Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Buried But Not Forgotten ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )

Buried But Not Forgotten

Chapter 2

 

 

A small poster depicted a panic-stricken orange tabby clinging desperately to a slender tree limb. Surprise was written clearly across its face, no doubt oblivious to the presence of a photographer. A caption beneath it read: “Hang in there!” Kurama found it quite humorous.

 

Of course, it would have been inappropriate to laugh, given the circumstances.

 

Mrs. Meinko's office, like every other office in the Guidance building, was filled to the brim with pieces of personality. Ceramic puppies, troll dolls, ridiculous novelty pens, and student-made gifts dominated the room. It looked as if the assault had started on her desk, spilled onto the floor, and crept up the walls. Color was splashed about the room, and any sign of professionalism- the fax and telephone, for example- was obscured by sequins and ribbons.

 

Mrs. Meinko looked alien standing in the brightly tacky room. Her darkly graying hair, held in a tight bun atop her head, matched the dull suit jacket and dress-skirt. The black blouse she wore complemented her nearly onyx eyes. She sat proper but relaxed behind the troll-covered beast of a desk, giving Kurama her most reassuring smile.

 

“Good morning, Shuichi. It's good to see you. This is…Mr Otake. He might want to ask a few questions if they come up.

 

A man in his forties with hair the color of dull nutmeg sat by the door, his jeans and t-shirt as non-descript as one can be without seeming suspicious. He gave a tight smile and nodded at the introduction. His demeanor and watchful eyes gave him away as a plain-clothes detective, and Kurama had to wonder about those who could be so easily fooled by a lack of uniform.

 

Mrs. Meinko's voice was soft and sincere. “I'm sure you've heard about what happened to Ms. Clements.

 

Three periods had passed before they thought of calling him up to Guidance. Three classes of different students gossiping with the same information, rumors, and theories; it was a safe bet that the entire school had heard of the murder. He gave a solemn nod and let the councilor continue.

 

“Yes, it was very tragic. How are you doing?”

 

Kurama thought for a moment. “I didn't know her outside of class. I'm still a little shocked by the news, but I'm doing all right.”

 

The kitsune wasn't completely unaffected, but he didn't want to give the impression of callous indifference, either. These people were working with teenagers- the news of a death, especially an unsolved mystery, was expected to have a devastating impact on everyone. Shuichi could not be an exception.

 

“You were Asena's partner, correct?”

 

The detective's voice was cold and devoid of emotion. The redhead feigned a startled look and replied, “Yes. Literature class.”

 

The man was apparently equipped with a spiel of pre-planned questions, for he continued without hesitation. “When was the assignment given?”

 

“Yesterday.”

 

“Did you see her at all after class that day?”

 

Kurama thought back and recalled her enthusiasm about the gloomy weather. “After the bell rang, we saw each other at the steps of the school. We agreed to discuss the project in more detail today, in class.”

 

“Did she mention her plans for the evening? Perhaps meeting someone or doing something?”

 

“No sir.”

 

Cold, calculating eyes stared at the boy.

 

“Do you ever visit the park off of Hand Avenue?”

 

Kurama knew the place well- it was quiet and secluded, blocked off from the housing developments. He enjoyed walking through the underbrush in the spring and watching the sakura leaves depart in the fall.

 

“Yes.”

 

“How often do you visit?”

 

He shrugged. “It depends on the time of year, I suppose. I haven't been there at all lately, what with midterms coming up.” He pretending not to realize he was being interrogated. Humor the officials- it tended to work better than aggravating them.

 

“Are you familiar with the reproduction of a certain sta-”

 

The infinite question-answer cycle was interrupted by Mrs. Meinko's voice, hardened by a hint of anger. “I believe that Shuichi has been more than helpful, Mr. Otake. As his counselor, I'm supposed to be helping him. I do not appreciate people badgering my students with questions at a vulnerable time such as this. You may go to your next class, Shuichi.”

 

The Kitsune hardly felt vulnerable, but he wasn't about to argue. Thanking them both, he made his way to the next class: Literature.

 

By a stroke of timing, Kurama soon found himself alone with Ms. Keruki. The young teacher did not have a third period class, leaving her room empty until the bell. A quick glance at the clock revealed that fourth period was still technically five minutes away.

 

“Just back from Guidance, I take it?”

 

Ms. Keruki sat behind her desk, filing papers at what seemed to be random. Her blouse matched her dark hair, and he realized that all of the teachers were dressed in quiet colors today- were they alerted of the student's death before coming to work?

 

“Yes, and I seem to be early.”

 

He took his seat while the teacher glanced at her watch. “Not by much.”

 

Silence fell, settling through the room like a thick blanket, until it was broken by the woman. “My door is always open, Shuichi.”

 

He smiled at the offer and managed a “thank you” before the bell rang and students flooded into the classroom.

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

 

“Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow-
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.

 

I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand-
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep- while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?”

 

The brunette finished reciting with a nervous smile.

 

“Thank you, Telaci.”

 

Taking her leave from the teacher, the girl reclaimed her seat by the door. Ms. Keruki had passed out several books entitled, `The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe.' It seemed that she wanted to spread the Poe cheer; comparison among his other works would improve the students' reports, in Ms. Keruki's opinion. Thus, they were given a copy of the book and each pair was required to read their assigned pieces to the class. This, of course, would take a few days considering the length of some of the pieces. Luckily, `A Dream Within A Dream' signified the last for today.

 

“Was she nervous, or what? She was shaking in her little heels up there.”

 

Short light-green hair bobbed as a girl leaned over, her hand blocking her mouth from the teacher's view. Kurama smiled.

 

“Some young ladies,” he emphasized the some, “are timid creatures, surrounded by an air of modesty and reserve.”

 

The all but flamboyant student straightened in her chair with a “harumph!”

 

Aika Tomakino: captain of the girl's softball team and tomboy extraordinaire. After colliding into each other the first day of school, her first impression told her that Kurama was a she. Knowing that, it's not surprising that the first words out of her mouth were, “Watch where you're going, princess.”

 

They were both able to laugh about it and have been friends every since. Friendship, it seemed, also entailed teasing.

 

“And you would know what it's like to be a lady.”

 

Kurama dismissed the comment, and when the last few minutes of class were announced to be “free,” the punkish girl dragged her chair over to sit by the fox.

 

“Let's be serious for a minute, though. Shuichi, my friend…you look like shit.”

 

Forrest green eyes locked onto emerald.

 

“You certainly know what a man likes to hear.”

 

He received a thorough eye-rolling and a follow-up explanation: “You look like you haven't slept in weeks, and well…it's not just your appearance.”

 

He raised an eyebrow at this, inviting her to continue.

 

“You're spacing out a lot lately. It's like the game's still on, but no one's up to batter. People have been steering clear of you because they figure that you're traumatized, what with her being your partner and all, but you have that weariness about you that say's you're ready to snap at someone.”

 

Kurama made a pained gesture of rubbing his eyes, surrounded by darkness and a little blood-shot. He inhaled deeply and could understand Aika's observations. He was physically tired, mentally frustrated, and over-all…ready to `snap' as his acquaintance so eloquently put it.

 

“I'll try to get some rest.” He gave a weak smile in lue of an explanation. The bell rang, school continued, and life was just a little more strained.

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

 

Once again, the kitsune found himself by the school steps staring at a stubbornly dreary sky as students flowed around him, anxious to begin their after school activities. With a lethargic sigh, he gave his backpack a final heave and started down the sidewalk.

 

He nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the scream. He had time to vaguely wonder about becoming paranoid before he saw who had shrieked.

 

Telaci sat on the sidewalk, her legs at an odd angle; her breathing was rapid, causing her small chest to rise and fall dramatically. She turned honey-colored eyes to the approaching redhead.

 

“What's wrong?”

 

Not bothering to stand up, the ruffled girl pointed an accusing finger to the lamp post ten feet away. Perched upon the harmless structure was a large raven, its beady eyes never leaving the two.

 

“It attacked me! I was just walking home and it flew right at me. Its beak it so sharp- it's like a monster!” She was nearly in hysterics.

 

Kurama petted the girl's hair in a soothing manner and looked at the bird. It was large, a raven for sure, but it was not an uncommon creature. Certainly not of monstrous proportions- it was no bigger than the one from that morning or at his window the other day. If he didn't know any better, he'd even say that it was the same one.

 

As if it could read his thoughts, the crow opened his pointed beak.

 

“Kar…”

 

“Make it go away!” The girl was sobbing now.

 

“Kar…”

 

Kurama took a swing at it with his pack, but it didn't so much as ruffle the crow's feathers.

 

“Kar…”

 

“Oh! Leave me alone!”

 

Kurama, in his attempts to frighten it off for the girl, had managed to come within a foot of the bird, and still it hadn't moved. He could literally reach out and touch it.

 

“Kar!”

 

With the girl's incessant sobbing and the crow's taunting calls grating on the fox's last nerve, he decided to do just that. Delivering a swift backhand, he felt it connect against feathers with solidity. With fluttering wings, the crow recovered quickly and flew high above their heads. With a parting `Kar,' it was gone.

 

The girl straightened herself, thanked her `savior,' and left at a running jog.

 

Picking up where he left off, Kurama continued down the street, heading home.

 

Why had it felt so good to hit the crow? Despite superstition and his own experiences with raven-like demons, it was just a bird. The kitsune had been visited by a number of nightmares involving Karasu since the dark tournament, but that was back when he was having dreams. Now he simply closes his eyes to open them and finds that a night had passed him by without lending so much as a drop of sleep.

 

He froze in mid-step as a thought occurred to him.

 

A bladeless wound, a feathered stalker; different quotes from the two girls came to mind simultaneously.

 

Take thy beak from out my heart and take thy form from off my door! Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore.”

 

It's beak is so sharp- it's like a monster!

 

Kurama shook his head and kept walking. His mind was ready to jump to any conclusion, it seemed- one murder goes a day unsolved, and he's anxious to blame a dead man. Fatigue will do that to you, he reasoned. It's simply absurd: a crow demon coming back as a crow in the Ningenkai. It was about as unlikely as a kitsune falling back into the form of a spirit fox and fleeing to the human world.

 

…

 

Absurd. He couldn't believe that he was even entertaining such delusional thoughts. What happened with Telaci just now was hardly an attempt on her life.

 

Pushing such rambling nonsense aside, he picked up a newspaper from a nearby stand and finished his journey home with more comforting thoughts: thoughts of dinner.

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

 

Authorities were baffled Tuesday, April 15th, when they received a report of a body. Asena Mya Clements, age 17, was found dead at the local Tamoka Park between one-thirty and two o'clock that morning.

 

“She was supposed to come straight home after the midnight matinee. It's a good neighborhood, and she was celebrating getting her license,” a family member commented.

 

Officials say that the Clements car was found in the theatre parking lot, two miles from the Tamoka Park, with no signs of forced entry. As of yet, the police have no leads, witnesses, or knowledge of the murder weapon. The cause of death is said to be a wound to the heart, though officials have ruled out the use of a blade. When asked for a comment, detective Yoshitaka had this to say:

 

Judging by the placement and condition of the body, we can guess that we're probably looking for a group of occult fanatics. Aside from the fatal wound, there were no other afflictions; no cuts or bruises to speak of. If it had been a single attacker, there would be signs of a struggle, but with the overpowering intimidation of a group, there is not always need for excessive force. The body was found lying across a statue of Pallas. This Pallas is a god of sorts, and the girl was no doubt used as part of a ritual. Rest assured that we are doubling our efforts to keep our neighborhoods safe.”

 

Kurama shook his head at the article, despite its inability to see the gesture.

 

Pallas was indeed considered to be a god at one time, but according to Greek mythology, he attempted to rape Athena and met his end at her hand. Of the many gods for an occult to pay sacrifice to, Kurama doubted Pallas was one of them.

 

He put the paper down next to the note on the dining room table. The kitsune was greeted by an empty house when he came in, a piece of paper waiting for him.

 

.~.

Shuichi, dear-

 

Hatakana and I have decided to catch a dinner and a movie. There's meatloaf in the fridge. I hope you had a good day at school. Also, I seem to have misplaced my diamond earrings- the ones that Hatakana gave me- so will you keep an eye out for them? Thanks dear.

 

Hugs, mom.

.~.

 

In other words, Kurama thought, Shiori confronted her husband about the man's harsh words towards her son last night. They had the slightest of arguments, for which he's sure Hatakana felt no remorse, and they're `making up' for the rest of the evening.

 

The redhead let out a sigh; he could use the time alone, he supposed.

 

He couldn't figure out why it seemed that he wanted just the opposite. Fifteen years without a kindred spirit to talk to left the fox feeling a little alone. The formation of Team Urameshi brought him allies, friends even, and he enjoyed their conversations and interactions yet…he still found himself with stories to tell and no one with the right ears to listen.

 

Hiei was never one for friendly chats, Yusuke would call his restless paranoia just that, and Kuwabara…well, he didn't think that the human was up to speculations involving murder and a dead demon. Kurama hadn't realized how much he wanted to relate to someone until Ms.Keruki made the offer. Naturally, he wasn't about to share a world of demons, deceit, and treachery with his literature teacher, but he yearned for contact none the less.

 

The sound of an empty stomach snatched the boy from his thoughts. He had a fearsome craving for meat, and there was a meatloaf in the refrigerator. Of course, it was the loaf part that he was worried about. Coming to the conclusion that there was noting better to satisfy his appetite, he heated and scarfed the questionable mound with only the slightest disdain.

 

The ever-constant pull of fatigue strengthened, urging the kitsune to rest. Dragging his things upstairs, he prepared to call it an early night. He had barely changed clothes and wormed into bed when his consciousness fell into a dark oblivion.

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

 

The shrieking of an alarm filled the room, piercing his comforting darkness. An arm flew out from beneath the covers and smashed the clock, sending it tumbling across the floor. The noise stopped.

 

With a pained groan, the redhead slumped out of his bed to perform the early morning basic functions.

 

Fifteen minutes, and Kurama was found moping his way into the kitchen. His mother was already up, watching TV.

 

“Good morning sweetie. What do you want for breakfast?”

 

He allowed himself to collapse in the kitchen chair, his head in his hands, and replied, “Nothing. I'm not hungry.”

 

He hadn't even spared a glance at the mirror that morning- he could guess what he'd see all too well. It was still daylight when he fell asleep, yet he was running on empty; he shouldn't be a walking corpse, damnit!

 

“Oh, did you ever find-“

 

“No.”

 

If Shiori was startled by the abrupt answer, she didn't show it. Instead, she just turned up the volume as a woman in her mid thirties read a news report to the camera.

 

“In local news, the death of another teenager was discovered last night. Telaci Sawamoto was found dead at the Kohkuri beach by a late-night jogger. The civilian called the police immediately and an investigation is under way. Though an official comment has yet to be released, there are suspicions of murder.”

 

-TBC

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-