Experiment
By: White Rain
Disclaimer: I do not own Yuu Yuu Hakusho.
Genre: Gen
Character/Pairing: Shiori, Kurama
Word Count: 397
Rating: PG
Warnings/Notes: I realized after writing this section, the fic would go smoother if I did it in another way. However, I felt as if this was something I couldn't hide from the masses.
Summary: Shiori gets a small glimpse of how interesting her son's life can be.

For the most part, Shiori's son was nothing short of a model child: polite, dutiful and intelligent. He rarely asked for anything, never had to be asked to do his chores, and actually seemed to enjoy the loads of homework his school piled onto him. Sometimes, it was nearly unnerving.

However, sometimes her son could be quite... odd.

Shiori was reminded of that one late Sunday afternoon while she was passing her son's bedroom. He was speaking to Yuusuke about someone called Koenma, over the phone she assumed, and his voice was a little off, though Shiori couldn't quite pinpoint how.

However, before she could ponder that, her son opened the door. And his eyes popped open. "Mother! I thought you were going out with Father."

"Work called," Shiori said slowly, trying not to gawk at her son, and failing pretty miserably.

"I'm sure you're wondering what's going on," Shuuichi said. He fiddled a bit with a stray lock of hair falling down his face. He sounded a bit like his step brother did when he was caught playing video games instead of doing his homework.

For some reason, that relaxed Shiori a bit. She gave her son a small smile and said, "It's not unusual for teenagers your age to... experiment."

"Yes," he said awkwardly and refused to meet her eyes, "but I didn't quite want you to find out like this."

Shiori tapped her chin thoughtfully, "Are you in a hurry?"

"No," Shuuichi said like he was admitting something, and it sounded like someone forced those words out of him from the barrel of a gun. He stiffened not unlike the few times he'd been scolded for misbehavior throughout his childhood. Clearly, he expected to have some sort of Talk.

"Oh good!" Shiori said, "your braid a little crooked and I think your eyes shadow takes away from the color in your eyes." She looked her son up and down once more. "And I think I've got a skirt that would look better with your legs."

Shuuichi stared at her for a long moment, his eyes comically wide. Then he looked down at his watch. "Actually, I misjudged the time. I'll be home in time for dinner." Then, without even kissing her good bye, he rushed down the hall and out the door.

Laughing softly to herself, Shiori smiled and made a mental note to prepare Shuuchi's favorite meal in apology for teasing him.