The Welder of BlackFire:

Thorn's New Life-The Legend Lives

Chapter Thirteen: Breaking of a Deal and Left in the Dark

Kurama stopped and looked around. Nothing in his room looked different, but something felt just a little strange.

'Huh, my imagination is working overtime today,' he thought with a small smile. He sat down at his desk, and began working on some unknown project.

There was a quiet, yet confident knock on the door downstairs. Mrs. Minemino wiped her hands on a dish towel.

"Coming!" she called as she walked toward the door. She opened the door with a smile. A young woman dressed in black stood before her, smiling up at the woman.

"Konnichiwa, what can I do for you?" the older woman asked.

"Konnichiwa. I was wondering if Minemino-san was home?" the girl asked, beaming up a brilliant smile.

"Why yes, wont you come in?" the boy's mother said, stepping aside to let the girl step into a tastefully decorated sitting room. "Shuichi-chan! You have a friend down here to see you, dear!" she called up to her son. "Please, have a seat, he'll be down in a minute."

"Agraito," the girl said, flashing another smile as she took a seat. She looked around the room a moment before her sensitive ears heard soft footsteps on the stairs. She also heard a confused and sharp breath and a faltering of step.

"Thorn-san?" came his softly confused voice. She turned around and smiled. She looked different. Her eyes held a dangerous glint.

"Hello, Minemino-san. How are you doing this morning?" she asked sweetly.

"Fine. Just fine. Would you like to come up to my room and talk?" he said, making sure his voice was neutral over the small clanging and swashing of his mother doing dishes.

"That would be wonderful," she said, rising from her seat and following him up the stairs. They walked down a short hall before he opened a door into his room. She took a seat on his bed as he shut the door.

"I thought you were out training with Hiei," he said, turning around to face her.

"I was, until I realized the you were using him as a spy." Thorn's voice had turned hard, and her expression verged on anger. Her eyes were a demonic blue that tore like ice into his being. His expression did not change even though his blood began to run cold.

"I was not using Hiei as a spy. If he chose to tell me anything he learned about you that you had told him then that was his choice," Kurama said impassibly.

"Don't pull that shit with me," Thorn hissed, her eyes bearing into his.

"Now, there is no need for harsh language," he said quietly.

"Don't be such a fop. Listen to me, Kurama," she said, spitting his name out in a curse. (A Fop is a man who is obsessed with clothes and manners, hehe.) "If you want information, get it yourself. It disgusts me that you, the famous Youko Kurama, would stoop to such a level. And to think that because of you, I blew up at Hiei, who had nothing to do with it. You are ruthless, just as the stories say." Kurama flinched. "Yes, you are trying to become a better person, but what you pulled for the past two and a half weeks was far from a step toward your goal. You made me hurt Hiei without need other than my rage. I do not like that. Not only that, Kurama, but you forced Hiei into a battle there was no way he could win. You know that I am strong, even though I have hardly shown my true power. Why did you drag him into it? Never mind, don't answer that. I came to break our deal. Next time you want something, ask first. Maybe, just maybe, you'll get an answer." Thorn's heated glare bore into him a moment longer before she began to stand.

"Wait," Kurama said, stepping toward her. "Then I have a question to ask. Who was your trainer?" Her eyes remained angry but her expression flitted with an amused smile. Her sword suddenly appeared on her back and she rose her left hand to draw it from the thongs that held it in place. Kurama tensed as it hissed from its place under her thick curtain of hair.

"Do you really want to know, dearest Shuichi?" she said in an innocent voice, holding his gaze with her eyes and her broad-sword with her left hand. She held it up in front of his face, waving it slightly.

"Yes," he replied. Her lips continued to twitch.

"Then here is your answer," she whispered, stepping closer to him, a smile finally fleeing to her sensual mouth. Her humming sword began to glow bright as she brushed it near his cheek, but did not touch him. The boy did not flinch.

"So you are saying that your sword is him? I don't understand."

"You don't? Well I suppose you wouldn't. Maybe one day you will. But for now, you'll just have to go on whatever information I choose to give you." She retreated her sword, who's hum dimmed at the motion. It again disappeared as she replaced it on her back. She looked up at him, her eyes glowing their normal, bright green. They were close. Too close to be comfortable stubbornly. But they stared at each other. She looked up at him, a smile still on her face. A face that hid a sly girl, who could manipulate the game to play right into her hands. A face that hid the deadly woman that she really was. That hid the power that she really possessed. Kurama looked down at her, his tall frame towering over her short one. His face was blank, but his eyes were deep and full of expression. He didn't even try to hid it. She could see it even if he used all his energies to conceal it and he knew it.

"I should be going, before your mother begins to wonder," she said with her sad smile after a few long moments. She turned her eyes away, and began to walk around the kitsune toward the door. He lightly grabbed her arm, turning toward her as she put her hand on the knob.

"But you never answered my question."

"And I don't suppose I ever will. Like I said, maybe one day you'll understand. Maybe one day I'll tell you. Its good for someone as old as you to be put in the dark every once in a while." Her smile grew wider, but she did not turn to face him completely. Kurama straightened.

"Let me show you the door," was all he said. She removed her hand from the door knob and let him open it, following him down the hall and stairs into the sitting room before he opened the front door for her. She stepped out and faced him, her voice sing-song innocent and her face radiating happiness that never even began to reflect in her eyes.

"Argaito, Minemino-san. It was nice seeing you again," the girl said with a small bow.

"Yes, it was nice seeing you again too," he said in his quiet voice, returning her bow. She turned around with childish glee and set off. Kurama closed the door and went to a large window on his left. He pulled away the curtains and watched her as she began to walk past.

Thorn continued to smile her fake smile. She could feel him watching her. When she walked even with the window where the boy was watching she stopped and turned. He didn't seem startled by the gesture. Anyone who was spiritually aware could feel someone looking at them. But what was that in his eyes? She thought. Her features faltered a moment, unnoticeably, as she looked into his eyes. The windows to the soul. The spark was gone. She brightened her smile slightly before turning and walking away. She saw the curtains fall back in place as the kitsune left the window.

'Hm, I wonder what he was thinking. Well it doesn't matter now. The emotion is gone. But still, I've never seen anything like it aimed at me before.' Thorn sighed. 'I must be imagining things.' She quickened her pace down the street.

Kurama walked back up to his room slowly, trying to put together the puzzle that Thorn had given him. But too many pieces were missing, so, he thought, he'd just have to wait for her to give out more.

"I take it she's already been here by the look on your face." Hiei stepped in from a tree branch near the kitsune's open window. Kurama turned to face the short youkai, nodding. He closed his door and crossed his arms, leaning against it with his eyes on the thick carpet.

"Did you get the information you wished to acquired from her?" Hiei asked.

"No. But I will," Kurama said determinedly.

"Hn. Once you get your mind set on something, there's no stopping you. But this girl. She seems to like leaving you in the dark."

"Funny, she said the almost exact same thing to me not five minutes ago. Only she said it was good for me." He smiled and gave a small chuckle. "I guess she's right. But it would help if I have a little more information to go on. Maybe I should ask Koenma if he's found out anything about her," he said musingly.

"Hn. I wouldn't," Hiei grunted. Kurama looked up.

"And why is that, Hiei?" he asked quietly. The youkai shrugged.

"If you noticed, she's avoided Koenma since we met her. Notice she left a note instead of speaking to him. With the exception of her talking to him about taking Gen Kai's place in the turnamate, she hasn't looked at him or spoken to him since," Hiei said.

"Are you saying you think she's afraid of him?" Kurama asked. "But she would have good reason. With all her power, it is assured that Koenma would find her a threat, even though we do not know the full extent of her strength."

"I noticed that she never used her powers with me when we trained. She didn't even use her healing powers, which I find strange."

"She used some of her powers with me. Although, now that you mention it, she never did seem to reveal her full potential as a fighter or use much of her spirit energy, even if she had exhausted her body," Kurama said, thinking out loud. Hiei looked up at him under his hair as the boy began to pace around the room.

"Hn. While you figure out what makes her so special, I'm going to see if Koenma has something worth while for me to do. This world bores me to no end," Hiei said, turning toward the window.

"Hm," Kurama said with a small wave as he left.

*

Hiei stood in Koenma's office, watching as the toddler rifled through a tall stack of papers. The young boy's face was etched in confusion as well as desperation. He looked up to see Hiei standing in front of his desk, but his work consumed his attention entirely.

Hiei glared at him until the young ruler looked up.

"What do you want, Hiei? Can't you see I'm busy?" he said harshly. "I don't have anything for any of you to do now, so just try to keep yourself amused in the human world....without hurting anyone," he added after the youkai's eyes lifted just slightly and his lips twitched. At the later statement he scowled dolefully.

"Hn. So what is so important?" Hiei growled.

"I'm trying to find information on Thorn. I haven't found a thing! People just don't appear! I don't understand it. Not only that, but I have no information about her to go on. Unless you or Kurama have found something..?" Koenma asked, stopping his work and putting his energies toward focusing on the fire demon.

"Hn," Hiei replied. Koenma sighed.

"I thought as much," he said, his shoulders slumping as he returned his attention toward the many books and paper stacks on his cluttered desk.

"Oh! What am I going to do?" Koenma whined, holding his head with his hands after another five straight minutes of searching. "I can't find a thing! Ogre! Bring me something to eat!" he demanded. The blue ogre rushed in with a tray.

"Here you go Koenma, sir!" he panted, setting the tray on the desk.

"Ogre! Watch it! These are important documents!" Koenma growled.

"Oh! Sorry sir!"

Hiei rolled his eyes and left the room.

"Don't worry, Hiei! I have a feeling something will turn up for you to do!" Koenma called after the fire youkai as he stuffed his face.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Authoress' Note: ^_^ 'nother chappy done! Yay! Sorry if I got the suffixes wrong, I'm new at them. Yay! More reviews! Rose Whip of the Darkness Flame, you are one of my most loyal reviewers!

Yusuke: Why wasn't I in this chapter? -whine-

J: dammit, will you quit bugging me about it?!

Yusuke: but I wanna have a part!

J: well next chapter your name is the first one on the screen, happy?

Yusuke: yeah!

Botan: and I get to scream at you! n_n

J: yup! ^_^

Yusuke: -rolls eyes- wonderful.

J: of course it is! You get a new mission next time!

Kuwabara: yeah! Time to go kick some bad-guy butt!

Yukina: Oh, be careful Kazuma.

Kuwabara: -blush- I, Kazuma Kuwabara, shall grant us victory!

All but Yukina&Kuwabara: -rolls eyes- -_-' baka.

Kurama: J-san, when do I get to write my story? -big puppy-dog eyes-

J: don't gimme that look! You'll get to it as soon as I let you on my computer. Frankly, its still getting repairs from the first story, the one that Hiei wrote.

All: ~Flashback~ Hiei beating the sh*t out of the computer tower, saying it was an incarnation of evil because of its annoying hum. ~*end flashback*~ -shudder-

Hiei: -mumbles- it IS an incarnation of evil. Just listen to it hum!

All: -_- sure.

J: well, enough of that. Kurama's story will be up…when it gets written, so get that pencil a-scratchin' boy!

Kurama: -rummages through desk for paper and pen- -finds- -begins to write-

J: -rolls eyes- Just make sure Kuronue and Youko are in it! Okay, well, to answer your review,

Rose Whip of the Darkness Flame: She will eventually admit to knowing more than they believe she could. It comes in later chapters. Try to be patient. ^_^. And I updated faster just for you!

J: Alright, this author's note is getting waay too long!

Click the pretty purple button! ^_^