Disclaimer: I don't own YYH, and even if I said I did, I doubt their lawyers are reading this. Right? (sweatdrop)
"Will all exploration units for the WDEC please report to Koenma's office. Thank you."
Evvy and Finn paused over their dinners in the employee café. They exchanged surprised glances, then quickly got up and abandoned their meals. They had never been to Koenma's office, but there were helpful signs all over the place, so they found it relatively easily. They arrived to find two other units already there. A 37-year-old black-haired, pale-skinned, red-eyed woman named Dian, and a 42-year-old man, Max, with brown hair, tan skin, and eyes that were black through and through. Dian nodded gravely at them, then went back to looking expectantly at the door through which Koenma, the ruler of all Spirit World, was supposed to enter. Max simply ignored them, all attention on the door. Leaning against the back wall, Finn and Evvy joined them. A few seconds later Jacob, their instructor and the oldest unit in the group, came in, wearing blue jeans and a pajama top. Looking slightly abashed, Jacob took the remaining chair.
They all waited patently, for the first five minutes. Then Finn got kinda fidgety. Evvy wanted to sit down, but there was no way that the Ruler of Spirit World's first impression of her would be taken with her butt on the floor.
A few more minutes later, a deep, scratchy voice could be heard on the other side of Koenma's door.
"But sir! They've been waiting for nearly ten minutes already! Shouldn't you get out there?"
"Shut up Ogre! I can clearly see that you posses no management finesse. The first rule of asserting your authority is to make them wait! Now be quite!"
Evvy was confused. The first voice was obviously one of an ogre (Klaud had told them that all ogres shared the same last name, but when questioned on it he had coughed and muttered something about a legal mix-up, and then changed the subject). But what about the second voice? It sounded like a child's. Or really, more like a spoiled brat.
A few seconds later, the Ruler of Spirit World walked through the door, but nobody knew quite what to make of him. He hopped onto his dest chair, then fixed them all with a critical stare that looked very out-of place on his toddler's face.
"Sorry for the wait. Now, I've called you all here to discuss a very important issue that has arisen in Makai. You are all familiar with what happens to worlds you clear for inhabitancy, correct?"
Nobody moved an inch, so Koema answered his own question.
"Yes, they become the residence of Spirit World's growing populace, or possibly prison camps for the more dreary worlds. When a culture is moved to a world- involving a long and hard process we won't get into- all its native art and treasures go with it."
Evvy was familiar
with this part. While she and the other four units held open an
extremely large portal, a culture's buildings, monuments, and just
about everything else important to them was sent through to their new,
empty home. This involved the assistance of telekinetic individuals
from the Department of Tele-studies, who also worked as a team to lift
entire buildings together.
It was very trying and slow work,
uprooting and re-planting entire cultures, and the projects usually
lasted for weeks at a time. Luckily for Evvy and Finn, they had only to
endure three such projects so far.
"Well," Koenma's baby face grew even more serious, "someone has been stealing their treasures." Seeing all the looks of dumbfounded confusion, Koenma assumed it had arisen from what he had just said and so explained,"I know, I know. The entire purpose of moving these people was to give them room to expand, free of influence. So it should be impossible to get to them..." Koenma frowned, suddenly angry. "Unless we have a mole in our Portal Network."
The Portal Network was aptly named. Created before even King Enma's rule, it was the one sure way for someone to get to everywhere from anywhere, as long as they had a Coordinator on their side. Coordinators determined when, where, for how long, and with what destination each world's portal, or World Gate, would appear. Humans like Evvy and Finn were able to get through the walls of worlds without using the 'door' that was the single portal every world possessed of its own accord. But they all knew what could happen if an individual had access to every world's Gate. They'd be untraceable, uncatchable, and if they were evil... they could get away with anything they wanted. Unless... Sometimes Finn was able to detect portals, which was how he unerringly showed up every time Evvy came home from assignment.
Koenma sighed. "Which is why I've enlisted your help. You lot don't need the World Gates to get to the worlds, and I've been told that a select member of this group," His gaze focused on Finn, "can detect portals, and possibly trace them."
Finn turned beat red. "Erm, well sir, I'll try my best, sir..."
Koenma nodded. "Good. Once you locate the world the marauders are currently in, I'll send in a team of my elite to stop them, along with you and your sister. You two are to make sure they don't escape through a portal."
"And just how are they going to do that?" Inquired Dian.
"Easy. Finn will locate any portal that opens, and Evvy will close it."
It was Evvy's turn to blush. "I-I'm not sure I can, sir, I've only done it once, and it was just a practical joke..." Max scowled.
Evvy had a fondness for practical jokes, and so as a way of meeting the other units when she first arrived at the WDEC, Evvy had played a joke on each of them. Dian got the sudden appearance of a small portal over her head that had dumped ten gallon's worth of sea water on her, after she had just taken a shower. Jacob had his brown hair dye replaced with pink one morning, and so had to wear a baseball cap for the rest of the day. But for the one unit that had been the rudest, and had the biggest ego, of the group, Max, Evvy had done a very long and much more subtle joke. Taking one of her vacation days, Evvy sat in her office with a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door. She stuck her hands into the Ether and concentrated on one thing: Stopping Max's portals. All day long, try after try, Max couldn't get to the world WDEC had assigned for him to explore. Becoming increasingly frustrated, Max eventually had to break down and ask for help. Evvy had made sure that Finn would be the only help available on that particular day. Arriving in time to see Max's admittance of needing help, Evvy was also treated to an excellent performance by Finn, who had by that time figured out what she had been up to all day. And so he put poor Max through all the motions of explaining just what was the problem, just what he had done about the problem, and just what might solve the problem (all the while, Max was getting redder and redder at being treated like a child). Then, catching Evvy's eye, Finn asked Max to go ahead and try to open a portal. Max, fed up by then and not expecting to succeed, fell over backwards when his careless jerk brought into existence a very sloppy portal, which then proceeded to dump cold sea water on him. Max never quite forgave Evvy and Finn after that, but sense he was never much fun anyway, they didn't really mind. As for Jacob and Dian, they appreciated the planning that went into their jokes, and after getting Evvy to swear she'd never, ever, EVER do it again, they forgave her.
But to do what Koenma was asking, holding close a World Gate... it'd be a challenge. Evvy liked challenges.
She nodded. "I'll do it."
Koenma smiled. "Good. Now, any questions?"
Finn tentatively raised his hand.
"Yes?"
"Sir, why are you a toddler? And what's with the pacifier?"
Koenma turned an interesting shade of red as everyone nodded their agreement to the question. He said in a harsh voice, "Any questions pertaining to the matter at hand?" A pause. "No? Well then, let's get started."
Please review, even if you don't like it, because then I can't change what you don't like 'cause I won't know about it! That made sense, right? (confused)