"Talking"
"Thinking"
-Telepathisis-
Flashback

-x-x-x-x-
Chapter Eleven
Familial Issues

"So this is our new teammate?" A slightly husky, teasing voice issues from the driver's seat. "Hey, I'm Ze, Emma's big bro."

That earns him a punch. "That's my younger brother, Ze."

"Only by a few minutes." He grins.

"Someone's happy..." I think before placing my bag in the trunk and slipping into the back seat of the car.

"So..." He draws out the "o" sound as he starts the car, shifts it from park to drive and pulls out of the spot.

"So?" I question.

"Well...info?"

"Why don't we wait 'til we get back before intros any further than what we have?" Emma cuts in.

I nod; Ze rolls his eyes rebelliously but remains stonily silent. I sigh mentally, as I may have just made my first adversary.

0x0x0x0

"It's nothing, Mother." Kurama murmurs. Only then is Shiori able to tear her eyes away from the tapestry of scars scored into her son's skin. Tears fill her eyes, though her blurry gaze lingers on the ones that look painful and recent.

"W-what h-happened to y-you?"

He tenses and his eyes refuse to meet hers. "It's nothing, Mother." He repeats.

"Shuichi!"

"Can we please talk about this after I get dressed?" He finally manages out.

"...alright." She agrees quietly and closes the door. Kurama waits until her footsteps die away before he resumes drying off. He ignores the fact that his hands are shaking.

0x0x0x0

"Hey, Kimi..."

The girl looks up from the project she needs to complete before the weekend/break ends. "Mm?"

"Why did...why were..." The black haired boy shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot.

"Eh?" She blinks.

"In the room...and..."

"Oh..." The bluette sighs before leading the way outside, where she begins to stretch to get the kinks out of her spine. "I could have sworn something or someone was following us...I figured they'd stumble across me first and who wouldn't be startled if someone who looked dead sprung to life and attacked?"

Sora shudders. "Thanks for the mental image." Silence reigns for a few moments. "Another thing..."

She looks up from stretching. "Mm?"

"Why would everyone be so pissed that I was in demon world?"

That causes a frown to worm its way onto her face; she bites her lip, thinking carefully about her answer. "Well...don't take this the wrong way, but to them you're like what a four year old is to you."

"...wait, what?"

"Okay, so compared to you, a four year old is pretty helpless, yes?"

"...yeah." Blue eyes regard her flatly.

"That's what you are to them...it's nothing personal, but you don't have the experience they do. You wouldn't let a four year old alone in a train yard, would you?"

"No!" Sora snaps.

"That's what it's like for them. It's nothing personal...you're just still an apprentice to them is all."

"Great." The boy mutters in annoyance. "I'm going home." He promptly storms off, leaving a resigned demoness to sigh and then retreat inside to struggle through her Japanese lessons and that blasted project.

0x0x0x0

Shiori listens to the faint sounds emanating from the bathroom. Thousands of scenarios swirl around her brain but she squashes them.

"I don't care how this happened." She thinks. "I just want him safe...and for whatever is going on to stop!" The sound of the bathroom door opening, then closing alerts her to the fact that he is approaching. "Shuichi, I d--" A yellowish durst enters her nose and throat.

A soft, familiar voice murmurs, "you will not remember what happened today. You will not recall the scars, how the hair dryer was broken, or why you were upset."

This is the last thing she hears before all goes black.

0x0x0x0

A few days later...

"Welcome home, Shuichi." Shiori greets. "Ah. Sorry, Sora. I didn't see you there."

The shorter boy sighs. "Most don't." He replies absently, trying to figure out why Kurama flinched at his mother's welcome.

"Sorry--"

"It's fine, Mrs. Minamino. Whoops, I mean Mrs. Hatanaka."

Shiori laughs before shooing both out of the kitchen.

0x0x0x0

"Alright, what's up?" Sora inquires as they place their bags on the floor of Kurama's room.

"I do believe you came here for assistance with your English..."

"Don't go all formal on me!" The shorter teen snaps.

"You've been distracted all day." Hiei comments from the window sill. Sora nods a greeting, but Kurama starts. Hiei raises an eyebrow as though to say, "see?"

"I'm fine." The fox demon grounds out stonily.

Shiori enters bearing a tray of snacks and drinks. "Hiei, hello! I didn't see you come in." She bustles back downstairs for another drink.

"Again with the short jokes..." Sora grumbles.

She returns with a drink for Hiei. "Oh, Shuichi, by the way, I've scheduled a doctor's appointment for you next Tuesday."

Kurama nearly drops his drink. "Why?"

The woman holds up a notice from school. "This came in the mail. Apparently you need a physical."

"Okay." He replies affably, but both boys can tell how strained his reply is.

"Good luck with your studies." She grins before leaving them to it.

Kurama sinks into his chair and rests his head in his hands.

Sora turns to Hiei. "Any ideas?"

0x0x0x0

"Let me get this straight..." Yusuke states as he sits on a couch at Genkai's. "His mom is having him go to the doctor's for a physical and that's a bad thing."

"I don't get it either." Sora agrees. "It's not like they're gonna draw blood..."

"Scars." Kuwabara states abruptly, causing the other three to stare.

"What?" Hiei snaps.

"Kurama gets injured a lot, right?" Cautious nods answer him. "And his body's still human, right?" More nods. "Get it now?"

"Oh shit..." Sora mutters.

"Pretty much." Yusuke agrees.

0x0x0x0

The look on Kurama's face when Yukina suggests cover up is a combination of confused and mortified; it quickly morphs into anger directed at Sora and Hiei.

"If you're having issues, they have a right to know." Sora states calmly.

Hiei's "hn" signifies his agreement.

"This is my problem..." Kurama begins.

"You have a number of them and, quite frankly, it'd take forever to solve them all. So let's focus on whichever's most pressing, shall we?" Interrupts a familiar voice; Kimi enters, favoring the leg with the sprained ankle slightly.

"You're up!" Sora cheers and half tackles her; she winces and pales. "Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!"

Yukina sighs as she heals Kimi's partially healed ribs a bit further. "You're lucky you didn't damage her ribs further."

"Thanks." Kimi murmurs dryly.

"Can you do me a favor?" The ice maiden asks earnestly.

The elder bluette sighs. "Name it."

"Help Kurama with his scars."

The other girl eyes the redhead. "Well, that explains a lot."

Kurama bristles, though her tone is one of polite observation. The ice maiden gives her a pleading look.

"Will you hold still?" She questions frankly. "I don't have enough energy for a second try."

He nods reluctantly before silently removing his shirt and ignoring the wide eyed stares.

"He could have asked to go somewhere else...and he only had to roll up his sleeves so I could see a few scars...oh well, no point in embarrassing him further...though his abs do look--okay, insta-derail that thought." She approaches and slowly, because she's tired, her energy is directed to him. Once all have shrunk, then faded to nothingness, she calmly draws what aura she has left back.

Kurama stares at his unmarred skin.

"And that's all of them." She mutters. "So keep your pants on." "Though I'm pretty sure his a--argh! NO."

He wordlessly slips his shirt back on. "How long will this last?"

Yukina bursts into giggles as Kimi glares. "Thanks. So much." Orange eyes focus on the extremely amused ice maiden. "Not. Funny."

Sora, nonplussed, takes a stab at why she's giggling. "They...don't know?"

"No." Kimi snaps. "They're just dense!" She then walks out, still favoring her leg, though this time she's muttering about "ungrateful, coldhearted bastards who ought to just stay dead".

0x0x0x0

"Ready to go, Shuichi?"

Kurama nods and reluctantly follows his mother to the doctor's.

"What if the illusion wears off?" The anxious fox demon wonders.

"Relax." Shiori pats his hand. "I'm not about to make you get your arm cut off."

The redhead gives her a weak grin. "I know, Mother." "But what could happen is much worse than that..."

0x0x0x0

"HI!"

I just step out of the car when I am nearly knocked off my feet by a girl with blonde hair and pink highlights. Behind her, a group of what appears to be about eight other teens is spilling out the front door of the average sized house.

I gulp mentally. "Here goes nothing..." I think with a sigh before hefting my bag onto my shoulder and approaching the group, the blonde with pink highlights trailing me like a lost puppy.

"That's Kurra." Emma mutters; she seems almost ashamed to be seen with her.

"She's our sister..." Ze adds.

"We're triplets!" Is Kurra's input.

...she officially reminds me of what I thought happy personified would look like. Joy.

-x-x-x-x-

Holy crap, no notes! (The horror, the horror?)

Anyway, sorry for the late update...Easter celebrations detained me far longer than I originally anticipated.

Happy Spring Break, y'all!
Emma