Higher Education by SunsetMiko

Chapter 28

Each prompt is labeled with the challenge it goes with.

Prompt: Spumescent: foamy, foamlike, and/or frothy. (Obscure Word Challenge)

Kagome awoke to the pleasant scent of coffee and her eyes popped open in surprise. "You did it again?" she asked with a wide smile, looking at the taiyoukai holding a drink carrier containing two coffees. "How did you sneak out of the bed without me noticing?"

"You were deeply asleep," he explained. "I could have jumped on the bed while playing the trumpet and you would not have awoken. There are donuts as well," he said, pointing towards the desk.

"You keep this up and I'm going to fall in love with you," Kagome warned playfully.

"Perhaps that is my intention," he replied warmly. "What are you planning to do after class?"

"I was going to come back here and get some more work done. All this showing Inuyasha around has me behind and there's a party Friday night that I definitely want to go to."

"My brother will be thrilled," Sesshoumaru said with disinterest.

"There's something I want to do tonight to get you ready for the party," she told him mysteriously.

"And that is?"

"That's a surprise," she said, claiming her cup and sipping carefully at the foam floating atop the hot liquid. "I also need to squeeze a shower in sometime today. Usually in the afternoon it isn't too crowded. What are you going to do?"

"I have an early evening class, but other than that, my day is open. I do have studies to attend to as well," he told her.

"Well, you can stay here and do it if you want. That way you won't risk Inuyasha banging on the door demanding you take him somewhere or show him something. He's seen the whole campus. I don't know what he thought he was going to do for a whole week."

"He expected there to be parties every night."

"Poor guy," Kagome said sarcastically. "He'll have to make do partying on the weekends like everyone else."

Sesshoumaru watched with interest as the miko hurried around the room, selecting her clothing for the day. He wondered if she intended to dress in front of him. Then he might get a chance to see the only part of her he hadn't uncovered yet. He was slightly disappointed when she motioned for him to turn around, but he did as she asked, waiting until she gave him permission to turn back. Instantly, his mouth was watering.

"That is a very nice..." he started, unsure of what to say. "I like the way it..." he stammered awkwardly. "You look beautiful," he finally managed to spit out.

Kagome giggled. He apparently approved of the black push up bra with matching lacy boy shorts. "Thank you," she replied with a slight blush.

"No, thank you," he said flirtatiously. "I will have the image of you in that arousing combination in my mind for the rest of the day." When she turned around, a growl escaped him. The way the lacy fabric clung to her ass was exceptionally flattering and he had the desire to drag his fangs over the flesh that remained bare before him.

"Well, if you're lucky, you'll get to help me take it off tonight," she told him.

"And what must I do to be lucky?" he inquired.

"Have the same amount of confidence tonight as you do right now. Don't let him push you around."

Prompt: Sunflower (Have a good year) (The Language of Flowers Challenge)

"I am hoping he stays at the frat house all day."

"And I'm hoping they don't kick him out on his ass," Kagome added with a laugh. She took another drink of her coffee before putting on the skirt of her choice for the day. She pulled on her blouse and posed dramatically for the taiyoukai. "Does this look okay together?"

"You are asking me for fashion advice?" he asked incredulously. "I cannot even dress myself properly, let alone know what goes with what."

"Okay, how do I look?"

Sesshoumaru smirked. "You have already told me that is a loaded question with no right answer." Kagome sighed heavily and the taiyoukai's smirk widened. "You look beautiful, Kagome, but then you always do in my eyes."

The miko skipped across the room to press a quick kiss to his lips. "Thank you," she whispered before rushing through the rest of her morning routine, struggling with her hair for a bit before taming the tangles. She checked the clock and chugged the rest of her coffee in one shot, tossing it into her small garbage can. The miko grabbed a donut for the road before saying her good-byes. "I'll see you later, all right?"

"Unless something comes up, I will be here when you return."

Kagome smiled brightly. "That sounds so nice, knowing you'll be here waiting for me. Gotta run!" Sesshoumaru caught the miko before she made it to the door, holding her close and kissing her heatedly. He then opened the door and watched as she collected both her bag and her keys, her cheeks a soft pink.

"Have a good class," he called after her. How he wished every morning could be like this one. He dreaded going back to his own room and sleeping alone in his own bed. He had to find some way around the rules so that they could stay together. Yes, it was moving quickly. They'd only been truly dating for a few days, but it all felt so right, it was as if they'd been doing it for ages.

An idea struck him but he was wary of following it through. Sesshoumaru was afraid she would think they were moving too fast, and she would probably be right. He didn't want to frighten her away, but then she'd said the same, that she wished they could stay together all the time. It couldn't hurt to look into it, could it? Of course, a move like that would require his father's permission and he had no clue if the old dog would give it to him. Sesshoumaru sighed and headed towards Kagome's desk and his laptop, intent on doing his work, after he checked out a few details pertaining to his idea.

Prompt: Slugabed: one who stays in bed until a late hour (Obscure Word Challenge)

Inuyasha woke with a groan and rolled to his side, cursing as he fell off the couch and onto the floor. "Damn it," he muttered, trying to rise but bumping against the table in front of the couch instead. Finally, the hanyou made it to his feet, running his hand over his face and rubbing his eyes. It took him a moment to remember where he was, but once he did, a scowl showed on his face. This place was nothing like his frat house. These guys needed to be shown a thing or two.

He headed up the stairs in search of a bathroom, locating one eventually while wondering where the hell everyone else was. Once he finished in the bathroom, he stumbled into the kitchen, checking the clock. Seeing that it was closing in on noon, Inuyasha shrugged and opened the fridge, sticking his head inside in search of something edible.

Finding nothing, he grabbed his phone out of his pocket and began texting Sesshoumaru, demanding that he come get him and take him to lunch somewhere. He'd been lucky to find his way to the frat house last night and he truly had no idea how to make it back to the cafeteria on his own.

While waiting for a response from his brother, the hanyou ran his plan from the night before through his mind. He was thankful it was finally Thursday. That meant that there would be parties the next night. He'd almost made it through a party-less, alcohol-free week with his sanity intact. Tomorrow night he would be able to begin his plan, to make Kagome think that Sesshoumaru did something inappropriate with another female. It might be tricky, but he was determined.

His ringtone for Sesshoumaru went off, a long farting sound that he thought fit his brother very well, and the hanyou checked his phone. He growled in frustration at what he read. The taiyoukai wasn't coming to get him, had told him to fend for himself. He was finished catering to him, doing as he demanded.

Inuyasha didn't like this a bit but there wasn't much he could do about it, besides calling his father and demanding he make Sesshoumaru do what he'd been told to, and the hanyou doubted that his father would do a thing to help him. All he really wanted was to go home and not think about his brother again but the old man wouldn't let him do that. No, he had to hang around and watch, to keep their father updated on Sesshoumaru's state.

He made a decision at that very moment. He was going home on Sunday, whether he was allowed to or not. The taiyoukai was growing stronger and more confident by the day, despite his best attempts at breaking him back down. If he didn't succeed in breaking them up, he was fucked.

The hanyou was startled as his phone began to ring and he stared at the screen in shock. It was as if his father had heard his defiant thoughts and was calling to put him in his place.

He swiped to accept the call and prayed that the old dog was in a good mood. "Yeah, Pops?"

"How is your brother doing? Has he beaten you up yet?"

"No," the hanyou growled. "I had him back to normal yesterday, but then the bitch came around and undid all my hard work."

"Why are you trying to make him revert to his old self?" his father demanded. "The changes in him are a good thing, so that I may no longer have to be embarrassed by my eldest son."

"But he's going to kick my ass! The longer he's with her, the more confident he becomes. She told me she drew his beast to the surface, that he took full control, all because of his hatred for me."

"I am not surprised."

"It's all right though. I have a plan to break the two of them up. Without her, he's nothing."

"You will do nothing of the sort!" the old man bellowed angrily. "Sesshoumaru is finally becoming a true inu. You will do nothing to interfere with that! Do you hear me, boy?"

Inuyasha winced at the volume of his father's voice, as well as his anger. His father was usually on his side when it came to he and Sesshoumaru, so this was new. The old dog almost never yelled at him, even when he got kicked out of school for partying too much and not attending classes. He just did whatever needed to be done to fix the problem the hanyou had created. He hadn't been the focus of his father's anger in years, and so he knew his sire was serious.

"Y...Yes, Father," he practically whispered. "Can I come home then?"

"Not until his transformation is completed."

"And how the hell will I know when that happens?" Inuyasha asked.

"Oh, you will know."

Prompt: Gamble: To be on uncertain outcomes (Obscure Word Challenge)

Well, it was doable. There were even still openings, but he doubted they would last long. If he wanted to get one, he was going to have to put his name in now. He'd never desired more than the small room he had before now. It was perfectly serviceable, met all of his needs, but that was no longer the case.

Perhaps he could take one of the available on-campus apartments himself before asking Kagome to move in with him. Then, maybe, she wouldn't think it was too rushed. She would have time to make a decision, all the while being able to share his bed without breaking any rules. They could be together without the chance of frightening her away by moving too fast.

He already knew he loved her. He'd known that since the first moment he laid eyes on her, when she smiled at him in the library before introducing herself. He'd lost his heart that very instant and his love had only grown stronger the more time they spent together and the more he got to know her. She was everything he'd ever dreamed of, everything he'd ever wanted but known for certain he could not have. She was his salvation, his future, his everything and he didn't think he could go back to sleeping without her.

Still, they charged rent for the on-campus apartments, whereas his dorm room was included in his tuition. He got a healthy monthly allowance, but he doubted it would be enough to cover the rent along with his usual costs. He knew for certain it would restrict his ability to take Kagome to the nicest restaurants and buy her the nicest things, if she would ever allow him to do so.

If he wanted this, he was going to have to call his father and ask, which meant he was going to have to explain his reasons, if his father even allowed him to get that far. Sesshoumaru feared that the conversation would be ridiculously short, with him saying that he needed to ask for something and his father saying no without ever hearing what he wanted. Could he risk being reminded just how unimportant he was to his father for Kagome? The taiyoukai chuckled to himself. Of course he could. For her, he could do anything.