Cracks

by Mayushii

All copyright materials are property of their respective owners.

A/N: This story actually touches on a theory I had that when Kurama was reborn he genuinely was human, and then he gradually changed back into a youkai. This coincides with the manga's canon story about his youki recovering at age ten. In this story the human body he was born into is being transformed into a youkai's by exposure to powerful youki, namely Hiei's. Since Kurama wants to stay with his human mother, he's trying to cover up the youkai traits that are shining through.

"Cracks"

Minamino Shiori hummed softly in tune with the kitchen radio, feeling very pleased with herself as she ran the dish cloth over the last of the plates. It had been a good day at work, she had read a few chapters of her new book on the train home, and very soon she would have all of her housework done too. That would leave the entire evening free, she thought happily, dunking the dish under the soapy water with a small splash.

The door in the front hall opened and shut.

"Kaasan! Tadaima!"

"Okaeri," Shiori called back. She smiled, rinsing off the plate and placing it on the drying rack. There was a short pause as shoes were removed and placed by the door, and then footsteps padded down the hall. Shiori wiped her hands on the towel, watching as her son appeared in the doorway. Shuichi was still dressed in his dark blue gakuran, but he held a green cloth shopping bag in his hand along with his school satchel.

"Shu-kun, did you have a good day at school?" Shiori asked.

"Yes, Kaasan." Shuichi gave her one of those warm smiles that he had never managed to give her as a baby. He held out the bag. "I did the shopping."

"Ohhh… You didn't have to do that, I could have done it."

Shuichi shrugged carelessly, as if to say it wasn't a big deal. The market was between the house and his junior high, so stopping at the greengrocery wasn't too hard. He took the vegetables out of the bag and placed them on the counter. Shiori's day had just gotten even better.

"Excellent," she beamed. "Why don't you get washed up? I'll have dinner ready in half an hour."

"All right."

As he turned to leave, Shiori noticed that he hadn't hung the shopping bag on the hook near the door.

"Shu-kun? Why don't you leave that bag here?"

Shuichi glanced over his shoulder, looking uneasy for a moment, and flashed another smile.

"Oh, I bought some soap and stuff. I'll just take it with me." Then Shuichi hurried off down the hall before his mother could say another word.

He almost slammed the door of his room, but Minamino Shuichi was far too mild-mannered to do that. Instead he shut the door as quickly and quietly as possible. He leaned against it for a second before crossing the room and dumping the cloth shopping bag on his desk along with his school satchel.

"Okay." He ran one hand through his hair. It was still as short as ever, but it had changed recently. It felt soft and tufty, almost like fur…and the texture was the least of his problems. He hoped his mother hadn't noticed that his roots were a much lighter, warmer color than black.

"Okay, what?"

A normal human would have jumped out of his skin, but again, Minamino Shuichi was far too controlled for that. He turned around and found a small boy lounging in the window like it was his personal property.

At least, it would have looked like a boy to anyone who didn't know better. It was obvious to Shuichi that this was no boy; he wasn't even trying to look human. The youkai's black hair was white-streaked and wild, every last strand standing on end like the bristling fur of an offended animal. His eyes were so wide and red it was like looking at drops of blood on a sheet of paper. His clothes, a long black cloak and white scarf, were in a frayed and tattered state that a human would only be caught dead in, and he had a sheathed katana resting beside him, one hand lingering on top of it as if he expected to use it at any moment.

"What are you doing here?" Shuichi asked. His tone was not as polite as he had intended. Must be courteous to guests, even uninvited ones. "Hiei-san?" he amended.

"I came to check on you. Got a problem with that?" Hiei answered sharply.

"It would have been more polite to send word beforehand."

"I was faster than the messenger."

Shuichi paused for a moment, frowning. After two months without contact, he had started to think he would never see Hiei again. He had thought that maybe he could get on with his life and forget the little youkai who had dragged him back into a world he had long since left. Granted, the brief encounter with Hiei's youki had cracked part of the human facade that hid Shuichi's own youkai nature—but he had found ways of hiding that.

Thinking of which…

"Well, I'm very sorry, Hiei-san, but I can't talk right now. I need to take a shower," Shuichi explained. Hiei stared at him flatly. "Please excuse me."

Reaching into the shopping bag, Shuichi closed a hand around the small box inside. He froze when he felt a displacement in the air behind him.

"You're…different."

Shuichi pulled the box out of the bag and turned around, hiding his purchase behind his back.

"How so?" he asked. Hiei cocked his head to one side, studying Shuichi. Then he furrowed his brow.

"Did you do something with your hair?" It was not a compliment or a favorable remark, just a note of the change.

"No." Shuichi brushed past Hiei, moving the little box in his hand so that his guest couldn't see it.

"It looks different," Hiei insisted as Shuichi crossed the room.

"Trust me, it isn't."

The door closed sharply.

Shuichi got out of the shower, dabbing water from his hair with a black towel. He glanced in the mirror and wiped the condensation away.

Good. He turned away, pleased that the red roots had been hidden by the dye, and was halfway across the bathroom before he stopped dead in his tracks. He rushed back to the mirror and touched his face, peering into his eyes. They weren't black the way a human's eyes were supposed to be. Not even close. No, they were green—like emeralds, like leaves, like everything that wasn't human. In the short time Hiei had been here, his youki had cracked Shuichi's shell wide open, exposing his youkai nature in all its glory. How was he supposed to hide this?

"Shu-kun! Dinner!" Shuichi jumped.

"Coming!" Shuichi called. He stared at his reflection for another moment before turning away and hurrying out of the bathroom. If Hiei was still here, he was about to be pushed right back out the window he'd come through.

Shuichi practically stampeded down the hall and opened his bedroom door, only to find that the youkai had not yet left. In fact, Hiei had decided to sprawl out on the bed. He was laying on his side, his arm supporting his head as he idly flipped through one of Shuichi's manga. Shuichi caught sight of the cover and felt his face turn bright red.

"Do you mind?" Shuichi tried to be polite. Really.

"Not really, no," Hiei said, waving a hand carelessly without looking up from the book. "Go ahead and change."

"You could ask for permission before reading my books. That's mine," Shuichi said, as if it weren't obvious. He moved toward the bed and attempted to take the book away. Hiei flitted away and appeared on the windowsill instead, turning a page.

"Yes, I see that." He held the book up, displaying the page he had been reading. Shuichi flushed darkly and quickly looked away, embarrassed. "What's this all about?"

"S-summary's on the back cover," Shuichi said through gritted teeth.

"No, what they're doing. With their mouths."

Shuichi blinked, his anger replaced with a sort of puzzled, awkward feeling as he gave Hiei a sideways glance. Hiei had opened the book to the most luridly incriminating page of all—and he was asking about their mouths?

"He's kissing him," Shuichi said uncertainly, wondering if Hiei knew what that meant. Not all youkai kissed, after all—many had sharp fangs that made it painful, or venom in their lips, and some species didn't have any mouth at all.

"I know that," Hiei snapped. "Why is he kissing him?"

"Because he likes him."

"Likes him?" Hiei turned the book back around and frowned down at the drawing. Shuichi watched him for a moment, uncomfortable. He wasn't sure if Hiei knew what that meant, either. Many youkai only mated for reproduction and had no concept of romance, and so far Hiei wasn't looking like the romantic type.

"Um… Can I have the book back now?" Shuichi asked, fidgeting slightly.

Hiei stared at the page for another moment. Then he shut his eyes, turned his nose up a little, and held the book out for Shuichi to take.

"Hn," Hiei snorted disdainfully.

Shuichi took the book and turned away, hiding it under his pillow. Then he went to the closet and rummaged around for some clothes. He turned to ask Hiei to look away and flushed when he found the youkai unabashedly staring at the top of his head. Shuichi cleared his throat pointedly, and Hiei rolled his eyes, looking out the window instead.

"Listen, I don't mean to be rude," Shuichi spoke up as he dressed, "but your youki is breaking my human illusion."

"And that's a bad thing?" Hiei asked with a tone of disbelief in his voice.

"It is when you're trying to live among them."

Hiei snorted with discontent, but he obligingly lowered his youki.

"Your skin is too pale for black hair anyway," Hiei said. "You'd look better with red."

"Thank you for your input," Shuichi grumbled.

"You're welcome."

Shuichi wasn't sure if Hiei was mocking him or if he genuinely thought Shuichi appreciated his comments. Either way, Shuichi was going to give him a piece of his mind. After dinner, that is.

Hiei glanced around just in time to see Shuichi leave the room. He stared at the closed door for a minute to be sure that he had really left. Then he slid from the windowsill, padded across the room, and retrieved the book from under the pillow.