Hello! I would like to thank you for reading this, because that's awesome of you. I would also like to say that the first part of the story is from a girl named Ray's POV. She is a Kitsune, also known as a Fox Spirit who is involved with trickery, fox fire, and best of all, shape shifting. You'll have to bear with me and get through this part, but, I hope it's not too boring. Please review, when you're done reading so that I know if this story's any good or not. Thank you!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.
She ran blindly, hard and fast, puffing hard. Flames roared in the distance and embers lay scattered throughout the woods. Shout of angry huntsman echoed every which way, enough to confuse one's sense of direction easily. You could swear you were heading away from the village and all of its trouble and suddenly see a torch light bobbing up and down and then hear a shout a few yards ahead. Quite confusing, actually.
Her long hair was in dreadlocks and she brushed it out of her pale face as she continued to flee the village. The matted, ratty texture did nothing to help her conceal herself as it only drew attention when seen. In the night, it appeared to be slathered in blood although it was actually a much lighter color. Her face was a jumbled mess of confusion, her expression ranging from hatred to exhaustion to sadness. But mostly, exhaustion.
Holding her arms in front of her to keep her balance, she still managed to trip on a few angry roots and the undergrowth but kept on when she shuddered at the thought of being caught by the villagers. After all, they thought she was yokai- a demon sent from hell to kill them all. That's why, no matter what, she could not be caught. They would burn her alive and cut off her tail. And all because she had accidently let her fox ears show today when performing her duties as a slave.
"This way! This way! I saw her!" the voice of a man was heard nearby. She dropped to her knees at the sound, shifting to her demon form in the process. She had become a blood red fox with blade-like claws and daggers for teeth. Taking off at a sprint and keeping to the ground, she wove her way through the nighttime forest, jumping when an owl hooted. Peering back over her shoulder, she saw several silhouettes slinking closer. She hissed and turned back to run again as she really didn't want to kill anyone. She just hoped her appearance would stand as a warning to back off.
Reaching the edge of the forest, and the end of the villagers' territory, she burst from the branches and took a flying leap into the valley that connected to a city. She'd never been anywhere but the village so the sight of grass and water as far as she could see, with a town at the end of the valley was simply exhilarating. She was lost in thoughts of wonder when a sharp and twisting pain in her shoulder snapped her back to attention.
"I hit it! Now it should lose its demonic form!" called another voice as the small she-fox snorted in annoyance at being called an "it". Her fox form melted away, leaving, once again, a small girl with an enchanted arrow impaled in her shoulder bone. She yelped and pulled the knife out of her flesh, wincing as blood began to flow freely. Holding her wound, she saw a hoard of villagers streaming from the forest. She stumbled to her feet and began to run but collapsed as a wave of nausea passed before her. She'd forgotten about the side effects of getting stabbed with the dagger which carried the villager's dark magic. They were, after all, people known for being yokai slayers.
"Kitsune-bi!" she shrieked at the oncoming humans with her remaining energy, shielding her face from her own attack. Flame and wind emerged from the space surrounding her and rushed at the villagers. A miasma was created as well as the protection from the smokescreen. She had been saved by her abilities, once again. When the smoke screen lifted, the small fox-girl was gone. All that was left, a small pool of blood and a claw.
She slid down against the wall in the alleyway, the cold stone scraping her sore back. After reaching the city, she'd fallen against a brick wall in a dark alleyway. A very ominous place really. She sighed heavily and closed her eyes, feeling very alone.
Just earlier today, she had been living, not completely uncomfortably, in the safety of the village. Sure, the shed had been cold at times, but it was a roof over her head and the hay always smelt of that familiar horse and forest smell. She'd been welcome there, so long as she performed her slave duties, but mostly treated well…that is, until she was found out to be a demon.
Stupid, stupid, stupid, she thought. She'd been dumb to think that they might actually accept her for who she was. A Demon. A Fox-spirit. A Kitsune. She'd thought they might treat her the same, might still somewhat accept her. But of course not! For Christ's sake, she had been living in a demon slaying village! But, they'd been pretty unintelligent to not realize the demon living among them. Sure, there had been small hints to that truth. Like the fact that she refused to clean up after the children of the villages' lessons were over for she just couldn't stand the lingering scent of the black magic used to destroy demons. After all, the lessons that went on were of course, witchery. Also, she'd never eat any of the villages' food for it was enchanted with vitamins and substances that would protect against and destroy magic and power other than the villagers'. If she had eaten it, she would not have been able to use her Kitsune-bi or anything else that could aid her survival. Nor be able to shift to her demon-form. She would simply settle for hunting on her own, late at night.
Letting her thoughts go astray she cringed as her shoulder began to throb. Even more frustrating was the fact that she had begun to cry silently without knowing it. She curled up, shifted to her fox form and laid her tail down on top of her nose. She fell into a restless and pained sleep, her human form shimmering like a transparent sheet above her.
"Koenma-sama! She's only a child!" Botan whined as she stared at the picture on the screen. A small girl with dirty blonde hair and deep red eyes looked back at her, blood and dirt lying in swaths across her cheeks.
"Botan, I don't want to have to do this either. That's why I'm having Yusuke do it. He alone should be enough, although…he's no longer a Spirit Realm Detective," Koenma replied, glancing back at the screen. "This child may look helpless but she could kill us all in an instant. At this moment, her power is at a C-demon level but it is growing as we speak. I suspect that she will be at almost an A-demon level by next week. That's what I've calculated anyways but for some reason her level has stopped for a short time. I have to guess that she's been injured. We also…..don't know what form she can take."
Botan looked at the screen sadly and nodded, knowing she had to do this. Jorge came running into the room then, "Koenma-sama! Koenma-sama! Your….father…he says it's urgent."
Koenma shrank back against his chair, which was, at least three times bigger than him, and shuddered. The last time King Enma had said something was urgent was when the Demon realm had been opened to the Spirit and Human Realm. "Put him on," he finally replied. Jorge nodded and clicked a button on the screen which flashed to an image of King Enma.
"Enma-sama," Koenma nodded. King Enma did not acknowledge his son but instead began to speak, "Koenma, Kurama, Hiei, and Kuwabara are to assist Urameshi Yusuke in the extermination of the girl. He alone will not be enough. Make sure the task at hand is completed quickly as her power and yoki are growing rapidly." Koenma gaped at his father addressing Yusuke as a Spirit Realm Detective.
"Father! I thought that Yusuke was no longer a part of the Spirit Realm's team." Koenma failed to hide his surprise.
"Koenma, I didn't want to have to use him, but this child, the demon one, we'll need Yusuke for her death. Do this quickly for I am lifting the order for Yusuke's death. As of now…. That is all." The screen went black and Koenma, Botan, and Jorge all stood in shock.
"Koenma? Should I go now?" Botan said quietly, reaching for her oar.
"Uh, yes, Botan, please tell Yusuke and the others of the objective." Koenma sighed, "Jorge, bring those papers that I need to catch up on." Jorge and Botan both nodded and left as Koenma continued thinking. He understood why Yusuke may be needed but an S+ Yokai like him should be enough for any demon, much less a child that is not even B level at the moment. Koenma just couldn't understand why Hiei and Kurama or even Kuwabara would be needed as well. Koenma sighed, again, and went to stamping the papers that Jorge had just brought in.
"Eikichi! EIKICHI!" hollered a voice. "Eikichi, where are you!"
She yawned and opened one eye to a slit at the noise. She sharply took in a breath and stood, backing away slowly from the small kitten that appeared before her, mewling like the helpless thing it was. I cannot leave my scent on her, she thought, her tail flicking rapidly behind her, for she still did not want to be caught, but her hope of escaping vanished when she felt another's presence.
"Thank goodness. I've found you. Please, don't run away again!" She froze at the sound of a man's voice and looked up, shrinking back into the shadows of the alleyway. A male demon? She sniffed. No, a human but….different. The man, with dark orange colored hair, leaned forward to pick up the small kitten and as he did, caught sight of a small she-creature huddled in a corner, damp and shivering. His eyes widened and he gasped. "A cat?"
She growled, tail bristling. No, a fox, you idiot. He then did something no one had ever done to her in her Kitsune form before; he attempted to pick her up. She was so shocked that she allowed the man to hold her for a moment before she came back to her senses. But after she did, that moment was over. Hissing and spitting, she wriggled in his grasp, but he held her tighter. "Whoa, hold on. I have to find who you belong to." He ruffled the fur on her neck, and sighed. "No collar. You'll have to come with me."
Again, you idiot, I don't have an owner! I am a fox! she thought. The man turned to leave holding the kitten in one arm and the stubborn, protesting she-fox in the other arm. She squirmed in his grasp but he held on, even when she sunk her fangs into the side of his arm. "Hey," he mumbled, looking down at her, "I mean no harm but I don't want you wandering the streets alone," he paused and then said in a barely audible tone, "there are some scary things out there." He then looked up, through the mist that had begun to flee as the sun peered out from the other side of the earth, and whistled, long and low, energy returning again. "Alright! We're here!"
She had finally gone limp, allowing the stranger with the orange hair to carry her with him to her house. Now, after reaching a building, next to a series of apartments, he began to climb the stairs to the door, letting himself in with a key that had appeared from his pocket.
"Shizuru! I'm back!" A tall female with long auburn-brown hair appeared, holding a cigarette between two fingers. Human….but different, she thought, looking up at the boy who held her, just like him.
"Kazuma, you've been gone for hours. You can't tell me that it took you that long to find Eikichi. Look, it's already morning." she sighed, putting the cigarette to her lips. "I was….worried."
"Well," said the one who seemed to go by Kazuma, "I found her too." He motioned towards the she-fox. "A lost stray cat!"
She hissed at him and Shizuru pointed. "You…do realize that that is a fox, right?" THANK YOU! thought the she-fox, finally someone who doesn't think I'm a cat!
The man who held her –Kazuma- suddenly yelped and dropped her, holding Eikichi tight. "F-f-f-fo-fox?" he finally stuttered, wide-eyed.
Shizuru rolled her eyes and sat down on a green couch with daisy patterns on it, muttering something about "the ugly thing."
I hope, for your sake, you meant that the couch was ugly and not me, she thought towards Shizuru. She was about to growl or hiss at both Shizuru and Kazuma but suddenly, the front door burst open and there stood a Yusuke, panting and leaning over, hands on his knees. He looked up and grinned, his demon teeth poking through.
So…was it any good? Please, please, review. I can take criticism; after all, it's what makes us all better! That and practice, but same thing, same thing. *throws confetti at the completion of the first chapter* Thank you so much for reading!