A/N: Hiya. Forgot to say that Ayame's song was by the Donnas (cover
version of Reo Steamwagon). Sorry it took so long to update. Why is it
that teachers love to assign projects at the same time? Anyways, on with
the reviews.
FireAngelWarrior: No, thank you for everything. I mean it.
ShadowStalker2008: Thanks
Ali B: I love high school fics too.
shan(): Hope I didn't make you wait to long
Meeko(): My ideas come from anything (mostly my weird imagination). As for the writing back thing, I figure that you spend your time reviewing, that I should say something back. The more you write, the more I write back. Thanks
SilentSlayer: I'm a big InuKag person. They get closer in this chapter, sorta. Thanks for the review
babygirl20008: Wow...I got an addict. I know the feeling though. There is this one story called Simply Irresistible that I love but the author took a hiatus and I'm impatient. If Chase (angelwings123) is reading this story then I grovel at your feet to please update soon.
Moongoddess1989: My next story is gonna be InuYasha but it will come out after this one. It's hard enough to manage one story and all the school work I get. Two would make me crack. Besides, it would take longer to update. BTW I hate britney spears but I figure that it would be good for Kikyou's character. Amy Lee could beat her into the ground any day of the week.
yasha21: thank YOU thank YOU thank YOU! (I loved your wording)
Chibi Children: I know. It was supposed to be sister but I wrote it at five in the morning after no sleep and it was spelt correctly. I realized it after I updated and I am too lazy to change it. But I think you get the idea.
angelkitty77: The homicidal tendencies aren't in this chapter (but utter out-witting is). Keep an eye out for more in later chapters though. I aim to please and that was my favorite part.
sammy(): one of my best friend's name is Samantha. Thanks for the review.
If there were more reviews than I didn't get them yet. Enjoy the story after disclaimer
Disclaimer: I own shit. I think that sums it up!
~*~Muted Words~*~ §Nothing Gold Can Stay§
-Monday (After School)-
"Why did you stop me Kagome?!"
"Sango, give into her feeble attempts and you do what she wants you to. Hit her, she wins. I refuse to let you be seen as weak. I know you're stronger then her. You've shown me that when you tried to hold back."
"But Kagome, she really hit a soft spot. She said you never had any problems in your life."
Kagome looked at the sky. She and the gang were walking through the park to get home. The incident in the hallway was the topic of their discussion. Kagome looked at her surroundings. There were flower; dried from the coldness of the air, fluffy clouds drifting in the hazy colors that decorated the sky. She could stay here forever. It doesn't even seem real.
"In my field of paper flowers,
And candy clouds of lullaby,
I lie inside myself for hours
And watch my purple sky fly over me." As beautiful as the little verse was, it was completely random for the discussion that was taking place. Taking out the pen and paper from Gym class, she added that to the other verses she created and circled it a few times. That would be the chorus.
"Kagome, you okay?"
"Yes, InuYasha, I'm fine." They gang continued through the park.
"What was that about?"
"Just thought of something I want to use for the lyrics I'm writing." Kouga looked a bit surprised.
"When did you start writing lyrics? You usually tell us."
"I started after I got back from Mr. Mori's office," Kagome admitted. "Why should I waste my time sitting there? It's not like I was going to participate."
"How exactly did that work?" pondered Sesshoumaru.
"You see, I record the classes so I can listen to them again at home incase I miss something important. So when Urasuea was yelling at me..."
"You had it all on tape," concluded InuYasha. "I got to admit, that's pretty smart. Maybe I should try that." Miroku chose to comment that.
"InuYasha, I don't think tapes are going to help you with improving your grades."
"Shut the hell up, Miroku."
"Wait, InuYasha, you're not doing well in school?" Kagome asked.
"I'm not that bad," InuYasha defended. "I get B's mostly, sometimes A's, but I can't do well in History if my life depended on it."
"Urasuea probably isn't helping. I'll bet she's the one holding the noose around your neck," she commented gently. "If it helps you at all, I could always tutor you a bit. I love History. The only one I like more is Literacy."
"You'd tutor me?"
"Of course, after all, I did answer that question right you know."
"Actually, I wasn't sure. Urasuea was so furious that she was outwitted by a punk that she assigned a ton of homework. She never said whether you were right or not."
"A ton? I'm sorry, I didn't mean for this to effect you."
"Don't worry about it Kagome," Sesshoumaru assured. "It was worth it to see her react that way."
"Yeah," Miroku agreed. "That bitch had it coming to her."
"She has no right to treat us like we're dirty rats," Ayame emphasized.
"You see," InuYasha grinned. "You did us a favor. So...you'd really tutor me?" Kagome smiled which made his heart soar. He wanted her to do it more. He'd give anything for her to smile like that. Do anything. And hurt anyone who would take that smile away.
"I said I would," Kagome affirmed. At the moment, they exited the park and were in front of a large, brick building. "Wait, I have to go in here."
"Why?" inquired InuYasha.
"I have to get Shippou." She left before anyone could say anything. The building was the place that watched the children of working parents after school. It didn't take much convincing to get Shippou in; the workers found him absolutely adorable.
"Hello Kagome, how are you today?" asked a young woman with mouse- brown hair, gray eyes, and a flashing smile.
"Hey Suki. I'm feeling much better. And you?"
"A bit tired, these kids can really wear a girl down. I heard you went to the hospital Friday. Keade came to pick up Shippou for you."
"I did, but it was only some breathing problems."
"Nothing serious I hope?"
"No. It was like being out of breath. Nothing really serious."
"That's good to he-"
"Mama!" came the joyous cry of a little four year old. His tiny form practically bounding to Kagome; rusty-red hair tied up into a ponytail and green eyes shining.
"Hello Shippou. And how was your day?" Kagome laughed. After all the stress that today brought, it sure was good to see his smiling face. She hugged him tightly.
"It was fun," exclaimed the small child. "I drew this picture." Shippou ran to a table that was close by and grabbed a piece of paper. It had a big house in the bathroom with Rin, Sango, Kouga, Souta, and Kohaku all standing around in front. Shippou was on her back in the center of the picture. It was very good for a child of his age; he stayed in the lines and the people weren't stick figures.
"Wow Shippou! This is really good. Where do you want to put it?"
"On the refrigidater."
"Refrigerator? Sure. We'll hang it as soon as we get home," Kagome assured. "Now go get your stuff so we can go home."
"Okay." He made his way to the coat rack to get his coat and backpack. While there, a young boy came up and asked him a question.
"Is that your mother?"
"Yup. That's my Mama."
"She's pretty."
"Yup." Without another word, Shippou left the young boy to his thinking. He walked right to over to Kagome. "I'm ready, Mama."
"Alright," answered the young woman. "Goodbye Suki. Have a nice day." Kagome took Shippou's hand and led him out the door to the group that was waiting for them.
"Mama?"
"Yes, Shippou?"
"Who are these people?" the boy gestured to her companions. The woman beside him laughed.
"Shippou, these are my friends: InuYasha, Sesshoumaru, Miroku, Ginta, Hakakku, and you remember Ayame." Shippou walked up to InuYasha and Sesshoumaru and looked at the two curiously.
"Is that your real hair color?" InuYasha kneeled down in front of Shippou so that they were nearly eye level.
"Yes, it's our real hair color. We're part albino." Shippou ran to Kagome again.
"I like them. They didn't say that it was rude to ask a person's real hair color." This statement made everyone laugh. Who couldn't remember the days where it was almost acceptable to ask that question? If a teenager asked that question, they would probably be slapped.
The group continued down the street until they made it to the "Higurashi Estate" where the five residents went inside while the others continued to their own homes.
-Tuesday-
Kagome woke up before her alarm clock could do that job and was sitting in the doorway that led to the terrace. The light rain was wetting her and the wind traced shadows on her face. Closing her eyes, she lost herself in this safe haven she just created. Then the alarm clock sounded its shrill, waking call.
"I linger in the doorway,
Of alarm clock screaming,
Monsters calling my name,
Let me stay,
Where the wind will whisper to me,
Where the raindrops
As they're falling tell a story," Kagome finished. Immediately, she rushed to her bedside table to where she left her paper from yesterday. She copied down her newest verse and looked at what she had already written. With the verse she just created, the chorus she made yesterday, the verse she wrote in Gym class and the one she formed last night, she had the lyrics for the song she was working on. All she needed now was for the rest to hear it and add to it like they do sometimes. Basically, someone starts a song and Kagome creates lyrics and they all add to it in their own way. It always works.
After turning off the alarm, Kagome stepped into the shower and quickly washed up. She dried her hair and wrapped the towel around her and began the search for the clothes she was going to wear; taking into consideration the fact that it was raining. Finally, she settled on a green camo shirt with sleeves that flared out and a long, black skirt with an embroidered, neon-green stem of thorns. On her feet was a pair of black boots that elegantly fit her foot. Again, her wrists were adorned with the black and dark green sex bracelets; she never takes them off unless she has to look really nice. A studded collar was wrapped around her neck and her emerald posts were slightly hidden by her hair. Going back to her bathroom, she applied her make-up the same way she usually does: a slightly translucent green eyeliner fully across the upper eyelid and halfway on the lower one, a very light rose blush on her cheeks, and a gold-tinted lip- gloss on her lips. As she walked into her bedroom, she looked at the full- length mirror hanging on the wall.
"I did a pretty fine job on these clothes," Kagome commented herself. Ever since her mother taught her how to sew on the sewing machine, she has made the majority of the clothes she owned. That made it impossible to wear the same clothes as someone else. It also made her feel proud when people ask her where she got her outfit. Taking the paper with the lyrics on it, Kagome headed to Shippou's room to make sure he was awake. After hearing no reply to her knocking, she entered the room to find Shippou curled up in the middle of the bed still sleeping. She gently woke her adopted son and, after making sure he would stay awake, left for Kouga's room. It was kind of funny really. Even though he was the oldest, he could never wake up in the morning so someone younger than him had to make sure he got up. She knocked and there came no reply. Cautiously, Kagome opened the door and found Kouga lying in the middle of the bed in the same position as Shippou. Fighting down the laugh, Kagome shook him until he woke up enough to talk.
"What time is it?" grumbled Kouga.
"Well, good morning to you too. It's seven Kouga, you know, the time someone always gets you up at."
"I don't need sarcasm this early in the morning Kagome."
"Be thankful. Remember how Kohaku and Souta woke you up last time?" Kouga sat up immediately with a look of terror on his face. He turned to Kagome and was greeted with a laughing face.
"Don't do that! I can still feel that ice water." Kouga got up and jumped into the bathroom and closed the door.
"See you downstairs Kouga." Kagome began her descent down the massive staircase and into the kitchen. Souta and Kohaku were already eating their toast and she could tell Rin had been downstairs already because she could she the dishes in the sink; she's the only one who forgets to put them in the dishwasher. So that only left Sango.
Sango!
Five more minutes... came her sister's mumbled reply.
Sango, if I gave you five more minutes, you would have to forfeit wearing clothes to school. Though...I'm sure that Miroku won't mind...
I'm up! I'm up! I'm putting on clothes! I can't believe he groped me yesterday!
Good morning to you, too, Sango Kagome sighed. Doesn't anybody say Good Morning any more?
The toast sprang out of the toaster and without even looking, Kagome caught the two pieces and headed downstairs; leaving two amazed boys to stare.
"I wish I could do that."
"I hear ya Souta."
Kagome headed down to the basement. Well, more like the underground floor that is a lot like the upper floors. The carpet and walls were cream- colored but there was a deep red trim on the top. There were big rooms with large windows facing into the hallway so someone walking by could see what was happening. After all, there's no point in having a window that faced outside if the only thing you see is a whole lot of dirt. She wanted to go to the studio and work on the music for her new lyrics. When she got there though, she heard the unmistakable sound of the drums being played. When she got to the studio, she found Rin sitting behind her drums; playing like there was no tomorrow.
"It seems that we had the same thought when we woke up this morning, eh Rin?" Rin nearly dropped her drumsticks.
"Kagome! How long were you standing there?"
"Long enough to know that you have been working on something and that I like it."
"Really? I was just sort of messing around."
"Yeah, it rocked."
"Thanks, but I know that you didn't come down here just to stalk me."
"You know me to well. I just finished the lyrics I was working on yesterday and wanted to see how it would sound. I wanted to play the piano."
"Can I hear it?"
"Normally, I'd say yes, but if that clock is right," Kagome pointed, "then we only have a few minutes to get to school."
The cousins ran upstairs to find that Sango and Kouga were arguing over who gets the bigger umbrella.
"I want to use it!"
"But I'm a lady, and as a gentleman, you should let me use it."
"You picked me up on Friday. I'm sure you can handle getting a little wet."
"A little wet? A little wet?! It's pouring out there Kouga."
"Which is all the more reason to give the umbrella to me." Kagome and Rin watched in mild interest. If this little tug-of-war continued much longer, there would be a new argument going on: whose fault was it that the umbrella broke?
"Hey, Kagome," Rin whispered. "Should we tell them that it's your umbrella?" Kagome looked over at her cousin.
"Nope. When it does break, they can buy me a better one."
"Still, if they continue like this, we'll be late." She had a point. Kagome walked up to the two teenagers, grasped the umbrella and yanked it away from them. She opened the door, then the umbrella, and proceeded to walk to school. The rest grabbed the nearest umbrella and ran to catch up.
Once the arrived at school, they walked to their lockers and got what they needed for their classes. It was pretty hard to miss the looks some of the people gave them, well, mostly Kagome. Those who would be considered "nerds" gave her looks of deep respect. Those who were considered "outcasts" gave her similar looks as well. Those who were considered "punks" gave an almost understanding look; like she was unanimously selected as alpha female for everyone who was treated like shit for whom they chose to be. On the other hand, those considered "preps" or "jocks" were giving her glares that could peel paint, but that didn't have any effect on the alpha female.
They walked into homeroom and found their seats in the back. The rest of the gang was already there. To InuYasha's joy, Kagome sat down next to him. To everyone's displeasure, Kikyou walked up to Kagome. The twisted face of vengeance versus the cool face of wisdom.
"This is far from over, bitch. I won't give into your tricks."
"What tricks?"
"The ones you pull to try and make me look like a fool."
"Kikyou, you don't need me to make you look like a fool."
"Bitch!"
"Tsk, tsk, Kikyou. You're being redundant. You know they check for a varied vocabulary on the tests for college."
"See, that's a trick."
"Well, in your world, maybe it is, but in the real world, it's called out-witting."
"You're being untolerable."
"Intolerable."
"What?"
"Intolerable. I'm being intolerable." This slightly threw Kikyou off guard but she quickly recovered with one of the most childish comebacks ever created.
"I'm glad you're admitting it."
"Admitting what?"
"That you're being untolerable."
"Intolerable." That did it for Kikyou, with a scream of frustration she left Kagome; the calm-faced, out-witting alpha female of the 'outsiders'.
On cue, the bell rang for first period. Some students left while some stayed for Literacy. Miss Sora stood at the head of the classroom to begin her lesson.
"All right class, today we will be looking at poetry and the hidden meaning behind them. For starters, does anybody know any poetry?"
All hands in the room went up.
"That they memorized?"
Half went down.
"And know the meaning behind the words?"
Two hands were left in the air. Miss Sora looked at the two people with their hands raised and in a sort of tired voice asked her last question.
"That isn't dirty?"
Miroku's hand fell instantly and a pout spread on his face and one could have sworn he had muttered 'killjoy'. The teacher smiled and regained her bubbly attitude.
"Kagome, will you please share the poem with the class and tell what you thought it meant." Kagome stood and close her eyes.
"Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hew to hold,
Her early leaf's a flower,
But only so an hour,
Then leaf subsides to leaf,
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day,
Nothing gold can stay." Miss Sora looked impressed. Not many teenagers knew a poem that old. "It' called 'Nothing Gold Can Stay' by Robert Frost. I think that it's trying to say that good things don't last forever. That the gold can never stay." For the rest of the class, they were told to find a poem in one of the books in the room and write a small essay on what they think it means.
Yet again, the classes flew by and it was lunchtime. And like yesterday, Kikyou yet again tried to bring Kagome down. Though this time, she had a resource. On Friday, Naraku was trying to listen in on the conversation held in the back and caught enough to realize that Kagome had a drug problem when she was younger. This could diffidently kill the popularity of her enemy. Maybe even force her to transfer schools. Yes, and she found a way to spread it to the entire school.
As the gang was eating their lunch, they noticed that everyone was staring at them with rather shocked looks on their faces. A girl who would be considered a "nerd" walked over and handed over a piece of paper to Kagome and asked, "Is this true, Kagome?" Looking down at the flyer, she noticed immediately what the girl was interrogating about. The paper had one basic message: Kagome had a drug problem. She looked at the girl, and then at the paper. Returning her ice-blue eyes to the girl in front of her, she asked probably the most unexpected question.
"What is your name?" The girl looked slightly taken aback.
"My name is Koharu." Kagome looked thoughtful. Everyone was silent.
"Koharu, where did you get this?"
"There all over the school?"
"Do you believe this?" Her voice still calm.
"I don't want to."
"Koharu?" Kagome had no choice. She had to share this part of her life with the entire school. Hatred is something she could tolerate. But hatred borne of lies is something that Kagome could never stand for.
"Yes, Kagome?"
"Do you know how to read?" Koharu looked even more shocked than before.
"Of course."
"And then relate what you read to the present situation?"
"Yes." Kagome began to dig through her purse and handed a piece of paper to her. Koharu realized that it was a newspaper article and unfolded it and began to read. As soon as she started reading, however, Kikyou strutted into the cafeteria and headed straight for Kagome. She noticed one of her flyers in her hand.
"Kagome, I heard that you had a drug problem. What is it? Pot? Alcohol? Ecstasy?" Kikyou formulated loudly. Kagome noticed Koharu's face becoming more and more shocked and that her friends and family were gripping the bench they were sitting on so they wouldn't tackle Kikyou to the ground and rip out all of her hair.
"Actually, it was steroids, sleeping pills and anti-depressants." The people in the cafeteria looked shocked, even the gang looked up at her in surprise. But Koharu, who finished the reading, looked almost scared as she glanced from the paper in her hand to the girl who gave it to her. Even Kikyou was a bit surprised that she didn't try to deny it but, like always, recovered quickly.
"That must have been a pretty sweet combo for you. I bet the feeling was-"
"You bitch," came the sound of a furious whisper. Everyone turned to Koharu. "You bitch!" she repeated. "You would really try to... all because you're... I can't believe that..." She was to shocked and angry that it was hard to make full sentences on her own... so she decided to use the ones that were lying in her hand; standing on the bench so every one could see and hear her. She read: "A young twelve-year-old girl was put in a coma due to the lack of responsibility and judgment on the behalves of a psychiatrist and physical therapist, both wishing to remain nameless. Neglecting responsibilities, the two never discussed their medication prescriptions like they were supposed to. The combined effects of medical steroids, sleeping pills, and anti-depressants on her already weakened body caused dramatic results. She went into a seizure with violent convulsions as her body started to shut down. Paramedics were able to revive her heart after it had stopped in two minutes. The two therapists will be sued for medical malpractice when the young girl awakens. In light of the situation, we did not press the family for questions. We wish her and the family the best of luck and a speedy recovery." Koharu finished. Everyone was staring at Kikyou, Kikyou turned horrified eyes to Kagome, and Kagome was serene. Koharu voiced what everyone was thinking. "You're disgusting." Koharu jumped off of the bench she was standing on, walked up to Kikyou and slapped her. She was about to do it again when a hand grabbed her wrist, not painfully tight but it was enough to stop the swing of the slap. Koharu followed the path of the hand and found that it was attached to Kagome.
"Don't. I think she got the point." Quite the contrary actually. Kikyou turned Koharu around and slapped her. She was about to fall to the ground but Kagome caught her. Her voice was calm and her eyes were sorrowful. "I'm sorry, I guess I was wrong." She sat her on the bench and turned to Kikyou who was posing to slap again; Kagome didn't move, but she did speak. "There is one huge difference between you and me. You have such little control over your emotions. You anger to easily." Kikyou went to slap Kagome with all her strength and Kagome didn't move until it was the last second. She caught her hand. "I, on the other hand, have enough control over myself that it infuriates you. But, I do not tolerate hurting someone when you deserve the punishment they give you. I'm warning you." Kikyou chose not to heed her warning and instead tried to kick Kagome in the back when she turned away to check on Koharu, but her foot made contact with her enemy's hand. Fast as lighting, Kagome spun which caused Kikyou to lose her balance and fall to the ground. Kagome shook her head and sighed. "I have had problems, Sango was completely honest with you yesterday when she said that I've been through so much shit in my life that not only would it make your hair curl, it would make it fall out."
Kagome looked around the cafeteria to find everyone was looking at her. The different types of looks from the different types of people seemed to have intensified. More respect, more understanding, and more hatred. She turned to look at Koharu; she looked shocked and she had a red handprint on her left cheek.
"Come on Koharu. Let's fix you up." Kagome wrapped her arm around the other girl's shoulder and the gang followed them; Sango, Ayame, and Rin treading heavily on Kikyou's left hand. After they got to the girl's bathroom (the boys were outside the door), they placed a cold, wet paper towel on the red mark. After Koharu was taken care of, they got their needed books and headed to history. They made it just in time to sit down when the bell rang. Urasuea walked in soon after.
"Alright class, if you didn't do last night's homework, then you have a detention for the rest of the week." She walked around the classroom to quickly grade the homework that was assigned. Everyone turned to look as she looked at Kagome. "Ahh, Miss Higurashi, should I sign you up for detention?" Kagome smiled calmly.
"No mam."
"Excuse me."
"You don't need to sign me up for detention. I did the homework."
"But..."
"Sango told me the questions and pages. See." Kagome handed the teacher her homework. Urasuea grabbed the papers and scrutinized them.
They were perfect.
Urasuea managed to ground out a good job. Kagome smirked.
'Check mate'
§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§
A/N: Oh how I miss the good old days where you could ask anyone if that was their real hair color and not get slapped. I know, not my best work, but I'm trying to find ideas that would be funny. Bye bye. Review please (I need self confidence)
FireAngelWarrior: No, thank you for everything. I mean it.
ShadowStalker2008: Thanks
Ali B: I love high school fics too.
shan(): Hope I didn't make you wait to long
Meeko(): My ideas come from anything (mostly my weird imagination). As for the writing back thing, I figure that you spend your time reviewing, that I should say something back. The more you write, the more I write back. Thanks
SilentSlayer: I'm a big InuKag person. They get closer in this chapter, sorta. Thanks for the review
babygirl20008: Wow...I got an addict. I know the feeling though. There is this one story called Simply Irresistible that I love but the author took a hiatus and I'm impatient. If Chase (angelwings123) is reading this story then I grovel at your feet to please update soon.
Moongoddess1989: My next story is gonna be InuYasha but it will come out after this one. It's hard enough to manage one story and all the school work I get. Two would make me crack. Besides, it would take longer to update. BTW I hate britney spears but I figure that it would be good for Kikyou's character. Amy Lee could beat her into the ground any day of the week.
yasha21: thank YOU thank YOU thank YOU! (I loved your wording)
Chibi Children: I know. It was supposed to be sister but I wrote it at five in the morning after no sleep and it was spelt correctly. I realized it after I updated and I am too lazy to change it. But I think you get the idea.
angelkitty77: The homicidal tendencies aren't in this chapter (but utter out-witting is). Keep an eye out for more in later chapters though. I aim to please and that was my favorite part.
sammy(): one of my best friend's name is Samantha. Thanks for the review.
If there were more reviews than I didn't get them yet. Enjoy the story after disclaimer
Disclaimer: I own shit. I think that sums it up!
~*~Muted Words~*~ §Nothing Gold Can Stay§
-Monday (After School)-
"Why did you stop me Kagome?!"
"Sango, give into her feeble attempts and you do what she wants you to. Hit her, she wins. I refuse to let you be seen as weak. I know you're stronger then her. You've shown me that when you tried to hold back."
"But Kagome, she really hit a soft spot. She said you never had any problems in your life."
Kagome looked at the sky. She and the gang were walking through the park to get home. The incident in the hallway was the topic of their discussion. Kagome looked at her surroundings. There were flower; dried from the coldness of the air, fluffy clouds drifting in the hazy colors that decorated the sky. She could stay here forever. It doesn't even seem real.
"In my field of paper flowers,
And candy clouds of lullaby,
I lie inside myself for hours
And watch my purple sky fly over me." As beautiful as the little verse was, it was completely random for the discussion that was taking place. Taking out the pen and paper from Gym class, she added that to the other verses she created and circled it a few times. That would be the chorus.
"Kagome, you okay?"
"Yes, InuYasha, I'm fine." They gang continued through the park.
"What was that about?"
"Just thought of something I want to use for the lyrics I'm writing." Kouga looked a bit surprised.
"When did you start writing lyrics? You usually tell us."
"I started after I got back from Mr. Mori's office," Kagome admitted. "Why should I waste my time sitting there? It's not like I was going to participate."
"How exactly did that work?" pondered Sesshoumaru.
"You see, I record the classes so I can listen to them again at home incase I miss something important. So when Urasuea was yelling at me..."
"You had it all on tape," concluded InuYasha. "I got to admit, that's pretty smart. Maybe I should try that." Miroku chose to comment that.
"InuYasha, I don't think tapes are going to help you with improving your grades."
"Shut the hell up, Miroku."
"Wait, InuYasha, you're not doing well in school?" Kagome asked.
"I'm not that bad," InuYasha defended. "I get B's mostly, sometimes A's, but I can't do well in History if my life depended on it."
"Urasuea probably isn't helping. I'll bet she's the one holding the noose around your neck," she commented gently. "If it helps you at all, I could always tutor you a bit. I love History. The only one I like more is Literacy."
"You'd tutor me?"
"Of course, after all, I did answer that question right you know."
"Actually, I wasn't sure. Urasuea was so furious that she was outwitted by a punk that she assigned a ton of homework. She never said whether you were right or not."
"A ton? I'm sorry, I didn't mean for this to effect you."
"Don't worry about it Kagome," Sesshoumaru assured. "It was worth it to see her react that way."
"Yeah," Miroku agreed. "That bitch had it coming to her."
"She has no right to treat us like we're dirty rats," Ayame emphasized.
"You see," InuYasha grinned. "You did us a favor. So...you'd really tutor me?" Kagome smiled which made his heart soar. He wanted her to do it more. He'd give anything for her to smile like that. Do anything. And hurt anyone who would take that smile away.
"I said I would," Kagome affirmed. At the moment, they exited the park and were in front of a large, brick building. "Wait, I have to go in here."
"Why?" inquired InuYasha.
"I have to get Shippou." She left before anyone could say anything. The building was the place that watched the children of working parents after school. It didn't take much convincing to get Shippou in; the workers found him absolutely adorable.
"Hello Kagome, how are you today?" asked a young woman with mouse- brown hair, gray eyes, and a flashing smile.
"Hey Suki. I'm feeling much better. And you?"
"A bit tired, these kids can really wear a girl down. I heard you went to the hospital Friday. Keade came to pick up Shippou for you."
"I did, but it was only some breathing problems."
"Nothing serious I hope?"
"No. It was like being out of breath. Nothing really serious."
"That's good to he-"
"Mama!" came the joyous cry of a little four year old. His tiny form practically bounding to Kagome; rusty-red hair tied up into a ponytail and green eyes shining.
"Hello Shippou. And how was your day?" Kagome laughed. After all the stress that today brought, it sure was good to see his smiling face. She hugged him tightly.
"It was fun," exclaimed the small child. "I drew this picture." Shippou ran to a table that was close by and grabbed a piece of paper. It had a big house in the bathroom with Rin, Sango, Kouga, Souta, and Kohaku all standing around in front. Shippou was on her back in the center of the picture. It was very good for a child of his age; he stayed in the lines and the people weren't stick figures.
"Wow Shippou! This is really good. Where do you want to put it?"
"On the refrigidater."
"Refrigerator? Sure. We'll hang it as soon as we get home," Kagome assured. "Now go get your stuff so we can go home."
"Okay." He made his way to the coat rack to get his coat and backpack. While there, a young boy came up and asked him a question.
"Is that your mother?"
"Yup. That's my Mama."
"She's pretty."
"Yup." Without another word, Shippou left the young boy to his thinking. He walked right to over to Kagome. "I'm ready, Mama."
"Alright," answered the young woman. "Goodbye Suki. Have a nice day." Kagome took Shippou's hand and led him out the door to the group that was waiting for them.
"Mama?"
"Yes, Shippou?"
"Who are these people?" the boy gestured to her companions. The woman beside him laughed.
"Shippou, these are my friends: InuYasha, Sesshoumaru, Miroku, Ginta, Hakakku, and you remember Ayame." Shippou walked up to InuYasha and Sesshoumaru and looked at the two curiously.
"Is that your real hair color?" InuYasha kneeled down in front of Shippou so that they were nearly eye level.
"Yes, it's our real hair color. We're part albino." Shippou ran to Kagome again.
"I like them. They didn't say that it was rude to ask a person's real hair color." This statement made everyone laugh. Who couldn't remember the days where it was almost acceptable to ask that question? If a teenager asked that question, they would probably be slapped.
The group continued down the street until they made it to the "Higurashi Estate" where the five residents went inside while the others continued to their own homes.
-Tuesday-
Kagome woke up before her alarm clock could do that job and was sitting in the doorway that led to the terrace. The light rain was wetting her and the wind traced shadows on her face. Closing her eyes, she lost herself in this safe haven she just created. Then the alarm clock sounded its shrill, waking call.
"I linger in the doorway,
Of alarm clock screaming,
Monsters calling my name,
Let me stay,
Where the wind will whisper to me,
Where the raindrops
As they're falling tell a story," Kagome finished. Immediately, she rushed to her bedside table to where she left her paper from yesterday. She copied down her newest verse and looked at what she had already written. With the verse she just created, the chorus she made yesterday, the verse she wrote in Gym class and the one she formed last night, she had the lyrics for the song she was working on. All she needed now was for the rest to hear it and add to it like they do sometimes. Basically, someone starts a song and Kagome creates lyrics and they all add to it in their own way. It always works.
After turning off the alarm, Kagome stepped into the shower and quickly washed up. She dried her hair and wrapped the towel around her and began the search for the clothes she was going to wear; taking into consideration the fact that it was raining. Finally, she settled on a green camo shirt with sleeves that flared out and a long, black skirt with an embroidered, neon-green stem of thorns. On her feet was a pair of black boots that elegantly fit her foot. Again, her wrists were adorned with the black and dark green sex bracelets; she never takes them off unless she has to look really nice. A studded collar was wrapped around her neck and her emerald posts were slightly hidden by her hair. Going back to her bathroom, she applied her make-up the same way she usually does: a slightly translucent green eyeliner fully across the upper eyelid and halfway on the lower one, a very light rose blush on her cheeks, and a gold-tinted lip- gloss on her lips. As she walked into her bedroom, she looked at the full- length mirror hanging on the wall.
"I did a pretty fine job on these clothes," Kagome commented herself. Ever since her mother taught her how to sew on the sewing machine, she has made the majority of the clothes she owned. That made it impossible to wear the same clothes as someone else. It also made her feel proud when people ask her where she got her outfit. Taking the paper with the lyrics on it, Kagome headed to Shippou's room to make sure he was awake. After hearing no reply to her knocking, she entered the room to find Shippou curled up in the middle of the bed still sleeping. She gently woke her adopted son and, after making sure he would stay awake, left for Kouga's room. It was kind of funny really. Even though he was the oldest, he could never wake up in the morning so someone younger than him had to make sure he got up. She knocked and there came no reply. Cautiously, Kagome opened the door and found Kouga lying in the middle of the bed in the same position as Shippou. Fighting down the laugh, Kagome shook him until he woke up enough to talk.
"What time is it?" grumbled Kouga.
"Well, good morning to you too. It's seven Kouga, you know, the time someone always gets you up at."
"I don't need sarcasm this early in the morning Kagome."
"Be thankful. Remember how Kohaku and Souta woke you up last time?" Kouga sat up immediately with a look of terror on his face. He turned to Kagome and was greeted with a laughing face.
"Don't do that! I can still feel that ice water." Kouga got up and jumped into the bathroom and closed the door.
"See you downstairs Kouga." Kagome began her descent down the massive staircase and into the kitchen. Souta and Kohaku were already eating their toast and she could tell Rin had been downstairs already because she could she the dishes in the sink; she's the only one who forgets to put them in the dishwasher. So that only left Sango.
Sango!
Five more minutes... came her sister's mumbled reply.
Sango, if I gave you five more minutes, you would have to forfeit wearing clothes to school. Though...I'm sure that Miroku won't mind...
I'm up! I'm up! I'm putting on clothes! I can't believe he groped me yesterday!
Good morning to you, too, Sango Kagome sighed. Doesn't anybody say Good Morning any more?
The toast sprang out of the toaster and without even looking, Kagome caught the two pieces and headed downstairs; leaving two amazed boys to stare.
"I wish I could do that."
"I hear ya Souta."
Kagome headed down to the basement. Well, more like the underground floor that is a lot like the upper floors. The carpet and walls were cream- colored but there was a deep red trim on the top. There were big rooms with large windows facing into the hallway so someone walking by could see what was happening. After all, there's no point in having a window that faced outside if the only thing you see is a whole lot of dirt. She wanted to go to the studio and work on the music for her new lyrics. When she got there though, she heard the unmistakable sound of the drums being played. When she got to the studio, she found Rin sitting behind her drums; playing like there was no tomorrow.
"It seems that we had the same thought when we woke up this morning, eh Rin?" Rin nearly dropped her drumsticks.
"Kagome! How long were you standing there?"
"Long enough to know that you have been working on something and that I like it."
"Really? I was just sort of messing around."
"Yeah, it rocked."
"Thanks, but I know that you didn't come down here just to stalk me."
"You know me to well. I just finished the lyrics I was working on yesterday and wanted to see how it would sound. I wanted to play the piano."
"Can I hear it?"
"Normally, I'd say yes, but if that clock is right," Kagome pointed, "then we only have a few minutes to get to school."
The cousins ran upstairs to find that Sango and Kouga were arguing over who gets the bigger umbrella.
"I want to use it!"
"But I'm a lady, and as a gentleman, you should let me use it."
"You picked me up on Friday. I'm sure you can handle getting a little wet."
"A little wet? A little wet?! It's pouring out there Kouga."
"Which is all the more reason to give the umbrella to me." Kagome and Rin watched in mild interest. If this little tug-of-war continued much longer, there would be a new argument going on: whose fault was it that the umbrella broke?
"Hey, Kagome," Rin whispered. "Should we tell them that it's your umbrella?" Kagome looked over at her cousin.
"Nope. When it does break, they can buy me a better one."
"Still, if they continue like this, we'll be late." She had a point. Kagome walked up to the two teenagers, grasped the umbrella and yanked it away from them. She opened the door, then the umbrella, and proceeded to walk to school. The rest grabbed the nearest umbrella and ran to catch up.
Once the arrived at school, they walked to their lockers and got what they needed for their classes. It was pretty hard to miss the looks some of the people gave them, well, mostly Kagome. Those who would be considered "nerds" gave her looks of deep respect. Those who were considered "outcasts" gave her similar looks as well. Those who were considered "punks" gave an almost understanding look; like she was unanimously selected as alpha female for everyone who was treated like shit for whom they chose to be. On the other hand, those considered "preps" or "jocks" were giving her glares that could peel paint, but that didn't have any effect on the alpha female.
They walked into homeroom and found their seats in the back. The rest of the gang was already there. To InuYasha's joy, Kagome sat down next to him. To everyone's displeasure, Kikyou walked up to Kagome. The twisted face of vengeance versus the cool face of wisdom.
"This is far from over, bitch. I won't give into your tricks."
"What tricks?"
"The ones you pull to try and make me look like a fool."
"Kikyou, you don't need me to make you look like a fool."
"Bitch!"
"Tsk, tsk, Kikyou. You're being redundant. You know they check for a varied vocabulary on the tests for college."
"See, that's a trick."
"Well, in your world, maybe it is, but in the real world, it's called out-witting."
"You're being untolerable."
"Intolerable."
"What?"
"Intolerable. I'm being intolerable." This slightly threw Kikyou off guard but she quickly recovered with one of the most childish comebacks ever created.
"I'm glad you're admitting it."
"Admitting what?"
"That you're being untolerable."
"Intolerable." That did it for Kikyou, with a scream of frustration she left Kagome; the calm-faced, out-witting alpha female of the 'outsiders'.
On cue, the bell rang for first period. Some students left while some stayed for Literacy. Miss Sora stood at the head of the classroom to begin her lesson.
"All right class, today we will be looking at poetry and the hidden meaning behind them. For starters, does anybody know any poetry?"
All hands in the room went up.
"That they memorized?"
Half went down.
"And know the meaning behind the words?"
Two hands were left in the air. Miss Sora looked at the two people with their hands raised and in a sort of tired voice asked her last question.
"That isn't dirty?"
Miroku's hand fell instantly and a pout spread on his face and one could have sworn he had muttered 'killjoy'. The teacher smiled and regained her bubbly attitude.
"Kagome, will you please share the poem with the class and tell what you thought it meant." Kagome stood and close her eyes.
"Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hew to hold,
Her early leaf's a flower,
But only so an hour,
Then leaf subsides to leaf,
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day,
Nothing gold can stay." Miss Sora looked impressed. Not many teenagers knew a poem that old. "It' called 'Nothing Gold Can Stay' by Robert Frost. I think that it's trying to say that good things don't last forever. That the gold can never stay." For the rest of the class, they were told to find a poem in one of the books in the room and write a small essay on what they think it means.
Yet again, the classes flew by and it was lunchtime. And like yesterday, Kikyou yet again tried to bring Kagome down. Though this time, she had a resource. On Friday, Naraku was trying to listen in on the conversation held in the back and caught enough to realize that Kagome had a drug problem when she was younger. This could diffidently kill the popularity of her enemy. Maybe even force her to transfer schools. Yes, and she found a way to spread it to the entire school.
As the gang was eating their lunch, they noticed that everyone was staring at them with rather shocked looks on their faces. A girl who would be considered a "nerd" walked over and handed over a piece of paper to Kagome and asked, "Is this true, Kagome?" Looking down at the flyer, she noticed immediately what the girl was interrogating about. The paper had one basic message: Kagome had a drug problem. She looked at the girl, and then at the paper. Returning her ice-blue eyes to the girl in front of her, she asked probably the most unexpected question.
"What is your name?" The girl looked slightly taken aback.
"My name is Koharu." Kagome looked thoughtful. Everyone was silent.
"Koharu, where did you get this?"
"There all over the school?"
"Do you believe this?" Her voice still calm.
"I don't want to."
"Koharu?" Kagome had no choice. She had to share this part of her life with the entire school. Hatred is something she could tolerate. But hatred borne of lies is something that Kagome could never stand for.
"Yes, Kagome?"
"Do you know how to read?" Koharu looked even more shocked than before.
"Of course."
"And then relate what you read to the present situation?"
"Yes." Kagome began to dig through her purse and handed a piece of paper to her. Koharu realized that it was a newspaper article and unfolded it and began to read. As soon as she started reading, however, Kikyou strutted into the cafeteria and headed straight for Kagome. She noticed one of her flyers in her hand.
"Kagome, I heard that you had a drug problem. What is it? Pot? Alcohol? Ecstasy?" Kikyou formulated loudly. Kagome noticed Koharu's face becoming more and more shocked and that her friends and family were gripping the bench they were sitting on so they wouldn't tackle Kikyou to the ground and rip out all of her hair.
"Actually, it was steroids, sleeping pills and anti-depressants." The people in the cafeteria looked shocked, even the gang looked up at her in surprise. But Koharu, who finished the reading, looked almost scared as she glanced from the paper in her hand to the girl who gave it to her. Even Kikyou was a bit surprised that she didn't try to deny it but, like always, recovered quickly.
"That must have been a pretty sweet combo for you. I bet the feeling was-"
"You bitch," came the sound of a furious whisper. Everyone turned to Koharu. "You bitch!" she repeated. "You would really try to... all because you're... I can't believe that..." She was to shocked and angry that it was hard to make full sentences on her own... so she decided to use the ones that were lying in her hand; standing on the bench so every one could see and hear her. She read: "A young twelve-year-old girl was put in a coma due to the lack of responsibility and judgment on the behalves of a psychiatrist and physical therapist, both wishing to remain nameless. Neglecting responsibilities, the two never discussed their medication prescriptions like they were supposed to. The combined effects of medical steroids, sleeping pills, and anti-depressants on her already weakened body caused dramatic results. She went into a seizure with violent convulsions as her body started to shut down. Paramedics were able to revive her heart after it had stopped in two minutes. The two therapists will be sued for medical malpractice when the young girl awakens. In light of the situation, we did not press the family for questions. We wish her and the family the best of luck and a speedy recovery." Koharu finished. Everyone was staring at Kikyou, Kikyou turned horrified eyes to Kagome, and Kagome was serene. Koharu voiced what everyone was thinking. "You're disgusting." Koharu jumped off of the bench she was standing on, walked up to Kikyou and slapped her. She was about to do it again when a hand grabbed her wrist, not painfully tight but it was enough to stop the swing of the slap. Koharu followed the path of the hand and found that it was attached to Kagome.
"Don't. I think she got the point." Quite the contrary actually. Kikyou turned Koharu around and slapped her. She was about to fall to the ground but Kagome caught her. Her voice was calm and her eyes were sorrowful. "I'm sorry, I guess I was wrong." She sat her on the bench and turned to Kikyou who was posing to slap again; Kagome didn't move, but she did speak. "There is one huge difference between you and me. You have such little control over your emotions. You anger to easily." Kikyou went to slap Kagome with all her strength and Kagome didn't move until it was the last second. She caught her hand. "I, on the other hand, have enough control over myself that it infuriates you. But, I do not tolerate hurting someone when you deserve the punishment they give you. I'm warning you." Kikyou chose not to heed her warning and instead tried to kick Kagome in the back when she turned away to check on Koharu, but her foot made contact with her enemy's hand. Fast as lighting, Kagome spun which caused Kikyou to lose her balance and fall to the ground. Kagome shook her head and sighed. "I have had problems, Sango was completely honest with you yesterday when she said that I've been through so much shit in my life that not only would it make your hair curl, it would make it fall out."
Kagome looked around the cafeteria to find everyone was looking at her. The different types of looks from the different types of people seemed to have intensified. More respect, more understanding, and more hatred. She turned to look at Koharu; she looked shocked and she had a red handprint on her left cheek.
"Come on Koharu. Let's fix you up." Kagome wrapped her arm around the other girl's shoulder and the gang followed them; Sango, Ayame, and Rin treading heavily on Kikyou's left hand. After they got to the girl's bathroom (the boys were outside the door), they placed a cold, wet paper towel on the red mark. After Koharu was taken care of, they got their needed books and headed to history. They made it just in time to sit down when the bell rang. Urasuea walked in soon after.
"Alright class, if you didn't do last night's homework, then you have a detention for the rest of the week." She walked around the classroom to quickly grade the homework that was assigned. Everyone turned to look as she looked at Kagome. "Ahh, Miss Higurashi, should I sign you up for detention?" Kagome smiled calmly.
"No mam."
"Excuse me."
"You don't need to sign me up for detention. I did the homework."
"But..."
"Sango told me the questions and pages. See." Kagome handed the teacher her homework. Urasuea grabbed the papers and scrutinized them.
They were perfect.
Urasuea managed to ground out a good job. Kagome smirked.
'Check mate'
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A/N: Oh how I miss the good old days where you could ask anyone if that was their real hair color and not get slapped. I know, not my best work, but I'm trying to find ideas that would be funny. Bye bye. Review please (I need self confidence)
