Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Yu Yu Hakusho. This story is merely a way of honoring one of my all time favorite manga/animes.
Plus I was getting kind of irritated by all the OC's that were so similar. This is were I will vent, via writing this story, whenever I feel like it. I hope you all enjoy.
Vocab:
Raijin: Japanese God of thunder, lightning and storms
Intro:
A loud shrilling scream and pattering footsteps were the sounds Nakamura Chiaki woke to on that beautiful crimson winter night. In a single fluid motion, she sat up, pulling a thin dagger out from under her pillow, pulling her arm back, aiming it at the intruder in her bedroom.
The shrill shrieks abruptly halted, and a whimper escaped the invaders mouth, forming frightened words, "N-no, wait, Chiaki, i-it's me!"
The girl narrowed her eyes against the silvery moonlight flooding her room and frowned. "Holy Raijin, Yuki, I almost put a dagger between your eyes!" Lowering her arm, she slipped out of bed and crept closer to her friend. "What's wrong, why are you in my room so late?"
The golden haired demon slowly staggered to her feet, revealing bruised shins, a nervously flicking black cat tail, torn clothing and blood leaking from the a cut on her cheek.
Sharply inhaling, Chiaki reached out before pulling back her hand, narrowing her eyes angrily, "Chiaki, who did this to you?" She hissed.
"Th-there are pe-people in the ca-castle, Chi-chiaki…I-I went to go see pa-papa, and ther-there was a gr-group in hi-his room, a-and, oh Raijin, Chiaki, they had killed him! And eating him!"
Pulling the hysterically crying girl closer, the demon gently patted her distractedly while placing her own head next to her door, listening for approaching footsteps. If intruders had indeed entered the castle, and had killed Lord Takahashi, then they would be looking for his daughter, the remaining heir for the Lord's territory, which stretched an astounding 50 miles around the castle in all directions. And if the intruders had managed to kill the Lord with only Yuki noticing, then they were dangerous. They couldn't stay any longer.
Pulling back from her Lady, Chiaki examined her once more. Her sunny, waist long hair was in tangles and her black cat ears were pulled tightly back against her head in fright. Her white-tipped tail was lashing at Chiaki's legs nervously, and her green eyes reflected the moon over Chiaki's shoulder perfectly, like two silver coins. In her state, it was clear that whatever Yuki had witnessed was more than just a bad dream. Dressed in a short, frilly dress with lacy leggings and high dress boots with shiny buckles, Yuki definitely wasn't prepared for fleeing.
Heading back towards her dresser, Chiaki spoke while she moved, "Wait one second, I'm going to find you a change of clothes. We have to run Yuki, alright? We won't be able to hold all of them off if what you said was true. Here," Tossing a battered bag at her Lady, the demon motioned around the room. "There's food on my nightstand and weapons and maps under my bed. Pack them while I grab us some clothes."
The girl didn't move from her spot. "B-but Chiaki, I can't leave! My people need me!"
Pulling away from the clothing, her servant gave her a look. "Look, we both know you're a terrible fighter. You couldn't hurt a mouse if I drugged it and trussed it up like a hog. I may be a good fighter, but I probably won't be able to get all of them before one offs me. Right now we're just going to make a tactical retreat, alright?" Grabbing the bag from the girl's hands, Chiaki shoved her towards the dresser.
"I'll get the other supplies, you get the clothes. And hurry! It's only a matter of time before they get here!"
The Lord's room was down a different wing then Chiaki's, as she was considered a servant rather than a Master-of-Arms-in-training. But if one of the intruders got a hold of another servant or person within the castle, it would only take a pointy blade to the neck for one of the more cowardly demons to yelp out her room. Everyone within the castle knew of Yuki and Chiaki's companionship. It wasn't exactly a friendship, as Lords and Ladies do not befriend the lowly demons that serve them, but they did hang out enough that anyone would have suspected Yuki of fleeing to Chiaki's room if she was frightened.
As she tucked the last of the maps and books into the bag and slung it onto her back, Yuki hissed out a warning. "Chiaki, I think I hear someone coming! Maybe two!"
Not for the first time, the servant envied her Lady's superior hearing-the cat demon's ears gave her a much larger range when it came to hearing and sensing noises. Being a normal class mongrel demon, Chiaki's blood wasn't pure enough to allow her to have any defying features like horns or animal parts, or even powers, like the lightning the Takahashi family wielded.
"Quick, hide behind the storage boxes!"
The door was suddenly smashed open, and not a moment too soon, as Yuki safely hid from sight behind the large wooden containers Chiaki stored her things in. Without even hesitating, the girl demon reached behind her, grabbed the dagger that she had accidently threatened Yuki with, and flung it at the bronze colored enemy demon growling at her. It sunk between his eyes that rolled up a second later, before he collapsed on the ground in a heap. A second demon appeared around the edge of the doorway, and looked down at his companion, blinking slowly in shock, giving Chiaki enough time to bound forward, pulled the blood slicked weapon from the fallen demon's face and stab the second one in the heart several times, catching him as he fell to prevent further noise.
Dragging the dagger out and wiping it on the enemy's clothes, Chiaki tucked it into its sheathe, strapping the edge closed and placing it in her bag. Going over to the bed she selected several more weapons, slinging them over her back and various parts of her body without ceremony.
"You done packing?" She called over her shoulder without turning around.
Yuki flinched at the sound, staring at the bodies that lay at her feet. "You just...killed them. So quickly…"
"Well, yes. They were bad people. Remember? Killed your dad?" She decided to leave out the cannibal part. She didn't need Yuki being reduced to tears again.
"Um, yeah, I-I finished."
"Good, put these on and let's go." The cat demon slipped on the trekking boots as Chiaki waited impatiently. They didn't have time for Yuki to change her entire court outfit, so the demon was just going to have to make due with a proper pair of shoes.
They raced through the castle with Chiaki in the lead, turning this way and that through the maze of corridors and small hallways. The servant only had to subdue one more hostile demon, allowing their escape to go silently and unnoticed. They ended up leaving through the compost pipe that led from the kitchens to outside of the castle.
Yuki complained the whole time through the pipe and squealed a little when they landed on the actual compost pile at the bottom of the pipe outside of the castle. She stayed silent though after Chiaki threatened to leave her for the enemies. Forcing the Lady to roll in the garbage to hide their scent and make them look like scruffy travelers rather than a posh Lady and a royal servant was much more difficult. Eventually they were on their way, down the castle road, leaving the Takahashi castle behind them.
Once they were a safe distance behind them and Chiaki was satisfied that no one was following them, they started to discuss in whispers what they should do. Of course the Lady wanted to go back, and put on some brave heroic show of rescuing the castle and land from their enemies. Though her heart was in the right place, Chiaki knew they couldn't do that. This meant they would have to turn to other means. Normally the authorities would have never been involved. Very few laws and rules bided the demons in Makai, and trespassing and murdering within another's territory would have been a matter the demons would have solved between themselves. Yet, their land hadn't been taken in a fair way, as Chiaki pointed out. Which meant it was fair game if they in turn, involved others.
After Yuki stopped pouting at the suggestion of calling others to aid them in getting back the Takahashi lands, they realized their one problem. The section of Makai that the Takahashi territory resided in had no objective ruler, leaving the two girls to turn to one place that they both strongly disliked and feared.
Reikai. The Spirit world.