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Mairelle: Thanks so much! It's great to hear that you like the pacing. I have a very long term plan for the story but have been taking my time getting there in part because it's a lot of fun to throw them into different situations and see what happens.
Noxingale: Don't worry, I'm still writing! Thanks for reading :)
ChuyaDud: Definitely! I think he needs Yusuke around for his sanity and to balance out his tendency to overthink, but in reasonable doses. Ahh that sounds like such a horrible experience! I'm sorry the doctor was such an asshole! I hate when medical professionals get all impatient, their purpose is to help us, not half-ass everything to get out to the golf course.
Have: Necrophilia is still illegal! I've seen all the anime but I've only read the series up through the Dark Tournament, and then the very last volume. For some reason they stopped publishing new books in English for a while and I just gave up and watched it all. You'll have to let me know if they're different enough to be worth tracking down the manga.
Guest: Thanks! Also not a stupid question at all! She's calling him that to tease him about his human persona. It's an English translation of a term which is used to refer to young Japanese men who aren't traditionally macho but instead are considered to have feminine interests and tend to be single and live with their parents.
They wait for Keiko at the train station on Friday, joking around and talking about old times. Yusuke keeps threatening to toss Kuwabara on the tracks and Kuwabara keeps daring him to try it. The commuters around them give them all a wide berth. It's always a little embarrassing to be out in public with Yusuke and Kuwabara when they're being like this but Kurama has to admit he's missed it. So he stands back and lets them bicker and tries not to laugh too obviously as they horse around.
Kurama's phone rings and he's surprised to find Chouko calling him, but hopeful.
"Hello Chouko."
"Hi," she says quietly. "I'm sorry, something's come up and I don't think I'll be able to come to dinner tomorrow."
"What's wrong?" he asks. "Do you need help?" He'd suspect she was just backing out on him except for her tone of voice. He can't pinpoint what's wrong with it but it sets his nerves on edge. He feels like he needs to get to her, to make sure she's all right.
"No, no, no, it's just—old business that's come back around. I thought it was over." She sighs into the phone. "I can handle it but it's going to take a few days to clear up."
"If you're sure…"
"I am. I'll tell you more when it's done and I can laugh it off."
"Chouko, please let me know if you do need anything."
"I will!" She tries to regain her normally bright tone but the strain comes through. "I'll talk to you later."
Kurama tells Kuwabara and Yusuke Chouko can't join them the next day because she has some mysterious personal business.
"Is she pregnant?" Yusuke demands.
"What?"
"Did you knock her up?"
"Urameshi," Kuwabara cuts in. "Don't talk about Chouko-san like that!"
"'Taking care of some personal business.' Sounds like she's pregnant to me."
"Thanks for your medical opinion, Yusuke," Kurama manages.
"She just didn't want to have to meet you, Urameshi," Kuwabara interjects.
Kurama flinches and that catches their attention.
"Wait, did she really not want to meet me?" Yusuke asks and he almost sounds hurt.
"She's nervous," Kurama says. "More powerful demons make her nervous."
"Is this the same girl you scared the crap out of when you first moved here?" When Kurama doesn't respond Yusuke's eye's narrow. "What, did you just harass her until she agreed to date you?"
Kurama blanches and Yusuke can't help laughing. It's not entirely accurate but Yusuke's not wrong either.
"You did!"
"Chouko-san takes some convincing that new people don't mean her harm."
"God, Kurama, so you did stalk her, you've just moved on to actually dating her. You better watch out, she might be making a break for it now that you're busy. You'll get a postcard from Europe saying 'I'm out of town. P.S. Don't call me. P.P.S. I won't be back.'"
"I did not stalk her!" Kurama exclaims and Yusuke almost looks repentant for a second, almost, but he's too excited about having something to nettle Kurama with to stop.
"So if she doesn't run away how do you plan to introduce her to your mom? 'Hi Mom, here's an ancient demon I'm dating, also I'm a demon and our children will be terrifying, inhuman monsters. Try the sushi here it's great.'"
Kurama sighs and rubs his temples. "My mother and step-father are planning to visit later this month and this is actually something that concerns me, Yusuke."
"Just be honest, 'Mom, this is my demon girlfriend and for fun she beats humans up on live TV.' Is she an animal spirit? That'll help. Maybe she's a cat demon. Your mom likes cats; they'll get along great!"
"Mom, this is my demon girlfriend," Kuwabara chimes in. "Don't worry, I'm pretty sure she doesn't eat kids."
"Remind me never to help throw parties for either of you again."
"Hey Mom," Yusuke says. "Good news and bad news. Good news, I'm dating someone. Bad news, she's older than everyone you know put together."
To distract them Kurama brings up his disaster plan for Tokyo and asks for Yusuke's opinion. That at least turns the conversation in a less stressful, if not more practical or pleasant direction. Yusuke doesn't like any of their ideas, but doesn't have any of his own except 'get there faster.'
Keiko arrives at last, wearing a summer dress and a breezy smile.
"I hope you all have been behaving yourselves," she says as she tucks her purse under her arm and looks them over.
"You know it," Yusuke says with a sly smile.
Keiko just rolls her eyes at him.
"At least I can trust Kurama-kun to keep you two out of trouble."
"Out of trouble! He's always getting us into trouble!"
Kurama rolls his eyes and takes Keiko's suitcase. It's going to be a long few days. Not that he didn't ask for this. They head down into the metro to go back to Kurama's apartment. The other three trail after him as he navigates the web of train lines and crowds of people. They just manage to hop onto a car before the doors close and Keiko lets out a huge sigh of relief. The car is half-full and there aren't any seats left, but Yusuke's glare quickly clears a space for Keiko to sit down and the three of them stand around her.
Kurama can't help scanning the bar. When Yusuke and Keiko aren't together bad things tend to happen and he can't help feeling suspicious that she made it all the way to Tokyo on her own safely. Everyone else is quietly minding their own business. A few teenagers at the other end have pastel colored hair but that's the most unusual thing around. He and Yusuke are the only demons nearby.
"I can't wait to see your apartment!" Keiko says when he looks back at his friends. "It must be so exciting living in Tokyo!"
"I'm happy to have you visit, Keiko-chan," Kurama says.
"Don't get any idea," Yusuke cuts in. "He lives in a shoebox. I mean," he says quickly, "it's a nice place, but our apartment is almost three times the size!"
"Yeah," Kuwabara says. "Mine isn't much bigger and Yukina works all the time to cover our rent."
"Oh, when do I get to see Yukina?" Keiko asks. Kurama can't help feeling relieved that Yusuke isn't impressed by his apartment. He can't begin to imagine the headaches involved if the former king decided he wanted to move to Tokyo.
"She's gonna join us for dinner once she finishes up with her last client this afternoon."
"Great! I'm so sad I haven't been able to come visit sooner. My classes have just been so intense."
"Hey, I feel the same," Kuwabara says, "and I'm not in pre-med."
Kurama's phone buzzes when they get off the subway and he checks the message.
You'd better watch out, fox boy. Big trouble is in town. It's a text from the Shinjuku tanuki, though as they share a phone Kurama doesn't know which one sent it.
What sort of trouble? he texts back but he gets only a grinning emoji in response.
Kurama thinks about asking Jiro for clarification, but that idea dies an instant later. He couldn't bring himself to ask the tengu for anything, especially not something he could find out on his own if he tried.
"What's up?" Yusuke asks as they stroll toward Kurama's apartment.
Kurama hands him the phone and the former king squints at it.
"What the hell does that mean?"
"I have no idea."
"Well keep your guard up!"
"Somehow I think it's not as simple as that," Kurama says as he takes his phone back. He makes a mental note to contact some of his runners that evening and tell them to keep an ear out.
"Oh," Keiko says when Kurama opens the apartment door then steps back to let her through first. "I see what you meant."
"Yeah, tiny!" Yusuke exclaims.
"But great for one person," Keiko says quickly. "And you've decorated really nicely."
"Thank you. And you don't have mince words, I know it's small," Kurama says with a smile. "But that's Tokyo for you."
That night they go out in Shibuya proper, which Kurama has been avoiding like the plague. Yukina is even wearing a dress instead of her normal kimono in honor of the occasion. After a dinner composed primarily of fried food Kuwabara drags them down Nonbei Yokocho, a narrow alley not far from the main station and the madness of Shibuya's famous crossing. Rows of lanterns hang above them, interspersed with neon signs and it feels like a bit of old Tokyo peaking out from behind the sleek modern façade that surrounds the train station. Kuwabara finds the smallest bar on a street of small bars and lets out a triumphant shout.
"I've been hearing about this place from the guys at school," he says as he ushers everyone in ahead of him.
Inside there's a bar and a line of five stools, three of which are full already. People shift down as the five of them pack in and once Kuwabara squeezes through the door there isn't room for another person in the place. Yukina and Keiko take the two empty seats, the only women besides the elderly bartender, and start ordering drinks for the group.
The others drink heavily and happily so Kurama holds back. He knows the other Tokyo ward leaders aren't happy about Yusuke's visit. His runners told him half of them left town for sudden 'vacations.' And the other half have been grumbling. Setagaya even sent him a note the previous day primly requesting he keep his friends and his problems out of her ward. He's never been to Setagaya and has no reason to go, but the note made him want to take a leisurely stroll past the ward leader's apartment around dinnertime. He has to keep reminding himself that sort of behavior does not work the same way here and will cause trouble not put people in their place. Kurama doesn't expect direct trouble, be he has to be prepared for it, especially as Yusuke gets blitzed.
"Now dancing!" Keiko proclaims around 11:30.
Kuwabara raises his glass, pounds a fist on the table and calls "Ganbei!"
They all down their drinks and hop to their feet, or in Keiko's case, stumble.
They all tumble through the doors into the sticky heat of the city. It's almost midnight but the warmth of the summer day lingers. The streets are packed with people. Up ahead a raucous group of college students sings loudly, their words slurring together. Yusuke and Kuwabara join in as they pass, arms around each other's shoulders, and keep it going as they reach the main street and turn towards the clubs. Yukina catches Kurama's arm and smiles up at him.
"It's quite a fun night."
He agrees but he isn't excited about going dancing. Or more like watching the other four dance while sipping his drink and fending off the amorous attentions of intoxicated humans.
"It's too bad Chouko-san couldn't join us."
Kurama wonders just what Yukina's getting at. Now that he knows she and Chouko go out for tea he can't help feeling suspicious.
"Yukina, do you know why Chouko isn't coming to dinner tomorrow?"
Yukina shakes her head quickly and looks up the street to where Yusuke and Kuwabara are veering from side to side while Keiko tries to steer them in the right direction.
"She told me not to worry, which worried me. I had hoped that you would know."
"She told me that she would tell me more once she'd sorted it out," he says.
"Come on you two!" Yusuke shouts back at them. "Hurry it up!"
"Kurama," Yukina says. Kurama can tell she's at least tipsy from the careful way she says it. "Would you tell me if something happened to Chouko-san?"
"Yukina, I—" It sounds like Kuwabara has told her his version of the Dark Tournament. Bright red eyes bore into him, almost accusingly, and Kurama drops his head and sighs. "Eventually. I would eventually."
Yukina seems to accept this and they hurry to catch up with the others.