Chapter 9: Shihiko

-:-

She was in a beautiful garden. An abundance of trees, full with lush purple and pink flowers spread their fragrant perfume around her. A man stood facing her. It was as if he were expecting her. His long, white hair was pulled back tightly in a high ponytail to fall down to the small of his back. His eyes were a piercing ice blue, speckled with gold. He stood a proud six feet, dressed in the green and golden garb of a wandering samurai; two katanas strapped skillfully at his waist.

He walked towards the girl, her visage, her features: ambiguous and unrecognizable. He reached up and plucked one of the light purple flowers hanging from above him and knelt down before her. He reached out and handed the blossom to her. The girl's eyes lit up in wonder at the small gesture. The man allowed himself a small smile at her pure delight over his gift.

"What is your name little girl?" He asked, his lilting voice deep and slightly accented.

The girl looked up from the flower and held her head up high, "I am Shihiko,"

-:-

Yumi started and opened her eyes and took in her surroundings: she lay in a four poster bed covered by white linen sheets; a silk mosquito net covered the bed; across from her, outside of the net, was a huge wooden bookshelf holding many books in different languages covering many different subjects. The wall that the bookshelf lay against, as well as the other walls, was a deep blush pink, like her eyes. "It was…just a dream," she said silently. 'But how...did I get home?'

She sat up in bed quickly and immediately felt a sharp stab of pain assail her in her back and behind her shoulder, near her heart. She looked down at herself and it was then that she realized that she was half naked, wearing only her underwear; her back, chest and upper part of her left arm were all wrapped up in bandages.

She looked to the side of her and noticed that on her vanity chair laid her tattered, torn and bloody garments. 'That's right,' she thought, 'I injured myself saving Suuichi,' she shook her head, "what in the hell was I thinking?" she said softly to herself. Suddenly, the thought occurred to her that it must have been Suuichi who tended to her wounds and brought her here. She heard a slight sound come from the next room. She got up carefully and put on her terry cloth robe. With her robe adorned she walked out of the room, her steps soft and careful so she wouldn't alert him if he was still there and more importantly so she wouldn't feel the pain in her back.

As she rounded the corner from her bedroom and entered the den, she found Suuichi standing outside on the balcony overlooking the apartment courtyard below as well as the rest of the city. He had a good view, for they were on the tenth floor. When she approached him, he turned around from the balcony and just stared at her. Yumi stopped dead in her tracks as he turned and stared into her eyes. She could read nothing from his expression, but, as she looked into his eyes, she saw that something was troubling him; like he was waging an internal struggle deep within him. She knew he had finally come to some conclusion when his stone like features cracked into the smallest of smiles. "How are you feeling?" he asked quietly.

-:-

Kurama's P.O.V.

-:-

He turned around and saw her coming towards him. When he saw her he couldn't help the mixed feelings of antipathy and… respect he felt for this slip of a girl before him. Somewhere among their time together, feelings of admiration for Yumi had slithered into his subconscious; her intellect and cunning came dangerously close to matching his own. She had toed the line between playing the exotic human and demonic threat very well. Baiting him just enough to whet his curious appetite. She had to be an excellent actress in order to pull off her little dance. However, tonight she began to falter in her façade. What he suspected to be her true nature began to seep through the intricate illusion she fashioned. She began to seem almost weary of her act.

Unconsciously, and once again, he felt his kitsune nature of inquisitiveness rear its head again. He couldn't help but wonder what had occurred to change her disposition so suddenly. But another part of him wanted nothing to do with figuring her out. That part of him wanted her in pain and out of their lives. That part of him wanted blood for Hiei. That part of him would get him nowhere.

He had to have a clear head. He had to truly find out what her motives were. His instincts were telling him that she was most definitely involved with their enemy, but he had no hardcore proof. That was his only dilemma. He needed the proof in order to act; and he would get it.

With that, he snapped out of his internal war with himself and smiled slightly at her. "How are you feeling?" he asked quietly.

She looked at him for a second, and blinked, as if not knowing what to say.

"Thank you...for saving me," she said hesitantly. She held herself around her waist and looked down into her folded arms. She did not really know how to act around him now. Should she keep up her charade? Or should she just cut the bull and blow her cover. Earlier on the Ferris wheel, her instincts had told her that Suuichi was her enemy, and the moves he used to take out those serpent demons told her that he was an experienced fighter. He was dangerous, that, she was sure of. But, one thing about this whole thing puzzled her. If Suuichi was her enemy, why did he save her? Did he have some sort of ulterior motive? She didn't know. And she wasn't sure if she wanted to find out.

"There is no need to thank me, after all, you were the one who saved my life first, I should be thanking you," he walked up to her and took her upper right arm gently in his hand and led her back into the den. He motioned for her to sit down on the cream colored couch in front of them. She sat and looked up at him. "We never finished our conversation from earlier," he said. He walked over to the wall and pulled over a wooden chair from the corner, placing it a few feet in front of her and the couch.

She couldn't help but smirk slightly as she watched Suuichi, "I take it this that this," she gestured at him seated, cross-legged, on the chair in front of her, "means that I am in for a long haul?"

Kurama smirked meaningfully, "perhaps," he said quietly.

Yumi's smirk widened at his words as she leaned back into the sofa, crossing her legs to match his position, "Well by all means, please, pillage me," she said, the double meaning to her words quite apparent and practically dripping with innuendo.

"If you insist. When we spoke in the Ferris wheel, I couldn't help but notice that your demeanor changed. Why? What was it that was going through your head that caused this change?"

Yumi stared at him lazily, "is one not allowed to go through mood changes?"

"That's not what I asked," Kurama said, his verdant gaze lancing her, "do not avoid the question at hand."

"My God, I feel like I'm being cross examined by a shark," she sighed dramatically, "very well Suuichi, I was merely thinking of a friend of mine. She and I have been…out of touch for some time and I recently heard from her,"

"And why would that upset you so?" Kurama needled on.

"Well I never said that her message was one civility. Now, I have a question for you," Kurama raised his right eyebrow as if to say, 'Oh really?', "Tell me, why did you truly bring me to this carnival tonight? You invitation seemed to be ripe with ulterior motives."

"I don't trust you," he said simply enough.

"Really?" she asked, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"Do you have something you wish to confess to me?"

She couldn't help the fit of hysterical laughter that plagued her at that moment, "you should hear yourself; really now, what on earth could I possibly have to confess to you?"

Kurama said nothing for a while. His eyes gazed at her calmly, calculating; he was about to unveil his trump card. "You are very well read Yumi. I could not help but peruse through the extensive collection in your bedroom." Yumi sat, listening, her eyes unfaltering.

"Yes, I love to accumulate as much knowledge as I possibly can. I assume that this fact applies to you as well?"

"Hmm, can you please tell me, how a human girl can possibly understand the dialogue of the Demon realm?"

A slow, predatory smile crawled across her face. Yumi snorted and rose from the couch, well aware of Suuichi's piercing gaze transfixed on her being. She sauntered up to Kurama, her eyes practically burning holes through his own, "my my, it seems that I am not the only one with secrets. I sensed that you were not who, or what, you seemed to be for some time now…and it seems that I was correct,"

"Do not digress,"

"I would not call this a digression. Who the hell are you?"

Kurama rose up to stand in front of her, not even three inches from her face. Yumi nearly started from the look in his eyes; they were golden. A color that they most definitely were not earlier. "Are you human?" he asked her, his voice deadly low and grave. He grew weary with this game.

Yumi nearly lost her resolve looking into the cold eyes of Suuichi. Those narrow, golden slits sent a shiver of fear and…excitement down her spine. At that moment, the young man standing before her could be likened to an exotic wild animal: beautiful and dangerous. An animal not to be cornered or taken lightly. There was no way that this man was human. No human had ever instilled these types of feelings in her before. There was only one man who made her feel this way, and he was long gone.

Regaining her composure, she steeled her resolve and rose to meet his challenge, "Are you?" she asked quietly.

Suuichi chuckled silently and darkly, "I suppose that you and I are at an impasse nymph. But I will tell you this, for your sake, you had better hope that you are not the one we are looking for." With that said, he stepped to the side and walked away from her. Before he left, he looked over his shoulder and said, "Farewell Yumi," and exited the apartment.

-:-

Yumi stared out over the city, from her balcony. It was almost 6 a.m.; the clouds on the horizon were beginning to lighten and turn from shades of midnight blue and black to bright orange and rose.

A familiar scent filled the air around her. She sighed, exasperated from last night's events and Suuichi's new, more dangerous and mysterious behavior. She closed her eyes, "What do you want Ran?" she asked wearily.

"Oh? What's this? No more smart remarks about my height or any other petty comments?" Ran said dryly. She emerged from the shadows of the balcony adorned in a tight, sleeveless, deep-red corset that looked like it was made of leather and black leather pants. She also wore black gloves that came up to the middle of her upper arm, and black 3 in. heeled boots.

"I'm not in the mood today Ran, say what you have to say and leave. Your presence is not wanted here,"

"Awww, your sour mood wouldn't be due to your little injuries would they, I told them to go easy on you, but, I forgot that you are such a weak thing," she said sarcastically.

Yumi turned around slightly and looked at Ran as if she were out of her mind, "You ordered the attack?!"

Ran opened her arms up and shrugged planting a fake smile on her face, a move she knew that would piss Yumi off, "but of course,"

Yumi hissed as her eyes transformed from their docile blush color to one which resembled the golden fires of hell.

Ran blinked slowly and smiled mockingly, "you really should control your temper. You do look absolutely hideous when you're upset, eeeww." Ran teased.

In move quicker than lightening Yumi grabbed Ran by her neck and brought her up to eye level. Her eyes had finished their transformation and were now the color molten gold with minute flecks of blush. Her grip tightened around Ran's neck, "I ought to kill you right now," she raised her other hand up, which was now glowing with a strange white and gold aura, to Ran's face. Ran had watched this whole ordeal with a calm expression on her face; however, her eyes were now throwing sparks of gold like Yumi's were.

"Calm yourself Shihiko," Yumi started at that name, "what? Have you forgotten who you are? Have you forgotten why you are here? I have never known the white dragon keeper to be so emotional and easily manipulated," Yumi retracted her energy and put Ran down. She turned her head to face the city again, "I did what I had to do to keep your identity a secret. As you said, that boy Suuichi was becoming suspicious of you. If I didn't make the attack look real, and if I told you about it, then he would've known it was a hoax. You should be thanking me right now,"

Yumi, or Shihiko, since that was her true name, walked back to the balcony rail and stared out at the city again.

Ran looked at her strangely, 'she's acting weird, she is normally calm and collected, but now…' she thought but she shrugged it off and continued with her report. "I grow tired of you emotional instability, I came here because I have news for you. I found out more about Koenma's flunkies. Well, it seems that you have already come into contact with them. That boy Suuichi and his friends are Reikai's Tentei. Kai nearly finished off one of them, a Jaganshi by the name of Hiei. But, as you know, she was…interrupted by that abomination."

Shihiko closed her eyes as she heard the news and the mention of the 'abomination,' 'No wonder Suuichi cornered me,' she thought dispassionately.

"Oh, and that's not all." Ran snapped Shihiko out of her thoughts, "it seems that that boy Suuichi has a few secrets of his own. He was once a demon who was catapulted into a human body about 16 years ago." Shihiko still stared ahead, not responding to anything Ran was saying, "The best part about all of this is that he was once a legendary bandit. His name was Yoko Kurama,"

Shihiko's head shot up and she gasped, "Yoko Kurama," she said with breathlessly.

Ran looked at her suspiciously, "yes, that was his name...are you alright?"

Shihiko didn't respond verbally, she just nodded her head once. Her mind was racing, Yoko, is alive…and human? Shihiko had been so caught up in her thoughts that she had not even realized that Ran had left. She stayed on the balcony for a long time after, letting the memories of her past wash over her. The sun had risen, it was a new day, and many secrets had come to light. Everything would be different now...everything...