oniisan04

Acknowledgments: Kichigai, Lila, MT, Ken_digital_kaizer, Abby, Jara, Matrix, severan, kitty, JessieHimechan, Ryone, akai risu, hime, and others whose reviews were inadvertently deleted and those from the mailing lists! ^.^()

Usual Disclaimers apply...

Part 4: Revelations

Kurama grumbled. The school day was not any better today, though Kurama had manage to sneak some few minutes away from Omi-kun and Ran-niisan like right now. He had walked from the school locker room, his 'niisan always walked with him to the soccer field in an unspoken agreement but right now he was running late. Kurama was now glad that they never agreed to it verbally as well grateful for the respite, he felt like he was being the subject of a hunt with all this attention.

"Minamono-kun."

"Yes, Naoe-kun?" Kurama said, thinking frantically of excuses to say to the other boy, he really needed to be alone right now. Unfortunately, it seemed that Nagi Naoe was determined to talk to him. He was leaning on the tree with his dark brown hair mussed by the breezes as if he had been waiting there for at least a half-hour and with his face set.

"Minamono-kun—" Nagi started again, he was having a hard time getting it out, having bad experiences when confiding about his powers. He figured on taking the direct approach since the indirect one has failed miserably.

"What?" Kurama said kindly though his patience was getting to the point of no return. If this were something as inconsequential as a crush he was going to kick the ball into orbit to vent his frustrations.

"Er, what do you think of the powers of the mind?" Said Nagi assured that Kurama at least wouldn't mock him or laugh.

"Huh?" Said Kurama, deciding to play it neutral until he knew where this conversation was heading. Though it was getting—interesting.

"Telepathy, telekinesis, precognition and the like." Nagi said levitating some of the fallen leaves to prove his point in a dance that was so deliberate it couldn't be mistaken for the wind.

"Very interesting, Naoe-kun, rest assured that the knowledge of your Gift will stay with me or do you want me to tell everyone..." Kurama's eyes widened at the play of rei the boy was showing but he only showed normal admiration at his tone, his mind was frantically in calculations. Nagi Naoe had betrayed a lot of training in his manipulation of the leaves. A lot of training…and we don't know much about Naoe-kun, why…why he's as secretive as I am!

"No, Minamono-kun, please keep it as our secret." Nagi said smiling in relief, he knew well enough that Shuuichi Minamono meant what he said and waved a farewell. He's normal or he would have reacted. Though I may wish otherwise, he wouldn't have been a good addition to the Schwartz anyway. As he walked away, Nagi felt a disappointment he never thought he would feel.
Now it faced with it, he realized that Shuuichi and his circle was the closest he'd come to having friends of his own age not counting Tot. Before he had come to Meioh High he had kept very much to himself, telling himself that he didn't need any complications with his profession. Brad and the rest of Schwartz also encouraged his isolation. They were the only friends he would need he had thought then but now, now he realized that he missed being normal. Having friends of his own age, no problems other than studies and girls and just hanging out on Saturday evenings or lazy afternoons…

It would have been good to have a friend like him for real. But how can he be friends with someone he cannot confide in totally? Lost within his own thoughts, Nagi unknowing left one very thoughtful kitsune behind him.

***

Hiei followed Nagi to an apartment in the suburbs. It was quite unremarkable except for one thing: Hiei couldn't sense thought emanations in or out of the place. It wasn't possibly be that there were no people there when he had seen Nagi, a red-head with messy hair, a man with glasses go in the interval that he had been observing the apartment. The only feasible explanation was that the apartment was shielded against mental intrusion. Yes, Kurama was right there was certainly something going on here. Such shielding was expensive, not only the materials but for the information in making it must have taken a lot of research. Hiei had encountered several demons that made a career of selling fake charms and such, there were a few genuine articles but these were generally lost in the trash, which is how the Reikai wanted it. The real thing would cost astronomical amounts of money to get and that without guarantee of success or, Hiei's eyes narrowed at the thought would require the cooperation of a demon from the Makai. These must be the right ones or at least a close guess.

***

Crawford twitched he felt something was about to happen but no vision had yet to manifest itself. There were days when he hated his Gift. It wasn't as accurate as he projected to the rest of the world. As his teammates probably suspected, it went on and off, choosing to manifest itself and sometimes it never solidified into a vision but into random feelings. His training with the Estet had honed his Gift so that he could remember most of the details and not to put off random dreams or feelings so he "saw" more than most precogs but that was all. Those who trained him admitted it wasn't the most reliable of talents and, sometimes, it made his teeth grit. He was going to put the rest of Schwartz on alert but the feeling tapered off and vanished. Uneasy but aware that nothing was going to happen now, Crawford went back to the report he was typing in his laptop.

***

Hiei decided to flit off to Kurama's to tell him before going to the temple to see Botan so he could arrange a meeting with the rest of the team since their regular meeting wasn't scheduled for three days. Besides it would not do to hang around the potential target, they might sense something and become suspicious.

***

Kurama was about to go to bed when Hiei appeared in his room. He was about to give a flippant comment but stopped he saw that Hiei's face was set grimly. Instead he sat on his bed and invited Hiei to seat himself beside him that the latter did.

Hiei didn't want to seat himself beside Kurama, he didn't know why but it amplified the strange feelings that he had been feeling around his best friend for awhile now but, k'so, the Fox would surely be hurt or offended so…

"I followed your classmate. Found him entering a 'Shielded house." Said Hiei where he sat a little a ways from Kurama. Compromising with a couple of inches between.

"So he may be the one."

"Hn, he lives with at least two people. Both of them are gaijin."

"Suspicious."

"I agree, that is why I'm going to ask Botan to call a meeting with the rest of the team. Be careful of that Nagi and…and be well Kurama." Said Hiei before he flitted off.

Kurama was too astonished to say anything. Be careful of a child, a child a fraction his real age and be well? He closed his mouth realizing that he must have looked like a landed fish for at least three minutes after Hiei had left. That was the first time he had heard Hiei care. Oh, he'd seen Hiei show enough "affection " with Yukina and himself looking out for them now and then, and there was the wrangling with Kuwabara and the subtle deference to Yuusuke. Well Kurama, do you think you've gotten to him? Maybe, maybe we have a chance. Kurama fell asleep with happy thoughts of a certain half-koorime.

***

Why did I say that to him? Asked Hiei to himself as he smoothly jumped from tree to tree. His own words echoed in his mind long after he had gotten away from the kitsune's house. Kurama didn't need them. For one, he was the most cautious of them all and rarely did he take on more than what he could handle. For another, why wouldn't he be well? He wouldn't be going anywhere dangerous with that 'niisan of his following his every move, unless that man himself was the threat. His eyes narrowed at the idea. Preoccupied though he was, Hiei managed to get Botan to summon Yuusuke and the Idiot for an urgent morning meeting and now he curled up in his favorite tree branch just outside of Kurama's window to sleep. But sleep wasn't coming, he checked his partner. Kurama had fallen asleep with a sweet smile curving his lips. Somehow though he didn't know why it reassured him and he also fell asleep with an identical smile curved his lips as he slipped into dreams.

~TBC~