Chapter 15: "Mystery Machine Mix-Up"
"Yusuke. Yusuke. YUSUKE, I know you can hear—"
"Yeah, yeah, pipe down," Yusuke grumbled as he flicked open his Communication Mirror. "What do you want?"
Koenma's pudgy features, arranged around the shiny nub end of a spherical pacifier, telegraphed supreme annoyance. "I want to tell my Detective more information about his case," he said, sarcasm dripping from every word. "But if that's inconvenient for you—"
Yusuke dug a finger in his ear. "Anyone ever tell you you're really dramatic for a toddler?"
A very adult vein pulsed in Koenma's young temple. "SHUT UP."
"I mean, I didn't think you could take a theater class until at least middle school…"
"BE QUIET, I MEAN IT."
Yusuke snickered. Meanwhile, Kuwabara stepped in front of Scooby-Doo, who looked alarmed as he peered at Yusuke around Kuwabara's legs. Kurama (who suddenly wore quite a fierce and protective expression on his face) gestured for Scooby to get low, and then he gestured for Yusuke to angle the mirror so it wouldn't show any members of Mystery Inc., all of whom were still standing around like zombies under the influence of Scooby's well-intentioned brainwashing.
"Now, if you're done mocking me, I have information for you. I trust you'll make good use of it." Koenma proffered a folder, words written on its front too small for Yusuke to read on the Communication Mirror's tiny screen. "We caught wind of the demon and assigned your case too quickly to do proper preemptive research, but as you travelled to Onigumo Manor, I had Jorge ransack the archives for any information he could scrounge up, and he managed to uncover something juicy. It seems Jorge is, against all odds, actually good for something."
"Oh, Koenma-sir," wept a gravelly voice from off camera. "So cruel!"
"Lemme guess," Yusuke said. "The energy signature belongs to a demon who looks an awful lot like a really big talking dog. Is that it?"
"What?" Koenma blinked a few times, brow furrowing. Then he sputtered, "No! What in the world would give you that idea?"
"Wait." Now it was Yusuke's turn to blink, confused. "You mean the demon doesn't look like—?"
"A dog? Hardly." Koenma opened the folder and held its contents up. "We'll have to talk about your harebrained theories later, Yusuke, but for now, feast your eyes on this."
Even on a small screen, it was easy to see what Koenma wanted to show him—namely an old-fashioned drawing of a crimson demon. A really big demon with a leering face and horns curling from its head. It had yellow eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth, not to mention a long tail, and its fingers were tipped in curling black claws that looked sharp enough to tear steel to bits.
"OK," Yusuke deadpanned. "So it looks like a walking butthole and not a dog."
Koenma blanched. "I wouldn't put it so crudely, but… yes."
Kuwabara walked over and looked at the screen over Yusuke's shoulder. His eyes bugged out at once. "Wait," he said, grabbing the mirror to take a closer look. "That's the demon we're looking for?"
"Indeed. That is what I just said, if I recall the past thirty seconds correctly," said Koenma.
Kurama came over to study the mirror as well. "I don't understand." His eyes traveled across the room. "If that is the demon we're looking for…"
Yusuke concluded, expression grim: "Then who the heck is Scooby-Doo supposed to be?"
NOTES: First the plot thickened. Now it's… congealed. Oops.