I of course hold no rights to the universe of Yu Yu Hakusho. What I do have is an imagination and I have decided to use.
This story was a labor of love between I and my betareader, 8D SerenityCrystal Tear 83. They were a lot of help shaping up this fic to something resembling good. I hope you all enjoy it!
A dry wind blew across a small city in the heart of Japan. The city was quiet with only the sounds of the early risers to break the silence. The sun had only just begun to rise, and a few kilometers outside of the city, a group of friends and fighters alike had gathered at the entrance to a cave. In the very center of the congregated men and women, a lone girl stood a little to the side on her own. With short dark brown hair billowing in the wind, dressed in a simple combination of jeans and a faded red sweater, she paced back and forth with her hands tightly folded against her body.
Keiko Yukimura was frightened - but frightened didn't begin to cover the emotional roller-coaster that was her mind. She felt worried, confused, nervous, powerless, resentful, and anguish. It was an agony that cut so deeply she felt like her guts might spill at the slightest hint of provocation.
At the moment, she along with Botan, Genkai, Shizuru Kuwabara, Asato Kido, Yu Kaito, Mitsunari, and Kiyoshi Mitarai all gathered around the entrance to a cave that could, at any moment, belch forth the forces of Demon World or Spirit World. In the case of Genkai, the ever practical martial arts teacher was at the very lip of the cave, no doubt prepared to release her remaining strength on anyone that wasn't the group of brave friends they had all grown to know so well.
Looking up from her continual pacing, Keiko could only marvel in silence at the iron stance Genkai still held. Dressed in her usual master clothes of a red pull over and brilliantly white under clothes, the white haired old woman kept her face pointed directly at the lip of the cave. The others, such as Yu and Asato, had both stood with the wrinkled woman, but had grown tired of the lack of movement. Already Yu's usually immaculate purple clothes were dotted with sweat stains and his black hair a mess. Blonde and watery eyed Kiyoshi, like Keiko, stood off to the side from the rest of the group with his own arms crossed and head bowed. Amongst all of them was an air of doubt that almost seemed to poison the very air.
The current situation could be laid at the feet of the former, now insane, spirit detective Shinobu Sensui. The madman had, in his deranged mind, come to the conclusion that all of humanity was beyond saving. According to everyone Keiko had spoken to, he wanted to unleash a horde of demons to ravage the earth.
As they all waited, Keiko's stomach churned at the news that had only just arrived from the boy Kiyoshi - or Seaman, as he liked to be called. Why the boy liked being called by the name of some fictional American comic book character was a little beyond her, but really, she just didn't care. All she cared about at the moment was the incredible revelation that her childhood friend had become a demon - but not just any demon apparently: a Mazoku.
That thought alone made her insides stir. What had happened to the boy she had known for so long? Would he even still remember her? Could he? His becoming a spirit detective was one thing; but now this? The news had come barely an hour after she learned her Yusuke had died fighting Shinobu. Her eyes still felt red and puffy from all the crying.
All the worry and hysterical joy at Yusuke's apparent return made her unable to keep herself still; now she found herself pacing back and forth across hard dirt, waiting for any sign of Yusuke and his allies to return.
"You know, Keiko," said Botan, with a frown, as her ocean blue hair twirled in the wind. "Trying to set the ground on fire with your feet isn't going to help. Not to mention, I don't think that's possible."
"I know," Keiko muttered. It was true that her continuous pacing was probably making everyone else even more nervous than she was, but it was the only way she could cope right then. "I just can't help it, Botan. I've got to do something or else I'll just scream."
"You and me both," said Shizuru as she pulled a long draft from a lit cigarette.
Keiko had been keeping count of the number of cigarettes the normally sour women had smoked, and in the hour they had been there, Shizuru had easily gone through two packs. Most of the little white death sticks were, however, twisted and broken at Shizuru's feet. Most of her cigarettes had been ignited for only a few minutes before they had been thrown down in disgust.
"Do those help Shizuru," asked a hesitant Keiko.
"What do you mean," probed the light brunette.
"Does smoking help you with everything that's going on?"
Shizuru had the oddest look on her face as she stared directly into younger woman's own worried eyes. Then, with a resigned outrush of air, she walked over to where Keiko stood and, with an extended arm, offered Keiko one.
"You're a little young, but I think if the world is close to ending, then it's better late than never," Shizuru said. "Too bad about the other stuff you'll miss out on."
Taking the proffered cigarette, she couldn't help looking at Shizuru in confusion; all her worry over Yusuke forgotten for that brief moment.
"What do you mean, Shizuru?"
"Do I really need to spell it out, Keiko?" said an obviously bemused Shizuru.
"I don't…" It suddenly clicked to Keiko what that utterly perverted women meant. A heated blush bloomed in her cheeks and she could only splutter in indignation at insinuation. It was true she hadn't ever done anything; but that wasn't the point. Clinching her hands in anger, Keiko completely forgot about the white death stick she had clutched in her hand and crushed it.
A small smirk was all that the older woman let show on her face. Keiko hated that she had reacted to such a brazen comment in such a stupid manner. Looking down at her hand, she let out a huff of annoyance. She had wasted a perfectly good cigarette that she actually wanted to try. It was unlikely now that Shizuru would let her have another.
Before she could even ask Shizuru if she would give her another one, the ever loud voice of Botan pulled her attention.
"Yeah!" shouted the cat-like woman, victory certain in her voice. "They're still alive!"
Instantly, Keiko looked to the entrance of the cave and saw exactly what she had been both hopping and dreading. Flanked on either side by demons, Kurama and Hiei, his school rival, Kuwabara, and the former baby Koenma; Yusuke Urameshi walked. Behind all of them was the now massive blue feathered form of Pū; the dark hair that framed his beaked mouth perfectly framed the eyes that were so much like Yusuke's.
Keiko knew that the person between Kurama and Hiei was her Yusuke. Even with the utter destruction of his shirt, showing off harden muscle she could see it was him. Across his chest was a large black triangle that seemed to be a part of his very skin. His jeans that had once been pristine were now ripped and shredded showing legs flexing with muscle. The most jarring difference was the hair. It was no longer short with the slight hint of curving around his face. Now it was so long it draped down his back like some ancient battle cloak.
Even with all those changes, the moment she saw those eyes and that unconscious cocky grin, she knew - even with all the changes, that he was alive. Her entire idea of picking up smoking forgotten, Keiko rushed straight at her greatest source of irritation and friendship.
"Yusuke! Yusuke! Yusuke!" she screamed as her feet beat against the hard earth in a rush.
Before she knew it, she had collided with her dearest friend and embraced him with all the strength she had. For several moments she stood there unable to even think of words as she simply marveled that Yusuke was still alive and standing right in front of her.
"You look good," she mumbled, still lost in the sensation. His smell was of the earth, sweat, and strength. A good smell, if ever there was one.
Without a word, she felt Yusuke bury his face into the side of her neck and heard him draw in one of the longest breaths she had ever heard. To her growing confusion, she felt him begin to subtly shake as he let out a long low growl.
"You smell wonderful, Keiko."
Then things became a blur of pain and motion.
Yusuke Urameshi still felt agitated. He knew leaving the demon world was the only right decision to make, but it didn't mean he had to like it. Right then, all he wanted to do was smash something to pieces; preferably large and heavy. The fact his sort of old-man interrupted his fight between him and Shinobu left a sour taste in his mouth.
As soon as he, Kurama, Hiei, Kuwabara, and Koenma exited the pseudo space between worlds, and into the cave that housed the imposing portal to Demon World, the boy scouts from the SDF began to seal it all up in earnest. Much to Yusuke's pride, none of them made eye contact with him. The mightiest warriors Spirit World had to offer did their collective best not to draw attention to themselves.
The walk out of the cave was very uneventful and none of the ragged fighters felt much need to talk. Yusuke couldn't blame them. Even he didn't feel like starting some friendly smack talk with Kuwabara. Their collective experience of their short stay in Demon World was probably a lot for them to process. Even Yusuke felt a little overwhelmed, but then again, all of his thoughts tended to drift back to that bastard of a grandfather that had taken it upon himself to interfere in his fight.
The questions constantly churned in his skull. Why had that bastard seen fit to interfere with his fight? He had that smug-ass Shinobu nearly on the ropes; just a few more minutes and he would have beaten some sense into his stubborn skull! Now Shinobu was dead, and he hadn't been the one to do it. The fact that he had been only an observer as someone else pulled the strings of his own body left him feeling disquieted. Could that rotten old man do what he did at any time? Was he, himself, a danger to everyone around him?
After reaching the very end of the cave and taking his very first step into natural daylight since his demonic resurrection, Yusuke felt himself hesitate. Maybe it wasn't too late to go back and hop through the portal… Before he could really take the idea and run with it, a hearty back slap from his red haired rival sent him into the light.
The sight before him felt both familiar and new all at once. In front of him stood the collective worried faces of some of his closest friends and some of his loss punch-worthy foes. Everyone had looks of worry and concern, but there was one person who put it into the simplest words.
"Yeah," Botan, his blue haired and often cat-like friend, screamed in joy. "They're still alive!"
It was nice to see some things, like Botan's penchant for stating the obvious, remained the same after you died…again. Before he could raise his own arm in greeting, a dark blur sped directly at him and collided with enough force to make him grunt. Warm familiar arms snaked themselves around his neck and a childhood voice spoke.
"You look good," came the quiet whisper of Keiko.
An odd feeling of peace settled over Yusuke's frazzled mind. His worry over his ancestor taking control of body again faded to the background. The frustration at seeing himself kill - and yet, have nothing to do it - melted at the warm embrace of Keiko. With her hugging his neck, there was peace, and any kind of peace was good.
Suddenly, a smell struck Yusuke's nose and left his mind fuzzy - only focused on the scent. It flooded his nostrils with the kind of power that came with the thick scent of bacon cooking in its own fat. The idea of seeing thick strips of red meat cooking on an open stove made his mouth water. The smell left him gasping for breath, his nostrils flaring with beauty of the heavenly aroma.
Images of stacks of raw meat came to mind as he basked in the glory of the odor. It coiled about his mind and stuffed it with thick cotton. All that mattered was the smell. Its lovely aroma of roast beef dipped in gravy made his belly quiver in need.
His belly rumbled and his entire body mimicked its demand. Slowly, he nestled his powerful nose into the source of that wonderful scent and spoke lovingly to it.
"You smell wonderful, Keiko."
The smell was Keiko; beautiful, loving, smart, eternal, Keiko. Now she smelt mouth wateringly delicious. Such a lovely creature that smelt of ripe food ready for the taking was beyond his ability to control. The need to bite, rip, and tear chunks of hot steaming meat dripping with untouched blood held power. To not taste such crimson beauty was beyond crushing - it left him on the verge of pain.
Breathing deeply of the heavenly scent, he opened his jaws and gently grazed the slender white neck of his beautiful meal. Fangs that had not been there before, now barely pierced the pearly white skin before blood welled up like a fountain. His tongue lapped at the blood, and the sweetness of such a taste was beyond his comprehension. It was of sweet candies dipped in chocolate, with the slightest hint of a fruity divine aftertaste. The taste of the slender creature foolishly grasping his neck sent his mind into overdrive.
Quickly, he drew back his head, opening his mouth and exposing his salivating jaws to the open air. Prepared to strike and tear his first true chunk of red meat from his prey, he was stopped. Thick green vines covered in thin stabbing thorns grasped him around his waist then threw him to the side. As he smashed into the side of thick stone, another unseen force quickly grabbed him about the neck with the strength of solid steel.
The thick, thorny vines snaked their way down his body and wrapped around him. Their cuts into his skin were only a minor inconvenience to his predatory mind; the arm of steel gripping his neck was another annoyance altogether; it squeezed his neck so hard, that it was a challenge to breathe.
Voices screamed and yelled, but they were insignificant insects to the powerful demand that was his desire to feed - but first, he had to break free of the two annoyances that had stopped him from enjoying his meal.
"Yusuke!" screamed the wonderful creature. It was odd that his quarry would know him by name.
There was a painful screech from some other creature with feathers, but its scent held no appeal to Yusuke now.
"What the hell is the matter with you two," Kuwabara yelled, his voice on the verge of panic.
"A fool like you, Kuwabara, wouldn't understand," came the gruff voice of the three-eyed fire demon, Hiei. "Just take the girl away and tell the rest to run. Kurama and I will hold him down; you need to get everyone away from here as quickly as possible!"
Already the scent of his prey was becoming fainter by the second and Yusuke screamed out his rage, thrashing about wildly to try to dislodge the powerful hold the annoyance had about his neck. The very air crackled with bright red lightening as his power ran amuck, only controlled by his overwhelming desire to feed.
"I am not sure we can hold him for long, Hiei," said the strained voice of the former demon thief. "He's too powerful, and the others might not be far enough away before he breaks free."
"I have half a mind to let this fool free and watch him feast on those pitiful humans," grunted Hiei, strain clear in voice. The arm around Yusuke's neck tightened noticeably.
Again he tried to throw the irritation from his back, but it continued to cling no matter how hard he scratched and rolled. Already his vision of the green trees had begun to fade. Inky blackness crawled into the corners of his eyes as he struggled against his bonds. The sound of some green vines snapping could be heard, but as one broke, two more came to take its place.
Ever so slowly, even as he thrashed about and snapped his teeth in anger, his vision grew darker and his limbs heavier, till at last he could no longer lift his arms and he slumped to the ground and knew no more.
If you love and/or enjoyed the story, leave a review. You will be surprised how much it can affect my update time. I might even post another chapter before this Octobers end.