Finally! Chapter 3 is here! I really didn't think it'd take this long to get it done. Homework is killin' me. It's a bit longer than the other two. It seems they just keep getting longer and longer. Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter 3

Round Two

Inu-yasha could almost feel the sting his pride took. She'd just walked away! He could honestly say that no girl had ever done that to him. In fact, he was the one who was walking away, and in most cases, he was running away. But if she thought that she had turned him off her, she had another thing coming.

It's official, he thought. She's my project. I just have to know why she did that. She said she wasn't interested, but I get the feeling there's more to it. I'm going to find out what it is. Now, to make it officially official, I have to tell Miroku.

Inu-yasha gathered his almost forgotten books from the ground, still gazing in the direction she'd gone. He walked in the same direction because his class was the same way. He rounded the corner and looked at the room numbers as he walked by. His next class was with someone named Honshu-sensei. He taught algebra. Math, Inu-yasha thought. Oh, joy!

Room 201 was only two doors down from the corner. He sighed and opened the door. Needless to say, everyone in the whole room turned around to look at him. Inu-yasha was used to attention so it didn't bother him as much as it would to someone else.

A man who Inu-yasha guessed was Honshu-sensei said, "And who are you?" He was young, maybe in his mid-twenties, and looked like he'd just shaved the day before. His dark brown hair curled in soft locks around his forehead. His clever sapphire eyes could make any woman speechless. He was standing behind his desk with his hands on the desk, holding his muscular frame up.

"Inu-yasha. And you're Honshu-sensei?"

The man nodded sharply and then said, "Would you mind telling me why you're late?" Inu-yasha had the feeling that although the teacher looked rather handsome (remember, this is a girl writing this fanfiction… Inu isn't gay or anything), he was strict with his students.

"The bell rang before I could get here." This earned a few giggles. "I'm just kidding," Inu-yasha said when he saw the dark look on the teacher's face. "No need to get all scary…" A few more soft giggles were heard. "No, really? I got lost, but one of the security officers told me where to go." It was so easy for him to lie. His voice never shook or stuttered and he trained his eyes to stay natural and not betray him. Only Miroku could tell when he was lying and he didn't know how Miroku did it.

The teacher looked at him darkly for a few seconds and then said, "Sit down."

Inu-yasha shrugged. He was used to hostility whether it was from a student or a teacher. He sat down smack in the middle of the room. He glanced around at the students briefly and recognized the boy named Hojo from his earlier class and a few other students.

"Okay," the teacher said in his low deep voice. "Let's get started."

Needless to say, the rest was history to Inu-yasha. He didn't pay any attention to anything said afterward the books were handed out. He spent the hour letting his eyes roam around the room and other students. As the teacher talked, Inu-yasha let his thoughts roam to the girl, Kagome.

I don't know what it was about her that caught my eye, he thought. It couldn't have been her looks since I can't really see anything with those baggy clothes of hers. And it couldn't have been her personality because I've never talked to her before. This is frustrating. What kind of spell does she cast over me? And if she did something like that, why did she turn me down when I asked her out? His thoughts started to get more and more ridiculous. But he allowed it. Maybe he could find something out… Either way, he thought, I will win her over. I haven't got the slightest clue how, but I'll find out.

The rest of the hour dragged by with no other incidents since Inu-yasha was so caught up in his thoughts. In fact, the rest of the morning went that way. His next two classes, English and art, were full of rules and books, just like the first two classes. He did have Miroku in his art class which was the class before lunch so they walked to lunch together. As they walked, Inu-yasha told Miroku about his new-found project.

"I've found it," Inu-yasha declared.

"Found what?" Miroku asked.

"My project of course."

Miroku gave him an accusing look. "What happened to 'Jeez, it's only the first day os school and—"

"Yeah, yeah," Inu-yasha cut him off. "I know. But I found it earlier than I thought I would."

"So…?" Miroku hinted. Inu-yasha didn't catch it. "Well, are you just going to leave me hangin' or what?"

"No," he snapped. "Do you remember that girl you saw me following out of the room earlier? Well, she's my project. Her name is Kagome, by the way." The two were just getting into the cafeteria.

Miroku stared at him blankly. "So… What do you plan to do to her? Kill her?"

"No, actually, the opposite."

Miroku looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, "What's the opposite of death?" They got into line for a burger.

Inu-yasha sighed. "You really are clueless."

"Oh, well forgive me! You're the one holding everything back."

Inu-yasha sighed again. "I'm going to make her my girlfriend."

Miroku stared at him blankly again. "You say that like you were going to force her…" Inu-yasha could see the slightly scared look in his face.

"Oh hell, no! I'm not going to force her! I'm not some kind of psycho!"

"Are you sure about that?" Miroku snickered. Inu-yasha growled. Miroku got serious again. "Wait, did you ask her already?"

"Oh course I did! That's why she's my project."

Miroku looked like he was about to explode with laughter. "You mean… she… turned you down?" He had to say it slowly so his laughter wouldn't escape.

Inu-yasha reddened. "Yeah," he said in a small voice. Miroku couldn't hold it. He laughed at his friend. Inu-yasha reddened more. "Shut up. It's isn't funny."

Miroku controlled himself after a while. "Sorry… So… what exactly did she say?"

"I asked and she said 'I'm sure you're a sweet guy but I'm not interested'" Miroku started laughing again. "I know, who says that these days? It's a 'yes' or 'no' question—"

"I can't believe she called you sweet!" Miroku burst out laughing. "Oh, that's a good one!"

"Don't push it," Inu-yasha threatened.

"Just kidding," Miroku said with a nervous laugh. Miroku paid for his food and waited for Inu-yasha to get his.

"Anyway, she didn't even give me a chance. So, that's my project: to find out what's up with her."

"Ever thought that she was telling the truth?"

Inu-yasha opened his mouth then stopped. He honestly hadn't thought of that. "No… but even if she was, I'm going to make her interested," he said. Miroku sighed. They both had their food so they started to walk over to the tables.

Just then, something caught Inu-yasha's eye just before he was going to sit where he and Miroku had been sitting for the last two years. There she was again, Kagome, his next girlfriend. He grinned and told Miroku that he'd see him later.

"Where are you goin'?" Inu-yasha pointed. "Oh, I see. Time for round two?" Inu-yasha nodded and left. Miroku had the feeling that the score was going to be two-to-zero soon.

Inu-yasha casually walked over and plopped himself down right across from Kagome. "Hi, how are you?" He picked up a French fry and popped it into his mouth, never leaving eye-contact with the girl.

She blinked in disbelief. Inu-yasha grinned smugly. "Didn't I already tell you I wasn't interested?" she said in annoyance when she found her voice again.

"Ya sure did," Inu-yasha said, chewing on another French fry and acting like this kind of conversation happened all the time. He looked at her face which clearly stated 'then why the hell are you here?' He chuckled softly. "You didn't think I'd go away that easily did ya?"

"N-No," she stuttered. "Well, actually, yes. Everyone else did…"

"I'm not everyone else," Inu-yasha said, keeping eye contact (although he did notice that she stopped eating since he got there). "I don't give up that easily."

Kagome growled in annoyance. "You'd better. You won't get any further with me."

"I'll be the judge of that."

"Oh, believe me," she said narrowing her eyes, "you won't."

"What makes you so certain?"

She didn't answer and instead took a huge bite of her burger. When she was done chewing she said, "Well, every guy knows that for them to score with the girl, he has to gether friends to like him and be well-mannered, am I right?" Inu-yasha nodded. "Yes, well, right now you don't look like you're very good at either." For the first time, he noticed that he was talking to her while chomping away at his food. And then, he saw that Kagome was looking past him. He turned and saw a girl about Kagome's age. She had red eye-shadow, pale skin, and long flow-y brown hair in a loose ponytail. She didn't look too happy.

Kagome smiled kindly at her. "Sango, met Inu-yasha. Inu-yasha, met Sango. Um… you're in her seat." Inu-yasha moved over quickly and said, "Sorry…"

Sango ignored him and asked Kagome, "How long is he going to sit here?"

Inu-yasha was just about to say something along the lines of 'hello, I'm still here' but Kagome cut him off. "He won't be staying long, I assure you." Then she completely lost her kind smile and a glare took its place. "Are you done talking to me? Because I'm definitely done talking to you."

Inu-yasha just gawked. He was about a millisecond away from exploding on her but he'd have to let his pride take yet another stab. If he didn't control it then there would be no chance to win her over. This girl had no idea how difficult she was being, he'd bet. So, he cleared his throat and stood up. "So sorry ladies," he said through gritting teeth. He turned to Sango. "Nice to meet you Sango." He turned to Kagome. "I'll talk to you later." Before he gloomily went back to his seat next to Miroku he heard Kagome say "I doubt it," and Sango giggled.

Inu-yasha sat next to Miroku and let out a sigh of defeat.

"Let me think," Miroku said and then continued in an announcer's voice, "and the winner is…Kagome!"

"Shut up," he warned halfheartedly. He didn't feel like finding some other snappy come back.

"Why her if she's that bad?" Miroku asked.

"I don't know," Inu-yasha sighed. "I think it's just… instincts or something."

Miroku looked at his friend as said, "If it were me I'd have already given up."

"Hell no!" Inu-yasha said almost too loudly. Nearby students glanced in his direction along with a few teachers. "I can't. At first, I just wanted to see if I could to it, which is still true, but now it's also a matter of pride. If I give up then she wins. There's no way in hell I'm going to loose to a fucking girl. And the fact that she's a challenge only makes me want to win her over even more." The determined glint in his eye told Miroku that he'd done his part. All Miroku had to do was even suggest that he should quit and Inu-yasha's pride handled the rest.

Suddenly, Inu-yasha got an idea. "Miroku…" Whenever Inu-yasha trailed of like that, it was almost never a good thing, so it was right of Miroku to get slightly scared. Suddenly, Inu-yasha planted a huge smile on his face and put an arm around Miroku. "Hey, buddy…"

Now Miroku turned slightly whitish and very tense. "Oh Lord…" Miroku squeezed his eyes shut.

"Oh come on, Miroku ol' buddy ol' pal. You have to do this for me!"

Miroku rubbed his temples. "I'm almost too afraid to ask but what?"

"I just want to see if she's only mean to me. Just, you know, do what you do and see if she's mean to you like she's mean to me." Miroku suddenly got a very bad and common look on his face. "Oh God, don't you even think about touching her! I will kill you." Inu-yasha loved his childhood friend dearly (they went all the way back to elementary school), but he felt very possessive over the girl for some reason.

"Don't worry!" Miroku said too cheerfully. "I won't. Be right back."

Inu-yasha watched Miroku go over the Kagome. She was happy and smiling with Sango and almost didn't even notice Miroku. He watched Miroku say a nice greeting and Kagome accepted it and offered one back. He didn't have a clue what they were saying but it seemed that his guess was right. Miroku had Kagome laughing and grinning like there was no tomorrow. It almost made his jealous… that is until Miroku said something that upset Kagome. Inu-yasha was about to go over there to pound Miroku's face in. He had a feeling that Miroku had asked her his infamous question (ya'll know what I'm talking about right? hehe).

But something was different. Whenever Miroku asked that question he made his face completely serious. But Miroku had said whatever he said with a happy attitude. Then he seemed to be trying to convince Kagome of something, but Kagome was shaking her head and refusing to talk to Miroku anymore. Sango was looking at Miroku the same way Kagome was and Miroku hadn't even talked to her. Miroku looked at Kagome in defeat and then started to walk back over to Inu-yasha.

"Well?" Inu-yasha said as soon as Miroku was close enough.

Miroku sat down. "She was fine, seemed very nice. But as soon as I said that I was your friend she didn't want to have anything else to do with me. Same with her friend."

"So it is just me. What the hell did I ever do to her!" Inu-yasha said this too loudly and grabbed the attention of a security guard.

"Shhh!" Miroku told him. Then in a lower voice he said, "Did you ever pull a prank on her before now?"

Inu-yasha thought for a second. "No. I've never seen her before now. She might be new to this school…"

"Maybe… Well, this was your idea, not mine. If she's such a challenge then find a new project."

"No!" The security guard started to glare at him; he was getting annoyed. "The project is supposed to be a challenge. As far as I know, this is only getting started." Inu-yasha's grin had mischief in it. Miroku was satisfied. It worked every time. Inu-yasha took a bite of his burger, the first bite he'd had since leaving Kagome's table.

After a while, Miroku said, "Hey, are we still doing that prank tomorrow night?" They had planned to tepee a house near the school. They'd always wanted to do it but only had just recently planned it.

"Sure are," Inu-yasha said through the bits of burger. "Why?"

"I was just wondering where we're meeting."

"My house around 12:00. It should be dark enough by then. And don't forget your half of the supplies."

"You always tell me that but I've never done it before."

"That's because I always remind you." Inu-yasha finished his food and stood up. He was restless and needed to do something before the bell rang. He had that familiar feeling in his stomach, the one that told him it'd been too long since he'd had a good laugh. "Come on," he told Miroku. "I think we should start early this year…" Miroku got a mischievous look too. He didn't have to ask what he meant, he was used to this "feeling" that Inu-yasha got. (Inu-yasha tried to explain this feeling to Miroku once and even after he'd explained it three times, Miroku still didn't really get it.) Over the years that Miroku and Inu-yasha had been together, Inu-yasha seemed to have passed the "feeling" onto Miroku although he didn't get it nearly as often as Inu-yasha did. But he loved it just as much as Inu-yasha did.

The two casually walked outside and as soon as they were out of the guard's sight, they dashed around the corner of the school.

Ten minutes later, the two walked back into the lunch room, both with ideas about the reaction to what they'd done. They'd sneaked into the back and took all the hair nets and gloves. They were replaced with ice they'd found in the freezer and the hair nets and gloves replaced the apron cupboard. The aprons were thrown in the freezer. They'd sneaked into the kitchen a lot and it was easy to do and to find the things they wanted. They locked the back door all the time but Inu-yasha never went anywhere without a paperclip.

Neither Inu-yasha nor Miroku had a clue what they were going to do when they'd reached the back door. They did that often. They'd just do it, not thinking about it. They were both creative enough come up with something on the spot so it wasn't that hard.

They didn't do anything too bad today since it was the first day of school. They'd been there long enough to know that the ladies were old and tired after work, and didn't really bother to actually look where they threw their aprons. (Inu-yasha skipped class once to track the actions of the lunch ladies so that it'd be easier to prank them. That was a long day…) And their gloves and hair nets were just thrown away. So their prank wouldn't even be noticed until the next day. Even knowing that, Inu-yasha still felt better, the feeling in his stomach gone for now.

Inu-yasha looked hopefully at the kids eating, his eyes scanning. Then he let out a depressed sigh.

"Trying to get on with round three already?" Miroku asked smiling.

"Yeah… Oh, well, we still have two classes left. Maybe I'll get lucky…"

Miroku sighed. "Just relax, you still have the rest of the year."

Just then the bell rang. Miroku changed the subject to something else as they walked to their lockers. It turned out that Miroku had class with Inu-yasha the last two classes, Science and Gym. They found the class room easily and sat down. A pleasant woman, maybe in her mid-thirties, was behind the teacher's desk. She had short redish brown hair that outlined her tanned face. She had kind brown eyes and slim glasses sat on the bridge of her nose. She smiled at them as the two passed her desk. Inu-yasha liked her.

The passing period dragged by and Inu-yasha and Miroku talked about some pranks they'd pull in the coming days while watching who came in the class.

Suddenly, a very familiar looking girl came in. It was Kami, the annoying girl from their first class. When she saw the two, she narrowed her eyes but didn't say anything. Inu-yasha was thankful for that; he really hated her voice. Then another familiar person came in. Inu-yasha froze.

Sesshomaru. Oh boy.

Inu-yasha was sure that he was still hot from that morning. Sesshomaru glared but didn't say anything either. He sat on the opposite side of the room, much to Inu-yasha's relief. Inu-yasha made a mental note to bolt out the door when the class was over. Over the course of the ten minutes they had to get to class from lunch, other familiar people came in, Hojo and Kouga from first period among them.

Just before the bell she came in. Kagome. Inu-yasha's heart leapt again. She seemed to be distracted and ruffled, as if she had to hurry to class. She was looking for a place to sit when she saw Inu-yasha. He smiled. She glared. Then Inu-yasha smiled even wider when he saw that the only open seat was right next to him, to his right. He patted the desk-top smugly. She rolled her eyes and sighed annoyed, but she reluctantly walked over.

"Hi," Inu-yasha said just a tad too cheerfully. Kagome just scoffed. "How was your lunch?" Inu-yasha said it really just to get her talking but she didn't say a word and instead took out some paper. He mentally growled. Then he got an idea. He too took out paper and scribbled something down. He folded it up and then he passed it to her. At first, he thought she'd just toss it, but she, obviously curious, opened it.

If you won't talk to me then will you write to me, it said. She wrote something down and gave it back.

No. Inu-yasha smiled. Then he wrote, So are you ever going to talk to me?

I most likely won't have a choice. The bell had rung by now.

You're right about that, I won't give up. Miroku started to get curious. He wondered why they were passing a note when they were right next to each other.

Why not? Why don't you know when to give up?

You tell me. I haven't got the slightest clue. The teacher introduced herself as Jizani-sensei but Inu-yasha was hardly paying attention. He was too happy about the fact that he was actually talking, well writing, to Kagome.

What do you mean?

I mean that I don't have a clue as to why I followed you earlier.

Really? Interesting. Jizani started to explain the rules of her class.

Did you put a spell on me or something? He hoped that she wouldn't think that comment was going to end in some lame pick-up line. She looked at it funny but wrote back anyway.

Why would I if I was just going to refuse you anyway?

That's what I thought. So, if I keep bugging you, will you eventually give in?

No.

Why not?

Because.

That definitely tells me a lot. The teacher started to notice the little exchange…

Maybe I don't want to tell you a lot.

Why not? He never found out. He'd passed the note and Kagome had a chance to read it but the teacher snatched it just as Kagome was going to pass it back.

"Well, what have we here?" Jizani asked smiling politely. It seemed the whole room shook when everyone turned their heads to see what was going on.

"Nothing, " Inu-yasha and Kagome said instinctively and in unison.

Jizani's eyes scanned the paper and she smiled. "Aw, isn't that cute? Hmm, should I read it out loud?" All the students (with the exceptions of Kami and Sesshomaru) shook their heads vigorously and a few yelled 'yeah!' Inu-yasha started to change her mind about the teacher. "Hmm… I won't this time but I will next time. Let this be a warning, okay class?" Some of the students groaned but nodded their heads. Inu-yasha decided the teacher was cool after all. It was a good thing too; he already had too many teachers he had to prank.

Kagome sighed in relief. Then she glared at Inu-yasha like it was all his fault, even though the teacher took the note when she was passing it. Inu-yasha felt huffy the rest of the class, which consisted of books, rules, talking, and glares from Kagome, Kami, and Sesshomaru.

The bell rang and Inu-yasha, remembering his mental note from earlier, flew out the door. He didn't wait for Miroku, figured that he'd talk to him in gym. He hastily went to the other end of the school to the gymnasium.

Inu-yasha leaned against the wall of the gym sighing in relief. He'd made it safely to his next class. For a second, he thought Sesshomaru was going to pound him right in front of Kagome. That definitely wasn't going to happen.

Inu-yasha was just dozing off when Miroku came in. He jogged over to Inu-yasha and started conversation.

"What was the hurry?"

It was a one word answer. "Sesshomaru."

"Oh yeah…" Miroku hesitated before he said, "So, did you get anywhere with Kagome?"

Inu-yasha closed his eyes again. "Only that she isn't going to talk to me and she isn't going to give in."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. That was when the teacher took the note."

"Oh."

Suddenly Inu-yasha's face got pale. Miroku followed his line of vision and almost burst out laughing. "So much for running!" he gasped.

Sesshomaru… again! Inu-yasha groaned. But he didn't mind too much. Kagome wasn't there to witness his death.

Then Inu-yasha got as white as a sheet. Miroku once again followed his line of vision and once again burst out laughing. This time he couldn't talk though, he was laughing too hard.

There was Kagome. Inu-yasha thought that he had the worst luck ever.

It wasn't long before the two noticed him. They both headed the other way. Inu-yasha didn't mind Sesshomaru going but Kagome… Even though he really wanted to talk to her, he didn't want to risk getting in Sesshomaru's way. He was certain by now that Sesshomaru had something big in mind for his revenge. Can't wait, Inu-yasha thought sarcastically.

The bell rang but there still wasn't a teacher there so Miroku and Inu-yasha talked. Ten minutes later, a very athletic looking man rushed in. He had short graying hair and grayish blue eyes. His face looked almost fifty but his frame suggested he was just reaching thirty. He ran into his office and then jogged out.

"I'm so sorry class," he announced. His deep-ish voice echoed off the walls. "I didn't the principal was going to keep me in his office that long. Okay, first things first. You may call me George. Please, don't call me anything else. I just don't like it." Inu-yasha liked him. He thought his name was weird but he like it. "Alright, seating chart. Um, I don't really use those. Usually, when you come in, just get dressed in your clothes and you can just talk the rest of the time until class starts." (Wouldn't we all love to have a gym teacher like that? Lol) George went on to explain his rules which were just basic stuff. He told the class what they'd learn and what they needed to bring within the next week.

Inu-yasha started to tune him out. He just stole looks at Kagome (and his brother). He wondered if she was still mad (but he didn't even have to wonder if his half-brother was still mad).

Then the teacher said, "Alright well, we can't do much today so I'll give you a choice. We can either play a game of kickball or you all can just do whatever you want." The second option won over and everyone just talked. Some boys asked the George for basketballs and they started a lively game. Inu-yasha, deciding that he'd rather wait for his pounding from Sesshomaru, joined the game and Miroku started to follow some girls around.

As Inu-yasha played, he noticed Kagome looking at Sesshomaru, who'd stayed in his same spot. He felt a pang of jealousy and didn't play as well the rest of the game.

The bell rang. Inu-yasha was going see if Kagome would talk to him when he spotted her talking to Sesshomaru! Inu-yasha could've died from the stab of jealousy that hit him. He was just about to march over there to set Sesshomaru straight when Miroku caught his shirt collar and walked to the door.

"Remember? Sesshomaru plus Inu-yasha equal death."

"But! He's talking to my girlfriend!"

"Correction: he's talking to a girl. She isn't your girlfriend yet." By now Miroku and Inu-yasha had made it halfway down the hallway and Miroku let go of Inu-yasha's collar but made sure he kept up.

Inu-yasha got frustrated. "Dammit! But… She… Her… He…"

"Just give it up." Inu-yasha let out an annoyed/depressed/angry sigh. He mumbled 'feh'. Neither of them had homework so they dropped by their lockers to put their stuff away and then they went outside. They said bye and then went to their separate cars.

As Inu-yasha drove out of the parking lot he thought, What a hell of a first day of school.

And that's chapter three. Sorry it took so long. I really don't have enough time to proofread it all the way. My internet goes off at 1:00 and it's almost that time. I want this chapter up before then though. Anyway, just so you know, this fanfic is mostly going to be in Inu-yasha's POV but some of it might be in Kagome's or someone else's. Kagome does have a past with someone, like Inu-yasha but I explain that later on. Alright, I'm really running out of time now so I have to go. Review! And thank you to those who have!

Hiko