Thanks for the reviews ;3 Hopefully this story catches on, but if not then I guess make do with a handful of people *shrugs*
Also /blah/ means telepathic speech.
Disclaimer; I own nothing besides my original character. Thank you.
XXX LAST TIME XXX
"Anyway, LK, what exactly am I called?" Adel asked taking a step towards Koenma's desk crossing her arms as she did so.
"Before I answer that, what's this nickname you have for me? LK?"
"Oh, well, I guess that isn't too obvious, is it?" Adel asked tipping her head. Shrugging, she decided not to say what it meant. "We'll leave that up to your all powerfulness to figure out, then, won't we?" she answered with a question of her own.
XXX AND NOW XXX
"Well, regardless…Your species is called just about everything under the sun from a copy cat to a leech. Though, technically the book term for you is mimic demon." he explained in almost a pout. It was obvious he wasn't very happy that she wouldn't tell him about his nickname thing.
/Is he pouting? Oh my gosh! He so is!/
"We're done here." Hiei spoke up turning to make his way out of the office. Within a blink, the shorter demon was out of sight, but this left the others to agree and start to make their way out of there also. Botan would open portals for them in the hall.
"That's true, Lord Koenma. We best be on our way before-" Kurama started, but was cut off by the somewhat sulking prince.
"-actually, Kurama, you aren't done here." Koenma cut in, pout still firmly in place. The others looked on confused, but dropped it as they left the room. Kurama glanced towards the girl Adel, but then turned his curious look towards the prince.
"Soo, LK…Where am I gonna be getting this awesome training and such?" Adel asked with a curious grin. Obviously assuming this Kurama person had something to do with it seeing as he wasn't allowed to leave just yet.
"We'll get to that. First we have to get you someplace to stay, such as-"
"-she has a great-aunt around here. Isn't that right?" Kurama cut in, not wanting to have her put on any random person's back. Not that he had anything against her, just that he wasn't sure how to handle a girl who could kill with a touch.
"Well…yeah, but Aunt Shi-shi is probably busy with her son and new hubby, and I wouldn't want to put her in danger with my…issue." she explained looking at her hands before hiding them behind her back in hesitation.
"Well, your aunt is actually Kurama's mother, Adeline-" Koenma attempted to explain, but Kurama cut in looking at Adel in shock.
"Adeline?" he asked, but when she nodded he continued to stare, not grasping the person he saw. "As in Adeline Zink?" he requested with a look of confusion, but his response was a look of complete surprise.
"Yes, well, he probably would recognize you better with those wide rimmed glasses, cap over your hair, and huge sweaters." Koenma explained gesturing to her contacts, long glossy hair, and school uniform outfit.
"Well…Uhh, this is quite the shocker, ne?" Adel asked grinning sheepishly as she rubbed the back of her neck in shyness.
"Quite…" Kurama trailed off as he seemed to go off into his own little world.
"Of course, you will be staying there for lack of a better place, but as for training, you'll have to come here." he explained smoothly, but was quickly greeted by two unhappy faces glaring harshly at him. Both looking quite deadly.
"That will not be happening."
"I think not, pacifier-breathe." both happened to say at once, but it was Adel who took a threatening step forwards. Lack of temper control told her to hit him, but her powers were telling her to grab and not let go. It was then that Koenma snapped his fingers.
"Wha-" Adel yelled as she fell back in surprise. Suddenly her hands flashed with light, but in the place were two rather plain looking gloves.
"Was that needed?" Kurama snapped as he assisted his second cousin to her feet.
"Yes." he stated with a sigh, but continued when she seemed to be standing comfortably once more. She appeared to realize what the point of all this. "They'll keep her safe around your mother. These gloves turn off her power completely, so no matter what, as long as she's touching at least one of these, she won't be able to hurt anyone." he explained with a knowing smile, but then was suddenly hit upside the head, almost knocking him out of his desk chair.
"Next time hand them to me, LK." she grumbled angrily, but stopped as she looked about for her stuff. Glancing back, she found her stuff near the door and sighed.
"Well, yes…" Koenma trailed off getting their attentions, but just coughed as he readjusted his hat. "I've taken the liberty to put a few books on your abilities in your bag, along with a few extra pairs of gloves. Though, before you leave, you should really get your fix…ah, I'm sorry. You need to steal energy before you go, otherwise we may have a problem." he explained, but this only seemed to confuse Adel.
"My fix..? What do you mean by problem?" she asked glaring at the little lord.
"You know the legends about vampires, right?" he asked, obviously trying to explain without going into a large amounts of details. At her nod, he went on. "Well, it's pretty much like that, cept with energy. If you don't use your power every so often, you'll begin to crave it much like air. You'll go crazy for it, enough where you'll take it anywhere you can get it. Even your own family." he explained with a grave expression on his face.
"What the f-" she started, but was cut off by her cousin who touched her shoulder and shook his head at her freak out moment.
"I'll take her to death row, then?" Kurama requested, but at the nod he received he turned, guiding his somewhat distraught cousin. At the sound of clearing throat, he glanced towards Adeline, who'd begun fidgeting.
"So, your like not really human, ne Shuichi?" she asked looking somewhat lost, almost forlorn in her moment of finally losing her tough outer shell. Putting a comforting hand on her back, he gave a sigh at his own predicament.
"Not really. I was born with a demon fox spirit within me..." he explained simply, but only stopped there because she nodded. Adeline seemed overwhelmed as it were, he didn't wish to make her situation any worse than it already was.
"Wonder what'll happen to my family? My friends? Well…My life, actually. I mean, how long is this going to take, and how am I going to 'get my fix' when I go back. Will I get to go back? And while I'm here, how am I gonna keep this from people? I mean, I freaking-" she rambled on and on until finally her cousin could take no more and stopped, grabbing her wrist to pull her to a stop also.
"Everyone that is important in your life will be notified. Koenma will take care of it, so until you do have more control, let's not worry about it, ne?" he asked with a slight smile. Adel only sighed, but did give a nod as she seemed to debate upon this.
"Right, as always." she grunted with a playful grin. Nodding towards him, she tugged them back towards walking, wanting to get this over with quickly. "So, I feel rather silly for not recognizing you, but the last time I saw you, we were both like four years younger, right?" she asked looking at him with a grin. Kurama chuckled at that, nodding to her assumption. They'd both been five years younger than they were now.
"You're right. My hair was much shorter, I tended to wear caps more often also." he explained motioning to his now super long red hair, but then glanced towards her just as long blond hair. The distance sure didn't make their habits much different from one another, especially considering their hair lengths, clothing choices, and personality.
"And then the last summers I was there, you weren't around. There was some camp or something…What was that?" she asked unsure if everything in her life was some sort of wild and crazy demon thing now.
"There were…some problems in demon world. Nothing to worry about, just an issue over who would lead." he explained with a slight smile. It was nice to know that there would be someone at home who'd understand soon where he was coming from. Perhaps not quite exactly, but at least someone from his family who'd be able to relate to him. At least when she got everything figured out, though the whole type of demon she was still worried him.
"Thanks, Shuichi. You always were pretty open with me, which was nice." she explained with a grin, but then seemed thoughtful about something that occurred to her. "So, how did the whole plant ability go? I mean, did you just have one rockin' green thumb or what?" she asked unsure where that situation had lead.
"The demon side of myself has control over plants so-" he started to explain, but was cut off by the grinning Adel beside him. Obviously she found this exciting.
"Wow! Control over plants? That sounds wicked awesome." she explained with a grin, but then seemed to think of something. A curious look appeared on her face as she continued to walk silently beside her cousin down the hall. "So, I have a real quick question. Does my leech-y power take temporarily or does it copy for keeps?" she asked looking unsure of herself in how her own ability worked.
"I can't say for sure. There were many different variations of the mimic demons before the sealing age, so it isn't for certain which kind you are." he explained looking thoughtful also, but then decided upon something rather quickly. "This coming weekend, we could go to a temple area and test out to see if you still have the horned demon form. That is if you really want to know, but if not then-" he went on, but was cut off by the grinning girl.
"That sounds great, but either way, this power is gonna be difficult." she explained simply with a pout of her own, but was smiling once more when her cousin laughed. Though, their family moment was cut short by the snarling of some of the demons in the cells coming into view. Both Kurama and Adel went silent as they walked through the halls of holding cells, but it was Adel who walked through the doors into the death row section first. Back straight, face blank, Adel made her way towards where a guard was waiting.
"Mimic, eh? Well, good for us. Less blood to clean up." the guard grumbled as he opened the holding cell for her. Kurama followed her in, standing in as her security to make sure nothing went amiss. Immediately the room was filled with sound. There were growling, whimpering, crying, snarling, whining, clawing, and other such clanging noises as the demons protested their judgment.
/Just gotta take my gloves off and start touching people./ she thought loudly as she pealed off her gloves. Dropping them into Kurama's awaiting hand, she started towards the demon hung up on the wall to her right. Working counterclockwise, she kept contact with each demon in the room until there was nothing left of them. Sighing, she closed her eyes to relax her tense muscles, but then stopped at the feeling that rushed her system.
XXX FLASHING MEMORIES XXX
"Oh, Junny. You have to be more careful when you're chasing your pray." a voice called as a small boy and a female were shown in the forest. The boy had fallen down, and the lady appeared to scolding him.
"Oi, Bari! Stop playing with your food." a large guy was poking at a human, but was cut off by another smaller female who appearance annoyed.
"What do ya mean, Oli? Of course, I love you! I just gotta do this. It doesn't mean anything, just that I gotta do it." splash of blood and scream followed, but still the images continued to flash through her mind.
"Love hurts." a scowl of some male.
"Blood tastes better with a dash of fear." a wide grinning female towards Hiei.
"Wouldn't you agree, Drui?" a grinning female and blank male.
"Yo-yo-yoko Kur-kur-Kurama?" small demon backtracking away from a tall fox and Hiei. It seemed to be some sort of fight.
"Well, that was ironic." her cousin saying to a Hiei with a corpse nearby.
"Run you fools." older demon male to a small group of demons. Hiei, her cousin, and the others were there also, but the main focus seemed to be on the demons nearby.
"What in the name of all that is holy was that for?" a very angry woman towards another female in what appear to be her pack.
"Just testing you, my son. You-" a large demon, but was cut off.
"-giant fire breathing-" a snit of a female explaining something to Hiei and the group.
"-underpants! What in the hell-" a small demon sputtering.
"-is that-" shocked demon with Hiei.
"-a giant, fire breathing-" freaking out demon with Hiei.
"-die you fool!" Hiei.
"Hiei, you need to-" her cousin and Hiei.
"-you stupid human." Hiei.
"-cut out your liver and shove it up your-" Hiei to a small demon.
Images flashed before her like a picture movie in fast forward, but she did grasp a few things about them. Family images, killings, crimes, and a whole lot of the men she'd just met. Hiei was in almost all of them, but in each of them, he seemed to enjoy taking down the demons. Perhaps it was the way he so skillfully did all the take downs that made her feel a sort of attraction towards him, but when the images started to reveal time in jail, she started to feel what she'd just done to them. Started to see their deaths from their point of view, and she hated it. They were demons, they'd killed thousands, but still, she'd killed them as if they were simply a food source. It was cold. It was…sad.
"Adeline…Adeline?"
XXX BACK TO REALITY XXX
It was almost as though her conscious was jerked back to reality. With a gasp, she jerked back slightly to look at her cousin in confusion. Kurama looked slightly worried, but Adel just shook her head with a soft smile.
"I'm fine, 'rama. No worries." she explained offering him a peace sign with a grin. Kurama looked at her expression for a few seconds before nodding and offering her gloves back to her with a nod. Once the gloves were back on her hands, the two made their way back to Koenma's office in utter silence. Both were thinking about what they'd either seen, felt, or thought about during the time of her first time consciously killing demons.
"Hey! Kurama, Adel!" came Botan's voice as she came scurrying down the hall from the direction of Koenma's office. With a sigh, she came to a stop in front of their halted forms. "Lord Koenma sent me to take you guys home." she explained once she'd caught her breathe again. Adel opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off. "Oh, and I already dropped your stuff off at Kurama's place." she explained with a bright smile. This left Adel blinking before she laughed and nodded to the lady death.
"Well, aren't are you a hyper death?" she said in an almost giddy voice, but was confused when she realized the two were looking at her funny at her giggle. "What?" she asked with a confused pout and put her hands on her hips.
"How could you tell what I am?" Botan asked as though it were the most difficult thing to see, but Kurama shook his head and patted Adel on the head.
"It's not that it's hard to see, but it usually takes a bit of formal education to read species by appearance, scent, and or feel." he explained with a smile. This fact left Adel confused.
"Well…Her outer color has a white tint, which at first I thought angel, but then her smell and feel are both kind of…dead?" she attempted to explain, but winced at the word she used for her smell and feel. Glancing towards Botan, Adel was glad she hadn't hurt the woman's feelings. That would've really made her feel bad. Worse than she already did.
"Don't worry about the term. I am the grim reaper, after all." she explained with a shrug and catlike grin towards the two of them. Snickering at the expression, the two women broke out into a small peal of laughter at everything and nothing at all. Kurama merely smiled as he observed his cousin's calm exterior for signs of breaking down.
"So, Botan, will I get weapons to fight demons or will I have to stick with my hands?" Adel asked as she relaxed her stance and enjoyed the conversation.
"Well…"she started, but trailed off unsure what to say. Tipping her head, Botan pondered on this, but in the end looked to Kurama for help.
"It really depends on what type of weapon you take up best, not everyone can be best at everything. I prefer my whip, Hiei and Kuwabara use swords, and Yusuke uses his fists for the most part." he explained hoping to give her prime examples. "I could use a sword, but I would never do as well as Hiei. Understand?"
"Yeah…well, I think it'd have to be a double of something. I fail when I only have one hand doing something…" she trailed off trying to think of an example of this concept in action. "Like in dancing! If I'm only dancing with one hand, then I lose my balance and I fall, so I must keep my body in an equal proportion." she explained as she proceeded to show a move that illustrated the point. Taking a seat, she positioned herself in a cross ballet and color guard seated position and used purely her legs to propel herself upwards into a standing position. Sighing, she stroked her thighs once she stood with a smile.
"Perhaps twin daggers, but it's obvious balance is your strong point, so a double weapon would be best." Kurama explained as he seemed to debate what type of weapon his cousin should use. Botan unsure what to contribute to this conversation, simply brought up the obvious about the situation and how they could be leaving.
"Sooo, I can open a portal whenever." Botan inserted, but grinning broadly when Adel nodded to her with a smile. With a nod of her own, Botan opened a portal in the park near Kurama's home and motioned for the two.
"Later Botan." Adel said with a wave, but then without further acknowledgement she jumped through the portal. Kurama nodded to the lady death and vanished as well.
XXX AT THE PARK NEAR KURAMA'S HOUSE XXX
Arriving on the other side of the portal, Kurama was greeted with the worry and confusion of not finding Adel within sight. Sensing her out, he gave a sigh of relief when he found her not that far away, just out of sight. Going to where she was, he was confused at finding her watching a young couple cuddling on a bench, ignorant of their presence.
"Adel, we should…" Kurama started to let her know they should be going on home, but stopped and trailed off at the sight and scent of tears. Adel gave a hiccup at her thoughts and snorted in annoyance at herself.
"Silly thing to get upset over really. I mean, he probably just wanted in my pants…or something. Some kind of victory, sleeping with the little blond virgin." she rambled slightly in her own pain, but just sighed when she looked up to find Kurama having no idea what she was speaking of. Though, he did look kind of annoyed about something, perhaps the idea that his cousin was someone's victory stepping stone.
"I don't follow."
"David was the boy, my first kill and-" she started to explain, but was cut off.
"Well, no technically he was your third, that demon and your cat were before him." Kurama supplied, half hoping this would divert and comfort her. No such luck.
"Wonderful. I murdered my loving, loyal cat Yukie." she said and smacked herself on the forehead with her right palm. With a sigh, she continued her original explanation with a frown towards the couple once more. "David was my THIRD kill, and he WAS my boyfriend of about twenty minutes…." she explained sullenly, but trailed off as she wiped at her eyes with annoyance.
"It's all right to mourn his loss, Adeline. No matter what his motive, how little you felt, it was still the loss of human life." he explained, but left off the part both of them know very well. The human life was not lost, it was taken, and it was taken by Adel. "You've had a very trying day. No one would judge you for-" he started to attempt to comfort her, but then she suddenly turned on her heel and started walking towards the street opposite the couple. Which just so happened to be slightly away from his home, not that she'd know.
"I'll live, Rama." she stated loudly, but glanced back at him once she was a great distance from the couple. Coming to a halt to wait for him, she ran her hand through her hair in annoyance at something unknown. "I've taken twenty-two lives, though twenty deserved it, and if I can handle a mass of memories, energies, blood, and who knows what else rushing my system, then I can hold in a few tears until I'm in the shower or something." she explained with a shrug, but just gave her a cousin a smirk of victory. Kurama nodded as he came to stand beside his cousin, but took a step back with a smile. Adel looked confused for a second before glancing to between them with a smile. In the next second Hiei joined them where they were standing with a bored expression.
"You're coming back from the airport to pick up your cousin from a back-up flight because she missed her original one with all her luggage." Hiei explained in a bored tone, but Adel just pouted at this fact.
"How come the made up story makes me sound stupid?" she whined, but smiled sheepishly when Hiei gave her a dry look. Kurama cut in then to keep the two from starting a literal fight.
"I'm sure Hiei didn't come up with the story. It was more than likely Koenma." he explained for the sheepish girl standing opposite him.
"Oh, so Koenma uses Hiei's glow-y eye for his own ends?" she asked with a curious look towards her cousin. Blinking, Kurama was again surprised by how quickly she was adapting to all of the demonic life around her.
/She is simply accepting the life forced on her. Nothing difficult./ Hiei's voice entered Kurama's mind, but Kurama slight shook his head.
/For a human, her adaptive nature is quite astounding./ Kurama corrected, but Hiei simply snorted and spoke up for the slightly curious Adel.
"The Jagan eye is an asset, which even Koenma can't ignore." he blanched, but continued to observe the girl next to him. There was just something odd about her.
"Well then you must be a very important asset to Koenma." she verbalized her own version of praise with a bright smile, but then turned her gaze to Kurama. Hiei blinked at her, but did nothing more to show his emotions. "What're we waiting for, oh, wonderful cousin of mine?" she asked in a somewhat patronizing tone, but this only caused laughter from her older cousin.
"Nothing, I suppose. Though my home is in this direction." he gave way, but wasted no time in pointing out her flaw in direction. She'd been forty-five degrees off.
"Well…I would've figured that out eventually." she stated as a light blush flushed her cheeks and she turned in a huff to go in that direction. Kurama laughed along with the amused Hiei as the two followed Adel.
XXX AT KURAMA'S HOUSE XXX
"Do you think maybe I should put a cap on?" Adel questioned as Kurama's home came into view, just as she remembered it. The question popped up in her mind when she thought of the factor of her aunt not recognizing her also.
"No, I don't believe it will be necessary. My mother has a keen eye," Kurama elaborated with a reassuring smile. At her slight nod, he took the lead by opening the door for them when they came upon the it.
"Shuichi, dear, is that you?" came his mother voice from the kitchen, but within a few moments she appeared in the doorway to the main room with a bright smile. "Oh, so the little late bird has arrived." she stated with a broad smile as she practically danced to Adel's side. Enveloping the younger girl in an warm embrace, Shiori sighed in joy. "It's been too long, Adeline. I've missed having a little girl around the house." she gushed.
"Aww, Aunt Shi-shi! You should've demanded my presence during spring break or something. You know I love it here." Adel gushed right back, as if this were a ritual she loved. The warm and loving smile on her face told more than anything else just how much she loved being with the elder lady.
"I'll remember that, dear." she said grinning brightly as she pulled back and looked the young girl over. Shiori brightened considerably at the sight before her, but turned to the boys before she said something. "Why don't you boys go on up to Shuichi's room, hmm? Give us girls time to catch up." she requested with a begging smile towards her elder son. The smile she received from her son was all she needed to clap happily and shoo the two away. Turning her grin on the niece still standing comfortably where she'd been left.
"So, what've you been up to?" Adel asked smiling cheerfully.
"Dabbling in a few motherly past times, knitting and baking and gardening." she waved off the question with a vague answer, but just beamed when she went back to her original thought process. "You must beat the boys off with a stick with a body like yours, and those clothes! You look absolutely beautiful, dear." she gushed but practically melted when she touched the younger girl's hair. It was so soft!
"Aww, you're just saying that cuz you're my aunt. Besides, every girl has to feel pretty in her own skin, ne?" she explained with a shrug, but was then promptly dragged into the kitchen. Once both were seated, Shiori seemed to find her voice once again.
"I just want to make this clear and I won't bring it up again. If you need to talk about what happened with your boyfriend, you just come to me." she offered with a soft, reassuring smile. Adel blinked in shock. How in the hell did she know? Did she really accept that her niece killed her boyfriend and was sympathizing?
"You-you know?" she stuttered out, but was covering her mouth in shock.
"Well, of course, dear." she stated as she covered Adel's other hand with her own in a comforting manner.
"How…Who told you?" she asked grappling for her lifeline, someone to blame, and someone to kill for doing this.
"Your mother, dear. She explained the entire situation to me." she explained still petting Adel's hand, but was looking more worried by the moment.
"What did she tell you?" she asked, almost afraid with what story Koenma had thrown at her family, but then she prayed it wasn't as bad as she'd began to think just then.
"Well, dealing with the murder of your boyfriend after only getting him a week beforehand is really hard, especially a murderer who is still very much on the loose back in the states. You poor, dear." Shiori crooned in her own sympathizing manner, but this just relieved Adel. There she'd been freaking out about her mom and aunt knowing too much. Realizing her mistake quickly, she just nodded and let tears rise to the surface with a sniffle of sadness.
"I'll just feel better…when you know, it's all over, and David's murderer is brought…to justice." she explained, but had a hard time bringing forth the word justice. Adel herself still felt that she didn't deserve leeway for what she'd done.
"I know, and I'm sorry I brought it up. I bet you were just starting to block it off and there I went-" Shiori started to ramble in her own guilt, but was cut off.
"Now, now, Aunt Shi-shi, there will be none of that. You are an awesome aunt, and it was nice to know I have someone I can blubber to about David, so don't think for a moment otherwise." Adel demanded with a soft, loving smile. This was her favorite aunt, and she'd be damned if she started to think even slightly otherwise. "I didn't come here just to get away from home, if that were the case I could've stayed with my cousin in Canada. I picked you guys because I love you guys and you guys always make feel better." she explained more so, without real cause other than to make her aunt feel loved. The elder woman sniffled in her own joy, but then this brought a question to Adel's mind.
"Oh, Adeline, honey. That was so sweet of you to say. We love you too." Shiori gushed joyfully as she dabbed at her eyes with a random tissue.
"I'm not asking this because of appearance, but more because of your emotions. Aunt Shi-shi, are you…ya know, pregnant?" she asked, but whispered the last part very softly. Though, as she thought about it, she noted the coloring difference around her aunt's lower stomach area. Shiori's color was a light green, but the color in her lower stomach was a dark blue, almost as though she had a random amount of energy in her stomach.
"I can't say that I am, but then I haven't been to the doctor recently either. One, two, three…Uhh…I'd say it was about four months ago that I went to the doctor." she explained, but then seemed to think seriously about the situation.
"Don't take me too seriously, I could be wrong…" Adel tried to stop the overjoyed look on her aunt's face, but trailed off as Shiori practically danced over to her calendar and phone. "Just don't get upset if I'm wrong." Adel warned with a sullen expression as she laid her head down on the table top watching her aunt make the call for her doctor. The sounds of someone on the phone brought Kurama downstairs, but at the sight of his mother setting up a doctor's appointment, he grew worried. Glancing towards Adel, he went to join her at the table, clearing his throat to get her attention.
"Is something wrong with her?" he asked, worry more than a little clear on his face.
"Nope…nothing's wrong with her at all." she stated with a roll of her eyes, but then smiled at her cousin's none too happy expression. Giving a small laugh, she decided to elaborate for him. "I opened my big mouth and asked if she was pregnant."
"Why would you think she was pregnant?" he asked.
"Why wouldn't I?" she returned childishly, but then giggled at his raised eye brow look as if he were a parental figure or something. Shrugging, she looked towards Shiori again, but this time focused on the blue ball of energy. "Well, for starters mister-notice-nothing, her emotions are far too wild for a normal period or hormonal cycle, too easily brought to tears for our lovable Shiori. Also, and this is where I'm not quite so sure, I see something inside her." she elaborated weakly as she stared at her aunt's stomach.
"See something insider her?" he asked obviously mimicking a parrot as he followed her gaze. Though, unlike her, he saw nothing, but then he was more scent oriented than anything. Taking a small sniff at the air, he did note there was a slight alteration to her scent, but then he'd assumed this to be some sort of change in soap or something. "I don't see anything, but I do smell a slight difference in her scent." he elaborated, but felt slightly annoyed that he couldn't see what his younger cousin could.
"I'm still getting the hang of this whole thing, so smells are bit much for me right now. Too many of them in the world to sift through, but sights I can deal. Her color is a light, almost dull green, but the ball inside her lower stomach is a dark blue color, which is either a baby or a very strange place for new energy production." she explained softly, but just laid her head back on the table with a thud and a sigh. The two went silent for a few moments as they listened in on Shiori's excited conversation with her doctor, but at it's end, the two sat up straighter to look towards her.
"Oh, Shuichi. Did Adeline tell you our possible good news?" she asked obviously very excited about the idea of having another bundle of joy.
/Hiei?/ Adel called out in her mind as she leaned back in her chair.
"Yes, and it would be very exciting around the house to have a little sibling to smother with love, wouldn't it?" he said with a soft smile, but his mother only seemed to take this as more good news as she danced over to the counter.
"Such great news! I'm going to bake cookies and tell your father all about it when he gets home. He'll just be beside himself!" she exclaimed as she started to get all her ingredients together for cookies.
/What?/ Hiei responded after a moment or two of silence, but looking up at the feel of someone looking at her she found him standing in the door way towards the stairs.
"Do you think my aunt is pregnant?" she asked simply. This brought a confused and surprised expression across the demon's face, but it passed quickly. Looking to the bustling woman mixing foods together, he gave her a once over before nodding to Adel.
"She gives off the glow of one, yes." he stated as if that were the most natural way to tell if a woman was pregnant. It was obvious he could detect the scent of being with child very well, but why he learned this tactic was something even Adel didn't want to know.
"Good." Adel sighed out, but then beamed at the fire demon. It was obvious his response pleased her for some reason or another. Nodding slightly, Adel shrugged to everyone in the room before getting herself out of the chair. "Well, if no one can't live without me for a few hours, then I'm going to go unpack." she stated with a grin, but then glided past Hiei and up to the room given to her years ago. It would seem that Koenma took the liberty of getting more of her stuff from her house. A few boxes were laying by the window of her room, and she could only smile in gratitude. It would be nice to have more of her things around than the bare necessities.
XXX LATER THAT NIGHT XXX
Maybe Adel was a bit more than a little down, but then after her little cry fest in the shower she wouldn't allow herself breakdown again. So to calm her rather sad excuse for an emotion spectrum, Adel decided to a bit of light, soft singing. Though when she started to go for her music, a memory bounced to the surface of her mind. Blinking, she felt something inside her voice box give way, but in a warm sort of giving more leeway kind.
"Well…that's different." she said softly, but a bit confused by the feel of her own throat. It was almost as thought her voice became a bit more musical. Pulling out her Ipod touch, she picked a song on shuffle and started to sing small parts of songs the system chose.
(Red Sam - Flyleaf)
Here I stand, empty hands
Wishing my wrists were bleeding
To stop the pain from the beatings
And there you stand, holding me
Waiting for me to notice you
But who are you?
You are the truth
I'm screaming these lies
You are the truth
Saving my life
Skipping to the next song, she mildly shocked to hear herself over the music and not want to turn it up at all. Her voice was somewhat pretty on its own, which confused her.
(Invisible - Ashlee Simpson)
You're the one who looked right through me
Now you're saying that you knew me when I was invisible
You're the one who walked right through me
Now you're saying that you knew me when I was invisible
Skipping the rest of this song, Adel was beginning to believe that her new found enjoyment of her voice was probably stolen somehow. One of those people on death row was probably one hell of a singer, and she just took that talent…somehow.
(Heartbreaker - Celtic Thunder)
They say that I'm a bad boy
That I just can't help myself
That even though I know I should
I'm just too bad to be good
They call me a romancer, a chancer, a gigglo
Who will always have an alibi
And kiss the girls and make them cry
Shutting down her Ipod, Adel was thoroughly confused by her own ability in her voice. How could a girl go that low that easily? With a sigh, she put her things back away and just simply flopped down on her bed in annoyance at her own confusion. Jumping slightly at the sound of a knock, she sat up slightly and faced the door as her cousin walked in.
"Dinner is almost ready." he stated with a calm smile, but it was obvious that wasn't all he came in to say to her. Though, he seemed set on having a conversation with her before he went into what he'd really came in there about.
"So, was my singing bothering you or something?" she asked trying to cut to the heart of the problem with his sudden entrance into her room. She wasn't technically territorial, but she did enjoy her solitary time. Silence was her friend when she was feeling depressed.
"No? What gave you such an idea?" he asked, but then seemed to catch on to what she'd implied. Shaking his head once more, he smiled softly at her obvious depressed attitude. "I didn't even know you'd been singing, but I'm sure it was lovely."
"Not the point." she snapped angrily, but then just sighed at herself. Giving him a sheepish smile, she pulled her Ipod back out and stared at it for a second. Looking back to her cousin, she debated about telling him about it.
"You can tell me anything, 'del." he said calling her by the nickname he'd given her when they were really, really little. It was a pet name of sorts.
"Yeah…" she trailed off as she turned back on her Ipod and chose a song at random just to see what he thought about what she did.
(Low - Kelly Clarkson)
Everybody's talking
But they don't say a thing
They look at me sad eyes
But I don't want their sympathy
It's cool you didn't want me
Sometime you can't go back
But why'd ya have to go and make a mess like that
Well I just have to say before I let go
Have you ever been low?
Have you ever had a friend that let you down so?
When the truth came out
Were you the last to know?
Were you left out in the cold?
Cuz what you did was low.
Pausing the song at the end of that line, she sighed and turned to look to her cousin. He seemed almost curious, but mostly seemed to be enjoyed the singing. Of course, he'd find it interesting because it was in English.
"So, yeah, I can't sing like this on my own. At least I couldn't do that before." she stated, but raised her hand when he seemed ready to deny her statement. "I'm serious. I was just wondering if it was possible for a mimic to steal a prey's like natural born talents." she elaborated her worries, but then Kurama only seemed to ponder on this in a serious fashion. This didn't make her feel any better, if not it made her feel even worse. She could steal everything from her prey.
"It would only make sense, but it isn't like you're taking it from them. Energy, blood, yes, stealing that, but your power copies everything else. So, when the spirit of the person you've used dies or moves on, they still have all their natural power." he explained but seemed to sense the unease, so he elaborated. "The demon you killed first, his spirit was still a demon, still insane, and still very much powerful. The only thing that's different about him is that he's dead." he explained softly. Adel just nodded.
"Thanks for trying to cheer me up, Kurama, but this is all just a bit much for me. I need some time to process. So, excuse me for being unreasonable." she grumbled slightly as she hugged her pillow to her chest. "I'll be down in a few." Kurama nodded, and with that he vanished from her door way, but did leave it cracked to let her smell the scents of the house. Kurama's scent was the first she got, but quickly following was three living, human scents, chocolate chip cookies, rice, fried fish slices, vegetable lo mein, and sliced apples from some sort of artificial amplifier. Shaking her head, she reason that maybe with some training this all would be easier on her poor, abused brain.
XXX TO BE CONTINUED… XXX
"No gloves allowed in class, Miss Blake."
"Ice cream is like the best thing since Jesus Christ."
"Why is the rum always gone?"
"Wow…You're almost as bad as Kuwabara."
XXX HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED THIS INSTALLMENT OF NOT QUITE WEAK. HOPEFULLY THE NEXT ONE DOESN'T TAKE NEAR AS LONG, BUT WITH MY JOB HUNTING FAILING SO MISERABLY, IT MAY TAKE A WHILE. THANK YOU TO ALL MY LOYAL READERS. XXX
Kagome141414; I'm super glad you 'loved' the last chapter, and here's is the next installment, as per requested. Hope you love this one also! I also love your little icon picture on fan fiction it's just so cute! 3 Hiei is awesome, ne?
LuBell; Thank you so much for the detailed review! It warms my heart to see a review that answers all my questions and gives me something to work with. I followed your advice and did use Shiori as her great-aunt, but I believe training at Genkai's is still a must. At least a few time. Also, I agree with you on the whole Hiei being too quiet in other fan fiction stores…because he's really just not. He's rude, crude, sarcastic, but he's very much not a silent type who never voices his opinion. Hopefully my version of Hiei meets your standards along with everyone else.
WELL AS PER USUAL, READ, REVIEW, AND ENJOY! UNTIL NEXT TIME!