I own Willow, don't own Yu Yu Hakusho.
***Genkai's Student*** Chapter Two: Rhymes and Gifts
The four fell out of the portal, landing on their feet in a thick underbrush. All four of them had their senses alert for anything. All they could see was bushes of different colors and trees. The mountain was no where to be seen. "You think she made a smal mistake?" Yusuke asked, looking around.
"Not sure, this could be a test though." Kurama responded. He had his Rose Whip out and ready, same as Hiei with his sword. Kuwabara was holding his twin Spirit Swords. They looked around anxiously, trying to find anything that was a danger to themselves.
"You four are in luck," they whipped around as Willow walked out of the shadows. She looked at them calmly, as they glanced around. "There is nothing here that can harm you, I'm quite surprised at that. Normally there is something dangerous everywhere you look. Anyway, here is your first test: Work together to find the End, There your training will Begin. Find the one with the Key, That's where you will find Me." she vanished in a burst of flames. Her words echoed around them.
"What are we supposed to do?" Kuwabara asked.
"Find her I suppose." Kurama answered doubtfully. Hiei snorted and took off his bandana. His eye opened but closed suddenly. Hiei winced and quickly put it back on.
"Something's blocking my Jagen." he said, looking around.
"Alright, we're stuck in some wilderness and have to find that girl. What was that little rhyme she said?" Yusuke asked.
" 'Work together to find the End, There your training will Begin. Find the one with the Key, That's where you will find Me.' " Kurama quoted.
"The End? Okay that must mean we are in a maze or something." Yusuke said, looking at the sky for awhile.
"We have to work together, that means there are puzzles and obstacles." Kuwabara supplied.
"At the end of the maze there will be someone with a Key. We have to get the Key to get to her." Hiei finished.
"Wonderful, now where does the maze start?" Yusuke asked, looking around. Kurama bent down to the ground, seeing something. He pushed back some leaves to find a line drawn in the ground.
"The ground! There's something here!" he called, brushing away dirt. The three ran over to him, watching as he revealed an arrow going through a large bush. Kurama tried to will the bush to move but it didn't. Hiei, impatient to stop the game, huffed and burnt it to crisps. They made their way to a large stone walkway. Kuwabara stepped onto a symbol in the ground, which triggered a booby trap. An arrow shot forward and narrowly missed Kuwabara's nose.
"Don't move!" Yusuke slowly stepped up to his friend, looking at the ground. Several of the stones had symbols on them, the one Kuwabara stepped on had an arrow. The carefully avoided the stones with symbols on them, slowly making their way across to a platform. Something was waiting for them, pacing the platform.
"Stop where you are." the creature stopped pacing and sat infront of them. It was slightly taller than Hiei, but its form was sleek with muscles. A lion body with the face of a woman. She stared at them with dark almond eyes.
"What is that?" Yusuke asked, staring.
"I am a sphinx, answer my riddle or turn around. If you answer correctly, I'll tell you how to get to the Guardian of the Key. Answer wrongly, you all will perish. What do you wish to do?" the sphinx demanded.
"Give us your riddle, please." Kurama asked politely. The sphinx flexed her paws looking at them with a grim look.
"Who are you and why are you here?" she questioned instead.
"I am Kurama, this is Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei. We are here to find Willow so we can be trained by her. She said she would fight with us if we trained for her until the Dark Tournament has begun." Kurama answered politely.
"Alright, now give us your riddle." Yusuke said, irritated. The sphinx closed her eyes before standing up. She moved away from the path which was two doors.
"You have answered correctly, through the left door, there is a house of silver. Should you pass the house, you will find the Guardian easily. But if your heart is greedy and you stray from the path you will never beable to leave. However, the right door there is a house of gold. Should you pass the house you will be forced to stay there for eternity. You will face hardships before you meet the Guardian. You have been warned. You must find a gift in these houses to present to the Guardian, or he will not let you pass. Any questions?" she explained, waving to the doors.
"Yes, should we take the silver house, how are we to find a gift if we cannot enter the house?" Hiei asked. The sphinx smiled, her eyes glittering.
"I have answered that." she replied.
"Alright, how about this, why offer both houses if one is the easy way and the other the hard?" Yusuke asked. The sphinx chuckled lightly smiling again.
"Impressive for a human," she purred. "These doors are in a way, your life. There are descisions you must make to survive, and not all of them good. Just remember this: The things you love, are the ones worth fighting for." the sphinx turned and laid down to the side, turning into a statue. The four stared at her before looking at each other.
"Which should we go through?" Kuwabara asked.
"The right," Kurama said certainly, "true we will have to fight hard but it is also easier. The sphinx said that we can enter the gold house but not the silver. We have to find a gift from one of the houses to give to the guardian. If we should need to enter the house, we need to go to the gold."
"Alright, we're trusting in you Kurama." Yusuke walked over and opened the right door. A small path came from the door, and they could see a small gold house. They entered the door and walked down the path. They stopped at the gold house, looking at it uncertainly. A raven landed on a branch above them and started chuckling.
"Enter the house, but beware! You can touch the one you choose, for if you don't then danger lies! Find the perfect gift you want, or die the moment your finger touch!" he cackled.
"What?" they looked confused. The raven sweatdropped, large eyes reduced to dots.
"Touch only the item you want to give the Guardian, or you will die! Idiots!" the raven flew off, leaving them. They shook their heads and entered the house.
"Alright, don't touch anything." Yusuke said, looking around. Beautiful things were laying everywhere, gem encrusted, gold, silver, bronze, anything someone would ever want. "Uh, this will sound really lame, but what does the Guardian want?"
"No clue." Kuwabara was looking along some shelves when something caught his eye. "No way, this is just like that movie!" he shouted. They came over to him. He pointed to a small object. It was a necklace but compared to the other things, it was dirt. It was a small golden key, on a silver chain. It was the most mundane thing in the house.
"What are you talking about?" Yusuke asked, irritable.
"In this movie I watched, there was this room filled with gold and silver cups. If someone could find the right cup, they could be immortal. But if they chose the wrong, they would die. It turns out that the true cup was the most ordinary of them. It was wooden with gold in the inside. No one would have given it a glance!" Kuwabara explained quickly.
"He does have a good point." Kurama said thoughtfully. Yusuke sighed and grabbed the necklace.
"Alright, let's get this over with." he grumbled and they exited the house. They walked down the path, and found themselves in a clearing. A man wearing black sat in the middle of it. His white hair contrasted with his clothing. Skin tight shirt, and breeches. His feet were completely bare. He looked up at them, white eyes staring through them.
"I am the Guardian of the Key." he said, still sitting. "Present your gift. If it is correct, then you will pass. If it is wrong, you shall be eaten alive by my wolves." Shadows walked out into the clearing. Black wolves half Hiei's size prowled around them. Their eyes were glowing red and drool fell from their jaws.
"Er, here." Yusuke handed the necklace to the man. He fingered the necklace, running his fingers over it before lifting his head again.
"You have...." he paused, waiting a moment, "chosen correctly." He slipped the key off the necklace and stood. He towered over them all, before going to a rock behind them. He placed his hand on the rock and fit the key into a crevice. The rock lit up and a doorway opened. The same picture of the mountain appeared and they leapt through.
***Genkai's Student*** Chapter Two: Rhymes and Gifts
The four fell out of the portal, landing on their feet in a thick underbrush. All four of them had their senses alert for anything. All they could see was bushes of different colors and trees. The mountain was no where to be seen. "You think she made a smal mistake?" Yusuke asked, looking around.
"Not sure, this could be a test though." Kurama responded. He had his Rose Whip out and ready, same as Hiei with his sword. Kuwabara was holding his twin Spirit Swords. They looked around anxiously, trying to find anything that was a danger to themselves.
"You four are in luck," they whipped around as Willow walked out of the shadows. She looked at them calmly, as they glanced around. "There is nothing here that can harm you, I'm quite surprised at that. Normally there is something dangerous everywhere you look. Anyway, here is your first test: Work together to find the End, There your training will Begin. Find the one with the Key, That's where you will find Me." she vanished in a burst of flames. Her words echoed around them.
"What are we supposed to do?" Kuwabara asked.
"Find her I suppose." Kurama answered doubtfully. Hiei snorted and took off his bandana. His eye opened but closed suddenly. Hiei winced and quickly put it back on.
"Something's blocking my Jagen." he said, looking around.
"Alright, we're stuck in some wilderness and have to find that girl. What was that little rhyme she said?" Yusuke asked.
" 'Work together to find the End, There your training will Begin. Find the one with the Key, That's where you will find Me.' " Kurama quoted.
"The End? Okay that must mean we are in a maze or something." Yusuke said, looking at the sky for awhile.
"We have to work together, that means there are puzzles and obstacles." Kuwabara supplied.
"At the end of the maze there will be someone with a Key. We have to get the Key to get to her." Hiei finished.
"Wonderful, now where does the maze start?" Yusuke asked, looking around. Kurama bent down to the ground, seeing something. He pushed back some leaves to find a line drawn in the ground.
"The ground! There's something here!" he called, brushing away dirt. The three ran over to him, watching as he revealed an arrow going through a large bush. Kurama tried to will the bush to move but it didn't. Hiei, impatient to stop the game, huffed and burnt it to crisps. They made their way to a large stone walkway. Kuwabara stepped onto a symbol in the ground, which triggered a booby trap. An arrow shot forward and narrowly missed Kuwabara's nose.
"Don't move!" Yusuke slowly stepped up to his friend, looking at the ground. Several of the stones had symbols on them, the one Kuwabara stepped on had an arrow. The carefully avoided the stones with symbols on them, slowly making their way across to a platform. Something was waiting for them, pacing the platform.
"Stop where you are." the creature stopped pacing and sat infront of them. It was slightly taller than Hiei, but its form was sleek with muscles. A lion body with the face of a woman. She stared at them with dark almond eyes.
"What is that?" Yusuke asked, staring.
"I am a sphinx, answer my riddle or turn around. If you answer correctly, I'll tell you how to get to the Guardian of the Key. Answer wrongly, you all will perish. What do you wish to do?" the sphinx demanded.
"Give us your riddle, please." Kurama asked politely. The sphinx flexed her paws looking at them with a grim look.
"Who are you and why are you here?" she questioned instead.
"I am Kurama, this is Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei. We are here to find Willow so we can be trained by her. She said she would fight with us if we trained for her until the Dark Tournament has begun." Kurama answered politely.
"Alright, now give us your riddle." Yusuke said, irritated. The sphinx closed her eyes before standing up. She moved away from the path which was two doors.
"You have answered correctly, through the left door, there is a house of silver. Should you pass the house, you will find the Guardian easily. But if your heart is greedy and you stray from the path you will never beable to leave. However, the right door there is a house of gold. Should you pass the house you will be forced to stay there for eternity. You will face hardships before you meet the Guardian. You have been warned. You must find a gift in these houses to present to the Guardian, or he will not let you pass. Any questions?" she explained, waving to the doors.
"Yes, should we take the silver house, how are we to find a gift if we cannot enter the house?" Hiei asked. The sphinx smiled, her eyes glittering.
"I have answered that." she replied.
"Alright, how about this, why offer both houses if one is the easy way and the other the hard?" Yusuke asked. The sphinx chuckled lightly smiling again.
"Impressive for a human," she purred. "These doors are in a way, your life. There are descisions you must make to survive, and not all of them good. Just remember this: The things you love, are the ones worth fighting for." the sphinx turned and laid down to the side, turning into a statue. The four stared at her before looking at each other.
"Which should we go through?" Kuwabara asked.
"The right," Kurama said certainly, "true we will have to fight hard but it is also easier. The sphinx said that we can enter the gold house but not the silver. We have to find a gift from one of the houses to give to the guardian. If we should need to enter the house, we need to go to the gold."
"Alright, we're trusting in you Kurama." Yusuke walked over and opened the right door. A small path came from the door, and they could see a small gold house. They entered the door and walked down the path. They stopped at the gold house, looking at it uncertainly. A raven landed on a branch above them and started chuckling.
"Enter the house, but beware! You can touch the one you choose, for if you don't then danger lies! Find the perfect gift you want, or die the moment your finger touch!" he cackled.
"What?" they looked confused. The raven sweatdropped, large eyes reduced to dots.
"Touch only the item you want to give the Guardian, or you will die! Idiots!" the raven flew off, leaving them. They shook their heads and entered the house.
"Alright, don't touch anything." Yusuke said, looking around. Beautiful things were laying everywhere, gem encrusted, gold, silver, bronze, anything someone would ever want. "Uh, this will sound really lame, but what does the Guardian want?"
"No clue." Kuwabara was looking along some shelves when something caught his eye. "No way, this is just like that movie!" he shouted. They came over to him. He pointed to a small object. It was a necklace but compared to the other things, it was dirt. It was a small golden key, on a silver chain. It was the most mundane thing in the house.
"What are you talking about?" Yusuke asked, irritable.
"In this movie I watched, there was this room filled with gold and silver cups. If someone could find the right cup, they could be immortal. But if they chose the wrong, they would die. It turns out that the true cup was the most ordinary of them. It was wooden with gold in the inside. No one would have given it a glance!" Kuwabara explained quickly.
"He does have a good point." Kurama said thoughtfully. Yusuke sighed and grabbed the necklace.
"Alright, let's get this over with." he grumbled and they exited the house. They walked down the path, and found themselves in a clearing. A man wearing black sat in the middle of it. His white hair contrasted with his clothing. Skin tight shirt, and breeches. His feet were completely bare. He looked up at them, white eyes staring through them.
"I am the Guardian of the Key." he said, still sitting. "Present your gift. If it is correct, then you will pass. If it is wrong, you shall be eaten alive by my wolves." Shadows walked out into the clearing. Black wolves half Hiei's size prowled around them. Their eyes were glowing red and drool fell from their jaws.
"Er, here." Yusuke handed the necklace to the man. He fingered the necklace, running his fingers over it before lifting his head again.
"You have...." he paused, waiting a moment, "chosen correctly." He slipped the key off the necklace and stood. He towered over them all, before going to a rock behind them. He placed his hand on the rock and fit the key into a crevice. The rock lit up and a doorway opened. The same picture of the mountain appeared and they leapt through.