A Red Rose in the Darkness
My soul, dried by loneliness
Only now, I send out blossoms of courage
Blooming in an utterly dark land
A Red Rose...
Overcoming suffering, searching for tomorrow
From out of a sleepy, worried dawn
A new me is born
From Darkness rises the morning sun
Stretching out in my heart
Indeed love has the power to give birth to miracles
Overcoming sorrow to capture tomorrow
Indeed love has the power to give birth to miracles .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ Chapter 1, A Red Rose in the Darkness~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Darkness. Nothing around her, but total and complete darkness. It was cold and deathly silent. Then, suddenly, the images started flashing again. She was wearing clean, silk, elegant white clothing, which was beginning to grow familiar to her. She had tied a bandanna around her head; holes had been cut to let her ears poke through. She had a wide-eyed look on her face, and her long hair flowed out from under the cloth of the beautiful Youko. Her fine, silver hair was untied, letting the rest flow down her back. In her hands, she held two elegant weapons. The first, a dagger, connected with a long, metallic string to her wrist. The second, a death flower, filling the battleground with a scent that defied the senses. Demons were flying in from out of nowhere, but she was quick enough to slash at them with lethal precision. Not far from where she was, the other silver youko was lashing out at the demons with a rose whip. He had such amazing grace and swiftness, was a fleeting image of death with every movement. Narrowed gold eyes calculated every pace and every attack, always ready to counter every blow. In the midst of the battle, they were slowly moving towards each other, until they ended up in the middle of some twelve marauding demons moving around in a circle. Their backs were against each other when they glanced toward one another at the same moment. They nodded at each other at the same time, and moved to attack as a duo, each lethal blow in sync. Then the image faded as quickly as it came, and for Kaze, it was back to where it all started: Darkness. ~ She woke in a cold sweat, emerald eyes darting around the room, "why are you doing this?" She was answered by a thick silence. Glancing at the clock, she noted it was 10:42 Pm, yawning, she let her legs over the side of the bed, putting on her slippers, and walking into the kitchen. Opening the fridge she pulled out a carton of milk and quickly poured herself a glass, which she had been doing for the past few nights, her milk reserves were getting low. She would have to go to the store tomorrow. Letting herself fall limply into a random chair she let her gaze drift to the window. Small crystals of ice were falling softly onto the ground. It was winter and heavy snow was to be expected this year, a small smile graced her lips, "Perhaps tomorrow I'll go make sure Yusuke hasn't gotten himself snowed in." Suddenly a thought hit her, "Oh, my plants are still outside, oh well, luckily they will bloom again in spring." She took a sip of her milk, which had been feeling slightly neglected on the table. Finishing the glass she put it in the sink, "I don't suppose I'll have school tomorrow, considering the snow." A wave of sleepiness hit her as she got into bed. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow. ~The next morning, 7:25 AM~
|Kaze Minamino - The Beautiful Human | | | |The red haired, green-eyed girl may be | |in a human form, but she is not | |completely a human. Given the name Zoku| |[thief] by her "mother" Shiori, she is | |still the demon fox deep down inside. | |Kaze had planned to keep her human form | |for only ten years-like her brother- | |then she was to return to being a Youko,| |but then something happened that changed| |her. When she was little, she wanted a | |cup to get some milk; unfortunately, she| |was too short in that body. So her | |brother tried to get it for her, he fell| |while trying to get it out of a cabinet | |and his mother saved him, but she was | |slashed by broken plates from the | |cabinet. The scars on her hands never | |went away and Kaze felt guilty. She | |began to be a good daughter and was very| |upset when their mother fell ill. In | |school Kurama and Kaze always challenged| |each other to be at the very top. Very | |intelligent and still able to control | |plants Kaze had a potentially dangerous | |mind. She met up with Hakari and the | |two of them stole treasures from the | |Makai, but Kaze simply wanted to use | |this to help her mother, not for evil. | |She met with Yusuke Urameshi and told | |him she would return the treasure after | |she had made sure her mother was ok. She| |was lying ofcourse, she was planning on | |selling a bit of what ever the duo stole| |and give the money to her Okaa'san. She| |would sacrifice anything for her mother,| |even her life. Her personality is | |vastly different from her Youko form. | |But this doesn't mean she can't fight. | |Kaze can be and is a very powerful | |fighter in this form. She usually takes| |a rose from her hair and turns it into a| |thorny rose whip. She usually fights | |alongside Hakari, her close friend and | |partner in crime. | | | | |
The fox shifted, a languorous movement that magnified the pristine beauty of her slender form, gently outlined on the red linen sheets. Her red hair fanned out as she turned away from the bright light that entered through the glass window. Kaze could not stand looking at the sun in the morning without thinking the universe to have some vested interest in allowing her to stay under this roof. Yet Kaze's smile turned a minute arch up, almost in an amused way. She kicked the blanket off and made her way to the windowsill. Sitting casually on the windowsill of her room, Kaze drew her rose, thought momentarily to play with it again. With Hakari acting the way he did lately, there was nothing else to do but to play with the delicate flower. Kaze had tried fighting with the stronger youkai in Yomi's palace but it never worked. She had barely worked up a sweat and their throats were already pressed between the wall and her hand. She hadn't even needed to use her ki. She stiffened slightly as the phone rang. She reached over to the table beside the window and picked up the phone. She smiled brightly, "Ofcourse, I'll be over in a few minutes. Kaze smiled as she sat back, making herself comfortable. Yusuke had invited her over for a day, and it was a pleasant feeling to be asked not for his academic skills, nor any other kind of help, but simply to 'hang out' as most ordinary human boys his age did. Of course, she reflected, her and Yusuke were far from ordinary, but that didn't change that fact that it was nice to be able to enjoy a simple human pleasure once in a while. "Glad you could come, Kaze!" Yusuke called from the kitchen. He was desperately looking for some food to offer his guest. [*sigh*. Of course we don't have any food.] He opened a cupboard, and several empty bottles fell on his head. "AHHHHH!" Hearing the shout, and a crash, Kaze jumped to her feet in alarm. "Yusuke? Are you all right?" she asked worriedly, fully prepared to go down there if need be, but holding back for the time being. Yusuke's pride would be bruised if she went down there and made an unneeded fuss, and the last thing she wanted to do was to hurt Yusuke's feelings. "Yeah, fine. Just attacked by a bunch of damned bottles." Grumbling, he kicked them out of his way. "Sorry." [Wait! I know!] He opened a drawer, digging in the back and pulling a long box out. [Didn't think I'd be giving it to her this way, but...] Returning to his living room, the dark-haired one set the box down before the redhead and opened it, revealing two rows of milk chocolate. He bought the treats and was intending on giving them as a gift, but had never gotten to the nerve to do so. Kaze blinked in surprise and delight. "Chocolate? Thank you, Yusuke -- I love chocolate!" Eagerly, she reached out, then drew her hand back as she saw the ornate ness of the box. "I... Yusuke, I can't eat these, they're meant for a special occasion, surely." And indeed, the box was fancily wrapped, and the chocolates were the expensive sort. [And very nice they are, too,] she thought a little wistfully, remembering when Hatanaka-san had given Shiori a box of this type of chocolates and she had shared them. "They're for you. I mean, uh, to eat. They're for nothing special." [Not true. *You're* special.] "Just dig in!" He took one himself and popped it in his mouth, grinning. Reassured by Yusuke's taking of the chocolate, Kaze decided that it was safe to indulge. Throwing a smile at Yusuke, unaware of how dazzling that smile was, she said, "Thank you. In that case, I will!" Gladly, she took a chocolate and bit into it, closing her eyes and savoring the flavor, making a slight, soft sound of appreciation as she let it melt in her mouth. Yusuke's eyes widened. [Damn... Even the way she eats is cute!] He popped another treat in his mouth, not paying attention. He was too focused on watching the play of Kaze's lips out of the corner of his eye. Swallowing, slender throat rippling with the motion, Kaze opened her eyes and smiled gratefully at Yusuke before popping the other half of the chocolate into her mouth. Having been held in her hand, the chocolate had been melted by body heat and chocolate clung to her delicate fingertips. Once she finished the chocolate in her mouth, she forgot her usually perfect manners and sucked the chocolate off, licking each fingertip clean one by one. It was the mark of Kaze that she effortlessly managed to make even this action look graceful and elegant. Finishing the first chocolate, Kaze gave in to her cravings and allowed she to take a second chocolate. [No more,] she told herself sternly, [at least not yet. Do you want Yusuke to think you're a selfish, greedy pig??] With this firm self-admonishment, she decided it would be forgivable to savor and enjoy this chocolate she held in her fingers to the full. Lifting it to her lips, she sucked on it briefly before nibbling gently on it, leaving a faint trail of chocolate on her lips as well as on her fingers. Sighing with the pleasure that only a chocoholic who rarely indulges can truly appreciate, she tossed her head back, shaking her hair away from her face. It spilled back neatly onto her forest-green shirt, while her legs were doubled up underneath her, elegantly clad in loose black clothe pants. Her bare feet were casually tucked beneath her. All in all, she was a breathtaking sight. And she knew it, though she doubted that Yusuke thought of it that way. She sighed inwardly. [If only he did...] But since Yusuke was oblivious, at least a little bit of harmless flirting and showing off her looks wouldn't hurt. And goodness knew it was all she'd ever get the courage to do with Yusuke. She, un-like her fox form, was a shy, timid creature, who was at this moment in serious need of some help, she was a chocoholic and fate was tempting her with the very object of her desires . NO NOT YUSUKE! THE CHOCOLATE! Yusuke blinked a few times, "Kaze ah . I.." she closed his eyes [Nice, lets tell her you like watching her eat chocolate, how odd will that make you!?] "I like watching you eat chocolate.." he mumbled, embarrassed. Kaze blinked. "Chocolate? You enjoyed seeing me eat chocolate?" [Okay, I have officially died and gone to heaven.] "Yusuke, people sometimes talk about their inner child. Do you know how happy you just made my inner chocoholic?" Yusuke laughed. "Man, I shoulda gave them to you sooner!" When Kaze looked slightly confused, he explained "They were s'posed to be a present for you, but I never got the nerve to give 'em to you. That's why they're so nice." Kaze joined in the laughter. "Thank you for giving them to me anyway, Yusuke. And for buying them for me in the first place. Oh dear... what a mix-up. I was too shy to say anything, and you were too nervous to say anything. And all it took to fix the problem was a box of chocolates. But then again, I've always thought that chocolate can fix almost anything..." Grinning, Yusuke leaned over the side of the couch, picking something up off the floor. "Chocolate?" He offered innocently, holding out the long box like a shield when Kaze looked as though she was going to swat him. "I might be a chocoholic, but I don't want any right now, thank you! I'll tell you what I *do* want..." And Kaze proceeded to do so, to Yusuke's delight. She leaned forward, kissing him on the cheek, "I've had a lovely visit, but I need to go see my brother, see you later," she giggled quietly and made her exit, leaving a dumbfounded Yusuke on the couch.
My soul, dried by loneliness
Only now, I send out blossoms of courage
Blooming in an utterly dark land
A Red Rose...
Overcoming suffering, searching for tomorrow
From out of a sleepy, worried dawn
A new me is born
From Darkness rises the morning sun
Stretching out in my heart
Indeed love has the power to give birth to miracles
Overcoming sorrow to capture tomorrow
Indeed love has the power to give birth to miracles .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ Chapter 1, A Red Rose in the Darkness~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Darkness. Nothing around her, but total and complete darkness. It was cold and deathly silent. Then, suddenly, the images started flashing again. She was wearing clean, silk, elegant white clothing, which was beginning to grow familiar to her. She had tied a bandanna around her head; holes had been cut to let her ears poke through. She had a wide-eyed look on her face, and her long hair flowed out from under the cloth of the beautiful Youko. Her fine, silver hair was untied, letting the rest flow down her back. In her hands, she held two elegant weapons. The first, a dagger, connected with a long, metallic string to her wrist. The second, a death flower, filling the battleground with a scent that defied the senses. Demons were flying in from out of nowhere, but she was quick enough to slash at them with lethal precision. Not far from where she was, the other silver youko was lashing out at the demons with a rose whip. He had such amazing grace and swiftness, was a fleeting image of death with every movement. Narrowed gold eyes calculated every pace and every attack, always ready to counter every blow. In the midst of the battle, they were slowly moving towards each other, until they ended up in the middle of some twelve marauding demons moving around in a circle. Their backs were against each other when they glanced toward one another at the same moment. They nodded at each other at the same time, and moved to attack as a duo, each lethal blow in sync. Then the image faded as quickly as it came, and for Kaze, it was back to where it all started: Darkness. ~ She woke in a cold sweat, emerald eyes darting around the room, "why are you doing this?" She was answered by a thick silence. Glancing at the clock, she noted it was 10:42 Pm, yawning, she let her legs over the side of the bed, putting on her slippers, and walking into the kitchen. Opening the fridge she pulled out a carton of milk and quickly poured herself a glass, which she had been doing for the past few nights, her milk reserves were getting low. She would have to go to the store tomorrow. Letting herself fall limply into a random chair she let her gaze drift to the window. Small crystals of ice were falling softly onto the ground. It was winter and heavy snow was to be expected this year, a small smile graced her lips, "Perhaps tomorrow I'll go make sure Yusuke hasn't gotten himself snowed in." Suddenly a thought hit her, "Oh, my plants are still outside, oh well, luckily they will bloom again in spring." She took a sip of her milk, which had been feeling slightly neglected on the table. Finishing the glass she put it in the sink, "I don't suppose I'll have school tomorrow, considering the snow." A wave of sleepiness hit her as she got into bed. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow. ~The next morning, 7:25 AM~
|Kaze Minamino - The Beautiful Human | | | |The red haired, green-eyed girl may be | |in a human form, but she is not | |completely a human. Given the name Zoku| |[thief] by her "mother" Shiori, she is | |still the demon fox deep down inside. | |Kaze had planned to keep her human form | |for only ten years-like her brother- | |then she was to return to being a Youko,| |but then something happened that changed| |her. When she was little, she wanted a | |cup to get some milk; unfortunately, she| |was too short in that body. So her | |brother tried to get it for her, he fell| |while trying to get it out of a cabinet | |and his mother saved him, but she was | |slashed by broken plates from the | |cabinet. The scars on her hands never | |went away and Kaze felt guilty. She | |began to be a good daughter and was very| |upset when their mother fell ill. In | |school Kurama and Kaze always challenged| |each other to be at the very top. Very | |intelligent and still able to control | |plants Kaze had a potentially dangerous | |mind. She met up with Hakari and the | |two of them stole treasures from the | |Makai, but Kaze simply wanted to use | |this to help her mother, not for evil. | |She met with Yusuke Urameshi and told | |him she would return the treasure after | |she had made sure her mother was ok. She| |was lying ofcourse, she was planning on | |selling a bit of what ever the duo stole| |and give the money to her Okaa'san. She| |would sacrifice anything for her mother,| |even her life. Her personality is | |vastly different from her Youko form. | |But this doesn't mean she can't fight. | |Kaze can be and is a very powerful | |fighter in this form. She usually takes| |a rose from her hair and turns it into a| |thorny rose whip. She usually fights | |alongside Hakari, her close friend and | |partner in crime. | | | | |
The fox shifted, a languorous movement that magnified the pristine beauty of her slender form, gently outlined on the red linen sheets. Her red hair fanned out as she turned away from the bright light that entered through the glass window. Kaze could not stand looking at the sun in the morning without thinking the universe to have some vested interest in allowing her to stay under this roof. Yet Kaze's smile turned a minute arch up, almost in an amused way. She kicked the blanket off and made her way to the windowsill. Sitting casually on the windowsill of her room, Kaze drew her rose, thought momentarily to play with it again. With Hakari acting the way he did lately, there was nothing else to do but to play with the delicate flower. Kaze had tried fighting with the stronger youkai in Yomi's palace but it never worked. She had barely worked up a sweat and their throats were already pressed between the wall and her hand. She hadn't even needed to use her ki. She stiffened slightly as the phone rang. She reached over to the table beside the window and picked up the phone. She smiled brightly, "Ofcourse, I'll be over in a few minutes. Kaze smiled as she sat back, making herself comfortable. Yusuke had invited her over for a day, and it was a pleasant feeling to be asked not for his academic skills, nor any other kind of help, but simply to 'hang out' as most ordinary human boys his age did. Of course, she reflected, her and Yusuke were far from ordinary, but that didn't change that fact that it was nice to be able to enjoy a simple human pleasure once in a while. "Glad you could come, Kaze!" Yusuke called from the kitchen. He was desperately looking for some food to offer his guest. [*sigh*. Of course we don't have any food.] He opened a cupboard, and several empty bottles fell on his head. "AHHHHH!" Hearing the shout, and a crash, Kaze jumped to her feet in alarm. "Yusuke? Are you all right?" she asked worriedly, fully prepared to go down there if need be, but holding back for the time being. Yusuke's pride would be bruised if she went down there and made an unneeded fuss, and the last thing she wanted to do was to hurt Yusuke's feelings. "Yeah, fine. Just attacked by a bunch of damned bottles." Grumbling, he kicked them out of his way. "Sorry." [Wait! I know!] He opened a drawer, digging in the back and pulling a long box out. [Didn't think I'd be giving it to her this way, but...] Returning to his living room, the dark-haired one set the box down before the redhead and opened it, revealing two rows of milk chocolate. He bought the treats and was intending on giving them as a gift, but had never gotten to the nerve to do so. Kaze blinked in surprise and delight. "Chocolate? Thank you, Yusuke -- I love chocolate!" Eagerly, she reached out, then drew her hand back as she saw the ornate ness of the box. "I... Yusuke, I can't eat these, they're meant for a special occasion, surely." And indeed, the box was fancily wrapped, and the chocolates were the expensive sort. [And very nice they are, too,] she thought a little wistfully, remembering when Hatanaka-san had given Shiori a box of this type of chocolates and she had shared them. "They're for you. I mean, uh, to eat. They're for nothing special." [Not true. *You're* special.] "Just dig in!" He took one himself and popped it in his mouth, grinning. Reassured by Yusuke's taking of the chocolate, Kaze decided that it was safe to indulge. Throwing a smile at Yusuke, unaware of how dazzling that smile was, she said, "Thank you. In that case, I will!" Gladly, she took a chocolate and bit into it, closing her eyes and savoring the flavor, making a slight, soft sound of appreciation as she let it melt in her mouth. Yusuke's eyes widened. [Damn... Even the way she eats is cute!] He popped another treat in his mouth, not paying attention. He was too focused on watching the play of Kaze's lips out of the corner of his eye. Swallowing, slender throat rippling with the motion, Kaze opened her eyes and smiled gratefully at Yusuke before popping the other half of the chocolate into her mouth. Having been held in her hand, the chocolate had been melted by body heat and chocolate clung to her delicate fingertips. Once she finished the chocolate in her mouth, she forgot her usually perfect manners and sucked the chocolate off, licking each fingertip clean one by one. It was the mark of Kaze that she effortlessly managed to make even this action look graceful and elegant. Finishing the first chocolate, Kaze gave in to her cravings and allowed she to take a second chocolate. [No more,] she told herself sternly, [at least not yet. Do you want Yusuke to think you're a selfish, greedy pig??] With this firm self-admonishment, she decided it would be forgivable to savor and enjoy this chocolate she held in her fingers to the full. Lifting it to her lips, she sucked on it briefly before nibbling gently on it, leaving a faint trail of chocolate on her lips as well as on her fingers. Sighing with the pleasure that only a chocoholic who rarely indulges can truly appreciate, she tossed her head back, shaking her hair away from her face. It spilled back neatly onto her forest-green shirt, while her legs were doubled up underneath her, elegantly clad in loose black clothe pants. Her bare feet were casually tucked beneath her. All in all, she was a breathtaking sight. And she knew it, though she doubted that Yusuke thought of it that way. She sighed inwardly. [If only he did...] But since Yusuke was oblivious, at least a little bit of harmless flirting and showing off her looks wouldn't hurt. And goodness knew it was all she'd ever get the courage to do with Yusuke. She, un-like her fox form, was a shy, timid creature, who was at this moment in serious need of some help, she was a chocoholic and fate was tempting her with the very object of her desires . NO NOT YUSUKE! THE CHOCOLATE! Yusuke blinked a few times, "Kaze ah . I.." she closed his eyes [Nice, lets tell her you like watching her eat chocolate, how odd will that make you!?] "I like watching you eat chocolate.." he mumbled, embarrassed. Kaze blinked. "Chocolate? You enjoyed seeing me eat chocolate?" [Okay, I have officially died and gone to heaven.] "Yusuke, people sometimes talk about their inner child. Do you know how happy you just made my inner chocoholic?" Yusuke laughed. "Man, I shoulda gave them to you sooner!" When Kaze looked slightly confused, he explained "They were s'posed to be a present for you, but I never got the nerve to give 'em to you. That's why they're so nice." Kaze joined in the laughter. "Thank you for giving them to me anyway, Yusuke. And for buying them for me in the first place. Oh dear... what a mix-up. I was too shy to say anything, and you were too nervous to say anything. And all it took to fix the problem was a box of chocolates. But then again, I've always thought that chocolate can fix almost anything..." Grinning, Yusuke leaned over the side of the couch, picking something up off the floor. "Chocolate?" He offered innocently, holding out the long box like a shield when Kaze looked as though she was going to swat him. "I might be a chocoholic, but I don't want any right now, thank you! I'll tell you what I *do* want..." And Kaze proceeded to do so, to Yusuke's delight. She leaned forward, kissing him on the cheek, "I've had a lovely visit, but I need to go see my brother, see you later," she giggled quietly and made her exit, leaving a dumbfounded Yusuke on the couch.