Thank you, Ensatsu-Kokoryu-Ha, for all your encouragement, and also for the feedback. I've changed the misspelled name.
I do not own any YYH characters. They belong to their author/creator Yoshihiro Togashi. The "Black Widow" name is also used by Marvel; I don't know anything about that character, so any similarities beyond name are completely coincidental.
Kira woke at four in the morning and looked around carefully. Kurama was sitting in a straight-backed chair with his eyes closed. Kira listened to his deep, even breathing for two minutes before lifting herself off the couch and moving to the door. Her hand had just closed around the handle when Kurama said, "You're an assassin, right?" Tira turned back to look at the kitsune, whose large emerald eyes were luminous in the predawn light. "The tattoo on the back of your neck. I've seen it before." He stood with the unusual grace of his kind and walked over to her. "You were contracted to kill Yuuske." It wasn't a question. "Who paid for the killing?
Kira, expressionless, shrugged and took a moment to study the fox-demon in his human form. His hair was thick and beautiful, redder than blood. He smelled vaguely of roses, and Kira recalled that his main weapon was the rose-whip. He probably had it hidden in his hair.
"I asked you a question." Kurama's voice became even quieter and deadlier.
"All I know is that the client is an enemy of Enma." That wasn't quite true. She also knew that he was able to pay an incredible sum of money to get the Spirit Detective out of the way, and he was willing to pay the sum. The fact that he hired an assassin meant that he couldn't take the target out himself: probably too weak, but possibly he needed his own connection to Urameshi's death hidden. Kira wasn't going to say such things to a one-thousand-year-old fox-demon; he could figure them out for himself.
"Where are you headed?" Kira was silent. "You tried to sneak out. Where were you going?
"Anywhere. If I can keep moving . . .
"Then maybe the Assassin's Guild won't catch you?" Kurama met her eyes, and she looked away.
"Urameshi told you?
"He didn't have to. I know that the Guild's tattoos are designed to hide spirit energy. I could sense yours while you were unconscious, which means the Guild has stopped protecting you. And the Guild's protection lasts until an assassin dies or the Guild decides to dispose of him.
Kira sagged against the doorframe, refusing to meet his eyes. "It will take a month to fade. Until then, it acts as a beacon.
"You're too weak to run.
"I'm too weak to fight. I don't have a choice.
"You could stay here.
She looked up angrily. "I don't need anyone's help, and I don't want your pity.
"I don't pity you. You tried to kill my friend, remember?" Kurama cocked his head. "Nevertheless, I'm offering you a chance to help protect him.
"Why the hell should I care about the brat?
"You nearly killed yourself to save him.
Giving up on escaping for the moment, Kira walked back to the couch, sat down and rested her head in her hands. "I needed to use him for my revenge. I didn't care whether he lived or died after that.
Kurama sat down next to her, felt her stiffen apprehensively. "If we work together, we might all survive this. Isn't that a good enough reason for a temporary alliance?
Without looking up, Kira muttered, "You aren't going to leave me alone until I agree?
"No," Kurama admitted cheerfully.
"Fine. I agree to a temporary alliance. Just remember: I don't want or need any Ôfriends', got it?" Kira glared at the kitsune.
"Wouldn't dream of it," Kurama assured her. "So, as a temporary ally, I suggest you get some sleep. You were in critical condition just a few hours ago; you need time to recover." Kurama gathered his belongings and pulled on his jacket.
"Where are you going?
"Now that we're working together, there's no reason to watch you. I'm going home." The demon in human form gave her a friendly grin. "I'll see you tomorrow.
Kira paid careful attention to his spirit energy, which she could feel receding into the distance. She waited patiently for it to come closer again, but it didn't. "He actually left?" Kira wondered. "Impossible. He wouldn't trust me so quickly." But she couldn't deny the fact that he was no longer nearby.
Kurama couldn't help but smile as he walked home. Although he was nervous about the assassins, it would take them a few days to reorganize, and Kurama knew that Yusuke had just gained an ally. A reluctant and defensive one, true, but the Spirit Detective had charmed Hiei; surely he could win the cooperation of a female who needed his protection. Ah, yes, Hiei: Kira's ferocity and surliness certainly reminded Kurama of the little fire demon. Kurama hoped he would be there to see the two demons meet each other. It would be an interesting fireworks show.
At 10AM, Yusuke's mom staggered out of her bedroom, holding her aching head. She went to sit down on the couch, but realized someone was sleeping on it.
"Yusuke? Where the hell is the aspirin?
She accepted the aspirin bottle while Yusuke got her a glass of water. He was being unusually considerate this morning, and he was even being quiet for once instead of nagging her about her drinking. She took four or five of the pills and downed the water, then wondered if the room would stop rocking back and forth long enough for her to get a beer from the refrigerator. It was ironic that the only thing that could make this headache go away was the very thing that had caused the headache in the first place. "Could you get me a beer, honey?" she tried, and was gratified when her son went back to the kitchen to get one.
Someone in the hallway yawned loudly and said, "Mom? You look terrible.
"Sweet of you to notice, dear," she answered automatically before noticing that something was wrong with this situation. If Yusuke was in front of her, then who was in the kitchen getting her a beer?
"Hey, Mom, have you seen--
"I'm in the kitchen, Urameshi," called an alto voice. The speaker entered the room a moment later with a beer. "For you, Urameshi-san.
"Oh, thanks dear . . . ah, Yusuke? Are you going to introduce me to your friend?" Yusuke's mother was wondering if her son had replaced Keiko, because his new friend was a striking woman of about twenty.
"Mom, this is Kira. She's a--
The former assassin interrupted, "--going to be staying here for a while, if that's OK with you, Urameshi-san.
"Sure, sure, any of Yusuke's friends are welcome. Have you known my son long?
Yusuke grabbed Kira's arm and dragged her to the kitchen. "Who said you could stay here?" he demanded with annoyance.
"Kurama.
"Oh." The Spirit Detective struggled for a way to respond to that. "But, you can't just . . .
"It's temporary, I assure you. For the moment, you need my help.
"I do not need anyone's--" Yusuke huffed.
There was a knock on the door, and the Spirit Detective went to answer. His mom was still too hung-over to get the door.
Keiko was standing there in her sailor-suit, clearly furious. "Urameshi Yusuke! WHY AREN'T YOU AT SCHOOL?" Crossing her arms, she continued, "This is the third day in a row! And Takenaka-san said that if you don't--" Keiko paused in her finger waggling to stare at the young woman standing in Urameshi's apartment. "Yusuke, who's this?
"She's just a, uh, a friend, Keiko. She spent the night with me. Nothing to worry about." Yusuke didn't want her caught up in his Spirit World problems again.
"Oh. I see." Keiko became suddenly very cold and formal. "Well, Urameshi, I just came to give you a warning, because I'm class representative, and I . . . I . . . I . . ." She trailed away as tears came to her eyes. "Yusuke, how could you? I hate you!" she sobbed and ran down the steps.
"Keiko . . .?" What had gotten into her? She was acting very strange.
He turned to see Kira smirking at him. "You might want to go after your girlfriend, Urameshi.
"Keiko's not my girl--
"You should probably explain the reason why I spent the night." She grinned wider. "Unless you want her to tell the whole school that you're cheating on her with an older woman?
Yusuke banged his fist against his head. He'd been so concerned about assuring Keiko that he wasn't in danger, he hadn't thought about how she would interpret the situation. When he caught up with her just outside the building, he said, "Keiko, wait! Let me explain!
"Hmph," replied Keiko airily.
"That girl . . . she didn't . . . well, actually, she did spend the night, but it's not what you think!
"Oh? And how do you know what I think, Urameshi?
"Well, I know it looked bad, but I honestly don't know the girl! I only met the girl yesterday!
SLAP! "If you didn't know her, why did you spend the night with her? Pervert!
Yusuke peeled himself off the sidewalk. "Keiko, listen to me! She's a demon, she was helping me fight another demon, and I brought her back to my apartment Ôcause she was hurt. I let her sleep on the couch.
"Then you didn't . . . and she wasn't . . . Oh, Yusuke! I thought that you and she . . ." She was crying again, but she threw her arms around him. Yusuke was wondering if this was a good chance to grab a squeeze, but remembered the force of her slap and thought he might recover for a minute first. "Hold on. If she's a demon, that means . . . Do you have another Spirit Detective assignment?
"Uh, no, of course not.
"You do! Oh, Yusuke, be careful! Last time, you almost died!" She was sobbing in earnest now, sniffling and crying into the front of Urameshi's jacket.
The Spirit Detective comforted her awkwardly. "There, there, Keiko, it's OK. Really, I don't have another assignment. It was just a random demon that was trying to kill me . . ." Keiko sobbed harder, and Yusuke wanted to kick himself for saying that. "But the important thing is, Keiko, that I'm OK and it's all over. You don't need to worry about it." He wiped away her tears.
"It's over now?
"Yeah.
"Then WHY AREN'T YOU IN SCHOOL?" Keiko bellowed. "I want you at school in twenty minutes, got it?" She turned and flounced away. Yusuke couldn't stop himself for leaning over to try to get a glimpse of her undies, but she was already too far away. Shrugging, he figured he might as well do as Keiko said. At least he'd have a chance to see Kuwabara and Kurama at school, and he didn't have to actually go to any classes if he didn't want to.
I do not own any YYH characters. They belong to their author/creator Yoshihiro Togashi. The "Black Widow" name is also used by Marvel; I don't know anything about that character, so any similarities beyond name are completely coincidental.
Kira woke at four in the morning and looked around carefully. Kurama was sitting in a straight-backed chair with his eyes closed. Kira listened to his deep, even breathing for two minutes before lifting herself off the couch and moving to the door. Her hand had just closed around the handle when Kurama said, "You're an assassin, right?" Tira turned back to look at the kitsune, whose large emerald eyes were luminous in the predawn light. "The tattoo on the back of your neck. I've seen it before." He stood with the unusual grace of his kind and walked over to her. "You were contracted to kill Yuuske." It wasn't a question. "Who paid for the killing?
Kira, expressionless, shrugged and took a moment to study the fox-demon in his human form. His hair was thick and beautiful, redder than blood. He smelled vaguely of roses, and Kira recalled that his main weapon was the rose-whip. He probably had it hidden in his hair.
"I asked you a question." Kurama's voice became even quieter and deadlier.
"All I know is that the client is an enemy of Enma." That wasn't quite true. She also knew that he was able to pay an incredible sum of money to get the Spirit Detective out of the way, and he was willing to pay the sum. The fact that he hired an assassin meant that he couldn't take the target out himself: probably too weak, but possibly he needed his own connection to Urameshi's death hidden. Kira wasn't going to say such things to a one-thousand-year-old fox-demon; he could figure them out for himself.
"Where are you headed?" Kira was silent. "You tried to sneak out. Where were you going?
"Anywhere. If I can keep moving . . .
"Then maybe the Assassin's Guild won't catch you?" Kurama met her eyes, and she looked away.
"Urameshi told you?
"He didn't have to. I know that the Guild's tattoos are designed to hide spirit energy. I could sense yours while you were unconscious, which means the Guild has stopped protecting you. And the Guild's protection lasts until an assassin dies or the Guild decides to dispose of him.
Kira sagged against the doorframe, refusing to meet his eyes. "It will take a month to fade. Until then, it acts as a beacon.
"You're too weak to run.
"I'm too weak to fight. I don't have a choice.
"You could stay here.
She looked up angrily. "I don't need anyone's help, and I don't want your pity.
"I don't pity you. You tried to kill my friend, remember?" Kurama cocked his head. "Nevertheless, I'm offering you a chance to help protect him.
"Why the hell should I care about the brat?
"You nearly killed yourself to save him.
Giving up on escaping for the moment, Kira walked back to the couch, sat down and rested her head in her hands. "I needed to use him for my revenge. I didn't care whether he lived or died after that.
Kurama sat down next to her, felt her stiffen apprehensively. "If we work together, we might all survive this. Isn't that a good enough reason for a temporary alliance?
Without looking up, Kira muttered, "You aren't going to leave me alone until I agree?
"No," Kurama admitted cheerfully.
"Fine. I agree to a temporary alliance. Just remember: I don't want or need any Ôfriends', got it?" Kira glared at the kitsune.
"Wouldn't dream of it," Kurama assured her. "So, as a temporary ally, I suggest you get some sleep. You were in critical condition just a few hours ago; you need time to recover." Kurama gathered his belongings and pulled on his jacket.
"Where are you going?
"Now that we're working together, there's no reason to watch you. I'm going home." The demon in human form gave her a friendly grin. "I'll see you tomorrow.
Kira paid careful attention to his spirit energy, which she could feel receding into the distance. She waited patiently for it to come closer again, but it didn't. "He actually left?" Kira wondered. "Impossible. He wouldn't trust me so quickly." But she couldn't deny the fact that he was no longer nearby.
Kurama couldn't help but smile as he walked home. Although he was nervous about the assassins, it would take them a few days to reorganize, and Kurama knew that Yusuke had just gained an ally. A reluctant and defensive one, true, but the Spirit Detective had charmed Hiei; surely he could win the cooperation of a female who needed his protection. Ah, yes, Hiei: Kira's ferocity and surliness certainly reminded Kurama of the little fire demon. Kurama hoped he would be there to see the two demons meet each other. It would be an interesting fireworks show.
At 10AM, Yusuke's mom staggered out of her bedroom, holding her aching head. She went to sit down on the couch, but realized someone was sleeping on it.
"Yusuke? Where the hell is the aspirin?
She accepted the aspirin bottle while Yusuke got her a glass of water. He was being unusually considerate this morning, and he was even being quiet for once instead of nagging her about her drinking. She took four or five of the pills and downed the water, then wondered if the room would stop rocking back and forth long enough for her to get a beer from the refrigerator. It was ironic that the only thing that could make this headache go away was the very thing that had caused the headache in the first place. "Could you get me a beer, honey?" she tried, and was gratified when her son went back to the kitchen to get one.
Someone in the hallway yawned loudly and said, "Mom? You look terrible.
"Sweet of you to notice, dear," she answered automatically before noticing that something was wrong with this situation. If Yusuke was in front of her, then who was in the kitchen getting her a beer?
"Hey, Mom, have you seen--
"I'm in the kitchen, Urameshi," called an alto voice. The speaker entered the room a moment later with a beer. "For you, Urameshi-san.
"Oh, thanks dear . . . ah, Yusuke? Are you going to introduce me to your friend?" Yusuke's mother was wondering if her son had replaced Keiko, because his new friend was a striking woman of about twenty.
"Mom, this is Kira. She's a--
The former assassin interrupted, "--going to be staying here for a while, if that's OK with you, Urameshi-san.
"Sure, sure, any of Yusuke's friends are welcome. Have you known my son long?
Yusuke grabbed Kira's arm and dragged her to the kitchen. "Who said you could stay here?" he demanded with annoyance.
"Kurama.
"Oh." The Spirit Detective struggled for a way to respond to that. "But, you can't just . . .
"It's temporary, I assure you. For the moment, you need my help.
"I do not need anyone's--" Yusuke huffed.
There was a knock on the door, and the Spirit Detective went to answer. His mom was still too hung-over to get the door.
Keiko was standing there in her sailor-suit, clearly furious. "Urameshi Yusuke! WHY AREN'T YOU AT SCHOOL?" Crossing her arms, she continued, "This is the third day in a row! And Takenaka-san said that if you don't--" Keiko paused in her finger waggling to stare at the young woman standing in Urameshi's apartment. "Yusuke, who's this?
"She's just a, uh, a friend, Keiko. She spent the night with me. Nothing to worry about." Yusuke didn't want her caught up in his Spirit World problems again.
"Oh. I see." Keiko became suddenly very cold and formal. "Well, Urameshi, I just came to give you a warning, because I'm class representative, and I . . . I . . . I . . ." She trailed away as tears came to her eyes. "Yusuke, how could you? I hate you!" she sobbed and ran down the steps.
"Keiko . . .?" What had gotten into her? She was acting very strange.
He turned to see Kira smirking at him. "You might want to go after your girlfriend, Urameshi.
"Keiko's not my girl--
"You should probably explain the reason why I spent the night." She grinned wider. "Unless you want her to tell the whole school that you're cheating on her with an older woman?
Yusuke banged his fist against his head. He'd been so concerned about assuring Keiko that he wasn't in danger, he hadn't thought about how she would interpret the situation. When he caught up with her just outside the building, he said, "Keiko, wait! Let me explain!
"Hmph," replied Keiko airily.
"That girl . . . she didn't . . . well, actually, she did spend the night, but it's not what you think!
"Oh? And how do you know what I think, Urameshi?
"Well, I know it looked bad, but I honestly don't know the girl! I only met the girl yesterday!
SLAP! "If you didn't know her, why did you spend the night with her? Pervert!
Yusuke peeled himself off the sidewalk. "Keiko, listen to me! She's a demon, she was helping me fight another demon, and I brought her back to my apartment Ôcause she was hurt. I let her sleep on the couch.
"Then you didn't . . . and she wasn't . . . Oh, Yusuke! I thought that you and she . . ." She was crying again, but she threw her arms around him. Yusuke was wondering if this was a good chance to grab a squeeze, but remembered the force of her slap and thought he might recover for a minute first. "Hold on. If she's a demon, that means . . . Do you have another Spirit Detective assignment?
"Uh, no, of course not.
"You do! Oh, Yusuke, be careful! Last time, you almost died!" She was sobbing in earnest now, sniffling and crying into the front of Urameshi's jacket.
The Spirit Detective comforted her awkwardly. "There, there, Keiko, it's OK. Really, I don't have another assignment. It was just a random demon that was trying to kill me . . ." Keiko sobbed harder, and Yusuke wanted to kick himself for saying that. "But the important thing is, Keiko, that I'm OK and it's all over. You don't need to worry about it." He wiped away her tears.
"It's over now?
"Yeah.
"Then WHY AREN'T YOU IN SCHOOL?" Keiko bellowed. "I want you at school in twenty minutes, got it?" She turned and flounced away. Yusuke couldn't stop himself for leaning over to try to get a glimpse of her undies, but she was already too far away. Shrugging, he figured he might as well do as Keiko said. At least he'd have a chance to see Kuwabara and Kurama at school, and he didn't have to actually go to any classes if he didn't want to.