Death Dimension

Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi, Shonen Jump, FUNimation, etc. However, I do own Taikyo, Kathryn and Darryl Verne, the plot, the Shattered Sword Inn, and the alternate universe.

Warnings: This story contains mild shonen ai. If anyone has a problem with that, don't tell me. I don't care. Also, the story uses the traditional vampire theme, instead of the new "modern" one. Don't complain about it to me.

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Chapter Six: Of Silverware and a Wish


A soft sigh escaped Kuwabara as he and the other Tantei entered the dimly lit shop. It was across the cobblestone street from the inn they were staying at, and the sign hanging above the door proclaimed that it was a tailor's store.

'Great. Just what I need: trying on clothes...' he thought wryly as the wooden door closed behind him. As always, he had ended up at the back of the group.

The shopkeeper by the counter looked up as they approached, his eyes widening when he caught sight of the dark glistening wings behind Yusuke. However, one quick glare from the detective silenced any comments that he had intended to say.

"H-How can I help you, sirs?" the man asked timidly, gulping as he caught sight of Hiei. Kuwabara glanced at the Jaganshi as well, his eyes widening when he noticed that Hiei's crimson orbs were glowing brightly in the shadows of the store.

'Nice discovery, Sherlock. Urameshi only just said something about the shrimp being a vampire on the way here...' The ningen snorted under his breath as Yusuke began to talk.

"Actually... We're wondering if you have anything made for travelers like us... We're planning on heading into the Shadow Realm once we leave here, so we'll need to be prepared. What we have at the moment won't do us much good." the former human replied smoothly, his acting skills actually surprising his companions.

The man nodded quickly, though he tried to look calm. "Y-Yes, as a matter of fact, we do. T-They're over on the back wall... H-However, t-they're all quite e-expensive..."

Yusuke glared at him darkly, causing the human to quickly restate his phrase. "I-I mean, everything i-is half-price off f-for you, my g-good sir!"

"That's what I thought." the tenshi called over his shoulder as he strode over towards the indicated wall. Sure enough, dozens of outfits and cloaks were on display, all made of fine battle-worthy leather and other strong materials.

Kuwabara hung back a bit as the other Tantei members set to work on trying to force Hiei into trying on the many thick cloaks that were there, trying to find one that 'suited him.' Kuwabara, however, decided to browse for himself.

A soft sigh escaped the ningen as he strolled past the various shelves, not really gazing at the clothing. Instead, he turned to his own troubling thoughts.

The rest of the detectives were accepting this dimensional change without a care in the world; Yusuke seemed rather happy about it, almost... Sure, Kurama was distraught, and Hiei had been terribly hurt, but never once did they act like they hated it. To them, it seemed to be only a change in scenery, nothing more than a trip to the Makai...

...To Kuwabara, it wasn't.

Rarely had he ever left the Ningenkai or Reikai, only having traveled to the Demon World a few times before. This wasn't just a 'change of scenery' for him. This new realm was completely different than what he was accustomed to, and it looked like it was something out of a video game. ( Not that he had played many role-playing games, as he was more into fighting and chance. ) He knew next to nothing that could help them, whether it be about monsters, or just outright knowledge.

'...I just wish... that there could be one time where I was the hero... Just once... Where I could save them, instead of getting my arse kicked while they rescue me...'

"Oi, Kuwabara! You better find something quick, or we'll leave without you!" Yusuke called suddenly, breaking through the human's thoughts. Kuwabara sighed, turning around and making his way back to his friends, quickly grabbing the first few things that looked remotely appealing.

Little did he know, as they paid and left the shop, Kuwabara would get his wish...

---

"Alright, where to next?" the kitsune asked as they made their way back in to the throng of people, his tone a bit more satisfied than before. Needless to say, the fact that he had bought a tunic similar to the one that his youko side had worn raised his spirits slightly. The only difference was that it was ebony-colored, and was a bit more intricate in style.

Yusuke paused before replying to Kurama's question. "Hm... Well, we can't really use our reiki or youki, right?"

Kuwabara nodded. "Yeah. I tried summoning my Sword earlier, but nothing happened."

"It could just be you, baka." Hiei scoffed, his shining eyes peering out from under the hood of his new cloak.

The kitsune intervened before a fight could start, having not the energy to deal with it. "To the weaponry it is, then..."

Yusuke lead the way through the rough crowd, his wings now hidden by a cloak of his own. This time, however, the people parted quickly, somehow sensing the dark auras milling about Hiei and the tenshi. Nevertheless, it was still a slight struggle to get through the narrow path created.

Eventually, they reached the store, which had been only five doors down. Yusuke shoved the heavy door open, letting the rest of the team slip in after him. It was a bit lighter than the tailor's shop, having been lit with many more lamps. After a few moments of looking around at the various weapons that lined the walls and shelves, they made their way over to the counter.

The salesclerk, this time, was a rather aged man with a thick, bushy beard. He had a battle-scorn face, and as he looked up at the new customers, he revealed his wise grey eyes. However, deep suspicion could be seen in the silver-shaded orbs; obviously, he wasn't too trusting of people.

Yusuke wasn't daunted by his appearance, instead letting his act fall back into place. "We're looking for a few things that would aid us in our journey through the Shadow Realm..."

The man paused, surveying the youth in front of him before nodding. "Aye... What kind of weapon do ye have in mind?"

The tenshi glanced back at the other Tantei before continuing. "I'll let them tell you for themselves... For me, though, I'm looking for any kind of gun..."

"Hm..." the man said, frowning. "I'm afraid that we don't carry those here... But if you travel to Indarcis, you'll probably find one there. With all the strange creatures they get, they'll need somethin' like that."

Yusuke nodded before moving aside as Kurama stepped forward. "A whip, sir, if you have one..."

A lopsided grin appeared on the elder's face as he hobbled out from behind the counter. "Aye, do we have one...! Only the finest, lad!"

He led the kitsune to a wardrobe-like cabinet on the right side of the shop, pulling out a small ring of keys from inside of his pocket. After sorting through a few of them, he found the desired one, and used it to unlock the door.

Kurama's eyes widened slightly as the man pulled out a long, thick leather whip that had been coiled tightly. The length of it glistened with the flames from the lamps, indicating that there was some sort of coating on it.

The man noticed the fox's curious stare, and chose to answer the unvoiced question. "The fine craftsman had metal worked into it. From what he told me, it's steel."

Kurama nodded in approval, quickly giving him the amount of gold required before taking the weapon from him. He made to speak again, but was cut off as Kuwabara pushed him aside.

"Gimme a broadsword, old man! I already know how to use one-!"

However, he was interrupted as Yusuke suddenly fell into hysterics at Hiei's comment of, "He should be buying a club, not a sword."

---

"Alright, that's everything..." Yusuke announced as he stuffed a few dozen slips of thin paper into the leather carrying bag they had purchased. "...Bandages, astringent, and Holy wards..."

Kuwabara frowned. "'Holy wards'? Why'd we need those?"

The tenshi replied as he swung the bag over his shoulder, wincing slightly as it collided with his wing. "...In case Hiei falls into a bloodlust. We'll have to have a way of controlling him..."

Ignoring the threatening growl that sounded from the former youkai, Yusuke began to lead the Tantei back towards the inn. Yet they had gone no more than a few yards when a man rushed up to them.

Instantly, the detective's eyes narrowed in suspicion, on alert due to the subtle hostile look in the stranger's eyes. He had neck-length straight black hair and slanted, steel-gray eyes. His build was lean, and he seemed to be around six-feet in height. His attire consisted of loose-fitting pants and a sleeveless shirt, both of which were in a gray color scheme.

"Good afternoon... You're Yusuke, correct?" He seemed to be trying his best to sound polite, though he wasn't succeeding.

The tenshi tensed slightly, unnerved that this man knew his name. 'But wait... Didn't Kat' say something about a bounty for me...? What if they put up fliers here, just like in Western movies? What if this guy's going to try and kill me? What if-?'

However, his mental ranting was interrupted by Kurama nudging him in the ribs, muttering something about replying to the stranger. Yusuke sighed before complying. "...Yeah, I am. And who the hell are you?"

The man shot a small glare at him. "Darryl Verne. I'm Kathryn's husband..."

The detective's eyes widened in surprise, though he felt himself relax. If Kathryn knew him - and really knew him; as in, all of him - then he could be trusted, right? "Oh... Well, do you need something?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact. My dearest wife-" (He rolled his eyes here.) "-insisted on me showing your little posse where I work. Don't ask me why... Women are confusing creatures." Darryl responded, his tone implying that he really didn't want to be doing this.

Yusuke chuckled quietly at his latter comment. "At least we have something in common..."

---

"Oh! Mr. Verne, you're back early!"

Kurama raised a brow as the boy, who seemed to be around the age of his own brother, exchanged a few words with Darryl. It turned out that the man worked as a blacksmith, and the youth was his apprentice.

The kitsune's gaze wandered away from the two humans and over to Hiei, who was standing beside Yusuke in an almost obedient manner. Kurama bit his lip slightly, subconsciously upset with the sight.

'First he pushes me away last night, and now he's practically clinging to Yusuke... Could there be...?'

The fox's thoughts were cut off as he realized that he had been staring blankly at the wall, and he quickly turned his attention back to the conversation at hand.

"-...so she comes in asking to me to make her a set of perfect silverware, because she's got a couple of 'important' guests coming over. I couldn't turn her down, so I had to accept it... I finished it today; it's over on that shelf... At least it was good pay, you know? I mean, the last time..."

Kurama felt his concentration failing again, and he found himself walking over to the aforementioned shelf. As the boy had said, there was a finely-crafted set of silverware gleaming on its surface; four pairs of each utensil, perfectly aligned in the display box...

Unconsciously, the kitsune had reached up to examine one of the knives. He had taken it up and was flipping it over with slight interest before he became aware of a terrible burning sensation that eclipsed his hand.

Kurama glanced down in slight panic, his eyes widening when he saw that his skin had become a flaming red, and was now being covered by dark shades that seemed to be coming from the knife itself.

The pain intensified ten-fold, and Kurama immediately let out a cry of agony before collapsing to the ground.


A/N

Slow Motion Runner: You're welcome for the extra info... n.n; As for Hiei losing the Kokoryuuha... I don't know if he'll get it back, even when they return to their own dimension. ( That is, if I decide to let them! ) True, it's probably going to affect the Tantei greatly... more so than it already has. Finally, Hiei's revulsion to drinking the blood... As it will be revealed, our favorite Jaganshi now thinks of himself as a parasite, so to speak... A pathetic thing. ( Isn't it fun? I love making the characters depressed... Muaha. )

x. tenshi: 'angel'

x. reiki: Spirit Energy, from what I've heard.

x. youki: Demon Energy

x. It was a very slow and boring chapter, I know. Sadly, it was required for the story to progress, so... yeah. Don't worry; one more chapter and then you'll have the big full moon scene...

x. If the chapter title can get any stupider...

x. Someone asked about making fanart for the story. My reply is, go right ahead! I'd be overjoyed if someone went through the trouble to do that. n.n Honestly, please do, if you have the time and energy!