Disclaimer: I in no way own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of it's characters.
Taki-hime: I'm baaaackkkkk! Sorry that it took me so long to start reposting this fic. Now that school's almost over I'll be sure to update regularly as well. Anyway, please review. Constructive criticism is welcome but no flames. Arigatou bows
A/N: ' ' thoughts
"" speaking
Chapter 1:
You wake up outside, the rain pouring down on you. As you rise, a sharp pain rings through your head and you collapse to the ground yet again. After a few moments the pain begins to subside and you start to take in your surroundings. You're in the middle of some sort of clearing surrounded by…bamboo? 'What the…' you start to think but are cut off when you hear two voices approaching very rapidly. You try to rise but once more are overtaken by the sharp pain in your head. The voices are much closer now and from the sound of them, both are male. Staggering to keep your footing you look up just in time to see to men enter the clearing. Your eyes widen when you realize they can't possibly be men. One of them has long silver hair with ears sticking out of the top of his head and a tail! The other has long, pitch black hair tied up into a ponytail and a pair of black leathery wings on his back! They stare at you, seemingly studying you too. 'This is too much' you think just before your knees give way and you collapse into darkness.
It's night time when you awaken. At least you assume so because of the small fact that the stars are out and the sky is pitch black. Suddenly it all comes back to you. You're in a strange place and not to mention those two guys you saw just before you blacked out. You shoot up into a sitting position and immediately regret it as the all to familiar pain rushes back to your head. Reaching up you feel a bandage around your head.
"You know, you really shouldn't even be trying to get up with an injury like that human" a flat emotionless voice states from behind you. You turn, ignoring the pain, to see the two guys from earlier gathered around a camp fire. The silver haired one, who you realize was the one who just spoke, adds "of course since your awake you can finally answer our questions." The guy with the wings nods in agreement.
"I guess I can" you say "but I'm afraid some things are still a little spotty to me too."
"Fair enough" says the silver haired guy "Let's start with who you are."
You want to scold them about how it's not nice to demand another person's name without first giving your own but decide against it. Both of these guys look like they could rip you to shreds in a second. "My name's Takara" you reply.
"Well Takara, I'm Youko Kurama" says silver hair "and this" he nods towards the guy with wings "is my partner, Kuronue."
Not knowing what to say you decide to simply nod in response. The two don't seem to notice your nervousness and continue questioning you. "What is a human like you doing in the Makai?" asks Kuronue.
"I'd love to answer your question but first…" you start to say but get interrupted when Youko sends a glare at you that clearly shows that he is NOT used to being questioned when he was the interrogator.
Kuronue notices and places a hand of his friends shoulder then says to you "What is it human?"
You're tempted to shout that you have a name and that he should use it but once more decide against it. "What's a Makai?" you finally ask.
Both of them stare at you like you're on drugs or something and you hear Kuronue mutter to Youko "Just how hard did she hit her head?". Youko just shakes his head and says "The Makai is the place you're in now human. I suppose you would know it as the demon world."
'Another world!' you think to yourself 'no way! This has to be a dream.' You look over the two and think 'but if this is a dream…why does everything feel so real?'
You must have looked pretty lost in thought because suddenly Kuronue says in a gentle voice "You really don't know how you got here, do you?"
Tears start to form in your eyes, threatening to spill out. You raise your head to look at them and shake your head "no" in reply. Turning your gaze back towards the ground you can feel the two so called "demons" still looking at you. However, you brush them off and concentrate on your own thoughts. 'How can I be in another world? How did I get here? Why am I here?' a thousand questions flood your mind all at once. The tears you have been holding back start to fall down your cheeks and you begin to rock back and forth. Suddenly you're being shaken by someone. You raise your eyes to see the two demons by your side.
They sigh then Youko demands "what the hell was that all about!"
"Nothing" you mutter, coming out of your trance "sorry bout' that"
They seem to take the hint and drop the subject. "You should get some sleep" says Youko "an injury like that won't heal without rest human." He turns his back to you and once more faces the fire. With one final glance at you Kuronue follows in suit.
Laying on your back once more you mutter "My name's Takara you jerk" and fall into a deep slumber, the last thing you hear is Kuronue laughing at what you said.
The sound of birds chirping fills your ears as you awaken. Sitting up you mumble "stupid birds" while rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. Looking around you realize you're still in the weird Makai place that Youko and Kuronue told you about last night. 'Speaking of Youko and Kuronue,' you think 'where are they?' Getting to your feet your surprised to find out that the pain in your head is gone. You reach up and are surprised to discover that what you thought was a bandage was actually some kind of weird plant.
"So you're finally awake" says a voice from behind you. You turn to see the demonic duo looking at you impatiently with their arms crossed in front of them.
Having gotten some of your energy back you decide it's time to put these two in their place. 'After all' you think 'if they had wanted to kill me, I'd already be dead.' That decided you smile at them and say "Yep! Sure looks like it. Where's breakfast? I'm starved!"
The two demons looked shocked that you don't seem intimidated by them and stare at you like you've lost your mind.
You walk up to them and wave your hands in front of their faces. "Hellllllllooooooo!" you say "breakfast? Where is it?"
The two continue to stare at you and it suddenly hits you. This is the first time either of them has dealt with a girl, much less a human one. Not able to control yourself, you burst into laughter.
"And just what" demands Youko "do you find so funny, human!"
Trying to contain your laughter you say "first of all, my name's Takara, not human. Secondly, you two don't have much experience around girls do you?"
Both of the demons look at you with a blank expression on their faces before Kuronue says "Hey, what do ya know? Humans can bite back after all."
"Damn straight" you reply "don't you forget it either."
"So what do you think?" Kuronue inquires looking at his partner.
Youko stares at you for a few moments before replying in a hushed voice "I think we better get her some breakfast before someone sees us getting lectured by a human girl." Kuronue stifles a laugh and nods in agreement. Motioning for you to follow him, he turns and heads into the forest with Youko right behind him.
Smiling to yourself, you follow them and soon arrive at a little stream. Looking over the bank, you see all kinds of fish swimming just beneath the surface.
"See anything you like?" asks Kuronue with a smile on his face.
Rolling your eyes at him you reply with a slight laugh "just catch the freakin fish, demon-boy."
He raises an eyebrow when you call him "demon-boy" then shrugs it off and gets closer to the stream. Suddenly you realize you haven't seen Youko since you got to the stream. You look around but there's no sign of the silver haired demon. 'Where did he go?' you wonder but your question is soon answered when you look up. He looks down at you from his hiding place and points to Kuronue. He then lifts a finger up to your mouth indicating that you should be quiet.
Looking back at Kuronue, you notice a kind of vine-like plant slowly wrap itself around his leg. Looking back up at Youko, you see a glint of mischief in his eyes. He points back to Kuronue and you turn just in time to see the vine tug at his ankle. With a loud splash, the poor guy lands in the stream.
Not able to contain yourself, you double over in a fit of laughter. Kuronue is laying in the stream for a few moments as if trying to figure out how he got where he was. He looks up and sees Youko sitting up in the trees and sends him the scariest glare you've ever seen in your life. "Kurama…" he growls "I'll get you for that."
Youko smirks and says "gotta catch me first" he pauses a moment then adds "demon-boy."
With that, Kuronue's face turns bright red and he leaps up out of the stream towards Youko. The fox demon sees him coming though and dashes into the forest. Before you know it, you're standing alone by the stream with neither of the demons in sight.
'That's just great guys' you think 'leave the human girl with no idea where she is alone in a world infested by demons!' A sudden movement out of the corner of your eye catches your attention. Before you know it, you're completely surrounded.
'Perfect' you think as the group of at least twenty demons surround you 'this is just what I needed.' Looking around nervously you think 'Uh…guys? Now would be a GREAT time for you to stop playing around and come help me out.'
"Hey girlie" one of the demons says "all alone?"
Unable to stop yourself, you blurt out "I think that's pretty obvious moron"
The others in the group burst out laughing and one of them shouts out "she's got ya there."
The demon you just called a moron glares at you with cold fury in his eyes before ordering the others with a simple "get 'er."
As the demons close in around you, you close your eyes and pray to whoever might be listening that you'll get out of this alright. A sudden cry of pain causes you to open your eyes just in time to see three of the demons fall to the ground, their heads missing. 'What the…' you start to think but are cut off when the "leader" of the demons whom you insulted moments ago shouts out "Who's there! Show yourself!"
A voice replies from somewhere in the forest and says "Twenty demons? You need twenty demons to handle one little human girl? Pathetic." You look around, recognizing the voice. "How bout' we even the odds?" it replies again.
Before you can even blink, Youko and Kuronue emerge from the forest and stand on either side of you.
The demon leader stares for a moment then bursts out laughing. "Two of you?" he says as if not quite believing his eyes "you mean there's only two of you! Are you sure that's fair?"
"Fair to whom?" replies Youko "because it seemed that you though it fair to have twenty of you versus one human girl." Kuronue nods in agreement.
"Shut up!" yells the leader. Looking at the others in his group he screams "what the hell are you waiting for! Get them!"
"Fools" says Youko in an eerily calm voice as the demons charge forward yet again. He reaches into his hair and pulls out what appears to be some kind of seed. You watch in amazement as the seed quickly sprouts around his arm into some sort of weird plant with branches that end. The tips of the branches then open up into what appear to be mouths! Even more amazing is the fact that when the saliva drips from the mouths it eats right into the ground. 'Acid' you think 'it has to be some kind of acid.'
As the strange plant begins to descends upon the swarm of demons you quickly close your eyes and cover your ears in an attempt to drown out the horror that was sure to follow. After several agonizing seconds the screams cease and you uncover your ears and open your eyes. The only demon left standing is the leader of the group, fear plastered all over his face.
"Now it's your turn" Kuronue states coldly as he lifts up a scythe. The demon screams and tries to run but it's already too late. With a simple flick of his wrist, Kuronue separates the demon's head from his shoulders.
You stare off into space, not quite believing what you just saw. A hand on your shoulder brings you back to reality. Turning, you see Kuronue looking at you with a concerned expression on his face. "Are you alright Takara-chan?" he asks in a gentle voice.
'Wait a second' you think 'is he…worried about me?'
"Takara-chan?" he asks again, taking hold of your shoulders.
"Huh?" you say, snapping out of your trance.
"I asked if you were alright" he repeats.
"Yeah, I'm fine" you say removing his hands from your shoulders "just a little shaken up."
He gives you a look that clearly shows he didn't believe a word you said but apparently decides to drop it anyway. A loud growl escapes from your stomach and you realize you still haven't eaten yet. Both of the demons look at you and sweatdrop. "I see shock has no affect on your appetite" Youko says in a sarcastic tone, rolling his eyes.
"Hehe, guess not" you reply rubbing the back of your head.
Both demons shake their heads and get back to making breakfast. Kuronue goes back to trying to catch some fish and Youko starts a fire. Before you know it the food is ready and you start to quickly gulp it down. "You know MOST people chew their food" says Youko. Looking up at him you realize what you had been doing and eat a bit slower.
After breakfast, Kuronue turns to you and asks "So, do you remember anything yet?"
You think really hard then shake your head and reply "No, nothing yet, sorry."
The two demons exchange a look but don't say anything more about it. You watch as they clean up, getting rid of the fish bones and putting out the fire. Soon there's no trace of any of you ever being there. Half joking you say "expecting to be followed?"
Youko looks over at you with a smirk and says "perhaps" then turns and starts to walk off. Kuronue quickly follows in suite and looks back to see if you're coming. Not knowing what else to do, you decided to follow the demonic duo.
After walking for a few minutes, you look ahead to see Kuronue and Youko talking in hushed tones. 'Probably because they're talking about me' you think, feeling like a bit of a burden at the moment. Kuronue looks back and notices you watching them and quickly whispers something to Youko. The fox demon glances quickly in your direction then nods in agreement to whatever Kuronue had just said. You watch them for a few more minutes but they don't say anything else to each other.
Several hours later you notice the sun starting to set. Apparently your companions notice too because next thing you know Kuronue's talking about setting up camp for the night. Youko nods and quickly runs off into the forest. "Where's he going?" you inquire wondering why he would suddenly leave the group.
"To scout for a place to sleep" Kuronue says making it seem as if it should be obvious.
"Oh" you reply feeling like a complete idiot. You look down at the ground, trying to make it seem like you're looking at something.
"Takara-chan?" Kuronue says "What's wrong?"
"Nothing" you say, trying to sound cheerful.
You feel his hand under your chin raising your head so he can look into your eyes. "You know," he says in a soft voice "You're not a very good liar."
You look at him puzzled by his concern. 'He's doing it again' you think. Your heart starts to race as he starts to close the gap between you. He tilts your chin up and starts to move his face closer when Youko suddenly emerges from the forest. Kuronue instantly pulls away, causing you to fall to the ground. Youko watches with amusement evident in his eyes then says "I wasn't interrupting, was I?"
Kuronue blushes slightly and says " Uh…n-no…of course not."
Suddenly it dawns on you 'Oh my god! He doesn't think that we…'a blush instantly sweeps across your face. Looking up at Youko you realize that he did and quickly look down in embarrassment. Fortunately, Kuronue changes the subject by saying "I take it you found a place for us to stay."
Youko nods and leads you to a cave hidden about a mile from where you were. It's not a large cave, but it's big enough to provide shelter for the three of you. Youko builds a fire while Kuronue pulls out some blankets and lays them on the ground. You try to meet Kuronue's gaze but he seems to be trying to avoid you. Youko starts to get up when Kuronue puts a hand on his shoulder. "I'll do the hunting tonight" he says, quickly dashing out of the cave. Youko shrugs and goes back to tending the fire, leaving you to your thoughts.
'What happened back there?' you think 'Did he…did he try to…kiss me?' You frown, wondering if he might have feelings for you. A voice pulls you out of your thoughts. You look up, realizing that it was Youko who spoke. "Sorry" you reply "What did you say?"
He gazes at you for a moment with his intense gold eyes then repeats "I asked you what happened back there."
A blush instantly covers your face and you say "well…I'm not quite sure. I was just standing there and next thing I know…" Suddenly you seem to lose your voice.
"He tried to kiss you" Youko says, finishing your sentence. You nod in response and he continues "I thought he was acting a bit odd since yesterday. Now I know why." He fixes his gaze back on the fire and you're about to ask him what he meant by that when Kuronue reappears at the cave entrance.
You look up as Kuronue enters the cave holding three dead rabbits. Once again you try to meet his gaze but to no avail. You watch as he walks toward the fire and seats himself across from you. Youko apparently notices too because you see him raise an eyebrow. He opens his mouth as if to say something but decides against it when Kuronue sends him a glare.
'Did I do something wrong?' you think 'No! That can't be it. I didn't say or do anything.' Suddenly a thought strikes you. 'Oh my god! Is it because I didn't do anything! Does he think I'm mad at him! Is that why it seems like he's mad at me?' "I'm sorry!" you yell out before you realize what your doing.
Both demons jump, obviously startled by your sudden outburst. "Sorry for what?" asks Youko.
"Umm…never mind" you say "I just…I just need some air." With that you stand up and quickly exit the cave. Once your outside you mutter "Stupid. Why the hell did I do that? Gaaaaahhh! I'm so stupid!"
"No your not" says a voice from behind you. Turning you see Kuronue watching you, his dark indigo eyes filled with worry.
'Great, now I feel even WORSE than before' you think as you try to avoid his gaze.
After a few moments he sighs and says in a soft voice "Ok, what's wrong? Come on, you can tell me."
'Don't answer, don't answer' but your voice betrays you once again and you blurt out "I'm so sorry!"
"Yeah," he says "I get that part. What I don't get is WHY you're sorry."
"I just…"you start "I just wanted you to know I…" Suddenly it feels as if your throat's closing up and you struggle to speak. "I'm not mad at you and I'm so sorry if I did something to make you angry with me."
"Huh?" he says with a look of shock "What makes you think I'm angry with you?"
Turning your back to him, you say "Because I didn't do or say anything earlier when you…and the way you've been avoiding me since then"
After a few moments of silence he says "So you think I'm mad at you because of the way I've been acting?"
You gasp as you feel his strong arms close around your waist and pull you into a tight embrace. "Kur…Kuronue?" you stutter, not quite sure what's going on.
"I…I never meant to make you think I was avoiding you" he murmurs into your ear "I just…needed some time to think."
Pulling back slightly, you inquire "Think about what?"
He looks deep into your eyes and says "How I feel about you."
Your eyes instantly widen in shock and you repeat "How you feel about me?"
He nods and says "You're the first woman I've ever met who's caused me to feel this way. I think I'm falling for you, Takara."
You freeze, not knowing what to say. 'He's…falling for me!' you think 'So that's why he's been avoiding me!' The feel of his warm, strong hand under your chin brings you back to reality. Once again, he pulls you towards him and tilts your chin up. As his face draws closer you think 'This is it! He's really going to kiss me!' You feel his lips brush gently against yours as if he's unsure of himself. 'He doesn't know how I feel about him!' you realize. With that, you wrap your arms around his neck and deepen the kiss. He seems shocked for a moment, but he quickly recovers and you can feel him smile against your lips.
After a few moments he brakes the kiss and says "I take it that means you feel the same way about me?"
You laugh and, feeling a bit mischievous, say "Perhaps" then turn and walk back into the cave. At the entrance, you look back for a moment to see him watching you in amazement. "You coming or what?"
He laughs and says "Yes, ma'am" then follows you into the cave.
Taki-hime: Well that's it for chapter 1. Be sure to review and I'll get the second chapter up as soon as possible. Ja ne!