Disclaimer: Don't own it, yet.
Quote of the week: "I don't care if I can see my breath and its forty-three degrees outside! Its still summer! Let's go swimming!" -Kawaii Kitsune Cub (don't ask, please. -_-;;;)
Suzuka: Have fun at the fair?
KKC: Faire, dude, Faire. There's an E at the end.
Suzuka: Don't you dare call me "dude". So what did you do?
KKC: *brightens up* Shot arrows at my brothers, threw knives and scared the living daylights out of my brothers, and hurled axes at Chris!
Suzuka: *sweatdrop* Sounds like fun . . .
KKC: I had to get them back ~somehow~ for making me listen to Britney Spears all the way up there. Ooh, and guess what?
Suzuka: What?
KKC: I got some awesome new ideas for "Wheel of Torture" today!
Suzuka: *shudders* Wonderful . . .
KKC: And look at what I found! *Points to a large russet-colored fox sleeping under her computer desk. His ears are unusually long and pointed, and he's really, really big; about the size of a Great Dane. *
Suzuka: And that is.?
KKC: I have no flippin' clue, actually. I think he's some rare breed of kitsune, but he's not very happy about being sold by his previous master.
Suzuka: You're that . . . that Thing's master! *Points to the giant fox, who is starting to wake up*
KKC: Dude, quiet! You'll wake him up!
Suzuka: And how many times have I told you NOT to call me "Dude"?!!
*Giant fox wakes up and growls at Suzuka, who "eep"s and promptly shuts up*
KKC: Now that's what I'm talking 'bout! Welcome home, uh . . . what's your name?
Fox: Grimoire.
KKC: Ooh! A Grimoire! Those ARE rare! ^-^ Do you mind if I call you Grim?
Grimoire: Yes, very much actually. Now start writing and leave me alone. I want to go mope some more.
KKC: -_-* Party pooper . . .
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KKC: Now, to finally start the finals! Hey, I made a pun! Hah!
Audience: *boredly* yay. *Lazily waves little pennants around*
KKC: *sweatdrop* Um . . .yeah. Not too enthusiastic, huh?
Audience: *pelts KKC with rotten fruits and veggies*
KKC: *Wipes tomato gunk off glasses and puts them back on* -_-* Fine, I know when I'm not wanted. *Stalks off stage to go type*
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Lyra stepped out of her bathroom, a towel wrapped around her torso and her long hair dripping wet. Kurama was sprawled out on her bed, fast asleep. "Hey, you." Lyra picked him up by the scruff of the neck and deposited on the floor. "Out." She pointed to her door, and the fox meekly complied. Shutting the door behind Kurama, Lyra got out a set of clean clothes and a blow dryer. Plugging the machine in, she sat down on her bed and proceeded to dry her thick, long hair.
Yesterday, she had noticed that the water main that was repaired last year wasn't too far from the ring. Maybe if Lark and her could force the water through the pipes and out under the ring, they could stage another attack like last year's; the tantei definitely wouldn't expect that coming from her and her sister. Twisters and wind storms were out of the question, Lyra had seen Jin at work during the Dark Tournament. She had seen all of them, actually, but hadn't paid too much attention and now she wished that she had. Her best bet to make it through this fight relatively unscathed were her shields, a natural talent.
Lark, on the other hand, wasn't nearly as patient as her sister and charged right into the thick of a fight instead of wearing her opponent down. Holly was pretty well balanced with both defensive and offensive, but was the fastest of the three with her broom. Together, they could at least last a minute against the boys, or so she hoped.
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Yusuke loitered by the commentator's stand, angrily pacing. "I can't believe he would just ditch us like this!"
"Yusuke, you can't just pin all the blame on Kurama. He might just show up late."
"Jin, you know as well as me that if Kurama isn't on time, he probably isn't going to show up at all." Jin mused over Yusuke's words and fell silent. Where was that fox?
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Meanwhile, Kurama paced the kitchen floor, looking for a way out. The girls had left just a few minutes ago, and were careful to lock all the doors behind them . . .but surely, they wouldn't think of a window, would they? Kurama ran beside the kitchen counters, now huge Formica cliffs to him, and jumped onto the trash barrel lid, then onto the counter itself. He nervously checked the window over the sink. Locked . . .damn. The tiny fox jumped down onto the tile floor and slipped, sending him sliding across the kitchen and into the dining room.
As Kurama looked around the dining room, he realized that none of the large windows had locks. Hope rising in his tiny chest, he rushed over to one of the plate-glass windows, trying to ignore the fingerprints and dead insects on the windowsill, and hastily checked for any latches or anything that might open the translucent barriers. Nothing.
'Damn . . . well, I guess there's no other choice.' Kurama trotted over to the opposite side of the wall, gauged the distance, and started running straight for one of the giant windows. He braced himself for the impact of the shattering glass, and collided. WHAM! The fox stumbled back to his feet and growled at the window, still in one piece mind you, as if it was its fault for not breaking. Eventually, he stopped his ranting and took a closer look. It was made out of Plexiglass, and so was every other window in the place, goddammit.
"Does little fox boy need some help?" Kurama turned towards the sarcastic voice, and Kyuro stepped out from his hidey-hole underneath the couch in the living room. Kurama stiffened and growled, trying to scare the cat away, but the small black cat just smirked. "Now, now, Kurama . . . don't get all uppity. I can help you. Being caged in is something I can't stand to see happen to someone, whether they be fellow familiar, annoying human, or demon."
Kurama cocked his head in thought. The cat could be lying, or looking for someone to pin the blame on; but Bones was easily available to in case something broke or went missing. And how the heck did the cat know who really was? Of course he remembered that the familiar was bound to his master by the thick leather collar, Kyuro complained about it all the time; so maybe the cat's intentions really were good. The fox didn't really want to trust the cocky feline, but he didn't really have a choice either if he wanted to get to the tournament. Knowing he regret it later, he barked a 'fine'. The familiar sat on his haunches and started to clean his silky, black tail.
"Good. Now follow me, we have to hurry if you plan on catching up to the others." Kyuro stretched and ran over to the room the two teachers shared, his eyes glowed a bright green for a minute and the door swung open. Kurama growled under his breath (something that kind of reverts to "Why didn't you just do that before?!") and Kyuro glared at him. "I would have opened the front door if I could, Kurama, But Holly and Erika put a lock on it so I can't get out unless I have their permission. If I could just find someone stupid enough to get this godforsaken collar off of me, then I wouldn't have to deal with you guys!" Again, Kurama snarled. The cat was getting way off subject. Kyuro was bound for a reason, and the fox didn't want to find out 'why' the hard way.
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Lyonell leaned back in his chair. The girls had arrived with minutes to spare, and now he was waiting for the rest of the crowd to find a seat before getting started. Yes, this was the job he wanted when he got out of school. Ever since his friend, Koto (c'mon folks, you remember her! The fox referee!), had gotten a job to ref at the Dark Tournament he wished he could be in her place. Watching the blood spill, hearing the cheer of the hordes of spectators, that was all he really wanted; well, that and a six- figure paycheck. Finally, the crowd of students had gotten settled and he started announcing the fight.
"And this year's finals match looks pretty good, folks! Let's give it up for the Urameshi team!" A round of scattered applause and cheers rumbled through the stands as the three fighters walked up to the center of the ring. Lyonell did a double glance and recounted the fighters. "Hey, guys," he called down. "What happened to Kurama and Kuwabara?" Yusuke pointed down to the sidelines, where Kuwabara was watching. "Well?" Lyonell asked. The redhead turned his head to the booth and sneered. "I don't fight girls! Its not gentlemanly-like."
"Okaaaaay . . . um, what about Kurama?"
"Who knows? He hasn't shown up since last night." Kuwabara shrugged. Lyonell sweatdropped but continued. "Uh-huh . . . Moving right along, then! And welcome back the Admarant team!" Ignoring the cheers and occasional wolf whistle, the three girls cheerily walked up to the center to face the boys. Lyra and Yusuke shook hands in respect, and when the girl pulled away Yusuke was left with a pendant swinging in his fist. "What the . . ?"
"For good luck, Yusuke. Although I doubt that you'll need it."
"Damn right I don't." Yusuke smirked and shoved the gift unceremoniously into his pocket. Farida walked out to the two teams, still as moody and sullen as ever. "What insolent beings, fighting to prove who is stronger, even though it is futile and shall never bring you anything but pain and grief." Jin stared at the pale teen and scuttled a few feet away from her. "Uh . . . bad day, lass?"
"Every day is a bad day, demon. For every day we must brave this false world, going along our pre-determined paths, with no hope for change or redemption." The others stared at the ranting referee, not really anxious to stop her or interfere. It was Holly who finally spoke. "Guess so . . . um, excuse me? Farida?"
"What do you want, mortal?"
"Maybe, um, could you officially start the match? Hiei's looking a tad peeved at the hold up." And in truth, the Jaganshi was ready to attack the Cthulu worshipper. Farida noticed the murderous gleam in his red eyes and glared right back. "Very well. Begin." She lifted the bandanna above her head and let it fall, signaling the beginning of the match.
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"Hurry up, fox. The fan might turn back on any minute!" Kyuro turned around and batted Kurama on the head, claws extended. The kit recoiled, and continued his trek through the dusty heating vents. If Kyuro was right, there would be a vent leading outside to Lark's greenhouse from her room. Behind them was a large fan, its sharp blades jammed by a metal bangle Kurama had stolen from Lark's room.
Ahead of them was the scent of the many plants flourishing in the heated greenhouse, and Kurama hastened. He missed the smell of fresh flowers, and ever since winter had rolled around there wasn't really much to be found. All of the outside flowering plants that had managed to survive past November had fallen prey to the first frost last week. Actually, he was quite surprised that it hadn't snowed yet.
The grating sound of Kyuro's claws on metal snapped him out of his little reverie. The cat familiar had hooked his sharp little claws on the vent grate and was trying to lift it up. "Well, don't just stand there!" He snapped. "Push the bottom open." Kurama nodded and bounded to the cat's side. He pushed his full weight against the grate and it fell from Kyuro's grasp with a metallic CLANG onto the floor below. Kyuro arched his back and hissed at the loud noise, glaring at Kurama at the same time. The fox received another claw swipe at his delicate ears before being shoved out of the vent and into the greenhouse.
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Lark dodged over to the right, watching as Jin soared right by. She had totally forgotten that he could fly, and wished that she had watched those tapes of the Dark Tournament last night instead of rushing her Runes homework. "Lyra, where are those shields?" She called over to her sister. "I'm kinda busy over here! I'll put them up once I get Hiei off my back- OW! Jerk!" Lyra brought up a quick shield to block Hiei's next sword blow and ducked underneath to whap him in the face. The fire demon swore and grabbed her wrist, twisting it in the process. "Ooh . . . that doesn't look too good!" Lyonell's voice blared out of the loudspeakers, narrating every blow and attack. "And Yusuke's busy trying to shoot Holly out of the sky, but it's a no-go. Man, his aim sucks . . ."
"Hey! I'd like to see you do better!" Kayko yelled at the cat demon, who jumped at least a foot in the air and hissed. "Hey, gimme a break, chick. I'm trying my best here." Lyonell turned back his mic and tried his best to smooth out his bristled fur. "Well, anyways, Jin's really breaking some speed records; Lark can't keep up with him." A deep ringing sound reverberated throughout the arena. "Wow, and she nailed him! That play was amazing, but I just have one question; WHERE THE HELL DID SHE PULL THAT FRYING PAN OUT OF?!!!"
Yusuke snuck a glance over at Jin, who was stumbling around and trying to clear his blurry vision. The teen snickered for a moment, but was whacked in the face by the end of Holly's broom; the ashen twigs raked his face, leaving reddish-marks where they had contacted his skin and he could feel a faint burning sensation on his face. "Ah, Shit! What was that?!" Holly hovered a few feet away, appalled that her broom had caused such an injury. "I-I didn't know I could do that! Yusuke, I'm so sorry! I'll- oof!" The witch was knocked off of her broom by an air-borne Hiei, who jumped right back up to his feet and charged at Lyra, katana drawn.
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"Koenma-sama, what a surprise. I thought you had some last minute paperwork to take care of." Botan slid over so the Reikai prince could sit down. Koenma, in his teenage form, unslung the heavy workbag from his shoulder and dug inside for a minute before pulling out a small laptop. "Yes, well I've managed to find a way to take my work with me. How's Yusuke and the others faring?" Botan sweatdropped as the prince booted up his computer and nervously replied. "Uh . . . not so good, sir. Kurama is missing, Kuwabara refuses to fight the girls, and Yusuke just got a face full of broom. And I'm still trying to figure out how Lark managed to get Jin in the head with a frying pan, considering the fact that she didn't have anywhere to hide it."
"A frying pan? Yusuke and the others are getting beaten by a girl with a frying pan? Wait, did you say Lark?" Koenma stared at the ferry girl, totally ignoring his laptop. Botan nodded, then grimaced as Hiei managed to cut a small chunk of Lyra's hair from the end of her thick braid. Both Koenma and Botan watched as the water manipulator and fire demon fired two blasts, Lyra's a tremendous wave of water and Hiei's a stream of bluish- white fire. The two attacks met in the middle of the arena and erupted into a cloud of hot steam that enclosed the entire ring. "Whoa! Haven't seen that move before, then again, maybe the Urameshi team has just walked right into another trap. You can't really see anything through this thick mist, geez . . . Can't really commentate either. So, um, you guys can just try to make heads or tails of the fight and I'll just kinda sit here . . . yeah . . . and wait." Chrysanthemum walked in behind her brother and took a seat at the second mic. "Gee, what a brilliant idea. No wonder Senior Ryo wanted me to help out at the finals. There's a battle going on down there and you're sitting here twiddling you thumbs." Lyonell recoiled away from her. "Hey! What're you doing here? Go 'way. I can handle this on my own. Hey, the steam's clearing up! Whoo-hoo! I can see-"
"-said the blind man." Crysanthemum finished the line and Lyonell just stared at his twin sister. "Um . . . yeah, whatever. Poor Lark, she's in a headlock from Jin, a pretty painful one, too by the look on her face." Jin turned to the burned Yusuke, holding Lark over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes; the younger girl was kicking and screaming such obscenities that the likes of which will never be written in a fan fiction. "You okay there, Urameshi?" He asked. Yusuke fired off another weak Spirit Gun, this time singeing the end of Holly's broom. "Nah, I'll be okay. But I'm pretty sick of having to fight at only half power, can we kick it up a notch and get this over with?"
"Get it over with?! Half power?!! Yusuke you idiotic jackass! Go ahead, use some of your real strength. I'll take you on any day!" Lark managed to kick Jin in the ribs and jumped down. She stalked over to Yusuke and grabbed the surprised teen by his collar, dragging him down to eye level. "Either play to your full potential or don't play at all. I can stand up to whatever you throw at me." Yusuke looked over Lark's shoulder to Jin for help, but the wind master had his hands up in an gesture of innocence. 'Some help he is.' Yusuke mentally griped, then turned back to the matter at hand. "Uh, look, Lark . . . I really would if I could, but if I went full power on you, you'd be a pile of ashes right about now."
"I know, Yusuke. Remember who has the tapes?"
"Yeah, but- Holy Shit!" Yusuke pulled out of Lark's grip on his collar and yanked her down to the ground. Between Jin and Holly, the wind speeds were picking up to be that of a hurricane's. To his dismay, Yusuke could already see small rain clouds gathering above the ring, and a cold rain was starting to fall. "What the hell is this?!" the teen turned to Lark for an answer or two, but the girl's blue-green eyes were now glowing and she was chanting something under her breath. As she chanted, lightning bolts flew from the black cloud that ominously hung over the arena, striking the ground in bright flashes.
Hiei dodged one of the dangerous bolts and snuck behind Lyra, using her exceptional shields as cover from the lightning. He charged at her, Fist of the Mortal Flame burning brightly even in the chilly downpour, and struck. Lyra was so busy setting up the miniature storm that she wasn't able to react in time as the fire demon slipped through a gap in her shields and struck, charring her shirt and side. She screamed, and suddenly the full brunt of the storm was upon Hiei. Electricity flashed all around him in a dazzling display, the rain and wind chilling him straight to the bone. It was like the biblical flood that had washed the earth clean was targeted on him, leaving his other teammates on the outside with little chance of making it through the vicious storm. The wind was like daggers, tearing his clothes and slicing his flesh with the precision of a surgical scalpel.
"And it looks like Hiei is a tough spot there." Lyonell loved it; every moment he could get his enthralled audience on the edge of their seat like this made the entire job worth it. Chrysanthemum glared at her twin and added a bit of her own dialogue. "Well, I would be pissed too if someone ruined a shirt like that, WHILE I WAS WEARING IT!"
"I'm sure you would. Dude! Look at all that blood!" Lyonell watched as several students paled at the sight, quite a few of them rushing off into the bushes to puke. Boy, had he killed it. Rule number one of commentating (I'm making these up, there are no rules to commentating; trust me. If there had been, I would've broken them all by now. ^ ^;;) , keep your audience excited, not so grossed out that they had to tango with the toilet every few minutes. The two twins could only stare as the storm ravaged upon Hiei, for words weren't needed, nor could be found, as the demon was thrashed by the small natural disaster.
Kurama slunk underneath the crowded stands, searching for a place he could watch the fight from undetected. What worried him was the burst of spiritual energy just a few seconds ago, forming into a swirling storm. He doubted that just one person could channel that much power into a natural element like rain or wind, except for Jin of course. No, this matrix of sparkling spiritual power and chilling rain was a mix of three different energies, all working together to create an ungodly force. Kurama's reddish fur was bristled and his tail twitched endlessly, the static energy of the lightning creating waves of power that irritated his skin to no end.
Finally, he found a spot down near the far end. Rushing to it, he was surprised to hear Koenma and Botan talking above him. Kurama paused for a minute, cocking an ear so he could hear their conversation over Lyonell's voice. "I haven't seen Lark since she was about five, when her mother was still around."
"Really, sir? I heard Lyra mention their mother once or twice, but not enough to get a clear picture of what she was like."
"She was quite pretty, it was easy to see why Micheal had fallen for her. Petite with long black hair and gorgeous eyes." Koenma sighed, remembering the necromancer's visit to his palace. " The funny thing was, she never had any respect for authority. In fact, the first time we met, she called me a closed-minded asshole."
"What?! B-but didn't she know who you were?"
"Of course she did. She had snuck away from her husband and kids so she could give me a piece of her mind. Micheal was working for my father at the time, helping put some of the wandering souls to rest."
"But a necromancer . . . I thought that your father hated them."
"He still does, but Micheal wasn't interested in reawakening souls; rather, he sent them to spirit world. He actually created the wind pipes out here, the ones that help keep the undead away from the school." Kurama almost didn't notice when the spirit prince looked over his shoulder and picked him up roughly by the scruff of his neck. "Eaves-dropping, Kurama?"
The fox yipped and struggled free of Koenma's grasp, nipping the prince on the finger in the process. Kurama ran behind Botan, who was too surprised to do much else but stare at the cursing ruler of Reikai. "Kurama, what happened?" The former human snorted and barked. Koenma seemed to understand what the fox was saying and started to chuckle under his breath. "So, Youko got you stuck in this mess? Now that's a laugh. Of course I won't tell anyone, if you don't want me too. And neither will Botan . . .right?"
"Who, me? I'm lost! I don't know what's going on." Botan put her hands up in a sign of defeat and nervously grinned. Koenma and the kit exchanged looks and then sighed. "Perhaps its better if you stay clueless . . . just treat this fox," Koenma pointed to the tiny canine. " like its any normal dog." The kit growled, and Koenma hurriedly corrected himself. "Except for the cuddling and baby talk, he doesn't really like to be touched." Koenma packed up his laptop and extra paperwork, slinging the bag back on his shoulder and nodding a goodbye to his two employees. "I'll see you later. Tell me who won." The prince snuck a glance at the girls, still powering the eerie storm. "It's amazing how those two sisters look so much like their mother . . ." The three of them watched as Hiei was propelled out of the ring, the ferocious lightning driving him back, and flinched as he was thrown into a large tree, slipping down to reveal a Hiei-shaped imprint in the massive trunk (think 'George of the jungle' there, folks). Koenma sweatdropped, and shrugged before turning back to Kurama and Botan. "Riiight . . . see ya." The prince waved and disappeared, teleporting back to his castle.
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Yuske could only watch as the much shorter demon was thrown right out, too dazed to make it back in for the ten-second count. "Shit. Just our luck." Jin nodded in agreement, protecting both of the fighters from the girls' electric storm. "Aye, it's not going to be fun and games now. I'd hate to hurt them, though." Yuske stared in shock at the wind master. "Not even a few lumps on the head? Come on, they've had it coming."
"Yeah, but you usually instigate 'em." Jin smirked, knowing he'd pushed one of Yusuke's buttons by pinning the blame on him. "Yeah, whatever. Blame it on me, like everyone else does. As if it isn't bad enough with an entire campus full of teachers and the other guys in class, my own roommate turns on me."
"Turn on you? I'm no back-stabber, Urameshi." Great, now they were starting to argue. Not a good idea with raindrops the size of hailstones and hail the size of baseballs falling about them. Yusuke resisted the urge to pick up one of the afore-mentioned hailstones right now and whip it at his Youkai partner, as it would be a whole heckuva lot harder to get all three girls down on his own. "Alright, here's the plan. We just get this done as soon and painless as possible without any interruptions, okay?"
"I could've come up with ~that~, Yusuke. Real brilliant plan . . ."
"Well, its definitely the most appeasing one I could think of at the moment. OW!" Yusuke rubbed his face from where a rogue Hailstone had snuck by Jin's windy defenses and whacked him in the head. "Jerk, you did that on purpose."
"Now why would I, oh fearless leader?"
"Tch. Whatever. Let's get Holly first, I'll take the right and you come in from the left." Yusuke and Jin split up, blocking the hail and sleet with their spirit energy. Jin flew up high, trying to distract Holly while Yusuke rushed in from below. The witch was quite a sight, choppy red hair whipping around in the wind, green eyes faintly glowing, the pupils nearly invisible. The storm seemed to have taken a bit out of the girls, they weren't even really conscious to what they were doing or where they were.
Yusuke leaped up in the air, ready to attack when the bolt came, a streaking flash of white electricity the jumped from the black storm cloud. He couldn't move or react, there was no time as it shot straight at him, and he closed his eyes, remembering his fight with Suzaku all too clearly. But it never hit. Yusuke opened his eyes, and yelped in surprise as the small charm Lyra had given to him was sucking up the energy, funneling it all into a tiny, harmless stream of lightning. Jin's was doing the same, keeping the bolts at bay while he lightly whapped Holly on across the face. She blinked, shook her head, and almost fell off of her broom before finally clearing her thoughts. "Whoa . . ." She gently lowered her ride to the ground and stumbled off, massaging her throbbing temples.
The storm started to slow down, the winds dissipating and dispersing, now that the wind witch was out of the cycle of energy. The black cloud was starting to look a little less foreboding, and Yusuke quickly put two and two together. "Hey, Jin! Try to get them to wake up! It'll stop the rain." The redhead nodded, carefully handing the drained Holly over to Kuwabara, and flew towards Lark.
Yusuke fired off his spirit gun, trying to blast a hole through Lyra's impressive shield, but it bounced back and blew a hole in the ring floor. "Great . . . just great. Jin, how you doing over there?" Yusuke yelled over to the wind master, who was cheerfully putting the younger sister out of commission. "Wait a sec' . . . there!" Jin grinned and pinched a tendon on Lark's slender neck, and the girl slumped over, completely out of it. "Want some help, Urameshi?" Jin floated a few feet off the ground, watching his comrade try to break the impenetrable shield. "No, you think so? It'll take forever to take down this shield either way. There really aren't any weak spots at least none we can get through . . . but maybe a draft could." The boys grinned at each other and Jin drew up a small breeze, channeling it through the tiny crack in Lyra's defensive barrier. "Maybe we could crack it from the inside, ya know?"
"Exactly what I was thinking, Jin. Now why don't you try building up the pressure in there? She's starting to look tired." Yusuke chuckled in glee. Lyra had trapped herself in her own shield. Maybe that pendant really did bring you good luck . . .
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"Hey, um, anyone know what they're doing down there? I kind of got lost after the lightning and stuff."
"Of course you did, Lyonell. You hate thunderstorms."
"Shaddup." The cat demon twitched his furry tail and quietly leaned over the control board as his sister continued on into the microphone about the fight. It was coming to a close, and just about time too. A stalemate would've been boring as all hell, just like Chrysanthemum's lousy job at announcing. "And it looks like Yusuke and Jin are trying to force Lyra to break her barrier from the inside-" Her mic went dead in her hands. Lyonell happily swung back to his chair and put his feet up on the desk. "Well, looks like she got cut off there. Might as well continue where she left off . . ."
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Jin could see her will breaking, the shield flickered for a moment, then again, before it crashed down into a shattered mess of glass-like energy shards. Lyra tried to dodge Jin's mild gust of wind, but it knocked her too her knees and she stayed there, too tired to move or speak. The demon floated over the sharp shards and braced her on his shoulder. "You okay?" He asked, but she just collapsed into a pitiful heap. Yusuke put other her arm over his shoulder and looped his other hand around to lift her up. "Come on, we better get her to the medical tent. She ain't looking too hot. Oi, Kuwabara!" Yusuke yelled over his shoulder to the big lug, who was busy helping some of the medical students with Lark, Holly, and Hiei.
"What?"
"Tell Kayko I'll be a while. I'm sure she'll understand." Kuwabara nodded, but was pushed aside by the brown-haired girl. "Don't worry! We'll meet you down at the infirmary!" Turning to the awakening Lark, she was immediately caught up in a whispered conversation. Yusuke shook his head at his unofficial "girlfriend" and sighed. "I am never going to understand her." Jin smirked at Yusuke's comment. Apparently his younger roommate hadn't heard Lark, but he supposed it was all for the better.
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KKC: *sighs* Wow, that was long. And I still have to do "Wheel of Torture" . . . @_@
Suzuki: I'm surprised it turned out as it did.
KKC: I know . . . I was originally have the girls win, due to my sister's request, but I didn't want to write the after-party in this chapter. Besides, it wouldn't really make sense for Hiei, Yusuke, and Jin to lose, now would it?
Suzuki: I guess not . . . WHAT IS THAT THING!!! *points to the giant wheel*
KKC: The "Wheel of Torture" of course! ^ ^ What else did you think it would be?
Suzuki: A weird and twisted rendition of "The price is Right" ?
KKC: *sweat drop* Don't get you hopes up, man. And today as our guest star, we have . . . *drumroll* Fangirlitis!
Fangirlitis: *runs in, and fixes her hair* Uh-huh! Ooh . . . can I pick? Pleeeaaaseee?
KKC: I don't see why not. *Holds up baseball cap with a bunch of tiny slips of paper in it. On each slip is the name of a character and who requested it*
Fangirlitis: *changes to Tylor* Cool! *rummages around in hat and finally pulls one out* Let's see . . .
KKC: *in cheesy game-show host voice* And today's victim is . . . TYLOR?! How the hell did that get in there?
Tylor: It's signed by Chris.
KKC: Oh . . . just pick again.
Tylor: * picks another slip of paper from the hat* I win! *holds up the slip. It has his name on it and is once again reuested by Chris*
KKC: *Growls* He's been fooling around with the ballots again . . . *sees Tylor cross-legged on the floor, picking out slips. All of them are the same*
Tylor: Wow, he must really hate me! ^-^
Suzuki: It would seem so . . .
KKC: Are there any more in there?
Tylor: * turns out hat* Nope . . .
KKC: *grabs a pen and scrap of paper out of her vest pocket, turns around and quickly scribbles something on it, then nonchalantly drops it on the floor by Tylor* Oops . . . you missed one.
Tylor: Huh? Oh! *picks up slip and reads it* Today's victim is Suzuki!
Suzuki: Wha-at?!
Tylor: Requested by me! Hey wait a sec . . . I didn't write this . . .
KKC: Yes you did. Trust me. *crosses fingers behind her back*
Tylor: Cool! I made a suggestion and didn't even know it. I rock!
KKC: *strapping Suzuki to a gurney so he doesn't get away* What are you standing there for? Go ahead and spin the wheel.
Tylor: Yay! *spins wheel super-fast. It lands on "Cauldoning"* Yay! I get to Cauldone Suzuki! Whatever that means!
Suzuki: *turns white as a sheet, as he obviously knows what the term means* No . . . you wouldn't . . .
KKC: *insanely grins* I was going for a medieval theme this week; like it?
Tylor: What do I do?
KKC: Watch and learn. You might want to take notes. *rips a sheet of paper out of a composition notebook and hands it to him, letting him use the back of the notebook to write on, along with a pen.*
Tylor: *eyes widen* Is that THE notebook?
Suzuki: What? The notebook?
Tylor: Yeah. The one she maps out her fics in . . . *starts to open it*
KKC: Open it and you die!
Tylor: *Slams cover shut* Okay! ^ ^ *as soon as KKC turns her back to get the equipment; however, he slowly opens it a little*
KKC: *from opposite room* NO TOUCHIE!
Tylor: Yes ma'am! *looks at the junk KKC is bringing in* Ooh . . . shiny . . .
KKC: Um . . . yeah. Anyways, first make sure the victim is bound down tightly. As you can see, we already have this step done for you. *points to the pale Suzuki, who is surprised that she's actually following through with it*
Tylor: *furiously scribbling down notes* Uh-huh . . . And?
KKC: Next, you want to set up the cage on the victim's abdomen. It sould have four walls, a roof, and a door, but no floor. *holds up cage* See? *puts it on Suzuki, using his chest as the cage floor, and ties it down*
Suzuki: Please, I beg of you, don't do it.
KKC: Sorry dude, but its an educational experience, something that my sister and Tylor aren't exposed to often. Just be a good sport about it, okay. *to Tylor* Next, you put some hot coals on the cage roof. Make sure it isn't blocking the cage door, folks. *shovels some red-hot coals onto the cage roof. One falls and lands on Suzuki*
Suzuki: OW! Damn, that hurts!
Tylor: Wuss . . .
KKC: Now here's the fun part. Take about ten or twenty small and hungry rats- *holds up a container with the ravenous little vermin* - and put them in the cage. * slides open the cage door and tips the rats into the cage*
Tylor: Now what?
KKC: Well, you keep stoking the coals until the rats can't stand it. Eventually, the heat will be so unbearable that the rats will burrow into the victims insides to escape it.
Tylor: Ooh . . . positively disgusting . . . Let's watch!
KKC: Remember kids, don't try this at home! *turns to watch Suzuki, who is screaming in agony* Eew . . . Ecchy . . .
Tylor: Wow . . .
KKC: You okay, man?
Suzuki: Do I look okay?! I have rodents eating my insides- OH MY GOD!!!! THERE GOES ONE NOW!!!!!!! *stares in horror at the small lump moving up his arm, much like the scarabs did in "The Mummy"*
KKC: O-kay! Time to cut this short! *yanks off cage and coals. Turns to Tylor, who is watching in revolting fascination as the lumps scurry around under Suzuki's skin* Tylor, Call Kurama! Yukina! Anyone who can get these things out quick!
Tylor: Better not get Yukina, she shouldn't be seeing this type of stuff. Zzzzhow 'bout Hiei?
KKC: Why Hiei?! Kurama can heal and Hiei can't! *panicking*
Tylor: I know, I'll call Kuraa too. But Hiei's gonna get a kick outta this . . .
KKC: I guess you're right . . . *vainly tries to ignore Suzuki* Well, until next time folks . . . See ya! *Peace sign* And please remember to Review while you're at it.
Quote of the week: "I don't care if I can see my breath and its forty-three degrees outside! Its still summer! Let's go swimming!" -Kawaii Kitsune Cub (don't ask, please. -_-;;;)
Suzuka: Have fun at the fair?
KKC: Faire, dude, Faire. There's an E at the end.
Suzuka: Don't you dare call me "dude". So what did you do?
KKC: *brightens up* Shot arrows at my brothers, threw knives and scared the living daylights out of my brothers, and hurled axes at Chris!
Suzuka: *sweatdrop* Sounds like fun . . .
KKC: I had to get them back ~somehow~ for making me listen to Britney Spears all the way up there. Ooh, and guess what?
Suzuka: What?
KKC: I got some awesome new ideas for "Wheel of Torture" today!
Suzuka: *shudders* Wonderful . . .
KKC: And look at what I found! *Points to a large russet-colored fox sleeping under her computer desk. His ears are unusually long and pointed, and he's really, really big; about the size of a Great Dane. *
Suzuka: And that is.?
KKC: I have no flippin' clue, actually. I think he's some rare breed of kitsune, but he's not very happy about being sold by his previous master.
Suzuka: You're that . . . that Thing's master! *Points to the giant fox, who is starting to wake up*
KKC: Dude, quiet! You'll wake him up!
Suzuka: And how many times have I told you NOT to call me "Dude"?!!
*Giant fox wakes up and growls at Suzuka, who "eep"s and promptly shuts up*
KKC: Now that's what I'm talking 'bout! Welcome home, uh . . . what's your name?
Fox: Grimoire.
KKC: Ooh! A Grimoire! Those ARE rare! ^-^ Do you mind if I call you Grim?
Grimoire: Yes, very much actually. Now start writing and leave me alone. I want to go mope some more.
KKC: -_-* Party pooper . . .
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KKC: Now, to finally start the finals! Hey, I made a pun! Hah!
Audience: *boredly* yay. *Lazily waves little pennants around*
KKC: *sweatdrop* Um . . .yeah. Not too enthusiastic, huh?
Audience: *pelts KKC with rotten fruits and veggies*
KKC: *Wipes tomato gunk off glasses and puts them back on* -_-* Fine, I know when I'm not wanted. *Stalks off stage to go type*
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Lyra stepped out of her bathroom, a towel wrapped around her torso and her long hair dripping wet. Kurama was sprawled out on her bed, fast asleep. "Hey, you." Lyra picked him up by the scruff of the neck and deposited on the floor. "Out." She pointed to her door, and the fox meekly complied. Shutting the door behind Kurama, Lyra got out a set of clean clothes and a blow dryer. Plugging the machine in, she sat down on her bed and proceeded to dry her thick, long hair.
Yesterday, she had noticed that the water main that was repaired last year wasn't too far from the ring. Maybe if Lark and her could force the water through the pipes and out under the ring, they could stage another attack like last year's; the tantei definitely wouldn't expect that coming from her and her sister. Twisters and wind storms were out of the question, Lyra had seen Jin at work during the Dark Tournament. She had seen all of them, actually, but hadn't paid too much attention and now she wished that she had. Her best bet to make it through this fight relatively unscathed were her shields, a natural talent.
Lark, on the other hand, wasn't nearly as patient as her sister and charged right into the thick of a fight instead of wearing her opponent down. Holly was pretty well balanced with both defensive and offensive, but was the fastest of the three with her broom. Together, they could at least last a minute against the boys, or so she hoped.
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Yusuke loitered by the commentator's stand, angrily pacing. "I can't believe he would just ditch us like this!"
"Yusuke, you can't just pin all the blame on Kurama. He might just show up late."
"Jin, you know as well as me that if Kurama isn't on time, he probably isn't going to show up at all." Jin mused over Yusuke's words and fell silent. Where was that fox?
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Meanwhile, Kurama paced the kitchen floor, looking for a way out. The girls had left just a few minutes ago, and were careful to lock all the doors behind them . . .but surely, they wouldn't think of a window, would they? Kurama ran beside the kitchen counters, now huge Formica cliffs to him, and jumped onto the trash barrel lid, then onto the counter itself. He nervously checked the window over the sink. Locked . . .damn. The tiny fox jumped down onto the tile floor and slipped, sending him sliding across the kitchen and into the dining room.
As Kurama looked around the dining room, he realized that none of the large windows had locks. Hope rising in his tiny chest, he rushed over to one of the plate-glass windows, trying to ignore the fingerprints and dead insects on the windowsill, and hastily checked for any latches or anything that might open the translucent barriers. Nothing.
'Damn . . . well, I guess there's no other choice.' Kurama trotted over to the opposite side of the wall, gauged the distance, and started running straight for one of the giant windows. He braced himself for the impact of the shattering glass, and collided. WHAM! The fox stumbled back to his feet and growled at the window, still in one piece mind you, as if it was its fault for not breaking. Eventually, he stopped his ranting and took a closer look. It was made out of Plexiglass, and so was every other window in the place, goddammit.
"Does little fox boy need some help?" Kurama turned towards the sarcastic voice, and Kyuro stepped out from his hidey-hole underneath the couch in the living room. Kurama stiffened and growled, trying to scare the cat away, but the small black cat just smirked. "Now, now, Kurama . . . don't get all uppity. I can help you. Being caged in is something I can't stand to see happen to someone, whether they be fellow familiar, annoying human, or demon."
Kurama cocked his head in thought. The cat could be lying, or looking for someone to pin the blame on; but Bones was easily available to in case something broke or went missing. And how the heck did the cat know who really was? Of course he remembered that the familiar was bound to his master by the thick leather collar, Kyuro complained about it all the time; so maybe the cat's intentions really were good. The fox didn't really want to trust the cocky feline, but he didn't really have a choice either if he wanted to get to the tournament. Knowing he regret it later, he barked a 'fine'. The familiar sat on his haunches and started to clean his silky, black tail.
"Good. Now follow me, we have to hurry if you plan on catching up to the others." Kyuro stretched and ran over to the room the two teachers shared, his eyes glowed a bright green for a minute and the door swung open. Kurama growled under his breath (something that kind of reverts to "Why didn't you just do that before?!") and Kyuro glared at him. "I would have opened the front door if I could, Kurama, But Holly and Erika put a lock on it so I can't get out unless I have their permission. If I could just find someone stupid enough to get this godforsaken collar off of me, then I wouldn't have to deal with you guys!" Again, Kurama snarled. The cat was getting way off subject. Kyuro was bound for a reason, and the fox didn't want to find out 'why' the hard way.
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Lyonell leaned back in his chair. The girls had arrived with minutes to spare, and now he was waiting for the rest of the crowd to find a seat before getting started. Yes, this was the job he wanted when he got out of school. Ever since his friend, Koto (c'mon folks, you remember her! The fox referee!), had gotten a job to ref at the Dark Tournament he wished he could be in her place. Watching the blood spill, hearing the cheer of the hordes of spectators, that was all he really wanted; well, that and a six- figure paycheck. Finally, the crowd of students had gotten settled and he started announcing the fight.
"And this year's finals match looks pretty good, folks! Let's give it up for the Urameshi team!" A round of scattered applause and cheers rumbled through the stands as the three fighters walked up to the center of the ring. Lyonell did a double glance and recounted the fighters. "Hey, guys," he called down. "What happened to Kurama and Kuwabara?" Yusuke pointed down to the sidelines, where Kuwabara was watching. "Well?" Lyonell asked. The redhead turned his head to the booth and sneered. "I don't fight girls! Its not gentlemanly-like."
"Okaaaaay . . . um, what about Kurama?"
"Who knows? He hasn't shown up since last night." Kuwabara shrugged. Lyonell sweatdropped but continued. "Uh-huh . . . Moving right along, then! And welcome back the Admarant team!" Ignoring the cheers and occasional wolf whistle, the three girls cheerily walked up to the center to face the boys. Lyra and Yusuke shook hands in respect, and when the girl pulled away Yusuke was left with a pendant swinging in his fist. "What the . . ?"
"For good luck, Yusuke. Although I doubt that you'll need it."
"Damn right I don't." Yusuke smirked and shoved the gift unceremoniously into his pocket. Farida walked out to the two teams, still as moody and sullen as ever. "What insolent beings, fighting to prove who is stronger, even though it is futile and shall never bring you anything but pain and grief." Jin stared at the pale teen and scuttled a few feet away from her. "Uh . . . bad day, lass?"
"Every day is a bad day, demon. For every day we must brave this false world, going along our pre-determined paths, with no hope for change or redemption." The others stared at the ranting referee, not really anxious to stop her or interfere. It was Holly who finally spoke. "Guess so . . . um, excuse me? Farida?"
"What do you want, mortal?"
"Maybe, um, could you officially start the match? Hiei's looking a tad peeved at the hold up." And in truth, the Jaganshi was ready to attack the Cthulu worshipper. Farida noticed the murderous gleam in his red eyes and glared right back. "Very well. Begin." She lifted the bandanna above her head and let it fall, signaling the beginning of the match.
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"Hurry up, fox. The fan might turn back on any minute!" Kyuro turned around and batted Kurama on the head, claws extended. The kit recoiled, and continued his trek through the dusty heating vents. If Kyuro was right, there would be a vent leading outside to Lark's greenhouse from her room. Behind them was a large fan, its sharp blades jammed by a metal bangle Kurama had stolen from Lark's room.
Ahead of them was the scent of the many plants flourishing in the heated greenhouse, and Kurama hastened. He missed the smell of fresh flowers, and ever since winter had rolled around there wasn't really much to be found. All of the outside flowering plants that had managed to survive past November had fallen prey to the first frost last week. Actually, he was quite surprised that it hadn't snowed yet.
The grating sound of Kyuro's claws on metal snapped him out of his little reverie. The cat familiar had hooked his sharp little claws on the vent grate and was trying to lift it up. "Well, don't just stand there!" He snapped. "Push the bottom open." Kurama nodded and bounded to the cat's side. He pushed his full weight against the grate and it fell from Kyuro's grasp with a metallic CLANG onto the floor below. Kyuro arched his back and hissed at the loud noise, glaring at Kurama at the same time. The fox received another claw swipe at his delicate ears before being shoved out of the vent and into the greenhouse.
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Lark dodged over to the right, watching as Jin soared right by. She had totally forgotten that he could fly, and wished that she had watched those tapes of the Dark Tournament last night instead of rushing her Runes homework. "Lyra, where are those shields?" She called over to her sister. "I'm kinda busy over here! I'll put them up once I get Hiei off my back- OW! Jerk!" Lyra brought up a quick shield to block Hiei's next sword blow and ducked underneath to whap him in the face. The fire demon swore and grabbed her wrist, twisting it in the process. "Ooh . . . that doesn't look too good!" Lyonell's voice blared out of the loudspeakers, narrating every blow and attack. "And Yusuke's busy trying to shoot Holly out of the sky, but it's a no-go. Man, his aim sucks . . ."
"Hey! I'd like to see you do better!" Kayko yelled at the cat demon, who jumped at least a foot in the air and hissed. "Hey, gimme a break, chick. I'm trying my best here." Lyonell turned back his mic and tried his best to smooth out his bristled fur. "Well, anyways, Jin's really breaking some speed records; Lark can't keep up with him." A deep ringing sound reverberated throughout the arena. "Wow, and she nailed him! That play was amazing, but I just have one question; WHERE THE HELL DID SHE PULL THAT FRYING PAN OUT OF?!!!"
Yusuke snuck a glance over at Jin, who was stumbling around and trying to clear his blurry vision. The teen snickered for a moment, but was whacked in the face by the end of Holly's broom; the ashen twigs raked his face, leaving reddish-marks where they had contacted his skin and he could feel a faint burning sensation on his face. "Ah, Shit! What was that?!" Holly hovered a few feet away, appalled that her broom had caused such an injury. "I-I didn't know I could do that! Yusuke, I'm so sorry! I'll- oof!" The witch was knocked off of her broom by an air-borne Hiei, who jumped right back up to his feet and charged at Lyra, katana drawn.
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"Koenma-sama, what a surprise. I thought you had some last minute paperwork to take care of." Botan slid over so the Reikai prince could sit down. Koenma, in his teenage form, unslung the heavy workbag from his shoulder and dug inside for a minute before pulling out a small laptop. "Yes, well I've managed to find a way to take my work with me. How's Yusuke and the others faring?" Botan sweatdropped as the prince booted up his computer and nervously replied. "Uh . . . not so good, sir. Kurama is missing, Kuwabara refuses to fight the girls, and Yusuke just got a face full of broom. And I'm still trying to figure out how Lark managed to get Jin in the head with a frying pan, considering the fact that she didn't have anywhere to hide it."
"A frying pan? Yusuke and the others are getting beaten by a girl with a frying pan? Wait, did you say Lark?" Koenma stared at the ferry girl, totally ignoring his laptop. Botan nodded, then grimaced as Hiei managed to cut a small chunk of Lyra's hair from the end of her thick braid. Both Koenma and Botan watched as the water manipulator and fire demon fired two blasts, Lyra's a tremendous wave of water and Hiei's a stream of bluish- white fire. The two attacks met in the middle of the arena and erupted into a cloud of hot steam that enclosed the entire ring. "Whoa! Haven't seen that move before, then again, maybe the Urameshi team has just walked right into another trap. You can't really see anything through this thick mist, geez . . . Can't really commentate either. So, um, you guys can just try to make heads or tails of the fight and I'll just kinda sit here . . . yeah . . . and wait." Chrysanthemum walked in behind her brother and took a seat at the second mic. "Gee, what a brilliant idea. No wonder Senior Ryo wanted me to help out at the finals. There's a battle going on down there and you're sitting here twiddling you thumbs." Lyonell recoiled away from her. "Hey! What're you doing here? Go 'way. I can handle this on my own. Hey, the steam's clearing up! Whoo-hoo! I can see-"
"-said the blind man." Crysanthemum finished the line and Lyonell just stared at his twin sister. "Um . . . yeah, whatever. Poor Lark, she's in a headlock from Jin, a pretty painful one, too by the look on her face." Jin turned to the burned Yusuke, holding Lark over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes; the younger girl was kicking and screaming such obscenities that the likes of which will never be written in a fan fiction. "You okay there, Urameshi?" He asked. Yusuke fired off another weak Spirit Gun, this time singeing the end of Holly's broom. "Nah, I'll be okay. But I'm pretty sick of having to fight at only half power, can we kick it up a notch and get this over with?"
"Get it over with?! Half power?!! Yusuke you idiotic jackass! Go ahead, use some of your real strength. I'll take you on any day!" Lark managed to kick Jin in the ribs and jumped down. She stalked over to Yusuke and grabbed the surprised teen by his collar, dragging him down to eye level. "Either play to your full potential or don't play at all. I can stand up to whatever you throw at me." Yusuke looked over Lark's shoulder to Jin for help, but the wind master had his hands up in an gesture of innocence. 'Some help he is.' Yusuke mentally griped, then turned back to the matter at hand. "Uh, look, Lark . . . I really would if I could, but if I went full power on you, you'd be a pile of ashes right about now."
"I know, Yusuke. Remember who has the tapes?"
"Yeah, but- Holy Shit!" Yusuke pulled out of Lark's grip on his collar and yanked her down to the ground. Between Jin and Holly, the wind speeds were picking up to be that of a hurricane's. To his dismay, Yusuke could already see small rain clouds gathering above the ring, and a cold rain was starting to fall. "What the hell is this?!" the teen turned to Lark for an answer or two, but the girl's blue-green eyes were now glowing and she was chanting something under her breath. As she chanted, lightning bolts flew from the black cloud that ominously hung over the arena, striking the ground in bright flashes.
Hiei dodged one of the dangerous bolts and snuck behind Lyra, using her exceptional shields as cover from the lightning. He charged at her, Fist of the Mortal Flame burning brightly even in the chilly downpour, and struck. Lyra was so busy setting up the miniature storm that she wasn't able to react in time as the fire demon slipped through a gap in her shields and struck, charring her shirt and side. She screamed, and suddenly the full brunt of the storm was upon Hiei. Electricity flashed all around him in a dazzling display, the rain and wind chilling him straight to the bone. It was like the biblical flood that had washed the earth clean was targeted on him, leaving his other teammates on the outside with little chance of making it through the vicious storm. The wind was like daggers, tearing his clothes and slicing his flesh with the precision of a surgical scalpel.
"And it looks like Hiei is a tough spot there." Lyonell loved it; every moment he could get his enthralled audience on the edge of their seat like this made the entire job worth it. Chrysanthemum glared at her twin and added a bit of her own dialogue. "Well, I would be pissed too if someone ruined a shirt like that, WHILE I WAS WEARING IT!"
"I'm sure you would. Dude! Look at all that blood!" Lyonell watched as several students paled at the sight, quite a few of them rushing off into the bushes to puke. Boy, had he killed it. Rule number one of commentating (I'm making these up, there are no rules to commentating; trust me. If there had been, I would've broken them all by now. ^ ^;;) , keep your audience excited, not so grossed out that they had to tango with the toilet every few minutes. The two twins could only stare as the storm ravaged upon Hiei, for words weren't needed, nor could be found, as the demon was thrashed by the small natural disaster.
Kurama slunk underneath the crowded stands, searching for a place he could watch the fight from undetected. What worried him was the burst of spiritual energy just a few seconds ago, forming into a swirling storm. He doubted that just one person could channel that much power into a natural element like rain or wind, except for Jin of course. No, this matrix of sparkling spiritual power and chilling rain was a mix of three different energies, all working together to create an ungodly force. Kurama's reddish fur was bristled and his tail twitched endlessly, the static energy of the lightning creating waves of power that irritated his skin to no end.
Finally, he found a spot down near the far end. Rushing to it, he was surprised to hear Koenma and Botan talking above him. Kurama paused for a minute, cocking an ear so he could hear their conversation over Lyonell's voice. "I haven't seen Lark since she was about five, when her mother was still around."
"Really, sir? I heard Lyra mention their mother once or twice, but not enough to get a clear picture of what she was like."
"She was quite pretty, it was easy to see why Micheal had fallen for her. Petite with long black hair and gorgeous eyes." Koenma sighed, remembering the necromancer's visit to his palace. " The funny thing was, she never had any respect for authority. In fact, the first time we met, she called me a closed-minded asshole."
"What?! B-but didn't she know who you were?"
"Of course she did. She had snuck away from her husband and kids so she could give me a piece of her mind. Micheal was working for my father at the time, helping put some of the wandering souls to rest."
"But a necromancer . . . I thought that your father hated them."
"He still does, but Micheal wasn't interested in reawakening souls; rather, he sent them to spirit world. He actually created the wind pipes out here, the ones that help keep the undead away from the school." Kurama almost didn't notice when the spirit prince looked over his shoulder and picked him up roughly by the scruff of his neck. "Eaves-dropping, Kurama?"
The fox yipped and struggled free of Koenma's grasp, nipping the prince on the finger in the process. Kurama ran behind Botan, who was too surprised to do much else but stare at the cursing ruler of Reikai. "Kurama, what happened?" The former human snorted and barked. Koenma seemed to understand what the fox was saying and started to chuckle under his breath. "So, Youko got you stuck in this mess? Now that's a laugh. Of course I won't tell anyone, if you don't want me too. And neither will Botan . . .right?"
"Who, me? I'm lost! I don't know what's going on." Botan put her hands up in a sign of defeat and nervously grinned. Koenma and the kit exchanged looks and then sighed. "Perhaps its better if you stay clueless . . . just treat this fox," Koenma pointed to the tiny canine. " like its any normal dog." The kit growled, and Koenma hurriedly corrected himself. "Except for the cuddling and baby talk, he doesn't really like to be touched." Koenma packed up his laptop and extra paperwork, slinging the bag back on his shoulder and nodding a goodbye to his two employees. "I'll see you later. Tell me who won." The prince snuck a glance at the girls, still powering the eerie storm. "It's amazing how those two sisters look so much like their mother . . ." The three of them watched as Hiei was propelled out of the ring, the ferocious lightning driving him back, and flinched as he was thrown into a large tree, slipping down to reveal a Hiei-shaped imprint in the massive trunk (think 'George of the jungle' there, folks). Koenma sweatdropped, and shrugged before turning back to Kurama and Botan. "Riiight . . . see ya." The prince waved and disappeared, teleporting back to his castle.
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Yuske could only watch as the much shorter demon was thrown right out, too dazed to make it back in for the ten-second count. "Shit. Just our luck." Jin nodded in agreement, protecting both of the fighters from the girls' electric storm. "Aye, it's not going to be fun and games now. I'd hate to hurt them, though." Yuske stared in shock at the wind master. "Not even a few lumps on the head? Come on, they've had it coming."
"Yeah, but you usually instigate 'em." Jin smirked, knowing he'd pushed one of Yusuke's buttons by pinning the blame on him. "Yeah, whatever. Blame it on me, like everyone else does. As if it isn't bad enough with an entire campus full of teachers and the other guys in class, my own roommate turns on me."
"Turn on you? I'm no back-stabber, Urameshi." Great, now they were starting to argue. Not a good idea with raindrops the size of hailstones and hail the size of baseballs falling about them. Yusuke resisted the urge to pick up one of the afore-mentioned hailstones right now and whip it at his Youkai partner, as it would be a whole heckuva lot harder to get all three girls down on his own. "Alright, here's the plan. We just get this done as soon and painless as possible without any interruptions, okay?"
"I could've come up with ~that~, Yusuke. Real brilliant plan . . ."
"Well, its definitely the most appeasing one I could think of at the moment. OW!" Yusuke rubbed his face from where a rogue Hailstone had snuck by Jin's windy defenses and whacked him in the head. "Jerk, you did that on purpose."
"Now why would I, oh fearless leader?"
"Tch. Whatever. Let's get Holly first, I'll take the right and you come in from the left." Yusuke and Jin split up, blocking the hail and sleet with their spirit energy. Jin flew up high, trying to distract Holly while Yusuke rushed in from below. The witch was quite a sight, choppy red hair whipping around in the wind, green eyes faintly glowing, the pupils nearly invisible. The storm seemed to have taken a bit out of the girls, they weren't even really conscious to what they were doing or where they were.
Yusuke leaped up in the air, ready to attack when the bolt came, a streaking flash of white electricity the jumped from the black storm cloud. He couldn't move or react, there was no time as it shot straight at him, and he closed his eyes, remembering his fight with Suzaku all too clearly. But it never hit. Yusuke opened his eyes, and yelped in surprise as the small charm Lyra had given to him was sucking up the energy, funneling it all into a tiny, harmless stream of lightning. Jin's was doing the same, keeping the bolts at bay while he lightly whapped Holly on across the face. She blinked, shook her head, and almost fell off of her broom before finally clearing her thoughts. "Whoa . . ." She gently lowered her ride to the ground and stumbled off, massaging her throbbing temples.
The storm started to slow down, the winds dissipating and dispersing, now that the wind witch was out of the cycle of energy. The black cloud was starting to look a little less foreboding, and Yusuke quickly put two and two together. "Hey, Jin! Try to get them to wake up! It'll stop the rain." The redhead nodded, carefully handing the drained Holly over to Kuwabara, and flew towards Lark.
Yusuke fired off his spirit gun, trying to blast a hole through Lyra's impressive shield, but it bounced back and blew a hole in the ring floor. "Great . . . just great. Jin, how you doing over there?" Yusuke yelled over to the wind master, who was cheerfully putting the younger sister out of commission. "Wait a sec' . . . there!" Jin grinned and pinched a tendon on Lark's slender neck, and the girl slumped over, completely out of it. "Want some help, Urameshi?" Jin floated a few feet off the ground, watching his comrade try to break the impenetrable shield. "No, you think so? It'll take forever to take down this shield either way. There really aren't any weak spots at least none we can get through . . . but maybe a draft could." The boys grinned at each other and Jin drew up a small breeze, channeling it through the tiny crack in Lyra's defensive barrier. "Maybe we could crack it from the inside, ya know?"
"Exactly what I was thinking, Jin. Now why don't you try building up the pressure in there? She's starting to look tired." Yusuke chuckled in glee. Lyra had trapped herself in her own shield. Maybe that pendant really did bring you good luck . . .
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"Hey, um, anyone know what they're doing down there? I kind of got lost after the lightning and stuff."
"Of course you did, Lyonell. You hate thunderstorms."
"Shaddup." The cat demon twitched his furry tail and quietly leaned over the control board as his sister continued on into the microphone about the fight. It was coming to a close, and just about time too. A stalemate would've been boring as all hell, just like Chrysanthemum's lousy job at announcing. "And it looks like Yusuke and Jin are trying to force Lyra to break her barrier from the inside-" Her mic went dead in her hands. Lyonell happily swung back to his chair and put his feet up on the desk. "Well, looks like she got cut off there. Might as well continue where she left off . . ."
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Jin could see her will breaking, the shield flickered for a moment, then again, before it crashed down into a shattered mess of glass-like energy shards. Lyra tried to dodge Jin's mild gust of wind, but it knocked her too her knees and she stayed there, too tired to move or speak. The demon floated over the sharp shards and braced her on his shoulder. "You okay?" He asked, but she just collapsed into a pitiful heap. Yusuke put other her arm over his shoulder and looped his other hand around to lift her up. "Come on, we better get her to the medical tent. She ain't looking too hot. Oi, Kuwabara!" Yusuke yelled over his shoulder to the big lug, who was busy helping some of the medical students with Lark, Holly, and Hiei.
"What?"
"Tell Kayko I'll be a while. I'm sure she'll understand." Kuwabara nodded, but was pushed aside by the brown-haired girl. "Don't worry! We'll meet you down at the infirmary!" Turning to the awakening Lark, she was immediately caught up in a whispered conversation. Yusuke shook his head at his unofficial "girlfriend" and sighed. "I am never going to understand her." Jin smirked at Yusuke's comment. Apparently his younger roommate hadn't heard Lark, but he supposed it was all for the better.
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KKC: *sighs* Wow, that was long. And I still have to do "Wheel of Torture" . . . @_@
Suzuki: I'm surprised it turned out as it did.
KKC: I know . . . I was originally have the girls win, due to my sister's request, but I didn't want to write the after-party in this chapter. Besides, it wouldn't really make sense for Hiei, Yusuke, and Jin to lose, now would it?
Suzuki: I guess not . . . WHAT IS THAT THING!!! *points to the giant wheel*
KKC: The "Wheel of Torture" of course! ^ ^ What else did you think it would be?
Suzuki: A weird and twisted rendition of "The price is Right" ?
KKC: *sweat drop* Don't get you hopes up, man. And today as our guest star, we have . . . *drumroll* Fangirlitis!
Fangirlitis: *runs in, and fixes her hair* Uh-huh! Ooh . . . can I pick? Pleeeaaaseee?
KKC: I don't see why not. *Holds up baseball cap with a bunch of tiny slips of paper in it. On each slip is the name of a character and who requested it*
Fangirlitis: *changes to Tylor* Cool! *rummages around in hat and finally pulls one out* Let's see . . .
KKC: *in cheesy game-show host voice* And today's victim is . . . TYLOR?! How the hell did that get in there?
Tylor: It's signed by Chris.
KKC: Oh . . . just pick again.
Tylor: * picks another slip of paper from the hat* I win! *holds up the slip. It has his name on it and is once again reuested by Chris*
KKC: *Growls* He's been fooling around with the ballots again . . . *sees Tylor cross-legged on the floor, picking out slips. All of them are the same*
Tylor: Wow, he must really hate me! ^-^
Suzuki: It would seem so . . .
KKC: Are there any more in there?
Tylor: * turns out hat* Nope . . .
KKC: *grabs a pen and scrap of paper out of her vest pocket, turns around and quickly scribbles something on it, then nonchalantly drops it on the floor by Tylor* Oops . . . you missed one.
Tylor: Huh? Oh! *picks up slip and reads it* Today's victim is Suzuki!
Suzuki: Wha-at?!
Tylor: Requested by me! Hey wait a sec . . . I didn't write this . . .
KKC: Yes you did. Trust me. *crosses fingers behind her back*
Tylor: Cool! I made a suggestion and didn't even know it. I rock!
KKC: *strapping Suzuki to a gurney so he doesn't get away* What are you standing there for? Go ahead and spin the wheel.
Tylor: Yay! *spins wheel super-fast. It lands on "Cauldoning"* Yay! I get to Cauldone Suzuki! Whatever that means!
Suzuki: *turns white as a sheet, as he obviously knows what the term means* No . . . you wouldn't . . .
KKC: *insanely grins* I was going for a medieval theme this week; like it?
Tylor: What do I do?
KKC: Watch and learn. You might want to take notes. *rips a sheet of paper out of a composition notebook and hands it to him, letting him use the back of the notebook to write on, along with a pen.*
Tylor: *eyes widen* Is that THE notebook?
Suzuki: What? The notebook?
Tylor: Yeah. The one she maps out her fics in . . . *starts to open it*
KKC: Open it and you die!
Tylor: *Slams cover shut* Okay! ^ ^ *as soon as KKC turns her back to get the equipment; however, he slowly opens it a little*
KKC: *from opposite room* NO TOUCHIE!
Tylor: Yes ma'am! *looks at the junk KKC is bringing in* Ooh . . . shiny . . .
KKC: Um . . . yeah. Anyways, first make sure the victim is bound down tightly. As you can see, we already have this step done for you. *points to the pale Suzuki, who is surprised that she's actually following through with it*
Tylor: *furiously scribbling down notes* Uh-huh . . . And?
KKC: Next, you want to set up the cage on the victim's abdomen. It sould have four walls, a roof, and a door, but no floor. *holds up cage* See? *puts it on Suzuki, using his chest as the cage floor, and ties it down*
Suzuki: Please, I beg of you, don't do it.
KKC: Sorry dude, but its an educational experience, something that my sister and Tylor aren't exposed to often. Just be a good sport about it, okay. *to Tylor* Next, you put some hot coals on the cage roof. Make sure it isn't blocking the cage door, folks. *shovels some red-hot coals onto the cage roof. One falls and lands on Suzuki*
Suzuki: OW! Damn, that hurts!
Tylor: Wuss . . .
KKC: Now here's the fun part. Take about ten or twenty small and hungry rats- *holds up a container with the ravenous little vermin* - and put them in the cage. * slides open the cage door and tips the rats into the cage*
Tylor: Now what?
KKC: Well, you keep stoking the coals until the rats can't stand it. Eventually, the heat will be so unbearable that the rats will burrow into the victims insides to escape it.
Tylor: Ooh . . . positively disgusting . . . Let's watch!
KKC: Remember kids, don't try this at home! *turns to watch Suzuki, who is screaming in agony* Eew . . . Ecchy . . .
Tylor: Wow . . .
KKC: You okay, man?
Suzuki: Do I look okay?! I have rodents eating my insides- OH MY GOD!!!! THERE GOES ONE NOW!!!!!!! *stares in horror at the small lump moving up his arm, much like the scarabs did in "The Mummy"*
KKC: O-kay! Time to cut this short! *yanks off cage and coals. Turns to Tylor, who is watching in revolting fascination as the lumps scurry around under Suzuki's skin* Tylor, Call Kurama! Yukina! Anyone who can get these things out quick!
Tylor: Better not get Yukina, she shouldn't be seeing this type of stuff. Zzzzhow 'bout Hiei?
KKC: Why Hiei?! Kurama can heal and Hiei can't! *panicking*
Tylor: I know, I'll call Kuraa too. But Hiei's gonna get a kick outta this . . .
KKC: I guess you're right . . . *vainly tries to ignore Suzuki* Well, until next time folks . . . See ya! *Peace sign* And please remember to Review while you're at it.