STOP!
Again, this next part to my ongoing story of insanity was too long to post as one entry, so I had to split it into two parts. Again. XD

SO. You know the drill. Click the archives button up there and click A Storm Approaches; Part A. Read that first. Then you can read this part. ^^

Because dude. Reading this part without reading part A first would um be... Uncool? And you’d... Miss Part A. XD

Okay, shutting up.

~
You read Part A?

~
No?

~
Why the hell not?

~
Read it now?

~
Good! XD Now enjoy part B.
~~~

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A Storm Approaches (b)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rae let out a sigh, leaning back in her chair, watching with a roll of her eyes as the three male occupants of the room each sat enjoying they’re meals. Meals prepared by Rae of course. She turned her gaze to the window instead; deciding that watching the three eat was something she’d rather not see actually. Messy men... Heh.

Lucky for her, popping Eggos in a toaster while micro-waving Hot Pockets really wasn’t that arduous of a task... As cooking really wasn’t one of the girl’s strong points.

A large gust of wind brushed up against the windows, rattling the old glass in their panes. She watched the glass tremble, a small frown forming on her lips. Usually the girl loved storms and windy nights. Yet... A small shiver ran up her spine, and for a moment... An odd eerie sensation passed over her. She shivered again and then shrugged, concluding that it was nothing more than stress.
I’m worrying too much. Calm down Rae, geez.

Before she could further contemplate the fading peculiar feeling, a cool sensation passed over her tattooed hand, engulfing the design in cold energy. Someone’s jumping. With that thought Rae looked up, noting with no surprise as Druuvbin suddenly appeared beside her, a pleasant smile on his lips.

“Ah, hello,” the blue haired man greeted the others cheerfully, waving a lean hand in welcome. “I see you are all awake.” The slender sprite then ran a hand through his long blue hair, a few strands of lavender highlights shimmering in the bright kitchen lighting.

“Druu-chan. Hey,” Rae responded happily, giving the man a bright smile. “You hungry? I’ve been playing chef for everyone else, so I might as well feed you too,” she offered, a grin forming on her lips.

“Hm, no thanks. I will have a cup of coffee however, if you don’t mind,” the psychic replied, moving over to the counter.

“Sit down, I’ll fix you some,” Rae interjected, moving to stand from her sitting position. “How do you take your coffee, anyway?”

“I do believe I can handle it, Rae,” Druuvbin stated with an amused smile, winking a lavender eye at the girl. He then proceeded to take a mug from an overhead cabinet. “And I like it black, actually,” he then answered lightly.

“Aw, no sugary-sugar, man?” Kopaka questioned, a goofy smirk on his lips. “Sugar is cool.”

“Figures you like sugar, Kopaka.... Hey, Druu. How ya doin’?” Jiro spoke up, first giving the wind sprite a smirk before turning to wave at Druuvbin.

The water elemental smiled, moving to sit beside Rae on the last unoccupied wooden chair. “I’m fine, of course. However, I do believe I may have had a few too many of those, hm, ‘radioactive challenge mix’ drinks...” he trailed off, a somewhat sheepish smile forming on his lips.

“Yeah, you look kind of crappy actually,” Sano commented through a bite of waffle, looking over the elemental. “Hung over?”

“You could say that I suppose,” Druuvbin responded airily after taking a sip from his coffee mug.

Rae turned her full attention to the water elemental, taking in his appearance. The lean man looked stylish as ever of course, light blue jeans and a casual, loose fitting lavender top. It goes good with his eyes...

However on closer inspection, she noted the psychic’s face, which was... Rather pale. More so than usual even. Not that Druu is ever not pale but still... Whoa. Actually now that I think about it... Druu, Kits, Mals and Kopaka are all pretty pale... What, they never heard of the sun or something? Well Kits is the palest, because she’s practically like an ice-cube or something... Kouji too... Rae shook her head, realizing her thoughts were getting a bit off track. Damn ADD...

“You okay?” she questioned, still taking in the sprite’s appearance. His pale face and tired eyes... “Sano’s right, you don’t look so great actually...” Rae bit her lip, a small frown forming on her lips.

“Ah, not to worry. Nothing that a few cups of coffee won’t cure,” Druu answered, waving a hand dismissively. “The same however could be said for you Sanosuke. You’re not looking, hm, exactly at your best either,” the sprite went on to say with an amused smile, motioning a hand towards the spiky haired teen’s neck.

“Shut up,” Sano responded, a blush forming on his face as he looked down at his food. “Stupid blonde maniac...”

“How many drinks did you have?” Kopaka suddenly questioned, turning his attention to the psychic.

“Hm? Well... I believe I lost count actually. They were rather good,” Druu answered, a guilty smile forming on his pale lips. “I suppose they were a bit stronger than I thought, neh?”

“They were so not good. That had to be the nastiest thing I’ve ever tasted. Ever,” Rae shuddered, remembering the downright acidic taste of the bitter drink. “Geh.”

“You shouldn’t drink so much, man,” the wind sprite commented, still focused on the psychic, his blue eyes meeting Druu’s lavender gaze.

“Says the crazed druggie alcoholic,” Jiro interjected with a smirk, pushing a lock of brown hair away from his eyes. “Like you have any room to talk, Kopaka.”

“Heheh...” the sprite smirked in response, finally turning his gaze away from Druu, instead moving to pull at Jiro’s earrings. “But drugs and booze are cooool, man.”

Rae rolled her eyes at the sprite, shaking her head a bit. Yes Kopaka, tell my little brother that drugs and alcohol are cool... Bad influence much? “Drugs and booze are not cool. Baka,” she responded, raising an eyebrow at the grinning sprite.

“Heheheh...”

“Will you leave my earrings alone?” Jiro groaned, pulling away from the wind/ice elemental. “You’re going to rip ’em out.”

“Heheheh...”

“Ow! Quit it!”

“Kopaka. Stop trying to rip my brother’s earrings out,” Rae sighed, rolling her eyes in exasperation. He’s like a little kid or something...Geez...

“Awww. Man. You’re no fun,” Kopaka responded with a pout, however the grin still remained. He then turned his attention to Sano. “Heh. Rabid rooster man.” With that he began to poke at the teen’s marked neck.

“Will you QUIT THAT?!”

“Heheheh.”

Rae rolled her eyes once again, deciding to ignore the sprite and his childish antics. “So, Druu. Did you uh, talk to Kitsune?” she questioned, remembering the annoyed look that Kitsune had flashed at the sprite. She wanted to ‘discuss’ something with him, huh...Heh...

“I don’t know if you would call it a talk, exactly. Two hours worth of lecturing would be a more accurate way to put it,” the psychic responded airily, a slight mischievous sparkle flashing in his eyes. “Perhaps that’s why I’m so tired, hm? Maybe it wasn’t the drinks after all,” he then commented with a playful wink.

Two hours? Ouch...

“What did you do this time?” Jiro questioned, raising an eyebrow at the sprite’s words. “Two hours?”

“Oh, Kitsune stays rather angry with me on a fairly regular basis. Not unusual I’m afraid,” Druuvbin answered with a smile, taking another sip from his large coffee mug.

“Heheheh... Rabid Kits,” Kopaka randomly stated, a teasing grin playing on his lips. “Rabid Kits, rabid, rabid foxes and rabid roosters...Lalala...”

Sano twitched at the ‘rooster’ bit of the sprite’s sing-songy words, however opted to remain silent, eating another bite of waffle instead.

Rae was kind of proud of the older teen actually. Yeah, she was proud of him for not trying to strangle the crazy sprite... She really wouldn’t blame him...

“Rabid? Hm, Kopaka, now I don’t believe I’d go that far,” Druuvbin stated with a smile, shaking his head a bit. “Irritable perhaps, but rabid?”

“Rabid foxes and rabid rooooosters...”

“Idiot...” Sano muttered lowly, once again twitching angrily.

“She seemed pretty pissed,” Rae commented, thinking back to the ice demon’s irritated gaze. The whole ‘color’ thing that Kouji said....Hm...

“Ah, well. It’s nothing to concern yourself with,” the psychic shrugged, waving his hand dismissively. “Just Kitsune being Kitsune, that’s all,” he went on to say, a pleasant smile still on his pale lips.

Rae nodded in response, however frowned, her thoughts drifting back to Kouji’s words... ‘He has a funny color...’ Kouji’s teary eyes and... She shivered, though unsure as to the exact cause. The memory of those teary eyes...

A crack of distant thunder pulled her from her thoughts and she turned her eyes to the window, noting the nearby trees bending and twisting from the force of the wind.... Almost like they’re dancing...

“So... I guess it’s gonna storm...” Jiro stated uneasily, steel-blue eyes also turned to the window. Unlike his sister, the young teen was not fond of storms, and a look of unease could be seen on his face.

“Stormy storms. Heh. Coool,” Kopaka commented happily, once again moving to tug on the young teen’s earrings.

“OW! Hey!”

“Yes, well not to worry Jiro-chan, it will hopefully pass quickly,” Druuvbin stated calmly, also eyeing the murky sky.

“I’m not afraid or anything,” the teen responded defensively, moving his eyes away from the dark window.

“Did I say you were?” the psychic questioned innocently, a smile once again present on his lips.

“He hates storms, big baby,” Rae grinned, poking her brother affectionately on the shoulder. “Heh.”

“Quit it!” the teen pulled away, giving his sister an annoyed glare.

The girl stuck her tongue out teasingly in response before pulling away, smirk still on her lips. “Touchy, touchy.”

“Ah, by the way, Jiro. I’m sorry that you were excluded from our little trip to Tokyo,” Druu cut in smoothly, changing the subject before the siblings had a chance to argue any further.

“Yeah well... I’ll live I guess...” the teen grumbled, shrugging his shoulders a bit. “Not your fault anyway. Kopaka’s the one who left me behind,” Jiro went on to say, giving the wind sprite an annoyed glance.

“You weren’t at the party. You should have been at the party, party. But you weren’t. So. Dude,” Kopaka responded with a grin, winking at the young teen. “Too bad for you.”

“You didn’t miss anything...” Sano mumbled, shooting a quick glare at Kopaka.

“I dunno. Seeing you get bit and molested was pretty interesting,” Rae commented, casting a purposefully irritating grin to the spiky haired teen. Heh...

“Will you shut up about that?”

“Sanosuke got mol~~ested.”

“Shut up!!”

“Ahem. Anyway,” Druuvbin cleared his throat, casting an amused glance at Rae and Sano before continuing. “I was thinking that perhaps after Kitsune brings Kouji, I could take you, Kouji and Rae back to Tokyo,” the sprite suggested with a smile.

“Really? You’d do that?” the shaggy haired teen questioned, sitting up a bit. “Really?”

“It seems only fair. Plus, I think it’s good for Kouji to get out... The boy... Well. He hasn’t had much of a life to put it lightly,” the psychic responded, a more serious tone flittering through his voice.

“Yeah... So I’ve heard,” Jiro commented, looking down. “I feel sorry for him.”

“Well. I believe this will be good for him, living in a somewhat normal, stable environment for once,” the psychic mused, running a hand through his long blue hair. “Though we do our best, I’m afraid a normal life is definitely not something that Kitsune or any of us are capable of giving him. At this point, I’m not sure what a ‘normal’ life even is...” Druu trailed off, shaking his head a bit.

Rae watched the sprite, noting for a brief moment his bright eyes darkened, a bit of emotion quickly flashing through those lavender orbs... What is that? Sadness? Guilt? Why are you so freaking hard to read, Druu? The expression swiftly faded however and the girl let a small frown momentarily play on her lips. Meh. I thought I was better at reading people than this ya know. Not with him though... He’s like a damn wall... I can’t read him at all. I’m suddenly doubting my empath abilities here...

“Hey, so you guys aren’t exactly normal. Normal is highly over-rated. I like you all just the way you are. And though I’m really not so sure I’d define myself as ‘normal’ either, I’m glad that you guys trust me to keep Kouji. That really, well. I dunno. Makes me feel kinda good,” she admitted, casting a warm smile to the water elemental. Who cares about normal anyway? she thought, pushing a lock of pink hair away from her eyes.

“Ah, yes. Well, thank you Rae,” the psychic smiled, moving a hand to rub at his temple for a moment. He then pulled his hand away, once again reaching for his coffee mug. “This coffee is rather good, by the way.”

“Heh. Thanks. It’s the one thing I’m good at making,” she responded with a grin. “Glad ya like it.”

“So you’ll really take us to Tokyo?” Jiro questioned hopefully, eyes focused on the water elemental.

“Of course,” the sprite responded, taking another sip of coffee.

“Cool!” the teen replied happily, a large grin appearing on his lips.

“Trippy, Tokyo part two, heheh,” Kopaka randomly chirped, bouncing a bit in his seat. “Can we go back to the arcade?”

“Who invited you?” Rae questioned teasingly, winking at the wind sprite. She then smiled, rolling her eyes at the hyper sprite.

“Me. Heheheh.”

“Well I’m not going...” Sanosuke stated sulkily, his dark brown eyes cast to his plate. “I’m never going anywhere with any of you again,” he went on to say, his eyebrow twitching.

“Aww, you mean you don’t want to go see Kousuke?”

“NO. I do not.”

“Aww, but he really likes you...”

“Will you shut up, Rae?!”

The girl smirked, thoroughly enjoying Sanosuke’s irritation. After all, it was pretty damn entertaining to annoy the spiky haired teen. He’s sooo easy...

“Bite the rooster, heheheh,” Kopaka joined in, teasingly poking at the teen, a large grin on his lips. “Rabid rooster.”

“SHUT UP!”

“Hey, you know, I wouldn’t mind going back to that arcade though, now that Kopaka mentioned it and all,” Rae commented, deciding that she had teased Sano enough. “You know, as long as Druu doesn’t start cheating again,” she went on to say, gently poking the psychic on the shoulder, a teasing smirk on her lips.

“Rae, you hurt me. Now what on earth would make you think that I would cheat?” the sprite questioned dramatically, blinking his lavender eyes innocently. “I can’t imagine why you would say such a thing.”

Rae laughed, shaking her head. What a dork. She then cleared her throat, raising an eyebrow at the psychic. “Oh, riiight. Because you so didn’t use your psychic powers to kick my ass last time, right?” she questioned, grin still on her lips.

“I haven’t a clue as to what you’re talking about. Really,” Druu replied melodramatically, an amused twinkle in his lavender eyes.

“Riiiight.”

“Really, not a clue. You must be delusional.”

“Yeah, uh-huh. Sure I am.”

“Well, perhaps I might go easy on you this time, how does that sound?” Druuvbin winked at the girl, running a hand through his long, silky hair.

“Hah. If you just let me win once, I’ll be happy,” Rae replied with a laugh. “You completely killed me last time.”

“Did I?”

“Heh...”

“Hey, is this arcade big? Have a lot of games?” Jiro broke in, eyes holding a spark of interest. After all, the subject was video-games, the boy’s favorite hobby.

“Duuude. Video-games. Lots and lots and lots, man,” Kopaka chimed in, a smirk on his lips. The sprite then reached into a pocket of his dusty-rose colored pink jeans, pulling out a crumpled pack of cigarettes. “Want one, Raeee?”

“Oh this is a first, you giving me cigarettes,” the girl replied, amusement in her aqua colored eyes. “And yes, please. Malba took mine,” she commented, reaching a hand out. Sweet deadly nicotine...

“Heheh...”

The sprite handed over a semi-bent cigarette, along with a purple lighter. On closer inspection the girl was pretty sure that it was actually one of her lighters... Rae shook her head, rolling her eyes. “Thanks,” she replied, tossing the lighter back after lighting the cigarette, taking in a deep puff of smoke.

Kopaka smirked, lighting up one for himself before returning the crumpled pack back into his jean pocket.

“So what all games are there?”

“Dude. Games. Lots of games.”

Rae smiled, sitting back a bit, watching as Jiro and Kopaka got into a discussion over arcade games. It was rather amusing actually. Heh, video-game addicts huh? Yup...

She then moved her gaze to Sanosuke, who sat quietly, arms crossed, finally finished with his breakfast/dinner. His eyes held a bit of an annoyed expression, and it was pretty clear to the girl that he was still quite irritated. Hah... Guess he’s still pissed at Kopaka... Well, and probably me.

She shrugged, once again moving her gaze away, this time focusing on the water elemental sitting beside her. Druuvbin sat, watching the animated discussion taking place between Jiro and Kopaka, an amused smile on his pale lips.

Rae frowned a bit, once again taking in the sprite’s wan coloring. Her thoughts were drawn back to the psychic’s vision, the way he had collapsed... She felt a small shiver run up her spine. Somehow she had a distinct feeling that those drinks (or Kits’ lecture) were probably not the cause of his pallid, pale skin... I knew that vision thing had to have at least drained him. It’s no wonder he looks so tired...

Should she really let him take them back to Tokyo? Shouldn’t he be resting or something? Yeah... Like he’ll listen to me if I tell him to rest... Meh... She took another large draw off of her cigarette, then reached over to stub it out on her brother’s empty plate. Hah... I better clean that up before Mom comes home or she’ll be pissed...

“Rae-chaaan!!” a loud voice suddenly broke into her thoughts and she jumped, turning to see Yuki standing in the doorway, tears in his grey eyes.

Wha?

“Y-Yuki-chan? What is it?” she stuttered, noting the tears in the silver haired spirit’s eyes. “What’s wrong?”

Oh man... Don’t tell me he overheard Jiro, Sano and me talking earlier... Um... she couldn’t help but think, her blue-green eyes slightly widening.

“This...This book ended AWFUL!!” the spirit cried out, holding up a thick paperback book, his bright grey eyes filled with tears. “It’s so... So sad!” he went on to say, his light voice trembling.

Rae felt relief wash over her, eyeing the book in Yuki’s hands. Not that she was happy that the spirit was upset of course. “Aw, Yuki-chan, I told you not to read that,” she replied with a sigh, giving the spirit a sympathetic glance.

“But-but...It’s so sad...” Yuki trailed off, lip trembling.

“Ah, Yuki-chan, why don’t you come sit and calm down a bit. You can sit here,” Druuvbin suggested calmly, moving to stand from his chair.

“No, that’s okay Druu. He can sit here, I need to fix some fresh coffee anyway,” Rae cut in quickly, not wanting the elemental to give up his seat.

“Well, I can handle fixing the coffee, I believe,” the sprite replied with a smile, winking at the girl. “Here Yuki-chan, sit down,” he went on to say, standing from his seat.

“Thanks,” the spirit sniffed, rubbing at his eyes as he plopped down dejectedly on the wooden chair.

Rae twitched a bit, casting a slightly annoyed glance at the psychic. Damn it Druu. Why won’t you just sit down and rest... She let out a sigh, watching the pale sprite move over to dump out the small remaining amount of old coffee in the sink, preparing to make a fresh pot.

Sure he was acting the same as always but... Still... Rae shook her head to clear her thoughts, refocusing her attention on the sniffling spirit sitting beside her.

“It’s okay Yuki-chan. It’s just a stupid Steven King book. It’s nothing to get upset about. Really,” she stated soothingly, patting the silver haired spirit on the shoulder. “Don’t cry.”

It’s so hard to believe that this timid little guy sitting here crying over a dumb book could have any kind of secrets. Not so innocent? It really doesn’t make any sense... Maybe Shishio really is just an idiot...

“Yeah Yuki, it’s just a book, don’t worry about it,” Jiro added, smiling at the spirit reassuringly. “Really.”

“Yuki-dude, Yuki-dude. Don’t be sad,” Kopaka chimed in helpfully, reaching over to tug playfully on the spirit’s long hair.

“Kopaka-san, stop!” the spirit exclaimed, trying to free himself from the wind/ice sprite. “Kopaka-saan!”

“Heheheheh...”

“I really don’t think that’s helping matters, Kopaka,” Druuvbin remarked, amusement tinting his voice as he leaned casually against the kitchen counter, already finished with starting a new pot of coffee.

“Heheheh.”

“Quit!”

Rae turned her attention to Sanosuke, who had been remaining oddly quiet. She took in his facial expression, noting the suspicious look that had entered his eyes as he watched Yuki. Stop looking at him like that stupid, he’s gonna notice... Rae frowned, reaching her leg further under the table to kick the teen in the shin.

“Oww--Hey, what the hell was that for?!” he exclaimed, turning his brown eyes to Rae, an angry expression taking over his facial features.

“Hm? What was what for?” the pink haired girl questioned innocently, however she raised an eyebrow at the teen, lightly kicking him again. Stop acting weird, Yuki’s gonna get suspicious. That’s the last thing we need...

After a moment the teen seemed to understand the expression she was shooting him and slightly nodded, running a hand through his spiky hair. “Oh, uh. I guess I just accidentally hit my leg on the table. I thought you kicked me. Sorry...” Sano then said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Oh yeah I kicked you. Why would I do that, geez,” she responded with mock sarcasm, turning her gaze to Yuki, hoping he hadn’t noticed anything... Luckily the spirit seemed too involved in trying to rescue his hair from the hyper wind sprite to have observed Sano’s former suspicious look.

“Sano-kun, you need to be more careful, hm?” Druu questioned, a mischievous sparkle playing in his lavender eyes.

Heh... He noticed, Rae thought, noting the sprite’s smile. Can’t fool a psychic. Hey I wonder if Druu has noticed the weirdness going on with Yuki lately. I’ll have to ask him after while...

“Uh, yeah...” the teen responded, also seeming to notice the playful expression on the psychic’s face. “Yeah.”

“Hah. Baka,” Jiro added, smirk on his lips.

“Shut up. Brat.”

“Whatever. Rooster.”

“Hey! I said shut up!”

“Uh-huh. Whatever.”

Rae bit her lip to keep from laughing as the two teenagers argued, noting her brother’s entertained grin. He likes bugging Sano as much as I do...

I wonder if-- her thoughts were suddenly interrupted as she heard the ringtone on her cell phone chiming the tune of a Green Day song. “Er.. Has anyone seen my phone?” she questioned, listening to the ‘Holiday’ ring-tone echo throughout the apartment.

“Uh, I think it’s in the tv room,” Jiro responded, cocking his head, listening to the tone. “Yeah, sounds like it.”

“Ah, okay. I’ll be back in a minute,” she responded, quickly rising from her seat and dashing out of the kitchen, in hopes of reaching the phone before the caller hung up.

Rae entered the tv room, eyes traveling across the large area, in search of the ringing device. “Ah, where- Oh. There it is,” she mumbled to herself, moving over to the large plush couch, pulling the vibrating phone out from between the tan cushions.

How the hell did it end up there? Oh well.

She looked at the caller ID display, recognizing the number as her grandparent’s home phone. “Hello?”

“Hey,” a female voice responded.

“Oh, hi Mom,” the girl replied, a small smile forming on her lips. “I take it your at your parents’ house.”

“Yeah. You were sleeping, so... I figured I’d just let you sleep. Besides, I didn’t think you’d want to come. Anyway, I just called to say I’m going to stick around up here for a little while longer, but I’ll try to be back as soon as I can,” Renee went on to say with a small sigh.

“Stay as long as ya want, and uh, don’t worry, I’ve already fed Jiro... And Sano... And Kopaka.. Um and Druu’s here, so yeah. Oh but be careful driving back, it looks like it’s going to storm...” the girl commented, glancing out a window, taking in the windy night. As if on cue another low rumble of distant thunder could be heard, and another large gust of wind rattled the old glass windows.

“Yeah, I will.”

“Oh and um... Uh... We kinda need to talk when you get back.”

“That doesn’t sound good. Did you let Kopaka destroy the apartment again?”

“Heh, no. Nothing like that.”

“Alright, well I’ll be back as soon as I can. Oh, and I think your father is working late again,” the woman commented, her voice tinted with annoyance at the mention of her husband.

“What’s new?”

“Yeah.”

“Well love, ya.”

“Love ya.”

With that said Rae clicked the phone off, setting it down on the nearby coffee table. She glanced out the window once more, eyes drawn to the dark sky. Again, another odd shiver passed through her and she frowned. What’s my deal tonight? Geez. With a shrug she turned, exiting the large room.

Loud sounds could be heard coming from the kitchen, obviously caused by Kopaka, as she made out a distinct “Kopaka-saaaan!”

The girl rolled her eyes, making her way down the hallway, back to the brightly lit kitchen.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A few minutes later, after Rae had finally convinced Kopaka to leave poor Yuki alone, she once again sat on her wooden chair, drinking a fresh cup of coffee. Begrudgingly she had to admit... Druu’s coffee was even better than her own. Maan... This coffee is good. Big jerk...

“So, what did Mom say?” Jiro questioned, breaking into the girl’s thoughts.

“She said she’ll be home later, oh and that Dad’s gonna be home late,” she answered, running a hand through her long pink hair, shoving a lock away from her eyes.

“Dad working late again huh? Who cares, anyway?” the young teen stated with indifference, rolling his steel colored eyes.

Rae sighed, nodding her head a bit in agreement.

“Um... So, Renee-san won’t mind that Kouji-chan is going to be staying here right?” Yuki questioned quietly, his eyes still a bit red from his previous crying spell.

“Uh, well... I haven’t exactly told her yet, but I’m sure she won’t care. Probably,” Rae replied sheepishly, a small grin forming on her lips.

“What about your dad? He doesn’t even really know about any of us, right?” Sano broke in, distractedly fiddling with his red headband.

“Not really. He just thinks I have a bunch of odd friends with weird colored hair that hang around here sometimes,” the girl answered flatly, rolling her aqua eyes.

“Weird hair... Heheheh...” Kopaka commented randomly, pulling at a strand of his own shaggy grey hair. “Weird hair.”

“So don’t you think he’ll notice some kid suddenly living here?” Sano questioned, raising an eyebrow. “Is he really that clueless?”

“That foolish man hardly even notices his own children. I seriously doubt he’ll be much of a problem,” Druuvbin commented with a small frown, leaning against the kitchen counter with his thin arms crossed.

The elemental then blinked, an apologetic look appearing on his pallid face. “Oh... That was rather rude wasn’t it? My apologies,” the psychic went on to say, uncrossing his arms, instead placing a hand on his lean hip. With his other hand he rubbed a bit at his eyes. “Really. Sorry about that.”

Rae raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised by the elemental’s comment. Not that she didn’t agree one hundred percent; it was just a bit unusual to hear Druu criticize, well... Anyone. Whoa.

“Dude. That was kind of harsh,” Kopaka responded, raising an eyebrow at the water elemental.

“Harsh but true,” Jiro added with a smirk, pushing a bit of dark brown hair away from his eyes. “Nothing to be sorry for Druu.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it Druu. It’s okay to call ‘em like ya see ‘em. You don’t always have to be polite. It’s fine. Jiro and I know Dad can be a jerk, so yeah,” Rae stated, turning to give the elemental a reassuring smile.

“Ah, but still. That was uncalled for,” the sprite replied, casting an apologetic smile first to the pink haired girl, then to her younger brother. “I suppose I really must be tired, hm?” Druu went on to say, moving a hand to rub at his eyes again, shaking his head a bit.

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Rae repeated, raising an eyebrow. “It’s not a big deal... Calm down.”

“Um... Druu-chan... Um...” Yuki suddenly stuttered, wide grey eyes focusing on the tall blue haired elemental.

Rae turned her attention to the spirit, taking in the odd expression appearing on Yuki’s face. A peculiar look of sudden realization, as if the ghost had just had an unexpected insight... But what? What the hell?

“Hm? What is it, Yuki-chan?” Druuvbin questioned, also turning his attention to the wide eyed spirit. “What’s wrong?” the sprite asked with a touch of confusion tinting his silky voice.

“U-um.. Uh... Druu-chan... You...” the spirit trailed off, looking down at the table surface, not meeting the elemental’s lavender eyes. “Um... I...”

“What’s wrong ghost-boy?” Sano inquired curiously, obviously noticing the spirit’s strange expression as well.

“Yeah dude, you look like you saw a ghosty-ghost. Heheh. Get it?” Kopaka added with a teasing smirk. “The ghost saw a ghost, heh...”

“Yeah,” Jiro also added, giving the spirit a questioning look.

“Um... Nothing. I just--it’s nothing,” Yuki answered quietly, his grey eyes still lowered to the table. “It’s nothing,” he repeated, this time his voice growing steadier. The spirit then looked up, giving the group a sheepish smile. “Sorry.”

Rae blinked and then raised an eyebrow, giving the spirit a suspicious look. Riight... She turned to glance at Druu, taking in his facial expression. The elemental looked as confused as she felt... What the freaking hell was that about?

“Ah, that’s alright, Yuki-chan,” the psychic replied smoothly, however a slightly perplexed expression flashed through his lavender eyes. He continued to watch the spirit for a few more moments before turning away, meeting Rae’s eyes instead.

She gave the sprite a questioning look, and Druu shrugged in response, his eyes still holding a look of puzzlement. Rae shrugged as well, shaking her head a bit. That was weird...

The girl turned her attention to the other occupants of the room, who all seemed to share the same perplexed expression, each focusing on the silver haired spirit.

“Uh, Yuki-dude... Are you okay, man?” Kopaka broke the silence, his voice taking on a bit of a serious tint.

“Yep. I guess I really shouldn’t have read that book... I thought there was a weird.. Um.. Ghost thing behind you Druu-chan. I’m sorry,” Yuki replied, embarrassment tinting his light voice.

“...Oh?...I see. Well, no hm, ghost-things here, Yuki-chan,” Druuvbin replied, giving the spirit a reassuring smile.

“A ghost afraid of ghosts? That’s really kind of sad...” Sano commented, watching the spirit closely.

Hah, I see he doesn’t buy that anymore than I do. I guess you really do have a brain Sano, the girl thought, noting the suspicious look flittering through the teen’s brown eyes. She then cast her gaze to her brother, noticing that he as well was seriously not buying the ‘ghost-thing’ excuse either...

Actually I’m pretty sure no one bought that... I mean c’mon, that was a pretty lame excuse... she then thought, shaking her head a bit.

Before she had a chance to decide if she should call Yuki on his ghost-thing story, she felt her hand grow cold, the tattoo tingling with cool energy.

Moments later Kitsune appeared, her younger brother standing beside her. The icy woman as usual wore all black apparel, bandaged arms and a cold, blank facial expression. Kouji on the other hand had on blue jeans and a casual long sleeved grey shirt, and of course his glowing blue gem necklace. Also, the short half-demon had a small backpack type shoulder bag hanging from a shoulder. The boy grinned waving at the group.

“Hey guys. Hi Rae-Rae!” the boy chirped happily, stepping away from his sister, moving to stand next to Rae. “You’re color changed, Rae-Rae,” he stated, gazing at the pink haired girl, grin still on his icy lips.

“Hey! Oh? My color changed? What is it now? Er... And what was it before?” she questioned, giving the half-demon a warm smile.

“Hm... Well, it’s the same kind of, but different. There’s grey now. Oh so that means you can jump now too,” he stated with a nod, once again looking over the pink haired girl. “Yup.”

Rae blinked, looking down at her marked hand. “Uh, yeah. I guess so. So it made my color grey, huh?” she questioned, eyeing the intricate design. Grey... Hm...

The girl turned her attention to the silent icy woman, giving her an affectionate smile. “Hey Kitsune,” she greeted the demon, waving a hand.

“Hn,” the ice demon responded, her facial expression remaining a look of cool indifference. The woman put her hands on her hips, glancing about the room with ice blue eyes.

“Hello Kitsune, nice to see you again so soon,” Druuvbin commented airily, an amused expression flittering through his eyes as he greeted the demon.

“Druuvbin,” the demon responded flatly, giving the water elemental a cool stare. She frowned, a spark of annoyance quickly flashing through her eyes.

Ouch... She’s still pissed...

Druuvbin smiled, locking eyes with the demon. They stood in silence for a few moments and Rae raised an eyebrow, watching the two.
She noted Kitsune twitch, irritation once again passing through her eyes.

“You know, it’s really not fair when you guys use telepathy,” Rae commented, watching the two. It was pretty apparent to her that the two were definitely communicating. Kitsune once again twitched, an angry frown appearing on her lips.

“Idiot,” the demon suddenly snapped at Druu, completely ignoring Rae’s previous comment. She turned her gaze away from the sprite, obviously through with their telepathic discussion...

Druu shook his head a bit, amusement still playing in his lavender eyes. “Really Kitsune. It’s always a pleasure to have such civilized, rational conversations with you,” the psychic replied pleasantly, his voice silky smooth, mischievous smile on his pale lips.

The demon remained silent, opting to ignore the elemental entirely.

“So, do you remember me, Jiro?” Kouji questioned, not paying any attention to his sister and Druu’s little telepathic stand-off.

Jiro blinked, turning to meet the icy boy’s gaze. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“Dunno,” the boy shrugged, grin still present on his icy lips.

“Uh, well. I definitely remember you. It’s good to see you again,” the teen stated, giving the half-demon a friendly smile. “So, uh, you like
video-games?” he went on to say, pushing a lock of shaggy hair away from his eyes.

“Hah, who doesn’t, ya know?” Kouji responded happily, his ice-blue eyes twinkling happily at the mention of video-games.

“Well then. I think we’re going to get along pretty well,” Jiro commented with a smirk. “If ya want, we can play something now,” the teen suggested.

“Cool.”

Rae watched the two boys’ exchange, a smile on her lips. Video-game addicts of the world unite, hah...

“Well, why don’t we move this to the TV room then, huh?” she suggested, standing from her sitting position. The girl cast a quick glance to the silver haired spirit, her thoughts still on the odd outburst Yuki had made only a few minutes earlier... Weird ‘ghost-thing’, huh? Right....

With a shrug, she pushed the thoughts away. After all, it would do no good to contemplate the unknown. Perhaps later tonight, she’d get some answers from the spirit.

But for now, she needed to focus on getting Kouji settled in, right?

~*~*~*~*~*~

Rain pounded against the old windows, and a bright flash of lightening temporarily lit up the dark sky, quickly followed by a loud crack of sharp thunder. Rae stood next to the dark window, watching the rain splash up against the glass. Storm’s finally here.

Jiro jumped a bit, however bit his lip, not taking his attention away from the video-game that he and Kouji were currently playing. The two sat on the tan carpeted floor in front of the tv, engrossed in Soul Calibur III.

“Hey, man. Abyss is kind of cheap, ya know?” Kouji commented with a grin, eyes locked on the fighting game, fingers mashing at the controller in his pale hands.

“Hah, you should see Night Terror then.”

“Heh.”

“Duude, I wanna play, I wanna play!” Kopaka chimed in, sitting cross-legged, hovering a few feet off of the ground near the two. “Heheh.”

“Wait for your turn, Kopaka,” the half-demon replied teasingly, not taking his eyes away from the large tv screen. “Ah! That attack I just did was cool.”

“That actually reminded me a bit of a move I’ve seen you do, Kitsune,” Druu commented lightly, stretching his lean frame back against the large chair he currently sat in, an amused smile playing on his lips.

The ice demon rolled her eyes at the sprite’s comment, a bored, disinterested expression on her icy-pale face. She crossed her arms, leaning back against the off-white wall, near the room’s exit.

Sano meanwhile had opted to sprawl out on the large couch, shutting his eyes, languidly relaxing with his head resting on the plush pillowed couch arm. The teen let out a lazy yawn, ignoring the storm and the video-game both.

Yuki on the other hand sat in the old rocking chair in the corner, engrossed in yet another paperback novel. Rae glanced at the title and suppressed a moan. Man Yuki, why is it you always end up choosing the angstiest, darkest books I own? He’s going to be crying again... Definitely...

“Whoa, he killed me.”

“Yeah, gotta watch out for that attack.”

“DUDE! Let me try!”

“Hah, you ought to let Kitsune try. She kicks video-game ass,” Rae commented from her spot near the window, turning to give the ice demon a smirk.

The demon rolled her eyes in response, a small annoyed sigh escaping her blueish-white lips. “I think I’ll pass,” she commented flatly.

“Well. It was just a thought,” Rae replied, smile still on her lips. Besides it was true after all. Kitsune kicked total ass at the arcade, the girl thought, grinning at the memory.

“...Anyway. I only brought a few things for Kouji. It’s somewhat difficult to jump extra items with that necklace... I’ll bring more when I return,” Kitsune commented, her ice-blue eyes focusing on the small backpack lying near her brother.

Rae nodded, also glancing at the shoulder bag. “Yeah, okay. Oh, um, are you leaving now?”

The demon nodded, eyes now focused on Kouji, who was of course still thoroughly absorbed in Soul Calibur III. “There’s a small job that I obtained which needs to be taken care of,” Kitsune stated calmly, her voice void of any real emotion.

Druu turned his attention to the demon, focusing his lavender eyes on the woman. “Oh? Need any assistance?” he offered, his voice light and airy, his lips curved in a pleasant smile.

“That won’t be necessary,” Kitsune responded dryly, a hint of a smirk forming on her icy lips. “It’s not exactly a complicated task...”

“Ah, well then... Have fun, hm?”

“Hn...”

Rae raised an eyebrow at that. Fun?... Heh.. Hm...

“I’m leaving, Kouji.”

“Okay Kitsi. See ya later, ‘kay?”

“Hn.”

With that said the stoic demon vanished, making the jump back to her world. Rae couldn’t help but look down at her hand, feeling the cool tingling sensation once again briefly pass over her. So weird feeling...

The girl then shook her head, turning her gaze back to the dark window, taking in the tempestuous night. Another bright flash of lightening briefly lit up the large room, shortly followed by a loud crack of thunder. Wow, looks like it’s actually going to be a pretty bad storm...

“So, is it really safe to be playing a game in the middle of a storm like this?” Jiro questioned, moving his steel-blue eyes to gaze warily out the shuddering window.

“Ah, don’t worry about it Jiro. Hey, show me Night Terror,” Kouji replied, giving the teen a large grin. “Night Terror sounds cool.”

“Hah. Okay. Just a warning though, he’s freaking hard.”

“Have you beaten him before, Jiro?”

“Of course.”

“Hah.”

Rae laughed at that, shaking her head a bit. Though technically, Jiro probably had a point about it not being exactly safe to play. Didn’t she learn in one of those old safety classes in elementary school that you should unplug all of your appliances and such during a storm? The girl shrugged, discarding the thought. After all, it wasn’t like she ever listened much to safety warnings. She was standing directly in front of a window during said raging storm, after all...

“The rain is coming down rather hard, neh?” Druu commented lightly, rising from his sitting position to walk over to the window, his lavender eyes taking in the windy, rainy night.

“Yup,” Rae replied, giving the sprite a smile. “Luckily I like rain.”

“Ah, actually I do too,” the psychic replied, placing a lean hand on the old glass. “It’s rather soothing, really.”

“Yeah, well doesn’t seem too soothing to me,” Jiro commented darkly, once again glancing uneasily out the dark window. “Bet Mom has to stay at her parents’ house until it calms down...”

“Yeah.”

“Whoa, dude! He has glowey-glowing wings!” Kopaka randomly remarked, a wide grin on his face as he watched Kouji take on Night Terror. “Watch out for the laser-beams, dude!”

“Ack. He killed me in two hits,” the icy half demon blinked, staring at the screen in disbelief. “That’s really not so fair, ya know?”

“Told ya he’s cheap.”

“DUDE. I wanna try!!”

“Will you be quiet? I’m trying to rest here,” Sano commented from his spot on the couch, opening his eyes long enough to shoot the wind sprite a dirty look.

“Hah. Rest somewhere else then, rooster-man,” Kopaka responded happily, winking a blue eye at the spiky haired brunette.

“Rae-chan, this book... Seems kind of sad...” Yuki spoke up, glancing up from the worn paperback book. “It’s not going to end bad too, right?”

The girl sighed, shaking her head a bit. “You really pick the wrong books to read, Yuki-chan.”

“That doesn’t sound good,” the spirit responded nervously. He turned his attention back to the book however, apprehensive grey eyes once again scanning the thin tattered pages.

He never learns, she thought with a small sigh.

“Hey, can we go to Tokyo now, Druu? Hopefully it’s not storming and crappy there,” Jiro commented hopefully, watching as Kopaka now controlled a character, attempting to defeat the tough fighting game boss. “Watch out for that Kopaka.”

“Dude. He threw me off the cliff. That’s so not cool.”

“Heh.”

“Ah, Jiro-chan, I believe it would be best to at least wait for your mother to return, yes? After all, Rae has yet to explain the situation with Kouji to her. But later tonight, we’ll go,” the sprite responded, an amused smile on his pale lips.

“Dude. He killed me again,” Kopaka complained, a small frown on his lips. “Not cool.”

“Hah, you just suck,” Kouji teased, poking the wind sprite playfully on the arm. “Admit it.”

“Dude. I am the video-game master-man-man,” the grey haired sprite declared, a goofy grin once again appearing on his lips.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.”

“Dude. I am.”

“Sure you are.”

“I am.”

“Then why do you keep getting killed?” Kouji questioned, teasing smirk on his icy lips. “Huh? Well?”

“Er... Well. I’m just warming up, man,” the wind elemental replied confidently, once again restarting the match with Night Terror. “I’ll beat him this time, man.”

“Yeah, sure you will.”

“Awww. Man....”

“Well... That was a quick match...” Jiro commented, attempting not to crack up at the surprised look on Kopaka’s face. “Don’t worry Kopaka, it took me awhile to beat him too.”

“Dude...”

“Hah. You suck,” Kouji chimed in, teasing smile still gracing his lips.

“Man. Totally not cool.”

“Hey Druu, you want to try?” Jiro questioned, turning to give the water elemental a grin. “This game is pretty fun.”

“Ah, in a moment, Jiro-chan,” Druuvbin responded, casting a warm smile to the teen. He then turned his lavender gaze back to the rain pelted window, rubbing a bit at his temple.

“Um, Druu... You’re color... You’re color looks really weird,” Kouji suddenly commented, his icy eyes growing wide, his former smirk fading. “Druu?” he questioned, his attention now solely on the water elemental, the video-game completely forgotten.

“Hm? Does it?” the elemental responded lightly, his lean hand massaging at his temple. “What color is it, Kouji?”

Rae turned to focus on the psychic, biting her lip. The color thing again?

“I’m not kidding Druu. It-Um-It’s starting to look weirder. Really, really weirder,” the icy boy exclaimed, his voice suddenly rising, his icy eyes widening even further.

Kopaka looked away from the tv screen, turning his blue gaze to the psychic as well. “Druu?” the sprite questioned slowly, all trace of his goofy personality suddenly vanishing, a serious expression flashing through his eyes.

Rae frowned, sharing a glance with her brother. She was starting to get nervous, because if Kopaka looked serious... Jiro raised an eyebrow, a frown appearing on his lips as well.

“Really. You all worry far too much. I’m fine,” Druu stated calmly, giving the group a reassuring smile.

Sano had meanwhile sat up from his spot on the couch, glancing between Kouji and Druu with a questioning look.

Yuki had also moved his gaze to the sprite, his book now forgotten. A nervous flash of emotion quickly passed through his grey eyes, and as Rae briefly glanced at the spirit... For a moment she thought she caught a very odd expression mingling with that nervousness... A look of... Guilt? What the hell?

Kopaka frowned, glancing at the icy half demon for a moment. “What color do you see, Kouji?” the grey haired elemental questioned firmly.

“Um... I don’t know. I-um...” the boy trailed off, tears suddenly forming in his icy eyes, a look of confusion appearing on his face. “I can’t remember.”

Druu moved his hand away from his temple, casting another reassuring smile to the visibly upset half demon. “Kouji, don’t be upset. I’m fine I assure y-” the sprite started, however suddenly trailed off, a pained expression passing through his eyes.

“Druu?” Rae questioned, moving a hand to touch his arm. What the...He’s cold. “Druu? Why are you so cold?” she asked nervously, moving her eyes up to gaze at the psychic’s pale face.

“I-I’m...” he started again, however was interrupted by a sudden cough that escaped his pale lips, shaking his lean body. The sprite raised a hand to cover his mouth, as the harsh cough continued to wrack his body.

“Oh... Oh shit,” Kopaka stated slowly, his blue eyes suddenly flashing with fearful realization. The sprite quickly stood from his position on the floor, hastily moving over to the coughing psychic.

“Druu?” Rae questioned fearfully, her hand still gently gripping the sprite’s cold arm. “Druu? What’s wrong?”

“I’m—I’m sorry Kopaka... I thought I could... Hold it off for awhile longer...Yet... I s-suppose I was wrong, hm?” Druuvbin whispered haltingly, finally pulling his hand away from his mouth, the coughing spell dying down. The sprite cast his eyes down to his hand, the lavender hue of his unfocused gaze flashing with specks of blue. “I’m sorry.”

Rae let her gaze travel down to the sprite’s hand, and her heart skipped a beat at the sight that met her eyes. His hand... His shaking hand was covered with red blood. She quickly turned her gaze back to Druuvbin’s pallid face, noting with rising fear that his lips were blood covered as well, a small stream of red blood dripping slowly from a corner of the sprite’s mouth. “Druu?!?”

The psychic’s glowing blue eyes rolled back and he slumped, falling forward, much to the horror of all the occupants of the room.

“Fuck!” Kopaka exclaimed with wide eyes, catching the limp water elemental. “Hold on Druu.”

“What’s wrong with him?!”

“Druu?!”

“Oh... Oh God I was right... Not again...” Yuki whispered, a few tears falling from his sad grey eyes.

A bright flash of lighting lit up the room, and a loud crack of thunder shook the earth. An approaching storm raging ever so severely....

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
To Be Continued
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rae:................. T___T Guilt. Guilt. Guilt. Guilt. Guilt. Guilt. GUILT. GAH. *bangs head against wall multiple times*

Dude. I was so dreading writing this....

Meh. Well, that’s all for today. I know, cliffhanger. Yesh. Hah, and just think. It’s all just about to get even worse. *sarcasm*-Isn’t that nice?-*sarcasm*

*sigh* It’s been coming for a long time now. I just kept putting it off. However... Yes I’m being vague. It’s my way, yo. It’ll make more sense later....

Whoa. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Kopaka cuss before... Scary.

Anyway. This got kind of long and random. The next part will be more focused and you know, pointful and make sense and all. Ahem.

*glomps Druu* I’m sooo soooooorry Druu-chan. T.T

...

*cough* Ahem. Ignore me.

Anyway.

Hm, well. Um. New characters are coming up soon as well, by the way. Yesh, characters. New. Yuup. And some old characters’ reappearances as well...

T.T ANGST. ANGST. T3H ebvvvil ANGST.

*cough*

.... I’ll be alright. XD

Oh, and guess what, guess what, guess what? *jumps around excitedly* I’m going to have new prettyful picture of my muses for you here in the next few days. Pictures that actually look like my muses. How you ask? Because I have discovered the joy and wonder of Soul Calibur III.

Seriously. Not only is it a kick ass game, but... You can make your own characters. Completely. You can choose faces, hair, skintone, eyes, clothes, personalities, fighting styles, EVERYTHING.

So, Jiro and I made t3h muses. And I mean freakishly accurate looking. We couldn’t believe how good they turned out. Dude, seriously. I’m never going to have to worry about trying to crappily sketch any of my characters ever again. Because, I can make them in 3D moving and and and so cool. Heh. ^__^

I’ll get some pics with my digital camera and unveil my muses’ real looks here in the next few days or so, neh?

(First I need to perfect Malba though. I still have one face I need to unlock that will be PERFECT for him.)

Well I’m rambling, so I guess that’s it for now.

Oh, well. And Jiro. Don’t get pissed at me. Storms make you nervous and you know it, so yeah. XD

Till next time.

*glomps poor Druu-chan*

T.T

~Rae