Fair Chase
Summary: Spirit World has put you through the ringer when it comes to missions, along with your handler Kurama. You were promised no more, and yet Kurama pulls you into just one more. The question is: Can you handle it?
Pairing: Kurama x F!Reader
Word Count: 1993
Disclaimers/Warnings: Mentions of previous violence, but nothing even remotely graphic.
A/N: This is a follow-up story to Hunter. For the pairing, I noted female reader. However, if you decide to read this and have not read the original oneshot, there is no mention of gender. That being said, I still recommend reading Hunter before this. Some references to it don't stand on its own as much as I would like them to.
Original Oneshot: Hunter
Masterlist
You leaned your head against the concrete wall, closing your eyes and sighing. The recent gauntlet of missions had taken its toll on you, barely giving you a moment to rest. The last one (less than a week ago, mind you) was supposed to be the last for a while before they swapped you out for a different team. But of course, another mission was dropped into your lap. And wow, did your body ache, your feet being the least happy.
Kurama, you had better get here soon.
You were ready for a break. You understood that you were making up for past transgressions, killing demons and the like. Had you really been that terrible to deserve back-to-back tasks for the past few months? You hadn’t thought so, but you supposed most other hunters felt the same, and you had been forced to work with some of the most narrow-minded people. Spirit World had their reasons, you guessed.
Footsteps broke through your thoughts, quiet and purposefully loud enough to get your attention. You know who it was.
“Don’t fall asleep on me just yet,” Kurama chuckled.
“I’d like to hope you know me better than that,” you said, pushing yourself away from the wall. Your back threatened to rebel. “So, where are we headed to this time?”
“It’s not far from here.”
“Yeah? Where exactly?” You eyed him, trying to keep your face free of suspicion.
“All in due time,” he smiled and gestured for you to follow him. “Now come on. We don’t want to miss the train.”
Shrugging, you fell into step with him. You should be used to this by now.
You boarded the train. It was fairly crowded, but not so much so that the two of you couldn’t find a handle overhead to hold. Kurama took the one closest to you, presumably so you all could discuss the mission without too much interference. The older woman sitting in the seat across from you glanced up, studying the two of you before returning to her book.
The doors closed, and the train left the station.
The quiet murmur of the fellow passengers and gentle sway of the car normally would be enough to lull you to sleep. You were thankful to be standing, though your feet disagreed with your decision. There was less chance of you passing out. And even if you did, Kurama would probably swoop in as he had been recently. Sometimes it felt more like he was babysitting than actually assisting you.
Shaking your head, you leaned in closer and kept your voice low. “So are you going to tell me where we’re going?”
His forearm brushed yours as he did the same. “Not far. Perhaps 30 minutes away.”
“That close? You’d think we would have noticed something sooner…”
“Not necessarily,” he mused. “This is more of a low-priority mission. Telltale signs could be more low-key.”
“Hmm… I suppose… But what are we looking for?”
“Classified, I’m afraid.” He smiled apologetically.
“Okay… What level of manifestation or entity are we dealing with?”
“Also, classified.”
Figures. Always classified.
You chewed your lip in frustration, a bad habit of yours. This wouldn’t be the first time Kurama had kept information from you. You had a habit of jumping ahead once you thought you knew everything, but you had been working on that. You were extra careful when the two of you had to infiltrate a hotel run by a low-level demon, keeping an open mind and eye for extra details. If you hadn’t, the other demons hiding out would have gotten the drop on you and more human souls would have been eaten. That had to count for something, right?
But this… This felt different.
“Okay. Let’s take a step back.” You fixed him with a steely stare. “How can so many details be classified? It’s a low priority and coupled with possibly harder-to-sense signs, that could mean what we’re up against is on the weak side. What aren’t you telling me?”
Kurama hummed and pulled away with a smug smile.
You little—
You glared at him, not noticing the extra sway in the train car. You pitched forward. Kurama’s free arm wrapped around your waist, preventing your inevitable face plant.
“Careful. Are you alright?” he said.
“Y-Yeah. Thanks,” you responded, righting yourself.
His fingers twitched at your side before finally releasing you. He nodded and returned to his neutral position.
Again with that, the hesitation. Especially in moments where he was protecting you. Whether it was pulling you to the side to get out of sight of your target, covering you from a rather ferocious youki blast, or just a light hand to your lower back to guide you down the right path, he always stayed in contact for a hair longer than necessary.
“Of course,” he replied coolly.
Guess that’s the end of that conversation.
Silence fell over you. Every now and then, you would venture a glance at him. The closer to your stop, the more fidgety Kurama became. Kurama never fidgeted.
What could possibly make him so… Nervous? Anxious? Those weren’t words you would have ever used to describe the scarlet-haired man. Could he have been lying to you about this mission? Was the target overpowered to the point where he was worried for your all’s safety? No, that couldn’t be it. But what could it—
Kurama’s fingers were on your chin, his thumb pulling your bottom lip from your teeth.
“You’ll chew a hole if you’re not careful,” he said in a near whisper.
His stare was intense, like it would bore through you. He grazed your lip in a soothing motion.
A quiet but pointed cough sounded from a seat in front of you. An older woman stared pointedly.
This was the one time he didn’t hesitate to pull away. Neither of you looked at each other for the rest of the trip.
The unique chime of the station resonated through you. Where had you heard that one before?
Kurama motioned toward the open doors. This was your stop. He wasn’t waiting for you to reminisce over the melody. He was already off the train by the time you released the handle. You rushed after him, stopping after exiting to catch which way he went.
Just as you were about to chase after him, something tapped your heel. The senior woman from the train was nudging you with her cane.
“Don’t keep them waiting any longer,” she wheezed and winked, motioning toward Kurama.
She left suspiciously quickly before you could come up with a rebuttal.
What was that about?
“Are you coming?”
You whipped around.
Kurama had finally stopped and was waiting for you. He had a curious look on his face, like he was gauging your reaction. But what exactly?
“Y-yeah.”
You jogged over to him, trying to rid yourself of a creeping sensation you couldn’t quite place.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
His brow was furrowed with what seemed to be genuine worry.
You nodded quickly. “Just… Something about all of this. This isn’t a normal mission, is it?”
“No,” he said, smiling at you sheepishly.
And all you could see was little Shuu-chan. That was the day you had finally coaxed him to climb up the tallest tree at the park with you. It was supposed to be a race to the middle, and he had beaten you with ease. At the time, you couldn’t understand why he smiled at you like that.
Kurama cleared his throat. “We should get moving.”
Nodding, you jogged after him. This time he waited for you to reach his side before setting off again.
He guided you down the streets that were filled with little shops, their signs begging you to stop in for a cup of coffee, a yakitori skewer, a bouquet of flowers. It wasn’t too dissimilar from the main city. It was at least much less overstimulating. Here, you could pick out distinct smells and sounds as you kept a quick pace next to Kurama, instead of them all melding together into some incomprehensible cocktail. It was… Nice.
The shops and sidewalks bled away, leading you toward the actual suburbs. It was comfortingly quiet. The most people you saw were a few individuals on their balconies, hanging up laundry to dry. It brought you a level of peace only felt in a distant memory, one you didn’t want to ruin.
“There is no mission, is there?” you asked, barely allowing your voice to raise over the hum of air conditioners from each passed home.
“No.”
You side-eyed him, trying to figure out just what he was up to. Kurama continued to look ahead, his lips plastered in a stony straight line. His eyes were another story. They seemed to sparkle.
Is he… Excited about this?
Staring ahead, you allowed him to lead you further. The fox-demon-turned-human had never led you astray before. Why would he now?
Eventually, he stopped in front of a home. Beyond the wall bordering it, you could see a tiny, neatly manicured yard, similar to the rest of the homes you had walked past.
Kurama turned to you, the mirth in his eyes gone. “Stay behind me until I signal.”
The stark contrast in his mood caused your throat to tighten. All you could do was nod.
You followed him down the path to the door and stayed directly behind him as he rang the doorbell.
”Mother, it’s me,” Kurama spoke into the intercom.
Heh? Mother? Shi-Shiori?! I—Has something happened to her? Is that why this isn’t a sanctioned mission? But… He’d be much more anxious about it, wouldn’t he?
The door opened.
“Oh, Shuuichi! Welcome home.”
“Hello, Mother. I was hoping you were here.”
He knew she would be home. He doesn’t leave anything up to chance. What is going on?
“You could have called,” she teased.
“I was trying to surprise you,” he chuckled.
I can’t sense anything off. Everything seems so… normal.
“Actually, I wanted you to meet someone,” he said.
“Oh?” His mother’s voice held a tinge of excitement.
Wait.
He stood aside, leaving you in full view of his mother. She was just how you remembered her. Maybe with a few more laughing lines and grey hairs, but it was still her. The same woman who held an overly serious Shuu-chan’s hand as they came to the park. Your heart swelled into your throat.
She gently smiled at you, clearly happy that her son had brought someone home. There was just one problem: she looked at you like she had never seen you before. And still your heart wouldn’t budge.
“Or rather, reintroduce someone,” Kurama said softly.
His palm settled on your lower back, pushing you forward gently before revealing your name.
Shiori gasped sharply. Her hand covered her mouth, tears pricking the corners of her eyes.
Eh… She’s going to— Shuu-chan, what do I— I don’t—
You did the first thing that came to mind. You bowed. You bowed and spewed something about it being nice to meet her again. You couldn’t remember exactly what.
Hands gingerly pressed into your shoulders, guiding you to stand. The tears were freely streaming down Shiori’s face now. Her arms flung around you, those tears spattering onto your clothes like you were on the outskirts of a waterfall.
Phantom smoke filled your nostrils as she held you. It was just like when she had bundled you and her son to her after Shuu-chan had pulled you out of your burning home. Her relief soaked into you, but this was different from when your aunt and uncle had held you back then. There was no pity or sympathy for you losing your family mixed in. This was joy, joy that you were alive, safe, and well. This was…
You didn’t spare him a glance, but you knew Kurama was smiling. You hugged his mother back, clearing your senses and falling back into place.
“Welcome home.”
