Southern Fried Ch 10

Here's a little bit of silly to balance out the sad from last chapter. :) A little bit of frivolity, a little bit of fluff, a filler chapter. Have fun!

Thanks again to all of my awesome reviewers!

After sending Yusuke into town for more detailed maps, which he complained royally about, the group spent the next few hours pouring over them trying to pinpoint the demon's location. The problem was, he kept moving. They would find him in north Japan, go to the regional map to find nothing, back to the map of the country to find he was in south Japan, then to the middle, and even to outlying islands. It was a very frustrating ordeal that set everyone on edge. They couldn't scour the entire country looking for this demon. From what they saw, their foe could move through the ground at will. They could get to where he was at on the map to find he was gone without a trace.

"Are you sure these maps aren't broken?" Kuwabara muttered, dragging a hand through his head. He had pretty much gotten over the sight of the spinning finger, and no longer looked green around the gills.

"They are maps, idiot." Hiei retorted. "It's the human that's broken."

Mickey-Jo raised an eyebrow at Hiei's insult, but was too tired to retort. She sighed. "Mebbe I am broken, at least fer the night. I been wastin' my energy on this. We know he is somewheres in Japan, but that's 'bout it. I cain't do no more tonight."

The fire demon smirked. "I told you."

The cowgirl mimed flicking him in the forehead and grinned when Hiei glared at her. She laid back on the floor and put her cowboy hat over her face. "You need to lighten up some, demon spit. You got a stick up yer ass bigger n'a California redwood tree." She mumbled underneath the hat.

Yusuke and Kuwabara snickered and Hiei rolled his eyes. "You need to stop calling me that, human." Hiei growled.

"DEMON SPIT!" She yelled from underneath her cowboy hat. Suddenly she raised up. Her hat fell from her face into her lap, a mischevious grin twisted her lips. "Say.. I know this would be contributin' to the delinquincey of minors and all that shit, but y'all wouldn't happen to have any fire water would ya?"

The others drew a blank look. Mickey-Jo shook her head and slapped her forehead. "Oh yea, I forgot, wrong country. Alcohol?"

Koenma rolled his eyes. "That's my cue to leave." He gave them all a stern look. "I expect some progress to be made by my return tomorrow evening."

Yusuke got up. "Yea, yea, Koenma. Go have your diaper changed."

The toddler prince huffed and poofed out of the room in a billow of smoke.

Keiko glared up at her boyfriend. "Yusuke, what are you doing?"

He shrugged. "I'm going to go raid Genkai's sake stash. It's been a rough day."

"Oh a school night?!"

The youth rolled his eyes. "As if I'm actually going to go to school when I'm working a case."

Keiko's face fell and she got up. "In that case, I'm going home. My parents didn't expect me to stay so late." She hugged Yukina and bowed to the rest of the room. "I'll see you all later."

"See ya, miss Keiko! " Mickey-Jo waved

The younger girl smiled at the cowgirl and walked out. Yusuke stared after her for a few long seconds and sighed.

Mickey-Jo chuckled softly. "You got a lot to learn 'bout women, boy."

Yusuke clenched his jaw, then forcibly relaxed. "We understand each other. " He shrugged again. He heard Mickey-Jo snort but continued on into the kitchen where he knew Genaki's sake stash was. The psychic was nowhere to be seem, off doing old lady psychic stuff, no doubt. He came back with the bottle and enough glasses for everyone. When he put one in front of Yukina and caught Hiei's fiery glare, he faltered.

"Er.. Yukina.. do you want some?" Yusuke asked nervously.

She giggled demurely behind a hand and rose. "No, thank you Yusuke. I believe I will retire for the night."

Kuwabara reached up to hug his beloved, but was too slow and crashed to the floor. He bolted upright to the titters of what was left of the gathering. Yukina walked around the table and knelt before Mickey-Jo. The human tensed and leaned back slightly. The only reason she had been this close to demon was to either kill it, or it was trying to kill her. Her prejudices would be hard to forget.

"I appreciate your apology earlier," the ice apparition said. "I'm very sorry I didn't tell you earlier. I do hope that we will become friends."

Mickey-Jo nodded and attempted a smile. "Thank ya, Yukina. I really am sorry.. fer... ya know..."

Yukina smiled again and rose. With another smile at the boys and Mickey-Jo, she left the room, sliding the door back behind her. All that was left was Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, Kurama and Mickey-Jo. Yusuke poured shots for all of them. Kurama politely declined his, to the shrugs of the others.

Yusuke raised in eyebrow. "Are you staying?" He asked the half-demon.

Kurama nodded. "Yes, I am. Someone has to make sure everything goes smoothly. I've seen you and Kuwabara drink, it's not pretty."

The Spirit Detective turned to Hiei, who hadn't moved. "And you, Hiei? You staying?"

"Humans are highly entertaining when they are inebriated," Hiei smirked.

MIckey-Jo lifted her glass and tossed back the shot, grimacing slightly as it burned down her throat. "Ahhh, thats the stuff. It ain't Jack, but it'll do."

Kuwabara gave her a wierd look. "Jack? I thought Jack was the name of your son..."

"I'm talkin' 'bout Mr. Jack Daniels, the whiskey." She motioned for Yusuke to pour her another. as the boy did so, she flipped it her cowboy hat back on her head and thumped it with her finger, making it lean back some. She downed that shot and grimaced. "There's Mr. Jack Daniels, Mr. Jim Beam and Senor Jose Cuervo. That's tequila. They became my best friends after Jack died, and after the demon came." Another shot went down her gullet.

Hiei rolled his eyes. "Yes, because that's the perfect way to act out revenge. Kill yourself with alcohol."

Mickey-Jo tossed back another one. She was now at 4 to the other's one. "Listen, demon," she said softly. "I don't comment on how you live yer miserable life, so keep yer dirty nose outta mine, ya hear?"

Hiei's eyes flashed and he leaned forward, gritting his teeth. "Then don't spill your entire pitiful life story on the table, human."

She slammed her shot glass on the table and whirled on him. "Shut yer mouth, demon spit!"

"Make me, human."

Yusuke quickly scampered around the table and flopped down between them, sloshing the bottle. "Holy hell, guys. Let's just drink and have fun. You two can make-out later when I'm passed out." He tossed back a shot of the sake.

Mickey-Jo bursted with laughter. "Haha! You're funny, boy. Me, makin' out with a demon! That's rich. Gimme 'nother." She raised her glass and Yusuke obliged her. She swirled the glass appreciatively with a small smile. This shot went down slower. Now that the slightly numb fire of the alchol was simmering in her veins, Mickey-Jo relaxed. She opened her mouth, took a deep breath, and that was when the boys found something else out about their tentative friend.

She couldn't sing...

She couldn't sing at all...

"Well I been saved by the grace of southern chaaaarm!" She warbled. "I got a mouth like a sailor and your'n is your like a Hallmark caaaard." The other stared in openmouthed grimaces as she continued her tone-deaf mutilation of what was obviously a country song. "If you wanna pick a figh', well I'm gonna have to say goodnigh'! I don' hafta be hateful I can jus' say BLESS YER HEART!" (*)

The cowgirl slammed her glass on the table again. "Another!" She looked around at the boys, still frozen in shock. "Wha'? Ain't you ever heard a county lark singin' a'fore?"

Kuwabara laughed loudly. "Where's a video camera when you need one? This is perfect blackmail opportunity."

Yuskuke poured another for the girl. "She may have been best friends with American drink, but she's never had some of Genkai's special sake!"

Mickey-Jo downed her next shot and started singing again, oblivious to the laughter of three, and the open disgust of one. "On the pontoon! Makin' waves and catchin' rays up on the roof! Jumpin' off the back don' act like you don' want tooooo! Party in slow motion! Out here in the open mmmmmmmmotorboatin'!"(*)

A she swung her arm down to slam her glass on the table again, Kurama caught her arm. She turned slowly to look at him with narrowed eyes. "The hell you doin, sugar?"

He chuckled. "You need to slow down, Mickey-Jo. You haven't had any dinner, and Genkai's sake is very strong. We have a lot to do tomorrow."

She flapped a hand at him, blowing a raspberry. "Pffft. I ain't drunk. It'll take a lot to get me drunk! I'm made of stiffer stuff n'that!" She waggled her fingers at Yusuke the Bottle Holder and turned back to Kurama. "This stuff may be a mite stronger than what I been used to, but my insides are like lead."

Kurama gave her a skeptical look but allowed her to toss back another. Outside he heard Ol'Boy bark and Dazzle whinny loudly. "Do you need to check on your animals?" He asked the cowgirl.

Cocking her head to the side, Mickey-Jo listened for a moment. "Naw, they's fine. They's just talkin' to each other."

"I've been meaning to ask you," Kurama said thoughtfully. "What exactly is Dazzle? He's not a regular horse that's for sure. He's not exactly a spirit either, and obviously not a demon."

"Weeellll...," The cowgirl mused. "Lemme try to 'splain this best I can. Dazzle is a kind of Indian god-horse."

"A god-horse?" Kuwabara blinked. "What's a god-horse?"

She gave him an irritated look. "Well don't interrupt me, boy, and I'll go on. Anyway, I got him while I was on the trail of the demon goin' through the Native American reservations. Came 'cross an old tribe. Don't 'xactly know what tribe they were, they never told me. But they kept to the old ways. Teepee's and chants and rituals and such. They was bein' harried by some weak demon, but they're magic was quite strong 'nough to get rid of it. I managed to help 'em out, and that night while we were sittin' 'round the fire, passin' the peace pipe, Dazzle come's out of the darkness and comes up right behind me." She chuckled. "Them old Indians, they didn't know what to think! Here was somethin' out of their legends, comin' up to an outsider and makin' friendly-like."

"What does all that have to do with Dazzle being a god-horse?" Yusuke asked.

"Sweet baby Jesus, you kids don't know nothin' 'bout telling a good story!" Mickey-Jo grumbled. "Us country folk gotta weave a tale with everythin'! First rule 'bout livin' in the south!"

Kurama chuckled. "Please, Mickey-Jo, go on."

"Dazzle's kind supposedly are mounts to the Indian gods. Or so they believe. I'm inclined to believe that too. He a mite uncanny, what with his teleportin' and all. First time he did it with me, I 'bout shit myself."

"Has his name always been Dazzle? I find it hard to believe Indian tribes would chose so... modern... of a name."

She shook her head. "Naw, I named him myself." She took another drink. "He's kinda dazzlin'!" Mickey-Jo grinned widely.

Yusuke drank a shot. "So, MJ.." he looked at her. "Can I call you MJ?" At her happy nod, he continued. "What about the mutt?"

She scoffed. "Ol'Boy ain't no mutt! He's a purebred scent hound whose had his nose worked on by a French-Canandian scent-hound master!"

"Ok, that made no sense... but we'll go with it!"

"You'll find I don' make sense a lot of the time, boy."

Kurama sat back with an amused look on his face. "The near future is going to be interesting..."

He heard Hiei's agreeing grunt and smiled wider.

Haha, told ya. Nothing really doing in this chapter. I love writing the interaction with the characters though. I've noticed my story is mostly dialogue. I will work on that! Don't give up on me yet!

Much love!