Tsuki: Sorry I'm taking so long, I've been so busy *Dizzy eyed* I working hard though, I swear…Suke-chan! *puppy dog eyes.*

Yusuke: This is the disclaimer, and fortunately Tsuki owns nothing, otherwise Yuu yuu Hakusho would be like the song that never ends. It would never, never end, until someone got so sick of it, they just killed everyone off permanently.

Anseiji Ningyou
By: Tsuki jaganshi

Tsuki woke up when they were only a few hours away from port. The cabin was completely empty and silent. But her ears were able to pick up the sound of the motor working against the ocean as they went along. 'Something feels strange.' She noted dimly, unable to remember what had transpired before she'd woken up. There was just blank space, between her memories of now, and then. 'I can remember my parents, my name, and where we lived…My favorite things, my dislikes…Everything but what happened before my birthday.' Tsuki's brows furrowed in thought. Her head was now resting against her knees. A position she often reverted to, when upset or even thinking hard. 'My hair became much longer.' She noted. The silky strands which once brushed the back of her knees were now precariously close to her ankles. The very last thing that Tsuki remembered was falling ill, more so then usual. 'But after that, everything is a blank.' She noted. Or maybe it wasn't so much that she didn't remember, as it was she didn't want to. There was a bad feeling about whatever had happened in the void of her memories.

She stayed in that exact same position for a while, never moving a muscle. If it weren't for the fact she blinked every now and then, Keiko would have thought she was dead. The older woman stood there for a few moments, taking in the girl's appearance.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Keiko requested from her spot in the door way. She'd been standing there for a good ten minutes, in sight and completely unnoticed.

Tsuki's ears perked in surprised, her eyes flying to meet Keiko. She hadn't heard anyone come done the steps, something about the word Keiko had said caught her attention. It was new, and shiny, having a ring that she'd never heard before to it. "Anno…What is a pen-ni?" She questioned.

"It's, Penny, and it's a foreign form of currency. It's a coin." Keiko smiled, and explained, correcting her on the pronunciation, before taking a seat by the bed. "But it's just a figure of speech…it means I wanted to know what you were thinking." She smiled after elaborating the last bit.

"Oh…" Tsuki stated softly, her eyes looking thoughtfully. "I wasn't thinking much of anything…" She blinked, when Keiko brushed a piece of hair from her face. "Things are different." Keiko stated. The whole reason she'd come below deck was to explain things as much as she could to the youkai. If her hunch was correct, then Tsuki had been asleep for a very long time. "But first, what year was it, when you went to sleep?"

Tsuki tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. "I think, 1570, or around that." She stated unsurely. Not for the first time, she took in Keiko's strange clothing. She'd seen men in pants before, but hardly ever a woman, excluding her aunt of course. Not many people had the courage to tell her what to wear. Much less to do anything else it could be considered hazardous.

Keiko took her hand comfortingly. "It's way past then. The year is now, two thousand eight." She stated. That meant that more than 400 hundred years had passed.

Tsuki's face remained blank for a few moments. "If I was four hundred and thirty four, when I fell asleep…then that means that…" Her mind tried to grasp the math quickly.

"You are now 868, if I'm right, which I think I am." Keiko supplied her. "And though I don't really know how to calculate that into Youkai terms, I'm pretty sure it means, you're no longer the same age you used to be."

Tsuki nodded her head numbly. "By far…" She choked out. It meant that she was an adult, culture wise at least. 'That means, I'm around 17, or even possibly 18.' But she hardly felt any different. Then again, Tsuki had yet to see herself in a mirror. For all she knew, time could have been very unkind to her. "D-do you have mirror?" Tsuki whimpered quietly, her hands had begun wringing the cloth of her Kimono nervously.

Keiko nodded her head, before helping Tsuki off the bed. She was completely off balance. 'It probably has a lot to do with not walking for centuries, and all the changes to her body.' But she was neither a doctor nor a Youkai expert. The taller girl guided her into the bathroom, before flicking on the lights. Tsuki starred across from her spot and into the mirror numbly. What she was seeing was very different from the last image she had of her own face.

Her face had once been rounder, and her eyes much larger. Her cheeks had been fuller, and more often than not, tinted bright pink against the alabaster white of her skin. The natural blush was almost completely gone now. Her face had thinned out with age, and her chin was now gently pointed. Tsuki studied the person in front of her intently. It was a lot like her mothers face, only more cherubic. Although years had passed, somehow for the most part the childlike quality had remained.

The woman in the door way watched her worriedly, half expecting to hear crying. Being asleep for more than half of your life had to be an emotional thing to go through. Instead, she watched as Tsuki tilted her head to the side, examining the person she saw looking back at her through the mirror.

Tsuki, took a deep breath, and supposed the changes weren't so unwelcome. It wasn't as though, she had just grown up in a few days span. This was how it was supposed to be. 'What happened to me, before I went to sleep?' Trying to think back that far, only made her head ache. So she pushed it aside. Positive thinking was good in some situations.

"I'll leave you alone for a while, so you can wash up." Keiko stated as she handed Tsuki a pair of clothes they had packed away for her. "But before I go, let me show you something." She grinned, before turning the knobs on the sink, allowing clean water to flow.

Tsuki's eyes went wide. "Where did you learn to do that?" Sure, Youkai had running water long before Ningen, but the way Keiko had done it was entirely different. She looked at the older girl inquisitively.

"Its common knowledge." Keiko giggled slightly, as she handed a wash cloth and some soap to the small girl. "All I really know is that it has something to do with plumbing, and what not." She stated truthfully. "Now wash up, and change your clothes." She called behind her. Keiko made sure not to go too far. "Just let me know if you need anything." Given the fact Tsuki was probably mentally much younger then she was physically, it could lead to trouble. With that said Keiko slid the door shut quietly and took a seat on the bed.

Tsuki undid the obi to her kimono tossing the cord used to tie it closed onto the sink table. After that, she shrugged the colorful outer layer of her clothing onto the floor. The plain white slip under her kimono brought something to her attention. Sometime during her sleep, or what she referred to as sleep, her chest had filled out. Not only that, but her hips were wider as well. Which, she supposed was normal 'Not that I would know.' She admitted mentally... The thing that sparked Tsuki's interest most of all however, was the fact she'd apparently grown quit a few inches.

She sniffed the bar of soap gingerly. 'It smells like flowers.' She mused. Not the sort that Tsuki was used to, but another foreign type. Shrugging it off, she set to work washing her hands. When rinsing her wrists off, Tsuki noted two faint puncture marks on her left one. They were darkly bruised all around. 'How strange…' She felt like it was important, where they had come from. But when she tried to remember; that aching came back with a vengeance.

Tsuki shook her head, pushing it from mind once more. It was in a person's instincts to do whatever they could to prevent pain, or discomfort for their selves. She unfolded the new Kimono slowly. It was black, blue, and aqua, Smokey gray and white. The embroidery along the hem and sleeve edges was of lily pads and lotuses. Funny thing was, Tsuki could hardly remember owning it, even stranger, that it would still fit.

When pulling the sash keeping her white slip closed. Tsuki took note of the once straight forms changes. She glanced up at the mirror curiously. Her chest had swelled and rounded during her sleep, and her hips had widened. She ran her hands along the newly gained curves. Worriedly, at first glance, Tsuki hadn't noticed the peculiarities at all, her clothing effectively hiding them. 'Is it normal to look like this?' she mused, tilting her head to the side curiously. Although thinking back on the times she'd bathed with her mother as a child, it seemed relatively normal. Tsuki shrugged it off, and pulled her hair to one side, picking up the wash cloth, she scrubbed her face and shoulders clean. It wouldn't be much longer until she finished cleaning up.

Keiko looked up a few minutes later, when Tsuki sidled out of the bathroom. Her hair had been smoothed back into its natural position, and her clothing was perfectly in place. Keiko couldn't help but be reminded of one of those pale white porcelain dolls from the west. If it hadn't of been for the style of Tsuki's clothes, the resemblance would have been uncanny. Keiko watched the younger girl shift uncomfortably, clearly rather self conscious at the moment. "You look fine." The older girl stated soothingly, ushering her up the steps and onto the top level of the deck.

Miyu looked up from the helm, before smiling. "Morning…" She greeted Tsuki perkily, waving briefly. She'd seemingly gotten over her earlier misgivings. Watching the girl sleep earlier had seen to that. 'Such a wispy thing surely can't cause that much trouble.' She mused, turning the helm to starboard side. Tsuki on the other hand made no response. She'd yet to see the sky since waking up; only the ceiling and walls of the down stairs cabin. The sky was dark gray signifying an oncoming storm she could hear, and see the sea laid out before them, and smell the clouds and water coming.

Keiko watched the smaller girl thoughtfully. Tsuki's eyes were half lidded and hazy. "You okay?" She placed a hand on the girls head. Tsuki blinked in response, glancing up to catch Keiko's eyes with her own. "I'm fine…" Her eyes went back to looking out at the sea, her feet leading her over to the left side of the boat. Keiko watched her worriedly, as Tsuki braced her hands on the ledge, and leaned out to look at the passing waters. Realizing the girl wasn't going anywhere, she made her way to Miyu's side, conversing with the older woman quietly for a few moments.

Tsuki stared down at the water, her ears twitching every now and then. It was a lot like looking at an overly alert dog. She leaned her head down slightly, feeling the small droplets of water misting her face. A smile soon broke out. 'Even though things are different, there are some things that never change.' She took comfort in that small truth.

Keiko stood at the head of the boat, looking out over the water thoughtfully. A problem had come to pass, due to spur of the moment thinking. The brunette glanced over to the pale haired girl who was hanging over the side of the boat precariously. Her large green eyes were looking out over the speeding waters in wonderment. 'If we take her off the boat and into a well populated area, it may be disastrous.' Keiko mused, she had no idea how strong her senses were, or how the girl would react towards all the changes at that. "Tsuki?" She called, trying to steal the girl's attention.

Tsuki was going to end up in the water if she wasn't careful; tendrils of her long hair had already become damp from the wake the boat created. "Hm?" Her large luminous eyes were now directed at the older girl. She was completely amazed. 'I had no idea that boats could move so fast, and without any sails, or even rowers.' Her sea sickness had apparently been rather fleeting thing.
"I wanted to know, if you're able to change your shape." Keiko explained. "Anno…Into what exactly?" Tsuki blinked at her owlishly, sitting on the bench behind her. Sure, she could transform into some things. "Well, nothing fancy." The brunette snickered slightly. "You just have to appear a little more normal." She had no idea what this statement would spark.

"I don't look normal?" Tsuki's confused look had simply melted into a frown.

Miyu shook her head, before speaking up. "That's not what she meant. It's just that Youkai are almost non-existent.

"What do you mean? We're all over the place." Tsuki blinked at her, watching the pity filled smiles take over their faces. "Did something bad happen to us?"

Keiko sighed briefly. "I really don't know much about it, except this, the Rekai set up a barrier, separating the Youkai from the ningen, I thought it was a little before the 1500's though." She admitted.

"Is the barrier still up?" Tsuki asked in alarm, her eyes were wide. If that was the case then she would never get home.
Keiko shook her head. "I don't believe so." She stated. "It doesn't matter much if it is…But back to the subject at hand, all you have to do, is appear more ningen. At least in public…do you think you can do it?" She watched as Tsuki nodded her head slowly.

"There might be a problem though." Tsuki smiled at her sheepishly. "I can't hold it for very long." It required a lot of focus, and energy. The energy wasn't so much the issue, as the focus was. "You won't have too." Keiko tilted her head thoughtfully. "Ten minutes tops."

Miyu raised a hand. "I take it, the subways are out of the question. Keiko nodded her head. "For Tsuki and I at least, but your headed back to work, right if that's the case, you can take the subways…I'm headed back to my home town with Tsuki." She explained to the black haired girl.

By now, said girl had stopped paying attention, and was once more overlooking the sea. "That's fine with me…but if you need something, give me a call." Miyu suggested. If she got even an inkling things were going badly for the two, she'd be back on the scene within a day.

"Of course." Keiko smiled at her appreciatively. "I'm sorry for the trouble." Miyu simply waved her off, turning her own attention back to navigating the boat. They'd be on shore within an hour, or less.

When they were about ten minutes from dock, Tsuki set about changing her features. The closer she stayed to her natural form, the less focus she would need. This is how she ended up with long pale blonde hair, and the unchanged eyes. She fingered one of her now human ears absently. Her balance felt incredibly off.

"Alright, we're ready to do." Miyu stated as she tied the boat up to the dock. Keiko tossed a few of their bags up onto the wooden platform. "I'll go ahead and return the boat on my own, there's a rental shop close by here." She stated, giving Keiko a brief hug as she grabbed a few of her bags.

Keiko smiled up at her. "Thanks for everything." She pulled away to help pull Tsuki out of the boat. The smaller girl's foot slipped out from under her along the way, almost sending her crashing to the ground.

"Sorry." Tsuki stated sheepishly. "My balance is uneven in this form." Keiko simply nodded her head in understanding. Miyu smiled at the Youkai. "Be good, okay?" She requested simply. Although Miyu was sure Tsuki wouldn't do anything bad on purpose.

"Hai." Tsuki bowed at her respectfully, Keiko picked up the bags that belonged to her, and Miyu had shifted all the items they took from the cavern into them. "I'll call you soon." She stated, tugging Tsuki along the pier, towards the car rental. They had a limited amount of time.

Tsuki waved farewell to Miyu as she allowed Keiko to tug her into the building. The building was rather shabby, but for some reason, Tsuki took great interest in it. It was very white, with strange white squares covering the floor. As Keiko chatted with the man at the desk, talking about something called a car, Tsuki counted as many squares as she could.

"Cute kid, doesn't look a thing like you though." The man at the desk stated to Keiko, as she filled out a slip of paper as fast as possible. Keiko laughed slightly. "She's not mine." She corrected. "But she's definitely cute." She admitted, before signing her name and handing over her credit card.

Somehow Tsuki managed to hold the transformation a little longer than anticipated. Paperwork seemed to be one of those things that never changed. It took around fifteen minutes to get the car. Tsuki whimpered as she shifted from foot to foot. It was becoming hard to hold it. Keiko couldn't help but be reminded of a child needing to use a rest room. "Okay." She ushered the girl out into the parking lot, unlocking the black cars door with the remote. "You did very well." She smiled, before opening the passenger door. Keiko moved aside and let the girl take her seat.

Tsuki's human ears gradually became pointier, and furrier. "Yea." She breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a familiar sense wash over her. "I'm sorry I couldn't hold it longer." Tsuki smiled apologetically. Keiko waved her hand dismissively, as she pulled the seat belt over the blinking girl. "Its fine…and this is for safety." She explained, pointing at the seatbelt.

"Okay." Tsuki's brow wrinkled in confusion. 'Safety, from what?' She mused, looking up as Keiko slammed the door shut and walked around the car to the driver's side. The noise made her wince for a moment. Keiko opened the driver's door, and slid into her seat, adjusting it and the mirrors before putting the key into the ignition. She pulled the seatbelt over her own form, clicking into the place, before turning the key. Tsuki yelped, as the car seemingly growled. "What was that?!" She asked hysterically, her eyes wide and filled with fear. It had sounded much like a monster.

Keiko laughed slightly. "I'm sorry I should have warned you, it's just the car." She explained, shifting gears and backing out of the parking space. "Oh…" Tsuki trailed off, instantly becoming distracted by the passing scenes. Her stomach felt slightly upset as things began to speed by at a faster rate. Tsuki covered her mouth looking rather green suddenly. "Oh, don't get sick, it's a rental!" Keiko cried in alarm, rolling down the windows quickly. Apparently, Tsuki was also car sick, the brunette filed that away for later, as the aforementioned girl gagged slightly.

'This is going to be a long trip.' Keiko noted. Reaching out with a free hand, she patted the girls back comfortingly. It wasn't long before the nausea receded, Tsuki quickly adapted to new things. Tsuki watched as the rain began pouring down, leaving droplets on the windows. It left a methodical rhythm in her head.
When they passed through Yokohama, Tsuki's eyes became large and enthralled. The buildings here were taller than any she had ever seen. Though everything was tinted gray from the weather, and the many glass windows looked cold and soulless, they seemed beautiful to her. Tsuki pressed her hands against the passenger window, looking out of it in awe. Sooner then she would have liked, they had left the city, and were now on a large expanse of open road. Very quickly, she became tired the motion of the car lulling her to sleep.

Tsuki leaned her head against the cool damp window. Keiko glanced over at her briefly. It would be another few hours until they finally even got halfway to where they were going. Her phone vibrated in her pocket obnoxiously. 'I'll check it when I get a chance.' She mused. Right now the most important thing was getting Tsuki to Genkai's, and then figuring out where the scroll had come from. 'Someone sent it to me. But why, did they know what it was about?' Keiko's mind raced with similar questions.

It was around one in the morning, when Keiko pulled into a Hotel parking lot. Tsuki had woken up hours before, and had her first fast food meal. She was currently fiddling with the hello Kitty toy that had come with it. She acted like it was the most amazing treasure she's found in her whole life. Keiko had to bite back from laughing. "It's just plastic." She told the girl.

Tsuki wrinkled her nose thoughtfully. "Plastic?" She questioned, looking at the toy with curiosity. "It's a man made material." Keiko stated, parking the car and turning the engine off. "I'll be right back, don't go anywhere." She told the Tsuki. Thankfully it was nice and dark, so there wasn't much to worry about in the ways of someone spotting the girl.

"Okay." Tsuki stated wistfully, turning back to her Hello kitty merchandise. Keiko exited the car, and walked into the check in area of the hotel. It wasn't long before the light in the car switched off, sending Tsuki into darkness. As soon as the light dimmed out, her chest constricted with an un-rational fear. She knew that it didn't make much of a difference, if there was a light or not, but somehow it washed over her regardless. Her hands were shaking, and her eyes started to tremble with tears. The dark felt lonely, it felt like abandonment.

When Keiko got back to the car, even with the doors and windows shut, she could clearly hear the crying from inside. Without thinking, she unlocked the passenger side door and pulled it open in alarm. "Tsuki?" She stiffened up for a moment, when the girl threw her arms around her waist. "Are you okay?" Keiko questioned, wrapping her arms around Tsuki's shivering form. "N-no." Tsuki sobbed, her face pressed against Keiko's waist. "I don't like the dark…please don't leave me alone in it. I promise I'll be g-good!" To her, the worst thing that could be done, was to be left alone in that creeping darkness.

Those words were going to stick with Keiko for a long time. "You were never bad to begin with." She stated, kneeling down slightly to wipe the girl's eyes. "I'm sorry; I didn't know you were scared of the dark." She stated with an apologetic smile. Tsuki sniffled, rubbing her red and now puffy eyes in agitation. Her eyes looked down at her feet gloomily.

Keiko smiled slightly, reaching over and unlocked the seatbelt. "We're going to rest here for the night, tomorrow afternoon; we'll be where we need to be." She explained. Tsuki nodded her head at the statement, allowing Keiko to help her out of the car. The two girls grabbed the bags out of the seat, making haste to get into their room without anyone seeing them. Keiko dropped the bag in her hands by the door, as she shut the door behind her. The phone had died a little bit ago, putting a cease to whatever calls she'd been receiving.

Tsuki walked over to the window and slid the curtains open as Keiko hooked up the thing she'd taken out of her pocket. The lights in the city were all on, and blazing like stars. Her eyes slid closed slowly, distantly, she was able to hear the sounds of other people inside the building. "Is this where you live?" She glanced over at Keiko curiously.

The ningen shook her head. "No, but it's similar to this in some places." She paused. "But the exact destination where headed to is very isolated…You should get some sleep." Keiko reminded her. Tsuki really wasn't tired, but she wasn't going to start misbehaving. Her parents had taught her to be well behaved. The silver haired girl lay down on the bed by the window, not bothering to close the curtains. The more light as far as she was concerned, the better.

Tsuki's eyes slid up towards the moon, half hidden behind the buildings of soulless glass. It glinted red, harsh against the dark sky. 'A bad omen.' She noted numbly. A red moon signified war on the horizons. Much like a red sky at morning meant warning for sailors. She lay awake from the next few hours, even after Keiko finished on the phone and returned to bed. At one point, she stood up, opening the window silently; there was a thick ledge outside, which she climbed onto cautiously. The rain had receded for the time being, but left the ledge slick with raindrops. Tsuki was cautious however, and stayed as still as possible.

A bird twilled loudly to her left. It was white, yellow and red, with long trailing tail feathers that spiraled downwards. Tsuki turned her attention to it quickly placing a finger over her lips. "Shh…" she hushed it, kneeling down, and holding her hand out encouragingly. The bird cocked its head to the side, hopping forwards. It allowed her to stroke its feathers soothingly. 'You seem familiar.' Tsuki mused, listening as it twittered at her softly, for a while, she sat there, simply listening to the creature sing softly.

The bird ruffled its wings startling her. "Huh?" Tsuki blinked, as it took flight, a large feather drifting down into her vision. Her hand reached out and plucked it from the air, she sighed slightly, mourning the loss of something that seemed so familiar. Tsuki soon returned to bed, as if she had never left, the red tipped feather clenched in her hand.

'28 messages?' Keiko mused, as she flipped through the missed calls and texts. 'What they didn't get the….Oh.' She quickly remembered that she hadn't informed a single soul besides Miyu where she was going. Keiko rubbed her temples exasperatedly. 'I better call them back, and let them know what's going on.' She stood up and slid into the bathroom shutting the door behind her with a click. Keiko pressed a few buttons on the phone. Most of the calls had come from Shizuru, Kurama and her parents. Although considering Yukina now lived with Shizuru and Kuwabara, some of those calls were probably theirs.

The dial tone drifted noisily into her ear, as Kurama's voice sounded out after the second ring. "Would you calm down?" He stated to someone in the room with. "I haven't even said anything yet." Keiko stated in annoyance.

"I didn't mean you Keiko-chan." The red headed boy responded. "Where have you been? We've been trying to get a hold of you for the past few days…We even called your work, but the administrator there said you took some vacation time." Everyone had been immensely worried by her lack of response. One person in particular who was currently standing in the room with him. "Stop it." Kurama snapped, slapping Yusuke's hand away from the phone. 'These past few years have done nothing to fix that impatience apparently.' He mused, turning his attention back to the female speaker.

Keiko blinked slowly. "Who's with you, Kuwabara-kun? And on the subject of where I was, and what I was doing…You'll find out tomorrow." She stated.

"Tomorrow?" Kurama questioned. He skimmed over her question. 'It's best to leave the subject of her and Yusuke alone.' As much as he would have liked to meddle, this time he just let it pass him by. For the time being that is. 'Besides, if she is coming back tomorrow, no doubt he'll be the first one to greet her.' He thought.

"I'll be arriving at Genkai's, at about one in the afternoon…speaking of which, would you mind meeting me there? I need your help with something very important." Keiko sounded rather troubled. "I'll call out of work." Kurama responded dutifully. Something was not right, and after the relatively peaceful recent years, it was highly probable chaos would come in droves.

Yusuke was behind Kurama, pacing slightly, as he ran a hand through his long hair. It'd grown back once more during his absence. He was just lucky the marking were easier to hold at bay then the hair was. 'I'll get it cut tonight.' He mused. Yusuke knew he had a lot of explaining to do in front of Keiko, but when he heard she'd be arriving so early, he felt nervous. He'd only just gotten back from Makai, a few days prior. Tomorrow he would learn, that the day he'd returned to Ningenkai, was also the day Tsuki had woken up, rather coincidentally. 'I mean I had a good reason.' At least it seemed like a good reason. When Raizen had said, Yusuke had somehow evolved into a form of mazoku, that no longer needed the flesh of humans to survive, he'd been right. Unfortunately, he skipped out on the part of Yusuke having the Urges and cravings to do so. Although it was very possible he didn't know that himself. Whatever mutation Yusuke's body had gone through, after awakening the demonic part of his genetics, left him more affected then originally assumed.

When Yusuke had first stepped foot back into Ningenkai, on the appointed third year, he almost went crazy from the smell of all the humans roaming around. He was lucky that Hiei had been close by, and managed to subdue him, otherwise He would have been having Human for a welcome back meal. It obviously hadn't of been safe for him to return back to Ningenkai. 'But I made a promise, and late is better than never.' Yusuke noted, hoping Keiko felt the same. He knew he could have written a note, or gotten word to her somehow. But he didn't want to admit his own failure, that and, he'd been so focused on learning as much as he could about his species, and practicing on how to squash those instincts; time had flown by. What had been eight or so years, had only felt like one or two for him.

'She's probably pissed.' Yusuke mused, but he preferred that to the alternatives. If she had been waiting there for him, who knew what would have happened. Although the hunger he felt for her, wasn't exactly the kind you felt for a tasty meal. He'd just been in the middle of asking Kurama about her, when surprise, surprise the girl had called herself. Yusuke just wanted to say hello, and Kurama was hogging the phone all to himself. Without thinking, he tacked the red head to the ground in midsentence.

"What are you doing?!" Kurama looked at Yusuke like his was rabid, vaguely hearing Keiko ask what was going on in the background. Yusuke took the phone, and climbed off the boy dutifully.

"Hey." He stated into the receiver, waiting a few moments. He could quiet vividly hear Keiko's breath catch in her throat. "Miss me?" He grinned slowly.

"Absolutely not!" Keiko seethed. It just figured that when she was on her way back to town, completely over him, he'd show up. Or at least she liked to think she was over him. A girl could dream.

Yusuke winced, hearing the tone of her voice. "Look, I can explain if you ju-" His mouth fell open slightly, when Keiko called him a few unsavory names. "There's no need for naming calling!" He had no idea her vocabulary went that far. As a matter of fact, there were quite a few words she'd said that he was pretty sure, he'd never heard before. Like, indecorous, and odious. Yusuke didn't know whether to be proud and amused, or hurt and shocked. He settled with the first choice though. Hearing those words spill from her mouth, simply meant she was upset. 'Being upset means, she still has feelings.' He noted eagerly.

"Look." Keiko stated as she took a deep breath. Yelling at him had made her feel a bit better. "I have to go, I've been driving all night. Tell Kurama I'll see him tomorrow." With great satisfaction, she hung up without waiting for a response, or even biding him farewell. If Yusuke showed up tomorrow as well, she'd give him what for.

Kurama had by now climbed off the floor. "I take it she wasn't thrilled to hear from you." He smiled slightly and took the phone. "Well, everything takes time…your welcome to go to Genki's with me tomorrow." He stated, watching in amusement as a smirk crossed over Yusuke's face. "You shouldn't be so happy with rejection. It's un healthy."

Yusuke shook his head wildly. "It's not rejection, it's a challenge." He stated, before looking at the red headed boy hopefully. "Give me a hair cut?"

Kurama chuckled lowly, before nodding his head. "Of course." He led the boy into the kitchen of his large apartment, grabbing a pair of sheers; he began cutting at the mass of black hair dutifully. "I take it you training went well, or you wouldn't be here now." He stated. Of course Kurama had known about the situation, which makes one wonder why he hadn't informed Keiko. The answer to that, is because he was not asked to tell, and he was never asked what was going on with Yusuke by said girl.

Yusuke nodded his head, a rather thoughtful look crossing his face. "So far." The only thing so far he'd had a problem with so far, was the rapid growth of his hair and nails. Concealing his markings was easy. But for some reason the other two were a bit more challenging.

When Kurama had finished, Yusuke left, heading back to Genkai's for the night. That was pretty much where he'd decided to live. He certainly wasn't going back to live with his mother, at the age he was now. Besides she'd gotten back with his father, And Yusuke couldn't stand the sight of the man to be frank. He ran a hand through his hair, relishing in the cool night air. It was a long walk back from the city, to the mountains, but for Yusuke it felt like moments. That was probably due to that fact, his walking was more like running.

Yusuke glanced up at the sky once more, talking note of the full round moon in the sky. It was tinted bright red. 'A red moon signifies war on the horizon.' He noted briefly, a shiver running up his spine. 'That's just superstition.' The small voice in the back of his mind stated in a pesky tone, urging him to catch a few precious hours of sleep. Yusuke relented, walking to his room, and flopping down onto his futon. 'Let's hope the haircut sticks.' He mused, drifting off to sleep slowly.

He should have known better, considering his prior profession. Superstitions were never simply superstitions whenever he or the others were concerned. It was a universal fact. A fact that was not to be ignored.

Whew *wipes sweat* I really wanted to get it, to 6 thousand words, but it was really hard. Can anyone guess where the title for this chapter came from? I'll give you a treat! I don't know what, because I doubt you'll guess it. *Grins* now, I'm off to do an outline of the next chapter for Borderline obsession!