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“How’s it been?”
Kurama was leaning over the side of his chair, a smile on his face as he looked down into Kaito’s face. Kaito leaned back in his chair, putting his head in his hand as he tapped the papers lined up along on the wooden table.
“I’m making progress. Nothing will hold me back from finishing. I just have to figure out how I want to phrase some sentences.” Kaito waved his hand, and Kurama followed it with his eyes. “That’s the thing. There’s so many different ways to say something, sometimes it takes a while to settle on the perfect thing. Once you get that perfect thing your reader gets what you’re saying better, so you need to make sure you phrase it appropriately.”
“Yes, and you’ve never been one to slack,” Kurama complimented, before looking down over the papers himself. “I’m sure whatever you put out will impress everyone who reads it.”
“There’s no need to compliment me, I know.”
Kurama read over a few more of them, turning his eyes to Kaito a few moments onward. Kaito was the furthest thing from a fool. Before long, he would be able to pinpoint why exactly he had come to visit him and what exactly he wanted to confirm with him. In fact, it was likely that he already knew and was just waiting for Kurama to spill it. He smiled, instead drawing out a game cartridge from his pocket, placing it in front of him to measure some good will and seem less like the only times he visited were in someone else’s personal interests.
“I’ve played this before, and I figured you’d like it.”
Kaito turned it over in his hand, squinting as he read the back of it and then dropping it down into his desk. He shut it with a hand, and then turned back to Kurama. “I figure you got a foreign game just because you thought I’d have tried most others that are available here.”
Kurama chuckled. “It’s a present from the Demon World.”
“Bullshit, I know your realm doesn’t have that kind of technology.”
“It’s not really my realm, but it is also my realm.” Kurama walked over to one side of the room, looking up and down the bookshelves. “But you know the details so I’ll spare you anything further.”
“Hmph.”
Kurama drew one of the books off the shelf: a book on exotic plants. He couldn’t help but slide his eyes over to Kaito. He hadn’t ever thought that Kaito was someone who was interested in that sort of thing, but it was possible that with their former encounter, he’d realized that botany was within his realm of interest. He was someone who sought after knowledge, and the experience just might have provided proof of what further he could learn. Genkai had already shown him a lot of things he hadn’t known, but the more topics that he studied, the better he would be at a lot of things. Writing was one area in particular where knowledge was extremely powerful. He held the book up to his mouth.
“Your abilities. Have you used them?”
“Well, there it is. I figured.” Kaito laughed and then turned around, eyes catching on the book he was holding up. “No, I haven’t. If I wanted to use it against someone, it’d have to be a rival. Since there’s no one around who fits that description, it’s useless. I’d outsmart anyone I tried it with. Secondly, yes, I have been studying botany—what of it?”
Kurama tapped the book against his lips. “What’s the scientific name for the yew?”
“Taxus baccata.”
“And why do you think I’m mentioning it to you?”
Kaito reached out and grabbed the underside of the book, taking it away from Kurama’s face and placing it on the desk alongside his paper. “It’s one of the most poisonous plants. Depending on the amount digested, it can cause a variety of painful symptoms and even death. You’re either saying you’re worried about me and that something’s out to harm me, or you’re just testing my knowledge as an expert on the topic.”
Kurama tilted his head. “I’m not saying that something’s going to harm you. I’m saying that something will harm you if you step out of line. But otherwise you answered correctly. Congratulations.”
“I don’t need your congratulations.” Kaito tapped his pen on the table. “And I know perfectly well how powerful Genkai is and that the spirit realm is concerned about us. I’m not going to use my abilities without permission, and I know what will happen if I do. Don’t look down on me like that, Minamino.”
“I’m not. I’ve just been asked to check up on you, nothing more.”
Kaito turned back towards his papers, switching between them as he continued to look for mistakes. Kurama watched as he made a mark with one of them with a red pen, writing a note beside it quickly and tilting his head further down to concentrate. His glasses slipped down on his nose and Kurama reached out, pushing them back up for him. Kaito turned his head at the gesture.
“Anything else? I’m busy, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t make it long.”
Kurama smiled. “Why don’t you take a break and come out with me? It’s always good to stretch your legs, and it might even help with your concentration.”
“I’m not interested.”
“It wasn’t a question.” Kurama turned his back to him, putting a hand in his pocket and brushing it against the bag pressed against his leg. He opened the door up, letting the wind blow into the room as he stared back at Kaito, the smile on his face only growing. “You’re coming with me and you don’t have a choice in the matter, unless you want to take it up with Genkai herself?”
“Tch. Fine, I get it.” He stood up. “So, where are you taking me?"
Kurama observed Kaito as they walked. His eyes caught on some of the games as they passed through the theme park, one of the stands in particular, but for the most part he silently followed Kurama, his face was pulled into an annoyed expression. Kurama had told him that he was allowed to go wherever he wished, to play any game that he desired, but considering that Kaito wasn’t interested in the theme park in the first place, he made no attempt to break off from him. Kurama strayed to the side of the path, walking past a few children and quickly moving his foot to the side so they wouldn’t trip.
“I’d suggest that you try to enjoy yourself,” Kurama said, “but I can tell that you’re not interested. Is your mind so captivated by your writing that you can’t rest until you’ve finished?”
“No, I’m just wondering what Genkai’s intent was if she wanted you to bring me all the way out here.” He pushed his glasses up and then maneuvered around a couple who were too lost in their happy bubble to notice that they would stumble straight into him. “Some sort of test, I assume. I’ll accept whatever you throw at me with open arms. Whatever it is, I won’t lose. I made a promise and I intend to follow through on it.”
“You’re free to think what you want, but you can’t ever be prepared for everything.”
“I know that better than the average person,” Kaito responded. “Those words are useless to me.”
Kurama walked over to a vending machine and deposited a few yen inside of it. When the cans fell out, he tossed one over to Kaito, who caught it and turned it to the side, reading the label. To Kurama’s good luck he didn’t toss it away, instead popping it open and taking a swig.
Kurama took a sip from his own can. “Are you a fan of soda?”
“Not particularly,” Kaito responded.
“I’m not the biggest fan either.”
Kaito chuckled. “Then why did you buy it?”
Kurama gave him a smile, and after a few moments of consideration, he made a beeline for the stand. It had a cute outline to it, with the colors being a lighter purple and orange and the decorations twisting around the poles at the edges daintily. It was a balloon dart game, as apparent by the balloons that were lined up on one of the walls. There wasn’t a single person in line. Whenever they stepped forwards, the employee looked up from his book at them, sliding it to the side quickly and putting on a broad smile for the both of them.
“Hello, do you know how to play?”
“Yes, I’ve been here before with my family,” Kurama answered, “Have the prizes been mixed up or are they the same? The last time we came there were different stuffed animals.”
“Uhh, as far as I’m aware the prizes are all the same as then, yes,” the employee stuttered back, looking underneath the shelf for a moment as if to re-acquaint himself with the prizes. “If you pop five in a row, you get one of them. If you pop all of them within the time limit, there’s a bigger prize. I’ll set the timer for a minute, and you throw until either your time is up or you’re out of darts. Tell me when you’re ready.”
Kurama turned back to look at Kaito, glad to see the interest he discovered there. He suspected that it was due to the bigger prize being something unknown, and a desire to discover what it was. Kurama, of course, knew what it was but there was no point in telling him that when he was so eager to discover it himself.
He held out a hand and took his soda from him, tilting his head as a signal for him to step forwards. “Go on. I’ve played it before, so I don’t need to again.”
Kaito grunted, but didn’t protest. Kurama set his own soda on one of the ledges to the side of the stand, and watched as he picked one of the darts up, and the employee started the timer. A moment later, he dug the bag from his pocket as he was almost entirely sure the only thing that the employee and Kaito were focused on at the moment was the game.
It was easy enough to upend the bag and deposit the powder into the soda in the time frame, and just as easy to swirl the drink around to dissolve it. As he thought, Kaito was a natural at the game, hitting most of the balloons easily, though when he didn’t Kurama was treated with a delightful sound of frustration that had him chuckling. At two seconds until the timer dinged, he managed to hit the last balloon, which earned a few claps from the employee and turned heads of a few people on the path behind them. Kaito watched eagerly as he skittered off to retrieve the prize.
“Well done, Kaito,” Kurama said, but Kaito didn’t seem to be flattered by the compliment.
“I’m sure you did just as well, knowing you. How long did it take when you played this before?”
Kurama thought back to the trip with his family, and the stuffed animals they’d lugged along with them around the park afterwards. “Around fifteen seconds, I believe. But, to be entirely fair, I was only around nine years old back then.”
Kaito’s eyes widened, and a few moments later he huffed, turning away with his mood a bit sour. It certainly wasn’t going to be lightened any whenever he saw his prize.
As if on cue, the employee lugged out a huge stuffed unicorn and deposited it onto the table in front of the both of them. It filled up the entire area, and even as tall as the staff was, he had to stand on his tippy-toes to be able to see over it at them. Kaito’s look of shock toppled Kurama’s composure, and he bent to the side, the hand not holding the soda over his mouth to keep anything too atrocious from coming out. Still, he was sure a few wheezes could be heard, and he was sure that Kaito did not take any amount of glee in them.
“...I don’t want it,” Kaito said through his teeth. “You can put it back, keep it for one of the kids or something.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m very sure.”
As the employee struggled with the prize, Kaito turned around and headed back towards Kurama’s side, looking a lot more beaten-down and exhausted than he had previously. Kurama handed him his drink, and then picked up his own, taking another sip. Kurama heard him sigh from behind him.
“Is this all you brought me for? To have some fun? It’s not working.”
Kurama looked over his shoulder. “We haven’t even gotten to the main event yet. View what we just did as a side quest, rather than the main one. As you’re someone who enjoys video games so much, I’m sure you can resonate with that comparison.”
Kaito pushed up his glasses. “What is the main quest going to be, then?”
Kurama gestured towards the Ferris wheel.
It was the centerpiece of the theme park. Due to where it was positioned, it allowed for easy navigation and was also an aesthetically pleasing sight, especially since the sun had set not long ago and the lights had recently been turned on. They weren’t anywhere that light pollution wouldn’t ruin the starry night sky, but if they were it surely would have been a breathtaking sight. He stepped in line alongside Kaito, and they stood together in silence as other park-goers entered and exited.
There was a smaller girl with round glasses that was working as the staff of the ride. Kurama complimented her makeup, to which she blushed and thanked him. Kaito sipped his drink behind him, watching the conversation without saying anything more. The line wasn’t long; they were the next to get on the ride. The cabin that approached them was a pale yellow, and when they stepped inside Kurama took one end and Kaito took the other. The ride rocked roughly as they settled in, creaking as it took off into the air as it started its first cycle around. Kurama stared across at Kaito, who uncomfortably started to shuffle.
“Are you interested in women?” Kaito asked, clearly trying to solve the problem of the uncomfortable silence that had filled the area in the past minute. Kurama’s eyes hadn’t slid from his for even a moment, which probably added to the pressure. “That lady seemed really flattered. You should have asked her out. You had all the girls at school wrapped around your finger, so I’m sure that she wouldn’t have said no if you asked. We’re getting around that age that we’d want that sort of thing, anyways.”
“I complimented her because it was clear she put effort into her appearance,” Kurama responded matter-of-factly. “Not because I wanted her to be my girlfriend.”
“So you don’t then?”
“I’m not interested, no.”
He set his half-empty drink to the side, staring into his face. Kurama knew that Kaito was tough himself, but the Demon World plant he’d crushed up to put into his drink was something that had taken almost too long to take effect. For a normal person, he would have had to drag them onto the Ferris wheel himself, but Kaito wasn’t precisely normal, so he’d administered it early. Only now was he seeing the effects. He watched Kaito reach up to grab his head, on their second go-around.
Kurama stood up, taking a step over in a way that severely tilted the cabin. Kaito clutched the edge of his side. “W-What the hell, go back over there! It’ll tip!”
“Kaito.” Kurama placed his knee on the edge of the seat, leaning down to look into his eyes. The cabin tipped more, and Kaito’s hands clutched it behind his head as Kurama’s face drew closer, close enough for the red tips of his hair to brush against his cheek. “You’re feeling a bit weird, aren’t you? Is there something wrong?”
Kaito blinked up at him a few times. “H-How can you…?”
“That’s my fault. I sprinkled something in your soda when you weren’t looking.” He reached up, drawing off his glasses and letting them fall from his fingers. The noise clanked against metal as they fell from his fingers and onto the ground. “You’re not going to need these anymore, are you? Your vision should be swimming by now, and I doubt that it’s possible for you to stand up.”
Kaito clutched the edge of the cabin loosely, his strength rapidly leaving him. “What did you do to me, Minamino?”
“Do you truly want to know?”
He glared at him. “Don’t mess with me.”
“I have been for the last hour, but it’s nice that you’ve finally noticed.” Kurama reached over towards his hand, moving it and dropping it down in his lap. It thudded against his thighs, before going entirely still.“What I used isn’t something from the human realm, so there’s no way for you to know what it’ll do to you. You can stop trying to figure it out. It won’t lead anywhere. With your limitations, you have no chance of reaching my level.”
Kaito’s head flopped towards the side, panic clear in his eyes as he tried to regain control of a body that wasn’t going to listen to him. Kurama aided him as it was getting to a point where he couldn’t hold up his head himself any longer, grasping his chin to keep it in place. The smile on his face grew; he leaned forwards more. The cabin tilted in response. It was nearing the top for the second time, and Kurama’s legs slid along the seat. It wouldn’t tip—cabins weren’t built to do that—but what mattered was the threat of it.
“Kaito,” He cooed at him, a threat in his voice. “The Spirit World has sent me here to kill you. You know that much, right?”
Kaito didn’t respond, but from the way his eyes reacted, he clearly was shocked to hear such a thing. He wouldn’t lose consciousness from the drug for a few more minutes yet, and Kurama was free to say anything he wanted to him. To tempt him, to throw him off the edge to see whether or not he would lash out with his abilities and use his territory to keep himself safe. That was his true purpose here, to threaten him to a point that he might use his abilities. As much as words were comforting—to humans at least—they never could be trusted as proof, especially not in these sorts of situations. In situations where life was at stake, whether it be your own or others. And given Kaito’s own selfish mindset, Kurama had been set on confronting him alone.
The Youko inside of him loved it, and the Minamino who cared about Kaito hated it in return.
“In around a minute’s time you’ll lose consciousness, and you won’t wake up again.” Kurama leaned so close that their noses almost touched, keeping complete eye-contact with the one in front of him. “What are you going to do with the time that you have left? There’s still many options for you. Are you going to peter out or are you going to go out with a bang? It’s your choice, in the end.”
He saw him swallow, but something appeared in his eyes. A realization almost, at those words. Half of him yelled at him for revealing his purpose, but the other half of him reveled in the fact that he’d let such a compelling hint slip. Human emotions danced happily at the newfound spirit in Kaito’s eyes, and he gently released his chin. Kurama climbed up off of him and sat back against the other side of the cabin, watching him slowly lose his consciousness. No threat of someone’s territory creeped over him, and absolutely no sign of Kaito fighting back against the situation, despite how terrifying the experience must be. Slowly losing control of his body, slowly losing consciousness—his body started falling towards the side, and Kurama watched his head hit the side of the cabin somewhat painfully. He turned his head and looked into the distance as the cabin lowered.
Now, all that was left was to meet with her.
“I’ve brought him. He passed,” Kurama said to her, leaning over to the bench and setting Kaito down on it. “I administered the antidote on the way here, but he’ll still feel terrible when he wakes up.”
“Hmph.” Genkai crouched beside Kaito, tapping his face a few times before standing up. “I didn’t tell you to poison him, did I? You went out and did that on your own. You take care of him, I already have enough brats to deal with around here and the last thing I need is to have to take another under my wing.”
“Alright,” Kurama responded. “He can stay with me for the time being. Afterwards, I’ll send him home. However, I’m not sure how much he’ll like me taking care of him after what happened tonight. I normally wouldn’t call upon your aid, but I thought that it might be more comforting for him to be housed by someone who didn’t poison him.”
“Boy,” Genkai looked up at him. “Do I look like the comforting type to you?”
“No. I guess neither of us qualify then.” He glanced over at Kaito, a stern expression on his face. “What of the Spirit World? Will they lessen the precautions they’re taking around them? I assume that they’re talking of measures if you wanted me to test him, and I also assume it was passed down on Koenma’s orders. Are they still worried about them using their abilities on normal humans? Did something happen?”
“You talk too much.” Genkai waved her hand. “But you’re correct. One of this boy’s friends used his abilities when a demon confronted him in an alley. The Spirit World didn’t crack down too harshly on him, but it made them more aware of what they could cause if they go unchecked.”
“So Koenma wanted you to check on him?”
Genkai shrugged. “I have better use of my time. I figured I’d hand the matter to you and you accepted it. The poison wasn’t necessary, but guess I admire the dedication of bringing him to a public place. You really wanted to test if he was dangerous to people, didn’t you? You weren’t thinking about yourself in the slightest.”
Kurama’s smile broadened a bit. “I’ve survived many wounds; he wouldn’t be able to lay a hand on me if he wanted to. The common folk on the other hand…”
“You’re lucky it ended well. You would’ve been punished if it had gone poorly.”
“I wasn’t concerned.”
Genkai sighed, turning around and walking away from where the both of them were sitting in the small park. “Do whatever you please, but at the very least make sure your rambunctiousness doesn’t tangle my coattails too. I've had enough of that with Yusuke and I don’t want to deal with any more of that crap with you. You’re usually pretty sensible, Kurama.”
“Of course. Have a good evening, Genkai.”
She didn’t respond as she walked further down the street, slowly disappearing out of sight. Kurama looked down at Kaito, who was still entirely unconscious on the park bench beside him, looking as if he was just having a good dream. He sat down himself next to him, staring at the trees across from them as they swung side to side in the midnight wind, starting to think to himself just how he should act whenever Kaito woke up.