Flower Petals: Hello peoples! This fan fiction was the result of my obsession with my Yoko Kurama DVD. After the 13th time watching it, I decided to chronicle these wonderful episodes, so on a whim, I got out a pencil and a notepad and wrote down every detail I could!
Now, I couldn't write down EVERY thing everyone said, or ALL their thoughts and subtle movements. And in fact in some areas, had to change a few things for different purposes. But I tried my best to stay true to these episodes.
And one more thing before you read, I divided the scenes with clear markers so it shouldn't be too confusing. But there is this one scene where Botan starts off talking and then it goes to an entirely different point of view even though it's all in the same scene. So *hopefully* it's not going to be too hard to understand.
Sooooo, please read people!
This is the first chapter of the first episode The Beginning of the End, of the DVD, Yoko Kurama.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho, nor any of the characters, dialogue, scenes, and music pertaining to it. I will make NO profit off of any of this, except the enjoyment of writing this story, and hopefully for the enjoyment of a few readers.
Flower Petals
The Beginning of the End
No More Second Chances
The full moon rested low in the heavens that night. Its glow was somewhat dimmed by its golden hue, but yet it remained puissant enough to alter the complexion of the vagrant clouds nearest it.
Kazuma Kuwabara was sitting cross-legged in a forsaken meadow that very night, relying on that dim radiance to cast a glow on what he otherwise would not have been able to see. He sat-almost uncomfortably-staring at the item which was so shrouded in mystery and danger and unspoken things, but was yet so ordinary in its appearance under the light of the moon, unadmittingly afraid.
He could almost hear the voice of the creator of the mystic item in his head, warning him once again of its uncomprehensible secrets:
"The trial sword," Suzuka had announced, "made from a Japenese cedar that grew to great heights by sucking up the surrounding light.
"For Shishi Wakamaru, it became the Banshee Shriek. But for you, it should be quite different and probably without the demon."
Then came the line that troubled Kuwabara the most: "This fight was the first time that item was used. I still can't tell you how it works or what side effects it may have."
Kuwabara tilted his head, squinting at the mere hilt of a sword; its midnight black color interrupted only by the encirclement of white lines, as if fearing under a different perspective it would inexplicably appear differently.
Hesitantly, with a conveniently positioned twig nearby, he timidly poked the hilt. But nothing visible to his eyes had changed.
"You're not going to blow up on me are you?" he asked the item.
Once again, the thing he so feared remained unchanged.
"Oh, enough of this sissy stuff!" Kuwabara suddenly exclaimed, tossing the twig away most unceremoniously. He grasped the hilt. "I'm not scared." His grip tightened around the item. "I just have to pretend its an extension of my arm, channel my spirit energy, and see what the heck happens!"
An electromagnetic pulse shattered the strict silence of the meadow. The moon's radiance that had once been the only light in that dark region, was now all but irrelevant to the swiftly spreading light pouring from the hilt.
It surrounded him in its bright circle.
Kuwabara fell to his knees, squinting through all the brightness. "It absorbs my power right?" he asked the night. "So whatever it makes should reflect my real strength."
The electricity in the environment caused a heavy static in the air. The night cackled and sparked as a golden energy emerged from the once empty hilt.
Blinking furiously, Kuwabara glanced up at the thing he had created, relief etched on his face. "Wow, oh no way!" he shrieked complacently.
The forest was dark and dangerous at that hour of the night, with wary creatures lurking just behind trees, and cleverly concealed roots and twigs that sought to trip those carelessly passing by. But Kuwabara paid them no heed as he stumbled swiftly through the deceptive paths, nearly bursting with suppressed excitement.
When at last he arrived at the foreboding, looming fixture of the apartment building, he could no longer contain his enthusiasm.
"Urameshi!" he cried, waving his prized discovery at a dark window on the third floor. Man, he's not going to believe this. "Urameshi, wake up! You've got to see my new sword, and brace yourself 'cause you're about to get insanely jealous!"
There was no movement behind the darkened glass, nor appearance of a familiar, skeptical face as Kuwabara had been half expecting.
He lowered his arm, disappointment manifest on his features. "Must've left."
There was a sudden explosion of energy behind him, and he turned to ascertain the source.
A jagged cliff lay mere yards away, where the uneven ground littered with boulders glinting in the light of the moon, met the naked air. A sandy beach lay just beyond, its tranquility, penetrated only by the sounds of the waves crashing ashore. And of that night, an immense energy.
"Hey you sneaky little punk, is that you over there?" Kuwabara questioned, making for the cliff. "I've got something to tell you."
A potent energy erupted beyond the cliff, and a gigantic orb of blue light burst forth into the still air of the night, intensifying with every step closer Kuwabara came. Its power shook the ground, causing imminent spidery lines to appear along the terrain's rough surface.
Kuwabara tripped over one of these troublesome lines, and nearly fell if it hadn't been for his keen intellect that aided him to immediately restore his balance.
"What the h-heck is going on?"
His answer awaited him just beyond the edge of the cliff, for standing-seemingly alone- on the barren sandy beach, was the very person he had so wanted to tell of his discovery to.
Yusuke Urameshi was the source of all the immensely puissant energy. The intense blue light had surrendered to his will. As he raised his arms, palms pressed tightly together, the massive energy increased in force and concentration until the very wall of solid rocks surrounding it, began to crumble and break apart.
Boulders and their airborne debris plummeted into the water, sending a chain reaction of ripples amongst its angry surface.
But it was not the radiant energy that confounded Kuwabara so. Nor was it the realization that his closest friend had been keeping such a secret. The thing that puzzled him, confused him, frightened him, was the look of intense hatred so vehement and dripping with antipathy that contorted his friend's familiar features.
As he stood, transfixed by the hate and loathing in those all so familiar eyes, the energy around his friend slowly diminished until the moon was once again, alone to combat the unrelenting darkness.
It was then he made a mistake; a step too far.
Yusuke, startled by the sudden downpour of rocks turned to find a disgruntled Kuwabara, checking himself over to make sure no injuries had been obtained.
"So you forget how to walk?"
"Somebody should really put a sign up there," Kuwabara replied, rubbing his sore head, all the while scrutinizing Yusuke's expression. Somethin' strange is going on around here; since when did Urameshi become fo frickin' powerful? It must be the reason he can shoot his spirit gun like a cannon, Kuwabara thought, reflecting on his friend's last display of irregularly powerful energy.
Yusuke rested his hands on his hips, the moon's light reflecting off his sleek black hair and large brown eyes. "Hey genius, are you going to say something or just stare?"
The look. . .was gone. . .Kuwabara dismissed his thoughts and got to his feet. "Your bad attitude isn't going to ruin my day, 'cause I've found my secret weapon." This was it-his time to shine. Urameshi had his exploding energy, but he, Kuwabara, had his surprise discovery. Smiling from ear to ear, Kuwabara thrust out the empty hilt.
"And here it is: my totally fresh, bad guy slicin' and dicin', mega awesome super sword!"
A figure cloaked in the shadow of the cliff stepped out from around a bend. Red eyes gleamed in the darkness. "Do you think it is possible you could shut up?"
"Hey, Hiei," Yusuke greeted without much enthusiasm.
"You really shouldn't sneak up on someone holding the world's most powerful sword," Kuwabara scolded, disappointed that his thunder had been stolen. Though now, there were two people to learn of his impressive discovery.
But as Hiei stepped forth from the shadows, Kuwabara noted something that greatly disturbed him.
"Eww! Eww! What the heck happened to your arm?"
Hiei seemed to regard this question before lowering his crimson eyes to rest upon his damaged arm. Deep lacerations lined its length and there were numerous scratches and tears, each varying in intensity. "It wouldn't obey when I gave it a specific command, so I decided it needed to be punished."
Okay, he's weird. "Too much information for me," Kuwabara admitted. "Lets stick to something safe like where's Kurama?"
A sudden burst of energy erupted from behind him, and Kuwabara shouted in surprise. He whipped around, ready to defend himself with his new sword from whoever had just appeared.
But it was only the firey haired fox demon, Kurama, who occupied the space between him and the base of the cliff.
"Kuwabara, I've been standing next to you for quite some time," Kurama explained, clamly. He smiled apologetically. "A bit nervous, are we?"
Wow, I couldn't even sense his spirit energy, Kuwabara thought sheepishly. "Alright, now we only need to find the old lady."
There was a heavy silence. The only sound was supplied by the persistent wind, rustling the trees and scattering the grains of sand unceasingly.
Yusuke was facing the water, his eyes staring far beyond its eternal vastness.
"Uh, has anyone seen her?" Kuwabara queried uncertainly, clearly troubled by the sudden silence. He studied the faces of his companions, determined to come to some sort of solution.
"She's not coming," Yusuke replied heavily.
"Huh?" Kuwabara pivoted around.
"She's not well," Yusuke continued. "She just needs some time to rest." His jaws were clenched, as if he was battling something with all his strength.
As the moon began to succumb to gravity's pull and slowly sank; its reflection on the water dimming, his eyes gradually closed with the weight of a heavy sorrow.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Yusuke could not bring himself to tell his teammates the truth about Genkai. Somewhere deep in his heart he held onto the hope that she would return and he would hear her make a snide remark, or give a piece of wisdom once more.
"Truthfully, Yusuke could not tell them, because then he would be admitting to himself that she was gone for good. And that was something he did not know how to do.
"However, Yusuke was not the only one who felt a tremendous weight on his shoulders. They had all gone through so many trials during the course of this tournament, as a group and individually. They had come to the realization-each in their own way-that they were approaching the final test of their will. There was nothing left to be done.
"No more practicing. No more second chances. This was the beginning of the end. . ."
Two doors slid off to the side revealing the grim team. They all knew what that day meant for them, and the bitter anticipation weighed heavily on their hearts.
Nonetheless, a grin dawned over Yusuke's face and he punched his hand. "Lets kick some ass."
"Right!" Kuwabara agreed, stepping beside his captain.
Kurama nodded his head, mouth tight.
Beside him, Hiei the fire demon, was grinning maliciously.
Together-a team linked and held tightly compact by a friendship that knew no depths-they walked their final walk to the place where their fates would be decided.
Botan watched them walk away, right hand pressed gently against the glass window, her other laying limp at her side. No more second chances, she told herself once more. Her eyes filled with restrained tears. No more. . .
There was a slight click as the door to her room opened behind her.
She turned in time to see her Lord Koenma stride in majestically, his faithful George, the ogre, shadowing him as always.
"Botan," he greeted, giving a curt nod and lending her ample time to muse over how silly he appeared in his "younger" form.
"Oh, hello Koenma."
"I trust Genkai's journey was a safe one?" Koenma inquired, blue binkie bobbing rhythmically with his words.
Botan dropped her gaze, strands of her long, light blue hair drifting over her shoulders. "Yes. I-I'm sorry I'm such a mess but this was the most difficult task I've ever had to carry out. I-I mean, that part of my job has never been pleasant, but it's never hurt like this before. . ."
"How many times do I have to tell you," the toddler sighed. "You knew Genkai would be leaving us as soon as she felt Yusuke was prepared."
"Koenman, but why?" Botan cried, indignantly.
The Lord of the Spirit World sprang into the air, emitting a frustrated growl. "How would I know? You have to face reality and start acting like a professional. Like me," he added, grinning. But the complacent smile slid off his face as Botan's eyes continued to water. He sighed once again. "All this blubbering and crying won't bring her back."
Botan bowed her head, conceding to the inevitable truth. With a gentle finger, she wiped away her restrained tears. "I know you're right."
Sensing an advantageous respite in the conversation, George spoke: "Koenma, sir, I don't mean to interrupt, but it is time."
"Keep your undies on," Koenma remarked. He glanced up at Botan. "I'd love to stick around and chat, but I have some important business to attend to." He nodded once, then laughed gleefully as he skipped from the room, George the blue ogre, laughing to himself as he followed closely behind.
Botan blinked back her puzzlement. "Why, it's practically unheard of for Koenma to work. I wonder if he's feeling a bit under the weather. . ."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sporadic lightning illuminated the darkening sky, its companion, thunder, sounding its tremendously deep voice. Continuous clouds were accumulating over the day time sky, both a dark veil and a harbinger for the threat of rain.
A line was forming far beneath the heavens, by a varied group, each individual anxious and irksome. For they had all been waiting for eternities, each believed, and all simply desired to enter the massive stadium before the uncertain weather took a turn for the worse.
It was an impressive building-the stadium. Standing far above any's greatest height, it loomed over them all; dark and eerie and foreboding. Its curtain of solid black color was interrupted in a few places by the blood red orbs of light that occupied locations along the surface of the dome. Long, narrow appendages extended from the very peak to the base of the fixture, arched, like a tense spider's legs.
From the central entrance the line of demons impatiently stood. There was one, however, who did not participate in the irritable row, and instead, eagerly assessed the crowd, a microphone pressed to her lips.
"Well, it looks like we're in for some nasty weather," Juri commented, her green ponytail whipping back and forth as her sea green eyes glanced around. "I hope you outside people brought umbrellas."
She turned to face the camera that had desperately-in a failed attempt-tried to keep up with her constant movements. "And tell you what, if this line doesn't start moving soon, this fight will be over before everyone finds a seat." A sudden thought dawned on her. "And speaking of the fight! I think it's time for me to get in there."
Without a spare thought for the aggravated camera man, she dashed off torwards the entrance, the pink sash tied around her waist, flowing behind her. "Could I have everyone's attention at the front gate please! I'm making my way there and I need all of you to clear a path for me to get in! Please, make way, announcer girl coming through!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Fervent anticipation saturated the environment in the enclosed area around the ring. The onlooker's-occupying nearly every seat in the surrounding encirclement of the battle field-excitement grew in intensity with every breath. This was the moment they had waited so long for. This was the end of those undeserving humans who had existed far too long.
Koto raised her bare arm. A moments peak under her red wrist band was all the information she needed. "Okay, I just checked my watch people, and it looks like we're moments away from the ensuing blood bath!" she announced into the speaker before her.
"The outcome is uncertain, but the lovely carnage is guaranteed!" She glanced about the excited audience, her heart's thunderous beats, booming in her cat-like ears. "I can't take it; I might just faint from the anticipation!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The four of them were standing just beyond the doors that when opened, would lead to the grand coliseum, and the final battle. All were quiet, submerged in their own thoughts and choked for words by their varied doubts. For when those doors opened, there was no going back.
"One question," said Kurama, his calm voice echoing in the dank, narrow pathway.
Yusuke opened an eye to peer at his friend.
"Have you arranged for a substitute for Genkai since she won't be joining us, today?"
Hiei eyed Kurama warily, then focused his crimson gaze on Yusuke.
"I did," the spirit detective replied. "But the little twerp should have been here by now."
"Well I don't see why the old broad doesn't have to be here like the rest of us," Kuwabara commented, hands on his hips.
Yusuke lowered his head. "She's sick, I told you that."
"Aha!" Kuwabara shouted triumphantly. "It just so happens that I know a special remedy that can cure all kinds of sickness." His nose crinkled in thought, and he brought a hand up to his face. "Let me think. . .First, you hang upside down for awhile, then you eat five large lemons, drink some trivial tea with pepper in it, then wrap your body in seaweed. . ."
Hiei's eyes closed as he tilted his head over to the side. "So tell me, what's it like living in a constant haze of stupidity?"
Kuwabara growled, fingers curling into fists. "I've had enough of your lip, half pint!"
A sudden explosion shook the ceiling above them, precipitating a rain of loose dirt.
The crowd was cheering.
It was time. . .
~
Flower Petals: Awrighty, thanks for reading!!! And please, everybody who read, review! I'm going through a hard time right now, so it would be wonderful to know that the thing I MOST enjoy doing is receiving support!
So please review, and stick around for the next chapter!
(Whips out her handy pen and notepad and begins watching the episode again)