Disclaimer: I don't own it, so you can't sue me. 'nuff said.
Quote of the week:
Susan: What are you kids trying to do? Make me go crazy?
KKC: What are you talking about, mom? We aren't even trying.
Fangirlitis: Yeah. It just comes naturally.
To Forest of Tears: As much as you would like to have Rogerik die a slow painful death, I can't. Originally designed as a bit of a comedic addition (much like Kuwabara, only way smarter.), Rogerik has wormed his horny little way into my heart and has blossomed into a main character. How often do main characters die in the beginning of a story or series? Never. (With the exception of Yuske, of course) But if you feel like killing him in any of your own fics, by all means go ahead. Just please give some credit to me for creating him.
Now here's where I somehow manage to write three months of school, Exams, and maybe the start of a local tournament in one chapter. This is gonna be a long chapter. Enjoy!
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Mid-term exams
The next two months became a blur to Yuske. Although he was homesick, his life at the academy soon became so settled down that he wondered how he couldn't have lived like this back in Japan. Kyuro and Salvatore had settled their disputes; and Bones had soon become such a common sight, that Yuske wasn't even freaked out when he found a bone or skull belonging to the dog under the bed, in the closet, or even the entire skeleton sprawled out in front of the fire place. Even Rogerik had become less of a hot head, and was starting to show how smart he actually was. Sure, he still got a little too close to Lyra, Lark, or Holly; but the girls' familiars put him in his place soon enough (Amazing how much damage a cat and lovebird can do, really.). Holly's habit of eating Oreos with peanut butter and Kuwabara's clock didn't even faze him anymore. It was strange how soon this place was starting to feel like home. Classes weren't much harder than the ones at home, but they were more varied than the average Japanese public high school. (Ki Manipulation, Illusionary Arts, and Undead Exterminating were a few of the more exciting classes.) Ryo wasn't Yuske's only teacher; though, just the one he saw most often. Classes with Laird Michelangelo were the worst; however, as the mysterious teacher always gave Yuske the chills. The Laird always kept to the shadows and was almost never seen. (Rachel had her nasty habits of lecturing and being too strict, but she had warmed up to the boys quite a while ago) If anything, this was turning out to be more of a school transfer than a dangerous mission.. Koenma hadn't called for over a week now.
Once things had settled down after the first month, Lyra started her battles with Hiei again about Salvatore. Although usually taking place outside, the fierce arguments and spats started rumors among the other students(hint hint, nudge nudge. I doubt *that* pairing would ever work though.) . It took a while for the rumor to die out however; until the sign- up sheets for the 978th Cumulus Academy tournament. Yuske had looked on with mild intrest at the forms, not really wanting to bother wasting his time with a bunch of school kids in the ring, but Kuwabaka had seen a chance to show off and had signed the entire Tantei up without their consent. Kurama and Yuske had tried to back out, as did Jin, who was signed up as a back up member, but Kuwabara offered to pay them. With Christmas coming up, they needed all the money they could get ('cept for Jin, of course. I heard that he has an entire treasury somewhere in the spirit world). And Hiei didn't care either way, as long as he got to inflict some pain. Less thrilling than the tournament were the Mid-term exams. The academy's school year was split into two terms, the first was from August 28th to December 23rd , and the second started on January third and ended on June twenty-sixth. The midterms for the first half of the school year wouldn't be that major, just a quick once-over of what they had learned up until early December. Finals; however, covered the entire school year, alumni events, critical news events, and more. Yuske wasn't that good when it came to tests, but gained a little hope when he found out that your rank in the tournament gave you bonus points on the test. (I.e. You come in first, you gain an automatic fifty points to your test score. Yuske and Kuwabara are definitely gonna need to come in the top three at the tournament to pass if their scores are going to be as low as they were back home.)
"Let's see . . . Rachel is giving a written test on medicinal plants, Professor Awizus is giving another written test about offensive spells, as well as a small obstacle course, and Senior Ryo is setting up the tests on Latin, astrology, and the Illusionary Arts." Kurama looked through their dorms' schedule for the exams, and continued down the lower half of the list. "After that is a quick break and then back for Erika's test on defensive techniques . . . weird . . .I don't recall any lessons with her . . ." Lyra looked over his shoulder from where She, Lark, and Holly were furiously arguing something in hushed tones. "Hm? Oh, it's just a placement test to see how well you know your defenses. The actual classes start after New Years'." Kurama nodded at her comment and continued down the list. "Right. So then Djorn is testing our speed, and . . . crud."
"What?"
"Laird Michelangelo is doing an entire battle technique skirmish. He'll actually be fighting us . . ."
"Good. I never liked that guy. He's too creepy to be a normal teacher." Yuske turned back to his manga comic and chips and dip and ignored Kurama. He was immediately hit on the head by Lark's High-heeled, spiked, leather boot. Yuske turned back to an angry Lark with guacamole dip all over his face. "May I ask what *that* was for?" Lark tried to be serious, but burst out laughing at Yuske. "You- you shouldn't ~snicker~ make fun of- Make fun of people. Ha! You look like something that crawled out of the pond!" Holly stopped munching on her own lunch and almost snorted her soda through her nose as she looked at the messy boy. "What was that about glass houses and stones, Lark!" Yuske retorted. And flung her now goop-covered shoe back at her. He got up off the couch and walked towards the bathroom, only to be bombarded by a bright light and the furious clicking sound that accompanied it. "Kuwabara, you baka! Did you steal Lark's digital camera?! Come back here with that! Just wait until I get my hands on you!" Kuwabara ran up the stairs, pausing long enough to yell at Yuske while he tripped up the stairs. "It's all for a good cause, Urameshi! I'm sure she won't mind!" Yuske grabbed the banister and pulled himself back up. "Well I goddamn do! You're good as dead when I get you!" Kuwabara passed the memory chip to Kyuro, who skittered back downstairs and into Holly's lap. Kyuro hastily spit it out with an unusual comment. "Ye- uck! That is the last time I put anything I my mouth Kuwabara touched! Uh. um, meow?" Kurama and Jin just stared at the black cat. Kyuro looked at the two surprised demons and back at his angry owner. "Eh-heh. sorry about the 'normal cat' scthick up?" Holly gave him another death glare, and said, "I guess you couldn't have kept it up much longer anyways." Kyuro cringed at her tone of voice. "Oooh, I am in such deep shit."
Holly had to do some fast-talking about how Kyuro was able to talk (and why the authoress hadn't had the familiar speak until this point in the fic for some reason.) to Yuske and the others, but only managed to get confused herself. "So.um.yeah. Kyuro's a helpful spirit that's been helping my family for generations-"
"Helping? Its forced labor, I tell ya!"
"Excuse me?! Forced labor? Oh, yeah. You really seem to be getting the short end of the stick there, buddy!"
"I was trapped! Do you know how hard it is to serve twelve generations of arrogant mortals? Do you?"
"Me? Arrogant? Since when have I acted arrogant?" as the conversation ensued into an argument, Hiei watched in mild intrest as the wind witch and her cat traded comments back and forth. Jin, however, was getting tired of the bickering and shut them up quickly. "Will the two of ya jus' SHUT UP? You guys have gotten along fine for fifteen years and now you start arguin'? Sounds a tad melodramatic to me." He slowly stood up and walked down to his room in silence.
"Why, Jin. I never knew you even used big words like 'melodramatic'." Jin's elvish ears flicked backwards at the comment, but he kept walking. "I mean, when you've grown up during the dark ages and everything. I think I met your mother in Northern Ireland once, during a hanging. Of course, she was the one being hanged- oop! Touchy, aren't we?" Kyuro gleefully sneered in the angered demon's face as Jin held a blade to his collared throat and coolly flicked his tail. Jin was at his wits' end with the familiar already, and it had only been an hour since the cat had blown his cover. "Jin, calm down. Kyuro's an ass. He just can't help it." Holly reasoned, throwing a reproachful glare at the feline while forcing the demon to sit down. "On the contrary, dear 'Master'. You have no idea how long I've wanted to say that. You always seem to attract the strangest fellows, and our friend here is no exception." Kyuro nodded his head at Jin, who looked ready to blow a gasket, and trotted off. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a nap in the sun I'd much rather not miss. Ta-ta."
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Lyra held up the last charm. It was black pearl about the size of a dime with a tiny rune on it in silver ink, and swung on the delicate chain. There was no doubt that the Urameshi team would get to the finals, and the fact that killing in this tournament was forbidden meant that the Tantei would most definitely hold back from using their full powers. If all went well, her and her companions would have this years' tournament in the bag. The doorknob to her room clicked open, and she haphazardly shoved the charms into a tiny silk pouch before shoving it under the mattress. Kurama had come to visit, probably to study for the exams. "So, what do you want to go over first?" Lyra asked from her bed. Kurama sat down backwards on her computer chair and didn't answer at first, lost in thought. Finally he sighed and got up. Walking over to the bed, he sat down next to her and asked, "Well actually, um, Lyra . . . I was wondering- " Lyra forced herself to stay calm and not start shrieking 'YES!' on the spot while she waited for Kurama to ask her THE question. In fact, she was so wrapped up in where they might go for her first date that she almost didn't hear Kurama stutter over the last part. Key word being *almost*. "- Would you help me shop for my mother? I mean, it would be nicer to have a girl's opinion, and." Lyra fell over at the sudden change in plans, but managed to recover herself before the embarrassed Kurama could notice. "Sure . . . that'd be just . . . fine," She said through gritted teeth, all hopes of taking a nice walk through town and a romantic dinner with the fox crushed.
Walking out of Lyra's room, Kurama mentally slapped himself for his stupidity. What? He had taken on the saint beasts, gotten through the Dark Tournament finals, *and* stolen the Forlorn Hope, but he couldn't ask a girl out. Pathetic, absolutely pa-the-tic. (Three words there, folks. Not one, three. See? *KKC holds up two fingers in a victory sign, notices it, and quickly tries to cover up while she puts up a third one* Eh-heh. ^-^;; Sorry . . . old habits die hard.) And, of course, Yoko's taunts didn't help. As Kurama furiously strode down the hall to his room, the demon's reflection sneered at him from each window. Kurama turned the doorknob to his shared bedroom, ready to go sulk, when Yoko's voice reverberated through his skull. "Idiot. Why are you taking it so slow? You're a powerful demon, she likes you, so why don't you take her?" Kurama grimaced at the mental image Yoko sent him and answered back, " Because my day is a lot different than yours, you horny old goat. Things change in a thousand years. For instance, togas aren't in style anymore." Yoko's fur bristled at the insult, but he managed to stay cool and collected nonetheless. "Either you do something about it, or I will, little kit. And I think you know what will happen if I take this little 'relationship' into my own hands, don't you? Hm?" Kurama just continued to stare at the Kitsune's fading reflection in the window before storming off outside.
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The test sessions were exceptionally quiet, and Yuske lazily searched for something to do while the other students were bent over their test packets, furiously scribbling with their pencils. Jin was busy controlling a tiny legion of tornadoes on his desk across the giant room, and he sheepishly grinned at Yuske as his pencil began to fly around like rocket ship. Yuske sighed; desperately wishing he had a few scraps of paper to doodle on, a manga comic, a book, anything to pass the time. Across the table from him sat Justin St.Pierre, the class clown, staring off into space and clicking a pen (You know, the type that you have to click the button on the end to make the tip come out.) absent mindedly. Yuske just stared at the pen, and eventually fell into a stupor himself, snapping out of it when the diminutive Senior Ryo walked around to his table and started collecting the thick test packets. "Yuske. Oh, Yuske. YUSKE!" The teen was so startled, he fell off his chair and onto the floor. A small rumble of laughter echoed across the room as Yuske clambered back into his seat, slightly blushing. Ryo grabbed Yuske's test with a chuckle and slapped it onto the large stack that was magically suspended behind him, a grin brightening his young features (although Ryo was probably older than Erika was). Jin joked with Yuske on their way to the front lawn, where a giant picnic lunch was being served. All the students, from toddlers to college-aged teens, were spread out across the wide field of dry grass eating, talking, and generally socializing. Jin's elfish ears twitched a little as he surveyed the scene with bright, twinkling eyes. Yuske turned around halfway and just stared at Jin. "What's wrong?" Yuske followed Jin's eyes to the huge crowd of people having fun on such a nice day and finally got the picture. "Oh, I get it . . . You've never really been out much, have you?" Jin continued gaping and blankly nodded. Yuske grabbed the demon by the hood of his sweatshirt and dragged him over to a table that his roommates and a few other friends sat, eating lunch. Lyonell, Justin (St. Pierre. The clicky-pen-guy), Kuwabara, and Rogerik were busy clustered around a working Gundam model, while Chrysanthemum chatted with Holly and Lark. Lyra and Kurama were wrapped in a conversation with an older snake-demon about the medicinal properties of a unicorn's horn versus the healing powers of dragon blood, and Hiei was off in his own little world. Yuske plopped down on the bench and Jin wandered off to get a helping of roast pork, the Japanese boy keeping an eye on the redhead to make sure he didn't fly off. Jin came back, his plate completely hidden under heaping servings of potato and Macaroni salad, potato chips, and pork; opened a can of root beer and quickly delved into a conversation with the boys around the model.
Desperate for even just a little attention, Yuske tried to spark a conversation with the gloomy Hiei, but with little success. At least Hiei was improving on his social skills, ha had actually spoken a few words with Yuske before drifting back into La-la land. Shoving some coleslaw into his mouth, Yuske listened carefully to the others' discussions. Lark's voice was the loudest, but Yuske didn't bother to listen; until Chrysanthemum trapped Holly into telling her whether or not she liked Jin, the cheerful wind master was too enthralled with the model to even hear her. "Well . . . um, yeah. I do." Holly stuttered, and angrily glared at her two friends. "What? He's a nice guy!" Lark stopped giggling and asked, "Don't you know who he *is*? Jin is a member of the Shinobi-" Yuske choked on his Sprite. How the hell did Lark know?! Holly felt the same way. "And how the hell would you know?!"
"You forget, I've been keeping an eye on the Tantei ever since Koenma-chan told me. He even sends me tapes sometimes. I burned a copy of the entire Dark Tournament on DVD if you want to watch it on my computer . . ." Yuske almost poked himself in the face with his fork he was in such a shock. But what came next was even worse. "Oh, the dark tournament! My sister is the leader of a fan club for one of the fighters. I think it was this guy named Urameshi-" Chrysanthemum said, while the gnawing a chicken bone. That was the last straw. Yuske picked up his tray and tossed it in a garbage bag, then leisurely walked over to the headmaster's offices, where Erika's test was being held in about twenty minutes.
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"What!? How come you get a fan club and I don't?" Kuwabara was close to beating on Yuske, but the shorter boy held up his hands. "Wait! Calm down, that's not all!"
"What? You have fan shrines too? That is so unfair!"
"NO! God no! I'd hate to have a horde of rabid fans! (Heh-heh . . . too true . . . *twitchshuddertwitch* Rabid fans . . . EVIL!) Actually, its about Lark . . ."
"Oh, is she your fan club's president?"
"Argh! Shaddap with the fan club! The thing is, Lark has all our fights and missions on tape!" The other three Tantei just stared at Yuske with blank looks. "You're kidding . . . right?" Kurama asked. "Why would she bother keeping up with our missions?"
"She burned the entire Dark Tournament onto a DVD!" Yuske practically yelled in the fox's face. "That could be a problem . . . but I'm sure Koenma trusts Lark enough that she wouldn't just go showing the tapes to anyone." Yuske almost tripped over his own feet at Kurama's words. "Wha- at!?! Think about it! Pacifier-breath, thinking that Lark is responsible?"
"He is right, Kurama. After all, if he picked Yuske and Kuwabara as spirit detectives . . ."
"Exactly- HEY!" Yuske grabbed Hiei by the collar of his black T-shirt, and pulled the demon up close. "And what is *that* supposed to mean?" Hiei expertly countered Yuske's grab and soon had the spirit detective in a painful headlock. "Nothing much, actually. Let's go, we have another exam."
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The offices' main hall was now home to giant beasts, a few ghosts, and an astounding array of different shield and barrier spells across the far wall. Kuwabara in awe of the giant magical shield, covering the way out as Yuske grimly noticed, almost walked right into the cage of a furious Hellhound. "YAH! Goddamn dog! He ruined my new shirt!" Kuwabara leapt away, shreds of his white shirt stuck on the demon-dog's claws. Lyra watched the scene quietly before walking over and conversing with the monster. "Bruiser, Puppy-boy! How are you?" The fearsome hellhound stopped growling and thrashing around when he heard her calming voice, and joyously walked up to the bars of his kennel with his whip-like tail wagging madly. "Good boy! You shouldn't attack people like that, though." Bruiser happily bayed and bowed down, asking her to play. "Not now, pup. I have a test. I'll play with you tomorrow, okay?" Lyra put her hands through the thick steel bars, not the wisest idea in Yuske's opinion, and gently patted the dog's reddish fur.
Kurama stared at Lyra's fearless feat in stunned silence. "You . . . know that dog?" Lyra looked up from the happy hound and said, "Yep! I helped raise Bruiser from a pup! He's such a sweetie." Kurama looked at her as if she had finally lost it, and looked at Kuwabara's destroyed shirt. Sweet . . . riiight. And Jin had a Masters degree in Language Skills. As soon as Kurama thought those exact words, the wind master himself popped his head through the doorway and immediately ran over to play with Bruiser. "'ey! Tha's a good lad. Down. Down, Bruiser. Good boy!" Bruiser sat next to Jin, tongue lolling out in extreme pleasure as the demon scratched him behind his ears. " If only to be a dog . . ." Kurama grinned as the hound whimpered, his two playmates off to take their tests.
Erika patiently sat in her old rocking chair, carried up to the office for the occasion, and crocheted a blanket out of chenille skeins. "So *that* was where all those extra blankets had come from . . ." Yuske mumbled. Students crowded around her, eager to get their test over and done with and get the heck outta there. The ancient woman waited until every student had come in before putting down the half-crocheted blanket and slamming the doors shut with her spirit energy. The giant wooden doors shut out all light except for the glow created by the wall of magical bonds, and to Yuske and Jin's annoyance, a few girls shrieked. "Quiet dears. Your test is to find your way over to the door out and unlock the bond tying this entire knot together. You have only one chance. After you have done that, are you allowed to leave."
"Hey, Erika. Exactly how many locks are in that thing." Yuske jabbed a finger at the menacing wall. Erika smiled, the light coming from the knot of spiritual locks and chains eerily lighting the many wrinkles in her face. "Over twenty thousand, hon. Good luck. Now, in alphabetical order; Niru Aaruo."
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Almost three hours later, Yuske was jostled from his nap. All his other friends had gotten through the wall, Hiei in a matter of seconds, and most of the other students hadn't been able to get through at all. All wasted time to him, he hated having to wait through almost a hundred other kids only to find himself standing before that giant wall and helplessly staring at the enormous jumble of energy. Only one strand out of that hopeless mess was the key to continuing on with his exams. Personally, he never cared about grades, but the thought of that baka (Kuwabara) leering over him and bragging about his superior senses was too much to bear. Gingerly, he touched the energy wall and felt the warmth of Erika's spirit energy pulse beneath his outstretched fingertips. They all seemed to be merged together at one point, somewhere around the lower right corner. Closing his eyes, he mentally searched for the binding knot, the one that held all the others in place.
He went along the wall, sorting through the glowing strands until he found one that seemed to be stronger than the rest. It was no thicker than a human hair, and Yuske was afraid he would snap it if he touched it. Gathering the tiny string of energy in his hands, he gave a tremendous yank and watched it slowly wind apart. When the last fiber finally broke free, the entire wall seemed to collapse and Yuske quickly tried to dart out of the way as it disintegrated into a million specks of shimmering blue all around him.
"Very good, Yuske." The youth turned towards the ancient teacher and nodded. Erika made a shooing motion with her callused hand. "Now get going to his Laird's test. I can't rethread the wall if you're standing in the way." Yuske opened the equally mammoth doors and stepped outside into the late fall sunlight. He joyously took a long breath of fresh air; standing around for hours in a musty office was horrible. To his surprise, Rogerik was leaning against the office's brick wall waiting for him. As Yuske came closer, he noticed that the blonde rogue was sound asleep. Smirking, Yuske roughly shook Rogerik's shoulder, and the sleeping teen lost his balance and fell over. "OY! Damn! Give me a warning next time you do that!" Rogerik slowly got to his feet and stretched, cracking his back and neck in the process to doubly annoy Yuske. "Ah, shut it! Where're the others?"
"What do you mean 'where are the others'? They're back at the dorm waiting for you."
"What! How long did it take them to finish Michelangelo's test?"
"It was called off. D'jornn's too. A horde of undead appeared near the forest's edge and all the other teachers around were called in to help fight 'em off."
"Undead?! There haven't been any since Labor Day!" Yuske sprinted off towards the coniferous woods, Rogerik struggling to keep up. Although the slightly less than moralistic boy had gotten quite a bit faster (amazing how fast their female roommates could run when they were angry) during the few months he had lived at the dorm, he still couldn't keep up to Yuske's sheer endurance. "Hey! Where are you going? That part is closed off! They won't let you in, unless you want to help with clean up, that is."
"Clean up! They finished already?!" Yuske whirled around and angrily faced his roommate. Rogerik screeched to a halt and held up his hands in defense. "Dude! Don't get so angry! It was just a pack of weak Crowlers."
"Crowlers?"
"Uh . . . yeah. What? You never heard of them?" Yuske's blank stare was all the answer he needed. "I guess not . . . okay . . . um, Crowlers are mostly annoying. They're not dangerous or anything. They look like crows and are usually hanging around wherever there's a fresh corpse. Some necromancers use them as spies." Now knowing what to look for, Yuske strained his eyes towards the red and golden treetops. Sure enough, a few large, black birds were climbing over the leafy branches. "I'm surprised we didn't see anything until now, actually." Rogerik watched as the Crowlers flew off to the west. "I mean, it's after Thanksgiving already. You would think they would've been seen way back in October, especially on All Hallows Eve. That's when the barriers between the living world and the world of the dead are seriously weak. Ah, whatever. We better get back before we miss dinner."
"Huh? Oh, yeah. The tournament start tomorrow, doesn't it?" Yuske started to walk to the shoreline, preferring the scenic route to the busy main pathways. Rogerik easily caught up and continued the conversation. "Yep. I'm not fighting, though." Yuske gave him a sidelong glance. "Why not?"
"I'm not much of a fighter, more of a thinker."
"Pfft. As if. I doubt your test scores are better than mine."
"What! I got a 98 last year on my finals!"
"Whatever."
"Oh, are you jealous that I can ace the test without bonus points? I can help you tudy if you need it."
"When you aren't chasing after a pair of size 9 designer jeans."
"Hey! I don't go chasing after *every* girl I meet. Just a lucky few."
"Riiight . . . You keep telling yourself that. Catch 'ya later." Yuske quickened his pace to a fast jog and left an annoyed Rogerik walking in the autumn mist. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yay! It's done! Now to start on chapter 10! By the way, what the **** happened to my loyal reviewers? I know you guys have at least another week to waste time and read fics, unlike me. Anywhoo, A good friend of mine is starting a fic soon, co-authored by Fangirlitis and I. He hasn't told me his penname or put up any fics yet, but it would be good idea to keep an eye on him. He's a pretty good writer and has some cool ideas.
I probably wouldn't have been able to get this thing done if it wasn't for The Mighty Mighty Bosstones blasting out of my stereo speakers at five in the morning, so I'm lucky I was able to finish this chapter in time, much less update it since my mom's floppy disk drive isn't working (writer's block sux). You'd think my parents would save themselves all the trouble and just let me have Internet access on my computer. Eh, oh well . . . can't win 'em all, I suppose. Until next chapter (which will hopefully be up before Thursday), see you later.
KKC
Quote of the week:
Susan: What are you kids trying to do? Make me go crazy?
KKC: What are you talking about, mom? We aren't even trying.
Fangirlitis: Yeah. It just comes naturally.
To Forest of Tears: As much as you would like to have Rogerik die a slow painful death, I can't. Originally designed as a bit of a comedic addition (much like Kuwabara, only way smarter.), Rogerik has wormed his horny little way into my heart and has blossomed into a main character. How often do main characters die in the beginning of a story or series? Never. (With the exception of Yuske, of course) But if you feel like killing him in any of your own fics, by all means go ahead. Just please give some credit to me for creating him.
Now here's where I somehow manage to write three months of school, Exams, and maybe the start of a local tournament in one chapter. This is gonna be a long chapter. Enjoy!
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Mid-term exams
The next two months became a blur to Yuske. Although he was homesick, his life at the academy soon became so settled down that he wondered how he couldn't have lived like this back in Japan. Kyuro and Salvatore had settled their disputes; and Bones had soon become such a common sight, that Yuske wasn't even freaked out when he found a bone or skull belonging to the dog under the bed, in the closet, or even the entire skeleton sprawled out in front of the fire place. Even Rogerik had become less of a hot head, and was starting to show how smart he actually was. Sure, he still got a little too close to Lyra, Lark, or Holly; but the girls' familiars put him in his place soon enough (Amazing how much damage a cat and lovebird can do, really.). Holly's habit of eating Oreos with peanut butter and Kuwabara's clock didn't even faze him anymore. It was strange how soon this place was starting to feel like home. Classes weren't much harder than the ones at home, but they were more varied than the average Japanese public high school. (Ki Manipulation, Illusionary Arts, and Undead Exterminating were a few of the more exciting classes.) Ryo wasn't Yuske's only teacher; though, just the one he saw most often. Classes with Laird Michelangelo were the worst; however, as the mysterious teacher always gave Yuske the chills. The Laird always kept to the shadows and was almost never seen. (Rachel had her nasty habits of lecturing and being too strict, but she had warmed up to the boys quite a while ago) If anything, this was turning out to be more of a school transfer than a dangerous mission.. Koenma hadn't called for over a week now.
Once things had settled down after the first month, Lyra started her battles with Hiei again about Salvatore. Although usually taking place outside, the fierce arguments and spats started rumors among the other students(hint hint, nudge nudge. I doubt *that* pairing would ever work though.) . It took a while for the rumor to die out however; until the sign- up sheets for the 978th Cumulus Academy tournament. Yuske had looked on with mild intrest at the forms, not really wanting to bother wasting his time with a bunch of school kids in the ring, but Kuwabaka had seen a chance to show off and had signed the entire Tantei up without their consent. Kurama and Yuske had tried to back out, as did Jin, who was signed up as a back up member, but Kuwabara offered to pay them. With Christmas coming up, they needed all the money they could get ('cept for Jin, of course. I heard that he has an entire treasury somewhere in the spirit world). And Hiei didn't care either way, as long as he got to inflict some pain. Less thrilling than the tournament were the Mid-term exams. The academy's school year was split into two terms, the first was from August 28th to December 23rd , and the second started on January third and ended on June twenty-sixth. The midterms for the first half of the school year wouldn't be that major, just a quick once-over of what they had learned up until early December. Finals; however, covered the entire school year, alumni events, critical news events, and more. Yuske wasn't that good when it came to tests, but gained a little hope when he found out that your rank in the tournament gave you bonus points on the test. (I.e. You come in first, you gain an automatic fifty points to your test score. Yuske and Kuwabara are definitely gonna need to come in the top three at the tournament to pass if their scores are going to be as low as they were back home.)
"Let's see . . . Rachel is giving a written test on medicinal plants, Professor Awizus is giving another written test about offensive spells, as well as a small obstacle course, and Senior Ryo is setting up the tests on Latin, astrology, and the Illusionary Arts." Kurama looked through their dorms' schedule for the exams, and continued down the lower half of the list. "After that is a quick break and then back for Erika's test on defensive techniques . . . weird . . .I don't recall any lessons with her . . ." Lyra looked over his shoulder from where She, Lark, and Holly were furiously arguing something in hushed tones. "Hm? Oh, it's just a placement test to see how well you know your defenses. The actual classes start after New Years'." Kurama nodded at her comment and continued down the list. "Right. So then Djorn is testing our speed, and . . . crud."
"What?"
"Laird Michelangelo is doing an entire battle technique skirmish. He'll actually be fighting us . . ."
"Good. I never liked that guy. He's too creepy to be a normal teacher." Yuske turned back to his manga comic and chips and dip and ignored Kurama. He was immediately hit on the head by Lark's High-heeled, spiked, leather boot. Yuske turned back to an angry Lark with guacamole dip all over his face. "May I ask what *that* was for?" Lark tried to be serious, but burst out laughing at Yuske. "You- you shouldn't ~snicker~ make fun of- Make fun of people. Ha! You look like something that crawled out of the pond!" Holly stopped munching on her own lunch and almost snorted her soda through her nose as she looked at the messy boy. "What was that about glass houses and stones, Lark!" Yuske retorted. And flung her now goop-covered shoe back at her. He got up off the couch and walked towards the bathroom, only to be bombarded by a bright light and the furious clicking sound that accompanied it. "Kuwabara, you baka! Did you steal Lark's digital camera?! Come back here with that! Just wait until I get my hands on you!" Kuwabara ran up the stairs, pausing long enough to yell at Yuske while he tripped up the stairs. "It's all for a good cause, Urameshi! I'm sure she won't mind!" Yuske grabbed the banister and pulled himself back up. "Well I goddamn do! You're good as dead when I get you!" Kuwabara passed the memory chip to Kyuro, who skittered back downstairs and into Holly's lap. Kyuro hastily spit it out with an unusual comment. "Ye- uck! That is the last time I put anything I my mouth Kuwabara touched! Uh. um, meow?" Kurama and Jin just stared at the black cat. Kyuro looked at the two surprised demons and back at his angry owner. "Eh-heh. sorry about the 'normal cat' scthick up?" Holly gave him another death glare, and said, "I guess you couldn't have kept it up much longer anyways." Kyuro cringed at her tone of voice. "Oooh, I am in such deep shit."
Holly had to do some fast-talking about how Kyuro was able to talk (and why the authoress hadn't had the familiar speak until this point in the fic for some reason.) to Yuske and the others, but only managed to get confused herself. "So.um.yeah. Kyuro's a helpful spirit that's been helping my family for generations-"
"Helping? Its forced labor, I tell ya!"
"Excuse me?! Forced labor? Oh, yeah. You really seem to be getting the short end of the stick there, buddy!"
"I was trapped! Do you know how hard it is to serve twelve generations of arrogant mortals? Do you?"
"Me? Arrogant? Since when have I acted arrogant?" as the conversation ensued into an argument, Hiei watched in mild intrest as the wind witch and her cat traded comments back and forth. Jin, however, was getting tired of the bickering and shut them up quickly. "Will the two of ya jus' SHUT UP? You guys have gotten along fine for fifteen years and now you start arguin'? Sounds a tad melodramatic to me." He slowly stood up and walked down to his room in silence.
"Why, Jin. I never knew you even used big words like 'melodramatic'." Jin's elvish ears flicked backwards at the comment, but he kept walking. "I mean, when you've grown up during the dark ages and everything. I think I met your mother in Northern Ireland once, during a hanging. Of course, she was the one being hanged- oop! Touchy, aren't we?" Kyuro gleefully sneered in the angered demon's face as Jin held a blade to his collared throat and coolly flicked his tail. Jin was at his wits' end with the familiar already, and it had only been an hour since the cat had blown his cover. "Jin, calm down. Kyuro's an ass. He just can't help it." Holly reasoned, throwing a reproachful glare at the feline while forcing the demon to sit down. "On the contrary, dear 'Master'. You have no idea how long I've wanted to say that. You always seem to attract the strangest fellows, and our friend here is no exception." Kyuro nodded his head at Jin, who looked ready to blow a gasket, and trotted off. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a nap in the sun I'd much rather not miss. Ta-ta."
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Lyra held up the last charm. It was black pearl about the size of a dime with a tiny rune on it in silver ink, and swung on the delicate chain. There was no doubt that the Urameshi team would get to the finals, and the fact that killing in this tournament was forbidden meant that the Tantei would most definitely hold back from using their full powers. If all went well, her and her companions would have this years' tournament in the bag. The doorknob to her room clicked open, and she haphazardly shoved the charms into a tiny silk pouch before shoving it under the mattress. Kurama had come to visit, probably to study for the exams. "So, what do you want to go over first?" Lyra asked from her bed. Kurama sat down backwards on her computer chair and didn't answer at first, lost in thought. Finally he sighed and got up. Walking over to the bed, he sat down next to her and asked, "Well actually, um, Lyra . . . I was wondering- " Lyra forced herself to stay calm and not start shrieking 'YES!' on the spot while she waited for Kurama to ask her THE question. In fact, she was so wrapped up in where they might go for her first date that she almost didn't hear Kurama stutter over the last part. Key word being *almost*. "- Would you help me shop for my mother? I mean, it would be nicer to have a girl's opinion, and." Lyra fell over at the sudden change in plans, but managed to recover herself before the embarrassed Kurama could notice. "Sure . . . that'd be just . . . fine," She said through gritted teeth, all hopes of taking a nice walk through town and a romantic dinner with the fox crushed.
Walking out of Lyra's room, Kurama mentally slapped himself for his stupidity. What? He had taken on the saint beasts, gotten through the Dark Tournament finals, *and* stolen the Forlorn Hope, but he couldn't ask a girl out. Pathetic, absolutely pa-the-tic. (Three words there, folks. Not one, three. See? *KKC holds up two fingers in a victory sign, notices it, and quickly tries to cover up while she puts up a third one* Eh-heh. ^-^;; Sorry . . . old habits die hard.) And, of course, Yoko's taunts didn't help. As Kurama furiously strode down the hall to his room, the demon's reflection sneered at him from each window. Kurama turned the doorknob to his shared bedroom, ready to go sulk, when Yoko's voice reverberated through his skull. "Idiot. Why are you taking it so slow? You're a powerful demon, she likes you, so why don't you take her?" Kurama grimaced at the mental image Yoko sent him and answered back, " Because my day is a lot different than yours, you horny old goat. Things change in a thousand years. For instance, togas aren't in style anymore." Yoko's fur bristled at the insult, but he managed to stay cool and collected nonetheless. "Either you do something about it, or I will, little kit. And I think you know what will happen if I take this little 'relationship' into my own hands, don't you? Hm?" Kurama just continued to stare at the Kitsune's fading reflection in the window before storming off outside.
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The test sessions were exceptionally quiet, and Yuske lazily searched for something to do while the other students were bent over their test packets, furiously scribbling with their pencils. Jin was busy controlling a tiny legion of tornadoes on his desk across the giant room, and he sheepishly grinned at Yuske as his pencil began to fly around like rocket ship. Yuske sighed; desperately wishing he had a few scraps of paper to doodle on, a manga comic, a book, anything to pass the time. Across the table from him sat Justin St.Pierre, the class clown, staring off into space and clicking a pen (You know, the type that you have to click the button on the end to make the tip come out.) absent mindedly. Yuske just stared at the pen, and eventually fell into a stupor himself, snapping out of it when the diminutive Senior Ryo walked around to his table and started collecting the thick test packets. "Yuske. Oh, Yuske. YUSKE!" The teen was so startled, he fell off his chair and onto the floor. A small rumble of laughter echoed across the room as Yuske clambered back into his seat, slightly blushing. Ryo grabbed Yuske's test with a chuckle and slapped it onto the large stack that was magically suspended behind him, a grin brightening his young features (although Ryo was probably older than Erika was). Jin joked with Yuske on their way to the front lawn, where a giant picnic lunch was being served. All the students, from toddlers to college-aged teens, were spread out across the wide field of dry grass eating, talking, and generally socializing. Jin's elfish ears twitched a little as he surveyed the scene with bright, twinkling eyes. Yuske turned around halfway and just stared at Jin. "What's wrong?" Yuske followed Jin's eyes to the huge crowd of people having fun on such a nice day and finally got the picture. "Oh, I get it . . . You've never really been out much, have you?" Jin continued gaping and blankly nodded. Yuske grabbed the demon by the hood of his sweatshirt and dragged him over to a table that his roommates and a few other friends sat, eating lunch. Lyonell, Justin (St. Pierre. The clicky-pen-guy), Kuwabara, and Rogerik were busy clustered around a working Gundam model, while Chrysanthemum chatted with Holly and Lark. Lyra and Kurama were wrapped in a conversation with an older snake-demon about the medicinal properties of a unicorn's horn versus the healing powers of dragon blood, and Hiei was off in his own little world. Yuske plopped down on the bench and Jin wandered off to get a helping of roast pork, the Japanese boy keeping an eye on the redhead to make sure he didn't fly off. Jin came back, his plate completely hidden under heaping servings of potato and Macaroni salad, potato chips, and pork; opened a can of root beer and quickly delved into a conversation with the boys around the model.
Desperate for even just a little attention, Yuske tried to spark a conversation with the gloomy Hiei, but with little success. At least Hiei was improving on his social skills, ha had actually spoken a few words with Yuske before drifting back into La-la land. Shoving some coleslaw into his mouth, Yuske listened carefully to the others' discussions. Lark's voice was the loudest, but Yuske didn't bother to listen; until Chrysanthemum trapped Holly into telling her whether or not she liked Jin, the cheerful wind master was too enthralled with the model to even hear her. "Well . . . um, yeah. I do." Holly stuttered, and angrily glared at her two friends. "What? He's a nice guy!" Lark stopped giggling and asked, "Don't you know who he *is*? Jin is a member of the Shinobi-" Yuske choked on his Sprite. How the hell did Lark know?! Holly felt the same way. "And how the hell would you know?!"
"You forget, I've been keeping an eye on the Tantei ever since Koenma-chan told me. He even sends me tapes sometimes. I burned a copy of the entire Dark Tournament on DVD if you want to watch it on my computer . . ." Yuske almost poked himself in the face with his fork he was in such a shock. But what came next was even worse. "Oh, the dark tournament! My sister is the leader of a fan club for one of the fighters. I think it was this guy named Urameshi-" Chrysanthemum said, while the gnawing a chicken bone. That was the last straw. Yuske picked up his tray and tossed it in a garbage bag, then leisurely walked over to the headmaster's offices, where Erika's test was being held in about twenty minutes.
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"What!? How come you get a fan club and I don't?" Kuwabara was close to beating on Yuske, but the shorter boy held up his hands. "Wait! Calm down, that's not all!"
"What? You have fan shrines too? That is so unfair!"
"NO! God no! I'd hate to have a horde of rabid fans! (Heh-heh . . . too true . . . *twitchshuddertwitch* Rabid fans . . . EVIL!) Actually, its about Lark . . ."
"Oh, is she your fan club's president?"
"Argh! Shaddap with the fan club! The thing is, Lark has all our fights and missions on tape!" The other three Tantei just stared at Yuske with blank looks. "You're kidding . . . right?" Kurama asked. "Why would she bother keeping up with our missions?"
"She burned the entire Dark Tournament onto a DVD!" Yuske practically yelled in the fox's face. "That could be a problem . . . but I'm sure Koenma trusts Lark enough that she wouldn't just go showing the tapes to anyone." Yuske almost tripped over his own feet at Kurama's words. "Wha- at!?! Think about it! Pacifier-breath, thinking that Lark is responsible?"
"He is right, Kurama. After all, if he picked Yuske and Kuwabara as spirit detectives . . ."
"Exactly- HEY!" Yuske grabbed Hiei by the collar of his black T-shirt, and pulled the demon up close. "And what is *that* supposed to mean?" Hiei expertly countered Yuske's grab and soon had the spirit detective in a painful headlock. "Nothing much, actually. Let's go, we have another exam."
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The offices' main hall was now home to giant beasts, a few ghosts, and an astounding array of different shield and barrier spells across the far wall. Kuwabara in awe of the giant magical shield, covering the way out as Yuske grimly noticed, almost walked right into the cage of a furious Hellhound. "YAH! Goddamn dog! He ruined my new shirt!" Kuwabara leapt away, shreds of his white shirt stuck on the demon-dog's claws. Lyra watched the scene quietly before walking over and conversing with the monster. "Bruiser, Puppy-boy! How are you?" The fearsome hellhound stopped growling and thrashing around when he heard her calming voice, and joyously walked up to the bars of his kennel with his whip-like tail wagging madly. "Good boy! You shouldn't attack people like that, though." Bruiser happily bayed and bowed down, asking her to play. "Not now, pup. I have a test. I'll play with you tomorrow, okay?" Lyra put her hands through the thick steel bars, not the wisest idea in Yuske's opinion, and gently patted the dog's reddish fur.
Kurama stared at Lyra's fearless feat in stunned silence. "You . . . know that dog?" Lyra looked up from the happy hound and said, "Yep! I helped raise Bruiser from a pup! He's such a sweetie." Kurama looked at her as if she had finally lost it, and looked at Kuwabara's destroyed shirt. Sweet . . . riiight. And Jin had a Masters degree in Language Skills. As soon as Kurama thought those exact words, the wind master himself popped his head through the doorway and immediately ran over to play with Bruiser. "'ey! Tha's a good lad. Down. Down, Bruiser. Good boy!" Bruiser sat next to Jin, tongue lolling out in extreme pleasure as the demon scratched him behind his ears. " If only to be a dog . . ." Kurama grinned as the hound whimpered, his two playmates off to take their tests.
Erika patiently sat in her old rocking chair, carried up to the office for the occasion, and crocheted a blanket out of chenille skeins. "So *that* was where all those extra blankets had come from . . ." Yuske mumbled. Students crowded around her, eager to get their test over and done with and get the heck outta there. The ancient woman waited until every student had come in before putting down the half-crocheted blanket and slamming the doors shut with her spirit energy. The giant wooden doors shut out all light except for the glow created by the wall of magical bonds, and to Yuske and Jin's annoyance, a few girls shrieked. "Quiet dears. Your test is to find your way over to the door out and unlock the bond tying this entire knot together. You have only one chance. After you have done that, are you allowed to leave."
"Hey, Erika. Exactly how many locks are in that thing." Yuske jabbed a finger at the menacing wall. Erika smiled, the light coming from the knot of spiritual locks and chains eerily lighting the many wrinkles in her face. "Over twenty thousand, hon. Good luck. Now, in alphabetical order; Niru Aaruo."
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Almost three hours later, Yuske was jostled from his nap. All his other friends had gotten through the wall, Hiei in a matter of seconds, and most of the other students hadn't been able to get through at all. All wasted time to him, he hated having to wait through almost a hundred other kids only to find himself standing before that giant wall and helplessly staring at the enormous jumble of energy. Only one strand out of that hopeless mess was the key to continuing on with his exams. Personally, he never cared about grades, but the thought of that baka (Kuwabara) leering over him and bragging about his superior senses was too much to bear. Gingerly, he touched the energy wall and felt the warmth of Erika's spirit energy pulse beneath his outstretched fingertips. They all seemed to be merged together at one point, somewhere around the lower right corner. Closing his eyes, he mentally searched for the binding knot, the one that held all the others in place.
He went along the wall, sorting through the glowing strands until he found one that seemed to be stronger than the rest. It was no thicker than a human hair, and Yuske was afraid he would snap it if he touched it. Gathering the tiny string of energy in his hands, he gave a tremendous yank and watched it slowly wind apart. When the last fiber finally broke free, the entire wall seemed to collapse and Yuske quickly tried to dart out of the way as it disintegrated into a million specks of shimmering blue all around him.
"Very good, Yuske." The youth turned towards the ancient teacher and nodded. Erika made a shooing motion with her callused hand. "Now get going to his Laird's test. I can't rethread the wall if you're standing in the way." Yuske opened the equally mammoth doors and stepped outside into the late fall sunlight. He joyously took a long breath of fresh air; standing around for hours in a musty office was horrible. To his surprise, Rogerik was leaning against the office's brick wall waiting for him. As Yuske came closer, he noticed that the blonde rogue was sound asleep. Smirking, Yuske roughly shook Rogerik's shoulder, and the sleeping teen lost his balance and fell over. "OY! Damn! Give me a warning next time you do that!" Rogerik slowly got to his feet and stretched, cracking his back and neck in the process to doubly annoy Yuske. "Ah, shut it! Where're the others?"
"What do you mean 'where are the others'? They're back at the dorm waiting for you."
"What! How long did it take them to finish Michelangelo's test?"
"It was called off. D'jornn's too. A horde of undead appeared near the forest's edge and all the other teachers around were called in to help fight 'em off."
"Undead?! There haven't been any since Labor Day!" Yuske sprinted off towards the coniferous woods, Rogerik struggling to keep up. Although the slightly less than moralistic boy had gotten quite a bit faster (amazing how fast their female roommates could run when they were angry) during the few months he had lived at the dorm, he still couldn't keep up to Yuske's sheer endurance. "Hey! Where are you going? That part is closed off! They won't let you in, unless you want to help with clean up, that is."
"Clean up! They finished already?!" Yuske whirled around and angrily faced his roommate. Rogerik screeched to a halt and held up his hands in defense. "Dude! Don't get so angry! It was just a pack of weak Crowlers."
"Crowlers?"
"Uh . . . yeah. What? You never heard of them?" Yuske's blank stare was all the answer he needed. "I guess not . . . okay . . . um, Crowlers are mostly annoying. They're not dangerous or anything. They look like crows and are usually hanging around wherever there's a fresh corpse. Some necromancers use them as spies." Now knowing what to look for, Yuske strained his eyes towards the red and golden treetops. Sure enough, a few large, black birds were climbing over the leafy branches. "I'm surprised we didn't see anything until now, actually." Rogerik watched as the Crowlers flew off to the west. "I mean, it's after Thanksgiving already. You would think they would've been seen way back in October, especially on All Hallows Eve. That's when the barriers between the living world and the world of the dead are seriously weak. Ah, whatever. We better get back before we miss dinner."
"Huh? Oh, yeah. The tournament start tomorrow, doesn't it?" Yuske started to walk to the shoreline, preferring the scenic route to the busy main pathways. Rogerik easily caught up and continued the conversation. "Yep. I'm not fighting, though." Yuske gave him a sidelong glance. "Why not?"
"I'm not much of a fighter, more of a thinker."
"Pfft. As if. I doubt your test scores are better than mine."
"What! I got a 98 last year on my finals!"
"Whatever."
"Oh, are you jealous that I can ace the test without bonus points? I can help you tudy if you need it."
"When you aren't chasing after a pair of size 9 designer jeans."
"Hey! I don't go chasing after *every* girl I meet. Just a lucky few."
"Riiight . . . You keep telling yourself that. Catch 'ya later." Yuske quickened his pace to a fast jog and left an annoyed Rogerik walking in the autumn mist. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yay! It's done! Now to start on chapter 10! By the way, what the **** happened to my loyal reviewers? I know you guys have at least another week to waste time and read fics, unlike me. Anywhoo, A good friend of mine is starting a fic soon, co-authored by Fangirlitis and I. He hasn't told me his penname or put up any fics yet, but it would be good idea to keep an eye on him. He's a pretty good writer and has some cool ideas.
I probably wouldn't have been able to get this thing done if it wasn't for The Mighty Mighty Bosstones blasting out of my stereo speakers at five in the morning, so I'm lucky I was able to finish this chapter in time, much less update it since my mom's floppy disk drive isn't working (writer's block sux). You'd think my parents would save themselves all the trouble and just let me have Internet access on my computer. Eh, oh well . . . can't win 'em all, I suppose. Until next chapter (which will hopefully be up before Thursday), see you later.
KKC