Chapter three (Somewhere in the Makai)
"Why the hell is this happening to me?" Hiei asked himself for the fifth time since he left Kurama and Yusuke. His nerves perked up suddenly alerting him of a person or demon. Hiei jumped into the tree that he was leaning against and waited.
"I can feel that a forbidden child is around here somewhere!" called a high-pitched female voice. Hiei grunted and waited.
"Last time you said that a fat demon chased us for three miles and proved to us that he was not a forbidden child. So why should I believe you now?" asked a deeper voice. Hiei waited some more and hoped that he wouldn't be found.
"THERE!" shouted the female voice. Footsteps came closer to Hiei's hiding spot. 'DAME' Hiei thought as he went to leave. But he spotted a small girl, about the age of five was sitting underneath the tree. The girl looked up and spied the two demons. She screamed slightly. Hiei jumped down and grabbed the young girl and took off at the same time. In the distance he could hear the two demons yelling at him.
"LEAVE ME BE! I may be a Forbidden Child but I have feelings! You can't sell me!" shouted the girl. Hiei stopped and covered the girl's mouth while leaning up against a tree.
"Shut up. You aren't the only Forbidden Child in the Makai. I am here to help," Hiei snapped quietly. The girl nodded and Hiei let her go. "My name is Hiei."
"Mine is Yoratoga," the girl answered. She waited for Hiei to gasp in shock but it never came. She looked up and watched Hiei for a minute. "My name is Yoratoga!"
"I heard the first time," Hiei said to her. She watched him in shock. 'He must not have been in demon contact for awhile.' Yoratoga thought as she watched Hiei look below them. "Silence."
"Why?" Yoratoga asked. Hiei pointed down and she saw the two demons. One happened to have long black hair and wore a green skintight outfit. It revealed the top of her chest and seemed to have a bathing-suit effect. But there was a huge hole over the stomach. The male happened to be wearing only shorts and revealed his rippling muscles and icky yellow skin. The male's deep maroon colored hair added nothing to his already hideous looks.
"I swear that the boy looked like the koorime/fire demon Hiei!" called the female demon.
"I don't think that Hiei would return to save Yoratoga! There has to be a catch. That soooo can't be Hiei THE Forbidden Child, Inu!" said the male.
"I am positive that it is THE Forbidden Child-Hiei! Carl, you must believe me!" called Inu. Carl turned on the female and whispered something in her ear. Inu nodded and the two left. Hiei waited a second then jumped down to the ground. Yoratoga followed and the two soon found themselves stuck in a large net. They pushed against each other in the small space. At this point Inu and Carl returned.
"GOT UM!" Carl cried as he looked at the two Forbidden children. Inu squealed in delight and walked over to the net. She grabbed the bottom and twisted it so it would spin in a circle. She watched happily as Hiei and Yoratoga grabbed on to the ropes and kept their balance.
"We got the two most famous of Forbidden Children! This is purrrrrrrrrrrfect! I so can't wait to sell them!" Inu cried as she jumped around the net. Carl just watched in silence.
"We aren't going to sell them! We shall put them in a fair show. Make people pay to see and touch them! That way we have loads of paychecks instead of one! That would be great!" Carl said surprising Inu.
"WHAT? But I thought we were going to sell them for loads of money?" Inu cried.
"Yes, but why get one check with loads of money when you can get twenty or more a day?" Carl asked. Inu smiled and thought about it.
"I like you new idea better! And once seeing and touching them gets old we can have a hunting thing where you hunt them! It would be great!" Inu cried after. Carl smiled and he cut down the net. Hiei and Yoratoga landed on the ground with a load thump. Inu laughed slightly as Hiei and Yoratoga tried to get comfortable but before that could happen Carl snapped something on their necks. Hiei looked at Yoratoga's neck and saw it was a radio collar. Hiei growled and tugged at his only to get shocked by electric energy rushing through his body. Hiei cried out in pain and glared as Carl and Inu laughed. Carl grabbed Yoratoga and pulled her up along with Hiei. Then began to walk away. Yoratoga followed while Hiei stayed put.
"Come on Hiei, we have to follow or..." But before Yoratoga could finish warning Hiei, his body was hit by another zap of electricity. Hiei growled and caught up. Soon the four were standing in front of a large dome.
"What the hell is this?" Hiei asked. Carl answered with an electric shock and walked forward. Hiei growled and shut up. The four walked past the doors and entered a poorly light hallway. The few candles that lined the wall gave out little light and set an eerie tone. The black shadows ahead seemed to beckon Hiei toward his doom. Hiei ignored it and walked forward but couldn't help but think about his friends/family. One by one the group of four walked down the looming hallway that seemed to never end. Candle after candle seemed to light the way to a forbidding death. The air began to smell like old and rotting flesh. Blood coated the wall and ground making the black shadows seem, brighter. Moist ground soon turned up under the group's feet and created a feeling of fresh blood and flesh coating the ground. Hiei looked down to see the wet moss littered the ground and covered old bones of past victims to whatever loomed ahead. A chill ran down Hiei's spine and he passed a familiar looking pile of bones. The maroon color of dried blood began to change to a bright shade, meaning fresh blood. The hallway stretched on longer and put on the feeling of walking forever. The floor soon began to angle down and soon turned to steep stairs.
"What is going to happen to us?" Yoratoga asked Hiei is a whisper. Hiei looked down to the frightened girl.
"I don't know Yoratoga. I don't know," Hiei answered as a light brought new color to the hallway.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
(Back in the Human world)
"Where is Hiei?" Yusuke asked for the tenth time that hour. Kurama turned and glared at Yusuke.
"I DON'T KNOW! MAYBE UP YOUR..." Kurama began but stopped. He slumped onto a bench and began to cry slightly. Yusuke stared at the emotional teen.
"What is wrong with you?" Yusuke asked. Kurama looked up to show his tear stained face.
"Hiei has always been there to help me or protect me and when it comes to me... I just can never do it! Hiei must be in trouble and I can do nothing about it! Yusuke! It feels so... I don't know. I miss him. I want to hold him, to be sure he is safe! Hiei is like a boyfriend to me! You and Kuwabara, you are like my family. And now I have lost him," Kurama said as he began to cry again. Yusuke stood there and watched. Then he noticed how he felt the same way most of the time.
"Kurama, I know how you feel. Together we four have been through a lot. The Dark Tournament, school, Maze Castle, girl trouble, family troubles... Just about anything you can name. Including death. We are a family. We are the Spirit family! We meet through Koenma and will die together for Koenma. We do almost anything together. I can't remember a time that I really spent without you," Yusuke said to the red haired teen. Kurama looked up and watched as Yusuke began to get teary eyed. Kurama laughed bringing Yusuke out of his thoughts. "Wha?"
"Just, I think we should be working on trying to find Hiei, and not sulking over the loss of him. Lets get Kuwabara to help," Kurama said as he stood up. Yusuke smiled and shook his head side to side. The two took off in search of the 'Great Kazuma Kuwabara' and found him at a candy store. From there the two smart teens explained what was going on. After that the three took off to look around for Hiei.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
(Again in the Makai. This time at Touya's house.)
"So this is your home?" Jin asked as he looked around the barely standing walls. Touya nodded and also looked around but him seemed to be in search of something.
"This is what happened after a huge fire scorched the village clean of the weak and sick. We searched for years after and still found bodies of our young, old, and sick. My family was among them. I was left orphaned on the streets of our new village. I had watched as my mother and father's bodies were pulled from this pile. My sister and younger brother were never found. At the time I had forgotten about a small storage space that we kept under the house. I remembered it only a few hours ago and decided to check there. Here is the panel!" Touya explained to Jin as he found a small rock panel lying under all the wreckage of his home. Touya pulled the panel opened and expected to be meted by a pair of sweet voices from his older siblings, but instead was greeted by the smell of decaying forms.
"Touya," Jin whispered. Touya opened his icy blue eyes to find two pairs of bones laying across each other. They seemed to be trying to keep each other warm. Touya looked at the horrid image and felt his entire memory of those two happy children float through his mind. Then it changed to that night.
Flashback
"Mommy! Daddy! Help!" cried Lili, Touya's older sister. Lili rushed back from the flames that ripped through the burning curtains and reached for the young ice demon. Toten, Touya's older brother, rushed over to the screaming girl. Touya followed at his heals.
"Touya! Get Mom and Dad!" Toten cried and he pulled Lili over to the hidden storage panel. Touya nodded and did as his older brother ordered. Touya rushed through the small hut and found his parents on the other side of a large flame line.
"Mommy, Daddy!" Touya cried in his small voice. Touya's mother looked up and had eyes full of fear and sadness. Touya winched at his mother's face and turned to his father. Next to the distraught woman lied a proud man. Touya watched and hoped for movement. But the body laid still. Not even an breath escaped form the parted mouth. Touya watched in horror as the flames began to engulf the dead father and turn closer to his mother. "Mommy!"
"Get out of here!" his mother answered in a desperate attempt to make her child run away and live. Touya stepped closer to the flames and felt the searing heat pour from the dancing colors. Touya yipped in pain and jumped back startled. "Get out of here my son!" his mother cried again as she began to become engulfed. Touya watched and listened as his mother was swallowed by the pretty flames of the fire.
"Mommy!" Touya cried to the burnt figure laying on the ground. At this point Touya heard a crash from another room. He entered curiously only to be caught by the loving neighbor and pulled out of the collapsing room. "MOMMY! DADDY!"
"They are dead!" snapped the woman. Touya turned back to her and then to the falling house.
"Lili and Toten! Inside!" Touya cried unable to say where they were hiding.
"They are also dead my friend. I am sorry," called the woman as they raced out of the village filled with dancing lights of intense heat and destruction.
End Flashback
"Touya?" Jin asked. Touya looked over to see concern in Jin's eyes. Touya smiled and felt water in his face. He reached up and wiped away tears.
"I'm ok Jin. No need to worry," Touya said as he dropped the stone slab back down to hid the bodies of his older family. Jin smiled slightly and the two left the crumbling village. But without knowing it, Touya left his past memories behind with each step.
"Want to go to my home now?" Jin asked the ice demon. Touya looked up and saw the trademark smile from Jin. 'He wants to cheer me up. He is like a brother to me.' Touya thought to himself as he nodded yes. "I'll lead the way."
"Ok, Jin. Mostly seeing as the fact that I don't know where you live," Touya said with a smile. Jin laughed and looked at Touya.
"Ok, love..." Jin said. Just as suddenly as he said it, he stopped. Touya looked up and stared at Jin. The two said nothing and waited for the other to speak. Silence spread out between the two.
"Did you call me 'love?'" Touya finally asked as he watched the red haired demon. Jin shook his head yes and did nothing else. Touya smiled. "Fine, love."
Jin looked up and watched Touya. Touya looked away and seemed to lead them farther away from his old village. Jin then looked ahead and noticed they were going the wrong way. 'But which way do we have to go?' Jin asked himself as he stopped and looked around for familiar signs.
"What is wrong Jin?"
"I can't remember which way it is to my home! I don't recognize any of this land!" Touya looked around and found he didn't either. 'What the? I knew a minute ago!' Touya thought frantically.
"No idea where you are boys?" asked a voice behind them. The two turned to see the chaser was standing behind them. Jin shrieked and backed away behind Touya, who began to act like a protective older brother.
"Who the hell are you and what do you want?" Touya growled at the demon. It laughed and leaned toward Touya.
"I am God! I have the power to kill you or to make you live. I have chosen to kill you long ago. Now is your time!" the demon said as he began to take a huge breath. Touya gasped and grabbed Jin's hand. The two turned and took off trying to get away again. "You can't escape to the human world this time! I have destroyed it forever!"
'No, he couldn't have done that!' Touya thought as he raced through the woods. Jin was racing behind him. 'This seems familiar.' Touya thought as he turned and saw the demon was chasing after them again. Jin looked back and screamed for the demon had caught up and was close to arms reach away. Touya felt the wind picking up but it didn't help and soon it died back down.
"Touya," Jin cried as he began to slow and tire out. Touya looked back and saw Jin was centimeters away from being caught and killed.
"JIN SPEED UP!" Touya hollered but Jin didn't hear. Luckily something sliver swooped down and picked Jin up before being touched. Touya smiled and then felt something grab him also. Touya cried out in surprise only to have leaves be shoved into him mouth. Touya looked up and saw that a sliver fox carried him along. "Kafsmw?"
"No, I am not Youko Kurama. But I am his cousin," the silver fox told Touya. Touya simply nodded and looked forward to see Jin had fallen asleep in the arms of his sliver fox. "Lost his energy. That demon back there can steel a person's soul and spirit energy just by breathing near his victims. I had watched as he drained my sister."
"Wabs?" Touya asked. The fox looked over and then took the leaves out of his mouth. "WHAT?"
"Not so loud! The demon will hear! Anyway, he killed my sister then took off to find another victim. I want to save as many demons as I can!" the fox said as he slowed to a stop. Touya looked around and saw a village full of every demon kind possible. "Welcome to our sanctuary."
Demons roamed freely around and greeted each other as though race and species didn't matter. There were even some young half breeds among the groups. Touya looked around and noticed the main creature around happened to be a sliver fox. The foxes cared for the injured, weak, young, and/or elderly. One came and took Jin, lying him down on a bed.
"What do you do here?" Touya asked. The sliver fox looked over to Touya.
"What does it look like to you?" it asked. Touya looked around.
"It looks like you take care of everyone. But why are there so many sliver foxes?"
"Well, we sliver foxes live in packs sometimes. This big group is two packs put together. We are working together to help the innocent from that demon. So far no one has found it. Unless they are a sliver fox or if they had been here once before. Most stay, for they believe this is the safest place in all of the three worlds. Each day we get knew demons coming in. Most saved by foxes and others lead in by some who had once been here. We try to keep this place as safe as possible. No fights ever break out because, no matter what status you are. This demon can get you and kill you," the fox told Touya. Touya nodded yes and began to wander around.
"TOUYA!" someone called. Touya turned and found a good buddy of his there. They had been friends in the village of where he was born.
"Kartu?" Touya asked the demon. He nodded and the two embraced.
"Dude, I haven't seem you in so long! Man, where have you been?" Kartu asked. Touya shrugged.
"I've been around. So how about you?" Touya asked his old friend. The guy frowned and looked down.
"Noth'n really. Hey, look. I have to go on a search. You want to join?" Kartu asked. Touya shook his head no and looked to the sleeping Jin. "Oh. I see."
"He is like the girlfriend, or boyfriend, that I never had," Touya explained.
"Yeah, well I got to go. Bye!" called Kartu as he turned and left before Touya could mutter bye. Touya frowned and began to look around some more when another familiar voice entered his head.
"Touya!" Touya turned and saw Kurama, Yusuke and Kuwabara watching him. Touya smiled and walked over.
"Hey! What is up?" Touya asked.
"Hiei has gone missing."
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Yeah! Chapter is done! In the next one, there will be the first escape try.
KoorimeHiei ^________________^