Because of Small Things
Chapter 14
The rules were simple: everything goes.
The matches' pamphlets were up after the rules were established within every group. Some groups only had four people while as others had the mandatory five people. I was a little confused about the four people, but figured they wouldn't have a chance to redeem themselves if they were two on two, or someone would have to go twice. I didn't get a chance to read the pamphlets since the boys wanted to get up the room to talk things through. I gladly accepted that invitation; just being in the same room as that man made my blood boil and my demon side shift so uneasily, it made my head spin.
Yusuke led me upstairs, as well as the others. He said our room was on the tenth floor, room 113. I didn't like that number, but I pushed that aside. There was always something about the number 13 that I didn't like. I hastily pushed the up button for the elevator and we waited. No one really spoke; I was anxious to see the names of the contestants. That bastard had said every room had an "electronic screen in their rooms that announced the next fight and the contestants, showing who won and who lost". It was exactly that that caught my interest. I wanted to make sure I kept up with the tolls and the tallies.
The elevator dang and we walked out onto our floor. I looked around and saw the sign saying that our room was to the right. I led the way and toward the room. I looked toward Yusuke who pulled out the magnetic key and slid it over the door. The door clicked and I pushed it open, staring around. It was a decent room with a rather large living room and connected kitchen. There were four doors and I frowned. That meant two of us would have to share a bedroom. I, for sure, wasn't going to share a bedroom. I was the only girl; I deserved a bedroom of my own.
"Who's going to share?" Kurama voiced and I looked around. Yusuke sighed.
"Me and Kuwabara will share a room, since we're the loudest sleepers," he volunteered and Kuwabara didn't object. "This all seems so familiar to the Dark Tournament, don't you think Kurama?" Kurama nodded and I narrowed my eyes. "The Dark Tournament was like this, except there were some boundaries. We weren't allowed to blast the judges but in this one that bastard had said he had spare judges in the spare room… Twisted bastard." I scowled. I remembered that part. It was horrid.
I watched Hiei make his way into a room and I frowned. He didn't seem too suited up for this tournament, but Kurama reassuring smile made me think otherwise. All the boys were ready for this, I could feel it. I couldn't sense Hiei's readiness, but then again he was hard to read at all. It was like he could block that power of mine. I sighed and made my way to one of the doors to the right. I walked in and nodded. It suited me just fine with a single dresser and a full size bed. It had a closet and I found my duffel bags lying on my bed, still shut and untouched.
I walked to them and began unpacking. The tournament would take a couple months that man had stated. He said he'd have one week of battles and the next week would be to resting. There were a total of fifty teams but he said that only ten would be going to the real tournament. The forty who were beat would either be escorted off the island or dug into graves, which sent the crowd listening into an uproar. I was disgusted with that part. He also said that the semi finals would be between four teams and the finals would be between the last two teams, to the death. He said "in order to win the finals, you had to kill your opponent". I wasn't sure if I would be able to kill another living being, but I figured I'd have to.
I sighed once more after I finished packing and changed into some comfy pants and a baggy shirt that hung off my shoulders. I walked out into the living room and saw Kuwabara and Yusuke setting up a card game. I smiled at Yusuke and sat down, asking, "Can I play?" The two both nodded and we started on a simple game: gold fish. I figured they thought I'd forgotten how to play any other games, which they were right. If they said poker, I'd be embarrassed. We played for a while before I grew slightly bored with kicking their butts. I was using my telepathic abilities that I had learned from Hiei, also known as cheating. I didn't care. I got a good laugh out of it.
Kurama had made us all finger sandwiches and we all snacked on them before becoming incredibly quiet. I didn't want to say anything either. I was so used to not talking that now that I had grown my voice back (slowly), it felt weird to talk. I felt odd for talking when I've been not talking for a year and a half. I walked to the window and sighed, staring out. The clearing we were in was marvelous with lots of tall trees. The building towered of the trees and we could see the distant lights of Tokyo. I loved that view and I found myself gazing out there for quite some time.
I blinked and looked toward the small black device stuck to the divider between the kitchen and living room. I walked to it and pushed the power button. It flashed on and made a loud ding noise before settling and showing a menu. It was between contestants, fights, judges, and extras. I picked the "contestants" and scanned over the name. I noticed that Team Yang was the one with the twin snake demons by their pictures and they looked promising. Our team was on there and my picture looked hideous, to me. I scowled and turned the thing off. I'd study it later, probably tomorrow. That demon had said that tomorrow the beginning fights would be up.
Yusuke explained to me that the first twenty or so fights would be fairly easy and right after, they'd get a little stronger. I was surprised they didn't have some mass killing spree in order to get the 10 groups needed for the real tournament. Yusuke thought that too, but neither of us asked questions. We didn't want to seem pestering, even though all I wanted to do was kill the owner of this tournament.
I walked to my room and laid down on my bed, staring up at my ceiling. I sighed. I was getting a little nervous about tomorrow, which was the first day of fights. I bit the inside of my lower lip and my thumbs began fidgeting. I looked over and stared at Jasper, blinking. I turned onto my stomach and sighed, thumbing the stomach of Jasper. I stared at the raggedy stuffed animal and frowned. I sometimes wished it could talk and soothe me. It'd feel better to hear something I was so close with talk to me. I really wished my parents were alive right now, to watch and train me. They'd give me pointers and help me with these fights…
I shook my head and sucked in my bottom lip, biting it. I didn't like thinking of them, I reminded myself. Their memory was too painful. It hurt me to picture their faces and how I wouldn't be able to see them until I was dead myself. I shook my head; I tried not to think of that. My parents would be so angry if I was suicidal or had any thoughts of joining them as soon as possible. I could only imagine my mother's face; she was so against suicides. She made the "Anti-Self Violence" group that was in the city; it shut down the day after she died.
I frowned and noticed my hands were gripping Jasper so tight, my knuckles were white and when I released, it took a while before Jasper smoothed out. I sighed and set him on my pillow before heading to the window and staring out, watching the sun make its way down the horizon. It wasn't as beautiful as the view I had it back home, but it was still beautiful all the same. I leaned against the thick window and sighed, the warmth from my body fogging the window slightly. I scribbled in the vapor with my finger and smiled. I breathed heavily on the glass and put a smiley face before rolling my eyes at my stupidity and heading out of my room, to the kitchen, and grabbing the gallon of milk. I poured myself a glass and began sipping it, heading to the living room. I missed the TV we had. I hated most of the shows on, but it was something to do.
I sat beside Yusuke and stared at him. "Is it…hard?" I whispered and he looked at me, from his magazine.
"Not really. You'll do fine," he reassured. "You've been training a lot lately and you'll be completely fine. Promise!" I smiled and nodded. I was trained by the team that had won the last tournament that had taken place. That was a slight ego boost, to me. I knew that the other teams had to feel a little intimidated by the team that defeated the pronounced undefeatable Toguro team that Yusuke talked to me about a while ago. He had explained to me almost everything that had happened. I had felt bad for Yusuke, hearing his fight, and even asked him how exactly he came out alive in that fight. He wasn't sure himself but he figured he had more human determination that the Toguro guy. I agreed with that assumption, even if that wasn't even close to the truth. I wasn't there and Yusuke said his memory was faded because of all the missions he had gone on since them. He didn't allow himself to think of it because it made him feel egotistical.
I stared at the wall where a TV might be and made a face, causing Yusuke to laugh beside me. I grinned over at him and elbowed him, causing him to grunt slightly with another eruption of laughter. I rolled my eyes as my shoulders shook with laughter. I shook my head as I tried to control my silent laughter as Yusuke wrapped his arm around my shoulders. For some reason, I leaned into him and stared at the blank wall in complete boredom. I could tell everyone was bored so I stood, earning an odd look from Yusuke.
"Oh my god, I can't stand this silence," Kuwabara screamed out, causing me to jump, my face contorting into a weird look. Yusuke began laughing and Kuwabara blushed. "Sorry, Etsuko," he mumbled. I smiled and patted his back, leaning down and kissing his cheek. His blush deepened and I grinned as he became shy. I patted his shoulder.
"Don't think anything of it," I whispered and Kuwabara pulled off his large, broad grin as he scratched the back of his head with a goofy laugh. I rolled my eyes and walked toward the door.
"Where are you going?" Yusuke called. I looked back at him and shrugged my shoulders. "Well, you're not going alone." He sprang up and walked over to me, pocketing his hands and walking out with me. "In a hotel of demons, you shouldn't walk around by yourself…" I nodded, giving him a skeptical look. He glared at me and I grinned, breaking his glare and causing him to grin back and wrap an arm around my shoulders. We waited for the elevator before heading to the lobby and walking around. I smelt an amazing smell when I was down there and I headed toward it, Yusuke's stomach growling.
"That food smells amazing," he mumbled as we came to a restaurant named "Bistou's Bistro". I looked inside and saw some of the contestants sitting in there, enjoying their hefty meals. I looked at Yusuke and he grinned. "Let's go contact the others…" Yusuke went a phone as I looked back into the restaurant. I saw those snake demon twins and narrowed my eyes at them. They seemed to sense my stare and turned back to me. I couldn't help but think how handsome they were. They had slender, curvaceous bodies and they both had pitch black hair that was both pulled back at the nape of their neck. They were both wearing fancy business like suits but one had a green tie while the other's was white. I looked away when they stared over at me and watched as Yusuke made his way over to me.
"Why can't you look into the eyes of snake demons?" I whispered and Yusuke frowned.
"Well, I'm not sure if it's real. Hiei believes it is and so does Kurama. But it's rumored that a snake demon's eyes are like portals to death, to be frank! A normal human could just glance in their eyes and fall unconscious but for a demon, such as you…it would take a couple of minutes and intense staring to fall into unconsciousness and then, if not treated it could become a fatality," he explained, sighing. I frowned, but nodded. I looked behind him to see the other three boys making their way toward us. I was surprised to see Hiei, honestly. He looked bored though, so I figured if it got him out of that boring room, he was down.
We walked into the restaurant and I avoided the snake twins, hugging up next to Yusuke who seemed to notice my edge. "Don't worry, Etsuko! Those snake twins can't harm you! Hiei may not act like it, but he'd kill them if they harmed you!" Hiei glared over at Yusuke, who giggled nervously. I rolled my eyes and stared around. The hostess, who was plainly a demon, escorted us to a table where she handed us a menu, smiling and asking for our drinks. I looked at the menu and made a face. I didn't think "blood" counted as a drink. I pointed to it to Yusuke and he laughed. "Vampires are real too, Etsuko." I blinked and shook my head. I chose some soft drink and stared around, interested. My competition was sitting around me and tomorrow we'd all be facing each other, one on one. I wasn't surprised when I began feeling the readings of the others. Most of them weren't very strong but Yusuke said to not count on that since the Toguro brothers acted like they were weak but turned out to be incredibly strong.
I narrowed my eyes when I felt something intense from behind me. I turned around as our drinks came and saw the leader of that Team Yang. He was a handsome man, very handsome. His face was very defined and his jaw looked strong. His nose was crooked and his eyes were a brilliant shade of green and blue mixed together. He was wearing a very nice suit and had a red tie hanging loosely around his neck. I couldn't help but want to stare and when a smirk broke on his handsome face, I scowled and turned away. I can't believe I was just gawking and he caught me.
"You alright, Etsuko? I've never seen a redder blush," Kurama asked, smiling a bit. I didn't answer as I put my straw in my cup and began sipping. Even though the boys didn't catch it, I was so embarrassed. I was sure Hiei knew now because I don't think there's a moment when he's not reading my thoughts. I couldn't wait until I became strong enough to block him out. I could literally stick my tongue out at him in a victorious sort of way. I rolled my eyes at myself and looked up as the waitress's voice caught my ears.
"Are you guys ready to order?" she asked, sweetly. I blinked at her before ordering before the others. I wasn't that hungry so I settled with a salad, a fresh Caesar salad. I placed my hands in my lap and a loud laughter rang in my ears. I looked over to the sound and narrowed my eyes. It was a team I haven't remembered yet but they were being loud, slutty. They were a team of all girls and I narrowed my eyes. They were all wearing something skimpy and very revealing. I just saw four sluts sitting at the table, laughing and drinking their alcoholic beverages.
"Wow, those babes are hot," Kuwabara stated. "Do you think we'll have to fight them?" I eyed him. I wouldn't mind kicking their ass. They're obnoxious.
"Probably! They don't seem weak," Kurama stated and I glared at them all. They're all perverts. They were staring at them like they were slabs of meat. I rolled my eyes and looked over at the handsome man of Team Yang. He was staring at me, and only me. For some reason, I felt an ego boost. He wasn't staring at those four bimbos. I managed to smile and he winked, tapping his forehead and motioning his hand to me. I turned around, blushing and sipped at my drink, nervously. Hiei was basically glaring at me.
"What are you glaring at?" I snapped and Hiei rolled his eyes.
"You're going to have to watch him die probably, onna so stop fraternizing," Hiei hissed and I narrowed my eyes at him. "It'll either be by someone else's hands or our hands." I scoffed and watched the waitress bring our food over before I began devouring my salad, in pure anger. That three-eyed fire yokai had no business in my life. He needed to leave me and my life alone. "Hn, gladly…" he remarked and I glared at him, grinding my teeth together. Yusuke blinked, confused.
"I missed something," Kuwabara voiced, confused as well. I rolled my eyes and finished my salad easily before sulking in my chair. I didn't care what that asshole said. It wasn't like I was going to go out and marry the demon. I wouldn't want to marry a demon anyways; they're too pig-headed, especially fire yokai. I felt Hiei's eyes glaring at me and I smirked to myself. If he was going to read my mind, I'd make it uncomfortable for him or at least piss him off. I enjoyed making him mad; it made me happy, that's for sure.
We all finished soon and began walking out. I glanced back at that handsome demon and saw him watching me, confused almost. I smiled at him but felt someone tugging at my wrist. I looked up to see Kurama, eyeing me. "We're not here to make friends, Etsuko," he stated and I frowned, nodding. We were here because that man made us. He threatened us so we had to come because we couldn't run our entire lives. I remembered that portion.
I headed to our room, quietly. I haven't been paid that much attention in a long time and it felt good. Actually, I've never been ogled at so that was a big ego boost. The only people who ever ogled at me were crazy, insane nutcases who just saw me as a "girl" or a "braless" girl. It was uncomfortable, really. I shivered at that thought as Yusuke opened the door and I walked in behind him, straight to my room, shutting the door and sitting on my bed, fidgeting with Jasper.