Chapter III:
Headache
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A cold draft filtered through the open window with curtains that fluttered slightly in the early morning breeze that was colder than usual because of autumn. Laying on a bed that was near the window was a red head boy about 15 or 16, his chest moving up and down in the rhythm of his breathing but his body was tense, not the relax state that people usually take once they're unconcious.
~::Dream::~
The breeze whipped his silver white hair backwards, the feel of the the wind against his body cooled the hot feeling that coursed through his veins. Everywhere around him was green and brown but he was running too fast for a clear look at what the green and brown were. He was running from something. Something that he was afraid of, but what it was he didn't know. It just sent a chill through his body whenever he stood still. He had to keep running. He couldn't stop. If he did, he would be caught.
Everywhere he turned though, whatever direction he took, the eerie echo of whistling followed him. He knew that whatever was chasing him was the source of the whistling that was slowly driving him insane, if it hadn't already.
~::Reality::~
The boy's bedroom door opened and in came a brown haired woman. She was carrying a silver tray with a bowl that had steam coming from it and a forest green glass cup that held lemonade. She sighed, her brown eyes filled with worry once she looked at her son. Ever since a week ago when she had come home and found him lieing on the couch, his breathing shallow and sweat drenching his body, he still hadn't awoken. She was somewhat relieved to see that his breathing was getting back to normal but had noticed that even if he was getting better, his body was rigid most of the time. She had thought about calling an ambulance when she saw him but there was a note that was stuck on his forehead saying that he'd be okay in a week or so. At first it seemed like a joke that a sticky note was stuck on her son's forehead but somehow she trusted in what the note said without knowing who had put it there.
Shiori Minamino set the tray on her son's bed table and sat down on the chair that she had occupied nearly most of her free time in, just to watch Shuichi get better. She picked up the bowl of chicken soup and started to feed him after blowing at the spooned soup for it not to be too hot for him.
~::Dream::~
The feeling of panic that whatever that was chasing him was coming closer made him run faster. His mind was filled with the intention to get away and nothing else. He couldn't remember anything else though he knew he should but whenever he did, the whistling sound just drove all thoughts out of his mind.
~::Reality::~
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Hiei was perched in his usual spot, on a branch that could able him to look inside Kurama's room. This morning though, he sat with his arms crossed, his katana in one hand and had his eyes closed. One foot was upright, close to his chest, but the other was hanging from the branch. The black clad demon leaned comfortably against the tree, the even breath of sleep evident.
A cold wind brushed against his warm skin, easily waking him from slumber. Hiei took a glance inside of Kurama's room to see Shiori already feeding the fox his breakfast which was the same as his dinner and lunch. The curtains obscured his view of Kurama but he could see Shiori's worried and caring look without even trying. A pang of jealousy passed over him but it was so small and frequent so that he had time to learn how to smother it and put it aside. A sigh escaped his lips sounding much like the breeze that the human wouldn't hear him. He had been sitting in the same spot almost every day but she never really noticed him because he was hidden in the leaves carefully. It was also a good thing that there were more than one tree in Kurama's backyard, two of which was near the fox's bedroom window.
He averted his gaze to the sky which, strangely, was still a dark gray for a week already. It wasn't natural. He could sense it clearly and so did a few ningens but most of them thought it was just as simple as a matter of the season that they were in. His crimson eyes looked dazed for a moment as the conversation he had with the prince of Reikai, Koenma, came into mind.
After the short mission in Makai to investigate the strange disappearance of a few spies for Spirit World, and the trouble in the Shadow Forest and the Ruikyu........and the human (Hiei had left her behind because he didn't think it was worth it to go get her), he had brought Kurama home and gone to see Koenma to report that they had found nothing. When Koenma asked where Kurama was, Hiei had said that the fox was injured during his fight and had to rest. Koenma said nothing more than to dismiss Hiei while muttering that he was probally going to get spanked for the disappearance later by his father, King Yamma.
When Yusuke and Kuwabaka, the 'fool', heard about Kurama's 'injury', they came with Keiko, Yukina, and Shizuru to see him. Shiori reported that Kurama was unconcious so visiting him would just be pointless, Hiei on the other hand was kind of glad she said that, even if it was the truth. In his opinions, Kurama didn't need a bunch of 'loud mouths' to bother him (Yukina was an exception).
A groan brought him back to reality. Hiei turned to look into the window to see Shiori's face in an expression of relief. "Shuichi," he heard her say, "you're awake!"
It took a moment before he heard Kurama reply. "Hai, kaasan. Was I asleep?" Hiei rolled his eyes.
Shiori bent over, probally to hug her son. "I'm glad you're okay!" She pulled back, tears brimming her dark brown eyes. "Well, in a way, you were kind of asleep, Shuichi. For a whole week."
"Nani?" There was confusion in his tone of vioce. "Was I sick? I don't remember getting sick..."
Shiori sighed. "I wouldn't know. There was note," she smiled and her eyes lit with amusement as she continued, "stuck on your forehead saying that you'd be better soon. So, in some wierd way, I didn't think you needed to go to a doctor."
"A note? On my forehead? Saying what?"
Shiori smiled. "I think you had a fever or something, and you may need to rest some more." There was a pause.
"Well," Kurama started breaking the silence, "I do feel hot." Hiei had a feeling that Kurama was looking at the open window. "And I don't remember anything that happened before I.....slept for a whole week?" The last part became a question.
"Yes, you scared me half to death."
"I'm okay now."
"I know." Shiori sighed and got up, the breakfast tray clutched in her hands. "I'll leave you to rest now, Shuichi, and don't get up yet. I'll bring you lunch later on."
"Kaasan, what's for lunch?"
"Chicken soup."
"I had a feeling you'd say that. My mouth still tastes like chicken soup."
"Well, it's good for you---"
"I know. But when can I eat something else?.....Besides another kind of soup."
"Hmm when I say so, I think."
"Okay." With that reply from her son, Shirori left, closing the door softly behind her. "Hiei, are you out there?" the red haired boy asked after he was sure his mother was far from hearing distance. In less than a second Hiei was leaning against on the left of Kurama's bed, with his arms crossed with his trademark 'Hn'.
"If you knew that, why ask?"
"I didn't." Kurama stared at the wall directly in front of hi, still confused in some way. "All my senses are dulled. I only had a 'feeling' you'd be out there, Hiei."
"Hn. Figures, you were affacted by that---whistle."
Kurama turned to look at Hiei, his eyes a bit wide. "Whistle? There was a sound of whistling in my dream...." The fox youkai trailed off, going back to staring at the wall in front of him. "I was Youko again. Scared.......And I have a headache." Kurama closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. "A really bad headache."
"Magic."
"Huh?"
Hiei sighed, fighting an urge to roll his eyes. "That whistle was magic."
Kurama stopped rubbing his temples, his emerald eyes still held confusion. "Then---"
"It didn't affect me."
"Then what happened?"
"We were on a mission."
"And?"
"You fought a Ruikyu."
"What mission?'
"To investigate a missing agent, baka kitsune."
"It's not my fault I have amnesia, Hiei."
"If you had amnesia---" Hiei was cut off when the door opened and Shiori poked her head in.
"Shuichi were you talking to someone?" Kurama quickly glanced over to where Hiei had stood but the short youkai was nowhere to be seen. He turned his attention back to his human mother.
"Um, no."
"Hmm, I thought I heard someone." Shiori was about to close the door when she poke her head back inside his room. "Shuichi, get some sleep." Then she left.
'Great, now kaasan thinks I'm even talking to myself', Kurama thought silently. Faintly he felt Hiei snicker but it was so faint that he ignored it, which was probally lucky for the fire demon. Kurama thought about sleeping but the dream re-surficed in his mind's eye. He felt tired though but the panic that was still present from the youko part of his mind made it harder to go back to sleep. He would have to defiantly talk to Hiei later about this, but right now, he was already fast asleep.
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Her head buzzed like it held a swarm of bees in it which wasn't very comfortable to think about all those stingers. Krislin opened her eyes, waiting for her vision to clear. Besides the buzzing in her mind, she had a very very VERY big headache and her body ached so much that she didn't even dare to move much less twtitch. Besides the feeling that she had of being inside an oven, her forehead felt cool with a something that felt like a cloth resting against her pale skin. "You're awake," a female said somewhere nearby.
'Duh', Kris answered, but whoever it was didn't hear, unless of course, whoever it is could read minds. 'Where am I?'
As if to answer her the person replied, "You're in the hospital. And staying too."
Finally managing to see clearly, Krislin looked around seeing a plain room with some mechanical things, also seeing a machine that had a little plastic tubey thingie attached to her arm. Then she looked towards the place where the voice had come from and saw a really old pruned lady dressed in white. She had gray eyes that seemed crystal clear and was staring at the girl. "Why am I here."
"Well, it was likely that you were climbing a tree and fell. I sugest you don't do that again," the old nurse answered not to nicely. Krislin's lips became a thin line and her eyes were blank. She felt anger swelling up inside of her at being told what to do and what not to do by someone who looked like a prune.
"Did I break anything?" she asked with a bit of hope in her voice.
"Two sprained ankles, a broken arm, and alot of scrapes. I'll go get breakfast for you, so don't get out of bed."
'Yeah, like I could.' Instead, Krislin gave a fake smile and managed a small nod which the lady didn't see cause she was already out of the door. Kris looked out of the window besides her bed, seeing a dark sky. 'What a nice lady. I hope she gets fired.....how'd I end up in a tree anyways?'
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DS: Well, review please? If you're confused, it'll clear out maybe later on in the fic. Just don't give up on this fic yet.
Headache
~:~:~:~:~:~
A cold draft filtered through the open window with curtains that fluttered slightly in the early morning breeze that was colder than usual because of autumn. Laying on a bed that was near the window was a red head boy about 15 or 16, his chest moving up and down in the rhythm of his breathing but his body was tense, not the relax state that people usually take once they're unconcious.
~::Dream::~
The breeze whipped his silver white hair backwards, the feel of the the wind against his body cooled the hot feeling that coursed through his veins. Everywhere around him was green and brown but he was running too fast for a clear look at what the green and brown were. He was running from something. Something that he was afraid of, but what it was he didn't know. It just sent a chill through his body whenever he stood still. He had to keep running. He couldn't stop. If he did, he would be caught.
Everywhere he turned though, whatever direction he took, the eerie echo of whistling followed him. He knew that whatever was chasing him was the source of the whistling that was slowly driving him insane, if it hadn't already.
~::Reality::~
The boy's bedroom door opened and in came a brown haired woman. She was carrying a silver tray with a bowl that had steam coming from it and a forest green glass cup that held lemonade. She sighed, her brown eyes filled with worry once she looked at her son. Ever since a week ago when she had come home and found him lieing on the couch, his breathing shallow and sweat drenching his body, he still hadn't awoken. She was somewhat relieved to see that his breathing was getting back to normal but had noticed that even if he was getting better, his body was rigid most of the time. She had thought about calling an ambulance when she saw him but there was a note that was stuck on his forehead saying that he'd be okay in a week or so. At first it seemed like a joke that a sticky note was stuck on her son's forehead but somehow she trusted in what the note said without knowing who had put it there.
Shiori Minamino set the tray on her son's bed table and sat down on the chair that she had occupied nearly most of her free time in, just to watch Shuichi get better. She picked up the bowl of chicken soup and started to feed him after blowing at the spooned soup for it not to be too hot for him.
~::Dream::~
The feeling of panic that whatever that was chasing him was coming closer made him run faster. His mind was filled with the intention to get away and nothing else. He couldn't remember anything else though he knew he should but whenever he did, the whistling sound just drove all thoughts out of his mind.
~::Reality::~
~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~
Hiei was perched in his usual spot, on a branch that could able him to look inside Kurama's room. This morning though, he sat with his arms crossed, his katana in one hand and had his eyes closed. One foot was upright, close to his chest, but the other was hanging from the branch. The black clad demon leaned comfortably against the tree, the even breath of sleep evident.
A cold wind brushed against his warm skin, easily waking him from slumber. Hiei took a glance inside of Kurama's room to see Shiori already feeding the fox his breakfast which was the same as his dinner and lunch. The curtains obscured his view of Kurama but he could see Shiori's worried and caring look without even trying. A pang of jealousy passed over him but it was so small and frequent so that he had time to learn how to smother it and put it aside. A sigh escaped his lips sounding much like the breeze that the human wouldn't hear him. He had been sitting in the same spot almost every day but she never really noticed him because he was hidden in the leaves carefully. It was also a good thing that there were more than one tree in Kurama's backyard, two of which was near the fox's bedroom window.
He averted his gaze to the sky which, strangely, was still a dark gray for a week already. It wasn't natural. He could sense it clearly and so did a few ningens but most of them thought it was just as simple as a matter of the season that they were in. His crimson eyes looked dazed for a moment as the conversation he had with the prince of Reikai, Koenma, came into mind.
After the short mission in Makai to investigate the strange disappearance of a few spies for Spirit World, and the trouble in the Shadow Forest and the Ruikyu........and the human (Hiei had left her behind because he didn't think it was worth it to go get her), he had brought Kurama home and gone to see Koenma to report that they had found nothing. When Koenma asked where Kurama was, Hiei had said that the fox was injured during his fight and had to rest. Koenma said nothing more than to dismiss Hiei while muttering that he was probally going to get spanked for the disappearance later by his father, King Yamma.
When Yusuke and Kuwabaka, the 'fool', heard about Kurama's 'injury', they came with Keiko, Yukina, and Shizuru to see him. Shiori reported that Kurama was unconcious so visiting him would just be pointless, Hiei on the other hand was kind of glad she said that, even if it was the truth. In his opinions, Kurama didn't need a bunch of 'loud mouths' to bother him (Yukina was an exception).
A groan brought him back to reality. Hiei turned to look into the window to see Shiori's face in an expression of relief. "Shuichi," he heard her say, "you're awake!"
It took a moment before he heard Kurama reply. "Hai, kaasan. Was I asleep?" Hiei rolled his eyes.
Shiori bent over, probally to hug her son. "I'm glad you're okay!" She pulled back, tears brimming her dark brown eyes. "Well, in a way, you were kind of asleep, Shuichi. For a whole week."
"Nani?" There was confusion in his tone of vioce. "Was I sick? I don't remember getting sick..."
Shiori sighed. "I wouldn't know. There was note," she smiled and her eyes lit with amusement as she continued, "stuck on your forehead saying that you'd be better soon. So, in some wierd way, I didn't think you needed to go to a doctor."
"A note? On my forehead? Saying what?"
Shiori smiled. "I think you had a fever or something, and you may need to rest some more." There was a pause.
"Well," Kurama started breaking the silence, "I do feel hot." Hiei had a feeling that Kurama was looking at the open window. "And I don't remember anything that happened before I.....slept for a whole week?" The last part became a question.
"Yes, you scared me half to death."
"I'm okay now."
"I know." Shiori sighed and got up, the breakfast tray clutched in her hands. "I'll leave you to rest now, Shuichi, and don't get up yet. I'll bring you lunch later on."
"Kaasan, what's for lunch?"
"Chicken soup."
"I had a feeling you'd say that. My mouth still tastes like chicken soup."
"Well, it's good for you---"
"I know. But when can I eat something else?.....Besides another kind of soup."
"Hmm when I say so, I think."
"Okay." With that reply from her son, Shirori left, closing the door softly behind her. "Hiei, are you out there?" the red haired boy asked after he was sure his mother was far from hearing distance. In less than a second Hiei was leaning against on the left of Kurama's bed, with his arms crossed with his trademark 'Hn'.
"If you knew that, why ask?"
"I didn't." Kurama stared at the wall directly in front of hi, still confused in some way. "All my senses are dulled. I only had a 'feeling' you'd be out there, Hiei."
"Hn. Figures, you were affacted by that---whistle."
Kurama turned to look at Hiei, his eyes a bit wide. "Whistle? There was a sound of whistling in my dream...." The fox youkai trailed off, going back to staring at the wall in front of him. "I was Youko again. Scared.......And I have a headache." Kurama closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. "A really bad headache."
"Magic."
"Huh?"
Hiei sighed, fighting an urge to roll his eyes. "That whistle was magic."
Kurama stopped rubbing his temples, his emerald eyes still held confusion. "Then---"
"It didn't affect me."
"Then what happened?"
"We were on a mission."
"And?"
"You fought a Ruikyu."
"What mission?'
"To investigate a missing agent, baka kitsune."
"It's not my fault I have amnesia, Hiei."
"If you had amnesia---" Hiei was cut off when the door opened and Shiori poked her head in.
"Shuichi were you talking to someone?" Kurama quickly glanced over to where Hiei had stood but the short youkai was nowhere to be seen. He turned his attention back to his human mother.
"Um, no."
"Hmm, I thought I heard someone." Shiori was about to close the door when she poke her head back inside his room. "Shuichi, get some sleep." Then she left.
'Great, now kaasan thinks I'm even talking to myself', Kurama thought silently. Faintly he felt Hiei snicker but it was so faint that he ignored it, which was probally lucky for the fire demon. Kurama thought about sleeping but the dream re-surficed in his mind's eye. He felt tired though but the panic that was still present from the youko part of his mind made it harder to go back to sleep. He would have to defiantly talk to Hiei later about this, but right now, he was already fast asleep.
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Her head buzzed like it held a swarm of bees in it which wasn't very comfortable to think about all those stingers. Krislin opened her eyes, waiting for her vision to clear. Besides the buzzing in her mind, she had a very very VERY big headache and her body ached so much that she didn't even dare to move much less twtitch. Besides the feeling that she had of being inside an oven, her forehead felt cool with a something that felt like a cloth resting against her pale skin. "You're awake," a female said somewhere nearby.
'Duh', Kris answered, but whoever it was didn't hear, unless of course, whoever it is could read minds. 'Where am I?'
As if to answer her the person replied, "You're in the hospital. And staying too."
Finally managing to see clearly, Krislin looked around seeing a plain room with some mechanical things, also seeing a machine that had a little plastic tubey thingie attached to her arm. Then she looked towards the place where the voice had come from and saw a really old pruned lady dressed in white. She had gray eyes that seemed crystal clear and was staring at the girl. "Why am I here."
"Well, it was likely that you were climbing a tree and fell. I sugest you don't do that again," the old nurse answered not to nicely. Krislin's lips became a thin line and her eyes were blank. She felt anger swelling up inside of her at being told what to do and what not to do by someone who looked like a prune.
"Did I break anything?" she asked with a bit of hope in her voice.
"Two sprained ankles, a broken arm, and alot of scrapes. I'll go get breakfast for you, so don't get out of bed."
'Yeah, like I could.' Instead, Krislin gave a fake smile and managed a small nod which the lady didn't see cause she was already out of the door. Kris looked out of the window besides her bed, seeing a dark sky. 'What a nice lady. I hope she gets fired.....how'd I end up in a tree anyways?'
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DS: Well, review please? If you're confused, it'll clear out maybe later on in the fic. Just don't give up on this fic yet.