Prequel to Chapter 11 (InuKik, Artist, Purple)

"You're an ass."

Miroku blinked innocently at him, a grin tugging at his lips. "I thought an artist was always looking for ways to improve his craft."

Silver ears twitched as Inuyasha flushed with embarrassment. "That doesn't mean I need to stare at naked people all day!"

Miroku hooked his arm around his neck, dragging him into the room. "But that's half the fun, my friend! Now we have an excuse. And no one will get mad."

"You're such a perv."

"I thought I was an ass."

"You're both!" Inuyasha snapped, detangling himself from his grip. "I haven't done portraits in years. Why would I need—"

"Are you here for the life drawing class?" Inuyasha turned around to find himself mesmerized by a pair of brown eyes, the dark shade offset by the flecks of cinnamon around the pupils.

Miroku flicked the back of his head. "Oh, ummm… Sort of."

The woman raised an eyebrow, clicking her pen against her clipboard. "It's more of a 'yes or no' question."

"It's definitely a yes," Miroku said, answering for them both. While he signed them in, Inuyasha snuck looks at whom he guessed was the instructor. Her long, dark hair was pin-straight, pulled back into a neat ponytail at the base of her neck, showing off her porcelain skin.

He'd never wanted to draw someone so badly in his life.

The lines of her face were immaculate, the slope of her neck refined, and his fingers twitched with the need to grab the charcoal from his bag.

"Alright, you're the last ones, so once you find your spots, we'll get started." The small smile she offered him had his cheeks turning red, barely able to nod before she turned away.

"You have until the end of the session to ask her out, or I'm going to do it for you," Miroku smirked, nudging his shoulder. Inuyasha growled, shoving him away before finding a spot at the back of the room. He pulled out his sketchbook, placing it on the easel as he looked around, his eyes again falling on the instructor.

She checked in with a few other people, then sat on a yellow stool in the front of the room. "You've got an hour to complete your sketch. Feel free to move around the room to find different angles but be conscious of the other artists. Don't obstruct their view." She crossed her legs, adjusted her posture, then unclipped her dress, the pale cotton falling around the stool. "And let me know if you have any questions."

Inuyasha fell off his chair.

Cursing under his breath, he glared at Miroku as he got to his feet, but the man was already outlining her body. Climbing back into his chair, he peeked over his sketchbook, only to find the woman grinning at him, stifling her laughter behind a graceful hand before blowing him a kiss.

His ears lay flat against his head as he grabbed his charcoal, pretending to focus on his paper.

"Five minutes left," Miroku whispered after a while. "You found your balls yet?"

"I will murder you," Inuyasha hissed, tempted to throw his chair at him.

"You wound me, my friend. I only wish to see you happy."

A buzzer sounded, and Inuyasha jumped, looking up to find the woman pulling her dress back on. "That's your time, everyone. We've got a male model coming in next week, so please let me know if you'd like a spot in that class too."

Miroku motioned the woman over even as Inuyasha's gaze promised revenge. "Don't say anything funny," he warned.

His friend smirked. "I only wish to show off your work."

"Did you enjoy yourself?" she asked. "You mentioned you wanted to work on your shading."

"It was wonderful, my lady. But I believe my friend may require private tutoring," he said, motioning to Inuyasha. "You provided such a lovely model, but he could only focus on one portion of it."

The woman raised an eyebrow, her expression skeptical. "We run a serious business here. If you only came here to ogle—" She stopped as she caught a glimpse at Inuyasha's paper. He'd been so starstruck that he'd only seen her face, taking his time to sketch the fine lines of her eyes and smile.

A subtle blush crept into her cheeks. "You're very talented."

"And single too," Miroku added.

"Shut up!" Inuyasha hissed, kicking his friend in the shin.

The woman chuckled, then held out her hand. "I'm Kikyou."

Inuyasha blanched, then rubbed his hand on the back of his jeans, returning the greeting and grimacing as he realized his fingers were still covered in charcoal. "Inuyasha."

Kikyou looked at his sketch again, then gave him an encouraging smile. "I'm not sure if you need private tutoring, but you're welcome to come back to focus on another section," she said.

Inuyasha managed to keep his jaw from dropping to the floor as she walked away.