A Fox By Any Other Name Is A Fox The Same: Chapter One

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Yuyu Hakusho.

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Our favorite miko warms up to a certain emerald-eyed fox.

Modern Era: Sunset Shrine

Beep. Beep. "Kurama, its Koenma. Yusuke and Kuwabara are on their way to the shrine. Yusuke found out about your mission, and it seems that he has personal ties to the case. I tried to contact Hiei to stop them, but he is... indisposed."

"Indisposed," Kurama repeats slowly, "you mean that he refuses to help because he's in Makai slaughtering demons?" This is so unlike our Kurama, to blurt out things at the most inopportune times.

"Slaughtering?" Kagome screeches. "See! I knew you were in a gang!"

You dug yourself into a hole this time, human. Youko purrs. You've revealed that you have knowledge of demons too.

'Wonderful,' Kurama thinks, wondering where his self-control and composure flew.

"I am not in a gang. Koenma is my... boss. I am a detective, as are my companions. Hiei is not the most... pleasant of partners, and he often takes his aggression out on low level demons."

Kagome stared at him suspiciously, as if looking for flaws in his answer. She opened her mouth to reply when...

"Kuwabara, you idiot! Leave the cat alone!" a voice shouted from the courtyard. Kagome ran to her window and looked down. In her yard, an ugly boy with bright orange hair was brawling...

"Yusuke Urameshi, stop fighting right now!" she screamed. Kurama was startled that she knew Yusuke, but was even more shocked when the wayward teen listened. With a start, the dark haired boy jumped away from Kuwabara and grabbed the fat cat sitting by him.

"Sorry, Kagome, I wasn't trying to start any problems, really. I was just saving Buyo from Kuwabara," Yusuke was actually pleading with her! Kagome just rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Sure Yusuke, whatever you say. I'll be right down," she told him. Then, she turned to Kurama, "Come on, we better go out there before Yusuke tears that boy apart."

"If I may ask, how do you know Yusuke?" our favorite fox asked. Kagome just sighed and shook her head. "I'll tell you later; it's a long story."

They both rushed down the stairs and out of the house, only to be greeted with the sight of Kuwabara face-planted in the dirt with Yusuke grinning and grinding his heel into the back of the dolt's head.

"Yusuke," Kagome said, as if in warning. The detective looked up at her balefully, put her cat down, and stepped away from Kuwabara. "Okay, what are you here for?" she questioned.

"Yo, I don't even get a 'hello' anymore?" he asked. Kagome sighed, hating that she has to deal with the difficult boy, "Hello Yusuke, what are you doing here?" she repeated.

From his place on the ground, Kuwabara obnoxiously laughed. "She sure likes you, Urameshi. And you told me that you were in love with her!"

The dark haired boy blushed before kicking his 'friend' into a tree. "Shut up, you big idiot," he hissed. "I didn't tell you anything, you were eavesdropping!"

"Eavesdropping?" Kuwabara repeated. "You were screaming her name in your sleep! It was kinda hard NOT to hear!"

Well, by this time, Kurama was getting tired of being ignored. And a little jealous, to be truthful. Yusuke, the mighty spirit detective, knew this girl well enough to DREAM of her. What about Keiko though?

And Kagome was now severely embarrassed. Before she could reply, she was interrupted for the second time that evening.

"Kagome, you wench, you better be ready to go! You're late again!" Inuyasha shouted from the well house. The three spirit detectives immediately ceased their antics and got into fighting stance, blocking the girl from the hanyou's view with their bodies.

"Just who the hell are you?" the dog-eared boy shouted as he lunged for the detectives, sword drawn. "And why are you near MY Kagome?" As the team prepared to retaliate against the foreign demon...

"Inuyasha, SIT!" Kagome yelled, "I'm not YOURS, and these are my friends. Maybe if you were slightly civilized you would have realized that they weren't trying to hurt me!"

Inuyasha completely ignored the rebuff of his claim. "Well, if I always talked first and fought later, you'd be dead 400 times over!"

Kagome just gave up reasoning with the inu-hanyou and turned to the spirit detectives. "This is Inuyasha, don't mind him. He's really rude, but he's my friend and I won't allow him to harm you."

"Harm ME? The GREAT Kazuma Kuwabara, the strongest man on earth? Never. I'll protect you, fair maiden, from this monster. Just please grace me with a date?"

The entire group sweat dropped.

"A modern day Miroku, great." Kagome muttered. "Maybe a reincarnation?" she said, mostly to herself. Then she shook her head. "I don't need you to protect me. Inuyasha is my friend. And I'm not going on a date with you!"

"Feh, as if I'd let you go," Inuyasha proclaimed arrogantly. "An ugly human like him doesn't deserve you!"

"Inuyasha," Kagome said threateningly, "SIT. There is no reason for you to be so mean. Would you rather I agree to Kouga's proposal?"

The hanyou growled from his position face planted in the dirt. "You would never say yes to that mangy wolf!" he proclaimed as he struggled to free himself of the curse.

"Probably not," Kagome admitted. "But that doesn't mean that there aren't other people that I would like!" she added. "Anyway, Inuyasha, time for introductions. The dark haired boy is Yusuke, I know him from junior high. Before he moved away, of course. This is Kurama; I just met him. And Kuwabara just introduced himself."

"Feh, it's not like I care!" Inuyasha proclaimed. "You have to come home now. The brat has been whining for you the entire week! And Sango and Miroku think I did something to upset you! So you better set them straight!"

"They have no reason to think otherwise, Inuyasha. But I'll tell them that you didn't do anything this time. And I can't help it if my son misses me." Kagome replied. "Oh, thanks for reminding me. Shippou asked for me to bring him back some candy."

The three spirit detectives were all thinking along the same lines.

Son? She has a son! That means there's a mate! Oh, if its the hanyou, I will spill his blood! Youko thought vengefully.

'Well, there has to be a reasonable explanation for this. She's certainly too young to be a mother!' Kurama thought.

'Son! Son! Did she have a son when we were dating? When was she pregnant? How did she hide it? And most importantly, did she cheat on me?' Yusuke pondered.

'oOo, pretty kitty,' was pretty much all that ran through Kuwabara's head.

Okay, so two out of three spirit detectives were thinking it, and one thieving fox.

TBC