Hiei and Kurama looked down. Kary was looking up at them. Hiei dropped the pendant and stepped back. Kurama came around and sat down on the end of the bed. Kary pulled her legs over the side and leaned back. They wondered how she could be so calm when people were trying to kill her.
"Okay. So spill." Hiei said, ignoring Kurama's warning glare.
"From where?" Kary asked quietly. "When I was adopted or when I got the Snowflake?"
"That would be a nice spot."
"Hiei." Kurama growled. That got the fire demon's attention. He saw golden eyes and knew the Youko was warning him, not just the human side.
"It was when my aunt died. She gave me the Snowflake and told me to give the Fire Star to my sister Elly. That's the whole story. It's pretty simple really. The pendants tell us apart when normal people can't."
"Do you know what you are?" Kurama asked softly. He had no idea the extent of what she knew. He wanted to believe what the blue dragon said but it was just too convenient that she didn't know.
Kary tilted her head slightly to the left. They were coming to understand she did that when she was confused. "What are you talking about?"
"You passed out a few hours ago. Do you know why?" She shook her head. "Do you pass out often?"
She stopped and thought about it. "Not normally but it's been happening more and more. Brian's taken me to the doctor twice in the last month because of it. Doctors don't know what's going on either. It's odd because Elly's going through it as well."
Hiei and Kurama looked at each other. The latter opened his mouth to explain what exactly was going on, but as soon as he did, he felt his tongue being held. It was as if something was blocking him from telling her. Youko growled against it and received a snarl in return. So the dragon had telepathy. That must be where Kary got hers.
"Do you know when your sister's coming in?" he asked instead.
"She should be here any time." She replied.
"How will we tell you apart if we can't see the pendants?" Hiei asked. He had a feeling they kept them covered with their clothing just in case.
"Trust me. You will." She gave them a secret smile that had them looking at each other once again.
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The next morning, Kurama woke Hiei up for school. Kary had gotten up to help Shiori, Kurama's mother, with breakfast. The red head had gotten up to shower and found them together in the kitchen. He couldn't help but smile at the two women in the kitchen. His mother looked so happy to have a girl in the house since she had four men living there.
Hiei was not a morning person, but he was fully awake when he saw Kary standing in the kitchen in front of the window. She was in her uniform with a blue bandana around her head, like she had been the day before. She was setting the table when he made a beeline for a mug and the coffee pot just to give him something to do.
"It's his favorite mug." Kokoda, Kurama's younger brother, explained as she watched the shorter man. Kary laughed and joined everyone for breakfast.
They left immediately afterward for school. Hiei and Kurama were surprised at how alive Kary was in the morning. They got to class and sat in their seats. Kuwabara and Yusuke came in at the bell, like usual. Mr. Iwamoto took roll and started o his lecture when the door opened. A new student walked in. Hiei watched as a smile graced Kary's face and looked up front.
"Class, this is Miss Selphina Deegan." Mr. Iwamoto said before returning to his desk.
"Call me Elly." She said sweetly.
Everyone watched her go sit beside Kary. The twins looked at each other and hit wrists before settling back to listen. Hiei caught Kurama's reassuring nod. Yusuke smirked and leaned back. The fire demon let his head fall to his desk but he couldn't go to sleep.
After class, Kurama and Hiei watched as the senior class boys flocked to the twins. Kary's uniform was the same: bandana, loose tie, unbuttoned jacket. They were surprised to see her uniform the same except for the bandana that was red. It really shouldn't have been because they were twins but it was. Kary's eyes were alight and she was watching everyone as Elly began to talk to the people around them. It was obvious which one was the most outgoing.
"They seem to be the popular ones." Yusuke said as he came up to them.
"Seems so." Kurama replied. "Humans are lucky they can't feel the hidden power. It's enormous."
"They must be together for their power to exceed Yusuke's." Hiei stated. Kary came through the crowd of guys and looked back over her shoulder. "Identical twins, huh?"
"Yeah, she's a little louder than me and more rash." She replied, concern written all over her face.
"She isn't as advanced." Kurama murmured. Kary looked at him. "Don't worry about it. Go see your sister." She smiled and nodded, making her way through the crowd. He sighed as he reminded himself she didn't know. "Elly's power has just awakened. She doesn't know her full potential. Neither of them does."
"I'm supposed to protect Kary but with them both here, I'm afraid they'll be after both of them." Hiei said.
"We'll watch out for them both together. That way you don't have twins to pay attention to." Yusuke offered. Hiei nodded in agreement.
Everyone was silent. Elly finally came out and sighed. She smiled as she walked over to them. They could tell by her eyes that she was more outspoken than her sister.
As the day was winding down and they were on their way home, they all stopped by the arcade so Yusuke and Kuwabara could argue over who was the better gamer. Elly was being stalked by all the class guys as she played a racing game. Kary leaned against the tree by Hiei. His body shifted involuntarily toward her. She sighed and shifted, leaning more towards him. Their hands brushed slightly and he jerked away.
"Kary, I'm hungry." Elly said as she came out of the arcade.
Kary smiled. She took her sister's wrist and led her to her favorite restaurant. They sat on the same side of the booth and waited for their orders to come. Kurama and Hiei sat in front of them. Soon Kary's head landed on the table softly.
"Why don't you eat something?" Kurama asked.
"I'm not hungry." She replied.
Elly frowned and placed a hand on her sister's back. "Are you okay?" Kary nodded. "Why did Brian send us here?"
"I don't know. I want to be home though."
Kurama looked at Hiei through the corner of his eye. The fire demon had grown quiet. He decided to watch the twins a little bit more. He couldn't hear what the older was saying to the younger but he had a good idea.
"Kary, I want to help." Elly said. Kary shook her head. "This can't be good for you. Please let me help."
"You can't help. I don't even know what's going on and neither do the doctors. They say I'm a special case."
"You're not, Kary. You're a normal human girl." Hiei choked. If the two knew what they actually were, they'd be really nervous.
"Kary!" Elly suddenly called. The younger twin had left their booth, the older following her sister.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say she doesn't like the thoughts she's having." Kurama said after the twins were gone.
"Nice deduction, stupid fox." Hiei replied. He slid out of the booth and stood.
"She must be someone special if you're getting up. Usually you don't even move."
"Hn." Hiei left the cafeteria with his friend behind him. They found the girls sitting on a bench outside restaurant. The wind was blowing their hair to standing on end. They both watched them intently "Do I have to protect them both now?"
"I don't know. Koenma brought up the fact that Elly might be showing up but he didn't say anything for sure. He did say that if she did show up that we should go to Genkai's." Kurama took a deep breath. "I asked Koenma to restore your powers."
Hiei looked up at his friend. "Why?"
"Because you need them if the psychics are back. He said no, that attacking the teacher had been the last straw."
"The teacher deserved it. He should have given me that stupid A instead of the D."
"If you had studied like I said to, you would have gotten the A." Kurama shook his head. "Anyway, he said you couldn't have them back because you're too scatterbrained at the moment. I don't know what he meant by that but he said you couldn't have them back."
The fire demon watched his charge carefully. Even though she was the ice dragon, she was human and didn't know a thing about the creature sealed inside her. She and her sister both, although Elly housed the ice dragon's polar opposite, the Fire dragon.
Hiei's mind raced. This girl was just like him, except she had a loving family that cared for her. His life as the "Forbidden Child" played over in his head. Now he had to deal with the fact that he was powerless and pretty much human.
"I want to go home." Kary stated pretty pathetically. Her eyes were downcast as they looked at her. She lifted her gaze to the guys. "Can we go home please?"
Kurama's eyes softened. "Yes, we can go home." He handed her the bag she had left in the booth and looked at Hiei over her head. They nodded in agreement.
Yusuke and Kuwabara met them on the way to Kurama's house.