Disclaimer: While I was doing my homework, which was listening to the radio in french, the...radio person burst out in ENGLISH all of a sudden. "I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho! She doesn't own Yu Yu Hakusho! They don't own Yu Yu Hakusho! Yoshihiro Togashi does!"

A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed, favorited me, author alerted me. You know. To clear up some questions from Sheik83. I'm not too sure how old I wanted Kurama to be, so I didn't outright say his age, and because things like that give me a headache. And Shiori didn't contact Harry because she thought he'd be happier with his more immediate family, but when she figured out that his living conditions weren't the best, she...took actions? There's another little reason, but that's part of the plot. And yes, this does take place after the fifth book.

The HP/YYH fic you were talking about. It's the one by NightSeer, isn't it? Well, I read that one too, and I got inspired by that, and a whole lot of others. Kurama's not really living with his mom, per say... Er... He was staying over for the weekend as a family reunion of sorts. Yes. That's it. Don't worry about it, I don't mind questions. XDD

Warnings: Language, implied shounen-ai, violence, ah, well, it was in the first chapter. Go there if you want a list. Oh, and I might accidently randomly switch tenses. I don't do it on purpose! I swear!

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Once Upon a Time

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Chapter 1: Death Eaters

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Kurama stood at the edge of the driveway of Privet Drive. He glanced at a piece of paper in his right hand, a small suitcase in the other. The redhead looked at the house again, and then the paper. And again. Paper. House. Paper. House. He repeated this process several times before stuffing the scrap piece of paper into his pocket, and walked briskly up the driveway, shivering slightly at the tickly feeling of wards.

His hand hovered over the doorbell, before firmly pushing it. Kurama stood back, frowning slightly. From what his 'kaasan had told him, Harry's...guardians had a rather medieval attitude about magic. Were those footsteps? The redheaded youko thought idly, his keener senses having picked up the barely audible sound behind the door.

A big, beefy man with an extrordinarily large moustache opened the door. "Yes?" he asked curtly.

Kurama smiled politely. "May I please speak to Harry Potter?"

Vernon Dursley's face had paled dramatically when he took a good look at Kurama, moustache quivering. "No one who lives here goes by that name!" he spat.

"This is number four, Privet Drive, is it not?" The redhead noted the rapid loss of color, and the sounds of voices and movement behind the door. Kurama glanced at the sign that seemed to proudly declare 'Privet Drive'. "In fact, I'm fairly sure this is the right place. Is Harry Potter there?"


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It had started out like any another ordinary morning. Aunt Petunia shouting at him to get down here for breakfast. Harry Potter sighed, and shouted back. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" before swinging his legs of the bed mechanically and pulled on some clothes for the day.

Just another summer day. Just another day. Just another day. Yet it wasn't just any other day. It couldn't just be any other day. Because Sirius wasn't still alive. Harry's gaze dropped towards the still shrinked trunk on the middle of his desk as he blinked back tears. His throat clenched. Sirius wouldn't want him to get all upset. No. He'd wanted Harry to be happy. So he wouldn't, wouldn't, wouldn't cry. He pushed it all towards the back of his mind.

The Boy-Who-Lived clomped down the stairs. Harry walked past Aunt Petunia and Dudley to take a seat at the table. And proceeded to stare at what appeared to be breakfast. He prodded the...egg with his fork. Yet another day of summer break.

Both Dudley and Uncle Vernon ignored him, Dudley totally concentrated on the TV, and Uncle Vernon absorbed in the newspaper. That is, until the bell rang. Aunt Petunia called to Uncle Vernon. "Vernon, get that would you?"

Uncle Vernon grunted, putting down his newspaper with a rustle, and lugging himself out of the chair. He walked down the hall towards the door. A slightly feminine voice drifted past the door.

"May I please speak to Harry Potter?" the stranger said. Aunt Petunia froze, and dropped her spatula. Dudley also froze, and both turned slowly. Harry's mind churned. Who could it be? was the question on his mind. The english sounded a bit accented, and he'd never heard someone with that voice. Death Eaters? No, the spells and wards were there, and Death Eaters weren't likely to go up to the door and ask for him so politely. Or would they?

"No one who lives here goes by that name!" Uncle Vernon spat. Harry tensed starting to get up slowly. Aunt Petunia and Dudley did the same. Harry creeped around the corner, trying to get a glimpse of the stranger's face, while Uncle Vernon conversed with him. Or her. Mr.Dursley's voice started to get more and more agitated, insisting that Harry did not live there.


Kurama watched with mild amusement as the man started to get more and more angry, the previous pasty coloring of his face now replaced by an unhealthy looking shade of puce.

"I'm sure he'd be interested if you told him his third cousin is here." Kurama interrupted the man's vehement denials of anyone by the name of Harry Potter living here.

There was a pregnant pause. A long stretch of silence, and then-

"Thir-" The man was cut off as a small, skinny, black haired teenager shoved past him rudely. Large green eyes blinked behind round glasses, and a lightning bolt shaped scar adorned his forehead. Was this Harry Potter?

"I'm sure he'd be interested if you told him his third cousin is here." Those words rang in the still morning air, and all the birds seemed to stop chirping, all the cars stop moving, and time seemed to slow.


Third cousin? THIRD cousin! How come he never knew about this? Why hadn't Dumbledore told him he had a THIRD cousin? Sure, it was a DISTANT relative, but still a relative. It would've been better then having to put up with the Dursley's! Harry thought indignantly, dashing towards the door and shoving Uncle Vernon to one side, a rather large feat especially considering their contrasting sizes.

He stared. At first Harry thought his newly found third cousin was female, but then he abruptly realized that HE wasn't female, and was male. The stranger smiled at the sight of Harry.

"Are you Harry Potter?" he asked.

Harry was slightly stunned. The stranger looked so much like his mother... Aunt Petunia came up from behind, looking at the redhaired stranger curiously. Her hand flew to her mouth as she gasped. Apparently the same though had crossed her mind.

"Y-yeah." Harry finally replied. "Who're you?"

"I'm your third cousin, Shuuichi Minamino. My mother, Shiori Minamino, asked me to take you back with me to Japan to stay with her, and to remain there until you are old enough to move out. That's excluding the time you spend at school, of course." finished Shuuichi frankly.

The Boy-Who-Lived stared, as did Mr. and Mrs.Dursley.

"For real?" Harry demanded. Shuuichi nodded, holding out a piece of paper. A family tree, to be exact. Harry looked over it carefully. It seemed pretty real.. Besides, the worst that could happen would be that Shuuichi and his mother turn out to be Death Eaters, and not related to him after all.

"Er- I know this is going to sound kind of weird, but can I see your left arm?" Harry said awkwardly. Just in case...

Shuuichi looked slightly startled, but regained his composure. He rolled up his left sleeve, revealing a lightly tanned arm, sans Dark Mark. The Boy-Who-Lived let out his breath in relief.

"I assume you're assured I'm not a Death Eater by now. You might want to pack, the plane is leaving in 5 hours." Shuuichi commented, gesturing at his own suitcase. Harry nodded, leaving eagerly to collect his things.


Inwardly Kurama sighed in relief. It would've been awkward if Harry had refused to believe him. There was a long stretch of silence as Mr.Dursley, his wife, and son stood in the doorway. They all seemed to be in shock, and unable to speak.

The redhead waited patiently for Harry to finish packing, standing casually on the welcome mat, noting from the corner of his eye a woman in slippers with a bag of groceries and several cats.


Harry quickly packed up his trunk, grabbed Hedwig's cage, and rushed down the stairs, pushing past the Dursley's. "I'll send you a postcard or something!" He shouted at them, before following the smiling Shuuichi into a cab that his third cousin had waved down while Harry had been packing.

"We're taking a plane?" Harry asked curiously once both of them had settled into the cab, and Shuuichi had instructed the cab driver to take them to the airport.

"Yes." The redhead replied. He looked at Harry. "Why?"

The Boy-Who-Lived flushed. "I thought we would've been going by Portkey or something... I mean, wizards usually don't like to use Muggle means of transportation..." He trailed off.

A look flashed over Shuuichi's face, briefly, so quickly that Harry didn't see it. "I'm not a wizard."

What? "Isn't your mum a witch?" Harry said, confused. "Your dad?"

Shuuichi laughed softly. "Things work differently in Japan. But yes, my mother is witch, and so was my father." He paused. "I hope you don't mind plane rides."

"I've never been on one..." Harry said. Things work differently in Japan... "Er... How I am going to talk? I mean, I don't know any Japanese."

The redhead seemed to think for a moment. "I suppose you'll just have to learn it, or perhaps my mother could cast a spell on you." He shrugged. "I could teach you though, that'd probably be better, seeing as how you're going to be living in Japan for some time."

Harry nodded, and conversation ceased for the rest of the trip to the airport.


The next few hours passed in a blur, the customs check, waiting for the plane, finding the gate, and before Harry knew it, they were seated on one of the planes of Japan Airline, taking off to Japan.

Harry sat stiffly in the small airplane chair, knuckles white as he gripped the armrests tightly while the plane was taking off. But the Boy-Who-Lived was enjoying the view, all the same. He glanced over at his third cousin, who looked relaxed and was flipping through some...documents. A sudden thought struck Harry.

"How did you get a passport for me?" Harry blurted out.

Shuuichi paused, putting down his papers. "That's a secret." The redhead smiled mischievously. "Don't you worry about it."

Harry bit his lip, remembering the two passports Shuuichi had pulled out when they passed Customs. They'd LOOKED real enough... Harry shook his head, deciding not to worry too much over it.


Hiei hopped through the portal, having been relieved of his duties temporarily. The little fire demon sped towards Genkai's temple, intent on making sure his twin was safe. It'd become something of a habit. Skip out of Makai on the weekends for a couple of days or so, watch Yukina for a while, maybe go see the fox, if he was there, and head back to Makai.

The half-koorime decreased his speed as he ran onto the temple grounds, feeling the familiar tickle of wards. He headed towards Yukina's youki, hopping from tree to tree, to reach the back of the temple, where his sister was sitting, talking softly to the birds, and feeding them.

Hiei perched comfortably on a large branch, serenly watching his twin.

Yukina stopped talking, raising her head to look in the direction of Hiei's seat. She smiled, standing up slowly.

"Hiei-san, would you like some tea?" The Koorime asked, gesturing towards the temple.

Hiei jumped down from the branch, landing softly in the courtyard. "Hn." He followed Yukina into the temple.

The Koorime poured some tea slowly, handing a cup to Hiei. Hiei accepted it, muttering a quick thank you. He took a few sips of the tea, listening to the comforting sound of Yukina's voice.


Kurama and Harry once again went through security, collected what little luggage they had, and stepped out of the airport to the humid afternoon air. Harry blinked quizically.

"Er, Shuuichi, isn't it supposed to be dark by now?" Harry questioned.

Kurama tapped his watch. "You've forgotten the time difference." He hailed down a taxi, opening the trunk of the car and putting the luggage in. The redhead opened the door for Harry, before stepping into the car himself, and speaking rapidly to the driver in Japanese.

Harry watched in awe, not comprehending a word that Kurama said. "Wow." The Boy-Who-Lived watched the scenery go by, drowsy from the jet-lag. All of a sudden, the brakes squealed, and all occupants of the cab were thrown forward.


Kurama's eyes widened as a group of people in black robes appeared in the middle of the road, and barely had time to react before he grabbed Harry, and both of them were roughly thrown forward, hitting the seats in front of them.


Harry thought he felt Shuuichi grab him a split second before the taxi crashed, and he caught a fleeting glimpse of Death Eaters standing in the middle of the street before he hit something hard.


Kurama lifted his head slowly, checking for injuries. A few bruises and cuts, but nothing major. He would survive. The redhead curled out of his crash position. But Harry, on the other hand, might not be 'all right'.

"Harry. Harry. Are you all right?" The youko demanded urgently, checking the Boy-Who-Lived's pulse. The sound of a groan reached Kurama's ears, and he sighed in relief.

Harry roused himself, wincing. "What happene-" and was cut off when Shuuichi grabbed him again, opened the door, stopped and dropped. A second later, a jet of green and a voice. "-vra!"

"Oh shit." Harry muttered, as several Death Eeaters surrounded them. He grabbed his wand, trying to watch all of the Death Eaters at once. He swore inwardly, very, very, very many times. Harry struggled to his feet, standing next to Shuuichi warily, who was already up on his feet.

"Hand over the boy." the cold voice of Lucius Malfoy filtered through his mask, a bit muffled, but recognizable.

Oh right. Malfoy's daddy dearest had broken out of jail a few days ago. Harry thought bitterly.

Kurama shook his head firmly. "No." The redhead fell into a defensive stance.

Lucius Malfoy scowled underneath his mask. "Hand him over, if you know what's good for you, Muggle!" He snarled, pointing his wand at Kurama, and shouting the killing curse.

Harry's eyes widened, as he, for yet another time that day, hit the ground. The spell missed, Kurama having dragged them both down in time.

Shuuichi's eyes were cold, and calculating. "I am no Muggle." The redhead helped Harry up, whispering in his ear. "Stay behind me."

"But-!" Harry protested.

"You can't use any spells outside of school, correct?" Shuuichi asked. Harry nodded numbly. "So stay behind me." He whispered fiercely.

The Death Eaters were becoming impatient, the rustling of their robes barely audible. Malfoy's father pointed his wand at Kurama again, when, all of a sudden, there was a cracking sound. Lucius Malfoy fell forward slowly.

Harry blinked. What happened? A short person stood over the fallen Death Eater, a...sword, sheathed over the place where Lucius Malfoy's head had been. Apparently the stranger had knocked Malfoy out with the sword.

There was a moment of tense silence as the remaining Death Eaters stared blankly at the new arrival. Then all hell broke loose.

Spells flew everywhere, and Harry distinctly heard Bellatrix Lestrange yelling at some of her fellow Death Eaters to grab Harry. The Boy-Who-Lived ducked out of a the way of an Avada Kedavra.

He heard Shuuichi yell to the stranger. "Hiei! Great timing!" before the redhead started ducking spells fluidly, pulling Harry along with him as he ducked, rolled, and punched out several Death Eaters. Hiei, the stranger, dissappeared, only to reappear just as suddenly, standing over a fallen Death Eater, before moving on.

"GET THE BOY!" shrieked Bellatrix, as Nott and another Death Eater lunged for Shuuichi and Harry. "GET POTTER!" Shuuichi's eyes were narrowed in concentration, as he pulled a blue flower from his hair. Harry blinked. What the hell?

Shuuichi blew the flower's pollen at the two advancing Death Eaters, knocking them out instantly. The Boy-Who-Lived gaped. This was just getting weirder and weirder...

Kurama's eyes widened as the madwoman in robes ran at him and Harry, shouting a spell, which Kurama dodged, only to slam into the unyeilding cement of the road. His back screamed in pain. Hiei zipped up and grabbed the woman, holding her tightly. Kurama and Harry stood up slowly and painfully. The rest of the Death Eaters had either scattered or were knocked out.

"Thanks, Hiei." Kurama said gratefully. He could hear Harry breathing hard behind him. The redhead glanced at the boy, who was glaring hatefully at the woman. Kurama walked in front of the woman. "Go back and tell Voldemort won't get his grubby hands on Harry."

Bellatrix glared at Kurama. "You bastard, how dare you say the Dark Lord's name!" She shrieked. "I-" The woman started before Hiei knocked her out with a swift punch.

Kurama took her wand, breaking it in half. The redhead brushed himself off, acting cool and calm, despite his erratic breathing.

"Wow. That was awesome!" Harry burst out.

Kurama laughed. "It was nothing. Of course, if Hiei here hadn't arrived when he had, we might've been dead or captured..." The youko gestured at Hiei.

"Hiei, Harry. Harry, Hiei. Now, we should get our bags and start walking."

Harry shivered at the sight of Hiei's eyes. Cold, red, all too much like Voldemort's. But he'd help save Harry, so he couldn't be that bad, could he? Harry grabbed his trunk, grunting. Kurama tapped his shoulder, and took the trunk.

Hiei spoke. "So you're the Boy-Who-Lived?" Harry started. Hiei's voice was a lot deeper than he'd expected.

"Yeah, that's me." Harry answered, as the three of them started walking. Hiei nodded sharply, and said nothing for the remainder of the walk.


Shiori had welcome them warmly in Japanese, when they'd arrived at the Minamino residence. Kurama responded, pointing at Harry. The woman looked startled, but then smiled.

She pulled out a wand, before tapping Harry.

"Hello. I am Shiori Minamino, Shuuichi's mother." She greeted Harry. Harry suddenly found that he could tell what the woman was saying.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Harry Potter." Harry smiled at her.

"I'm sure you're tired, so why don't you go straight to bed. Shuuichi will show you the way." Shiori glanced at Shuuichi and his friend. The redhead nodded.


Harry laid in bed, unable to fall asleep, even with the events that'd happened that evening. Shiori had invited Shuuichi and his friend Hiei to stay, but they'd declined. Shuuichi and Hiei had left, to Shuuichi's apartement it seemed. Before that, they'd arranged for the redhead to come every weekend to teach Harry Japanese.

The Boy-Who-Lived sighed contently, watching Hedwig's empty cage. Shiori seemed nice, and so did Shuuichi's step-brother and dad. Maybe he'd fit in here... he thought drowsily as he drifted off to sleep.


Kurama sat on the couch of his fairly large and cozy apartement, sipping hot chocolate with Hiei while he cleaned his cuts.

"Well, that was a nice welcome back." Kurama remarked sarcastically. "Thank Inari I already put up wards around 'kaasan's house. No intruders will get through." The redhead said with satisfaction. He glanced at Hiei. "What did you think of him?"

"Nothing, as of yet. We hadn't exactly sat down for dinner and discussed each other's life. I don't know enough about him yet to judge him." Hiei said. Kurama smiled. Typical Hiei.

"How's Yukina?" Kurama asked. "And have you heard from Yuusuke?"

Hiei looked down at his hot chocolate. "She's fine. And yes. Apparently he wants to go and 'kick some weak demon ass' in the neutral lands. I told him I'd tell you."

Kurama grinned. "I like the sound of that."


Arabella Figg, the neighborhood cat lady, burst into the Order's headquarters, Number 12, Grimmauld Place, London.

"Harry's gone!"


A/N: There. Finished. Completed. Hooray! Ah, I hope you're happy. It's pretty long, I have no idea how long the pages are though. Ahaha, was that a mini-cliffie?

First off, I have no idea how long a flight would take to Japan, but from Canada to Japan, it'd take roughly 12 hours, give or take. So I'm using that. About the whole blood thing that Dumbledore had talked to Harry about. I'm assuming that since Kurama and Shiori are also related to Harry, the spells would work. Not to mention that Kurama put up wards around the Minamino residence too.

The blue plant doesn't have a name, the pollen just knocks people out.

Anything else... Oh yeah. Sorry if the dialouge seemed choppy, and the Dursley's and Harry's reaction to the whole 'third cousin' seemed weird. I have no clue how they would really react, this is just what I think would happen.

One last thing. Don't expect the next chapter to be so soon. I just seem to be on a roll.

And yes, I lied about the rest of the (former) Tantei showing up. It just didn't fit. But Yukina showed, and so did Hiei.

Comments, feedback, reviews? Pleeeeeeeeeease?