AN: Hey guys, I'm so sorry it's been so long since I have posted. I've been super busy, and to be completely honest, I haven't been writing as much as I would like. I hope you guys like it and please, PLEASE review.
Welcome to the Jungle
Even as Yusuke stood among his friends, full of excitement for the upcoming move, he felt his energy being drained. He had to fight his exhaustion. He had beaten demons much stronger then himself in the past through nothing more than dumb luck and determination; he figured he could approach this newest challenger with the same stubborn attitude. Kurama and many of the others had already started walking into the portal in front of them, large boxes in their arms. Yusuke bent down to pick up a medium-sized box of books in front of him. It wasn't too heavy, only about 30 pounds. As he picked up the box, he could feel his strong arms barely struggle to pick up the weight.
He sauntered into the portal before him, his confidence oozing out of him with every step. It didn't take long before that confidence started to morph into uncertainty as his strength seemed to get sapped out of him. Half-way through the portal he began to pant for air as he struggled to keep a handle on the box. Sweat began to pour down his face, stinging the corners of his eyes and blurring his vision. He could see the vague figure of someone walking towards him.
"Urameshi! What do ya think you're doing?" Kuwabara asked. "You shouldn't be carrying that!" He rushed towards him, arms extended as if to take the box out of his arms.
"Leave me alone, Kuwabara, I got this!" Yusuke said between clenched teeth, glaring the taller man down.
"Don't be stupid, Urameshi," he insisted, trying again to grab at the box.
"Don't!" Yusuke snarled, turning his back to his friend. "I'm not as weak as everyone seems to think I am! I can take care of my own damn self!"
Kuwabara stiffened at the response, and quickly walked back in the direction he came, calling over his shoulder, "You know, sometimes you make it really damn hard to help you."
"Whatever…" Yusuke mumbled to himself as sweat began to pour down his face. He shifted the weight uncomfortably as he struggled with the box. He found that he couldn't keep a hold on the box with just his arms; he had to hold the box against his stomach and press against it in order to keep it steady.
"Come on, Yusuke," he said to himself as he started to slowly walk forward. "This is no big deal, you can do this." Even as he tried to convince himself of his strength, he found that his arms began to shake under the weight, and his breathing got heavier. A sudden head rush hit him full force, and he tried to fight its affects even as the fuzzy vibrations began to take over his head. His vision began to blur, and he felt himself start to fall forward, and the only way he could keep himself from passing out was to let go of the box, and fall down to the ground, next to the pile of books, now scattered around the ground.
"Damn…" he muttered to himself, barely able to catch his breath. He was so engrossed by his own body's weakness, that he didn't even see Kurama walking up to him.
"Love…?" Kurama said softly as he leaned down next to his lover and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Yusuke said defiantly, his breathing was evening out, but his head still felt fuzzy. He locked eyes with his partner, and he saw how much worry was in those green irises. Yusuke hung his head, and answered in a low voice "… I'm not okay… I'm gonna need a second before going to the castle. I hate being so damn weak…"
"… Yusuke, you're going to have to stop pushing yourself like this, you are not weak, you are just weakened at this moment."
"Thanks. I feel loads better," Yusuke said.
"You know what I mean. If someone had been poisoned or had a broken leg, you wouldn't call them weak because they weren't able to do what they used to. It's not what you can do that makes you strong; it's the unwillingness to give in to your own reluctance."
Yusuke's eyes met Kurama's once more, and he let his own shame and insecurity fade away. Kurama didn't think he was weak, and he was the only person that mattered. He slowly stood, ignoring the hand that Kurama outstretched for him, not out of anger but his own stubbornness.
"I'll come back for the books later, what do you say we go ahead and go home?" Kurama said. Yusuke realized that it was the first time the fox had ever called Raizen's palace "home". He was hit with a wave of love for the man, but tried to stuff down the "sappy feelings" that were consuming his mind.
"Yeah, let's go home," Yusuke responded.
When Yusuke and Kurama arrived at the palace, it was already evident how much work had already been done. Boxes were crammed into every corner of the rooms, and the monks seemed to be running around trying to keep everything in order. Open garbage bags spilling out newspaper and packing peanuts were littered around the room. Yusuke and Kurama's couch and entertainment unit were already set up and music was playing from the speakers.
"Wow, you guys have gotten a lot of stuff done already," Yusuke said, shocked to see how different the palace looked. For years, it had always looked the same; everything in the castle was Raizen's. This was the first time that Yusuke ever felt like the palace was his.
"Lord Urameshi," Hokoushin said, as Yusuke sat down on his couch. "We have set up a bedroom for you on the lower level. I know that you are used to staying in your usual bedroom, but I don't think it wise for you to travel up 8 flights of stairs in your condition."
"Yeah, sounds good…" Yusuke said distractedly. He was beginning to feel over-whelmed by the whole process. He had known in the back of his mind that he and Kurama were moving the Makai for the foreseeable future, but a part of him never thought it would happen, or if he did that it would only be for a month or two. This was the first time that he truly realized that they could live here for years comfortably. He was starting to feel a little better though; the strength from the demon realm was starting to seep into him. He walked into the room that had become his and Kurama's new bedroom, and was shocked to see that most of it was already unpacked and organized. Their book cases and entertainment unit were already set up, and the bed was even made.
"How did you guys get this done so quickly?" Yusuke asked as he sat down on their bed.
"I actually had our bedroom done two days ago. I wanted to make sure that once we got here, you could rest and relax. Especially since I won't be here too much in order to help you get situated," Kurama said as he sat down next to his lover.
Yusuke's head snapped over to Kurama's direction and his spine stiffened as he spit out, "What do you mean you won't be here too often?!"
"Yusuke..." Kurama said slowly, shocked by the other man's response, "I told you about this. I told you that I would have to go back to the Ningenkai in order to make sure that the business was in order."
"I remember you said that you were going to have to go back, I thought that meant for, like, a day!"
"No, I'm going to have to be there for about another month-"
"A month! Hell no I'm not letting you just dump me here!"
"Yusuke, I will be able to visit you every weekend."
"Oh, thanks, that's much better, Kurama, I really appreciate that!" Yusuke said out as he shot off the bed and started to pace around the room.
"Love, please sit down."
"Will you please, just stop telling me what to do? What is it with you people, all you guys. Ever since I woke up from the shooting all of ya have been trying to tell me to 'take it easy' and 'relax'. I don't have a say? If I want to push myself to the limits, then I can, and I don't care what you think! It's not like you're even going to be around to see it!"
"I understand that you're upset, but-"
"You know what, Kurama? I don't want to hear it," Yusuke said as he opened the door to the living room. "I'm gonna go for a walk, and I swear to God, if you try and stop me I will fucking kill you."
Yusuke could tell that Kurama understood that he wasn't just bluffing, so without looking back, he walked out of the room and into the living room. Everyone was standing there like a tableau, all of them frozen in whatever pose they were in before they heard the fight. Yusuke just shook his head and stormed out, not even bothering to explain himself to his friends.
It wasn't the first time that Yusuke had threatened to kill Kurama, but it was the first time the red-head worried that his irrational lover might just try to do it. He didn't mean to push Yusuke so far over the edge, but these days he didn't know how to help him.
Kurama sat on the bed, his head in his hands and sighed loudly before leaning back and flouncing on the bed. He both loved and hated that Yusuke was one of the few people in all 3 worlds that was able to make him lose his cool.
'I have to say Suichi, you do have a way with words,' Yoko sneered in the back of Kurama's mind. 'Unless of course making Yusuke want to kill us wasn't part of your master plan.'
"Shut up, Yoko," Kurama snarled loudly as he shot up off the bed and saw Genkai standing in the door way looking at the fox with a straight face, and one eye brow raised. He cleared his throat loudly before saying, "hello, Genkai, I didn't know that you were there."
"Yeah, no shit," she said flatly. "Why the hell is my idiot apprentice stomping around the kingdom throwing a temper tantrum?"
"Yusuke is upset that I will have to go back to the Ningenkai for a few months in order to get the business ready for my absence for the next few months."
"That's not why he's upset," Genkai said with a smirk, leaning up against the stone wall next to the door frame. "I thought you were supposed to be the smart one."
"Please Genkai, if you know a way that I can help Yusuke, please tell me. I can't have you and Yoko both on my case for being an idiot," Kurama's tone was the most exasperated tone that had ever passed through his lips.
"Well for once, me and that damn fox see eye to eye on something. The reason Yusuke is mad at you is because you keep babying him. If he wears himself out, than that's his choice. Right now it's not going to affect the baby if he tuckers himself, and he feels like you don't trust him. Of course, he's even stupider then you are, so he doesn't know that's the reason he's mad at you."
"How should I talk to Yusuke about this?"
"How the hell am I supposed to know?!" Genkai said as she stood up straight and turned towards the door. "I'm not the one that's sleeping with him, so what would I know about it? I just know enough about that hot-headed moron to know what he's upset about. It's up to you to figure out how to talk to him," and with that, just as quickly as she had come into the room, she slipped out.
'That old hag is right you know,' Yoko said in the back of his mind. 'You're the one that is supposed to know Yusuke best, you should talk to him, Suichi.'
"Yes, you're right," Kurama said resignedly as he got up and headed for the door. "You know, sometimes I wish you came with a mute button."
'I could say the same for you,' the fox replied.
After Yusuke left the castle, he wasn't really sure where he was going to go. It's not like there was a demonic mall nearby he could go to, or some kind of hotel he could stay at within walking distance. There was a bar, but Yusuke knew that if he went there he would end up drinking, and as much as he might be reckless and angry, he knew better than to do something that colossally stupid. He would never do anything to hurt whatever it was that was growing inside of him. Why couldn't Kurama just trust him for once?
Yusuke still couldn't admit to himself that he was pregnant. He knew in theory that there was a creature growing inside of him, but the notion that it was a baby was just still such a foreign concept to him. Still, he knew better to endanger the fetus, and so decided to just wander around the palace grounds. He walked towards the old sparing station, where he, Hokoushin, To'o and Seitei used to spar while his ancestral father's stomach would grumble loudly in the back ground. As he walked closer to the grounds though, he saw a small building that wasn't there before. When he got even closer he saw that Hokoushin was busy hammering the last few shingles on the roof.
"Hey baldie!" Yusuke called up at the monk, "What are you doing up there?"
"Lord Urameshi, I didn't see you there, is everything alright?" Hokoushin climbed down from the top of the building, and nodded his head in respect to his former king.
"Yeah, I'm fine. What are you building?" Yusuke wandered around the building in order to take a good look at it. The roof was supported by three make-shift brick walls, and where the fourth wall would be there was instead a wooden fence and a gate. It looked like an odd cross between a lean-too and a stable.
"I figured that you would want your spirit animal close by you, but as he is too big to fit through the doors, I thought that it might be good to build him some comfortable housing out here."
Yusuke stood there, dumb struck. He hadn't even thought about where Puu was going to live. In fact, in all the time that Puu had stayed on Genkai's property he had no idea where his spirit animal had lived. He was flooded by a wave of affection towards the monk. No matter what, Hokoushin stood by his side, and did everything he could to help his lord. Even now, when Yusuke had only visited once or twice a year for the past 10 years, the monk stopped everything in order to help the mazoku make the transition to his new home easier.
"Thanks Hokoushin," Yusuke mumbled in order to try and prevent himself from crying. "I never would have thought of that."
"It's no problem, Lord Urameshi; I just hope that you like it."
"Of course I like it, and how many times to I have to tell you to call me 'Yusuke'?"
"Yes Lord Yusuke," Hokoushin said with a smile. Yusuke grumbled half-heartedly.
"Do you need me to help you with anything?" Yusuke asked, knowing that Hokoushin would say no, and tell him to go lie down, and take care of himself, and do all of that stupid bullshit that Yusuke had come to hate so much.
"Actually, I could use a hand with putting the hay inside," Hokoushin said, motioning to a bale of hay to the left of the newly constructed shelter. "If you don't mind, or course," Hokoushin said, a look of worry crossing over his face.
"No! I'd love to help!" Yusuke said as he practically ran over the hay bale, and grabbed the pitch fork next to it. He stabbed the bale harder than was necessary as he began to transfer the hay inside and scatter it around for bedding. "That damn fox of mine won't let me do shit," Yusuke said as he continued to work, overjoyed to feel that his muscles were working once again. "All he does now a days is boss me around and tell me to rest."
"Yes, Lord Kurama is very protective of you," Hokoushin said as he continued to nail the shingles into the roof. "In fact, Lord Kurama left detailed instructions on how we are supposed to care for you while you are gone."
"Of course he did!" Yusuke said angrily as he stabbed the hay bale once more. "Did he tell you to take me out on a walk three times a day?! Or to change my litter box?! Or maybe he just made sure that my doctor's phone numbers where on the fridge!"
"No, it wasn't like that at all," Hokoushin said calmly, "In fact, just the opposite. If anything, he just seemed to ramble about you."
"Wait… Kurama rambled?" Yusuke said, walking out of the shelter in order to stare up at the monk.
"Yes, he seemed to be quite unorganized. It seems to me as though he wants to be here and make sure that you are okay, and he hates to be away from you for even a moment. He kept telling us to 'keep Yusuke safe', and 'make sure Yusuke is comfortable.' Then he started to ramble out random facts about you. What you like to eat, and how not to piss you off, but to be honest, I think he was just trying to feel like he had some kind of control over the situation. In fact, it was more than a little disconcerting to see Lord Kurama so… vulnerable."
"Kurama…. Vulnerable?" Yusuke said, more to himself than to the monk. Yusuke felt like his head was vibrating with emotions and thoughts, and so in order to try and organize himself; he just decided to work in order to calm himself. Hokoushin and Yusuke continued their work in complete silence until both of their jobs were done.
Yusuke walked back towards the palace. He was covered in sweat and his muscles were sore, but he couldn't remember feeling so satisfied in a while. As he walked towards the palace, he noticed the red-head sitting outside. As he got closer, Kurama stood up, but kept his eyes on the ground. Yusuke could see for just a second the "vulnerability" that Hokoushin had mentioned.
"Didn't I tell ya not to follow me fluffy?" Yusuke said half-heartedly.
"I didn't follow you…" Kurama said as he looked up at his lover. "I just... happened to walk in the same direction as you for a moment, before deciding to stop and await your return." Kurama wore a little bit of a sheepish smirk, and Yusuke couldn't help but laugh. He regretted it immediately, though, because his muscles were so sore that the chuckle soon morphed into a groan. He could see the fox motion towards him, but then stop suddenly. Yusuke could see the amount of force it was taking for the other man to hold his tongue.
"Hokoushin let me help put down some hay in Puu's stable. I'm a little exhausted. Wanna go inside and watch a movie with everyone?"
"That sounds great, Love," Kurama said as he wrapped his arms around his lover's waist and walked inside with him.
When they arrived at the living room, they realized that it was probably a good idea to relax with everyone, because everyone else seemed to already be doing just that. Shizuru, Atsuko, and Yukina were playing rummy on the coffee table while Kuwabara sat slumped over on one of the arm chairs. His snoring was echoing through the room as Genkai sat on the couch playing Mortal Kombat.
"Hey guys!" Yusuke said, hoping that everyone would get up. Everyone just kind of groaned and half waived from their seats.
"Everyone," Kurama said, placing a hand on Kuwabara's shoulder to wake him up, "As repayment for helping us move, I am going to make us all tacos and fajitas to eat while we hang out."
"Food?" Kuwabara said sleepily as he yawned and stretched out.
"Leave it to Kuzuma to have a one-track mind like that," Shizuru said with a smile. "Food or Yukina, that's all he ever seems to think about."
"Oh shut it Shizuru!" Kuwabara tried to snap, but it came out more as a plea.
"Kuwabara," Kurama said, stopping whatever Shizuru was about to say before it left her mouth, "I could use your help in the kitchen, if you wouldn't mind."
"Yeah, sure," Kuwabara groaned out as he got up from the couch.
"Do ya need my help, Fluffy?" Yusuke asked. It seemed a rather pointless question though, as he was already starting to take Kuwabara's place on the couch.
"Hey, kiddo, if we want to eat burnt offerings we'll let you know," Atsuko chimed in before taking a sip from her beer.
"Shaddup, Ma," Yusuke said tiredly, leaning back against the couch. Kurama and Kuwabara shuffled towards the kitchen.
Shizuru lit a cigarette, and took a swig of beer, as she resumed her game with Atsuko. Yusuke was leaning back into his seat, his head back and eyes closed when the fumes from the cigarette entered his nose. The warm smoke wrapped around his senses, and his whole body ached, and his hand started to twitch as the desire to smoke seemed to be injected directly into his blood stream. It was definitely an inconvenient time for him to have his heightened demonic sense of smell, because it felt like he could smell every small piece of tobacco as it smoldered.
He sat up quickly and cleared his throat, trying his best to ignore the screaming in his head that was begging him to take a long drag on the end of the cigarette. Yusuke began to sweat lightly as he tried his best to remember that he couldn't smoke for the health of his baby. He had quit cold-turkey when he found out about his pregnancy, but this was the first time he was around a smoker since then, and he found it extremely difficult to ignore the temptation.
Genkai obviously noticed that her pupil was struggling because she suddenly stopped her game. "Shizuru, what the hell do you think you're doing?" She barked out angrily, "Smoking in front of Yusuke, he just quit! You know that!"
Shizuru looked up at Yusuke apologetically, putting out the cigarette immediately.
"New rule," Genkai added, "And this goes for everyone, no smoking in or around the palace as long as Yusuke is pregnant, got that?"
"Sorry, Yusuke, I wasn't thinking," Shizuru said, looking much more embarrassed than was necessary.
"Don't worry about it," Yusuke said, trying his best to keep his voice from shaking as his entire body screamed for him to take just one lonely lungful of the smoke.
"No, Genkai is right; I shouldn't have smoked in front of you. You had to quit smoking suddenly, and you have to stick to it. It isn't like when Keiko tried to get you to smoke and you'd fall off the wagon a day later," Shizuru said with a snicker. She obviously didn't notice the dark look that passed over Yusuke's face when she mentioned his former wife's name. Genkai, ever watchful over her apprentice noticed the shadow that passed over him, and immediately changed the subject.
"So, dumbass, think you can finally kick my ass in this game?" She said with a taunting smirk.
"Bring it on ya old bat," Yusuke said, quickly grabbing the controller. Keiko was still in the back of his mind, but he didn't want to think about that right that second. She had passed away so long ago, and he was trying his best to move on, but it still hurt when someone mentioned her name.
Just as Genkai and Yusuke had finished going through the character select and their first round was about to begin, they heard a deafening knock at that door. Three loud bangs followed by a crash.
"Sheesh, Chu," said a familiar voice, "Ya didn't really have to break down their door did ya?"
Yusuke turned around and saw that familiar faces of Chu, Jin, and Touya. Chu was grinning sheepishly as he picked the door off the ground, and Touya was pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head slowly.
"Hey guys!" Yusuke said, jumping off the couch before practically running to the door. "What the hell are you guys doing here?"
"Well, we heard that you and Kurama were moving here due to the pregnancy so we came over to congratulate you," Touya said loudly to be heard over Chu's frustrated grunts as the large demon tried to put the door back on its hinges.
"Yeah, we had no idea that this big lug would go and knockin' down ya door," Jin said with a smile.
"Don't worry about it guys," Yusuke said, "Come on in, and take a seat. The Fox and Kuwabara are making dinner right now."
"That sounds awesome, mate. You know I could always use some food!" Chu said loudly, grabbing Yusuke and pulling him into a tight bear hug.
"Chu…" Yusuke strained to say, "You do know that giving birth isn't like squeezing ketchup out of a bottle, because that's what it seems like your trying to do right now."
"Sorry, man," Chu said as he put Yusuke back down on the ground, "Just been a while since we've seen ya."
"Well maybe if you didn't try and break his back every time you saw him he might hang out with you more often," Shizuru said.
"True enough, sheila," Chu said with a roaring laugh as he sat down on the floor next to the couch.
His friends continued to bicker amongst each other in good spirits as Yusuke relaxed on the couch, half asleep. As Yusuke sat with his friends, enjoying the atmosphere and smell of food, all his doubts and worried started to fade away. For the first time in weeks he began to feel truly happy with the situation. He smiled broadly as he looked down at his flat stomach. For the first time, he actually said something to the baby. "Welcome to the Jungle, kid. You're in for a wild ride."
