nice way to draw attention to himself, he decided as he shoved yet another key into the hole and twisted.
"Damn," he muttered, wondering how long it would be before his temper got the better of him.
If he already didn't have troubles enough, he thought as he tried the next key. He knew intimately what the inside of a laboratory looked like: the last thing he wanted was to see one again from the wrong angle- that of the specimen instead of the scientist.
"Sir?"
Grumbling, he ignored the voice as he continued fiddling with the door.
"Sir?"
"I'm busy," he grunted.
"Maybe I can help?" the voice offered, the sound light and delicate.
Just great, he thought impatiently as he lifted his head to look at the owner of the voice. This is exactly what I …
The resemblance was astonishing, his thoughts stopping midway as he carefully schooled his face to show no emotion.
Absolutely amazing.
"What do you want?" he growled, unable to keep his eyes from tracing over the lines of her beautiful face. Strangely enough, he never considered the possibility that he would consider a human attractive, but…
It must be from the years of contamination, he rationalized. It would be enough to pervert anyone's taste.
"Would you happen to be Maru-sensei?" the girl asked, stepping closer as she cocked her head.
Her undoubtedly vacuous little head was probably trying to figure out why a professor would wear sunglasses and a trench coat indoors. Most people did, but he simply didn't have time for this nonsense, he decided as he started to fumble with the lock again.
"I am he."
Even where he stood, he could hear the girl exhale in relief.
"Oh, good. I was so afraid I missed you, sir," she explained as she tried to subtly shift into his line of sight. Determined not to allow the girl to distract him, he knelt upon the ground in order to stare into the keyhole.
"By all rights, you should have. Speak to me during my office hours," he bit off, his voice a little harsher than he had intended. But in all honesty, what did he care?
"It will only take a moment, sir. Please!" the young woman insisted, a tenacious note in her tone as she knelt next to him.
Stubborn, he thought as he turned his back to her. There even was the same glint of… something he really wasn't sure of in those brown eyes. And if there was one thing that was as true now as it was back 500 years before, Sesshoumaru did not like to be unsure.
Really, his mind, as one-track as always, returned to his previous idea. The similarities are too incredible for this to be mere coincidence, he thought as he tried yet another key. This would make it the third incarnation of the same woman he had met then, he thought, his nose wrinkling distastefully at the idea.
Had the gods not punished him enough?
"My name is Hiragashi, sir," she started as she pushed her head towards his. "I would like to inquire about your archaeology of Japan mythology class…"
"It's closed," he grunted, pleased that he could deny her. It had been over five hundred years and the woman was still as disagreeable as ever.
"Sir, I wasn't… well, I was enrolled in that class but I… well, by the time I arrived, the class had already ended."
"Well, Hiragashi-san, buy yourself a watch and find another professor who is more willing to overlook your inadequacies for I simply am not," he said, barely able to restrain a victorious grin as the door finally swung open.
"But sir!"
"That is all, Hiragashi-san. Now leave."
The girl looked startled, her eyes filling with a panic as she rose to her feet.
Graceful, Sesshoumaru thought, only to banish the thought nearly instantly.
"Sir, I need this class to graduate!" Hiragashi said, her voice choked with what he expected would soon become a fountain of tears.
Boo bloody hoo.
"You should have thought of that before you missed the first class. Good day, Hiragashi-san," he growled, pleased at the way his voice echoed through the hall.
"But sir! I won't be a problem, I promise. I am a good student, you can ask nearly anyone," she gushed, her hands clutching to an old backpack as if it would save her from her predicament. A part of him was somewhat impressed that the girl hadn't yet broken down into tears. "I love Japanese mythology and I can't imagine how great it would be to take a class in it."
"You will just have to imagine, Hiragashi-san, because you will not be entering my class."
"Sir, please! I'll …" the girl stopped, her face a bright red from the exertion. "Please. I know a lot about mythology, sir. I would be an asset, truly."
Just what he needed, he thought as he leaned against the small desk in his office: another all-knowing human like the one from earlier today.
"If you know so much then you obviously do not need to take this class. Why don't you just challenge it to receive credit at the end of the semester?" he mocked, his sarcasm ringing in his own ears.
Hiragashi looked stricken as she stared at him, her wide eyes shining with unshed tears.
Spoiled little beast he thought as he slammed the door in the girl's face, enjoying the sound even though it did hurt his own ears a little. No one has probably ever told that thing no before.
Perhaps he could no longer kill, Sesshoumaru thought as he folded his arms across his chest, watching the shadow of the girl as she fled past his window, but he can still do some damn good damage.
Life is good, he decided as he reached for the doorknob. It was a minor victory, certainly, but he hadn't had very many victories for a while so it was probably best if he enjoyed them when he could. After three of the miko's lifetimes, he finally was able to return just a hint of the annoyance she had bestowed upon him. Life can be so good.
He frowned as he pulled at the old door, only to look down at his empty hands.
"Bloody hell," he muttered as he tried to figure out a way to grab the small ring of keys that were locked outside of the door that now locked him in.
Response to Reviews:
Char: Thank you (angel that you are) for being the first to review! I'm glad you like it. Your wish is my command! (That's what you get for being the first, you know.) I've spent the last couple hours worrying to death how such a fic will be received. Oh, the anticipation!
Abacus: Thanks for the flattery. *GRIN* If it helps, I agree 100% with you. Stories, if at all possible, should have happy endings. Life can be so sad sometimes that it can be nice to turn to something as trivial as a story where you know that, in the end, everything will be okay. Hope this chapter made up for the last one!
Vernal Equinox: You've always been so cool, Vern. J Make me feel all welcomed and stuff. Yeah, I've been out of the country for the last few months. Unfortunately, I had assumed that I was going to have internet access that I didn't actually get. Bummer, huh? Oh.. me want to add Sess? What gave you that idea? *grin*
Bishonen no Hime: Thanks! Sess added and awaiting further instructions! I'm glad you liked the chapter. (And yeah, a little bit of Sess goes a LONG way with making girls giddy. *drool*)
Phoebemoon: Will do! Yay! So glad you approve! I hope you like what happens next. Oh, I do feel terribly evil! Thank you SO much for taking the time to review. It means a lot!
Note: Poor Sesshoumaru. He's not having a very good day. Next chapter- Sess learns the meaning of persistence.