Title: Pet Shop Scene

Author: Buffybot76

Rating: PG-13 (for Inuyasha's mouth)

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, they belong to the creators of Inuyasha, Harry Potter and Yu Yu Hakusho. I'm just having some non-profitable fun writing them in the same universe.


Their entrance into the pet shop was heralded by the ringing of bells that were attached to the top of the door. The owner of the shop looked up, greeting them with a smile and moved from behind the counter, preparing to assist in any way he was needed.

"Ah, I take it you are looking for a pet?" he said, looking over the group. Kurama, Keiko, Kuwabara and Kagome all nodded in agreement.

Hiei simply crossed his arms. "Hn. Not me." Yusuke also shook his head, declining.

"Oh, very well then," the shopkeeper replied, arm sweeping in a presentory manner. "By all means, please look around, see if there's anything that suits you."

The group dispersed, the pet hunters roaming the display area in search of the perfect pet for them; whatever it might be. Kuwabara instantly went for the cats. Yusuke snickered. He'd pretty much figured what sort of pet Kuwabara would choose.

The orange haired young man reached to pick up the Eikichi look alike, then froze. His eyes darted left, then right, then honed in on a slightly larger ball of fur toward the back of the cage. The light grayish furball lifted its head at the same moment Kuwabara's eyes locked onto its form. The feline's head turned in the direction of its observer with a graceful movement as its hazel eyed gaze fell on Kuwabara with a look of intelligence that could rival even Kurama's.

Kuwabara watched in awe as the cat rose from its bedding. It moved across the floor of the cage with an air of confidence until it stood at the orange haired spirit detective's feet. With a soft mewing sound, it leapt from the floor into a startled Kuwabara's arms, settling down most comfortably and began to purr.

"Ah.. an excellent choice, my dear boy." the shop keeper voice spoke near Kuwabara's right, startling him. "A Kneazel is a most devoted pet when it takes to witch or wizard."

"A Kneazel?" Kuwabara's puzzlement was audible. "I thought it was a cat."

Yusuke moved to stand beside his partner, peering over at the now sleeping Kneazel. "Looks like your pet chose you, Kuwabara." he said with a smirk.

Kagome, after seeing the boy get his pet, drifted off, walking aimlessly through the store. She stopped a few times, but shook her head at each animal. She's only ever had a cat, but she didn't want one here. Perched on her shoulder, Shippo looked around with wide eyes as Kagome stopped and petted an owl. "This one, Kagome? Are we getting this one?"

Kagome giggled at Shippo and ruffled his hair. "No, I don't think so. I want the perfect pet while I'm here. Something useful, but not an owl."

A delicate sound like a raptor's cry reached her ears and she turned, letting the noise leads her to the back of the store. The cry became louder until she stepped into view. It immediately stopped upon seeing Kagome and began a softer meow. Kagome stepped towards the strange creature and studied it. It's eagle-like beak clicked in appreciation as she hesitantly rubbed it behind its ear tufts.

Golden hind quarters had the short fur of any catlike creatures, as did the tail and up to the neck. Silver feathered wings were folded next to the golden body and the front legs were thick bird legs, sharp talons on the end as the creature hummed with delight. It's neck was covered with the same silver feathers as the wings, and a hooked raptor beak bit gently on the metal cage holding it in.

As Kagome stared into the golden eyes to the mixed creature, a loud cry was heard behind her. "What the hell is that?"

Eyes as equally golden as the eyes of the creature she was petting glared at her, and the creature made an odd hissing sound, beginning to screech as Inuyasha walked closer. Inuyasha clutched his ears at the high pitched sound and backed away. A chuckle came from behind them and the shopkeeper stood there. "It seems you can tame the wildest of beasts. When these arrived, I never thought any of them would go home as a pet to a student."

Kagome looked back into the cage at the word 'them', and realized there were indeed other similar creatures of varying colors and sizes. Upon seeing the gold and silver creature she hadn't even paid attention to the other bodies behind it. "What are they?"

"They're called Griffins, and that one was an especially stubborn one. Most customers that have attempted what you are doing have had to grow back fingers. She's very temperamental, even for a Griffin." the shopkeeper noticed the disbelieving look on the Miko's face and chuckled. "She must sense something in you. She even has a lesser price than the others, though it may still be more than you would like to pay. Do you want her?"

Kagome's grin was answer enough. The others had begun to gather around at Inuyasha's yell, and even their eyes widened nervously at her confident answer. "Yes, I want her. She's the pet I've been looking for."

The shop keeper nodded, seeming to have expected such an answer. "Then you will have her."

Yusuke raised an eyebrow. "After all he said, you sure it's not going to bite you hand off? His description of it sounded pretty vicious."

Kagome grinned, and she briefly looked towards Inuyasha before answering. "Sometimes the things that are most vicious are the things most worth befriending."

On the other side of the shop, Kurama idly walked along the isle that held a row of cages filled with other various creatures for sale.

His emerald gaze swept over each one, identifying the many different species and mentally going over the pros and cons of owning such an animal.

His eyes widened, however, when he spotted a cage that held creatures that even he was unfamiliar with. and was instantly captivated.

They seemed to frequently disappear into the dirt the cage held, at least a foot of it. The creatures on the surface were constantly grabbing shiny bits of metal, cheap junk jewelry, and other 'toys' left in their cage. Fine black fur covered the small body, and a long snout appeared at the of the face. Kurama stared in fascination at the front paws, seeming to displace the dirt and go through it as easily as a dolphin swam through the sea.

He gently lifted the cover off of the cage, placing on hand inside. Ever curious, one black furred creature immediately ran up, sniffing around his hand curiously. Finding nothing interesting, it crawled into his hands and attempted to steal the button firmly attached to his sleeve. Kurama chuckled and picked the creature up, fascinated as it made no attempts to escape, but instead went single-mindedly towards the button. "You'd probably make a good thief, if you had good training," Kurama said out loud in a thoughtful voice.

In response to his audible musing, the shopkeeper appeared behind Kurama and chuckled as well. "That does seem like what they were meant to do."

Kurama glanced over his shoulder at the man, smiling politely. "What are they? I've never seen anything like them before."

"That, my boy, is what is known as a Niffler." the shopkeeper explained. "They are attracted to anything shiny, and goblins have been known to use them to find treasure. They usually tend to live underground, and as you can see, they are excellent diggers."

"Ah, I see..." Kurama replied, turning back to stare at the creature in his hand. It seemed to have given up on his button and had moved further up his arm, sniffing his way up to the button at his collar. Kurama laughed softly as the whiskers tickled his neck.

Kurama pulled the creature back briefly to look it over once more. Curious eyes met his and he smiled, gaze moving to meet the shopkeeper's. "I'll take him."

The shopkeeper smiled. "Excellent! It seems only one more of you will need a pet then. please, step this way and we will make the transaction. Of course, you may want to pick up some food too."

The shopkeeper began walking back to the front of the shop and Kurama began to follow when a small sound reached his ears and his eyes widened as he looked down to find the Niffler had managed to get his button unthreaded, and was now holding it possessively in clever front paws. Kurama sighed and followed the shopkeeper to buy the clever animal.

Keiko stepped amongst the cages, which held the different types of owls on display. There were all kinds and her brown eyes were wide in wonder. She had always adored birds and these in particular all so very striking to her.

Suddenly, the tiny hairs at the nape of her neck seemingly stood on end as a tingling feeling ran down her spine, a sensation associated with being watched. Keiko froze, her eyes widening marginally and began darting about the room. She found no one and sighed heavily in relief. 'Gee, Keiko, can you be anymore paranoid?' she chastised herself before continuing with her shopping.

The feeling of being stared at did not diminish, however, but instead seemed to grow in intensity the further she drew toward the back of the isle. Despite the warning signals going off in her head, Keiko couldn't stop herself from moving toward the back of the row, as if she were being drawn there by some unseen force. Her eyes scanned the far wall, at the line of cages lining it, and gradually fell on one in particular.

This cage did not contain an owl, though, much to her surprise. Instead, it held a raven, its inky black feathers blended well in the shadows of the corner in which its cage sat. This bird's mournful coloring was disrupted, however, by a brilliant burst of crimson feathers at its breast, with a thin line of white ones running up and around its neck. The contrasting feathers formed an odd pattern that immediately caught Keiko's attention.

'It looks like its wearing a pendant or something.' she thought just before her eyes met the bird's piercing gaze.

Her eyes seemed to glaze over as she returned the raven's intense gaze. The beady, black orbs seemed to bore into her, giving off the impression that it could see into her very soul. 'Like it can see right through me.' Keiko shuddered inwardly at the thought, but still, she stepped closer to the cage.

"Choose me." a soft voice seemed to whisper in her thoughts and Keiko gasped, her eyes widening in surprise just as a hand landed lightly on her shoulder.

"Found something to your liking, Keiko-chan?"

Keiko jumped as Kurama's voice sounded right behind her.

She smiled at him and looked at the raven. The earlier whisper seemed to be echoing in her head and she bit her lip. "You startled me, Kurama-kun. I'm not sure, but I think I'm going to take this raven."

Kurama frowned slightly at the raven, something tugging on the edge of his memory. He shook it away and smiled at Keiko. "That looks like a wonderful bird, Keiko. Would you like me to find the shopkeeper?"

"No need," chuckled a voice behind them. They both jumped and Kurama wondered if appearing out of nowhere was a special skill of the shopkeeper. "So, you want that raven, do you? He is very special, and very picky. But, as you are standing so near, bring him to the front. Grab his cage by the handle. I'll recommend some food for him, but if you let him out, he may go get food for himself."

Keiko complied, grabbing the cage's handle and moving to follow the shopkeeper to the front of the store. The others had all assembled, Kagome and Kuwabara each holding their new pet. Kurama's Niffler was sitting on the counter in a cage of its own. Kurama retrieved his pet, allowing Keiko to place hers on the counter as she withdrew enough wizarding money for the transaction. Finally, the raven was paid for and Keiko turned back to the others, cage in hand.

There was a brief pause as everyone took in the pets the four were holding. Kurama tried to put it diplomatically. "Well, it seems we all have interesting pets."

"Interesting? They're all so damn messed up, that's what they are! Look at this, a strange rodent creature, a cat that isn't really a cat, a bird with weird feathers, and Kagome's bird cat! Don't any of you have any freakin' common sense?" Everyone stared as Inuyasha snarled out his words, and Kagome gave him a harsh glare.

This did, on the other hand, cause Yusuke to study the newest pet in the group and draw back at the strange raven in Keiko's arms. " Keiko! Out of all the weird animals in this entire store, you get that!?"

Keiko frowned, "Hey! At least mine is a normal looking animal! Look at Kagome's!"

Everyone turned to eye Kagome's griffin as Kagome's face turned red.

"So what?!" the miko huffed. "Look at Kurama's! I mean, his pet looks like some kind of deformed ant eater or something!"

The griffin seemed to nod in agreement while she let out another hissing screech at Inuyasha. Kurama glared at the griffin and then petted his Niffler protectively. "There is nothing wrong with him," the kitsune defended. "He's meant to look like this." Unlike the others, Kurama resisted passing on the ridicule to someone else.

"Keh! You all have stupid pets! Get over -ouch! Damn it! Kagome, get it off!" Inuyasha raised a claw threateningly at the griffin. Her golden eyes narrowed and her beak dug into his hand harder.

Kagome frowned at the griffin. "Down." Obediently, the griffin let go and, returning to the miko's side, sat on its furry haunches.

Yusuke snickered. "I may begin to like that thing."

Finally, Keiko sighed. "This is really childish guys," she said, bowing her head to hide the blush that rose up as a result of her earlier action. "I'm sorry, Kagome. I didn't mean to make fun of your pet."

Kagome nodded her agreement, "That's okay, Keiko. And you're right, it is childish." here she shot a look at Inuyasha, the instigator of the pet ridiculing in the first place before glancing at Kurama. "Sorry about what I said, Kurama."

Kurama inclined his head forgivingly. "It's quite alright Kagome." he paused, searching for something to say in the quickly developing silence. Surprisingly, it was Shippo who relieved the quiet uneasiness.

"So, what'd you name them?"

All four glanced at each other and Kuwabara shrugged. "I hadn't though of one yet. Anybody else?" The others shook their heads.

They all contemplated while leaving the store, ("Have a nice day, don't forget to feed them, or they might feed on you, just kidding...") then stopping for Inuyasha's implusive desire for ice cream ("What the hell kind of flavor is Clotted Cream, anyway?"). "I think", Yusuke proclaimed, "That you should just name the thing, Eikichi II and be done with it." he gestured to Kuwabara's new cat with his cone.

"Eh, I don't know, Urameshi… It just don't seem right to name her that. Eikichi ain't dead or nothing." Kuwabara said, looking indecisive.

The group had to squeeze into two booths, as, Inuyasha refused to change his sitting habits, and took up an entire booth seat, legs long and crossed. Kagome and Keiko sat together, facing the half youkai, and Kurama, Kuwabara, and Yusuke took up the second booth.

"I'll bet it'll kill Eikichi when you're not looking. It's vindictive like that. I can tell." Yusuke frowned at the unusual cat, as it hissed at him.

"Urameshi! It would not! No cat of mine would do that!" Kuwabara looked highly offended.

Yusuke shrugged and looked over at the next booth. "What about your pets?"

Kagome smiled at the griffin, then beamed up at Yusuke, pretending not to hear Inuyasha's sudden growl. "Her name is Tuaria. Isn't it nice?"

Yusuke shrugged and looked at the odd pet, the corners of his mouth turning up to return her smile. "Sounds like an okay name for the griffin. At least you've chosen one. Can't any of you make any decisions here?"

"Some of us like to take our time, baka." Keiko snapped. She felt... out of sorts. It was strange. Her head felt hot and aching, but it wasn't a headache, not really...

"We should call it something in the meantime," Kurama was saying, jokingly. But his eyes darted every so often to her own, silently worried.

Then, Keiko pressed an involuntary hand to her head. Now it was a headache. Like the one earlier at the pet shop... Now, there was that strange, sibilant voice again.

Kuronue... Kuronue...

"Kuronue...?" the name left her lips on a whisper.

Kurama heard a small sound exit her lips and when the whispered name reached his ears his eyes widened and darted to her in puzzled confusion. "Are you alright, Keiko?"

"Yes, I'm fine, I think I have a name for it now, though." she paused and Kurama drew back as he realized that must be what she was going to name it. A raven with strange markings that looked like his pendant on its chest. "I'm naming it Kuronue."

Kurama closed his eyes briefly and then stared at the raven. It rustled its feathers innocently. He didn't believe in coincidences that were that big. "It...It sounds like a nice name, Keiko-chan."

"Thanks." Keiko said, turning to Kurama in an attempt to forget the strange voice that had seemingly influenced her in naming her pet. "So, have you decided on a name for your pet, Kurama?"

Kurama replied absently. "I am as yet undecided," at the same time Hiei said, "Spot."

They all blinked. Hiei blinked back, and crossed his arms. And Hiei supposedly didn't have a sense of humor, yeah right...

Kurama glanced down at his pet, pure black and spotless. He raised an eyebrow at Hiei. Hiei's face was blank and Kurama went back to considering his animal. Yusuke snickered, attempting to cover it up with coughing as the two demons glared at him. Kurama sighed and petted the Niffler. "As interesting a name as that would be, I don't think that would fit."

"Well, you could just say it was one big spot. Small enough to be." Yusuke smirked unrepentant as Kurama sent him an exasperated look. In the other booth, Kagome giggled at the smirk and on her shoulder Shippo smiled, eyes darting to the niffler. "Thought of a name yet?"

Kurama groaned as the small kitsune asked, but there was one name he was considering that seemed to fit. "I believe I will name it Kieran. It means black."

There was silence for a moment before Hiei spoke again. "That's even worse than Spot."

"What does that thing eat, anyway, Kurama?" Yusuke continued. "I mean, compared to Kagome's, Keiko's and Kuwabara's pet, it doesn't look like it would eat human flesh."

The aforementioned pets and their owners respectively glared at Yusuke.

"Hey!" Kuwabara protested. "Ratana objects to that."

"Hey, now they all have names!" Shippo chirped. "Tuaria, Kuronue, Kieran, and Ratana!"

"We all heard, Shippo, we didn't need it repeated!" Inuyasha bared his teeth at the kit, prompting him to jump down to Kagome's shoulder and hide behind her hair.

Kagome got herself ready for a long argument about not threatening Shippo when someone else spoke up. "Leave the kid alone. Besides, with you and Kuwabara here, the IQ levels have dropped enough that I'm not surprised he thought they needed repeating."

Kagome hid a smile as Inuyasha sputtered. It was much easier to let that happen than to argue it herself. The reactions were more amusing that way, too.

"Inuyasha, Yusuke, please don't start. This is a peaceful time to eat and enjoy our free time. We may not have much later. Do not fight now." Kurama turned a stern gaze first to one boy, then to the other. They traded a glare and then subsided. Shippo smirked behind Kagome's hair.

"You!" Inuyasha turned on the innocent red head, "You need to stop being ... Mr. Perfect Youkai ... person! Argh, so uptight! You're worse than Kagome!"

"They're called manners." the red head replied smoothly, casting a glance at Keiko, who was trying to stifle a giggle.

Inuyasha didn't bother to glare at the absurdity of that remark. He pointedly ignored the group with a muttered 'feh'.

"He won't say anything for a while. It's best to let him sulk; he'll get tired of it soon, so don't let it bother you. " Kagome explained.

"Is that what he does every time he loses an argument?" Yusuke asked scathingly. Inuyasha swallowed his growl and pretended he couldn't hear them.

"Yeah, pretty much," Kagome answered, biting her lip to keep from smiling as Inuyasha failed to muffle his growl this time.

"Kagome's way is much more effective. When she's losing an argument, she just 'sits' him. Boom! Down goes dog-breath." Shippo's head appeared from out of Kagome's hair as he explained to the boys. Kagome was torn between being mad at him or simply smiling. Considering it was Shippo, she chose the latter.

"Shouldn't we be going, guys, we do have more supplies that we need to buy." Keiko asked, noticing that everyone had pretty much finished their frozen treats. "I, for one, am looking forward to purchasing my wand!"

"Good idea, Keiko," Kurama agreed with the brunette. "Koenma mentioned a place called Ollivander's in our briefing. Supposedly, he is the best in the field of wand crafting, so I suggest we head there next."

Everyone agree, except for Inuyasha, who wanted another bowl of the Clotted Cream (apparently, it wasn't as strange a flavor as he had thought) but was convinced to leave when Kagome bought him some of the ice cream to go.


Author's Note: I may attempt to write a scene with them buying their wands if I can think of what kind of wand would suit each character. We'll see...