Cheza was awoken to the sound of something banging against the wall in the vacant apartment next door. Her eyes widened a bit..she hoped it wasn't a demon. "WOOF!" Alice was barking at the wall, Cheza decided to investigate. She quietly crept to her front door and silently unlocked it . She stuck her head out and saw the apartment door next to her wide open. Hesitantly she stepped outside and peered into the vacant room….
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Cheza's heart began to race as she stared into a familiar pair of pale blue eyes. A woman with long curly blonde hair in her late 30's smiled up at her. "Its been awhile, hasn't it?"
Alice wagged her tail excitedly, remembering who the woman was. She happily trotted over to her…she passed right through her "mom…you….your…" she didn't want to finish the sentence. "Dead…yes..I have come here to warn you of your father..he kept a secret from us Cheza…"
Her heart sank, she had always hoped to find her mother one day..alive and happy. She had up and disappeared one day…she always had the suspicion she left to get away from her father…but now she knew the truth..she had died. Her mother continued to speak, "your father is a bounty hunter Cheza..he killed many demons and humans alike…" Cheza's eyes widened, "you…you know about demons?" The woman nodded, " I know many things..there is something else I have to tell you…it's about the spirit fox..your father was the one that nearly killed him and forced him to take refuge here in human world…" This was all to much for Cheza to take in, her mother was dead..and her father..was an evil bounty hunter that nearly killed her boyfriend!
"is…he a demon? I mean…that was a really long time ago..if he was human..how could he possibly still be alive?" Her mother got to her feet, " He has some sort of jewel in his possession that keeps him youthful.." Cheza frowned after another question popped into her head..she wasn't sure if she wanted this particular question answered. "Mom…how…did you die?". A sad look fell upon her mother's features, "your father..murdered me". Cheza felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, she didn't know what to say…tears began to fall. " She placed a hand on her shoulder, although, Cheza couldn't feel it. "My time here is short…so listen to me. Your father has come upon an ancient artifact that will turn him into the most powerful demon in existence..but in order for it to work he needs your blood..beware he will send his minions after you..and if all else fails he will come for you himself…" Her mother began to fade, "goodbye Cheza". "NO! DON'T GO!" She yelled..but her mother was gone.
Yusuke and Kuwabara were walking up the steps heading towards the apartments when they heard Cheza yelling. They quickly came to her aid to see her holding onto Alice sobbing. "Cheza whats wrong!" She didn't want anyone to see her like this..she got to her feet and ran past them, Alice followed close behind. " Man..I hate seeing girls cry!" Kuwabara exclaimed. "Kurama will be here soon..I think we should tell him to go find out whats wrong with her". Kuwabara nodded, "yeah..good idea…by the way..did you sense a spirit..I would have swore I did…" Yusuke nodded, "yeah..I thought I did too".
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Cheza came to a clearing in the forest by the apartments. She needed time to contemplate, what was she going to do? She felt sad…angry..so many emotions all at once. She clinched her fist in anger, tears still streaming from her eyes. How dare he take away her mother..she would make him pay. Alice began to growl, Cheza looked at her to see her teeth bared. "So you're Cheza..this will be a walk in the park!" She turned to see a man with spiky black hair and blue eyes staring at her. He had all sorts of weapons on his being, knives..a sword…a bow and arrow. ..you name it! She knew he had to be a bounty hunter that worked for..you guessed it, her father. He slowly walked over to her, then lifted her chin up and stared into her eyes. "aww whats wrong? Don't worry..I'll put you out of your misery soon" Alice was fixing to attack the guy when a black blur beat her to it. In less than 4 seconds Hiei had decapitated the man. His crimson orbs met with hers, " You should listen to your mother's warning..you would have died if I hadn't been here". Cheza fell to her knees, tears still forming in her eyes..she didn't say anything. Hiei's features softened, he felt bad for the girl. He was right..it was foolish to be alone in the woods with no protection. Alice came to Cheza's side and she buried her face in her fur..she didn't want to do anything. Hiei sheathed his katana and jumped into a tree above her, he decided to watch over her for the time being.
/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Yo fox boy!" Yusuke greeted as Kurama approached his apartment. Yusuke had seen Kurama coming and had opened the door just before he was fixing to knock on it. "Hello Yusuke..Kuwabara". "Hey Kuronue! You feeling better?" Kuwabara asked. Kuronue nodded, but didn't say anything. "Oh yeah Urameshi tell him about Cheza". Kurama's eyes widened, "what! is she okay! Where is she!". "Calm down! We were walking to my apartment when we heard her yelling..when we found her she was crying …we asked if she was okay ..she didn't answer, she just took off running into the woods". A worried look appeared on the foxes face, "when was this?". "A few hours…." Kurama had already ran out the door before Yusuke could finish his sentence, Kuronue too. "You search from the skies..I'll take off on foot" Kurama instructed his bat friend.
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Nightfall was approaching..it was already pretty dark out. Cheza had wandered off to the park to sit and think. Hiei had followed her, making sure to keep a close eye out for anything that would cause her harm. He had contacted Kurama telepathically informing him of Cheza's whereabouts, knowing he was looking for her. Cheza heard footsteps approaching her soon after, "Cheza". Kurama sat next to her on the park bench, he took his hand in hers. "Are you alright?" he asked. She didn't respond, Alice began to wine. "Cheza..please tell me..maybe I can help you". "You cant" she replied. The two sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity.
"I…talked to my mom today" Cheza stated, finally breaking the silence. "I believe you told me she had disappeared..I'm glad to hear shes alive and…" "She's dead" Cheza interrupted. She stood up, "She's dead..and my father is the one who killed her". Kurama stood up as well, embracing her in his arms. "Im sorry" he whispered into her ear.
/\/\/\/\/\/\
Kurama had insisted Cheza stay at his house for the night. She had informed him of the conversation she had with her mother..leaving out one detail. She wasn't ready to tell him that her father had been the one that nearly killed him. Now, the two were sleeping peacefully together in his bed. His mother had gone on vacation with his stepfather and Kokoda was spending the night at a friend's house. He had eased her pain a bit, she was grateful to have such a caring boyfriend. Many things needed to be done the next day. Kurama was planning on visiting Koenma to see what he knew of Cheza's father..one thing was for certain, there was no way in hell he was letting Cheza out of his sight.