LAST
"Sorry Kennedy-chin. It is just…
the image of Kurama-sama…dressed
as a female…apparently…stripping?"
Kennedy shrieked. "Don't give him ideas!"

LAST
FIFTY-FOUR

"The phone, the phone, the phone!"

Michael chanted the happy words as he raced to pick up the ringing cell phone that belonged to Kari. The demon was not far behind the hyped up younger boy, chasing him down in hopes of reaching the phone before he did. There was not a lot of hope for Kari as he dived over the couch rather than running around the obstacle.

"Michael-kun! Hand the phone over!"

Kari reached over the couch, swiping for the phone and grunted as the air went out of her and Michael ducked away. Slid down the couch cushions, Michael flipped open the cell phone with an ecstatic greeting.

"Kennedy! You haven't called for a whole three weeks! What the hell were you up to? I got to turn 17 and you missed the thing! Carly offered me a piece of her candy, but then claimed I did something stupid and threw it at my face! I really did not do anything stupid. Besides, she needs more respect for her elders, but Lynne says I can't teach her a lesson! How stupid is that? Oh! And speaking of Lynne, she made the most awesome sendoff of fireworks ever! Out with a bang, because she set the whole thing off with a fiery explosion! Like your thing with water, except way cooler due to the fireworks spewing off! Carly and I got something going on, but we—UMPH! HEY!"

Michael came up from ducking over the cell phone to have a bony rear sit farther on top his head, long fingers pulling the phone from him. R.J. Stover's face looked at him, upside down.

"Kari told you to hand the cell phone over short man. You know you are not to answer first in case Ken and Shuichi got discovered. All of that talk of yours just listed off all your sisters."

The younger glared at him and punched at the long legs in front of him, trying to edge around the taller boy for the phone again. "It's Kennedy. I don't have to hear her voice to know that's my sister. I've had a feeling since I woke up that today would be the day she'd call. Instinct of one of the hidden people, so ha!"

R.J. stared down at Michael. "You are stinking full of it. This is Kari's phone. She answers it. Then she can hand it to you. Here," he called upwards as he tossed the cell phone back to Kari.

"Thank you R.J." She paused to listen to the other end of the phone. "Michael-kun is saved. It is Kennedy-chin. Sorry about that. Did you find anything helpful to prove to Koenma-sama that you are not some horrible thing? We have all been missing and hoping for the best so you can come back."

"Yeah," Michael grunted out. "Now get your bony ass off me."

Kari shot the younger boy a look, but R.J. got off, unconcerned about what was said. She huffed.

"I hope he's not being too difficult for you. Do you want me to talk to him Kari?"

"No, no. He's fine," Kari insisted. She rolled her eyes at Michael who was looking hopefully at the cell phone. The girl left the living room of the new house the three younger Malone siblings were hiding in while Shuichi and Kennedy were gone. "What have you and Kurama-sama found out? Good news relating to Koenma-sama and returning?"

"Pretty excellent news actually," Kennedy replied. Kari's face perked up and she listened closely.

"There were these circular bricks around this…fire. The prophecy written on these bricks how long ago was completely different, referring to a prophecy to the first of the hidden people. Some of these bricks have rotated, reveling that there is another prophecy underneath. We talked to Wai and Yato, the head and assistant historians for Hep. They're the most studied in the old writing style and have been translating it to today's terms and the possible meanings behind it. The two, the old prophecy and new one being revealed, are…fairly similar…"

Kari gripped the cell phone tightly. "I've heard hints of those stories Kennedy-chin, in my search of why my own condition of no energy is so feared. Those were from the first of the hidden people and what happened wasn't excellent."

"Oh, no! Don't fret about it, it is excellent news! There are just some word changes, but it is the one thing Wai and Yato were firm on the translation and meaning of from the newer prophecy. The new prophecy states that yes, the hidden people will change the worlds, but it will be a change of great mindset and proof of old concerns as unnecessary. Rather than change the worlds due to destruction."

"Changing mindsets and old concerns," Kari repeated as these words reached understanding to her brain. "That's great! It will even prove to be good for me as well! Koenma-sama will have nothing to fear with this news! And you can return home!"

Michael shot his head around the corner, gleeful. "Kennedy is coming back? Yes! No more shit from Lynne and Carly!"

With that exciting remark, Michael disappeared again. Kari shook her head with a smile. "So you and Kurama-sama are going to talk with Koenma-sama then?"

"Yes. We are talking the long way back, but still taking care with how we look since Spirit World doesn't know yet and just to be careful. Shuichi is enjoying it a bit too much…now that we are returning with good news. No," Kennedy screamed suddenly, away from the mouthpiece.

"Just because I brought it up doesn't mean you should do that again! I'm not looking you impure idiot! Do you want me to freeze a real weight on your chest!"

Kari pursed her lips, face turning red as laughter threatened its way out of her mouth. She really shouldn't be laughing, but Kennedy and Shuichi were just too fitting with each other sometimes.

"Would you forget what I said about ogling it," Kennedy's voice sounded from a distance away from the phone. Kari could hear distinct 'whaps' as Shuichi was most likely being hit for something he did, but she could hear Shuichi laughing.

One never would have thought Shuichi would have previously acted like he did around Kennedy… The same went for Kennedy. While Kari knew anger could flash across Shuichi's normally impassive face, the younger Malone siblings knew how blasé Kennedy was and forgiving easily. However, when together… They brought out the unexpected of the other.

"Kari? You still there," Kennedy's voice asked in her return to the phone conversation.

She nodded. "Yes. Um… What exactly was Kurama-sama doing again?"

Kennedy snorted. "Trying to be sexy with his girly shirt. Idiot. But, yes, we're walking back to the way we got into Demon World to return to the Human World so we can get a hold of Kuwabara's phone to call Koenma. Kari?"

Pursing her lips on Kennedy's response to her curious question finally no longer worked, Kari bursting out into laughter at what Shuichi had been doing.

Gasping for air, Kari got her laughter under control.

"Are we quite done over there," Kennedy asked dryly.

"Sorry Kennedy-chin. It is just…the image of Kurama-sama…dressed as a female…apparently…stripping?"

Kennedy shrieked. "Don't give him ideas!"

"Showing off skin then? It still seems very hilarious and not very like Kurama-sama Kennedy-chin. Forgive me for laughing."

"You're fine Kari, you're fine. He's not."

"Good to hear you're doing well after all this time. As it is, Michael brought it up, but… It seems Lynne has been creating some sparks of fire. She's not very pleased by being weird as she puts it."

"I guess I figured that after he was so excited by Lynne lighting up his birthday fireworks," Kennedy said and sighed. "Maybe there is no event that makes a personal power start. Maybe it is just age, right after one stops growing. You would have said if some horrible event has happened."

Large violet eyes blinked. "I don't think it was an event, but Lynne-chan seems to be trying to pick up the slack and watching out for Michael-kun and Carly-chan more. She does respect you, you know Kennedy-chin. I think in trying to replace you in watching out for Michael-kun and Carly-chan, the fire just came out of that."

"Interesting," murmured Kennedy.

"Oh," started Kari in sudden recall. "Is there something wrong with the prophecy? You sounded worried when you talked about the similarities between the old and new, but they don't sound the same to me since this one is so good."

A silence came over the other line of the phone.

"It's nothing for you to worry over Kari."

The girl scowled at those words. "For me to worry over? It means you're left worrying about it all alone Kennedy-chin. It's something for you to worry about, isn't it?"

"Well… It is just the prophecy leading up to the last part is very close in wording to the first… Hey!"

A different voice entered the phone's conversation. "I'll talk to her about it," Shuichi spoke. "It's not anything to worry about truly Kari. We were just shown the possibility that part of the prophecy had on the first of the hidden people. Kennedy is just over worried for no reason."

"So the similarity between them and us doesn't strike you as way too alike? Two sets of protectors falling in love with what they protect! Then what happened to them, burning—!"

"We aren't them!"

"Um…" Kari seemed uncertain at the conversation taking up the other line of the phone. "Kurama-sama, what is Kennedy-chin talking about?"

Shuichi sighed loudly on the other line. "The first of the hidden people," he grudged out unwillingly. "Her protector fell in love with her and she with him. Instead of him protecting her, she wound up protecting him, which in some way killed him, and she sent the worlds on fire. It's why the hidden people started being feared so much. We… There's a fire in Hep that if when you stand next to it, it will reach out and cover you, without burning you. Depending on how much it covers, shows how much you get to know what the historians here know. Proving you are worth having the knowledge."

There was a hesitation.

"Yes? So it covered you and Kennedy-chin so you two could find out more of the hidden people." Kari bit her lip in worry. "Right?"

"Yes… The fire did not just cover us. We found out exactly why that fire has burned so long. The…the first of the hidden people, her soul is trapped inside that fire. Her protector's soul is trapped in the fire as well. They…showed us their deaths. And made sure we remembered it all too well."

Kari's wide violet eyes were large and watery in fear.

Shuichi continued slowly and steadily on. "For part of showing their deaths to us, we saw them, but sometimes it wasn't just them. Sometimes they showed us ourselves playing out their deaths."

A mouth went wide at this and Kari sucked in her breath.

"But this one is different than the first," she protested loudly. "And and…it may not even refer to the two of you!"

He laughed a bit humorously at this. "I think it refers to us Kari. Kennedy is simply over worried at the similarities. After all, the newer one has a much better outcome. We aren't them."

"No you are not," Kari said strongly. "You make sure Kennedy-chin understands that Kurama-sama. I don't like seeing her worried."

He laughed a bit lighter at this. "No. No I don't like seeing her worried either. I have my ways to get her worries off her mind."

Kari heard a 'whap' and then Kennedy screaming out her favorite insult, the line disconnected with Shuichi laughing at his girlfriend. She suddenly understood why Shuichi would be acting like a stripper earlier to annoy Kennedy. Certainly was one way to distract a mind from worry. Kari snorted and laughed, then shook her head.

"Only Kurama-sama and Kennedy-chin…"

She dialed up the other number on the cell phone.

"Hey," shouted out from the earpiece. "They finally got back? Sweet!"

"Hello Yusuke-sama." Any grumblings from the boy in question were ignored by the demon. "Yes. Kennedy-chin and Kurama-sama just called. The prophecy Koenma-sama is worried about is the old one and it seems they are part of the new one, which is good all around."

"Excellent! I'm all for shoving that up baby breath and Kuwabara's asses," Yusuke crowed out.

Kari chuckled a bit at his enthusiasm. "They are returning to the Human World to share the news to Koenma-sama."

"No more phone of doom for Kurama," said Yusuke happily. "No more phone central for you either, eh, Kari? How the younger ones doing?"

"They are still fine. No one has been looking for them in any case and Michael-kun is sharing the exciting news of Kennedy-chin returning home. I will be most happy when they return as well. Both of them deserve to be happy after all this time."

"Too damn right. Especially with Kurama. Never did know how to relax and have a good time, but hell, he gets the good ass swats," he complained. The boy whined. "No way in hell would Keiko ever be nice to the cheeks I want her to be nice too."

The other burst into a smile. That could be part of the reason of why Shuichi enjoyed humor like that. Perhaps Yusuke as a friend had a larger impact on Shuichi than he realized when complaints of Shuichi being no fun at times came from his mouth.

"Do not let Kurama-sama hear that from you Yusuke-sama."

She could practically hear the wince. "A fun Kurama has too much fun. I'll leave him alone next time with Kennedy. She can at least manage a fun Kurama so he does not go after me but goes after her instead. Damn pair can have a real good time together without me. As long as she makes him happy, fox deserves it. I gotta get back to work before Keiko decides my running outside to take the call has taken too long. Bye!"

Kari smiled. She rather liked Yusuke. The boy was a good friend to Shuichi and cared a good deal about his friend. Such as his dislike for the so called 'phone of doom' in dealing with Shuichi right now. Kari had to agree with Yusuke on that. It was a very good thing the phone had never been used as a messenger of doom in all this time of Kennedy and Shuichi traveling Demon World in disguise.

For the younger Malone siblings, R.J., and herself; it was days of celebrations and enjoyment of knowing the eldest was returning.

And then, well…

Yusuke's name of Shuichi's phone suddenly became very much founded.

"He—"

"Kari," he interrupted the greeting. "The younger ones are still safe, right?"

"Yes," she replied slowly in confusion. "Is something wrong Yusuke-sama?"

The other swore colorfully on the other line. "Me and Hiei are heading to Demon World, Kuwabara once he found out too. Some fucking idiots attacked Kurama and kidnapped Kennedy. I've got to get going!"

She froze. "…What?"

"I'm coming, I'm coming! Damn it Hiei, I'm coming!"

"Yusuke-sama!"

"What?"

Kari gripped the phone tightly, knuckles white and made a demand to the other. "You call me the minute you get Kennedy-chin back safely!"

"Yeah. Fine. I've got to get going now!"

The cell phone went dead on the other line.

To be continued…