Hello all. How are you. I am fine. Okay, okay, I can already hear you all
screaming at me to just get on with the story, so here we go.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.
Everyone stared at Kuronue. Shuichi looked very unnerved, for his hand was shaking badly enough to where Kuronue was convinced he was going to drop his soda. Jeroun's mouth hung open, and most everyone in the room looked nervous.
"C-could everyone please leave? I think this is best dealt with between Kanon and I," Shuichi said. Jeroun was surprised he hadn't opened his mouth to be sick, because it was tinged a fine shade of green. Yusuke nodded and herded everyone out of the room. Jeroun looked to Shuichi.
"You're a Youko?"
"Y-yes," Shuichi stammered. Kuronue also looked at Shuichi, and in return Shuichi gave Kuronue a puzzled look. "How did you know?"
"Your eyes. Even though they appear normal to most people, I could see the Youko in them," Kuronue said. "If there's one thing about you foxes, it's that you never lose the look in the eyes."
"I should have known," Shuichi said, a faint smile suddenly playing on his lips.
"Hang on," Jeroun said. "Is he THE Youko?" Shuichi went very, very still and Kuronue frowned. "What?"
"I don't know," Kuronue said. "But . . . he's dead, so Shuichi can only be a different one."
"Shuichi?"
"I shall not tell," Shuichi said, completely scared out of his wits by this point. He was starting to regret the fact that he had sent his friends away. Then again, perhaps they would not have felt his urgency to keep his identity a secret. "Koenma did not want you to know, otherwise he would have told you from the start."
"True," Jeroun said. "Kanon, we'll drop it until Shuichi's ready to tell us, okay?"
"Fine," Kuronue growled with a glance at Shuichi. Shuichi stiffened and returned the glare. Jeroun seemed to notice this.
"Hey, Kanon, I was talking to Hiei about some 'sweet snow' something," he said. "You wanna go see if we can find any? Would that be all right, Shuichi?"
"Fine," Shuichi said. (Anything to get Kanon out of here. He was way too close to finding out who I really am.) Shuichi thought.
"All right, let's see," Kuronue said, getting up off the couch.
"Come on! I think I know what container it's in," Jeroun said. When they had left, Shuichi slumped down in his chair and put his hands over his eyes.
"That was way too close for comfort," he muttered.
Later that night, Kuronue lay on his back in bed, thinking. (I can't get it out of my mind that Shuichi's a Youko,) he thought. In truth, he had only seen the familiar look breifly, just long enough to notice it and realize what it was. The door opened a crack. Jeroun's face peeked in.
"Kuronue?"
"Shhh," Kuronue hissed.
"Doesn't matter, Shuichi's gone out for a while," Jeroun said. "Something about getting out of the house, but he's really trying to keep away from you. You really scared him."
"I know," Kuronue said. "But after this test of yours is done, we'll get out of here and never see Shuichi again."
"Yeah," Jeroun said, but he didn't look too happy about it. "But I was kind of growing fond of Shuichi. Can I come in now?"
"It's your room as well as mine, but sure," Kuronue said, rolling over onto his back. Then he smiled. "At least this discovery takes care of one thing."
"What?"
"Why I thought Shuichi was familiar," Kuronue said.
"It still doesn't explain why he thinks you're familiar," Jeroun said. Then he thought of something. "You don't think that . . . "
"No," Kuronue said, sitting up. "Youko Kurama's dead. Shuichi . . . he can't really be Youko, he can't." As calm as Kuronue's voice was, Jeroun could see him shaking his head back and forth and squinting his eyes shut to keep tears from falling out of them.
"But he might . . . " Jeroun said.
"Did you hear me, baka?" Kuronue demanded, jumping up out of the bed and glaring at Jeroun. "I said that Youko Kurama is dead. There is no way that Shuichi can be Youko Kurama."
"There's always a chance!" Jeroun said, facing Kuronue. "Didn't you hear the rumors about the Dark Tournament? The ones about Youko?"
"Shut up, Jeroun, just shut up," Kuronue said, walking towards the door. "Right before the news came that Youko was killed, I felt his energy weaken and go out. That is as good as seeing him die." With that, Kuronue walked out of the room.
"It was just a thought," Jeroun mumbled weakly. "Just a stupid little thought that might have had some meaning to it. It was nothing serious."
"Where's Kanon?"
"I got him mad, so he left to go blow off some steam in the woods," Jeroun said. Shuichi looked at him with a questioning look in his eyes, and Jeroun wondered how he could have missed the Youko look in them before. "I said something that I should not have said."
"Really?"
"About his old partner, the one that died," Jeroun said. "Has he told you about him?"
"Nothing much, but I do remember Kanon saying something about him," Shuichi said. "What did you say?"
"I just thought that . . . it's nothing," Jeroun said. "Really far- fetched."
"Really?" Shuichi asked, getting a cup out to make himself some tea. "Just how far-fetched was the thought?" This was one of the many times Jeroun spoke before he thought about what he was saying.
"It was almost as if I were suggesting that you were Youko Kurama!" Jeroun said. There was a very stunned silence. "What? It's not like you are Youko Kurama . . . are you?" Jeroun heard Shuichi's cup shatter as it hit the ground. Jeroun had a feeling he had hit a nerve. "I'm sorry, I think I should have thought that you might not want to be compared with the Youko. . . . " He trailed off as Shuichi came up to him, grabbed him, and began to shake him by the shoulders.
"How did you know?" Shuichi demanded. "Who told you?"
"No one," Jeorun said. "It was just a joke."
"More true than you know." Jeroun finally grasped what Shuichi had been trying to tell him. He looked up at the kitsune with wide eyes.
"You . . . are . . . Youko Kurama?" Jeroun asked. Shuichi closed his eyes and nodded. "But . . . that means. . . . "
"I was seriously injured by demon hunter, unable to assume even a human form," Shuichi said. "So I came here and entered a woman's body and was reborn as Shuichi Minamino."
"Youko . . . Kurama." Jeroun was still in shock. "But . . . you . . . and . . . Shuichi! D-do you ever . . . wonder how Kuronue is?"
"Kuronue is dead," Shuichi said.
"Hello, Shuichi," came a quiet, deadly voice. Both Shuichi and Jeroun whipped around to see Kuronue (human form) glaring at Shuichi. (Baaaaaad timing,) Jeroun thought. (Veeeeerry bad timing.) Shuichi narrowed his eyes. (All of this just because Kuronue found out Shuichi's true form. Hang on!!) Jeroun placed himself between the two demons.
"Hang, there's something that both of you should know!!" he said. Both of them glared at him. "About the other. . . ." He said the magic words.
"About him? I don't wanna know any more about him!" They both said together. And they both stomped off to their rooms, each taking a different route through the kitchen Jeroun stared lamely after them.
"I don't know what things are coming to anymore!" he said aloud. "The two most infamous bandits, both thought dead, standing right under the other's nose and no one notices a thing! And what's more! They absolutely HATE each other! I don't know what I'm gonna do." Okay. I'm happy now. Jeroun has figured out who Shuichi/Kurama really is, but can he convince the former partners that the other is alive and "standing right underneath the other's nose" as Jeroun puts it?
Kuro: Wow. I'm kind of slow on the uptake, aren't I?
Nagem: Just a little. ^___^
Kuro: Well, I'm glad . . . when will everything come together?
Nagem: I hope to start that in the next chapter. Erm, to the reviewer Maruken; here's the answer to your question that you asked a few chapters back (Gomen, I haven't been thinking about it lately.) First off, I think that Shuichi is too polite to read someone's mind given the situation that he is in. Second, I had no idea that Shuichi could even read minds O.O. Yeah . . . I'm still a little ignorant to some of the finer details of Yu Yu Hakusho . . . that's probably why I don't own it.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.
Everyone stared at Kuronue. Shuichi looked very unnerved, for his hand was shaking badly enough to where Kuronue was convinced he was going to drop his soda. Jeroun's mouth hung open, and most everyone in the room looked nervous.
"C-could everyone please leave? I think this is best dealt with between Kanon and I," Shuichi said. Jeroun was surprised he hadn't opened his mouth to be sick, because it was tinged a fine shade of green. Yusuke nodded and herded everyone out of the room. Jeroun looked to Shuichi.
"You're a Youko?"
"Y-yes," Shuichi stammered. Kuronue also looked at Shuichi, and in return Shuichi gave Kuronue a puzzled look. "How did you know?"
"Your eyes. Even though they appear normal to most people, I could see the Youko in them," Kuronue said. "If there's one thing about you foxes, it's that you never lose the look in the eyes."
"I should have known," Shuichi said, a faint smile suddenly playing on his lips.
"Hang on," Jeroun said. "Is he THE Youko?" Shuichi went very, very still and Kuronue frowned. "What?"
"I don't know," Kuronue said. "But . . . he's dead, so Shuichi can only be a different one."
"Shuichi?"
"I shall not tell," Shuichi said, completely scared out of his wits by this point. He was starting to regret the fact that he had sent his friends away. Then again, perhaps they would not have felt his urgency to keep his identity a secret. "Koenma did not want you to know, otherwise he would have told you from the start."
"True," Jeroun said. "Kanon, we'll drop it until Shuichi's ready to tell us, okay?"
"Fine," Kuronue growled with a glance at Shuichi. Shuichi stiffened and returned the glare. Jeroun seemed to notice this.
"Hey, Kanon, I was talking to Hiei about some 'sweet snow' something," he said. "You wanna go see if we can find any? Would that be all right, Shuichi?"
"Fine," Shuichi said. (Anything to get Kanon out of here. He was way too close to finding out who I really am.) Shuichi thought.
"All right, let's see," Kuronue said, getting up off the couch.
"Come on! I think I know what container it's in," Jeroun said. When they had left, Shuichi slumped down in his chair and put his hands over his eyes.
"That was way too close for comfort," he muttered.
Later that night, Kuronue lay on his back in bed, thinking. (I can't get it out of my mind that Shuichi's a Youko,) he thought. In truth, he had only seen the familiar look breifly, just long enough to notice it and realize what it was. The door opened a crack. Jeroun's face peeked in.
"Kuronue?"
"Shhh," Kuronue hissed.
"Doesn't matter, Shuichi's gone out for a while," Jeroun said. "Something about getting out of the house, but he's really trying to keep away from you. You really scared him."
"I know," Kuronue said. "But after this test of yours is done, we'll get out of here and never see Shuichi again."
"Yeah," Jeroun said, but he didn't look too happy about it. "But I was kind of growing fond of Shuichi. Can I come in now?"
"It's your room as well as mine, but sure," Kuronue said, rolling over onto his back. Then he smiled. "At least this discovery takes care of one thing."
"What?"
"Why I thought Shuichi was familiar," Kuronue said.
"It still doesn't explain why he thinks you're familiar," Jeroun said. Then he thought of something. "You don't think that . . . "
"No," Kuronue said, sitting up. "Youko Kurama's dead. Shuichi . . . he can't really be Youko, he can't." As calm as Kuronue's voice was, Jeroun could see him shaking his head back and forth and squinting his eyes shut to keep tears from falling out of them.
"But he might . . . " Jeroun said.
"Did you hear me, baka?" Kuronue demanded, jumping up out of the bed and glaring at Jeroun. "I said that Youko Kurama is dead. There is no way that Shuichi can be Youko Kurama."
"There's always a chance!" Jeroun said, facing Kuronue. "Didn't you hear the rumors about the Dark Tournament? The ones about Youko?"
"Shut up, Jeroun, just shut up," Kuronue said, walking towards the door. "Right before the news came that Youko was killed, I felt his energy weaken and go out. That is as good as seeing him die." With that, Kuronue walked out of the room.
"It was just a thought," Jeroun mumbled weakly. "Just a stupid little thought that might have had some meaning to it. It was nothing serious."
"Where's Kanon?"
"I got him mad, so he left to go blow off some steam in the woods," Jeroun said. Shuichi looked at him with a questioning look in his eyes, and Jeroun wondered how he could have missed the Youko look in them before. "I said something that I should not have said."
"Really?"
"About his old partner, the one that died," Jeroun said. "Has he told you about him?"
"Nothing much, but I do remember Kanon saying something about him," Shuichi said. "What did you say?"
"I just thought that . . . it's nothing," Jeroun said. "Really far- fetched."
"Really?" Shuichi asked, getting a cup out to make himself some tea. "Just how far-fetched was the thought?" This was one of the many times Jeroun spoke before he thought about what he was saying.
"It was almost as if I were suggesting that you were Youko Kurama!" Jeroun said. There was a very stunned silence. "What? It's not like you are Youko Kurama . . . are you?" Jeroun heard Shuichi's cup shatter as it hit the ground. Jeroun had a feeling he had hit a nerve. "I'm sorry, I think I should have thought that you might not want to be compared with the Youko. . . . " He trailed off as Shuichi came up to him, grabbed him, and began to shake him by the shoulders.
"How did you know?" Shuichi demanded. "Who told you?"
"No one," Jeorun said. "It was just a joke."
"More true than you know." Jeroun finally grasped what Shuichi had been trying to tell him. He looked up at the kitsune with wide eyes.
"You . . . are . . . Youko Kurama?" Jeroun asked. Shuichi closed his eyes and nodded. "But . . . that means. . . . "
"I was seriously injured by demon hunter, unable to assume even a human form," Shuichi said. "So I came here and entered a woman's body and was reborn as Shuichi Minamino."
"Youko . . . Kurama." Jeroun was still in shock. "But . . . you . . . and . . . Shuichi! D-do you ever . . . wonder how Kuronue is?"
"Kuronue is dead," Shuichi said.
"Hello, Shuichi," came a quiet, deadly voice. Both Shuichi and Jeroun whipped around to see Kuronue (human form) glaring at Shuichi. (Baaaaaad timing,) Jeroun thought. (Veeeeerry bad timing.) Shuichi narrowed his eyes. (All of this just because Kuronue found out Shuichi's true form. Hang on!!) Jeroun placed himself between the two demons.
"Hang, there's something that both of you should know!!" he said. Both of them glared at him. "About the other. . . ." He said the magic words.
"About him? I don't wanna know any more about him!" They both said together. And they both stomped off to their rooms, each taking a different route through the kitchen Jeroun stared lamely after them.
"I don't know what things are coming to anymore!" he said aloud. "The two most infamous bandits, both thought dead, standing right under the other's nose and no one notices a thing! And what's more! They absolutely HATE each other! I don't know what I'm gonna do." Okay. I'm happy now. Jeroun has figured out who Shuichi/Kurama really is, but can he convince the former partners that the other is alive and "standing right underneath the other's nose" as Jeroun puts it?
Kuro: Wow. I'm kind of slow on the uptake, aren't I?
Nagem: Just a little. ^___^
Kuro: Well, I'm glad . . . when will everything come together?
Nagem: I hope to start that in the next chapter. Erm, to the reviewer Maruken; here's the answer to your question that you asked a few chapters back (Gomen, I haven't been thinking about it lately.) First off, I think that Shuichi is too polite to read someone's mind given the situation that he is in. Second, I had no idea that Shuichi could even read minds O.O. Yeah . . . I'm still a little ignorant to some of the finer details of Yu Yu Hakusho . . . that's probably why I don't own it.