*"O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!" - Walter Scott*
Luna
After I had gotten dressed for the day, I was about to give Keiko a call and see if she wanted to go do some silly girly shit to stop thinking about Yusuke. He had been gone for six months now. This was getting a little ridiculous. But as if she knew I was thinking about her, the phone rang. "Yusuke's home! Come hang out with us! We are gonna go get milkshakes from that stand downtown!"
"Alright. I will be there in a minute!" I hung up, well, at least he is home. Maybe things can go back to being normal again? I started the walk towards our meetup location. I knew I had to walk there at a normal pace. Appearing there moments after she hung up would be a tad suspicious. As I walked I thought about what had become of my new normal...I was in a sorta-kinda relationship with a fox demon who thought I was a human. I kept piling on lie after lie after he was so honest with me...This is going to be a disaster.
"It really will be, you know?"
"Shit Kuro, don't just speak without telling me you are there first!"
"Sorry. But you are right. The more lies you tell him and the longer this goes on, the more pissed off he is gonna be when he finally does learn the truth."
"When did you decide to become my moral compass?"
"It's not like that. I can feel how happy you are with him, and I don't want that to end just because you are too stubborn to tell him the truth. Do you really think he won't accept you?"
"I don't know...he has feelings for a human, Kuro..."
"No no no. You stop that! Dreamboat is not Geralt. He is absolutely nothing like him, and from what you have told me, I think the dreamboat demon actually cares about you. And don't start feeding me that bullshit about how Geralt did care, because he didn't. We both know it. You just can't admit it."
"He likes the mask Kuro! And as you said, I am way too deep in the lies now. If he finds out, he will be very upset..."
"You mean when he finds out. Truths always come out Luna. You know that."
"Yeah yeah. What is wrong with just enjoying what I have until it blows up in my face?"
"Nothing I guess, but I really don't want it to blow up in your face...This is probably the happiest I have ever known you to be, both in your memories, and in the time that I have known you. If anyone in this fucked up world deserves a little bit of happy. It is you Luna...You have been through enough."
"Thanks Kuro... You deserve happiness too, you know... be safe storming the castle. I gotta meet a friend for milkshakes." I could see Keiko, Yusuke and Kuwabara in the distance.
"Is it the dreamboat? Are you gonna get one milkshake with two straws like in the movies?"
"No Kuro. Go be a spy." I felt his laugh and then he was gone.
Kuwabara saw me first, "Hey Tsuki! You are joining us for milkshakes?!" He gave me that goofy grin, it always amazed me how he still looked at me the same, even after Hiro and I have spent the last six months beating the hell out of him. I wondered if he had told Yusuke about that. Probably not...He probably wants to surprise him.
Keiko handed me a milkshake, "Here you go, vanilla with caramel."
"Keiko. You are the fucking best." She smiles and gives me a one armed hug.
"The guys were talking about wanting to see a movie, so I said we should go see that art film playing in town!"
Yusuke and Kuwabara both looked at me, begging me to give them an out. But Yusuke deserved this. I could handle a stupid art film if it meant he had to sit through it too.
"That sounds great Keiko!" I smiled, and I could feel the guys glaring at my back.
We walk towards the movie, Keiko and I are just ahead of Yusuke and Kuwabara. I can hear them whispering.
"This is the happiest Keiko has been in months. You guys must really have somethin' for her to be that way..." the sounds of a struggle, "Don't act like you're not excited too! How do you think Keiko feels when you pretend you don't care!"
"Hey you are squishing my milkshake!"
Keiko stops and turns to them, "Yusuke stop wrestling the movie is about to start!"
Yusuke seems distracted, I follow his eyes, and I notice it too, something feels wrong.
"Hey Keiko... I gotta grab something at the store first..."
"What?" Keiko is sad, but I know Yusuke needs to check out that weird feeling, and I really don't want Keiko anywhere near it either.
"Kuwabara needs to grab something too, right?" He nudges him. "We will be right back, five minutes tops. You mind saving us some seats?"
"Well if it is quick I will come with you." Keiko stammers, she wants to be with Yusuke. That is the point of this whole damn movie.
"No it's sort of embarrassing, it is a guy thing, you know? We'll be back soon okay?" he grabs Kuwabara and runs off,
"Fine, we'll be in the center row!" Keiko calls after them, and I grab her arm to comfort her. We waited outside that theatre for about an hour before she began to get teary. I felt awful for her. "Yusuke, you brat..." Her tears were about ready to fall. This better have been fucking important.
Keiko said she wanted to go to Sarayashiki to take care of some stuff for the student government. Who was I to judge her for wanting to bury her sorrows in school? As we walked, I saw a large bug fly by my head, and I snatched it out of the air.
A Makai insect? Here? This must be what Yusuke is dealing with. I kept an eye out for more. I pity the human that gets infected by one of these. I dropped Keiko off at the school. She didn't have a weak enough mind to fall victim to the makai insects. She would be safe. The other people of the city? Not so much...Should I try to help them?
"Hey Keiko, are you gonna be fine here working by yourself on a weekend?"
"Yeah I will be fine! You gonna go see Shuichi?" She asked as we approached the school.
"No, I just have some errands to take care of. I will be back soon, okay?"
"Yeah, of course! Have fun on your errands." She sounded chipper as she headed into the building. I knew it was an act, and she was still very upset about Yusuke ditching her. But the other people of this city needed me more now. I shifted and headed to the dojo. There were even more bugs popping up by the second.
"Hiro!" I called, as I grabbed my trench coat and put it on, it would allow me to be discreet from my demon form if I needed to be seen. It was long enough to hide my tail, and had a hood to cover my ears. "There are Makai insects all over the city. I am going to try to save as many people as I can. I recommend you do the same!" He appeared beside me, his katana on his hip.
"I will do what I can."
"Thank you."
I headed out into the city. Slashing bugs with my claws and knocking out any infected humans and killing the parasites that crawl out. God, I hate bugs.
The sun was starting to set, and I was in the middle of punching a mass of infected humans when they suddenly stopped and turned away. I could hear them muttering, "Kill...Keiko..."
"Keiko? Oh fuck!" I abandon these humans and rush towards Keiko's school. I won't leave her alone again. Shit. I shouldn't have gone so far away...again...
When I arrived the school was full of infected humans. They all had makeshift weapons, I knocked them down. I ran around the school, looking for any sign of her. "Fucking shit! Keiko! Where are you!" I called out for her, but I knew she wouldn't recognize my real voice. If she was smart she would be staying away from everyone. I heard a scream from one of the other school buildings. I knew it was her.
"Fucking shit!" I was kicking down the infected left and right, they were everywhere. They were making it hard to move quickly.
I found a horde of them breaking down a door. She must be in there. I watch as they stab a cabinet with their makeshift spears. I see her scarf in the crack of the cabinet.
"No!" I scream, and begin to punch wildly, "Keiko!" I see Iwamoto and I punch him extra hard. Then I see Keiko and Botan jump out of the window, holding brooms and begin to knock down the infected. I look at her from beneath my hood, "Keiko! You are alright! Oh thank God."
Botan looked at me, I knew she could see my fangs. She knew I wasn't human, "Who are you?"
"That doesn't matter. I am here to make sure the both of you survive this..." I extend my hand towards them, and I see them both look at my claws in horror. "Listen to me, I promise you I am not here to hurt you! If I wanted you dead, you would be dead!" I raise my head so that she can see my eyes clearly. She said I had kind eyes before. I need her to believe that now.
"I believe you." She spoke softly, and Botan turned to look at her. We didn't have time for this.
"We need to leave. Putting ourselves in a corner is dangerous. You two run ahead, I will keep them off of you."
They nod sternly, and run out the broken door and down the hall. I stay a bit behind them, caught up in knocking out as many infected as I could. I was taking care of another teacher I vaguely recognized when I heard the thud of the pipe. I glanced up and I saw Botan going down, and Keiko catching her in her arms. "Shit!" It would be so much easier if I could just fucking kill these people.
I rush to her, knocking the zombies out of the way. I heard Botan telling her to run away, but Keiko telling her she can't leave her. A man was raising a pair of scissors and about to plunge them into her when I swept his legs and he fell into two other men. I felt the wind on my ears, and I knew that my hood was off.
I knelt in front of Keiko and Botan, and Keiko was just staring at me. "Listen Keiko. I know this is crazy, and that you have no idea who I am, and all this is fucking terrifying. But we can't stay here, and I can't carry you both out of here while I am like this. You don't remember it, but you saved my life once, and now it is my job to keep you safe. Will you let me do that?"
She looked scared. If I were her looking at me, I would be too. She nods nevertheless.
"This is going to get even weirder, but I need you to trust me. Can you do that?" She nods again. "I am going to turn into a large wolf, you need to put Botan on my back, and climb on yourself and I will get us out of here. I won't be able to talk but it will still be me, and you are gonna have to hold onto my fur as tight as you can okay? Don't let Botan fall off...I know I will look scary. But I owe you. And I care about you. And I am not going to let anything happen to you."
"Okay...I believe you... I am ready." Her voice is breaking, and she is crying, but I felt like she understood. I stepped enough away from her to shift, and for a moment she just stared at me. I mean, a nine foot long wolf is scary, but we don't have time for this. I shook my head and whined, and that seemed to snap her out of it. She lifted Botan and laid her across my shoulders before she climbed on my back like I was a horse. Good Girl. I felt her throw her torso across Botan and wrap her arms around my neck, her fingers gripping my fur. She felt secure, so I started to run.
In this form, with the two of them safely on my back, I was able to just knock down the infected with my paws or by nipping with my teeth. Even though they were infected, they were aware enough to know to fear a giant wolf. I ran up the stairs to the roof, and I was happy to find it empty. I laid down, signalling them to get off, and Keiko obliged, stepping off of me with relatively steady feet, and taking Botan back in her arms. I shifted back to my true form so I could barricade the door to the roof, and once that was done, I turned back to Keiko. She still seemed to be in shock.
"We should be safe up here, and I am sure Yusuke will take care of the source soon."
I saw her perk up at the mention of Yusuke. "Can you tell me what is going on? What are you?"
I smiled, "There are a lot of things in this world that normal people aren't supposed to know about. Like spirits and demons. Things like me, and like the things that infected your teachers and classmates."
"Like when Yusuke was dead, and they brought him back to life?"
"Yeah...Part of the deal was that once he was back, he would help protect the world from the things that want to do harm."
"Like demons?"
"Yeah. Mostly demons."
"Are you a demon?"
"I am. I am a wolf demon."
"But you saved me?"
"We aren't all evil. We are good and bad. Just like humans."
"You said that I saved your life?"
I smiled at her, if she was scared of my fangs, she didn't show it. "You did. You were much younger. But I was dying. You didn't know it, but you saved my life. So now you are under my protection."
That annoying hum that I had been hearing all day finally stopped. I twitched my ears and I heard the sound of a bunch of bodies hitting the ground. "I think he did it Keiko...I think Yusuke stopped it." She smiled at me, I saw her absent-mindedly rubbing Botan's shoulders.
"I am glad."
"Keiko, can I see your hand?" She nodded, and extended her hand to me, "I am just going to prick your finger. It will hurt a little bit. But I wanted to be honest."
"It's okay...I don't know why... but I trust you." I smiled at her, and pricked her finger with my claw, and then pricked my own and pressed them together. I felt the bonding. "We are connected now. If in the future you are in danger or need me, or want to talk to me or anything, all you have to do is think of me, and I will be able to hear it."
"From anywhere?" She asked, rubbing her finger.
"Anywhere. Anytime. If you need me, I will be there. You may not always see me, because I am a master of disguise. But I promise you, I will be there."
She smiled, and as Botan started to move, I began to stand. "Wait! I don't know your name!"
"My name is Luna. Its great to officially meet you, Keiko..." Botan was starting to wake up, and I didn't really want to answer all her questions. "I should get going. But you know how to contact me if you need me."
"Yep!" She smiled and closed her eyes, and I saw tears well up and fall. I lept off the roof and began running through the trees.
Kurama
Hiei and I re-entered living world with Kuwabara on my back, and Yusuke on Hiei's. The portal dropped us out seemingly on the outskirts of town, luckily I knew someone I trusted who lived nearby.
"Do you know somewhere we can take them? I don't think we can explain this to a hospital." Hiei asked, obviously upset to be toting a human around living world.
"Yes. I know somewhere nearby, though it may be difficult to explain why you are here."
We walk the few blocks to Tsuki's home.
"A Martial Arts studio? How will that help?"
"Please just trust me Hiei, and try not to say anything."
I could feel his glare on me as I knocked on the door, and after a moment, Tsuki answered the door. Her eyes raked over the four of us quickly before she spoke, "Jesus Christ, Kurama! What the actual fuck?" She holds the door open and Hiei and I head inside. "You can drop one of them on the couch, I will get a mat for the other." Hiei unceremoniously drops Yusuke on the couch.
"That is the other human girl from the warehouse right?" Hiei asks rather quietly.
"Yes. Her name is Tsuki."
"She isn't a normal human is she?"
"No, she is most definitely not." Tsuki renters the room, and rolls a mat out on the floor, and I gently lay Kuwabara down.
"I imagine this has something to do with the fact that Hiro and I have been playing exterminator to Makai insects all day?" Tsuki lays a hand on Kuwabara, and I can feel her energy spike. She does the same to Yusuke.
"Yes. The Four Saint Beasts were controlling them. They are dead now."
"So the four of you went in as a team?" She looks between Hiei and I before heading towards the kitchen. She hops up on the kitchen table, and pops open a secret compartment in the ceiling. She pulls out a rather large bag of healing herbs from demon world. Some of them quite rare.
"Yes. You could call it parole for Hiei and I." I answer, and she throws the bag of herbs at me.
"I am sure you have a better idea of how to use those than I do. I need to focus on them, so you will need to fix your own wounds and whatever is wrong with Hiei..." She turns to look at him. "You know, the more you try to look inside my mind, the easier it is to see inside yours. That is true for most telepaths. You should be more careful."
"What are you-" He steps towards her, but I put a hand on his shoulder. She just smiles before sitting in between Yusuke and Kuwabara, and beginning to heal them both. I began to utilize the herbs I was given to slow my own bleeding and accelerate my healing. A few moments later, there is a knock at the door.
"Kurama, would you get that?" Tsuki asks me, I can smell her blood that tells me her nose is bleeding again. I hate coming to her like this. I open the door, and I see Botan and Keiko at the door with smiles on their faces.
"Oh Kurama, I thought I might find you here!" Botan exclaims.
"Yes. Yusuke and Kuwabara are here too." I barely finish my sentence before Keiko rushes past me towards the main room. I turn to look at Botan, "We are going to have to do a lot of explaining to her, aren't we?"
"Oh Kurama... you have no idea." She responds, kicking off her shoes and closing the door behind her.
We round the corner, and I see Keiko staring at Tsuki healing the two boys. Tsuki turns to look at Keiko, "Oh Keiko, I am so glad you are okay! I know this probably looks really crazy but I.."
"No. Botan explained some things on the way here. Like how you, Yusuke, and Kuwabara all have special powers, and that yours are more for healing than fighting." She turned to look at Botan.
"Alright guys, something really weird happened and I couldn't not explain things to her after what she saw..."
Tsuki narrowed her eyes at Botan, her nose was bleeding still, but it seemed like Kuwabara was starting to wake up. Suddenly he bolted upright, looking around at all of us, and seemed to calm when he recognized his surroundings. He glanced at Yusuke who was on the couch. I answered his silent question.
"He is alive. He will be fine with rest."
"Yes, and Keiko was just going to tell us about her grand adventure while I was unconscious. She told me the jist of it on the way here, but I am looking forward to hearing the details. Maybe you all can make sense of it." Botan spoke quickly, and then all eyes are on Keiko.
"The short version is that a wolf demon saved Botan and me from those crazy people!"
"But I told her, there are no Wolf Demons." Botan seemed mildly perturbed.
"She looked like a wolf. She said she was a wolf!"
"Maybe she was a fox?"
"No Botan. I know what a fox looks like, and i know what a wolf looks like. She was a wolf! Just a really big one! I rode on her back!"
I decided to step in and mediate, "Maybe you should slow down and start from the beginning."
Botan stepped forward, "I will start with what happened while I was awake. We were running from the infected, and we had set a trap for them, when a girl rushed in yelling for Keiko. She was wearing a hood but when she looked at us, I could see her fangs, and when she held out her hand she had really long claws instead of fingernails."
Keiko chimed in, apparently excited to tell the story, "She said she was there to help us, and she did help us! I looked in her eyes, and they looked so kind. They were so deep blue they were almost black, but for some reason I trusted her. She told us to run, so we did."
"And then I got hit in the head, and I was unconscious."
"We were sitting there, and we were surrounded, and a man was about to stab me, but she tripped him, and her hood fell down. I could really see her, she didn't have ears like us, she had big furry ones on her head. They were black with white tips, and I know it's weird, but I remember thinking she was somewhere between scary and beautiful. Then she told me she was going to get us out but she couldn't do it in her current form. She told me she was about to do something weird, and she told me what I had to do, and then she transformed into a giant wolf right in front of me!" I watched Keiko as she was telling this story like it was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to her, and I guess it was. "She was a really big, black wolf, and then I lifted Botan onto her back, and got on myself just like she told me to, and then she carried us to the roof. That's where she told me that Yusuke was going to fix this, and that spirits and demons were real, and that I had saved her life, and she was going to protect me." Keiko smiled at the room of stunned faces, and took a second to catch her breath.
"You see what I mean? Keiko believed the demon, but I don't see how we can believe anything she said, considering she claimed to be a kind of demon that don't exist!"
Botan was a being of spirit world. It makes sense that she wouldn't know. As far as I knew, only the word of mouth keeps the legends of the wolves alive. "Well, that isn't entirely true." The whole room turned to look at me, aside from Hiei, who was only passively listening to the entire conversation. "Wolf demons are real. Or rather...they were, before Spirit World drove them into extinction...Spirit World rightfully deemed it one of their darker moments, and wiped records of it from history. The spoken histories of demon world still speak of them though."
Botan looked horrified, "Spirit World drove them to extinction? But why?"
To my surprise, Hiei finally joined in the conversation, "They were the demons every demon wanted to be. They could take any form. Duplicate any ability, and had seemingly endless power. They could cross any barrier spirit world erected like it wasn't even there. Spirit World hated that. They told both the Demon World and the human world, that if they could prove they had killed a Wolf Demon, they were entitled to great riches. So despite the fact that most of the wolves were reclusive and peaceful, they all faced genocide at the hands of everyone else."
Keiko threw her hands over her mouth, and Kuwabara and Botan just looked shocked. Tsuki just seemed...sad. Keiko spoke first, "That is awful."
Botan seemed remorseful, "No wonder she wanted to leave before I woke up. I wouldn't want to face an agent of spirit world either..." She turned to Keiko, "You truly feel like she had your best interests at heart?"
"I do. I believed her."
"Then this encounter doesn't leave this room. We will tell Yusuke the basics when he wakes up, but beyond that we should never speak of the wolf again."
"Her name was Luna." Keiko spoke.
"Right. We will never speak of Luna again. I would like to think that she would be safe even if Spirit World found out about her, but I don't want to take that chance when she risked her safety to help Keiko and I."
I was trying to think of why that name seemed so familiar...Luna...That's it! My mother said a woman pretending to be a nurse came in and took away all her pain...She said she had the deepest blue, kind eyes. And she said her name was Luna. She was so certain that this Luna was the reason for her miracle recovery, but I knew that that was the Forlorn Hope. I dismissed Luna as a hallucination. But maybe it wasn't...
"If we truly have a skin-walker watching out for us, why don't we contact it, see if it will do the next mission for us next time?" Hiei joked, but he had a point, a demon that powerful on our side would be a real asset.
"How would we contact her, though? And even if we could, she wouldn't come. She didn't survive this long by being dumb! She has no way of knowing if she can trust us not to kill her for the money!" Kuwabara chimed in with something that was surprisingly insightful.
"He is right. Even though the incentives of Spirit World are no longer in place, The body parts of a Wolf-Demon are very illustrious collectors' items because of their rarity."
"Ha. Of course the thief would know that." Hiei scoffed.
"Well, this just keeps get more and more interesting, doesn't it?" Tsuki laughs, as she turns around and focuses all her energy on healing Yusuke. I hear the door open, and everyone turns. Hiro is standing in the doorway looking at all of us.
"Well well, a party in my own house, and I wasn't even invited...What a shame." He pulls his sword from its sheath, and uses a napkin to wipe off what appears to be blood.
Botan appears to be the only one who wants to mention it, "Is that blood?"
He smirked at her, "Would you believe me if I said no?" I heard Hiei chuckle as Botan gasped. "Oh relax, they were only superficial wounds, they'll survive." He walked over to Tsuki, apparently to inspect her work.
"I thought you were taking the sword for the bugs, not to maim the afflicted..."
She looks up at him, but he just smiles and pats her on the head. "Shit happens, pumpkin..." He hands her a tissue, "Don't get blood on my couch." He turns back to the rest of us, "if anyone needs a place to say until they heal up, you are welcome to stay here, there are plenty of bedrolls in the closet and food in the fridge. Just don't piss me off or scare my students. Oh, and do everything Tsuki says."
"I'll pass" Hiei spoke softly, and quickly left the building. He stayed much longer than I expected him to, honestly.
"I need to report to spirit world. But I will be back tomorrow! But I would love it if you took care of my body!"
"Um sure?" Tsuki called over her shoulder, as Botan fell to the ground. Keiko seemed shocked.
"It is perfectly normal for her, I assure you." I said to Keiko as I helped Kuwabara move her body to his now vacated bedroll.
"I need to make sure Shizuru knows I am okay. I will call Atsuko and tell her Yusuke is staying with me for a few days."
"Alright, thank you Kuwabara. You are sure you are fine to get home on your own?" Tsuki asked him, holding another tissue to her nose. I guess I should feel grateful her ears hadn't begun to bleed yet.
"Yeah, I feel great! You are a wonderful healer Tsuki."
"I hope your training paid off?"
"Yeah. I held my own. You can ask Kurama." Tsuki turned to look at me,
"He did well. Better than we expected."
"Hey!" Kuwabara yelled at me, but I just laughed. "I am going now. I will be back in the morning."
"Yusuke should wake up tomorrow around noon. I can't do much else for him. He just needs sleep now." Tsuki smiled lightly at Yusuke's unconscious body as she moved to stand.
"I'll be back before he wakes up then!" Kuwabara leaves, and I hear the door close.
Tsuki turns to Keiko, "I'll give you some time with him. I need a break anyways." Keiko smiled and took Tsuki's place in the floor in front of the couch. Tsuki looked at me, and I knew what she needed. We went out into the hallway where we were alone, and I pulled her into my arms. Stroking her hair as she nuzzled my chest. I felt guilty for it, but I knew that since she was so weak, I could hold her for much longer. "Are you okay?" She muttered into my chest.
"I am. The herbs you had were very useful. Thank you."
"So did you each take a saint beast?"
I laughed, and I felt her arms clutch my waist. It hurt my wounds slightly, but I didn't want to let her go. "Yes. I took on Genbu the stone demon."
"A friend once told me he smelled like shit. Is it true?"
"Yes. He did have quite the putrid odor. He is dead now though...I am more concerned as to how your friend knew that...?"
"He is nosy. He hears lots of gossip." She laughs, and I feel her rumble against my chest. When I heard that Suzaku had sent the infected after Keiko, I was worried that Tsuki would get involved and get herself killed, I was relieved to have her safe in my arms. I felt her move, and I thought she was letting go, but she just moved her hand to my wound. I felt her powers as she started to heal me. "This way everyone wins."
"Just don't push yourself too far Tsuki..." I ran my fingers into her hair and I heard her sigh. I began to caress her ear with my finger and I heard her breathe catch. I knew I wasn't playing fair, but I loved the noises she made.
"Don't push me too far, Kurama."
"You are right, I am sorry."
"No you aren't." She pulled away and looked up at me with a crooked smile.
"You are right, I am not." I smirked until she poked my ribs just above my open wound and it caused me to cringe. I deserved that...but it was worth it.
"You should be getting home to Shiori. She is probably really worried about you."
"You are right...You will be fine here?"
"Yeah. It's my house, Kurama. Besides, how much third-wheeling could really happen when one of the two wheels is comatose?"
"I don't know. I guess that really depends on Keiko's opinions on consent and voyeurism." She laughed, but it earned me an elbow to the ribs. "I'll see you tomorrow Tsuki..."
"See you tomorrow, Kurama. Be safe out there."
Luna
It was late in the night. Hiro and I were sitting at the table in the kitchen, silently watching over Yusuke sleeping on the couch, and Keiko sleeping beside him on the bedroll on the floor. Botan's body was on a bedroll against the wall... It was sweet, really.
I heard Hiro in my head, "Was is really such a good idea to tell her everything?"
"She was scared, Hiro. I knew if I lied, it would make everything even worse...They know about Luna now, but they don't know that I am her. So everything is fine."
"They are smart Luna. How long do you think it will be before one of them figures it out? Especially Kurama. He is very smart and very close to you. I think he would be the first."
"Yes. Probably."
"Are you prepared to deal with the consequences of that?"
"I don't have a choice... He will find out, and he will feel betrayed. This much I know. However, there are two distinct personalities within him. I like them both, but I feel like they would have different reactions to my betrayal."
"Do either of them have a good ending?"
"Not really...not for me at least."
"He cares about you too though..."
"But is it enough? Or will he feel like his feelings clouded his judgement and I used that to my advantage?"
"But that's not what you-"
"It doesn't matter that everything we have is just as real to me as it is to him...if not more so...He won't see it like that. He is a tactician. He will see it as a plan, because honestly, it wouldn't be a bad one. Secure my secret by distracting the most observant of the group..."
"Fuck, you trapped yourself."
"Yep. Now I just have to wait for it all to blow up on me."
"You could just lay low."
"No. If one of them is in danger, I would rather give up my identity, or even my life to save them."
"You would give your life to save them?"
"Keiko and Kurama? No doubt. Yusuke, Kuwabara, and their families? Yes too. Hiei is a maybe. I still haven't quite forgiven him for the warehouse incident...But he lived a hard life. He's never been cared about at all. I know how that must feel for him."
"You were in his head?"
"He tried to look into mine, apparently he wasn't aware that he opened a two lane highway... I think I know more about that boy than I ever wished to...He came to human world to look for his sister. I think when this Saint Beast bullshit is over, I will go look for her. He is confined to the city, but I have no fences."
"Why would you do that?"
"She is an ice apparition. You know better than most what humans will do to her."
"There is more to it than that..."
"Yes...he reminds me of a younger me. Bloodthirsty and bitter...Lost and alone. I spent the greater part of my life looking for petty revenge and things that didn't really matter. Once I found what I wanted, the reputation I had built as one of the best killers in the realms kept me from having that. I don't want anyone to make my same mistakes. He is young. He won't realize his errors until he is much older...but maybe if I can help him to his goals before he completely ruins his life, I can help him somehow."
"And people say you are heartless..." He nudges me with his elbow, and I give him a side glance. "Is that ice wall around your soul finally melting?"
"I will fucking stab you, Hiro." He covers his laugh with his hand to keep from waking Keiko.
Kurama
I retired to my room after assuring my mother that I was fine, and so was Tsuki, only to find that I wasn't alone. "Hello, Hiei, back so soon?"
"You and that human girl seem close." he must have kept watch after he left.
"We are."
"So can you tell me what she is? Because she can't be human." I flicked on the light, and Hiei was standing on the window sill.
"As far as I know she is human. At least mostly. I know that her grandfather Hiro is a two hundred year old demon hunter, and that they both use a type of energy that is neither Spirit nor Demon. It is not something I encountered before I met them."
"A two hundred year old human?"
"Yes. Apparently their special energy allows them to live long lives if they are not killed. I have been working under the assumption that Tsuki's parents were also demon hunters, and that is how she saw them murdered, but she hasn't spoken of it, and I don't intend to ask."
"For you to be involved with her, you don't seem to know much about her."
I gave a pointed smile, "I hardly see how my involvement with her is any of your concern."
He hopped from the window sill and appeared in front of me. "Because Kurama, in the less than a second from the time I tried to look in her mind, to the time when she made her comment about "it being easier to see in my mind" she had seen enough of my memories to locate the one I have of my sister, realize that would bother me the most, and then comment in my own mind on how beautiful she was."
I chuckled, that sounded like something she would do. "What, Hiei, are you scared that her telepathic abilities are superior to yours?"
"No Kurama, I am concerned that that memory was deep. I have seen and done many things which your girlfriend would have seen on her way to the memory of Yukina, and she didn't even flinch. She didn't look at me any differently. She didn't seem like it affected her in the slightest."
"I share your concern...when I first learned that she had extensive knowledge of demon world, and of my past, I assumed she would be scared of me, but she never was. She seems to know about all of the things I did as Yoko Kurama, but she still smiles at me the same as she always has. When we entered into this...relationship of sorts, she admitted that there were things about herself she could never tell me, and things we could never do, and I accepted her terms. Since then I have learned that her knowledge of the workings of Demon World is perhaps greater than mine, and no amount of violence or cruelty seems to phase her. I don't know why this is, but I don't intend to ask, either."
"How can you just look past all that and treat her like a normal human?"
"I don't treat her like a normal human. I would never talk about my fights or my past with a normal human. I treat her like Tsuki. She is the only person I have ever known who accepts both my past, and my current life as a human."
"You don't wonder why that is?"
"Of course I wonder, Hiei, but it's not as important as enjoying what we have for the time being."
"But why, Kurama?"
"I thought that was obvious, Hiei, because I care for her."
"It still doesn't make any sense."
I laugh, "I suppose it doesn't...but it doesn't have to."
"Human world has changed you, Kurama." And with that, he is gone. Leaving nothing but an open window. I guess it has.
