It was almost midnight and Sango was still awake. Not that twelve was truly late, especially with the next day being Saturday, but she usually went to bed pretty early, and her first day of work had been emotionally exhausting. So she had expected to fall asleep shortly after retiring to her room for the evening.

However, she was instead stretched out on her bed, idly thumbing the track button on her walkman. Sure, she had a large stereo, but she rather liked to entertain the thought that she was listening to music no one else could hear.

The cd she was currently playing was burned, meaning it offered a variety of different titles, organized like so, creating a stunning assembly. Sango had what some might consider a curious taste in music. Not only did she like soundtracks, techno, and j-music, but also she equally enjoyed older and more 'classic' songs.

Right now, however, she was waiting for the next song to start playing. The cd should be dog-eared by now, she smirked, for she played it every chance she got. She knew every track by heart, and loved the songs dearly, but she couldn't help feeling oddly apprehensive.

When the peppy, up-beat music began to play, and a woman's voice began to croon, Sango blanched. So that was why: 'Manga Maniac'. A very cool, very sing-able song, albeit one that implied all together suggestive, erotic, and disturbing meanings, but a very good song nonetheless.

In fact, if it didn't remind Sango so much of that pervert from earlier, she would be thoroughly enjoying it. Quickly switching tracks, she decided that however much she liked it, she wouldn't be playing it for a long time to come.

She mellowed considerably when one of her favorite songs came on, 'Raven', by Do As Infinity. The instrumentals were superb, and the vocals stirred deep thoughts from her otherwise fried mind. She found herself repeatedly pressing the 'previous track' button on her walkman until her mother came in to find her asleep on the bed.

The cd had stopped playing, for the batteries had died out, but that was just as well, for had Sango been awake, she would have noted that she wouldn't wish for such beautiful music to play for those not able to enjoy it's sentiments.

Mayhap, however, she would have taken back her musings if she had known that the last song that played was a rousing chorus of 'Manga Maniac'.

So there Sango slept, in her patented Strawberry Shortcake pj's, until the morning light streaming through the window signaled her body to awaken. And so she did, swearing when she heard the telltale crunch of her walkman beneath her body. Oh, and the fact that her ears hurt like hell from those blasted plugs being crammed in all night, did not tempt her to sport a cheery outlook this new day. After last time, she swore she'd never fall asleep with them in again!

So, like the true grouch she was in the morning, she passed her dresser-top mirror with a scowl that would make old Oscar proud. She had to work today too, but not til later, thank God.

So, she trudged downstairs with a not-too-positive but not-too-negative look, attire consisting of her more dressy black flares and a dark purple turtleneck. It may be approaching summer, but this girl could bare long pants in almost any weather, which greatly helped the fact that she almost refused to wear shorts.

She didn't like to eat breakfast, though she made herself useful by fixing her younger brother Kohaku some cereal, leaving out only the milk, for she didn't want everything to sog by the time he woke up.

Her mother had apparently already gone to work, so that left Sango stumped and money-less. Kagome had promised to take her little brother Souta to the park, so that crossed her off the list. Ayame had needed new clothes and had left for the mall bright and early. Her boyfriend Kuranosuke was stuck at home cleaning house all day, but his parents were home so it would be a boring visit if she headed over. All of her other friends were busy too, damn it!

Oh well. She could always pop in some anime in their new dvd player. Sango might be popular at school, but that didn't mean she couldn't indulge in a little 'geek-culture', now did it? Kohaku had gotten her into it a few years ago.

Her favorite series was Love Hina; she quite enjoyed seeing the Hinata Sou crew beat the crap out of Keitaro everytime he put a foot out of line, though she would admit they took it too far sometimes, and would almost admit to feeling sorry for the poor oaf.

So after wandering aimlessly around the house looking for her perfect collection box set, she popped in the Christmas Special and positioned herself by the couch and near the phone, in case anyone decided they weren't busy and wanted to give her a call.

But alas, the escapades of the hapless ronin and friends played through without interruption, and Sango found herself frowning. Kohaku had awoken and eaten breakfast before leaving to meet his own friends around halfway through the movie. It was Saturday, and come one, when your middle school brother had better things to do than you did on the weekend that was pretty sad.

Before she could retrieve the case for the dvd she had been watching, the phone did ring, much to her delight. She literally pounced on it, barely containing her excitement. Hell, even if it was a telemarketer...! "Moshi-moshi?"

"Hey, San-chan," Kuranosuke's pleasant voice greeted her. "What's up?"

"Osuke-kun!" she exclaimed. "I'm just being bored but...I thought you had to help around the house today?"

"I did," Kuranosuke replied with a chuckle. "I finished them as fast as I could so I could do something with you, but first I have some great news!"

Kuranosuke was a nice boy, if a little bit on the possessive side. He came from a well-to-do family and lived in a cozy little manner on the other side of town. In fact, it was at his home where he had met Sango; she had been giving his family lessons in hand-to-hand martial arts. They had been going steady ever since.

He also happened to attend Goshinboku Academy, a private facility near his neighborhood. Little did Sango know, his news would concern the prestigious school. "Oh?" was all she could reply. She added, teasing, "What news is so important you couldn't have waited to tell me, Osuke-kun?"

"Goshinboku's getting ready to re-model. Half of the students are being transferred to Shikon High School for the remainder of the school year while the other half are going to go to Sengoku Jidai Middle School!"

Shikon High, Shikon High...Sango's eyes widened. She went to Shikon High! "You mean you could be coming here?"

"Yup!" Kuranosuke audibly 'grinned'.

Sango's eyes sparkled happily. She could deal with a hundred perverts after this! "When do you find out who's going where?" she asked anxiously.

"See," Kuranosuke sighed. "That's the problem; we don't know til that very morning,"

"That sucks," Sango grumbled. Upon looking at the clock, she all-out groaned. "Osuke-kun, I have to go to work...Good luck!"

"Ja ne, San-chan,"

She hung up and did a little dance as she went searching for her things. It seemed fate pitied her after what happened yesterday.

A/N: In Keitaro Urashima (Love Hina)'s defense: I feel for the poor dear; he's such a sweetie, but most all he gets for his troubles are beatings. Sango being the prude she is, does not believe in his accidents though she witnesses them all first hand, and therefore has the opposite belief as me on this matter. Oh, and if you haven't noticed, Sango is a bit of a narcissist and pessimist. I would like to note that besides the occasional hangout session with my friends, my Saturdays consist of the usual all-day internet sessions unless I'm 'forced' to spend time with my family. I love being a loner.

I'm taking a page out of Greywolf's book, and in the future I may include a few more music-type scenes, and even a 'surprise', permanent character (a total canon character seen in a totally different light, heh) to soothe my irritation over a particular rant during the first chapter. Believe me, I've already got a few songs lined up for some very appropriate 'moments' between one of our favorite couples.

If you, by some otherworldly chance, are reading this Greywolf, please forgive me for taking the err, 'permanent guest' idea, as I have so dubbed it. I nearly fell out of my chair when I first started seeing those Kikyou/Sesshoumaru hints in your story too, lol. In any case, if you aren't Greywolf, go read his fantastic yet sadly so-far unfinished story, 'Let the Music Be Your Master'.

And while you're at it, download E-Rotic's 'Manga Maniac'. Kick ass song, lemme' tell you, and if you consider the words carefully enough, funny in a bizarre way. Oh, and if you have heard this song before, I err, don't really believe Miroku would engage in the hinted activity so much as I just think the song is perverted in a cool/funny way, just like the houshi himself. Keh, download Raven, too. Your Empress commands thee! (Inside joke, lol, sorry.)

Thank you to my few but loyal reviewers. Shadow Wraith, you have absolutely no idea how horrible this is all going to turn out for Sango. Kukuku...Ok, so maybe you do, but...yah ....

Updated, as of Tuesday, August 5, 2003:

Well, upon my own dissatisfaction over the original third chapter and reviews to back up my own negative opinion of it, I re-did the chapter. The first half of it remains the same, but from the phone conversation on, it has changed. Originally, I didn't plan for Kuranosuke (canon character from episode seventy-eight) to make his appearance as Sango's boyfriend til later on, but not only did I realize that it would conflict with future plans but it would also be odd if Sango didn't mention him at least once before then. So here he is. I know Kuranosuke's sweet but he does seem a tad possessive, and that's good, because I need that for the song I have planned to pop in here. There will be a few more scenes in their school because of this new plot development, and yes, more favorite characters will make an appearance, I assure you. Oh, and lastly, I'm also going to fix the first few paragraphs of chapter four to make sense.

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