Disclaimer – I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho, or Youko Kurama. Everyone else currently in the story is mine!
AN: Just as a note, I will not be using very many Japanese phrases. Just some honorifics and some small words like mother and father. I really dislike it when I read stories that have whole phrases in it. Especially when they don't even translate it at the bottom of the page.
Chapter Two.
Kenji's eyes opened wide in astonishment as he stood in the center of the clearing. "Kaa-san!" he exclaimed, swiveling his head to take in the sight before him. "What happened?"
Yoshe stood directly in front of him, her figure tense. Tamako and Haya had retreated into the woods where she could sense them huddled together. Haya had claimed the stench too strong for her to stand and left with her little sister.
If not for the endurance and experience Yoshe had accumulated over the years she would be fleeing the clearing as well. The stench was disgustingly strong, filling the senses with the smell of the dead. The pungent air came from the blood, flies, and rotting bodies that were strewn across the clearing, lying in piles of death and gore.
The hawk demons lay dead, stripped bare of their weapons and valuables. The pools of blood gathering on their chests and sides as well as the steady stream of the red liquid flowing from their throats made it obvious that they had been killed with swords or claws. It appeared that not one demon had managed to escape.
Yoshe moved forward, kicking a hawk demon so it rolled onto its back. She bent over, examining the way his throat had been slit. She frowned, before standing up and moving to the nearest corpse. Once again she knelt by it and looked at the fatal wound, surveying the damage done.
Kenji followed his mother, a revolted look on his face as he wrinkled his nose. The stench was almost overwhelming. "Kaa-san, what happened?" he repeated.
Yoshe did not reply as she straightened up, and glanced around. Silently, she scanned the area, searching for a flash of silver amidst the brown, gold, and red of the hawk demons.
"Bandits," she said at last.
"What do you mean?" inquired Kenji.
"They were attacked by bandits. Two or three at the most. Extremely skilled by the looks of it. I doubt the hawks even had a chance to put up a fight."
"You mean they attacked them, killed them, and then robbed them?"
Yoshe nodded. "Hawks are known for their skill in weaponry. They use their talons to create special spears and darts that are easier to use then metal or rock weapons. They're usually dipped in poison."
"But then how...?"
"These bandits were skilled," said Yoshe again. "The hawks didn't stand a chance."
"But kaa-san..." Kenji hesitated. "Where...where's Youko?"
There was silence for a moment. Yoshe's golden eyes settled on her remaining son, before focusing on the bright orange-red sky. "I don't know," said Yoshe at last. "I don't know."
Opening his eyes after recovering consciousness was one of the oddest experiences Youko had yet to encounter. As he blinked, the light he expected to appear in his vision never showed up. His sight wavered, the darkness shifting into more of a brown color as he shut his eyes again, trying to regain a sense of balance and stillness. He attempted to sit up in order to recover his normal vision and to survey his surroundings. He gave out a rather embarrassing squeak as a hand pushed him down again.
"Don't try to get up," said a deep voice, too close to his ear for comfort.
Youko did not recognize the voice and remained still. He kept his mouth shut, his ear twitching intently as he listened closely to the movements of this strange demon.
He groaned slightly as he felt a throbbing in his forehead, a massive headache finally setting in as he felt more awake. His eyes remained closed until he felt a hand touch his hair. His eyes flew open as he raised his arm in an attempt to shove the hand away.
"Calm down," ordered someone roughly. The voice was different, higher, smoother, and strangely soothing.
"W-where am I?" required Youko, shaking his head slightly in an attempt to see more clearly. He stopped when another painful throb racked his head.
"You're in a cave. Safe...for now," replied the first voice.
"Who are you?"
"I'm called Daichi," the demon said. Youko focused on the spot where the voice had come from, his vision taking in the blob of color different from the brown of the cave.
"And I'm Natsumi," said the second demon. "And what are you called, silver?"
Youko hesitated. He still couldn't see that well and he did not yet have a good grasp on his spirit energy. His fighting ability was weak and he did not know who these demons were, or if he should trust them. The young silver knew his mother had many enemies and the fact that she had four kits that she cared deeply for was not a hidden secret. Still, the demons had saved him. If they planned to attack him for being Yoshe's youngest son, they would've done so already. But...it never hurt to be too safe. "Kurama," he said at last. "My name is Kurama."
"Good name," said Natsumi, sounding cheerful. "Named after Mount Kurama, right? I've never been there, but I heard it's beautiful. Oi, stay down, Kurama!" She pushed Youko back as he attempted to sit up again. "You got injured pretty badly by those hawk demons."
Youko stiffened at these words. He sniffed the air, searching for the stench of the hawk demons, but he only smelled the faint remnant of their blood. Then these demons were...
Natsumi's hand - at least, he assumed it was her hand - started stroking his hair slowly as Youko relaxed, the touch reminding him of his mother. And within minutes, he had fallen asleep.
Natsumi stood up and stretched out her arms over her head. She yawned slightly as she glanced down at the young kitsune in front of her. "Think he'll join up?" she question her companion.
Daichi didn't reply immediately as he too stood up. "He really has no other choice," he said at last. "Either join up or die in the wilderness. He's too young to survive on his own, and his family is probably long gone."
"Ryota will be ecstatic when he finds out we caught ourselves a silver kitsune. We'll be eating like the best demons themselves when we deliver this kid."
Daichi remained silent.
"So...what do you think of Kurama? I think he's got good potential. Maybe."
"He lied about his name," said Daichi, not looking as he spoke.
Natsumi looked up, startled. "What do you mean?"
"What do you think I meant? He didn't tell us his true name."
"How do you know?"
Daichi finally looked at Natsumi with a somewhat reproachful look on his face. "I'm an Epathin demon, remember?"
"Ah, right. Mind-readers."
Daichi closed his eyes and rubbed his temple, obviously seeking patience.
"Empath."
"Whatever. Same sort of thing."
"No it's not! I feel emotions, not read people's perverted thoughts! I sometimes can't even believe that you managed to survive this long. No wonder Kotone decided to dump you on me to train!"
"Shut up!" snapped Natsumi, dropping back down in to her original position. "Why would he lie?"
"Why do you think? He was confused, apprehensive, nervous. He didn't trust us."
"Eh? Why not?"
Daichi gave Natusmi a dry look. "I wonder," began Daichi sarcastically. "Would you be very trusting if you woke up disoriented and confused, hurt and slightly blind, not knowing the demons who are around you? Would you jump into a strange demon's arms the second you laid eyes on him?"
"Yeah, if he was good-looking."
"You're unbelievable," muttered Daichi. "Keep an eye one him while I go get some food. If I return to find you dozing off and him wandering around in this god forsaken forest I swear I'll pull out every one of your limbs and eat them myself!"
"Wha...? Hey, wait!" protested Natsumi immediately, but the Epathin demon had already vanished. Natsumi pouted, sinking back. "Stupid stupid Daichi, leaving me to do the boring dirty work," she muttered darkly. She crossed her arms, scowling at the prone figure of the small kitsune. "This is your fault," she informed him in her velvety voice. "If you hadn't gotten yourself attacked by hawk demons, I would've been out their hunting food with Daichi!"
When Daichi returned nearly two hours later, he entered the cave to discover that Natsumi seemed to have taken a liking to the unconscious silver. She sat cross-legged on the ground and was chatting away to the oblivious fox.
"Enjoying yourself?" Daichi asked as he dumped the food on the ground.
Natsumi leaped up and snatched a leg away from the pile. "Very much!" she declared. "How old do you think he is?"
Daichi shrugged. "Fairly young. Maybe around a hundred years old or such."
Natsumi tore at her leg, biting down on the meat with a satisfied look on her face. "He probably has a lot to learn, huh?"
Daichi nodded. "Yeah. Kotone will probably be roped into babysitting him and training him until he's ready to join the trade."
"You're that sure he'll come with us?"
"He honestly doesn't have that much of a choice."
Natsumi eyed her companion for a moment. "Do you know him from somewhere?"
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know. I just get the vibe that you know something about him."
Daichi frowned and glanced at the young kit. "I..." he bit his lip in thought as he considered the figure in front of him. "I think I might know him. Well, not specifically him but..."
"But someone who knows him?"
"His mother."
"...and how would you know who his mother his?"
Daichi glared at Natsumi. "By the demon energy I sensed. I recognized it from a long time ago."
"Really? Who was it?"
Daichi shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Finish eating and get some rest. We're not stopping until we reach camp tomorrow."
Natsumi scowled. "Stupid mind-reader."
"Empath."
"Whatever."
The second time Youko awoke in the cave, the first thoughts that popped into his mind were that he still had a bad headache, the ceiling looked brown, and that he was hungry. Extremely hungry. And there was a distinct smell of fried meat.
Youko's nose twitched as he slowly sat up, shaking his head slightly to take in his drab, rocky surroundings. He groaned, clapping his hand to his forehead in an attempt to cease the throbbing. He not only had a major headache, but his heart was pounding painfully and his ribs felt like they had been broken, knocked back together, and then shattered by a metal axe.
"Ya hungry?"
Youko started in surprise, trying to edge away from the voice that had sounded out directly behind him. He immediately released a whimper as he clutched at his ribs, trying to rid himself of the stabs of pain that shot through him.
A throaty chuckle sounded out. "Woah! Easy there, silver, we don't want you to kill yourself from all the pain! We've wasted enough time watching over you to have you keel over from reckless movements." Youko turned his head, focusing on the figure behind him as he recognized the voice of the female demon Natsumi.
He immediately realized that she was a panther demon. Though she was kneeling down Youko could tell she was at least seven feet tall. She was dressed in black pants and a dark green tunic. A light blue belt was draped carelessly on her hips, clashing with her dark skin. Her black hair hung down in a braided rope from her head, slung over her shoulder and still touching the floor. Two separate braids were left hanging in her face, ending at her stomach. She had large dark emerald green eyes, and her two cat ears poked out from her head. She had black boots that reached to her knees and double swords that she carried on her back.
"Are you done checking me out?" asked Natsumi as she watched Youko. "C'mon, silver, eat up." Natsumi shoved a plate of steaming meat at the fox. She watched with silent amusement gleaming in her eyes as Youko hesitated, not trusting enough to eat the food, but quite obviously wanting to.
Natsumi let out an exasperated sigh. "Look," she said, reaching for a small piece and shoving it into her own mouth. "Not poisoned, see?"
"You could have immunity to it," accused Youko.
Natsumi smiled. "Smart kid. I could. But it's not poisoned. So eat." She indicated the plate by tilting her head.
Youko's hunger was his downfall. He started shoveling the food into his mouth, his teeth ravenously tearing the meat apart.
When Daichi entered the cave only minutes later, the meat had been totally consumed and Youko was eying a grinning Natsumi in a rather skeptical manner.
"Feeling better?" asked Daichi as he sat across from the two.
Youko jumped as he caught sight of the blue-skinned demon. "I'm fine," he murmured, not quite meeting Daichi's eyes.
"That's good," Daichi said. "Will you be able to walk tomorrow?"
Youko nodded.
Daichi nodded sharply. "That's good news. We'll be heading out tomorrow then. Get good sleep tonight since we won't be resting until we reach our destination."
"Wait!" called Youko as Daichi made a move to leave. The Epathin demon paused. "Why did you save me from the hawk demons? What do you want from me?"
Daichi didn't answer immediately, but he looked at Natsumi. The two seemingly had a silent conversation since Natsumi frowned slightly before standing up and sauntering out of the cave.
Daichi turned to Youko. "You're Yoshe's kit, aren't you?"
Youko's eyes widened as he swerved forwards slightly.
Daichi closed his eyes for a moment. "I'm not surprised. I knew I recognized that energy. And you have your mother's eyes. What's your name?"
"Who...who are you?"
"My name is Daichi. I knew your mother a long time ago. I met her when she still only had one tail."
"You did?"
"Yes. What's your real name?"
Youko frowned. "How do you know Kurama isn't my real name?"
"I'm an Epathin demon. We're empaths. I sense your emotions."
Youko turned his face away. "Why should I tell you?"
"Listen, kit. You really don't have much choice right now. It's either join our band or get slain in the wilderness by a wild demon. It's not good to lie when you're in the midst of potential allies."
The young kit sighed. "It's Youko."
Daichi ran this name through his mind. "Youko. Good name. Not as fancy as Kurama, but still a good name. Listen, kit. You probably figured it out by now, but Natsumi and I are bandits. Our leader, Ryota, is always looking for new members for our band. A silver kitsune like yourself is too good an opportunity to pass up. Are you in?"
"I don't really have much choice, do I?" said Youko bitterly. "My kaa-san's probably long gone. If she was looking for me, she probably wouldn't be able to find me."
Daichi nodded. "Don't lie anymore," he told Youko. "I'll be able to tell. Most of us will. Bandits make half of their living by lying, so we can usually sense a lie miles away. Don't try it. Not all of us are idiots like Natsumi." He paused, studying the kit for a minute. "What made you come up with the name Kurama anyway?"
Youko shrugged. "I was born there."
Daichi nodded. "Keep the name. It's always good to have a fallback name when you need it." He smiled suddenly. "Get some rest. You have a long journey ahead of you. And tomorrow, you'll met your new family. Welcome to the band, Youko Kurama."
Just as a warning, this story will be having a lot of OCs, as you can probably tell. ^_^' Yomi and Kuronue will be entering the story, though both won't be here till later.
As for Youko's age, I did some research on that and read that Youko is probably around 3000 years old during the show. During episode 47 where it's said that he's three hundred, I read that that could just be his current age, since the Idun box was supposed to regress Kurama back to his young age. But anyway, in this story I'm going to say that silver kitsunes stay with their mother for maybe two hundred-three hundred years before going off on their own. Just because they live for so long, they must still be childish at that age.
And as for the reason these two bandits didn't kill Youko is for the fact that they're bandits. When they see something that they like or something that will help them they take it! A silver kitsune is considered to be the most powerful kitsune of all, so obviously having a young kit would be hitting the jackpot!
If you want me to update this, please review!
