Disclaimer: If I owned Yu Yu Hakusho, I would insist Cartoon net work stop
playing the first few episodes and move on!
Author's Note to the Reviewers: First off I would like to thank everyone who has supported me and defended me from La La La. Then I would like to thank everyone in general who reviewed. It really means a lot to me! Thank you everyone!
SECRETS IN MY BLOOD, CHAPTER 6
Keiko sluggishly opened her eyes. She paused for a moment to adjust her eyes to the bright light that greeted her and then propped her body up with her elbows. In front of her was the dark form of Hiei. Would there ever be a time he was not awake before her?
Hiei was leaning against the trunk of the tree, watching her. Instead of his usual gaze of cold indifference, he was looking at her with what might have passed for awe, maybe even confusion. Of course it was very hard to see it, a few days earlier and Keiko wouldn't have been able to notice it. It was there however, no matter how slight.
"How did you do it?" Asked Hiei, his monotone laced with traces urgency.
"What? No 'Good morning Keiko'?" She replied.
Normally Keiko would know better then to taunt Hiei. It was like playing with fire, and as the saying goes, when you play with fire, you're apt to get burned. Unfortunately, Keiko had just woken up and, for some reason, felt terrible. Her head hurt and her body was sore.
Hiei grabbed her by the front of her shirt and pulled her face up to his. They were scarcely one inch apart. Keiko suddenly felt much more awake.
"I have no time for this. Tell me how you turned changed into your demon form." Hissed Hiei in a deadly whisper.
The events of last night fast-forwarded through her head. The entire evening was crystal clear, not one detail had been forgotten. Only, it had a dream-like quality to it. She remembered everything, just as it had happened, but she remembered it like she had been watching it on television. It was as if something had taken over her body and she had done nothing more, but sit back and observe.
Something had taken over her body. A rush of exhilarant energy, blood- thirsty ferocity had filled her being. Her demonic side had been released. It had been set free, with all its wild and vicious glory intact from the years of containment that had been endured.
"Keiko, tell me how you transformed when you aren't even a full demon yet. You're at least still one eighth human." Demanded Hiei, his voice destroying her concentration.
"That's the first time he's said my name." Thought Keiko, but then decided it would be wise to answer Hiei before he became too impatient.
"I saw something." Answered Keiko, trying to remember what exactly had triggered the release of her demonic self.
"What did you see?" Questioned Hiei, he still had an iron grip on Keiko's shirt.
"I saw . . . the demon coming after you . . . and then . . . it happened." Said Keiko after several seconds of silence.
Hiei slowly let go of Keiko's shirt, allowing her to sink back into the position she had been in.
"That was senseless thing to do." Said Hiei.
"What?! I probably saved your life and all you can say is that I was being stupid?!" Yelled Keiko.
The fire demon's face remained indifferent to her ranting.
"Hn. It was an incredibly foolish thing for you to do. The transformation should have been the death of you. The fact that you killed the demon goes against nature itself. You should be dead." Stated Hiei.
"You actually care?" Asked Keiko in a disbelieving voice.
"There is only one reason I would care if you died. I would have wasted my time and that is all." Responded Hiei.
His words stung, but Keiko was more annoyed then upset with him. This mildly surprised her, but in a rather pleasant way. She wasn't crying. It made her feel stronger. She relished this new feeling of self empowerment.
"Alright, you don't care, but how could transforming kill me? I thought half demons could do it without any harm coming to them." Asked Keiko.
"Most, not all half demons can change into their demon form. You're half cobra demon. Cobras are . . ." Said Hiei.
"Cold blooded. So that's why my blood wouldn't merge." Finished Keiko.
"Hn. A cobra is cold blooded. A cobra demon's blood is poisonous rather then cold." Added Hiei.
"But, then, how did I kill that demon? I wasn't even cut once that day." Interrogated Keiko.
Keiko was either too caught up in the current position, or totally ignorant of what had just taken place. She had just admitted to killing a living, breathing thing. Even if it had been a demon, she had just ended something's existence.
When she had been ten years old, her family's restaurant had been infested with mice. Her foster father, who she had believed to be her real father at the time, had put out mouse traps. Not the humane kind either.
She wasted an entire weekend finding the mice and releasing them into a field. Two days of searching the darkest corners, the dustiest stairs, the smallest back room and all for a bunch of rodents. That was how much death had bothered her.
But now, Keiko had killed something that had laughed, cried, yelled and was capable of intelligent thoughts. Yet, she was devoid of guilt. She didn't experience any of the regret, any of the remorse, any of the depression that should have burdened her soul.
No, instead she felt strong. A sense of pride and confidence that she never had before now existed in her being. However, she took no notice of the psychological changes in her, the physical one were so much more intriguing at the present.
"Hn. When cobra demons change into their most powerful state, their nails and teeth carry a deadly poison." Answered Hiei.
"Amazing. So even the smallest of scratches could kill an opponent?" Asked Keiko.
"Within a given amount of time, it could, unless the victim was given the cure." Said Hiei.
"There's a cure?" Inquired Keiko.
"Hn."
Keiko perceived this as a sarcastic yes.
"What's the cure?!"
"No one knows because cobra demons rarely ever save anyone they poison. Even when they do, the victims never tell, unless they want to die." Replied Hiei.
Keiko sighed. She knew so very little about her own body, her own life. She knew what kind of demon she was, but, beyond that . . . practically nothing. She was in the dark. Surrounded by mysteries.
Two weeks ago, or, had it been two years ago? Had she not been laughing with her friends at lunch? About what, she couldn't remember, but that was beside the point. Just two weeks ago she had been a normal teenager. Her biggest problems had been keeping Yusuke under control and getting good grades.
Now she was about seven eighths cobra demon. She was learning to fight, to kill. She was in the Makai. She was in a place that no humans, with a few exceptions, knew existed. Even if humans did find out about this place, they would never believe in it. Hell, she was a mythological creature! That's how screwed up her life was.
A soft growling noise from her own body interrupted her reverie. She blushed, as she was sure that Hiei could hear it.
And now, she was hungry.
Hiei got up and looked at her. Taking the hint, Keiko did the same. She knew where they were going. Hiei was headed for the stream. They were going fishing.
Keiko desperately wished they didn't have to eat fish. Excluding some roots and berries, it was all they ate because any land herbivore that was still living had a reason for it. Keiko felt like she would do anything for a salty, steaming bowl of ramen right then.
Even so, despite its dangers and primitiveness, Keiko had grown fond of the Makai. The air, when it didn't carry the scent of blood, was much cleaner. The stars, sky and sun were ten times more beautiful. Also, she enjoyed the tranquility.
Cities of human domain were deafening. Shrill sirens, noisy pedestrians, blaring car horns. Even with her human ears all that noise had bothered her. When she went back, it would certainly take a while to adjust.
When she went back . . .
"Of course I'm going back!" Thought Keiko.
She just couldn't leave all her friends and family behind! It would be insane. What would she do with her life here, in the Makai, anyway? Live in the forest for the remainder of her days, picking a fight with the occasional demon? Not this cobra demoness!
"So, I have no choice but to go back to the human region." Thought Keiko, her mind made up.
However, this too brought up a number of problems. Yes that was where all her friends and family were, but was that necessarily a good thing? When she has the ability to go back to the place of her birth, she would be returning as a demon, a monster. How would they react if they ever found out? She was becoming a completely different species from everyone she was close too.
"Except Hiei-What?! I don't consider him close! Well, he has helped me a few times; I guess that does qualify him for the 'friend' category." Begrudgingly thought Keiko.
She stared at the fire demon she had deemed worthy of her 'friend' category. So he wasn't the friendliest person in the three worlds and seven hells. He was loyal, you could depend on him. Wasn't that the foundation of friendship?
Finally they had reached the stream. Hiei was in waist deep catching fish with his bare hands. He didn't bother rolling up his pants; after all, he was a fire demon. Water had a phobia of being near his body.
Keiko gathered wood to cook the fish with. Having collected enough wood, she went to the bank of the stream to fetch some roots. As soon as she reached the water, Keiko saw something that made her gasp.
Staring back at Keiko from the surface of the water was her reflection. Only, it didn't look anything like her.
Keiko hadn't actually seen herself in her demon form, but during the process of transforming, she had a vague idea of what she had looked like. Nevertheless, the image in the water was neither her demon form, nor her human one.
Her hair was a dark, dark brown with only a miniscule amount of purple tint to it. Her eyes were their former chocolate brown on the outside, but mostly they were now an acidic green. In her parted mouth she could see two small, but very pointy fangs where there had been none before. These were the only differences this 'form' had with Keiko's human appearance.
"Hn."
At the sound of Hiei's trademark saying, Keiko practically jumped a foot in the air. After she had gotten over the initial shock of Hiei standing right beside her and her not knowing it, she glared at him. People with lightning fast speed should be force to wear collars with bells on them.
"What are you doing?" Hiei asked.
His question was not out of curiosity, it was more out of wanting to know the level of her sanity. She was, after all, staring at her own reflection as if she had never seen it before. Keiko could tell from his tone of voice he thought she had lost it. She chose it ignore it this time and instead pointed to her reflection.
"Why do I look like this? I mean, this isn't how I looked in my demon form or my human form!" Said Keiko.
"It's your new humanoid form, almost." Said Hiei, as it was all very simple and obvious.
Keiko paused for several seconds. She was trying to understand what Hiei had just told her. Yet, she could not. His answer made no sense whatsoever. Hiei would have rolled his eyes had such an action not been beneath him. This girl could not be as intelligent as everyone claimed her to be if she could not grasp this one, simple concept.
"More advanced demon types have two forms. Their demon form and their humanoid form. The demon form is more powerful-"
"But I already have a human form!" Interrupted Keiko.
"Hn. A 'human' form. This is different. If you had been born a full blooded cobra demon, this is how your humanoid from would have looked. However, you're still part human. Your humanoid form will continue to change until everything that makes you human leaves your body." Said Hiei before getting up to gut the fish and start the fire.
Keiko continued looking at her face. She touched one of her cheeks. Her identity was being thrown out the window, and at this tender age. She was becoming, no, she was a different person. Keiko rubbed her temples and then went back to searching for roots.
If her life was going to hell in a hand basket, she might as well have a half decent meal along the way. Both Keiko and Hiei ate in silence. Keiko because she considered it rude to talk with her mouth full. Hiei because he preferred silence to mindless chatter.
"Hey, Hiei?"
"Damn." Thought the fire demon
"How come no one ever found out I was half demon before? I thought you could sense energy or something like that." Questioned Keiko, as she tried to delicately tare a piece of meat off her fish.
Hiei had to think about that question for a while. In all honesty, it had been plaguing his mind for a while now too.
"You never learned to fight, use spirit energy or control your own. You lived in a completely human environment." Answered Hiei.
"So, it's like birds that grow up thinking their humans because that's what raised them." Said Keiko.
"Hn. Might be, although, there were some hints you were a demon . . ." Muttered Hiei.
"Hints? What hints?" Asked Keiko, her attention having been captured.
"It makes sense now that I think of it. I knew the ferry girl couldn't have lasted as long as she did. The only reason that she didn't die and Keiko become a low class demon was because she was already part demon. That's why the shadow sword didn't work." Thought Hiei, ignoring Keiko's presence.
"Tell me!" Shouted Keiko.
Hiei growled at her, but then told the story to her, knowing that if he didn't, the pestering would never cease. All females seemed to be like that.
Keiko looked stunned when he had finished his tale. Almost as if she had never known it had taken place.
"But, then you, and Yusuke . . . how could, Kurama, what did . . . how?" Rambled Keiko.
Hiei watched with some fascination as Keiko's face went from ghostly pale to almost beet red. Her face had changed colors faster then, what had Kurama called it? A traffic light.
"You, you IDIOT!" Screamed Keiko before hitting Hiei upside the head with a branch that had not yet caught fire, "I'm going to KILL you!"
Hiei rubbed his head and growled. How dare Keiko hit him! She took no notice of him though, she was too busy pacing and ranting. In fact, she was so busy ranting, she didn't notice herself transforming into her demonic form. Unfortunately, neither did Hiei.
Hiei was not at all pleased that Keiko wasn't even acknowledging his existence. He grabbed her arm and whirled her around to face him. Keiko hadn't been expecting this and let her instinct take over. She let her attacker turn her body, and then slashed the side of his face.
Time stopped.
Her 'attacker' had been Hiei. They both stood there, shocked. Then Keiko saw it.
The scar on his face was acid green.
Author's Note to the Reviewers: First off I would like to thank everyone who has supported me and defended me from La La La. Then I would like to thank everyone in general who reviewed. It really means a lot to me! Thank you everyone!
SECRETS IN MY BLOOD, CHAPTER 6
Keiko sluggishly opened her eyes. She paused for a moment to adjust her eyes to the bright light that greeted her and then propped her body up with her elbows. In front of her was the dark form of Hiei. Would there ever be a time he was not awake before her?
Hiei was leaning against the trunk of the tree, watching her. Instead of his usual gaze of cold indifference, he was looking at her with what might have passed for awe, maybe even confusion. Of course it was very hard to see it, a few days earlier and Keiko wouldn't have been able to notice it. It was there however, no matter how slight.
"How did you do it?" Asked Hiei, his monotone laced with traces urgency.
"What? No 'Good morning Keiko'?" She replied.
Normally Keiko would know better then to taunt Hiei. It was like playing with fire, and as the saying goes, when you play with fire, you're apt to get burned. Unfortunately, Keiko had just woken up and, for some reason, felt terrible. Her head hurt and her body was sore.
Hiei grabbed her by the front of her shirt and pulled her face up to his. They were scarcely one inch apart. Keiko suddenly felt much more awake.
"I have no time for this. Tell me how you turned changed into your demon form." Hissed Hiei in a deadly whisper.
The events of last night fast-forwarded through her head. The entire evening was crystal clear, not one detail had been forgotten. Only, it had a dream-like quality to it. She remembered everything, just as it had happened, but she remembered it like she had been watching it on television. It was as if something had taken over her body and she had done nothing more, but sit back and observe.
Something had taken over her body. A rush of exhilarant energy, blood- thirsty ferocity had filled her being. Her demonic side had been released. It had been set free, with all its wild and vicious glory intact from the years of containment that had been endured.
"Keiko, tell me how you transformed when you aren't even a full demon yet. You're at least still one eighth human." Demanded Hiei, his voice destroying her concentration.
"That's the first time he's said my name." Thought Keiko, but then decided it would be wise to answer Hiei before he became too impatient.
"I saw something." Answered Keiko, trying to remember what exactly had triggered the release of her demonic self.
"What did you see?" Questioned Hiei, he still had an iron grip on Keiko's shirt.
"I saw . . . the demon coming after you . . . and then . . . it happened." Said Keiko after several seconds of silence.
Hiei slowly let go of Keiko's shirt, allowing her to sink back into the position she had been in.
"That was senseless thing to do." Said Hiei.
"What?! I probably saved your life and all you can say is that I was being stupid?!" Yelled Keiko.
The fire demon's face remained indifferent to her ranting.
"Hn. It was an incredibly foolish thing for you to do. The transformation should have been the death of you. The fact that you killed the demon goes against nature itself. You should be dead." Stated Hiei.
"You actually care?" Asked Keiko in a disbelieving voice.
"There is only one reason I would care if you died. I would have wasted my time and that is all." Responded Hiei.
His words stung, but Keiko was more annoyed then upset with him. This mildly surprised her, but in a rather pleasant way. She wasn't crying. It made her feel stronger. She relished this new feeling of self empowerment.
"Alright, you don't care, but how could transforming kill me? I thought half demons could do it without any harm coming to them." Asked Keiko.
"Most, not all half demons can change into their demon form. You're half cobra demon. Cobras are . . ." Said Hiei.
"Cold blooded. So that's why my blood wouldn't merge." Finished Keiko.
"Hn. A cobra is cold blooded. A cobra demon's blood is poisonous rather then cold." Added Hiei.
"But, then, how did I kill that demon? I wasn't even cut once that day." Interrogated Keiko.
Keiko was either too caught up in the current position, or totally ignorant of what had just taken place. She had just admitted to killing a living, breathing thing. Even if it had been a demon, she had just ended something's existence.
When she had been ten years old, her family's restaurant had been infested with mice. Her foster father, who she had believed to be her real father at the time, had put out mouse traps. Not the humane kind either.
She wasted an entire weekend finding the mice and releasing them into a field. Two days of searching the darkest corners, the dustiest stairs, the smallest back room and all for a bunch of rodents. That was how much death had bothered her.
But now, Keiko had killed something that had laughed, cried, yelled and was capable of intelligent thoughts. Yet, she was devoid of guilt. She didn't experience any of the regret, any of the remorse, any of the depression that should have burdened her soul.
No, instead she felt strong. A sense of pride and confidence that she never had before now existed in her being. However, she took no notice of the psychological changes in her, the physical one were so much more intriguing at the present.
"Hn. When cobra demons change into their most powerful state, their nails and teeth carry a deadly poison." Answered Hiei.
"Amazing. So even the smallest of scratches could kill an opponent?" Asked Keiko.
"Within a given amount of time, it could, unless the victim was given the cure." Said Hiei.
"There's a cure?" Inquired Keiko.
"Hn."
Keiko perceived this as a sarcastic yes.
"What's the cure?!"
"No one knows because cobra demons rarely ever save anyone they poison. Even when they do, the victims never tell, unless they want to die." Replied Hiei.
Keiko sighed. She knew so very little about her own body, her own life. She knew what kind of demon she was, but, beyond that . . . practically nothing. She was in the dark. Surrounded by mysteries.
Two weeks ago, or, had it been two years ago? Had she not been laughing with her friends at lunch? About what, she couldn't remember, but that was beside the point. Just two weeks ago she had been a normal teenager. Her biggest problems had been keeping Yusuke under control and getting good grades.
Now she was about seven eighths cobra demon. She was learning to fight, to kill. She was in the Makai. She was in a place that no humans, with a few exceptions, knew existed. Even if humans did find out about this place, they would never believe in it. Hell, she was a mythological creature! That's how screwed up her life was.
A soft growling noise from her own body interrupted her reverie. She blushed, as she was sure that Hiei could hear it.
And now, she was hungry.
Hiei got up and looked at her. Taking the hint, Keiko did the same. She knew where they were going. Hiei was headed for the stream. They were going fishing.
Keiko desperately wished they didn't have to eat fish. Excluding some roots and berries, it was all they ate because any land herbivore that was still living had a reason for it. Keiko felt like she would do anything for a salty, steaming bowl of ramen right then.
Even so, despite its dangers and primitiveness, Keiko had grown fond of the Makai. The air, when it didn't carry the scent of blood, was much cleaner. The stars, sky and sun were ten times more beautiful. Also, she enjoyed the tranquility.
Cities of human domain were deafening. Shrill sirens, noisy pedestrians, blaring car horns. Even with her human ears all that noise had bothered her. When she went back, it would certainly take a while to adjust.
When she went back . . .
"Of course I'm going back!" Thought Keiko.
She just couldn't leave all her friends and family behind! It would be insane. What would she do with her life here, in the Makai, anyway? Live in the forest for the remainder of her days, picking a fight with the occasional demon? Not this cobra demoness!
"So, I have no choice but to go back to the human region." Thought Keiko, her mind made up.
However, this too brought up a number of problems. Yes that was where all her friends and family were, but was that necessarily a good thing? When she has the ability to go back to the place of her birth, she would be returning as a demon, a monster. How would they react if they ever found out? She was becoming a completely different species from everyone she was close too.
"Except Hiei-What?! I don't consider him close! Well, he has helped me a few times; I guess that does qualify him for the 'friend' category." Begrudgingly thought Keiko.
She stared at the fire demon she had deemed worthy of her 'friend' category. So he wasn't the friendliest person in the three worlds and seven hells. He was loyal, you could depend on him. Wasn't that the foundation of friendship?
Finally they had reached the stream. Hiei was in waist deep catching fish with his bare hands. He didn't bother rolling up his pants; after all, he was a fire demon. Water had a phobia of being near his body.
Keiko gathered wood to cook the fish with. Having collected enough wood, she went to the bank of the stream to fetch some roots. As soon as she reached the water, Keiko saw something that made her gasp.
Staring back at Keiko from the surface of the water was her reflection. Only, it didn't look anything like her.
Keiko hadn't actually seen herself in her demon form, but during the process of transforming, she had a vague idea of what she had looked like. Nevertheless, the image in the water was neither her demon form, nor her human one.
Her hair was a dark, dark brown with only a miniscule amount of purple tint to it. Her eyes were their former chocolate brown on the outside, but mostly they were now an acidic green. In her parted mouth she could see two small, but very pointy fangs where there had been none before. These were the only differences this 'form' had with Keiko's human appearance.
"Hn."
At the sound of Hiei's trademark saying, Keiko practically jumped a foot in the air. After she had gotten over the initial shock of Hiei standing right beside her and her not knowing it, she glared at him. People with lightning fast speed should be force to wear collars with bells on them.
"What are you doing?" Hiei asked.
His question was not out of curiosity, it was more out of wanting to know the level of her sanity. She was, after all, staring at her own reflection as if she had never seen it before. Keiko could tell from his tone of voice he thought she had lost it. She chose it ignore it this time and instead pointed to her reflection.
"Why do I look like this? I mean, this isn't how I looked in my demon form or my human form!" Said Keiko.
"It's your new humanoid form, almost." Said Hiei, as it was all very simple and obvious.
Keiko paused for several seconds. She was trying to understand what Hiei had just told her. Yet, she could not. His answer made no sense whatsoever. Hiei would have rolled his eyes had such an action not been beneath him. This girl could not be as intelligent as everyone claimed her to be if she could not grasp this one, simple concept.
"More advanced demon types have two forms. Their demon form and their humanoid form. The demon form is more powerful-"
"But I already have a human form!" Interrupted Keiko.
"Hn. A 'human' form. This is different. If you had been born a full blooded cobra demon, this is how your humanoid from would have looked. However, you're still part human. Your humanoid form will continue to change until everything that makes you human leaves your body." Said Hiei before getting up to gut the fish and start the fire.
Keiko continued looking at her face. She touched one of her cheeks. Her identity was being thrown out the window, and at this tender age. She was becoming, no, she was a different person. Keiko rubbed her temples and then went back to searching for roots.
If her life was going to hell in a hand basket, she might as well have a half decent meal along the way. Both Keiko and Hiei ate in silence. Keiko because she considered it rude to talk with her mouth full. Hiei because he preferred silence to mindless chatter.
"Hey, Hiei?"
"Damn." Thought the fire demon
"How come no one ever found out I was half demon before? I thought you could sense energy or something like that." Questioned Keiko, as she tried to delicately tare a piece of meat off her fish.
Hiei had to think about that question for a while. In all honesty, it had been plaguing his mind for a while now too.
"You never learned to fight, use spirit energy or control your own. You lived in a completely human environment." Answered Hiei.
"So, it's like birds that grow up thinking their humans because that's what raised them." Said Keiko.
"Hn. Might be, although, there were some hints you were a demon . . ." Muttered Hiei.
"Hints? What hints?" Asked Keiko, her attention having been captured.
"It makes sense now that I think of it. I knew the ferry girl couldn't have lasted as long as she did. The only reason that she didn't die and Keiko become a low class demon was because she was already part demon. That's why the shadow sword didn't work." Thought Hiei, ignoring Keiko's presence.
"Tell me!" Shouted Keiko.
Hiei growled at her, but then told the story to her, knowing that if he didn't, the pestering would never cease. All females seemed to be like that.
Keiko looked stunned when he had finished his tale. Almost as if she had never known it had taken place.
"But, then you, and Yusuke . . . how could, Kurama, what did . . . how?" Rambled Keiko.
Hiei watched with some fascination as Keiko's face went from ghostly pale to almost beet red. Her face had changed colors faster then, what had Kurama called it? A traffic light.
"You, you IDIOT!" Screamed Keiko before hitting Hiei upside the head with a branch that had not yet caught fire, "I'm going to KILL you!"
Hiei rubbed his head and growled. How dare Keiko hit him! She took no notice of him though, she was too busy pacing and ranting. In fact, she was so busy ranting, she didn't notice herself transforming into her demonic form. Unfortunately, neither did Hiei.
Hiei was not at all pleased that Keiko wasn't even acknowledging his existence. He grabbed her arm and whirled her around to face him. Keiko hadn't been expecting this and let her instinct take over. She let her attacker turn her body, and then slashed the side of his face.
Time stopped.
Her 'attacker' had been Hiei. They both stood there, shocked. Then Keiko saw it.
The scar on his face was acid green.