I'm baaaaaaack!! Thank you for reviewing, but I may not be updating for a
while, so I wanted to get chappie four outta the way. It's still up in the
air, but I have a feeling it'll come down on my head pretty hard^_^; "IT"
is me studying for a huge test in one of my classes, and unless our teacher
gets married next week, I'm gonna have to pull all-nighters every other day
(pray for wedding bells, people)!!!!!!!! Anyhoo, I've got an OC right here:
SUKI!!!! Suki will be entering my story in this chapter, so let's give her
a hand!!
Flower Petals: I just couldn't resist a fluffy ending, the chance to give Hiei a fluffy side was so THERE!!
Fox Moonshadow: Bring it on! I just have got to see how he functions (even if he CAN) in that situation. You understand.I hope.
Hiei: This is your last chance, don't do this to me.
Me: Say the disclaimer and I may reconsider.
Hiei: Hn. Very well, Sareph does not own YuYuHakusho, for which I am grateful. Now, have you thought about it?
Me: (Playing video games)Huh? Oh, yeah.
Hiei:*death glare* well?
Me: No.
Hiei: damn.
The morning was still young when she arrived, a black and white streak moving through the trees, frantically searching for her ward. The battle had been fierce, but Suki had hoped that her frantic spell would have at least kept the child in Makai, where it would be treated with respect. But no, it had to go straight into the Ningenkai, she was worried sick Ahren was lost. That would mean facing his parents' wrath, along with her own grief. Neither was a very pleasant prospect, so she followed the fading trail of draconic energy that wove through the forest. She finally saw smoke rising in the distance, and increased her speed, halting in a tall maple overlooking the campsite. Hmmm.two, no, three demons, a fairy- like onna, two human boys of amazing Spirit power, and a normal human girl. Interesting. One of the demons looked to be a child, even. And there, curled up on the child demon's stomach, was Ahren, sleeping without a care in the world. She bounded down to him, not bothering to draw her two long, curved fighting daggers, and caressed one of the tiny silver wings, feeling relief wash over her as she found that her precious ward was unhurt. Instantly a sword blade was against her throat, Ahren was out of reach, and red eyes were glaring at her. The demon was awake.
"Who are you, and what do you want with this child?" asked the demon. Suki blinked; she had called him a child, but he was just very short, like herself. "I am Suki, and I am that child's guardian. He is my responsibility, and I have come to take him back to his parents."
"Hn. Forget it. I found him, he is in my care, and that is where he stays."
"Who are you?"
"Hiei, now move away or die."
Suki started to comply, backing slowly onto the limb of the tree, then suddenly drew her twin daggers and leaped at Hiei, who jumped out of the tree and landed silently on the ground below. Unfortunately, Kawai woke up.
"WAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" wailed the demon-child, beating its fists and legs fitfully. Suki tried to get her charge away from Hiei, but he slashed at her, driving her back.
Kurama woke and saw Hiei fighting with someone, trying not to drop a wailing Kawai. The rest of the company was rousing, but he ran over and grabbed the stranger, pinning her.
Hiei handed the wailing baby to a sleepy Keiko, then walked over to Suki, flanked by Yusuke and Kuwabara, who were both awake and alert. "Now, where do you come from, what are you, and who are this child's parents?" he asked.
Suki answered patiently enough, though the sight of her charge being calmed by a clumsy human was seriously irking. "I am Suki, a half-breed storm demon in service of little Ahren's parents, two dragon demons in the north part of Makai. They were attacked by a rival family, and I had to teleport Ahren away. My spell was without a destination and too strong, and he ended up here. I have come to take him home, now give him to me!" At this lightning flashed in her eyes and Kurama let go quickly, electricity still giving him quite a shock.
Suki was really pissed now. Her little Ahren was being held by some worthless ningen bitch, her masters would be worried, afraid and angry, possibly hurt, and all she and they wanted was to see Ahren safely back in his home-den in Makai. She had had enough of talking, it was time for action. She charged at the ningen bitch, determined to get back that baby.
Yusuke didn't know what was going on, only that Keiko was screaming in fear, some lightning-thingy-demon was charging for her, and that just wasn't good. So."SPIRIT GUN!!!" The blast caught Suki in her side, sending her into a tree with a loud smash. The tree was ripped apart by a bolt of lightning, and Suki charged again, her demon side showing through.
Hiei stared at the shining, crackling being that had been Suki. Her body was just barely visible in a pillar of white energy that zapped, hissed, and singed the ground. She was changed, too. Jagged stripes of black ran crosswise down her arms, neck, and legs, her eyes were brimming with power, and her hands had arcs of electricity running around them. He decided it was time to show a little bit of his true nature, letting the Jagan open wide and pierce the storm-demon's power-blinded vision. He unsheathed his sword, leaping at the raging column of lightning.
The pain was shocking. Suki lost concentration, and her lightning-shield vanished, leaving her to tumble to the ground, a large slash down her back. The wound refreshed her, though. She had been careless, and she resolved not to make the same mistake again, snarling as she drew her twin blades.
Kurama leaped into her path as she charged at Keiko, who was grabbed by Botan and dragged out of the immediate danger. He saw that Kuwabara had conjured his Spirit-sword, the longer one, Yusuke was full of shots just waiting to be fired, Hiei had opened the Jagan and was trying to get a reading on the raging demon, and Yukina had created a towering wall of ice around Hiei's massive oak. Keiko and Botan were behind the wall, and Yukina stood tall in front of it, gathering strength and courage for a fight. Yusuke gave directions to the fighters.
"Kurama, Kuwabara, you come with me and we'll take on this thing! Hiei, attack and keep her from getting near Yukina. Yukina, keep that thing up! Botan, if this gets bad, take Keiko and fly outta here! Let's GO!!" The four fighters charged the storm demon, who had used the pause to summon a small, roiling black cloud that spat bolts at them. The wind was amazing, whipping the tree branches all around in a frenzy. Suki leapt into the air, heading for the ice wall.
Kuwabara saw her plan. Kill Yukina, and the wall would fail, leaving Keiko, Botan, and the baby without a prayer. He saw Suki summoning a huge bolt, and he ran like the wind to beat her lightning. He got there in time, skidding to a stop as Suki cast the fatal bolt. "Back off, you stupid lightning rod!!" he yelled. He raised his sword in a defensive stance and the bolt hit the shimmering orange blade. His body was surrounded by it, but Yukina was spared. Kuwabara yelled a defiant, wordless challenge, and as the bolt ended, fell. His body was burned, his clothes blackened rags.
"Kuwabara!!" cried Yukina and Yusuke simultaneously. They both leaped to their fallen friend, Yukina immediately beginning a healing process. Kuwabara was still conscious, and he locked eyes with Yusuke, the usual faint grin on his face. "Heh, guess.I got a bit faster.after all, huh, Ura.Urameshi?"
Yusuke was horrified at his friend's injuries. His hands were charred, his face and arms were red and sore, his clothes were black, with ashes gently floating down from his sides. "Why'd you have to do that, you dumb ox?" he said, trying to keep his voice from breaking. Kuwabara had been hurt badly, sure, but this was the worst by far.
"Don't worry about me.Ura.meshi. Yukina'll.take.care of.me." Yukina said nothing, only nodded and continued her work. She managed to get off his shirt, and was amazed to find his heart still beat. Not steady, it was erratic, but it wasn't going to stop as long as she could help him. His chest was just as bad as the rest of him, so she started there. Yusuke stood up, his aura becoming visible as a cold blue flame that surrounded him. He headed for where Suki and Kurama were fighting furiously, the shots in his finger shining.
Hiei saw the baka-ningen fall, saw Yukina and Yusuke go to him, and felt a rage seeping out of his cold, calm, rigid shell. He could see Yukina fighting back tears, feel Yusuke's anger and aura growing, and felt his own hate rouse deep in his heart. He helped Kurama until Yusuke arrived, delivering a right hook that knocked Suki out of the sky, and ran to where Yukina was desperately trying to save her savior's life.
Kuwabara was only half-conscious. He so wanted to close his eyes and sleep, but if he did, Yukina got more worried and begged him to open them again, so instead he focused on the sounds of battle. Yusuke's fists and kicks flying, Kurama's whip hissing, and Suki's double blades singing and humming as they traded blows. He was suddenly aware of Hiei crouched over him, and grinned again. "Hey, half-pint.what do you.want?"
Hiei ignored him as usual and spoke to Yukina, his eyes still absorbing Kuwabara's horrific burns. "Will he live?" he asked. He even ignored Kurama, whose right leg suddenly had bloody furrows running down it from the hip. He knew the kitsune demon would still fight.
Yukina nodded again, not looking up from her work. She felt Hiei's gaze on her, could sense his worry deep beneath his calm exterior, and worked even harder to save Kuwabara.
Hiei stood up, locking his eyes with Kuwabara's. "If you die, I'll find a way to make you suffer, Kuwabara. Only weak fools die after something like that. You're an idiot, but you're not hopeless." With that he streaked off.
Yusuke dodged a blade and swung, feeling his fist hit nothing but air, but seeing Kuwabara's whip strike Suki's left arm. She cried out and dropped her left dagger. The arm was useless. He grinned and attacked again.
Pain blazed through Suki's left arm, blood flowed from the wound, but she dodged a kick and sliced the owner's chest, seeing blood seep down his chest. Not bad, but painful. She dodged a whip-strike and then felt a line of ice drawn across her hamstrings, which burst into fiery agony. She screamed and fell, unable to stand. Rolling over, she froze when she saw Hiei's blade mere inches from her chest.
Keiko was watching the battle through the clear ice, and felt relief wash over her when Hiei hamstringed the half-demon terror. Botan cheered, then grabbed her oar and flew over to see if the demon was a fugitive. Keiko gasped and readjusted her hold on Kawai, trying to soothe the wailing, kicking child. "Kawai, hush! It's over, we'll be out soon, why are you so- AAAAHHH!!!" She screamed. Kawai's eyes were glowing, followed by the rest of him. His little body faded into a silver mist, which floated out above the ice wall.
Yusuke turned at Keiko's scream, and his jaw dropped. A mist had formed above the ice wall, and was solidifying even as it sped towards him. It solidified into the shape of a bull-sized silvery dragon with bright blue all-iris eyes, and he was knocked aside by a scaly foreleg. He scrambled up, and saw the dragon had landed beside Suki, silvery wings half-spread. The creature growled querulously and nuzzled her, and she smiled softly and stroked the scaly head with a loving hand. "Ahren.you transformed. I'm so proud of you." She continued to calm down the agitated dragon, forgetting the muddy pool of her own blood, the bruises covering her body from Yusuke's blows, her mangled left arm, and the burn in her side from the Spirit Gun. She even ignored Keiko, who was retrieved from the ice wall by Botan. The dragon licked her arm for a bit, and the horrendous gashes improved somewhat while the dragonlet repeated the process on her other wounds. She looked less like a bloody rag doll when the hatchling was done, but she was nowhere near a recovery.
Ahren was fully aware in his dragon form, though still a juvenile. All he knew was that his nurse was hurt by those who had protected him. But she had hurt them, and he cared for both sides. Somebody must surely be behind all this, and he would hunt them down and make them pay. He was confused, and didn't who to attack.but his nurse's words and hand calmed him, and he soon settled down on the battle-scarred grass and half-purred, reassured that no danger was near.
Kurama winced as Suki heaved her self up, leaning heavily on the dragon. Occasionally steadied by a nudge or a wing, she turned to them. "This is Ahren, the baby you cared for. He won't hurt you, I think he looks up to you as guardians. He's a dragon demon, and I need to take him home. His parents will be worried. I'm sorry about the fight, but since you cared for him, we'll call a truce. I need to get him back."
Kurama walked over to her and supported her more, saying "Are you sure that it's safe?" Suki froze, then shook him off. She looked worried, but she stayed upright and closed her eyes.
"I should probably check." she said. She started murmuring strange words, closing her eyes. A dim glow formed in front of her, but she coughed and slumped down again. "I'm too weak to cast the spell.I need rest." She immediately fell over, her wounds sapping her of her remaining strength. Ahren rumbled his concern, but sniffed her and then settled down again.
They tended her wounds as best they could, washing and dressing them, then wrapped her in a sleeping bag and took turns watching for any problems. Ahren eventually turned back into a baby and went to sleep. The group calmed down, got Ahren settled, and turned in for the night. Suki (once she regained consciousness later that evening) turned out to be quite agreeable when she realized they weren't kidnappers, but she kept to herself, sleeping outside under a large birch. Hiei settled in the same tree, resolving to watch the new half-demon. He didn't trust her, and the cold glances she gave him occasionally showed the feeling was mutual.
Mwahahahaha.the best is yet to come.mwahahahaha.review. Now. Thanx!
Flower Petals: I just couldn't resist a fluffy ending, the chance to give Hiei a fluffy side was so THERE!!
Fox Moonshadow: Bring it on! I just have got to see how he functions (even if he CAN) in that situation. You understand.I hope.
Hiei: This is your last chance, don't do this to me.
Me: Say the disclaimer and I may reconsider.
Hiei: Hn. Very well, Sareph does not own YuYuHakusho, for which I am grateful. Now, have you thought about it?
Me: (Playing video games)Huh? Oh, yeah.
Hiei:*death glare* well?
Me: No.
Hiei: damn.
The morning was still young when she arrived, a black and white streak moving through the trees, frantically searching for her ward. The battle had been fierce, but Suki had hoped that her frantic spell would have at least kept the child in Makai, where it would be treated with respect. But no, it had to go straight into the Ningenkai, she was worried sick Ahren was lost. That would mean facing his parents' wrath, along with her own grief. Neither was a very pleasant prospect, so she followed the fading trail of draconic energy that wove through the forest. She finally saw smoke rising in the distance, and increased her speed, halting in a tall maple overlooking the campsite. Hmmm.two, no, three demons, a fairy- like onna, two human boys of amazing Spirit power, and a normal human girl. Interesting. One of the demons looked to be a child, even. And there, curled up on the child demon's stomach, was Ahren, sleeping without a care in the world. She bounded down to him, not bothering to draw her two long, curved fighting daggers, and caressed one of the tiny silver wings, feeling relief wash over her as she found that her precious ward was unhurt. Instantly a sword blade was against her throat, Ahren was out of reach, and red eyes were glaring at her. The demon was awake.
"Who are you, and what do you want with this child?" asked the demon. Suki blinked; she had called him a child, but he was just very short, like herself. "I am Suki, and I am that child's guardian. He is my responsibility, and I have come to take him back to his parents."
"Hn. Forget it. I found him, he is in my care, and that is where he stays."
"Who are you?"
"Hiei, now move away or die."
Suki started to comply, backing slowly onto the limb of the tree, then suddenly drew her twin daggers and leaped at Hiei, who jumped out of the tree and landed silently on the ground below. Unfortunately, Kawai woke up.
"WAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" wailed the demon-child, beating its fists and legs fitfully. Suki tried to get her charge away from Hiei, but he slashed at her, driving her back.
Kurama woke and saw Hiei fighting with someone, trying not to drop a wailing Kawai. The rest of the company was rousing, but he ran over and grabbed the stranger, pinning her.
Hiei handed the wailing baby to a sleepy Keiko, then walked over to Suki, flanked by Yusuke and Kuwabara, who were both awake and alert. "Now, where do you come from, what are you, and who are this child's parents?" he asked.
Suki answered patiently enough, though the sight of her charge being calmed by a clumsy human was seriously irking. "I am Suki, a half-breed storm demon in service of little Ahren's parents, two dragon demons in the north part of Makai. They were attacked by a rival family, and I had to teleport Ahren away. My spell was without a destination and too strong, and he ended up here. I have come to take him home, now give him to me!" At this lightning flashed in her eyes and Kurama let go quickly, electricity still giving him quite a shock.
Suki was really pissed now. Her little Ahren was being held by some worthless ningen bitch, her masters would be worried, afraid and angry, possibly hurt, and all she and they wanted was to see Ahren safely back in his home-den in Makai. She had had enough of talking, it was time for action. She charged at the ningen bitch, determined to get back that baby.
Yusuke didn't know what was going on, only that Keiko was screaming in fear, some lightning-thingy-demon was charging for her, and that just wasn't good. So."SPIRIT GUN!!!" The blast caught Suki in her side, sending her into a tree with a loud smash. The tree was ripped apart by a bolt of lightning, and Suki charged again, her demon side showing through.
Hiei stared at the shining, crackling being that had been Suki. Her body was just barely visible in a pillar of white energy that zapped, hissed, and singed the ground. She was changed, too. Jagged stripes of black ran crosswise down her arms, neck, and legs, her eyes were brimming with power, and her hands had arcs of electricity running around them. He decided it was time to show a little bit of his true nature, letting the Jagan open wide and pierce the storm-demon's power-blinded vision. He unsheathed his sword, leaping at the raging column of lightning.
The pain was shocking. Suki lost concentration, and her lightning-shield vanished, leaving her to tumble to the ground, a large slash down her back. The wound refreshed her, though. She had been careless, and she resolved not to make the same mistake again, snarling as she drew her twin blades.
Kurama leaped into her path as she charged at Keiko, who was grabbed by Botan and dragged out of the immediate danger. He saw that Kuwabara had conjured his Spirit-sword, the longer one, Yusuke was full of shots just waiting to be fired, Hiei had opened the Jagan and was trying to get a reading on the raging demon, and Yukina had created a towering wall of ice around Hiei's massive oak. Keiko and Botan were behind the wall, and Yukina stood tall in front of it, gathering strength and courage for a fight. Yusuke gave directions to the fighters.
"Kurama, Kuwabara, you come with me and we'll take on this thing! Hiei, attack and keep her from getting near Yukina. Yukina, keep that thing up! Botan, if this gets bad, take Keiko and fly outta here! Let's GO!!" The four fighters charged the storm demon, who had used the pause to summon a small, roiling black cloud that spat bolts at them. The wind was amazing, whipping the tree branches all around in a frenzy. Suki leapt into the air, heading for the ice wall.
Kuwabara saw her plan. Kill Yukina, and the wall would fail, leaving Keiko, Botan, and the baby without a prayer. He saw Suki summoning a huge bolt, and he ran like the wind to beat her lightning. He got there in time, skidding to a stop as Suki cast the fatal bolt. "Back off, you stupid lightning rod!!" he yelled. He raised his sword in a defensive stance and the bolt hit the shimmering orange blade. His body was surrounded by it, but Yukina was spared. Kuwabara yelled a defiant, wordless challenge, and as the bolt ended, fell. His body was burned, his clothes blackened rags.
"Kuwabara!!" cried Yukina and Yusuke simultaneously. They both leaped to their fallen friend, Yukina immediately beginning a healing process. Kuwabara was still conscious, and he locked eyes with Yusuke, the usual faint grin on his face. "Heh, guess.I got a bit faster.after all, huh, Ura.Urameshi?"
Yusuke was horrified at his friend's injuries. His hands were charred, his face and arms were red and sore, his clothes were black, with ashes gently floating down from his sides. "Why'd you have to do that, you dumb ox?" he said, trying to keep his voice from breaking. Kuwabara had been hurt badly, sure, but this was the worst by far.
"Don't worry about me.Ura.meshi. Yukina'll.take.care of.me." Yukina said nothing, only nodded and continued her work. She managed to get off his shirt, and was amazed to find his heart still beat. Not steady, it was erratic, but it wasn't going to stop as long as she could help him. His chest was just as bad as the rest of him, so she started there. Yusuke stood up, his aura becoming visible as a cold blue flame that surrounded him. He headed for where Suki and Kurama were fighting furiously, the shots in his finger shining.
Hiei saw the baka-ningen fall, saw Yukina and Yusuke go to him, and felt a rage seeping out of his cold, calm, rigid shell. He could see Yukina fighting back tears, feel Yusuke's anger and aura growing, and felt his own hate rouse deep in his heart. He helped Kurama until Yusuke arrived, delivering a right hook that knocked Suki out of the sky, and ran to where Yukina was desperately trying to save her savior's life.
Kuwabara was only half-conscious. He so wanted to close his eyes and sleep, but if he did, Yukina got more worried and begged him to open them again, so instead he focused on the sounds of battle. Yusuke's fists and kicks flying, Kurama's whip hissing, and Suki's double blades singing and humming as they traded blows. He was suddenly aware of Hiei crouched over him, and grinned again. "Hey, half-pint.what do you.want?"
Hiei ignored him as usual and spoke to Yukina, his eyes still absorbing Kuwabara's horrific burns. "Will he live?" he asked. He even ignored Kurama, whose right leg suddenly had bloody furrows running down it from the hip. He knew the kitsune demon would still fight.
Yukina nodded again, not looking up from her work. She felt Hiei's gaze on her, could sense his worry deep beneath his calm exterior, and worked even harder to save Kuwabara.
Hiei stood up, locking his eyes with Kuwabara's. "If you die, I'll find a way to make you suffer, Kuwabara. Only weak fools die after something like that. You're an idiot, but you're not hopeless." With that he streaked off.
Yusuke dodged a blade and swung, feeling his fist hit nothing but air, but seeing Kuwabara's whip strike Suki's left arm. She cried out and dropped her left dagger. The arm was useless. He grinned and attacked again.
Pain blazed through Suki's left arm, blood flowed from the wound, but she dodged a kick and sliced the owner's chest, seeing blood seep down his chest. Not bad, but painful. She dodged a whip-strike and then felt a line of ice drawn across her hamstrings, which burst into fiery agony. She screamed and fell, unable to stand. Rolling over, she froze when she saw Hiei's blade mere inches from her chest.
Keiko was watching the battle through the clear ice, and felt relief wash over her when Hiei hamstringed the half-demon terror. Botan cheered, then grabbed her oar and flew over to see if the demon was a fugitive. Keiko gasped and readjusted her hold on Kawai, trying to soothe the wailing, kicking child. "Kawai, hush! It's over, we'll be out soon, why are you so- AAAAHHH!!!" She screamed. Kawai's eyes were glowing, followed by the rest of him. His little body faded into a silver mist, which floated out above the ice wall.
Yusuke turned at Keiko's scream, and his jaw dropped. A mist had formed above the ice wall, and was solidifying even as it sped towards him. It solidified into the shape of a bull-sized silvery dragon with bright blue all-iris eyes, and he was knocked aside by a scaly foreleg. He scrambled up, and saw the dragon had landed beside Suki, silvery wings half-spread. The creature growled querulously and nuzzled her, and she smiled softly and stroked the scaly head with a loving hand. "Ahren.you transformed. I'm so proud of you." She continued to calm down the agitated dragon, forgetting the muddy pool of her own blood, the bruises covering her body from Yusuke's blows, her mangled left arm, and the burn in her side from the Spirit Gun. She even ignored Keiko, who was retrieved from the ice wall by Botan. The dragon licked her arm for a bit, and the horrendous gashes improved somewhat while the dragonlet repeated the process on her other wounds. She looked less like a bloody rag doll when the hatchling was done, but she was nowhere near a recovery.
Ahren was fully aware in his dragon form, though still a juvenile. All he knew was that his nurse was hurt by those who had protected him. But she had hurt them, and he cared for both sides. Somebody must surely be behind all this, and he would hunt them down and make them pay. He was confused, and didn't who to attack.but his nurse's words and hand calmed him, and he soon settled down on the battle-scarred grass and half-purred, reassured that no danger was near.
Kurama winced as Suki heaved her self up, leaning heavily on the dragon. Occasionally steadied by a nudge or a wing, she turned to them. "This is Ahren, the baby you cared for. He won't hurt you, I think he looks up to you as guardians. He's a dragon demon, and I need to take him home. His parents will be worried. I'm sorry about the fight, but since you cared for him, we'll call a truce. I need to get him back."
Kurama walked over to her and supported her more, saying "Are you sure that it's safe?" Suki froze, then shook him off. She looked worried, but she stayed upright and closed her eyes.
"I should probably check." she said. She started murmuring strange words, closing her eyes. A dim glow formed in front of her, but she coughed and slumped down again. "I'm too weak to cast the spell.I need rest." She immediately fell over, her wounds sapping her of her remaining strength. Ahren rumbled his concern, but sniffed her and then settled down again.
They tended her wounds as best they could, washing and dressing them, then wrapped her in a sleeping bag and took turns watching for any problems. Ahren eventually turned back into a baby and went to sleep. The group calmed down, got Ahren settled, and turned in for the night. Suki (once she regained consciousness later that evening) turned out to be quite agreeable when she realized they weren't kidnappers, but she kept to herself, sleeping outside under a large birch. Hiei settled in the same tree, resolving to watch the new half-demon. He didn't trust her, and the cold glances she gave him occasionally showed the feeling was mutual.
Mwahahahaha.the best is yet to come.mwahahahaha.review. Now. Thanx!