This was the longest chapter I've written. This means the action is starting to get interesting.
She was rocking back and forth, hands over her face, as long, black hair fell around her. The skirt of her dress was spread about, ripped in some places to show bits of flesh of her leg. Hauntingly broken sobs echoed around the abyss, as flashes cut through the black. Blood spilling from mouths of unspeakably cruel demons, people screaming in agony, flames swallowing cities. The sky was a burning crimson color, the color of blood. There was no sun, no moon. No peace. It was hell on Earth. At the helm stood a throne made of bones. Upon it sat the girl they've been trying to save, her body healed as if she had never been torn to pieces. Donned in a black dress, she watched the carnage with a demon by her side. A decayed hand crept onto her face, fingers barely covering her eyes. Her eyes weren't the warm embers they were used to. No, instead they were pitch black and a slight, cruel smile twisted her lips…
The torn spectre broke through the flashes of the vision with a scream, her eyes raining blood…
Kuwabara woke up, panting heavily as his senses flared. The only time he's ever felt this kind of malevolence was when Hikari bleeding darkness from her eyes. And his vision, it wasn't good. Not if everyone was going to die. His cellphone buzzed on the nightstand beside him and he reached for it, answering the call as soon as Yusuke's name flashed on the caller ID. "What is it, Urameshi?"
"We may have an idea about where Kari's parents are. You in?" Yusuke asked, his tone cool. At the mention of Hikari, Kuwabara shivered at the thought of his nightmare. However, he knew that this nightmare was a sign of some sort; he and his friends may have to go to war with the very girl whose soul they were trying to put to rest.
"Kuwabara? Hey, you still there, idiot?" Yusuke's voice was laced with utter impatience, jerking Kuwabara from his thoughts. "Are you in or out?"
"In," he replied. "But I got something to tell you first."
The afternoon sun burned through the skies as Yusuke and the others gathered in front of his apartment. Gia's teeth furrowed into her lip as her violet eyes flickered to Zeri in concern. Zeri had demanded that she come with them to the asylum to find, in spite of her frailness and the complete fact that she had suffered from breakdowns that would have driven any one insane.
Kurama's expression was stoic, but Yusuke knew his friend well enough to know something had shaken him. What unnerved the usually calm demon was beyond Yusuke's comprehension and he knew Kurama would explain soon. Kuwabara, however, was utterly shaken, his skin pale. From what he had explained, Yusuke could understand. If he had a nightmare like that, he would have lost his head a long time ago.
The only one missing was Hiei, not that Yusuke was surprised. The fire koorime, oddly enough, was about as composed as Zeri. Even the mere mention of Hikari had him on tenterhooks and Yusuke was genuinely concerned for Hiei's wellbeing when it came to the fire-eyed girl.
After a tense silence, Gia broke it tersely. "Is anyone going to explain why Kuwabara's shaking like a leaf and why Kurama's been tense for the better part of the time we've spent standing out here?" she asked, crossing her arms. "Feel like explaining?"
Yusuke turned to look at Kuwabara, raising an eyebrow. Kuwabara tensed a bit before exhaling loudly. "I had a nightmare about Kari, I think. She was crying, but then the whole world flashed before my eyes. Everything was completely destroyed," he explained slowly. "There was a throne made of bones and a different Kari sat on it."
"What do you mean different?" whispered Zeri, looking at Kuwabara.
Kuwabara's face paled impossibly more, the color absolutely drained from his cheeks. "Kari was sitting on that throne. And her eyes…her eyes were black."
Kuwabara's words were met with stunned silence. "What are you talking about, Kuwabara?" Gia demanded shortly. "She's dead and her soul is being held somewhere in the dark and she can't even move on to the Reikai without our help!"
"Was she still a spirit in that vision, Kuwabara?" asked Kurama, his voice tensed and cool. Trembling, Kuwabara shook his head. "She…had a body. A real, plain as day body."
"How is that possible?" Zeri's voice trembled, biting her lip and she reached to grab Gia's hand. "How can Hikari have a real body if she…if she's…?"
"Hey, calm down." Gia's tone dropped an octave, her tone soft to not further alarm Zeri. "Won't do you much good to get riled up."
Nodding, Zeri relaxed, but Yusuke could still feel in unease radiating off of her in droves. Kuwabara's explanation caused waves of discomfort and Kurama could sense his next words will further disrupt what little normalcy they've had. However, it had to be said. "I've found something among Hikari's things," the demon fox began.
Yusuke remembered Kurama taking the small box from Hikari's apartment that contained ramblings on little scraps of paper. "There was a video Hikari had recorded. It was dated after she had isolated herself from us. She had mentioned something growing inside of her."
"What do you mean growing?" asked Yusuke.
"She didn't say what it was," Kurama answered swiftly, tensing at the memory of the video he'd watch, the image of Hikari's face full of fear before his mind was bruised by her soul-shredding scream. Then he recalled when he and Gia had gone back to Hikari's apartment and encountered Chika. "The Tsukiyomi family saw the darkest entities that haunted humanity since before the demons began to devour us." That was what Chika had said, an ability that Hikari hadn't developed yet. However…
"Azazel." That was the name on Hikari's scraps of paper, the name she uttered in the video with fear in her eyes, the name belonging to the decayed hand that touched her and caused her to scream alone. Hikari was able to see the entities, yet what other abilities did she hide from them?
"We should go," Gia muttered softly. "We know where her folks are, we should go there while we still have time to find out how to help Kari's soul."
There was a collective nod among the group. They uncovered things about Hikari that raised more questions and less answers. They needed those answers. They needed them, knowing the soul they were desperate to take back from the clutches of the dark.
The asylum gleamed in the sunlight like a jewel on a prized crown, the windows glinting. Such a polished, sturdy building that hid away the rotting sanity within.
Hiei considered this from where he stood, watching the humans bringing out a body. The scent of rotting wildflowers reached him, a familiar scent because he had smelled it before.
The girl's mother has passed…The thought drifted through his mind as they took the body away to wherever it was they took bodies to. The woman was still healthy as any insane person could have been when he saw her last, muttering to herself about Azazel and about the girl. As soon as Hikari flashed through Hiei's mind, his teeth ground together. His gaze averted to the ground, where he saw the group walking toward the asylum.
"What happened?" Zeri's trembling voice echoed into the air. "Was someone…?"
Clicking his tongue, Hiei jumped down from the branch he stood upon. He caught their attention quickly.
"You were here the entire time, Hiei?" asked Kurama, jade eyes narrowed just slightly.
Hiei's own eyes narrowed in response. "I gave you the information for you to come to this place. You all could have been here sooner to see the girl's mother."
"Kari's mom was here?" Surprise etched Yusuke's tone and face, making the former detective look like the fool Hiei had always expected him to be. "What happened to her? Was she the one in that body bag?"
When Hiei didn't respond, Gia reacted with a violent "Damn!" They had come all this way and it was too late…
"She would not have been able to tell you much, anyway," Hiei bit out harshly. "The woman was just as insane as you expected."
Zeri's eyes flashed to Hiei, anger surging through her body. "You knew this and you kept it from us," she growled to the Forbidden Child. "All the while, you've said this has nothing to do with you! That you didn't care about Kari! Why are you even here? Why bother at all?"
"Hey, calm down," Kuwabara began gently, reaching for Zeri in an attempt to calm her but she shrugged him off, her anger as palpable as the clothes she wore. "Why the hell can he get a pass on this?!" she snapped, shaking her head furiously. "Kari's mom was the only lead we could have had to figure out why she's suffering in her afterlife and not once has Hiei ever gave a damn!"
"Zeri…" Yusuke began as Gia gently grabbed at her friend's arm in concern, but Zeri was beyond herself.
"What right does he even have to care now?!"
"Sanzeris." Kurama's voice was stern as he directed his attention to the brunette. Zeri glared into his jade eyes as he spoke. "You know better. Regardless of how Hiei deals with Hikari's plight, he has as much a right as we do to care. Hikari did have feelings for him, do not forget."
"What does that matter when he's broken her heart over and over again!" Zeri shook of Gia's arm violently, her anger getting the best of her. "The way I see it, he's never cared about her and she's wasted her time plaguing him with nightmares of her suffering!" With that, she turned on her heel and ran down the street.
"Zeri! Oh, damn it…" Gia took off after Zeri. The boys remained where they were. Zeri's outburst was a catharsis she needed after all of this and Gia was the only person to calm her after such venting.
Yusuke turned to look toward Hiei. "Did any of what she said register in there?" he asked, crossing his arms.
Hiei averted his gaze, refusing to meet the former detective's eyes. He couldn't admit to it, but Zeri's words did sting. Why did he care? Why does the fact that Zeri's accusations stabbed into him like a sword swiftly thrust into his gut?
"You're…trembling…"
"Do you want to forget me, Hiei?"
"I'm not good at explaining my feelings."
"My soul is better at paper."
"I can't protect you all when you dig into things that ought to stay buried!"
Hikari's words rang in his skull, enough to irritate him further. Hiei hated the girl and yet…
"That is your sin. You long for acceptance, love, and yet you push away the very creature who is all too willing to give it to you." Hiei never felt cold before, but that chill he received when he first heard those words…
"Hey, don't zone out on us!" Kuwabara's obnoxious voice grated Hiei's eardrums, brewing a fresh surge of irritation for the human male.
"Who said anything about zoning out?" he growled, turning away. "The foolish girl was right. What reason do I have to be bothered with this?"
"It is because of how close you and Hikari were," Kurama told him, his tone sharpened by the sternness he had with Zeri. "She means more to you than you care to admit, Hiei, and the guilt within you may signify that you have failed to protect her."
Damn Kurama…Hiei's mind was already in turmoil, he didn't need the fox to try and explain it to him.
"We should go and find the girls, don't you think?" Yusuke asked, jabbing his thumb in the direction Gia and Zeri ran off in. "If we aren't there to protect them, they'll hurt themselves."
"Agreed. Let's not waste time at the moment," Kurama nodded.
"Zeri, why did you say those things to him?" Gia asked as the girls sat on a park bench. The park was empty despite the time of day and it was the farthest Gia had seen Zeri run (hell, move at all) during this whole ordeal.
Zeri covered her face. "I'm just…I'm mad, okay? Hikari loved him so freaking much and he's not even showing that he cared at all, even when she was alive! How can I be okay with him caring now after all his bull of not giving a damn about her!"
"Maybe because we have to for Kari," murmured Gia, wrapping an arm around her friend. "Kari wouldn't want us to be angry with him. Hell, he was like that before we all met the guys, you know."
Exhaling a heavy sigh, Zeri lowered her hands. "I know…"
"Come on, let's find the guys." Gia stood up. "They're probably worried about us."
Nodding, Zeri stood up also. "Okay-"
They both tensed. Being around Yusuke and his friends as long as they had been, their awareness was extremely heightened. There was an abnormal amount of spirit energy saturating the air of the park.
"Where is that energy coming from?" Gia muttered, instinctively reaching for Zeri's hand.
"We should go…" Zeri gasped, her free hand gripping at Gia's wrist.
"Zeri, what's wrong?" Gia slid her eyes over to follow the direction of Zeri's gaze—
-Right as her complexion paled. "It…can't be…"
"Where in the hell could they be? They can't have ran that far," Yusuke grumbled, running his fingers through his hair roughly in irritation. Yet anyone who knew him well could understand he was worried. Not leaving Gia and Zeri alone was partly why they hadn't been attacked by any rogue demons; they had one of the guys with them until they were safely asleep in bed.
"We can track them by their scent," Kurama said, his own jade eyes flickering about to observe in case of any danger. The demon fox had empathy towards humans and his concern for the two surviving human females was enough to spur him to keep them safe. Despite that he and Hikari had not been close they had shared enough conversation for Kurama to do her memory justice in protecting her dearest friends.
"I sure hope they're okay. Gia can handle herself fine, but Zeri's been feeling antsy," muttered Kuwabara before tensing. Waves of spirit energy smacked him right in the face, sending chills and tremors straight up his spine. "Whoa, what was that?"
"You felt it too?" Yusuke asked, suppressing a shudder. That energy was cold, chilling, worse than any demon he'd fought as a spirit detective.
"Did you catch that scent, Kurama?" Hiei asked in a low voice, his crimson eyes narrowing.
"I have. Is it familiar?" asked Kurama, glancing at the Forbidden Child.
Hiei inhaled the scent before it triggered the memory with sharp clarity. The memory of rotting flora…
The girl's scent before…
A high-pitched scream shattered through the air, the voice belonging to Zeri. "Let's move!" Yusuke yelled, his stomach knotting inside as he led the run to the direction of the scream. The scenery blurred from either side and he was aware of his friends following right behind him, as the remaining echo of the scream brought them to the park.
Gia and Zeri were transfixed upon something, gripping onto each other for dear life, Zeri nearly collapsing to the ground. Hysteria radiated off of them in waves, smashing over the four males like rocks.
"Hey!" Kuwabara called out to them. "Guys, what's wrong?!"
Gia's eyes didn't flicker to them as the males moved closer, but she was whispering under her breath. "It can't be…this can't be…"
"What are you talking about?" Kurama knelt down beside Gia, resting a hand against her shoulder. Zeri slowly raised her hand, her thin index finger pointing and the males turned their gazes to the direction she was pointing at—only to freeze in their spots.
Barely hovering above ground, her flesh healed with nary a scar—almost as though she had never been killed in the first place—was the very girl they were striving to bring to the Reikai. A breeze blew through the trees, toying with her long, black hair. She wore only black, the skirts of her dress trailing the grass instead of her feet. Her eyes were closed, the tremendous spirit energy spilling from her. A soft sigh left her lips as her eyes were slowly beginning to open.
"Kari? That you?" Yusuke asked in a shaking voice. He couldn't believe this. Koenma had told Yusuke every gruesome detail he had about Hikari's murder—the wounds she sustained killed her, there was no way she was here before their eyes.
"This is creepy," Kuwabara shuddered, rubbing his arms. As sensitive as he was, the energy Hikari was exuding was enough to send chills throughout his body. "That dream I had…it's coming true…"
"Kurama…" The fox turned to look at Gia, whose eyes were fixed on his and rapidly filling with tears. "She came back to us…so why isn't she saying anything?"
A rapid swell of dread was filling Kurama when he turned his eyes back on Hikari. Her eyes were half-way open now, the energy rising quickly and coiling around them like nooses coming from an executioner.
Hiei fixed his eyes on her, activating his Jagan in order to probe her mind to see if this wasn't just some hallucination. Just as quickly, bile coated his throat all the way up to his tongue.
There was nothing in the vastness of her mind. Not even a memory.
Her eyes completely opened and the girls let out cries of dismay. Hikari's eyes were pitch-black, the traces of the fire in her eyes vanished.
This girl was the one they sought, Hiei knew this implicitly. This was no illusion or cheap trick by a vengeful enemy. This was the girl that was dear friends of his comrades, of the two human girls who were unable to even stand. Her scent was the very same from before she walked out of their lives, before she walked out of his.
Woman, he pushed his thought to her mind, to get some form of reaction from the human before them that was pushing energy from her frail body like a tsunami. She was powerful, so much so that he could taste it. His demonic instincts roared for battle, but he forced himself to rein the urges back.
When he got no reaction, not even a whisper of her voice through his mind, he tried something that he would have never attempted in normal circumstances.
"Hikari." He felt the eyes of his comrades upon him then. It was the first time he ever said her name. This moment was the only time she would ever hear it.
Hikari's eyes fixated on him before a twisted, sadistic smile twisted her lips, as her energy crackled around her hands.
Deep in the bowels of his lair, Azazel 's own lips were curled into a malicious grin, sharpened fangs peeking from beneath his hood. His prized weapon, their precious light, was now the enemy of those she tried so long to protect from him. He would use her to take their souls and spill their blood until there was nothing left of them.