Chapter two: Making it happen
"Come on Kagome, don't go to sleep! Tell me what you think!" Inuyasha shook her.
She got up. "This is a real shock. Do you really want to go to school with me?"
"Yes."
"Do you really think that you can handle it?"
"Of course I can handle it. Besides, you couldn't handle fighting demons at first and you got used to it."
"Okay... I guess I'm fine with it. Just... stay out of trouble, okay?"
"Why? What kind of trouble could there possibly be to get into? It's a school, for mortals, right?"
"Yeah, but it's a different kind of trouble. You have to... keep your grades up, not make people mad, and fit in as best as you can. You're going to have to get a school uniform, a haircut too. You're also going to have to hide your ears somehow and leave your sword at home. And... you're going to have to take off the prayer beads..." Kagome said the last part with a twinge of dread.
"I can do that Kagome... I'm not a baby, you know."
"Why are you going to all of this trouble to be with me?"
"Because... I... can't believe you don't know..." He said. He bent over to be face-to-face with her. Then he kissed her... just a little kiss.
She blushed. She looked at him, and then she kissed him back.
"Because of that." He said. "That's why I wanted to be with you. Even if I have to do all of those awful things."
"Thanks, Inuyasha... This really means a lot to me." She told him as removed the prayer beads.
"Inuyasha!" He heard her grandfather calling him. "Come on, we're going to the school. You have to come too."
Kagome pulled out a black bandana from her dresser drawer. She tied it around his head, concealing his ears.
Kagome came with him to the school and coached him on how to act normally in a public place.
"Hello, I'm Mr. Takeda. I'm the principal of this school." an old man told Inuyasha.
Kagome prompted Inuyasha to bow.
"I don't know how much education you've had, so you may have to play a bit of catch-up."
He handed Inuyasha a small piece of paper. "This is your schedule. I expect you to stay to it and not skip any classes. To assure that you don't get lost, I've given you all of the same classes as Kagome, here."
"Kagome, I expect you to look after him." Kagome made an audible gulping noise.
The principal handed Inuyasha two packets.
"The red one is the Student Code of Conduct, and the Blue one is a dress code. It also includes a map and some other orientation tools. I expect you to sign and return those by Monday. Just because I am giving you until Monday to sign it does not mean that you will not be held to any of those standards. You should read both of those tonight."
Inuyasha looked at his stack and groaned inwardly.
"I hope you don't intend to wear that bandana to school, young man. That's against the dress code."
Kagome's grandad spoke up. "Actually, it's for a political statement. It says that he doesn't have to take it off since it's a political statement."
"What political statement is that?" Mr. Takeda's eyebrows rose.
"He is from Tibet, and he won't take off the bandana until Tibet is free."
"Fine... whatever. Then I expect you to get a haircut at the very least." The principal conceeded.
They followed Mr. Takeda for a time and listened to him rant about the various school policies and consequences. They finally seemed to be at Mr. Takeda's destination. The principals office. They came and signed some forms, and Mr. Takeda gave Inuyasha a school uniform which someone had left there one year. He said that he was doing it out of "The goodness of his heart so be thankful."
When they finally got home. Inuyasha was really upset. "It looks awful!" Inuyasha screamed, looking at his hair, (which was puffed out like a poodle's).
"I'm doing the best I can!" Kagome's mom shouted back at him. "picky, picky." she mumbled.
Kagome's mom cut off some more of his hair while he read through the rule book.
"It says here that no romantic relationships are allowed, inside or outside of school. What are they gonna do, spy on me when I'm out of school?!" He howled.
"Don't worry about that one." Kagome told him. "Everyone's got a boyfriend. We just hide it during school, and if someone from the school sees you who's likely to tell, just make up an excuse."
"No eating or drinking during class. That's like... eight hours!... Shirts are to be tucked in... underwear is to be worn... How are they gonna know?! No talking unless called on by a teacher... Do not vandalize school property... be respectful of your teachers... What if my teacher is an idiot? Do I still have to respect them?"
"Yes. You have to just suck it up and respect them."
"What are they gonna do about it if I don't."
"Well, Just read that in the packet."
"In-house suspension... parent-teacher conference... after school detention... suspension from school... lunch detention... expulsion... what are those?"
"They're bad. If you go to In-house, they'll make you do stupid school work for hours and hours... for example: They may have you write... "Look at the teacher, say okay, and do it." five-hundred times. The parent-teacher conference is when they call your parents to school and yell at them about what a stupid person you are. After school detention is when they keep you in school even longer, after the other students have left and do stupid things like clean blackboards. Lunch detention is where instead of letting you eat lunch, they make you stay in class and do stupid things... expulsion is where they kick you out of school permanently, and suspension is where they kick you out of school temporarily."
"I don't get it... the suspension from school doesn't sound like a punishment."
"Well, it is... because you get behind in all of your classes and your grades go down, then you risk failing and having to do the whole stupid class over."
"Failing?"
"If you don't do well enough in a class, they can force you to do it all over again. That's really really bad, because that's a lot of wasted time and effort."
"I don't think I can do this... Ahh! what have you done to my hair?! I'll do it myself!"
"Just make sure you cut it beneath where your ears are when you're human." Kagome told him.
Her mom made a "hmph" sound.
Inuyasha took his Tetsusaiga and cut off a bunch of hair. It didn't look all that bad... it wasn't great... but at least he didn't look like a poodle.
"You'll do fine, Inuyasha. And remember... even though those stupid things could happen. I'm not going to "sit" you anymore, that's gotta count for something."
"I guess..."
"you'll be fine..."
"This is going to suck, isn't it?"
"Totally."
"Come on Kagome, don't go to sleep! Tell me what you think!" Inuyasha shook her.
She got up. "This is a real shock. Do you really want to go to school with me?"
"Yes."
"Do you really think that you can handle it?"
"Of course I can handle it. Besides, you couldn't handle fighting demons at first and you got used to it."
"Okay... I guess I'm fine with it. Just... stay out of trouble, okay?"
"Why? What kind of trouble could there possibly be to get into? It's a school, for mortals, right?"
"Yeah, but it's a different kind of trouble. You have to... keep your grades up, not make people mad, and fit in as best as you can. You're going to have to get a school uniform, a haircut too. You're also going to have to hide your ears somehow and leave your sword at home. And... you're going to have to take off the prayer beads..." Kagome said the last part with a twinge of dread.
"I can do that Kagome... I'm not a baby, you know."
"Why are you going to all of this trouble to be with me?"
"Because... I... can't believe you don't know..." He said. He bent over to be face-to-face with her. Then he kissed her... just a little kiss.
She blushed. She looked at him, and then she kissed him back.
"Because of that." He said. "That's why I wanted to be with you. Even if I have to do all of those awful things."
"Thanks, Inuyasha... This really means a lot to me." She told him as removed the prayer beads.
"Inuyasha!" He heard her grandfather calling him. "Come on, we're going to the school. You have to come too."
Kagome pulled out a black bandana from her dresser drawer. She tied it around his head, concealing his ears.
Kagome came with him to the school and coached him on how to act normally in a public place.
"Hello, I'm Mr. Takeda. I'm the principal of this school." an old man told Inuyasha.
Kagome prompted Inuyasha to bow.
"I don't know how much education you've had, so you may have to play a bit of catch-up."
He handed Inuyasha a small piece of paper. "This is your schedule. I expect you to stay to it and not skip any classes. To assure that you don't get lost, I've given you all of the same classes as Kagome, here."
"Kagome, I expect you to look after him." Kagome made an audible gulping noise.
The principal handed Inuyasha two packets.
"The red one is the Student Code of Conduct, and the Blue one is a dress code. It also includes a map and some other orientation tools. I expect you to sign and return those by Monday. Just because I am giving you until Monday to sign it does not mean that you will not be held to any of those standards. You should read both of those tonight."
Inuyasha looked at his stack and groaned inwardly.
"I hope you don't intend to wear that bandana to school, young man. That's against the dress code."
Kagome's grandad spoke up. "Actually, it's for a political statement. It says that he doesn't have to take it off since it's a political statement."
"What political statement is that?" Mr. Takeda's eyebrows rose.
"He is from Tibet, and he won't take off the bandana until Tibet is free."
"Fine... whatever. Then I expect you to get a haircut at the very least." The principal conceeded.
They followed Mr. Takeda for a time and listened to him rant about the various school policies and consequences. They finally seemed to be at Mr. Takeda's destination. The principals office. They came and signed some forms, and Mr. Takeda gave Inuyasha a school uniform which someone had left there one year. He said that he was doing it out of "The goodness of his heart so be thankful."
When they finally got home. Inuyasha was really upset. "It looks awful!" Inuyasha screamed, looking at his hair, (which was puffed out like a poodle's).
"I'm doing the best I can!" Kagome's mom shouted back at him. "picky, picky." she mumbled.
Kagome's mom cut off some more of his hair while he read through the rule book.
"It says here that no romantic relationships are allowed, inside or outside of school. What are they gonna do, spy on me when I'm out of school?!" He howled.
"Don't worry about that one." Kagome told him. "Everyone's got a boyfriend. We just hide it during school, and if someone from the school sees you who's likely to tell, just make up an excuse."
"No eating or drinking during class. That's like... eight hours!... Shirts are to be tucked in... underwear is to be worn... How are they gonna know?! No talking unless called on by a teacher... Do not vandalize school property... be respectful of your teachers... What if my teacher is an idiot? Do I still have to respect them?"
"Yes. You have to just suck it up and respect them."
"What are they gonna do about it if I don't."
"Well, Just read that in the packet."
"In-house suspension... parent-teacher conference... after school detention... suspension from school... lunch detention... expulsion... what are those?"
"They're bad. If you go to In-house, they'll make you do stupid school work for hours and hours... for example: They may have you write... "Look at the teacher, say okay, and do it." five-hundred times. The parent-teacher conference is when they call your parents to school and yell at them about what a stupid person you are. After school detention is when they keep you in school even longer, after the other students have left and do stupid things like clean blackboards. Lunch detention is where instead of letting you eat lunch, they make you stay in class and do stupid things... expulsion is where they kick you out of school permanently, and suspension is where they kick you out of school temporarily."
"I don't get it... the suspension from school doesn't sound like a punishment."
"Well, it is... because you get behind in all of your classes and your grades go down, then you risk failing and having to do the whole stupid class over."
"Failing?"
"If you don't do well enough in a class, they can force you to do it all over again. That's really really bad, because that's a lot of wasted time and effort."
"I don't think I can do this... Ahh! what have you done to my hair?! I'll do it myself!"
"Just make sure you cut it beneath where your ears are when you're human." Kagome told him.
Her mom made a "hmph" sound.
Inuyasha took his Tetsusaiga and cut off a bunch of hair. It didn't look all that bad... it wasn't great... but at least he didn't look like a poodle.
"You'll do fine, Inuyasha. And remember... even though those stupid things could happen. I'm not going to "sit" you anymore, that's gotta count for something."
"I guess..."
"you'll be fine..."
"This is going to suck, isn't it?"
"Totally."