Email: swythangel@hotmail.com
Title: The Reddest Rose
Type: Series 8/?
Rating: PG (just to be safe)
Disclaimer: All characters of YuYu Hakusho are owned by their writer and company. They aren't mine (sigh!) and even if I wished on a hundred falling stars, Kurama will never be mine. This fiction was made to entertain and hopefully does not infringe on their copyright.
Okie dokie, here's the next part…I need to get this het fic out of my system… ^^
The Reddest Rose
Keiko,
Luck is with us! They accepted. The idiots accepted! The war is over…
Damn, I'm so relieved. Now all we have to do is win the tournament…Oh, that's right, I haven't told you about it, have I Keiko?
Remember my last letter? The plan I was hatching? Well, this is it. Instead of the war, we made Kitsune agree to a tournament instead. You know, like what I did with Yomi. Only this time we had to bargain with Koenma's head. *snicker* He's pretty pissed off about it too but we all have to make sacrifices and the kitsune leader wants Koenma's head pretty bad…at least now we don't have to lose thousands…
Its been arranged. Koenma, Hiei, Mukuro, Enki, Kokou, Shura, Hitori, Kuwabara and I will meet the Nine Tails of Kitsune in the battle arena. Most wins will get the Makai.
The way I see it, the odds are for us. I mean, with the exception of Hitori and Koenma, everyone has had experience in the ring. Kokou reminds me of Kamikaze pilots sometimes and Hiei has really gotten very powerful since I last saw him fight. Enki's time-tested and I doubt if there's anything Shura can't handle, the brat is a regular dynamo.
Hitori might be a first-timer but she is my sister and with Raizen's powers, she'll probably even show me a thing or two. Kuwabara, well, he's better than he was last time but he's sort of a last ditch effort.
*snicker* Koenma insisted on being there since it is his head on the line after all. Well, his pacifier is powerful, I just hope he can keep up with the physical part too. And of course, there's me. With all the training I put in, I'm sure I can cope. (Well, Keiko, seems all my training is finally being put to good use, ne?)
Anyway, since it should be safer here in the Makai, I arranged it with Koenma so you and Yukina will be able to join us here for the tournament. I rather think you'd want to watch, ne, Keiko?
Yusuke
***
"Roster's up!" Botan told them. She had a better vantage point than the others did since she was hovering several feet off the ground.
"Alright!" Yusuke jumped up from where he had been doing warm-up stretches and rushed to the front of the stadium, barreling over numerous other participants and spectators who were unlucky enough to be in his path.
The Makai's coliseum was packed to the brim with spectators eager to see the fate of the Makai. Yusuke and the gang had arrived just in time to be able to get in the stadium and were now waiting for the roster of who would be fighting whom and Yusuke had been fidgeting ever since.
"The baka." Kuwabara muttered and trudged unto the path cleared by Yusuke's enthusiasm to follow Yusuke. He, too, wanted to see who he would be up against.
"Hee hee! That's Yusuke for you." Botan told them cheerily. "He'll never grow up."
"At least Yusuke-san has kindly cleared a path for us." Yukina was, as always trying to point out some good in the situation.
Keiko sighed and shook her head at Yusuke, following in the others' wake. Behind her, she heard Hitori and Koenma talking. "Is he here yet, Koenma-sama?"
"No. None of them are here yet, Hitori. I doubt if they'll be here ahead of time. They'll probably arrive tomorrow since our competition is officially slated for the third day…"
Oh, Hitori! Keiko sighed again. The kitsune was still worried about Kurama and Keiko couldn't really blame her.
CRASH!
A commotion started at the entrance of the stadium and Keiko craned her head to see.
"Botan!" She heard Koenma say sharply, "Please investigate what that's about."
"On my way…"
"WHERE'S THE DAMN ROSTER?"
"Botan, never mind." Koenma had recognized the voice that boomed out from the entrance. Kitsune and the Nine Tails had arrived. He squuezed Hitori's hand as he felt her tense up.
"Make way!" The kitsune forced their way inside the stadium and shoved the unassuming spectators aside, clearing away a path for their Lord and his nine vanguards.
He is so predictable. Koenma thought to himself. The arrogant, insane bastard…
The kitsune group was nearing them now and he could see individual faces. That long haired blonde must be Ririka, the short platinum haired Shuki, the black-haired twins Ake and Akemi, purple haired Kuronue, green haired Seiya and Katsura, grey-haired Kawakami and….Kurama, no, Youko….
It had been a month since he had last seen Kurama. Shit! What a difference. The former kitsune thief had reverted back to kitsune form, the tough, muscled and handsome silver-haired kitsune they called Youko looked dangerous and cruel, unlike the affable Kurama.
Their eyes met. And nothing…there was no recognition in his eyes.
"Kurama." Damn! Koenma remembered Hitori. I should have prevented her from doing this. He thought to himself as he saw Hitori come up to Youko only to be pushed aside violently. He helped her up instead.
"Bad move, Hitori." He whispered. "That isn't really Kurama. He's Youko now and I don't think he'll remember just by looking at you. Kitsune will almost certainly have brainwashed him." He tugged at Hitori's arm, noting the worried look on Hitori's face. "Come on, let's join Yusuke and the others."
***
"Damnable shit!" Yusuke said in frustration. "This isn't a line-up that I would recommend."
He had been staring at the roster of the competition.
Kuwabara vs. Kuronue. Significantly stronger than Kuwabara. I just hope the baka has trained enough to survive this one.
Koenma vs. Seiya. Oi! This guy is one of the toughest fighters, I wonder if Koenma can handle him.
Kokou vs. Ake. Isn't this one of the kamikaze twins? Well, Kokou should be able to handle him, I hope.
Mukuro vs. Katsura. No problem at all. Mukuro will probably wipe the floor with em.
Enki vs. Ririka. Way over his head. I don't think Enki's gonna make it in this one.
Shura vs. Akemi. The other kamikaze twin…well, the violent dynamo should be able to match him.
Everything was going fine until…
Hitori vs.Youko. Shit, shit, shit, fucking shit! Not this.
"Koenma!" He shouted in the crowd. "Get up here."
"What is it? You sound a trifle displeased, Yusuke." Koenma rushed to his side tugging Hitori along. He hadn't once loosened his hold on her, fearing that she'd try to make a go at Youko again.
"Um…Hitori, would you mind calling Botan and Keiko over there?" Yusuke ignored Koenma for a moment to ask Hitori.
"I don't think that's a good idea, Yusuke." Koenma warned Yusuke with his eyes.
"Trust me, it is. Its important." Yusuke ignored the warning and insisted. He gently pushed Hitori towards the direction Botan and the others went to.
Hitori shrugged and went. When Hitori was out of earshot, Koenma flashed Yusuke a dirty look. "Baka! Do you realize that Kitsune and the Nine Tails have arrived? Kurama is under this same roof, what if Hitori tries to go over to him." He glared at Yusuke.
"Keiko's watching her, Koenma, so don't worry." Yusuke shrugged. "I'm more worried about this." He pointed at the roster posted on the wall.
"What's the problem?" Koenma shrugged Yusuke aside to peer at the roster. "Sonuvabitch!"
"My sentiments exactly." Yusuke punctuated Koenma's oath with a wry reply.
" I don't think Hitori is any condition to fight with Youko at all, she's liable to lose. What are we going to do?"
"That's why I asked you over in the first place." Yusuke told Koenma.
Koenma sighed. "Damn. I'll have to think on this. In the meantime, what do you think of the matches?"
"I've only reached three fourths of the roster before I saw Hitori's name but judging from the line-up in the first half, things are pretty shaky."
"Nani? What about the last few battles? Koenma frowned. "You'd better make sure that we win this Yusuke or there will be hell to pay."
"Hmmnnn…let's see." Yusuke stared at the roster. "Hiei versus Shuki. No prob for Hiei. Yusuke versus. Kawakami. This one's Hitori's otosan, right? Hmmnnn…he's a bit powerful. It could go both ways I guess. Oh, Koenma, you have the second fight. You fight with this Seiya. I have absolutely no clue as to your fighting prowess, Koenma. So I want to ask you, can you defeat him?"
"If I have to." The Prince of the Netherworld was serious this time.
"Good. Because this roster stinks. If I didn't know better I'd say someone manipulated the matches. They deliberately put stronger opponents in our weak spots, and then there's Hitori's and Kurama's match." Yusuke said, disgusted.
"I'll look into the matter." Koenma told Yusuke. "For now, we'll have to think of some way to avert the disaster when Hitori and Kurama enter the ring. I'll try to think of a way to get out of this, maybe pull some strings. Meanwhile, try to distract Hitori so she won't look at the line-up."
"Me? Why me?"
"Well, it couldn't be me, can it? I'm the one who has to get us out of this mess so you'll have to do something useful."
"Shit. This is going to be one tough assignment." Yusuke said, shaking his head. Even now, he could see Hitori drag Keiko and the others towards him. "Shit."
I think I have the better end of the bargain. It would be easier to stop a rampaging bull than to convince Hitori out of something she didn't want to do. For the first time in days since he had consented to be the decoy for Yusuke's little plot, Koenma felt lighter. If I have to offer my head, the least Yusuke can do is this. He snickered.
***
"Well, I've released the official line-up for the big fight. Everything is as you wanted it to be. Particularly that Youko guy"
"Thank you for the favor, Kaika. I appreciate it." Kitsune's faithful adviser smiled. He had left Kitsune's side early to call in a few favors. I can't let my plan fall to pieces. I have worked too hard for it.
Kaika blushed. "Its nothing, Lord Yomi. Consider it a gift from an old friend."
***
That afternoon…
I'm friggin' tired. I really am. This day seems endless.
"Yusuke, let's go see the line-up, I want to know who I'm fighting." Hitori said, impatient.
Here we go again. "But the match isn't finished yet."
"It isn't much of a match. Come on!" Hitori tugged Yusuke who was pretending to be absorbed by the battle on the ring.
He had to admit it was pretty pathetic. "This is actually pretty fascinating." He lied through his teeth. Fascinatingly idiotic, that is. He amended to himself.
Hitori didn't reply which made Yusuke turn to face her only to find a look of utter disbelief on Hitori's face. "Alright, alright. It isn't much of a match." He sighed. "But I still don't want to go see the roster again. There are probably a lot of people looking at it. I hate a crush."
"I'll clear the way then." Hitori said.
"Without angering a lot of people? You know we have to keep a low profile."
"I'll ask them nicely to get out of the way."
"Er, what if they don't?"
"Then I'll smile and shove them aside."
"That isn't too polite, Hitori."
"Who cares about polite?" Hitori gritted her teeth. "I want to see that roster! Is it me or are you reluctant to take me there?"
Damn, found out! "Who says? Well, if I'd known that you desperately wanted to see it, I probably would have taken you earlier." Yusuke added a shrug to the nonchalant words and stood up. Lying was becoming a bad habit. "Don't just stand there Hitori. Its rude to stare you know." Yusuke told the incredulous-looking Hitori. "And do close your mouth, flies might go in."
Hitori screeched.
***
Koenma walked back to the hotel with a worried look on his face. He had a niggling feeling that something was wrong with all this but he didn't know what. When he had confronted the organizers of the fight about the roster, they had been offended. Nothing, they said, could get in to tamper with the list. Only the highest officials of the Makai had been there when the fights were scheduled. It was chance, they said. So his whole day's effort yielded little result.
Chance my foot! The battle assignments were conspicuously favoring the Kitsune team and Koenma knew someone must have done it. But who?
Deep in thought, he didn't realize that he had come into the main dome where Yusuke was trying to distract Hitori.
"Oi, Koenma! There you are!" Yusuke shouted with obvious relief. He had run out of ways to distract Hitori and had hoped Koenma's search had yielded results.
"Oh, Yusuke!" Koenma looked up. "Hitori. How was your day? Did anything exciting?"
"Its ok, we went and saw some matches. Some are pretty exciting but many are quite pathetic. I'm just happy they aren't the ones who're gonna fight Kitsune or they'd be totaled for sure." Yusuke babbled on but his eyes held a question for Koenma. A question Koenma understood. He shook his head.
Yusuke visibly deflated. Koenma turned to Hitori. "So where were you two going?" He smiled.
Yusuke slapped himself on the face. Oi, of all the questions…
"We were just going to look at the roster, Koenma." Hitori told Koenma. "I wanted to look at it earlier but Yusuke here was trying to prevent me from doing so. Until he ran out of excuses that is." Oi, Hitori knew all the time? "It almost seems as if he didn't want me to see something."
Yusuke contrived to look innocent as Hitori turned to face him. Koenma sweatdropped and raised his hands in a placating gesture. "I'm sure it's just your imagination, Hitori. You look tired. I have an idea! Why don't you guys join me in the hotel for some refreshments."
Hitori narrowed her eyes. "Now you're doing it. Just what is it about the roster that's so terrible." She pinned Yusuke with a glare. "Come on, spit it out, oniisan!"
Yusuke could feel sweat dripping on his cheek. "I…I don't know what you're talking about, Hitori." He elbowed Koenma and whispered. "Hey, think of something, you're the one with the bright ideas…"
"Me? Why me? You were supposed to be the one distracting her."
"Koenma…" Hitori's glare transferred to the Prince of the Reikai.
Koenma sighed at the threatening note in Hitori's voice. "Oh alright, Hitori. You want to know the truth. I'll tell you."
There is a God! Yusuke let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding. Koenma is really a fast thinking fellow.
"You have the sixth match and your opponent is Kurama." Koenma said flatly. At which point all the blood drained from Hitori's face and she fainted.
I take it all back. Koenma is a dimbulb! "That's your bright idea?" Yusuke burst out, lifting the kitsune from the floor and motioning Koenma towards the hotel, ignoring the curious crowd they had began to collect. "Even I'm not that stupid."
"Oh, bite me, Yusuke. I didn't have time to think." Koenma shot back. "Besides, we might as well tell her because she's gonna find out anyway. Nothing short of a catastrophic cataclysm will stop it now."
His Royal Smallness was right. Hitori was bound to find out. "What happened anyway? Weren't you able to pull on some strings?"
Koenma snorted. "Nope. They were all hung up on making this a 'fair' fight, although I don't see the fairness right now."
"Damn."
"My sentiments exactly."
"So what are we going to tell Hitori?"
"Leave that to me, I think I know a way."
Yusuke's eyebrows rose up. "After the performance you just put on, I don't think I can leave it to you, Koenma. You might botch it."
"I won't. Call it temporary insanity on my part. I'll plan what I'm gonna say before I say it. I can handle Hitori."
"Famous last words." Yusuke's tone was dry but Koenma knew that he had won.
***
Kurama is my opponent. Hitori opened her eyes to find herself in her bed at the hotel they were staying in. I can't do this.
Outside, she could hear voices discussing something. Yusuke and the others no doubt. Her thoughts turned back to Kurama. How can I fight you?
An image of a smiling Kurama hovered before her eyes and was superimposed by the kitsune she had seen earlier today. I still cannot believe he passed me by, passed all of us by without recognition. Surely, Kurama still remembers us.
Then she remembered Koenma's words…"Bad move, Hitori. That isn't really Kurama. He's Youko now and I don't think he'll remember just by looking at you. Kitsune will almost certainly have brainwashed him."
Brainwashed? That's ridiculous. I'm sure Kurama remembers us. He must. I must find out.
Without a thought, Hitori climbed out of her bed, slid the window open and jumped out, twisting in mid-air to land silently on the ground below.
***
"Alright, so that takes care of Hiei, Shura, Mukuro and Enki. What about Kuwabara?"
Koenma, Yusuke and the other fighters were discussing tactics for the matches the day after tomorrow. They had assembled everyone in the living room connected to Hitori's bedroom since the time Hitori had fainted to brief each and everyone of them about opponent weaknesses and the like.
"Yeah, what about this Kuronue fellow…" Kuwabara said. "Isn't this the one Hitori's father wanted to give her to." Kuwabara asked. "I'm going to have fun in this match." He grinned.
"Not so fast, you baka." Yusuke told him sharply. "I've seen him in the war. Kuronue might look unassuming but he's really very strong, Kuwabara."
"Yusuke's right." Koenma nodded. "Also, he's ages old, he has experience you don't have."
"Here's some tea everyone." Keiko announced while Yukina put down the pot and cups in their midst. A gesture that everyone ignored.
Keiko sighed. They were really taking this seriously. "Come on Yukina," she whispered, "Short of dropping an A-bomb, I doubt if we could do anything to distract them from what they're doing. Let's check on Hitori instead."
Yukina nodded and both girls went from the room, still unnoticed.
"Ok, I get the point, I'll stay on my guard the whole time."
"The most you can do, ningen, is to tie him." This from Mukuro. "With your present spiritual energy level, you cannot hope to win."
Ouch! That was straightforward. Kuwabara thought. "I…"
He was interrupted as Keiko and Yukina burst into the room and into their midst. "Hitori is gone."
"Nani?"
"What?"
"How?"
"We don't know, she was there a minute ago. Now she's gone."
"Shit!" Koenma slammed his fist down on the table. "There's only one place she could have gone."
Yusuke nodded, face tight. "Question is, where are the Nine Tails billeted…"
"Hotel on the other side of the main dome, 14th floor." Hiei's tone was clipped and matter-of-fact.
Well, I'll be…Hiei actually went to the trouble of finding out. "Thanks, Jaganashi. Come on, Kuwabara. You girls stay here." Yusuke stood up to go.
"I'm coming with you." Hiei was up as well.
"Course. I wouldn't have it any other way." Yusuke grinned. After all, they had been a team once, it was nice to be fighting alongside Hiei again. Now if only Kurama was here too.
"I'll stay here and finish the briefing." Koenma called after their retreating backs.
"Well, Yukina, it wasn't exactly an A-bomb but we managed to get their attention after all." Keiko said dryly.
***
As Yusuke and the others went from the hotel, Hitori also sped out of the main dome in a blur. She knew Yusuke and the others have probably found out that she had gone already and would be hot on her heels.
This must be the place. She had asked the karuto in the main dome for the whereabouts of her father's retinue and had been rewarded by the hotel's name and the floor. 14th floor. She looked up, gauged the probable location of the kitsune rooms and went around to the back of the building where she proceeded to climb up the wall.
***
"Why can't we take the elevator?" Kuwabara whined. He was tired from climbing the stairs. 14 floors, geez. Why did the kitsunes pick the top floor!
"Baka. Go up the elevator and risk being seen. You know what would happen if someone saw us." Yusuke told the lagging Kuwabara. Hiei was several flights above him, climbing the stairs effortlessly. "Hurry up!"
Kuwabara sighed a long-suffering sigh. "Coming!" If he even knew that the Nine Tails of Kitsune weren't inside the hotel and that they could have taken the elevators, Kuwabara would probably have screamed.
***
"Alright, the 14th floor!" Kuwabara couldn't remember how happy he was to leave the stairs behind. He was still panting and wheezing from the long climb. Why can't they just make emergency stairs into escalators!
Yusuke and Hiei had been waiting for him for some quite time now and was busy discussing which room was Youko's. They barely spared him a cursory glance.
"So, Hiei, you're sure? "
Hiei glared. "Hn. Its room 420. I personally confirmed that."
"Alright then. We'd better get going. Hey Kuwabara, stop wool-gathering and hurry up will you?"
"Baka." Kuwabara said under his breath.
***
From the outside of the building, Hitori was inching across the small walkway on the 14th floor, peeking into the rooms as she passed by to see if Kurama was in one of them. Luck was with her because she knew that he would be the only one in the 14th floor. She had already seen Kawakami 'Tosan and the other seven in the main dome watching the matches. She had even seen Kitsune. She shivered. Hitori still couldn't get over the fact that the kitsune leader had taken over Fox-fire's body. Niisan…She shook her head. Now was not the time for sadness, she had other things to do besides hang outside a building, thinking depressing thoughts.
Where is he? Hitori was impatient. She had to hurry because she had seen 3 figures in the distance heading towards the hotel and knew that it was Yusuke and the others. That had been some floors down and quite some time ago. She had to find him before they found her.
"If you wanted to see the Nine Tails so much, you could have taken the elevator and knocked on their rooms, ningen. Unfortunately, they aren't in right now, they're all at the main dome." A cold but amused voice drifted down from above her.
She looked up, startled, to see silver hair glinting in the moonlight. Hitori had found Youko.
TBC ^_~ Next part out on Saturday I promise.