A/N: I want to thank those who took the time to listen to my creative juices for this story and gave their constructive criticism on it. You know who you are and please be aware of my heart felt appreciation.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho or anything that ties with it. Just this story.

Act 1: Resonance

Chapter 1: Between Light and Dark

Rain fell that night, a fine whispering rain. Koenma knew, with many years to come, that he would only had to close his eyes to still hear it, like wind-chimes singing softly in a gentle breeze. Thunder echoed in the darkness, and no matter often he tossed and turned, Koenma couldn't get to sleep.

A large stack of vanilla folders sat open before him, their contents scattered upon the smooth surface of his desk. White papers glowed faintly in the gloom, printed words sleeping in the dark. Words he barley knew, words that teased with their mystery.

It was these words that danced behind his closed eyes, keeping rhythm with the falling rain and since both wouldn't let him sleep, he sat up straighter in his chair, rubbed the drowsiness from his eyes and gathered the scattered documents. The white pages rustled softly as he reorganized them. Koenma thought this whisper sounded a little different from one case to another. It was only due to which ones he read and the ones he didn't.

But he needed light.

One of his employees seemed to have visited early in the evening to turn off the lights, an act that was more of a nuisance than anything else. Turning them on, he returned to his desk.

That's when he noticed it.

It would have been unimportant, insignificant even, if wasn't for two key facts. It was larger that the rest, so much so that the document had to be placed in a three-ringed binder and a giant red stamp was placed on a glossy, forest-green cover, thus showing Koenma that it wasn't a normal day to day case.

A fact that made him drum his fingers against the surface of his desk once he sat down.

It had been roughly two weeks since the Dark Tournament. Two short yet peaceful weeks filled with nothing but the usual day to day circumstances and the extra work brought about from the tournament. They were filled with minor skirmishes, mild problems and peace treaties. Of course, there had been some lenient cases from time to time but nothing grave enough to grace his desk with a case that needed a three-ringed binder to hold it's contents.

Closing his eyes brought his racing mind to a standstill, blocking his psyche from sight and color. Silence quickly raced to his ears, seeming to be impossibly loud. An unorthodox concept that would never cross his mind on any normal day. But today, it unnerved him more that it should have.

His eyes snapped open, chasing away his feelings for a brief second. Fingers brushing softly against the binder, Koenma hesitated for a short moment. A moment he used to catch his breath before turning the cover.

The words that flashed before his eyes caused his thin eyebrows to frown in confusion then rise in shock. It wasn't the first time that someone appalling enough decided to kidnap, murder, or go through some immoral deed; yet this case offered something different, something quite clever.

Koenma shook his head at the thought, lifting his eyes to a nearby window. Yes, the information before him was pretty straightforward yet he couldn't disagree with the genius and the originality behind this case. A very intriguing prospect, yet it was so sinister that he couldn't help but feel a shiver run down his spine. He never came across something like this before.

Koenma grew increasingly amazed by the intelligence of humans and demons. He had to smile at the thought.

But his smile quickly left his lips as fast as it appeared.

Now wasn't the time!

Focus! he thought to himself. This is case is more important. Be serious will you!

This…plan had to be stopped at all coasts. He, as well as his father and his employees, knew that such an act would do more damage to the three worlds than it was intended. It was all about balance, keeping balance.

But was there something more?

Koenma turned his eyes back to the case, reading slowly. Making sure he wasn't missing something important.

"Damn!" he muttered in the silence, refusing to accept there was no answer to his question as he read the file over a third time.

The information had to be complete, it was the job of those working in Reikai to keep a close watch on those living in Ningenkai and Makai. A very daunting task for the limited area in Maki.

But he couldn't help but feel that there was something more, something missing.

It was during his period of intense thought that a certain blue-haired woman decided to make a visit.

Hearing only a wordless phrase, he raised his head and looked at her with the usual absent expression he wore when she interrupted his work. And it always took him a few moments to find his way out of that other world, the labyrinth of printed letters and serious matters that involved life and death.

"Excuse me!" was his response. Furrowing his brows tightly over his eyes, he continued, "It better be important Botan!"

She hesitated before him and he knew it was because of his words. It wasn't that often that he snapped at her in sheer annoyance, but it wasn't something that was unheard of either.

He closed his eyes and raised his right hand to indicate that he needed a moment. What a predicament?! Why do these kind of things have to happen?

Taking a deep breath and looking directly into Botan's fuchsia colored eyes, he simply stated his mind. "Recall the Spirit Detective! It would be best to call in Team Urameshi as well. This case is serious enough that I have to inform all of them myself."

Botan stared blankly at him, unaware of her puzzled expression. It wasn't often that Koenma informed a detectiveabout cases upfront and personal. A fact that he saw flashing briefly in her eyes.

Which Koenma knew would seize her curiosity and it was something he didn't need right at this moment.

"Once you're done gawking at me Botan, I would appreciate that you make the necessary preparations for your job tomorrow. This case is serious!"

"Umm…y-yes Koenma," Botan murmured. Bowing slightly, blue hair moving delicately, Botan showed a moment of respect before turning and walking slowly out of the door, pink robes blowing gently behind her.

She would effortlessly find out later but not straight away…

Running one hand through his thick mane of brown hair, Koenma slowly stood up from his desk, left his office at a slow pace and gradually made his way into his own living quarters. There was more noise echoing through the air than he would have liked during his walk, but trying to silence any of his working employees was just a losing battle right from the start.

Entering his dark room, and not bothering to try and create any sort of light, however easy it might've been, he wandered over to his bed. Flopping down ungraciously and pulling the sheets over his head only to pull them down once more, he sighed.

Glaring uncharacteristically at his perfectly innocent ceiling, Koenma sighed once more before rolling over and tucking his knees to his chest, ignoring the fact that he was still wearing his work uniform. This position was one he rarely found himself in anymore, usually preferring to lie out straight on his back, or on his side for the whole night. But sometimes it was the only one he'd be able to get any sleep in, usually after a particularly stressful or aggravating day.

A strand of moonlight broke through the clouds then, stating that the rain storm was dissolving. The light from the sky angled into his room and fell onto his bed, mingling with the darkness of the night that lay thick in the room. Koenma lay there waiting for the darkness to fully disappear, and take his fear of some evil menace away with it. It was then that he understood that the evil had not appeared for the first time that night. It had just slunk back into the world again.

Feeling blurry sleepiness pulling at the edges of his mind, the tense muscles straining themselves in his body finally relaxed and he finally drifted into a light sleep, still not completely at ease with all of the thoughts in his head.

15 years earlier

A pair of bright amethyst eyes blinked at the dazzling morning sunlight. Sitting up, Yuri realized, reluctantly, that he had fallen asleep in plain view under a maple tree. Despite the cool weather, he hadn't been bothered throughout the night, and even the chilly breeze blowing through the air right at that moment didn't make him shiver at all.

Sleeping abruptly was something that sometimes occurred to Yuri after a busy day, especially if his obsession consumed him, so there was nothing that new about the current situation.

His face shifted from a soft, casual expression into one slightly murderous, and he continued to stare at the green covered branches above him. Thoughts of a sadistic nature floated through his mind then. A deliberation that eventually led to the curiosity of the activity of the institute that stood hidden a quarter of a mile behind him.

"If only…"

"If only what?"

The sudden question made Yuri close his eyes and a slow sigh of dissatisfaction. With the same sluggishness to his movements, he climbed onto his feet, and glanced irritably at the source of the interruption to his sinister reflection.

As suspected, although he hadn't sensed her approach at all, there was a young girl sitting close to the tree trunk behind him. She was staring out over the lush green grass, the faintest of a detached smile playing on her lips. Her voice was soft and nonchalant, only because of the fact that she preferred silence over sound and she refused to be emotional over inconsequential matters. It was clear she was making sure no one except him knew she was there at all. A first, since she was the type to never revealed her presence to him out right, for she tried to avoid him at all costs.

Even so, she was probably the only one who didn't cringe in fear or completely follow him in blind obedience. Something he found very infuriating because he was the one who ordered her abduction when she was four years old and that was six years ago. In the end, he truly didn't understand her and that was due to his personal choice. His objective for the whole world was more important. But whenever he'd find himself driven with cold malice toward the 10 year old girl, he would always remind himself that it would only be a matter of time before she would be put to use. Even in death…

"Do you always have to use stealth when you come to see me, Asuka?" Yuri evenly remarked, turning away from her. He knew that his staff members would never dare to execute such an act in his presence. Violet eyes glancing at the emerald field spreading out before him, Yuri was about to say something more, the disapproval of about her behavior and the lack of success at the institute in recent weeks, but he refrained from doing so. He wasn't the type to needless nitpick unless he was issuing torture along or giving instructions.

At this particular moment, he wasn't in the mood as he looked up at the sky. There was something else more important on his mind. Furthermore, he knew she wasn't the type to listen to such talk. Or at least, she didn't unless it suited her to hear pessimism.

"Don't start!" Asuka suddenly remarked, apparently reading his thoughts as she leaned forward so far that she was angling her neck quite harshly to stare up at him. The young girl shook her head then, sending her navy-blue hair whipping through the air around her, and to make her ice blue ribbons flutter gracefully in a self-created breeze.

"I know for a fact that I'm to valuable an asset for you to hurt or kill, so what's your problem? Sometimes I wonder if there's really a reason for the others to stay away from you..."trailing off, she blinked her electric blue eyes at him innocently, discarding her usually cold and indifferent demeanor for one that rarely he ever saw, a young girl waiting in fear for something malicious to happen. Compared to the open, and trustful girl he'd first met, she was so much more introverted now. Still, somehow, she was able to achieve an elevated level of maturity and indifferent cool . . .an impossibility for any child her age.

"Why aren't you in the lab?" Yuri asked, glancing briefly at her with narrowed eyes. Strongly against his will, he refrained from snapping her neck for the sheer pleasure. "And you don't have the right to converse with me about being 'valuable' or the reasons behind my employees actions. That's something for me to decide. You, though, should contemplate carefully before speaking."

Blatantly ignoring his words, the girl slowly stood and pointedly began watching the sapphire sky and the white clouds moving slowly across it in a light breeze. Her expression, usually so complex and painfully hard to decipher, somehow, was peaceful and she seemed to be hovering on the edge of a happy dream. One that she probably wouldn't share with anyone except those she'd come to trust and understand completely but he knew better.

Behind that image of nonchalance and self-assurance . . . she wasn't as alright as she appeared to be; as she made herself to be. He knew the young girl well enough that her cold exterior wasn't just part of who she was but a front to her inner soul.

With a twisted smile, he left her