Disclamer: me no own so you no sue
The Sleeper
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Chapter 2: Reunion
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Knock…knock knock….knock
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Knock..knock
"WHAT!"
Miroku scratched his head seriously considering turning around and marching back to his own room. Obviously something has seriously upset Akita. First they had been on their way to pick up the present from Akita's brother then suddenly the he had tensed up and bolted away with only a ' Sorry Miroku; I've gotta go' and a face that looked as though it had seen a ghost as explanation; and now this. Was Akita insane; split personality perhaps? The bewildered boy was just about to turn around rather then confront his new friend when the dorm room was suddenly pulled back to reveal a very disgruntled, very familiar (if unexpected) face.
"I said WHAT!"
Miroku took an involuntary step back, eyes wide with shock.
"I-inuyasha?! W-what are you doing here?"
"Oh it's you." Inuyasha's voice dropped to a normal volume when he realized that it was Miroku rather then his own bastard brother.
"Thought you were someone else..." Inuyasha mumbled and then when he processed what had been said irritation crept into his voice, "and what do you mean 'what am I doing here'? I go to school here…or did you forget already?"
Miroku was looking at his friend with poorly veiled alarm wondering precisely how to dig himself out this predicament. He was, in fact, shocked to see Inuyasha here at school; especially after what happened last year, but equally as curious to see why he was in Akita's room.
"No I didn't forget. I meant why are you HERE? Where's Akita?" Miroku countered smoothly.
"I have no idea who you're talking about."
Miroku looked at the room number and the name on the door '404 Higurashi Akita'. Having eliminated the possibility that he was delusional, Miroku pointed the sign out to Inuyasha.
"Oh, yeah…I guess that's my roommate."
Inuyasha turned his back on the boy standing in the doorway and padded back into the room. Miroku smiled at his old friend when he saw the state of the room. The room that had been immaculate just hours ago was now, a complete disaster area.
"Good ol' Inuyasha." Miroku chuckled to himself.
"Well are you going to stand there all day, or what?" Inuyasha said as he flopped down on the unmade bed closest to the door.
"It's good to have you back." Miroku smiled toothily as he entered the room closing the door behind him.
"Keh." Inuyasha rolled his eyes at the smiling boy, and then as an after thought smiled back. " Yeah well it's good to be back." The boys looked at each other and began to laugh.
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She plastered her back to a thick trunked tree trying to catch her breath, her legs ached with fatigue and she could taste the faint metallic tang of blood. She inclined her head to the right trying to catch sight of her pursuer. A passing group of boys gave her a queer look before continuing on their way. He was gone, there was no sign of the man. She let out a relieved sigh, but the voice caught in her throat coming out as a strangled whimper, she had seen him; he was there at the edge of the quad searching. Searching for her, he snapped his head in her direction.
"Kuso."
Just as she was about to duck back behind the tree completely he turned and their eyes met.
"Damn it why do you have to be so fast, I don't remember you being so fast." She mumbled to herself, cursing her luck.
Her muscles were like rubber bands pulled taut, and just liked that she made a mad dash towards her dorm, less then fifty meters away, forty, twenty-five, ten, four.
"Thank you brother." She eyed the silver band on her arm that allowed her to move with slightly accelerated speed…though still not as fast as the one following her. She plunged into the entrance and fled towards the stairs. Taking them two or three at a time she found herself on the fourth floor just as a resounding crash sounded from below. She didn't spare a look to see what had caused it and fled down the hall towards her room.
She dove threw the doorway snatching the piece of paper with her name on it as she went. The sight that greeted her gave her pause for a second.
"What the..?! Miroku what are…Who?..." She panted as she found Miroku and an unfamiliar boy lounging in her room. She was transfixed by the new boy, his inky tresses spilling around his broad muscular shoulders, violet eyes that seemed to burn holes right into her sole, if she had not already been flushed from exhaustion she may have blushed from the sheer intensity of the boy's glare. Wait a tick, this was her room and they were lounging around uninvited, and he has the nerve to glare at her, like she was the trespasser.
Another crash sounded from around the corner the rest of her complaints flew right out the window. She turned a weary eye towards the hall before whipping around slamming the door and locking it behind her.
She eyed the door as if it might splinter at any moment as the two boys sitting in the room sputtered like fish out of water. Before they could get a single question out, Kagome faced them with a pale face a combination of anger and shock clearly written in the furrow of her brow and the glassy sheen of her eyes.
"I'm not here."
The boys stared at her like she was speaking some unrecognizable language.
All three of them could hear the sound of footsteps rapidly approaching. Kagome eyed the door again then looked pointedly at the two boys and repeated her earlier invective.
"I'm NOT here!!!"
With that she dashed into the bathroom and locked the door.
Inuyasha sat on his bed trying desperately to process the proceeding events. A strange person had barged into HIS room and then insisted that they should pretend that he wasn't there. He looked at Miroku to see if his friend had a better handle on what was going on. Miroku sat there with a bewildered look on his face, not much help there, what a shocker.
The door handle rattled and the two boys were startled back into reality. They could hear mumbled cursing as whoever was on the other side tried to wrench the door free of its hinges, and failed. The door held fast.
"What the hell…" Inuyasha was the first to speak and was not trying to suppress his anger.
BANG BANG BANG
The person in the hallway had given up trying to pull the door out of the frame and now sounded as if they were trying to break it down with the force of their knock.
"I KNOW YOUR IN THERE AKITA!!!" A somewhat recognizable voice bellowed.
"That kinda sounds like…" Miroku began.
Inuyasha stepped to the door to admit the noisy intruder.
"Kouga." Inuyasha finished for his friend with a sneer.
Kouga stood framed in the doorway with an arrogant smirk on his face arms crossed over his chest examining one of his claws.
" It's about time…now why the hell…" Kouga looked up from his claw to face he boy before him, smile fading when he recognized the face with which he was greeted.
"Inu-kuro…" he growled "what the hell are you doing here!"
Inuyasha glanced over his shoulder at Miroku. Miroku shrugged. Since when is Miroku so freaking tight lipped, Inuyasha returned his glare to Kouga.
"This is MY room!" Inuyasha grounded out, jaw clamped firmly in place.
"Now what do YOU want?" Inuyasha emphasized each word by cracking a knuckle and pointedly looking the confused wolf youkai in his blue eyes.
Kouga ignored the black haired boy before him and stuck his head in the room to scan for evidence of Akita.
"Kuso!" Kouga stepped back and eyed Inuyasha when he could find no indication of his quarry "I'd love to stay and chat, dog breath, but I really must be off." Without waiting for Inuyasha's reply Kouga sprinted down the hallway, and out of sight.
"What the hell was that all about?"
Inuyasha was glaring at the bathroom door. A tense hush had filled the room like a poisonous gas; the whole city seemed to have gone mute. The two boys eyed the bathroom door with equal parts curiosity and apprehension.
"Do you think he snuck out the window?" Miroku hazarded a guess.
"Baka, we're on the fourth floor, you think anyone would be so afraid of that wimpy idiot that they'd jump out the window?"
Miroku was about to knock on the bathroom door when the phone rang startling everybody.
Kagome popped open the bathroom door and looked at the ringing phone and then at the boys blocking her path. Without a word of explanation she pushed aside the boys and stalked across the room.
Inuyasha was about to protest the rude behavior when Kagome shot him a cold look of warning and gestured with her hand to shut the hell up.
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"Hello?" Kagome's voice sounded exceptionally deep and reserved, as if she was trying to camouflage it.
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" Oh hi…what?" Kagome said in her normal tenor timbre. She looked at her watch and then at the two boys staring at her with rapidly increasing agitation. She narrowed her eyes, what could make them so agitated; she was the one that had just been chased through campus to find people in her room, after all.
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"No of course I didn't forget…I uh…got uh… waylaid."
Inuyasha was beginning to quake with barely suppressed rage, and Miroku was slowly moving to step between his two friends to prevent violence, should the need arise. Kagome was making a point of ignoring the tension that seemed to be building in the room combating it with only a very large smile.
"Kouga."
She said simply into the receiver in answer to some question that the person on the other end had asked. Miroku turned from Inuyasha to look at the boy on the phone, hoping that he would elaborate and explain what exactly was going on.
Kagome oblivious to their stares blushed two shades of red from some unheard comment then cleared her throat.
"Yeah well, anyway…I'm on my way now."
Kagome hung up the phone and grabbed the tulips that were still sitting in the small plastic bucket and made her way towards the door. Inuyasha with a flash of inhuman speed moved to block the door with his body, arms firmly planted on his hips.
"Oh no you don't…what the f…" Inuyasha began watching the boy with the flowers continue to come closer.
Kagome smiled at Miroku and then glared warily at the boy blocking her means of escape.
"Hold that thought." Kagome said cutting Inuyasha off mid word.
She quickly opened the bathroom door and locked it behind her.
Inuyasha nearly face faulted at the sheer audacity of the boy and shot Miroku a look that clearly told him not to interfere with the pounding the newcomer was about to receive.
Within the bathroom they could hear the sink faucet running. Inuyasha relaxed his stance somewhat waiting for the boy to come back into the room.
After five minutes with no sound other then the running of the sink Inuyasha was about to knock the door down and batter an explanation out of the boy, when someone tentatively knocked at the door.
Inuyasha ratcheted the door open to reveal a smiling Houjou.
"Oh hi Inuyasha, good to see you back!"
Inuyasha grunted in response.
Houjou peered into the room and spotted Miroku, giving him a friendly wave.
"Miroku I have a message for you."
Miroku stood smoothing his hair with one hand a lopsided grin etched permanently on his face, he looked at Inuyasha.
"From some beautiful lady no doubt."
"Keh"
Miroku looked at his sandy haired roommate waiting for him to relay the message.
"Hmm, no not a beautiful lady, though I guess he is kind of a pretty boy…" Houjou shrugged if to suggest that he wasn't one really to judge the accuracy of such a statement and then continued, "…yeah the new guy, Akita, told me to tell you that you could hang out in his room with your friend for as long as you want."
Miroku looked a bit confused.
"Is that it?"
"Oh, um no, he said to make sure to clean up the mess you guys made and that he would talk to you when he got back."
"Houjou…" This time it was Inuyasha that spoke, his voice was so low and dangerous that even the naïve boy at the door didn't miss the intent, "…when exactly did Akita leave this message for Miroku?"
Houjou took a step from the black haired boy growling at him.
"Uh…five minutes ago? He said you two seemed to be having some sort of fight and he said he didn't want to interrupt so he came in to my room through the bathroom, introduced himself then gave me the message to give to Miroku. He seems really nice doesn't he?" Houjou looked at Miroku for support and continued to back away from Inuyasha.
"Well anyway… I can see he was right, so I'll just leave you two alone, yeah?"
Houjou looked at Miroku, "Just yell if you need anything," the boy gave a nervous laugh and then darted back into the room next door.
"Why that son of a bitch, can you believe the gall?" Inuyasha looked at Miroku for agreement. Miroku chuckled scratching the back of his neck and looked away.
"Calm down Inuyasha, this IS his room and I hardly think he needs to explain himself to us. He just met me and he doesn't even know who you are."
Inuyasha's eye began to twitch in irritation.
"Keh, I don't care about his pathetic explanations…barging in here acting like we don't exist, sneaking out like a stinking coward."
"I admit that his behavior is a bit strange, but maybe he was still shaken up and didn't want to face an inquisition."
"Keh…shaken up from what… that two-bit wolf?" Inuyasha scoffed.
"Kouga is a formidable opponent Inuyasha, and you know it, I'm surprised that Akita was even able to get away from him, he must be pretty fast."
"Whatever, I could take him." Inuyasha fingered the small band on his index finger and then looked back at the Miroku.
"Well we don't all have youkai strength or speed, now do we?"
"It's not like there isn't a binding spell on the campus you know." Inuyasha complained.
"Yeah well even at diminished strength most of the youkai could inflict some serious damage if they really set their minds to it." Miroku bent down and picked up a pile clothes and eyed the closet.
Inuyasha grunted in response. Flopping back down on the unmade bed he slowly used his thumb and forefinger to rub the bridge of his nose, before turning to observe Miroku's activities.
"Oi, what the hell are you doing?"
Miroku deposited the clothes in the closet then proceed to pick up some scattered books. At the question he stood up from his bent position books in arm and looked at the long haired boy lying before him. A strange emotion flickered across Miroku's violet eyes before he shook his head as if trying to clear his head with the action.
"Well I was cleaning up…the mess…" He said it as more of a question then a statement.
Inuyasha turned away and grunted, "Since when are you so helpful to anyone who isn't in a skirt."
Miroku dropped the books "I..uh…I have no idea."
"Well if you're through playing at house frau, let's get out of here and get some food."
"Why I'm honored that the reclusive Inuyasha would invite me out, your treat no less." Miroku raised his eyebrow in question.
"Stuff it bouzo, I didn't say anything about paying."
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Kagome stepped into the light of the restaurant that fell in rectangles across the sidewalk. The sun had set minutes ago but still a faint waning crescent moon had risen in the darkening sky, grinning no doubt at her daily trails. Sango would be waiting, and with that thought Kagome opened the door and scanned the sea of faces for the brilliant face of her one true friend.
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A/N Thanks to my first two reviewers: senko kisei and Hilary Carter 24 . Chapter 3 should be out somewhere around Sunday (knock on wood) if you're all nice and I feel the love. Also look for the first one or two chapters of 'The Mononoke of Forest Deep' around the same time, let's see if I can juggle 3 stories at once.
This chapters reading recommendations are:
"This Can't be Good." Which despite what the title suggests is beyond good.
"Dogs of Tokyo" Action packed and tempered with humor.
"Bottle Genius" (AU) I swear this fic has just the right amount of everything, one of my favorites.
So if you are one of the authors Kudos' from me to you, if not read these and enjoy…oh yeah and review them (trust me authors like that.)
The above are unsolicited endorsements.
Read/Review: Let me know what you think, ideas for how it could be improved, points of confusion, fics that you would like me to recommend (I'm always in search of good fics to read)