Every Gimmick in the Book by naqaashi

Natural Beauty

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, or An Unwilling Bride. 

A/N: This little bit of insanity-meets-cliché is a thank you fic for Fox. And also a tribute to every single Regency romance novel I have ever read, for the wonderfully charming world they've brightened my fantasies with! This fic will be posted in the form of drabbles, with each chapter being 300 to 500 words long. Enjoy, for I serve you romance, sunny side up!

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A slender arm poked out of the tangled sheets to send the alarm skittering across the room with a sharp smack. When that did nothing to silence its shrill beeping, a tousled black head joined the arm in the open and gazed mournfully at it. Their owner, a slight young woman by the name of Higurashi Kagome, attempted to convince herself that it would be a very bad idea to arrive late for work on her first day while simultaneously scrabbling around to unearth whatever it was that was poking her in the behind with astonishing rudeness. 

Ahhh, An Unwilling Bride by Jo Beverley. A blissful smile took over her face as she recalled the happy ending of that particular tale. She had fallen asleep fantasising about Lucien de Vaux, its arrogant, aristocratic hero, and wishing very much that she were Beth, the impudent, no-nonsense heroine. Alas, it was not to be. Women like Beth did not laze around daydreaming in bed when there was work to be done and a bright new day to be experienced. No, they were industrious, practical, punctual, since – 

“Oh shit!” – and they certainly didn’t swear. 

Hang Beth, Kagome thought, scrambling out of bed and into the bath. Or rather, emulate Beth, she corrected herself a while later, fumbling about the flat trying to cover toast, briefcase and clothes in one fell swoop. She faltered before her closet however, agonizing over clothing choices. 

“Why is it,” she muttered impatiently as she rejected a succession of bright – and inappropriate – dresses, “that girls in romances can dress in potato sacks and still grab the guy? Natural beauty, my foot!” Right on cue, an old, drab brown jacket fell into her clutches, and a thoughtful gleam lit her eye.

If Beth could do it, so could she! 

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Prompt: Lazy (March 12 GM DDN)

Do read and review!