For once, Rieka was not the first one in the house to rise, and had to be shaken awake by her mother. She felt warm and well-rested, but felt like she could have slept hours more at the same time. But there were things to be done, bento to be packed and bags to be carried as they finally made their way to the train station. Hiei remained aloof during all the chaos, and Rieka noticed he carried nothing with him but the clothes on his back.
Once they arrived at the station, they were greeted by a familiar face.
"Kurama!" Rieka cried, throwing her bags to the ground and wrapping him up in a bear hug, "I didn't know you were taking the same train as us."
Kurama disentangled himself from her embrace and patted her head, "It seems things worked out that way," he glanced over her shoulder, "and I see Hiei is here too? What an unusual surprise."
"Still living as part of the human world, I see," said Hiei, the faintest of smiles touching his lips.
"I find it still suits me," said Kurama, clasping hands with Hiei, "It's unlike you to wander out of Makai these days."
Yusuke playfully slapped Kurama's shoulder, "He says he's here for business, not just because he misses us," he said with a smirk, "I'll explain when I can."
"Kurama is still your favorite, I see," Hiro whispered to Rieka teasingly.
Rieka punched him in the arm, "Shut up and stay out of my head!" she hissed.
Hiro gave a coy smirk, "Don't need psychic powers to see that. Even he probably knows."
"What do you know, you idiot?"
"You're blushing."
Rieka aimed a precise kick at the back of Hiro's knee, making him buckle and stumble forward. The noise caught the rest of the group's attention.
"Wow, Hiro, you're such a clutz, tripping over nothing. Here, I'll carry your bag onto the train too," said Rieka, slinging both their duffles over her shoulders and speeding off to board the train.
The rest of the trip was mainly silent. Rieka stuffed headphones in her ears and let the thrum of music fill her head. Hiro fell asleep almost instantly, mouth lolling open. As the train chugged on towards the countryside, few people were left in the car, and it was the perfect opportunity for the adults to talk.
Kurama examined the scale Yusuke had handed him, "A human is eating yokai, now that really isn't something you hear everyday. With the Kekkai barrier down, it could lead to some serious repercussions."
"Some of the stupider yokai are already discussing hunting for this person, no matter who may get in the way of them," Hiei added, "Others are hoping for a war with the humans, talking of 'teaching them to remember their place.'"
"It seems prudent we should find this person first then," said Kurama, "being part human, Yusuke, it could be taken as a show of good faith."
Yusuke leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms, "True enough, but finding the guy with nothing but a scale to go on is going to be tough."
"There aren't many humans who can use sacred energy, that should narrow it down," Kieko suggested.
"Since we defeated Sensui, I can't think of one," said Yusuke, scratching his head, "That's why I'm hoping Genkai can help us. It's not like they post these things on the internet."
"The internet?" said Hiei.
"A human invention. Anyone can put data into something like an electronic library, available for everyone to access simultaneously from an electronic device," Kurama explained, "I can even access it from my phone."
Kurama raised a sleek smartphone for Hiei to see. He hadn't seen a phone that could fit inside a pocket before. He wondered how much had changed in the human world over the past 20 years.
"Mostly people use it to look at videos of cats," said Yusuke.
"And posting pictures of themselves," said Kurama with a cheeky grin. He lifted the phone above their heads and snapped a selfie of himself and Hiei.
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Since this chapter is so short, I will be posting two this week!