Sunday morning finds me jogging around town after having done some stretches and exercises. It feels good to be training again after all this time, like I'm sliding back into my skin. After having spent so many years molding my body into fighting form to reach B Class, it feels better to be doing things again.
It's as I'm heading past the bakery that I feel a strange itch on the back of my neck. I smack where it itches like a bug bite, but when I pull my hand away, there's nothing there. Shuddering, I move to run when my eyes lose focus. I fall to my knees, feeling like I'm going to throw up.
Then...my body kind of...half-shifts? I don't know how to describe something that's never happened before, but it feels like half of me goes demon, and the other half is still human. It fades in an instant, and I'm all human again, but I don't feel right. Slowly, I get to my feet and walk through town, wondering what just happened.
That's when I spot Urameshi and Kuwabara talking to a girl with blue hair. The girl points to me, and the delinquents frown. "Asaki!" Urameshi yells.
"What?" I snap back.
"Well, damn, it is her." That's when I remember he's never seen me in human form before. Crap. I could have just kept going.
"No way, Urameshi," Kuwabara grumbles. "I thought that girl in our class had dark red hair."
"Yeah, well, she's a half-demon."
"Why are we telling my business to everyone?" I ask, stalking over to them, trying to ignore the weird feeling that won't leave me.
"Well, since Botan feels the need to blab to everyone, I figured why not me too?" he says, hands behind his head in a relaxed pose.
I sigh, looking over at the blue-haired girl who must be this "Botan" he's talking about.
"Pleasure to meet you at last, Asaki!" she says, right on cue. "The name's Botan! I'm a friend of Yusuke's."
"That's one way to put it," he grumbles. "More like a pain in the ass."
"Urameshi! You can't talk about a girl that way!" Kuwabara snaps at him.
"I can talk about her however I want. I'm not the one in love with her," he teases, a grin on his face.
"Shut up, you punk!" Kuwabara grabs Urameshi by the front of his shirt, and I run a hand through my hair. I really don't want to deal with this right now.
"All right, boys," Botan says. "We've got business, remember?" She turns to me as Kuwabara lets Urameshi go. "I don't suppose you'd mind helping us out?"
"Depends on what you need," I say, deciding that flat-out refusing might not be the best idea. This girl gives off a weird vibe. While my human senses are poor, she doesn't feel normal to me.
"Just a teensy favor. If you help us out, Spirit World has promised to forgive the crimes you've committed."
My mind immediately flits back to a black-haired demon, and I suddenly want to punch something. "What do you want from me, Botan?"
Bile rises in my throat that I swallow down as she speaks. Whatever is wrong with me, I need to fix it, or I won't be of any help to anyone.
"Follow me, and I'll tell you on the way." So, the three of us walk after the blue-haired girl as she explains. "The Four Saint beasts, I'm sure you'll have heard of them, have unleashed Makai insects on the humans of this city. They're all turning into mindless zombies. It's up to Yusuke to fight the Beasts and return the humans to normal before they start killing each other."
"Sounds fun," I deadpan. The Four Saint Beasts...four nasty demons that have holed themselves up inside a place called Maze Castle, surrounded by a ghoulish city. They're not anyone I'd want to trifle with, that's for sure. "What do you want me to do?"
We step into a creepy-looking warehouse, and Botan says, "Well, I'm hoping you'll accompany them and put your healing powers to good use."
"Healing powers?" Urameshi asks.
"Asaki Anno is a fire demon with an unusually strong gift for healing," Botan explains, sounding like she read that out of a book or a file somewhere. Maybe she has, if she works for Spirit World.
"I might be," I add, frowning as I swallow down more bile. My skin is starting to tingle, and I think I might half-shift again.
"Anyway," she says, banging on the floor of the warehouse, "please say you'll go with them? Pretty please?" She hits a spot, and a panel lifts like a small door. "Bingo." She lifts it up to reveal a nasty looking portal.
"You are going to give us a rope ladder or something?" Urameshi asks.
"No," Botan says casually. "Jumping down should land you safely on the outer bank of the city." She looks up at Kuwabara and says, "You know you don't have to go through with this if you don't want to. No one will hold it against you."
"Oh," Urameshi says, hands in his pockets. "Okay, goodbye."
"Not you," Botan replies, sticking out her foot to trip him as he tries to step. "The Spirit Detective does not have a choice in this." He falls on his face, and I chuckle. Botan looks up at me again. "So, will you go, Asaki?"
"On one condition," I reply, shuddering.
"What's that?"
"Tell me, what does it feel like when you've been bitten by one of those insects?"
She stares at me, confused. "Well, I've been told it's a feeling like your skin crawling. You get nauseous and dizzy, and then you'll turn into a zombie."
"Shit," I mumble, and my body half shifts, my hair turning fiery red for a moment before returning to brown, and I fall to my knees.
"I knew something wasn't right!" Kuwabara says, kneeling down beside me. "You got bitten!"
"Botan, I thought you said depressed people were the most vulnerable!" Urameshi growls.
"They are," Botan replies, slowly.
"L-lucky me," I stammer, a violent shiver racking through my body. I spit out some bile, almost laughing. This is the closest I've been to actual pain in well over a century. Close, but not quite. "I'm not exactly the happiest person in the world."
"What do we do?" Urameshi asks. "She can't go like this." As he says it, my body half-shifts again, and I feel fire in my hands before I revert to being fully human.
"You're right." Botan groans. "All right, I'll look after you. Unfortunately, I don't know exactly what will happen to you, seeing as you're only half human."
"This week just keeps getting better," I grunt, my body feeling weak. Maybe I'll turn into a zombie. Could be fun, not having to think for a while.
"Well, I guess the only way to make her better is to go find that stupid whistle." Kuwabara gets to his feet, putting a fist to his chest. "Don't worry, Asaki. I'll find it and break it and then I'll come back for you, okay?"
Why does that sound like a threat? I nod, half-shifting again, bile rising in my throat. "Good luck," I spit out as he jumps into the hole.
"Wow," Botan and Urameshi cry. They clamber to the edge of the hole, and half of me kind of wants to push them in. Maybe, like, a third.
"He really jumped," Botan says, surprised.
"Maybe he'll be okay alone," Urameshi mumbles. Botan gives him a death glare, and he quickly cries, "Okay, okay."
"Oh, and here!" She pulls two disks that look like compact mirrors from the front of her jacket. "Communicators!"
"Geez! You nearly forgot to give me this thing? Let me guess, I could have been killed without it, right?" he shouts, snatching it from her.
"No," she replies. "It's just a communication mirror. We can use it to keep in touch while you're down there."
"Yeah yeah, leave me on your own while you go and do other things." Suddenly, Urameshi's face grows pale. "Oh no!"
"What?" Botan asks.
"Keiko! I just dumped her off at the movie theater. Will you take care of her for me?" he says, sounding panicked before jumping into the portal.
"Yusuke! I don't want to do that!" Botan cries, but he's already gone.
"You guys sure picked a winner," I mumble, resting my back against a wooden box. The shifting has subsided at least for now, and I gulp a breath of air. My mouth tastes vile, but at least I'm still cognizant.
"Well, he hasn't failed us yet," Botan says, still staring down at the portal. She sighs. "Asaki, I really don't know what to do about you. Maybe Koenma has a better idea of what to expect."
She flips open her communicator, and a toddler appears on the other side, a pacifier bobbing in his mouth. I snort, closing my eyes, suddenly tired. "That's Koenma?" Every demon knew of King Enma and his son who ran Spirit World and were responsible for regulating the three worlds, more or less. For Demon World, a lot less. That world really has its own laws, and as long as it doesn't make too much trouble, Spirit World pays it little mind.
"Yes," a child's voice snaps at me from the other side of the mirror.
"Koenma, sir, do you have any idea what we can expect from her?" Botan asks, getting right to the point.
"Not a clue. I'm having someone look into it right now. At the moment, stick around. You've got guests incoming. Friends to help out Yusuke."
"Yes, sir," Botan replies, closing the mirror. "He must mean Kurama and Hiei."
My stomach flips, but it has nothing to do with the Makai insect. "Kurama and Hiei?" Could this day get any worse?
"Do you know them both?" Botan asks.
I try to get to my feet, my knees weak. I have to support myself on a stack of boxes, but I manage to remain upright. "Unfortunately."
"Well, they'll be helping the boys out, and a good thing too, since you can't."
"Oh, darn," I drawl, not really meaning it.
Botan sighs. "Why are all of you so difficult to deal with?"
"I'm not really in top form," I reply. "Get back with me on a good day." I half-shift, my legs giving out. I'm going to end up with bruises. Footsteps make me look up, and I sigh as a pair of demons step into view.
Hiei, a four-foot something with tall, spiky black hair and a headband around his head snorts, Kurama at his side. "Where are the humans, girl?" Hiei asks Botan.
"Good to see you too, Hiei," Botan says. "They're already down there."
Hiei's gaze sweeps over me, and he scoffs. "You look as pathetic as the last time I saw you," are his words.
"And you're a short as ever," I snap.
"I was wondering what you'd be doing without that fiancé of yours to hide behind," he says. "Apparently, the answer is cowering on the floor of warehouses."
"I swear, I will hurt you," I grunt as I half-shift.
"What's wrong?" Kurama asks, his face contorted with worry. He kneels beside me as it happens again.
"She was bitten by one of the Makai insects," Botan says.
"Which means you have the spiritual awareness of a flea," Hiei jabs.
"I know that!" I growl, my hands burning. "Shoot," I grunt, looking at my slightly blackened hands. "I shouldn't be able to do that as a human. That's the second time.
"How did it happen?" Kurama asks.
"I keep shifting into a demon, but not all the way. It's like because of the insect, my body refuses to fully change. But, parts of me will shift. I guess it was my energy that time." I try to heal my hands, but nothing happens. Looking up at Kurama, my heart beating fast, I put a hand on his shoulder, trying again.
"That's not good," I reply, taking my hand away.
"What is it?" Botan asks.
"I can't heal," I say, half-shifting again, my stomach lurching. I jerk away from Kurama, upending the contents of my stomach.
"Don't worry about her, boys," Botan says, not sounding very convincing. "The sooner you destroy that Makai whistle, the sooner she'll be okay."
I wipe my mouth, my hand trembling. I've never not been able to heal before, and I can't stop shaking. Fear trips through me. Swallowing, I get to my feet, meeting the eyes of everyone in the room. "No worries," I say, forcing a smile. "Just go do what you have to and come back safe."
Hiei scoffs, jumping into the portal, but Kurama hesitates. Looking at him, I remember what I told his mother yesterday about putting him on a pedestal. I grab my left arm with my right hand, staring down at the ground. When I look up again, he's gone.
"Well, at least that's going right," Botan says, sighing.
"Forgive me for going wrong," I mumble, grimacing. The weird dizziness has subsided for now, and I get to my feet. "So, what are your plans while they're doing that?"
"I was planning on exterminating some insects and preventing the humans from hurting each other if possible, but I'm not sure now."
"Don't let me stop you," I say. "How can I help?"
"I really don't know that you should be on your feet like this," she replies, sounding worried.
"You brought this to my attention, so I'm not going to sit around and do nothing. I definitely can't fight other demons like this, and I can't heal anything. The only thing I might be able to do is kill bugs and knock out some humans. If only I could see the damn things." I try to force a shift into demon form, but it makes me queasy, so I stop.
"Oh, wait!" Botan reaches in her pants' pocket, and I wonder if they aren't bottomless as she pulls out some glasses. "Specter Specs!"
"Specter Specs?"
"Glasses that allow you to see things that normal humans can't. With these, you should be able to see the insects."
"Brilliant," I reply, starting to feel a little better about this whole ordeal. At least now I can do something to help. I take the glasses from her, sliding them on my face and striking a pose.
She laughs. "They look good on you."
"Why, thank you," I reply. "Now, let's squash some bugs."
...
Botan gives me a communication mirror and a map, and we split up to cover as much area as we can. Apparently, humans bitten by the insects turn bluish and revert to their basest desires, which typically means destroying and killing. It took some convincing to get her to let me go on my own, and she only agreed after I promised that I would call her if things got too much for me.
With these Specs on, I can see the little bugs everywhere, and it makes me regret, yet again, how blind I am in my human form. The bug spray Botan gave me kills the bugs instantly, making that, by far, the easiest part of the job. What is a bit harder is dodging the zombie humans.
When I think zombies, I picture slow-moving brain eaters. These are less zombie and more mindless minion. One of them came at me with a baseball bat, hitting me squarely in the back. I'm pretty sure it left a bruise that I CANNOT HEAL. It's agitating. I may have knocked him out a bit too hard.
This is made only more difficult by the fact that I'm still half-shifting and feeling nauseous off and on. It's a small hell, but squashing the little bastards that caused it is doing wonders for my mood.
After maybe an hour or so of this, a call rings in on my communicator and I flip it open to find Urameshi glaring at me. "Good to see you too," I tell him. "Glad to see you're still alive."
"Ha ha. Careful or you're going to start sounding like Botan. Speaking of which, why the hell aren't you with her?"
"Because we can cover more ground this way," I reply.
"Which would make sense if you weren't half-zombie."
"I am one hundred percent zombie, thank you very much," I say, spraying an insect as it makes its way toward me.
"I thought you couldn't see those," he grunts.
"Notice the nifty new glasses," I reply. "Anyway, shouldn't you focus on the task at hand?"
"Well, excuse me for worrying about my moron of a new teammate."
"I don't recall signing up for that," I say.
"Same here," Kuwabara says, his face popping into the frame.
"You're the idiot who jumped first," Urameshi retorts, pushing him out of the way.
As much as I appreciate both his concern and the comedy skit, I can feel a half-shift coming on, and I have company. Four infected humans are moving toward me fast. "Sorry, guys, I've got to go." I close the mirror, sinking into a ready stance. Just knock them out and move on.
I move to punch one in the face when my head spins, and I stumble, receiving a sharp kick in the head. I fly back, landing on my rear as my vision continues to swim. I retch as blood drips down my face. That's new.
I half-shift, getting to my feet and landing a dizzy punch on one guy, wiping the blood out of my eyes. Head wounds bleed like no one's business, and this one is living up to that reputation. I don't have time for a concussion, and I wish I could change into demon form for real. At least that one doesn't react like a human body does.
I take out the other three, making my way into a shop and into a bathroom where I wash the blood from my face. I still look pretty rough, but somehow, my glasses remain unscathed. Sighing, I head back into the fray.
This goes on for I don't even know how long, and I'm starting to lament an entirely wasted Sunday when the people who were attacking me suddenly stop. They blink in unison before turning and walking away. Panting, I follow them, wondering what's going on. Zombies don't just give up on something for no reason.
They make their way to my school, and I wonder who the heck would be there on a Sunday. Maybe some teachers. Student council members. Overzealous class reps…. I have a bad feeling about this.
I vault a low wall, landing wrong because of a sudden dizzy spell and rolling onto my back. I lay there, breathing deeply until the dizziness fades. My communicator rings, and I pull it out of my pocket.
"Yo?" I say, my voice sounding as good as I feel.
"Asaki?" It's Botan, and she's running. "You look rough."
"Thanks," I reply dryly. "What's up?"
"Where are you?"
"School."
"Oh, thank goodness. The infected humans are after Keiko!"
"I had a feeling," I say, forcing myself upright and to my feet. I sway a little but manage to stay vertical.
"Are you all right?"
"Fine. I'm going to find Keiko before something bad happens to her. Where are you?"
"On my way!" I close my communicator and break into a run. Keiko's no slouch when it comes to sticking up for herself, but I think these guys will be too much for her.
Running along the wall of the school, I spot her being cornered by some teachers. "Run, stupid legs!" I shout, even as exhaustion makes it harder and harder to move. Just as one of them goes to swing at her, I grab his fist, throwing him off-balance and stepping between the others and Keiko.
"Get out of here!" I yell at her, turning to face down my favorite teacher, Mr. Iwamoto. I'm going to enjoy knocking his lights out. Keiko looks at me for a moment, so I push her. "Move! That way!" I point toward where kids park their bikes, thinking maybe she can take one and get out of here.
She runs, and I raise my fists, but the teachers don't want anything to do with me. They follow Keiko.
"Dammit," I mumble as I grow dizzy again. A few half-shifts keep me from moving, but when they're done, I press on, hoping to find her before they do. With my glasses on, I spot her energy mixed with...Botan's? Thank goodness they're both together.
Mr. Iwamoto pulls apart the bushes where they're hiding, pulling back his fist. He's too ready to hit kids for my taste. He punches, and I hear them scream, but before he can go any further, I grab him, yanking him back before jumping through the bushes after the girls.
"Botan! We've got to move," I shout at her.
"Right!" She grabs Keiko's hand, and I follow behind, keeping my eyes out for anyone getting too close. My communicator goes off again, and I flip it open to see Urameshi's face. "Bad time!"
"Where's Keiko?!" he cries.
"She's safe, she's fine. Botan and I have things under control," I say, hanging up on him. I have to stop as I half-shift again.
"Asaki!" Botan cries, and the pair stop as well.
"I'm fine!" I call to them through my nausea. "Keep going!"
"I-"
"Just go!" They run on, and I dry-heave, almost glad I have nothing left to throw up. Someone grabs me by hair, yanking me up. I find myself looking up into Iwamoto's soulless eyes. He scoffs at me before letting me go. I can't catch myself, falling to the ground with a thud. He thunders past with a few more people, and I dry-heave again before forcing myself to my feet.
I chase after them only to be grabbed by Botan. "Come on!" I follow behind her and Keiko again, and we head inside the school, making our way to a phone.
Keiko tries to dial for help, but it doesn't work. "They must have cut the phone lines," she says, looking a lot less shaken than someone who's being hunted should.
"They're getting smarter," Botan replies.
"They've gone past just being mindless zombies. They have a purpose now," I add.
"Oh, good," she says. Both of them are eyeing me.
"What?"
"You look like you're going to faint any minute," Botan says.
"Worry about Keiko," I snap.
"If you insist."
"Let's try the teacher's lounge," Keiko says, and I'm grateful she's got ideas. I think that kick to my head addled my brain. I really don't have time for a concussion right now. "Maybe someone in there can help us."
"I've always loved the way you think!" Botan says, smiling. Unless these two have known each other for a while, that's kind of creepy to say.
We run to the teacher's lounge, the three of us stepping inside to find Principal Takenaka sitting inside. "Mr. Takenaka!" Keiko says, and we approach him. However, as we get closer, he slumps forward in his seat, unconscious.
"That's not good," I say, turning to find Mr. Iwamoto right behind us.
A/N: Plot! Thank goodness, I was getting worried. So, we're going to be following the Four Saint Beasts Arc here, so, there's direct quoting from the show. Next chapter will have that too, so bear with me. From here on out, Asaki's story will be weaving between the actual plot of the anime/manga. It took a while, but finally, the gang's all here, and I'm looking forward to where they'll go together!
YYH is owned by Yoshihiro Togashi (duh :P)
