Atopos - I haven't been on in awhile, and I have nearly forgotton how to post new stories on here. I got the idea for this when I was going through the pictures on my laptop and seeing this one of Kuwabara and Kurama. I then thought, 'wow, I still totally love that picture! Maybe I should do something about it!' and then this fic was born in a few minutes.

I have kind of gotten out of writing since I have become a CLAMP fan. I really want to write for X/1999 and Tsubasa, but I'm not sure how people will respond to it.

Well, R&R! You never know, the next thing I write might have something to do with Fai and Kurogane!

Warning! This could be seen as yaoi. The picture I was looking at when I was writing was seen as yaoi, but that doesn't mean the fic has to, too. I just like Kuwabara and Kurama together (especially as friends!)

Fortunately

It was when Kuwabara was lying on his back, his spirit sword slowly vanishing with most of his strength, the sun beating down on his face, that he realized something important:

Unfortunately, Kurama was not as weak as he looked when even sparing with his comrades.

When he first asked the redhead to be his teacher, he expected Kurama to brush him away with a claim that he would never be able to hurt another human. Kind of like what Hiei had done. Hiei had been Kuwabara's first choice in teacher, mostly because Hiei knew how to handle a sword, and also because Hiei, unlike Kurama, had a lot of time on his hands.

Unfortunately, Kurama gave a smile when he was asked, and said he would be happy to.

Kuwabara then figured that Kurama would let him win. Kurama was much smarter than any of the other members of their little misfit group, so Kuwabara knew that he would feel good knocking Kurama flat on his ass when the redhead would think to under-estimate him.

Unfortunately, Kurama let him win the first fight to gauge his skill, then let him have it.

Kuwabara could not help but think that Kurama, such a caring person, would be nice enough to tell him exactly what he was up against and what losing to his own teammate would help him understand. Once again, Kurama smiled and took out his weapon. When Kuwabara first saw it close up, against himself and a spirit sword, he thought it would be easy.

Unfortunately, Kurama must have read his mind because he thought 'easy' was an insult, and showed Kuwabara that flowers packed so much more of a punch than Yusuke did even on a bad day.

And now, after what felt like the hundredth beating, Kuwabara added another mental tally in his head to how many times Kurama had won against him. He then furrowed his eyebrows together and re-added, coming to the same previous result. Impressive. That's what Kurama was.

Unfortunately, the amount of times Kurama had beaten him was quickly approaching the amount of times Yusuke had beaten him. Maybe if Kurama was more like Urameshi, who always turned away when Kuwabara demanded a rematch, and was not like Hiei, who would turn back around and show him why rematches were not wise, the score between how many times Kurama and Yusuke had won against him would not be so even.

Kuwabara turned onto his stomach, trying to find his teacher. He had the feeling he had been thinking things over, delaying the inevitable rematch they might have if Kuwabara felt up to it, by laying on his back in the sun and thinking these crazy things over again in his mind. In his left hand was a single rose. That had been where he had grabbed Kurama's whip, thinking that if the redhead could not use it, then he could win. Not a smart idea.

Unfortunately, Kurama was just as lethal close up as he was far away.

Kuwabara got to his knees, not wanting the dirt from the ground to get into the wounds Kurama had left as a gift. He would bandage them up when he got home after washing them out. He did not want any of his friends to know who had wiped the floor with him this time.

Unfortunately, Kurama was pretty much famous, and if one person heard that the tough Kuwabara was hanging out with the handsome Kurama, they would think he was a monster. Could he live with the embarrassment of everyone knowing that he had been beaten by Kurama? Probably not.

Kuwabara spotted Kurama not far from where he was. Kurama was sitting in the shade, a book from his school bag resting in his lap, but his eyes focused somewhere else. Kurama was staring, as if in a deep daydream, out towards the thicker parts of the woods. The pink top he wore for school was fanned out beside him, so he sat in only the pink pants and the white long-sleeved, buttoned-up under shirt.

Kuwabara asked himself again, would anyone honestly believe him if he told them that this redhead kicked his ass? They would laugh at him. A lot.

As Kuwabara approached, he wiped the dirt from his clothes and complained over the shape he was in so he would not frighten Kurama from his musing. He knew that Kurama was half-demon, but that still made him half-human. Kurama could still drift off into his own mind, and would be alarmed if someone came up behind him. No one had done it yet, but one never knew.

Unfortunately, Kuwabara saw Kurama as somewhat delicate, and never knew if he was going to scare him or hurt him in some way. Goes to show that he did not learn anything from spending the past month and a half with Kurama kicking his butt.

When Kuwabara was a foot away from Kurama, the redhead turned his head to look at him, the same smile on his face. Kuwabara gave a goofy smile in return.

"Why don't we call it a day?"

Kuwabara spluttered when he heard that come from Kurama's mouth. Of course, Kurama was never one to call him a dumbass and leave the fight, and he was never one to tell him to get off his ass so they could go another round, but this felt…different.

Unfortunately, Kurama was an unexpected character, whose personality changed like the wind. Kuwabara just could not pinpoint what he was thinking most of the time.

"Sure," Kuwabara answered. He had no clue what to say to him. If Yusuke had suggested this, he would have yelled an insult. Something along the lines of, 'are you chicken or what?', but he could not get his mouth to work like that along Kurama. "Is there something else you wanna do?"

Unfortunately, Kurama was so sweet and kind-hearted that – not only would Kuwabara feel awful saying something mean to him – Kurama would just smile at the outburst.

"Oh." Kurama looked surprised for a moment until that expression turned into amused. "You mean like hanging out?"

It was Kuwabara's turn to be surprised. "Well, yeah. I mean, I don't have anything planned for the rest of the day. Of course we could hang out. We're friends now, right?"

Kurama nodded, his bright green eyes still staring at Kuwabara as if he could not fully apprehend what was going on.

"It's not like it would be a date!" Kuwabara added as a joke, laughing at the absurdity of it.

Kurama blinked, then broke into an entertained smile. "I guess it would be nice. Mother always wanted me to hang out with someone. The last time I did so, Hiei and I planned out to steal a few dark objects."

Unfortunately, Kuwabara and Kurama did not share the same sense of humour.

"Well, um," Kuwabara started, worrying over the stealing thing, but paying it no mind, "how 'bout we take a walk?"

Kurama got to his feet, grabbing his bag and placing his book in there amongst all the notebooks and novels. He then slipped his pink shirt over top of the white one and did it up all the way. "Let's go then. Afterwards, if you'd like, I can give you something to help your wounds heal faster and take away the pain."

"Boy, Kurama," Kuwabara laughed, slipping the shirt Kurama had beside him on, "is that what you have to give everyone you--" Kuwabara stopped, thinking for a moment. Kurama had just told him that he never hung out with people, so it would be wrong to say anything regarding the

Unfortunately, Kuwabara always, always, said that wrong thing around people who were as nice as Kurama.

Nonetheless, Kurama's expression did not change, although Kuwabara could have sworn that he saw those green eyes reflect something akin to regret or shame. Kurama shook it off, though, and returned to being happy, no, content. Kurama was content with being with a friend, with him, with Kuwabara.

Kuwabara smiled back at him, feeling a genuine happiness that he felt with being with a kindred spirit. Kurama may have been a hardass on the battlefield, but he was a great person to be around.

Unfortunately, Kurama would never let anyone figure him out.

Fortunately, Kuwabara still liked having him as a friend because he felt as if he could, even if for only a moment. He also knew that they needed each other, that Kurama needed someone like him and that he needed someone like Kurama.

Maybe not as an influence, but as a companion.

That what they were to each other.

Friends who understood each other despite all the ways they were different.

- Atopos