/Next Morning/ Kristina woke up, hopped out of bed, and left, paying no attention to Yusuke. She changed into a pair of baggy jeans, a tight black T-shirt that read 'Tomorrow, I'll be sober, but you'll still be ugly', and a dark green hooded sweatshirt. Thus attired, she vaulted over the railing on the stairs and landed in the hallway below. Kurama and Kuwabara come running into the hall, hearing the sound she made when she landed, and fell. "Are you okay?" Kurama asked, extending a hand to help her up. Instead of taking the offered hand, Kristina stood on her own and glared at them.
"Who had the brilliant idea to put a rug right beneath the landing of the stairs?" Without waiting for an answer, she dusted herself off, and then walked past both boys and into the kitchen.
"Talk about giving the cold shoulder." Kuwabara observed. Once Kristina was in the kitchen, she settled herself with a bowl of cereal. The boys, now accompanied by Hiei, who looked to be in a very bad mood indeed, entered. "Why do you have those out?" Kuwabara wanted to know, indicating the sharp claws Kristina was casually flexing.
"Why does it matter?"
"Just leave her alone Kuwabara."
"Because I need to clip them. Besides that…it's not a complete form. I'm…I suppose you could say that I'm stuck." Kristina finished her breakfast, and headed for the door, hoping to get away before a certain unwanted question arose. On the way out, she couldn't resist irritating further Hiei's wounded pride. "Nice black eye, shorty." she whispered as she passed him.
"Hey, Kristina. Have you seen Yusuke this morning?" Kurama tactfully changed the subject before Hiei could say anything.
"Uhhh…. nope, haven't seen him, Kurama." Something about the way Kristina acted made all of them suspicious.
"Why are you acting so nervous?" Hiei wanted to know.
"I'm not nervous."
"Grab 'er!" Kuwabara yelled, then tackled Kristina. She wriggled out of his grasp and was about to make a getaway, but she ran right into Hiei's arms. The only reason she hadn't seen him was because she'd been looking behind her, keeping an eye on Kuwabara and Kurama, who she'd deemed more of a threat.
"Why do you always catch me when I'm looking the other way?" Kristina asked, more questioning herself then him, so she was surprised when he answered.
"Because you never think to pay attention to what's ahead."
"I thought you weren't talking to me."
"I'm not."
"Yes, you are!"
"Hn"
"Oh so that's all you're gonna say now!?"
"Hn."
"Aaarrgh! Stop saying…mmmmmmf!" Kurama had come up from behind Kristina clapped a hand over her mouth to muffle her complaints.
"It's too early for attempts at killing each other. Just tell us were Yusuke is."
"NO!"
"Um, Kurama, I found Yusuke." Kuwabara showed up, and Kristina knew that he'd gone into Yusuke's room and seen him.
"And?" Kurama prompted.
"I think you should see this." Kurama looked at Kristina suspiciously.
"He'd better still be alive, Kristina. Otherwise, Koenma may change his mind about sparing your life." He dragged the protesting girl with him to Yusuke's room. "Good heavens!" He exclaimed when he saw Yusuke "What on earth did you do to him!?"
"Simple. I put him in there so he'd stop shoving me off the bed. Don't worry, he'll live."
"Well, let him out! We know how hard that stuff is!" Grumbling about weaklings, Kristina caused the enclosure to collapse, covering Yusuke in a heap of ice, water, and slush. He sat up quickly, coughing and sputtering.
"That's cold!" Without further ado; he got out of bed (Or rather, puddle!) and raced after Kristina, who had just run out of the room. Kurama, Kuwabara, and Hiei watched her lead Yusuke on a merry chase around the house.
"It's gonna be a loooong two weeks." Kurama muttered.
"You said it." Kuwabara replied.
/One Week and 6 days later (1 day before everyone leaves)/ The boys and Kristina were headed for Koenma's office. Kristina knew, from careful eavesdropping, that the boys were going to attempt to rid themselves of her. "It's not going to work, you know." she informed them.
"What's not going to work?" All four snapped. Kristina smirked.
She'd spent her time either in the gym, on a training field, being lectured by Koenma, or at the boy's Spirit World living quarters. When she was at the house, she always managed to drive at least one of the boys absolutely crazy. Kurama, for example, was in a bad mood for several reasons. One, something had put him in the same form Kristina spent most of her time in, meaning he had claws to contend with and he had to stick to the Spirit World, making it nearly impossible for him to escape the newest member of the team. Also, three days ago, Kristina had come up behind him when he'd come back from swimming at the pool and had pressed the receiving end of a shocking pen into Kurama's back. Thanks to the water covering him and the fact that Kristina had been tinkering with the wiring, he received a major shock, which knocked him out for several hours; when he came to, he discovered that he couldn't get his hair to lie flat. It had taken him nearly an hour, 2 combs, and Yusuke's help to get it to stay down this morning.
Hiei was still sore about the fact that Kristina had beat him up; Yusuke didn't like sharing a room with her (she'd gotten her own bed 2 days after the 'ice coffin' episode) and she'd put glitter in his hairgell this morning, so he sparkled. Even Kuwabara had stopped eyeing her, after she'd put him inside a suit of ice while he slept, and then forced him to wear it until she got bored with it. As a result of these and other pranks Kristina had pulled on the boys, everyone was in a very bad mood.
"I'm telling you, it's not going to work." she repeated.
"Just Shut Up!" They all yelled. After this, they continued in silence to Koenma's office. Kurama, who was in front, knocked on the door, which opened.
"Come in." The boys, who wanted to leave her outside, shoved Kristina roughly to the side. She responded by conjuring several dozen ice cubes, which dropped down their collars. "Kristina, did you do that?" Koenma asked, watching Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara hopping around, trying to rid themselves of the freezing objects. Hiei was attempting to get rid of the ice by melting it. It wasn't working.
"Of course it was me."
"Would you get rid of the ice please? I think they were intending to talk with me, and it is impossible to do so like this."
"You're a spoilsport, you know that?" she responded.
"Now,Kristina."
"Yessir." Kristina immediatelyturned the ice to water, which soaked the boys, trickling wherever the ice hadn't been to begin with, which guaranteed miserably cold clothes. Then:
"Ack! Kurama!" Koenma and the other boys yelped. Kurama, in order to dry off, shook himself like a dog, a trick he'd used before, but never indoors. This sprayed the water everywhere, and left him relatively dry, although his hair was sticking up again. "Did you boys have a reason to be here, or did you just want to cause trouble?"
"We came to ask if you'd keep Kristina here. We don't want her help, and she's causing more trouble than you'd believe." Kurama said, trying unsuccessfully to get his hair to lie flat.
"She's coming and that's that. You need a girl for this tournament and even I can't get around that rule Now, go pack!"
"But she's useless!" Yusuke complained. Kristina bristled at this, and tensed up, ready to spring.
"Kristina, calm down. Yusuke, she's just as skilled as you are."
"Yeah right! She's just a girl!" Koenma sighed and shook his head.
"Kristina, would you like to have a practice fight with Yusuke?" Kristina grinned evilly.
"Of course. Just a girl, am I? Yusuke, meet me on Training Court D in 15 minutes."
"You're on." Yusuke said, cracking his knuckles. As she left the room, Koenma sighed again.
"What am I going to do with that girl?"
Kristina was waiting on the court when Yusuke showed up with the others, and Botan, who she had met the week before. When they entered, the boys, even HIEI, stood and gaped. "C'mon Yusuke!" Kristina called. She knew very well what they were looking at: her. Up until now, she spent all of her time out of the water in loose, comfortable clothes. Not today. Today she was wearing a tight white tank top, which showed part of her belly, and skin-tight black pants. She went barefoot, and had braided her hair. "Quit goggling! I'm here to fight!"
"When'd your hair get so long?" Kuwabara asked (It hangs to her hips.)
"It's always long. I just keep it up. Now, Yusuke, are you going to fight, or will you forfeit, to save yourself embarrassment?"
"I'll fight! I never forfeit!"
Kristina stood still, waiting for Yusuke to move first, which he did; He launched himself at her. She dodged, and then created a strip of slick ice beneath his feet, Yusuke skidded for a moment, and then fell hard on his rump.
"Did'ya trip over your own feet Yusuke?" Kristina asked "Poor baby. How 'bout a kiss to make you feel better?"
"Sure" Yusuke replied sarcastically.
Kristina made as if to blow a kiss to Yusuke, and a palm-sized kiss-print materialized in front of her, and then flew toward him
"Aaaah! Get it away from me!" Yusuke yelped, running away. The kiss hit his back, burning a hole through his shirt and leaving him with some nasty burns. "That was dirty!" he spat, picking himself up from where he'd fallen. Kristina didn't see his fist start to glow.
"At least it didn't hit your mouth, whiney." she called. In response, Yusuke shot the Spirit Gun at Kristina, and she didn't have the time to dodge fully. It collided with her left arm, which popped out of its socket from the force of the blow.
"Stupid boy!" she hissed, backing up several paces to assess the damage: not much beyond a dislocated shoulder and what was sure to be a spectacular bruise later.
Yusuke snarled, lunging at Kristina. She made a strange, sort of choked, cry. Spines of ice flew at Yusuke, piercing his skin in dozens of places. He yelled and started to pull them out. While he was thus occupied, Kristina closed the space between them and socked Yusuke in the stomach. He doubled over, wheezing, then gave a choked gasp as Kristina hit him again. Yusuke hit the ground; Kristina picked him up by the throat, and slammed her forehead into his. Yusuke groaned and went limp. Kristina released her grip on him and watched him fall to the floor in a heap.
She turned to the watchers "Anyone else feel like a thrashing?"
"No"
"I didn't think so." she murmured, moving toward the open doorway.
"You headin' for the Infirmary?" Kuwabara wanted to know
"Why would I go there?"
"Look at your arm!"
"Oh, that. I'm going to fix that now."
"How?"
"Watch and learn." Kristina leaned on the doorframe, braced her feet against the floor, and shoved all her weight on the dislocated shoulder. There was a sickening click, which made everyone flinch. When she walked back toward the group, her arm hung at a more normal angle.
Kristina marched back onto the court and crouched down next to Yusuke. "Hmmmm…out cold. Guess I hit him too hard." She rolled him over, then pulled him onto her back and shoulders. Steadying him with one hand, she headed for the door, than realized that everyone was staring at her. "What are you waiting for? Koenma needs to know the outcome of the fight, I'm taking Yusuke to the Infirmary, and I know that I'm the only person here who has already packed for the tournament. Come on, move it!"
"Maybe we should do what she says. I don't want to have to fight her." Kuwabara said. Everyone agreed. So they went, Botan to Koenma, Hiei and Kuwabara to pack, and Kurama went with Kristina.
At the infirmary, Kristina left Kurama with Yusuke and went to find a nurse. When she found one, she towed the woman back to where she'd left her companions.
"This guy needs the burns on his back tended to."
"What happened to him?"
"Me"
"Oh"
"Hey, Kurama"
"I'm listening."
"Race you to the kitchen. Loser makes lunch. How 'bout it?"
"You're on. I hope you're a good cook, because you're going to lose!"
"In your dreams. GO!" Lucky for them, there was no one in the halls but them as they tore down the hall, out of the main building, and across the courtyard to their quartes. They shot into the kitchen together, hit the slick linoleum floor, and skidded into everyone else (They were getting lunch), causing a mass pile-up. A pitcher of cranberry juice fell on both of them.
"What the heck just happened?!" Kuwabara yelled.
"I believe we just got hit by a pair of rampaging demons." Hiei said dryly "Now, whoever is trying to pull my leg off, LET GO!" Kurama laughed slightly from underneath his friend. His voice sounded…off, somehow, and this was mirrored in both Kurama and Kristina's actions. They said nothing, but laughed rather guiltily and tried to free themselves from the pile.
"Come on you two, let me clean you off." Botan grabbed both of them by the arm and tugged them toward the back door.
Whining and fighting the pull, they scooted inch by inch out the back door, and into the yard beyond. When Botan had successfully gotten them both into the yard and had closed the door (Kristina and/or Kurama had bolted for the door several times) the pair huddled together in the middle of the yard. The run down the hall and playful competition had awakened the mentality of eager-to-please fox cubs, and both of them were completely trapped in it. The closest comparison would be young children, probably boys, around the age of five or so, complete with the age-old abhorrence of bathing.
"She has a hose!" Kurama yelped.
"I don't wanna get wet! No hoses! That's not playing fair!" She wailed in reply. Botan stopped to turn the hose on, and was surprised to see both of her victims sit down in the grass and howl. She walked toward the two of them, still carrying the now running hose.
"RUN AWAY!!!!" They both cried, and then followed their own advice. They shot away from Botan and the hose. Unfortunately for them, the yard, although big, was walled in, and neither of them stopped to consider jumping over the wall.
"Guys, I think you may want to see this." Botan said, sticking her head inside.
"What?" They asked, coming to the door.
"Our resident enemies have apparently been caught off guard by an animal personality. Can you help me catch 'em?"
"What are you going to do when you do catch them?" Kuwabara questioned "Yeee!" Kristina and Kurama had just come flying around the corner, and Kuwabara had to jump really fast to avoid being trampled.
"I'll give them a good hosing down and then see if I can get them back to the people we know and l-" Botan paused, reconsidering her choice of words, as the looks on both boys faces said that if she said 'love' then she would regret it. " And… know." She finished.
"Alright" Hiei said grudgingly.
Ten minutes later, Hiei and Kuwabara were stationed in different parts of the yard. Currently, both Kurama and Kristina were down at the small pond in one corner of the yard, trying to catch the water-skaters that flitted across the surface. Botan crept up to them, carrying the hose. She'd already tried bribing, having just barely escaped with both hands. "Hey there!" She said brightly, turning the hose on the two.
"Hoses! Run!" They both raced away, bowling Botan over.
"Incoming!" she called. They split up; Kurama running one way while Kristina ran the other. As Kristina ran, she heard a startled yelp, and then voiced one herself, as a heavy rope fell around her shoulders. Kuwabara climbed down from the tree he'd been in.
"Kristina? Could you possibly be reasonable and come with me?" Kristina whined in response. "Stop giving me those puppy eyes. Come on." He picked up the free end of rope and walked toward the house. Behind him, Kristina followed in a stiff-legged walk much like that of an angry cat, rather than being pulled on her rear.
"Thanks guys." Botan said, obviously relived. "Could you just stick around while I hose 'em?"
"Sure" came the reply. Kurama and his companion tried to make themselves as small as possible as Botan neared.
"How did they get you?" Kristina asked
"Hiei jumped out of a tree onto my back." Kurama muttered "He can be blasted heavy when he wants to! My back still hurts. You?"
"Kuwabara got me with a rope and dragged me here."
"Look out! It's the hose!"
"Now, just hold still." Botan commanded, then turned the hose on them. They voiced their opinion on the proceedings; Hiei and Kuwabara covered their ears.
"You'd better be finished quick." Hiei growled, "Otherwise I'm going to make them be quiet permanently."
"Don't worry, I'll be quick."
"Cold! Coldcoldcoldcoldcold!" Kurama and Kristina yowled. Then the water stopped. Kristina looked at Kurama, then shook, Kurama mirroring her. When they were reasonably dry and the others were quite wet, they retreated to a sun-warmed patch of grass.
"I don't think we're allowed to have animals on our team." Kuwabara said, disappointed. "She seems to be so much nicer like that. I mean, look how she's treating Kurama. It's almost like they're brother and sister."
"You're right. Oh well. Come on, follow me." Botan sighed and moved toward the pair.
"Hey guys," she said brightly. "Look, I don't have the hose, so you're safe." Assured by the way she and Kuwabara approached with hands out in front of them, Kurama and Kristina held their ground.
" Hey, Botan. How long are you going to play with them?"
"Eeeep! Hiei, don't sneak up behind me like that. I tol- Oh, dear" Botan broke off. Kristina had dropped onto all fours with her elbows on the ground, looking for all the world like she wanted to play. Botan moved toward Kristina, reaching out cautiously. She had just managed to grab Kristina's hand when she took off, leaving Botan on her back where she'd fallen.
"Botan, what did you do? Hey you, stop hopping around! Aaaagh!" Hiei was suddenly run over, or, more accurately, he was pounced over. Both Kurama and Kristina were currently prancing around, almost bouncing, and Kurama had gotten an idea.
"I'm going to see if Hiei wants to wrestle!" He said brightly, and shot away. After he'd knocked Hiei over, Kurama proceeded to get a good grip on Hiei's cloak and dragged him away.
"What do we do?" Kuwabara asked
"Play with them until we either catch them or they get tired out. That's all we can do."
"What are those two doing? They look like they're getting along." Came another voice.
"Hey Yusuke!" Botan called happily. Yusuke walked over. He was currently shirtless, his bare chest mostly concealed by the bandages wound around his torso to cover the burns, and looking decidedly confused. "It's a long story." Botan said slowly.
"Do you actually want me to throw that? Fetch!" Kristina had just dropped a stick at Yusuke's feet, and he obliged by throwing it for her. She raced after it, waiting until it was nearly 12 feet off the ground before she jumped and caught it in mid-air.
"Whoa! Get off me! Aack! Botan! Help me!" Kristina had just pranced up, dropped the stick at Yusuke's feet, and jumped on him.
"Hang on!" Botan called, and ran over. Grabbing Kristina around the waist, she mumbled something under her breath. Immediately, the girl released Yusuke. As she realized what she'd been doing, she turned very red and ran to the house. Almost immediately after this, a yell echoed from the other end of the yard, a heavily wooded area.
"Somebody stop hiiiiiiiiiiim!" The pair, accompanied by Kuwabara, raced for the source of the sound and found Hiei, who had both arms wrapped around a tree, hanging on for dear life. Kurama was still resolutely gripping Hiei's cloak, growling playfully as Hiei kicked against the powerful pull on said cloak. Botan grabbed Kurama and repeated the incantation. When he was himself again, he apologized profusely before going into the house to find Kristina. It was quite clear to those outside when he did find her, in the living room.
"WHAT ON EARTH POSSESSED YOU!? DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU MADE ME DO!?"
"I WASN'T DOING IT ON PURPOSE, YOU IDIOT!"
"NOT ON PURPOSE?! ARE YOU INSANE!? I'VE JUST SPENT THE BETTER PART OF TWO HOURS ACTING LIKE A PUPPY! AND I NEARLY KILLED MY BEST FRIEND BY JUMPING ON HIM!"
"JUST SHUT UP!"
"I WILL NOT!"
"I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"
"THAT'S FINE WITH ME!"
"SAME HERE!"
"YOU CAN DIE FOR ALL I CARE!"
"Ouch." Kuwabara said. Two door slams were heard, followed by the sound of two people just yelling at the top of their lungs. There were no words, just angry sound.
"Whoa, I didn't know he could be that loud." Hiei commented.
/Meanwhile, inside/ Kristina stomped around the room, getting angrier and angrier, screaming and cursing. All this emotion built up, until she felt as if she was going to explode. Knowing that this was possible, she opened the window, hopped out of it, and moved to the center of the back-yard lawn. Unknown to her, Yusuke was also outside, watching.
Voicing a high-pitched shriek, Kristina threw her head back, holding her hands towards the sky, palms up. Inside, everyone heard and raced to the door to find the cause of the ruckus. Streams of white light shot from Kristina's palms. Her eyes and mouth began to glow, than, from them, a pillar of blue light blasted skyward. Moments after that, huge chunks of ice plummeted out of nowhere towards her, only to be reduced to small chips of crushed ice by the light from her hands. These chips rained down, piling up in drifts more than a foot deep.
"All this over a shouting match?" Kurama asked, feeling guilty. He'd calmed down much more quickly than Kristina.
Meanwhile, outside, Kristina stopped screaming and stood straight again, then staggered, feeling weak. Her claws receded to normal human fingernails, and her pupils rounded out.
"Kristina!" Yusuke called, then ran over and caught her as her knees gave way. "Are you feeling okay?"
"Just tired."
"Why do you even bother with Kurama? Is there something between you two?"
"Promise not to tell anyone?"
"I promise."
"He's my brother."
10