Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho. Never have, never will.

I tugged the edge of my skirt nervously, fidgeting as I waited for Hiei and Kurama to make an appearance. When I'd informed the others that I was going to be having dinner with my parents on Sunday, Yusuke had insisted that one of the guys go with me. He claimed it was for my protection, saying something about Mecca attacking me while I was in the city.

Personally, I think he's being overprotective. Maybe all those years as Spirit Detective knocked a screw loose in his brain, causing him to see danger where it doesn't exist. But hey, who am I to judge?

Regardless of his reasoning, the buddy system had been instated and I was now stuck with the two demons for company. I wasn't entirely sure if it was a good or bad thing to have companions. On the one hand, I'd have people to talk to that could distract me from my nerves; on the other hand, knowing that Kurama and Hiei were going to be waiting outside my parents' house to find out how the revelation went was reeking havoc on my already frazzled nerves.

Yusuke's plan was for us to take the train back to the city and then make the five minute walk to my parents' as a group. Once outside my parents' place, Kurama and Hiei were going to go waste time in the general area of the house while I went inside and had dinner.

How were we to meet up after I had dinner?

Yusuke, being the uber-idiot that he is, had not thought that far.

In the end, it was decided, much to my reluctance, that Hiei would keep tabs on my mind so that when dinner ended he and Kurama would know. My resistance to the plan was due to the fact that 'keeping tabs' on my mind meant that Hiei would be able to hear all my thoughts.

I'd thought that I had insured that no mind reading would ever occur when I risked life and limb to ask Hiei to stay out of my head. Apparently, I had been wrong.

I guess that it shouldn't really be a problem and with most parents it wouldn't be. Sadly though, there's my mom to factor into the equation, and she is most definitely not 'most parents.' I was already imagining the wonderfully embarrassing questions she was going to ask.

Damn Yusuke and his stupid ass buddy system.

So now, on top of everything else, I also had to worry about having a prying demon inside my head. Just about the only thing I didn't need to stress about were my bruises, which had finally disappeared entirely. I'd been worried that the bruises wouldn't fade and I'd have to explain them to my parents, which would have meant explaining things on their terms instead of mine.

"Shyle, are you alright?"

I resisted the urge to tell Yukina to shove off and leave me the hell alone. I had a feeling that yelling at the small apparition would not get me anywhere. "Yeah, I'm alright. Nauseous and lightheaded, but alright."

She eyed me quietly and finally said, "I'm sure your parents will be very accepting of what you have to tell them. Keiko says they are very nice people."

"Nice and sane are two entirely different things." That Yukina didn't understand what I was saying was immediately obvious. Sighing, I muttered, "Never mind, it's not important."

"Okay," Yukina replied. With a demure smile she turned away from me, returning her attention to the tea she was making.

Sometimes I question how it's possible for Yukina and Kuwabara to be in a relationship. They're polar opposites, both in the physical and psychological sense. Kuwabara is, for lack of a better way to say it, huge, loud, and easily excited. On the complete opposite of the scale is Yukina, who is tiny, soft spoken, and self-contained. But, I guess, that's love at its strangest.

I glanced through the living room down the bedroom hallway. Where the hell were Kurama and Hiei? Had they forgotten about me?

A door swung open and I straightened eagerly, grabbing my purse off the table and getting ready to leave. The sooner this was over with the better.

Ten seconds later I plopped my purse back down on the table and sank into a seat with a groan. Yusuke grinned at me. "Don't act so happy to see me, Shy? You may inflate my ego."

"What are those two doing? I was ready to leave fifteen minutes ago."

"Don't ask me," he replied. "What they do on their own time is none of my business."

"You aren't even remotely helpful. Not to mention the fact that I could have left as soon as I was ready if it weren't for you and your stupid overprotective buddy crap."

"Buddy crap? Well, excuse me!" Yusuke snapped indignantly. "I'm just trying to protect you and this is how you repay me?"

"Shove it, Yusuke." I was too nervous to even make the command heartfelt.

Yusuke raised an eyebrow. "Is someone down in the dumps?"

"Don't mock me right now."

"Threats aren't really that effective when issued by someone in a skirt and blouse."

"Screw you," I grumbled, annoyed with him.

"Sorry, you can't. I'm with Keiko." When I didn't respond to him, he added, "I didn't realize that you even owned skirts. Kuwabara, did you know Shy has girl clothes?"

I glanced up to find Kuwabara in the doorway, looking extremely confused by Yusuke's question. "What are you talking about, Urameshi? Shy's a girl, of course she has girl clothes."

"You're no help," Yusuke said, glaring at Kuwabara.

"And you're retarded," I muttered.

Yusuke shifted his glare to me and said, "I hope it takes Kurama and Hiei another hour to get out here."

"It better not, or I'm going to leave without them," I threatened.

"No need to leave without us," Kurama said, appearing in the doorway that Kuwabara had vacated moments earlier in favor of a seat at the table. "I apologize for the delay. I was convincing Hiei to wear human clothing. I made us reservations at a restaurant down the street from your parents' house and Hiei's usual attire would not have been appropriate."

"Yeah, that's nice," I said anxiously, pushing my chair back and standing up. Grabbing my purse once more, I added, "Let's go. I want to get this over with."

I headed for the front door without checking if the two men were following me. Glancing up as I slid my shoes on, I caught my first glimpse of Hiei.

Immediately I redirected my gaze down to my shoes, desperately fighting a blush. If Hiei in his normal clothes was attractive, then Hiei in human clothes was down right sexy. I was suddenly very glad that he wouldn't be reading my mind until we got to the city.

He was wearing a pair of dark jeans and a simple navy blue shirt. Not exactly an outfit to die for, except that on him it was incredible. The jeans hugged his hips perfectly, hanging low and allowing a strip of skin to show between the jeans and shirt when he moved. The shirt itself was short sleeved and clung to him slightly, revealing incredible muscles both on his chest and arms.

Praying my blush went unnoticed, I asked, "Are you guys ready?"

"I believe so," Kurama replied.

I didn't respond and yanked the front door open, eager to get on with it. The walk to the train was awkwardly silent, leaving me with far too much thinking time.

My mind was focused on two things: the approaching dinner with my parents and Hiei. Finding neither topic particularly appealing, I opted for the lesser of two evils, which happened to be Hiei. I'd rather be embarrassed because I was thinking about the fire demon, than nervous about my parents.

Our conversations the past few mornings have proved interesting. Much like the first day, the questions have been relatively innocent and easy to answer, but I've learned a lot anyway. And, weirdly enough, not all I learned was about him.

While most of his past remained a mystery, he had revealed how he had come to meet Kurama, Yusuke, and the others. Hiei had also explained more to me about the guys' missions than anyone else ever had.

Hiei's questions tended to be short and to the point, requiring succinct answers, and, odd though it may be, the fire demon tended to talk more than I did. If my questions were simple and impersonal, then Hiei's were barely questions at all. They required no divulgence of secrets or personal revelations. In fact, one of his questions had been what my favorite color was. Answering amethyst hadn't exactly been difficult.

Why Hiei didn't ask me any questions with even the faintest amount of substance, I wasn't sure, but it made me nervous. I was afraid that one day he was going to ask me some horrifically hard, embarrassing question that I would be forced to answer. The idea of it made me shiver and I was happy to find that we had arrived at the train station.

"How long is the ride?"

"Nearly two hours," Kurama answered.

"That sucks."

"We'll be right down the street if you need us," Kurama instructed for the hundredth time.

"Okay, I get it," I said, allowing my exasperation to show. "But isn't it a little redundant for me to come get you since Hiei is going to know if something goes wrong?"

Kurama looked vaguely surprised before beginning to chuckle. "Very true. I had forgotten about that."

"Clearly," I said. We were a block from my parents' house and getting ready to part ways. I glanced at Hiei. "Am I going to know that you're in my head?"

"Would you like me to make my presence felt?" he asked blandly, disinterest clear in every word. The fire demon wasn't even looking at me and I couldn't help feeling faintly hurt that he found the gravel of the sidewalk more appealing to look at than me.

"Do whatever the hell you feel like," I snapped. Without another word, I turned and started toward my parents' house, trying desperately to hide my nerves.

"Shyle," Kurama called after me.

I stopped but didn't turn around. "What?"

"Don't worry; it's going to go well."

"Easy for you to say," I muttered. My back still turned I gave them a quick wave and resumed my walk of doom.

I paused at the small path that led to the front steps, throwing up a quick prayer to whatever god was listening. Taking a deep breath, I strode purposefully down the path and climbed the steps. I didn't bother knocking, opting to simply try the doorknob.

The door swung open easily and I slipped inside, kicking off my sandals on the front mat. "Mom? Dad? I'm here," I called.

I'd estimate that it took them less than a second to make appearances. My mother darted into the foyer from the kitchen and my father emerged from his office.

"Shyle!"

My mother's ungodly screech hurt my ears and I replied weakly, "Hi, Mum."

I was swept up in a bone crushing hug, which I returned, though maybe not with my mother's extreme exuberance. "It's great to see you finally. I feel like it's been months."

"Yeah, sorry about that," I said sheepishly.

"Don't be, don't be," my mother answered, waving my apology away with a delicate hand. She smiled and said, "Come, Shy. Help me in the kitchen."

"Sure, just let me say hi to Dad first."

"Oh, of course, that's not a problem." Flashing another smile, she turned and headed back toward the kitchen. "I'll be waiting for you."

My attention was diverted from her retreating back when my dad clapped his hand down on my shoulder. I turned to him with a grin. "What's up, old man?"

Chuckling, he asked, "Other than the ceiling?"

I stared at him for a second. "You didn't really just say that, did you? Dad, that's dorky."

"Really? My students find it hilarious."

I rolled my eyes. "Are you sure they're laughing with you and not at you?"

"Your old man is cooler than you realize," he said with mock seriousness. My dad was a teacher at the same high school I had attended. In fact, I'd transferred to Keiko's high school because my dad worked there and I had been granted a lowered tuition fee. I had little doubt that he was aware that his jokes weren't actually funny.

"I'm afraid that, in truth, you are less cool than you realize," I joked. "You had that backwards."

"Hm, I see. You may be right."

"Oh, I assure you, I am."

"Let's go help your mother now," he said, a smile dancing about his lips. Though my mother was an emotional rollercoaster, my father tended to be even-keeled and relatively stable. He loved a good joke and I know I got my sense of humor from him.

Not to mention my utter lack of height. Standing at a measly five foot three, my dad had only three inches on me. If only I'd inherited my mother's height rather than her hair. In a rather comical role reversal, my mother stood a good seven inches taller than my father.

But personality and height were the only characteristics I shared with my dad. My brown hair most certainly hadn't come from my redheaded, bespectacled father. And hidden behind his glasses was a pair of brilliant blue eyes, not chocolate brown. No, my eyes, hair, and just about every other feature had come from my mom.

I followed as my dad trudged toward the kitchen, intentionally making it seem as if he was walking to his death. When I entered the room, I found my mother bent over the stove.

"What are you cooking, Mum?"

"Nikujaga," she answered, without diverting her attention from the pot in front of her.

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Could you set the table?"

"Sure thing." As I began my task, I was amazed at how much my nerves had already died down. Being in my parents' home had relaxed me and I was beginning to trust that Kurama was right. My parents were going to accept what I told them.

My mother brought the food to the table just as I finished setting it and we each took our seats. A comfortable silence fell as we served ourselves and began to eat, but I was aware that I couldn't let it last.

Knowing it would be best to get things over with, I said, "Um, I guess I should tell you guys that I didn't ask to come to dinner just to see you guys." My mom glanced up at me, confusion showing in her eyes, but I continued speaking before she could say anything. "Look, just let me talk, okay? I won't be able to do this if you interrupt."

"Alright, the stage is yours, Shy," my dad said and I smiled at him appreciatively.

And so the explanations began. I covered every topic I could think of, explaining about the three worlds, demons, spirit detectives, and even divulging the fact that Yusuke was a half-demon. The entire time I talked I kept my gaze focused on my plate, studiously avoiding my parents' eyes. Finally, after what felt like hours of talking, I said, "So yeah, that's what I wanted to say. I understand if you don't believe me or want me to leave or something." I trailed off awkwardly, glaring hard at my plate.

For a few very long seconds, neither my mom nor my dad said anything. At last my father broke the silence. "Why wouldn't we believe you, Shy? I certainly wouldn't think you would lie about something like this."

I looked up to find him watching me, a small smile resting on his lips.

"Your father is right, Shyle. I'm undeniably intrigued by everything you had to say, but I believe every word and I most definitely don't want you to leave."

My gaze now shifted to my mother and I allowed myself a relieved smile. "Really? You guys aren't freaked out at all?"

"As I said, I'm curious, slightly amazed, but freaked? No, not really," my mother said calmly.

"Do you know how much of a relief that is?" I asked, feeling almost giddy now that they had accepted what I had to say.

"Would you two mind if we cleaned up and then transitioned this conversation to the living room?" my father asked. "I made ichigo daifuku that we can eat while Shy answers our questions."

Murmuring our agreement, my mother and I stood up and began to clear off the table, while my father prepared his dessert. When I was growing up, my mother had always cooked the dinner and my father made the dessert, it became a sort of family tradition.

Fifteen minutes later, we all took seats in the living room, our dessert plates in our laps. "Alright, what are you questions?" I asked.

"You said Yusuke is a demon?"

"A hanyou, which means he's a half-demon. So yeah, for all intents and purposes he's a demon."

"Interesting," my father murmured. "Do you know any other demons?"

"Yep, I've met a few."

"You mentioned Kuwabara, how is he involved?"

"He has extremely high sensitivity to spirit and demon energy and he is a powerful psychic."

They hit me with question after question until I was sure they couldn't ask anything else. Except there was the little fact that my mother had yet to embarrass me. When I'd told Kurama that she would ask if there was a demon boyfriend, I hadn't been kidding.

But then, just as I had predicted, my mother leaned forward in her seat and placed a hand on my knee. "Shyle, are you telling us all this because you're dating one of the young men that walked you hear?"

I blinked once and then again, unable to comprehend that she had actually just asked me that. She knew that I had come with Kurama and Hiei? "You saw me walking here?"

"You ask that as though you think I was spying on you," my mother said, disbelief clear in her voice.

"Well, what else am I to think?"

"I was sitting in the living room, thank you very much. Is it my fault that I saw you through the window?"

"Mum, I was a block away. You don't accidentally see someone that far away. It just doesn't happen."

"I beg to differ."

I sighed, but dropped the argument. "No, Mom. I'm not dating Kurama or Hiei, they simply accompanied me here." Noticing the glint in my mother's eyes, I added warningly, "Don't even suggest it. I'm not going to date one of them, so don't try."

"But, Shy –"

"No, Mom," I snapped, fully aware that Hiei would know what we were talking about. "Just no."

"Drop it, love," my dad said, smiling faintly.

"Any more questions?" I asked.

"About your revelation? No. But I am interested in what is happening in your life," my mother answered.

Our conversation shifted, changing to topics revolving about our everyday lives. We spent over an hour catching up and, when I realized that it was nearing ten o'clock, I finally stood up. "It's time for me to get going. We have a two hour train ride back to Genkai's. As it is we probably won't get home till one, so…" I trailed off letting them fill in the blanks.

"Oh, I wasn't thinking," my mom exclaimed, jumping to her feet and fussing around the room.

My father watched her with a cocked eyebrow before turning his attention to me. "Well, give me a hug. You can't leave without giving your old man a hug."

Laughing, I allowed him to swoop me up in a bear hug. "Come here, love," he said, pulling my mother into the hug as well.

"I love you guys," I murmured. Never in my life had I meant it more than I did at that moment.

"We love you too, Shy," my mom replied.

"And that's enough of that," my dad added, releasing us from his hug, feigning disgust at the prolonged show of affection. "Get out of my house, kid."

"Yes, sir," I answered, giving him a quick salute.

When I emerged from the house a few minutes later, I saw that Kurama and Hiei were waiting for me where we had parted ways and I headed towards them.

"Well?" Kurama asked as I neared them.

I smiled. "You were right."

"Hn, when isn't he?" Hiei said dryly.

AN: So what did you think of Shy's parents and their reaction?

The food eaten by the Irahetas are both Japanese. Rather than making you look up what they are, I have their descriptions for you: Nikujaga is a Japanese dish of meat, potatoes and onion stewed in sweetened soy sauce. Ichigo Daifuku are Japanese sweet cakes with strawberry and anko fillings.

So, because this chapter includes Shy's parents and they 'named' her, I figured I would explain where I got Shy's name. As some of you may have realized, Iraheta is the last name of one of Season 8 of American Idol's competitors, Allison Iraheta (she was my favorite). Shy's first name, Shyle, comes from Final Fantasy XII. It's the name of a girl who is never even shown (she's mentioned in a hunt), but I read the name and liked it so. . . yeah.

And finally, thank you to everyone who reviewed, especially those of you who are anonymous. I wish I could respond to you, but sadly I cannot. Please keep the reviews coming, they're awesome.