Raised
Chapter three
Yusuke looked over his shoulder when he heard the door to the restaurant open up. He put the oversized chopsticks down and wiped his hands on his apron. He was kind of surprised when he saw who had just walked into the restaurant. Botan wasn't exactly the person he expected to see after they'd split off from Spirit World's service.
"Hey Botan," Yusuke greeted in his usual informal way.
Botan smiled widely when she saw him. "Long time no see! How are you and Keiko doing?"
"We're doing alright," The young adult answered. "You didn't come here for pleasantries. What did you want?"
Yusuke had never really been one to beat around the bush. In fact,it was one of his better qualities as far as Botan was concerned. At least when it wasn't directed at her. Botan's face morphed into one of pure innocence as she looked at Yusuke.
"Is that anyway to talk to an old friend?" Botan responded.
She tried not to look around the small family restaurant but she could still feel all the people around her. She wouldn't be a good Grim Reaper if she couldn't feel all the souls.
"No 'hi, how are you?' or 'it's good to see you too Botan'!" The blue haired woman said as she did her best to imitate what he could have sounded like.
Yusuke rolled his eyes as he pulled the apron off. "Fine. It's good to see you too Botan. How are you? -Don't answer that. Just cut to the chase."
"Yusuke!" Another woman's voice called out in reprimand.
The former spirit detective looked over to the entrance of the cooking area as Keiko pushed her way past the split fabric divider. He gave a small wave but she Keiko just gave him a withering look. She moved passed him without saying anything to tie on an apron herself and picked up the cooking which Yusuke had been neglecting. Once she was sure it wasn't going to burn, she nudged Yusuke with her elbow.
"Go catch up with Botan upstairs. I can handle the restaurant for a while," Keiko said in a calm voice.
"Sure, sure. It'll be just like old times I'm sure," Yusuke said with a dry sort of humor.
As he walked through the doorway that Keiko had just emerged from, he motioned for Botan to follow him. She hurried after by going through the doorway in the dining area, passing by the toilet room and following up the stairs after him. Once they got up to the Yukimura's living area, Yusuke led her into what was undoubtedly Keiko's bedroom. Although from the looks of it, Yusuke had made himself comfortable in there too.
"Yusuke you naughty boy," Botan said with a catlike grin. "Staying in Keiko's room like this. What would your mom say?"
Yusuke's face lit up like a firework as he spun on her. "Gheese Botan! Stop treating me like I'm doing something wrong. Nothing's happened!"
She grinned as she leaned forward. "Oh really? Then why is your stuff in here, hmm?"
"Because I stay over when I help close up. It's easier for Keiko so she can focus on her school work," Yusuke said as he sat down on the bed. "Now, stop trying to distract me. Tell me what pacifier breath wants."
"Who said Prince Koenma wants anything?" Botan asked as she fiddled with the sleeves of her pink kimono.
He just stared at her as he leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees. The look in his eyes narrowed and Botan could feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand on edge. She laughed nervously before taking a deep breath.
"Alright, so he did ask that I come and get you. But I'm sure he has a good reason!"
"Tch," Yusuke's response was simple and in disbelief of her assertion.
"Would he call you if it wasn't?"
"Was that a real question?" the young man tossed back.
Her arms spread open wide expressively. "You know that's not true, Yusuke! He's done nothing but left you and your friends alone! Besides, aren't you the least bit curious about what could have been so important that he decided to ask you for a favor and not just send in a team from Spirit World?"
Yusuke simply stood up and crabbed his coat from the back of Keiko's computer chair. "Alright, you got me. Let's go see the Toddler."
Groggily Piper opened her eyes. The torch had long since burned out so all she saw was pretty much what she had seen prior to opening her eyes - darkness. Her body felt like it had been weighed down by at least a hundred more pounds as she got up out of bed. Waking up alone only reinforced everything she had heard before coming to this place.
Piper stood up and fixed her hair, which had gotten kind of messy from the nap. After she tied her hair back up, something glimmering caught her attention. The seemingly young woman couldn't see exactly what it was in the dark but there was something in her mind, like it was constantly on the edge of her vision. She moved over to a small clothing trunk, the one with the pieces she'd gotten as gifts. Her hands deftly opened it up and sorted through, trying to recall what each piece was from her sense of touch alone.
A smile touched her lips as she slowly sorted through the pieces, recalling what some of them were and the memories they brought back. These were the pieces she was given on special occasion. It might have been a scarf or a certain shirt but each piece was definitely special. And then her hand ran into something that she wasn't familiar with. Carefully Piper pulled the item out. It was a small silk purse with what felt like a necklace inside of it. This was definitely not something she remembered having.
She snapped the clip open to feel at what was inside. After all, she still couldn't even see the end of her nose. What Piper could do was feel what was in her hands. Not to mention the tickle on her spiritual awareness. It was a funny thing because what she was sensing from whatever was inside of the purse was different than anything she was used to. Like a sense that had decided to heighten itself until all the familiar things became unfamiliar.
Once the woman slipped the item out of the purse she finally realized what it was. The pendent weighed in her hand and she went very cold as she realized what it was. Kuronue's pendant. Though she couldn't see it with her eyes she could visual the blood red stone in the middle giving the water-like gleam as she ran her thumb over the stone. The metal alloy that made the setting would be matte in comparison to the stone. What was far more interesting, however, was that as she brushed her thumb along it she felt heat. It was like somehow it was being heated from the inside out and she had no idea if that was what was really happening or if it was her imagination.
With a vague idea of what was happening, Piper stood up. Slowly she slipped the necklace over her head and made sure it was secure before closing the trunk back up. Getting out of her room was done by memory. For Piper, it was just like walking through her house in the dark like any other person was able to do. It was just that her house wasn't what most people would have considered such as it was a series of connected cracks and tunnels underneath as well as inside of a plateau.
Once the brunette was out of the dark and had managed to squeeze through the plants, she rested against the rock. Pulling the pendant up to her face she stared at it. The funny thing was that she could feel something staring back at her. It wasn't much, just a shadow of a person, but even that made the young woman smile. Kuronue was truly crazy but this was unbelievable. A piece of his essence and his soul were in the gem. No wonder he would never leave it behind anywhere. It was like separating himself into parts. Yet that very separation would stop a true death from him. Crazy and smart.
Piper had to wonder how it was that she'd never noticed this before. Did he do it after she slipped into her Spirit World imposed coma? Or was it because she'd just, more or less, woken up from a form of death herself that she could sense the fraction of his soul clinging to this pendant? Somehow Piper didn't think she was ever going to find an answer to that…
Biting her bottom lip, Piper slipped the pendant down between the two layers of her top as though that was going to protect the fraction of the soul inside. If it really was his way of clinging onto life then there must have been a way to truly bring him back. She had long ago learned that nothing was truly impossible. In fact, claiming that something was impossible seemed the sure fired way to be proved wrong. So yes, she was going to find a way to bring him back. Even if it took a lot of work it would be worth it.
