Hey Guys I hope you enjoy this story! It's going to be at least 50,000 words long, but i have a hunch it will be longer. I hope you stick around and enjoy the ride! I have not fully decided on ships but for sure I know these will be present: Usagi/Mamoru, Kuwabara/Yusuke, Yukina/Shizuru. I may or may not have crossover ships, just to give a heads up!

Kuwabara walked quietly down a long hallway, his eyes staring straight ahead. He was being extra careful to not stray from his line of sight, not wishing to lock eyes with any old familiar face he might run into. It was going to be hard enough talking to Koenma, so running into anyone else that might know him would just make this all more difficult. As his steps echoed down the hall, Kuwabara began to regret even agreeing to show up to spirit world.

He no longer had any reason to be here.

He was not rushing off for a mission, or meeting with Koenma to have a friendly chit-chat. Kazuma Kuwabara was going to school, college in fact. It had been hard, and he had faltered many times, but now at the age of twenty-six, he was almost ready to graduate. He needed to complete one more task, and he would have his degree by the next semester. Kuwabara had jumped around within college, unsure what he wanted from the experience. It took a year, but during a grueling study session, Kuwabara recalled how poorly his teachers had been to him. No one had given him a fair shake at school. But it hadn't been just him that suffered.

It seemed that any student who wasn't your typical average Japanese student didn't get the attention they deserved. And if there was a teacher that cared, there were just too many students that needed help. With some shock from his friends, and even from himself, Kuwabara had decided he would be a teacher. He would be the teacher he never got to have. He just needed to get his student teaching out of the way, and he'd be done with school and launching into his new life as an academic role model.

Kuwabara couldn't resist chuckling aloud at the thought.

Years later, he still found his choice to be a teacher, terribly and humorously ironic.

So Kuwabara's life was getting wrapped up, everything was falling into place. There was no reason to be here...and yet here he was. A letter from Koenma, asking for Kuwabara's help, had the young man running, ready to leap back into action. Just like the old days.

So why was he even here? He was not a spirit detective anymore. He had no reason to answer this call for help... and yet...

Kuwabara came to a stop in front of a familiar set of doors.

They were still ostentatious, too large, and bright pink. He smiled to himself as a little rush of eagerness stirred within him. It reminded him of those days with his friends, heading off on their next adventure. Those missions had been trying, but through them, Kuwabara has learned a lot about himself and formed friendships that were stronger than the bonds of family. Hell, even Hiei held a special place in Kuwabara's heart that others couldn't replace!

"Ugh...I'm disgusting!" Kuwabara wheezed as he tried to shake the warm and gooey feelings that were washing over him.

He wasn't even pushing thirty and he was already having sentimental thoughts like an old man!

Kuwabara shook his head clearing his head and steeling his heart. He raised a hand to knock on the doors. As his hand lifted up, the doors suddenly swung inwards on their own, revealing an ornate office. Or at least it used to be.

The office had once been done in the taste of Koenma's father, Yenma. However, it seemed since Koenma has usurped his father, the office had received some updates. The office no longer was filled with useless red pillars and large potted plants. The office now had a more modern and even minimalistic look. The pillars were gone, as were the plants, and everything was painted in various shades of blue and gray. Koenma's desk had been updated to a larger black model, and an additional desk was placed in the corner. Both desks teetered with neat stacks of papers. Overall, the room seemed cleaner, and emptier, though no doubt Koenma still had his large wall-sized monitor screen tucked away somewhere.

Sitting behind the new desk, in his teenaged form, was Koenma, his hands hurriedly pressing a stamp into some stacks of paper. He was only visible from about the nose up due to the stacks of papers, and his brown eyes seemed to be focused on his work. Kuwabara cleared his throat, unsure of what he should say to get the Demi-god's attention.

Koenma looked up, and then very quickly his eyes darted to Kuwabara's leg, before going back up to look Kuwabara in the eyes.

Kuwabara pursed his lips and put his hands in his pockets so Koenma would not see the fists he was making. He hated it when people did that. They always gave him this look now. A look at him, then his leg, and then back up again.

With that look, it reminded Kuwabara why he hadn't been sure of coming.

Koenma, sensing he has already made a misstep, quickly got up and plastered on a large smile, his pacifier shifting to one side.

"Kuwabara! You got my letter! Thank you for coming!"

Koenma then hurried to meet Kuwabara his hand extended for a handshake.

Kuwabara took it, giving a hard firm shake, before clearing his throat, "Yeah...It was... kinda weird to get a letter from you. It's not what I expected."

"You cut your hair!" Koenma declared, clearly missing anything Kuwabara had just said.

Kuwabara instinctively reached up and touched his hair. His sister had given him a haircut called an, "Undercut." She claimed that if he was going off to be a teacher, his students neede to respect him and the Pompadour had to go. Kuwabara had reluctantly allowed her to do so, as his College professor had told Kuwabara his hair wouldn't be appropriate as a student teacher. The undercut was a nice modern style, and people praised his slightly curly copper hair with new zeal, but Kuwabara swore that when he was a teacher-his Pomp was coming back!

"Oh yeah...my professor said a lot of schools won't accept me as a student teacher if my hair looked like it did...so Shizuru cut it for me," Kuwabara explained, reflexively ruffling the longer part of his hair.

Koenma nodded, his eyes staring at Kuwabara's hair for a long time, before looking at his face. There was an awkward pause, where Koenma just seemed to be looking at Kuwabara. It was odd and a little uncomfortable, but in truth, Kuwabara understood why Koenma was looking at him. It had been almost a year since the pair had last talked or met up with one another.

The silence eventually got to be too much, and Kuwabara cleared his throat, "So...You said you wanted to see if I could help you?"

Koenma shook himself out of his trance, and laughed, his voice coming out high and force, "Yes! Yes of course. You see Kuwabara, I was hoping that I could rely on your extremely high spiritual awareness to help me out with a problem." Koennma looked Kuwabara in the eye, and the taller man nodded gesturing for Koenma to continue.

Koenma nodded, smiling tightly, and then abruptly began to pace, folding his hands behind his back.

"Near Tokyo, it has come to my attention that some strange things are happening. I must admit, they have been happening for a while, but for a time I was too busy to really pay it any attention. But now these mysterious happenings-well there are just too many to ignore!" Koenma burst, throwing his hands up.

Kuwabara's eyes darted over Koenma, extremely curious about Koenma's stressed and wild behavior. "Go on, I'm listening," Kuwabara proclaimed, and then he began to pace with Koenma, slightly following behind the demi-god's tense pace.

"Low-level monsters are appearing in the street! In broad daylight!" Koenma continued, eyes focused down on the floor as he paced, "And they are not demons, but monsters! These creatures have power...but it doesn't seem to be quite demonic. It's...different somehow! And there are many different kinds, all attacking the people of Tokyo for... well that I'm not sure of either. I've sent agents to investigate, and they report that not only are there monsters running about, but there are...girls fighting them. And these girls have power as well! The girls' powers appear to be a mixture of spiritual power...and something else!"

"Something else?" Kuwabara echoed.

Koenma looked to Kuwabara sharply and nodded, "Yes. Laced with psychic ability, and elements like water and fire, and so on... but there is something else! Something that goes beyond the human realm. The power is so strong I can't tell what it is! I don't understand what is happening, or even if this is a threat, but I was hoping you-" Koenma turned sharply around to fully face Kuwabara. In doing so, his leg accidentally swung out and caught Kuwabara's left ankle.

Kuwabara grimaced, and his hand shot out to steady himself, while Koenma was rushing forward to help. The demi-god grasped Kuwabara and righted the man, hooking his arm around Kuwabara's waist. He did not let Kuwabara go and instead clung to the taller man, looking down at Kuwabara's legs with clear alarm.

"Oh, my Goodness Kuwabara! Did that hurt!?"

"Just a bit-"

"Well of course it hurt! What a stupid question of me-"

"Koenma-"

"I am so sorry! Let me get you a chair-"

"No. Stop-"

"Is it better to walk? I can't believe I did such a-"

"Stop. Stop! It is really no big deal-"

"thing! I'm mortified! Kuwabara! Please, please come sit! You can use my office chair-"

"That. Is. Enough!" Kuwabara snarled shoving the clinging man away. Kuwabara's face was flushed red, and orange electricity cackled off his shoulders, and his eyes flashed gold. Koenma released Kuwabara, wincing as the energy that snapped off Kuwabara stung him. The energy lowered, but Kuwabara was still furious, and his eyes glowed with a barely contained power.

"I did not come here to be treated like some sort of...some sort of cripple! (At this Koenma gasped loudly and his skin turned the shade of milk) I thought I had come here to help you with something! I didn't come here to be coddled, or for anyone to make a scene over poor stupid Kuwabara's injury! I'm done with the babying! And the avoiding! I thought..." Kuwabara took in a deep breath, and let it out in a shuddering breath as he tried to school his emotions back under control, "I thought I was done...with all this." Kuwabara waved his hands between himself and Koenma, refusing to look back at the man, his anger quickly boiling down to shame.

He should not have come.

There was a long silence, with neither party seeming to know what to say, or who should act first. Koenma, mercifully, made the first move with a quiet, "I don't think you're a cripple. I'm sorry. What happened...was such a big deal. For everyone. And I...I can't help but feel responsible-"

Kuwabara's head whipped around to Koenma, who immediately pressed his lips together in silence from Kuwabara's explosive look.

"This is not your fault!" Kuwabara half-roared, grinding out each word clearly. His nostrils flared in agitation, but when he spoke again it was in a calmer but insistent tone, "What happened to me was not your fault. Not anyone's! You...you must know that."

Koenma's shoulder's sagged, "Kuwabara...you have to understand. I sent you there. I sent you-"

"You didn't send me anywhere!" Kuwabara dismissed, "I went myself. I went with Yusuke, Kurama, Hiei... and shit! Shit got...bad! But it always got rough on missions! You can't blame my injury on my choosing to go on a mission. The only person at fault is the person who did..." Kuwabara's hand reflexively touched his left leg, "who did this to me. You can't blame yourself for this. No one can. The only person at fault is rotting in hell right now."

Koenma sighed, "I understand what you're saying...and I am trying not to...not to worry I suppose? This feeling of remorse and guilt isn't something I can just shut off. I will try to do better. But... trust me. There's not a single thing out there that I believe you can't do. I have complete faith in all you do. I'm not coddling you, or babying you...or treating you...like you have a handicap. But I'm still worried about you because... well I like you and I think...well..."

"We are friends Koenma. Even if absent of late. We're friends," Kuwabara quietly confirmed.

The tension eased, as the pair shared awkward smiles.

"So...what did you want me to do again?" Kuwabara asked, briskly swinging his arms as he felt the need to do something.

"I know that you will begin your student teaching soon. I was hoping you would agree for me to make it so the school sends you to the Juuban district in Tokyo. This is where most of this weird activity is taking place. I'm hoping you can use your psychic abilities to pick up on the weird energy coming from these creatures, and from these girls and give me more of a clue as to what is going on. Perhaps you'll even be able to sense who these girls are," Koenma explained, "Your powers have come through for you before. In the dark tournament, you were able to find out what happened to En, Ryo, and Kai. If a dream revealed what was forcing them to fight during the tournament, I thought perhaps if you went to Juuban you might have another useful dream."

"My predictions have been coming in clearer and clearer over the years," Kuwabara agreed, "If I goto Juuban...I really might be able to sense something. What about the monsters, and these powerful girls? What should I do if I encounter them?"

"If you run into the monsters, and you can capture it, that would be ideal. If we brought one of these creatures here we could determine if they're demonic...or man-made," Koenma explained, eyebrows raising to his hairline as if the last part of his sentence had just dawned on him.

"You think these weird monsters are man-made?" Kuwabara asked, squinting curiously at Koenma.

"Now I'm starting to," Koenma affirmed, "How else would I not be able to recognize this odd energy coming from them? We've seen attempts at this before. Perhaps someone has tried to make their own version of demons to continue the traditions of my father. Pitting demons against humans once again."

Kuwabara nodded agreeing with Koenma's line of thought. There were holes of course. How were the demons being made? Who would do it? Why would they do it? But these were all questions Kuwabara felt could be answered if he actually did go to Tokyo. Shoving his hands in his pockets, Kuwabara asked, "And the girls?"

"Try to avoid them if you can. Or at least don't let them see you. If you could figure them out, and where they stand on this... that's really all I want," Koenma reasoned as he rubbed the back of his neck, "To my knowledge, they are fighting the monsters and that's it. Protecting mankind-"

"Supergirls," Kuwabara concluded with a nod.

Koenma smiled, "Well yes. Supergirls. Superheroes, even. And if that's the case and you can find a way to approach them, I'd like to meet them. I'm only keeping my distance for the simple fact that their powers, like the monsters, is something I've never seen before."

"If you set it up through my school...I'd be happy to do this. I'll get my student teaching done, and walk around the Juuban district, and into Tokyo. I'm sure I can figure out something. Just...you said you sent agents out to Juuban. What happened? Why do you need me specifically?" Kuwabara asked tilting his head as rolled his questions out.

"My agents were all attacked at some point," Koenma answered seriously. Crossing his arms, and sitting on the edge of his desk, Koenma let out a deep sigh, "They couldn't sense anyone, and they each can barely remember the accident. But they claim the monsters attacked them and pulled things from their body. Spiritual energy, their life-force, and something else. Something physical, like a crystal of some sort. One swears a mirror came out of their chest. They then admitted to blacking out and waking up seeing the girls leave the scene, and the monster gone. A few think the girls attacked them, the rest think the girls saved them. One agent thinks they were overwhelmed by something of a more Psionic manipulative nature."

"A Psi-what now?" Kuwabara guffawed, eyes bulging at the word.

Koenma grinned, "Something of a more psychic power nature. Telekinesis. Precognition. Omnikinesis. All of the above!"

"So...just a bunch of psychic powers. Like what I do?" Kuwabara asked wishing Koenma could just speak more simply.

Koenma nodded, "Yes. Which I why I want to send you. Fight fire with fire. Or in this case, psychic with psychic."

Kuwabara smirked, "Okay. I get it now. But you do admit I'm just bait right? You get that, right?"

Koenma frowned, "You're not bait!"

"I'm bait," Kuwabara snickered, "And because I'm bait... what do I do if the girls are in on it."

Koenma bit the bottom of his lip, "Contact me preferably... if you have to defend yourself. Fight them. Can... you do that?"

Kuwabara nodded, "Yes. Now I can."

Koenma nodded flattening his lips against each other and looking away. After a moment he mumbled, "You really aren't bait."

Kuwabara laughed hard and smacked Koenma against the shoulder with a friendly hand. "I am too you fuckin' diaper baby! But that's okay. I get your reasoning. When do I go?"

"I expect your teacher will bring this up in a week. You'll have to move to be in the area, and I expect you'll be there for four months, and at most a year," Koenma's voice faltered a bit. The mission was more or less an undercover mission and could take some time for some results. Kuwabara would be gone for longer than he and his friends had ever been gone when they worked together. Koenma was incredibly nervous to send Kuwabara on his own and privately wondered if he'd made the right decision on this.

"If you are attacked, you must come back. You must abort this mission," Koenma insisted, tone suddenly sharp. "And if you get over your head, I have a specially made watch for you. It will call here directly, and I will come get you. I don't want you to do something... that will cost you."

Koenma glance quickly at Kuwabara's leg.

This time, Kuwabara chose to ignore the look.

"Done. I'm ready, get it all arranged," Kuwabara said, shrugging his shoulders. He turned, making his way towards the door, "Well if that's all, I'm going to start pack-"

"Yusuke and the others aren't back," Koenma suddenly interjected. There was a hesitation in his voice, and he spoke like the words were being pulled from him, "They are still...out. They won't be back for at least a month more...so they won't know-"

"Good," Kuwabara interrupted. "They don't need to know. I will tell them I'm doing my student teaching when they come back."

"Kuwabara-" Koenma began.

"Don't tell them Koenma," Kuwabara pleaded, his voice soft, and his back towards the demi-god. "Dont...tell them. You know... they've been a bit... overprotective since..." Kuwabara gripped his pant leg. The silence dragged on between the two, but Kuwabara couldn't bring himself to say it. He hated to admit, but he couldn't bring himself to talk about the past without feeling shame.

He hated being pitied, but the gut wrenching shame he felt was even harder.

"I won't tell them. But... please consider doing it before the mission is complete. They really care about you," Koenma insisted, "They just... want you to be okay. And... well since Harumi-"

Kuwabara made a weird sound in his throat that silenced Koenma. The ruler of spirit world shot a hand over his mouth, stopping any more words from spilling from his mouth. He watched Kuwabara with wide alarmed eyes and felt a pang of guilt shoot through him as he watched Kuwabara shudder. When Kuwabara's shudder ran its course, the taller man's shoulders sagged and Kuwabara seemed much smaller. Koenma was grateful he could not see Kuwabara's face at this moment.

"I know..." Kuwabara's voice was tired, and cracked as he spoke, "I know. everyone is worried about me. My sister is worried about me. Yukina is worried about me. Genkai is worried about me. And Yusuke, Kurama, and Hiei can't even seem to face some days. I never thought I'd miss Hiei's fuckin' snappy remarks... but nothing is as it used to be. I need a fresh start. I can't be asked to stay at home while everyone else is out there protecting me from the whole stupid world. I can't be the person who sits at home. It just...kills me Koenma..." Kuwabara's voice dropped off and he dropped his head into his chest. After a beat, Kuwabara resumed his retreat and limped from Koenma's office.

Koenma watched Kuwabara's limping form fade from view, unable to tear his eyes away long after Kuwabara was fully out of sight.

End of Chapter 1