Chapter Vier
Botan spent hours digging through the debris of her former home in search of something, she should never have taken it off. He told her to take care of it and she failed to do so. She clawed and dug through the sizzling wood, her hands burning and bleeding from red splinters in the wood.
The group of four newly acquainted boys stood behind her, watching her, there was nothing they could do but watch. "Wow, in a matter of moments the inn went down." The other said
"I wonder who would do this?" the redhead asked looking around, seemingly for clues. "There had to be a reason why they chose this place and not any other. Someone of high importance must have been inside."
"Like a famous person?" The Carrot top asked.
"Hn. You really are stupid aren't you?" the dark stranger teased but grew serious when his senses picked up something. "Hn," He looked back at the Botan, "Onna, get up and answer are you coming with us of not?"
"Not, yet, I have to find it, it has to be here." Botan frantically dug, tears stinging her eyes. Then she saw it and reached her hand to grab it just as someone plucked her from the remains of the inn. She looked up and saw the eyes of the Dark Stranger. "Hey what the heck?"
The redhead sniffed the air and wrinkled his nose and backed up, "Perhaps we should get out of here, it seems the one who started this fire did not kill whom he wanted to kill." The two boys next to the redhead looked at him and nodded as they ran through the dusty city; the dark Stranger not too far behind with Botan in his arms.
The soon came to a stop when they felt the presents of the being dissipate with distance, what ever it was, it was not following them.
"Okay this is just freaky. First I wake up one day and I can't remember who I am, then I find an Inn with hot girls and the next thing I know it burns down to the ground…" The carrot topped boy exclaimed dramatically before being cut off by the other.
"Wait, you said you woke up not knowing who you are?" He asked rhetorically, "The same thing happened to me."
"Hm, to me as well." The redhead added.
"Hn." The dark stranger spoke the same words as he put Botan down. "So none of us know who we are, and we all happened to meet at the same inn? Meet this same girl and survived the same fire?"
"Yes, it does seem a bit odd. More than just a coincidence."
Botan looked up in shock; maybe they were whom she had first thought they were. Maybe there was still a chance to save the world and make things better.
"What was it that you had to save back there anyway?" The other asked Botan. She opened her hand and smiled. A blue pacifier on a silver chain lay in the palm of her hand. "A pacifier?" The other raised one eyebrow.
"Yes. It was entrusted to me by a friend." She said putting it on.
"Back to this test of fate we have now found ourselves in." the redhead cut in once more, "lets see if our reasons for meeting at this inn match up." He said "I had a dream and inn it was the inn. Four shadows darkened the corner."
"I had that same dream." The carrot top said as the other two nodded. Now it was more than just a coincidence, this was something bigger something out of their control. "What does this mean?"
"I am not sure, but there is a reason we all met up." The redhead said then all eyes were on Botan. She flinched and giggled in nervousness.
"Eheh, what?" she shivered, her eyes passing over theirs. "You think I have something to do with this?"
"There is something oddly familiar about you. What is it?" The redhead asked himself, "Tell me, is there anyone who might be after you?"
"N-no not that I know of,"
"Wait, earlier you called me Kurama. Could it be that you know who we are?" he asked and this time all eyes were bearing down on her.
"Huh? Me?" she gulped
"Hn, Onna if you Know, Then Tell Us." The dark Stranger urged her forcibly with his voice.
"Yeah, Please" the carrot top added in a nice tone. "I am tired of not knowing."
"Oh, But you might not believe me if I told you, and I could be wrong." Botan looked down finding sudden interest in the dust-covered ground. "It's all my fault you are like this." she frowned
"Come on, you have to, we deserve to know who we are." The other said almost begging.
"Okay, but not here." She said looking around a bit paranoid. "Lets go somewhere less…crowded" She looked up.
"The surface?! Are you insane? If we go up there we will have to face a whole army." The orange-headed teen said.
"Its okay, I know a place were, just trust me and come on." Botan ran off to the exit of the city, checking for the army. No sign of them. She pushed open the doorway and the boys followed eager to find out their pasts. Botan led them to the park of laughing children and pulled them into a small cavern beneath the slide.
"Whoa, this place is creepy." The orange head said, "the sounds of ghost children." He shivered
"Okay, no one will find us here." Botan said sitting down forming a circle with the other four. "The story a am about to tell you will change everything." She said, "First off, I am Botan. And your names are: Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei." She pointed to each one in turn as they came in order from left to right.