A/N: Hello once again, Dearest Yu Yu Hakusho Lovers!
Without further ado: Chapter Twenty!
Symbols Guide:
* : Written by CM; She writes for Akari and Hiei
3 : Written by Star (supposed to be the 'heart' symbol, but FF doesn't like the 'less-than' sign, so it's a 3 instead); She writes for Toriko/Shikiyoku and Kurama
~!**!~ : A universal transition between scenes or characters, sometimes used to indicate a passage of time, but most often used to transition between major scenes that are happening. As the story progresses, this will evolve into mainly separating the (usually two) scenes happening between authors/characters.
As a general rule, anything in italics is thoughts.
Unless it's used in a sentence like this, which merely indicates emphasis.
"Quotations are usually reserved specifically for telepathic dialogue being transmitted from one being to another, but sometimes this can also mean a character isn't being careful about what they're thinking and anyone with telepathy in the nearby vicinity can listen in without taking any effort."
The only exception to that last rule is for the Shiba Inu dog, Nabu. All of his "spoken" dialogue will be in italics and quotations, but is communicated through body language or dog-like noises, so unless a character is able to translate those they are unlikely to pick up on what he is saying any more than the average person might understand his general moods like aggression (bared teeth, ears back) or excitement (wagging tail).
Previously on Yu Yu Hakusho!
Our favorite heroes end up at a warehouse, the address Akari had been given in a letter.
Apparently Shikiyoku would not willingly join the fake Youko's gang,
but the Youko wanted to test Akari out and see where her loyalties would lie,
so a scenario was set up in order to discover whether or not she would actually join them.
Otento, the fake Youko, Terepo, and one other demon were all spotted at the back of the room,
but their images were only being projected into the area and they did nothing as Akari and Hiei,
the only two demons capable of resisting Shikiyoku's energy,
manage to kill a demon posing as Toriko while Kuwabara, Yusuke, and Kurama stood mesmerized.
Once Shikiyoku could concentrate, she began withdrawing her energy into the room,
asking Hiei to help her walk over to the other three mesmerized persons so she could free them from the spell...
Akari let Toriko go as she pleased, her expression solemn as the girl made her way to the three who stood under her influence. She tugged at her own energy, trying to draw it back in, silently dismissing all shadows from her immediate control.
When Hiei passed through it, she felt the difference of her energy shifting, letting him move by her, his own energy allowing him to pass through with ease. Now that he was no threat, her energy simply let him by, the parting of it moving like liquid, the hole remaining as the last of the dome shrank away into nothing, leaving her trying not to let her breathlessness show. *
Shikiyoku gratefully let Hiei manipulate her arm, slumping heavily into his firm weight, nodding in the direction of the other three after she got her feet under her body and started to put one in front of the other.
As more energy in the room returned to her, so did her awareness of the situation and she knew the looks in the eyes of those she made her way towards.
She reached one with black hair slicked away from his face, first. Lifting her arm, she rested it on his chest, but resisted closing her eyes as she wanted, instead meeting him gaze for gaze.
Her eyes shimmered, and after a moment of tugging with it, her energy recognized its true owner and began pulling out of him. The young man's knees bent slightly as she released him, and she left him shaking his head as his mind started to clear itself. She did the same with the taller red-head next to him, her power taking a moment to adjust back to her before she could begin drawing it out.
When she came to the last, her stance was taller. Her body felt no less weak than before, and her mind still had trouble focusing, but her spirit was willing to do the work needed.
As she placed her hand onto the red-head's chest, something in his eyes gave her pause. His expression was not only one mesmerized, but cruel and calculating, staring intensely at her with a glare that made her heart shimmy in her chest once.
The energy that hummed around him took no longer than the others in recognizing its true owner, but as she started attempting to draw it away from him, she could not get it to recede and her hand lifted from his chest as if she had been burnt, her eyes growing wide.
"What…?" 3
Hiei adjusted her weight accordingly, allowing Shikiyoku to lean every ounce of her weight into him. If he weren't so aware of every single mark that blemished her skin in the most angry of ways, he would have simply carried her where she needed to be. But, her wounds were so great that he feared if he jostled her too much, she'd simply pass out. Go comatose…
So he settled for taking each step with her, slowly.
As they stood in front of Kurama, Hiei stared at his friend, waiting for the change that would come. After all, Kurama was a better candidate for watching their backs than Akari was, since he wasn't sure what Otento and the other three were up to. They hadn't attacked, but surely they wouldn't just let this go on without a hitch? There had to be a point to everything, and the fire demon was having trouble seeing the points.
But no change came over his friend, and Shikiyoku's gasped question left him looking between Kurama and her in confusion. "What's happened?" he inquired, his tone even with slight curiosity despite his displeasure at the thought that Kurama wasn't in his right mind; he was a valuable team member…
~!**!~
Akari looked around the room, keeping her breaths quiet as she regained her own thoughts. Now that Toriko's energy was lessening in the air, her body began telling her just how much she'd withstood in such a short amount of time exposed to it. Her legs shook only slightly, her fingers twitching and her eyes drooping only a little as the pressure in her head lifted little by little.
She paid no mind to the others in the room for the moment, her eyes searching the darkness for the other male she knew had been there. But now, no silhouette could be seen. When did he leave? Curious, to say the least, the demon began walking towards the shadowed area, staying cautious as her energy billowed out just a little again, grasping at the darkness that she was so acquainted with.
Her power whispered to them, asking silent questions and probing them for information. But they hummed her energy back, like a sonar radar telling her that nothing was nearby. She frowned and let her energy taper off, receding into her body again, completely unaware of the happenings with Hiei and Toriko. *
As that woman approached him, something within Kurama stirred and he briefly woke up from his standstill to blink and catch her eyes with his own.
Even through the pain plain in her expression, or perhaps because of it, Kurama saw promises within desires shimmering before him. His mind struggled to remember something...something...important...about her, about those green eyes that locked with his as she reached out to place her hand on his sternum.
As she touched him, he felt his ribcage shiver underneath those fingertips, and then it was as if a veil had dropped from his eyes, but remained hovering around his body, holding him, compelling him to reach out as she started back in what seemed like so much surprise.
"Who...who are you?" Shikiyoku breathed as they continued to stare at one another, a sensation of recognition flittering on the edge of her awareness, but remaining out of her reach.
As Kurama extended a hand to her, his appearance grew more angular, and his body became enveloped all at once with a silver light, his form shifting.
As the silver light withdrew from him, it revealed not Kurama, but Youko, complete with golden eyes and silver hair, his ears tipped forward with great interest, his tail twitching once behind him before growing still. Shikiyoku hissed in a sharp breath and her eyes widened at his appearance.
He completed the gesture he had started while Kurama, placing his long fingers on her cheek.
"...Yoku." His lips did not curve into his usual smirk, and neither did his eyes soften at the sight of her. His brow turned downward briefly at her wounds, and he instinctively sought out the bond that they once had between them in an attempt to gauge how badly she had been injured, but he came up with nothing, grasping at emptiness where once that bond had been.
At that discovery, his eyes widened briefly and Shikiyoku knew exactly by his change in disposition what he in that moment realized, but she had known all along.
"Fitting." He said simply, "I grew much too weak."
Shikiyoku's head nodded slightly, still in so much awe at standing in front of the bandit.
"So, this is what it is like to be under your control..." He struggled mightily to leave his fingers where they rested, still on her cheek. Echoes of the unspoken danced in his mind.
The energy of the room was almost completely withdrawn into Shikiyoku's body now, the little bit left much less than that which wove around Youko now.
"Were you truly under my control, you would not know it." Shikiyoku responded.
"Then it is as I thought." Youko mused, "The longer around you, the worse it gets."
Shikiyoku merely raised an eyebrow, this being the first time she'd heard mention of his theory. 3
Hiei hadn't moved a single step when he saw the energy fill the air, clouding his vision with silver that he recognized. But, what he didn't understand was why. Yet he didn't say anything, since he really didn't have anything to say about the situation at all. He merely stood silently, watching as Youko Kurama made his appearance and spoke with a nickname he'd only heard Maneshi use once before. His own brows drew together, his instincts suddenly kicking in and keeping him wary.
Yes, he trusted this demon, but the familiarity, especially with the fox's touch, made the fire demon cautious. Perhaps it was natural, something that came with the title of Champion, he did not know. But he eyed the fox carefully, searching for any sign of thoughts that would end up with a scene.
And Enma knows Hiei wanted to fight Kurama just about as much as he wanted to go stand in a crowded building of humans. No, that didn't fit properly. The comparison did no justice to the feeling that rocked him at the mere thought of a scene.
His eyes slid to Shikiyoku, waiting for a hint of any kind for the situation. But it didn't seem that it was dire, yet, so he turned back to Youko with a calm expression, finally nodding his greeting and simply saying, "Fox." And that was all the greeting he would use to make his presence known.
~!**!~
Akari frowned at the shadows in confusion, but her attention was pulled with the sudden shift in the air. She turned, anticipating a fight with the foreign energy and the person she hadn't known had entered the room. Her body buzzed with energy, ready for anything.
Instead, she was left baffled.
A demon stood where the red-headed Kurama had, speaking to Toriko and Hiei. His golden eyes held centuries within them, she could tell even from this distance. His ears were a smooth silver, as was his tail, and she found herself in awe of the features. So this is… Kurama's form? she thought, remembering Sensui telling her about the separate form the redhead held from his demon blood.
She had fully intended to turn away, but each time she tried, another feature of the demon caught her eye, making her curious. Now why had a demon of this stature come here, to the human world, again? It was obvious that he had a high amount of power, so why would a being like this doom himself to the human world?*
"You appear not to notice, but your energy is constantly at work around you on a level too high for weaker demons to sense." Youko explained, wiping away a trail of blood that had not dried and started to swept down to her jaw. "It has been this way ever since...ever since we met."
"Hey! What's going on!"
As the last of Shikiyoku's power withdrew into her, Yusuke and Kuwabara began to see clearly, spying Akari off to the side and both boys dropping into a more defensive stance, wary and eyeing the room around them. 3
Hiei had gone silent again, eyeing the fox demon wearily before his attention was turned to the two humans on the side, who immediately reacted defensively, like a couple of skittish kittens startled awake. He raised a brow at them before replying with, "You fools were of no help. I killed one, but four remain."
He didn't say anything more after that, since that was about all he himself knew, but his eyes did trail to the darkness on the other side of the room, again searching for outlines of demons, but he only saw shadows.
~!**!~
Akari blinked once, then crossed her arms over her chest and turned to Yusuke as he moved, his mouth finally opening as his body shifted to a stance she had fully expected, as did Kuwabara. Her frown remained in place as she watched the boys silently for a moment, wondering if they'd be able to tell that the room was empty.
But after a moment, she saved them the trouble of searching. "They're gone. Left some time ago, apparently." *
"What? Who?" Yusuke relaxed only a little before tensing up again, "And where's Toriko?" He spied the chair she had been occupying at the moment they entered the building, but she was no longer there. In fact, it appeared that a lot of things that weren't the way he remembered them being. Namely...the silver-haired fox-looking demon standing tall next to him.
"Youko?" Kuwabara exclaimed before Yusuke had a chance.
The two of them spied Hiei holding up-
"Toriko?" They both sucked in a harsh breath of air at the sight of the dark-haired girl who had an arm thrown over Hiei's shoulders and was obviously barely standing in place. At the same time, they both moved to stand near her.
"How yah holdin' up, short-stuff?" Yusuke dropped to one knee to peer up at her face.
Shikiyoku once again felt her eyebrow raise, seemingly unsurprised at the sudden friendliness of the two considering how long they had been under the influence of her powers.
"Not Toriko." She clarified. "My true name is Shikiyoku, though the side of me that you apparently know goes by 'Toriko.'"
Yusuke considered her for a moment, then turned to look at Youko, then back to her.
"So how long have you two known each other?" He grinned, catching on quickly. "You seem to have had the same idea!"
"How did you do it?" Shikiyoku's expression perked with interest at the kitsune.
"He invaded some poor kid's body." Kuwabara remarked bluntly.
It was Youko's turn to raise an eyebrow. "That is...a rather blasé what of putting it, but succinct. My spirit entered a fetus to recover."
"I took on a more human form and sealed away myself and my powers within that form." Shikiyoku explained for her part.
The others kept talking, but a wave of exhaustion swept over Shikiyoku again and she leaned more heavily than before into Hiei.
"I need rest." A line of pain creased her brow, her body awash with the frailty of her recent encounters. She did not know what to do about her energy surrounding Youko, and as such her concern became second to her physical exertions. 3
Hiei resigned himself to simply stand there until this idle chat was over, deciding there was no need to rush if she could chat like this. But the moment his body suddenly buzzed with the feel of the bond being touched with pain and exhaustion, he turned to Shikiyoku and acted without permission, simply crouching so the strain on her would not hurt her more than necessary as he scooped her up in his arms, turning to Yusuke and Kuwabara. "The Toriko you saw earlier was not the true Toriko. The imposter was killed, but Shikiyoku has been through enough. Her blood loss is significant and life-threatening." He turned without another word, now set on leaving while the moment seemed to allow it.
Akari stepped forward, silently joining the group and standing with the team, her mouth pressed together. Would they be allowed to leave? Her brows drew together and her arms crossed even tighter together. "Do you think Otento would let us leave so quickly?" *
While Yusuke and Kuwabara's jaws dropped at both the number of Hiei's words as well as his apparent protectiveness, Youko's face remained grim, knowing exactly what drove Hiei to his otherwise out-of-place actions. As such, Youko turned to follow, his longer legs allowing him to stride past Hiei and heave open the large metal door with a shoulder, letting in some of the cooler night air.
"I will be accompanying you." Youko left no room for argument from the fire demon. He felt amused as he looked at Shikiyoku's face, her eyes all but closed, bruises and blood covering her body, her clothing almost nonexistent... A near replica of their first meeting, though in a more human form. Of course, his desire to be with her stemmed from her power still holding sway, and the intellectual side of him realized this, but found that it could do nothing to resist it. Nor did it seem to want to.
Shikiyoku made no protest to Youko's statement. Humans caught under her mesmer were, oddly enough, better suited to shaking off the effects of her powers after a short while. Demons, however...demons caught by her energy were relentless in their pursuit of her and she felt no need to make a scene with the fox who up to this point had reacted stoically.
Yusuke and Kuwabara turned to one another after watching Hiei and Youko walk off together, eyebrows raised.
"...I guess we're done here?" Kuwabara shrugged, starting to methodically make his way around the room, though his senses told him there was no longer any threat here.
"I get the feeling this case isn't closed. I didn't even get to kick some ass!" Yusuke formed a fist with one hand, spying Akari out of the corner of his eye and turning to her, putting his hands on both hips and giving her a hard stare, "For some reason I feel like we owe you thanks for watching our backs. So...thanks." He extended a hand towards her in a gesture of shaking on it. 3
Hiei raised a brow at Youko, but turned to leave anyway, completely dismissing anything Youko had to say and writing it off completely as something he didn't completely understand at the moment. He didn't care that the demon fox lead the way out of the building, despite all logic that screamed that this wasn't over. But he was too worried about other things at the moment.
So he merely continued on, walking with steps as light as possible, eyes glancing at Shikiyoku for just a moment before returning to the path ahead of him.
~!**!~
Akari wasn't happy. Something was off, but she just couldn't… It couldn't be this easy. She'd dealt with Otento enough to know that he had many layers of plans ready for each circumstance, for anything that would happen. He had always been three steps ahead, so why were they able to leave so suddenly?
Yusuke voiced her concerns, though in a way she herself found tacky. Her eyes found him and she gave a look of disapproval, though she didn't have room to judge. When he too turned to her, thrusting a hand to her, she stared at his offer for a moment before slowly, tentatively, taking the offer of a shake. "Really, you should thank Hiei. He did the hard work. All I did was distract, as I always do." With that, she brushed by him and followed the others to the door. "Next time, don't get caught in the trap and maybe the fire demon and I won't have to save your ass." *
Kuwabara wanted to say something snarky at Yusuke, but bit his tongue, knowing he had fallen in just as easily as his friend.
"Yeah, well," Yusuke began as they started to follow her out the door, "Who knows what would have happened if you'd gotten here by yourself. For what it's worth, I'm glad you stayed with us." 3
Akari glanced back at Yusuke with a raised brow, a corner of her lips raising up. "I'm pretty sure the same thing would have happened. You would've been useless, Hiei would've gotten out of it, and maybe Kurama wouldn't have transformed and we probably would have gotten out of there quicker. Granted, it could have also gone the complete other direction, and I could have died, but hey, what does that matter?" She stretched her arms above her head, feeling the extreme strain in the muscles from the weight Toriko's energy had pressed onto her. Bones cracked and her body suddenly relaxed almost as if she'd had a nice long nap. She turned her eyes forward again, deciding that the night had actually come to an end here, since they were actually being allowed to leave. *
The moon was still in the sky, casting its muted light down on the town below and Yusuke took a deep breath, feeling unresolved and wanting to find something to punch.
Kuwabara, seeing Akari give a stretch, yawned and did the same, "I'm dog-tired." He rubbed at his eyes. "I think I'm going to head home." 3
Akari made a sound similar to a groan before her hands linked behind her head, arms loosely positioned on each side of her head so that her peripherals were cut off by the limbs. A part of her wondered if Nabu had actually listened for once, and hoped he actually had.
But Kuwabara's next words made her give a dry laugh. "Was that intentional?" *
"Huh?" He blinked sleepily at her, closing one eye first and then the other.
Yusuke gave Akari a strange look before making a small laugh to himself. "And that's how I knew you were gonna be swell as part of the team tonight." He said cryptically, reaching up to stroke a nonexistent goatee and raising an eyebrow as if he were a villain with a secret. 3
Curiosity touched the edges of Akari's mind and she again glanced back at Yusuke. She assessed his odd pose for a moment before sighing, deciding to take the bait. "And what exactly do you mean by that?" she asked, eyes turning to the sky and look at the moon in the sky and the stars. Here, they shined brightly, calming her nerves almost entirely.
~!**!~
Hiei had stayed silent the entire walk back, thinking about next to nothing other than getting to the house and staunching wounds, something he half-expected Youko wanting to do as well. So, he hadn't considered the possibility of what he encountered when he stepped up to the front door and reached for the knob. His hand, still under Shikiyoku, tried to twist the metal orb, but nothing happened. His grip wasn't sufficient at first, so he tried again.
This time, he was met with resistance. The knob stopped turning a quarter of the way, making a sound that he recognized with irritation. He stepped back, letting the fox demon see the door knob and lock, red eyes finding gold ones. "It's locked," he said bluntly, figuring Youko would understand his silent request. *
Youko said nothing, though the thought crossed his mind, sweeping silently up the step or two leading to the door and crouching, peering into the keyhole. He thought about the size and type of the lock for a moment, reaching up in the meantime to curl a bit of hair that had fallen in front of his face back behind one ear.
As the fingers of that same hand came back down level with the lock, a small, dark plant began growing from underneath his palm and he held it much like one would hold a key when it grew long enough.
It continued growing past the tips of his nails and he slipped it inside, the sinuous plant easily molding to the locking mechanism, then suddenly hardening and becoming wiry.
Youko gave his wrist a flick and the lock came undone. As he stood, the plant withered in his grasp and turned to dust, blown away by a slight breeze. He confidently encircled the knob with his other hand and gave it a twist, the door silently swinging inward as he stepped inside the dark house.
His foot pressed down on top of something that felt very key-like on top of the tile at the entrance. He left it, stepping to the side to allow Hiei to enter.
At the same time in which he entered the house, his nose became accosted with a multitude of different smells that he knew originated from his left when he first came in. He smelled fish, and chicken, as well as sugar, more prominent than what he considered the "normal" smells of a home such as this, like the upholstery, the wood, the metal.
His eyes glanced in the direction of the smells to spy what he knew was considered a kitchen, able to see the mess on the table nearby, the discarded food on the floor. His nose twitched. 3
Hiei was silently thankful for the fox demon at this moment, despite his earlier thought about telling him to go elsewhere. He waited until the fox was in the house before following, naturally ignoring everything else in the house that didn't pertain to his immediate thoughts. He passed by Youko and turned to the stairs, going up them carefully, but not slowing his pace as he headed for the bathroom, where he knew of the easiest way to get this amount of wounds clean. *
Youko closed the door once Hiei entered, his feet padding silently across the carpet as he followed the fire demon. His eyes were ever watchful of their immediate area, taking in all escape routes as well as memorizing the floor plan. In the back of his mind he counted the medicinal plants he had on his immediate person that would be of some use once Hiei found a suitable place to put Shikiyoku down. 3
The fire demon reached the top landing of the stairs and continued down the hall a short ways until he found a door he remembered to be the bathroom. He easily had the door open before he was faced with the trouble of staring at the bathtub, suddenly realizing he didn't understand the mechanics in this one. He'd only used the ones in Demon World, and they were always more complex, more knobs that made it easy to get the temperature just right. After a single moment of hesitation, he slowly let down and laid Shikiyoku in the empty tub.
After another second, he leaned over the sides of the tub and slowly turned the two knobs to an equal degree, or so he hoped. *
When Youko saw Hiei leaning over what he recognized to be a tub, he immediately looked along the wall for a light switch and flicked it on. He busied himself with scavenging around in the cabinets for anything useful for their situation, and managed to come up with a roll of what he knew could be used as bandages, as well as a handful of cloth that he promptly claimed as well. Another cabinet proved to have towels and he made no hesitation in grabbing as many as he could with one hand.
One of his ears twitched as water began filling the tub more than a few inches.
"Not too much." He intoned as he grasped the towels and pulled away from the cabinet to close it. "It will be bloody and useless soon enough. Likely need to be drained and refilled to a low point several times." 3
Hiei listened idly to the sounds in the room, ranging from the water in the tub to the wood of the cabinets hitting together when shut. He could hear the soft sound of cloth rubbing together, the sound of soft breathing. It was so quiet that when Youko spoke up, it was almost out of place.
And he did lean over and turn the water off, having been watching it carefully and gauging how much he should leave for this time that would likely take a while. *
Youko came to Shikiyoku's side next to the tub and bent down on one knee, placing the towels to his right and balancing the smaller cloths on his raised leg. His expression twitched as he held up the bandages and he tossed them behind him where they landed softly in the sink and rolled around, but remained contained.
The first thing he did was pass a hand over the water that had only just reached a few inches in height. A powder began to fall from his out-stretched palm, leaving a light dusting on both Shikiyoku and within the water itself.
He placed what at first seemed like nothing along the edge of the tub, but in reality the small seeds there he coaxed with energy and they slowly began to grow. In the meantime, he placed a cloth in the water that was already beginning to smell of iron and shade into a dirty brown-red, gently bringing it up to Shikiyoku's face and starting to pat and wipe away the blood there. 3
Hiei had sat back for a moment to give Youko room for what he needed to do, watching carefully as if he would be able to learn anything from this scene. Of course, it was evident that he wouldn't be able to do any of this since he had no abilities even remotely similar to Youko's, but still, he was a curious creature by nature.
After a few moments, he again sat forward, grabbing one of the smaller towels and following Youko's lead, though on the arms and across Shikiyoku's collarbone. The cloth quickly turned from white to reddish-brown from the dried, crusted blood he worked at gently. *
As the plants along the edge of the tub continued to slowly grow, Youko pulled back and tossed his head slightly, both to move his hair from his face and to release a pollen in the air that spread outwards towards the ceiling, but did not fall back down. Instead, the pollen grew larger until they resembled so many circular bowls and suspended around the room, releasing a soothing scent that cleared away the messy smell of their work.
Gesturing with his free hand by turning the wrist in a circle, he flowed his energy into another plant that burst upwards from his palm. This one he set on the floor between his knee and foot where it continued to sprout and take on a very leafy shape.
Reaching behind his ear for one last plant seed, this one became like a disc no larger around than a half-dollar coin and Youko tenderly tipped Shikiyoku's chin upwards, her face still mostly bloody, her hair matted down to her cheeks in a mixture of sweat and dried blood.
"For me, Yoku." Youko murmured when her eyes fluttered at his touch, bringing the disc to her lips.
They parted slightly at his request and he slipped it into her mouth.
The effects were almost immediate as the disc started melting on her tongue. Her eyes came open, though she winced at the light and still appeared to be unfocused.
"Hiei?" She croaked, looking over at Youko, attempting to rise out of the water.
At her first word being a query of the fire demon, Youko's core tripped once inside his chest and a great sadness surged up from deep within his body, filled him in place of what would for most in his position likely be jealousy. That she would ask after another first…
Youko shook his head, both to Shikiyoku and himself. He could still feel her power humming through him, and she asked for the one Youko immediately knew at the sight of the two had taken his place as her protector.
"Not Hiei." He placed a light hand on her shoulder as soon as she started trying to get up, preventing her from leaving.
Shikiyoku blinked again, but she said nothing for a moment as Youko rung the wet cloth out and dipped it in the water in a place that looked less contaminated than the others. He went back to trying to clear the cuts of her face from blood so that they could be treated.
"Thank you...Yo-chan." She breathed once she recognized his face, leaning back against the tub but continuing to watch him.
The disc in her mouth was all but gone and she took a deep breath, raising her arm and placing her hand on Youko's bare chest where his tunic gapped apart as he leaned over her.
She closed her eyes, beckoning what remained of the spell outside her body, and Youko frozen in place. It still took her more than a few seconds to get the attention of the energy around him and as she drew it back to herself, it practically fought with her, much more reluctant to return than any of the others she dealt with that night.
A minute passed. Then two. Beads of sweat started to form on her forehead near her hairline as she was forced to meticulously grab each strand around him and practically tug them back into herself.
Finally the last bit of energy struggled one last time against her call, then slipped away, returning to its rightful place.
At that moment, Youko blinked, his mind clear.
Hiei had been working silently here and there, mainly trying to stay out of Youko's way when Shikiyoku's quiet voice piped up, asking for him. But, the fire demon didn't answer. Instead, he sat back even further, withdrawing the hand that had held a cloth and watching the interaction between her and Youko. He was curious about several things, but he assumed that he had gotten the gist of it:
Youko had once been in the place where Hiei now was with Shikiyoku, her Champion. That much he'd understood from their first conversation. After that, things seemed vague. For all he knew, they could have been lovers, but that was only a matter he was curious over, since it didn't matter to him in the least.
Hiei's keen crimson irises picked up on each movement the two made, looking at body language as they spoke. But the talking, the chatter, ended with Shikiyoku's hand on the fox demon's chest. At first, he saw the gesture as one of fondness. But after a few minutes, he noted the sweat that beaded on Shikiyoku's forehead, and he understood. His curiosity lead him to assessing everything that happened and waiting to see the outcome; if his guess was right, and it soon was proven to be, the fox demon would turn rather cold once Shikiyoku's energy was gone from his system.*
Youko glanced sharply over at Hiei, then down at the dirty cloth in his hand.
Had Hiei not been there, it was likely the kitsune would have stayed and tended to the battered woman, and while none of his thoughts reached his eyes, he felt keenly a pang of displacement at no longer being her Champion.
He rose to his feet, wishing for some time alone to consider better how Shikiyoku's powers worked now that he had finally experienced them first-hand, even if they were channeled through another.
He dropped the cloth without care onto the tile and said loftily, "The leaves of that plant, when crushed with the fingers, will serve as a paste that will get rid of bruises when it is spread over them." He pointed at the plant that had been placed between his knee and his foot.
"Those buds," He pointed next at the first plant growing on the edge of the tub, whose demonic form included buds all along the vines that were spilling over the outside of the tub to the tile floor, "Contain a liquid cleaning solution for wounds when squeezed. It is a painful process, but it will insure there are no infections and will also cleanse impurities since we do not know whether she was struck with poisoned blades or not."
He gestured openly to the rest, "The others will seal the wounds if you draw them over it." They each appeared to be a root similar to ginger and there were a handful or so, each about the length and width of a finger, though the last one was twice the size. "And can be used more than once." Youko started to turn away, "I suggest you save the largest one on the end for the gash down her calf."
He swept out of the room without further delay, his tail and hair trailing slighting behind him. 3
Hiei listened very carefully to each word Youko even uttered after his abrupt change in demeanor. With each gesture the silver-haired demon made, Hiei's eyes followed, taking in the information with an amount of curiosity that almost rivaled with the duty he felt towards healing Shikiyoku and serving as her champion.
He would have thanked the fox, if it were in his nature to do such a thing. In truth, he wasn't even sure what to say to the demon he hadn't seen since the tournament. So, instead, he merely nodded once to his comrade, unsure why he felt the small amount of relief that he did in the moment that the fox turned to leave.
Without even looking up again, Hiei picked up his own cloth again, dipped it in the water before draining it out and running fresh water, and continuing where Youko had left off, using the information and plants he'd been given to his advantage when necessary.
~!**!~
Akari landed on the concrete slab of the sidewalk and turned to the blue-haired woman who floated in front of her, smiling cordially as if they'd been friends for an eternity. "Thank you for complying and coming to see Koenma. I'm sure he appreciates everything you've done, despite…"
Akari felt the corners of her lips lift into a sarcastic sneer. "Despite my association with his former detective?"
A nervous laugh escaped Botan before she waved her hand as if waving away the subject. "You know, from what I can tell, they really seem to have gotten used to you. You're-"
"Don't go there." Akari interrupted, a hand in the air as she turned to leave. "No sentimentality. Just because they put up with my presence doesn't mean they care."
A small giggle followed after Akari's retreating steps into the night. The next sound she heard was of Botan's oar soaring into the highest parts of the sky and away into the next world, and Akari was left unsure of whether to go home, where she knew Nabu and his million questions were, or to wander until she felt tired enough mentally to sleep. *
~!**!~
As soon as he got outside, Youko took in a deep breath, closing his eyes momentarily and choosing to think about nothing.
After his pause he slunk out into the dark night, sticking to the shadows and avoiding contact with anyone that walked the streets at the hour.
His mind buzzed at the recent events involving Shikiyoku. And he found himself reflecting on memories he had not called upon in a long time...
"Ah, ah, ah, my dear." Youko reprimanded, tapping a finger smartly on Shikiyoku's nose, "You're not to practice your wiles on me." He took her firmly by the shoulders and forced her to step back.
Shikiyoku pouted, her lower lip protruding out in a lovely manner, "You never let me have any fun at all, Yo-chan."
"Yoku," Youko cooed, "Don't be like that." He playfully grabbed her protruding lip between his thumb and forefinger and made a small, gentle tug, "I can get you another play-thing any time you want."
Shikiyoku pulled away from him and huffed herself into a chair at the table in the room, flouncing down into the chair and leaning against the table, putting one elbow down and resting her face in that hand as she continued to pout. "But they're all so boring." She continued.
"Then I'll find you an exciting one." Youko countered, taking note that the blindfold he required her to wear in his presence was not hindering her as much as it did when she first arrived. She must sense things out much more adeptly than before. He was mildly impressed.
"But they're all boring." She protested, feeling Youko move to sit in the seat next to her, facing her, and she turned towards him, "You on the other hand…" She reached over and drew the back of her hand down the bare shoulder, "Would be much more thrilling."
"Mm." Youko intoned noncommittally. "Then I'll have to find someone like me."
Shikiyoku made a noise of discontent, "But there isn't anyone like you. Not in a million, billion years." As her hand slid down the inside of his upper arm, she tilted her head as if able to watch the movement.
Youko grabbed for it, taking her slightly by surprise, but he simply put her hand back in her lap and stood up, holding onto it a moment longer and he bent over and purred into her ear, "Then I'd better start looking." He planted his usual chaste kiss on her soft cheek before letting go of her hand and standing up straight, turning to go.
"Hmph." Shikiyoku sniffed, "You're so mean to me. Tease."
Youko laughed outright, pausing near the door, "I'm the tease, my seductress? I find that hard to believe."
"You are and you know it. That's what makes it so hard." She whined, disappointed he was leaving so soon.
He smiled at her distraught expression. "I'll find something special this next time."
"You'd better." She crossed her arms and he chuckled again and closed the door, locking it behind him.
As she heard him going down the hall after a moment, she pulled her blindfold up to her forehead and turned back to pull her feet underneath the table and put her arms down on top, inspecting her hands, frowning as she flexed them.
Youko let out a whoosh of air as he leaned against her door briefly, his expression losing its amiable cast that he found it acquiring more and more often in their encounters.
It was getting harder not to give in. Not suddenly, not all at once, but slowly. His eyes narrowed as he wondered if she was doing it on purpose, trying to draw him in without his notice.
He walked off down the hall, mind still dwelling on the thought. If her previous track-record was any indication, she did not actually mean to make it harder for him, and it meant her energy acted on its own to an extent.
No wonder she was in such trouble when he first came across her.
It also meant that he needed to keep his time around her to a minimum as there would be an eventual moment where he would no longer be able to resist her. Not that he hadn't already thought of a few very specific things he would like to do to or with her, but...once in her clutches...well, he had seen the eyes of her prey after she finished with them and it seemed almost a kindness to put them out of their misery.
His being caught by her would cause many problems he did not want to have to deal with and he would by no means put himself in that situation willingly. Perhaps she would become of no more used to him long before that moment...though he dismissed the thought almost as soon as if formed. She was invaluable to him, and the instant she realized it, he would be in trouble enough. He knew her next play-thing would have to be something special indeed...
~!**!~
Shikiyoku shifted uncomfortably as she felt the water draining from around her legs, her eyes slowly fluttering open at the touch of someone she couldn't at first make out.
"Hiei…?" She blinked, her vision blurry with pain and the muscles around her eyes tightening in a grimace until she squeezed her eyes shut, opening them again to see the red-eyed demon bent over her.
The smell of the demonic plants in the air soothed her disjointed thoughts, and she took to watching Hiei go about his self-imposed duty, her gaze soft on his frame as he worked, taking the quiet moment to appreciate the inherent gracefulness in his movements.
She tried to keep any protests she had to herself as he cleaned her wounds, only releasing uncomfortable bits of breath when the pain grew too much for her to stay silent about, which happened much more often than she liked. She ruefully thought of the high tolerance for such things that her other side now coveted, feeling rather embarrassed for appearing so weak in front of the warrior beside her.
She cast her eyes downward at the sudden thought, staring blankly at her torn clothing and wishing, not for the first time, that she didn't have to rely on others for her own safety. That was one thing it appeared Toriko got right at least.
This time, however, her wish grew out of a desire for this fire demon to have a reason to view her as an equal, instead of a mess of trouble that he had been forced into by chance. If only she could match his speed, or his swordplay. If only she could meet him blow for blow on a battlefield. If only her demonic energy could be channeled into death-inducing spells instead of being an irresistible bother for her and any around her.
If only she were back in Demon World...3
Time seemed to pass on one end or the other of the spectrum, one moment feeling as if the time would pass without his notice, the next making him feel as if he'd been in this spot for an eternity. Half of the time, his hand that held the cloth moved almost on its own, his mind blank completely as he methodically went about dabbing at wounds, occasionally dipping into the water that had been, moments before, almost crystal clear. Now, it was a rustic color again, and without hesitation he drained it out and refilled with fresh water again, watching it turn only a slightly different color, unlike before when it would immediately turn brown.
By the time he had wiped away most of the dried, crusted blood, he was recalling every detail of what Youko had said before leaving. As he recalled the fox's instructions, the fire demon reached first for the plant used for cleaning the cuts, slowly picking a bud from the vine-like stem before lightly squeezing it curiously, watching a small drop of a cream-like substance rise to the surface. His gaze turned to the injured woman in the tub, meeting her gaze that he hadn't realized had been on him and giving a brief pause. "Prepare yourself," he muttered before leaning further over the tub and squeezing the bud over one of the smaller cuts on her arm.
~!**!~
Akari walked under the moonlight, eyes pointedly focused forward as she considered her options. If she went back to the place she currently called home, Nabu would be waiting and berate her with questions as soon as she stepped inside, just as he had earlier before Botan had shown up. But, she would also get to lay on the cushioned couch and stretch her tired body. She wouldn't sleep, she knew, but her body would thank her later.
But it would be noisy.
She could go to the park. No humans would be wandering through there this time of night, and it'd be quiet. Sure, the bench wouldn't be as comfortable, but she could make it work. Perhaps the ground would work too, if it weren't for the rain they'd had the day before.
She'd just have to make due.
With that thought, she altered her course and continued through town, ignoring the city lights of the night and the sounds of the nightlife roaming about. And with her mind forcefully blank, it didn't take her too long before she was entering the park. *
~!**!~
Youko reached a slightly more wooded area, one that he recognized was the town's park by the landscaping, and he slowed to a walk, still sticking to the shadows. He felt the presence of no one in the immediate area when he first arrived, but kept moving.
His mind remained too preoccupied with analysis of how the enemy made use of Shikiyoku's powers for him to take much notice of the fact that his core had begun pulsating. He noted somewhere in the back of his mind that his fox-form was slipping away and after a few minutes in the park, silver hair gave way to red, tail and ears disappearing as Kurama gained control once more.
He did not feel whole enough to return to his house and kept wandering around, though not quite as reclusive about it as before, strolling along the pathways in the moonlight.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku had not until that moment taken much notice of the plants that were littered about the bathroom, but when she heard Hiei's brief warning and noted the bud in his hand, her eyes widened. Youko had used this very method of cleaning wounds when they'd first met and the pain had been excruciating even with her high tolerance for such things.
Had he given her just a moment more, Shikiyoku would have attempted to lift her hand and grip the edge of the tub, but she did not have time to gather strength in her weak body to do so before he leaned over and placed the substance on a cut. A rather small one.
The cleanser rested for a moment above the opening and Shikiyoku felt her entire body tensing in anticipation.
As soon as it dove beneath the surface, Shikyoku's jaw clenched together and her arm twitched violently where it lay as if trying to remove a fly that landed and would not leave.
Her energy burst out into the room defensively, though it mingled with the smell of the demonic plants hanging overhead that had been constantly releasing their heavy perfume into the air and its powers were greatly nullified, and Shikiyoku's jaw relaxed, sinking herself into the shimmer that settled over her body, her skin tingling.
This happened very quickly, and also dissipated very quickly, her energy retreating and her jaw tensing up again as she tried not to cry out in pain.
The cleanser turned a sickly yellow color all at once and the pain was over, Shikiyoku's eyes sliding open again-she did not remember when they closed-and staring up at the ceiling. 3
Hiei paused briefly at the energy that momentarily grabbed his attention, but easily dropped back into the groove of his tedious work, slowly rubbing the substance he considered to be an ointment over the cut, only with his index finger. Once that bud was spent, he picked another, giving Shikiyoku some time to recover her breath before holding it up briefly in silent warning and squeezing the bud over another, larger gash that ran along her collarbone, frowning pensively as he did the same as before and rubbed the substance in slowly.
He continued this, repeating the same step over and over in several places and ignoring all jerks and sounds of pain Shikiyoku made, knowing that listening to them wouldn't do much good.
~!**!~
Akari walked into the park with small, leisurely steps. She stretched just a bit, popping her back in the process, and released a heavy sigh. She could lay on a bench, but what fun would that be? That would just stress her muscles more. So, she decided to keep moving, passing the benches completely and finding a path through the more wooded area. Her eyes searched for the owls that hooted above, the mice that scampered around on the earth floor, and sometimes for the insects that buzzed by her face.
Had she been paying any less attention than that, she wouldn't have noticed the shadowed figure walking on a path perpendicular to hers. She assessed the outline of the person, curious as to why a human would be out at such a late hour. Or maybe it was early? She didn't know anymore. So she simply chose to ignore them, continuing along the path until it intersected with his, not looking to see who it was at first. *
Kurama's feet stopped on their own, his body sensing that he was about to run into someone, but his mind not registering that it was happening. He blinked, and realized he stood near Akari, a ghost of a smile passing over his lips.
"Seems we run into each other more and more often of late."
~!**!~
Each time the cleanser was placed on a wound and began setting to its work, Shikiyoku's energy would flare up in reaction, but each time it happened, the amount of demonic energy sent out into the room became less and less until finally the energy only extended just beyond her body and she could not hold back an actual cry of pain at the terrible stinging sensation that wracked her body, ridding the cuts of any infection or impurities in the process.
A sheen of sweat settled onto her skin and with the most recent application of the plant, her right hand-which had moved up to grip the edge of the tub-actually squeezed so tightly on it that it sent several cracks running abruptly out from her fingers.
The cleanser turned black on the outside of that last, larger wound and a tremble ran the entire course of her body before she sat still, breathing heavily. 3
Hiei frowned at the blackened substance, his pupils dilating a fraction as he wondered if that was an indicator of poisons. He wasn't sure if he needed to leave it or rub it away, so for an extra moment, he let it sit before he took a cloth- a clean one this time, just in case- and wiped away the cream. As an extra precaution, he added another bud to the very same wound, then sat back as he decided to let the cream sit and continue cleaning the wounds for a few moments longer, and, also, to give Shikiyoku a small break to catch her breath.
He glanced at her sweat-covered face and took in the paleness of her features, the darkness under her eyes. He released a small breath and sat on his rump, one leg crossed under the knee of the other. He couldn't find anything to say, so he simply watched Shikiyoku in silence.
~!**!~
Akari took an extra step before turning to Kurama, a brow raised at his cordiality. She stared for a moment before making a small sound that even she didn't recognize before she released a sigh. "That's what happens when two people enjoy the same area." she countered, her eyes sliding to the side and away from his features. "Of course, I've always enjoyed the park. Your recent liking of it is what's causing this." she taunted lightly, though her tone was even and expression void of any emotion other than light curiosity. *
"Hm. Is that right?" He countered amiably, "And how long have you been in this area exactly? If it's more than maybe a decade, then I'll have to concede your point." This time the smile actually rested over his features. A small one, but a smile nonetheless.
~!**!~
Her chest still heaving under her clothes, Shikiyoku's eyes came back open, staring up at the ceiling.
"Thank you..." She managed to say, though whether for his rescue of her earlier or the current reprise that he afforded her by not applying more cleanser than was already slathered over her wounds even she did not know.
After her last outburst, Maneshi appeared moments later, trotting into the open door of the room, his heterochromatic eyes wide with concern. The smells had already penetrated his senses even before he made it half-way up the stairs-he had been within the closet in the living room and did not realize Shikiyoku and the others had arrived.
He paused for a moment when he came upon the scene, his tail slowly weaving a back and forth pattern in the air as he calculated the meaning of what his eyes saw.
His whiskers shivered once in distaste at the water, and as he carefully plodded forward, he avoided any point of the stuff along the way, skirting the discarded, bloody cloths.
Maneshi walked right up to Hiei and promptly stepped into the fire demon's lap for warmth, his muscles tight with the same concern that he now used to warily peer over the edge of the tub at what he could make out of Shikiyoku.
He stretched his neck too close to one of the demonic plants sitting along the edge and he sneezed violently, drawing back and leaning heavily into Hiei's body, waiting and watching. 3
Hiei raised a brow at Shikiyoku's thanks, not sure if he should respond or not. So, he didn't. He simply stayed where he sat, adjusting just a bit so that his katana, still sheathed under his cloak, didn't jab into his side as it had been. His eyes slid to the cat that made his way over to the fire demon, watching the reaction of Maneshi blandly, not actually very interested in how he reacted to the plants and such. But when the cat sneezed and leaned against him, he raised a hand and gently patted the top of his head twice before leaning back, palms on the tiled floor so that his shoulders could stretch just a bit.
"You should rest," he said suddenly, knowing that Shikiyoku was completely exhausted. Then again, when he was to get back to work on her wounds, he knew she'd just be awoken by the pain again. So, really, he didn't think she'd listen to him in the slightest.
~!**!~
Akari rolled her eyes to the sky, but realized she'd been rather stupid in saying something like that. Of course he'd been here longer, enjoyed something like this longer than she, since she'd been kept near Sensui for years.
"Touché," she finally admitted, crossing her arms in defiance and giving a small huff. Then she eyed him slowly, considering him for a minute before saying, "you look more in your right mind than earlier. How's it feel?" *
"Awful." He answered truthfully, thinking about how worn out he actually felt, not to mention how his mind kept returning to Toriko for some reason. His brows turned downward slightly and he hesitated, "What...what happened back there? Exactly? I'm getting bits and pieces, but can't seem to fit them together."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku did not feel as if she had the strength to nod at Hiei's observation, so she closed her eyes instead, twitching every-so-often as another pang of the cleanser did its job. She concentrated on reducing her rate of breath and finally managed to get it under control. The cleansing process did not allow her much rest as it was on-going, but centering her thoughts and reigning in the frantic beat of her core did help and she felt grateful once again to Hiei for mentioning rest.
The plants suspended in the air of the room gave off much less scent that before, their internal lights muted in response. The bathroom lights from overhead made Shikiyoku cringe the more she calmed herself, and she thought briefly of asking Hiei to turn them off, but her mind did not stick with the thought long enough for her to form the words to accompany it.
She did wander back to earlier musings, still finding Hiei's position as her Champion as a source of strangeness.
Each previous demon who held the title gained a mutually beneficial...something from it. In fact, they could not have taken the 'oath,' as it were, unless they desired something from her. Youko used her within his bandit gang as an information gatherer. The others too had similar reasons for accepting, and Shikiyoku became for each of them a tool most willingly at their beck and call in exchange for their protection.
She saw herself as nothing more than a bother with this newest acquisition, wondering what in the three worlds compelled him to answer "yes" when her other side presented him with the question. She could certainly think of no reason. She had no place alongside a warrior of his caliber... So, what made him accept it?
With the question repeatedly echoing around inside her head, she shifted around to try and get more comfortable before gathering her strength to try and ask.
"I am useless to you. You have no need of me. You should have let me die and been rid of your curse." She did not open her eyes, remaining in the more meditative, resting state she had slipped into.
Well. That wasn't exactly what she meant to say, she thought to herself, though it properly conveyed her emotions on the subject. Her jaw snapped back shut as soon as the words tumbled beyond her mouth. 3
Hiei patted Maneshi between the ears again, his eyes trailing from the demoness in the tub to the worried feline. It didn't take much for the fire demon to see the cat's distress, but he didn't say anything about it. He merely pet him a few times here and there, as if comforting him, watching small tufts of fur float in the air from his shedding. A few pieces of fur landed on his face, and he brushed them away casually before returning to his petting of the cat.
When Shikiyoku was moving, his eyes shot up at her, wondering just what the hell she was doing, before she spoke up. He raised a brow, eyeing her for a moment. Her words rang true, he told himself; he gained nothing much of use from such an agreement. However, the last sentence she said made his brows furrow. He scoffed. "A death wish?" he finally asked, his tone mocking. "I knew you were ridiculously impetuous, but this is new." he taunted, his head tilting to the left only slightly.
~!**!~
Akari hadn't expected such an honest reply, truthfully. But as he asked, as she had been expecting him to do, she herself took a second's hesitation. She took a deep breath. "Not too much, I suppose." she stated, her eyes closing as she thought about the moments after they had entered the building. "We learned that they have a demon with the ability to use illusions. Hiei killed one of their members, who utilized that power into looking starkly similar to Toriko." Here, she paused again, her mind giving her the image of the wounded Toriko and repeating Otento's words about her condition.
"Toriko herself, however, was suspended from the ceiling. She's…" Akari paused, searching for a way to say this without going into detail. "In short, they had their… fun… and.." An image passed Akari's mind's eye that hadn't been relevant to the evening, causing her to pause and force her eyes open, watching Kurama's reaction instead. "She's in bad shape, last I saw her. Hiei is with her, I presume." Another image passed unbiddingly, this time harder to ignore. "She's lucky to have survived such.." This time, the image that hit her came with an itch that told her she needed to stop talking, concentrate on herself and force the wall in her mind back up. *
Kurama blinked as he watched Akari speak. He remembered everything after the spell held over he and the human boys had been broken, though it was in the distance behind Youko's personality, to ridiculously simplify the relationship held with Shuichi's body and Youko's spirit.
At the moment, none of that seemed to matter as his world focused in on Akari and her twinges. He stepped closer and held an arm out behind her back, not touching her, but silently in place as he scrutinized her features. He said nothing, knowing she was not okay, knowing something was wrong, and instead standing nearby and hoping that simply his presence would be of some support.
~!**!~
"I have no death wish." Shikiyoku replied simply. "But were I you, I would have removed my head from my neck the instant I became more trouble than I am worth. For what am I worth to a warrior like you? I see no reason you could possibly have in keeping me alive, and better to kill me and return you your freedom. I am at my weakest and will not be able to stop you." 3
Hiei felt an emotion pass through him momentarily. This was ridiculous. He sat forward, leaning over Maneshi who had took to laying in his lap, eyes rolling between himself and Shikiyoku. Finally, he opened his mouth, speaking in a matter-of-fact tone, "You think I didn't consider such a thing?" His expression was blank, tone harsh, but his eyes sparked with the emotion of irritation about the subject. "I could have found a way back to Demon World by now if I had so desired, yet you get in my way constantly."
He paused, the air in the room turning uncomfortable, even for him. "However, it isn't your fault you're useless." He stated offhandedly, tone quieter than before. "You're a pain, you're impetuous and mildly annoying. However…" he paused again, stretching the moment as he searched for something else to say. "However, I don't know what made me feel obligated to agree." Sure, impulsiveness wasn't normally the cause for him being in such situations, but for the moment, that was all he could come up with. Especially since he didn't understand why he'd agreed yet himself.
"You'll just have to deal with it." He finished nonchalantly.*
I didn't really think about this until just now, but the usage of "Shikiyoku" and "Toriko" can sometimes be confusing, so I'm going to attempt to explain her situation a little more in detail.
Akari did not know about "Shikiyoku," so she referred to "Shikiyoku" as "Toriko." The same goes for Kuwabara and Yusuke; they only knew her as "Toriko," and it's a habit, so that's the name they're likely to fall back to most often.
Toriko was a personality that manifested out of Shikiyoku's need to hide from Spirit World's Hunters. Shikiyoku locked her powers and her demonic form away and basically became a human so that the Hunters could no longer track her down. As a defensive mechanism, the personality called "Toriko" manifested to take care of the daily grind, kind of like how Sensui established separate personalities to take care of specific tasks. Toriko's personality is strong enough to almost be considered a separate entity, similar to Youko and Shuichi, but unlike the kitsune that entity/personality is only in FULL control when her hair is pinned back with the enchanted bobby pins (and Youko and Shuichi are two actual spirits in one body, while I associate Toriko/Shikiyoku as two personalities in one body-it's not terribly dissimilar from Disassociate Identity Disorder) and she is wearing the thick-lensed glasses. Without the bobby pins AND the glasses in place, Shikiyoku is allowed more freedom to be herself.
Hope that helps!
Yo-chan - Shikiyoku's 'nickname' for Youko Kurama. The honorific -chan (according to wikipedia) "is a diminutive suffix; it expresses that the speaker finds a person endearing. ... [chan] may also be used towards cute animals, lovers, close friends, any youthful woman, or between friends."
Thanks for reading! Bless your face. If you sneezed during this chapter, bless you. Peace off! -Star