(Co-Written by Candid Ishida)
Tilted Arc
Rei's POV-
This tale starts at Meiou High where the lovely Suuichi is well liked but has very little friends except three other boys he always seems to be with. Two are hoodlums from Sarayashki Jr. High and the other... Well he's a strange one. My sister Yami and I attend school here at Meiou with everyone's favorite student Suuichi, who we soon discovered has a side that's rarely seen by anyone.
It was late January and Shiori, Suuichi's mother, and our classmates have noticed him acting funny and only that strange dark haired boy he's always with seems knows why. The teachers were noticing that their usual top student was falling behind in his schoolwork and wasn't paying attention.
It was Friday afternoon and I was walking home with Yami when I heard something crying near a trash can. I stopped but Yami kept walking. Probably wrapped up in a daydream about Suuichi. I walked over to the trash can and saw a little white fox not more than a couple of months old. I noticed it had a cut on it's front right paw. I set my bag down and moved the trash can aside. "Hey there little one, I'm not going to hurt you" I said as I let it smell my hand. It licked me and I picked it up along with
my bag and ran to catch up with Yami, who still hadn't noticed I was gone.
Kurama's POV-
I was sitting in class looking out the window not really paying any attention to what the teacher had to say and trying to figure out what was going on with me.
"Mr. Minamino? MR. MINAMINO?!" screamed the teacher. I snapped back to reality and looked at the teacher.
"Gomen, Miss Kamiya" I apologized to her.
"What is the matter with you? You're barely paying attention today. Are you feeling all right Mr. Minamino?" she asked me.
"No, not really" I said.
"Go to the nurse then, I will write you a pass to go" she said she started to write a pass out.
"The nurse won't be able to help me ma'am. It's a different kind of illness" I told her.
"Well what is it then?" she demanded.
"I'm not sure, but I am willing to guess it won't get better as of yet" I told her. "I need to talk to Hiei" I thought to myself.
The bell rang letting us know school was out for the day and I went to go
find Hiei.
Hiei's POV-
I heard the bell sounding letting me know my fox was out of school for the weekend or for the day I should say. I watched from my tree as he came out of the school looking really sad and distant. I jumped from the tree and landed softly beside him.
"Kurama, what's wrong? You're not yourself lately" I said. He sighed and I followed him to his house. He went in through the front door and straight up to his room to open the window for me
to come in. He set his bag on the floor next to his bed and proceeded to sit on his bed lost in his own thoughts.
"Fox? FOX!!" I yelled at him. He jumped and then smiled.
"I'm sorry Hiei, I have a nagging feeling that won't go away, it's a nasty little urge I have to do" he told me as he softly kissed me.
"What is it?" I asked him. He looked at me and blushed.
"I need to find a vixen and mate with her Hiei... it's mating season for me" he said and my jaw dropped as I comforted him.
"I'll help you in anyway possible Kurama, that's what I'm here for" I told him as he leaned into me.
"Thank you Hiei, that means a lot too me" he said hugging me gently.
Yami's POV-
"Maybe it's his cousin... Or, no they can't be brothers they look nothing alike." I sighed while walking down the sidewalk, trying to figure out the mystery surrounding that dark clothed boy Suuichi Minamino was always with after school. No matter who I asked, no one seemed to know who he was, and of course I could never ask Suuichi myself, he's like a God to me! That flowing red hair, those striking green eyes.... I couldn't help but wonder why he'd be so close to such a strange person who no one knew anything about.
"Yami, hold on!" Suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by my sister Rei, running up behind me with a bundle of something in her arms.
"What's the matter?" I looked down and she held out the little ball of fur in her arms, all white with two sad blue eyes and a tiny black nose peeking out.
"Awww! It's so cute, where did you find it?" I asked petting him gently on the head, making the baby fox cringe for a moment and tried to get away. Rei hushed him and calmed him down, where she had found him it appeared he'd bonded with her right away.
"He was behind a trash can over there. It looks like he's hurt and there is no sign of a mother anywhere...." She said. He was much too small to be on his own, and in a suburban neighborhood it's likely his mother had gotten hit by a car, or fallen prey to some other accident. Whatever the
case, he was all alone.
"I'm going to take him home and look after him." She said, cuddling the baby fox and receiving a tiny yipping sound and a lick on the hand in return. "He's like an angel."
"We should call him Tenshi." I suggested.
"Tenshi it is"
Rei's POV-
When I finally caught up to Yami I called to her to get her attention. She stopped and looked at what I had in my arms. She fawned over the little fox I had found and she started petting his head gently and he freaked out.
"Hey, it's all right. She won't hurt you" I told him to calm him down. He settled down and Yami asked me where I found him. I pointed across the street and back a little ways.
"Over there, he was hiding behind a trash can and he's hurt. I didn't see a mother anywhere..." I told her. I made a comment that he looked like an angel and that I was going to take him home and care for him. He liked the idea and yipped happily and licked me. She suggested we call him Tenshi and I agreed.
Shiori's POV-
I sat in the living room, trying to find interest in the book I was reading but couldn't seem to concentrate. I knew my son, Suuichi was upstairs, he had just gotten home from school, and for the past week or so, he just hadn't been acting like himself. Something was preoccupying him, but no matter how many times I asked, he always told me he was fine. Perhaps he couldn't tell me, but what on earth could there be that an honest boy like Suuichi could not tell his own mother? He's very selfless, very caring, it could be that he simply didn't want to trouble me.
I hope that whatever is wrong he can find comfort in his friends, especially the black haired boy I've seen him with. I've never mentioned it, but I see them walk home from school together everyday, and then in the blink of an eye, he's gone. I always feel that seeing him was just my imagination, as if he were a good spirit watching over us. They seem so close, but I've decided not to pry as to who he is or where he came from. I'm sure when he's ready, Suuichi will tell me, but I suspect there is more to their relationship than meets the eye.
Though I've never been able to put my finger on it, I know there is something special about my son, he's different than the rest of us somehow. I have faith that one day, everything will be clear to me, but for now I think I must just let him work things out in his own way, I trust him to make the right choices.
But lately I'm worried, what if he's come to face something he can't handle? I mulled things over in my head, but suddenly my train of thought was derailed by some commotion in the front yard. I set my book down on the table and pushed aside the curtains in the front window to see two girls frantically trying to get something out from under Suuichi's rose bushes. I noticed their school uniforms were that of Meiou High School, and I stepped out to see if I could help.
"Could I help you with something, girls?" I asked from the front steps of the house. They looked up suddenly, and the taller of the two stood.
"I'm sorry that we ran on to your lawn like this but you see, we found a little baby fox on the way home and he sort of jumped down and ran under your rose bushes so we're trying to get him out." She said, seeming embarrassed. The other girl was still kneeling, trying to coax the animal out from under the flowers.
"Fox?" Someone said from the door, I turned to see Suuichi leaning over my shoulder, holding on to the door frame and peering at his garden. The girl's mouth dropped open and her eyes opened so wide I feared they were going to fall out.
"M... Minamino-kun... this is... your house?" She stuttered.
The other girl finally pulled the baby fox out from under the flower garden and stood with it in her arms.
"Hello, Suuichi," she said.
"Yamato-chan, Rei-chan, what are you doing here?" He asked. Then, spotting the animal the girl was holding he raced past me and on to the cold grass, still in his slippers. He leaned over and patted it on the head, and the fox seemed suddenly overjoyed, climbing up against Suuichi's chest and licking him on the face, as if they knew each other from somewhere.
"He's injured," Suuichi said. "Where did you find him?"
"A few blocks down the road," she said. "He was all alone."
"Come inside and let me tend to his wounds. I know a thing or two about foxes..."
She nodded and handed the fox kit to my son, while the other girl grabbed her arm and whispered something in her ear. They talked for a moment and then the shorter of the two grabbed her companion by the wrist and started dragging her inside after Suuichi.
"Ha ha, oh Minamino-san you have such a pretty son, I mean house!!!" She said awkwardly, her face bright red as the three of them went inside. I smiled and closed the door behind them, then went to make tea for our two guests.
Kuwabara's POV-
Another long, boring day of school was finally over. All I had left to do was go home, chill in front of the TV, and hope my sister didn't bug me too much, and maybe pick a couple of fights on the way there... I decided to take the long way home to hopefully run into some lowlife whose ass I could kick, maybe save the day for somebody getting picked on. I felt like playing the hero. I rounded the corner and noticed I was in Kurama's neighborhood, and was thinking about stopping by and saying hi, but that shrimp Hiei would probably be there... I don't know why, but that guy just doesn't like me!
I made my way down the sidewalk, and was enjoying the walk until this crazy car came speeding by me! Some people just shouldn't be allowed to drive. Just then though, I looked ahead and saw a little grey fox dashing across the street, right in the road hog's path!
"Hey, watch out!" I yelled, but it was too late... I heard a sickening crunch and before I could do anything, the fox was on the side of the road and the car had already sped out of sight. I ran over, hoping maybe it was still alive and I could bring it to a vet or something, but when I kneeled down, there was no doubt that it definitely hadn't survived...
"You bastard!!" I called after the car, but whoever was driving it just swerved around the corner and never even looked back. I sat on the sidewalk and looked over the lifeless creature. From what I could tell, it was a girl, and from the looks of it, she was nursing a baby.
"Aw man! That means some poor baby fox just lost its mom!" I said. I stood up, feeling angry and depressed that were was nothing I could do. People might think I'm just a no good street thug, but the truth is I'm a real animal lover, especially kittens. For a second I thought I might even cry, hey... Guys can have feelings too!
If I tried to tell Urameshi about it, he'd probably just laugh and call me a wuss, what a jerk. Kurama would probably be the best person to go to, he's always good at listening to people's problems, and he's way smart on top of that. Since I was only a few blocks from his house, I shoved my hands in my pockets, took one last look at the fox vixen, and walked off.
Yusuke's POV-
Another day of sweatin' my ass off under Grandma. Man, I hate training with the old hag. I had to ditch Keiko to go train with her. I almost feel sorry for Keiko, I always to ditch her to go do something for Koenma or train with Grandma... it was either that or have her drag me shopping. If there's two things I hate it's waiting and shopping, I'd rather wait then shop. Well today something strange happened, Grandma stopped me in the middle of training to tell me something was wrong with Kurama.
"He's fine, there is nothing wrong with fox-boy," I told her.
"Dimwit!! Believe me when I say Kurama's in trouble" Grandma said.
"What could possibly be wrong with Kurama?" I asked her.
"His spirit energy is usually high. It's normally calm and under control but he cannot control it" she told me.
"That's not normal" I said.
"I suggest you go see him soon Yusuke" she told me.
Keiko's POV-
Yet again Yusuke ditched me. He said he had to train under Genkai. I think it's just an excuse not to go shopping with me. Sometimes he is just the biggest pain, I don't know how I manage to put up with him, the way he always goes running off and leaving me behind!
"Yusuke, you jerk!"
And yet.... Why can't I help how I feel about him? We've known each other so long, and I know he can be a nuisance and my parents don't approve, but I have a feeling Yusuke and I are going to be stuck together for a long, long time. After all, he lets me in on all his biggest secrets, I guess that counts for something? Three worlds, fighting demons, it's almost too much for a Junior High girl to handle, but I know I have to stick by him and everyone else, it's just a feeling in my gut.
I wasn't in the mood to shop anymore, so I decided to go for a stroll in the park. The weather wasn't too cold, despite it being January, I just wished I had someone to enjoy my walk with. Just then my cell phone rang, and I was surprised to hear the last person I expected to be calling me on the line.
"Keiko, are you still in town?" Yusuke's voice asked me over the phone.
"Yes, why? Is something wrong?"
"The old hag is insisting I go back, right after she called me here to train with her. She says there's something wrong with Kurama and it's urgent so, meet me there, will you?" He said.
"Kurama? Did she say why?"
Yusuke sounded a bit worried, it's not like him to worry about anything.
"No, she doesn't even know, she's just bitching at me to go back. It's gonna take about an hour though considering I have to walk..." He groaned.
"I'll go check and see if Kurama's all right and meet you at his house," I told him.
"Thanks Keiko."
I hung up my phone and placed it back in my purse, and turned around in the other direction towards Kurama's house. Kurama always struck me as the type to be able to take care of himself, I wondered what he could need our help with? As I made my walk down the sidewalk, I car came speeding by me and almost crashed into a fire hydrant only a few meters away from me!
"Crazy driver, watch where you're going, you could hurt someone!" I shouted. They apparently didn't hear me though, because they just kept going and sped by the turn to Kurama's street and out of sight.
I finally reached the street sign after getting over the shock of almost being hit by a car, there has been one too many car accidents in my life already, and I doubt I could get my life back like Yusuke managed to do! As I was about to step onto Kurama's block, I looked up to see Kuwabara coming fro the other direction, and stopped to say hello.
::CHAPTER 2 COMING SOON!::
