Well, sometimes my writer's block acts up…and sometimes it doesn't. x.x What can I say, it's a very fickle thing and I hope it dies.
Lobo-chan, those were the people who helped me out with that particular chapter. Don't misunderstood, I'm very grateful for all you've done, and that wasn't a final shout-out page. -.- And if you get pissed because I didn't mention your name or thank you every chapter, does that make you my "most loyal fan"? I DO thank you for every poem you've written, and I give credit where credit is due. *probably should've posted in Kikyoku, but updates will be few for that one*
That aside, let's move on, shall we, minna-san? Last chapter, Kaeru got drunk. Enough said. Fweee. Dedicated to Lexi-chan, whose writer's block is being even more evil than mine. And you didn't think it was possible. XD
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"Kae-chan, I promise, you're not going to fall!" Botan repeated the assurance for the fifth time, glancing exasperatedly at the Koorime, who was eyeing the oar her friend was riding. The look in her eyes as she stared at the object was easy enough to decipher. Absolute mistrust. Not of Botan, but of the oar. "Onegai, just get on?"
"Demo (but)…demo…it looks…so…unstable."
Botan blinked and rocked slowly on the oar as it floated upwards. "See, look. It's PERFECTLY stable!" Just as she said that, she leaned forward, the oar rocked again, and she fell off, hitting the damp grass with a thud.
"Botan-san!!" Alarmed, Kaeru grasped the ferrygirl's arm, helping her to her feet. "Are you all right??"
"Fine, fine!" With the Ice Maiden's assistance, Botan was able to get up. She placed her hands behind her head, laughing nervously. "That wasn't very convincing, ne?"
Kaeru looked at the chuckling girl, and then at the oar, now hovering innocently above them. A soft sigh was issued, and then she turned back to Botan, lifting her chin up. "I'm ready to go."
"Are you sure?"
"No." A few seconds later, she shook her head, chagrined. "I mean, YES!"
Botan boosted her Koorime friend onto the oar and hopped on, instructing Kaeru to wrap an arm around her…just in case.
Kuronue watched them from a window in Kurama's house, sighing. Things had almost returned to normal, until Botan had dropped by and told Kaeru she'd been summoned to Reikai and they had to leave right away.
And now his charge was perched on a wooden stick, under the protection of the most ditzy, happy-go-lucky ferrygirl he'd ever met. To Kuronue, this reeked of DOOM. He was about to go after them when a loud yell from Suzaku made his ears twitch in pain.
"WHAT IN THE HELL IS UP WITH THIS DAMNED GOAT!!"
Kuronue turned…just in time to see the leader of the Saint Beasts hobble by, a very familiar-looking goat clamped on his left leg. In fact, it was the same goat at the zoo that had developed a penchant for Suzaku's pants.
The chimera raised an eyebrow. "I don't want to know…"
***Reikai***
"Kae-chan…" Botan looked at the Ice Maiden, who kept her eyes tightly shut. "Kae-chan, we're here!"
"Really…?" Kaeru lowered her hands from her eyes and finally opened them. Sure enough, they were in front of a big pagoda-like building.
Botan lifted her passenger down and then the oar disappeared in a flash of yellow light. "Koenma-sama's office isn't too far inside." She offered Kaeru her hand, who took it and, as the wide doors swept open, they stepped inside.
"Oh, good, she's here!" A blue-skinned one-horned creature wearing nothing but a tiger-striped loincloth hurried over to them.
Kaeru shrank behind Botan with a muted squeak. The creature looked at her in puzzlement. "Am I that scary?"
"Kaeru, this is Jorge, Koenma-sama's assistant," the blue-haired ferrygirl explained. "He's an oni…and don't worry. Even if he LOOKS fierce, he and the other oni here are huge softies."
"P-p-pleased to meet you," the Koorime stammered timorously, not venturing out from her hiding place.
Jorge shrugged resignedly and turned, leading the two into a large room with several large stacks of paperwork. In the center was a big desk, facing a huge screen suspended up above. Behind the desk sat a toddler with a big hat. Beside the desk, looking very sour, was…
Forgetting her fear of Jorge, Kaeru stepped forward. "Hiei-san!"
"Koorime," he returned, the bored look never leaving his face.
The blue oni gaped at her. "She's afraid of me, but she's happy to see HIM?"
"Save your griping for later." Koenma looked directly at Kaeru, who gazed back at him blankly. "Kaeru, do you know why I've called you here?"
"No, not really..."
"Figures." The toddler drummed his fingers on the desk's surface. "With some grudging help from Hiei, and much research, I've finally learned why Zenkai seeks your demise." He regarded the little Koorime solemnly. "Have you ever heard of the Kinmuku Hiruiseki?"
Kaeru thought hard. Had Ruri ever mentioned that in her years of schooling? "Gomen, Koenma-sama, but I can't say I've heard of it."
Koenma picked up a sheet of paper and began to read aloud from it. "Every three hundred and sixty-six years, an Ice Maiden is born with the ability to produce a unique tear-gem called the Kinmuku Hiruiseki: The pure gold tear-gem. This jewel is capable of eternally sealing away any spirit and also harbors an immeasurable amount of power within it. The hiruiseki will not appear unless its wielder summons it in times of great danger. If the Ice Maiden who carries it cannot harness the gem's power, she will be utterly destroyed by its power."
The Ice Maiden blinked. "That's a very nice story, Koenma-sama, but I don't quite--"
"You are the Koorime with the gem," Hiei interrupted her. "You carry the Kinmuku Hiruiseki."
"Precisely," Koenma agreed. "Zenkai wants to kill you because the gem you carry has the power to seal him away forever. You're a threat to his existence and as long as you're alive, you have the potential to destroy him."
Poor Kaeru looked a bit overwhelmed. Her knees slowly buckled and she started to sink to the ground. Hiei seized her arm and hauled her up before she fell.
"Arigato," she told him, before looking pleadingly at the Reikai prince. "How…how…WHY am I the one who carries it? Are you SURE it's me?"
"I'm sorry to say there's no doubt that it IS you, Kaeru," he said heavily. "It's shown up in your family twice. Your great-grandmother and HER grandmother had it. Your grandmother was killed before it was determined if she carried the gem as well. And that is undoubtedly why Zenkai murdered your mother and is now coming after you. He knows the pattern. Your mother never actually had the gem, but he had to make sure." He gazed at her. "Do you understand how important this is?"
"Hai…" The Koorime closed her eyes. Her mother had been killed…because of her.
"Your mother was killed because Zenkai was a witless bastard," Hiei suddenly said. She looked at him, startled, and he smirked, his Jagan glowing faintly underneath his band of white cloth. His hand, still holding her arm, squeezed slightly, before he released her.
He's hard to understand, Kaeru thought. "Is that all, Koenma-sama?"
He nodded. "It is. You may return to Ningenkai…just be very careful. If Zenkai knows that you ARE, without a doubt, the one who holds the Kinmuku Hiruiseki, he'll do everything in his power to destroy you as quickly as possible."
Kaeru bowed and retreated. Botan followed her, pink eyes filled with concern. If she noticed that her little friend was silent during the trip back to Ningenkai, she didn't remark upon it.
***Back to Kuronue and Suzaku…and the goat***
"I don't care WHAT Kaeru says about not hurting it, I'm going to ROAST IT AND HANG ITS HEAD ON MY WALL!" Suzaku howled, kicking at the goat…still stubbornly gnawing on his pants.
Kuronue discreetly inched away. This was all giving him one hell of a migraine. He went outside for some air.
"It's Kuronue, isn't it?"
The chimera glanced to his right. Hiken was approaching, smiling amiably. "Hey," he replied nonchalantly.
"Is my niece at home? I'd hoped to speak with her."
Kuronue had wanted to speak to Kaeru as well…for a few days, he'd been wrestling with the concept of telling her what had happened while she had been intoxicated. Every time he had tried to bring it up, however, the inquisitive look on her face stopped him short. He just couldn't tell her. That bothered him…blunt, brash, brutally honest thief that he was.
"No, she isn't."
"Hmmm…that's a shame." The man glanced at him, and then lowered his voice confidentially, looking up at the deep blue sky. "You know, she's the only family I have left. I was so young, but I was with my sister and my mother…but then the other Koorime…took them away from me. I never saw Kazuko or my mother again. I just couldn't understand…why all Koorime, male AND female couldn't live together peacefully. Why was I cast away?"
The other youkai was wondering why Hiken had decided to tell him this, but obliged him. "And then what happened?"
"I was raised by a kindly youkai couple, got older, learned about Zenkai, and sought my only living relation." Hiken sighed. "I just want to keep her safe."
"You and everyone else," Kuronue remarked.
"Kuro-kun!" Botan came circling down, with Kaeru clinging to her waist. "We're baaaaack!"
"Oh, goody…" He reached up to take Kaeru from the oar. She went into his arms quite willingly. "So, how was it? Did the baby need a new diaper-changer or something?"
"No, that wasn't it." The Ice Maiden waved to her uncle as the chimera set her down. "Gomen, Hiken-san, Kuronue-san, but I don't feel too well…" She headed inside, practically drooping.
Kuronue and Hiken watched her go, and then looked at Botan. "What happened?" They said in one voice.
The ferrygirl fidgeted on her oar. "I'm really not at liberty to divulge--" She flinched when Kuronue reached for his scythe. "It's nothing, really! Kaeru just has this tear-gem thingy that can beat Zenkai and if he finds out, she'll be doomed, but…oooh, don't tell Koenma-sama I said that!"
"Not a word," Hiken promised. "She'd be in even more danger than before…"
"Suzaku-san! What are you doing to that poor goat!"
"Don't try to stop me, Kaeru. That thing has a deathwish, and it's about to be granted!"
"Oops." Botan got off her oar and ran towards the house. "I'd better help out."
The two males sighed in unison.
From high above, unseen and unheard, a pair of cruel crimson eyes narrowed. "That's just perfect…"
*OOC*
I adore doing this. XD Anyway, please review! NEXT chapter, which will probably be extremely short, but hopefully very funny!
* We all know what a flirt Kuronue is…but what happens when he flirts with the wrong person?
* Why you should never answer the door for a vampire slayer…can Kaeru resolve things peacefully, will Hiei shed some blood, or will Kuro get slayed? Stay tuned…
Lobo-chan, those were the people who helped me out with that particular chapter. Don't misunderstood, I'm very grateful for all you've done, and that wasn't a final shout-out page. -.- And if you get pissed because I didn't mention your name or thank you every chapter, does that make you my "most loyal fan"? I DO thank you for every poem you've written, and I give credit where credit is due. *probably should've posted in Kikyoku, but updates will be few for that one*
That aside, let's move on, shall we, minna-san? Last chapter, Kaeru got drunk. Enough said. Fweee. Dedicated to Lexi-chan, whose writer's block is being even more evil than mine. And you didn't think it was possible. XD
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Kae-chan, I promise, you're not going to fall!" Botan repeated the assurance for the fifth time, glancing exasperatedly at the Koorime, who was eyeing the oar her friend was riding. The look in her eyes as she stared at the object was easy enough to decipher. Absolute mistrust. Not of Botan, but of the oar. "Onegai, just get on?"
"Demo (but)…demo…it looks…so…unstable."
Botan blinked and rocked slowly on the oar as it floated upwards. "See, look. It's PERFECTLY stable!" Just as she said that, she leaned forward, the oar rocked again, and she fell off, hitting the damp grass with a thud.
"Botan-san!!" Alarmed, Kaeru grasped the ferrygirl's arm, helping her to her feet. "Are you all right??"
"Fine, fine!" With the Ice Maiden's assistance, Botan was able to get up. She placed her hands behind her head, laughing nervously. "That wasn't very convincing, ne?"
Kaeru looked at the chuckling girl, and then at the oar, now hovering innocently above them. A soft sigh was issued, and then she turned back to Botan, lifting her chin up. "I'm ready to go."
"Are you sure?"
"No." A few seconds later, she shook her head, chagrined. "I mean, YES!"
Botan boosted her Koorime friend onto the oar and hopped on, instructing Kaeru to wrap an arm around her…just in case.
Kuronue watched them from a window in Kurama's house, sighing. Things had almost returned to normal, until Botan had dropped by and told Kaeru she'd been summoned to Reikai and they had to leave right away.
And now his charge was perched on a wooden stick, under the protection of the most ditzy, happy-go-lucky ferrygirl he'd ever met. To Kuronue, this reeked of DOOM. He was about to go after them when a loud yell from Suzaku made his ears twitch in pain.
"WHAT IN THE HELL IS UP WITH THIS DAMNED GOAT!!"
Kuronue turned…just in time to see the leader of the Saint Beasts hobble by, a very familiar-looking goat clamped on his left leg. In fact, it was the same goat at the zoo that had developed a penchant for Suzaku's pants.
The chimera raised an eyebrow. "I don't want to know…"
***Reikai***
"Kae-chan…" Botan looked at the Ice Maiden, who kept her eyes tightly shut. "Kae-chan, we're here!"
"Really…?" Kaeru lowered her hands from her eyes and finally opened them. Sure enough, they were in front of a big pagoda-like building.
Botan lifted her passenger down and then the oar disappeared in a flash of yellow light. "Koenma-sama's office isn't too far inside." She offered Kaeru her hand, who took it and, as the wide doors swept open, they stepped inside.
"Oh, good, she's here!" A blue-skinned one-horned creature wearing nothing but a tiger-striped loincloth hurried over to them.
Kaeru shrank behind Botan with a muted squeak. The creature looked at her in puzzlement. "Am I that scary?"
"Kaeru, this is Jorge, Koenma-sama's assistant," the blue-haired ferrygirl explained. "He's an oni…and don't worry. Even if he LOOKS fierce, he and the other oni here are huge softies."
"P-p-pleased to meet you," the Koorime stammered timorously, not venturing out from her hiding place.
Jorge shrugged resignedly and turned, leading the two into a large room with several large stacks of paperwork. In the center was a big desk, facing a huge screen suspended up above. Behind the desk sat a toddler with a big hat. Beside the desk, looking very sour, was…
Forgetting her fear of Jorge, Kaeru stepped forward. "Hiei-san!"
"Koorime," he returned, the bored look never leaving his face.
The blue oni gaped at her. "She's afraid of me, but she's happy to see HIM?"
"Save your griping for later." Koenma looked directly at Kaeru, who gazed back at him blankly. "Kaeru, do you know why I've called you here?"
"No, not really..."
"Figures." The toddler drummed his fingers on the desk's surface. "With some grudging help from Hiei, and much research, I've finally learned why Zenkai seeks your demise." He regarded the little Koorime solemnly. "Have you ever heard of the Kinmuku Hiruiseki?"
Kaeru thought hard. Had Ruri ever mentioned that in her years of schooling? "Gomen, Koenma-sama, but I can't say I've heard of it."
Koenma picked up a sheet of paper and began to read aloud from it. "Every three hundred and sixty-six years, an Ice Maiden is born with the ability to produce a unique tear-gem called the Kinmuku Hiruiseki: The pure gold tear-gem. This jewel is capable of eternally sealing away any spirit and also harbors an immeasurable amount of power within it. The hiruiseki will not appear unless its wielder summons it in times of great danger. If the Ice Maiden who carries it cannot harness the gem's power, she will be utterly destroyed by its power."
The Ice Maiden blinked. "That's a very nice story, Koenma-sama, but I don't quite--"
"You are the Koorime with the gem," Hiei interrupted her. "You carry the Kinmuku Hiruiseki."
"Precisely," Koenma agreed. "Zenkai wants to kill you because the gem you carry has the power to seal him away forever. You're a threat to his existence and as long as you're alive, you have the potential to destroy him."
Poor Kaeru looked a bit overwhelmed. Her knees slowly buckled and she started to sink to the ground. Hiei seized her arm and hauled her up before she fell.
"Arigato," she told him, before looking pleadingly at the Reikai prince. "How…how…WHY am I the one who carries it? Are you SURE it's me?"
"I'm sorry to say there's no doubt that it IS you, Kaeru," he said heavily. "It's shown up in your family twice. Your great-grandmother and HER grandmother had it. Your grandmother was killed before it was determined if she carried the gem as well. And that is undoubtedly why Zenkai murdered your mother and is now coming after you. He knows the pattern. Your mother never actually had the gem, but he had to make sure." He gazed at her. "Do you understand how important this is?"
"Hai…" The Koorime closed her eyes. Her mother had been killed…because of her.
"Your mother was killed because Zenkai was a witless bastard," Hiei suddenly said. She looked at him, startled, and he smirked, his Jagan glowing faintly underneath his band of white cloth. His hand, still holding her arm, squeezed slightly, before he released her.
He's hard to understand, Kaeru thought. "Is that all, Koenma-sama?"
He nodded. "It is. You may return to Ningenkai…just be very careful. If Zenkai knows that you ARE, without a doubt, the one who holds the Kinmuku Hiruiseki, he'll do everything in his power to destroy you as quickly as possible."
Kaeru bowed and retreated. Botan followed her, pink eyes filled with concern. If she noticed that her little friend was silent during the trip back to Ningenkai, she didn't remark upon it.
***Back to Kuronue and Suzaku…and the goat***
"I don't care WHAT Kaeru says about not hurting it, I'm going to ROAST IT AND HANG ITS HEAD ON MY WALL!" Suzaku howled, kicking at the goat…still stubbornly gnawing on his pants.
Kuronue discreetly inched away. This was all giving him one hell of a migraine. He went outside for some air.
"It's Kuronue, isn't it?"
The chimera glanced to his right. Hiken was approaching, smiling amiably. "Hey," he replied nonchalantly.
"Is my niece at home? I'd hoped to speak with her."
Kuronue had wanted to speak to Kaeru as well…for a few days, he'd been wrestling with the concept of telling her what had happened while she had been intoxicated. Every time he had tried to bring it up, however, the inquisitive look on her face stopped him short. He just couldn't tell her. That bothered him…blunt, brash, brutally honest thief that he was.
"No, she isn't."
"Hmmm…that's a shame." The man glanced at him, and then lowered his voice confidentially, looking up at the deep blue sky. "You know, she's the only family I have left. I was so young, but I was with my sister and my mother…but then the other Koorime…took them away from me. I never saw Kazuko or my mother again. I just couldn't understand…why all Koorime, male AND female couldn't live together peacefully. Why was I cast away?"
The other youkai was wondering why Hiken had decided to tell him this, but obliged him. "And then what happened?"
"I was raised by a kindly youkai couple, got older, learned about Zenkai, and sought my only living relation." Hiken sighed. "I just want to keep her safe."
"You and everyone else," Kuronue remarked.
"Kuro-kun!" Botan came circling down, with Kaeru clinging to her waist. "We're baaaaack!"
"Oh, goody…" He reached up to take Kaeru from the oar. She went into his arms quite willingly. "So, how was it? Did the baby need a new diaper-changer or something?"
"No, that wasn't it." The Ice Maiden waved to her uncle as the chimera set her down. "Gomen, Hiken-san, Kuronue-san, but I don't feel too well…" She headed inside, practically drooping.
Kuronue and Hiken watched her go, and then looked at Botan. "What happened?" They said in one voice.
The ferrygirl fidgeted on her oar. "I'm really not at liberty to divulge--" She flinched when Kuronue reached for his scythe. "It's nothing, really! Kaeru just has this tear-gem thingy that can beat Zenkai and if he finds out, she'll be doomed, but…oooh, don't tell Koenma-sama I said that!"
"Not a word," Hiken promised. "She'd be in even more danger than before…"
"Suzaku-san! What are you doing to that poor goat!"
"Don't try to stop me, Kaeru. That thing has a deathwish, and it's about to be granted!"
"Oops." Botan got off her oar and ran towards the house. "I'd better help out."
The two males sighed in unison.
From high above, unseen and unheard, a pair of cruel crimson eyes narrowed. "That's just perfect…"
*OOC*
I adore doing this. XD Anyway, please review! NEXT chapter, which will probably be extremely short, but hopefully very funny!
* We all know what a flirt Kuronue is…but what happens when he flirts with the wrong person?
* Why you should never answer the door for a vampire slayer…can Kaeru resolve things peacefully, will Hiei shed some blood, or will Kuro get slayed? Stay tuned…
