Chapter 2

Several days later, Rin walked out of the room where she had been practicing with Suikotsu and Bankotsu and headed down the road to her own home. As she reached the corner of the street, she collided with something warm, yet solid. Looking up in confusion, she blinked in surprise as she saw Sesshoumaru standing in front of her, looking equally confused.

"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed as soon as she recovered the power of speech.

He put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

She looked up at him and took a step back. "Neither was I."

He shook his head slightly and looked at her closely. "You've been at band practice?"

"Yeah. We've just finished for the day."

"I see. So you were in that new band then?"

"Evidently."

Sesshoumaru smirked. "I was impressed. I didn't think you had it in you."

"Had what in me?" she asked, looking at him suspiciously.

"The guts to get up and sing on stage with a shirt that left little to the imagination."

Rin frowned. "That's an exaggeration. That outfit was at least better than a pair of jeans and an ordinary shirt."

"Fine. I get the picture," Sesshoumaru said and put his hands up in defeat. "So is your band going to be a one hit wonder then?"

"It will not!" Rin exclaimed, beginning to get irritated.

"I think it will."

"It won't," she insisted, knowing that she sounded childish.

"Prove me wrong," Sesshoumaru said with a smirk.

She paused and looked at him, carefully thinking over her situation. "How am I supposed to do that?"

"There's an opportunity for another performance in two weeks time at the same venue. I'm going to enter your band and if you can come up with something better than the other night, I'll admit that I was wrong about your band."

"Fine. We'll do it and I'll prove you wrong."

Sesshoumaru smirked again. "Let's up the stakes this time." Rin blinked in confusion. "Two songs this time. Not just one."

"Two songs. I'll make you eat your words, Sesshoumaru Taisho," she said confidently.

Having said that, Rin turned on her heel and walked straight back down the corridor to the practice room she had left Suikotsu and Bankotsu in. Sesshoumaru smirked at her retreating figure and went to inform his brother of the incident.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Several days later, Rin paced the practice room while Suikotsu sat at a table with his head in his hands and Bankotsu chewed his pencil thoughtfully.

"This is hopeless!" Suikotsu said mournfully. Rin glared at him but didn't stop her pacing. Suikotsu shook his head in despair. "We're going to have to forfeit, Rin."

"No we won't," Bankotsu interrupted.

Rin stopped her pacing and looked at him. "We've got nothing so far and there's only just over a week left. I shouldn't have made that stupid bet with Sesshoumaru."

"You were just trying to defend the band. There's nothing wrong with that," Bankotsu said as he walked over to her, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We will show them that we aren't going to be just a one hit wonder."

Rin nodded before turning to Suikotsu. "Natsumi's creative, do you think she can help?"

"I didn't think of that," he admitted. "I'll give her a call and see if she can come over."

With that said, they decided to take a break while Suikotsu phoned Natsumi. Rin sank down into a nearby chair with a sigh and covered her face with her hands in a gesture that showed her weariness.

"You've not been sleeping properly have you?" Bankotsu asked.

Rin looked up at him with a rueful smile. "Is it that obvious?"

He nodded. "Let's go and get some coffee while Suikotsu waits for Natsumi."

"Okay."

Rin left with Bankotsu after a brief conversation with Suikotsu. They walked down to the corridor to the cafe area and Rin sat down in a seat by the window and waited while Bankotsu got them both some coffee. She smiled gratefully at him as he returned and they began to discuss what they would do about their next song.

Unbeknownst to them both, Sesshoumaru Taisho walked past the cafe with Miroku and sat down at a table outside as they took a break from their practice. As he sat down, Sesshoumaru caught a glimpse of Rin seated in the cafe. He watched her for a moment, curious as to what she was doing. After a while, his curiosity was satisfied when a man walked towards her and handed her a cup of steaming coffee. Sesshoumaru hoped that he was merely a waiter who worked there when Rin gave him a smile that was reserved for very few people. His hopes were crushed, however, when the man sat down opposite her and began a conversation.

"Do you like her, Sesh?" Miroku's voice held a trace of amusement.

He tore his eyes away from Rin to stare at the dark haired man sitting opposite him. "Me? Like her? Don't be a fool, Miroku. No man such as me could like a woman like her."

Miroku shrugged and smiled slightly. "No need to get edgy. It was just an observation."

Sesshoumaru glared at him for a while before shaking his head. It was hopeless trying to reason with Miroku. Although he was by far the most intelligent of Sesshoumaru's band members, he was very stubborn and very devious when he wanted to be. Despite his seemingly harmless appearance, Sesshoumaru had the suspicion that Miroku was not a man to mess with.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*

When Rin and Bankotsu returned to the practice room, they found Natsumi and Suikotsu hard at work on a song. Rin smiled at the pair and sat down on the sofa nearby while Bankotsu went to inspect their work. Minutes turned into hours and Rin eventually found herself unable to keep her eyes open, her lack of sleep had finally caught up with her. With a sigh, she curled up on the sofa and let her eyes drift shut with thoughts of how she would prove Sesshoumaru Taisho wrong. Soon afterwards, Suikotsu looked at her, seeking her opinion on what they had written, but found her asleep. Grinning, he nudged his friends and nodded in her direction. Natsumi smiled gently at her sleeping friend briefly before turning back to the work while Bankotsu moved toward her to cover her with a jacket that lay nearby.

The sound of a guitar woke Rin several hours later. She looked around sleepily and saw Bankotsu sitting at the table nearby examining several sheets of paper and scribbling notes down every so often.

"How long have I been sleeping?" she asked as she stood up.

"About two and a half hours," Natsumi said cheerfully from the back of the room where she sat with Suikotsu.

Rin gaped at her, horrified. "Why didn't you wake me up?!"

Bankotsu snorted slightly. "You needed sleep. How are you supposed to help us if you can't focus?"

"Rude as always, Bankotsu," Suikotsu teased. "Couldn't you at least be a little nicer to her? She's been trying harder than the rest of us put together."

"Heh."

With a sigh, Rin interrupted before an argument broke out. "What have you done so far?"

"We've basically done one song. We're trying it out with the music at the moment. If it works, then we'll have a proper practice and you can see how you like it," Natsumi said with a smile.

"Let's have a proper practice. I want to know what it sounds like when we put it together," Suikotsu said excitedly.

Rin and Bankotsu nodded as they headed towards the stage area of the room.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Inuyasha sat at the back of the room watching as two girls walked past. He sighed as he watched them go past. The dark haired girl was a beauty, there was no denying it. Tilting his head, he scrutinised her. Her dark hair was smooth and long. Her body was slim and her face was angelic. Shaking his head to clear it, he glanced at her retreating back once again before his view was blocked by yet another dark haired girl. This one was taller and seemed to be very fit as she raced past him and after her friends. Inuyasha smirked as he thought of the first girl and compared the two. However, his comparison was interrupted by a masculine form rushing past him and after the two girls. His eyes widened considerably when he realised that the man was none other than Miroku. He closed his gaping mouth and stood up to follow his friend.

"Miroku! What are you doing?!" Inuyasha demanded when he caught up with the trio.

Said man blushed and turned to face his band mate. "I can't help it. Sango ran away from me."

The girl named Sango stepped forward and left a bright red hand print on Miroku's face. "You pervert!" she exclaimed loudly.

Inuyasha groaned as he realised what had happened. Although Miroku seemed dignified and polite, this was merely a facade to cover his perverted nature that lay beneath the surface. He stepped forward and pulled Miroku away from the girls roughly.

"I apologise for his behaviour, ladies. I hope he didn't cause you too much trouble," he said politely.

Sango opened her mouth to deliver a scathing remark, but was cut off by her friend. "It's alright. I'm afraid I don't know you though," she said with a perplexed expression.

"I'm Inuyasha. Inuyasha Taisho. This is Miroku Ashida."

The girl inclined her head politely. "I'm Kagome Higurashi and this is my friend Sango Yamaguchi."

"It's a pleasure to meet you both," Inuyasha said with a smile.

"At least you have more manners than your friend," Sango said in disgust.

"It's one of his many flaws; you'll have to excuse him. I'm under the impression that he can't control himself around attractive women."

Kagome blushed and tugged at Sango's arm. "We have to go to a lesson now. Please excuse us."

Inuyasha watched as the two girls walked away before looking at his friend. "Normally I'd hit you for what you just did..." he started.

"But this time you'll let me off because you got to talk to the girl you like," Miroku said with a wink.

"I do not like her!"

Miroku shrugged and picked up his bag which he had dropped. "You sound just like your brother," was all he said before he left Inuyasha alone in the corridor to ponder the meaning of his statement.