Disclaimer: I do not own Eden No Ori.
Kurohime turned from the window of the plane to her seatmate, and more importantly, lover when she heard him begin to flip his coin. She smiled and wrapped her arms around him, making him stop to look at her curiously.
"Get my bag, Yarai," she said rather than asked. He didn't say anything as he sat up straight and reached up to grab her 'bag', a military style pack and kit that had the basic survival tools and a surplus of medical supplies.
"Why'd you bring a survival kit to a school trip?" Yarai asked his girlfriend, not really expecting an answer. She never answered his questions outright, letting him solve it by giving him clues. He liked that since it made things interesting in an otherwise boring world. It was why he didn't reject her when she did the only straightforward thing he'd known her to do since before the start of their relationship...she up and kissed him when he asked why she hung out with him and replied 'because I love you. I decided to claim you as mine and give myself to you the moment I saw how great you were.'
Since then Yarai had come to fully understand what she meant. Kurohime was simple yet at the same time very complex. She was powerful and though she wasn't a genius, had her own kind of intelligence, and her view of life was crystal clear but not conductive for having a bright future, not that he could talk. She believed that it was a dog eat dog world, not in a business sense, but in a literal fight for you life sense. She blatantly told him when she confessed that she loved him because he was great. It was the basest of instincts for women, to find a strong mate, both physically and mentally, and Yarai was just that. The fact that others were frightened and intimidated by him and his appearance only added to his potential as the perfect mate and Yarai recognized that that was how Kurohime's mind worked and he couldn't help but be intrigued and attracted by it, hence why he had her as his lover. They had already gone all the way, multiple times in fact, the first time having been instigated by Kurohime, but the rest by Yarai when he got a sense of her moods and got to know her better, despite their young age and he never had to worry about being gentle with her, she was powerful and that too attracted him. He snapped out of his thoughts when she answered his previous question.
"Do you remember what I said when we first met? The start of my hanging out with you?" She answered with her own question. He thought back, remembering it clearly because of how strange it was, how interesting.
"You said that you wanted to get closer to the strongest among those that would survive." Yarai said slowly trying to figure out the puzzle she was presenting.
"And what did I say the day we received notice of this field trip?" She asked again.
"You told me that I wouldn't want to miss this, that I wouldn't be bored anymore," he frowned since that seemed to have been proven false, but his frown deepened since Kurohime's predictions...or rather premonitions had never been wrong before. Yarai knew that she knew things about himself and others that she shouldn't have known and she seemed to have precognitive abilities that fascinated him, but what he didn't know was that she was a woman that was reborn from a parallel Earth where Yarai was nothing but a fictional character in a manga, a completed manga called Eden no Ori.
"And...?" Kurohime prompted as she secured her bag on her lap, securing her seat belt and his, much to Yarai's confusion, though he did nothing to stop her.
"And that you didn't want to stick around to watch...watch the world end." Yarai looked at her sharply. Did that mean that going on this trip would somehow make them escape some unknown fate? Was the world going to end while they were on the plane? It sounded ridiculous, but from what Kurohime said so far...
"The world won't end while we're on this plane. It'll take years before it really happens." He opened his mouth to ask another question, but she stopped him by putting a finger under his jaw and closing it. "We just won't be there to see it. We'll be busy with our own dilemma. Oh, but you will gain something very precious out of this. You'll find another one." More questions arose, but they were quickly answered by her next two words and what followed right after. "Brace yourself." The plane shook violently and some that weren't properly strapped in were thrown out of their seats and into other objects.
Yarai now understood why he was strapped in and why she asked for her bag. Kurohime was smaller than him and the seat belt only secured her waist. Her bag helped her from the violent whiplash that could have happened while Yarai was safe from it because of his taller and larger build. Kurohime was quick to jump into action when there was a paranormal blackout in what was supposed to be the middle of the day. She quickly unstrapped herself and put the pack on her back while Yarai unstrapped himself as well.
"Kurohime, what's going on?" He asked. His eyes widened when she turned to him with a shaky smile and something that severely caught his attention, there was a spark of fear in her eyes. He had never seen her afraid of anything, nothing seemed to frighten her in the time they had spent together and to see it now was unnerving.
"Kami-sama is granting the wish of a dying mother." Yarai didn't bother asking anymore questions when he felt the plane going down. Instead choosing to grab onto Kurohime and protect her from the eventual crash. He wondered just what the hell was going on as his love clung onto him for dear life, her now seemingly small and fragile frame shaking like a leaf. Whatever it was, whatever she knew, was frightening her. Yarai's eyes steeled. And whatever it was she was frightened of...Yarai would make sure to get rid of it quickly.
Yarai glanced at Kurohime's absolutely bored expression from the corner of his eye as she nonchalantly hung off his shoulders like she usually did as that extinct animal attack and even kept the same expression when the people went into mass panic. So this isn't what she was afraid of and from the looks of it she knew it would happen. Yarai stored that away for later as she wordlessly pointed to the end of the aisle where their sensei was about to get raped by two arguably ape like males. He took that as a sign that he should rescue her and did so, kicking her main assailant in the face and making him bounce off the floor, kicking the other to the side and making him bounce against the opposing walls like a rubber ball.
"Th-thank you Yarai-kun," their sensei managed to stutter out as she tried to compose herself.
"...This is how I am, sensei." Yarai replied as he started to look over his shoulder.
"What? What are you saying?" She asked, making Kurohime roll her eyes at the woman.
"...seems this tedious thing is taken care of." Yarai grinned at the chaos. As always, Kurohime had been right. He was no longer bored. "See ya, sensei." He called as he turned and left, putting a hand on Kurohime's arm, knowing that she sometimes liked to slip off and walk on her own, but this was his signal telling her that he wanted her to stay there for a while so she complied.
"Y-Yarai-kun?! Kurohime-chan?!" Their sensei called, then she got up to follow shakily. "Wait just a second!" She called, though the couple ignored her.
Yarai stopped when Kurohime and the sensei following them looked back to the roaring fire coming from where the plane was supposed to be. The sensei had tears in her eyes and a hand covering her gaping mouth, her expression one of horror. "O-our way back..." she breathed out despairingly. Yarai glanced to Kurohime to see that she seemed unfazed. Something else she knew would happen and she wasn't worried. He had thought she wasn't going to say anything, but she did and just before that annoying sensei could start sniveling.
"What way back, sensei? The pilot and co-pilot are dead and no one else was capable nor would have later become capable of driving it. It wouldn't have mattered. It was too late even before we abandoned it. Kami-sama closed the gateway. The wish was granted. Now all we must do is survive as humans were always meant to do," Kurohime said in a hollow voice, more frightening than reassuring to their sensei.
"H-how could you say that, Kurohime-chan! You mustn't give up hope so easily. I-I'm sure Kami-sama is merciful. H-he wouldn't do something like this!" Their sensei apparently thought that she needed cheering up, but Yarai knew better. How could he give her hope if she had none to begin with? And he was more focused on what she said, more pieces to the puzzle. She said something about a wish again and Kami-sama granting it, but the gateway... that was new.
He figured that the strange phenomena that happened on the plane, the turbulence, the blackout, then that strange distortion of reality in the shape of a large beak- that all must have obviously been what Kurohime said was Kami-sama granting a wish, the wish of some dying mother, but who and for what purpose? He didn't really believe in any god, but he knew that Kurohime was not much of a believer either, so for her to say it was his work meant that it must be true. Then what did she say? The gateway had closed? The wish granted? Did this dying mother want to send the plane here specifically? Why their plane?
Yarai didn't wonder long about the gateway. He had heard the conversation between the pilot and the monk before the former was killed. He had said that they had to go before it was too late. He must have seen this gateway, obviously unable to avoid it. After all, who could avoid Kami-sama's will? He must have thought that if they hurried back to the same spot that they could return, but Yarai knew now that would have been impossible since Kurohime just told him that the gateway had closed maybe even before the pilot mentioned it. Yarai filed the information away and decided to ask her another question.
"Why else did Kami send us here? Not just for some mother's dying wish," Yarai questioned. Their sensei seemed at a loss, but Kurohime just smiled sadly.
"Kami-sama wanted us to see the results of sin." Yarai frowned at that. Sin...if she referred to a single god then it was probably Christianity and their religion had seven deadly sins...sloth, gluttony, lust, wrath, envy, greed, pride. She had not specified on a sin, simply using the general term, that meant that all seven must have been employed at one point, but what did human sin have to do with an island of extinct animals? Already Yarai had a theory, but he needed to find more pieces.
He picked up a complacent Kurohime and put her back to dangling on his shoulders, bag and all. She had been walking all day with that pack, pulling out their clumsy sensei from dangerous situations while he handled the danger, she needed a breather. He knew she wasn't tired, just winded, but he cared for her and if giving her some time to catch her breath was all it took for her to save herself from death in a dangerous situation, then he would gladly give it. He glared when the other people that followed him started to complain about some nonsense.
Yarai grinned, the thrill of having taken down the strange deer like creature still coursing through him. He didn't turn or respond to his classmates asking if they could have it and enthusing about food, but he turned when Kurusu-sensei called his name, making Kurohime turn with him, still dangling on his shoulders.
"It was true that while wearing these ears, we wouldn't be attacked by wild beasts. Thank you..." Kurohime bit her lower lip as Yarai answered.
"That...was a lie."
"Eh... WHAT?!" She shouted, making Kurohime unable to hold it in, she slipped off of Yarai's back, laughing hard until Yarai actually had to hold her up by her arm to keep her from falling over.
"I can't believe you fell for it!" Kurohime managed to say between laughs. She started to regain her breath while her sensei turned red-faced.
"B-but, you're wearing them too, Kurohime! Plus you even have a tail!" She pointed an accusing finger at her student's black cat ears and matching tail, she even had a black, thin cat collar around her neck.
"Oh this?" Kurohime said as she leaned back into Yarai, who slipped a hand around her waist. "I wear them because my koi here likes them," Kurohime said suggestively as she reached up to stroke his face, Yarai leaning down so she could do it and let his face brush against her hair and ears. He smirked when Kurohime started laughing again at Kurusu-sensei's now extremely red, embarrassed face.
Yarai noticed Kurohime's frown when she saw the berry plants. He wondered at it, but pushed the thought aside in favor of giving Kurohime and Kurusu-sensei some appropriate shelter for once. He was sure that Akira had a comfy cave for his crush and that flight attendant. He slid Kurohime off his back in favor of putting her on his lap after taking off her pack and setting it aside. When his group of delinquents had gone too far and pushed Kurusu-sensei aside when she tried to stop them, he simply said two words.
"Hey. Food." The three readily and nervously complied with his demand, giving both Kurohime and himself food. They had learned early to respect not just Yarai, but Kurohime. Yarai thought they were stupid for thinking they would get away with trying to hurt her just for getting his favoritism. Of course he treated her differently. Kurohime was his lover...and she was strong. Not as strong as him, but strong enough to easily teach three delinquents a lesson they'd never forget. Yarai stood, bringing his hime with him after they had both eaten their fill. She had nudged him and pointed arbitrarily in the direction of the herbivore that was suspiciously docile. He came in on a conversation between Akira and their school's resident genius Mariya.
"About those things that went extinct long ago...I have a guess. It's because it can't see them directly. For example, the andrewsarchus, there's only one part of the skull they aren't finding." Mariya continued as Yarai silently put Kurohime down and watched her climb the rhino beast without hesitation, staring at the two warily before turning to examine the berry plant.
"Huh?!" Akira asked in confusion.
"However, from the fossils that were unearthed from the stratum, we know the time it lived, the place and the environment, and from the shape of its teeth, we know its feeding habit. They found common traits the animals have from the shape of the jaw and so it can be categorized. If you can attach it to a classification, that's 'taxonomic'. That shape is assumable. The shape and feeding habitat...if you can gather it's shape and period of living, the next up's ethology. In this way, various studies come together." Mariya explained, though it seemed Akira didn't get it.
"B-but I thought the animals were based on those..." Akira trailed off, unsure.
"All right... then why...?"
" 'Nature doesn't jump'." Yarai said, entering the conversation and catching Kurohime's attention, making her slide off the animal to lean on Yarai's back as he began to examine the rhino animal himself.
"Y-Yarai!" Akira exclaimed. He didn't even turn.
"Ohh, so you know that Yarai." Mariya said.
"In Darwin's theory of evolution, it's thought that it seems like you're rising up a staircase in evolution. On the contrary, if you go down, you expose the reality of the past's living things though it wouldn't be difficult." Kurohime sighed and got up from Yarai's back when Rion made her appearance. She frowned when Akira mentioned her injury, of course knowing that Yarai would rip off her shirt to see it...which he did. And of course, Akira retaliated by punching him, though Yarai didn't even move from the impact. Rather he smiled and was about to reach into his pocket for his keys, but Kurohime had had enough.
"Yarai," she said simply, making Yarai stop in his tracks, his eyes wide. "make your intentions clear." She stated simply. Mariya, Akira, and Rion, all three seemed shocked that she spoke. They had known about her since she was always seen beside Yarai and it was clear the two were intimate, but Kurohime rarely spoke to anyone but Yarai, in fact she rarely spoke around others at all. It was why Yarai was rather surprised with how much more talkative she had become since the plane. Not only did she speak to him in front of others, she sometimes even spoke to other people which was strange. It was then that Kurusu-sensei came stomping up to scold Yarai and take care of Rion. Yarai's smile faded as he turned away, speaking to Akira as he did.
"My woman, as it is, my right arm remains a hindrance. The shoulder to the elbow's firmly fixated and she said not to move it for 2-3 days." He knew that Kurusu-sensei had come to the same conclusion, but Kurohime had examined her first. Another one of her talents, being able to analyze someone or something's body and being able to identify the strengths and weaknesses based on their physique and overall appearance. While Kurohime wasn't a true doctor as she of course didn't have a degree, her healing abilities with herbs and her chi abilities, along with some other medical knowledge he was sure she knew, would certainly be more helpful than having no medical aid at all.
Kurohime rolled her eyes as Akira tried to stop them from fighting off those weak imps in the trees. Though she was rather impressed that he got over the shock of Kurohime's new attire so quickly. Kurohime had a name that suited her perfectly. Her long, straight black hair was a deep black that shone almost blue in reflective light, her eyes were two obsidian black stones and her complexion was a contrastingly pale peach. She was curvy for her age, but didn't have an overly large bust like Rion or the flight attendant, hers being a modest c-cup pair with slightly larger hips that flared attractively from a thin but well muscled torso.
Kurohime had switched out her school uniform for an outfit that looked suspiciously similar to what ninja would wear, more specifically, kunoichi. She wore a flat black sleeveless yukata top that doubled as a mini dress with slits that rose to her hips on either side to reveal the white string of her panties. Beneath she wore thick, high black socks that traveled down to traditional Japanese sandals though the soles were padded so as to muffle sound and leave no prints and armor to protect her shins. Matching armor and cloth was on her arm, the thick black cloth reaching to the center of her upper arm. Strapped to her belt and thighs were pouches that contained the classic ninja weaponry, kunai, shuriken, senbon, smoke bombs, actual bombs, poison darts, wire, medical wrap, etc. Strapped to her hip and lower waist were a matching tanto and katana and across her back was an open quiver that revealed a professional looking hunting bow with lethal looking arrows. her waist length hair was pulled back in a high ponytail by a strip of black cloth and around her neck was a loose black scarf that could easily be pulled up to hide half of her face.
Both Yarai and Kurohime grinned at the prospect of battle, Yarai pulling out his keys as they rushed the enemy, Kurohime staying behind as she expertly pulled out her bow and fired three arrows at once after having tied wire to them. She couldn't afford to waste any arrows as the wooden ones she knew how to make wouldn't be able to pierce most of the animals that inhabited the island, but her modern metal arrows could. She took down three after they all pounced when Yarai took down the first one, not bothering to pull them back just yet as she prepared four more arrows. She downed three more to give Yarai a clear path to their child that was stuck in the ground and had previously been tormented by the three idiots in their group.
Yarai got bored when they left easily after he returned their kid. Kurohime didn't bother watching when he backhanded one of the delinquents, pulling back her arrows with a sharp and deliberate tug of her hand, the wire not cutting into her skin thanks to her thick black leather gloves, scuffed so they wouldn't reflect light. Kurohime cleaned and put away her weapons as Yarai prepared to strike the fools again, but was distracted by Akira dealing with a very irate baboon that was lingering.
Yarai started to laugh boisterously at the situation and Kurohime was quick to join when she saw the matching expressions of shock on the baboon and Akira's face.
"Haha, s-sorry about that, Sengoku Akira," Yarai told him with a smile, tears of mirth in his eyes as he stood, one hand still holding his stomach while the other wiped away the tears. He picked up Kurohime, holding her in his arms since he didn't want those idiots ogling her rather revealing combat outfit. "Hey, let's get going," he told the others. Kurohime smiled warmly at Yarai when he continued to give short bursts of laughter at remembering what had occurred just moments ago, her own laughter joining in sometimes and making Yarai smile warmly down at her as well. Kurohime loved that smile of his, the sight of it never failing to make her heart and stomach flutter, her whole body tingle with joy and excitement. She snuggled up to him, a little sad since they hadn't made love since they arrived on the island and his smile was definitely something that made her body very ready for him. He seemed to notice as well as he held her closer, his hands tightening around her waist and thighs. They both knew anything more intimate was impossible at the moment, but this was good enough for now.
Yarai watched throughout the night as Kurohime's eyes gradually became red as well. He knew that he already had it, but why was Kurohime the last to show the symptoms? He knew she had the answer to this and one of his had already died and now she was sick too. Why was she being so silent? He almost froze when she spoke.
"It was necessary. The only ones who can defy their fates are you, Akira, and those that follow him, and even then there will be sacrifices. This is only the first of many unexpected enemies. You already have all the pieces, you need only put them together." Kurohime said softly, her breath slightly labored, though the only indication besides her slightly labored breath of the disease was her red eyes and pale complexion. His brows furrowed in frustration when he saw that spark of fear he'd seen on the plane.
"...why are you afraid?" Yarai almost didn't want to hear her answer when she paled further, unshed tears in her eyes as she swallowed heavily.
"...I know the fate of all those that wander this cursed island. All of them, I know things about their past, their present, their future that I should not know. The mystery of this island is no mystery to me and neither is how we arrived here...is it not cruel then that the only fate I do not know...is my own?" His eyes widened at that. He had known that she knew things but not to that extent, but that didn't really matter right now.
"Is that why you chose to catch whatever the hell this is? To die!" he hissed at her, outraged. Tears fell silently down her cheeks as she weakly shook her head.
"Of course not, perhaps at one point, before I met you, I would have gladly done so, but you are my purpose for living. I never want to leave you, you don't deserve that, but..." she shook her head and continued a different string of conversation. "My own fate...I cannot see it because I was never meant to be here, never meant to meet you...it was not fated. I placed myself next to you because I knew of you before I met you, knew how great you were, knew you would lift me away from that dark and boring place and you did. I knew you would survive and that was enough for me. I cannot change what is already set in stone, those that I have seen must follow those fates, but I do not know what my fate will bring...that is what I fear. I know every trial, every battle, every problem that we will face and I do not know if one of those will be the one to end me, if I will have to leave you-" she wasn't able to continue as Yarai had put his hand over her mouth, his head hanging.
"Enough...enough of this. I won't let you die. I'll always protect you...just...just tell me what's causing this," he said quietly as he lifted his head with a desperate but determined expression on his face. Kurohime's only answer was to smile at him warmly.
"Even the smallest of things can bring you the answers you seek." And just like that, Yarai's eyes widened in understanding, the pieces of the puzzle that were going around in his head finally fitting neatly together. He lifted her easily as he stood and started to walk out silently, the others not even stirring in their troubled sleep.
"Can you hang onto me like you usually do? I'm going to need my hands for this." Kurohime only smiled and nodded silently before he slid her on his back and secured her arms around his neck, waiting for her to clasp onto her own arms so that she was dangling off him like usual though he could feel her body shaking slightly against his. He rushed out, knowing he had to hurry before she ran out of the strength to just hang on.
Kurohime watched from the safety of a nearby tree as Yarai saved his new and only friend Akira from the rhinos. "I didn't think I'd be beaten here," he said as he held Akira up by the back of his jacket. "No doubt our conditions were caused by the poison in those red berries. More than likely, we ate them without knowing they carried a strong poison for hemorrhaging. But...did you know the poison of blow fish and scorpion can offset the deadly poison of an aconite plant? Their conditions are kept normal because they're eating the berries and plants at the same time..." Yarai explained as he distracted the rhinos while he gathered flowers.
After seeing Rion mouth feed Akira the antidote when he became unconscious, he decided to do the same on their way back when Kurohime was having trouble swallowing the flower on her own, not that Kurohime minded of course and she made sure he swallowed some of it as well as their lips stayed connected far longer than Rion thought was necessary, both her and Akira turning away when they saw glimpses of their tongues wrestling with each other. Yeah, definitely longer than necessary.
"...geez," Yarai said as he picked up Kurusu-sensei bridal style when she refused to let his pants go, rambling about being their chaperon. Kurohime didn't mind as she currently hung off his back, her legs wrapped securely around his waist and no longer shaking as she regained her strength.
"Y-Yarai! Where are you going?!" His answer to Akira was to flick a 500 yen coin on his forehead. Yarai grinned at Akira.
"Don't be dead, before we meet again, Sengoku."
"Bonds, blood, and water. Immaterial, material. One washes away the other and the last remains standing, but the scars left by blood will not vanish. Stained, forever tarnishing the skin, the sin, the nonexistent," Kurohime muttered to herself as they trekked through the limestone caves.
"Why do you always say such scary things, Kurohime?" Kurusu-sensei asked, a slight shiver in her voice as she stuck close to the couple. Yarai going slowly so as to try and unravel her strange prophecy.
"Two will remain from the darkness, one joining the light, the other becoming the shadow. Once the blade of death, changed to one of protection, but the stains of blood will forever remain, his only redemption the strength of the bond, of immaterial. No longer waiting to be saved, rather protecting what once protected him." Yarai frowned. Some of it was symbolic while some of it was literal and she gave important indicators when she addressed some things.
Bonds goes under immaterial, blood and water material. Water washes away the blood and the bond stays strong, but the mental trauma caused by the blood will stay, Yarai thought as he interpreted the first part, some of it too vague or not having enough pieces for him to interpret it correctly. Two people will survive from an unknown group, one will join Akira, who he quickly and correctly associated with the light, and the other survivor will become his shadow, following him, but not showing himself? The shadow was once a killer, but Akira changed him to one that protects him from the shadows, but it won't make anyone forget what he did. Maybe a good friend of Akira's, even a best friend started to kill people and somehow seeing Akira made him come face to face with his guilt since he knows they can't go back to what they used to be with the blood on his hands. He must have been waiting for Akira to come sooner, to stop him, save him, but after whatever's going to happen he'll find a new purpose. Hmm, well the second was easier and more specific to the possible situation, but the first still concerned him. Water washing away the blood. Was it literal? Figurative? Both? If so, how?
"Ah," Yarai turned when Kurohime made a sound and saw her looking around. "Kurusu-sensei is getting herself lost." She said simply turning back to Yarai with a bland expression and her finger pointing in Kurusu-sensei's direction where she was wandering ahead, looking more than a little lost. Yarai just sighed and grabbed Kurohime's hand before following after Kurusu.
AN: As you can see this will be following Yarai's group and the minute differences caused by his OC girlfriend. I may or may not add additional scenes of their interactions together during events happening to Akira's group. We'll see later. Reviews will be much appreciated.