Kashitsu wo Yurusu

By: Cece Williams

((Disclaimer: Don't own it, but you knew that already.))

Cece: Well, once again, this story's coming to a close.

Kurama: To make way for another saga.

Cece: (nods) Yep. Keep your eyes out for the third part.

Kurama: This is probably the longest chapter, so take your time reading.

Yusuke: Uh… what's the title mean?

Cece: After the story, Yusuke. RR.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Andrea managed to avoid Kurama for the day. She asked Botan to tell him she needed "time to herself." In actuality, she really needed to be alone… because she didn't know whether to forgive Kurama or not. And it wasn't looking too good for the former.

At the present, which was just after sunset, Andrea sat in the living room of her apartment with Yukina, Keiko, Shizuru, and Botan, watching "Ella Enchanted. /1/" While her friends were watching the movie, where the scene was that Ella wrote to the prince that she couldn't see him anymore because of her curse and she ran away to save him, Andrea didn't really pay attention to it.

Yukina watched the movie with interest. "I so like this movie. It's really sweet," she said, her ruby-like gaze twinkling.

Keiko agreed. "I like it, too."

Shizuru took a draw from her cigarette and blew out the smoke. "It's okay. But I prefer more action."

However, Botan looked over at the young Tantei. "Andrea? You hadn't said anything since the movie started."

With Andrea still not paying attention, her friends got worried. "Andrea?" Yukina asked her, getting only a blink and a small breath for an answer.

Shizuru put out her cigarette in her glass of water. "Hey, girl, what's the problem? Bro giving you a hard time again?"

Finally, Andrea answered them. "No."

Yukina looked concerned and worried. "What is it then?"

"It's nothing." Her voice remained deadpanned.

Keiko looked skeptical. "That doesn't sound like it's nothing."

Shizuru nodded. "Sounds more like something."

Andrea stood up from the couch and walked into the kitchen, the other four girls following her, and she stopped at the kitchen sink.

Botan looked at her. "Something happened last night, didn't it?"

Andrea continued to look away from everyone. "I don't want to talk about it," she answered her.

Yukina's ruby gaze looked more worried than ever. "You must if you want to feel better," she reasoned.

Andrea looked down into the sink. "It's Kurama."

Shizuru blinked. "Fox-boy? What's he done?"

Andrea took a deep breath. "Karasu came back to fight him, and he killed him."

Botan was confused. "I was sure Koenma took care of that last year."

Shizuru agreed with her. "Yeah, nothing could go wrong in Reikai."

Andrea took another deep breath. "Apparently, Karasu didn't die. He tried to kill me by locking me in the bathroom, but Kurama told me it was probably the door sticking to the frame."

Now, Yukina looked slightly stunned. "Kurama lied?"

Andrea nodded. "Worse than that. He didn't tell me that Karasu was alive. I had to find out myself... from Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei."

Although Yukina looked stunned, she felt sorry for her. "We're so sorry."

Shizuru nodded her head. "Man, that sucks."

"It sure does," Keiko said, patting Andrea's shoulder, which flinched.

Yukina looked at the flinch. "Are you hurt?" As Andrea nodded, she started healing the young Tantei.

"Kurama's never lied to anyone," Botan said, trying to think of why the kitsune would do something like that.

Yukina finished healing Andrea. "Perhaps he had good reason."

Andrea looked at an imaginary speck. "What reason? If my life was on the line, which it was, I had a right to know."

Shizuru lit another cigarette. "Girl, the fox likes you," she said, taking a puff and letting out the smoke.

Andrea shook her head, mostly in denial, but also in anger. "You've got to be kidding. Shizuru, he lied to me and tried to cover it up."

"Because he was trying to protect you. He wouldn't do that if he didn't like you."

"He would've done it for everyone here. What makes me different?" Andrea asked her.

"Have you looked at him lately when he's around you?" Shizuru asked back to her.

"Not really," she answered, feeling a skeptical look from her friend. "Not that I would've noticed." Hearing the silence around made her turn around. "What is this, charades?" she asked, only to see Shizuru point to her own head. Remembering about the sixth sense, she turned back around. "Oh... forgot."

Shizuru looked at her. "Girl, next time you see Kurama, look at him, REALLY look at him. Got it?"

Andrea's heart was thudding out of control. "Oh, I looked at him all right. Saw him as a liar and he got what he deserved." She went to her room and closed the door.

Botan blinked. Wonder what she meant by 'he got what he deserved.'"

Yukina looked worried again. "I hope Kurama wasn't hurt."

"I don't know," Keiko said, literally answering both thoughts.

Shizuru leaned against a wall. "Girl needs to snap out of it."

Botan blinked as a thought came to her mind. "Anyone notice her right hand?" she asked them.

Keiko nodded. "I did. It looked redder than her other one."

Shizuru heard it all. "Did she slap someone?"

"I have a feeling if you mention his name around her, you might get it too," Botan answered as Yukina looked to the floor.

Keiko looked at them in utter disbelief. "Of all the people I've seen her hit, Kurama's not one of them."

Shizuru looked at the closed door. "I know honesty is the best policy but to tell the truth, she's acting like a spoiled brat."

Yukina was shocked, hearing Shizuru's thought. "Shizuru, how can you say that?"

Keiko thought for a minute. "Maybe she felt betrayed by what he did, like she can't trust Kurama anymore."

"She's seeing it from her point of view instead of Kurama's," Shizuru argued.

"Maybe she snapped or something."

"But as far as Kurama liking her is concerned, she's in denial," Botan said to them.

"She has to see what he saw," Yukina said to them.

"Walk a mile in each other's shoes," Shizuru added.

Botan looked at the door. "But try to get her out of her room."

"Easy." As she opened the door, she saw Andrea hug a stuffed animal in one hand and hold at bat in the other. Shizuru sighed. "Andrea, quit being stubborn."

Andrea looked at her from the bed. "I'm not stubborn."

Shizuru pointed at the floor. "Then what do you call this?"

"I call it the floor," Andrea answered, more bored than ever.

Shizuru walked in her room. "I call it running away from your problems."

Andrea looked out the window. "If I were running away, I sure wouldn't be here, would I?"

Shizuru tried to keep her cool. Andrea was one stubborn girl. "You're turning your back on something that isn't worth the time to cry over."

Andrea literally felt her heart being pulled in different directions. "How would you feel if this happened to you?" she asked her.

With a sad look in her eyes, Shizuru looked at her. "How would you feel if the one you loved died?" she asked back.

Having a slight feeling she was talking about her parents, Andrea looked at her. "I already had that happen, Shizuru. My parents died when I was really young. The police lied to me and said they died in a car accident. Now I know they died because my father killed my mother and then himself."

"Life's a bitch and then you die. It's the same all over," Shizuru answered her, but when she looked at Andrea's lowered head, she finally called it quits and headed towards the door. "When you've stopped being five years old, call me." With that, she left her room.

Keiko looked at Shizuru, noticing the look on her face. "Didn't work?"

Shizuru shook her head, lighting a cigarette. "Give me a call when she's back to her senses," she answered, leaving the apartment.

Botan took a deep breath. Hopefully, she wouldn't strike out. "Wish me luck." Hearing the "Good luck" from Yukina, she knocked on the young Tantei's door. "Hey, I know it's a bad subject, but remember how Kurama acted with you during the Dark Tournament?"

Andrea tried to dry her eyes as best she could. "Kind of."

"What if Toguro had pointed at Kurama, not at Kuwabara?"

Hearing the question made Andrea drop her stuffed animal in shock. What was she getting at?

Yukina's ruby eyes widened as she pulled her hands over her mouth. "Botan, how could you say that?"

Botan sat on Andrea's bed. "Shizuru was right about it."

The more Andrea thought about it, the more she knew she had two people to apologize to. "She was..." she started.

Yukina walked into her room as well. "Kurama did fight for you, Andrea."

As Botan picked her stuffed animal up and place it on her bed, Andrea let the tears flow. She had an understanding about it all; she remembered a few times when he told her to stay behind him, that she was still weak from the attacks. He cared about her, and she treated him like a dog. "And I was a complete idiot," she said, hanging her head.

Yukina looked at everyone. "You think there's still time?

Botan nodded. "Yep," she answered, pulling Andrea off of the bed as she blinked. "Come on."

Keiko watches as two out of the three girls walked out. "Come on, Andrea. It's not like he's going anywhere."

Grabbing a change of clothes, Andrea raced between them and headed for the bathroom. She closed the door behind her. "Where is he?" she asked from behind the door.

Yukina looked at Botan. "Do you suppose he could he be at his house?"

Botan looked at the gold rose pendant, grabbed it, and went to the bathroom. "Don't forget that," she said, sliding it under the door. She looked at Yukina. "I think so."

Yukina nodded. "We'll go there first."

"I just hope he didn't leave town," Keiko said.

Yukina shook her head. "That's not like Kurama. He wouldn't do that."

"But you know Yusuke."

Yukina blinked. "Yusuke seems really nice," she answered.

Andrea opened the door, wearing a lavender cardigan with a white tank top underneath and blue jeans. Her pendant shone around her neck. Obviously, she had put cold water on her face, because she looked better. "Oh, believe me; Yusuke's trying to get Botan and Koenma hooked up."

Botan laughed nervously as Yukina giggled.

Andrea headed to the door. "Come on; we're going fox-hunting," she said, desperate to get to Kurama before it was too late.

Meanwhile, at Kurama's house, the Tantei were playing poker. At the moment, Kurama and Hiei had more chips than Kuwabara and Yusuke, who was the dealer. Yusuke dealt the cards around. "Okay, twos are wild," he said, looking at his meager stack of chips. "And, uh…what happened to the potato chips?"

Kuwabara looked at his even SMALLER stack of chips. "I don't know."

Hiei looked at Kuwabara. "Hn, idiot. How can we play without chips?"

"Blame Urameshi. It was his day to bring the chips."

Yusuke looked at him. "Hey!"

Kurama looked at his cards sadly. It was all too obvious that something was the matter, but he didn't want to worry his friends at the moment.

Kuwabara looked at the not concentrating kitsune. "Still hung up?"

Kurama snapped out of it and blinked at Kuwabara. "Huh?"

Yusuke looked at Kurama, eyebrow raised. "You look like someone sat on you, Kurama."

A blue glow came from underneath Hiei's bandanna. "Hn, it's the girl," Hiei said, looking at Yusuke. "Dealer's call."

"5." Yusuke put 5 worth of chips in the center of the table.

Kurama blinked again but looked at Hiei. "Hiei! You used your Jagan on me!"

"So what if I did, fox?" Hiei asked him. Picking up some chips, he added, "I see your 5 and raise you 10."

Kuwabara tried not to laugh. "Shorty got busted," he sing sung.

Hiei only glared at him. "Your turn, oaf."

Kuwabara put some chips down. "I see your ten and raise you 20."

While everyone wasn't looking, Yusuke looked under the table and ate a few chips from the bowl.

Kurama set down some chips. "I see your 20 and raise you 5 more."

Kuwabara looked under the table. "Urameshi!"

A few little chips hung off of his mouth. "Uh..."

Kuwabara looked at Yusuke. "I knew those chips were here."

Hiei grabbed the bowl out of Yusuke's hands. "Been hiding the chips again?"

Yusuke sat back up, laughing nervously. "Uh... I'll raise you ten more."

Kuwabara set his cards down. "I fold."

Hiei looked at his hand. "I call. Three of a kind," he said, holding up three Jacks.

Yusuke set his cards down, two kings and two queens. "Two pair."

Kurama set his cards down, three Queens and two 10s. "Full house."

Yusuke fell out of his chair in disbelief as Kuwabara looked at Kurama. "Hey, Kurama? Your luck's turning around."

Kurama blinked, collecting his chips. "No it isn't."

Yusuke got back in his chair. "Come on, fox-boy. You and Andrea belong together... kinda like Mukuro and Hiei." /2/

Hiei looked at him and growled. "I just work for her, idiot."

Kuwabara blinked. "Really?"

Hiei rolled his eyes. "Of course, oaf!"

The argument was getting nowhere fast. "Can we just resume our game?" Kurama asked them.

Yusuke nodded. "Yeah, sure, man," he answered.

Kurama took a deep, relieving breath. "Dealer calls."

Yusuke dealt the cards again. "Four's wild," he announced.

Kurama set some chips down. "I place 50."

Kuwabara set his cards down. "I fold," he said, but suddenly stiffened.

Yusuke looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "What's wrong with you?"

Kuwabara blinked. "Someone's coming."

Hiei didn't even freeze. "Probably Kurama's mother. She did say she would be back about now."

Kuwabara shook his head. "No, it's younger than his mom."

Kurama looked at him, also sensing the feeling someone was there. "How much?" he asked him.

"Age or chips?"

Kuwabara's joke wasn't really that funny to Kurama, who sighed. "Both."

"Chips, I fold. Age, gotta be near 18."

The blue light underneath Hiei's bandanna appeared again. "It's the girls," Hiei said to them.

"And that means my lovely Yukina's here!" Kuwabara said.

Mentally, he wanted to kill this baka. "Let's finish the game!" Hiei said to the lovesick idiot.

Kurama set his cards down. "I fold as well," he said to them.

Outside, Andrea was biting her bottom lip. She was getting so nervous that her heart was thumping inside of her like a fast Congo drum. "Maybe he's busy; I don't want to bother him," she said.

Yukina patted her on the back. "You'll be fine, Andrea," she answered.

"He's probably still upset at me, and I don't really blame him."

Botan looked at her. "Hey, just be thankful you're not in love with Yusuke."

Keiko's face reddened. "Uh..." As Yukina giggled, Keiko looked at them, waving her hands, laughing nervously. "It's not what it looks like."

Botan rolled her eyes. "Riiiiiight."

Inside the house, Hiei looked at his teammates. "Call."

Yusuke lowered his cards. "Three sevens." Kuwabara gave him a look of "I think you're gonna lose this one."

Hiei set his cards down as well. "Two kings."

"Oh, man," Yusuke said as Kuwabara tried not to laugh at him while Hiei collected his chips.

Back outside, Andrea swallowed semi-nervously. "Okay, you two can argue about Yusuke... I've got something important to do." She knocked on the door. And I'll just hope it doesn't kill me, she added to herself.

Keiko looked at her friends. "Maybe we should leave before someone opens the door," she suggested. She figured it was Andrea's fight and hers alone.

Yukina nodded her head in agreement. "I think you are right." Botan had grabbed both her and Keiko and hid all three of them behind a tree.

Kurama opened the door and saw a familiar bobbed reddish-brown head. "Oh, Andrea," he said, slightly surprised that she was at his house this late.

Andrea blinked. Maybe she came at a bad time. "Was I disturbing something?"

Kurama shook his head. "No. It's just a poker game with the guys."

Andrea nodded her head, the ends almost on her mouth. "Let me guess... Yusuke lost." She wouldn't tell him that she looked in the window while he was getting the door.

Kurama chuckled, nodding his head. "Yes, in fact he lost to Hiei."

Andrea slightly smiled at the answer. "Why doesn't that surprise me?" Her face then looked of urgency. "Uh, do you have anywhere we can talk..." She looked in the door. "Away from the fighting duo?"

As Kurama looked behind him, he saw Yusuke and Kuwabara wrestling on the floor. Maybe the living room was a bad idea. He turned to her. "Uh, yeah. My room."

Andrea felt like sighing in relief. "All right." But there was something she had to get out. As she walked into his room, Kurama closed the door behind them and Andrea looked at the floor. "I guess there isn't a fancy way to say it."

Kurama leaned against the wall, slightly confused. He didn't know what she was talking about. "Care to elaborate?"

Andrea took a deep breath. Sure it was tough to get out, but she had to… for his sake and hers. "The reason I avoided you today was because I acted like a brat," she began, still looking down at the floor. "I didn't see it from your point of view." Another deep breath. "Earlier tonight, Shizuru asked me something that scared me. She asked me how I would feel if someone I loved were killed. I couldn't answer it right away, but now I can. I couldn't take it; you were the first person to be truthful with me, and I hurt you."

Kurama knew it was tough on her; still he felt she had a right. "I am fine with you wanting to hate me. You have every right to."

The word "hate" shocked Andrea inside. She really had to get it out. "I did, at the time I finally found out. But I realize the more I hate you, the more depressed you'd be. And it's not your fault."

The poor girl was almost shaking; Kurama could sense it. "Andrea, it's my fault that you were hurt."

"But I should have understood why you kept it from me. I should have let you explain instead of hurting you."

"You were angry at the time. You had the right."

Andrea shook her head. "I don't anymore. I'm sure if it was the other way around..." She sat down on his bed, trying not to collapse.

Kurama looked at the girl on his bed. "I would have forgiven you."

Andrea wrung her hands together. "After what I did to you..."

"I would have forgiven you," Kurama repeated. "And I did."

Andrea blinked, hearing his answer. "When?"

"Yesterday."

Andrea blinked her eyes. "What?" she asked, looking at the floor again, this time in disbelief.

"I've forgiven you. I had since we fought."

Andrea was literally at a loss for words. How could he forgive her just like that? "A fight that shouldn't have happened." As Kurama sat next to her, she felt herself saying two words that she had come over to say. "I'm sorry."

"Forgiven, if you forgive me."

"I do." The words came out faster than ink to dry on calligraphy paper.

"Then you are too forgiven."

Andrea felt relief wash all over her like a waterfall. She felt better, and for the first time in two days, she smiled. "That felt good."

Kurama had to agree; he couldn't really handle her being mad at him for eternity. "It did," he agreed. He saw Andrea blink and when she was trying her hardest to not turn the color of his hair, he smiled at her.

Outside Kurama's bedroom door, Hiei pulled a struggling Yusuke and a knocked out Kuwabara away from the door. From within the room, however, Andrea shook her head. "They're at it again?" she asked him.

Kurama nodded his head. "I'm afraid so."

Andrea hung her head low. "They'll never learn."

Kurama shook his head. "Afraid not."

A few minutes of silence came and went before Andrea broke it. "There was another reason why I stayed away from you."

Kurama looked at her direction. "Why is that?"

Inside, Andrea's conscious was driving her nuts. (Oh, great... he just forgave me, and now I'm going too far here,) she thought to herself.

Her other half looked at her. ((Hey, but he's worth it!)) she answered.

(Shizuru must have smoked one too many.

((But she did have a point. Are you past the baby stage now?))

Andrea couldn't really look up at him; her mind was racing, and so was her heart. (How do you get out of this?)

Her other half felt like popping her upside the head. ((Tell the truth.))

Andrea blinked her eyes. (Which is?)

((That you were scared for his safety and that he is a very important person in your life.))

(So, in other words, I'm in love with him.) Andrea felt like she would stop breathing when she heard herself think that. (Oh, no. Nuh-uh...)3/

((Well, not in so many words…))

Andrea felt panicked. (Any way to say it where it doesn't sound like that?)

Her other half thought. (("Kurama, you are a very important person to me, and I don't want to lose that." How about that?))

It didn't sound like it, which made her sigh mentally. (You think he'll figure that out?)

((If he does, maybe it'll get to be better then just friends.))

(Well, wish me luck... I'm gonna need it.) Finally giving her mind a rest, she answered him, although her head did not rise. "You're a very important person to me, and during that fight with Karasu, I was scared because I thought the same thing would happen again."

Kurama blinked, knowing what she was saying. "That I would die and this time, not come back?" As Andrea nodded her head with her head still lowered, he put his arm around her. "Rest assured, I will always come back."

Relieved to hear the words, Andrea wrapped her arms around Kurama. She thought to her conscious. (Any other ideas?)

((I think you can handle it.)) Her conscious let her take over, somehow sensing Andrea sticking her tongue out at her.

"Kurama, I believe you." With that, she hugged him while he wrapped his arms around her.

Unbeknownst to them, a lone person watched them from binoculars. "You're still my girl." The person set them down. "And I'm going to make you mine again."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

((Who was the person watching with binoculars? And what does this person have to do with Andrea? Will everything finally be over? Find out in part three called "Trial of Halves."))

Author's Notes:

/1/ I've never seen the movie before. Plus, I don't own it, either. Props to my buddy, Kori, for the idea.

/2/ This pairing made no sense to me. Oh, well.

/3/ "Nuh uh" was something from "The Emperor's New Groove." I don't own the movie, either.

Cece: Trilogy time!

Kurama: Okay, okay, no need to get excited.

Cece: Whoo hoo!

Kurama: To figure out who the person is, check out the next segment. Okay, Cece, you can stop jumping on the bed now.

Yusuke: What did the title mean, anyway?

Cece: (stops jumping on bed) "To forgive someone of his/her own faults."

Yusuke: Cool! So, do Kurama and Andrea…?

Cece: (FWAPs him with binder) You moron! They're not like rabbits!