"Hi-Hiei? How… How is this possible?" Kuwabara asked.

I hung up the phone. I wasn't going to answer the fool. Let him figure it out. The first thing I needed to do was change out of this damn pink pullover. Kurama…

"Shuuichi! You'll be late for school!"

Damn. Damn Kurama. I knew the color he wore to school… and the crowds of people, expecting... expecting me to interact with them. I also knew how important it was to him that he attend school to maintain a normal ningen life… But I just did not want to go through with it. This wasn't my business.

The phone rang again in my hands, and I pressed the 'on' button. "What?"

A baritone voice replied back. "Hiei." I could almost hear the warble in his throat-the feelings of despair he was trying to hide from me. I knew the sounds of my own voice too well.

I didn't like hearing him use my voice, either.

"Kurama?"

"You don't have to go to school for me today. Tell 'Kaasan that you're feeling ill and then climb back into bed. I'll stop by in an hour or two and we can talk about this."

"All right."

"See you then."

I hung up again, and walked out of Kurama's bedroom and to the stairs. Shiori was standing at the bottom of them with a look of concern on her face. I wasn't acting like Kurama. Or, maybe he doesn't normally have telephone calls like this.

"Is everything alright, Shuuichi? You look ill." She motioned for me to come down to her, but I held my ground and stood still, gripping the wall with one hand for support. "Stay home, son. You need rest." I nodded and turned away slowly, taking the cordless phone with me.

Before succumbing to my growing need for sleep, I forcibly yanked off Kurama's pink pullover and tossed it way to the far corner of the room. Soon, his white button-down shirt followed-but what I really wanted was not to ditch just his clothing, but his body. It's just not where I wanted to be.

Shirtless, I walked over to Kurama's mirror and took one more look into his green eyes. If I stood still, I could almost forget that this was my reflection staring back at me. I felt at peace. But, the moment was spoiled when I realized he'd never be looking into my eyes… I'm usually too short for that.

I turned my head away, feeling his locks caress my bare back. I couldn't take the torture of the moment any more. I took one fist and punched into the air rapidly, following with a swift sidekick before giving up and climbing into Kurama's bed. This was not what I considered fun.

I awoke this time to a tapping noise. I sat up in bed to find myself knocking at Kurama's window. It was weird to watch him-me-crouch there on the tree branch by the ledge… If I were not in his body I would have thought he was me-he hadn't changed out of my clothes from last night and was carrying my katana. I pushed the bed covers aside and went to the window to let him in.

When he grinned at me, I suppressed the urge to push him back out the window.

"Hiei? Where's my shirt?"

I shrugged and crossed my arms. "Not on me." Kurama chuckled and shook his head before pulling out his swivel chair from his desk and taking a seat.

"Hiei-what were you doing last night?"

I sat back down the bed and thought a moment. I remembered being in the woods behind Kurama's home, but… For the first time in my life, I honestly could not remember exactly what I had been doing. I looked at him and shrugged.

"Kuwabara-kun says that it is difficult for him to sense the difference between us."

"So?"

"Is there anyone else involved?"

"I was alone, and," I stood up from the bed and looked him in the eye. "I don't know what happened."

"All right."

"We can't just stay here and talk."

"Hai. I'd like to examine the area where the exchange took place, and later Kuwabara would like to meet with us."

I went to Kurama's closet and began rummaging through his shirts. "You don't have anything black, do you?"

"None that you would want-they aren't very plain. You can find my Chinese clothes in the bottom of my dresser drawer. Do you mind if I get changed, too? "

I nodded and he left the room. There wasn't much I really liked of his clothing to choose from… but I found some jeans, a blue shirt and some belts before he came back dressed in an oversized yellow shirt and blue sash. "Yuusuke is here, isn't he?"

Kurama grinned again, wearing my face all wrong.

'Kuso…'

I followed Kurama down the stairs towards the loud sounds of Yuusuke's pounding at the front door. I didn't want to see Yuusuke right then, but I went to the door anyway, but stood away, at a distance. When Kurama let him in, he stood in the doorway just staring at us.

"Kurama?"

"Hai." He said, using my baritone voice, but in a softer tone, causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end.

"Hiei?" I shrugged, not wishing to let him indulge in the moment, knowing full well it was a losing battle. I braced myself, waiting for his laughter. And it came.

"Baka."

He laughed louder.

Kurama cleared his throat and beckoned Yuusuke back out the front door. "We need to find out what really happened-we can't stay like this much longer--I have responsibilities to school, and 'Kaasan." He swallowed again, eyes downcast, after his last word.

Yuusuke nodded, suddenly serious. Kurama ran ahead of us, to the forest area where I had been the night before. "Are you sure you're Hiei?"

"What makes you say that?'

"Well, why aren't you the one dashing off ahead?"

"Shut up." I picked up the pace, mentally cursing Kurama's stupid ningen body for keeping me slow--though in less than a moment, I was there, standing next to Kurama, examining a tree I used to sleep in from time to time.

"I don't feel anything unusual here, Hiei. This really bothers me."

Kurama walked a way a few paces, leaving my line of vision and Yuusuke approached me, looking sheepish. I knew from his posture he was up to nothing I would be interested in. Still, I was ready to listen. "Nan da yo?"

"Hiei-I have to ask…" Hands in his pockets, he grinned at me. "So, is Kurama a real guy?" I held my ground, glaring at him. "Is he?" I wasn't about to dignify that question with a reply. It was not my business, nor his, for the matter. Humans…

Kurama appeared again at my side. "Nothing. I found nothing out of the ordinary-so we'll just have to think of something else." He unhooked my katana from his side and held it out to me. "I can't seem to make much use of your jagan-if you also can't use my powers, you'll need this back."

I took it from him, withdrawing the blade from the sheath, taking one long last look at my sword before… giving it back to him. "Take it."

"Demo…"

Somehow, I knew I didn't need it. Before he could shove the hilt back into my grasp I took one hand and reached for a seed behind my neck and withdrew… A single red rose.


JM Reverie 2001 - 2004

Yu Yu Hakusho is copyright to Yoshihiro Togashi/Shueisha, Jump comics, Fuji Television and Studio Pierrot and licensed by FUNImation Productions, Inc.