Disclaimer: What? I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho. Haven't you heard? Some guy named Yoshihiro Togashi does.
oooOOOooo
Chapter 6: Preparations and Revelations
He hadn't meant for this to happen.
He really hadn't.
His plan had been to just get in, get out, and get on with his life. Sure, interference had been expected; it always was. But this?
This was ridiculous.
He had raided Lord Kakashi's Vault a few times before, and each time, he had been met by a horde of dumb and useless henchmen. This time, however, when there was actually something exquisite to pilfer, he was met, instead, by a horde of formidable humans and half-breeds…
Spirit Detectives
One, he could have handled. Two to five, he could have evaded. But twenty-five?
It was absurd. Absolutely absurd.
What didn't make any sense was how the pesky brats had known he was going to be plundering the cat-demon's estate that evening. The only other soul that had known about his plans was Kuronue, his dark-haired accomplice, so unless there was a third source that had overheard their scheming…
It just didn't make any—
"Youko! On your left!"
The silver-haired kitsune thrashed his head in said direction, only to cringe in pain as a fiery blast flew past his shoulder, grazing his skin. "Shit!"
See, that was the other problem. While their pursuers may have only been measly humans, King Yama's lap dogs if you will, about 95 of them were masters of one of the fox's most insufferable weaknesses…
Fire
"Dammit, Kurama! Stop thinking about your woman and focus!"
Youko shot his collaborator a nasty look, struggling to keep his pace even with the dark-haired youkai's. "I'm not thinking about—"
His partner cut him off with a wave of his hand and a simultaneous retort: "Just shut up and run!" He twirled his jeweled pendent around in his clenched fist a couple of times before adding, "And just so you know, you're a crappy liar!"
If there was one thing that Kuronue didn't handle well, it was fiascos like these. And at the moment that was a very bad thing.
Unfortunately, his bat-winged accomplice had been somewhat right: the blue-haired goddess had been involuntarily drifting in and out of his thoughts since the chase had initiated. He had left her back in his underground lair with her big-mouthed feline and a promise that he'd return, but at this rate, he wasn't exactly sure if he would. And if there was one demon that he couldn't rely on to care for the girl in his absence, it was Kuronue. The two of them fought like cats and dogs—well, that and the demon was currently in the same predicament as he, so…there wasn't much he could do for the fox if they both died.
A sharp pain tore through the kitsune's leg as another flaming mass flew past his body, causing him to stumble. He heard Kuronue gasp: "Youko!"
He pushed the bat demon's extended hand away, keeping his pace, but limping and cringing with each step he took. "We can't— augh—we can't go on like this!"
"I know!" came his curt reply. "But just what do you suggest we do?"
Well, considering he already knew how risky it was to fight fire with deadly, carnivorous plants, head-to head combat was out of the question. And since his leg was severely torn up, as well as one of his arms, running wasn't going to be an option for him much longer. Therefore, it was time to choose the lesser of two evils…
"Kuronue…"
"What?"
His pace began to slow. "You're going to have to go on without me."
The bat demon shot him a disbelieving look, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. "Are you mad?" He skillfully dodged another attack by ducking, causing the very tip of his fraying hat to get seared off. He cringed, but went on: "No, wait. I'm sorry. What I meant to say was: HAVE YOU COMPLETELY LOST YOUR FUCKING MIND?"
The kitsune's pace slowed a bit more, so, to keep himself from getting hit, he began to swerve in and out of trees. "Perhaps."
The dark-haired demon mimicked his movements, struggling to keep sight of his silvery hair. "Then what in Kami's name are you trying to—"
"Just go, will you? I'll keep them distracted for as long as I can!"
The bat youkai growled, patting the top of his smoking hat with a clawed hand. "No way, Kurama! There's not a chance in the seven levels of hell that I'd—"
"Dammit, Kuronue! Just let me finish!" He paused to release a painful breath of air. His partner remained silent. "Since I'm just about out of commission, you can run back to the liar, fetch Botan, and bring her to wherever it is I happen to lie after all of this is over. Keep her out of sight, of course, until the coast is clear. When it is, take her to my body. She can heal me. I'll be fine."
Kuronue laughed, loud and mockingly. "I'm afraid to say this, Youko, especially to you of all demons, but that has got to be the stupidest proposition I have ever heard!"
The fox sneered, throwing a seed behind him. "I'm sorry, did you have a better idea?"
The bat youkai was quiet for a moment, the only sound escaping him being heavy panting. Finally, he reluctantly replied: "Fine. You'll have your way. But I swear on my life that if this doesn't work, I'll kill the girl—and her stupid cat!"
The silver-haired kitsune didn't have time to argue. After all, he knew the feline wouldn't allow for it, and Botan was rather formidable herself when she wanted to be. Instead, he skidded to a stop, ducking behind his germinating Ojigi plant for cover. "Just go. And don't look back!"
Kuronue didn't heed to his command. Instead, he paused for a moment to duck alongside him, face seemingly dead-panned, but the kitsune knew better. "You're stupid, you know that?"
Kurama snorted, pushing him away. "Not half as stupid as you—now move!"
The bat demon shot him one last look before bolting upright and heading off. However, his choice to stop hadn't been a wise one, for some of the detectives had anticipated his last few moves…
And fired…
"KURONUE!"
The wounded fox could only watch in horror as his friend was hit 5 consecutive times in the back by sizzling, red and white fireballs, throwing him off his feet. His airborne body then slammed into a near-by tree, convulsed a little, and slid to the ground, his wings charred and bent in odd directions.
Was he dead? Kurama couldn't tell. All he knew was that he was pissed…
Very, very pissed.
He let out an angry roar before hurling a horde of 50+ seeds in the direction of the detectives. Unfortunately, most of them were charred before they had a chance to germinate, and those that did were trampled to death. A few of the more precise spores had managed to embed themselves in the chests of a couple of front-liners, but the overall damage to the group was completely negligible.
His golden eyes widened as his screaming Ojigi plants were torn up from the ground in front of him, leaving his 7-foot frame open for a direct attack. He grabbed his bleeding shoulder and slowly turned around in a complete circle, only to find himself surrounded; the angry mass of flaming hands was slowly closing in on him from all sides, the figures themselves masked by a thick sheet of grey and black smoke. And, much to his dismay, the Spirit Detectives must have finally lost their patience with him, for they wasted no time initiating their onslaught, and the fox could only gape into the orange void as over 20 fireballs closed in on his sagging body…
This was it.
This was the end.
Youko Kurama, the infamous Thief King, had finally fallen.
And as his body ignited into one, ferocious flame, charring his flawless skin to the bone, he couldn't help think…
'I'm sorry, Botan…I'm so sorry.'
And with that, he transformed into his spiritual fox form and fled the burning area, never to return again.
oooOOOooo
"Suichi…Suichi please don't look so sad. It mars your beautiful face."
Kurama sat immobile in a small chair next to his mother's hospital bed, elbows resting against the edge of the mattress and forehead in his hands. He slowly looked up at the sound of her weak voice, smiling wanly as his gaze rested upon her beaming visage. How the woman could be so cheerful at a time like this was beyond him.
"I'm sorry, mother," he replied softly, running his hands through his hair and pushing his body away from the bed. "It had already happened once before. I never…wanted it to happen again."
"I know," she replied softy. "Neither did I."
It was true, his mother had fallen ill not too long ago with an unknown disease that the doctors couldn't diagnose. But he had used the mystical powers of the Forlorn Hope to remedy that. Now, his mother was sick again, except this time she had Ovarian Cancer, and Kurama couldn't help but mourn over the fact that she was inevitably going to die. After all, she was barely eating, she was hallucinating, and, worst of all, her entire body was beginning to shut down, organ by organ. The cancer was spreading incredibly fast; it would take a miracle to cure her…
And that was something he no longer had.
He gently brushed a couple of stray, black locks from her drooping brown eyes and sighed. He hadn't told a soul about his mother's condition aside from Hiei (and even the fire demon had to coax it out of him); he just hadn't seen the point. Besides, everyone had their own burdens to deal with at the moment…
This one was his.
Shiori moaned softly, placing a hand over her abdomen and clenching her eyes shut; her smile had long vanished. "I will say, though," she began, her voice sounding somewhat strained, "that it isn't fair…" She slowly turned her head back towards her son. "For you. It isn't fair at all."
Kurama placidly took one his mother's bony hands within both of his and whispered, "It's alright, mother. Just go back to sleep. You need your rest."
She shook her head. "No, Suichi. You don't seem to understand…"
"I do, mother. Believe me, I do."
But Shiori wasn't listening to him; at this point, she was on the brink of rationality and senselessness. Trying to reason with her was fruitless. "No, Suichi. No." She took in a deep breath as another wave of pain washed over her fragile body. Kurama squeezed her hand tighter, but said nothing. "I never remarried, I never had any more children, and since I had to delve into our savings account to pay for my medical care, I have virtually nothing left in the bank. (sigh) I know that you are perfectly capable of taking care of yourself, but I can't help but worry…" Tears began to fill her sagging, brown eyes as she gazed into his emerald ones. "About you. About what's going to happen to you when I…" She didn't finish her sentence. She couldn't.
"It's okay," he murmured, untangling one of his hands from hers so that he could catch a couple of her cascading tears with his thumb. "I don't want you to worry about this now. I'll be fine." He had wanted to add, "and so will you," but even in her semi-delusional state, she would have known that it was a blatant lie, so he stopped himself there.
His mother looked at him, a smile once again gracing her lips. She looked so terribly thin…"Oh, I know, honey." She sniffed and coughed a couple of times before adding, "But that doesn't make it any less unfair." She then turned her head the other way, squeezing his hand one last time before dozing off into a light, morphine-induced slumber.
Kurama gently removed his hand from hers, scooted forward, and leaned his elbows against the edge of her mattress once more. While Shiori had been correct about his capabilities, she had been wrong about something else…
If there was one thing that was unfair about the situation, it was not what she was currently doing to him, but what he had already done to her. He was a spineless, two-faced swindler who had been purposefully deceiving his own flesh and blood for the past 15+ years for the mere sake of remedying his demon self. Hell, he had even planned on leaving the poor woman at one point so that he could search for Botan, but when she fell ill the first time, he took pity on her situation and remained behind. And not only that, but he had taken the place of whatever human soul she had originally conceived; he had put her in danger, countless times, without her knowledge; and he left her, sometimes, for weeks at a time, but she never questioned him.
She trusted him.
She loved him.
She cared more about his future well-being than her own preordained death.
And what did he do for her in return?
He lied.
He placed his head in his hands and sighed. "You have nothing to be sorry for," he whispered, listening to the soft sounds of her rhythmic breathing. He looked back up at her with an expression she would have scolded him for making.
If there was anyone who should've been sorry…
It was him.
oooOOOooo
If there was one thing that Yusuke Urameshi had learned over the past five months or so, it was that life was incredibly precious. After all, he had already had the displeasure of losing his once; he didn't want to lose it again.
But his current job as Spirit Detective of Ningenkai required him risk his goddamn ass almost every single day, so the possibility that he would lose his life again was more likely than not. And that got him to thinking: was there such thing as a third chance? He really didn't know; he had never bothered to ask Hinegeshi for fear of just...knowing. It scared him.
A lot.
And now, he was being forced to go up against, probably, one of the most powerful demons in existence. Or, at least one of the most powerful that he had ever had the displeasure of encountering. And did that scare him?
Hell yes.
For all he knew, by accepting Toguro's proposal, he was signing an inevitable death wish. But he couldn't just stand idly by while some punk-ass, sun-glassed hot-head went around killing everybody he had ever cared about; he would never be able to live with himself if he did. And Toguro, being the evil son-of-a-bitch that he was, knew this, which was why he had made the detective that seemingly preposterous offer; it was one that he couldn't refuse. So, in the event that something happened to him after all of this was over, the detective was strolling around town, paying some of these "cared-for" individuals a visit. Not to say goodbye or anything…
Just to say hi.
And he was saving one of the best for last.
The dark-haired teen shifted impatiently on his feet, hands rammed deeply into his jeans pockets, shoulders slouched, and face set in an indignant frown. "Aw, come on. Don't tell me she's not home…"
He removed his right hand from his pocket for the third time and raised it to knock, but a series of muffled clicks stopped him just as his knuckles grazed the door. His sullen display immediately perked.
About time.
When the door opened, he couldn't help but smile. She looked genuinely surprised to see him, which, he supposed, was understandable. It was usually she that made the house calls, not vice versa.
"Yusuke? What are you…?"
Yusuke held up his hand to silence her. "Listen, Keiko," he said, trying to sound gentle. "There are a few things I need to say to you right now, so I'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from asking questions and just listen…okay?"
The brunette nodded slowly, brown eyes wide and tentative. In all honesty, the girl looked utterly terrified. Why, he wasn't sure. Maybe she knew…"Um…okay." She eyed him curiously for a few seconds before gasping, blushing, and exclaiming all at the same time: "Oh! Would you like to come in?"
He laughed. She really looked cute when she did that. "That's alright. I can't stay long anyway." He paused for a moment to look down at his shoes. "I, uh…" He looked back up at her soft eyes and slightly parted lips. "I just wanted to say thanks, you know. For everything you've done for me."
Keiko blinked. "You're…thanking me? For wha…?" She squeaked and raised a hand to her mouth. "Oh! I wasn't supposed to do that, was I?"
Yusuke slowly shook his head, smiling nonetheless. "No, but it's alright. Besides, this must all seem pretty freaky to you. Not to mention random."
She smiled, revealing a few of her pearly-white teeth, and leaned her shoulder against the open doorway. "Yeah. Maybe just a little."
"Well, I mean it." His smile vanished, expression growing stern. "Really. There weren't many people who believed in me back in that god-forsaken Junior High. Not many people who cared…" He paused to take in her unexpected, slightly stunned reaction. He had seriously been half-expecting her to slap him or something. It was just a natural Keiko-reaction, using that damned hand of hers for such trivial violence…
"Yusuke, you don't have to—"