A/N: Hello once again, Audience.
Yes, this is posting really early today. I might not get the chance later, so I decided to go ahead.
...I swear I'm eventually going to have a moment to go back and update the previously section...but I'm in the middle of a show right now and we open next week, so that won't be happening any time before the next chapter post, I don't think. Again, I would think that any reader would rather get the next chapter posted than have a bunch of "previously on" sections updated, hah!
Chapters for this fanfic are released on the first and third Mondays of each month.
Ciao for now!~
Symbols Guide:
* : Written by CM; She writes for Akari and Hiei
3 : Written by Star (supposed to be the 'heart' symbol, but FF doesn't like the 'less-than' sign, so it's a 3 instead); She writes for Shikiyoku and Youko/Kurama
~!**!~ : A universal transition between scenes or characters, sometimes used to indicate a passage of time, but most often used to transition between major scenes that are happening. As the story progresses, this will evolve into mainly separating the (usually two) scenes happening between authors/characters.
As a general rule, anything in italics is thoughts.
Unless it's used in a sentence like this, which merely indicates emphasis.
(Words in italics and within parenthesis is dialogue between Hiei and Shikiyoku via the bond between them after Hiei becomes Shikiyoku's Consort. As soon as the 'thought' occurs, it can pass between them, and does not actually have to be formed into exact words-feelings and sensations can pass through as well-in order to be picked up and the meaning translated immediately by the other. For the sake of the coherence by the reader, words and sentences are used as normal. It cannot be picked up by telepathy.)
"Quotations are usually reserved specifically for telepathic dialogue being transmitted from one being to another, but sometimes this can also mean a character isn't being careful about what they're thinking and anyone with telepathy in the nearby vicinity can listen in without taking any effort."
The only exception to that last rule is for the Shiba Inu dog, Nabu. All of his "spoken" dialogue will be in italics and quotations, but is communicated through body language or dog-like noises, so unless a character is able to translate those they are unlikely to pick up on what he is saying any more than the average person might understand his general moods like aggression (bared teeth, ears back) or excitement (wagging tail).
The Nabu Exception also applies to anyone when they are in an animal form, if the dialogue is in italics and quotations, unless stated otherwise.
Previously on Yu Yu Hakusho!
[Will be updated soon]™
"Good morning, Ms. Inyoku."
"Good morning, Ms. Inyoku."
The greetings continued as Shikiyoku made her way through the hall towards Kurama's office at precisely six a.m. hardly giving the handful of those along the way that also arrived as early as she a second glance as her heels clicked smartly along the tile floor, token clipboard held against one hip.
As she let herself unceremoniously into the door that had the CEO's name across it, she pulled the clipboard up and began scanning its contents.
"You have two meetings today, sir, as I'm sure you...well...know-" Yoku's sentence faded off as she looked up, clipboard lowering again when she did, finding that Kurama was not in his chair.
Immediately on high alert, Shikiyoku pulled off her glasses to scan the rest of the room and reached out with her awareness, getting no feel for him on any floors as she mentally scanned them until-
Upstairs.
...
Strange.
Returning her glasses to their rightful place, Shikiyoku swiftly pivoted back towards the door, waiting an excruciating ten beats that would have allowed her to get a mandate from Kurama, and then straightened and swung open the door, striding out as she always would.
Flagging down one of the nearby employees to walk with her as she headed for the elevator, she quickly informed him that, "Minamino-san is not to be bothered," and then waved him away.
As she entered the elevator upon its arrival, she closed the doors manually, unworried about the numbers above the elevator going any higher as they had not been officially programed with the upper floor. She unbuttoned her jacket and reached into the inner pocket, pulling out a passcard.
Pressing the floor buttons in a certain order, she slid the passcard into the slot the combination revealed, removing it, and feeling the elevator jerk into motion and start to rise, moments later stepping out onto a well-lit hallway.
Even the recollection of receiving the pass card from Kurama-You are more than welcome to stay upstairs any time you like, Yoku-was quickly dismissed amidst her growing concern.
Following her sense of the direction his energy lay, she had never actually been on this level of the building, she turned to the right until she came across a door on her left through which she felt his presence.
She knocked, turning her head so her ear might be closer to the door, but she heard nothing. Knocking again, she called out his human last name, this time placing her hand on the knob to test and see if it were locked.
Noting a place where a passcard might fit, Shikiyoku slipped it in and out to see a little light blink green at her twice and this time the knob twisted.
"Kurama, I'm coming in." She said as she swung the door inwards and stepped inside.
It took a moment for her eyes to adjust from the brightness of the hallway to the room within where after a second she could see all the windows of which had room-darkening shades that were pulled down, leaving the area in very low-light, save for another door to her left that was open just a crack, a warm light of some sort on within it.
She did not head for that door, not when she had spied a lump in the bed that had incited her ire.
"Youko Kurama, what the hell you think you're doing, laying around-" She had started to move for the side of the bed while speaking. "-when you have meetings this morning with prospective-"
"...Y-Yoku?"
The tone of voice immediately put a stop to her tirade, which was really just a product of her worry when he had not been downstairs as usual.
"Yoku, is that you?"
When Shikiyoku stepped up to the left side of the bed where the lump had been stationed, it moved a little and managed to pull just enough of the covers down that she could see part of a face as well as red hair matted down by sweat.
"Youko-" She immediately moved closer and helped him peel back the comforter, seeing that his skin was pale and he was sweating, despite the fact that when she reached out to touch him, he felt clammy. "Youko, what's wrong?"
"I'nno." He mumbled, the blankets shifting some more as he struggled to free a hand, reaching towards her with it.
Panic had already started to rise into Shikiyoku's throat.
Wounds she could manage, pain she could handle herself, but disease?
That had always been Kitoushi's specialty. Even to a lesser extend his cousin's, though the latter through plant-work, naturally.
His hand latched onto her wrist that had been checking his pulse, and Shikiyoku tried to tug away.
"Youko, I've got to-"
"No-" He moaned. "Don't leave me."
She blinked at him, having no one she could turn to anyway. She had yet to come across a demonic doctor who might specialize in the sorts of diseases that one of their own kind could contract, and the only healer she knew-Yukina-only dealt with physical wounds of the sort the old Spirit Detective group had managed to accumulate.
"I...don't know what to do." She couldn't keep the panic out of her voice this time and her tone had risen slightly in pitch.
"Jus'...c'mere." He tried pulling her closer.
Thinking he planned on telling her what to do, and didn't have the strength to speak up, Shikiyoku leaned further over the bed and Kurama shifted just enough onto his back to get his other arm out from underneath himself, the blankets over him now pushed back to his waist.
Apparently, he had collapsed in his work attire, but had grown too hot. The sleeves were rolled up in a sort of disarray and the buttons down the front were almost completely undone up to the waist of his slacks-though the shirt had also come halfway untucked from those-revealing his undershirt, which was damp in places because of the sweat.
His forest green eyes half-lidded, he watched Shikiyoku come closer until she was leaning over him, and then gave a quick tug on the right wrist he grasped to tip her over onto the bed, meeting her lips with his own, his other hand finding her left hip and shifting around it to the small of her back, pressing her to him as best he could from their differing angles.
Her own eyes widening behind her glasses, finding his lips unnaturally hot as she imagined his forehead might be, Shikiyoku realized she had not felt his desire to kiss her until he was already doing so and was unsure how to take that, her skirt starting to hike up as she had placed a knee on the bed trying to maintain her balance.
The hand he had not grabbed had planted itself next to his head on the pillow in an attempt to catch her fall, and she used it now to try and gently push herself away from him.
"You...ko..." She spoke against his lips, watching as he barely opened his eyes when she spoke his name.
"Mm. C'mere." He tried pressing her closer, realizing she was not actually touching him as he had meant to do and unsure why she had remained only leaning over him.
She couldn't deny that he was still a good kisser even when slightly out of mind, but her worry about his condition overrode any other thoughts she might have had on the matter as she tried pulling away a second time.
Kurama made a noise of protest at her, frowning as he followed the retreat of her lips and did not let her break their contact. Giving another tug to her wrist to try and bring her up against him, he let go and found her stomach with it, grabbing a fist full of the material of her blouse and untucking it from her pencil skirt.
"Nope." She said to his lips. "Nope. No. Stop."
He almost immediately pulled away from her with a whine, "Yoku...it will help."
Retreating from the bed as soon as she felt the opportunity to get away, Kurama grumbled at her incoherently, still trying to reach for her, but having spent what little energy he had and only weakly lifting an arm in her direction.
"I highly doubt that's what will help you right now." She tried straightening her black jacket, but then sighed and just took it off to lay it over the nearby chair as she simultaneously retrieved what was currently the most advanced cellular device on the market for the times, an investment she had seen to it that both herself as well as Minamino Corporation had a share in.
"It will cure me."
She narrowed her eyes at him from over her shoulder and found that his lips were stretched into a somehow still wiley smile despite his state.
"Uh huh." She stood up and tucked her blouse back in. "And why do I find that little fact absolutely suspect?"
He tried to shrug and she moved away, cell in hand, for the door, stepping out into the hall and actually removing one of her heels to stick it in the doorway so the thing wouldn't close on her as she began dialing several numbers.
The calls were basically to reschedule his entire day, move meetings to next week, give her fake excuses for him, and then thanking the client or whomever for understanding.
She stepped back into the room, heaving a huge breath from her lips and staring at the floor, seeing the shoe in the door, but only registering it after passing it over, turning back to bend down and pick it up, going ahead and slipping off the other heel as she did so.
When she stood up, a body suddenly enveloped her in its own and this time she could feel rather intimately the amount of unnatural heat his body was emitting.
"Yoku-" He whined again, his arms coming down over her shoulders to hang and his head resting heavily on one of them.
For a second, she struggled to remain standing as his weight nearly put her off-balance, his chest pressing heavily into her back, but as she shifted her stance to compensate, she suddenly realized he had begun kissing the side of her neck.
"Don' lea' me li' tha'." He said between kisses, each one planted higher until he reached her ear.
She was already having trouble not giving into him as he took her earlobe between his teeth, but the instant one of his arms twitched up to her collarbone and his hand slid underneath her blouse, finding her skin, Shikiyoku took a step forward, eyes popping open.
"Nope." She shook her head and grabbed his wrist, pulling it away. "No. Don't."
He was not strong enough to hold himself up on his own and she felt his weight start to fall into her again and she turned around to plant her hands firmly at the place where his arms met his shoulders, though he gave her that same grin as before and craned his neck down to find the skin of her forehead with his lips.
"Back to bed with you." She announced firmly, even as he groaned at her again, though he did move along with her as she started walking him back to it and practically tossed him there, him landing on his side.
"Youko-" She began seriously, crossing her arms over her chest. "What can I do to help?"
"Kis' me." He grinned, half his face hidden on the pillow.
"Youko Kurama." She said his name a little more intensely the second time. "How can I help you?"
His grin hadn't gone away, but his lips mumbled something she couldn't make out.
"What?" She leaned a little closer, hoping to catch it the second time.
"Ma' lov' t' me."
Shikiyoku let out an exasperated breath and threw her hands in the air, turning away from him to put her heels down over by the chair.
"Yoku!"
When she whipped back around, he had a rather pitiful look on his face and he was trying to get his eyes to open.
"Yo-chan, I'm here." She went ahead and put the shoes down and turned back around.
"Don' le' me."
She had a hard time not rolling her eyes, "I won't."
"...promise?"
"Only if you'll tell me what I can do about this." She replied, gesturing to his body.
He didn't answer at first.
"Youko." Her voice was filled with warning. "Promise me."
"...'mise." 3
~!**!~
It hadn't been hard for Akari to make up for the lost time. She'd only needed to use her demonic speed for mixing ingredients and firing up machines and forming pastries and all the things that usually took time. And so, it was just before opening hour that Akari was placing piping hot muffins and croissants and other breakfast goodies in the display case, in the refrigerator, on the counter.
She had just enough time to turn around and turn on the music station on the television before she had to unlock the doors and let in the first customer, who smiled sleepily at her but otherwise gave no greeting. Akari let the woman look at the menu- a new customer- as she turned on the last of the drink machines.
"What's the, uh…" Akari looked up from the till she had been counting and saw the woman looking up at the menu, and turned her own eyes to look. After a few seconds, Akari's eyes alighted on the only thing that might be unrecognizable to the newbie, and she smiled. "It's an espresso drink with a shot of caramel, blended with ice and cream and a few special ingredients to give a kick. Has a sort of spice at the end. A new item."
"Spice as in, hot?"
"No ma'am. More like… similar to cloves I guess you could say." Akari smiled politely as the woman tapped her chin.
"Yeah, I'll take a small one of those."
"Yes ma'am."
"Can I add a flavor?"
Akari blinked and looked up. "Sure."
"Cherry?"
Akari blinked again, imagining the taste and realizing that it would probably be even better than it already was. Why didn't I think of that? "Sure!"
"And what smells good?"
"That depends on what smells strongest to you. I personally smell the croissants over everything."
"Then one of those too, please ma'am."
By the time Akari was done ringing up the customer, she had enough for four people to eat on, and all the demoness could think about was the added cherry to her specialty drink. "Have a good day!"
"Thank you!"
And as the woman sauntered out the door, Akari began playing with new concoctions. *
~!**!~
Suffice it to say, regardless of his promise, Shikiyoku had a difficult time getting anything out of him other than a pass, and spent most of the day fending him off, surprised at how strongly he pursued her when he hardly had any energy or strength to his name.
She hadn't even dared to try and change his clothing, feeling that if she so much as tried, his fever-addled mind would associate the circumstance with something she did not at this time intend.
She didn't even get another chance to leave him, to get in contact with anyone that might be able to help. She wasn't going to call someone while still next to him, as his inappropriate tendencies would have been too much of an issue, at least while he was awake. She made a mental note to herself that she likely would need to reschedule any meetings he may have in the next few days, and to do so the next chance she got.
And to be honest, she had not even once considered that he might be contagious, though given that she had already been in close proximity with him, the thought wasn't worth nodding to since at this point she was already exposed.
By the end of the day, Shikiyoku felt exhausted. Not only from continuously fending him off, but simultaneously from the worry and effort spent attempting to get him to tell her anything at all about what was going on with him.
She was tempted to add "extremely horny" to her short list of symptoms.
Once she finally got him to sleep, she slouched in the chair that had her jacket thrown over the back of it which she had pulled up next to the bedside sometime during the day.
Now that she had a moment to herself, she quietly looked around the room, spying typical furnishings a bedroom might have, as well as a door across from her on the other side of the room.
Remembering the door that had its light on behind her, she slipped from the chair to poke her head inside, finding that it was actually a bathroom.
Leaving the door slightly cocked as it had been previously, she left it and made her way back across the room, bare feet padding silently on the carpet as she skirted the bottom-most edge of the bed.
This door made no noise even when she turned the knob and she only opened it just enough to be able to see inside, actually swinging it wider when she discovered a smaller bedroom.
A sudden wash of gratefulness at the sight of the bed, knowing she wouldn't return to the bar this night, not with Kurama ill, Shikiyoku made no hesitation in slipping through the door and collapsing herself on the bed.
~!**!~
When Shikiyoku's eyes opened, she knew it was not yet morning, but she had no idea what pulled her from sleep until she heard it again.
Kurama's voice. Calling her from the next room.
Sensing no change in him, she squeezed her eyes shut, but knew it would do her no good to try returning to sleep before checking up on him, so she sighed, rolled off the bed and shuffled towards the door.
She heard a thump just as she went to open the door wider that immediately sobered her mind so that when the door suddenly swung inwards towards her seemingly over its own volition, she somehow had prepared herself for the much taller body that slumped into her where she caught hold of it and kept him propped up.
He was breathing heavily, which Shikiyoku understood given the fact that he had made his way across the room, and as his weight began to sink into her, she only nudged at his cheek where it had come to rest against her own as his forehead rested on her shoulder.
"Hey. No sleeping here." Despite the furrow in her brow as all her worry for him returned ten-fold, her lips twitched with a smile.
"Nn."
She felt the pressure on her shoulder lift for just a moment before it resettled, his cheek there now instead.
When he moved his lips towards her, this time the kiss he planted there felt more like one he might employ were his mental facilities completely returned.
"Let's get you back to bed, Yo-chan." Mood slightly improved, Shikiyoku started shifting him and herself so that she was positioned under one of his arms with it slung behind her neck and could begin walking him the way he came.
"Yoku-"
Shikiyoku almost paused in stride as she mostly-carried him back into the other bedroom. He sounded much more lucid too.
He started talking to her about what he felt, and aside from what she expected from a fever-sweating, chills, swollen glands, etc.-he began listing things she would have never been able to discern on her own.
He even had a suggestion for her as well: she should return back downstairs at six a.m. as she always did, just so no one suspected anything, and told her where she could find a briefcase in his office, one that she could use to gather a number of plants that he began describing, and bring the briefcase back full of them for him to use.
And that's precisely what she did.
After getting him back into bed, she returned the kiss he gave her with one on his forehead, leaving him smiling after her as she pulled away. When she looked at the clock, she saw that she actually had just enough time to slip on her heels and jacket, grab her glasses, and shove them on her face as she made a dash to the elevator so that she might emerged onto the second highest floor of the building at precisely the moment she always did.
This time, however, she induced a bit of glamour around herself, a haze to prevent those that looked at her from noticing she had slept overnight in her clothes and hadn't retouched her hair.
Everything was where Kurama had told her, his descriptions of the plants she needed to gather exact, though it was more than twenty minutes later before she emerged from the office, once more informing a worker on that floor that Minamino-san was not to be bothered, and to call her if they needed something.
Heaving a sigh after the elevator door had closed and she provided the correct combination and passcard insertion to rise to the top floor, Shikiyoku leaned against the back wall as the car lifted, closing her eyes and relaxing her energy away so the glamour would disappear.
When she felt the stop about to occur, she pushed herself forward and took a couple of steps, but did not look up and see Kurama standing on the other side, his eyes half-lidded and the rest of him a bare-foot, disheveled mess.
He stumbled forward into the elevator, Shikiyoku's head jerking up in time to see him crash into her, carrying them both back to where she had been leaning moments previously.
Just before she could bring herself into the present of the moment, he was pressed up against her and his hands had found her wrists and pinned them to the wall behind her, the briefcase getting knocked out of her hand just as it hit the back wall, jerking from her grasp, and slamming into the floor beneath her.
He breathed her name into her ear, the cool air sending a shiver down her spine as his lips found her neck and started to nibble at the skin there.
Her eyes fluttering closed, Shikiyoku's first thought consisted of the fact that perhaps she should add "horny as hell" to the list of symptoms he had provided.
Though...
Now that she thought about it, if she remembered correctly, THAT particular symptom tended to rear its head any time anything was wrong with him at all. Injury. Illness, even if a rare occurrence. Youko had always gotten more handsy-a feat even for him in her experience-in those types of situations, and perhaps it was the same in this one.
"Yo-...Kura-"
He had let go of a hand to snake his between them, finding the buttons of her blouse and getting at least one undone before she noticed, and put her own now free one between them, trying to push him away.
"Kurama!" Her eyes widened as over his shoulder she saw the elevator doors start to close, for the first time actually starting to struggle against him as he continued nipping at her neck, moving now in the direction of her exposed collarbone. "Kurama-" She clenched her teeth together as her energy started to buzz around her core at his attentions and the elevator began to move.
She became more desperate in that moment, and knew that hurting him was more desirable than the two of them getting caught in the elevator, her with her blouse half-undone and him with his own shirt open, regardless of the fact that he was sick. That part of it no one was likely to pass to anyone else.
"Ku. Ra. Ma. Get. Off. Me. Right. Now."
When his response as she tried to free herself was to give her a low growl, Shikiyoku's eyes widened briefly and then suddenly narrowed.
"Oh, no you did NOT just do that to me." Shoving both her shoulder and hand against the side of him that wasn't holding onto her wrist, she threw him off-balance long enough to get free and twist herself forward, stretching over with her left hand to stop the elevator just as it reached the floor to which it had been called, inputting a series of numbers into it again, and starting its movement back upwards, letting out a sigh as it did so.
Glancing back over her shoulder, she noticed Kurama cringing, and though he held her other hand, he apparently had not noticed anything other than the brightness of the lights for the moment.
"Kurama the Youko." The authority in her voice had him blinking and shifting to look at her. "Pick that up." She pointed at the fallen briefcase, which he precariously leaned over to get.
When he stood back up, he shuffled in her direction, but the way that his left hand was holding her right meant that the only comfortable thing he could do was come up behind her again.
Luckily for her, by the time all of this had transpired, the elevator doors were opening, and before he could decide whether to drop the briefcase or let go of her hand, she went into action.
"Alright, fox." She shifted a single foot back and in one smooth motion had him on her back, easily able to carry him as he didn't struggle against her and was awake enough not to be dead weight for her. "Let's go back to bed." 3
~!**!~
The day had become so busy that by the time Mimi had shown up for her shift, Akari was too wired to leave. Her hands were flying across every machine in the immediate area, producing drink after drink for customer after customer, her mind reeling at the amount of people in the shop at once.
"I'm here, Akari! Sorry I'm late!" Mimi called as she disappeared into the back, Akari almost not hearing her. "There's a traffic jam, and there's some kind of event in town, and just so many people-" the girl continued rambling as she entered the room and tied the apron around her waist, doing a little skip and a hop to get between bodies and behind the counter to take the next order.
"Good to see you, Mimi. Honestly, I thought it was still morning!"
"Well, lucky for you, it's not." The girl shimmied her way to the machine next to Akari, who was busy blending a handful of smoothies for some schoolkids. "Has it been this way all day?"
"Since right before my lunch, actually."
"You haven't eaten?" The girl asked, rounding on her. "Go! I can handle this!"
Akari ignored the order and turned to serve the group of girls, each of which thanked her and apologized for taking up so much time. "No, no, it's fine! We enjoy the business!" Akari gave them their change, and was on to the next customers.
A couple more hours passed before business came to a sudden standstill, the building so quiet that Akari would be able to hear if a speck of dust hit the floor it seemed. Both baristas stretched their arms over their heads, looked at one another, and grinned.
"That was fun," Mimi commented. "Now all we have left is a cupcake order! It's rare we ever get one of those!"
Akari tilted her head. "I didn't think we actually made them."
"Yep! And it's so much fun to decorate them! Come on, I'll show you!" Mimi lead the way to the back room, gesturing to the machines they would need to utilize within the next few hours.
And it was funny how, for as long as Mimi was talking, teaching, not a single customer came into the shop. Not a single time did the chime on the door ring. So, Mimi was able to even introduce to Akari how to make icings from scratch, which the dog demoness found extremely pleasing to the senses.
"Now, you just scoop all of the icing up and just blop it into the bag and-"
"'Blop'?" Akari repeated with a teasing smile.
"Yes, blop, now shush and take the bag from me!" The girl passed the white bag over, and began filling another bag with white icing. Except in that one, she added food coloring inside and kneaded it until the icing came out a wonderful teal color. "Now, the fun part!" Mimi leaned over her tray of cupcakes and began piping the icing onto the tops in a simple swirl.
Akari smiled and, after a moment, mirrored her movements. Pretty soon, two dozen cupcakes were iced in blue and white, and Manami was rolling out new tips and a different color. "What next?"
"Watch the magic happen, Akari!" With a precision Akari had never seen in a human before, Mimi began decorating the swirled icing on the cupcakes with small dots that, with a flick of her wrist, Mimi turned into tiny bows.
Mesmerized, Akari took a step closer to analyze each motion she made, until she was sure she could mirror her. At that point, she reached for a new piping bag of her own, filled it with white icing and red food dye, and she too began decorating. However, she made a point to make large bows, smiling as she found that it had been just a little more challenging than she'd expected, but that she'd gotten it down. "And you do this all the time?"
"No, but I want to, I think. Cake decorating is one of my passions!" Mimi finally stood upright to check Akari's work. "Hey! Those look good! Are you sure this is the first time you've done this?"
"Yeah. I had a good teacher," she teased as she too stood upright.
Mimi giggled. "Yknow, you might like it too. You should consider some cake decorating classes! Especially if Grams and Gramps are asking you to run the place."
Akari blinked; she'd almost forgotten about that in today's business. She looked up at the other girl. "You think I should take it."
"Well, yeah. It's obvious you love being here. And you work hard enough that I'm willing to bet you'd make a name for yourself. Bring in more customers. They already like your customized drinks that we added to the menu! Why not go the extra mile, hm?" Mimi's smile was kind, encouraging. "And if you don't like it, you can sell it too!" She gave a thoughtful pause. "And yknow, if you were interested, Grams and Gramps may even pay your way into Decorating classes, since you're considering taking over for them soon. You might consider it too."
Akari leaned against the counter with an elbow, making sure to shift the pan of cupcakes away so she wouldn't mess them up by accident. "I haven't even decided yet if I'm going to accept the job or not."
"Well, at least explore that avenue a little. You might like it."
Akari didn't respond, her eyes finding the tile floor in thought. She didn't even know if she wanted to run the place. She rather enjoyed being the support staff; she liked dealing with the customers who come in and experimenting with drinks and collaborating with Mimi and-
Something hit Akari's arm, and as if wet, began sliding down the appendage. Confused, Akari blinked and turned to look in mild curiosity. The sensation was felt again, this time on her cheek, and Akari could only blink again and bring her eyes to Mimi, who stood poised with the bright purple icing bag pointed in Akari's direction.
She squeezed it again, sending more buttercreme her way. Akari, stunned, couldn't even bring herself to dodge. "What was that for?"
"You're taking the fun out of it!" Another squeeze, and Akari was reaching for her own piping bag. She pointed the tip in Mimi's direction with a devilish grin, not surprised to find her own grin fired back at her. "You can't beat me! The student is never as good as the teacher!"
"Oh yeah? Well, there's a new generation, old woman!" Akari squeezed the bag, sending several portions of the red icing flying across the space between them and hitting Mimi's white shirt sleeve.
"Old?! You called me old!" The girl ran closer, the pair firing icing at one another and giggling. "I happen to be younger than you, thank you very much!"
The pair continued firing icing at one another, running around the obstacles in the kitchen, until the both of them ran out and the human girl took a small slip on the icing on the floor, sliding until she knocked Akari off her feet too. The girls lay in a giggling pile of limbs, both breathing heavy.
"If you don't… take over for Grams…. And Gramps…. I'm gonna be sad forever…" Mimi puffed out between breaths, finally turning a serious look to Akari. "You're… a part of… this family… too!"
Akari smiled through her huffs and puffs. "Fine, I'll do it. But not because you asked me to!"
"Yaay!" The girl cheered as she made an attempt to jump to her feet, only to slip and fall onto Akari all over again.
Amidst the giggles, Akari became aware of the chime of the door opening, and she blinked. "Th-there's a customer," she giggled out. "I've got i-"
"No, it's time for you to go home! I got what I needed from you! Now go home to the puppy-dogs!" This time when Mimi pushed herself to stand, she didn't fall. "I'll clean up too, since I started it. Thanks for helping out today, and staying late!"
Akari too stood, looking herself over and wondering if the food coloring would come out of her white shirt. "No problem. It isn't like I have anything else to do." She pulled the apron from around her waist, following Mimi out the doors and into the front of the store. "I'll see you this weekend, then!"
"Thank you again, Akari! And I'm counting on you! You better keep your word, missy!" The girl waved before she turned to the customer, not watching Akari leave the premises.
She didn't get far before she realized her phone had, at some point, fallen from her pocket. She turned around with a sigh and retraced her steps, making sure to look at the ground just in case she had dropped it outside of the shop. By the time she was walking back into the cafe, Mimi was hiding in the back, and emerged only a few seconds after the door closed with a smile and a greeting ready to fire away.
"Oh, hey! You're back! I was going to call you and let you know your left your phone but, well, you can see the problem with that," the girl giggled. "Here ya go!"
Akari smiled as the girl approached with her phone extended in her direction, gratefully taking the technical device from her before nodding goodbye again. "Thanks a bunch!" She turned to leave, only to stop just shy of running into a body. "Oop- sorry. I-"
"No, my apologies. I didn't expect you to turn around so soon," came the smooth voice in amused reply. Akari glanced up at the demon and blinked, finding that this face was familiar. He raised a brow at her. "You're Akari."
She nodded. "Yuuichi."
"Just who I was looking for." He stepped to the side, holding the door open for her so she could step out into the sunlight. "I'd like to thank you."
Akari's head tilted to one side as she turned to face him, watching the door close behind him once he released it. "For what?"
"Because of you, I was able to get a lead in this area, and put away the crook." The brown-haired demon gave a small smile. "All because you had a short amount of footage of the criminal. The PD has been chasing him for years, and you helped put him away."
Akari noted the way he ticked his head at her while he waited for her response, causing the hair he had tied back to slide into her view over his shoulder. Low ponytail. "It was just a surveillance video."
"With enough proof to lock him away for good," Yuuichi pointed out with a toothy smile. Than, he extended his hand towards her. "This is me thanking you for your contribution."
Akari blinked, taking his hand and shaking it out of instinct. "Sure. But you came all the way here for that?"
"Well, I was in the area. Figured I'd stop by."
Akari nodded. "Well, next time I see a traffic violation, I'll be sure to call you, detective."
He gave a lopsided smile, "I look forward to it." With that, he turned to walk away, Akari watching him go. *
~!**!~
Luckily for Shikiyoku, all of Kurama's energy had been spent making his way down the hall to the elevator, so he spent the rest of the day compliantly in bed.
In her rush to get him there, she didn't even bother trying to close the door to the bedroom.
Unfortunately, he never became lucid enough to do anything with the plants inside the briefcase, and it wasn't as if Shikiyoku knew what they were supposed to do even if she were able to manipulate them in the first place.
So, she spent the time he drifted off into sleep making more calls, not leaving the room this time, and completely rearranging his schedule for the next several days as she had done for today the day before.
Waking up the next morning, she realized she had fallen asleep in the chair, and that it was her internal alarm waking her this time, the one she had set with time for a shower and actual preparation this time so she wouldn't have to rush downstairs.
Seeing Kurama still slept, though the covers were all twisted up in his legs, Shikiyoku got up and stretched as she moved for the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind her as she started the shower and stripped down.
An idea suddenly occurred to her and she wrapped herself in a towel and snuck back out into the room, making a grab for the cellphone in her jacket pocket and dashing back into the bathroom, turning off the shower for the moment.
With a series of quick calls, Shikiyoku made the appropriate preparations as if herself and Kurama were going on a business trip together and leaving within the next hour or so, just so she would not have to go back downstairs and risk another encounter like she had earlier with him in the elevator.
Feeling rather brilliant, she went ahead with her shower, putting her glasses on the cabinet and removing her hairpins and placing them besides, but she took her time in the shower and enjoyed it, only leaving when she felt absolutely refreshed.
The room was rather steamy at that point.
Scratching her fingers against her scalp after she briefly patted herself down and then wrapped the towel around her body, when Shikiyoku looked at the only clothes in the room, her nose crinkled.
She'd have to get in them again.
But I'm all cleeean.
She huffed, remembering the drawers in the other room and wondering what was in them, and if the bedroom beyond it had anything either.
A more appealing idea, she did not get so far as to step out of the bathroom.
She had not heard a single sound, and yet Kurama's body fell through the door as she opened it, knocking her off her feet and slamming her head into the tile floor below.
Taking absent note of the pain, she squinted down at Kurama, whose cheek lay against her chest, pinning to it the hand she had used while falling to keep the towel from coming off.
At first glance, she wasn't positive he was actually awake, especially since she felt the full weight of his body against her and couldn't exactly get to an angle where she could push herself back up in any way.
By the time she had taken a couple of shaky breaths to clear her head, he began to shift around, and her expression quickly lost any humor it might have had when it became obvious he was simply moving his face in place.
"Kurama get off of me." She ordered harshly, glaring at him.
"Sorry." He mumbled as he did manage to push himself up to all fours, a lingering smile on his face as he paused to gather energy.
The air about him held the similar lucid feel she had gotten from him the night he'd given her instructions, and she quickly shifted out from under him as he managed to move over far enough to be sitting on one hip, leaning his shoulder against the counter with his legs extended in front of the now open door.
Tucking the towel tightly in on itself and giving it no further thought, she got up just as he asked her if she retrieved the plants and Shikiyoku told him she would fetch them, moving rapidly into the other room and grabbing the briefcase, bringing it back to lay it open next to him.
When she returned, she noticed he had been struggling to remove his dress shirt, and with his current return to self, she made no hesitation to assist him, finally getting both it off his shoulders and removing the undershirt over his head, throwing them onto the pile of her own dirty clothes nearby.
All at once, he frowned and opened his eyes to slits, looking around.
"Did you bring the briefcase?"
Shikiyoku blinked at him, but reached over to where she had set it down and brought it closer.
Kurama stared at it, before saying, "Open it."
Not thinking anything about his order, Shikiyoku shifted it onto its side and lifted the top, revealing everything she had gathered.
Staring at the contents for a moment, he suddenly stared at her and Shikiyoku felt her blood run cold as he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.
"I can't feel them."3
~!**!~
The next morning, Akari's phone rang long before her alarm went off, forcing her into the waking world and into rolling onto one side, careful not to kick the dog that lay at the end of the bed in her movements. She reached over the second canine for the little flip phone that lit up the corner of the room, her hand fumbling in the dark as she absolutely refused to open her eyes and pull the cover from over her head.
When she finally had the little device in her hand, she disconnected it from its charger and flicked her wrist, effectively ending the ringing. She slowly moved the phone until it was at her ear, underneath the heavy comforter she had rolled herself up in.
"Hello?"
"Akari, I know it's early- or maybe late- and I'm sorry to call, but do you mind swapping me shifts today?"
Said demoness finally opened her eyes and peeled the phone from her ear to glance at the number displayed there, the name above it sparking recognition in her still-asleep mind. Finally, after a few more seconds, she planted it against the side of her head again. "Is everything okay, Mimi?"
"Yeah, I- actually, no. Not really. I'm in the hospital with Grams. A little stressed, really."
As if she'd been physically shocked, Akari shot upright, sending all blankets to her lap in a heap. "Do what?"
The girl gave a long sigh into the speaker. "She's okay. It's just a sprained wrist, but I'm going to stay here for a while to keep her company. Gramps is going to meet you at the shop before ten to catch you up."
Akari ran a hand down her face, a long sigh finding its way to her lips. "Yeah, I'll trade you. Just- give her a hug for me, will you?"
"Yeah, no problem! I'll take over for the evening today. Thank you again, I owe you. Big time."
Akari gave a soft smile. "Don't worry about it. It's why I'm here. Get some rest, Mimi." Akari hung up the phone and ran her hand down her face a second time, her eyes staring blankly at the wall across from the bed. She turned to Kiyoko, who was surprisingly the only other one to wake up. "I think I'm going to own a shop tomorrow, Kiyoko."
The dig stretched her body out, extending her neck until her head rested on Akari's lap, tail gently thumping on the covers.
"Yeah. This will be… interesting." She turned to look at the alarm clock, reading the three digits with a yawn and watery eyes. "...I'm worried, girl," she finally admitted to the canine, her hand finding the fluff that was her fur and began stroking her along her side. "I hope it's the right decision."
She stared at the clock, realizing that now she only had two hours before she had to be at the shop and getting ready to open. She yawned again and began pushing covers away, Kiyoko shifting back to where she had originally lay with a little puff. "Sorry, Kiyoko. I won't be able to go on a run this morning."
Akari slowly shuffled her way to one side of the bed and set her weight on her feet, turning to look at the pair who didn't move from their sleeping places and giving a small smile.
For an hour, Akari shuffled around her apartment, making breakfast for herself, filling the bowls for Nabu and Kiyoko, drinking orange juice, channel surfing and then settling for the radio on a quiet volume before she turned and moved back into her room and towards the closet. She grabbed the closest shirt and pair of black slacks before turning and tossing the outfit onto the chair in the corner, crossing the room again for the drawers.
She shuffled through the top one until she found clean undergarments.
Once dressed, Akari moved for the bathroom and bravely reached for the pick that lay on the countertop by the sink. With a sigh, always hating this part, she began running it through the tangled curls, yanking it through until, after about twenty minutes, her hair fell in natural ringlets around her shoulders.
She eyed her reflection for a moment before deciding to go with a simple clip, leaving her bangs to frame her face. Satisfied, she turned and moved into the kitchen area, finishing off her glass of orange juice before turning off the radio and going out the door, grabbing her keys as she went and locking the door behind her.
At work, the hours between opening and ten am flew by it seemed, with no incident. The morning rush had gone smoothly, with only one deviant from the usual flow, and then business had died down enough for Akari to turn on the television and surf the channels one by one until she found a comedy show that was entertaining enough to keep her awake.
So, when Gramps came sauntering into the shop with a cane in one hand and a manilla folder in another, she was quick to scurry around the counter in greeting. "Good morning. What happened?"
"She took a tumble from bed last night. Tried to catch herself. She'll be fine, my child."
Akari took a breath. "I'm glad."
"Come, child. We have things to discuss." He waved her forward with the folder, all but shooing her out of the room to get her into the back kitchen. She turned to look for him, finding that he wasn't immediately in sight.
When he did come into sight, though, he continued to shoo her into the office, giving the 'scoot' motion with his hand. "I've locked up for now. This will take some time." He followed her into the little office, leaving the door open, which was out of habit. He circled the desk, gesturing for her to sit across from him as he took his own seat in the office chair, plopping the folder on top of the wooden surface. He sat back, relaxing into the chair as if he hadn't had a comfortable seat in hours.
Akari waited in silence, letting the man gather himself before speaking, watching his face and finding that this morning, he seemed his age more so than ever before. The wrinkles in his face seemed deeper than usual, the hair at his crown thinner than any other time she had seen it.
"Akari, dear." His voice seemed older too, more worn. Tired. "We've found a buyer who agrees with our terms. It's time you made a decision, so that I can prepare for the next step." He paused, his brown eyes finding her similarly-hued ones with a soft gleam. "My wife and I are retiring. We've done this for as long as we can remember." He paused, a fond smile coming to his lips. "Would you like to take the reigns? Continue what we started?"
Akari took a deep breath and then released it through her nostrils, as if breathing out all of her worries at what she was about to agree to, about what she was about to jump headfirst into. "Before I agree, I want to ask," she met his gaze again, a small smile on her face, "that you help me choose Cake Decorating classes, and anything else that might help. I'm not asking that you guys-"
"Already done, my child. We've already arranged that; Mimi mentioned that you'd enjoyed the cupcakes you decorated. We've also paid your way into a workshop for Baristas, and then another for pastries. You will not be thrown into this without some sort of help, Akari."
Relief flooded her, and for a few moments, the demoness couldn't say anything. She'd been half afraid that she would find classes she liked, and then not be able to afford them. "Thank you very much, Gramps." Her smile widened and she leaned forward, pointing a finger at the envelope he had placed on the top of the desk. "Is that the contract?"
"Indeed it is. Have a look." He passed it to her, and she carefully scanned each page, reading it word for word until she understood everything entailed within the paperwork, noticing that it had specifically asked that she be placed as the owner of the shop, and was a requirement for this particular buyer. Curious, she read again, searching for clues as to why, and finding nothing in the end.
"Have a pen?" She finally asked the old man, who smiled and nodded once, passing his favorite calligraphy pen her direction. She eyed it, fascinated. "Your lucky fountain pen?"
"Everyone needs some good luck here and there," he gave her that tired smile again.
Akari gave a breath of a laugh as she pulled the cap from the pen and touched it to the paper, hesitating just long enough to create a little black spec before she continued, signing her name in loopy, curly cursive on a dotted line, and then printing her name on the solid line below it.
"Where else should I sign, Gramps?"
The old man leaned forward, taking the folder from her and sifting through the paperwork one sheet at a time, marking lines for her to sign with black Xs before sliding it back to her.
And each one he had indicated, she signed her name in that same loopy, curly cursive. When she finally signed the last line, she replaced the cap on the fountain pen and passed it back to the man who had sat in silence with a pleased smile on his face. He pulled the papers from her and began looking through the pile again. Satisfied, he tapped the ends of them on the desk to straighten out the lot before paperclipping them together and replacing them in the folder.
"I believe you have everything you need to take ownership of this place, Akari. We believe you to be the best person suited for this job, and wouldn't want it any other way."
"I'm flattered, Gramps. Really," she smiled wide at him.
"I will be turning in this paperwork to the buyer in four days. For the next three, you will be in workshops so that you will be fully equipped with the proper knowledge to run the place."
Akari nodded, watching as he scrawled a few addresses, and wrote times under each one. "I'll miss you guys, though."
"We'll send letters, or visit from time to time. We won't disappear from the earth, child," he responded as he dot some I's and crossed some T's before passing the paper to her. "The location of each workshop, and the time at which you need to be present. Don't worry about showing up for work these days. Mimi will just shut the shop down early, since you'll be tied up for a good amount of time."
Akari nodded, memorizing the places and times.
"Sadly, this will be the last time we see one another for some time," he continued, his tone taking a different lilt this time. "The next time I see you, I will be a customer and you a busy bee."
Akari gave a small sigh, though she didn't look away from the old man. "I look forward to it." She moved to stand, knowing that he needed to get going and she needed to reopen the shop for business before the lunch hour chimed. "Don't go too far, okay?"
"We won't, child. Or, at least if we do, we will send postcards." Akari smiled as she followed him to the door at the front, watching as he fished in his pockets for a few minutes, jingling keys and change until he pulled his hand free and held a set of keys on his palm, extending them in her direction. "These are yours. When the time comes, I will bring by the extras for you. They go to the safe, and the filing cabinets in the office.
Akari nodded dutifully. "Thank you, sir."
"I'm heading out now. Take care, Akari."
Akari watched the old man saunter his way down the sidewalk, waiting until he turned a corner at the end of the block before she headed back inside, eyes on the keyring in her hand.
It's… weird-feeling. They're heavier than I expected.
She smiled at the keys before fishing her own from her pocket and adding the new ones to her growing collection.
Might get a lanyard soon.
As she meandered her way back to her station, she turned to watch the television, though her thoughts remained elsewhere for the remainder of her shift. In fact, she had been so distracted that by the time Mimi had shown up, Akari had jumped, forgetting that she was to be in today.
"Congratulations!" The girl enveloped her in a hug, giving a squeeze before she pulled away. "Now you'll be going to workshops and then it will be just me and you!"
Akari smiled," Yeah. We'll be busy soon. You'll be teaching me the paperwork side of things too?"
"Mh-hm!" The girl nodded eagerly. "I'm good with the numbers." Finally, she began shooing Akari away. "Go home! You're gonna be pulling long hours over the next few weeks. Get some rest while you can!"
"Okay, okay, I'm going!" The demoness let herself be shooed from the store, smiling at the girl on the other side of the glass that waved goodbye to her. Giving in, Akari made her way through town and back to her apartment.*
Thanks for reading! Bless your face. If you sneezed during this chapter, bless you. Peace off!