Higher Education by SunsetMiko

Chapter 6

All prompts are from Riku Ryuu's Random Prompts.

Prompt: Library

Sesshoumaru was restless. He hadn't seen Kagome since Sunday afternoon when they shared lunch together. After their meal she hurried back to her room to get to work on her assignments and he hadn't heard a peep from her since. As the days passed, he grew more and more worried.

Did she only have an interest in him when it had to do with taking him out and making him into a social creature? Was he truly nothing but a project after all? Would he not hear from her until Friday when she wanted to go out again? He'd thought they were developing a genuine friendship, but now he had his doubts. He tried to drone out his worries as much as possible, spending hours in the library studying and doing research for a paper he had to write, but they were growing louder and louder.

By Wednesday afternoon, Sesshoumaru could take it no longer and headed down two floors from his to Kagome's dorm room. He knocked on the door and then waited nervously for her to answer. What if she didn't want to see him? What if she'd changed her mind about being his friend and that's why she disappeared from his life? He figured he was about to find out as he heard noises from inside the room.

The door opened a smidge and Kagome stuck her head out. When she spotted the taiyoukai, she smiled and Sesshoumaru relaxed a great deal. If she didn't want to see him, she wouldn't be smiling at him, right?

"Sesshoumaru? What are you doing here?"

Her tone had him worried again. Was he interrupting something? Should he have waited for her to contact him? He had no idea how friendships really worked and so he was guessing, flying by the seat of his pants. She looked almost frightened, as if he'd caught her in the middle of something she didn't want him to see.

"I hadn't heard from you in a while," he said hesitantly, not wanting to sound too clingy. "I thought, perhaps, you might like to join me for lunch."

"Who's at the door, love?" a voice from inside the room called.

Kagome's eyes widened and her head disappeared from Sesshoumaru's view for a moment as he heard her whispering "hush!"

When her head popped back through the small opening, the taiyoukai had to fight off a frown. "Am I interrupting something?"

She had another male in there! Was she seeing someone? He'd held out a small amount of hope that the two of them could slowly move from friendship to a relationship, but that would be out the window if she was dating someone else. Then he would be stuck her friend forever, if her new boyfriend even allowed such a thing. Why would she bother keeping him around anyway if she had another male to take her to parties and dance with her? Sesshoumaru felt as though he was being pushed out, replaced, and he didn't like it a bit. Suddenly, he wished he hadn't come at all.

When the male voice spoke again, Kagome sighed heavily and opened the door all the way. "Sesshoumaru," she said, annoyance in her tone. "This is Miroku. Miroku, Sesshoumaru. Miroku is helping me with my philosophy class. Without him, I'd be failing."

"Is that all I am to you, my love?" Miroku asked in a playful, fake hurt tone. "Just a means to an end?"

"Oh, shut up," the miko growled before turning her attention back to Sesshoumaru. "I can't go to lunch right now. We're eating in while we're studying," she said while gesturing to the two steaming Cup O Noodles sitting atop her dresser. "I can meet you for dinner though," she added cheerfully. When the taiyoukai nodded, Kagome smiled brightly. "I'll swing by your room around six o'clock, okay?"

"I will see you then," Sesshoumaru replied before turning and walking away, hearing as Kagome slammed the door and began chastising Miroku for his flirtatious behavior. Now the taiyoukai was genuinely confused. Who was this male to her? Was he truly just a friend helping her study? But then why had he referred to her as 'love'? He could only hope he would receive his answers in a few hours when they shared dinner together in the cafeteria.

Prompt: Idea

He hadn't gotten a thing done since he returned from his visit to Kagome's room. He'd been too busy questioning everything he knew about both her and their friendship. He was utterly confused and it made focusing on his studies impossible. Finally, six o'clock rolled around and, like clockwork, Kagome knocked on his door. He practically threw it open, aching to be in her presence and hoping for some kind of answers, only for his heart to drop into his stomach. She'd brought Miroku with her.

Almost as if she saw the disappointment in his eyes, Kagome smiled brightly at him. "Miroku's not only good at philosophy," she said. "He's also a pro at a skill you need to learn. I thought maybe you guys could talk during dinner."

"And what skill is that?" Sesshoumaru asked, not at all interested in what this other male had to offer.

"He's an expert at picking up women," she said, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

"And you believe I need to learn how to do so as well?" the taiyoukai asked, not liking the grin on Miroku's face, or the way his hand was pressed to Kagome's lower back in far too familiar a fashion.

"How else are we going to find you a girlfriend?" the miko asked.

"Assuming I desire one," Sesshoumaru added. Sure, he wanted a girlfriend all right, but he didn't want just any girl. He wanted Kagome. Her desire for him to learn how to pick up girls, however, gave him the impression that what he wanted was highly unlikely.

"Every guy needs a girl!" Miroku exclaimed. "Come on, my friend. Let's head to the cafeteria before all the good tables are taken."

Though he didn't like the idea in the least, Sesshoumaru nodded, walking out into the hall and closing his door. If this was what Kagome wanted, then he would humor her. Perhaps Miroku could teach him the skills necessary to gain her attention romantically.

Once they had gotten their food and claimed a table of their own, Miroku turned his focus to the taiyoukai. "The first thing we need to know is what kind of girl you're looking for. Once we know that, then I'll teach you how to approach that type of girl. So, what interests you, my new friend?"

Sesshoumaru swallowed hard. How was he supposed to describe Kagome to Miroku right in front of her? What if she recognized herself in his description? What if she laughed at him? He still had no idea if it would be possible to move from friend to something more. He had no clue whether Kagome would ever be able to see him as more than the dorky guy she rescued from the library and dragged out into the world.

"I... do not know," the taiyoukai lied.

Miroku rolled his eyes dramatically. "Sure you do. Think about the girl you like the best out of everyone you know, the one you would be with if you could. Is she a bookworm like you? Is she beautiful? Is she in a sorority or does she keep to herself? What's she like? Is she shallow and empty headed or is she kind and caring? Is she intelligent?"

"I..."

"And what kind of relationship are you looking for?" Miroku continued right over Sesshoumaru. "Are you looking to just get laid, hit it and quit it, or are you looking for something more meaningful, something long term?"

"Hit it and quit it?" Sesshoumaru repeated the monk's words, his confusion obvious.

Kagome laughed at the overwhelmed expression on the taiyoukai's face and the tone with which he spoke the foreign phrase. Taking pity on him, she decided to explain. "It's a crude way of saying a one night stand, when you pick up a girl, sleep with her, and then never see her again."

"I would never do such a thing," Sesshoumaru said indignantly. He was no sex-crazed frat boy. In fact, before he met Kagome, he'd never worried much about sex at all, assuming he would never lose his virginity. At the rate he was going, it felt like it would never happen, and so he refused to think about it, focusing instead of his studies. Now, he wanted the miko, badly, but he still doubted it. She was far too beautiful and special for him. If he did ever manage to have sex with her, though, he would certainly not abandon her the morning after. He wanted a real relationship with her, one that would last a long time, not a one night stand.

"Sorry, dude," Miroku said with his hands raised in surrender. "I didn't mean to offend you."

"He really didn't," Kagome added. "Miroku's just a dog. He's slept with half the girls in my sorority and is working his way through the other half," she said with a laugh. "He wouldn't know a meaningful relationship if it up and bit him in the ass."

"Oh, my love?" Miroku said teasingly. "And what about you? Do we not have a meaningful relationship?"

Prompt: Cowboy

Sesshoumaru had to swallow a growl at the flirtatious way Miroku was looking at Kagome. At least now he would know what kind of relationship the two of them had when the miko answered the monk's question.

"While it's probably the longest relationship you've ever had with a woman," she teased, "I wouldn't consider it a meaningful one, at least not romantically meaningful. You know we're just friends. Now stop teasing and trying to make Sesshoumaru jealous already! It's obviously not working."

Sesshoumaru mentally released a heavy sigh of relief. She was only friends with the man-whore she'd brought along to teach him about women. He prayed that meant she hadn't had sex with Miroku. She told him she wasn't like that; that she didn't do the whole walk of shame kind of thing, but that didn't completely rule it out. The guy was constantly flirting with her, even while talking to him, and the taiyoukai didn't like it a bit. If she hadn't slept with him yet, it was obvious the monk was working on it.

He thought about Kagome's words. Was Miroku truly trying to make him jealous? Well, it was working! Could she really not see that? He didn't like the idea of another male chasing after the miko and he wanted it to stop. He was tempted to strangle the life out of the monk just to keep him away from her. Sure, he wouldn't be around to teach him about women, but this guy wasn't the kind of man he wanted to be anyway.

"Fine, but then what am I supposed to do for fun?" Miroku asked with a pout.

"You're here to teach him how to pick up girls! Teach him how to talk to women. I think I might be the only girl he's ever had a real conversation with." The miko gathered her trash on her tray and rose. "You guys be good. I'll be right back."

As soon as she was out of earshot, Miroku turned to Sesshoumaru, a serious expression on his face for the first time. "You want her, don't you? Admit it. I can tell by the way that you look at her. You'd better treat her right, cowboy, or I'll make you pay. She's a sweet girl and she deserves the best."

Sesshoumaru's mouth fell open in surprise, though he closed it quickly. "You..."

"I care about that girl more than I have any woman I've ever met. I'm not here to teach you how to pick up girls. That was just my excuse. I'm here to check you out and make sure you're worthy of her."

"But how did you even know..."

"The look in your eye when you realized she had another guy in her room. I knew that second that you wanted her. It's a damn good thing you're not interested in a one night stand or I'd have been forced to torpedo your relationship."

Sesshoumaru studied the male sitting across the table from him in awe. His playful, flirtatious nature had disappeared in an instant and he knew Miroku meant every word he was saying.

"You will not tell her?" the taiyoukai asked

"That you want her? No, I won't say a word, but you're definitely going to have to up your game if she really can't see it, and she seems oblivious."

The taiyoukai glanced in the direction Kagome had disappeared, seeing her chatting with several females, before leaning in close. "What do you recommend I do?"