Sesshoumaru steeled himself before stepping into the classroom. He didn't have to teach undergraduate classes, thank kami, but sometimes his PhD students were even worse. They fancied themselves adults and could be arrogant little troublemakers.

"Morning Professor Saiga!" The chipper voice of his teaching assistant forced him to enter the classroom, not wanting to be accused of dawdling unnecessarily.

He nodded to the boy, an orphaned kitsune he'd adopted when the child only had one tail, then scanned the students, barely a dozen, and all the females were in the front row. He noted that the males in the class seemed to be watching a certain female chatting animatedly with a male student he'd had before and steeled himself before looking at her.

She was not unattractive, for a human. Her long black hair fell in soft waves around her upper body and her face was delicately and stubbornly structured. It wasn't until she turned to him that he realized what had caught the attention of the other males in the class, she had deep, stormy blue eyes and a heart-stopping smile.

You are going to be vexing. He decided, then changed his assessment when he sensed her reiki. You are going to be extremely vexing.

He strode into the room and was preparing to make his opening speech when the breeze from the open window behind the miko caught her scent and carried it to him. His head spun as the scent of peaches, rainwater and sunlight overwhelmed him.

Her scent called to his instincts so strongly he nearly lost control of them. When he gasped her scent flooded his mouth and he turned on his heel and strode out the door. Once outside the classroom he used his youkai speed for the first time in years and in mere moments stood outside the president's office.

Sesshoumaru checked himself, making sure he was in control, before pushing open the door and making his presence known.

"I'm taking a sabbatical." He announced. "Effective immediately."

Sango Taijiya stopped typing and looked up at him. "Professor Saiga." She raised an eyebrow. "You're supposed to be in class for the next three hours if I'm not mistaken."

"Sabbatical."

She sighed. "Are we really going to do this again? Every semester when you get a new class you ask for a sabbatical and every semester after a week you decide that your students are not as 'insufferable' as you thought."

He glared at her impertinence. She was the president of the college but he was the co-founder and it irked him that he needed her approval to take a leave of absence. Though in hindsight he probably would have given up every class as a lost cause if she had not made him wait. But this time was different, this time was serious.

"I cannot teach that class." He started pacing.

"Is it another kid with BO?"

"Worse."

"Excess perfume?"

"If only."

Sango took a moment to really look at him, taking in his obvious agitation, which was rare for him since he was usually impassive to the nth degree.

"How long of a sabbatical do you need?" She asked quietly.

He looked relieved. "Not long. Seventy years should be adequate."

Her jaw dropped. "Seventy years? Have you LOST your mind?"

"I will if you make me teach that class." He glowered at her.

"Please sit down Sesshoumaru-sama." She indicated the comfortable armchair across from her desk. "Tell me what this is all about."

He sighed and accepted her invitation, trying to relax into the leather. "It is not wise for me to be on campus."

"What happened?"

"I found my mate."

Surprise radiated off of Sango as she struggled to find an appropriate response. "That's… good, isn't it?"

"No."

Something clicked and she looked at him sharply. "Is she a student?"

"Yes."

"Ah. That is a problem." She steepled her fingers thoughtfully. "We can figure out a solution… why did you want a seventy-" She broke off and glared at him. "There's nothing wrong with finding your soul mate in a human Sesshoumaru-sama."

"Hn."

"I'm serious. In fact, as I recall you were the one who told me that finding a true mate is an extremely rare and celebrated occurrence in youkai culture."

"I recall the lecture. At the time you were playing feminist and disagreed with the whole concept vehemently."

She rolled her eyes. "That was ten years ago and my experience with youkai only extended to my professor who was insufferably arrogant and gave all the girls a hard time."

"They are annoying."

"So they think you're attractive, considering that you're the only professor who looks their age and you spend all your free time at that dojo, what'd you expect?"

"Respect." He wrinkled his nose. "And better personal hygiene."

"Oh for the love of-" Sango pinched the bridge of her nose. "We're not getting into this debate again."

Sesshoumaru didn't show his disappointment; verbal banter was the basis of his relationship with Sango. It had started when she was his student, earning her PhD at the young age of twenty-two, and continued as she put her genius to work in education administration. She was the youngest president the university had ever had and was only elected in office because he—with his not inconsiderable age and influence—had insisted that she'd be ideal for the job. Sango was one of the very few humans that he would consider a friend and he knew she still looked up to him as a mentor.

"Which student is it?" She finally asked.

"I don't know."

"Okay… well let's see if I can figure out who it is…"

"She's a miko." He murmured.

"A what?"

"A priestess." He clarified with a huff.

"Oh, you mean Kagome Higurashi." She brightened, typing quickly and swiveling her computer screen to face him. "This girl?"

Sesshoumaru felt his pulse quicken at the image presented. A very familiar smile shone like it was just for him and he let out a breath.

"That's her."