A.N. : Someone must done this somewhere... And I think it'd really happen to Kagome, with the way she lives...

Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha... ::cries:: I'd be RICH if I did... ::moths fly out of wallet::

Stress



Ring. Ring. Riiiiinnnnnggggg.

"All right, all right..." Kagome grumbled sleepily as she slammed her hand down on her ringing alarm clock.

Rubbing her eyes sleepily as she sat up. She yawned widely and finally decided to glance at the now silent clock at her bedside. Her eyes widened.

"KYAA! I've only got fifteen minutes to get to school!" Kagome cried in dismay as she hurriedly grabbed her school items and headed out her door. Skipping any of her normal morning rituals, including eating breakfast as she headed down the steps.

"Oh Kagome!" Her mother spoke as she heard Kagome's foot steps from upstairs, holding out her lunch, only to stop short as she took a glance at her daughter. Kagome waved vaguely to her mother, grandfather, and little brother Souta, all of which were in the kitchen. Souta glanced up at his sister and his grip on his rice bowl loosened. His grandfather loosing grip on a pickled radish he had just picked up with his chopsticks moments ago.

"Late for school. Have to go. No time for breakfast. Bye!" Kagome babbled hurriedly and out the door, sticking on her shoes hastily without even glancing down, and quickly out the door.

The other members of the Higurashi family continued to stay in their rigid forms, letting the scene that just played before them sink in. Each individual response-

Her mother blinked several times, then glanced down at the neatly wrapped bento in her outstretched hands. "And she forgot her lunch."

Souta sighed and went back to his breakfast. "She's lost it. I bet it's because she keeps missing school, being with Inu-nii-chan.

"AHHHHH!!! Kagome!!! She must be possessed!!!" Souta sighed an 'Oh grandpa...' as his grandfather dissolved to comical tears, ranting on how they must have lost Kagome's sanity to an evil spirit.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~



"Kyaa!! No!! No!! KYAA!!" Kagome cried in dismay and nearly fell to the ground in despair as the final bus departed. She'll never catch up now, Kagome thought as she watched the bus head to her school with increasing speed. Where was Inu Yasha when you needed him? Probably waiting at the well in the past to yell obscenities at her. Or bidding his time, debating when to come bother her and try to make her bend to his will and continue their search for shards...

Obviously, thinking about the not-so-great points of Inu Yasha's personality, didn't help her mood any. She sighed tiredly with a hint of annoyance as she started on her walk to school. It was that far. But if she had taken the bus, she wouldn't be late. She wouldn't have to walk. And receive strangers looks from the other people walking either.

Kagome vaguely sensed the gazes from strangers all around. Also the very odd reactions that followed after catching sight of her. A couple of women exiting a store nearby with an arm load of shopping bags, had just gasped loudly, dropping everything. But this was after Kagome had passed, and with her attendance record and grades being as bad as they are, she really didn't feel she could afford time to be the goody-two-shoes and help the older women out. She glanced over her shoulder to see both women still staring after her in shock. Her annoyance grew slightly, facing straight forward again. Honestly, haven't they seen a teenage girl before? What made her so special?!

Besides the fact that she was friends with a dog demon, fox demon, lecherous Buddhist with an air-rip in his hand, and a demon exterminator, and a few many others. All of which who were in feudal Japan. Where she traveled to through a well and the main reason why she might never make it to her graduation.

But that didn't count. Of course, not in this situation. Right now, all she was, was a normal teenage girl named Kagome Higurashi. Who was going to be toast if she didn't get to school in a hurry.

Without really looking, Kagome cut across the street in a short cut, causing a car to halt to a screech. The driver stuck out his head to yell at the idiot girl, only to have his mouth agape. Kagome was just glad she didn't have to listen to the driver's ranting about her carelessness and have added another thing to fuel her annoyance.

"I need to get a louder alarm clock next time." Kagome mumbled, hoping it would keep her from getting stuck in her current situation in the future. When arriving at the school gates, Kagome groaned at finding the grounds completely empty. She must have been later then she thought. Everyone was already in class.

Kagome quickly hurried through the empty grounds and gladly up the steps in to the building ahead. To tell the truth, the sight of an empty court yard was really unnerving. Kagome would complain about how crowded it sometimes seemed to get, but she rather be surrounded by the bustle and rush of the other students, than that suffocating silence.


"I'm sorry!" Kagome cried out as she opened the door to her homeroom class, bowing deeply in apology. The teacher sighed, and paused in his writing on the blackboard to glance at Kagome.

"Higura-" Was all her got out. Kagome felt her annoyance growing once more as she noticed, not only her teacher, but the whole class seemed to gaping at her in astonishment. Kagome stood tensely, very aware of the silence pressing in and the eyes of everyone in the room boring into her. She decided maybe it would be best to take her seat. Hey, at least she didn't get detention.

But Kagome soon realized that everyone's stares were following her to her seat. A couple of minutes ticked by, more like an eternity for Kagome. Then a snicker rose up and broke the silence that seemed to have been worse than the one outside, by ten fold.

Kagome couldn't take it. A few more joined in the snickering and she snapped. Slamming her hands on her desk, she stood up, glaring around the room and asked, "What is it?! Why are you all staring?!"

"U-um... Kah-Kagome... Did you check yourself in the m-mah-mirror this morning?" One of her friends questioned, torn between hysterics and concern for her friend. Kagome found this to be an odd question and frowned. " No, why?"

The class was now laughing. A lot had fallen off their chairs, others doubled over in pain with tears streaming down their faces. Even her teacher couldn't resist, his professional manner broken as placed his hand on the chalk board for support.

"What?!" Kagome frowned even more deeply, not even bothering to mask her irritation. Her friend desperately tried to keep a straight face. But she too, broke in and pointed at Kagome, unable to stop her laughter.

"KAGOME!!! AHAHAHAAAHAHAHAHA!! YOU'RE!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!! N-N-NA-NAKED!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAH!!!" Kagome stared at her for a moment. Blinked. Looked around the class. Blinked again. Then with a sinking feeling down in her stomach, she seemed to realize how breezy it seemed to have gotten. She looked down and with great embarrassment found out the truth.

Now she knew why everyone gaped. Why everyone stared. Why everyone was laughing and making her feel like she was in some sort of asylum then at a high school

"KYAAAAA--"


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~



"--YAAAAA!!!" Kagome shot up from her place at her desk. A sheet of paper stuck to her cheek as she rose. Breathing hard, Kagome patted herself down. She let a sigh of relief when she realized she was wearing clothes. And in her room, with no laughing classmates, or staring passerby's on the street.

Kagome stared down at her assortment of books and study guides, then to her alarm clock. Six in the morning, Saturday. She let out a tired sigh and slumped down in her chair, falling to the floor in a heap.

"That's it. I am not studying at all today. A naked dream is a definite factor of too much stress. I'm sleeping in." Kagome managed to haul herself up, a good half an hour later, in to bed with the covers over her head.

Then she added as an afterthought, 'And I'm sitting Inu Yasha in he wakes me up any time today.'


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Meanwhile in Feudal Japan,

"Houshi-sama, where did Inu Yasha go?" The demon exterminator asked as she realized that someone was missing from their group. Shippou turned over in his sleep, snoring soundly.

There was an amused twinkle in Miroku's eyes. "He went to the lake. To take a swim."

Sango frowned, looking up to see the sky still dark and the air quite chilly, then turned to Miroku with a raised eyebrow. "But it's freezing-"

"Exactly." Miroku didn't bother to cover his amused chuckle as Sango stared at him in slight confusion, before catching on and smacking the houshi upside the head.

"Houshi-sama!"

In the freezing lake,


Grumble. Grumble. Curse.

A certain hot-tempered dog demon continued to do some laps in the lakes to get his mind off something that truly seemed to bother him. After he'd gotten his laps in, Inu Yasha swam out into the middle of the lake, where he bobbed there. The water up to his chin as he glared out ahead.

"Damn bitch. Stupid dream. Damn seducing bitch trying to-" Dives underwater for a moment. Resurfaces. "-In my fucking dream..."


~*~*~*~*~*~ Owari ~*~*~*~*~*~



Terms used (Japanese, Most know 'em, but some might not, ehehe...) -

Hoshi/Houshi-sama - Low rank monk. (Wanders around, ex- Chichiri from Fushigi Yuugi)

Bento - Meal-to-go thingy. Usually something like, fish or meat with rice. Or mabbe somen noodles, ya know?

Inu-nii-chan - Souta uses this to refer to Inu Yasha. nii-chan is big brother, so something like Big brother Inu Yasha.

A.N. : Whacha think? Please fill me and tell me how'm doing! ;-; Anyway... I did hear once that stress can cause dreams, such as standing naked in a public place or something. Like imagining an audience in their underwear ... and.... Uh... okay, mabbe not like that... And with how Kagome's life is, I believed this would fit her ^______________^ Reviews are highly appreciated =D