Yahooo! *suddenly covers mouth* Oops… I kinda just pulled a Black Star move there, didn't I? XD Haha, anyways, thank you guys/girls SOOO much for loving this story! Also, some more thanks AND some cookies for my AWESOME and most recent seven reviewers: wolf girl 4797, Xerxes'Girl, AnimeGmr101, Black Dragon Valkyrie, spoiled princez, verry-chan, and DivineTrance13! I LOVE YOU ALL! *glomp hugs you* Also, another HUGE thanks to all the AMAZING people who have favorited and/or followed this story. I hope everyone enjoys chapter 7! It's a bit longer than most of the others. XD
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho, nor its characters, NOR its plot! I only own my OC character Gray-Jay Crees, any other OCs I create along the way, and any part of the plot NOT a part of the anime and/or manga. This fanfic, however, is MINE and I'd like to keep it that way.
Chapter 7-Night With a Fox
Kurama's P.O.V.
I tilted my head slightly so that I could read the name printed on the tags hanging from her neck.
DANTE S. CREES
The name was extremely familiar in my mind, making me feel as if I'd heard it somewhere before. I had an inkling that I'd come across it briefly when digging through some of the records in spirit world, but I couldn't remember what it said about the man.
"Your play." Miss Jay snapped me out of my thoughts as she finished dealing and gathered up her hand.
"Of course." I smiled a bit, about to pick up my own hand of cards until the phone suddenly rang.
"Ring, ring, hello." My opponent spoke with a lazy smirk of amusement, "You should probably answer that."
I raised an eyebrow at her interesting little saying but went to go answer the phone all the same, wondering if the girl intended to sneak a peek at my cards while left unattended. "You've reached the Minamino house." I spoke politely as I picked up the line.
"Ah, Shuichi dear?" my mother's voice spoke in its usual gentle tone.
"Mother?"I inquired, slightly surprised, for she should be on her way home from work by now, "Is everything alright?"
"Oh, yes, everything's fine, dear." She softly chuckled off my concern, "I just called to tell you that due to the busy schedule, a large selection of nurses at the hospital are being asked to stay and work through the night. So, I'm afraid I won't be home until sometime in the morning."
"I see." I replied calmly.
"Is everything alright, dear?" the gentle woman continued worriedly, "Will you be alright taking care of dinner on your own? If you want, you can order something and have it delivered."
"You don't have to worry about it, Mother." I reassured her, even though dinner honestly hadn't even crossed my mind, "A friend of mine will be spending the night so we can study together for an upcoming quiz. As for dinner, I'm sure the two of us will come up with something."
"Oh, alright then." I could almost see the motherly smile on her face, "If you don't mind my asking, Shuichi, which friend?"
"Miss Jay, actually." I admitted.
"Oh, how lovely." My mother quipped back, seemingly cheered by my statement, "Well, I'm afraid I have to go. Love you, sweetheart, and have fun."
"It's just studying, Mother, but we will." I allowed a soft smile to adorn my features, "And I love you as well. Goodbye."
Hanging up the phone, a small sigh escaped me. So, as it turned out, Miss Jay and I would be spending the night here alone together. Silently, I could only hope that she wouldn't feel too awkward about the matter, especially since it seemed she would be sleeping on the floor in my room. Then again, it was her who had suggested as much in the first place, and one of the first things I'd learned about her was that she didn't seem to follow the morals that most human girls her age did. As usual, I honestly couldn't predict what the stormy-eyed girl would do. Miss Jay may very well take it with an indifferent grain of salt like she seemed to do most things in life, and on another note, she could do something entirely different. With her, one could really never tell.
Gray-Jay's P.O.V.
The cloudy emotion of slight indecision wafted into my senses, making me wonder what was going on over the phone that could have Kurama feeling that way. I didn't have to wait long, however, before the fox reappeared with a slightly troubled look on his face as he sat back down at the living room table.
"Everything okay, Red?" I inquired with a raised eyebrow, using a spur of the moment nickname in hopes of cheering the guy up.
"It seems my mother will be working the graveyard shift tonight." He replied calmly, folding his hands under his chin as he gave me a studious look, "That means that it will just be you and me tonight. I hope you won't mind. However, if it's two awkward for you, then I don't mind letting you have my bed while I use my younger brother's-"
To be honest, the fact that it was just gonna be the two of us sleeping in the same room together when no one else was around did bother me a bit. True, I may be a mostly indifferent person, but I admit that this one was kinda pushing it. However, I sure as hell wasn't gonna be the person to boot Kurama out of his own damn room! I mean, come on! I'm not that much of an asshole!
"Suck it up, girl! This is hardly the time for your near non-existent feminine side to start feeling self-conscious!"
"Seriously, Kurama, it's fine!" I insisted, though I'd dub only thirty percent of that statement as the truth, "It's not a big deal. So, as long as you don't mind sharing a room for the night than don't worry about it."
It didn't look like the redhead was completely convinced with my statement, but it didn't seem like he intended to push the subject; probably because he knew that all hell would freeze over before someone like me would actually admit that I felt a little self-conscious…
Or awkward.
Or embarrassed.
Hell! As lazy and indifferent as I was, I was still a girl! Seriously, why did I even bother getting involved with all this wacko stuff again?
Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if he could smell that fact that I was more or less lying. Kurama was a fox demon, after all.
Though, wasn't the fact that he could detect if I was lying or not simply by sense of smell kinda cheating?
…
Then again, I guess I could tell if someone was lying or not just by the fluctuation in their emotions. So, I suppose I had no room to talk.
"Anyways," Kurama's ever calm voice broke into my silent rambling, "since my mother won't be here, that means that we're on our own for dinner. Is there anything in particular that you'd like to have? She gave me permission to order and have something delivered."
Blinking my troublesome thoughts away -
That's right, remember!? I don't like troublesome things!
- I gave the emerald-eyed boy my signature look of pristine laziness. "I dunno." A yawn escaped me as I slouched down onto the table, "Ordering something is such a pain, especially since we'd have to go through the stupid debate of what we'd want to order. Wouldn't it be simpler if I just whipped us up something real quick?"
Tilting his head slightly, the fox gave me a slightly interested look, "You can cook?"
"Shit! There's that look again, damnit! What the hell is wrong with me!?" I mentally cursed myself. Okay, I know Kurama's was just my friend and all, but he really did look cute like that. In all honesty, the head tilt was so slight, most people probably wouldn't even notice it.
But I did.
And as almost microscopic as it was, it was still… Damnit, I'm rambling again! Just forget everything I just said.
"Fair enough, yeah." I replied with a shrug, officially deciding that I was no longer going to notice any more physical qualities about the redhead sitting in front of me.
Though, come to think of it, just saying he was a redhead stated a physical quality as well.
…
Oh geez, my brain really just needed to shut-up. In fact, I just didn't care anymore, "So, go ahead and just think what you want, brain. I'm tired of arguing with ya anyways. Seriously, I give up."
When was the last time I had taken a nap again? Cause I could sure use one right about now.
"Miss Jay?" the fox tilted his head a fraction farther, probably wondering why I was so spaced out, "Are you alright?"
"Tell me." I spoke bluntly, for I had found that doing so was always the best way to rid a troublesome thought from my mind, "Tilting your head like that, do you do that when you're trying to pick up a girlfriend. Cause to be honest, even I think it's kinda cute."
Kurama blinked once, twice, oh hell even a third time before he actually spoke again, as if digesting the words that I'd just said. Finally, after a couple seconds of blinkified silence, a fair helping of amusement made its way to those emerald orbs of his as he answered with a simple and well clarified, "No."
"I see." I replied indifferently, standing as I made my way into the kitchen, "Well, keep it in mind, cause in this day and age, most girls would fall head over heels for that."
A soft chuckle assaulted my ears from the other room, "I'll keep that in mind."
"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, knowing he could hear me as I rummaged through some of the cupboards, "Say, Kurama, you got any noodles? If ya do, I could just whip us up some ramen or something. Quick and simple."
Clearly still feeling amused with my previous statement, it was only a moment before fox appeared in the kitchen with me as well. "Try the upper right cupboard." He said simply.
"Gotcha." I replied as I pulled out the small noodle pack and set it beside the stove. Grabbing a pan, I filled it about two-thirds up with water before setting on the stove to boil. Afterwards, with Kurama telling where things were, I grabbed some green onions and laid them out on a cutting board. Grabbing a nearby knife, I grinned briefly as I went to work, "Let's get this show on the road."
Kurama's P.O.V.
I watched, mostly in silence, as Miss Jay went about her work. Her skill in the kitchen was clearly more then what she'd let on as she handled the knife with skillful ease as her hands practically flew over the ingredients she seemed to randomly add to the pot.
I knew better, though, to assume that such things were added at random, for it was quite obvious to my keen eye that Miss Jay clearly knew what she was doing.
To be honest, I was still replaying the scene that had happened just minutes beforehand in my mind. True enough, I had had plenty of human females from my school comment about my looks, and even ask me out. Though, I had politely turned them down. However, never in my entire existence had I run into a girl who had so bluntly complimented me without seeming to care one way or the other. I realized that, as the young female saw it, she had made nothing more than a simple statement.
It was these kind of little quirks in Miss Jay's personality that I found made her… intriguing.
Yes, not only at this point had I begun to more or less consider her as a friend, but I couldn't help but consider her a most intriguing human being as well; much like Yusuke when I'd first met him.
In a way, the stormy-eyed girl bustling around in front of me was so secretive and yet, at the same time, so brutally honest as well. The more secretive side made me curious about her, while the brutally honest part of her made me wish to be straight forward with her myself.
The feeling I got when around Miss Jay, it was comfortingly close to the one I got when around Yusuke, and yet… I still couldn't help but feel it was a little different, for unlike Yusuke, Miss Jay was a far more difficult person to read.
Again, that's what made her so interesting.
True enough, Yusuke was not predictable, but he was readable, and there's where lay the greatest difference between the two. When she wanted to be, Miss Jay could be both unpredictable and unreadable.
However, I got the feeling sometimes that that wasn't exactly intentional. More like a side-effect of not being particularly close to anyone during her life. But on subject of that topic, I felt that it wouldn't be incorrect to say that the girl at least trusted me to a certain extent. She had stated that I was her friend, after all.
"Who knows?" A bit of a smile crossed my face at the thought, "In a little time, she just may open up completely."
In the end, patience was what would always be the key.
Gray-Jay's P.O.V.
"I have to admit," Kurama spoke with a slightly impressed tone to his voice after taking a sip of the broth while we sat together at the kitchen table, "you're actually a really good cook."
"Meh. Thanks." I shrugged, though inwardly I had to admit I did feel a bit pleased to have my cooking skill complimented, "I'm pretty handy when it comes to making pastas and such. Anyways, I'm glad ya like it."
He smiled a bit in return before returning to his meal.
I couldn't help but notice how calm his emotions and aura felt at the moment. It was a bit confusing, how at ease Kurama seemed compared to what he usually was, for it'd become quite obvious to me that the fox never completely let his guard down. As always, I could still detect that cold, dangerous underlining beneath it all, but right now… even that seemed to have diminished greatly.
At the same time, it was a little nostalgic as well. The last time I remembered thoroughly enjoying a truly relaxing meal like this was when my dad was still alive. In fact, come to think of it, I hadn't cooked anything ever since he'd passed away. Again, Kurama just seemed to have an odd effect on me when it came to things like this. And once again, it really did feel… rather nice.
Good grief! Did I really just think all that? Gosh, I was beginning to sound like an old lady. Meh… I was probably just tired. Yeah, just tired. That's what it was.
Subconsciously, upon mentally mentioning the subject of tired, my shoulders ending up drooping as I finished my meal while a yawn escaped my lips.
"Tired?"
My eyes blinked briefly as I looked up to meet Kurama's ever calm emerald gaze. "Yeah." I admitted with another yawn, "Admitted… It has been a rather long day."
The fox gave me a small smile before getting up and gathering both his and my dishes. I was about to protest and say that I could clean up after myself when he cut me off.
"Since you cooked dinner, I'll do the clean-up." The redhead stated, not leaving me with much room to argue, "In the meantime, you can use our shower if you want. It'll probably help you sleep better."
"I think I'll take you up on that offer." I smiled back at my friend before heading to the living room. Grabbing some soft black and gray shorts and a loose white tank-top, I made my way to the bathroom before hopping in a hot shower.
Seriously, after the odd day I'd had, the shower felt wonderful! I was beginning to wonder if I'd suddenly died and gone to heaven. I mean, let's review what's happened so far today…
First, I confirmed Kurama was a demon and learned all about his foxy past including the fact that his previous occupation was a master thief. Secondly, I'd been imprisoned and barely escaped my evil language teacher. After that, I'd gone to Kurama's and used my ESP to find a pair of angel's wings, resulting in subconsciously meeting the voice of one who I could only guess to be a demon guardian the two relics.
Uh-huh, I believe I could accurately say that I'd had a full day.
A soft sigh left my lips at the thought as I leaned my forehead up against the shower wall, "Just what happened to not getting involved in troublesome things?"
Later that night…
Kurama's P.O.V.
It was a little passed eleven o'clock as I lay on my bed and stared silently at the dark ceiling, perfectly and widely awake.
Why?
Because currently, sleeping directly beside my bed and on the floor was Miss Jay, whose presence I found myself all too aware of lying here in the darkness. Though not in a particularly bad way, I was still extremely aware of her presence in my room.
Her breathing was soft and even, signifying that she was asleep, while her aura was at ease, stating that she clearly felt safe in my presence. A sent almost like fresh mountain rain continued to brush across my sensitive nose, keeping my sense of smell thoroughly occupied as I found myself unable to concentrate on any other scents.
Although, I had to admit her scent was actually rather pleasant.
To be honest, I didn't really understand why it bothered - if that was even the right word - me so much. It was strange, for normally my sleep wouldn't and shouldn't be hindered in this kind of situation. Yet, it was.
"The heck… dumb tard…"
I blinked out of my thoughts as Miss Jay's mumbling voice assaulted my ears, followed by the rustling of blankets. Turning over on my side so that I could peer down at her, I found myself looking at a rather amusing picture.
My female classmate, who was lying on her back, had mostly kicked off her blanket and had also managed to slide half her body off her air mattress and onto the floor. Her loose white tank top was pulled halfway up her body, reveling the whole of her torso. Unfortunately, I was not quite quick enough to avert my gaze from the somewhat immodest image she made.
A soft sigh escaped my lips as I slid out of bed, being careful not to step on her. Miss Jay had most comically warned me that if I did such a thing, even if on accident, that she would bit my foot off. Bending down, I very slowly grabbed the girl's bare legs and sat them back on the mattress, vaguely noting that her light caramel tanned skin was actually extremely soft. Pushing the unwanted thought away, I grabbed Miss Jay's blanket and recovered her. It wouldn't due for her to catch a cold.
Satisfied, I continued crouching on the floor for a moment as I studied her sleeping face, "It's… so peaceful."
Smiling a bit, I hoped that I Miss Jay wouldn't make any more disturbances and continue sleeping peacefully as she seemed to be doing now. I was about to stand up and hopefully find some peaceful sleep of my own when…
I found I couldn't move away.
...
Somehow, without me even knowing it, the young psychic had managed to latch onto one of my arms and didn't seem to have any intention of letting go.
My green eyes narrowed slightly as an unfamiliar feeling of warmth seeped into my body upon making such physical contact with the girl.
Again, I sighed softly, "This is going to be a long night."
Alrighty then, mission accomplished! *grins* Soooo... what did ya'all think? Haha, and just a little hint, Kurama will NOT be sleeping with Jay. He'll get his arm back... somehow. *sweat-drops* All the same, PLEEEAAASE review! I have been SO inspired as of late thanks to you guys/girls awesome reviews! So, keep up the good work and you'll keep getting more chappies! :D Also, please follow and favorite this story too. See everybody in the next chapter!
Rock Out!
Kira
