Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me

Chapter Fourteen: Hojo Makes a Discovery

October 15th

Battling demons wasn't nearly as hard as trying catch up in school work. Kikyo pulled herself out of bed with great effort. She had barely been able to grab two hours of sleep after finally finishing her homework assignments. To make things worse, she was pretty sure that she had done half of it wrong.

Kagome is going to be very angry with me when she returns and finds herself failing all of her classes. Kikyo frowned. She didn't like to think about when Kagome would be coming back.

She knew it was selfish, but she didn't want Kagome to come back at all. If she could only continue living this life she would be happy. School may be tough, but it beat living her life protecting some stupid jewel. Constantly being hunted. Never being happy. Never being able to live. Or love.

Glancing towards the mirror she thought of Kagome, and wondered how she was doing. Every time she saw her in the mirror she seemed to be happy, tired, but happy. The girl actually seemed to be enjoying herself. And she even found herself in the company of yet another demon. A fox demon this time.

"Kikyo, darling, it's time to get up!"

"Okay, Mom!"

Kikyo kicked off the covers. Her favorite thing in the world was to leave a messy bed. It was one small defiance against the life of order she had been forced to live.

Her other favorite thing was hearing her mother call her "darling". It made her feel a part of a family… and loved. It was like she was really a normal girl. She felt a moment's pang of guilt before pushing it away and headed downstairs.

The homemade pancakes and syrup came in a close third though as far as favorite things went. Oooh, and the ice cream! Her mother had allowed her to have ice cream after dinner every night since she first tried the delicious treat with Souta, after the haircut incident, and completely fell in love with it. Kikyo knew she was being spoiled, and reveled in the feeling.

She smiled at the family sitting around the table. Kagome is a fool for wanting a different kind of life.

Even though it had only been since Monday when Kikyo started to school, she was already getting used to where her classes were and knew most of her teachers and her friends' names.

"How are you enjoying school, dear?"

Kikyo beamed. "I love it! There is so much to learn." Then she frowned. "Though I am still so far behind everyone else."

Her mother patted her head reassuringly as she walked her two children to the door. "You will catch up. You are a very bright girl." She thought for a moment. "We can see about getting you a tutor though if you would like. A tutor will be able to help you catch up and will be able to explain things to you clearly."

Kikyo appreciated how her mother would explain unusual concepts, like a tutor or a hot dog, to her without making her feel like she is stupid.

When she opened the door she found Hojo standing outside with a smile on his face, just as he was every morning since he had found out about Kagome's head injury. It touched Kikyo's heart that he went so far out of his way to walk her to school because he was worried about her.

No. He's worried about Kagome, she sternly reminded herself. Her smile faded.

"Are you alright, Higurashi?"

Kikyo looked up into his very concerned eyes. She couldn't help but smile. Even if he was mistaking her for someone else, it still felt nice to have someone worry about her.

"Good morning, Hojo."

"Good morning, Mrs. Higurashi."

Kikyo buttoned up her coat, picked up her yellow backpack, and started out the door. She stopped and turned around when her mother called out to Hojo again.

"Yes?" He was polite as always.

"You used to tutor Souta last year."

"Yes, I did. He is a bright kid, all he needed was a push in the right direction."

Mrs. Higurashi smiled at the way he didn't tell her that her son was smart but lazy. "Could I use your tutoring services again?"

"Is Souta having difficulties?" Hojo looked past the doorway to see the young boy putting on his shoes and pulling on his jacket.

"Souta is fine," she assured him. "You did a great job teaching him. Actually, I would like you to tutor Kagome."

Hojo's eyes widened, and so did Kikyo's.

"But Higurashi already has some of the top grades in the class. I don't think I could be of much help to her." He sounded, and looked, very sorry to have to turn her down.

Mrs. Higurashi gently touched her daughter's cheek before looking at Hojo. "Since… the accident… my daughter has been having troubles with her memories. And I'm terribly afraid that the memories of some of the things that she was taught in school have been lost as well. She is still very smart, but she will have to re-learn many of the things that you now take for granted."

Hojo looked like he had just been whipped. "I am so sorry." He turned to Kikyo with eyes that seemed to threaten tears. "I should have realized that you would have difficulties. Of course I will do everything in my power to help you."

Kikyo bit her lip and turned her gaze from the earnest boy in front of her to her mother. The woman nodded at her.

"Thank you, Hojo. I would appreciate your help greatly."

With that said, Hojo brightened up and the two went off to school. They talked about how to approach the tutoring. They decided to meet everyday after school for an hour or two and start with the basics and work on current assignments.

"We could meet after school today for an ice cream before we study," he said as they reached the school building.

Kikyo grinned brightly. "That would be great!"

The rest of the day was spent looking forward to the sweet treat. She had already planned on what she would order. The banana split! Mmmmm… the one with one scoop of chocolate, one scoop of strawberry, one scoop of vanilla, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, chopped nuts…

"You're drooling," whispered Eri as she handed Kikyo a note.

Kikyo opened up the note. It asked if she was really meeting Hojo after school. Kikyo looked at her friend and nodded. She was a bit taken aback when the girl almost squealed in happiness.

After school Hojo met Kikyo at the gate and they walked in amiable silence to the ice cream shop. Hojo ordered a hot fudge sundae and Kikyo ordered the banana split deluxe, complete with whipped topping, nuts, and a cherry on top.

About halfway through the delicious treat, Kikyo realized that Hojo had not spoken a word to her since they left school. She took her eyes off the desert to find Hojo staring at her. Licking the ice cream off her lips she looked down at her spoon uncomfortably. Was she supposed to be acting differently? How would Kagome behave?

"Forgive me for asking this," Hojo asked quietly, "but who are you?"

Kikyo's mouth fell open. Quickly she closed it and studied her spoon once more. "Kagome, of course. We're friends, Hojo, since we were kids."

"How did we meet?"

Kikyo laughed nervously. "My memory… remember?"

Hojo pushed away his uneaten sundae and clasped his hands together on the table top, suddenly very serious. "You are not Kagome Higurashi. Every gesture you make and every word you say tells me that you are not her. You can forget your memories, but you can not become an entirely different person."

"I…. I…." Kikyo began to feel panic building within her chest. What would happen if others found out about the switch she and Kagome made. What would happen to her? It isn't fair!

A gasp escaped her lips as she felt her hand being held. She looked across to the young man across from her who was covering her hand with his own.

"Please don't be afraid. You can tell me. You can trust me." And she did. Kikyo actually trusted him.

"My name is Kikyo. It's a very long story."

"I have plenty of time," he assured her.

"Let's go back to Kagome's where we can talk."

Explaining the strange situation took a good portion of the evening. Hojo stayed for dinner, but didn't say much.

"Can I see her?" Hojo asked as vegetables were being passed to him.

Kikyo and her mother looked at each other, then at Hojo.

"I don't see why not." Mrs. Higurashi said.

"I don't always know when she will be there. Sometimes it takes a couple of hours, sometimes a couple of days. We have to be looking for each other at the same time or it doesn't work." Kikyo explained.

During dinner Hojo asked Kikyo questions about her world, and how Kagome seemed to be doing. Is she in danger? Is she healthy? Is she eating well? Kikyo was sorely tempted to hit him over the head with her history textbook, since it was the thickest, if he asked her one more question about Kagome.

Once the dishes were washed and dried, Kikyo and Hojo walked back up the stairs to her room. Kikyo pulled out her textbooks, including her potential weapon, the history book. She looked up to see Hojo staring hard into the mirror. A strange feeling rose within her chest at the sight. It felt as if her heart was being squeezed.

I am not jealous. I am not jealous. I am not jealous, she chanted to herself.

Kikyo cleared her throat. "Did you want to start with Math or History?" Please, please choose history…

"Hmm?"

"Homework. You ARE being paid to tutor me aren't you?" Oooh, now that came out a little more harshly than I intended. She sighed. "Looking in the mirror won't help you, Hojo. It only works if I am the one staring into the mirror."

She came and stood beside him, looking into the mirror at his reflection sadly.

"How did you know I was not Kagome?"

"No one is like Kagome," he answered.

Without a word Kikyo sank to the floor. She pulled her knees to her chest and hugged them close as she stared into the mirror beside Kagome's friend. Quietly he sat beside her, and there they sat… watching… and waiting…