Rei says:
Voila! Finally! Chapter 15 is up.
I'm so sorry it took so long for it to put up. But when you finish reading this chapter, you'll understand why. It's eighteen pages. No joke. (Well, really nineteen, if you count this page of my ramblingness) It took me three hours to finish it off. I've been having so much trouble with this chapter…it took me the longest time to finally get my butt into gear and start working, but then I got this huge case of writer's block and I couldn't write anything for four days. (If you'll notice, during the funeral part there's a few moments where I just rambled and rambled. That's kinda where my writer's block was) Finally I said, 'screw it', and I took my dad's laptop and retyped the beginning of this chapter which was three pages at the time and went off from there. It's kinda funny; it doesn't even seem that long to me. So all in all, to finish this chapter, it really took me two days. Pretty amazing, huh? Since it's eighteen pages and all? Well, that's because, my friends, Rei has skill. I'm still a little unsure about this chapter. It's going to be a pain to read (I apologize in advance for that). I was almost going to stop it halfway and make it two separate chapters, but then I decided against it. This was how I wanted it to go. I just never expected it to become this long. O.O;; Just to let you guys know, I'm not sure the next update will be so quick. So enjoy this chapter a little more than you really should. ;)
Oh! Oh oh oh! Rei has an announcement!
I now have an editor!
My friend Mike is my official editor person. From now on, he's going to be reading and editing my chapters so there won't be as much. Or any at all. So he deserves some credit for that too. Although, he didn't edit this chapter because I couldn't get a hold of him. >>
And just so we're clear on this: Someone reviewed this and pointed this out, and I realized I never actually mentioned this to you all although you probably figured this out already. For From the Inside Out, I made the characters at least one year older. This is why Yusuke and Kuwabara are in the high school with Kurama. I AM WELL AWARE of the fact that in the anime/manga they are in different schools; Yusuke and Kuwabara go to Sarayashiki and Kurama goes to Meiou. Hah, it sounds like 'mayo'. I don't like mayonnaise that much. I'm not that stupid. To make things a little easier and less complicated by going back and forth to different schools and whatnot, I just made them older. So instead of Yusuke/Kuwa being 14, they're 15, like Kana. And Kurama is not 15, he's 16. And he also has a permit to drive. This makes Yu/Kuwa/Kana in 10th grade and Kurama in 11th. I just wanted to point this out to prevent any further questions on this…get it? Got it? GOOD.
Thank you for helping me reach my goal of 150!
I was so excited about that, and I'm sorry I never got to put this chapter up right after I received those 150 reviews. I hope you'll be able to forgive me. I think this long, loonnnggg chapter is payment enough, yes: Yes I agree with you. nn
Thank you to:
Koji Jaganshi, 14thShrineMaiden, Konane Shadow Wolf , MikoHatome, RyokoOfTheDarknessRising, mel, Du Weldenvarden Farcai, Just2kawaii, Cuthien Moonleaf, Madhatterness, OneNightOneDream, keia mizuki, CryOfTheGhost, and xxDream Theaterxx for reviewing! Without you guys I wouldn't have made my goal. (I even went over! I got 152 reviews!) I love you guys. Reviews make me so happy. 3
Enough chattering. Onto (the extremely long) Chapter 15!
Quick disclaimer: I don't own YYH and I don't own the songI used at the end of this chapter.
Chapter 15
"Oh, hell."
It was Saturday morning, the day of the funeral, something Kana was not looking forward to. She looked down in disgust at the shoes on her feet, the ones Keiko had lent her yesterday. There wasn't much of a heel to them, but somehow she managed to trip and fall in them already, and she hadn't even gotten outside yet.
She rubbed her ankle absently, silently cursing the shoes. One glance at the clock told her that Kurama and his mother would be here in around fifteen minutes, taking her to the church, where the memorial service would be held.
She fell into a sudden silence as she began braiding her hair, wet from the shower she took not too long ago. The least she could do was make an attempt to look halfway decent…
Sometime later, there was a knock at the door. Kana got up and headed over to open it, marveling at how she didn't trip or anything in Keiko's shoes. It's Kurama, she thought. It had to be.
The door opened, and she was greeted with two arms wrapping around her body.
"Oh, Kana!" The person cried, clinging to her. Kana knew immediately it was Shiori, Kurama's mother. And she had an insanely strong grip. Kana could barely breathe.
"M-Mrs. Minamino?" She managed to get out, cracking open one eye. Shiori let go of her immediately, smiling sadly.
"You poor dear!" She cried. "Shuichi-kun told me what was going on." She hugged Kana again, this time not as bone-crushing as before. "You should have told me sooner, I would have done something, we could've taken you in, or at least--,"
"It's fine, don't worry," Kana interrupted, smoothing her dress. She smiled at Shiori. "I just want to get this over with. Honestly, I'm not looking forward to going to a funeral."
"They're never happy things, are they?" Shiori agreed. "Well then, get your things. Shuichi's outside waiting in the car." She explained, waving her hands around. Kana grabbed a jacket and locked the apartment door behind her as they started walking down the hallway. "It's been so long since I've seen him in a suit, wait until you've seen him. He looks adorable, you know--," she stopped herself, smiling sheepishly. "I'm sorry; forgive me if I'm talking too much."
Kana smiled, shaking her head. "It's fine."
They left the apartment building, and Shiori led Kana to the parking lot, where the car was parked. She fished through her purse to get the car keys.
"Get in, dear," she said after successfully unlocking the car door. She opened it and let Kana slide into the back seat before shutting it again. Kurama was sitting in the front seat; his head was turned to look at her.
"Hey," he said. Kana looked up, and blushed. His mom was right: he looked good in the suit. Really good. She looked down at the floor, flustered. Jeez, what was she doing, getting all weird over some boy like this? She scolded herself gently as she strapped her seatbelt on, brushing back a strand of hair that had fallen out of place.
"Hey yourself," she smiled, nodding at his outfit. His face took on a delicate shade of pink and he turned around in his seat again. His mother, who had just gotten into the car, looked from him to Kana, then back to him again. Kana caught the knowing glance she shot at Kurama, and she looked out the window, trying to ignore it. Shiori started up the car with a little, as if she knew what was "going on" between them. Kana pressed her head against the cool glass of the car window, wishing the day would go by faster.
After what felt like ages of small talk and pleasant smiles and stop lights, Shiori finally pulled into a parking lot of a church. She stopped the car after finding a good parking spot and unclipped her seatbelt. With a heavy sigh, Kana did the same, smiling reassuringly at Shiori, who had been shooting her worried glances in the rearview mirror the whole car ride.
"You ready to go, dear?" She asked, shifting in her seat to look at her, grabbing her black purse in the process. Kurama had turned as well, and both were watching her intently. She realized then that their eyes were both emerald, only Kurama's were a much richer, deeper shade than Shiori's. She was distracted for only a moment while she pondered her new discovery, then shook her head, clearing her thoughts. They were waiting on her, she shouldn't dawdle like that…
"Sorry," she apologized quickly. "Let's go."
Shiori exited the car with a nod, and Kurama paused for a moment, his hand resting on the car door handle.
"You sure you'll be all right?" He asked, not looking at her. Kana stopped, considering what he had said.
"Yeah," she said softly, and left the car without waiting for a response.
The church was small, but was beautiful. It looked very old, its stained glass windows decorated with colorful images of Jesus or the Virgin Mary. The outside of the church was supposed to be white, but it was so old it appeared a darker shade, almost a yellowish color, in bad need of a repaint. Shiori had told her that she had never been there before, and neither had Kurama. They entered silently, and Kana looked around in awe.
People were already seated, sitting in the pews, people she had never seen before, people she remembered only vaguely from her childhood. She noticed T in the back, sitting with Ryu and Keitaro, some other people Aki worked with at The Heat. T's Mohawk wasn't red anymore, she noticed absently. Instead, it was dyed black, almost as if to match the occasion. They looked odd, sitting there in suits. It didn't seem to fit them at all. They were much better suited to their baggy chained jeans and black band t-shirts, wearing mounds of bracelets and wristbands and spiked chokers around their necks. They caught sight of her, and she waved back at them, smiling, happy that they cared enough to come.
As they turned away, Kana felt her breath halt. All at once, she felt nervous. She couldn't do this, she had to leave. She thought she was able to go through with this, but she couldn't, she had to get out…
A hand gently placed on her shoulder interfered with her thoughts. She turned slightly and relaxed, seeing Kurama standing behind her. Without speaking, he guided her slowly over to an empty pew, Shiori following them both. Kana sat down with a huge sigh to calm her nerves a little. There weren't a lot of people here, but it made sense. Her family wasn't exactly that social.
"Kana," a voice said. She blinked, seeing Yusuke and Kuwabara, as well as Keiko and two other people she did not recognize, their heads turned to face her. They were sitting in the pew in front of where she sat.
"You all came," she said, sounding breathless, a smile on her face.
"Of course we did, Kana," Kuwabara said, patting his chest. The girl sitting beside him coughed, trying to grab his attention. His eyes widened, remembering something. "Oh!" He announced, nodding from Kana to the girl. "Kana, this is my sister Shizuru." Shizuru nodded, as if confirming it, and winked at Kana. She had brown hair like Keiko's, only hers was lighter and cropped to just around her shoulder blade area. Immediately Kana knew she had that I-could-really-give-a-crap-what-you-think-of-me attitude, and she started to like her already.
"So you're the girl little bro's been talking about, huh?" She said lazily, one eyebrow raised. "I've never heard him talk about anyone like that since Yukina." She wiggled her eyebrows at Kuwabara, who turned bright red at the mention of that name. Who was Yukina? Kana wondered vaguely. "Whatever happened to her, huh little bro?" She teased playfully. She chuckled to herself, turning her attention back to Kana. "You seem all right though." She dug through her purse to produce a cigarette. Kuwabara swiped it away from her before she had a chance to stick it in her mouth. "Hey, I was going to use that," she protested.
"This is a church," Kuwabara said, sticking the cigarette in his pocket, "a funeral. Which means no smoking."
"Oh, fine," Shizuru responded, casting her eyes to the ceiling in annoyance. She sighed, and turned back to Kana. "How're you holding up, girl? From what Kuwabara told me, it sounds like you're going through hell."
"I'm all right," she said quietly, her eyes at the front of the church, where her father's coffin rested for the time being. It was covered with flowers, and in a way it looked fake. Unreal. Kurama was looking at her now, watching over her protectively the way a mother cat would watch over her kitten. She didn't look at him, she couldn't bring herself to. She found herself unable to look away from the coffin.
Suddenly everything was quiet. It was as if a blanket fell over the crowd. Everyone was silent. The priest had entered the church. Kana watched as he made his way to the front of the church, a Bible tucked under his arm. People hushed immediately, and Kuwabara and Shizuru swiveled back around in the right direction, their eyes following the priest as well.
She could feel Kurama shift a little uneasily next to her, and she swallowed hard. The priest cleared his throat, and if it were to quiet people, it was needless; for the place was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Kana exhaled, realizing she had been holding her breath. The priest opened the Bible and began to read. How much time passed, Kana had no idea. She was spellbound, her eyes tearing at the beauty of the priest's words. Her hands formed into fists, inhaling deeply. She didn't care, she didn't care her father was dead. She didn't…right?
"Jirobe Iokuzo," the priest said, "lies here. His journey in this life has ended, and he will begin a new one, for in death, he had been given a new life, a new purpose. Do not weep, my friends," he said, spreading his arms out, watching the crowd mournfully, "he is in a better place now."
Kana nodded, as if agreeing with the priest's words. Kurama turned his head slightly to look at her, and she returned his gaze. His hand sought hers, and she grasped it gratefully. He squeezed her hand reassuringly, turning back to the priest.
After a long while, the priest allowed another to come up to him. A woman. From what Kana could see, she was in her mid-forties, with long brown hair pulled back into a bun, wearing a nice, expensive-looking black dress that fell to her ankles. As she walked, the clack clack clacking of her heels echoed through the small church. In her hands she clutched a piece of paper, and, after nodding to the priest, she made her way to the middle of the church, smoothing out the paper.
"Jirobe was my brother," she began, wiping her eyes hastily. Kana started. This was her aunt. This was the woman who was going to be taking her in. "Sadly, I never had the chance to tell him I loved him. He was a brilliant man, a loving brother, and a dedicated son." She smiled at the crowd, before turning back to the paper. "He loved his two children very much." At this, Kana scoffed, but covered it quickly with a cough. What a load of bullshit. This woman didn't know what he did to Aki. Or to her, for that matter. Poor thing, she had absolutely no idea at all. Kurama tightened his grip on her hand, and she realized the woman had started to talk again. "He knew what he wanted in life. I remember when we were children; he said he was going to be an astronaut." This brought a few chuckles from the people in the pews. "I laughed at him." She sighed, catching her bearings before continuing on. "My brother was a passionate man. He loved to dream of the impossible." She wiped at her eyes with a handkerchief. "When he fell in love with Asheline in high school, I knew that he had found his soul mate. Those two were inseparable. You could tell he really loved her, and she really loved him. So it was no surprise when they married." She looked up, as if remembering something. "They welcomed their firstborn, Aki, with open arms." Kana closed her eyes slowly at the mention of Aki's name. They had no idea he was the one who actually brought an end to their father's death, to the one who so-called 'loved his children very much'. "You could really see that there was nothing that he wanted more than to start a family."
The woman talked on and on, but after that Kana had tuned her out. It was like a really bad soap opera. What this woman was saying was so far from the truth it drove her insane. Okay, so she was right about a few things, like that her mother and father had met in high school. But the whole loving part? Crap. That's what it was: crap.
Hah. Don't make me laugh, Kana thought bitterly. After her mother died in the car accident, things just went downhill. That was when her father took her death so badly, he turned and blamed it on Aki, and started to beat him. Sure, there were happy memories of the old days, when her mother was still alive and everything was just hunky-dory, but she was so young then that she could just barely remember what her mother looked like. She was beautiful. Kana remembered her hair, her long black hair that resembled a black waterfall. It was so shiny and sleek, Kana remembered tugging at the ends of them, giggling. Her mother was tall, pale. She resembled a goddess, with her summertime dresses walking through the fields picking strawberries. When she was alive, everything was fine. Just fine. No one was insane. Her father was actually a happy man, which was hard to believe. After her death, all that had remained was a hollow shell of the man he used to be. He changed on the inside. He took up smoking, yelled at her and Aki. Things really did suck. Would things be different if she was still alive? Would she be sitting here at her father's funeral? Would she and Aki have had to run away, to move into this town? Maybe Aki would never have received that ugly scar on his back. If her mother was still alive, maybe none of this would ever have happened.
She felt Kurama's hand tighten, bringing her back to the real world. She felt something hot on her cheeks, and realized that she was crying.
If her mother was still alive, would she still have met Kurama?
She looked at him, at his calm face, his dark emerald eyes. She had already gotten so used to him, so used to him being there when she needed him. Like now. He was holding her hand, keeping her grounded. He was such a kind person; he understood what she was going through. It seemed unreal that she wouldn't ever have met him. Even Yusuke, Kuwabara, Keiko…their laughter, their voices, their kindness. If her mother hadn't died, she would never have met them either, never have known they existed.
It was a curse. And yet, at the same time, a blessing.
But it was true. If her father hadn't gone all crazy on Aki, then they would never have found the reason to escape, to move away and finally settle in that crappy old apartment. Kana would never have enrolled in Mieou High School and would never meet them all. She inhaled deeply. She had gotten so used to them, she enjoyed their company. Sure, they were probably a little crazy themselves – Yusuke said he died before and that all of them were something called Spirit Detectives, taking orders from a toddler ruler named Koenma, doing his dirty work in ridding the Human World (what they said) of demons – but putting that aside, they were great people. She couldn't imagine getting through life without them. Okay, so she's only known them for two months, tops, but that's how much they've affected her already.
Kana wiped her eyes, stopping her thoughts, and watched the woman giving the eulogy bow a little, saying a little 'thank you' while trying her best to keep herself from bursting into tears. It took her that long to give a eulogy? Although the thought was a little mean, it was the truth. That woman must have talked for a half an hour, maybe even more.
Kana watched her as walked back to where she sat, in the second row on the other side of the room. A man, probably her husband, gave her a hug as she sat down, handing her a handkerchief to wipe her eyes. There was a girl, too, a girl who looked older than her, not meeting anyone's gaze. She was distracted by them for a moment, amazed at the thought that those were the people she would be living with very soon. Like the coffin covered with flowers, it didn't seem real at all. It seemed like another universe, an alternate reality.
She let her yellow eyes wander the church, let them fall on different people, watching them for a moment, trying to see if there were people she knew. As she made her way to the back of the church, she froze.
Oh my God.
Her eyes sought out a figure standing in the back of the church, the only visible trait about him was his hair. His purple hair. She felt her body grow cold, her eyes wide. No, this wasn't true; there was no way Aki would be here.
But he was. He was standing right there, and he was looking around, looking for something.
Or someone.
She willed herself to look away, to turn her attention back to where she sat, with Kurama. She gripped his hand, her heart pounding. Maybe he hadn't seen her. Maybe she was imagining things. Maybe he wasn't really there at all. Kurama looked at her now, his expression told her that he was alarmed, wondering why she was acting so oddly all of a sudden. She shook her head quickly, discarding any thoughts he might have had. With a small nod, he returned his gaze back to the church, where the priest had begun talking again. Kana could barely hear what he was saying. She was getting all worked up over nothing, it probably wasn't even Aki at all, and she was imagining things, as always…
She forced herself to look again, and this time he was ready for her. He turned his head, looking directly at her. His eyes, yellow like her own, held hers for what seemed like an eternity. He looked so sad, though. That was the only thing that bothered her. How did he get here? Why?
I need to speak with you.
No words were spoken, but somehow she knew what he was asking of her. She was frightened, so frightened. How did her brother get here? Why wasn't Deimus in control? Was this a trick?
Please.
His gaze turned pleading, and his head nodded towards the door, his eyes never leaving her face. Kana couldn't answer. How could she do this?
The priest asked everyone to stand, and Kurama let go of her hand to grab a hymnal, distracted. Kana took this opportunity to get up and sneak her way outside the church to where Aki was. This was crazy, this was insane. Why was she doing this? She had to have lost her mind.
"Aki."
He was standing right there. Hearing her voice, he turned, walking towards her with a relieved expression. He looked so lost, but seeing her, he looked…happy. She steeled herself against him, backing away. At this, he seemed hurt, but he masked it quickly.
"Explain this. All of it." Kana crossed her arms, watching him. He sighed, running his hands through his hair.
"There's no time." He answered quickly, beginning to pace around the soft grass of the church lawn.
"Aki…" her tone grew frustrated, upset. "What's going on? I don't know anything anymore. Where have you been, what have you been doing?" She paused, taking a deep breath. "Why did you kill him?"
The words seemed to hurt him. He winced, sighing. "I had no control. It was out of my hands."
"He was our father!"
Aki eyes narrowed. "He was also the one to do this to me," he said dangerously, shrugging off his suit jacket. Kana knew what he was doing.
"Aki, don't, I don't want to see--," He didn't seem to hear her, he was unbuttoning his shirt quickly, his eyes downcast. "Aki, I mean it, don't make me see it again…"
"Have you forgotten this?" He thrust off his shirt, turning around to reveal his back to her. She shut her eyes hard, turning away, but it was too late. She had already seen. Across the pale skin of his back, the long, jagged scar stood out perfectly, almost as if someone had drawn it on. It was awful. All of a sudden her mind went back to that night, that night she stood hidden behind a corner while her father stood over him with the knife…
"Aki."
"Kana, he was the one who did this to me," he said now, coming closer to her. "We do not forget," he whispered, his eyes narrowing, his voice becoming something darker, stranger. "We remember what he does to us."
Was this really her brother? She stared into his eyes, searching. No. The old Aki was gone. Replaced was a new, angrier Aki. He would never normally act this way.
"You've changed." She answered bitterly, backing away from him. "And it's because of you that I'm leaving this place."
Aki looked surprised, confused.
"The police came, Aki. They came to the apartment. Because they found dad's body in an alleyway, and they needed me to come down to the morgue to identify him." She said. "I'm guessing you had something to do with that," she added bitterly. "Since you were God-knows-where, they assumed you weren't capable of being my legal guardian. Now, they're shipping me off to live with some aunt I've never even met before, and it's all your fault."
Aki ran his hands through his hair, unsure of what to say. "Kana…"
"Maybe I wanted to stay, Aki." She said, looking at him. "Maybe I wanted to live here." She rubbed her eyes hastily, changing the subject before she could get emotional. "They're looking for you, you know." She nodded inside the church, to Kurama and the others, where they would be singing the hymn still. "They told me something interesting. That you're what they'd call a wolf demon."
Aki paused, holding his breath, watching her silently. He didn't respond.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
No answer.
"Aki, why?" She asked again, moving closer to him. He averted his eyes, looking sorrowful. "Aki, we've been through so much. Why couldn't you just tell me something like this?"
"Because I was ashamed," he said sharply, turning to her again. His sudden outburst made her step back a little. "Kana, I was the freak. Dad beat me because he knew. He knew what I was. What I am."
"All this time, I had no idea, and then suddenly I have these people come out of nowhere and tell me that you're some kind of demon. I didn't want to believe them, you know. I mean, nii-chan being a demon? That's something out of a really bad fairytale gone horribly wrong. I thought they were lying, that maybe they were on something." She sighed. "Then I saw him. That night, when you killed him."
"You were never meant to see that," he answered softly.
"But I did!" She said, her voice rose. "I did. Why did this have to be a secret? Why was I kept in the dark for so long about this?"
Aki looked around wildly now, looking alarmed…but about what? "There's too many questions, no time to answer them. Kana, I'm sorry."
"I don't know you anymore," she said, feeling tears begin to fill her eyes. "You've changed. I don't know who you are."
He looked like he was going to break. "Kana, I'm sorry. I never meant for this to happen." He sighed, pushing a strand of purple hair out of his eyes. Suddenly his former mood was gone. He grasped her by the shoulder, his eyes narrowing, meeting hers. "Look. I can't stay in this form for too long. I can already feel him beginning to take control. Just--," he broke off, searching for words that would not come. He shook his head, frustrated. "Those friends of yours. Stay away from them. They do not mean good."
"What?" she exclaimed, the first word that came to mind. Did he mean Kurama and everyone else? That was bullshit too. They were her friends, they wouldn't do anything…
"I've got to go," he muttered quickly. He turned to her. "Kana, I'm sorry. Listen to what I've said to you."
"Aki, wait--!" She cried out, one arm stretched out as if to grab him. It was too late. He was already gone.
She stood there for no more than a single moment, wiping the tears from her eyes. Inside the church she could hear the organ's music dying down. The hymns were over. Kurama would realize she was gone. She had to get back…
She started back into the church, giving one last look at the spot where she and Aki had been only moments before, and sighed. Things were going to be changing from now on.
Kana slipped back into the pew silently, tugging on Kurama's sleeve. He jumped, looking alarmed, but relaxing seeing her.
"Where were you?" He mouthed, looking worried.
"I needed to get some fresh air," she lied, whispering back to him. He paused for a moment, and then nodded, buying her story. She heaved a heavy sigh of relief on the inside, slipping her hand into Kurama's again. The priest was ending a reading. Soon, the memorial service would be over, and then they'd have to go through the whole burial service. The words Aki had said ran through her mind. What did he mean, 'they weren't good'? She looked at Kurama. They weren't evil. They didn't mean any harm.
No. They were just fine.
It was at least ten or eleven in the morning, and Shiori and Kurama had dropped her off back at her place after the burial service. She shuddered, remembering the coffin, lowering down into the grave so slowly…
Her aunt was there as well, and she saw her wiping her eyes dramatically with a handkerchief, moaning and crying a lot. She wasn't sure if it was for show or not, but something about it bugged her. Her husband had been speaking softly to her, trying to comfort her, and the girl sitting in the pew with them was still quiet as ever, pretending not to know them. Her aunt had seen her, and came over to her, too, while she was outside with Kurama and Shiori…
"Kana?"
She turned, looking at the woman who had given the really long eulogy. "Yes?"
"Oh, it IS you Kana! I barely recognized you, you've grown so much!" She cried, wrapping her into a hug. She let go quickly. "Do you have your things all packed? Remember, we're coming tomorrow, and we're not going to be late!" She smiled hugely, this huge grin that showed off her too-white teeth. Her husband was standing next to her, his arm around her. He smiled politely to Kana. "I'd like you to meet my husband, Haruhei." She leaned her head on his shoulder, grinning. "We're very excited about having you live with us."
"Oh, um…" Kana had no idea what to say. This woman was talking so much, acting like everything was just great in everyone's lives. All she really needed was one of those sunflower outfits and she'd be all set.
"Aw, you're shy, huh?" She said, giggling. "Well don't worry. We'll take good care of you, and you're shyness will be gone just like that!" She snapped her fingers for emphasis. She looked past Kana, seeing Kurama and Shiori. "And who is this?"
"I'm Shiori, Shuichi's mom." Shiori said, smiling, nodding to Kurama. Her aunt had raised her eyebrows and wiggled them at Kana, and she blushed, embarrassed. Kurama had reached out and shook Haruhei's hand.
"Well, it's so nice of you to come here. It's been hard on all of us." She paused, sniffling. Her husband nodded sympathetically. "Well!" She continued, brightening. "It was nice meeting you two, and Kana, it was so good seeing you again." She shook Shiori's hand and Kurama's. "Have a good day, Shiru and Soichiro."
"Uh, it's Shiori and Shuichi--,"
"Yes, yes of course," she laughed, waving her hands in the air, cutting Shiori off. "Remember Kana, we're coming over bright and early, so be sure you're ready!" She smiled, wagging a finger at Kana. "All righty, we've better get going, there's plenty of more guests to thank, you know." And with that, she and her husband ambled off, leaving Kana, Shiori, and Kurama to stare at each other in shock, wondering if that had actually taken place.
"She seems…" Shiori started, looking for a word.
"…happy?" Kurama suggested.
Ugh. It made her sick. She was going to be living with this human chatterbox. She seemed so out of it, so…materialistic, almost. You know, like those girls with platinum blonde hair and huge boobs that guys drool over that end up having an I.Q. of like, ZERO.
She slipped off the dress and the shoes, happy to be rid of them at last. She was going to have to figure out a way to get these back to Keiko…
She changed into a shirt and jeans, sighing. Okay. She had the rest of the day to do something. But what?
She put her hands on her hips, surveying her room, where mostly everything had been neatly packed into suitcases and duffel bags, something that took her the whole week to do correctly. She hung her head, going over to the bed and flopping herself onto it. She grabbed a pillow and hugged it, thinking.
Things were definitely going to be much, much different.
Riiing…riiing…
Damn alarm clock.
Riiinng…riiing…
Finally Kana gave up, growling. She hurled the thing across the room, where its ringing ceased abruptly.
Holy crap. It was Sunday.
She was leaving today.
Her eyes widened, feeling an odd sense of coldness fall over her. She clutched the end of her blanket, looking at the alarm clock on the ground. Her aunt said they would be coming 'bright and early'. But what time did that mean? Would she still have time to say goodbye to everyone?
She sighed, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes as she headed into the shower and changed into a shirt and cargo jeans. This was the last time she was going to use the shower, the last time she'd open that closet and pull out some clothes…
Okay. She was getting a little too weird.
Kana opened up the fridge, taking out an orange and beginning to peel it. She leaned against the counter, mumbling to herself. Today was the day. It was odd, but she didn't feel any different. Well…it's not like she was expecting anything huge to happen. But this day had been ominous, something that seemed so far away, so…dangerous, so life-changing. Yet it had come about just like any other day, the sun rising like it had been a gazillion other times.
A bunch of frenzied knocks at the door jerked her out of her thoughts. She had this sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Was it her aunt already? She didn't even get to say goodbye to everyone yet…
She opened the door and was immediately tackled, something she wasn't ready for. She yelped, caught off-balance. She gripped the edge of the counter to keep herself from falling to the ground by this sudden new weight.
"Kana! You idiot!"
"I-Isuzu?" Kana said, blinking. Shiko was there as well, standing in the doorway and watching Isuzu cling to Kana like a lost child to its mom.
"You're so stupid, Kana! Why didn't you tell us sooner? I had to find out from Urameshi!" She cried, clinging to Kana still. "I even woke up early to make sure I'd get to you in time, and I hate to wake up early. I had to call Shiko's house, too, and it was funny, because, you know, her mom answered, and she sounded kind of pissed that I was calling so early, right Shiko? Wasn't she angry? Ha-ha, you should have heard. We came over at top speed on bicycles, and I haven't ridden a bike since I was five, and I kind of fell a little, see, I've got a few scrapes on my knee here, oh, and one on my elbow, too--,"
"Isuzu," Shiko said, raising her eyebrows. Isuzu paused, then laughed.
"I'm talking too much. Sorry Kana."
"Its okay, it's fine. But how did you--,"
"Find out where your apartment is? Get bikes? Wake up early?" Isuzu threw random questions at her. "Answer to number one: we got the info out of Urameshi, he's a funny kid, Kana, I should talk to him more; number two: I found a bike in my garage, and it's all small and pink and gross and probably from when I was five; number three: the power of my cell phone. It has one of those alarm clock thing-a-ma-jiggers so I set it realllly early and had it play When the Saints Go Marching in, because I hate that song and it's always really loud when it plays on my phone so there was no way I would not hear it."
"O-okay…"
"Oh, and I had a few cups of coffee too, to wake me up a little."
"I can see that," Kana answered, looking at Isuzu oddly. Isuzu let go of her, putting her hands on her hips.
"Are you really leaving, Kana? Was Urameshi telling the truth?"
Kana nodded. "Yeah. I'm leaving when my aunt gets here." She looked down at the ground, feeling sad. It was all too real now.
"That sucks," Isuzu said flatly. "And you, what, just got here, right?" Kana nodded. "Man…" she said, shaking her head. "Poor girl." She sighed. "Anyways, we just came to tell you that we're going to miss you." She said, stretching out her arms. "My 'rents don't know I left yet, so they're probably going to flip when they see I'm not home." She grinned. "A little worrying will do 'em good. Come on Shiko, what're you standing there for? Come on. Give Kana a hug, or something."
Shiko came in, and Kana gave her a hug. "I can't believe you guys came here so early."
"We had to. Otherwise, you'd be God-knows-where by now and we'd never see you again without saying goodbye. We'd be sitting in class a few weeks from now going 'now where did that Kana girl go' over and over. It'd be like one of those Unsolved Mysteries thingies that I saw on TV last night…you know, there was some guy last night that disappeared after watching…"
They stayed for about fifteen minutes, then left after each giving Kana a huge bone-crushing embraces. She watched them go, smiling. She barely knew them, but they were so nice to her. She was going to miss them.
It was around seven when the door knocked again. She was hoping it was Kurama and Yusuke and the others, but when she opened the door again, her heart sank. It was her aunt and her husband, Haru-something-or-other.
"Well, sorry," her aunt said, giggling. "Who were you expecting, Alex Trebek?"
"The Jeopardy guy?" Kana asked, raising an eyebrow.
Her aunt shrugged. "I don't know." She sighed, looking into the apartment. "All righty, where's the luggage? We're gonna have Haruhei help us a little with that too."
Kana led them into the apartment, trying not to show her disappointment. Maybe they weren't going to come after all. Maybe they forgot. Maybe…
"Is that all the luggage, dearie?" Her aunt asked, waving a hand in front of Kana's face. "Yoo-hoo, anybody home?" She chuckled at her own joke, holding two duffel bags in one hand. She saw Haruhei struggling with three. She herself had one.
"Um, are you okay, I could take one--," Kana started, talking to Haruhei. He shook his head, smiling.
"I've got it all under control," he said.
"All righty, let's go," her aunt said brightly.
"I've just got to give the keys to the landlord…" Kana trailed off, the keys to the apartment in her hand.
"No problem-o. We'll wait right here. Just don't take too long, we don't have all day, you know." Her aunt said, setting down the duffel bags she carried. Kana hurried down the hall, knocking on the door and handed the keys to the landlord after exchanging a few words with him. She took a deep breath. It was really happening.
She hurried back to her aunt and her husband, grabbing the duffel bag she had dropped before. "All set?" Her aunt asked, picking up her bags as well. Kana hesitated, then nodded slowly. "Okie dokie mokie, let's go. We've got the car parked outside." Kana rubbed her head, hoping she wouldn't get a headache. Between Isuzu and her aunt, there was so much rambling and fast-talking it made her dizzy just trying to follow along with it.
They exited the building, and Haruhei tried his best to get the car keys out without dropping any of the bags. Kana looked around, biting her lip. They really weren't coming, were they? They were just going to let her leave without saying goodbye or anything.
"Got it!" Haruhei cried, unlocking the car. Her aunt went around to the back and opened up the trunk, dumping the bags she carried into it. Haruhei wobbled over there as well, heaving a great sigh of relief as the heavy load was off his shoulders.
"All set, dearie. You ready?"
Her aunt was looking at her. Haruhei had already gotten into the front seat of the car, waiting for them. Kana took a deep breath, stalling…waiting…
Okay, you guys had until the count of three to get here, she thought.
One.
Two.
Two and a fourth.
Two and a half.
Two and three-quarters.
"Damn it! I suck at fractions!" She wailed, kicking a rock that was unfortunately sitting right by her Converse-clad foot. "THREE!"
Nothing.
"Okay," she whispered back finally, and her aunt opened the passenger side and climbed in herself. Kana put her hand on the car door, opening it slowly. Why didn't they come?
"KANA! KANA YOU IDIOT! WE'RE HERE! DON'T LEAVE YET!"
She stopped, feeling a huge grin spread onto her face. She whirled around quickly, seeing Yusuke waving his arms around frantically down the sidewalk. Kuwabara was right behind him, although he looked like he was having a harder time catching up to him.
"Yusuke! Kuwabara!" She cried happily, feeling guilty for ever doubting them. Of course they were going to come. She waited until they caught up. She could see her aunt tapping her fingers on the dashboard, impatient. Oh well, she'd just have to wait, she thought.
"You're leaving already," Yusuke said sadly after he caught up with her. Kana sighed, hanging her head.
"Yeah," she said.
"I'm sorry we're late, but I had a hard time getting Urameshi up. He sleeps like an effing log." Kuwabara explained. "You know how he is, with his snoring and everything."
"I'm telling you, I don't snore!" Yusuke protested, glaring at Kuwabara.
"You do, you know," Kana agreed, siding with Kuwabara. Yusuke threw his hands up in the air, rolling his eyes.
"Hurry up and say good bye to your little friends, Kana," her aunt interrupted, poking her head out the window, "we don't have all day."
Yusuke raised his eyebrows, putting his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay, chill out, lady," he said to her aunt, who sighed and drew her head back into the car. He clucked his tongue, shaking his head. "Manners, manners," he said.
"So…I guess this is goodbye?" Kana said, looking at them. She realized something was missing. Where was Kurama?
"I guess so, Kana," Kuwabara said with a heavy sigh. "You were really cool. But don't worry; we'll come up and visit you sometime. Or, you come and visit us."
Kana nodded. "Definitely."
"Don't feel too bad, though," Yusuke said. "I have a feeling we're going to see each other again whether we'd want to or not." He grinned at her.
Kana gave him a hug, catching him off-guard. "I'm gonna miss you," she said, feeling tears rise into her throat. "Damn it," she said, letting go. She wiped her eyes quickly. "I hate goodbyes." She smiled sheepishly, turning to hug Kuwabara. "I'm gonna miss you too," she said to him.
"Stay cool, Kana," Yusuke said, winking at her. Kuwabara gave her the thumbs up. She smiled back at them.
"Oh, wait," she said, remembering something. She opened the trunk and opened a suitcase, handing Yusuke Keiko's dress and shoes that she had lent her for the funeral.
"I don't think this is my size," Yusuke said, looking down at the dress and shoes quizzically. Kana laughed.
"No, silly, that's the things Keiko lent me. You gotta give it back to her for me, since I couldn't. Tell her I said a huge thank you, okay?" She watched as Yusuke agreed, then sighed. "I guess I'd better be going," she said, nodding to the car. Yusuke and Kuwabara watched her sadly as she opened the door and got inside. Kurama never said goodbye to her, she realized. Where was he?
"Are you ready now?" Her aunt said, swiveling in her seat to look at her. Kana looked at Yusuke and Kuwabara from the window, sighing heavily.
"I--," she began, but stopped. Out the window, she saw the all-too-familiar redheaded wonder come up the sidewalk. His mouth was open, his eyes wide. He must have thought that he was too late. "No. Wait." She said, unclipping her seatbelt quickly.
"What is it NOW?" Her aunt cried, exasperated. Kana ignored her, and threw open the door, making a mad dash towards Kurama.
Sweet darling, you worry too much
"I thought you weren't coming!" She cried as she neared him. She took a running leap into his arms, and he held her tightly, sighing in relief.
My child
"I thought I was too late," he said into her ear. "I thought I missed you."
See the sadness in your eyes
"No," she whispered, not stopping the huge grin on her face. "You came right on time." He gripped her even more tightly, but careful not to hurt her.
You are not alone in life
"Be safe," he whispered into her ear, stroking her hair.
Although you might think that you are
"I will," she promised, trying to stop the tears from coming. A car honk interrupted their moment. Kana drew away from him, embarrassed. Her aunt was waving at them, pointing to the watch on her wrist. She turned back to Kurama, feeling tears rise in her eyes. "Kurama…"
So sorry your world is tumbling down
"It's okay," he assured her, pulling her back into an embrace. "We'll see you soon."
I will watch you through these nights
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Rest your head, and go to sleep
Kana finally pulled apart from him, walking back slowly to the car. She rubbed her eyes, wiping away tears. She opened the car door, and then hesitated, looking back at Kurama, then to Yusuke and Kuwabara. "Thank you, you guys," she whispered, then climbed in, shutting the door behind her. Her aunt sighed impatiently, but she ignored it. Haruhei started the car. She pressed her forehead against the glass as Haruhei pulled out of the parking lot, waving at the friends she was now leaving behind.
Because my child, this is not our farewell
She watched them, as their forms became smaller and smaller, as the car drove farther and farther away.
"They were good friends of yours, huh?" Haruhei said quietly, looking at her through the rearview mirror. Kana smiled, rubbing her eyes.
"Yeah."
This is not our farewell.