*in a hospital somewhere in town*
Dream: HI EVERYBODY!
Zero: lower the volume please... *in a full body cast and on a hospital bed*
Dream: oops sorry...*whispering* hi everybody! Welcome to the seventh chapter of Zero's Curse! As you can see we're in a hospital right now because Zero thought he'd be able to ditch the dog if he ran into the middle of a highway...
Zero: No I didn't! You pushed me!
Dream: *halo* I would never do such a thing!
Zero: Why am I in a ningen hospital anyway? It's not going to take me that long to heal. All I did was break every bone in my body...
Dream: well the ambulance came and brought you here. I couldn't do anything about it...
Zero: Now what's this I hear about you wanting to change your character's name?
Dream: *shrugs* I just thought it might be easier if I started using my real name for my character. It really doesn't matter to me cuz by now I've gotten used to typing Autumn. I'll probably just leave it. I don't think I have the energy to go back through all three stories and replace the name...
Zero: *sleeping*
Dream: *twitches* Zero...*whacks him in the head with a shoe*
Zero: ITAI!!!! (Ouch)
Dream: NO SLEEPING DURING STORY TIME!
Zero: *grumbles* well you didn't have to hit me...
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Gleam ~Yami ni Hikaru~ (Gleam ~Darkness in the light~):
The group had been doing their best to ignore Yusuke's drunk rambling. He was bouncing around as they walked. They had made it to the lake where the Kiri Mori rabbit tribe were. It was already evening.
"Can we stop now?" Kuwabara whined.
"No." Kumo responded as they continued to walk along the Ookami River. Kuwabara pouted.
Autumn sighed, "At this pace we'll never make it in time to help Zero!"
"So? Who cares?" Arielle asked.
"I care! I promised Zero that I would help him and I don't want to break that promise!"
"What are they talking about?" Kumo pointed her thumb at Autumn and Arielle.
"Nothing important." Zero sighed.
Kurama regarded Zero curiously. He seems to be acting more and more like he did when he was a child... he thought.
After a few hours it was too dark to continue so they made camp for the night. Kumo took out the food she had gotten from the tavern and started cooking some of it.
"What is that?" Kuwabara wrinkled his nose in disgust.
"Rabbit."
"RABBIT!?! EWW! GROSS!!!" Autumn squeaked and stuck out her tongue.
"What's her problem?" Yusuke, who is finally sober, asked.
"I'm guessing that she finds that disturbing since she has a pet rabbit..." Kurama said.
Kumo took out some more food, "We've also got what appears to be noodles and bread." She tossed some bread at Autumn, "Eat up, vegetarian."
"How did you know that she was a vegetarian?" Kurama asked.
"Harmony never had a stomach for eating dead animals after what happened to her family. It was only a matter of time before her human form became a vegetarian as well."
"And here I thought I was being original..." Autumn pouted. She looked at the cooking food, "Are you really going to eat the rabbit?"
Zero translated the question. Kumo nodded, "Yes, it's quite good."
"Then I'm going to go eat over there. AWAY from the rabbit..." Autumn pointed with her paw, took her bread and walked away quickly.
Kurama watched her walk away and then sighed, "I hope we can reverse the curse on her and the others soon. I really miss being able to understand what she says..."
"Why? Most of what she says is stupid and annoying." Zero crossed his arms.
Kurama glared at him, "She only says stupid things when other people are around. When it's just me and her we have interesting conversations..."
Yusuke rubbed his head, "My head hurts...Maybe getting drunk wasn't such a good idea..."
"I can make it hurt more." Arielle smirked. Zero translated what she said.
Yusuke moved away from Arielle. "NO! That's ok...I'd rather you didn't..." He sighed, "Why did we have to get stuck with these crazy violent people...?"
Hiei hit Yusuke on the head with his sheathed katana. Kurama threw a rock at him. Kumo chuckled slightly as she continued cooking the food for everybody. After eating everyone settled down to go to sleep. Kumo offered to keep watch all night while the others got some sleep. Autumn curled up next to Kurama and they both fell asleep. Hiei was sleeping in a tree and Arielle was sleeping in his hair. The others were in random places sleeping.
~*~Autumn's dream: (of course I just HAD to stick a few dreams in here somewhere...)
The sun was shining brightly on the small marketplace in Makai. Demons were rushing by to get good bargains on the items they needed. There were little demons running around having fun and playing games. Every now and then they would make someone trip and then they would be scolded by their parents. A little kitsune was being scolded by her mother for playing in a puddle of mud. The mother led her daughter away to get cleaned up. Nearby there was a small tavern/café that had outdoor tables set up. Sitting at one of those tables were three kitsune. They watched the family in silence.
One, a male kitsune with light blue ears and a light blue tail, turned to look at his cousin. "Harmony, when are you planning on giving up being a Reikai Tantei and settling down to have a family?"
His cousin, a female kitsune with black ears and a black tail, nearly choked on the tea she had been drinking. "WHAT???"
"Well, it's just that so many of the kitsune we've seen have had kits and they were less than half your age..." The first said.
"Are you calling me old?" Phantom narrowed her eyes.
Phantom's brother laughed, "Well you've been alive for over 700 years!"
Phantom narrowed her eyes at her brother, "Dari, you and Viern are older than me."
"Oh...right...I knew that..." Dariken laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head.
"Come now, Harmony. Surely you've given some thought to having a family?" Viern pressed on.
"No. Having a family is not one of my priorities." Phantom looked at the little orange bird that was sitting on the table eating bread.
"I think it would be fun to be an uncle...I would get to play games with my nieces and/or nephews..." Dariken smiled.
"That would give you a good excuse to act as immature as you do." Phantom smirked at her brother.
Viern decided to step in before they started arguing. "So, you mean to tell me that you've never met anyone that you considered to be a worthy mate?"
Phantom's eyes grew wide in surprise. Her thoughts turned briefly to the silver haired bandit she had met about 75 years before. She touched the ruby red rose necklace that was around her neck. "Well...I wouldn't say that I've never met someone..."
"So, does this person have a name?" Viern smiled at the sudden redness that appeared on his cousin's cheeks.
Phantom glanced over at her brother before answering. "Yes...but if I told you Dari would kill me..."
"Oh? Would I? Now you have to tell us." Dariken frowned slightly.
Phantom sighed and braced herself for the explosion that would follow her words. "Err...Youko Kurama?"
"WHAT?!?!?" Dariken yelled loudly causing everyone nearby to stop and stare at the group. Viern motioned that it was alright and everyone turned back to what they were doing.
Dariken and Phantom were now glaring at each other. Viern took it upon himself to keep the peace, "Now, now, Dariken. I'm sure Harmony has a good explanation for this..."
"She had better." Dariken never stopped glaring at his sister.
Phantom took a sip of tea, "He's not really a bad person Dari...He's just misunderstood..."
"He's a thief, Harmony! A no good lousy thief!" Dariken hissed.
Phantom's ears went back in anger, "You don't even know him!"
"And I suppose that you do?"
"I know him better than you!"
Viern held up his hands, "Cousins, please. Let's not ruin our reunion..."
"Listen, Harmony, I'm just worried about you...I don't want you to get hurt..." Dariken sighed, "Besides, isn't he your enemy or something?"
Phantom shook her head, "No. Not unless I'm sent on a mission against him."
"What if you do get sent on a mission against him?" Viern asked.
Phantom blinked, "I've never thought of that before...well, I guess I would have to decide what was more important to me, my job or my love..."
"What would the answer be?" Viern watched as his cousin stared down into her tea.
"I'm not sure..."
"Did you ever tell your friend, Lioness about this?" Dariken asked.
"I met Youko before the Tournament against Crone. So I'm pretty sure that I might've mentioned something about him to her before she disappeared...Why do you ask?" (Read Lioness by Winter -iel -o burzum for more info)
Dariken shrugged, "I asked because you always seem to tell her things that you don't tell me...In fact you hardly ever tell me anything..."
Suddenly Koenma appeared, "There you are, Phantom! There's a robbery taking place in the Temple of Storms and you have to stop it!"
"What's being stolen?" Phantom gave Koenma a 'do it yourself' glare as she quickly hid the necklace under her shirt.
"Some of the ancient treasures that were put there as offerings. You have to go and stop the thieves! Now go!"
"Fine. Come on, bird." With that she ran off quickly in the direction of the temple with Jouka flying above her.
~*~Kurama's dream: (he's dreaming at the same time that Autumn is)
A tall male kitsune with silver hair and silver ears was sitting on a cliff with his back against a tree. He was looking out at the ocean beyond. The sun was just rising. He sighed and looked down at the rose in his hands. It reminded him of her. Everything reminded him of her. 75 years...it's been 75 years since we last saw each other and I still miss her...but...why?
"Hey, Kurama! You ready for the heist this afternoon?" A voice said from behind him.
Youko turned to look as his friend and partner, Kuronue, walked over and sat down next to him. "Are you kidding? I'm always ready!"
Kuronue chuckled and looked at the rose in Kurama's hands. "So, what are you doing out here?"
"Just thinking..." Youko turned back to the sunset. Kuronue did the same and there was a moment of silence between them.
"Say Kurama? Have you ever thought about what it would be like to have a family?" Kuronue asked after a moment.
"What???" Kurama turned to look at his friend in shock.
Kuronue laughed slightly, "I don't know it just seems so lonely sometimes, being a thief and all. Sometimes I just wish that I had someone that needed me...Someone to love me..."
"Kuronue..." Kurama's ears went back in sadness.
"Guess this must sound pretty stupid to you. Hearing me talk about love like that..." Kuronue shook his head and laughed some more.
Kurama looked down at the rose again, "Actually I know just how you feel."
"You do?" Kuronue blinked.
Kurama nodded, "I met someone once...She was so nice to me. Even after she found out who I was. I felt like I could tell her everything about myself and I pretty much did. She listened the whole time and understood how I felt about a lot of things...I miss her..."
"How long has it been since then?" Kuronue asked.
"75 years..."
Kuronue whistled dramatically, "That's a long time to be thinking about someone..."
Kurama nodded. There was silence between them once more. "So what was her name?" Kuronue asked.
"Phantom Harmony..." Kurama winced as he saw his friend's startled expression.
"What??? And she didn't turn you in???"
"No...She said that since I had done nothing against her she didn't feel the need to turn me in. She didn't care about the reward."
"Interesting..." Kuronue said.
"Yes, she was an interesting person...Not at all like I imagined..." Kurama smiled at the memory.
"What would you do if you ever had to face her as part of a heist?"
"...I don't know..." Kurama frowned slightly.
After a while of friendly chat about a different subject Kurama and Kuronue got up to leave. They went to their destination quickly. They reached the Temple of Storms by midday and set about the task of finding the place where the jewels were kept.
"This place is like a maze!" Kuronue complained as they kept wandering around. They turned another corner and found themselves in a room filled with jewels and things made of gold and silver.
"Wow..." Kurama said as he and Kuronue started taking jewels and filling their pouches with them.
They froze when they heard a voice say from behind them, "And just what do you think you're doing?"
~*~Both Autumn and Kurama's dream: (As in this is happening in both their dreams)
Kurama turned in surprise at the voice. It sounded so familiar to him. Kuronue pulled out his scythe and readied for a fight. Kurama's eyes widened in shock as he saw Phantom. Phantom had a similar reaction.
"It's you!" They both said as they pointed at each other.
Kuronue looked back and forth between them in confusion. "Am I missing something, here?"
"Kuronue, this is Phantom Harmony. Phantom this is my partner, Kuronue." Kurama said as Phantom walked closer.
Kuronue nodded in understanding, "Hello."
"Hi." Phantom smiled slightly and looked up at both of them. She noticed the jewels, "So, you two are behind the robbery that Pacifier Breath sent me to stop..."
"Pacifier Breath?" Kuronue blinked.
"Koenma." Phantom said the name with disgust.
Kurama laughed, "You haven't changed much since the last time we met."
"Is that all you're taking? There's plenty more." Phantom pointed at the pouch that Kurama held.
He blinked, "What? You're not going to stop us?"
"No. Tenka said this place had to be cleaned out, so I might as well let you two have the jewels." Phantom shrugged and sat down. She quickly stood up again and frowned, "Damn, I feel short..."
Kurama laughed again, "I've missed you..." Kuronue was gathering up other things to take.
"I've missed you too...I never did get a chance to thank you for the gift." Phantom pulled the chain of the necklace so that it was visible again.
Kurama smiled, "You kept it!"
Kuronue gasped, "Kurama! You gave that away? Wasn't that your mother's???"
"My mother told me to give it to the girl that stole my heart..." Kurama's smile widened as he saw Phantom's face redden.
She was about to say something when she was cut off by a loud chirp. Jouka flew into the room at top speed and perched on the arm Phantom outstretched for her. Jouka quickly chirped a message to Phantom. She frowned, "Damn him..." She turned to Kurama and Kuronue, "You have to leave. Koenma's coming with reinforcements."
"What's going to happen to you?" Kurama asked concerned.
Phantom smirked, "Nothing. I'll tell Koenma that you were already gone when I got here."
"Are you sure? What if they find out that you let us go?" Kurama moved closer to her.
Phantom shook her head and led him out into the hallway. She pointed down the opposite direction from where they came in. "They won't find out. There's an exit that way that is only known by a few people. Jouka will show you the way." The bird chirped and hopped onto Kurama's shoulder.
He looked at Phantom with worried eyes. He bent down and kissed her quickly on the lips. She looked up at him surprised. She then smiled like she hadn't smiled in hundreds of years. A truly happy smile. Kurama smiled back before he turned and started walking away with Kuronue. Jouka was leading the way. Once outside Kurama insisted that they hide nearby to make sure that Phantom would be alright. She walked out of the temple confidently and stood in front of Koenma.
"Well?" He asked.
"Well what?"
"Well, where are the criminals?" Koenma's eye twitched, he hated when she acted like that.
Phantom shrugged, "I don't know."
"What do you mean you don't know??? You're supposed to have caught the criminals!!!"
"Well maybe I would've if a certain someone had told me earlier about the robbery! I can only run so fast, y'know!" Phantom growled giving Koenma a 'this is somehow all your fault' glare.
Koenma blinked and then got angry because some of the men he had brought started to laugh at him. He turned back to Phantom, "You can't talk to me like that!"
"I can and I am, oh great leader." Phantom rolled her eyes causing more laughter to erupt. Kurama and Kuronue were snickering quietly from their hiding spot.
"Phantom...don't push your luck...I can fire you!" Koenma narrowed his eyes and pointed at her.
She grew hopeful and smiled, "Really??? You can???"
Koenma gave her an odd eye look. "Don't you care?"
"No. But your dad will. Isn't he the one that wanted you to get my help in the first place? Oh, speaking of your dad, I wonder how he's going to react when he finds out that you let treasures get stolen from the temple. After all it was your duty to protect it..." Phantom smirked when she saw Koenma's face pale. She then started walking away whistling happily.
"Wait! Phantom! You have to help me!" Koenma yelled after her.
"Phantom's not here right now, please leave a message after the beep and she'll get back to you as soon as she cares!" She yelled back as she continued walking away. There was more laughter erupting from the group. Jouka flew over to join her and Kurama and Kuronue turned and also left.
~*~End Dream~*~
The next morning the group set out to continue walking. Kumo was leading them. Autumn was sitting on Kurama's shoulder again. They were both thinking about their dreams.
'Before that second meeting with Youko I had been wandering. I wasn't officially missing at the time but I had no contact with anyone that I knew and I had left my house under Darla's care. I rarely returned to the house and anyone who came looking for me was told that I was missing. It had been a complete coincidence to meet my brother and Viern at that marketplace. Koenma was still able to find me when he needed to and that's why they didn't list me as missing until seven years after that second meeting with Youko...that's when I found a way into Ningenkai and started living different lives to find the peace of soul that I needed to destroy the amulet...' Phantom was saying to Autumn.
'I didn't see her again after that. Not for another 125 years...' You mean when Autumn turned out to be Harmony? 'Yes. Do you know how annoying it is to wait that long for a person?' Well, yeah, I'm you. '...oh...never mind then...' Kurama and Youko were having their own conversation.
The group reached the Meiun Ookami's base by noon and stopped to plan what they would do.
"There are bound to be more guards this time. Most of them were trapped outside because of the rain last time." Zero said.
"Well at least this time we know where we're going. It shouldn't be too hard to get there. Not with all these talented fighters and Kuwabara here." Autumn smirked.
Zero chuckled, "Yes, the talented fighters and Kuwabara. Perhaps we'd be better off without the extra baggage?"
OkageHime smiled, "I know! Let's use Kuwabara as a decoy and get all the demons to focus on attacking him while we go ahead!" Zero translated the suggestion.
"I like that plan." Yusuke nodded.
"I don't!" Kuwabara yelled.
"So?" Yusuke blinked.
Kuwabara frowned. Kurama held out his hands, "Come, now. I'm sure we can find another way of getting in there without using Kuwabara as a decoy..."
Autumn opened her mouth to say something. Zero cut her off, "And we are NOT going to come up with some stupid story about a cat being stuck in a tree!"
Autumn stuck her tongue out at him. Yusuke looked at the mansion, "How bout we just go in there and kick the ass of every demon we come across?"
"Yeah!" Kuwabara agreed before he and Yusuke started running off down the hill.
Kumo blinked, "Not very smart, are they?"
"No, but somehow they always manage to come out alive in the end..." Kurama said as he watched the humans beating up the guards.
"That's because they're lucky fools..." Hiei crossed his arms and started walking down the hill followed by the others.
After fighting their way through the hallways they found themselves once again in front of the doors leading to where they had found Megumi. Kumo pushed open the doors and everyone stepped through into the courtyard like room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dream: I just had to end it there. It was just too good of an opportunity to pass up! ^_^
Zero: Torturing your readers, eh?
Dream: *smirks evilly*
Zero: So, once the curses are reversed the story will be over?
Dream: *innocently* Maybe...
Zero: What do you mean maybe? o.O
Dream: You'll find out when everyone else does... *smirks*
Zero: *whining* But I wanna know now!
Dream: Too bad!
