Pendulum

Chapter 7: School Days

That day, Kagome found it terribly difficult to concentrate on her classwork given her eventful morning. Seeing Shippo and Kirara eased the trauma of her abrupt departure from the feudal era. Like Sesshomaru, they were like a tether to her former life. Visions of simpler times enticingly played within her mind, her heart drifting to the striking image the red haori clad hanyou as he smiled confidently to her with the setting sun at his back. Inuyasha approached, reaching a clawed hand out to her cheek only to–

"Ms. Higurashi, the answer?" repeated her math teacher as he impatiently tapped the equation scrawled on the chalkboard. Alarmed, Kagome sat up straight in her seat and her focus moved away from fantasies and onto fractions.

"I-uh..." she stammered, struggling to make sense of the problem. Minutes dragged on along with Kagome's troubles to find the correct answer.

"You don't know, do you?" he asked pointedly, his words bringing the silver haired daiyoukai to mind. With an air of defeat and reddened cheeks, Kagome hung her head in embarrassment. "Kagome, see me after school." he sighed disappointingly before moving to the next student.

Kagome didn't know which was more mortifying, not knowing the answer or knowing that Sesshomaru was right. The taunting image of the daiyoukai's arrogant sneer haunted her thoughts throughout the day, accompanied with the growing fear that he'd somehow find out about her slip in academic performance.

Time passed like honey dripping in January, each second dragging her closer to the doom that was her meeting with her math teacher. Following the dismissal bell, Kagome found Mr. Tanaka at his desk grading papers his thick glasses slipping down his nose only to be shoved back up by a finger. His exiting students hastily moved past her, eager to take hold of their freedom and escape the confines of school.

Clearing her throat, Kagome approached. "Uh-hi Mr. Tanaka, you wanted to see me?"

Glancing at her from above the rim of his glasses, he gestured a chair placed closest to his desk. "Kagome take a seat." he offered politely. Nervously Kagome did so, feeling apprehensive in the scolding she knew she was going to get. Setting his pen down, Mr. Tanaka turned to face her with his full attention. "Kagome, is everything alright?" he asked with warmth and concern. "You've been really sick and I wanted to make sure you're okay."

Just how far had her grandfather's stories gone? Sheepishly, Kagome nodded with a half-hearted smile. "Yeah! Of course! I'm healthy as a horse." he explained, patting her chest as emphasis. "No symptoms in sight."

"I'm glad to hear it." he said with genuine relief before a wry grin twisted his lips. "Unfortunately, I can't say the same about your classwork. I'll be frank, Kagome your grades are slipping and apparently math isn't the only subject that's suffering."

"Oh. Right." Kagome acknowledged, her shoulders sinking, not liking the direction of the conversation in the least bit.

"By the skin of your teeth you'll advance to your sophomore year but the other teachers and I are concerned that you're not totally prepared to start the new year. " he explained.

"Oh."

"I know you're a good student and I know you can do good work when you apply yourself. The other teachers and I agree on that which is why I'm submitting a recommendation for a scholarship to Shiro Academy's summer program."

"Summer school?" she repeated her sense of foreboding doubling. Kagome seriously needed a break, wasn't saving the world cause enough for a vacation? Not even a week had passed since she helped destroy one of the greatest evils imaginable and rather than live a happily-ever-after, she was slapped with an all expense paid trip to summer school.