Therapy?

Kurama did not know how long he had been standing out in the rain. It was way after dark. He knew that Shiori would be worried. He didn't know that his kaasan and Naynoku were searching for him. He was waiting for Botan. He missed her so.

He was so agitated about his feelings and his life. He needed to talk to Botan again. To see her and touch her would be so divine. Her features were beautiful. Her skin was soft and her hair… He was in the park. Hr knew that if his parents came looking for him that would be the third choice they would look. First would be school, second would be Urameshi's, third would be the park, fourth would be at the lake, and fifth would be the police station.

"Kurama, is everything all right?" It was Botan. Kurama's eyes filled with tears and he ran into her embrace. "You called me in the middle of the night to hug me and cry!"

"Oh, Botan. It's terrible. I missed you." Kurama shifted his face into her bosom, not looking for sexual contact but seeking comfort. Botan blinked.

"And that's bad why?"

"Shiori's getting married!" He burst into tears. "I didn't mean to yell at him. I didn't mean to. I am so stupid!" Kurama sobbed. Botan sat down with Kurama still holding onto her like a life line. He buried his face in her lap. Botan stroked his hair for a few minutes.

She was slightly irritated because she was getting soaked with the rain and it was cold. But Kurama was having a problem and knowing her, since she was a woman (being smarted than men) knew that there were other things bothering him. But she wouldn't push otherwise he would not say anything to her.

"Why did you yell at him? What did you say?" She finally asked. Kurama sniffled and parted his lips. He took a deep shuddering breath and spoke.

"I don't know why I yelled at him. He was just being nice to me and I turned him away!" He sobbed anew. "He said, 'Shuichi- kun, my son, let me help you'. And I yelled at him. I said that I wasn't his son!" He couldn't help it. He began to gasp for breath. With his continuous sobs he wasn't able to breathe. He had committed so many crimes and was the cause of so many deaths and shaming his kaasan, and perhaps Naynoku- san as well.

"Maybe you should apologize. I'm sure right now they are very worried about you."

"Botan- chan, I have missed so." I rolled onto his side and stared up at her. He sat up. He leaned forward and kissed her lips, fondling her tongue with his. Botan was surprised by this. A moment ago he was weeping and now he was loving her.

He pushed her down on the wet grass gently. "Botan- chan, I need you." Botan only nodded. He kissed her neck and moved her kimono aside slightly so he could kiss her shoulder. He pushed her kimono aside carefully so he could take the time to lay it out so they would not get wet and cold.

He cupped and fondled her breasts, moving his tongue over them and down the valley between them. He suckled on one nipple and then the other. He kissed her stomach and hips. He came up and kissed her mound of fur and running his tongue over the slit. She jumped and moaned softly.

Kurama smiled and kissed her ear, nibbled it softly and then moved up. She jumped and moaned and sighed when he was between her thighs, grinding, struggling to be gentle and not hurt her.

They had reached their max and Kurama could take no more. Botan was practically screaming with pleasure. He collapsed on top of her, tired and weak. "Botan- chan… You have made me feel much better." It dawned on Botan that he had been seeking her pleasure for comfort to his problems.

"Oh, so now you're going to come running to me to have sex when you feel bad. I'm glad I'm just your average whore!" With that Botan disappeared, clothes, oar and all.

"No! Botan! Botan- chan don't leave me! Botan- chan!" Kurama cried. "This is all my fault. If Shiori ever knew that I have been having sex she would be most ashamed.

He dressed hastily for he was getting cold and if Naynoku- san and Shiori were to come into the park he would not be suitable and would probably have to face severe consequences. Not that he wouldn't suffer them for being out all night.

He sat there soaked to the bone from all of the rain. He was exhausted from exerting himself and because he had not slept properly in the past week. His depression also contributed to it.

He was vaguely aware of his kaasan's car pulling up near the park. He sat in a swing pushing back and forth not caring about anything. He had no emotion for there were too many feelings to express at one time. The rain began to thicken and become heavier. Kurama paid no mind to his soaking wet hair that dipped into his eyes so green that once held wonder and love and curiosity about the world. Now they only held pain and confusion and looked so lost. Kuro why did you have to go?

"Shuichi!" Naynoku yelled. He seemed angry and Kurama knew he had every right to be, but Kurama did not care. He kept his hands on the chain that supported the swing. Shiori ran up sobbing.

"Kaasan…" He began as he looked up. Shiori's arm swung back and flung forward. Kurama gasped as his mother's hard slap rung in his ears. She began sobbing once more. Naynoku held her.

"Look what you've done to your mother, Shuichi." Kurama looked up at Naynoku his eyes full of grief and yet full of nothingness. He had lost his mother as well and his soon- to- be- stepfather. He wanted to cry out in anguish. "Do you see what you've done to her? Is this how you treat her all the time, after she's done everything for you?"

"No…" Kurama whispered his voice barely audible.

"Why are you out here? Is this your game of running away?"

"No, Naynoku- san. I didn't mean to worry you. I was meeting a friend."

"You couldn't have called us?" He shouted.

Yoko what am I to do?

It was then that Naynoku- san spied his tear- stained face. He's been crying. Something has hurt him. "What happened, Shuichi. You didn't cry over a meeting a friend." Shuichi's lips worked but he couldn't make the sound come out. He didn't know how to say it, everything.

"I'm sorry." Naynoku was angry and it was all his fault. Kuronue! He begged for his guidance, knowing nothing. For once in his life he did not know what to do or how to use his craftiness to get out of tight situations. Kurama was drained of self- confidence and self- esteem. He lacked the confidence to speak to his kaasan about his problems. He lacked confidence to lie. He lacked confidence in everything. Yet, he didn't move. He, for some reason, did not feel that his kassan, and his soon- to- be- stepfather were worthy enough for him to grant them with standing up. He stayed in the exacted same position he had been in when they showed up. He stayed in the swing.

"Shuichi- kun, come. Tomorrow you will see a therapist after school. You have no options. If you won't talk to us then you will talk to somebody. Mark my words, boy. I care about you and so does Shiori. If you think I would hurt her you are sadly mistaken. I would never hurt her." Shiori kissed Naynoku and went to the hastily. However, Naynoku wasn't blind. He knew that it would take a lot, considering the fact that it was him and a stubborn boy, to get Kurama to move. "Shuichi- kun, you are cold and wet and tired, and probably hungry. Let's go home. We will speak of this later. Let's go." But Kurama didn't budge.

"I'm not hungry." Was all he could manage. Naynoku looked angry, but Kurama was probably a lot stronger than he was. But he was at a disadvantage. Kurama's strength came from his ki, Naynoku- san did not have ki, so Kurama was just an insolent adolescent boy without the strength he would usually have against an older man.

"To hell you are! I know you are. Urameshi called and said that you hadn't eaten lunch. He said that he thinks something's wrong with you. And you didn't eat breakfast. God only knows if you ate yesterday. You will come home if I have to drag you to the car myself." It wasn't much of a threat, but Kurama nodded anyway. There wasn't anyway, with out letting Naynoku know that he wanted to runaway, to get out of it and he wasn't in the mood for it.

He slowly moved to his feet. He felt his abdomen surge with pain. He had done something when he was bedding with Botan, but he wasn't sure what. He gritted his teeth and nearly fell if it hadn't been for his stepfather to be. "Naynoku- san…"

"You are tired. We need to get some food in you and then get you to bed. We will figure out what's wrong with you later." He made it clear, in a gently loving way that he intended to find out what was wrong with Kurama. He helped Shuichi into the car and found Shiori in the driver's seat.

"I want to drive." She said quietly. Naynoku only nodded as he buckled his seatbelt and stole a glance at the shaken boy. Kurama was staring out the window. Water dripped off his hair. He has been in the rain for awhile. Naynoku noted.

Kurama didn't know what was wrong. His abdomen hurt so much, yet he couldn't feel it. He felt nothing but anguish and grief and guilt and shame. He missed his fellow red- headed Yoko friends and Blondie. He sighed without knowing it. Shiori and Naynoku heard it but made no comment.

Kurama needed his friends and yet he had betrayed them with evil deeds, sinful words, lies, sex, letting his grades slip(hurting Shiori and Naynoku somewhat), spitting cursing words, telling people to get out of his life, and "running away". He knew he had betrayed them, which was why he planned to runaway to leave, perhaps go back to Makai. His depression went deep.

Suddenly the car stopped. It took Kurama a moment to realize that they were in the driveway. Shiori had just gotten out of the car, which left the two men. Suddenly Kurama burst into tears. "Naynoku- san, my friend is dead!" His hair and hands covered his face as he sobbed with quick gasps. Naynoku got out of the car and shut the door. Kurama thought that he was going inside, but to his surprise he sat next to him in the car and held him.

"Who was it? What happened?" Naynoku said calmly yet sympathetically. Could not reply so soon. His sobs were great and made her shoulders shake and his abdomen ache more. After a moment when he seemed to have calmed down just a bit Kurama murmured his reply.

"I don't know. He was shot. I left him for dead. We went out to get something, I don't remember what it was, but… but some gang gto angry with us for shopping there. They told us to put our things down and… and we ran. They pulled out their weapons and began shooting them, but… but they missed us. We thought we had outrun them, but… but they got him! They got him! They got him!" He sobbed anew and Nanoku-san knew that this was a test for fatherhood. He needed to comfort his son- to- be to gain his trust and respect. He held Kurama to his breast while he wept. "He didn't die right away, but he couldn't move He told me to get away. He saved me and sacrificed himself. It's all my fault. He didn't make it…" He cut off abruptly and continued to weep. In truth he had said nothing false. Everything to some degree was correct. Kuronue had been caught by a shots of spears. And everything else as well.

"Who is dead? When did this happen? Who were the ones who killed him?" Naynoku pushed Kurama back slightly from his protective warmth. Kurama hadn't expected this.

"My friend. I don't remember when it happened. I don't know the ones who killed him. I'm sorry!" Kurama jumed out of the car and ran inside, leaving Naynoku at a complete loss. He's suffering from post- traumatic- syndrome. I know it.

Kurama was upstairs in his room thinking about Shiori slapping him. He stripped off his cold wet clingy clothing and jumped into a warm bath. He did not deserve his mother's love or his father- to- be's sympathy. Yet, it made him feel better somehow.

He slept well that night and did not want to get up in morning. He was afraid of what of the day's events and how it would turn out. He got up a combed his long red hair and tried to smile, but couldn't bring himself to do it. There was no point. Kurama dressed in his pink uniform for school and hesitantly went down the stairs.

Shiori was at the table and a big breakfast sat at Kurama's place. He said nothing until he sat and prayed. Naynoku- san was sitting on one side of the round table too. "Thank you, kaasan." He said hoping his voice sounded confident and almost happy- like.

"You are welcome, Shu- chan. I'm sorry I hit you, Shu- chan. I'm so sorry." Her eyes filled with tears. Kurama stopped eating.

"It's okay, kaasan. I deserved it. I should not have been out that late anyway. I know I must've worried you and Naynoku- san." She nodded but didn't look convinced.

"Shuichi- kun, what happened the day you went out with your friend? What store were you going to? Who was the boy who was killed? Who were the ones who killed him? We need to know, Shuichi." Kurama caught his breath for a moment. He hadn't expected them to bring it up so soon.

"I don't know what you mean. What are you talking about?" Kurama knew it was lame, but if he pretended not to remember saying it then they would think that he needed help and he wouldn't have to talk about it.

Naynoku's brow furrowed, but it was Shiori who spoke next. "It is all right, sweety. He just had a dream. That's all. Go to school after you eat your breakfast." Kurama pushed his food around on his plate. He had only taken three bites of his pancakes with whipped cream spread on top, yet suddenly he wasn't hungry.

School was a dud and when Shiori and Naynoku- san came to pick him up for his appointment he felt pressured and closed up; like a closed book that simply would not open until it was softened up a bit and given love and care and above all a soothing gesture of affection. Therapy was not something he wanted to do rather it was something he had to do.