Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Suicide ❯ Chapter Eleven ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter Eleven
Yuusuke unlocked the door to the apartment, letting Hiei enter before him. He winced, but didn't comment, when the fire demon didn't bother to take his shoes off in the genkan. Instead, he locked the door behind him and took his own shoes off.

Atsuko's voice drifted in from the other room. "What're you doing with your shoes on? Go take 'em off."

Hiei stalked back into the room and practically tore the shoes from his feet, throwing them at the geta-bako before stalking back through the living room and into the bedroom. Yuusuke cringed as Hiei slammed the door, then headed into the living room.

"Mattaku [1]! Who does he think he is?" She glared at Yuusuke from where she was laying on the couch. "What're you two doing home? School isn't out, yet."

Yuusuke sighed. "There were problems. Hiei was singled out by two of the teachers."

Atsuko gave him a bored look. "And? If you're not going to go to school-"

"I know, I know: quit because school costs money. I left for a reason, you know!"

"Whatever. Make some coffee."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." He put the coffee on, then went to the bedroom and knocked. After about thirty seconds of waiting for a response, he scowled and berated himself for thinking there would be one. He opened the door to find Hiei asleep in his bed. That looks like a good idea . . . The teen yawned, then grabbed his pajamas and went to the bathroom to change. It had been a long day. Cooking dinner could wait until later.

Yuusuke woke slowly, blinking as he noticed that the sun was setting. Damn. We got home at noon! He got up and glanced at Hiei, who was curled underneath the blankets. I'll wake him up after I get dinner made.

The teen padded into the kitchen, yawning. He noted on the way that his mother seemed to have gone drinking already. Some mom she is. He froze as he entered the kitchen to find that dinner was already waiting on the table. After staring in shock for a few minutes, he noticed a note sitting next to one of the plates. He picked it up and read it, his eyes widening as he did.

Yuu-chan,
You looked tired, so I decided to make dinner
tonight. No, I'm not out drinking. I have
something to take care of. Don't wait up.
~Atsuko

Yuusuke shook his head. The food was still hot, meaning she hadn't been gone long. He decided to wake Hiei so they could eat. Then maybe they could go do something interesting. Maybe they could hit the arcades, or the movie theater.

Yuusuke sighed. They'd ended up in a park. Hiei had refused to go to most of the places he'd suggested. He'd said that he didn't want to deal with humans. Yuusuke thought it was more likely that he didn't want to deal with his claustrophobia. After all, both of those places were generally tightly-packed, closed areas.

Hiei also hadn't wanted to stay inside, probably for the same reason. He had finally agreed to the park when Yuusuke had reluctantly suggested it. While the park was generally boring, it was definitely better than being cooped up inside.

However, it was getting late, and Yuusuke knew that the cops would be making their rounds in the park. As always, his reputation would get them in trouble if they stayed.

"Hiei, we'd better get going."

Hiei scowled. "Hn." He showed no signs of moving from his perch in the tree branch.

"Hiei, you know my reputation. We need to go home."

The fire demon jumped down, his scowl deepening. "You and your damned reputation . . ." He stalked past Yuusuke.

The teen winced. "I'm sorry, Hiei . . ."

"Hn."

Yuusuke gave up. A thought occurred to him. "We're going back to school tomorrow."

Hiei stopped. "I will not-"

Yuusuke interrupted him. "You're going to let them defeat you?" The fire demon stiffened, but didn't reply. "It's settled, then. We're going."

"Whatever." Hiei began walking again.

Yuusuke sighed and followed. I need a nice, relaxing bath . . .

He hoped tomorrow wouldn't be as bad as today had been.

"Urameshi Yuusuke! I did not raise a bum! Get up!"

Yuusuke sat up and blinked at his mother groggily. "What the . . .?"

Atsuko glared at him. "Come on, Lazy! You slept all day yesterday! You too, Hiei. Up!"

Okay . . . What the hell is going on?! Atsuko never acted like this. The most she ever did was sob over him drunkenly and wake him to see if he was still alive. She was acting like . . . a mom. He was too surprised to even attempt to argue. Apparently, Hiei was, too, because he obeyed silently, grabbing his clothes and leaving the room.

"Mom! I need to get dressed! Geez!"

The woman laughed. "It's not anything I haven't seen before, Yuu-chan. I did change your diapers." She left anyway.

Yuusuke flushed in embarrassment. Good grief! I think I like her better drunk . . .

He dressed quickly and grabbed his and Hiei's daypacks, then left the room. "Mom, we don't have to be there for another hour!" He handed Hiei his daypack and glared at Atsuko. "Why do we have to get up so early, eh?!"

He blinked as Atsuko grinned at him in a way that was positively impish. "You'll see. We're going early. I've got some business to take care of there."

"Business?"

"You'll see. C'mon."

Yuusuke exchanged a look with Hiei, who shrugged, looking bored with the turn of events. I don't like the sound of this . . . But there was no way he was going to stay behind. He had to find out what was going on with Atsuko, now that his curiosity was piqued. He followed his mother from the apartment, locking the door behind them.

They'd been at the school for nearly half an hour, and Yuusuke had only gotten more confused. Atsuko had dragged them to Iwamoto's classroom, ordered them to stay there, and had disappeared. He leaned against the inner wall of the classroom and looked at his charge. "Hey, Hiei . . . What do you think she's doing?"

Hiei rolled his eyes and continued looking out the window from his perch on the ledge beneath it. "How the hell should I know? She's your mother."

"That's why I'm worried." Hiei just shrugged.

"Worry too much and you'll get an ulcer, Yuu-chan." The teen jumped at Atsuko's voice, then glared at the doorway. "Go ahead and sit down. Iwamoto-san and Akashi-san and I have something to discuss." She turned to the figures waiting outside. "Come on in and have a seat. This won't take long, I assure you." Akashi and Iwamoto entered the classroom and sat, both looking confused. "You too, Yuu-chan. Hiei, you're fine right there."

Yuusuke slowly walked across the room, sitting in a seat near Hiei. What the heck is going on . . .?

Atsuko sat on the teacher's desk, grinning at them. "I'm sure you're all wondering what this is about. I know Yuu-chan's been trying to figure it out for about an hour now." Her grin widened and she winked at her son.

Yuusuke groaned. "Just get to it!"

Atsuko ignored him. "In any case, what is said in this room will stay in this room. When I say it, you'll know what will happen if it gets out."

Yuusuke shifted uncomfortably. What the heck was going on?!

"I've heard Yuu-chan complain constantly about two teachers who enjoy harassing him," Atsuko continued, her grin fading. "Asked around and was pointed in the direction of you two. Yuu-chan can easily take care of himself, for the most part. But harassing my nephew is inexcusable, especially when you've been told specifically not to and why."

Hiei looked up in surprise and Yuusuke stared. He had definitely not expected this.

Atsuko's expression was cold as she glared at the two teachers in question. Akashi was sweating slightly, but Iwamoto looked unconcerned. He smirked. "You have no proof, besides the claims of a few punks."

Atsuko grinned suddenly, maliciously. "You're completely correct. I have no proof, so I can't really get you in trouble. At least, not that way."

Yuusuke was pleased to note that Iwamoto suddenly looked worried, but he was still confused. "Urameshi-san, what is this about, exactly? Takenaka-san has already spoken to us regarding this."

"If you cared about what Takenaka had to say, you would have stopped harassing Yuu-chan a long time ago." Atsuko stood and walked across the classroom. "This is about blackmail."

Yuusuke stared at his mother. "WHAT?!"

Atsuko shrugged. "I have information about them that they don't want out for social reasons, and if they don't want it to become public . . ." She grinned. "They'll just have to play nice."

Iwamoto stood. "This is ridiculous! I don't have to deal with this."

Atsuko smirked. "You might not have a problem, Iwamoto-san, since your father is no longer alive to berate you, but perhaps you should consult your lover. After all, he's the one with the wife and kids." She glanced at Akashi. "Ne, Akashi-san?"

Yuusuke stared. Akashi and . . . Iwamoto . . .? And since when was Atsuko so well-spoken?!

Akashi paled. "How . . . how did you find out about that?!"

Atsuko chuckled. "I have connections." She glanced at Iwamoto, who seemed just as shocked as Akashi. "Do I have your attention now?"

Iwamoto sat down heavily. "Yes."

Atsuko sat back down on the desk. "I don't like blackmail, usually. And I especially dislike using it against people in your situation. However . . . all other avenues of negotiation were taken. Neither of you have shown any remorse for your behavior, and all signs have pointed to the probability that it would continue." She sighed. "So blackmail was necessary, you see."

Akashi spoke hesitantly. "What assurances do we have that you won't tell if we stop?"

"My honor."

"And them?" Akashi indicated Yuusuke and Hiei.

Yuusuke scowled. "As long as you quit messing with us, I won't tell anyone. I'm not mean-spirited, despite what people say."

"I will not break up a family," Hiei said softly, then returned his attention to the window. Yuusuke bit his lip at that, but was gratified to see both Akashi and Iwamoto cringe. At least they realized the implications behind Hiei's words, even if they didn't know what the statement truly meant.

Atsuko raised an eyebrow. "Satisfied?" She smiled when they nodded, defeated. "Good. It's settled then. You will not harass either of my boys." Hiei looked up, his face filled with surprise for a split second before he shut his emotions in. "Are we clear?"

"Crystal," Iwamoto muttered. "Now, if you would excuse me, I have a class to prepare for."

Atsuko grinned. "We'll take our leave, then. Come along Yuu-chan, Hiei-chan. We're going out for breakfast."

Hiei scowled at the name as he jumped down from the window. "Get used to it," Yuusuke whispered slowly, staring at Atsuko. He was flummoxed. There was no way this was his mother.

She grinned at him as they left the room. "Don't look at me like that, Yuu-chan. There's a reason you haven't been arrested yet."

Yuusuke groaned. It was not going to be a good day . . .

[1] Honestly!

And, again, a new chapter begs to be written. Yay for working muses! XD

In any case, thank you all for the wonderful reviews and feedback. I'm currently trying to get more of Half-Breed's Curse out. I just wish my notebook for that one hadn't gone missing. In any case, I hope to have that out within a week, though I'm going to visit the parents for Fathers Day, so no promises. ^^

Thanks go out to Yamino Tora and Mina Lightstar for looking this chapter over for me!