A LITTLE DISCLAIMER: Most of the characters appearing in this fic are the property of Yoshihiro 
                     Togashi, Studio Pierrot, Fuji TV, and Shonen Jump Weekly. 

	Loud shouting from nearby distracts me from my book; I look up and see the boys coming 
closer, Kuwabara-kun arguing loudly with Hiei, with Yuusuke egging both sides on and Kurama-kun
trying to break them up. I shake my head a little, amused by their antics - I have long since 
despaired of getting Yuusuke to act a little more mature, a little less hotheaded - more like 
Kurama-kun.

	As if hearing me speak his name aloud, he looks up and smiles at me, waving slightly, 
green eyes sparkling as he returns to his refereeing of the steadily growing fight. He places 
one hand flat against Hiei’s chest and pushes him away from Kuwabara-kun, grasping the latter’s
arm firmly as he speaks to them in his gentle tones, trying to keep them from each other’s
throats. And I must admit, Yuusuke isn’t being much help; he stands behind them, grinning like 
an idiot, hands jammed in his pockets, occasionally shooting sly little remarks that jab and 
prode tempers and undo all of Kurama-kun’s hard work.

	Shizuru chuckles from her spot beside me, drawing a deep breath on one of those slim 
cigarettes she always has whenever I see her. She is shielding her eyes with one hand as she 
watches her brother and Hiei struggle against Kurama’s light grip; both could easily break away 
from him, but neither is willing to risk hurting him to do so. There is something about him - 
maybe it’s his slender build and figure, the one that makes so many mistake him for a woman - 
that disallows either of them to lift a hand against him.

	Hiei is the first one to fold, maybe because Kurama seems to be directing most of his 
arguments towards him. He folds his arms across his chest and glares daggers at Kuwabara, his 
gaze hard and disapproving. I wonder what they were fighting over this time as Kurama finally 
succeeds in getting Kuwabara to back down, and the four of them walk towards the four of us.

	Yuusuke plunks himself down at my feet in an ungraceful heap of limbs, leaning slightly 
against me. I smile a little, and ruffle his hair, just to annoy him a little. He sputters and 
shoots a glare at me, but folds when I wink back at him. He settles back down, moving a little 
close to me, watching with lidded eyes as Kuwabara sits down in front of Yukina-chan and 
giggles a little, the sound a little too high-pitched than what one would expect from such a 
large man. Hiei opts to stand, keeping his distance from all of us, and Kurama sinks to a 
cross-legged position nearby with a single graceful movement. These are the times I love best, 
when the boys are here with us; when they have time to do these sort of lazy normal things with
us, instead of running off in the Makai or some equally dangerous place, performing some 
mission for Koenma that could possibly get them killed.

	I shudder internally at the thought; loosing Yuusuke once was bad enough. I never want 
to go through that again, and I don’t want to see my friends suffer, either. Both Shizuru and 
Yukina-chan would grieve if anything happened to Kuwabara-kun; Minamino-san would be hurt if 
she lost her son to circumstance. But Hiei ... who would mourn Hiei? I frown at the thought
before I spare the quickest of glances at him, knowing he only sees me as a tagalong, the woman
of his leader, and therefore views me with a little contempt.

	As always, he is clad in his usual black, standing apart from us, red eyes distant as 
he looks away from all us, lost in his own thoughts. All of those four have ties here, in the 
Ningenkai, that would mourn them, except for him. Oh, to be sure, Yukina-chan is here, but she 
doesn’t know the secret he has been keeping from her for so long; I suspect it is for that
exact reason - if he is killed, it will not hit her as hard as it would, if she knew. But who 
else?

	Kurama laughs softly, in reply to something Yuusuke has said, and the sound draws my 
eyes to him. Lights sparkle in his eyes, both the exterior gold of sunlight, and the interior 
gleam of happiness. He holds a half-eaten apple in one slender hand, seems perfectly recovered 
from his ordeal several weeks ago.

	When the news of Minamino Shuuichi’s strange illness reached our school, poor Kurama 
had been swamped in "Get Well Soon" cards and letters, most of them accompanied by chocolates 
or small photos of shyly smiling girls. It was a source of great amusement for all of us, 
watching those girls tromp into his room and do their best to endear themselves to him, asking 
him every five seconds if he wanted anything, needed anything, until Shizuru finally took pity 
on him and chased them out.

	Kurama is now trying to draw Hiei into the conversation, tugging at the fabric of one 
black pant leg and crooning something in his most convincing tone. Hiei shrugs him off and 
glares at him, though he says nothing other than a muttered "Hn!" in reply to all of the 
former’s coaxing. But Kurama is enjoying himself, I can tell, and I watch them, giggling softly
when Kurama makes a lunge for Hiei’s leg, only to miss when the other steps just out of range. 
The redhead reacts in mock-indignation, putting his hands on his hips and tossing his head, 
like any jilted girlfriend.

	That last thought makes me blink, startled. Could it be ... ? Kurama and Hiei ... ?

	I ponder those thoughts, the nod a little to myself. It makes sense; it would explain 
why Kurama is the only other besides Yukina-chan that Hiei truly tolerates; it would explain 
all the teasing and secret smiles and innocent-seeming touches, the physical contact that 
Kurama never gives Yuusuke or Kuwabara; why Hiei always goes to Kurama first when hurt or in
need of help before considering the others. I chew on the inside of one cheek, opening my book 
again and dropping my paper to the printed words, pretending to read, using it as a cover-up 
for my musings.

	I get to my feet, suddenly; Yuusuke has fallen asleep, and therefore cannot protest 
when I slip my leg out from under him, settling his head gently down on the blanket. He mumbles
something in his sleep, then turns over to his other side. I smile lovingly at him, then turn 
to look Kurama in the eye. He’s given up on getting anything from Hiei other than a few words 
at a time, but doesn’t look too disappointed; he is leaning back on his hands, watching me with 
thoughtful cheer, hidden laughter in the depths of his green eyes.

	I flash him my cutest smile. "Kurama-kun, would you walk with me? I’d like to talk to 
you --" everyone awake leans forward, except for Yukina, who is preoccupied with trying to feed 
a small squirrel bread crumbs, and Hiei, who has refused to turn around for the past five 
minutes. "Alone."  I stress the word, glare at the others to make sure my point gets across. 
Shizuru raises an eyebrow at me, before glancing at Yuusuke; I smile reassuringly at her, 
trying to tell her without saying it that it’s not like that.  Kuwabara only blinks and 
scratches his head, looking confused; Botan winks at me before crumbling up some more bread, 
handing it to Yukina.  He gets to his feet in that same swift, inhuman grace of his, and nods 
at me, sweeping a few stray grass blades from his clothing. "Of course, Keiko-chan," he tells 
me calmly, gesturing grandly. "Lead the way." He punctuates his worlds with a theatrical bow, 
winking playfully at me as I laugh at him, stepping over Yuusuke and walking away, feeling him 
trail behind me.

	We walk in silence for a while, arriving at a small lake in the center of the park, 
just as the sun is beginning to sit. It is a beautiful view, but I notice that many of the 
girls present are too busy watching my companion, rather than heaven’s fiery display. Eyes also 
turn to me, glowering in jealousy at my luck - they think that I am Kurama’s girlfriend, and 
that we are enjoying a romantic stroll together. I surpress a laugh; if only they knew!

	I glance quickly at Kurama; he has his eyes closed, face peaceful and turned towards 
the dying red light, which draws a flush on his pale cheeks and compliments the bright color of 
his long red hair. He opens one eye briefly, looking at me, and a content smile spreads across 
his face, forcing me to catch my breath in appreciation. While I have no intent in straying 
from my Yuusuke’s side, I do have to admit Kurama is quite a "catch", as the slang would 
proclaim. Hiei is truly lucky, I reflect, turning back, watching as the sun begins to sink from 
view.

	Now. Now or never. I swallow nervously, clear my throat. He opens both eyes to look at 
me, curious. "What is it, Keiko?" he asks me gently, his voice quieter than usual - probably in
respect to the true beauty of the sunset.  His hands, clasped behind his back, are loose and 
relaxed, and there is no concern on his serene face - if he has any suspicion of what my 
question is going to be, he gives no sign.

	"Kurama-san ..." it’s so hard to force these words out; they stumble over my tongue 
like drunken bees, "do you ... do you have any sort of ... feelings for anyone?" I can feel 
myself blushing, and hope that the red light of the dying day hides it. He blinks, surprised, 
and I continue before fully loosing my nerve. "Like ... do you ... l ... l ... l-love a ... 
anyo-one?" I sound like a complete, bumbling fool; I sound like Yuusuke did when he first told 
me he loved me.

	Kurama looks away from me, and I frown, angry at myself for blurting the words out 
without handling them as delicately as I should have. It takes me a few seconds to realize he’s 
speaking, but when I do, I perk up, listening closely. His voice is terribly soft, the volume 
so low that even the faintest whisper of the breeze could snatch the words from his lips before
they become clear.

	"... what do you think, Keiko-chan?" he faces me with that last part, green eyes boring 
into me, pinning me helplessly in place, like a mouse entranced by the snake’s - or the fox’s - 
glowing eyes. I swallow nervously, and try to speak clearly, though my voice comes as a high-
pitched squeak.

	"I ... I think that ... that you l ... you lo - you love ..." Damn, this is harder than
I thought! "You l-lo-love ... Hi ... H-h-hi ... that you love... Hiei." I drop my eyes, my 
cheeks burning, wishing I could shrink away, vanish, disappear and never have to face him 
again. But when I look up, there’s a silly grin on his face, one born of pure emotion - I saw 
it on Yuusuke’s face after I told him I loved him; I see it on Kuwabara’s face every time he’s 
around Yukina.

	Love.

	"Keiko-chan," he says warmly, then shakes his head, amused. "I really must be getting 
old," he tells me, tilting his face towards the sky, watching as the dark blue jewel-tones of 
the evening creep to take place of red and gold. "I truly thought no one would figure it out, 
but I’ve been proven wrong - and more than once, too." He winks at me. "Yes, I think I really 
do... you know. But don’t you breath a word of this to him," he warns me, in mock-seriousness, 
"or I’ll turn you into plant-food."

	I shudder at the image, and he laughs, all pretenses of violence gone, like a butterfly
flittering from a rose. We start to head back towards where our friends are waiting, walking in 
companionable silence. Then, suddenly, he asks, "Are you surprised?"

	"I - no, actually, I’m not." I smile at him, stretching my arms over my head, enjoying 
the slight drop in temperature. "At first, I was, but once I thought about it - considering all 
the things you two do together - it’s nothing surprising at all. In fact," I went ahead a 
little, feeling like a giddy child, "I’m rather pleased I was right about you two."

	He pauses, bemused. "Right about what?"

	I lean forward, cup my hands in front of my face in an exaggerated whisper.  "That you 
two are so cute together. You’ll make a great couple - maybe even better than Yuusuke and I."

	I leave him behind, skipping like some ditzy schoolgirl, humming pleasantly to myself.

	No, I’m not surprised. Not at all.

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* Next: Yukina's Snapshot: Brother of My Heart