Oniisan
chapter 4
by Silrayn Silverwolf
Acknowledgments: Kichigai, Lila, MT,
Ken_digital_kaizer, Abby, Jara, Matrix, severan, kitty, JessieHimechan, Ryone,
akai risu, hime, and others whose reviews were inadvertently deleted and those
from the mailing lists and bulletin boards! ^.^()
Usual Disclaimers apply...
Part 4: Revelations
Kurama grumbled. The school day was not any better today, though Kurama had
manage to sneak some few minutes away from Omi-kun and Ran-niisan like right
now. He had walked from the school locker room, his 'niisan always walked with
him to the soccer field in an unspoken agreement but right now he was running
late. Kurama was now glad that they never agreed to it verbally as well grateful
for the respite, he felt like he was being the subject of a hunt with all this
attention.
"Minamono-kun."
"Yes, Naoe-kun?" Kurama said, thinking frantically of excuses to say
to the other boy, he really needed to be alone right now. Unfortunately, it
seemed that Nagi Naoe was determined to talk to him. He was leaning on the tree
with his dark brown hair mussed by the breezes as if he had been waiting there
for at least a half-hour and with his face set.
"Minamono-kun—" Nagi started again, he was having a hard time
getting it out, having bad experiences when confiding about his powers. He
figured on taking the direct approach since the indirect one has failed
miserably.
"What?" Kurama said kindly though his patience was getting to the
point of no return. If this were something as inconsequential as a crush he was
going to kick the ball into orbit to vent his frustrations.
"Er, what do you think of the powers of the mind?" Said Nagi assured
that Kurama at least wouldn't mock him or laugh.
"Huh?" Said Kurama, deciding to play it neutral until he knew where
this conversation was heading. Though it was getting—interesting.
"Telepathy, telekinesis, precognition and the like." Nagi said
levitating some of the fallen leaves to prove his point in a dance that was so
deliberate it couldn't be mistaken for the wind.
"Very interesting, Naoe-kun, rest assured that the knowledge of your Gift
will stay with me or do you want me to tell everyone..." Kurama's eyes
widened at the play of rei the boy was showing but he only showed normal
admiration at his tone, his mind was frantically in calculations. Nagi Naoe had
betrayed a lot of training in his manipulation of the leaves. A lot of
training…and we don’t know much about Naoe-kun, why…why he’s as
secretive as I am!
"No, Minamono-kun, please keep it as our secret." Nagi said smiling in
relief, he knew well enough that Shuuichi Minamono meant what he said and waved
a farewell. He's normal or he would have reacted. Though I may wish otherwise,
he wouldn't have been a good addition to the Schwartz anyway. As he walked away,
Nagi felt a disappointment he never thought he would feel.
Now it faced with it, he realized that Shuuichi and his circle was the closest
he'd come to having friends of his own age not counting Tot. Before he had come
to Meioh High he had kept very much to himself, telling himself that he didn't
need any complications with his profession. Brad and the rest of Schwartz also
encouraged his isolation. They were the only friends he would need he had
thought then but now, now he realized that he missed being normal. Having
friends of his own age, no problems other than studies and girls and just
hanging out on Saturday evenings or lazy afternoons…
It would have been good to have a friend like him for real. But how can he be
friends with someone he cannot confide in totally? Lost within his own thoughts,
Nagi unknowing left one very thoughtful kitsune behind him.
***
Hiei followed Nagi to an apartment in the suburbs. It was quite unremarkable
except for one thing: Hiei couldn’t sense thought emanations in or out of the
place. It wasn’t possibly be that there were no people there when he had seen
Nagi, a red-head with messy hair, a man with glasses go in the interval that he
had been observing the apartment. The only feasible explanation was that the
apartment was shielded against mental intrusion. Yes, Kurama was right there was
certainly something going on here. Such shielding was expensive, not only the
materials but for the information in making it must have taken a lot of
research. Hiei had encountered several demons that made a career of selling fake
charms and such, there were a few genuine articles but these were generally lost
in the trash, which is how the Reikai wanted it. The real thing would cost
astronomical amounts of money to get and that without guarantee of success or,
Hiei’s eyes narrowed at the thought would require the cooperation of a demon
from the Makai. These must be the right ones or at least a close guess.
***
Crawford twitched he felt something was about to happen but no vision had yet to
manifest itself. There were days when he hated his Gift. It wasn't as accurate
as he projected to the rest of the world. As his teammates probably suspected,
it went on and off, choosing to manifest itself and sometimes it never
solidified into a vision but into random feelings. His training with the Estet
had honed his Gift so that he could remember most of the details and not to put
off random dreams or feelings so he "saw" more than most precogs but
that was all. Those who trained him admitted it wasn't the most reliable of
talents and, sometimes, it made his teeth grit. He was going to put the rest of
Schwartz on alert but the feeling tapered off and vanished. Uneasy but aware
that nothing was going to happen now, Crawford went back to the report he was
typing in his laptop.
***
Hiei decided to flit off to Kurama's to tell him before going to the temple to
see Botan so he could arrange a meeting with the rest of the team since their
regular meeting wasn't scheduled for three days. Besides it would not do to hang
around the potential target, they might sense something and become suspicious.
***
Kurama was about to go to bed when Hiei appeared in his room. He was about to
give a flippant comment but stopped he saw that Hiei's face was set grimly.
Instead he sat on his bed and invited Hiei to seat himself beside him that the
latter did.
Hiei didn't want to seat himself beside Kurama, he didn't know why but it
amplified the strange feelings that he had been feeling around his best friend
for awhile now but, k'so, the Fox would surely be hurt or offended so…
"I followed your classmate. Found him entering a 'Shielded house."
Said Hiei where he sat a little a ways from Kurama. Compromising with a couple
of inches between.
"So he may be the one."
"Hn, he lives with at least two people. Both of them are gaijin."
"Suspicious."
"I agree, that is why I'm going to ask Botan to call a meeting with the
rest of the team. Be careful of that Nagi and…and be well Kurama." Said
Hiei before he flitted off.
Kurama was too astonished to say anything. Be careful of a child, a child a
fraction his real age and be well? He closed his mouth realizing that he must
have looked like a landed fish for at least three minutes after Hiei had left.
That was the first time he had heard Hiei care. Oh, he'd seen Hiei show enough
"affection " with Yukina and himself looking out for them now and
then, and there was the wrangling with Kuwabara and the subtle deference to
Yuusuke. Well Kurama, do you think you've gotten to him? Maybe, maybe we have a
chance. Kurama fell asleep with happy thoughts of a certain half-koorime.
***
Why did I say that to him? Asked Hiei to himself as he smoothly jumped from tree
to tree. His own words echoed in his mind long after he had gotten away from the
kitsune's house. Kurama didn't need them. For one, he was the most cautious of
them all and rarely did he take on more than what he could handle. For another,
why wouldn't he be well? He wouldn't be going anywhere dangerous with that 'niisan
of his following his every move, unless that man himself was the threat. His
eyes narrowed at the idea. Preoccupied though he was, Hiei managed to get Botan
to summon Yuusuke and the Idiot for an urgent morning meeting and now he curled
up in his favorite tree branch just outside of Kurama's window to sleep. But
sleep wasn't coming, he checked his partner. Kurama had fallen asleep with a
sweet smile curving his lips. Somehow though he didn't know why it reassured him
and he also fell asleep with an identical smile curved his lips as he slipped
into dreams.
~TBC~
