Alice Alive

Chapter Twenty-three: Forgiven

By, KKYOKO

I sang Alleluia in the choir, oh,

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia,

I confessed my darkest deeds to an envious man,

My brothers they never went blind for what they did,

But I may as well have,

In the name of the Father, the Skeptic, and the Son,

I had one more stupid question,

We all had our reasons to be there,

We all had a thing or two to learn,

We all needed something to cling to,

So we did.

-Alanis Morissette

I wake up warm, nestled against Hiei's hard body. His face is buried in the back of my neck, one arm wrapped around my waist, the other hidden under my pillow. The sky outside is a light grey, and I can tell today will be overcast and possibly rainy. The smell of sandalwood warms me, and I figure that Hiei must have had a bath after I fell asleep beside him. I decide that I'll have a bath as well and start to extract myself from his embrace, but his arm clenches tighter around me and he gives an unhappy, sleepy grunt.

"I need a shower," I murmur, turning my head to face him. "Let me up?"

His eyes squint open, red slits peering at me. His mouth pulls into a frown, and then a slightly amused smile at the sight of my bedhead. "Fine," he says, not at all sounding like he'd been asleep, "but hurry up."

He releases me and I roll to my feet, searching out the last of my clean clothes from my luggage and dart into the bathroom. I am pleased by the fact that we are finally going home today. I've always been a bit of a homebody, and I miss Shiori and Sitka. And my own bed. I even sort of miss school.

Bland would be a nice little respite from the excitement of the last ten days. Although, I know that Sensui and his lackeys will be showing up almost as soon as we get back. Maybe I can just avoid that all together, since I just want to be a little normal for awhile. Nice, normal, quiet life sounds very good about now.

I quickly wash up and pull on my clothes – a black pencil miniskirt, slouchy pink graphic t-shirt, and cozy thick knitted thigh-high tights – and comb and blow-dry my hair. I pull it into a fishtail braid, thinking it appropriate since we're getting back to the mainland by ferry. I head out to put on my makeup, eyeing Hiei sitting on the bed.

He watches me in mild interest as I bend in front of the mirror, rubbing primer on my face. I follow his gaze and see that he's not necessarily watching what I'm doing. Actually, he's plainly examining my backside. I feel a little amused, but decide not to call him out on it. After all, I've ogled his gorgeous body plenty of times, and I loathe to be called a hypocrite. Also, I really don't mind in the least.

"Do you always wear makeup?" he asks suddenly, frowning to himself. He's watching me brush liquid foundation over the bridge of my nose, brow furrowed.

"I do most of the time," I reply, trying to decide on which blush to wear. I decide on a pinker one and brush it over my cheekbones.

"Why?"

I blink at him in the mirror, surprised. "Because I like it?"

His expression told me he was unsatisfied with my answer, and I decide to elaborate a little more as I try to figure out what I want to do with my eyes. "I think there are a lot of girls who are uncomfortable going out without a stitch of makeup on, maybe because they don't think they're pretty enough without it, or they're insecure, or whatever. Anyway," I trail off, finally deciding to keep my eyes light and just highlight the corners of my eyes. "I've always liked makeup and fashion, and I like looking put together. Going without doesn't bother me, because I don't define my worth by how I look, but I still prefer to look nice. And it allows me to be creative, which is fun."

"I see," Hiei says succinctly, seeming more content with a longer, complicated answer. "I'll admit, I was concerned that you were too wrapped up in your human social constructs of how things must be done, but I am satisfied with your response."

"Hm," I say with a smile, rolling up my brush mat and stuffing my makeup back into its bag. "You thought I was being stupid."

"Naturally," he replied, not missing a beat. The corners of his mouth pulled up into a smirk.

I raise an eyebrow at him. "You're testing me."

He doesn't reply, but I take his widened smirk as a yes.

"Did I pass?" I ask, approaching him, turning my head to the side curiously. I stand in front of his perch on the edge of the bed, just out of his immediate reach.

I suddenly go sailing into the mattress, ceiling hurling before my eyes, and Hiei's weight pins me down as he crushes his mouth on mine in a demanding kiss. His hot hands go up my skirt, groping, exploring, turning me into a shuddering mess of ecstasy. I groan his name as his mouth slides down my neck, nipping and sucking, hot breath clouding my skin.

"Can I take this as a yes?" I murmur, slipping my hands in his shirt, fingers running up his sides. He twitches, and I realize he's ticklish.

He offers an affirmative, "Hn," before pressing his mouth against mine again. This kiss is slower, but no less demanding and he slides between my thighs, pushing my skirt up and cupping my bottom. His other hand goes to the back of my head, holding me up, and he deepens the kiss. His tongue darts into my mouth, exploring, invading, but not unwelcome. I am melting like a puddle, and I press my hips against his, wondering how far it will go today.

"We don't have much time," he says, pulling away, answering my mental question. "The others will be ready to leave soon."

"All right," I sigh, disappointed, rolling away from him, adjusting my clothes as I get to my feet. Seriously, am I ever going to get laid?

Keiko sighs. "I'm so relieved that Genkai is alive. I'm so glad that Koenma was able to bring her back." Her brown eyes find the short, elderly woman on the deck. Genkai is standing next to Atsuko and Yusuke, and they look like they're giving him hell about something.

I remember the feeling I felt when she died, and wish I could forget it. "I'm glad too. Even though I don't really know her or anything, I know that it was really hard on Yusuke. I'm sure it was hard on you too, Botan."

"Taking her soul to the Reikai certainly wasn't easy," she answered, fighting off a depressed look. She forced a smile. "But it's all over now, and everything is right as it should be!"

Keiko changes the subject to something more pleasant. "Should we do something when we get back?" she asks me, glancing at Botan beside her, leaning against the rail of the ferry. "I don't know if you need to leave right away, Botan, but if you don't –"

"Oh, Keiko, I'm sorry," Botan says, sheepishly, "I haven't been to work properly in days, and I know Koenma-sama expects me as soon as possible." Her hair is pushed blown away from her face by the wind. "Maybe we could meet up another time? What about next Sunday? We could karaoke again!"

"That sounds fun," I say, giving her a smile. I turn to Keiko, widening my stance to accommodate for the rocking of the ferry. "Maybe you and Yusuke can get together for the rest of the day? You probably would like to spend some time alone with him, don't you?"

Keiko brightens up. "Yeah, I do, actually. It's been awhile, and I've missed him. But you know," she trails off, looking thoughtfully at the choppy sea. "These past ten days, we've all grown so close, us girls, and I just don't want to lose that. I hope we can all stay good friends..."

"Oh, Keiko!" Botan laughs throwing her arms around her.

"I think you mean best friends," I say, giving Keiko a pointed smile.

"Exactly!" Botan exclaims, grinning happily, squeezing Keiko for all she's worth. "I haven't been so excited for a Sunday in decades, I'll have you know! I've never had so many close girlfriends all at once, and I'm super happy about it!"

Keiko's face breaks out into a pleased smile, and she hugs Botan back. I throw my arms around them both, feeling fuzzy inside.

We break apart after a moment, and Keiko sighs. She spots Yusuke chatting with Kurama, and tosses us a smile. "I'm going to go talk to him now, okay?"

"Okay," Botan and I say together, standing close against the cold, cutting wind. We exchange grins and watch her steal him away from Kuwabara and Kurama and step inside the cabin with him. I notice Shizuru standing at the bow, smoking a cigarette, all alone.

I hear Botan sigh beside me, and I know she sees her too. "She's been so depressed lately. Ever since the last round, it's like she's had a huge wall around her."

"You remember that guy I told you I was trying to set her up with?" I say, wondering why Shizuru didn't tell Botan about Sakyo, but then realized that it would be out of character for her.

Botan nods.

"He was Sakyo," I tell her, facing her fully.

Botan's mouth hangs open in a strangled "oh", and her pink eyes are huge in shock. "That means then –"

"Yeah," I say, frowning at Shizuru's back. "Do you think we should leave her alone? I'm not really sure what to do."

Botan's face brightens with determination. "We do not leave her alone! Definitely not. I'm going to march right over there myself and get her out of that black cloud she's in!" And so she does, and I'm left watching her back, wondering how Botan is so strong and amazing.

I really don't know what to say to Shizuru. What do you say to someone who just lost her lover? I'm sorry, I hope it works out better next time? What can I possibly say?

I turn away from Botan and Shizuru and watch other people for awhile. Kuwabara and Kurama are standing a ways from me, talking. Yukina is toward the back of the ferry, taking in the human sea with avid interest, so absorbed in observing everything that I'd feel bad if I interrupted her. Hiei is standing on top of the cabin, cloak billowing around him in the cold wind. He doesn't look at me, if he can tell that I'm watching him. I wonder where Genkai and Atsuko went, but then I think they must be inside the cabin where it's warmer.

I watch others, humans, demons, in-betweeners. There's a load of people leaning against the rails, sauntering about the deck – I think I see Naoto's hair, but he disappears behind a brown-haired foreign man before I can see him properly.

I huff, staring at the foreigner's back, annoyed that he got in my line of sight.

Kurama sidles up to me, leaning his back against the rail. "You look upset," he says, glancing at the bow of the boat. "Is there a fight going on between you girls?"

"No," I say, wondering how he can be so casual since the last time we talked I nearly tore him a new one. "Nothing like that." I don't feel very amicable, so I decline to tell him what's really going on. I turn back to the sea, and see that we're coming close to the mainland. I breathe in the salty, icy air, trying to ignore Kurama, hoping he'll go away. I want to bottle the smell of the ocean and sell it, I think. I'll make billions and move away to London or something. No, not London – Puerto Rico. That sounds better.

I feel warmth against my face and blink, realizing that Kurama is cupping my cheek. His eyes are sad and heavy, and I can't find it in myself to pull away. I feel like I'm already forgiving him.

"I'm sorry," he says, voice deep and unwavering. "I said awful things, uncalled for things. I'm sorry, Alice."

The heat from his hand makes me realize that my cheeks are freezing and I'm actually rather cold on the deck. Kurama isn't burning like Hiei, but his warmth is still welcome for some reason. I do, honest to God, I do want to jut my chin and stubbornly refuse to forgive him. But I feel the ice cracking on my skin, and the warmth of him seeping inescapably into my body.

"Yeah," I say finally, acknowledging his apology. I don't exactly completely forgive him, but in the long run, it won't really matter. He'll slip under my guard again somehow, and I'll get hurt again, and I'll sort of almost-not-quite forgive him again. I wonder if we're doomed to this cycle of take and break, or if we can ever evolve past it.

His hand drops to his side, and he presses his shoulder against me, offering me warmth. I think about going inside the cabin, but for some reason I'm stuck to my place on the deck. Maybe my feet are frozen there.

I stare out into the choppy sea, watching the mainland grow bigger and bigger, and try to remember any Spanish I learned long ago.

The glass of the window is cold, I notice as I watch the wind shake the bare branches of the tree in the courtyard. It brings a chill through the thin wall, and I give a small shiver, wishing I were closer to the heater. The steel grey sky stares back at me, daring me to go outside.

The walk home is going to be unbearably cold - especially since I forgot my scarf at home again.

Students murmur around me, occasionally giggling and moving their chairs and desks around. Kitajima suddenly plops her chair at my desk and leans forward with her chin on her hands. She gives me a bright smile.

"Guess what?" she says, grinning.

"What?"

She squirms in her seat, like an excited puppy. "I got a boyfriend over the break!"

I am uncertain what sentiment I should use. "Good for you," I finally settle on, after a second. It's not that I'm not happy for her, but maybe I'm a little jaded. I pull my mouth into a smile. "Tell me about him."

She doesn't seem to notice my mood. She launches into an excited ramble about how she met him through a friend of her family, and how he's going to the same school she's planning on going to, and how he's super, duper, amazingly attractive. Her brown eyes are bright and warm – a nice contrast to the cold grey outside. I wonder if she couldn't coax the sun to come out with her happiness. She pulls out a picture of her new boyfriend, a purikura they took together, and passes it to me. I notice that he's definitely a total looker, and he has a nice smile. He's got a kind expression in his eyes.

"I'm really happy for you," I say, sliding the picture back to her.

Her smile falters suddenly, and she looks a little ashamed. "I'm sorry Minamino-chan, I got too caught up in my own happiness and forgot that you were still single. Isn't there anyone you're interested in?"

I blink at her. "What?"

"I mean, I haven't seen you show any interest in anyone, so I just wondered if there was someone you liked..." she trails off, embarrassed.

I scratch my head, wondering how to best answer the question. I suppose keeping Kitajima out of the loop as much as possible would probably be the most ideal thing. Kurama would probably kill me if she got too involved with us again. And it's not like I really want to tell Kitajima all about Hiei and me. She's a really nice kid, but still. She's a kid. "No," I say, finally, "I don't have someone I like yet. Maybe in high school. Speaking of which, tell me more about the school you picked."

Kitajima grasps the subject change gratefully. "Oh, it's really cool! It's really nice because it's close to my house and everything, so I won't have to take the train anymore, and they've actually got a paranormal club! I'm so excited to graduate, Minamino-chan, and then I can go to school with my boyfriend too. It's like something out of a shoujo manga!" She giggles. "What about you?"

"Mm. I've been thinking about Sato, but there's a private science school that I'm looking into too. I think Shiori-san would rather me go there, but she hasn't said anything to me about it. She just looks sort of pained when I bring Sato up. I wonder what I should do," I say, looking back outside.

Kitajima practically leaps at me. "You should talk to her, of course! How do you really know that's what she's thinking unless she says it? Open the lines of communication! You may be surprised!"

I give her a warm smile. I only bring that up because I know Kitajima honestly does feel bad about parading her shiny new boyfriend around in front of me, even though I honestly couldn't care less about something like that, so long as she is happy. I just want to give her an opportunity to feel like a good friend again. By her warm glow I can tell she already feels better, and I give her a wider smile. "You always know what to do, Kitajima. I wish we could go to high school together too. Let's stay friends after graduation, okay?"

She grins and I can see her aura, a swirling energy of pink and gold, suddenly surround her. "Of course, Minamino-chan!"

I smile happily.

The bell rings, and school is officially over, and Kitajima jumps to her feet. "Oh! I've got to hurry! I have to give a girl in class C some notes!" She gives me a last smile, snatches up her things, and darts out of the classroom in a small blur.

"Bye!" I call after her, standing up and sliding my notebook into my bag.

Tasaka groans in frustration, two desks to my right, looking after the way she ran. "Damn it, I missed her today too!" He huffs and grabs his bag, throwing it over his shoulder and then stops – eyes landing on me. He gives me a frown and weaves his way through the other students and stops at my desk. "Hey. What were you and Kitajima talking about?"

"Why?" I ask, giving him a scowl, shouldering my bag.

"Just tell me," he snaps.

"Tch, I don't have to tell you a goddamned thing. Get out of my way, already. I want to go home," I demand, watching his face darken. He looks like he might pick a fight, but then Kurama steps beside me, giving him a politely interested look. Tasaka winces and steps aside, and I walk right past him, Kurama at my elbow.

"I wonder if he'll ever give up on Maya," Kurama says with a frown as soon as we're out of the classroom.

"I hope so. He's got a temper," I reply, as we head downstairs, "and she's got a boyfriend now, apparently, which is probably what he wanted to know more about."

Kurama's face doesn't change at all. "I overheard."

I guess he still has a thing for her after all. "He looks nice enough, I guess, from the picture she showed me. Not the sort that I'd like, but nice."

Kurama's eyebrows go up, and his green eyes slide over to me. "If you don't like him, then I suppose he really will be good for her."

I stop on the stairway, and gape at him. "You...jackass."

"You have to admit your taste in men is questionable," he says, teasing smile on his wide mouth. He reaches up and takes my hand, tugging lightly. "Are you coming?"

"Yeah, yeah," I grumble, stomping down the stairs after him. His hand is much larger than mine, and warm too, and I can't find it in myself to actually be angry with him.

We stop and change into our street shoes, and follow the crowd of eager students out into the sidewalk and we make our way home. I give a shiver as a burst of icy wind shoots through me, and I tug my blazer tighter around me.

Kurama notices and sighs, pulling his scarf from his neck. "Hold still," he requests, hovering over me with it.

I do and his drops the scarf on top of my head, wrapping it under my chin and around my neck like a hood. I glare at him as his mouth twitches suspiciously.

"You look like a babushka doll," he manages finally, holding back his laughter.

I sigh, but don't feel up to chastising him. The scarf creates a bubble of warmth around me, and I feel much better. I press my shoulder against his arm when a blast of wind cuts through us. I don't think Kurama gets cold very easily, but as he did just give me his scarf, I suppose it couldn't hurt to be nice to him.

"I heard you mention the idea of school to Maya as well. Do you really think Mother would be unhappy if you chose to go to Sato?" he asks, eyes as warm as his scarf. His smile is kind.

I give another sigh. "I just don't want to disappoint her, you know? I like science well enough, but I don't want a job in the field and I don't want to teach. I want a job that's fun, and I'll be happy to go to every day. I've done enough crummy jobs for three lifetimes."

Kurama gives a thoughtful noise. "What all have you done?"

I hold up my hands and start counting off. "Grocery store checker, I waited tables for long time, then I was a barista at Starbucks, I cleaned houses for awhile, worked in my ex's father's bait shop, did some English tutoring for high schoolers, baby-sat my neighbors kids, groomed horses, and then I spent a week painting houses for a realtor. I've done a lot of odd jobs on top of all that." I suppose most normal twenty-somethings don't go through as many jobs as I had, but at some points I had been working three jobs at once to be able to live on my own. "What about you? Has your occupation always involved thievery?"

He smiles in amusement. "For the most part. Although, I did pirate for a little while."

I blink. "Wow, really? Why did you stop pirating?"

"As you can probably imagine by the nature of my powers, I've always been strongest on land," he informs me lightly, smiling. "Always play to your strengths, I say."

"Ah, yes, I see," I agree. I look up and find that we are nearly home already.

"I think Maya is right about you talking to Mother about going to Sato," he says, suddenly. "At least one of us should go to high school – even if it is an art school. And I highly doubt that Mother will be that adverse to Sato, simply because it's an opportunity to spoil you, if anything. I think she wishes she could spoil us a lot more than she does – especially you."

I give him a confused look. "Why me? You're her son."

"Yes, but," he says, tilting his head to the side, looking down at me, "you're her daughter. I think she relates to you more than me because you're a girl."

I blink at him. "Well...if you say so, Kurama. I'll talk to her about it tonight."

He smiles again, pleased. "You should let yourself be spoiled once in awhile, Alice. I know that you've grown up very differently than you would have if you were born here, and I know as an American you were expected to be extremely self-sufficient, but every now and then it's important to look up an accept what is being handed to you."

"I know," I huff, "but I just don't want to put Shiori out or anything."

Kurama's warm hand engulfed my shoulder and squeezed. "Don't worry so much about that. She just wants you to be happy."

"Hmm." I tighten the scarf around my head as we turn the corner and approach the house. I see a brown car parked on the street. "Hatanaka's here. Wonder if he'll stay for dinner?"

"Most likely," Kurama says, hand falling away from my shoulder. "I smell chopped onions. I think it might be nikujaga."

"Tofu?" I ask, worrying my brow.

"Of course. You know Mother wouldn't feed you beef."

"I know, but she might want to make it for Hatanaka-san," I reply, relieved, hopping up the step to the house. "We're back!" I call into the house as I swing open the door. Sitka immediately bowls into me, giving me happy, happy puppy dog kisses.

Missed you, missed you! He tells me, excitedly.

Shiori steps out of the kitchen and stops in the entryway, looking like she's trying not to smile at me. "Alice, dear, why are you wearing Shuichi's scarf like that?"

I stop, touching the scarf wrapped around my head, having forgotten it was there.

"Babushka," Kurama mutters playfully in my ear as he stands beside me.

I give him a glare, untie the scarf and pull him down by his shoulder. Tossing the scarf over his head, I tie it in a knot below our chins and smile. I press my cheek against Kurama's. "Now we're an amoeba."

"Stay just like that!" Shiori exclaims and rushes back into the kitchen.

"She's getting her camera," Kurama mumbles, almost sounding like he's complaining.

"Yes," I tell him.

And sure enough, Shiori comes back with a grin and her camera, snapping several pictures of us in succession. Hatanaka sticks his head around the kitchen doorway, and gives a bark of laughter before quickly retreating. Shuichi doesn't appear, so I figure that he must be at his mother's house today.

"You two look adorable!" Shiori tells us, looking us over. She gives a wistful sigh, folding an arm around her waist. "Before I know it, both of you will be gone and starting your own families. I wish you could stay little forever."

I can see this mood veering quickly into a mother's depression. "But then I wouldn't be able to reach the cups," I joke lightly, nudging Kurama and myself closer to her.

She gives a little laugh then, and holds out her arms, and Kurama and I embrace her together.

"Since we're getting older, we'll just have to try extra hard to be cute, Alice," Kurama says seriously, as we pull away, giving me a quick smile.

I curl up my hands in front of me, making puppy paws, and give a pout. "Like this?"

Shiori laughs and clicks a picture of me, and I'm happy to delight her. I look up at Kurama from my puppy pout to find a strange look on his face. His brows are pulled together, and his mouth is slightly open, and it's sort of like a what-the-heck-are-you-doing face, but not exactly. There is too much awareness in it to be surprise.

"Shuichi-kun?" I ask, face falling out of the pout. I glance at Shiori to find her with a sort of knowing smile, and I don't really get it.

"Well," Shiori says suddenly, cheerfully, "you two should get upstairs and do your homework. Dinner will be ready in an hour or so."

"Okay," I say, untying the scarf, feeling my hair cling to it.

Kurama suddenly snaps out of it and steps away from me, taking off his shoes, and stepping properly into the house. I follow him up the stairs after kicking off my own shoes, and Sitka bounces up after me, tongue lolling out of his mouth.

Hiei's in your room, Sitka informs me.

Oh, good, I haven't seen him in awhile. I smile and ruffle Sitka's coat while passing Kurama's scarf to him before he closes his bedroom door. I see his green eyes cast a curious glance at the wall that separates our bedrooms, but he doesn't say anything about Hiei's presence. The door closes as he turns his back to me, and I go to my bedroom door and swing it open.

Hiei's reclined on my bed, wearing his shoes, and reading my diary.

"H-hey!" I protest, snapping the door shut after Sitka. I point a finger at him. "Stop that!"

"Stop what?" he asks, sounding as if he really isn't listening to me. He doesn't look up from the sparkly pink journal (for the record, it was a gift from Shiori when I was thirteen), completely absorbed in my written ramblings about my life (lives).

"Reading!" I demand, stamping my foot.

I hear Kurama guffaw through the wall, and really assess the noise level of my voice. Of course, I'm positive that he can hear whispering on the other side of the house while he showers. His hearing is supersonic, after all. I guess it doesn't really matter how quietly I yell at Hiei.

Hiei finally tears his eyes away from my journal and smirks. "Your writing is much more succinct than your thoughts, but your penmanship is atrocious. I can barely make out what you're trying to say. You've even written half of it in English." He turns the page. "Not like that could stop me."

I guess I'm not really surprised, but I still ask to confirm. "You can read English?"

"Demons have a knack for languages," he responds. Then he closes the book and sets it on the windowsill, propping it on the cold glass. His stoplight red eyes rove over me, observing. His stoic expression doesn't change much, but there is a softening in it that he reserves just for me. "Come here."

I cross the small room and sit beside him on the edge of the bed. Sitka plops down on the floor by my feet and I rub his belly with my socked foot. He gives a happy whine and yip.

Hiei reaches over me and touches my face. I sink into his warm palm.

"How have you been?" I ask, touching the back of his hand. "I haven't seen you since we got back to Asaka."

"Fine," he answers, seeming to look at every facet of my face, as if committing it to memory. He grasps my arms and tugs me closer to him so that I'm pressed against his warm chest. "You're cold. Have you been well?" His tone is uncertain.

"I'm all right," I explain, snuggling closer to him. "Humans aren't so fragile to get sick from a chilly day – at least I'm not, anyway. I eat a lot of vegetables."

"Eat more of them then. Everywhere I go in this godforsaken city there's a human hacking his lungs up. You've got to be on your guard," he informs me seriously.

"Mmhm," I agree, pressing my cold nose into his neck. He cringes. "I know. Can I sleep here?"

"If you insist," he replies, grudgingly.

I smile, and with Hiei's permission, I doze off in his lap, head resting against his shoulder. Sleep sort of hovers at the edge of my senses, but the doze is a comfortable one. Or at least as comfortable as sleeping on another person can be. I think Hiei closes his eyes for a bit, sort of taking a nap in his own Hiei-way, but it isn't long before he's shaking my shoulder gently.

"They want you downstairs," he says, letting me up.

Sitka's ears are perked up and he looks up at me expectantly. I sigh and slip out of Hiei's lap, getting to my feet lazily, and realize that I'm still wearing my uniform. I shrug off my blazer and open my wardrobe, hanging it up. I send a teasing glance Hiei's way and unhook my skirt, fingers pausing over the catch.

His bedroom red eyes are on me, watching with interest.

I step behind the open door of my wardrobe, out of his line of sight, and I hear him growl as I drop my skirt on the floor. I force myself not to laugh, and thankfully he can't see my wry smile. I pull on a pair of yoga pants from the bottom drawer of the wardrobe, and I toss my button-down white dress shirt over my shoulder, and pull on a slouchy t-shirt. I step out from behind the door, fully dressed, fighting a grin.

"Tease," he accuses.

I bend down and press my mouth against his, wishing we could really be alone somewhere. I would do so many things to him. I want to make him scream my name. I think he senses this, or reads it in my thoughts, because there is another low growl from his throat. It's lusty, not angry, however. His hands wrap around the backs of my thighs, and I feel them tighten, as if he wants to lift me up or move me. Sadly, he stops himself.

"Maybe we should go to a love hotel," I murmur, parting my mouth from his.

His eyes darken. "When?"

I think for a moment, and realize that I'm going to be really busy for the next week because of finals and more entrance exam prep. Surely there will be a window of opportunity somewhere – I just have to find it. "I don't know," I tell him honestly. "I want to go soon though. I'm not the only tease here, you know."

Hiei looks amused and his hands fall from my thighs. "I should have had you back on Hanging Neck Island. We had plenty of opportunities then – we wouldn't have had to worry about being interrupted at least."

"That and privacy," I say, glancing at the wall that separated Kurama's room and mine. Shiori's room is across the hall, but it really isn't much better. Japanese houses have notoriously thin walls, hence the creation of love hotels – a place for couples to get away for an hour or two and have sex without being bothered or discovered. I'm not stupid. I know Shiori will be displeased with me for doing something like this with any male, but that isn't really going to stop me. Sorry, not sorry. I am an adult, and I have needs.

Hiei's hands trace my legs. "You'd better go down there. I'll wait."

"You just want to read my diary without me bugging you about it," I chide, smiling.

"Don't be stupid."

"Don't be predictable," I tease, pulling away from him.

"Hah!" he scoffs in amusement. "You must be blind to call me predictable. But I suppose one can't expect much from your weak human eyes."

I roll said eyes, and look down at Sitka. "Are you coming with me, beast?"

He bounces up to his paws excitedly, nudging my leg toward the door with his long nose. Dinner! he says excitedly, rushing out the door as soon as I open it. He bounds down the stairs in a mass of stomping paws, sounding like a herd of elephants. I glance back at Hiei from over my shoulder, giving him a wink, and close the door behind me.

I smell Shiori's cooking from inside my room, but it's even more aromatic on the stairway. I hear steps behind me, and look back up to see Kurama coming down the stairs too. He shoots me a small smile, and drops down on the step beside me.

"Ready for dinner?" he asks politely.

"I guess," I reply, wondering if I should have been so quick to change into my nightclothes. Hatanaka is practically part of the family, and he's seen me in my pajamas before, but something about Kurama's tone makes me wish I hadn't changed out of my uniform. "Something wrong?"

He eyes my yoga pants, but doesn't say anything. I sort of get the feeling that he's actually very aware that I'm female for once. I suppose he has more of a sense of that, what with Hiei hanging out in my bedroom at all. I wonder if Kurama has ever looked at me like a woman before. Back on Hanging Neck Island, when I first arrived and changed into Kyoko's red dress, I thought he might have looked at me like that then, but now I wonder if he wasn't just teasing me.

But now, I'm almost sure he's checking out my super cute butt in my super cute yoga pants as I head down the stairs and into the kitchen. I find that I don't actually care. Kurama probably notices that I notice, and I feel his gaze shift off of me.

Hatanaka and Shiori are waiting for us at the table, and it's set for four. There's a bottle of sake between them, and a secret smile on their faces. I can tell they're holding hands underneath the table. I greet them and pull out a chair, and Kurama comes in and sits beside me. There is a pot of tofu nikujaga in the center of the table, with hot steam fighting against the glass lid. Shiori also has a small baguette and a salad to share between the four of us on the table.

My mouth waters. I'm hungry. "I'll serve," I offer, holding my hand out for Hatanaka's bowl.

He passes it to me with a wide grin, and I take the lid off the pot, and the steam escapes in an aromatic puff. I ladle nikujaga into everyone's bowls as Shiori breaks the baguette into fourths and passes them around. After the salad is served, I sit down, eagerly picking up my chopsticks, and we all give an "Itadakimasu!" and begin eating.

The atsuage tofu is salty and the potatoes are warm, and it's tasty and delicious. Nikujaga is typically intended to be stewed meat and potatoes, but Shiori recreated it for me, exchanging the meat for fried tofu and the bonito dashi stock for a kombu and soy sauce stock. Sometimes she adds noodles or more vegetables, but I guess she thought the salad and the baguette would do tonight. Whatever, I'm just happy that I don't have to cook my own food. My own mom would have never cooked me anything, so Shiori is pretty awesome in my book.

We devour dinner companionably, and Shiori and Hatanaka pour each other more sake, smiling secretively.

Kurama finally sets his chopsticks down and gives them a pointed smile. "So, did something happen? You both seem rather ecstatic tonight."

"Well," Shiori says, blushing. She glances at Hatanaka, who grins back. "We're getting married!"

"Oh my God, that's awesome!" I exclaim, jumping up from my seat. "Isn't that awesome, K-Shuichi-kun?" I catch myself, so excited that I almost slipped on his name. Usually, I'm very good about that.

"It's wonderful news," Kurama agrees, smiling happily at his mother. "Congratulations to you both. Have you decided on a date yet?"

"Oh, we're thinking the beginning of August would be ideal," Hatanaka says, smiling. "That way we'll have time for a honeymoon during the break. Are you two really happy? I mean, I know it's just been you and Shiori for so long, and I don't want to make anyone feel –"

"Don't be silly," Kurama interrupts, holding up a hand. "Alice and I are very pleased that Mother is going to be married again, aren't we, Alice?"

I'm too busy doing a jig to answer properly. "This is great!" I tell them, grinning. "I'll go play you something on the piano!" And then I dash off into the other room, hearing Hatanaka and Shiori laugh behind me (I think they were kind of drunk at this point), and plop myself down in front of the piano. The music flows out of my fingertips immediately; it's one of the best songs from the eighties.

"If you're lost you can look, and you will find me, time after time..."

Woo-hoo! Done with another one! Sorry I kinda skimmed over the Genkai-coming-back-to-life part. I honestly didn't even really know how to go about writing it.

And, yay! Shiori and Hatanaka are getting married! And as for Alice's super cute butt, well, it's not like she has much on top. Plus, she's a runner. They tend to have cute butts.

Leave me a review and stuff! Tell me what you want to see more of! I might do a lemon, but I obviously can't post it on FFN.

Oh, and maybe you noticed I changed my pen name to KKYOKO from Kajihenge Yoko. I needed a change. :)