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Old Things Never Change	By : KitsuneBaby2004 Category: Yuyu Hakusho > General Views: 1162 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own YuYu Hakusho, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 2
- 3
Disclaimer: All
right, once and for all, I don�t own YYH, so� there.

Kit: Hey,
y�all. This is one of the longer
chapters, really. This one�s going to
answer some of the questions I had at the bottom of the last part, mainly about
what Songbird�s name really is. So,
enjoy.

Old Things Never Change:
Chapter 3

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Two days had passed without incident, probably the longest day in her
life. Songbird went to the dressing
room and opened the door, blinking in surprise. Sitting on her make-up desk was a vase with lavender heathers and
blue violets. /1/ She looked at another worker and tapped her shoulder.
She looked at the flowers and
whistled. �Looks like you have an
admirer,� she said, watching Songbird walk in the room.
�Who sent these? Do you know?� she asked, her voice matching
the surprised look in her blue eyes.
The worker shrugged her
shoulders. �You got me,� she
answered. �But whoever it was did a
nice job of picking them out.�
�Must be Sato-kun,� Songbird
replied. �He�s always been so
thoughtful.�
�Maybe,� she answered and left.
Songbird sniffed the flowers,
smiling. �Well, they are beautiful,�
she said, looking for a card or something to know who they were from. She blinked, seeing a china rose /2/ in the
middle. �What�s this?� she mumbled,
gently picking up the rose, careful not to let the thorns prick her. She saw a slip of paper where her fingers
were and opened it.
��I�m really sorry for upsetting
you the night before. Good luck out
there.��
�There�s no signature,� she said
after reading the small note. �I wonder
who it�s from�� She looked at the flower in her hand. �It�s really pretty, though.�
She took a glass, filled it with a little bit of water, and set the rose
in it. She wasn�t used to the
treatment.
A knock on the door interrupted
her thoughts. �Um, come in,� she
answered as the door opened. When she
turned her head, she saw nothing.
�Hmm. Must be my
imagination.� She stood up and closed
the door.
Meanwhile, Kurama was wiping down
the bar, his eyes fixated on the surface.
It had already been two full days since her attack, and she was back at
work again. And he still wasn�t any
closer to knowing Songbird�s real name or what had happened to her four years
ago. If anything, she was a definite
enigma.
Yusuke sat down at the bar in
front of him. �Hey, Kurama,� he said in
a hushed tone no one but the redhead could hear.
Kurama blinked and looked up. �Oh, Yusuke,� he said.
�Still worried about that Songbird
chick?�
Kurama nodded.
�Well, why don�t you go back there
and check on her?�
The fox shook his head. �She doesn�t trust very many people,� he
answered. �And with good reason.�
�Staying with someone like that
bitch who beat her isn�t one,� Yusuke argued.
�Agreed, but I can�t very well
force her to leave,� Kurama reasoned.
�It has to be her decision and hers alone.�
�Think she could hurry up with
trusting you already?� Yusuke complained, getting up from the barstool. �I mean, it�s not like you�re gonna kill her
or anything.�
Kurama was about to answer when
the woman they had been talking about stood in front of them, her arms crossed
against her chest.
�Minamino, you and I need to
talk.� Songbird�s voice was serious.
Kurama blinked. What did she want to talk to him for? �Um, sure,� he answered; setting the cloth
he had used to clean the bar counter down and walked around to the bar. He noticed that her blue eyes looked a
little more fierce than usual, which sent a shiver down his spine. He motioned over to a table away from the
usual hustle-and-bustle. As he sat
down, he asked her, �What did you want to talk to me about?�
She crossed her arms against her
chest, her blue eyes boring into Kurama�s emerald orbs. �It�s about the flowers.�
Kurama blinked, hoping she didn�t
already know who sent them. �Well, um,
what about them?� he asked her, keeping his composure outwardly.
�Do you know who sent them?� she
asked him, her eyes looking at him as if she knew who really sent them, which
she didn�t.
Kurama shook his head. �I wish I could help you��
�But I can��

Youko, for the last time, shut up!
Songbird continued to look at
Kurama. �And you don�t know who sent
that?� Seeing him shake his head for
the second time, she looked down at the table.
�I see��
�Perhaps an admirer,� Kurama
answered, not wanting her to see the young singer look so blue. When she looked up, he smiled, hiding a
definite lie through his lips. �Maybe
Sato sent you a little present along with his flowers.�
�I guess,� she answered, not
looking at him. She felt a tap on her
shoulder and turned her head. Seeing
Mako point at his watch, she sighed and nodded. �Well, I better get ready.�
Kurama nodded. �Yes,� he answered. �Oh, I�m just curious as to what you�re
singing tonight.�
Songbird blinked and looked at
him. In all of the confusion and recent
excitement, she didn�t have a clue. In
fact, she didn�t even practice!
Kurama chuckled at the look on her
face. �Don�t worry; I�m sure you�ll
still sound wonderful,� he said, flashing her a smile.
Songbird only smiled wanly for a
second before racing back to the dressing room to change.
Kurama watched the brown-haired
woman run off before he returned to the bar and saw Yusuke still sitting there.
�So, did she chew you out?� Yusuke
asked.
�No,� Kurama answered, wiping down
the bar again while reeling from the obvious lie that he had fed Songbird. He didn�t want to lie to her, but he had no
choice. She didn�t trust him, and he wouldn�t
force her to, anyway. When he looked at
his watch, he shifted his gaze to Yusuke.
�You better get back before Mako-san gets on you.�
Nodding, Yusuke left the bar and
stood at the door.
Meanwhile, inside the dressing
room, Songbird had put on a lilac colored dress and a few lavender colored
barrettes in her hair. She looked at
the rose in the glass and read the note again, wondering if Sato really had
sent her the rose. But she didn�t have
any time to think, as she had to practice.
She looked at the words of a song
she had to sing that night. �I just
hope I can sing this,� she said to herself as she began to practice.
A few minutes later, Songbird was
on the stage, singing the same song she only practiced a good five minutes
before. ��Give me time�� she started,
which made some people applaud already.
��Time is what I need��
Kurama blinked, since he wasn�t
busy at the bar, and looked at the siren on the stage. There was something about her that she was
trying to hide; something in her singing, it held a message. All the kitsune had to do was find it.
�She�s really good,� a customer
had said, snapping the fox out of his trance.
�Yes, she is,� he commented. He looked at the person in front of
him. �What can I get you?�
�Mai Tai,� he answered, and as
Kurama was fixing him the drink, he looked at him. �So, do you like her?�
�Like who?� Kurama asked, mixing
the customer�s drink.
�The girl on the stage,� he
answered. �She�s really cute.�
�She�s also seeing someone,�
Kurama answered, pouring the drink into a glass and setting it on a
coaster. �She has a boyfriend.�
�Oh, yeah, I read about
that.� He sipped his drink and looked
at the redhead. �Guy decides to beat
her in public. Doesn�t sound like much
of a boyfriend to me.� He took a deep
breath. �Then she doesn�t press charges
on him��
Kurama�s eyes widened. �What?�
�Didn�t you read it? She dropped the charges on him. Not the smartest thing she�s done,
especially having her real name in the paper.
Cute name��
The applause drowned out the rest
of what the customer was saying. Kurama
looked up, seeing the woman exit off the stage and head over to the bar. �That was wonderful,� he told her.
Songbird looked up at the gently
smiling redhead and looked down rather suddenly. �Thank you,� she answered, her voice still not certain of
trusting him. There was something about
him that made her want to, but then again, she didn�t want a repeat episode
from the night before last. And then�
she didn�t want to think of what would happen if that happened again.
The customer paid for his drink
and left.
As Kurama looked around, he saw
that half of the people were gone. Now
he knew it was going to be a slow night.
�I don�t think it�ll be long until he�ll let us go home,� he said in
another attempt to have a conversation with her. �Do you need a ride?�
�I�m fine,� she answered, walking
back to her dressing room.
Kurama had no choice but to let
her go. As he watched her, he sensed a
hurt emotion in her. What it was,
though, she was blocking it extensively.
I wonder what�s causing her to be isolated from everyone, he
thought to himself.
�She should have put that bitch
behind bars.�
She couldn�t, Youko. That�s just it. She�s dependent on him.
�More like he has her around his finger. Though I know what I would love to do with
my fingers��
Youko, this is no time to worry
about your sex life!
Yusuke walked over to the bar and
sat down in front of Kurama, waving a hand in his face. �Yo� Earth to Fox-boy.�
Kurama blinked, being snapped out
of his gaze. �Huh? What?�
He looked around and saw Yusuke sitting in front of him. �Oh, Yusuke. I didn�t see you sitting there.�
�I know,� he said. �You�ve been eyeing that hallway for about
five minutes.�
Kurama didn�t know what was
happening. What was making him look at
the hallway the secretive woman had walked through? Sure he was worried about her, but he couldn�t do anything unless
she wanted him to, which at the moment, she still didn�t trust him.
Meanwhile, in the dressing room,
Songbird took off her dress and winced when the fabric contacted a dark spot on
her side. Looking at it, she shook it
off. �I got to stop drinking while
walking again,� she muttered, shrugging of the dress and putting on her
jeans. She looked at the China rose in
the glass while she put on her peach sweater.
It was still a mystery as to who sent her the rose, along with the
flowers. She pulled on her shoes and
took the barrettes out of her hair, setting them on the desk while hanging up
her dress.
A knock sounded on the door just
as she hung up her dress. �Who is it?�
she asked as she turned her head and saw something slide under the door. She went to the door and picked up a folded
piece of paper. �What�s this?� she
asked, opening it and blinking to what was written:
��Don�t go home tonight.��
Her brow furrowed as she read it
again a second time. �What is this,
some kind of joke?� she asked, grabbing her purse and slinging it over her
shoulder as she threw the note onto the desk and walked out of the room.
Standing in an alley across the
street, watching Songbird leave was a certain redhead, watching her leave with
a look in his eyes meaning he had tried everything he could to help her, but
the rest was up to her.
Oblivious to someone watching her,
she walked home, thinking about what had been happening. First the flowers, though they were
beautiful, came from someone� or so she thought. Then there was the single China rose along with the flowers,
which confused her more. She started
humming to get the voices out of her head, and then the humming turned into
singing. �Even if the days�� /3/ she
started out softly but gradually increased slightly. �When I smiled a lot should turn out� to be nothing but a lovely
dream��
While walking to his apartment,
Kurama heard Songbird singing. He heard
the song once before but couldn�t remember who sang it originally. He separated from her when he found his
street. �She�s got a lovely voice,� he
said to himself as he climbed the stairs to his apartment on the fourth floor. After he unlocked the door, he walked in,
took off his shoes, and lay down on the couch, looking at the ceiling.
Meanwhile, Songbird had finally
returned home. �Sato-kun?� she called
as she opened the door. �Tadaima!� (I�m
back!) When she closed it, the light
came on suddenly, startling her as she turned her head.
�Arina-chan, I didn�t know you�d
be home so soon,� Sato said from the couch.
She blinked. Only Mako, the manager of the club she
worked in, and Sato knew her real name:
Arina Kajima. �It was a slow
night,� she explained as he stood to his feet.
�Thank you for the flowers. That
was very thoughtful.�
Sato blinked in confusion. �Flowers?
I didn�t send any flowers.�
Arina blinked in astounding
surprise. �You mean you didn�t send
them?� she asked. �Well, then, who
did?�
�Maybe you�d like to tell me,� he
said, grabbing her arms above her elbows.
Arina winced slightly. �Please let go, you�re hurting me,� she
pleaded softly.
�Who sent them? Another of your boyfriends?�
�I don�t know!� Arina�s voice grew
in panic. In truth, she really DIDN�T
know who sent them, but it seemed like Sato wasn�t going to listen, which was
obvious from the frown on his face and as he backhanded her across the face,
letting go of her as she hit the floor.
�You�re lying,� he said in a dark
tone, standing over her.
Arina held her face, feeling the
heat of the backhand she received. Her
blue eyes were widened in horror. �I�m
not lying to you,� she said in defense.
�Why would I lie to you?�
�Because you�re all the
same.� His voice grew into a
threatening tone as he gave her another vicious backhand as she tried to stand
up. He watched her tumble back to the
floor like a limp cloth.
Arina looked up at him and
received a final backhand that sent her to the floor, not moving. She couldn�t believe what was happening.
�If you try to leave again, I�ll
kill you,� he threatened before he went to his room and slammed the door.
Arina looked at the floor, the
tears welling in her eyes as she sat on the floor, wincing in pain at the
different areas that hurt now. She
tried to move her left shoulder but nearly screamed in pain as she stood back
up. She turned off the lights and
waited for Sato to go to sleep. If
there was one thing about him, she knew he slept like a log.
A few minutes seemed to pass when
she heard silence. The most beautiful
noise she had ever heard. She went to
the door, purse over her shoulder, and walked out of the house. She needed to get away�
�Until it started raining.
Cursing herself for forgetting an
umbrella and her shoes, Arina made a rough trek to find somewhere to spend the
night. Maybe that person who wrote
that note was right, she thought as she squished her rain-soaked socks down
a street and found an apartment complex.
Shivering from the cold rain and her wet hair and clothes, she squished
on.
Walking up the rain-covered steps,
she continued to climb� and then let out a sneeze. Damn it! Now I�ve
started to catch a cold! Why did I have
to leave without any shoes on? I�ve got
to be the biggest idiot in town! Arina smacked she mentally as she looked at all the dark
apartments, save for a few. Praying for
someone to answer the door, she knocked.
Back in his apartment, Kurama
heard the rain outside and closed his windows, not wanting the water to get
inside. He was about to sit back down
when he heard a squishing noise.
Blinking his emerald eyes, he looked around until he heard a soft knock
on the door. He looked at the clock;
who would be outside in the rain at quarter after midnight? Curious as the kitsune that he was, he went
to the door and opened it, staring in shock.
Standing outside his door, in the
rain, was a rain-soaked woman. Her dark
hair was nearly matted to her head, which was lowered, as if she was looking at
the floor. She was about to say
something when she sneezed.
Kurama blinked in surprise. Whoever she was didn�t need to be outside,
especially in the rain. �Come in,� he
ushered her inside, feeling her wet body flinch. �You don�t need to catch a cold.� He set her gently near the fire and then went to fetch some
towels. He came back in the living room
with three in his arms and sat down beside her. He took one of the towels and started to dry her hair as best as
he could.
Arina blinked, feeling the towel
on her head. Where was she? And how did she get here? Someone had just let her inside his or her
house without so much as an explanation.
She brought her hands to her face while the person next to her continued
to towel-dry her hair, flinching at the pain in her shoulder.
Kurama looked at the drops of
rainwater that clung onto her arms.
When he tried to touch her arm, she flinched again. Something must have happened to her, but he
needed her to talk, just to let him know she was all right, but as he looked at
her again� �Songbird?� he asked incredulously.
She blinked in her hands. That voice� she had heard it from somewhere�
She looked up and to her side, drops of rainwater falling from her bangs. �Mina�mino?� she asked meekly.
Kurama nodded but slightly frowned
at the look on her face. Or rather,
what her face looked like. Holding the
towel in one hand, he started to dry her bangs, but she flinched again. �It�s all right,� he said reassuringly. �You�re safe here.� After he dried her bangs, he lightly patted
the water off of her face, seeing her recoil a few times from the bruises,
which made his suspicions confirmed.
�He did this to you again?�
The tears stung at her eyes as she
nodded and lowered her head again. �He
said he�d�� she started to say before the tears escaped her eyes and she,
unknowingly, latched herself onto the redhead.
Kurama blinked in surprise. For all the time he knew her singing at the
club, she had never done anything like this before. The hot tears that fell from her eyes dampened his shoulder and
he felt her shaking in front of him. He
wrapped his arms tentatively around her shaking form. �He�s not here,� he answered the drenched woman in his arms. �Why don�t you get a nice, warm shower?� he
suggested, letting go of her. �You�ll
feel a lot better.�
Arina looked up and felt a small
tinge of blush enter her cheeks. After
she let go of him, she nodded. �Maybe��
she said, seeing Kurama getting to his feet.
She blinked as he held out a hand for her too. �Just don�t hit me��
�I won�t,� he said, helping her to
her feet and handing her the only dry towel around. �I�ll try to find you something to sleep in� unless you have
anything of your own��
Arina shook her head.
�All right� well, I�ll find you
something to wear for the night,� he said, leading her to the bathroom. When he looked at her, he noticed that the
tears had returned. �What�s the
matter?�
She looked up at him, feeling a
tear fall from her eye and another was threatening to fall as well. �I didn�t want to get you involved,� she
answered, but blinked as she felt something slide across her face.
�If you need anything, you just
let me know,� he answered. �Now, hurry
up. You don�t want to catch a cold, now
do you?�
Shaking her head, she walked in
the bathroom. She turned her head and
peered out the door. �Hey, um,
Minamino?� she asked the redhead, who turned and faced the door with a smile.
�Just call me Shuichi,� he
answered her. �Since we�re sharing this
apartment for the night, I�d like to know your name as well.� He saw her blink skeptically and figured he
had to reassure her. �Don�t worry; it
won�t leave this apartment, I promise.�
�It�s Arina,� she answered, still
giving Kurama an odd look. �Arina
Kajima.�
�That�s a lovely name,� Kurama
remarked, which sent a small blush at her cheeks. �You don�t like your name?�
Hearing her sneeze was about as much answer as he was going to get for
now. �Well, I suggest you hurry with
that shower, then.� He saw the door
close and smiled; she was going to be fine.
�Arina��
�That�s the best name I�ve ever heard.�
But it�s not leaving this apartment, Youko. She�s only trusted me enough to not tell
anyone else her name.
�And to come
here��
Youko, she probably didn�t have anywhere else to
go. But how she knew I lived here�
�Maybe she asked
that Mako guy.�
No, that�s not it�
In the meantime,
Arina had shed off her wet clothes, wincing slightly with the bruises. She unhooked her bra and tried to take it
off, only to end up screaming and pulling a towel around her. She heard the door open and someone usher
her out.
�Arina-chan, what�s
wrong?� Kurama asked and got his answer.
She was clutching her left shoulder with a pained look on her face. �Your shoulder�s been dislocated.�
She looked up at
him worriedly. Would he have to take
her to the hospital? And how was she
going to explain the bruises?
�I can pop it back,
but it will hurt for a second,� the redhead continued, gently laying her on the
floor, his hands on her shoulder. After
giving himself a mental count of three, he pushed hard on the shoulder, hearing
a pop and a startled scream. �There we
go.�
Arina blinked, moving
her shoulder again and looking at Kurama, who only smiled as he helped her back
to her feet.
�You�ll be fine
now,� he said as she nodded and headed for the bathroom again. This time, he heard the door shut and
smiled. She did still not trust him, but
he figured she had a good reason.
�What is taking
her so long? It�s not like you tried to
kill her!�
Patience, Youko�
Meanwhile, in the
bathroom, Arina had already undressed fully and turned on the water to make
sure it wasn�t too hot. After checking
it, she gingerly stepped in, hissing as the water touched the bruises on her
side and arm. She stood in front of the
shower as she felt the water beat on her.
Whatever he told her was definitely the truth.
Back in the living
room, Kurama was gathering the two towels he had used to help dry Arina, but
then he remembered: Her clothes were in
the bathroom along with her! Oh,
great� now she�ll think I�m a pervert� he
thought, hanging his head.
�Hey, nothing
wrong with that��
That�s easy for you to say, since you�ve been known
as the biggest pimp in the Makai�
�That�s hitting
below the belt, Shuichi.�
Well, that�s all you think with.
After he reached
the bathroom door, he shuddered. What
if she were to see him walk inside? Not
wanting to startle her, he knocked on the door. �Arina-chan? It�s me, I�m
just getting your clothes to the dryer.�
�Oh� uh, okay,� was
the reply and Kurama opened the door.
He stepped in the
bathroom and started to gather her soaking clothes. That is, until something conked him on the head. Rubbing his head, he picked up a bar of
soap.
�Oops,� she said
from behind the curtain, with the exception of a hand. �Sorry about that��
Kurama looked at
the water-covered arm out of the shower and handed her the bar of soap. �There you go,� he answered, feeling the
blood rush to his head.
�Thanks,� she
answered, her arm retracting back into the shower as Kurama hurriedly rushed
out of the bathroom. She blinked at the
blur of red hair and shrugged, starting to lather the nearest shampoo into her
hair.
Back in the living
room, Kurama closed the door and let out a huge sigh. �That was close,� he said, carrying the soggy clothes to the
dryer in his apartment.
�Aww� and I
wanted to see what was behind that curtain, too��
Youko! Kurama was starting to turn pink from
embarrassment. He really didn�t want to
see what she looked like, but� She�s just been through a terrible
ordeal.
With that thought out of his mind, he put them in the dryer and went to
his room, trying to find something she could sleep in for the night. He found a long shirt and a pair of
shorts. �Hopefully these will be all
right,� he said, walking out of his room and into the living room, seeing Arina
walk out of the bathroom at the same time, one towel wrapped around her chest while
she was drying her hair with the other.
Arina blinked,
seeing Kurama�s face with a small shade of pink. �Um, are you all right?� she asked him.
�Me? Oh, I�m all right,� he answered, handing her
the clothes. �I�m afraid they might a
little big on you.�
�Oh, I�m sure I can
manage,� Arina answered, taking the clothes and giving him an odd look. �Um, do you mind?�
Kurama�s face now
turned redder. �Oh! I�ll�just�� He headed for the small kitchen,
hearing the towel drop to the floor with a thump.
�Come on,
Shuichi� just one little peek��
Youko, I told you, no� But he couldn�t help with one small peek. Looking around the wall, he saw the bruises that blemished her
young flesh. He turned back around
before she knew he was looking.
�All right.�
Kurama turned
around, seeing Arina in the clothes he gave her and the towel on her head. �Do you feel any better?�
She nodded. �Other than the bruises, I�ll live,� she
answered. She looked up at him and
cleared her throat just as her stomach started to rumble. �Um��
�I�ll handle that,�
he said, going back into the kitchen and pulling out a container of soup onto a
saucer. Fetching a spoon, he walked
back in the living room, where Arina sat on the couch, hugging her knees. �Here,� he offered, setting the soup in
front of her as he looked out the window at the rain. �It�s not letting up.�
Arina blinked but
then took the saucer in her hand and ate a spoonful. She was starting to feel a little better. �Hmm?� she asked, a small noodle hanging
from her lips as she slurped it.
�The rain,� Kurama
explained, looking at the woman on the couch.
�I�m afraid you�ll have to stay here tonight.�
�Oh,� she answered
as she continued eating the soup.
He looked back out
the window. �Your song��
Arina had eaten
nearly half of the soup and set the saucer on the coffee table. �What about it?� she asked.
�You sounded sad
while you were singing tonight,� he replied.
�Almost as if something upset you greatly.�
�It�s nothing,� she
answered, knowing full well she was lying�
�And Kurama knew
it, but he didn�t want to upset her further.
�Well, it�s getting rather late,� he said, walking away from the
window. �You can sleep in my room
tonight. I doubt the couch would be
comfortable for you.�
�Um, thank you,�
she said, standing up, but she blinked as Kurama led her into his room. �But where are you going to sleep if I�ve
got your room?�
�The couch gets
rather lonely,� he answered, but before he left, he turned around. �If you need anything, I�ll be in the living
room. Good night.�
�Night,� she said,
climbing into the bed. She let out a
deep sigh, letting the pillow cradle her head and her body moving to the
side. After a few minutes, her eyes
closed, getting herself ready for a nice, long sleep; one of the best, she
thought, she�d ever have.
Kurama lay down on
the couch, a throw pillow behind his head.
After staring at the ceiling, he turned over and went to sleep.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

/1/ The lavender heathers mean �admiration and solitude� and the blue
violets mean, �I�ll always be there.�
Double meaning here.
/2/ The mysterious China rose that was sent to Arina means �Beauty
always new.�
/3/ The song Arina was singing to herself was actually a song called
�Ai ga Osiete Kureta� or in English that means �Love Taught Me� from the anime
�Blue Gender.�

Kit: Hey, y�all. It�s Kit again. The next chapter: Will
Kurama ever knows what happened to Arina four years ago? Has Arina finally gotten able to trust our
favorite redhead? And who really sent
her the flowers? Read the next chapter!
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Old Things Never Change

�But I can��