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Guns and Roses [AU: Yusuke X Kurama]

He picked up the butts and followed he lead, about to kick off his shoes before he paused with a small "Oops," and scurried back out the door to pick up his bag. Once back inside, he did take off his shoes and put the bag in the same spot he did the last time before turning around and walking backwards and out of the woman's way toward the kitchen.

"Hey, how long do you think Shuichi can hold a grudge?" The question was far too chipper for the mood he'd been in moments before.
 
Shiori placed her purse on the counter before pulling open the refrigerator to take out last night's leftovers. She paused just before closing the door at the sudden, chipper question sent her way. Oh dear... As much as he tried to hide it, her son had a bit of a mean streak. He'd gotten into some sort of quarrel with Shuuichi over a month ago, and she still found her proper son pulling childish, but incredibly clever, pranks.

Rather than answer, she countered with a question of her own. "Did you and Shuichi have a fight?" she asked. There was no animosity in her tone, no accusation, just a kind curiosity.
 
He tilted his head at the question, then shook his head lightly. "W'll no. Not yet at least. I don't know how he's going to take the news I got for him though after everything we went through last night."

He pouted lightly, but the light pout turned rather melancholy quite quickly. He tossed the spent smokes into the garbage and stared at it for a moment before huffing a sigh and turning toward the kitchen table. He wasn't very hungry, but Shiori's cooking was amazing. Maybe it'd help him feel better. He forced back on that cheery smile. It came way too easy when he looked at the sweet woman today for some reason. "Thanks, by the way. I slept in late and didn't get breakfast this morning, so I would have missed both if not for you."
 
Two buns were placed in the toaster oven before Shiori returned to the fridge. This time, she pulled out a small thermus and a bottle of root beer. If she weren't mistaken, Yusuke had been drinking it when he was here last. she soda was set in front of Yusuke before she took a seat herself. She sat at an angle from Yusuke. He seemed rather skittish, and sitting right across from him could seem domineering, and right beside him would definitely make the poor boy uncomfortable. "Anytime dear," she assured.

"But I must ask, what did happen last night?" That sweet expression slipped into worry. "Shuichi said you and your friends were playing in the park, but he didn't tell me exactly how he got hurt."
 
Yusuke's face mirrored hers almost instantly. "Wait he got hurt? I was talking about homework. I didn't know he got hurt when we played tag!" Yusuke had to sit and think about it for a long moment, but it did finally click. At the end of the night. He did remember Kurama being hurt during tag. Although the reason wasn't really the game.

"Oh, now I remember." he mentioned. "When Kuwabara dogpiled us at the end he didn't look so hot. That was when I took him home." He knew it wasn't from that, but he couldn't say what it was really from so... "Is he still bad off from that?"
 
A slight frown remained on her lips, but her worry seemed to have fadded quite a bit. "Thank you for taking care of him Yusuke," she replied with a relieved sigh. "It can be difficult to tell with Shuichi," she admitted. "He says he's doing just fine, but he went to school with a bit of a limp this morning." She was quiet for a moment, then shook her head to clear her expression. Her smile returned.

"But, what was that about homework?"
 
Yusuke's smile for being praised for helping quickly turned to a frown and was turned down on the place mat in front of him as he poked at it. "We did a bunch of homework last night for me to turn in cause I was behind on schoolwork. I was supposed to turn it in today."

He grew quiet as he drew invisible shapes on the mat with his nail, his shoulders hunching and his head slumping. "I turned it in..." he mumbled.
 
A few wrinkles on her forehead became more prominant as her eyebrows pinched together. Yusuke's words and his body language did not link up. She waited for a moment for the boy to continue, but when he didn't she oh so gently prodded. "I'm guessing that it didn't go very well?"
 
"I got kicked out." he huffed.

"UUUUGH!" He tossed his fists up in the air only to shrink back down a bit. Not into the squirrely position he'd just been in, but still hunched and still playing with the mat as the sad look crossed back over his face. "I woke up late, got to school late. I guess that was the last straw. Takanaka took me out of class kicked me out himself this time. He never kicks me out. I told him I'd just turn in my homework tomorrow, but he told me there isn't going to be a tomorrow. I'm kicked out for good this time. I can't go back. I'm finished!"

He tossed his hands up again before throwing them behind his head and leaning back in the chair with a hefty, "Fuck!" Boy was there more he wanted to do, but considering who he was sitting next to, it was best to try and stay calm for now.
 
Shiori jumped with a startled 'Oh!' at the sudden outburst. Yusuke had been rather quiet just a moment ago. She calmed quickly enough, and quietly listened to the poor boy rant. A small red flag tried to wave when she quickly put together that Yusuke had been kicked out multiple times, but she consciously lowered them. She would not jump to conclusions about someone her son obviously cared deeply for.

A 'ding' from the kitchen pulled her attention away. "I'll be right back dear," she assured before returning to the kitchen. It was a saving grace, really. She didn't know what to say. She had no context. Any words of comfort or encouragement wouldn't mean much from her. The time it took to place the buns on two plates with silverware and bring them out was enough for her to figure out what was best to say. The only part of the equation she knew anything about.

"And you're worried Shuichi will be upset with you?" She asked, taking her place once more. The buns were perfectly browned and crisped by the toaster over. She always made them soft, so that the leftovers could have a light crunch without getting burnt when reheated. "Be careful, it's hot," she offered in warning.
 
He looked down at his meat bun, offered another "Thank you," and cut it open to cool with his fork while they talked.

Then he turned his eyes on her. They were sheepish and shy, from under their lid; depressed. "You got no idea how proud of me he was for just getting some stupid homework done. And it wasn't even that much yet. I stayed up and did more after he left. That ain't why I woke up late or anything. I just forgot to set my alarm..." It wasn't like Yusuke could get into another school after all. This one was his only chance. And he'd blown it.

"I've never had anyone act the way he did before... So yeah. What's he gonna do now?" The disappointment he imagined on Kurama's face was simply devastating. He began poking at his bun with his fork in an attempt to rid it from his mind.
 
She listened intently once more, cutting her eye contact with him to cut open her own bun. She watched the steam drift from her meal, giving the boy a bit of privacy for his pained ramble. Her son getting upset about such a thing, and she would have offered a good natured laugh if she hadn't turned her attention back to him. He was devistated. Her humor vanished.

Yusuke had so far been uncomfortable with her attention, and she'd meant to keep her affections to a minimum but... Shiori reached out a hand to place gently on top of Yusuke's. "I won't speak for my son, but I will tell you, that Shuichi won't be upset with you." Her smile was warm and motherly, and hopefully as comforting as she wanted it to be. "It sounds like you worked very hard. I'm sure that's what he'll see."
 
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He blinked down at the hand on his own, surprised but oddly comforted by it. Especially when it came with that sweet smile. "You really think so?"

He tucked into the bun when she pulled her hand away and took the large sized bite onto the fork in preparation to eat it. "I mean, I know he won't yell at me or anything like my mom probably will. But that's not really what I'm worried about. You didn't see him..." He squirmed in his seat a little and a light blush touched his cheeks and brushed over his nose as he remembered just how proud the redhead acted all over again while he took that bite and silenced himself from saying anything too intimate that he didn't want to share about just how good it had made him feel.
 
She couldn't help the delighted feeling she gained as Yusuke continued on. This boy her son was so fond of was positively smitten with him, and despite the sad tone he kept, she couldn't stop the happy warmth that came from knowing that her rather anti-social son had gained such a lovely relationship. Whether that be a friendship, or something more, as she expected.

That light mood she'd been put in allowed her to lightly laugh. It wasn't cruel or mocking. It was sweet and kind. "Oh Yusuke dear," she started between quiet chuckles. "It would be hypocritical of him to be disappointed in you. After all, he's been expelled from school before as well."
 
It was pretty cruel of her to tell such a funny joke when he was in the middle of such a huge bite. He choked a little through the laugh that attempted to force itself out of him. Though he managed to keep his mouth shut and swallow the large bite with little difficulty despite that. "Haha, bullshit!" The exclamation came out almost breathless since he'd lost all his air through the initial snort of a choking laugh he gave when she told her joke in the first place.

He stuck his fork in for another bite, smiling broadly at her, having lost that trace of sadness from before purely for how hilarious the thought alone of Kurama getting kicked out of school even was.
 
Her giggling grew louder as Yusuke choked on a laugh, and she lifted her hand to her mouth to hide her own. "Oh my Yusuke," she started. "Such language." It was an obvious tease. After all he'd been cursing for a while now. "And I know it's difficult to believe, but Shuichi was a bit of a handful when he was young. He got himself into his fair share of trouble, and he was expelled in the first grade."
 
"Hey that's the first time I got into trouble too," he mentioned offhandedly in comparison.

Now that she mentioned it, Kurama did mention something about being a little shit when he was a kid. Yusuke hadn't ever put any credence to it though because of how polite and well mannered he was now. Still, he squinted at the woman skeptically and waved his full fork at her over his plate carefully. "I don't believe you," he decided before taking his final large bite and savoring it happily. Man, Shiori's cooking really was the best.
 
The fork full of food waved at her reminded her of her own, uneaten meal. She began to cut herself off a much smaller portion. Shiori released a pleased hum as she took her first bite, and politely finished it before she continued. "I'm glad you hold my son in such high regard, but no one is perfect dear." She took another bite, she didn't have too much time left before she had to hurry off back to work, but her manners remained immaculate. "Shuichi had a bit of a..." She paused, thoughtful, "Spat? I suppose, with one of his teachers."
 
Yusuke found her manners absolutely enthralling. But did his best not to stare at her as she ate. Instead he found other small things to peek at each time she took a bit of her food.

That last part garnered his full attention though. "Ha! Now I know you're lying," he accused mildly. "You can't convince me Shuichi attacked a teacher."

No way in Hell Kurama would put himself at risk like that, at oeast as far as Yusuke saw it.
 
"Oh! Oh no, dear. A verbal spat," she corrected through light chortles. "Shuichi had a habit of correcting him, and his teacher pushed back whether he was right or not. One day, Shuichi had had enough and said..." She stopped herself and looked up and away from the teen. It was suspiciously similar to the innocent expression her son pulled off so well. "Something I'm sure was taken out of context," she finished with a slightly nervous chuckle. "A quote from a movie he'd seen, I'm sure."
 
Yusuke tilted his head lightly as he was corrected, slowly beginning to possibly believe her as she spoke. But then she cut herself off and didn't tell him what was said. "Hey! C'mon you gotta tell me what he said now," he informed her adamantly as he finally laid his fork down and gave her his full attention.
 
Shiori tried to save herself from answering by eating the rest of her bun, but even without devouring it the way Yusuke had, she was quickly running out of food on her plate. As she chewed the laste bite, she covered her mouth with the back of her hand. She swallowed before quietly answering, "I believe it was something like," her voice softened to a murmur. "'You are a parasite upon this world, and will,'" a light cough. "'Suffer a horrible fate.'"

She cleared her throat, placed her fork on the plate, and clapped her hands together once. "Like I said, something he heard in a movie. It was silly really!" She said with a hint of nervous laughter. She couldn't help but feel that she had perhaps said too much in her attempts to make Yusuke feel better.
 
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Yusuke debated on her quiet response, just barely catching it really. Well that did sound like something that Kurama might say to an enemy, but Shuichi to a teacher? Hoe different was he when he was little, anyway? He still wasn't sure he really believed her, but either way, the story had served its purpose in cheering him up a little. "Oh yeah, silly," he agreed through a nervous sounding chuckle of his own.

He wondered if either of them really believed the movie part, but wasn't stupid enough to ask. If it was true, it meant Kurama had always been kinda scary. And that Yusuke could believe.
 
Shiori took the last bite of her lunch before standing from the table. "I'm sorry I can't stay with you any longer dear," she started, picking up both of their plates. "I have to get back to work. My lunch break will be over soon." She disappeared into the kitchen for a moment to put the dishes in the sink for Shuichi to wash after school, then returned with her purse once more on her shoulder. "But you're welcome to wait for Shuichi in his room, as long as you keep your smoking outside."

She placed her hand on the door knob and paused halfway through opening the door. Shiori looked over her shoulder with the sweetest, kindest smile and said, "Give Shuichi a kiss for me when he gets home."
 
Yusuke watched as the woman disappeared into the kitchen, nodding quietly toward what she had to say. It felt too weird to be so trusted to find words for it really. Aside from the "Thanks," he finally offered as she was walking out the door.

He followed her there, planning on having one of said smokes before he made his way up to Shuichi's room just for good measure, but he was stopped in his tracks at the last thing she had to say. A horrible flush marred his face and all he could really do in response to her was babble out half syllables at her in some weird attempt at a denial of some sort that he wasn't even sure where he was trying to go with.
 
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