Karma Chapter 5

Hello all! I would like to start off by saying that I'm terribly terribly sorry for the lack of updates! I know it's been forever! I'm happy to inform you that there shouldn't be too much wait between this chapter and chapter 6, since I know how I want it to go. I also hope the length of this chapter makes up for the lack of updates. (Don't worry, I know it doesn't.) I would especially like to thank brown eyes for her unconditional motivation, and Jandy for letting me talk the chapter out to her. This update wouldn't have happened without them! Enjoy!

"Go after him?" Yukina repeated timidly, "I don't think I've made enough progress to do that…"

"Oh sweetie of course you have! You heard him compliment you. He's totally smitten. " Botan encouraged.

"All right, but I don't even know where to start with going after him. I mean, what do I do?"

"I think you should start small. Maybe ask him to take you to a movie or have dinner with you," Keiko suggested.

"A movie sounds good! Dinner seems too formal for just a first date. You should ask him to take you to that new zombie movie. Horror movies are always the best to see with a guy. You can act scared and then he'll get all protective. It's really cute and it'll give him the confidence to make a move," Botan explained. She knew that Yukina wouldn't even have to act scared for Kuwabara's protective nature to kick in. As soon as the first zombie appeared on the screen, Kuwabara would immediately put on a macho act. This plan seemed flawless and as Botan was mentally congratulating herself on her brilliance, Yukina asked,

"How do I not take no for an answer? I mean, what if he doesn't want to see a movie with me?"

"It's really simple kid; all you have to do is be persistent. First you should whine just a little. You need to show him how disappointed you'd be if he didn't go with you. Men are weak and can't stand it when women are upset. Then if he still doesn't go, you alter your plans just a little, to show him that you are hell bent on going. Suggest a different time to see the movie, or tell him he doesn't have to buy you popcorn. If he still won't go for it, roundhouse kick him in the face and tell him you'll beat the crap out of him if he doesn't take you," Shizuru said wisely. Everyone sweat dropped.

"She does have a point. Persistence is the key. Guys don't have the patience to keep arguing with girls, so they'll just give in eventually. Trust me," Keiko said confidently.

"OK, I will ask him tomorrow morning to take me to see the movie on Friday," Yukina stated, trying to sound confident, "But I'll need to ask him when no one else is around. Can you guys try to get everyone else out of the house since it's Sunday?"

"Absolutely! We'll arrange a picnic and day at the park. It's supposed to be beautiful tomorrow, so it won't seem like a weird suggestion. We should all go upstairs and get some rest for the big day tomorrow though," Botan reminded them. Everyone agreed to get some rest and so the women bounded up the stairs with a new spring in their steps at the idea of setting up a date.

The next morning everyone was gathered around the kitchen table eating breakfast. Botan and Kurama were discussing literature quietly while Kuwabara showed off his bruises to Yukina. Hiei and Shizuru watched the display with disgust. Keiko sat deep in thought about how to bring up the picnic, while Yusuke was still passed out on the floor from the other night. Finally, Keiko decided she should just say it casually, as if it was an idea that struck her while she was looking out the window.

"Hey guys, I was thinking that since it's such a beautiful day, we should all go out and enjoy it together," Keiko said in what she hoped was her most convincing casual voice.

"Yeah! It would be much less dangerous than last night's activities!" Botan chimed in.

"I have missed being able to enjoy nature," Kurama stated.

"Yeah! Let's have a picnic and play some competitive sports!" Kuwabara shouted. He was always happy to show off.

"Actually, I think you should stay home little brother. Your bruises haven't healed all the way. I really don't want you risking it. I'm sure Yukina would be happy to stay home and take care of you, though," Shizuru said giving Yukina a look. Yukina mentally frowned. There would be no way she could get to Hiei alone with Kuwabara following her everywhere and trying to get her attention. What was Shizuru doing?

"I guess I should since my bruises are pretty bad. I know the power of my love for Yukina will heal me!" Kuwabara said thrusting his fist into the air.

"Yes, yes it will. Now, you will be joining us, won't you Hiei?" Botan asked with a deadly undertone in her voice.

"I've never been one for social events," Hiei said coldly pushing in his chair and getting up from the table before anyone could argue.

"Well, I guess he doesn't have to come if he doesn't want to. He does keep to himself mostly, so he shouldn't get in the way around the temple," Botan said trying to put a positive spin on things.

"What about Yusuke? I don't think he's in any condition to go out, although I'm sure you would all really want him to," Kurama said with an air of suspicion in his voice.

"He'll be out cold for the next week. It's not like that's any different from how he usually is, though. I say we leave him," Keiko said coldly. She had still not forgiven Yusuke for making her so worried the last night.

"I guess it's settled then. We should really head out to the park before too many people get there. We can pick up food for the picnic on the way there," Shizuru said. Everyone rose from the table and headed toward the door. "Take care of my little bro," Shizuru said with a wink before she was the last to leave the temple.

"Soooo….Yukina, you wanna touch my owies? Maybe kiss 'em and make 'em better?" Kuwabara asked hopefully, learning in closer to Yukina and motioning to a large unattractive bruise on his already unattractive face.

"Uh, not that I wouldn't love to, Kazuma, but uh, I think you should take a hot bath first. The heat will make the blood flow better throughout your body. You'll heal faster that way. Actually, maybe you should just take a nap in the hot springs for a few hours," Yukina suggested, trying to time how long the others would be gone.

"Whatever you say is best for me, my love…" Kuwabara said in a disappointed tone as he slumped away to the hot springs behind the temple.

As soon as he had gone, Yukina began her search for Hiei. She found him in the forest practicing his fighting techniques. She approached him cautiously, feeling bad for interrupting his training. She tried to formulate a conversation in her head, keeping in mind all the previous tips the girls had given her. Be mean, show off, be persistent. Oh, why didn't I put on any make up when I woke up? And my kimono is so plain. Maybe I should wait to ask him. No, now is my only chance. If I don't do it now, I'll keep pushing it off and I'll never do it. Okay, here goes…

"Yukina, what are you doing out here?" Hiei asked interrupting her as she was just about to speak. His voice was more concerned than annoyed. For this, Yukina was grateful.

"I…I need to…to ask you something…" Yukina stammered. She didn't know how to ask him while doing all the things she had been instructed on. She had never been so nervous in her life. Hiei, meanwhile, was equally nervous. He was afraid that Kurama had hinted to her that he may be her brother. He didn't want her to ask. He had never planned out what he would say if she directly confronted him.

"Yes?" Hiei said after a tense moment.

"Well, there's this new zombie movie out, and I REALLY want to see it. But you see I have no one to go see it with. The other girls don't really like monster movies," Yukina explained in her best begging voice. She took her hair out of its usual pony tail to make herself seem more attractive as she continued, "so you BETTER take me Friday night," She had said that rather aggressively in hopes that she would come across as persistent, and mean, but also desirable. Hiei just stared blankly at her. He was too surprised to say anything. This had not been at all the question he had expected, and her sudden change in tone and mood really threw him off. Yukina took his silence as a bad sign, so she added quickly, "And we can go Saturday night if you're already going out on Friday. Actually, we can go whenever you want. You don't even have to buy me popcorn! I don't even like popcorn!"

Hiei was now more confused than ever. He stared into her identical crimson orbs for a moment, and saw a small fleck of pain in them at his silence. He didn't understand her desire to watch a cheesy human horror movie or her decision to ask him of all people to a social event, but he couldn't stand to see her unhappy. He supposed he should be glad she was asking to spend time with him and not that pastry headed oaf Kuwabara. Hiei balled his hands into fists as he thought of Kuwabara trying to make moves on his innocent sister in a dark movie theater.

"Um, Hiei…?" Yukina prompted timidly as she watched him begin to shake with rage.

"Oh, yes, I'll see the movie with you if that's what will make you happy," Hiei said quickly as he cleared the thoughts of Kuwabara from his mind. He leaped away to a new spot to train before Yukina could say anything else. He wanted time to himself to vent his anger at the thoughts of Kuwabara and Yukina together, and he also wanted to try to sort out why she was so interested in him all of the sudden.

Hiei slashed at the air with his sword, trying to focus on performing the techniques accurately. He imagined he was slashing Kuwabara into pieces. Unfortunately, Hiei's imagination had become hard to control in his rage. Kuwabara had taken on a Hydra effect. Every time Hiei cut off his head, Kuwabara's head and two orange pastry shaped hairstyles grew back in its place. After the imaginary Kuwabara had been successfully slaughtered by Hiei cutting his body in half, Hiei turned his attention to the conundrum of Yukina's sudden interest in spending time with him. He remembered his conversation with Kurama a few days ago. Kurama had said something about Yukina being concerned about the relationship between him and Kuwabara, and looking up to him as a brother figure. Perhaps Yukina wanted to spend more time with him in order to get a better sense of his opinions. Hiei wasn't sure why she would do that, as he was sure he had made his opinions on Kuwabara perfectly clear, but it seemed a likely possibility. Still, Yukina had no reason to value his opinion unless she had caught on to the fact that Hiei was indeed her long lost brother.

Hiei stopped slashing at this sudden horrifying realization. It would explain her odd behavior. She was acting so strangely towards him because she was unsure whether to reject him or to accept their biological relationship. She was mean to him because she was disappointed in what her brother had turned out to be. Hiei was sure that when she imagined her long lost twin, he would be much better than a vengeful thief like himself. On the contrary, she wanted to love him simply because he was her brother. He was the only family she had left now. There was still one thing wrong with this theory, however. Yukina could not possibly know for certain that they were related. Although Kurama liked to meddle in affairs that didn't concern him, Hiei trusted his closest friend to keep his secret. Hiei was also confident in the fear that he had stricken into Botan and the other girls to keep them from informing Yukina. Perhaps Yukina just had a hunch. Yes, that had to be it, it was a hunch. Hiei made up his mind then and there that he would do anything she requested of him. If Yukina were to come to the complete conclusion that they were twins, Hiei wanted her to be happy with him. He couldn't do anything about his appalling past; therefore, he would be the best damn brother he could be. And if she never decided anything for certain, at least Hiei could take comfort in being close to her so he could protect her.

While Hiei was having a mental battle with himself, Yukina had returned to the temple. She plopped down on the couch and tried to plan out Friday's events. She had never been to a movie theater before, and she was slightly nervous about how she was going to act. She was confident that human theatrics would look silly compared to the real monsters of the demon world. It would be such a stretch to pretend they even frightened her a little. Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by a loud groan a few feet away.

Yusuke stumbled to his feet, holding his head in his hands. "Oh man, this hangover kills!" Yusuke cried out. Yukina hurried off the couch and quickly ran over to him. She placed her hands on his face and began to heal his pain. After she had finished, the two of them sat on the couch together.

"Hey thanks Yukina, that headache would've taken forever to heal if you hadn't helped me out," Yusuke said gratefully.

"Of course, it was no trouble," Yukina stated absent-mindedly.

"Hey kid, what's wrong?" Yusuke inquired.

"Well…" Yukina started, not sure if she should share her romance problems with Yusuke. Then again, she had already trusted her problems to the girls, but no men. Maybe it would be useful to get a man's opinion on the subject. "I sort of like this guy, and I asked him to see a movie with me on Friday. He agreed to it, but it seemed sort of reluctant. I really care about him, but I don't want him to go places with me just out of pity."

Yusuke frowned at this confession. It was terribly unlike Kuwabara to show any sort of reluctance at the chance to do anything with Yukina, but then again, Yukina didn't have much experience in dealing with human emotions. She did seem to be rather clueless when it came to Kuwabara's affections. Yusuke was just about to offer her some comforting words when Kuwabara returned from the hot springs with a towel around his waist.

"Oh hey guys! Glad to see you didn't die of alcohol poisoning, Uramesha," Kuwabara stated upon seeing Yusuke conscious. Feeling a cold draft, Kuwabara looked down at himself and remembered he was only wearing a towel. He shrugged off the embarrassment and took this as a chance to show off his muscles for Yukina. As he stood in front of her and began to flex, Botan, Keiko, Kurama, and Shizuru burst through the door.

"Hello all!" Botan greeted cheerfully as she stepped inside. She observed the awkward scene in front of her and decided to try and ignore it by making conversation. "So, Kuwabara, you must be so excited for this weekend, right?

"What? Why? What's going on this weekend?" Kuwabara's hair cocked to the side in confusion. The girls all stared at Kuwabara in surprise. Suddenly, Keiko came to the conclusion that Yukina must have been too shy to ask Kuwabara to the movie, and then Yusuke distracted her with his hangover.

"Well Yukina wants to see the new zombie movie that comes out Friday, but she has no one to go with. You'd be happy to accompany her, wouldn't you?" Keiko asked.

"What?" Yukina blurted out.