Disclaimer: Isn't it self-explanatory. Well, anyways, I DON'T OWN YU YU HAKUSHO or its characters, although I may hope it were otherwise.

Sorry people, but there are going to be a lot of changes in point of view during the first half of the chapter, but after that it might get better. Don't worry, though. I let you know the point of view.

Also, do not take my religious incorpation in the second or third chapter offensively. It was not written to be so. It was written for the sake of fun, but not at anyone's expense.

If you somehow find it offensive, well then, I imagine you cannot go through your life an hour without being offended. That's your problem.

Also, sorry that this chapter is so long.

Chapter 1: Did I Mention I HATE HEIGHTS?!

Haruko Urameshi's POV

"Whoa? What was that thing?" I exclaimed in surprise. I saw a burst of speed faster than anything I'd ever seen come from what I believed to be an oversized bird.

That's a pretty damn fast bird considering its size. Actually, that's pretty fast for any bird period. Aren't hummingbirds the fastest birds on the planet? That thing moved a hell of a lot faster than any hummingbird I'd ever seen.

Hiei's POV

Hn. It's as if she felt my eyes on her. That's not too unusual, but she saw me move. That's something no normal human could hope to accomplish at a distance of two paces let alone ten. I had been watching her for a little while, listening to her internal monologue. Sometimes it was amusing to listen to the worries and activities (AN: you better not be thinking that way) of idiotic human beings. Following her was more entertaining than anything else he had to do anyway. Why did have to end up stuck here again following some girl named Haru.

Haru's POV

Must be my imagination playing tricks on me, again. I shake my head, hoping to clear it. First at home, then at the university and now here. Even in Japan, I can't stop these stupid weird things. You know, a lot of coincidental and just plain weird things happen that I can't explain, and its starting to creep me out, because in some certain situations it's just not normal. Some of the things I've seen would make most peoples' eyes fly right on out of their sockets. As much as I like being abnormal, I like having a sense of stability in my life. Some people are good at shrugging things off. Well, I'm not. It's probably because I don't occupy myself with enough activities. I feel uncomfortable around most people, because I don't like them judging me. They think they know me before they get to speak to me. Too many people have been jerks to me for a bunch of stupid reasons. I have problems with most people, because most people lie to me, hate me because I don't follow the crowd, hate me for being better at something than they are, and before for just being happy. I'm not the happy person I used to be, and whenever I am someone is determined to ruin it for me. The one thing I can say is that I appreciate happiness much more than I ever did, because it is rare, and because it is rare I consider it a true treasure. Wow, I rant too much. Anyway, what was I doing? Well, maybe I'm just losing my mind, because whenever I see, do, or hear these unexplainable things no one else can. Rrr, great, just another thing to worry about. In consideration of all the other things I've seen, though, this isn't too weird. The only weird thing is this feeling I'm getting. Oh joy, that can't be good. I always get this feeling before something strange happens. It's a good thing I don't tell anyone about this kind of stuff or they'd think I was nuts. I mean, seeing a guy you're getting in a fight with that has horns isn't particularly normal. It has to be only my overly active imagination.

Hmm, I wonder what the place I'm staying at will look like. It sure is far away. Let's look at the directions…

"What?! How the hell am I supposed to find a place in the middle of a forest?"

Sure I knew the paths where I lived, even the really small unmarked ones, but this place was huge, and I'd never been here before. Great, I'll probably end up on a whole different island. Why does this place have to be in the middle of nowhere? I have nothing against nature, except for maybe some of the bugs, however I don't want to go on a hike to get to my place of residence with all my stupid baggage. Stupid school people, they didn't even bother to tell me I'd have to hike through the forest. Well, I'm not turning back now. Good thing I have a very decent sense of direction.

Hiei's POV

Hn. She seems to be trying to find someplace. She must not be from around here. There isn't anything down the way she appeared to be going. She returned to relaxed thought again. I'm listening to her every thought for whatever reason I do not know or care. Indeed, she was a strange human. I had seen some of the things she had seen when she had been thinking about weird things that had happened in her past. Apparently, she's been in a fight with a pretty pathetic demon and sadly beat him. How pathetic. Of course, she doesn't know this. She just suspected it was her overly active imagination. It was impressive for a human I'll admit. Even though, the demon was pathetic by my standards, the fact that she'd beat this demon so easily did say a lot for her and I felt more respect for the girl and contempt for the demon. What am I doing? I must be pretty bored to be following a ningen around. Blast it Kurama, when does this human school end? Then again, she isn't your average ningen. There's something different about her that's hard to grasp.

Haru's POV

Let's see… I can do this. I'm good at this sort of thing. I was always the navigator on car trips, even if it was because I was the only other person in the car. Oh crap, the path forks.

"What the hell?! I swear the big guy up there is against me. The directions don't say anything about this. Hmm, I wonder if I could…"

Glancing at a nearby tree, I notice the tree is taller than most of the others. Hoping to get a better view, I start climbing up the tree. As usual it didn't bother me at first, but after a while I got nervous being up so high.

"Shit, I'm up high. Dammit, I hate heights."

Ugh, I'm being a baby. What's more important: not getting lost forever or stop climbing the tree so you won't be afraid? Then there is always another way of looking at it. What's more important: not getting lost or climbing a tree, snapping one of its branches and falling to your death? OH, SHUT UP. Sometimes, I hate my brain. It's not always very good at helping me out in these situations. Why do I always have to rationalize things?

"Dammit, I'm up in this tree already, and I'm not going to have climbed it for nothing."

I decided to continue up the tree until I got to the branches that I was sure couldn't support my weight. I looked around for a building. Notta

"Great, I did climb up here for nothing. Just perfect, now I feel really stupid. Now all I have to do is climb down and don't look down."

I just told myself not to look down. So, WHY in bloody hell am I looking down? Simple. I just couldn't resist the temptation and I'm a bloody moron. Why is it when anyone and I mean ANYONE tells me not to do something, including myself, I have this terrible urge to do it? This time it overcame me. "Oh, shiiiit…"

I held on to the tree for dear life. Maybe this really was a bad idea. Ugh, I don't know. To reinforce my next thought I said it aloud. "I'm gonna be stuck here forever if I don't suck it up and climb down."

I reluctantly willed myself with the rational half of my brain to climb down the tree and the further I went down the more my pace quickened until I jumped to the ground from the last branch. My legs were shaking. Not visibly, but I could feel it. ManI'm such a wimpI stood there and leaned up against the tree waiting for my anxiety to ebb away. Now, I was proud that I had done it, no matter how dumb the back of my mind dictated that I was for doing it in the first place.

"Phew, I made it. Piece a cake."

Hiei's POV

Watching her in amusement, a rare grin is stretching across my face. She is clearly terrified of high heights. What reason did one have to worry about that? Even if you were clumsy enough to fall, it would only cause temporary pain. You probably wouldn't even break anything. Then again she was just a frail human, and there was much greater risk, including death, if she had fallen from such a height. The girl seemed to be nearing Genkai's temple. Strange. Why would this girl's school send her there? I'm just following this girl out of sheer curiosity. It's not as if I have anything better to do until the fox was back from his human school anyway. I am beginning to believe Yusuke, that this school was a place of torture, even if it wasn't the physical kind. She's still making a decision of which path to take. She has no way of knowing which way to go. If she takes one way it will lead to Genkai's. However, if she takes the other way she'll have a lot more to fear than climbing trees, but she, of course, doesn't know that. She seemed to start to pick the wrong way, then abruptly stopped, and is now taking the other path. She got lucky. She is talking to herself aloud again.

"Jeez, where the heck am I? I'm starting to think this whole study abroad thing was a bad idea. It must be at least two already! If I don't find this place soon, I'm gonna go back."

In her mind I can tell that she is too stubborn to go back. She couldn't go back. She'd put so much time into finding this place to just go back. I hear her logic complain about the possibility of her being stuck out here after nightfall, and I could tell she didn't want to be alone out here at night. Still, she is far too determined to give up.

Haru's POV

"I must be halfway to Kyoto by now. How the hell am I supposed to get to and from school everyday?"

I walked on for a few more kilometers. I was getting more impatient by the minute and I was getting hungry, too. My stomach growled as a stone formation in the distance became identified as a giant flight of stairs.

"Let's make Haru do more exercise than she's ever done in all her life."

Okay, so I haven't always been this way. In fact, there was a time when I would have skipped meals to run up and down that flight of stairs for the sheer enjoyment of a challenge. Back then, having sighted them, I would have been excited and would have challenged someone to a race up the stairs. No wonder my teachers and classmates had been convinced I was an alien. Yes, even the teachers. What the heck happened? Those times were gone, though. I'm lazy now. It just isn't fun when people won't accept your challenges anymore, because they are sure of defeat. Having no competition, I have morphed into a couch potato like many other kids, since my mother has never allowed me to play sports. Mom is afraid I'm going to get hurt supposedly. Give me a break. I've never broken a bone in my life. At the rate I'm going, I probably never will. Thanks mom. Now, being my lazy self, all I could manage was an exasperated groan. As far as I was concerned, I had attended and participated in all my gym classes. I shouldn't have to do this kind of crap anymore. I began trudging up the stairs with my three bags. One was all school stuff and weighed about forty pounds. The other two carried my other belongings, and weighed approximately twenty pounds each. No doubt I must look a wreck. In my mental eye, I can see the sweat covering me from head to toe and my hair a big tangled mess that was no doubt frizzy from the breezes I encountered from the treetops.

"Jeez, I probably smell horrible right about now."

I hated climbing those stairs with an excess of eighty pounds. It certainly wasn't fun. I'd already been lugging them around the whole dayOkay, so I could afford to lose a couple pounds, but it wasn't as if I were fat or anything. I just need to tone up. I'm naturally athletic and that has gotten me through gym class with straight A's unlike my other friends back home, who haven't quite hit the genetic lottery even if some do look fitter than I do. They always cheer me on, and are amused when I beat the snobby jocks (most are anyway) and hear them grumble about me. Now, I was up the stairs and relieved to find the temple was only thirty paces away. "Yes! Finally!"

I've only been walking for about four or five hours. I rapped on the door. An old woman came and slid open the shoji. She was very short, shorter than my own grandmother and probably around the same age. She didn't seem altogether happy, as if she were expecting something she wasn't overly enthusiastic to receive. "Welcome, it's about time you got here. My name is Genkai, and this is where I live." I didn't like her tone of voice, but at least I knew I'd found the right place. It would have really sucked to have come this far and have gotten a 'Sorry, you've got the wrong house.'

"Old lady, look. I'm sorry I was late, but I certainly wasn't expecting it to take even half as long as it did to get here. The school gave me some pretty crappy directions and I must have walked at least fifteen kilometers to get here. I had to lug about eighty pounds of luggage all the way here, and that isn't fun. By the way, you need an escalator."

I don't think she was the kind of person who was fond of excuses or sarcasm, but she got both anyway. I'm sorry, but I'd had a rough day. Somehow, I expected she would hit me over the head or yell at me, but she didn't. What can I say? She looked like one of those kind of people. Maybe, she was nicer than I thought.

"So, they had you come the long way."

"I'd say. There's got to be a faster way to get to and from the school if I'm expected to be there on time."

She looked very serious and still looked slightly peeved. Then, why did something tell me she was laughing her head off inside? Oh well.

"There is. It takes about ten minutes to walk to the bus stop, and from there the bus ride is twenty to thirty minutes depending on traffic."

"I'm going to hurt them," I grumbled.

I don't know if she took me seriously or not. The look on her face remained unreadable. Damn. I hate not being able to pick up on people's feelings. Her face was a mask. She must have learned to hide her emotions with age. No matter how hard I tried sometimes I could not hide the way I felt. I didn't act out, but my emotions played out clearly on my face. The only thing I had learned to control so far was to stop myself from crying and that had taken a long time. Someone else came in behind me, very quietly. I almost didn't notice. Him and the old woman just looked at each other briefly and went about their business. I guess that was how they greeted each other.

"Well, he's certainly the friendly type."

Wow, I was being rude today, but honestly I didn't care. The old woman didn't seem to mind it too much. She just looked a little annoyed by it. I didn't care if she was annoyed, because I was annoyed right now, too. What was it with the short people? Two in one day. However, oddly, the new one seemed familiar to me from somewhere, but I couldn't figure out where from. The feeling was very vague. I remembered to take off my shoes before entering, since it was a Japanese custom. She seemed marginally satisfied that I knew about that.

"Come in, Haruko. I'll show you to your room."

She didn't seem as annoyed as before, but she still obviously wasn't enthusiastic. Wait, how did she know my name? Guess the school gave it to her. Leave it to them to give her more information than they gave me. Ugh, I hated being called by my full name.

"Just call me Haru. That's what everyone else does."

At least she didn't call me Ms. Urameshi. I hate that. When people call you by your last name, it just seems so impersonal, but it was the custom in Japan. She led me to my room and I followed quietly after that.

"Thanks…Genkai."

She just looked at me and then left. I suppose she expected me to get unpacked and so I did. A weird place with a weird woman. Not saying that I'm normal or anything, but even now my surroundings aren't normal. Oh, and don't forget about the weird guy. Don't think I didn't notice that the guy had red eyes. That's not normal. And what's with the hair? I've never even seen hair like that before, and I didn't smell any hair gel. As if that weren't weird enough, he was wearing a katana. Isn't that illegal? Maybe, I'm mistaken. Whatever. As long as he doesn't try to kill me with it, it's not my problem. I'm not the stupid cops. After I was done, I wandered around, motivated partly by trying to find the strange old woman, and partly by the desire to acquaint myself with my surroundings. I found that the place wasn't as big as I originally thought it was, and now that I could relax, I took in the scenery, which was truly beautiful. I was content to sit there and watch the sun set, and without my knowing it so was someone else, but they were also watching me in interest. Fortunately for them, I didn't know, because I had felt as if I was being watched the entire day, and I wasn't particularly happy about it. It left me feeling unsettled. I left to go find the old lady after almost all of the color had drained from the sky. I wonder what she does with all this land. Back home, you only had this much land if you were a celebrity or a farmer. She definitely wasn't a farmer, and I wasn't betting on her being a celebrity. I imagined her dressed up as a farmer and started laughing at the mental image of her milking a cow. I don't know why it was so funny, it just was. Apparently, they didn't know what was so funny, either. I guess they weren't used to laughter around here, because as I entered the next room, I had every one of its occupants staring at me. Maybe it's just because I'm new.

"Sorry, just thinking about something."

So, other people were here, too. I wonder if they all live here, because they don't look related. Well, maybe two of them, but that's it. The first one to speak was a guy with long red hair and really green eyes. I had to admit that he was cute, but a little girly for my tastes. I caught an amused look from the one called Hiei. I resisted the urge to glare at him and only had a prolonged glance in his direction, though often my stares are misinterpreted as glares. What can I say? I just have one of those faces that normally look angry unless I'm smiling. Something told me he knew what I was thinking, but I ignored it. Is it just me, or does everyone lately seem to know something I don't? That's annoying. Anyway…

"My name is Suichi Minamino, but I am also referred to as Kurama."

I wasn't sure of which one to call him. "Do you have a preference?"

"My friends normally call me Kurama, but at school I go by Suichi."

"Well, we're not at school, so Kurama it is for now. My name is Haru. It's nice to meet you."

"It's a pleasure."

He bowed. Wow, he's so formal and gentlemanlike. I awkwardly bowed back.

"So, you're Kurama, that's Hiei, and who are you?" I asked a green-haired girl. Talk about weird occurrences. I thought it was weird to have red eyes. Well, not only did she have red eyes, she had green hair that appeared to be natural. Maybe I really am losing it. I was going to ask her if she and Hiei were related when I received a sudden death glare from Hiei. Wow, he's upset about something. I wonder what's bugging you, Hiei. It seemed to be directed at me. I was surprised, and slightly offended. What's his problem? Then, in my head I heard, 'If you ask that question I will kill you.' Oh great, if I wasn't worried for my sanity beforehand I certainly was now. I'm going schizo. Just lovely. Kurama looked from me to Hiei uneasily, trying to surmise what the problem was.

"Is something wrong?" the girl asked. I'm not one for stupid questions, but I'll answer anyway.

"Uhhh, nothing."

I switched my gaze from him to her. It appears that I'm not the only one with family issues.

"Well, anyway, my name is Yukina."

If they are related, it must be a distant relation judging by the differences in their attitudes.

"So, I guess it's nice to have met you all," I said that and looked directly at Hiei in a way to show him that I was not intimidated by him, but I would respect his wishes if those were his wishes. I still wasn't entirely convinced I wasn't out of my mind. In any case, that guy's definitely not the friendly type. I continued, "So, um, what's the deal with dinner?"

As I said that, I heard a bell ring, and Yukina shuffled off into the kitchen. This was certainly not going to be a dull next couple of months, but then again when I get involved nothing ever goes as it should. Everything is always more complicated, or at least it seems that way. It's my first day here and I've already managed to piss one of them off unintentionally. I'm good at unintentionally pissing people off. Right now, I have a couple of questions I'd like to ask the old lady, but I'll wait until I can talk to her alone. After dinner, I had stuff to do, though. Evil stuff called homework.

Thanks for reading and please review. I've been having trouble structuring my story and any suggestions would help. I've been playing around with having thoughts in italics, but I'm not sure if that makes it confusing as well. Also, I don't find it necessary to flame people so please don't; however, constructive criticism is always welcome. Hope you enjoyed it. I like a lot of insight into characters thoughts which may be less preferable to other people based on their style. Feel free to comment.