A/N: Thank you all for the reviews! I really appreciate all of the love, lol. Sooo, what will happen now since Naraku's birthday has passed?...


After Naraku's party, the days seemed to just fly by for the rest of the year. It was now mid December and semester finals would be next week. I had finals in six classes so the stress level was at an all time high. Not to mention that I had still been having mixed emotions about my best friend. I knew that I wasn't in love with him, but everytime I would see him with Tsubaki, I would feel a little jealous. Maybe it was because for a long time, I was the main woman in Naraku's life, or it could have just been that I knew he was giving her something that Sesshoumaru wasn't giving me. What ever the cause of my jealousy was, I didn't know, but I wasn't about to let my silly emotions get the best of me. I had to concentrate on my grades first.

"For your finals next week, I want you to perform a soul summoning spell," Urasue-Sensei told us one freezing Friday afternoon in Spell Casting class. "I want you to take any inanimate object and give it life for exactly three minutes. No more, no less. Precision in spells is a very important skill in this class. Therefore, if the object lives for more or less than three minutes, then you automatically fail the final. No questions asked." I sighed deeply as I slid down in my seat a little. Spell Casting was probably my worst subject and it made me feel so dumb sometimes. I mean, I knew that I was a smart girl and I got good grades all my life, but this year was horrible and Spell Casting was the cause of it all. I knew that Naraku and Kagura would probably ace the exam, for their majors was sorcery. Mmm, maybe I could get Kagura to help me.

After the rest of my classes, I immediately headed to home in the blue Dodge Charger that Li's fiance let me borrow during the winter time. I wanted to catch Kagura before she left for her evening classes. But to my luck, she wasn't even there. 'Hmm, I guess she had to go into work today,' I thought as I took off my heavy outerwear. It seemed as if I would just have to go it alone. I went to my bedroom, sat at my desk, and instantly hit the books. I read the section about soul summoning over and over again, but I still couldn't get the hang of it. Soul summoning was my weakest area in Spell Casting and it was just my luck that the final exam was over it. After several more minutes of reading that section over and over, I finally got the jist of it. Now it was time to see if I could applicate it. I looked in my drawers in search of something to animate. I finally pulled out a ruler. "Okay let's see," I said as I prepared to do the spell. I placed the ruler in both hands, closed my eyes, and mumbled the Japanese spell. After a few seconds, the ruler began to shake slightly in my hands, but nowhere near the required time limit or skill. I sighed deeply and decided to try again, but like before, it just shook for only a few seconds.

Well, it had now been about three hours and I still couldn't get anything in my room to move properly. I tried shoes, pencils, belts, paper, a chair. Nothing seemed to want to have life. "Uggggh!" I let out a growl of frustration as I beat the ruler ontop of my desk, "live damn you! Live so I can pass!"

"Naima? Is something the matter?" I heard Sango's voice all of a sudden say. I turned around in my chair to see that Sango was now standing in my doorway with a concerned/freaked out look on her face. I guess she had heard my cries of educational agony.

"Yes. I can't seem to get my soul summoning spell to work," I sighed as I got out of my chair and flopped down on my bed. Sango giggled as she walked over and sat down next to me.

"Final stress?" I nodded my head in reply. "Well, I would help you, but I don't know anything about sorcery. Mmm...what about Sesshoumaru?"

"Nah. He's no good at magic."

"Maybe Kagura can help you when she gets home."

"Nope. By then it will be too late. She's staying over at her mom's house in The Bronx this weekend and my final is Monday."

"Ahh...I see. Well I don't know who you should ask then." I sat back up on my bed in order to look at the clock on my dresser. 8:30 pm.

"Well, I guess Naraku should be off of work by now. I could ask him to help me. He always was good at black magic."

"Or you could always ask Tsubaki," Sango joked. I rolled my eyes and smiled.

"Yeah right, like that'll ever happen," I said as I got up to get my cell phone off of my desk.

"Hello?" Naraku asked after about two rings.

"Hey. It's me."

"Hey Naima. What's up?"

"Are you off work yet?"

"Yeah, I'm at home right now."

"Listen, can I come over? I need some help with my homework."

"Sure. Come on."

"Okay, see you in a few minutes." I closed my phone and put my textbooks back in my back pack. "See you later Sango," I said as I walked out of my room.

"Bye Naima."


"Okay Naima, what are you having trouble on?" Naraku asked as we sat on the couch trying to see if I could pick up on the soul summoning spell.

"Mmmm...pretty much...everything," I said with a sweet smile. He shook his head and smiled back.

"Is this the first time you've actually read this section of the textbook?"

"...Maaaaybe..." He sighed.

"...Okay. Let's see what you can do first."

"Alright." I reached and picked up a pen from off of the coffee table. I held the pen in both hands, closed my eyes, and muttered the spell. Like always, the item shook, but never moved. Naraku chuckled as he took the pen from me.

"I see you haven't been paying attention in class," he said with a smirk. He put the pen in both hands and did the same thing that I did. As he put the pen back down on the table, it began to move of it's own accord. My jaw dropped when the pen stopped moving in exactly three minutes.

"How did you do that?!" I gasped.

"You have to focus both your demonic and mental energy in order to make the spell work."

"I have been doing that."

"Obviously not enough. Try harder and give it another shot." I did as he said and concentated harder on my demonic and mental energies. As I was doing this, Bankotsu came out of the kitchen with a glass of milk. Both men stared hard at the pen as I placed it back on the table. Once again, the pen just shook.

"Damn Naima. You suck," Bankotsu chuckled as he left the livingroom and went back to his bedroom.

"Thanks a lot 'B'," I sarcastically said to my friend as he left the room.

"Just keep trying," Naraku said with a smile.

It was now 11:30 pm and I still couldn't get the pen to get full life. I was beginning to get very worried and frustrated. "Ugh! I can't do this," I whined as I threw my head down on a couch pillow.

"Yes you can," Naraku softly said as he rubbed my back, "you'll get it."

"No I won't Naraku. I'm going to faaaiiiil."

"I'm going to stay right here with you until you get it, so you're not going to faaaiiiil." I sat back up and looked deep into my best friend's red eyes. I found myself smiling as I looked at him. He was so good to me by staying up to help me like this. Naraku always did have my back. I sighed.

"...Okay. I'll do my best." I placed the pen in my hands again.

"Now concentrate as hard as you can," Naraku guided me. I nodded as I allowed my eyes to flutter close. I concentrated the hardest I ever could on both my mental and demonic energies and to my suprise, when I opened my eyes, the pen was now moving in my hands. The movement only lasted about a minute, but it was enough for me.

"I did it!" I squealed. Naraku chuckled again.

"Yes you did. Now we just have to get the time up and you'll be good to go."

I continued to repeat the soul summoning spell over and over with the pen's life lasting longer each time. Finally, around 1:00 am, I got the pen's life to last three minutes. I let out a big sigh of relief knowing that my Spell Casting grade was now secure. "You see, I knew you could do it," Naraku said smiling down at me. I smiled back as I yawned loudly.

"Yep, but all of that training has really made me tired," I said as I leaned against his shoulder.

"Yeah I guess you would be tired with the time and all of that practicing we did."

"Mmmhmm," I mumbled as I closed my eyes.

"You want me..."


Naraku's POV

"You want me to take you home? Naima? Naima?" I looked over to see that she was now fast asleep on my shoulder. I smiled as I noticed how beautiful she was when she slept. Even though I was with Tsubaki now and I tried my best to build a strong love for her, I was still not over Naima. I still loved Naima with all my heart, but I knew that I had to respect her wishes by only being her friend. I just felt lucky that I was even this close to her now. I smiled again as I removed a stray hair away from her soft, lovely face. I didn't want to wake her from her peaceful dreams, so I guessed that she would be sleeping over here tonight. I held her back up with an arm as I got off of the couch. I then lifted her up into my arms. She stirred around a little and burried her face in my neck as I moved her. I carried her to my bedroom and placed her between my black sheets and pulled the covers up over her. I then walked to my closet and pulled out my own blanket. "Sweet dreams, my dear," I whispered in her ear before kissing her cheek. I turned to look at her once more before turning out the light and heading back out to the livingroom where I would spend the rest of the night.


The Next Day (Naima's POV)

I could feel the heat from the sun as it beat down on my face the next morning. I groaned as I turned over on my other side, away from the window. As I burried my face in the pillows, I soon realized that the scent on them wasn't my own, but it smelled just like Naraku's cologne. Wait a minute! It was Naraku's cologne! I immediately opened my eyes and noticed that I was not in my bed, but in my best friend's. My mind instantly went to the gutter as I looked under the covers to see if I was still dressed. I let out a sigh of relief when I saw that I was. Then I remembered that I had fallen asleep after I had finished studying with Naraku. I slapped my forehead, feeling silly for thinking that I had done something that I would have regreted. I climbed out of Naraku's bed and remade it before going into the livingroom. "Good morning," Naraku said to me with a big smile as soon as he saw me. He was already dressed, so I was guessing that it was late morning.

"Good morning," I replied, smiling too.

"You hungry?" I shook my head no.

"Uh, what time is it?" Naraku flipped open his cell to check the time.

"11:50," he said. My eyes instantly widened as I swallowed hard. I remembered that Sesshoumaru was supposed to be picking me up at my house at 12:00 so I could go to the orphanage with him. Naraku narrowed his eyes at my sudden change in composure. "What is it?"

" I gotta go," I declared as I scrambled to put all of my textbooks in my backpack and grabbed my car keys. "Thank you for everything Naraku. I'll call you later." I didn't give him a chance to reply as I ran to my car, hopped in, and tried my best to make it home before Sesshoumaru got there.


When I pulled up in the parking lot of my building, I saw that it was already too late. Sesshoumaru's red Mustang was already there and I knew that he would be pissed at me. One, because I didn't come home last night and two, because of the scent that clung to my clothes. I swallowed hard as I entered my home. Sure enough Sesshoumaru was sitting in the livingroom with the other three girls with an annoyed look on his face. "Hi baby," I nervously said. He didn't reply at all.

"Uhh...I guess we'll leave you two alone now," Kagome stammered as all the girls left the room. Deep down, I had kind of wished they would have stayed, because I was afraid to see what Sesshoumaru would do next. I knew that he could smell Naraku's cologne on me.

"You were with Naraku last night weren't you." He said, more as a statement than a question.

"Ye...yes I was, but let me explain."

"Oh please do."

"Naraku and I were up late studying and I fell asleep. Naraku put me in his bed and he slept on the couch. Absolutely nothing happened, I promise."

"I hope that you don't expect me to be okay with the fact that you slept at another man's house do you?"

"I know. I know. But I swear. Naraku and I didn't do a thing."

"I believe you." I cocked an eyebrow a bit.

"You do?"

"Yes. I don't smell arousal mixed in with his scent, so I know you're truthful." I was utterly shocked by his calmness.

"So that's it? No yelling or fighting?"

"Why? I believe you and you were honest so there is no need to engage in an unecessary arguement. Just try to watch where you lay your head down from now on." I let out a sigh of relief, for I expected a major fight on my hands.

"I'm sorry baby," I said as I kissed him on the lips.

"Go get dressed. I can't stand to smell another man's scent on you." I giggled as I ran a hand down his cheek.

"Okay baby." I did as he said and ran to my bedroom to take a quick shower in my bathroom, anxious to spend the rest of the day with the man I loved.


A/N: Sesshoumaru is a good one, because I probably would have went off on my boyfriend, lol