Alright! Chapter forty! I'm finishing this off with a bang!
By the way, a friend of mine suggested I write an Animetopoeia starring a different character that wasn't Harry. Her suggestion was Lavender Brown in a bunch of Mahou Shojou anime and then, in the end she'll wind up with Harry. I don't know if you've read my other stories, but I've mentioned before that Otaku!Lavender is like, my most favourite interpretation of the character ever.
Another idea I've been toying with is Luna Lovegood in a Harem Animetopoeia. Like, Luna would be traveling across anime worlds building up a harem (all girls or all boys, still haven't decided). But…I worry that such an idea posted on the internet might make the world explode. Should I risk it?
I do not own Harry Potter, Yu Yu Hakushou or Fairy Tail
As they walked into town, Yusuke had somewhere along the lines picked up a long stick in the forest and was now using it as a crutch.
"Yusuke, can't you just admit it would be easier to lean on my shoulder?" Boton asked, not impressed by the display.
Harry hadn't taken his bag with him, all his healing supplies were at Yusuke's house.
"Right, can't you admit that it would be embarrassing?" he shot back at Boton.
Harry let out a sigh of exasperation,
"Then why not let me help you?"
Yusuke's eye twitched,
"Because people still mistake you as a girl, and that would still be embarrassing!"
Harry's eye twitched, he didn't look that much like a girl!
"Might I remind you, Yusuke that I'm the one in charge of healing you." He said with a creepy smile that actually caused both Yusuke and Boton to stop and shiver.
"Uh, you don't look that girly, Harry." Boton said quickly, "Yusuke's just an idiot. Besides, he's probably jealous, I mean, you get hit on by girls and guys so…"
This was not the right thing to say apparently, as Harry only smiled wider, and the strange feeling of being a trapped animal increased inside the two of them.
"Boton, shut up." Yusuke hissed.
"Oh, um…I mean…" Boton stammered.
Suddenly the scary aura dropped and Harry tilted his head off to the side. Yusuke's watch began to beep and spin,
"Kurama." Yusuke realized, "He's nearby…but where?"
The long haired red head came walking through the crowd. He stopped momentarily as he passed the three of them. Harry just looked off to the side, unconcerned, but Yusuke and Boton were on full alert.
"Don't worry. I have no intention of fighting you. Nor do I intend to flee." Kurama spoke and Harry could detect a hint of sorrow in his voice, "In fact, I've come to ask you a favour." He said, then walked by them again.
"Are you crazy?" Yusuke wondered, turning around to watch the boy's retreating form.
"Give me three days. After that I will gladly return to you the forlorn hope." He said walking away.
"Interesting." Harry said, then walked on.
Yusuke and Boton quickly followed after him.
"What's interesting, Harry?" Boton asked, "Did you pick up on something?"
Harry shrugged,
"Kurama has a different agenda from the other two demons. And I'm not sure if you've noticed, but his energy is strange. Like it's half way between yoki and reiki."
"A hanyo?" Boton wondered.
"You mean…a half demon half human?" Yusuke asked thoughtfully, "So this Kurama guy is half human?"
"Seems so." Harry sang, walking off towards Yusuke's apartment, "And in the woods he was having an argument with those demons. He left them for some reason or other."
"But then, what could this 'other agenda' be?" Boton wondered, putting two fingers to her chin as though she were thinking hard on this.
"What does the forlorn hope do?" Harry asked her.
"It grants a person's wish but at the cost of something else. I don't know what that something else is though. Oh, and the mirror only can grant a wish on the night of a full moon."
"Then it's no coincidence that he asked for three more days." Harry said, "Three days is the night of the full moon. My guess is that this Kurama guy didn't want to team up with the demons to begin with, but when he heard of the forlorn hope, well, he needed it for something." He frowned, "It seems that it's something important too. Something he wouldn't mind giving up everything for."
Boton frowned,
"But what could this something be? And what could be worth all that?"
Harry shrugged,
"I doubt it's money. You have to give up something in return for this wish, right? Boton, why don't you ask Koenma what that is tomorrow. We have a couple of days to figure our Kurama's motive and what he's planning. As for you, Yusuke…" Harry looked over the detective, "I guess I'll have to patch you up again."
"What do you mean, 'you guess?'" Yusuke crossed his arms and looked away.
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Harry, as promised, healed Yusuke's wounds back at his apartment, then gathered his things and left for his own apartment.
Three days later, Yusuke tracked Kurama down to a hospital.
"I'm surprised you gave him his three days." Harry said looking at Yusuke curiously.
"I was thinking about what you said." Yusuke admitted, "That and…my gut tells me this Kurama guy isn't bad."
Harry nodded and Yusuke looked at Harry closely,
"You know, you could have tracked Kurama down whenever you wanted, what with your spirit ribbon trick. So why did you wait for my decision?"
Harry thought about this, then shrugged his shoulders,
"You're the spirit detective, I'm just assisting you." He said, "Besides, I figured it would be a good idea to go by your decision this time. I didn't sense anything bad about Kurama either and I've always considered myself rather adept at detecting deceit."
Yusuke raised an eyebrow at the reasoning,
"You know…you're a weird guy, Harry."
Harry snorted,
"So I've been told."
They paused once they'd made it to the hospital doors. Kurama was outside, waiting for them, it seemed.
"You came." He greeted them.
"Hello." Harry said waving a hand lazily.
"You're the one that defeated Hie, right? And you beat Goki." He said looking between Harry and Yusuke.
His eyes settled on Yusuke,
"You didn't seem as strong before, when I first met you. Your reiki is a lot stronger now."
"That's because of Harry." Yusuke said pointed to the boy in question, "He did this weird technique thing on me that made my reiki increase, then he gave me some training."
"Oh?" Kurama asked, "I didn't even realize it before, but your reiki is nearly completely hidden." He said looking over Harry, "You must be strong to defeat Hie too."
Harry shrugged, but didn't say anything further on the matter, instead he opted to change the subject,
"So, what's going on? I'm curious as to what you'd choose to risk your life to save."
"So, you know what the mirror does, then." Kurama said calmly.
"We know." Harry nodded, "But we figure you have your reasons. I was hoping to persuade you not to do…whatever it is you're doing."
Kurama's face took on a look of deep sadness, and Harry knew that was likely not going to happen.
"Come with me and you'll understand." He turned and entered through the hospital doors.
Harry and Yusuke shared a look, then followed in after him.
They took the elevator up to the fifth floor and Kurama led them down the halls. He even said hi to a few nurses and doctors…so that meant he'd been there before.
He opened a door numbered five hundred and one and entered into a clean, private hospital room where a woman lay with her eyes closed, they opened up though as Kurama approached, though only into slits as though the light disturbed her.
"Hey there." She said gently, then sat up, struggling a bit with just that simple motion. But the smile remained on her face, as though she were very happy, "It's been a long time since you brought a friend with you. And two of them." She smiled at both Harry and Yusuke.
"It's alright, mother. You don't have to sit up." Kurama said with concern.
"It's not so bad, I'm feeling well today." She said, though Harry could tell she was lying, and if he could tell, he knew that Kurama would know as well.
"Can I maybe get you something to eat at least?" he offered her.
"Oh no, I'm not hungry Shuichi." She said.
"Have you eaten anything today?" he asked her with concern, "You haven't been eating much lately and I worry for you…"
"I had a later lunch today, but I'll eat later, I promise." She smiled up at him warmly, "Now why don't you introduce me to your friends. I'm sure they didn't come all this way to watch you dote on me."
Harry decided that it would be up to him to take the initiative, as Yusuke was still struggling over the fact that Kurama had just been called 'Shuichi.'
"My name is Harry Potter." Harry introduced, "This guy here is Yusuke. Don't let him scare you. He liked to pretend he's tough but he's really just a big softy." Harry whispered conspiratorially.
"Hey, I heard that!" Yusuke said.
Harry grinned,
"See what I mean?"
Thankfully, he earned a bit of laughter from the sick woman who seemed amused by their antics. Kurama smiled with a bit of relief, though whether it was due to his mother's good mood, or the fact that Harry and Yusuke chose to play along, Harry couldn't say.
"So how did you two meet, anyways?" she asked them curiously.
"We met on a hike through the woods." Harry answered without skipping a beat, "I moved here from England a while back, and I found out that Yusuke was running an errand for a friend in Grey point. I basically tagged along."
Yusuke and Kurama looked at Harry curiously as he told his version of the story.
"Shuichi was out there in the woods, he seemed kind of upset so we approached him. But he ran away for some reason…anyways, we saw him a bit later in town. He recognised us and apologised for his behaviour. Things just sort of took off from there."
"Really?" she asked looking at her son curiously, "Are you alright then? It must have been after…"
"Mother, it's fine now." Kurama said quickly, "Besides, I got two friends out of it, right?"
She nodded, actually looking rather relieved.
"Yes…I was worried." She said, "You always…you always seemed to have trouble making friends…"
"Mother…" Kurama said, trying to sound like any embarrassed teen at having his social life brought up in front of his friends, but his concern betrayed him.
Harry could sense the tension in the room, and smiled slightly, an idea coming to mind. He put a hand behind his back and summoned his wand into his hand. Kurama looked up at Harry abruptly.
"Shuichi, can I maybe show the two of you a magic trick…er, sorry I don't know what to call you Shuichi no okaa-san."
"You can just call me Shiori." The woman said warmly.
"Alright then, Shiori-san, would you like to see a magic trick?"
"Harry…" Kurama said cautiously.
"Don't worry." Harry gave him a wink; he took his wand from behind his back.
"Harry, I don't think…" Yusuke said, only for Harry to wave his wand,
"Wingardium Leviosa." Harry said, causing Yusuke to levitate into the air.
Shiori clapped her hands in amazement,
"That's incredible!"
"Alright, Harry. It's great and all, but would you put me down?" Yusuke glared.
Harry tapped his chin with one of his fingers,
"I don't know Yusuke…"
Kurama actually chuckled a bit. After a bit of arguing, Harry eventually set Yusuke down.
"Let's see…" Harry tapped his chin, then grabbed the empty glass at Shiori's bedside, "May I used this in my next trick? This was you'll know I've nothing up my sleeve."
"Go right ahead." Shiori decided, amused.
Harry then reached into his bag and pulled out a cloth. He put it over top of the empty cup, before first showing that it was a plain and ordinary kerchief. He then placed the cloth over the cup and tapped it with his wand,
"Avifors." He said, then pulled the cloth away, revealing a blue bird. Harry let it fly a circle around the room a few times while Shiori let out a giggle of surprise. The bird landed on his hand and he held it out to her,
"Don't tell the doctors." Harry said shifting his eyes around as though a doctor might walk in at any moment, "They're all out to get me."
Shiori laughed outright at this.
"Here, you can hold her if you'd like."
"Really?" she asked.
Harry passed her the small blue bird and she stroked the creature's feathers gently. After a while she handed him back, only for the bird to settle down on the table next to her. Harry waved his wand and right before their very eyes, the bird turned back into an empty glass.
Shiori clapped her hands,
"That was amazing!"
Harry gave a small bow,
"Why thank you very much, Shiori-san. Now why don't you get some rest? You look tired. Yusuke and I can come back tomorrow though if you'd like. I have a hole bag of tricks I can show." Harry said, patting his bag which was still slung over his shoulder carelessly.
"Please do, that would be wonderful." She said, letting out a small yawn.
"I'll drag Yusuke along too. Eh, he doesn't do anything special, but he'll be there."
"Hey, what do you mean by that?" Yusuke demanded.
Harry just laughed,
"It was very nice meeting you, Shiori-san. Hey, Shuichi, why don't you show us to the roof?"
"Oh, sure." Kurama said, looking between them and his mother, "I'll see you later, mother."
"I'll see you soon, Shuichi. You have some really interesting friends." She commented.
As soon as the door to his mother's room was closed, he turned to look at Harry,
"What sort of ability was that?" He asked curiously, "I've never seen anything like that before."
"Magic." Harry answered, a smile on his face.
Kurama raised an eyebrow, disbelieving, while Yusuke flat out said,
"Like hell it's magic."
Harry tilted his head to the side,
"So ghosts, demons, gods and Shinigami exist but not magic?"
"I do believe magic to be real." Kurama said cautiously, "The forlorn hope is magic. But to actually be harnessed by humans…"
Harry nodded,
"Yeah…That's a bit of a long story." He admitted, "But we aren't here for my story. We're here for yours. So, the roof then?"
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Up on the rooftop, the sun was setting. Kurama's eyes reflected the light, making his melancholy ever more apparent. He turned away from them, in deep thought. Neither Harry nor Yusuke wanted to interrupt the silence though. They waited.
"Shuichi is the name I've taken in my human form." Kurama said at last, "That woman is my mother…sort of. My father passed away years ago. For fifteen years she has brought me up…while I have deceived her." He looked down, and Harry wondered what could have happened to make him so sad.
"Sorry, I'm not following." Yusuke admitted.
"I was a Yoko, a fox demon…and I suppose, in a way I still am. I was a spirit fox that gained the powers of a demon over the hundreds of years that I've lived. Over time I became board, and started to learn the art of breaking codes and seals. Ancient treasures were my favourite sport." Kurama sounded a bit ashamed, yet wistful at the same time, "But fifteen years ago I made a careless mistake and was badly injured by a strong pursuer. With the last bit of energy, I had, I escaped to the living world and became the child of a proud, human family. I knew that if I could withstand humanity for ten years, my yoki would have time to safely recover. Then, I would escape without a trace."
"I take it something went wrong." Yusuke deduced.
"My mother fell ill…I know it might sound foolish, but I couldn't leave her." Kurama said, turning his head so that Harry could get just a glimpse of his bright green eyes.
"I don't think it's foolish." Harry said, looking up at the sunset, "Someone once told me, there is survival, and then there is living. Love, friendship, adventure, the things we experience and embrace in life, that's what it means to live. Well, it's tough to explain, really." Harry sighed, looking a bit sheepish, "But it's not something you should dismiss as foolish."
Kurama turned to Harry, blinking a few times, as though only just having seen him.
"Yes…I suppose so." He looked back out into the distance, "Hie was the one who tracked me down. I don't know how, but they needed my expertise. That's when I remembered the powers of the forlorn hope." He knelt down to the ground and removed a brick from the wall, then pulled out the mirror in question. He gazed into the glass longingly.
"Did you know? In some species a child eats its mother." He said softly, "I beg you, let me use the forlorn hope to save her."
"But…why would a monster want to save a human?" Yusuke asked confused.
"Yusuke," Harry said, "Things are rarely black and white like that…I mean…" Harry trailed off, thinking of Rukia and her execution. There had been some who had fought to have her executed, but in the end they had believed, truly that they had been upholding justice.
"So you don't think I'm a monster then, Harry?" Kurama asked curiously, "I did possess the dead body of my mother's unborn child…"
Harry just looked at him oddly,
"I don't know what Shiori-san would think of you, Kurama-san. I never had parents, nor even a parental figure who I might be able to compare her feelings to." Harry admitted, "But I've met a monster before, and you are not a monster." And image of Voldemort flashed in his head.
Kurama stared at Harry a long while,
"I've caused her great pains…it's hard raising a child who thinks you're inferior." And Harry could hear his voice break for just a moment.
"That…I can understand." Harry said softly, "I grew up in a society that believed other humans to be inferior." Harry admitted, "We're an isolated society…and we age slower than others. One of the oldest of my kind, that I know of is six hundred years old."
"Whoa, six hundred!?" Yusuke exclaimed.
Harry nodded,
"Sometimes…we end up being born to mundanes though. My mother was one of these people. When my parents died, I grew up with my aunt who knew what I was and hated me for it."
Kurama looked Harry over to see if he was lying,
"I see…maybe you can relate then."
"Not quite." Harry sighed, "I never believed myself to be superior or anything…But I know others did. Sometimes…I could see it in some of the people I hung out with. At one point I nearly got dragged into it…I hated my relatives, but that didn't mean that all mundanes were that bad. I only bring it up because…I've seen it. I can't quite relate, but I can understand."
Kurama nodded,
"So how old are you then…really?"
Harry smiled,
"That's a secret."
"Oh man," Yusuke groaned, "All this time I knew you seemed to know way too much for a fourteen-year-old. At least now I don't have to feel so bad."
Harry chuckled,
"No, I guess not. I'm sorry, Kurama. That was rude of me to interrupt. Please continue." He sobered.
"Well…to be honest I feel like maybe I broke her spirit…that maybe I am one of those mother devouring creatures. That maybe…I caused her disease." Kurama admitted.
Harry shook his head,
"I don't think so." He said, "I may not know a whole lot about your mother. I think…I think it would hurt a parent to know that their child didn't love them. I know it would hurt a child if their parents told them they were hated…but, that's why I don't think you should blame yourself for this. Because you are willing to give up your life for hers. And if Shiori-san is really the caring mother you believe her to be, then she would give up her life for yours as well. That's what it means to love someone." Harry said, "And I think, that if she can love you, and knows from the bottom of her heart that you love her too, then it would all be worth it. That's why I don't think you can blame yourself for this. Humans can be very fragile creatures." Harry said with a bitter smile, "They get sick…"
Kurama looked down,
"I…I still…"
"Can't stop blaming yourself." Harry finished for him, "I know…and that's a part of what it means to live too, Kurama-san."
"What about his mother, though?" Yusuke asked with a raised eyebrow, "Can you cure her? You're really good with healing and stuff."
Harry looked thoughtful,
"I might be able to keep her alive, prolong her life a while longer. But I'd have to do some research on her disease and that could take anywhere from a week to a year. I'd need access to her chart as well." His jaw moved into a firm line, "If I can help though, I'll do it."
Kurama looked at Harry wide eyed,
"You'd help me? Just like that?"
Harry nodded, smiling softly,
"If someone needs help and you can do something about it…then why wouldn't you help them?"
Kurama blinked a few times, then shook his head and returned the smile,
"You know, you're a very strange human, Harry…I mean, if you are human."
"I'm human." Harry confirmed, "I just happen to be…"
The door opened on the roof and a nurse appeared, looking panicked, then her eyes landed on Kurama,
"Shuichi, it's your mother."
Kurama's eyes widened and he ran after her. Yusuke was about to follow, when Harry stopped him.
"Don't." Harry said, "Just…just wait. They don't allow anyone other than family to talk about the patient's case anyways."
Yusuke took a step back, but he looked like he was itching to do something.
They waited up there a while. The moon was full and out, and the sun had set, revealing more stars in the sky than Harry had seen back in Karakura.
The door to the roof opened once again, and Kurama walked to the middle of the roof, hands clutching the mirror.
"Forlorn hope, I beg you to hear my desire so that you can make it true…" he murmured.
"No, Kurama!" Harry shouted.
But the mirror had activated, black tendrils swirled around the glass's surface. Harry and Yusuke back away from the energy, shielding their eyes with raised arms.
"The happiness of this woman. Is that what you desire?" A deep voice came from the mirror.
"It is." Kurama said.
"Hey!" Yusuke shouted, "Can't you hold on a second so we can work things out!? I mean there's gotta be some other way to do this!"
"No…" Kurama said resignedly, "There is not."
"To grant this wish, you must give your life. Is that what you desire?" the mirror asked once more.
"If that will save my mother's life, then yes, I do." Kurama said with such conviction that Harry knew there was no way to persuade him otherwise.
But still, he had to try.
"Then your desire shall be fulfilled." The glass of the mirror turned black, like it was now reflecting a void. The promise of oblivion in the afterlife ahead.
Electricity now encompassed him, crackling against the red head boy's skin, and Harry knew that he was too late.
But still, he had to try…didn't he always.
"No!" Both Harry and Yusuke said at the same time. Both of them reached out their hands and rushed towards the mirror.
Yusuke got there first.
"Hey mirror guy, can you hear me? I want you to take my life instead!" he shouted, "That way Kurama can live and he can still get his wish, isn't that right?"
"This doesn't make sense, it's my wish!" Kurama shouted back at him.
"Yeah well, it doesn't make sense rescuing your mom only so she can spend the rest of her life mourning the death of her son!" He turned to Kurama, "I've seen that before and I don't want to see it again."
Harry put his own hand against the mirror,
"Please spare them." Harry said quietly, "Take my life instead…Because both of them have a mother to mourn them…I have no one…no one…" Then an image flashed through Harry's eyes of a man with long, tangled hair, a bit skinny with a handsome face but sunken slightly from pour health, "Sirius…"
"Your desire shall be fulfilled!" The mirror announced and Harry closed his eyes as light erupted from the glass.
Harry was pretty sure he fell unconscious for a while, though he fully expected to open his eyes to a black abyss. Only, he was on the roof of the hospital.
Kurama wasn't there, but Yusuke was, and he was standing over him,
"Wanna tell me what that crap was?"
He grabbed Harry by the collar and pulled him to his feet. Harry glared at him angrily,
"You tried to sacrifice yourself too, you idiot. And you have a mother who would mourn you. And right after you came back from death!"
Yusuke returned the glare,
"You have people too!" he shouted, "Everyone has someone. Before I died the first time I thought I had no one too. But there are people who would mourn you. So, don't start spouting crap like that!"
Harry looked away, something in his words had hit him hard.
"I…Yusuke, my parents died when I was one. I grew up with people who constantly reminded me that everyone would have been better off if I had died with them. I made friends at school, but then found out that their friendship was conditional. One of them even told me I could just go die once!" and image of an angry red head flashed through his mind.
Yusuke listened to the rant patiently,
"I don't want you to die."
Harry's head jolted as he looked up at the self-proclaimed punk. Yusuke scratched the back of his head,
"Dammit, I'm not good at this stuff!" he exclaimed, "But…you didn't deserve that shit. Actually, after that rant, I'm kind of amazed you managed to stay together as well as you did. I sure as hell didn't and despite my mother not being the best role model, she does love me." He sighed, "You are probably one of the nicest guys I know. You've made mistakes, but I know you've always had the best interests of everyone around you at heart. So, I'll say it again. You didn't deserve that shit. You never deserved that shit. And you don't deserve it now."
Harry shook slightly and looked away, but Yusuke continued,
"You've got a big heart, Harry. You're far more forgiving than some people deserve. I would miss you. And I know that, with such a big heart, and with all the things you've probably done for others, like Kurama, I bet there are a ton of people out there who would genuinely miss you too."
Harry's eyes widened, and several things went through his mind all at once. Natsu, Happy, Lucy, Erza, Grey, all the people at Fairy Tail. Then Ichigo, Uryu, Orihime, Chad, Rukia, Hitsugaya, and Rangiku…The Baron, Haru, Muta, Toto…but out of all those people, his mind, surprisingly settled on one person.
"Sirius…" Harry whispered involuntarily.
"Serious?" Yusuke frowned.
"No, Sirius Black…he's my godfather…I…you're right." Harry said, "Maybe I do have people…"
And he smiled slightly, feeling tears tumble down his face. He wasn't just surviving anymore. Somewhere along the way…he had started to live. And even though he was smiling, tears fell down his face as emotions filled his chest in a way they never had before.
Yusuke scratched the back of his head,
"And if you ever make me say something like that again…" he warned, but couldn't finish, he turned away awkwardly and Harry laughed through his tears.
He could keep living his life. Not surviving anymore. Because no matter what, he would live.