Catalyst by Tally Mark
Chapter 1
Author's Note: I wrote this in 2007 for the ebony_silks oneshot challenge; the theme was “chemistry.” Almost more of a drabble than a oneshot, and fluffy.
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“I can’t believe you understand all this.” Kagome threw down her textbook in disgust. “You’ve never been in school a day in your life, we’re doing science that won’t be discovered for hundreds of years, and you’re better at this than me.”
“This Sesshoumaru is a demon of many skills.”
Kagome rolled her eyes and picked up her notebook. She’d have loved to have a witty comeback for that, but the thing is, he was right. Sesshoumaru was good at everything.
Languages, literature, history, math, the sciences—one read, and he was a master of it. From the nuances of Shakespeare to advanced algorithms, he remembered flawlessly and analyzed brilliantly. He was a freaking genius. Not only that, but he liked it. What sort of nutcase likes math? She supposed a man of his kind of smarts must simply be starved for intellectual stimulation.
And Kagome, modern-day schoolgirl, was the only source of it around for miles (and let us not forget centuries).
That’s how their arrangement had started: an exchange of knowledge. She would provide information, and he’d make sense of it for her. Though, now it seemed he just stuck around to watch her flounder; he’d already memorized every textbook she owned.
And oh, flounder she did. Biting her pencil, Kagome stared at the problem again for what felt like an hour, feeling the weight of his gaze on her. Self-conscious, she rearranged herself on the grass, but the feel of his eyes—of his rapt attention—didn’t leave her. If only she could impress him, just once…
Letting out a groan, she finally threw up her hands in despair. “This is impossible! I don’t get chemistry at all!”
His lips quirked up in a vague smile. “That much is obvious.”
“It’s all the math,” she whimpered. “All those moles…and conversions…” She stabbed her finger at the paper. “And this one. This is one of the components, so why isn’t it part of the calculations?
He stood above her and peered down at her notebook, cocking his head in a way that was disconcertingly adorable. “It is a catalyst.” At her blank look he let out an amused puff of air. “It is only there to set things in motion. Accelerate the process. But it is not necessary—the reaction would have happened regardless, it would only have done so more slowly. The catalyst merely helps it get started.” His eyes slid from the paper over to hers. “The chemicals want to react.”
“Oh.”
He suddenly dropped down in a crouch beside her, his snowy hair pooling in her lap. Her fingers clutched around it involuntarily. He studied the paper. “This is where you went astray.” His long, clawed fingers brushed against hers as he plucked the pencil from her hand and began crossing things off and scribbling new ones in. ”You must remember to balance your electrical charges.”
She tried to follow what he was doing but her mind wasn’t able to focus. He was sitting so close his body heat seeped through her clothes, and his hair was tickling her cheek. The numbers flew right over her head and went south for the winter.
She shook her head with a sigh. “Chemistry is just too hard.”
His low chuckle vibrated through her. “Chemistry is beautiful in its simplicity.” He slanted a look at her through his bangs. “You are only complicating things within your mind.”
“What do you mean?” She flushed at the tremble in her voice.
He turned to face her fully and her heart skipped a beat. “Forget numbers. Forget equations. Think only of the forces at work. Everything in chemistry comes down to one immutable, fundamental law.”
Her fingers tightened around the strand of hair. “Which is?”
He looked at her with dusky gold eyes and she found herself transfixed. Their faces were so close that she could feel his words ghost across her skin as he spoke:
“Opposites attract.”
She swayed forward slightly. “Isn’t that physics?” she asked breathlessly.
“No,” he replied with a slow smirk, his mouth descending on hers. “Chemistry.”