Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Aoitsuki Yurai ❯ Oh, Those Crazy Afternoons ( Chapter 7 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: AvalonShikaro 
Kurama has some visitors while Shinzui is asleep, but some batty trouble wakes the poor girl up. A familiar ferrygirl meets Shinzui, but Kouken acts very vicious towards the ferrygirl! The dog, Kouken, gives a new meaning to the words "Catch me if you can". Some history is revealed about Shinzui and Kouken, but wait... Something's wrong with Shinzui's memory!
Anime/Manga: Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 12.29.2003 | Pages: 4 | Words: 4.9K | Visits: 188 | Status: Completed
Kurama has some visitors while Shinzui is asleep, but some batty trouble wakes the poor girl up. A familiar ferrygirl meets Shinzui, but Kouken acts very vicious towards the ferrygirl! The dog, Kouken, gives a new meaning to the words "Catch me if you can". Some history is revealed about Shinzui and Kouken, but wait... Something's wrong with Shinzui's memory!
Anime/Manga: Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 12.29.2003 | Pages: 4 | Words: 4.9K | Visits: 188 | Status: Completed
<Font face="Verdana">Disclaimer: All Yu Yu Hakusho characters and YYH stuff belongs to the creator Yoshihiro Togashi. All original characters and stuff belong to me.<Br>
<Br>
BONUS!: I'm working on a special Halloween picture and I'm hoping to get it up in my blog TODAY ^_^() Yes, drawing a whole pic in one day. I just hope I can find a place to scan it o.o<Br>
<Br>
A/N: Well, not as many reviews as I hoped, but oh well. I decided to put up another chapter! This chapter has a mixture of different situations, 'cept no romance. In our last chapter: Kurama had a strange dream and Shinzui revealed a bit of her past to Kurama, but is that all of her past? Let's find out in this next chapter!
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* * * * * * * *<Br>
<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; An hour and a half had passed when Kurama's studies were interrupted by the door bell. He stood up and answered the door to find Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, and a new girl standing there. The girl had sky blue hair pulled back in a high pony tail and her brown eyes were shining with excitement. She was wearing the familiar blue and yellow uniform of Sarayashiki High School. Kurama smiled and stood back so the visitors could come inside the house. <Br>
"Hey Kurama," said Yusuke as they walked in, "Hope you don't mind that Botan turned up and came with us. Apparently, KoEnma's interested in what happened to Shinzui and what she did."<Br>
"Well, she woke up for a bit," said Kurama, taking a seat on the couch, "But she went back to sleep just now."<Br>
"Darnit," said Botan, looking a bit disappointed, "I wanted to talk to her."<Br>
"How about telling us what's going on first," said Yusuke, "You came over to my house asking about our new friend, but you haven't bothered telling us why KoEnma's so interested."<Br>
"KoEnma's always curious when a human shows signs of having the ability to use spirit energy," replied Botan, "Especially if it's used in massive quantities, like your friend displayed. For someone who has just tapped into her spirit energy, she used some fairly powerful attacks."<Br>
"Do you know who 'Master Koumori' is?" asked Kuwabara.<Br>
"I remember reading somewhere about a bat demon called Koumori," answered Botan, her brow furrowed in thought, "He was wanted for many crimes, but never got caught. He supposedly died because he disappeared, but KoEnma thinks he managed to get into the human world and is parading around as a human."<Br>
"Are you serious?!" exclaimed Yusuke, staring at her, "We have another wanted demon wandering around here?"<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; The conversation continued between the group for several minutes, but it came back to the topic of the demon, Koumori. After a few more minutes, the sound of something scratching against glass reached Kurama's ears and he saw Hiei's eyes dart around the room. Kuwabara and Yusuke were both talking with Botan about the demon, but they didn't notice the quiet growling and scratching noises that came from the room where Shinzui slept. <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; All at once, a series of sounds suddenly came from Kurama's room; A crash, snarling and barking, and then a scream followed by hissed swearing. The group stood up as one, heading to the door, which wouldn't open, inside there was a thud and they all felt an aura sky rocket. A flash of silver light was seen through the cracks and a loud, shrill screech made them all cover their ears. A slam was heard as the sounds of battle continued in the room and something infront of the door shimmered and faded. They were now able to open the door and see the chaos inside. <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; A burned and injured bat demon was vainly trying to get Kouken, who's fur was matted with blood, to back off. The dog sank his teeth into the creature's wing as it tried to fly towards the window, causing it to fall in a heap to the ground. The bat demon hit the dog into the wall and started to claw at the closet door, breaking a hole in it. A shriek came from the closet as the demon reached inside, trying to grab something from inside it and screeched in frustration.<Br>
"Go away, you horror movie reject!" yelled Shinzui's voice from the closet, "I don't care what you came here to do!" She was in the closet, trying to keep the hand from clamping around any part of her body.<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; In an instant, Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, and Kurama had pulled out or created their weapons and attacked the creature. The bat demon screeched when the attacks hit it and turned to fend them off, but was fought off easily by the four boys. The demon let out a loud, high pitched screech again, making everyone cover their ears and the ground shook. Hiei managed to get through the sound attack to slice up the monster and shut it up.<Br>
"Nice work, Hiei," said Yusuke, giving him the thumbs up, "Man, those things are getting to be a pain in the ass."<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; The closet door slowly opened as Shinzui peered out to see what had happened and seeing that the coast was clear, she slid out a bit. She looked very shaken, but there weren't any new wounds on her body from the encounter. Kouken got up, shaking some blood off his fur and Shinzui was alarmed to see a few gashes on the dog. Botan walked over to the girl and bent over to look at her, causing Shinzui to scoot into the wall, looking a bit wary of this new face.<Br>
"You seem to be very popular with those bat demons," said Botan, smiling in a friendly way and she giggled at the funny look Shinzui was giving her, "Don't worry. I'm a friend." <Br>
"Um... Who are you?" asked Shinzui, still giving Botan the funny look.<Br>
"I'm Botan," replied Botan, smiling, "What's your name?" <Br>
"Um... Shinzui Ookami," the girl answered, blinking at Botan, "Uh..." She looked over at the four boys. "Is she a friend of yours?"<Br>
"Yeah, she is," replied Yusuke, laughing a bit at Shinzui's expression.<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Botan held out a hand and Shinzui lifted to shake it when a mess of bloody fur blocked her way. Kouken had bounded over to stand in front of her and was growling at Botan, his teeth bared. The blue-haired girl jumped back as the dog snapped warningly at her hand and Shinzui tried vainly to calm him down. Botan retreated behind the boys as the dog's growling turned into vicious snarling and he took a step forward. All four boys got ready to block any attacks from Kouken, but Shinzui managed to stand up to move in front of her dog and dropped back to her knees. <Br>
"Kouken! Calm down, boy," murmured Shinzui, gently caressing the dog's head, "She means no harm. Please, calm down."<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; To the group's utter amazement, Kouken's snarling began to diminish to a low growl as Shinzui continued to mutter soothing words. They finally relaxed when the dog laid down and put his head in Shinzui's lap as she stroked his head softly. Botan peeked out from behind the boys, but the dog immediately started to growl a bit again, causing her to duck back behind them. Shinzui looked over at the boys and Botan with a apologetic expression on her face.<Br>
"I'm sorry, Botan," said Shinzui, sighing, "I've never seen him react that way to anyone, but people who have been a threat to me." <Br>
"T...That's ok," stammered Botan, peeking over Yusuke's shoulder. <Br>
"I can see if he'll atleast tolerate you," said Shinzui, looking at her dog, "Even if he won't like you." She spoke a few words in an unfamiliar language and the dog seemed to give her a stubborn and slightly irritated look. "He's such a stubborn dog." <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; After a few more words from Shinzui, Kouken finally seemed to accept whatever she was saying to him and looked at Botan. She stepped out and Kouken didn't growl at her, but meerly gave her a look of dislike. Shinzui insisted that she be the one who gave Kouken a bath, but Kurama pointed out that she could barely stand and the girl rolled her eyes. She sat stubbornly in the middle of the bathroom floor with Kouken sitting next to her and her arms were crossed.<Br>
"She's as stubborn as Kuwabara," said Hiei, smirking slightly as he watched Yusuke and Kuwabara trying vainly to get her to move and Kurama attempting to reason with her.<Br>
"Fine," sighed Shinzui, laughing a bit, "But I doubt you'll even get Kouken in the tub." Grinning, she moved aside and allowed the three boys to make their attempts at giving the dog a bath.<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Kouken turned out to be far more than a small challenge. The dog dashed out of the bathroom when Kurama tried to coax him into the tub and everyone spent nearly half an hour trying to find him. Kouken turned up under Kurama's bed and charged out of the room, barely evading the group's efforts to catch him. When they did catch him, the dog refused to stay in the tub, slipping through their arms to run around the house and barking jovially as if this were a game to him. <Br>
"This dog's starting to annoy me," said Yusuke as he tried to keep Kouken in the tub for the tenth time.<Br>
Kouken barked loudly and bowled Kurama over as he leapt out of the tub, knocking Hiei right into the soapy water as he left and the demon climbed out, grumbling, "I'm starting to hate that ningen hound!"<Br>
"Ready to give up," said Shinzui, smiling as she sat in the same spot.<Br>
"Let her do it, " said Botan, watching the chaos continue.<Br>
"Alright," sighed Kurama in resignation, "Yusuke, Kuwabara, stop chasing the dog before..." Too late, the two boys fell over the couch with a crash as Kouken ducked under it.<Br>
"Kouken!" sang Shinzui, whistling, "Time to get clean!" She grinned as the dog raced in, knocking over Kurama and Hiei as he leapt into the tub.<Br>
"Did you tell him to do that?" asked Hiei grumpily as he stood back up and gave Shinzui an aggrivated look.<Br>
"Nah, he did that because you were there," answered Shinzui, scooting over to the tub, "He likes to mess with anyone who tries to give him a bath, except me. I'm surprised you managed to get him in the tub a few times." She laughed at their faces when she began to scrub Kouken's fur gently and the dog stayed put.<Br>
"I don't get it," said Kuwabara, appearing in the door way, panting, "How can a dog be that smart?"<Br>
"Kouken's like that," replied Shinzui, washing all the blood off of the dog, "He's been with me since I was a baby and doesn't seem to age. He's definitely one dog that you'd never find in stores."<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; The group watched as Shinzui cleaned Kouken up, humming a calming tune and the dog obediently did as he was told. When she was finished, Shinzui dried him off with a few towels and checked his wounds closely. To the group's amazement, all the gashes had some how healed enough to no longer need bandages. Shinzui's bandages on her arms and hand had gotten wet, so the girl had to sit there patiently as Kurama changed them.<Br>
"So," said Botan, looking at Kouken, "What kind of dog is he?"<Br>
"He's a wolf-dog," answered Shinzui, wincing slightly as the salve touched the wounds on her hand, "Well, he's more wolf than dog, but he's the only one around here. My dad said that he turned up at their house as a pup a few months before I was born. He wanted to turn him over to the pound, but my mother..." Shinzui immediately stopped when she said those last words and looked at Kouken, who nudged her leg reassuringly. She sighed and continued. "My mother loved him from the start and took him in. She's the one who named him. My father told me what she said when she came up with a name. 'I'll name him Kouken because one day, he'll be watching over our daughter like a guardian.' And he has." She gave Kouken a pat on the head with her free hand.<Br>
"Your mother obviously is a good judge of character," said Botan, brightly, "I should meet her someday." From the look on Shinzui's face, she knew that her last comment wasn't a good idea.<Br>
"You can meet her if you wish," said Shinzui, her eyes becoming cold and icy, "If you can talk to the dead." Her voice was sharp and Botan felt a cold chill run up her spine when she locked eyes with Shinzui.<Br>
"If she was a good judge of character," said Hiei, looking at Shinzui, feeling the same cold chill, but didn't back down, "Why'd she marry your father. He doesn't seem to be the ideal husband or father."<Br>
"Apparently, he used to be nice," answered Shinzui, raising her other arm to allow Kurama to bandage it, "Up until I was about six or seven, he was a wonderful father, but then... He started to leave me with Chikara Sensee several times a week. As I grew older, he became more hateful and hostile towards me. By the time I was about 11, he'd send his bodyguards or as I call them, lackies, to drag me home after school." She sighed and looked at her lap, eyes turning crystal blue. "When I turned 13 I started to sneak out of the house and wander around the city... After that..." She stopped, blinking a bit, but then closing her eyes as if she were trying to remember something, <i>Oh no!</i> she thought, <i>Not now, not here! Come back! C'mon, don't disappear now!</i><Br>
"Are you alright?" asked Kurama, finishing the bandage on her arm and looking at Shinzui in concern.<Br>
Shinzui suddenly hit the table her already bandaged hand, exclaiming, "Dammit!" Everyone in the room jumped in surprise at her sudden outburst and she placed her hands on her temples. "It's still there..." <Br>
"What's still there?" asked Yusuke, staring at her in surprise.<Br>
"What's wrong?" questioned Kuwabara as Shinzui stayed silent.<Br>
Shinzui looked at everyone in the room, <i>Should I even tell them?</i> she thought, but she sighed and spoke. "The blank spot..."<Br>
"Blank spot," said Kurama, giving her a quizzical look.<Br>
"From when i was 13 to when I turned 16, it's completely blank," explained Shinzui, leaning back to stare at the ceiling, "I have no memories of anything that happened those three years of my life."<Br>
"Is it just white?" asked Botan, watching her intensely, "Or do you feel pain every time you try to remember."<Br>
"It's just blank," answered Shinzui, "Sometimes if I try to remember I'll get a headache, but..." She closed her eyes with a sigh and continued. "I just don't know why the memories aren't there. It's like... Like they were..." She stopped talking and when she didn't continue, Yusuke got up and poked her a bit, but received no reaction.<Br>
"She's... She's asleep," said Kuwabara, staring at the now sleeping Shinzui, "How could she fall asleep in mid sentence?"<Br>
"You tell us how you do it and maybe we can figure it out," muttered Hiei, promptly ducking to one side as Kuwabara tried to hit him, "Don't tell me you didn't see her use any of her spirit energy."<Br>
"She did?" said Yusuke, staring at the fire demon, "When?!"<Br>
"When she was calming the dog down," replied Hiei, "And when she was washing the dog. That's why he healed so easily." His gaze swept over Shinzui and Kouken. "She used her spirit energy to heal the dog and calm him down. I'm guessing that's how he understands her and she can understand him."<Br>
"No way," said Kuwabara, staring from Shinzui to Kouken and back.<Br>
"I'm just curious about why Kouken wanted to attack Botan," said Kurama, looking at the dog, who was sleeping next to the couch, "He's never met Botan before, so how can he see her as a threat. He didn't see any of us as a threat."<Br>
"Maybe there's more to this dog than we think," said Botan, looking at the dog, "He reminds me of the wolf form of a demon that disappeared into this world over 17 years ago." <Br>
"What?!" exclaimed Yusuke, but he was hushed by Kurama and lowered his voice, "You mean there's another demon running around."<Br>
"Well, I don't think he's shown himself since he escaped," answered Botan, looking at Kouken, "But I remember that the demon had a sister who was supposedly killed by Reikai members, so he hates anyone who is from Reikai." <Br>
"Do these demons have names?" asked Kuwabara.<Br>
"I'll have to look up their files," answered Botan, sighing, "Their cases were dropped when both of them disappeared. I'll go back and take a look at them." She got up and moved to the door. "I'll be back when I've looked up the info and talked to KoEnma! Bye!" She walked out, shutting the door behind her, and the boys looked at eachother.<Br>
"First we have bat demons running around," said Yusuke in exaspiration, "Now we have another demon somewhere. This is getting complicated."<Br>
Kurama looked up at the clock and said, "I think we should clean up the house before my mother gets home and sees the mess." <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Yusuke and Kuwabara started to protest, but at a glare from Hiei and a growl from Kouken, the two sighed and nodded. The four boys stood up and began to clean up the mess that was all over the house, especially in Kurama's room. It took them a couple of hours to get the rooms of the house back to normal and clean. The only two things that they were unable to fix were the window and the closet door in Kurama's room, but the fox had no trouble coming up with a good excuse as to why the two things were broken. <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Shinzui was put to bed with Kouken and Shiori turned up just as the boys were sitting down with a sigh of relief. She invited the boys to stay for dinner, but Kuwabara and Yusuke declined, saying they had to go home and Hiei just disappeared out the door with a quick 'good bye.' The two boys left and Kurama went to help Shiori with dinner, feeling that the day's adventures had finally come to a close. <Br>
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* * * * * * * * *<Br>
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Whee! Wasn't that an interesting chapter? Hee. If you all are thinking you have the puzzle figured out ^_^ Sorry to disappoint you, but it's gonna get more twisted! hee. <Br>
<Br>
SNEAK PEEK!: <Br>
<Br>
** Shinzui returns home and ends up eavesdropping on a conversation between her father and a few of his lackies<Br>
<Br>
** Investigation leads to many discoveries and a deeper look into the relationship between Shinzui and her father. <Br>
<Br>
** A distressed Shinzui receives comfort from the most unlikely person imaginable, but trouble comes sauntering in to make matters worse.<Br>
<Br>
Curious? Well, keep checking back to find out in the next explosive chapter of Aoitsuki Yurai! <Br>
<Br>
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<Br>
BONUS!: I'm working on a special Halloween picture and I'm hoping to get it up in my blog TODAY ^_^() Yes, drawing a whole pic in one day. I just hope I can find a place to scan it o.o<Br>
<Br>
A/N: Well, not as many reviews as I hoped, but oh well. I decided to put up another chapter! This chapter has a mixture of different situations, 'cept no romance. In our last chapter: Kurama had a strange dream and Shinzui revealed a bit of her past to Kurama, but is that all of her past? Let's find out in this next chapter!
<Br>
* * * * * * * *<Br>
<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; An hour and a half had passed when Kurama's studies were interrupted by the door bell. He stood up and answered the door to find Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, and a new girl standing there. The girl had sky blue hair pulled back in a high pony tail and her brown eyes were shining with excitement. She was wearing the familiar blue and yellow uniform of Sarayashiki High School. Kurama smiled and stood back so the visitors could come inside the house. <Br>
"Hey Kurama," said Yusuke as they walked in, "Hope you don't mind that Botan turned up and came with us. Apparently, KoEnma's interested in what happened to Shinzui and what she did."<Br>
"Well, she woke up for a bit," said Kurama, taking a seat on the couch, "But she went back to sleep just now."<Br>
"Darnit," said Botan, looking a bit disappointed, "I wanted to talk to her."<Br>
"How about telling us what's going on first," said Yusuke, "You came over to my house asking about our new friend, but you haven't bothered telling us why KoEnma's so interested."<Br>
"KoEnma's always curious when a human shows signs of having the ability to use spirit energy," replied Botan, "Especially if it's used in massive quantities, like your friend displayed. For someone who has just tapped into her spirit energy, she used some fairly powerful attacks."<Br>
"Do you know who 'Master Koumori' is?" asked Kuwabara.<Br>
"I remember reading somewhere about a bat demon called Koumori," answered Botan, her brow furrowed in thought, "He was wanted for many crimes, but never got caught. He supposedly died because he disappeared, but KoEnma thinks he managed to get into the human world and is parading around as a human."<Br>
"Are you serious?!" exclaimed Yusuke, staring at her, "We have another wanted demon wandering around here?"<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; The conversation continued between the group for several minutes, but it came back to the topic of the demon, Koumori. After a few more minutes, the sound of something scratching against glass reached Kurama's ears and he saw Hiei's eyes dart around the room. Kuwabara and Yusuke were both talking with Botan about the demon, but they didn't notice the quiet growling and scratching noises that came from the room where Shinzui slept. <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; All at once, a series of sounds suddenly came from Kurama's room; A crash, snarling and barking, and then a scream followed by hissed swearing. The group stood up as one, heading to the door, which wouldn't open, inside there was a thud and they all felt an aura sky rocket. A flash of silver light was seen through the cracks and a loud, shrill screech made them all cover their ears. A slam was heard as the sounds of battle continued in the room and something infront of the door shimmered and faded. They were now able to open the door and see the chaos inside. <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; A burned and injured bat demon was vainly trying to get Kouken, who's fur was matted with blood, to back off. The dog sank his teeth into the creature's wing as it tried to fly towards the window, causing it to fall in a heap to the ground. The bat demon hit the dog into the wall and started to claw at the closet door, breaking a hole in it. A shriek came from the closet as the demon reached inside, trying to grab something from inside it and screeched in frustration.<Br>
"Go away, you horror movie reject!" yelled Shinzui's voice from the closet, "I don't care what you came here to do!" She was in the closet, trying to keep the hand from clamping around any part of her body.<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; In an instant, Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, and Kurama had pulled out or created their weapons and attacked the creature. The bat demon screeched when the attacks hit it and turned to fend them off, but was fought off easily by the four boys. The demon let out a loud, high pitched screech again, making everyone cover their ears and the ground shook. Hiei managed to get through the sound attack to slice up the monster and shut it up.<Br>
"Nice work, Hiei," said Yusuke, giving him the thumbs up, "Man, those things are getting to be a pain in the ass."<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; The closet door slowly opened as Shinzui peered out to see what had happened and seeing that the coast was clear, she slid out a bit. She looked very shaken, but there weren't any new wounds on her body from the encounter. Kouken got up, shaking some blood off his fur and Shinzui was alarmed to see a few gashes on the dog. Botan walked over to the girl and bent over to look at her, causing Shinzui to scoot into the wall, looking a bit wary of this new face.<Br>
"You seem to be very popular with those bat demons," said Botan, smiling in a friendly way and she giggled at the funny look Shinzui was giving her, "Don't worry. I'm a friend." <Br>
"Um... Who are you?" asked Shinzui, still giving Botan the funny look.<Br>
"I'm Botan," replied Botan, smiling, "What's your name?" <Br>
"Um... Shinzui Ookami," the girl answered, blinking at Botan, "Uh..." She looked over at the four boys. "Is she a friend of yours?"<Br>
"Yeah, she is," replied Yusuke, laughing a bit at Shinzui's expression.<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Botan held out a hand and Shinzui lifted to shake it when a mess of bloody fur blocked her way. Kouken had bounded over to stand in front of her and was growling at Botan, his teeth bared. The blue-haired girl jumped back as the dog snapped warningly at her hand and Shinzui tried vainly to calm him down. Botan retreated behind the boys as the dog's growling turned into vicious snarling and he took a step forward. All four boys got ready to block any attacks from Kouken, but Shinzui managed to stand up to move in front of her dog and dropped back to her knees. <Br>
"Kouken! Calm down, boy," murmured Shinzui, gently caressing the dog's head, "She means no harm. Please, calm down."<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; To the group's utter amazement, Kouken's snarling began to diminish to a low growl as Shinzui continued to mutter soothing words. They finally relaxed when the dog laid down and put his head in Shinzui's lap as she stroked his head softly. Botan peeked out from behind the boys, but the dog immediately started to growl a bit again, causing her to duck back behind them. Shinzui looked over at the boys and Botan with a apologetic expression on her face.<Br>
"I'm sorry, Botan," said Shinzui, sighing, "I've never seen him react that way to anyone, but people who have been a threat to me." <Br>
"T...That's ok," stammered Botan, peeking over Yusuke's shoulder. <Br>
"I can see if he'll atleast tolerate you," said Shinzui, looking at her dog, "Even if he won't like you." She spoke a few words in an unfamiliar language and the dog seemed to give her a stubborn and slightly irritated look. "He's such a stubborn dog." <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; After a few more words from Shinzui, Kouken finally seemed to accept whatever she was saying to him and looked at Botan. She stepped out and Kouken didn't growl at her, but meerly gave her a look of dislike. Shinzui insisted that she be the one who gave Kouken a bath, but Kurama pointed out that she could barely stand and the girl rolled her eyes. She sat stubbornly in the middle of the bathroom floor with Kouken sitting next to her and her arms were crossed.<Br>
"She's as stubborn as Kuwabara," said Hiei, smirking slightly as he watched Yusuke and Kuwabara trying vainly to get her to move and Kurama attempting to reason with her.<Br>
"Fine," sighed Shinzui, laughing a bit, "But I doubt you'll even get Kouken in the tub." Grinning, she moved aside and allowed the three boys to make their attempts at giving the dog a bath.<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Kouken turned out to be far more than a small challenge. The dog dashed out of the bathroom when Kurama tried to coax him into the tub and everyone spent nearly half an hour trying to find him. Kouken turned up under Kurama's bed and charged out of the room, barely evading the group's efforts to catch him. When they did catch him, the dog refused to stay in the tub, slipping through their arms to run around the house and barking jovially as if this were a game to him. <Br>
"This dog's starting to annoy me," said Yusuke as he tried to keep Kouken in the tub for the tenth time.<Br>
Kouken barked loudly and bowled Kurama over as he leapt out of the tub, knocking Hiei right into the soapy water as he left and the demon climbed out, grumbling, "I'm starting to hate that ningen hound!"<Br>
"Ready to give up," said Shinzui, smiling as she sat in the same spot.<Br>
"Let her do it, " said Botan, watching the chaos continue.<Br>
"Alright," sighed Kurama in resignation, "Yusuke, Kuwabara, stop chasing the dog before..." Too late, the two boys fell over the couch with a crash as Kouken ducked under it.<Br>
"Kouken!" sang Shinzui, whistling, "Time to get clean!" She grinned as the dog raced in, knocking over Kurama and Hiei as he leapt into the tub.<Br>
"Did you tell him to do that?" asked Hiei grumpily as he stood back up and gave Shinzui an aggrivated look.<Br>
"Nah, he did that because you were there," answered Shinzui, scooting over to the tub, "He likes to mess with anyone who tries to give him a bath, except me. I'm surprised you managed to get him in the tub a few times." She laughed at their faces when she began to scrub Kouken's fur gently and the dog stayed put.<Br>
"I don't get it," said Kuwabara, appearing in the door way, panting, "How can a dog be that smart?"<Br>
"Kouken's like that," replied Shinzui, washing all the blood off of the dog, "He's been with me since I was a baby and doesn't seem to age. He's definitely one dog that you'd never find in stores."<Br>
&a mp;nbsp; The group watched as Shinzui cleaned Kouken up, humming a calming tune and the dog obediently did as he was told. When she was finished, Shinzui dried him off with a few towels and checked his wounds closely. To the group's amazement, all the gashes had some how healed enough to no longer need bandages. Shinzui's bandages on her arms and hand had gotten wet, so the girl had to sit there patiently as Kurama changed them.<Br>
"So," said Botan, looking at Kouken, "What kind of dog is he?"<Br>
"He's a wolf-dog," answered Shinzui, wincing slightly as the salve touched the wounds on her hand, "Well, he's more wolf than dog, but he's the only one around here. My dad said that he turned up at their house as a pup a few months before I was born. He wanted to turn him over to the pound, but my mother..." Shinzui immediately stopped when she said those last words and looked at Kouken, who nudged her leg reassuringly. She sighed and continued. "My mother loved him from the start and took him in. She's the one who named him. My father told me what she said when she came up with a name. 'I'll name him Kouken because one day, he'll be watching over our daughter like a guardian.' And he has." She gave Kouken a pat on the head with her free hand.<Br>
"Your mother obviously is a good judge of character," said Botan, brightly, "I should meet her someday." From the look on Shinzui's face, she knew that her last comment wasn't a good idea.<Br>
"You can meet her if you wish," said Shinzui, her eyes becoming cold and icy, "If you can talk to the dead." Her voice was sharp and Botan felt a cold chill run up her spine when she locked eyes with Shinzui.<Br>
"If she was a good judge of character," said Hiei, looking at Shinzui, feeling the same cold chill, but didn't back down, "Why'd she marry your father. He doesn't seem to be the ideal husband or father."<Br>
"Apparently, he used to be nice," answered Shinzui, raising her other arm to allow Kurama to bandage it, "Up until I was about six or seven, he was a wonderful father, but then... He started to leave me with Chikara Sensee several times a week. As I grew older, he became more hateful and hostile towards me. By the time I was about 11, he'd send his bodyguards or as I call them, lackies, to drag me home after school." She sighed and looked at her lap, eyes turning crystal blue. "When I turned 13 I started to sneak out of the house and wander around the city... After that..." She stopped, blinking a bit, but then closing her eyes as if she were trying to remember something, <i>Oh no!</i> she thought, <i>Not now, not here! Come back! C'mon, don't disappear now!</i><Br>
"Are you alright?" asked Kurama, finishing the bandage on her arm and looking at Shinzui in concern.<Br>
Shinzui suddenly hit the table her already bandaged hand, exclaiming, "Dammit!" Everyone in the room jumped in surprise at her sudden outburst and she placed her hands on her temples. "It's still there..." <Br>
"What's still there?" asked Yusuke, staring at her in surprise.<Br>
"What's wrong?" questioned Kuwabara as Shinzui stayed silent.<Br>
Shinzui looked at everyone in the room, <i>Should I even tell them?</i> she thought, but she sighed and spoke. "The blank spot..."<Br>
"Blank spot," said Kurama, giving her a quizzical look.<Br>
"From when i was 13 to when I turned 16, it's completely blank," explained Shinzui, leaning back to stare at the ceiling, "I have no memories of anything that happened those three years of my life."<Br>
"Is it just white?" asked Botan, watching her intensely, "Or do you feel pain every time you try to remember."<Br>
"It's just blank," answered Shinzui, "Sometimes if I try to remember I'll get a headache, but..." She closed her eyes with a sigh and continued. "I just don't know why the memories aren't there. It's like... Like they were..." She stopped talking and when she didn't continue, Yusuke got up and poked her a bit, but received no reaction.<Br>
"She's... She's asleep," said Kuwabara, staring at the now sleeping Shinzui, "How could she fall asleep in mid sentence?"<Br>
"You tell us how you do it and maybe we can figure it out," muttered Hiei, promptly ducking to one side as Kuwabara tried to hit him, "Don't tell me you didn't see her use any of her spirit energy."<Br>
"She did?" said Yusuke, staring at the fire demon, "When?!"<Br>
"When she was calming the dog down," replied Hiei, "And when she was washing the dog. That's why he healed so easily." His gaze swept over Shinzui and Kouken. "She used her spirit energy to heal the dog and calm him down. I'm guessing that's how he understands her and she can understand him."<Br>
"No way," said Kuwabara, staring from Shinzui to Kouken and back.<Br>
"I'm just curious about why Kouken wanted to attack Botan," said Kurama, looking at the dog, who was sleeping next to the couch, "He's never met Botan before, so how can he see her as a threat. He didn't see any of us as a threat."<Br>
"Maybe there's more to this dog than we think," said Botan, looking at the dog, "He reminds me of the wolf form of a demon that disappeared into this world over 17 years ago." <Br>
"What?!" exclaimed Yusuke, but he was hushed by Kurama and lowered his voice, "You mean there's another demon running around."<Br>
"Well, I don't think he's shown himself since he escaped," answered Botan, looking at Kouken, "But I remember that the demon had a sister who was supposedly killed by Reikai members, so he hates anyone who is from Reikai." <Br>
"Do these demons have names?" asked Kuwabara.<Br>
"I'll have to look up their files," answered Botan, sighing, "Their cases were dropped when both of them disappeared. I'll go back and take a look at them." She got up and moved to the door. "I'll be back when I've looked up the info and talked to KoEnma! Bye!" She walked out, shutting the door behind her, and the boys looked at eachother.<Br>
"First we have bat demons running around," said Yusuke in exaspiration, "Now we have another demon somewhere. This is getting complicated."<Br>
Kurama looked up at the clock and said, "I think we should clean up the house before my mother gets home and sees the mess." <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Yusuke and Kuwabara started to protest, but at a glare from Hiei and a growl from Kouken, the two sighed and nodded. The four boys stood up and began to clean up the mess that was all over the house, especially in Kurama's room. It took them a couple of hours to get the rooms of the house back to normal and clean. The only two things that they were unable to fix were the window and the closet door in Kurama's room, but the fox had no trouble coming up with a good excuse as to why the two things were broken. <Br>
&a mp;nbsp; Shinzui was put to bed with Kouken and Shiori turned up just as the boys were sitting down with a sigh of relief. She invited the boys to stay for dinner, but Kuwabara and Yusuke declined, saying they had to go home and Hiei just disappeared out the door with a quick 'good bye.' The two boys left and Kurama went to help Shiori with dinner, feeling that the day's adventures had finally come to a close. <Br>
<Br>
* * * * * * * * *<Br>
<Br>
Whee! Wasn't that an interesting chapter? Hee. If you all are thinking you have the puzzle figured out ^_^ Sorry to disappoint you, but it's gonna get more twisted! hee. <Br>
<Br>
SNEAK PEEK!: <Br>
<Br>
** Shinzui returns home and ends up eavesdropping on a conversation between her father and a few of his lackies<Br>
<Br>
** Investigation leads to many discoveries and a deeper look into the relationship between Shinzui and her father. <Br>
<Br>
** A distressed Shinzui receives comfort from the most unlikely person imaginable, but trouble comes sauntering in to make matters worse.<Br>
<Br>
Curious? Well, keep checking back to find out in the next explosive chapter of Aoitsuki Yurai! <Br>
<Br>
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