The Heart Remembers
(YYH fanfic)
"There it goes," yells Yusuke. They were chasing a demon, it was supposed to be named Hanneko and very powerful. Supposedly it was an air/wind demon. They were all running through a forest looking for Hanneko.
There was a rustling in the tree nearby and Hiei stabbed his katana into the branches viciously. A small sparrow flew out but there were no gasping breaths or screams of pain that would signify someone's death. The whole team sighs in exhaustion and looks around.
A shape moves form behind one tree to behind another and Hiei is there in a flash. But when he turns there's nothing there. Just then a bush tumbles across their vision because of picking up winds. A small chuckle comes from the tree closest to Hiei. They all lookup and come face to face with a girl about seventeen or so sitting in the branches with a sparrow on her left shoulder.
Her hair is an odd black red and she has eyes that are such a deep brown they look completely black. "So, what have I done wrong now?" she asks in a sarcastic voice. She jumps down to stand next to Kuwabara and looks them all over carefully. Surprisingly enough they all don't try to capture her but hold back unsure why.
Kuruma looks at her calmly and says "I believe that you should know the answer to that same question."
Hanneko looks him over quizzically and says quite confused "I don't know what you mean, usually they tell me what I have done wrong and I am to pay the price." She looks at them again and sighs to herself. "I can not remember what crimes I have committed so I am told my crimes."
Hiei looks at her suspiciously and gives his signature "Hn."
Yusuke and Kuwabara look at each other slightly confused about everything that has happened.
Kuruma looks at her thoughtfully and says "Do you mean to say you have no memory of your past what so ever?"
"No, I...I don't. Least not of the past five years."
Kuwabara's eyes light up comprehending one of the first things Hanneko said. "So others have tried to capture you?" he says hopefully.
"Correct," she replies.
"Ha Ha then we'll be the first," he says and starts walking over to Hanneko.
"Wait!" yells Yusuke and Kuwabara stops mid-step.
"So you have been pursued for crimes that you have done in the past that of which you can not remember?" Kuruma asks.
She nods and her eyes fill with hope.
Hiei grunts his "Hn" put in an unconvinced way but doesn't move.
"It's okay you don't have to believe me, I don't want to fight anyone though for I know not which side I am on let alone which side you are on, I don't even know if there are sides anymore," She looks down at the ground, pats her sparrow still on her shoulder and continues more calm now. "What am I being captured for anyway?"
Yusuke and Kuwabara look astounded then say in unison "No idea, Koenma never tells us anything." When they don't notice Kuruma nod or Hiei say "Hn" they frown and are about to start arguing when they notice Kuruma is smiling slightly and Hiei has an amused look on his face since he doesn't smile much.
Kuruma looks at Hanneko thoughtfully being very careful with his words and says to Yusuke and Kuwabara "Koenma does not tell you but Hiei and myself know."
Hanneko looks at the little group confused then sits down ready for a long argument. But before Kuwabara or Yusuke can yell at Kuruma or Hiei Kuruma says "Never mind about that, for the time being we should be focusing on the problem at hand."
Hanneko stands up quickly and gets into a fighting position. Kuwabara steps toward her again then is stopped when Kuruma says "Perhaps we should find if she speaks the truth?"
Kuwabara shrugs, sits down and starts toying with a branch to his right. Hanneko relaxes her pose and gives a relieved look to the boys.
She sits down next to Kuwabara and Yusuke sits down next to her. Kuruma joins the small circle but doesn't sit down, he stands instead. And Hiei is off a bit leaning against a tree ready for anything.
Hanneko says to Hiei telepathically "Could you perhaps tell me what I have been convicted of?"
Hiei hears her question and answers telepathically back "Murder," he says this simply and without explanation.
She glances over at him and his face does not change emotion even in the slightest degree. Hanneko turns back to the small circle and they all stare at her confused except Kuruma who is looking at Hiei questionably and worriedly.
Hiei stares back at Kuruma; Kuruma turns back to Hanneko and says "You can not remember anything of your past at all what so ever?"
"No, well actually I can remember a scene but whenever I try to recall it I get a terrible pain, it courses through my body and leaves me throbbing pitifully."
"Do you remember the scene?" asks Yusuke.
"Yes, I was-I was throwing two daggers at a corn husk and I was about fifty feet away...I-I didn't miss. Also I used my wind power to draw the daggers back to me. I-I don't know why but that scene really scares me."
Kuruma looks at her concerned and nods solemnly.
Kuwabara looks around the circle slightly confused and says "Maybe we should just let Koenma handle this one."
Hiei nods in agreement but Yusuke and Kuruma look at one another not sure, then Yusuke shrugs and Kuruma nods in submission.
At Koenma's office
"I see you boys have found Hanneko and defeated her, you are unscathed" says Koenma.
"Well...," says Yusuke and Koenma tilts his head to the side in confusion.
"What he is trying to say Koenma sir is that we have found Hanneko but she can not remember any of the crimes she had committed or anything else for that matter," says Kuruma.
"What do you mean Kuruma?" asks Koenma. Just then Hanneko walks into the room looking uncomfortable and says "He-Hello? Sorry to bother you but I-I am Hanneko." Koenma just stares at her a while, turns to the group standing off to own side and looks at then one at a time, then turns back to Hanneko and walks out of the room.
Everyone follows him out of the room with their eyes. They all stand there a couple seconds then pass around uneasy looks.
When Koenma returns he is in his teenage form. He walks right in front of Hanneko staring straight into her eyes. Then in a split second they are hugging and murmuring small sounds to each other in another language.
They break apart and hold each other at arms length. "Oh Hanneko I haven't seen you for so long, the whole team thought you were dead."
She smiles and says "I-I have no idea what your talking about but when you stood there staring into my eyes my heart made me hug you."
Koenma nods sternly and mumbles "You can't erase the heart's remembrance."
"Perhaps you can tell me what I have forgotten," Hanneko said very hopefully.
"Of course, of course. Let's see, you were kidnapped for five years and were most likely tortured I can see faint scares, you never did bruise easily. Anyway, the team you worked with was called the undefeated, the name is ironically painful. You had three other members Lamoin, Camlain, and Melakan. Your group was chasing a rather powerful demon and you were taken hostage. Lamoin, Melakan, and Camlain came back and said they saw the demon murder you. They must have seen an illusion. If I had known you still lived I would have sent a group out to rescue you."
Hanneko stared at Koenma for a few seconds trying to remember any of this when she felt a twitch of pain but she ignores it and tries harder to remember.
The twitch turns to a throb and now she can't ignore it any longer. Hanneko closes her eyes tightly and a flashA man, with blue eyes, the eyes are drilling into your head, your mind. The pain oh the pain, it's too much. That person they are erasing everything, it's so painful.
Hanneko is jarred back to life by hands on her shoulders shaking her aggressively yet tenderly. Her eyes wince open and Koenma is in his teenage form still looking into her eyes hopefully.
She shakes her head to clear her mind and push out the throbbing pain. Hanneko slowly rises to her feet and wobbly leans on the wall to steady herself. She opens her eyes slowly to the concerned faces of Kuruma, Kuwabara, Koenma, and Yusuke. Hiei looks at her unemotional as though staring right through her and says "She seems to have recovered."
"I'll be sure not to care about you if you fall into the pain of trying to remember," Hanneko says harshly. Hiei just shrugs and turns away.
Hanneko glares in his direction coldly but is interrupted by Yusuke saying "Soooo...what happened?" Hanneko looks at him blankly thinking only of the small disagreement with Hiei. Then her eyes light up and she says "I tried to remember anything that Koenma had said and my whole body started throbbing at the effort and I, well I collapsed," she states plainly.
"Oh, umm, okay," Yusuke says uncertainly.
Kuruma looks at her concerned and says "Perhaps it was a side-effect from when you were tortured and there is a curse or such upon you."
"His name was Melakan," she says quietly but everyone hears her anyway and they stare at her perplexed. She looks up at their faces angrily and yells "When I tried to remember what Koenma said I recognized him." And then shouting at the top of her lungs "That's right a member of my own team deceived me and tortured me," and then bursts into tears.