Monday, March 29, 2004

   Past Collides with Present: Chapter 5
Chapter 5: News

Kurama and Shuichi were still in the living room when Hatanaka finally made it home at 12:30 in the morning. They both jumped up and rushed to the hall when they heard the door open.

"Boys, you have school tomorrow. Shouldn't you be in bed?" Hatanaka said as he closed the door and took off his shoes.

"Where's Mom?" Kurama said.

"The doctors decided to keep her in the hospital for observation. She's fine though. Her worst injury was that hand. It's a second degree burn. She should be home tomorrow."

"Did she tell you what happened?" Shuichi asked eagerly.

"Well, yes." Hatanaka hung up his raincoat and walked into the living room, plopping down on the couch. Shuichi sat beside him, and Kurama took a nearby chair. "The story isn't all that believable, however."

That just made Shuichi want to hear it even more, so Hatanaka repeated it to the boys. Kurama sat through it silently, showing no reaction. After all, he already knew what had happened. Shuichi was also silent, but his eyes grew ever larger as the story went on.

"Wow!" he breathed when Hatanaka had finished. "You mean demons really do exist? I have a friend who all into demons. He's always talking about some new legend or story he's found. I bet he would know what kind of demon it was that saved Mom!"

"I'm more worried about why Mom was kidnapped in the first place," Kurama said quietly, instantly sobering Shuichi's mood. "Did she have any idea?"

Hatanaka shook his head. "Iie. I'm worried about it, too. What if the demon tries to kidnap her again? I can handle many things, but demons?" He helplessly shook his head again.

"Well, she got help this time," Shuichi said. "Maybe she will next time, too. I mean, if there is a next time," he added, looking downcast.

"I doubt it," Kurama said. "That demon can't be around all the time." /Though I'll certainly try,/ he added to himself. And once Koenma got some information for him, he would be able to protect Shiori even better.

The family went silent for a few minutes, pondering the ominous turn of events. Kurama wasn't really worried about Shuichi finding out what kind of demon he was. In fact, this friend's knowledge might be helpful.

"Shuichi," he said, breaking the silence. "When you tell your friend about this, ask him what kind of demon it was who kidnapped Mom in the first place."

Shuichi gave him a strange look. "Why?"

"I think it might be helpful if we know what we're dealing with," Kurama replied. He stood up and stretched. "In the mean time, Hatanaka- san is right. We have school tomorrow, and it is quite late. Let's go to bed."

* * *


The next day dawned bright and clear, the rain having left during the night. Kurama loved days like this. The air had a fresh smell, and the sun seemed brighter and warmer. /Yes, rain is a good thing,/ he thought. It also meant that he didn't have to water his gardens today.

He was sitting in school, listening to the teacher drone about history. He rarely listened to the teacher in this particular class, since he had lived through most of the subjects of the lectures. However, he never fell asleep.

Which was exactly what he did that time.

"Minamino-san!"

Kurama jerked awake to find the teacher standing over him.

"I wasn't aware you had a problem with narcolepsy, Minamino-san," the teacher said wryly. A few classmates snickered.

"Sumi masen*," Kurama said, his face turning red. "My mother had to be taken to the hospital last night, and I stayed up late to wait on news. I'm a little sleepy today."

The teacher's face softened. "Perhaps you should go home, then."

"Iie. She's fine. She'll be home later today."

"Whatever you say." The teacher walked back to the front of the classroom. "In the meantime, please try to stay awake. That goes for you, too, Kimura-san," he said, rapping a desk sharply. The girl jumped. "Sumi masen, Ochiai-sensei," she mumbled.

* * *

Kurama finally made it home that afternoon to find Shiori in the living room, her wrapped ankle propped on the coffee table. Kurama nearly forgot to take his shoes off in his haste to see her. "No, Mom, don't get up," he called as he hastily kicked them off. Shiori settled back down as he came into the living room and bent down to hug her.

"Hi, son, have a good day at school?" she said.

"More or less," he replied. "Hatanaka-san told us what happened. How are you feeling?" He sat down beside her on the couch.

Shiori gave a short laugh. "Shell-shocked, I guess. I never would have imagined this happening to me." She studied her son's face and was reminded of the demon who had rescued her. /Why do they seem so similar?/ she wondered again.

At that moment, Shuichi came in. "Tadaima!" he called. Then he spotted Kurama and Shiori and ran into the living room. "Mom! You're back!" he cried happily, about to jump on her. Kurama grabbed him before he could.

"Careful, she's hurt," he admonished.

Shuichi sheepishly bent down to hug her carefully, then sat down on her left side. "I talked to Takeshi today," he said. "He said he'd have to do a little reading to find out what kind of demon it was who kidnapped you. But he did know what kind of demon the other one was!"

"Wait a second." Shiori frowned. "You've been telling your friends about this?"

"Just one, Takeshi. He's always believed in demons, and he studies everything he can about them."

"Well, Shuichi," Kurama prodded. "What did he have to say?"

"This is what he said!" Shuichi was obviously excited. "The demon, the one who saved you, Mom, he was a youko!"

Kurama silently congratulated Takeshi for being smart while Shiori gave her step-son a confused look. "What's a youko?"

"A kitsune. A really powerful one."

"Shuichi, you may have picked up some knowledge of demons from your friend, but I don't know anything about them. What makes a youko fox so special?"

Shuichi sighed impatiently. "A youko is a spirit fox that can shapeshift. They're said to be really good at illusions. The one who saved you was an arctic fox. They're really rare and *really* strong. They also live a really long time."

"How long?" asked Kurama, amused.

"Well, let's put it this way. Takeshi hasn't heard of any that have died of natural causes, but he has heard of some that are hundreds of years old."

Kurama was beginning to wonder if this Takeshi had any connections to Makai.

"Well, that's all well and good, but I just hope I never have need of this youko's help again," Shiori said.

"Me, too," Kurama added. He stood up and started for the hallway.

"Hey, wait!" Shuichi called. "I want to tell you some stories that Takeshi told me."

"What kind?" Kurama said, turning around.

"Well, there was one I especially liked about a youko named Kila." Shuichi started. Kurama turned back to the hall and picked up his book bag. ".and the one about the thief Kurama and his partner Kuronue."

*That* caught Kurama's attention.

"Thief, you say?" he asked, turning around again. "That doesn't sound like anyone to idolize to me."

"He's still cool," Shuichi said, shrugging.

"Well, you tell 'Kaasan about it. I've got homework to do." With that Kurama started toward the stairs. The last thing he needed right now was to hear anything about Kuronue or his past life. /I had no idea we became known in Ningenkai./

He could hear Shuichi starting his stories downstairs before he closed his bedroom door.

* * *

A bird sat in a tree outside the living room window, watching the entire exchange. It was about as big as a crow and black, for the most part. Its chest was a deep indigo blue, and its legs were mottled orange and black. The beak was colored like a piece of candy corn and the eyes were red. It stared hatefully at the red-haired boy, if a bird could be said to stare hatefully. When the boy left the living room, it flew off, deciding it had gathered enough information. It would make its move soon.

*Sumi masen: I'm sorry (formal).

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