Chocolate
Sao: Well, lookie see! ANOTHER CHAPPIE! New record for Sao as for length of stories. Well, posted, decent stories, anyhow.
Saor: Sao, you have problems.
Sao: I know... Anyhow, we have something that I have been forgetting for quite a while.
Neko: NO! We haven't forgotten anything! Not anything! Never!
Kurama: Actually, yes, Sao/Saor/Neko doesn't own me.
Karuri: Nope, that's me! She owns me!
Neko: NOOOO! Why'd you have to go and do that? I was all set to change the copyright records on you too... STUPID HONEST PEOPLE!
Sao: I've changed my mind, Neko is the yami and Saor can be the muse.
Saor: Huh? I'm not a muse. I don't have any ideas. My only purpose is to make sarcastic remarks and laugh maniacally. MWAHAHAHA– (chokes)
Sao: Nice job. At least I can do the maniacal laugh properly.
Saor: Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try!
Sao: You pathetic BUG! I will crush your life! MWAhahahahahahahahahahah!
Saor: I hate you...
Neko: Do you see my point about Saor. hikari, Sao. yami?
Sao/Saor: WE HEARD THAT! WE'RE THE OTHER WAY AROUND!
Karuri: I'm inclined to believe Neko, actually.
Kurama: Mm-hmm.
Sao/Saor: Traitors...
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Karuri was fairly happy at the moment. Actually, she was fairly drunk at the moment. Chocolate tended to have that effect on kitsune. It wasn't drunk the way ningen tended to get. It was more like sugar-high way too hyper can't even think sort of drunk.
Which was why she was dancing around the tree in the park instead of in her apartment where she probably was supposed to be. Actually, chocolate could become a dangerous drug-like substance to the younger kitsune, becoming less potent as you grew older. It could even stunt your power expand if you had it in any large quantities before you were over fifty or sixty years old.
Giggling slightly through her chocolate-induced haze, she slipped on the grass and went down by the trunk of the tree, flopping willingly and inhaling deeply the green scent of the small soft plants.
She should really remember to do this more often. But then, she wouldn't remember any of this. She would just find herself somewhere, where ever she woke up. Imagining the future made her mind blurrier even than it already was.
Pushing herself up from the ground, Karuri found herself looking up at the scowling red-eyed face of somebody clothed all in black. She had the inkling that there was supposed to be some reason she wasn't supposed to like this guy, but then again, she had no idea why she wouldn't like him. Had she met him before? He didn't look familiar... and neither did the neon-green sparrows and hot pink hearts that were dancing around his head. Actually, those were all around. Laughing, she reached out to pet a particularly bright bird fluttering near the edge of her vision. It flew just out of her grasp.
Forgetting completely the other person, she struggled to her feet to chase after the bird, her eyes lighting up when she realized that it was a color changing bird! But it just wouldn't let her catch it. No matter how she tried, it just flew out of her reach... around and around in a great big circle. Like the sky blue ones that kept on flashing in front of her eyes like a circle light bulb being turned on...
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Kurama was aimlessly wandering, unconsciously heading towards Karuri's apartments, when Hiei contacted him.
: Fox, is this your crazy onna: he asked, sending an image of what was unmistakably Karuri in a loose, chocolate brown v-neck tee and dark blue jeans, running as if chasing something (nothing was there) and with a happy, goofy smile pasted on her blissful face.
What the heck?- Kurama asked.
: Don't ask me. I'm in the park about two blocks from the onna's apartment. :
Kurama was already heading there.
The scene that met him when he arrived was almost exactly like the one in the image Hiei sent him, except that Karuri was running back and forth in drunken zig-zags rather than in a lopsided circle. Hiei was standing next to a park bench under a tree with a disgruntled look on his face as the female kitsune happily twirled past him.
Kurama stepped forward to catch the girl as she slipped on the grass, noting the sweet smell of chocolate on her breath as she sighed and blinked innocently up at him. She smiled again as her eyes tracked something around his head that was not there.
"What is wrong with that onna?" Hiei asked, finally daring to step further from the park bench to scowl at both of them.
He sighed at the cross-eyed girl in his arms as she tugged on the collar of his shirt to pull herself closer to his neck and sniff him delicately.
"Chocolate." he responded to Hiei's question, and at his confused look, elaborated. "Kitsune are very sensitive to the chemicals in the caocao bean. It's almost like a drug, except that there are no withdrawal symptoms and it's not quite as addicting. It gets less potent as you get older."
"Hn." the koorime snorted.
"Hey, I'ze your jacket, ya know." Karuri slurred sleepily in his ear. How much had she had? She was at least coherent, so he supposed that was a good thing.
"I know, Karuri." he assured her fondly as she hooked her chin over his shoulder and wound her arms around his neck, her warm breath fluttering his hair. Hiei rolled his eyes disgustedly at their antics and flitted away in an instant, probably to the top of the tree.
Kurama settled her more securely in his arms, doubting her ability to walk in a straight line right now, and set off for her apartment. Tomorrow was a full moon, the perfect night to initialize, and she would need her things, as he was planning to see if Genkai had an extra room in the temple (actually, he knew she did). After all, one couldn't go through kitsune courting processes as two ningen. And Kami knew what would happen if two multi-tailed creatures were found by ningen.
He ignored the strange looks from passers-by he was receiving for having the girl with her arms wrapped around his neck, sleeping, and him carrying her as if it were the sort of thing he did every day. The way her body pressed against his so innocently made him wish it was the sort of thing he did every day.
How long do you figure she'll be out?- he asked Youko.
–: Probably a few hours. Half an hour at the very least. :–
Chocolate was such an annoyance. He was glad that neither Youko or he were addicted to the substance. Granted it wouldn't be as hard on them as it was on her, but it would prove problematic in some situations.
He reached Karuri's apartment within a relatively short amount of time, deciding to sift through her pockets for the key rather than pick the lock again. It was tucked loosely in the front pocket of her jeans.
The apartment was just as much of a mess as he remembered it to be, save for that the debris had been organized if not cleaned. He settled her sleeping form on the bed, covering her up once again with his jacket, which was hooked over the corner of an open door.
Checking through some drawers and the closet he found that she had not unpacked much yet; all of her clothes were conveniently located in a single cardboard box with a duct-taped "x" on each side of it.
The easiest way to work this right now was to wait until she woke up. And there was a pile of dishes sitting on a counter out there that were annoying his neat-freak tendencies to no end...
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Karuri blinked several times as she rose out of the haze that had enveloped her being some time back. She didn't really register how much time had passed. Just the feather-light sensation of floating on mist...
The scent of roses was dramatically increased around here, enough that she could smell it with repressed senses. Wait, where was she anyway?
She blinked, and the room came into higher focus. It was her room... strange. She thought for sure she'd end up on a roof or something... That was what usually happened when the neon sparrows were chasing her around...
Karuri realized that she had been covered up when she sat up and Kurama's jacket slid off of her again. Oof. Had someone brought her here after finding her on the roofs? She remembered being on a roof the last time... and the time before that... Yes, she had to admit it to herself, she was a bit of a chocolate addict. Especially dark chocolate... Of course, only dark chocolate led to the sparrows. Usually with milk chocolate you ended up just being extremely happy and slightly blurry.
She found that she was slightly stiff as she pushed aside the comforting jacket and couldn't for the life of her figure out why. Had she gotten herself banged up chasing the damn birds?
"Oof." she sighed to herself, sliding the door open. That was when she got the surprise of her life. Kurama was there, arranging the sparkling dishes, that she was sure had been left out in cute little rows (dirty) when she had left, in one of the cupboards that lined the kitchen wall. The sleeves of his pale green, long sleeve t-shirt with leaves and small kanji that she didn't care to make out right now printed near where his heart would be were rolled up still.
"Hello, kitto." he greeted her, meeting her surprised eyes with molten gold ones. Just like the morning... very far back in the morning, almost lost in the depths of time. Why did she remember gold eyes like that? She'd never seen Kurama with gold eyes; he had vivid emerald green eyes.
She'd never seen him with gold eyes... except for last night. And that morning. And that morning... he had...
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He watched with amusement as confusion, then dawning comprehension, then astonishment flitted across her face.
"Exactly how much chocolate did you have, tawainai?" he went on, unrolling the sleeves of his shirt.
"Eheh... only about three brownies, a quarter pound of fudge and half a bag of dark chocolate." she responded, looking slightly guilty.
"I marvel at your recovery skills then." he remarked, raising an eyebrow at her.
"Stop looking at me like that. Chocolate IS widely considered a recovery food."
"By ningen."
"Meh." She looked crossly up at him, the expression only serving to make her seem cuter.
"If you have anything you'd like to bring, I know the perfect place for initialization of this without crossing into Makai." Youko remarked idly from where he was in partial control, ignoring Kurama's mental tugging to be let back.
Her eyes lost their cross look as they widened in almost disbelief. You could almost see the thought swirling around in her head; 'He meant it?'
"Tawainai kitto, of course I meant it. Would I have left it otherwise?"
WHAT are you talking about?- Kurama demanded.
–: We left her a message last night by scent. So that she would know of our intentions. Wouldn't be nice to take her by surprise, now, would it:– (insert mental evil predatory smirk)
When were you planning to tell me this?-
–: When you asked. :–
How typical.-
"Oh..." she murmured, wide eyes staring at him openly and innocently. After a moment she blinked, and lost the confused look with an indrawn breath. One side of her mouth kicked up in a playful smirk. "Of course."
"Then do you want any of this?"
"Not if it's unneeded. It can sit and gather dust for a month or so, never hurt it before. Just a minute while I put clothes into something more convenient than a box."
She turned away with a small skip-step and disappeared into her room.
Apparently chocolate didn't totally wear off that fast.
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Sao: oookay... gomen folks, that chappie didn't go as planned. But it's one-thirty and I'm feeling extremely lazy and it was a really good stopping point for some reason. And I have a good starting point for next time.
Saor: Eheh... Filler chappie!
Kauri: (sigh) got chocolate.
Kurama: Oh no you don't.
Karuri: Drat.
Sao: many thanks to:
Ugly Kitten- yes ma'am! Heh heh... love demented stories. The ones Keahi (my friend) and I rp are soooooo demented it ranges beyond funny.
sillylittlenothing- eheh, arigato! I feel loved that you liked that chappie. I thought it was highly amusing. (Threatening koenma– so fun)
kage- arigato for reviewing!
Princess Kandra- I'm glad you like it! (feels loved)
GoddessOfTheRose- AAAAAHG! (hides behind Karuri/Kurama) HAH! Now you can't get me unless you want to get past the main characters! (Karuri and Kurama step aside) eheh... RUN AWAY!
RoseFire-shadow666- new chappie! I have it! It's... HERE! ... and it's filler. Oh well. I'm lazy and tired. Gomen again.
and Rache- Neko is a she. And I didn't know akai ate cats. And Neko would put up a terrible fuss. Imagine katie.