Pen: Um...gomen? And arigatou? At least all the words I used actually exist, even if my definitions are...slightly...off, and was calling swearwords swearwords. I don't do plaigarism, ever, even if it means typing a research paper from scratch the night before it's due, so no worries, but I can't tell you what creative idea your story sparked becaues it would ruin the surprise! It's not 'till near the end of the story though, and that's a while away. 'All time favorite stories' ::feels loved:: I can now die happy! ::sigh::

Fire: ::laughs:: If only for that reason I shall nowhave to continue to update.

Jasmine: Updating fast is good though, right? The ideas just keep hopping, and refuse to leave me alone... ::stabs over-active imagination:: Hiei! ::glomps leather wearing demon boy:: Meep!

Asilin: What's the point of life if you can't smother it in sarcasm? And if I update, you better too! Otherwise....I will be forced to come up with some kind of punishment...can't think of one now...

Lintered:Mweep! More people's! Welcome-ness-es!

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Chapter 11

Kisu…

We had gotten to Hiei's at 6:00. It had taken us over an hour to jog there. It had probably taken Hiei less than five minutes. Have I mentioned that I hate short people who are faster than me? Even Kurama could probably have made it to the building long before I could if I had known the way and had actually been trying to run.

This whole experience is just making it painfully clear that I need to start training more seriously again. After not needing any of the things you learned as a child for a while you start to let the skills slip because you don't seem to need them anymore.

That philosophy, of not practicing skills that I don't need right that minute, has always come back to bite me.

The apartment was actually very nice, far nicer than I had expected it to be.

It was a floor and a half. The door opened off of the front hall of the building on the first floor into a huge living room, which was adjoined to a full sized kitchen. Stairs wrapped around the walls in two half flights. There was one bedroom on the first landing, and a second at the top of the flight. The top one was the guest bedroom.

Upon finally arriving I had said I would sleep on the couch. Kurama had said that no, he would sleep on the couch and I would take the room because I was going to be staying there for longer than he was. Hiei said that I got the room because it would be harder for me to sneak out of it than the living room, especially if I would have to go past his door to get to the first floor.

Which is why I got to reclaim my clothing bag from Kurama and drag that, along with my weapon's bag, up the stairs to the room.

At least the room's a dark blue. If it had been white, or some awful mint, like most guest rooms are, I would have been seriously annoyed. I do not sleep in rooms that are painted light colors. The walls reflect too much light for me to sleep even if the lights are all off. I need dark.

After dumping my bags and leaving my coat and knives up there, I had gone back to the living room and spread out my homework around the couch, while Kurama and Hiei discussed whatever in the kitchen. I picked up a couple of words, because of my improved hearing, but not much; just enough that I was fairly sure that they were discussing me.

Whatever. It's not like I really care what they think.

The teacher's had told me that all the makeup work they had given me would probably take me about seven hours total to complete. They were thinking as though I hadn't learned all this information multiple times already and would have to look stuff up and research it before doing all the papers and worksheets. As it was it only took me an hour, leaving me with five chapters worth of the literature book to sludge through.

Wonderful. I had just settled back on the couch, book in lap, the rest of my stuff back in my bag, ready to read, when a doorbell tolled.

I opened my mouth to yell to the two of them in the kitchen, but Hiei had flashed out to the door before I could say anything.

"Hey Hiei." Yusuke and Kuwabara strolled into the living room and dropped their backpacks on the other white leather couch that was in the room. There were two white leather couches, a love seat, and a matching recliner clustered around a cute coffee table and large screen TV. I doubt that Hiei would actually care enough about the apartment to decorate it, or even spend money to get it decorated, so I was betting that it had been Koenma that did it or had it done.

Yusuke waved to Kurama as he dropped onto the couch. "Hiei, your place has some style."

"Hn." Hiei ignored him and went and sat in an alcove that was cut into the wall. It was like a bench. There were no windows in the place. I could just see him sitting on a windowsill instead of a chair though.

"We figured we'd come over here and help you watch Kisu." The look Yusuke gave me said that he obviously didn't trust me. That's okay, since I don't trust him either. Why should I trust any of them? I just met them. And they arrested me.

I glared at him. "I'm not going to run, baka," I snarled at him. "And where would I run too?"

He shrugged and started pulling stuff out of his bag.

"Hey Kurama! You want to help us with some of this work! Me and Kuzuma have tons!"

"I was going to make some food."

Yusuke's expression froze for a second and then split into a grin. "Go ahead and do that then. We'll just shuffle through it on our own."

I returned to reading the Literature textbook but couldn't help asking them, "I thought Keiko was going to help you?"

He stared at me blankly before remembering that I had been there when he had asked her. "Oh. Ya. She has club meetings and stuff tonight. She said she'd help us tomorrow."

I shrugged and went back to the book again, to suddenly find Kuwabara looming over the back of the couch staring at me.

"Kisu, your eyes are like rock hard boulders, your hair dandelion weeds. I have never seen anyone as beautiful as you. Say that you will be my girlfriend and go on a date with me."

I stared at him for a minute, and then asked Yusuke, "Is he always like this or is he on drugs?"

Yusuke laughed, like he was surprised that I could make a joke and not explode at someone. I didn't smile with him, but whatever.

He choked on his tongue as he said, "Naw, that's just Kuwa. Ignore him. He doesn't know what he's doing."

His eyes sharpened and he studied me for a minute. "The teachers gave you tons of make-up work today. Shouldn't you be doing it?"

I didn't glare at him like I might have if I was trying to work at being nasty. I was probably going to have to put up with these people for a while. Bland would probably be the best approach to avoid unnecessary murder attempts, from others and from me, except in the case of Hiei. I think the two of us are too far down the warpath to turn back, but I don't really care.

"I did it already."

His face turned skeptical. "But they gave you, like, seven hours worth of stuff."

"Yep."

"Then how are you done?"

"It was easy." I was having issues with this book.

"Have you read this book before?" I held up the textbook to show him.
He nodded. "Ya, that's usually the only homework I ever actually do."

I stared at him, trying to assess how he might take my proposal. I didn't really want to help him, but it would get him off my case and solve my issue with the textbook.

"If I help the two of you with your work will you help me go over the literature chapters without having to read the textbook."

He leaned back like he was thinking about it. "Did you really do all that work already?"
Kurama walked by the door to the kitchen carrying a huge bowl of lettuce. "She did, Yusuke. I saw her."

Kuwabara was still standing over my sofa, but he was starting to drool. I watched him warily as I answered. "See. I told you." Kuwabara started to sidle closer to me again.

"Okay then. You help us with this stuff. I help you with the book. Agreed?"

"Agreed. Just get this giant drool machine away from me."

Kuwabara snapped out of his daze and managed to look offended. "Hey, that wasn't very nice."

"No. It wasn't. Now get away from me."

Kuwabara dragged his feet as he slumped over to the loveseat and dropped onto it, moping.

"Right. So what do you have for work."

Yusuke grinned and picked his bag up, dumping all of the stuff onto the coffee table.

I grimaced.

"Fun, huh?"
"Ya. Let's get started."

I swung off of the couch so that I was leaning against it, sitting on the floor instead, and grabbed one of his books.

It was the calculus one.

Those two really are hopeless. It took me an hour and a half to explain how to do ten problems that had taken me a total of five minutes to do on my own.

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