Chapter four is complete! I honestly cannot believe I was motivated to write three whole chapters this weekend!
I'd like to thank Madarao and Lilith for keeping me motivated to continue on with this story. Also, a huge thanks is owed to anyone and everyone who has read and reviewed so far. You guys are amazing, and I couldn't have gotten this far without you!
Unfortunately, I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho, even though I'd love to. But I do own my OCs.
Three days had passed since the boys had left on their mission and the cloaked man had shown up at Genkai's. When Keiko returned to the temple, Ashton and Madarao had not informed her of the visit, but the two were careful to be on guard at all times since the boys had yet to return. The last thing they wanted was to be caught off guard and have someone get hurt because of it.
It was a warm Saturday morning, and the three were sitting together outside. The sun was shining above them. There were no clouds in the sky. A gentle breeze made the tree's leaves softly rustle.
"It's so quiet around here with the boys gone," Keiko sighed. She stood and stretched, a slight yawn escaping her lips, and then she looked at Madarao and Ashton.
"I have an idea," she happily announced to the two. She smiled at her friends. "Let's leave the temple for the day. We can go see a movie or something. It'll be a lot of fun!" Ashton and Madarao looked at each other and shrugged.
"That does sound pretty nice," Ashton finally said. "Let's do that." The three returned inside and quickly readied themselves for the day. As soon as they were all finished, they left the temple.
| |¯`·.¸_¸.+´¯`¤.¸¸.·´¯`×
"You'd think that all these stupid demons would learn not to mess with us!" Yusuke exclaimed, frustrated. As if to make a point, he delivered a punch to the green, mottle-skinned demon that had tried to sneak up on him. Hearing a loud snap as the bones in the demon's nose gave way, the detective couldn't help but smile. The being paid no mind to his injury and continued to try to attack Yusuke. The boy sent him to his grave with a Spirit Gun blast to the head.
Koenma had received word that a hole in the barrier between the worlds had been found, and that a group of demons was attempting to get through to wreak havoc on the Human World. He'd sent Yusuke and his team to take care of the group so that the barrier could be repaired and the hole closed up. Botan hadn't been able to transport them directly to the site, though, so they'd had to travel through Demon World to get where they needed to be. That had taken them the better part of the three days they'd been away.
"That seems to be the last of them," Kurama commented, surveying their surroundings. Around them lay the bodies of at least a hundred demons, most dead, the rest too injured to continue fighting. The blood of the deceased colored the earth, and the metallic smell of it hung heavy in the air. Yusuke made a face and wrinkled his nose at the scent.
"Splendid job, boys!" Botan's voice came from behind them. The four turned to see the reaper floating in the air on her oar. Yusuke glared at her for a moment.
"How're you able to magically appear here now when you couldn't three days ago?" he angrily asked. Botan covered her mouth as she giggled.
"There wasn't anything stopping me from coming here then," she told him. "But Koenma specifically told me not to bring you straight here, or anywhere close, for that matter. I think he wanted to get back at you for calling him a toddler again." Upon hearing that, Yusuke's right eye began to twitch slightly. After a few moments, he began to laugh.
"Two people can play at that game," he said, grinning. "I'll get him back for making us travel for so long."
Little more was exchanged before Botan took them back to Genkai's temple. Hiei, as usual, disappeared as soon as they entered the temple grounds. A kind of eerie quietness filled the air.
"The girl's must have gone out for the day," Kurama remarked as they went inside. Sighing contentedly, Yusuke flopped down on the couch, arms folded behind his head as he stretched out.
"Let them stay gone," he replied. The detective yawned and closed his chocolate eyes. "It's always so loud when they're here. With all this peace and quiet, I can finally take a nice long nap." Within fifteen minutes, he was doing exactly what he wanted. His snores filled the room, driving Kuwabara and Kurama out.
Yusuke's nap didn't last long before it was interrupted. A loud crash from outside woke him up.
"Somebody's going to die today," he grumbled as he, Kuwabara, and Kurama ran outside. The air was filled with dirt and debris, making it hard for the three to see the source of the noise. As it cleared, though, a feminine figure could be made out. She stood at just over five feet tall. She was wearing a white kimono that stopped mid-thigh and showed off her long, slender legs. A black dragon decorated the silk. The obi and edge of the sleeves were black as well, and black stilettos were paired with the outfit. Her hair was white with streaks of neon purple. The twitching purple tips were all that could be seen of her ears. The rest blended well with her hair. She wore a white mask over her face; scarlet-flecked silver eyes watched the boys from behind the mask. Strapped to her back was a folded, oversized white fan. As the dust cleared and the debris settled, a crater three feet in diameter could be seen separating the three from the girl.
"What the hell?" Yusuke exclaimed. "Who are you? Why the hell'd you do that?" She ignored his questions, choosing instead to ask one of her own.
"Where is the kitsune?"
"Ashton? What do you want with her?" Kurama asked, twirling a blood red rose between the index finger and thumb of his right hand. He wanted to be prepared in the event that the girl attacked them. She didn't, though; she merely laughed, the bell-like sound ringing in the air.
"Let's just say that I have important business with her," she replied. She inhaled as if to speak again, but paused for a long moment before adding,
"Although… It seems that she is not here at the moment. I suppose I must take my leave for now." Pulling her fan from her back, it unfolded, and a cloud of dirt was blown at the three. They shut their eyes tight and shielded them with their arms. When the dirt settled again, the girl was gone, but the wind carried the message,
"Tell Ashton that Kilala is coming back to see her."
| |¯`·.¸_¸.+´¯`¤.¸¸.·´¯`×
The dishes had been washed and put away after supper. Ashton didn't have much to do since her work had been finished. She was sitting on her bed in her room. A book was open in her lap, and she was staring at the page, not seeing the words that were printed there. A gentle knock on the door brought her from her thoughts. Sighing, she placed the book aside.
"Come in," she called. The door opened, and Kurama stepped into the room. He shut the door and leaned back against the wall.
"I have a message for you," he said. He told her of the visitor that had shown up after they'd returned from their mission. Ashton eyed him skeptically as he spoke.
"Are you sure she said her name was Kilala?" she asked. She shook her head slightly. "I don't find that one bit funny, Kurama. Kilala was my best friend. Despite our differences, we were like sisters. She died at the hands of a pack of wolf demons years ago simply because she was a neko." The redhead apologized before replying that he was positive that the name had been Kilala.
"Describe her," Ashton commanded, and Kurama did just that. Ashton's eyes widened slightly with each sentence her friend spoke.
"Oh my God," she whispered. She opened the top drawer of the nightstand beside her bed and pulled out a faded picture. It looked to be many, many years old, and the edges were ragged and worn. The picture was of two small children: Ashton and a girl that fit Kurama's description.
Ashton handed the picture to Kurama. He studied it briefly before giving a slight nod of his head as he returned the photo.
"She was wearing a mask, so we couldn't see her face. But she has the very same eyes as the girl in this picture," Kurama remarked. Ashton's expression was one of mixed emotions as she put the photograph away.
"I can't believe it," she finally said. "Kilala's back from the dead…"
And that's that! :) Thank you for reading, and please make sure to review! Reading reviews makes me feel very, very loved, and they motivate me to continue on.
I told you guys that Madarao was based off my cousin, and now I'm telling you that Kilala is based off of Lilith. Kilala, aside from Ashton, is the only OC that I kept from the original draft of this story that I wrote three years ago, back then titled 'Remembering the Forgotten.' Although the two stories began pretty much exactly the same, when I found what I'd written of RtF a few weeks ago, I knew I wanted to take the story in an entirely different direction. That's how 'Of Roses and Flames' was born.
That's enough rambling, though, because I really doubt that anyone cares about the history of this story. XD Enjoy this chapter, and I will try to have another one written and uploaded sometime this week!
Much love,
Pandah