Paper Voice

A YYH Fanfic

Chapter Eighteen

Kurama grimaced as he cleaned and bandaged his arm; Katrina was the only thing on his mind at the moment. She'd be okay, he knew she would, she's a demon and demon's have taken worse injuries than that and survived. Everyone was in the living room probably pestering Catherine for more information on what had happened. He didn't want to leave her to deal with that but he had work tomorrow and he was determined to spend as much time by Katrina's side as he could. Besides, he had to reassure Ritsu that he was safe.

When his arm was bandaged and he'd cleaned up the mess he'd made, Kurama went straight back to Katrina's room. Genkai had left and Ritsu was curled up on a chair next to Katrina's bed; gently Kurama scooped Ritsu up and sat down setting the kit in his lap. Ritsu jumped onto Katrina's bed and growled at Kurama, who sighed and shifted for a minute into his feral form so as to reassure Ritsu that he could be trusted. The kit stood startled on the bed and said, "Daddy? You- you're one of those weird two-legged shifter creatures? Like Mommy?" Kurama nodded and shifted back to Shuichi and Ritsu jumped into his lap and curled up. "Is Mommy going to be okay, Daddy?"

"Yes, Katrina will be okay, she's just going to sleep for a while to give her body time to heal."

"Daddy?"

"Hmm?"

"What's your family like? Master told me that my real parents were… um… He said my real Daddy was a fox, just a plain old animal. And my real Mommy was a demon fox and he was curious as to how I'd turn out cause of that. He called me a half-breed, but cause Momma was one of his favorites he kept me after she died."

"Don't call that man Master, he's gone now and I would prefer you not bring him up anymore."

"Alright; but what are you? Cause if you can change… how can you change into three different looking creatures? Are you a half-breed too? That's why I wanna know what your family's like."

"My story's complicated; I don't think you'd understand it right now. Maybe when you're older I'll tell you. My family though, I can talk to you about, I have a mother, step-father and step-brother."

"What's a step-whosey-wha-?" Kurama smiled down at Ritsu and laughed, "A step-father and step-brother are family related to you through marriage but not blood. My mother and father were married and had me; when I was very young my father died. A few years ago my mother remarried and her new husband already had a son with his previous wife, making his son my step-brother."

"So," Ritsu cocked his head to the side and looked up at Kurama, "Am I like your step-son or something?"

"Heh, no, Katrina and I aren't your parents in any form, we're just taking care of you."

"But- why can't you be my parents? The Ma- uh- the um… man who used to take care of me said you two are my new Mommy and Daddy."

"Well, it's complicated, Ritsu."

"What's so complicated about it? You guys love each other right?"

"Yes but-"

"So, you guys are my Mommy and Daddy, you take care of me together like parents should!"

"Ritsu, Katrina and I- we're- we're only boyfriend and girlfriend right now. If- and I most certainly hope not- we were to ever break-up who would take you then? Would you want to have to choose between us?"

"Well, no, but I would definitely choose Mommy over you; no offense, Daddy. So why don't you two get married, since ya love each other and everything. Then you definitely wouldn't break-up and I'd get to be raised by both of you!" Ritsu barked a little in excitement at his believed to be brilliant idea.

Kurama stared a little wide-eyed at Ritsu for a second before answering, "Yes, Katrina and I love each other but we really haven't been together that long. Marriage right now would be much too sudden and may cause more trouble then happiness. We will- if fortune smiles on us- get married in the future but for right now, we're happy the way we are."

"But, if you're married you could… um… adopt! Yeah, you could adopt me if you were married and then I'd be yours for real and maybe have a little brother or sister someday!" Kurama sighed and tried not to laugh at Ritsu's enthusiasm and insistence on a marriage immediately. "What, you and Mommy don't want to have kids? I would love to have a little sister or bother to play with!"

"Ritsu, I think we should end this conversation now, don't you want to take a nap, or better, go exploring? There's quite a lot to see around here, I think you'd have a lot of fun; just don't stray too far from the temple if you go outside and be back here before dark, okay?" Ritsu jumped up and ran under Katrina's bed then out the open door whooping in excitement at the thought of exploration. Kurama sighed in relief as he stood up and shut the door. That kit was going to be quite a handful, but now he could just sit quietly with his girlfriend until he had to leave for work the next morning.

Three days later Katrina was still unconscious and Catherine was starting to grow concerned. Genkai wasn't doing too well since healing Kat because she was… well to put it bluntly she was old and the major healing she'd done had taken a lot out of her. Everyone had gone home because of the situation but they insisted that Catherine keep them up to date on Kat and Genkai's health. The only one's left at Genkai's now where Genkai herself, Yukina, Ritsu, Catherine and Katrina. Daiku was staying with Yusuke- and helping him with his business- and had been for quite a while now.

Catherine was tired of the melancholic feeling around the house and was going to take Bruno for a walk when she heard a terrified scream coming from Kat's room. Running in to see what was wrong she found Kat sitting up in bed crying and clutching her ribs. She dropped down onto the edge of Kat's bed and scooped her into a gentle hug. "Shhh, Katrina, what's wrong? You're safe, you're okay, just tell me what's wrong, Sweetie," Catherine said soothingly as she rubbed Kat's back. Katrina breathed slowly trying to ease the pain and release the fear before speaking. "I had a horrible nightmare. Everything was dark, like light had never existed, then a light appeared and I saw my little sister. She was… cutting herself, something we both know she would never do. I tried to call out for her to stop but as I opened my mouth she looked up at me, smiled and slit her throat. Th- then… It went dark again and I heard the sound of a rope creaking from the strain of something heavy dangling from it behind me. When I turned…" Katrina took a deep breath and more tears escaped, "when I turned my brother was hanging there… and grinning too! I dropped to my knees and let loose a silent scream and the sound of tires squealing and headlights in front of me made me look up.

My Dad and youngest sister were in our van and a semi-truck appeared out of nowhere and ploughed into them crushing them against a huge, very solid building. I collapsed and begged to wake up or die, I didn't care I just couldn't take anymore. The sound of sobbing filled the darkness and I thought I'd finally been permitted the ability to utter sound. Below me it looked like I was looking into a reflection and my mother's image appeared, she was curled up in her bed sobbing over everyone. As I watched I could sense that the years were going by and that my mother had spent the rest of her life grieving us before finally being allowed to join us in death. Don't ask me how I knew I was dead I just did. Finally, the pain was so overwhelming that I stood screaming and ripping at my hair, then I collapsed and pounded the darkness that was ground below me. The pain emotionally was so immense I just begged for death to end me but I knew it couldn't happen. That this was my own personal…well…you know."

"How did you wake up in the end?" Catherine whispered after Kat had been silent for a few minutes.

"For the longest time there was nothing but pain. I couldn't wake up; I think what made me snap was… what I saw right before I woke up screaming and in physical pain."

"Do- do you think you could tell me? Saying it out loud might help make it easier to get over."

"Yeah… I need to say it or it'll drive me crazy. What caused me to wake up was… the monster that'd kidnapped me. Curled up in a ball I refused to move, but I could sense those horrible deaths replaying all around me. Then it just stopped. Slowly I started to feel hopeful that something good was happening; but I'd been tricked. Uncurling and sitting up I saw that monster holding Ritsu by the scruff of his neck over the pin of dogs that he'd dropped me into. He grinned at me, Ritsu silently cried out for my help, and then he was falling through the air down into the pin. The dogs swarmed him but made sure I had a clear view of them ripping Ritsu apart. A scream of anger ripped through me and I jumped up to tear out that monster's throat and I woke up here and in terrible pain."

"You're awake now, and that's the important part, are you okay?"

"Yeah, jittery- how long was I asleep?"

"Three days."

"Three day- wow," Katrina shook her head, "So how's everyone else been since I've been gone? I mean including when I'd disappeared." Catherine pulled out of the hug and let her friend lean back and see her face. "Honestly, Kat, not much happened, when you were missing Kurama was the one who discovered it around lunch time the next day. We were all kinda concerned but didn't have much time to really get worked up about it cause I'd managed to find you soon afterward. Brought you back, Genkai and Yukina healed you and… now you're awake," Katrina didn't trust the fake smile on her best friend's face, "What aren't you telling me, Cat?"

"What? Okay, well there was a little bit of a panic when you went missing but everything's good now."

"Cat, what are you trying to hide from me?" Catherine wouldn't look Katrina in the eye, glancing at the clock she jumped up causing the bed to bounce and Katrina to hiss in pain. "Would you look at the time! I really should call Kurama and let him know you're awake, he'll be thrilled. He didn't want to leave you but he had work and family obligations that he knew he wouldn't be able to skip out on. Not that he doesn't care about you it's just that he knew you were okay and that we'd call him if anything happened; so I'm gonna call him and let you two spend some quality time together," Catherine pulled out her cell phone as she left the room and closed the door behind her.

Dialing Kurama's number she thought about why she wasn't telling Katrina everything. She couldn't tell her about Genkai, not yet at least, she just woke up after a very traumatic experience and a horrible nightmare. Catherine didn't want to add to her trouble right now; Kurama answered on the second ring, "Catherine? How's Katrina, is she okay?"

"She's better than okay; she's awake, so get your butt over here pronto- she really needs you right now."

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Kurama hung up the phone as soon as the sentence had left his mouth. Catherine put her phone away and decided to proceed with her earlier plan of taking Bruno for a walk. Who knows, maybe she'd run into Hiei hiding out in the forest and she'd manage to weasel some answers out of him as to why he was in the human realm instead of doing his job.

Kurama was true to his word and arrived at Genkai's temple no more than two hours and fifteen minutes after receiving Catherine's phone call. Katrina's bedroom door was shut so he knocked softly, "Come in," he heard and his heart leapt with joy at the sound of Katrina's voice. He quickly opened and shut the door behind him as he rushed over to Katrina's bed.

Katrina was caught off guard as Kurama scooped her up- she'd been sitting on top of her blankets reading while she waited for him- into his arms, dropped onto the bed and set her in his lap gently, hugging her. "I missed you so much," he mumbled into her hair. She turned her face up towards his and smiled softly at him and kissed his smiling mouth. "I missed you too," she replied after pulling away.

"I never want to let you go," Kurama said as he shifted so that they were lying comfortably on the bed, his arms wrapped around her. She tried to move her legs on top of his but an intense pain shot through her right leg and she held back a yelp. It escaped as a strangled squeak and Kurama could see the pain in her face as she curled up in his arms. "Are you okay," he asked in immediate concern. Katrina slowly lifted her head, tears in her eyes and nodded, "I'm fine, just a little too sudden of a movement for my leg I guess." Kurama looked down, "which leg was it?"

"The right one… the one the dogs chewed up," she mumbled. Kurama looked at her asking permission to see her leg, she nodded and he gently pulled the leg of her pajama pants up to her knee. Her leg was bandaged but had started to bleed from the sudden movement. "Didn't anyone think to stitch it up?" Kurama asked in frustration. "Well, I'll see if Yukina can do something about it, I'll be right back." Sitting up Kurama kissed Katrina before getting up to find Yukina. He left the door open incase Katrina needed anything; just down the hall he found Yukina chasing Ritsu. "Yukina, Katrina's leg is bleeding could you please take care of it?" Yukina scooped Ritsu up and handed him to Kurama, "of course, I'm sorry about that, at the time I thought it would heal well enough on its own. I'll make sure that the wound won't reopen this time."

Ritsu looked up at Kurama, "Daddy, how come only you and Mommy can understand me? I keep trying to talk to those girls but they don't seem to get what I'm saying."

"I guess it's because Katrina and I can change into foxes; if you could change into a human then the others would understand you but you and I communicate differently than humans."

"So, it's like we're speaking a different language?"

"Yes, now, I don't mean to cut our time short, but I don't have much time right now and if you don't mind I'd like to spend it with Katrina. I haven't gotten to spend time with her for a while now; I promise I'll play with you next time I visit though okay?"

"Okey-dokey, Daddy," Ritsu shouted as he jumped out of Kurama's arms and ran off to find something else to do.

Kurama was going to go back to Katrina's room but the sight of Botan running towards him, tears in her eyes, alarmed him. "Botan what are you-"

"Kurama, she- she's… Genkai's… I had to take her! Genkai's dead," she whispered.

"We need to tell everyone; did Genkai tell you anything?"

"She said she'd left her Will on a table in her room and to tell everyone to just let her finally be."

"You let Hiei and Catherine know, I'll tell Yukina and Katrina then we'll start calling everyone else before we read her Will."

Entering Katrina's room Kurama stood silent for a few minutes as Yukina finished taking care of Katrina's leg. Looking up Katrina's smile died as she saw the pain in Kurama's eyes, "Kurama, what's wrong?" Yukina stood up and looked towards Kurama as well. "Genkai's dead, Botan's here; we're going to gather everyone and read her Will and find out what she wanted us to do." Yukina's hands flew to her mouth and tears sat in her eyes begging to be released. Katrina looked at her friend and told her it was okay for her to cry if she needed to; given permission Yukina's tears flowed and changed to pearls bouncing on Katrina's bed and floor. Katrina sat up to hug Yukina who gladly collapsed into her arms and Kurama rested his hand on Katrina's back, a single tear sliding down his cheek.