Part Eight: Anger, Confusion, and a Confrontation
Hours later, Kuwabara is still furious. He has refused to even speak to Yusuke about this and has taken to keeping in his room. His fist connects with the wall again. "Bastard!" he grits out, "Why can't anyone ever be HONEST when it counts?"
"Kazuma, stop hitting the wall!" Shizuru yells up the stairs.
"Mind your own business!" he snaps back. Anger spirals through him and he doesn't quite know what to do about it. It had hurt when the others hadn't told them about Genkai's death but this…this was personal. He sinks down to the floor and presses his head against the wall. Why couldn't Koenma be honest with him? Why was he trying so hard to keep this away from him? He wishes he knew the answer to this. Downstairs the phone rings and Kuwabara wonders who is trying to get him to talk THIS time.
"Kazuma, it's for you," Shizuru calls.
"Tell them I'm not here!" he yells.
"Take the damn phone call, Kazuma!" his sister shouts up the stairs, "and quit acting like such a child. I don't know what it is you think that toddler's done, but you need to grow up!"
Kuwabara grits his teeth but he picks the phone up. "Hello?"
"Kuwabara," Kurama says softly.
"I don't want to talk to you, Kurama."
"Don't hang up…please. Listen to me, I know that you are angry with Koenma and you have every right to be. I just don't want you to do something you'll regret in your anger. Give yourself time to calm down and think rationally about this. He never should have lied to you about this but that is irrelevant at this point."
"I haven't tried to kill him yet have I?"
"Well, no."
"There you have it. I haven't done anything stupid yet."
"Keep it that way, Kuwabara, please."
"I'm not making any promises. He truly pissed me off."
"I can tell. Give yourself time, okay?"
"Fine."
"We're worried about you."
"Right, the only one who isn't is Hiei. I know."
"He's worried, Kuwabara, he just doesn't like admitting that he's fond of you."
"He's NOT fond of me."
Kurama chuckles. "You keep thinking that. Just remember what I said."
"Yeah, all right. Bye."
"Bye."
Kuwabara hangs up and sighs. Leave it to Kurama to be the sensible one. He looks up at the ceiling and sighs. There had to be something he could do other then sit there and be angry at Koenma. Anything was better then that.
It takes Ani three hours before he'll calm down and then he goes off in a fit of rage. "I don't know which is worse, his tears or his anger," Karasu says dodging various projectiles being flung around the room. Oto sidesteps a steak knife.
"I think I preferred his tears. They were less damaging," he answers. Karasu narrowly avoids being skewered by a butcher knife and takes cover under the table to wait him out. Hopefully, this fit wouldn't last too long.
Thirty minutes later, the projectiles stop and Ani sits down on the couch quietly. "Feeling better?" Oto asks.
"No," Ani answers. He doesn't apologize to them, but they expected that and let him keep what little pride he could. They knew it was hard enough for him to deal with the damn mood swings.
Not two hours pass before the phone rings. This time, Oto gets it. "Hello?" he asks. Ani watches his muscles tense slightly and wonders who it is. Within a few minutes of listening, he slams the phone down.
"Brother?" Ani asks. Oto doesn't answer. "Who was it, Oto?"
"No one, Ani," Oto responds.
"Don't lie to me. Who was on the phone?"
Oto sighs and his shoulders slump. "It was Koenma. He wasn't too happy with Kuwabara ignoring him and seems to think somehow, it's your fault because you HAVEN'T aborted the child."
"He needs to get over himself. I am keeping this child whether he likes it or not."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why are you keeping the child? Everyone knows that you hate Kuwabara."
"Because I am."
"You aren't going to say anything more are you?"
"No."
Oto doesn't push him as he doesn't want to deal with more flying objects. Ani walks over to the window and hops up onto the sill. He stares out into a dark forest of demon world. 'I can't seem to find any desire to harm this child, but that's not what perplexes me most. What I am most concerned with is my reasons for not doing so. I don't want to get rid of the child for the same reason I SHOULD get rid of it, because it is Kuwabara's. I just wish I knew why I felt this way,' he thinks.
He sits there, undisturbed, for two hours. It is the doorbell that pulls him from his solitude. Slowly, he lowers himself back to the floor and walks to the door. He turns the door and opens it. For a moment, he just stands there and just stares at the figure. "K-Kuwabara," he says softly. The carrot-top looks at him silently for a moment.
"Hello, Ani," the human says, "May I come in?"
"How the hell did you find us?" he asks looking confused.
"I am a Spirit Detective. We're supposed to know where our enemies live," Kuwabara answers, "So, may come in?"
"Umm…well…"
"Sure, come in," Oto says from behind him, "as long as you don't upset my brother. We've already had sharp knives thrown at us today."
"Sharp knives?" Kuwabara asks faintly.
"Yeah, that was AFTER he got done crying because of YOU," Karasu says.
"Oh, sorry about that."
"You should be," Bui grumbles. Ani, seeing him, burst into yet another crying fit and runs from the room.
"What the hell did you do?" Oto snaps. Bui looks startled.
"I didn't do ANYTHING!" he responds.
"I'll go get Ani, you keep the blue-haired moron from your brother and be hospitable to Kuwabara," Karasu says before disappearing out of sight.
"What was that?" Kuwabara asks.
"A mood swing," Oto answers.
"This soon?"
"Well, Ani's male so I don't think that he's going to follow the normal symptoms for a woman."
Kuwabara shakes his head. "Have you called and asked?"
"No."
"You might want to."
"That is a priority. He's just been so moody today so not much has gotten done."
"Again, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset him."
"It's not your fault. Koenma is an idiot and needs to learn that honesty is the best of policies. Well, come on, let's go into the living room. It's a bit warmer though be careful and watch where you step. I am not sure got all the sharp knives." Kuwabara nods and follows him into the living room. Bui, disappears outside obviously to avoid making Ani any more hysterical and get him beaten up by Oto…again.
A few minutes later, Karasu and Ani join them in the room. Ani doesn't look at Kuwabara and goes and sits back on the windowsill. "Everything all right?" Oto asks Karasu.
"As well as he can be…I guess. He's upset and embarrassed so he's trying to get a handle on his emotions and having very little success," Karasu answers.
"You two stay here with him. I am going to go call the demons who saw him and see what they say. If Bui comes in, keep him away from my brother," Oto says sternly before disappearing out of the room. Karasu looks at Kuwabara.
"Does Koenma know you're here?" he asks.
"No and I don't really care what his opinion of me being here is. He lost that right when he lied to me."
"Have you spoken to him at all?"
"No, the only one I've actually talked to is Kurama. I won't talk to Yusuke and Hiei and I don't see eye-to-eye on anything."
"How is Kurama?"
"He's fine. He still gets mobbed by every girl at his school. He is just too polite to tell them to go away."
"That's Kurama."
"Yeah. I'm surprised you haven't gone after him, to be frankly honest."
"No, I'm too worried about Ani. Bui can't be decent to save his soul and Oto is not too enamored of him having this child."
"I can hear you two, you do realize this right?" Ani asks.
"We never thought you couldn't," Kuwabara answers.
"Why are you here, Kuwabara?"
"Honestly? I wanted to see you."
"Why?"
"I wanted to check and make sure you were okay and apologize for accusing you without proof."
"You trust Koenma. You had no reason to think he was lying."
"Well, it's not the first time someone has lied to me."
"You shouldn't be so suspicious all the time. That sort of paranoia is not good for you." Kuwabara smiles slightly.
"You still have a sense of humor."
"That has yet to leave."
"Probably to your benefit." Ani turns to face him and Kuwabara realizes that he is almost. He finds himself grinning in return. At least, for now, Ani is calm.