http://clampfix.fanworks.net/guests/kurama06a.txt </head><body><pre>_Long_ chapter, so, like chapter 6 of _Only Yuu_, it'll be posted in two parts. Hmmm... this could be a conspiracy relating to sixth chapters.... Must be an X-File! Kurama 1/2 -chapter 6, part 1- by Kristin Huntsman "Come on!" Hairspray said, grabbing Kurama's arm. "Let's go!" Kurama sighed and allowed herself to be dragged along. <How did I allow myself to get talked into this, again? Oh yeah - Kaasan wanted us to get out of the house for the day, and Hairspray had made plans with Keiko and Botan to go to the mall, and we met up with Shizuru here....> She sighed as they entered what seemed like the billionth store. "This is nice," Hairspray said, letting go of Kurama suddenly, and fingering a blue spill of silky fabric. Kurama blinked, then realized that they'd entered a woman's clothing store. <Not another one....> "What is it, Kurama-kun?" Keiko asked from next to her. "I'm beginning to understand Yuusuke's attitude," Kurama replied. "How can you girls _like_ going into all these stores and not buying anything? There's no purpose to it!" "But there is," Keiko replied, moving to look at a dress that was colored in several subtle shades of pink and lavender. "We can't afford most of these, but we can pretend. Didn't you ever like playing dress-up?" "Oh, look at this!" Shizuru exclaimed suddenly, interrupting Kurama's negative reply. Kurama glanced at the dress she was holding out in front of her. It was pretty enough, she guessed, all emerald green and silky. She looked away, around the rest of the shop. Dresses in every imaginable hue and style covered the walls and aisles. "Don't you think that it would look good on Kurama?" Botan asked the other three. "WHAT?!" Kurama demanded, turning back to look at her. Shizuru stepped up and held the dress up against her, examining the fit with a critical eye. "It's just your size," she pronounced. "Come on, let's find a fitting room." "NO!" Kurama said stubbornly. "I am NOT wearing that dress!" "Is there a problem?" the saleslady asked, stepping up to them. "No," Shizuru said. "We do need a fitting room, though, as well as some... personal items for this young lady." "As you wish," the young woman said. "Please follow me...." She turned and started walking off. The four of them followed her, Shizuru still holding the dress. "Shizuru..." Kurama said in a low voice. "I'm going to get you for this." "Whatever for?" Shizuru asked innocently. "It's only a dress." Kurama blinked. She had a point. "It's a DRESS," she insisted nonetheless. "I am a _guy_, remember?" "Uh-huh." Shizuru looked doubtfully and pointedly at Kurama's chest. "What will you be needing, Miss?" the saleslady asked. "I don't... know," Kurama said, after a stern look from Shizuru. "Everything," Shizuru said. "Very good," the saleslady said, bowing politely, and turning to leave. "How did I let you talk me into this?" Kurama muttered, as Shizuru helped her unbutton her shirt. "I think you'll look pretty in this dress," Keiko said. "Why should you be ashamed of being a girl?" "I've spent my entire life as a guy, why should I have to enjoy being a girl?" Kurama asked, slightly embarassed as the four girls critically examined her form. "But you look beautiful as a girl," Hairspray said softly, in Chinese. Kurama paused, blushing slightly. "Speak Japanese when we're around others," she replied in Chinese. "It's more polite." "Miss," the saleslady said, knocking on the door. "Thank you," Botan said, opening the door and accepting the small stack of undergarments from her. The saleslady bowed and walked back out to the front of the store. "Come on, take it all off," she told Kurama. More than slightly embarassed, Kurama hastily took off the rest of her clothes and quickly reached for the top item on the pile of underclothes. "What the--?!" she asked, holding the pair of French-cut panties out in front of her. "Just put them on, Kurama-kun," Shizuru soothed. "They don't feel as strange as they look." "I hope so," Kurama said, bending over and stepping into them. She stood up and pulled them on. Shizuru was right, she found; after a few seconds, they didn't seem strange at all. They were actually comfortable, fitting better on this body than what she had been wearing before. "What next?" she asked, reaching for the next item from the pile. It was a bra. "NO!" she said firmly, holding it at arm's length. "I am NOT wearing this!" "Yes, you are," Shizuru said, taking it from her and fastening it around her body, just under her chest. "Stop arguing. You've gotten this far." "This is a BRA, Shizuru," Kurama explained, even as Shizuru guided her arms through the straps. "This is GIRLS' clothing." "You ARE a girl," Shizuru explained. "And a young woman needs support for her chest. Don't worry about it, okay? It's just something that you need to wear when you're female." "But--" Kurama protested. She sighed and shook her head in resignation. "All right. What next?" "Pantyhose!" Botan said cheerfully, holding them out. "Oh no..." Kurama groaned. She took them and held them out in front of her. "Do I have to?" Keiko and Botan looked at each other and nodded. "Yes!" they said in unison. "It's an ensemble look, Shuuichi," Hairspray explained. "It won't look right without them." "If I have to..." Kurama sighed. She sat down on the small bench and resignedly started pulling the lingerie on. "Not like that, like this," Shizuru explained, showing her how to roll the hose up her legs. "You'll snag them." "I have a feeling I'm going to resent that I ever fell into that spring," Kurama muttered as she stood and finished pulling them up to her waist. She slid the dress on as Shizuru handed it to her, and went to look at herself in the mirror, absently fastening the gold clasps at the collar. "Here, don't forget these," Botan said, handing Kurama a pair of green slippers. She slid the soft leather shoes onto her feet, and looked up. Her reflection looked back at her, a stunning girl in a green Chinese-cut silk dress, trimmed with gold. Kurama swallowed as she noted how the soft fabric clung to her body, revealing every line and curve. The slits up the sides reached to her hips. She moved her leg a little, and saw how the pantyhose helped to define the smooth lines, just as the bra supported and caressed her chest. The high collar was the only thing that belied the sheer sensuousness of the dress. "Is that... me?" she asked quietly. "Kurama, you look wonderful," Shizuru said softly. "Now if we could just do something about your hair...." She fingered a scarlet curl. "You are _not_ doing anything to my hair, Shizuru!" Kurama said, turning to look at her. "It is staying long, and it is staying down!" Shizuru shrugged philosophically. "Oh well," she said. "So you've gotten me into this dress," Kurama said, turning back to her reflection. "Is there anything else you wanted to do to me today?" "I guess not," Shizuru said regretfully. "What did you want to do with the dress, Shuuichi?" Hairspray asked in Chinese. "You're talking in Chinese again," she responded. "I don't want them to know what I'm asking," she replied. "Or, at least, you don't." "What do you mean?" she asked. "This dress looks very pretty on you," she answered. "You look very beautiful in clothing like this." Kurama paused for a split second as she absorbed what Hairspray had just implied. Then, for some reason, she wondered what Hiei would think of the dress on her. "It doesn't matter," she replied in Chinese. "It costs too much, anyway." She sighed and started to unfasten the clasps. She pulled the dress over her head and removed the rest of the girls' underclothing. She quickly got back into her own clothing, and headed for the door of the dressing room. "I'll carry those," Botan said, taking the pile of clothes from her. "No, it's okay," Kurama insisted, reaching for them. Botan moved them out of reach. "You want these, don't you?" she asked in a low whisper. "What are you talking about?" Kurama asked back. "You're a girl, Kurama-kun," Botan explained. "I've been reading up about those springs since we got back, and part of falling into them is that your mind _may_ begin to function partially as whatever you're cursed to be. Yours is, isn't it?" Kurama paused. That might explain something, actually. She had liked how she felt while wearing that dress. And she had liked how she looked in it. "It only happens while I'm a girl, right?" she asked. "Yes," Botan answered. "So, did you want this dress or not?" "Why does it matter?" Kurama asked. "Koenma-sama licensed me to get a Reikai Gold Card," Botan explained. "Accepted worlds-wide at all places. I don't have a credit limit, and they get the bills. Consider this a gift for helping Yuusuke out so much." Kurama smiled, suddenly amused by the thought of Koenma being stuck with all of Botan's shopping bills. "Well... okay," she said. "But only this once." Botan smiled and disappeared, supposedly off to find the sales desk and purchase the items. Kurama sighed as she set the package on her bed. Then she headed down the hall, towards the bathroom. She quickly stripped out of her clothes and placed them in the clothes basket. Stepping into the room, she set the bucket under the faucet, and turned the water on to hot. She tested it with her finger as it slowly filled the container. She wanted hot, but not too hot. She didn't relish the idea of boiling herself. When it was full enough, and the water was warm enough, she stood, holding her hair out of the way, and poured it over her body. The change came and went so quickly that he didn't even have time to analyze how it felt. But he was himself again, and could think more clearly about why he'd allowed Botan to buy that dress for him. Her. Whatever. He sighed and picked up one of the large towels that was folded over the rack, and started to dry himself off. <You are seriously losing it,> he thought. <Botan bought a _dress_ for you, for Kamisama's sake!> He thought about what his reflection had looked like, and the nebulous thoughts he'd had, concerning what Hairspray and Hiei would think about it. <Well... it's only a dress,> he thought. <If you'd gotten spiked heels, _then_ I'd know that you were losing it. So... you're not totally insane yet.> Shaking his head, he hung the towel back on the rack to dry, and stepped out to the outer room, grabbing his clothes back out of the basket and putting them on. He walked down the hall and back into his room and regarded the small bundle on the bed with suspicion. <It won't bite me... but... what do I do with it?> Sighing, he sat down and opened it. The green silk of the dress glowed faintly in the sunlight, living and warm. He picked it up and held it before him. Sighing in resignation, he moved to his closet and found an empty hanger. He deliberately placed it at the very back. If he needed it, he knew where it was. In the meantime, he didn't want anyone to find it. He picked up the remaining items on the bed - the panties, bra, slippers, and nylon hose. He moved to his dresser and buried them in the very back of one of the drawers. These, too, did not need to be found. He paused as he closed the drawer, his hand still on the handle. For some reason, he had a picture in his mind of what Hiei's reaction would be if he ever actually wore these clothes. He smiled, shook his head, and moved away. He had a meeting to keep with Yuusuke. "I can't believe I'm doing this," Yuusuke muttered, glancing around the roof of the school nervously. No one was in sight. "Oh, come on," Kurama said lightly, setting down a bucket of cold water. "You'll probably love flying." "Pu!" Pu agreed, fluttering his ears so that he settled down to land on Yuusuke's head. "What do you know about it?" Yuusuke asked sourly, plucking Puu off his head with one hand. "You just flap your ears." "Pu...." the downy blue creature cooed sadly. "Shouldn't you be with Keiko?" Yuusuke demanded. "I thought I gave you to her." "Pu...." the little creature agreed even more sadly. "You shouldn't harrass Puu so much, Yuusuke," Kurama said, coming over and taking him from Yuusuke's grip. "He is your soul, after all." "Yeah, well, I didn't want him," Yuusuke said, glaring at the bird-thing. "And he can't even stay with Keiko like I tell him to." "Pu!" Pu said defensively, settling on Kurama's head. Kurama gave a soft laugh. "Well, ready?" he asked Yuusuke, picking up the water again. Yuusuke took a deep breath and let it out. "Yeah, I guess so," he told Kurama. Kurama smiled and threw the water on him. The world grew suddenly larger as Yuusuke instantly transformed into a falcon. He shook his head and flapped his wings, shaking the water off. "Here," Kurama said, bending down and extending an arm. Yuusuke looked up at him, then down again. After a few seconds, he figured out how to get onto Kurama's arm, where he hung on for dear life. "Ite!" Kurama said. "You have talons, Yuusuke. They hurt." <Gomen,> Yuusuke mentally apologized, relaxing his tense grip somewhat. "That's better," Kurama said, standing up slowly and moving away from Yuusuke's pile of discarded clothes. Yuusuke looked at him somewhat curiously. He hadn't spent much time in this bird's body, and wasn't quite used to it. It was weird... he couldn't see straight ahead, but he could see perfectly what was on either side of him. And things looked different, too. The way Kurama looked suddenly seemed absolutely hilarious, though Yuusuke couldn't figure out why. Yuusuke cocked his head upwards, examining Pu with a sudden new interest. Pu didn't really look much at all like a bird, he decided. If anything, he resembled a stuffed animal. But he was the closest thing to a bird that Yuusuke had ever seen flying or given a second thought to. Pu was looking back at Yuusuke with the same interest, like Yuusuke was a new toy or something. <Stupid bird,> Yuusuke thought. <Why the hell did that egg have to hatch into something that looks like you? I mean, why can't my soul look a little cooler or something?> "Ready to try, Yuusuke?" Kurama asked, breaking Yuusuke's train of thoughts. "I can't give any personal experience about being a bird, but I know a little about flying." Yuusuke gave a questioning noise and looked expectantly at Kurama. "You want to fly with the breeze," Kurama explained. "Gliding is easier than continually flapping your wings, and if you want to climb in altitude, go against the breeze." He paused, and his serious face lightened. "You're a peregrine falcon in this body, which means a few things. You're not that big, but you're fast. _Very_ fast. Peregrines have been clocked at over 120 miles per hour. Peregrines are also predators, and more or less at the top of the food chain. If you had to choose a cursed spring to fall into, I don't think you could have done much better." Kurama smiled. Yuusuke nodded his head and spread his wings, getting ready to take off. "On three?" Kurama asked. Yuusuke nodded again in agreement. "One..." "Two..." "Three!" As Kurama lifted his arm upwards, Yuusuke opened his wings and beat them furiously, moving quickly upwards. He cocked his head downwards momentarily, and saw Kurama looking up at him. If Yuusuke could have laughed, he would have. He turned his attention back to the skies. The wide open skies. Freedom. How incredible. <I love flying!> Yuusuke thought wildly, instinctively performing a loop-the-loop. Kurama chuckled softly, watching Yuusuke show his evident delight in the pure sensation of flight. Sitting down against the wall, he pulled a book out of his pocket and began to read. Falcons are among the most beautiful and noble creatures that roam the skies. Peregrines, in particular, are spectacular for their black-and-white beauty, and their comparitive rarity. Though they make their nests in practically every known country, they are not often seen. Kurama smiled to himself. <Well, now Tokyo has at least one peregrine falcon to her credit,> he thought, looking up to where Yuusuke's bird form was performing swoops and circles that seemed to defy the very laws of physics. <Though I doubt he'll ever nest.> In ancient Egypt, the peregrine was highly revered, and was often accorded the same dignity given to nobles and cats, being mummified upon its death. The Egyptians' sentiments towards this noble bird may best be seen in their belief that it represented an eternal rebirth, immortality, and freedom. Kurama repressed a cold shiver of prescience as it ran down his spine. <Rebirth... but whose?> He kept reading. Yuusuke shrieked in delight. He felt like he could never get his fill of flying. But he'd been flying for a good half-hour, and was beginning to get a little bit tired, and a little hungry. Time to turn back. Yuusuke performed a 180 degree turn at 65 miles per hour. Then, suddenly, he spotted prey. His falcon instincts told him that the fleeing pigeon was definitely food, and then totally took over. Yuusuke gave chase to the soft gray pigeon, and quickly caught up with it. His claw closed around it, and his talon pierced through its chest to the heart. Yuusuke's mind came back with a shock at that. <What--?!> was his first thought. <Oh God, I killed it!> was his second. <No....> Yuusuke sped back to Sarayashiki. Kurama would know what to do. He always did. And in his claw, Yuusuke clutched a dying pigeon. Kurama looked up at a bird's shriek, and saw Yuusuke quickly approaching the school. Carrying something in his left claw. <Something's wrong,> Kurama thought, standing up as Yuusuke flew over the fence. <What did he do?> Kurama extended his hands as Yuusuke came to an abrupt halt, hovering over them. Yuusuke opened his claws, and the bloody corpse of a pigeon fell into Kurama's hands. He looked at it as Yuusuke settled onto his forearm. "You did this?" he murmured, looking up at Yuusuke. Yuusuke's eyes were so full of shock and remorse that Kurama didn't need to hear an answer. The pigeon stirred weakly in Kurama's hands. "She's not dead," he said softly. "But she will be if we don't hurry." Deciding, he gently set the bird down on the pavement, and moved with Yuusuke over to where the thermos of hot water was standing on the ground. Yuusuke obediently hopped off his arm as Kurama opened the thermos. He poured the water over Yuusuke. "What do we do with it?" Yuusuke gasped, standing up. "You get dressed, then we take it to a good vet I know of who's near here. While he's patching her up, we can talk." "Gotcha." Yuusuke turned away and started pulling on his clothes in what had to be record time. In seconds, they were clattering down the stairs. Yuusuke sat miserably while Kurama explained to the vet that the pigeon had been injured, and asked if he could take a look at it. "I can't believe that I did that," he murmured as Kurama sat down beside him. "It was like one minute I was fine, then - wham! - I wasn't me anymore. I was going to kill it to eat it, and now because of me, some little bird is going to innocently die." "It's not going to die," Kurama reassured him. "Seishirou-sensei is very good; he'll fix her." "What the hell happened to me?" Yuusuke murmured. "You became a falcon for a minute," Kurama said, laying a reassuring hand on Yuusuke's shoulder. "The springs sometimes have that effect, Botan says. You just have to be a little more careful." "You mean there's a reason?" Yuusuke asked. "I'm not going crazy?" "Not in the least," Kurama said laughingly. "It's happening to me too, a little." "Nani?!" Yuusuke turned sharply to look at Kurama. "You're not serious?!" Kurama shrugged. "Just some things don't bother me as much as they used to when I'm in that body." "Like what?" "Shizuru got me into a dress during a shopping expedition today," Kurama replied. "And while I was wearing it, it didn't seem wrong at all." Yuusuke tried to read Kurama's eyes, but they were turned away from him. "This is permanent?" he asked. Kurama shrugged again. "Probably as permanent as the curses," he answered. "Unless a cure can be found, we're probably going to have to live like this for quite some time." Yuusuke sighed, and they sat for several seconds in contemplative silence. Finally he asked, "So I spend the rest of my life eating pigeons while you go around in drag and Kuwabara gets hooked on carrot cake?" Kurama gave him a look for a long second, and Yuusuke returned it until neither of them could stand the serious expressions any more and they both burst out laughing. ******** See, Sandy's not the only one who can do research! And here you all thought I picked Yuusuke's cursed spring completely randomly! HA! I defy you! Oh, and I have to thank Rika for finding the particular _Tokyo Babylon_ reference I asked her for, as I'd forgotten it. Arigato, Rika-san! And, now, after posting this, I have to go get ready for school... ugh. I hope everyone else who's being forced to participate in the travesty known as the first day of school today is as excited about it as I am. :( </pre><p><a href="./">Back</a></p><p><a href=http://www.dreamhost.com/donate.cgi?id=216><img border=0 alt="Donate towards our web hosting bill!" src=https://secure.newdream.net/donate1.gif></a></p></body></html>