A/N: Hello once again, Denizens of the FanFiction World!
We have broken a thousand views for the story! I am so glad there are so many people that have at least taken the time to check it out. CM and I originally never intended to post the story, so it's cool to have people peeking in to see what we've done! It's especially neat that FF tracks the 'display location' feature on the traffic stats so I get so see the different places people are from that are viewing the story! It's pretty sweet!
As to some actual A/N, my current plan is to continue posting chapters once a day throughout the rest of this month as well as the next, but to switch to a schedule, like Monday/Wednesday/Friday postings at a specific time, starting in February.
Anyway, I appreciate all of the views the story has gotten and if you are enjoying reading our roleplay, feel free to leave us a review and let us know what you think!
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!
Akari is having trouble not thinking about the kiss Kurama gave her,
and she skips school to avoid him,
running into Yusuke near the arcade.
~!**!~
The All-Fire speaks with Hiei through Shikiyoku,
eventually rewarding him with another white-hot flame.
The next day the two of them arrive at the first city
and start to make their way through to the other side...
Shikiyoku kept moving, unaware of the fact that she had left Hiei wandering behind her somewhere among the vendors, her crimson colored cloak lightly rustling near her feet.
Even as her eyes appreciated the city around her, in the back of her mind she thought through the other articles of clothing that she had, thinking about how the next time she was going to have to choose her outfit more carefully so incidents like what happened back at the gate would not hinder her visit.
Deep in these thoughts simultaneous with the bit of wonderment in her eyes, she did not notice the pair of sharp eyes that caught sight of her form as she entered into what was unmistakably the mercenary district, as those who strolled about her changed from the more 'normal' demons to ones with a fiercer cast about their faces, some of them openingly carrying large weapons, others nearly completely shadowed by the cloaks they wore, their appearances unable to be made out.
There were both male and females demons lining the walls-in groups or pairs or singularly-of the buildings that had various signs denoting the merc guild within, and these demons were of a particular vocation, though of different status within said vocation, usually denoted by how revealing their clothing was or the style. Or both.
More than a few called out to her as she passed by them, but she only took to gracing one or two of the ones she actually felt deserved it with a look a only a demon of her kind could conjure, taking the demons who received the look completely by surprise as they realized just by the sultry smile and flashing eyes exactly who they cat-called to, in spite of her simple appearance. And those couple of demons took it as a compliment that she would even give them such a look, though they also knew what she meant by it and stayed back.
She raised an eyebrow amusedly as she turned back to continue watching her way along after glancing at the last one, most of the demons around her this deep in the district tall and imposing figures of muscle, with only one among their number being near her height, though the ferocity of his face Shikiyoku considered to rival even Hiei's.
"What do you want?" She said suddenly.
"Whatever you're willing to give me." Came the snarky reply of the demon who caught up and matched her stride as soon as she spoke.
"You've certainly been following me long enough."
"You knew, then?"
Shikiyoku stopped and turned to look up at the demon, realizing at that very moment that Hiei was no longer with her and that out of the corners of her eyes she could not see him anywhere nearby.
The demon was tall-though most were in relation to Shikiyoku-and wiry with a filled out form accented by the tightness of the brown leather clothing he wore. He was surprisingly attractive in a devious, roguish sort of way, his sharp nose and tilted blue eyes with a well-cut jaw complimenting the mop of unnaturally white hair pulled into a ponytail at the base of his neck with pointed ears sticking out from the sides of it, his crooked smile with full lips revealing bright teeth. He looked as if he had not shaved in several days, but the smattering of facial hair only added to his handsomeness, not thick enough to cover a single stripe of a silver scar across his left cheek. He had two sheathed swords on a pair of belts tightened around his waist at his right, another single one, slightly longer, at his left. There were tattoos on his defined arms, left bare by the sleeveless tunic, and one of his hands had come to rest on a hip, the other hanging loosely by his side.
"There are more where those came from." Her caught her eyes sliding to take in the markings "But you haven't even told me-" His expression started back as her scent drifted up to his nose, "Oh. OH." He looked down at her with realization in his eyes.
Shikiyoku let her lips settle into that particular smile.
He let out a brief laugh, the hand on his hip sliding down to rest about the hilts of the pair of swords at his side. "I'm not sure now whether to stay or run."
"You should probably run." Shikiyoku purred.
He bent closer to her, whispering in confidence, "Then I'll most definitely stay."
One of her eyebrows quirked at his riposte and she found herself more intrigued.
He stood up straighter. "I was going to ask you something completely different at first, but I think I've changed my mind."
Shikiyoku tilted her head slightly in a nod to his decision.
The demon held up a finger, "Don't go making such rash judgements of me so quickly."
"You didn't even hear my answer to your original question."
His stomach retracted slightly as he meant to release his next words, but she took him off-guard with her expression and the statement that he did not expect her to make and he didn't say anything at first, opening his mouth and taking another breath in the pause.
"You know..." His other hand had not moved from the hilts of his swords. "You're very tempting." He clucked his tongue, "And if I didn't know your type, I would take you up on that in an instant."
"What if I said you were my type?"
"Well, I would hardly be able to blame you for that." He immediately replied with no sense humility whatsoever, obviously aware that he had good looks. He went on from there.
"I was originally going to ask for your company-"
"And you still could."
He raised an eyebrow and quirked his lips with a smirk, "But now I think I would ask for your services."
"They can be one in the same."
He laughed again, more exasperated this time as he raised the hand not on his swords up to cover his face.
"Are you always this difficult to hold a conversation with?"
"Depends on what we're talking about." She made no effort to hide her suggestiveness, though she had not been doing so the whole time.
He chuckled again, lowering his hand, "I asked for that one."
"Yes."
His fingers gripped a little tighter on the pommels of his swords, ready for the chance that she might release her powers on him.
"My guild would hire you for a job-"
"That would depend on how many of you there are."
The demon's mouth hung open, stuck in half a grin and half speechlessness at her audacity.
She waved his moment away, appearing slightly more business-like, "I require that you kill the informant for me once the work is done."
Returning back to the present, the demon caught up, straightening, and nodded once, "That would not be a problem."
"I would suggest that you let me speak to your guild leader before we go any further."
He grinned, his eyes twinkling.
"You're the guild leader." She said flatly.
"At your service." He made a slight bow from the waist.
She gave him another look that made him release another nervous laugh and put his free hand up behind his head.
"Pretty human is alone?"
The white-haired demon looked up over Shikiyoku's head and she noticed the immediate shift in his feet. She turned around and took one step backwards towards the guild leader.
"Friends of yours?" He asked lightly.
"No." Shikiyoku murmured, her eyes taking in three burly, huge, obviously animalistic-demons, each with a large, spiky club. The one in the middle had his resting across his shoulders behind his neck.
"Not alone!" The guild leader replied pleasantly. "We were just discussing business."
The demon in the middle, the one who spoke first, narrowed his beady eyes.
"Then is alone if only with you for business." He made no attempt to hide the saliva that started leaking from the corner of his lips.
"Also, not human!" The white-haired demon pointed out.
The new arrival took a loud sniff of the air through his large nostrils and his eyes brightened in understanding.
"Is almost as good." He reached down with a large paw-like hand.
"Ah-ah-ah," The guild leader reprimanded, drawing the single, longer sword out of its sheathe with his left hand so quickly that in one split second it was not in the air, and in the next he was crouched slightly over Shikiyoku with his knees bent and his head almost at the same level as her with the sword between her and the grabby demon who stopped his hand just short of the blade that gleamed red in the light. His right hand came to rest on Shikiyoku's shoulder companionably.
"I found her first. I suggest you leave her alone before things get ugly." 3
Hiei meandered about, eyes soaking in the sight of the merchandise before him, completely unaware of anything else at the moment. He pulled to a stop at a very particular stand that held things that were very interesting to him, featuring daggers and swords and weapons galore. A single blade had his attention, and curiously, he eyed the hilt and the sheath the blade was hidden within.
The sheath itself was plain black, with small lesions here and there where it had obviously come in contact with another as a last resort for defense. The hilt, however, was flawless. The gold that encircled the small gems that plated it was glittering in the light of day, not a single scratch on the weaker metal.
"Good taste, you have," the demon behind the stand spoke up, reminding Hiei dully of a character that humans often quoted and mocked. "Price lowered with this one, it is. Been on the market long time."
Hiei sneered, eyes never leaving the very beautiful blade. "That's too bad," he replied as he ran a single finger down the handle until his index finger touched the sheath, which felt as if it were covered with felt.
Such an odd combination.
"Touch the blade, you will not. Not unless buying."
Hiei's eyes flashed as he slowly turned up to look at the scrawny creature with beady eyes. A sneer formed on his lips as he took the challenge by the handle, quite literally, and he lifted the blade from the table's surface and unsheathed it.
The sound of the metal being removed from the sheath was music to his ears, and without even looking at the blade he knew it was in pristine condition.
"Place down or die."
Hiei ignored the threat, pulling the weapon entirely from the sheath and wielding it in his dominant hand, weighing it thoughtfully and poising it as if ready to strike. Nice balance. It rivaled even his beloved katana, despite its larger size. It was only a few ounces heavier than his current blade, but that didn't matter much for the fire demon. He still had speed on his side.
The demon across from him made a sound that was obviously of a last warning, and Hiei moved with a flash of speed, pointing the end of the blade at the demon's neck, watching the taut skin of the demon go still and draw closer around his bones in fear as he quite literally shrunk into himself. "I wish to test the blade's quality in the art of slicing through skin. Care to be the experiment?"
"N-not so, sir."
"Good."
And with that, Hiei turned and left the stand, blade still in hand, now sheathed and held in his left hand. He was very happy with his prize, even so much as considering using it, since it was very easy to see the sharpness of the blade was unlike the one he already owned.
In a single motion, he had the sheath tied to his belt, hiding it underneath his cloak on his right hip, making both sides of his body now occasionally bumped by sword sheaths.
Only then did Hiei realize Shikiyoku was not within sight. He paused and turned to look in the direction he had come from, searching for her, but not seeing her. He searched a bit longer before he met the eyes of the demon whom had had his most prized blade taken, but that demon didn't seem to think it wise to send someone after him.
Good.
Hiei turned and followed the path until he was in another district of the city, and faintly, he could smell Shikiyoku's scent moving along a path that she had taken minutes ago. He calmly followed it, his feet moving a little faster so that he jogged by demons, easily weaving his way through the crowd that moved against him.
At least the bond hadn't acted up yet. That meant she was fine…
But still…
His feet continued to move, faster now, at a run through the crowd as he searched for a visual of Shikiyoku.
~!**!~
AKari raised a thin brow at the detective and a small smirk formed on her features, a sarcastic "ha ha" leaving her at his response. "Jealous of the grump with three eyes? I hadn't pegged you the jealous type. It must suck," she mused, turning to face him again and pausing in her leave. "Maybe one day your muscles will shrink from the soft pillows they are and become… rocks, as you said," she taunted, eyes glittering with amusement and relief now that she had something to keep her mind busy. "I mean, your fists aren't soft, but it seems the rest of you is. From muscle to heart, you're the epitome of kindness." Her voice hadn't ever wavered away from her sarcasm, her eyes rolling to the sky above. "It's an odd thing to combine with your love for scuffles."
She went quiet in contemplation now at his offer of video games. It was… tempting. And she had withdrawn of Sensui's account earlier for food. That needs to end soon.
Her head tipped to the side as she eyed the detective curiously. Her first thought had been that hitting the machines was likely not very advised. But of course, she knew that hadn't been what he meant.
"I suppose I have time to kill," she responded with a shrug. "Might as well. Lead the way, since you know the gaming systems and I do not." She paused and gave a small sigh. "But only for a bit. I have things to do." *
"Then allow me to welcome you to my domain!" Yusuke threw an arm over Akari's shoulder and led her in the direction he had just left, reentering the wide open arcade and moving to sit down at a different game than before.
"This is a fighting one." He pointed to the joystick and buttons as he explained the basic mechanics. "High attack. Low attack. Move. Jump." He slipped a coin into his machine as he went on, "You make combos based on the order you push the buttons and how you move your character." He demonstrated a couple. "Pretty simple, right?" He glanced over at her.
~!**!~
The demon with the club took another sniff of the air that wafted to him from Shikiyoku's body, the invisible, undetectable tendrils of her energy being pulled up into his nose and taking over more quickly his lesser developed mind.
So it was with a couple of wide-eyed looks from the companions on either side of him that he hefted his club off of his shoulders and smacked it against the palm of his hand. They could both easily see that the guild leader, a notorious merc at that, should have been left alone as soon as his sword was drawn, and they each took the slightest of steps back, leaving their leader more to himself and silently indicating to the white-haired guild leader before them that they would not be participating in the unsound judgement call their own leader was making.
The demon who still bent over Shikiyoku was smiling deviously upwards at the leader.
"Think I should give him one more chance to back off?" He said aloud, letting his eyes glance over to the side of Shikiyoku's face.
Shikiyoku knew the look on the demon's face, that he had already been captivated by her unintentional power.
"It's not going to matter." She responded in the same light tone that he used, though at the moment she felt nervous, unwilling to exercise her abilities on a brute that might do as she said if she asked him to back off, but would likely come back for more.
"You think so?"
"He's too stupid to know any better."
The demon with the club growled at her, lifting his weapon over his head to bring it down on top of both Shikiyoku and the guild leader still protecting her.
Shikiyoku didn't even blink and she missed what happened as the demon lurched in place, his eyes bulging out of their sockets as the upper portion of his body suddenly shifted heavily to the left and then completely disconnected from his waist, falling over onto the ground.
She did notice, however, that while he had not appeared to move-his left arm still protectively dividing them both from the would-be attacker-the guild leader's right hand was no longer resting on her shoulder and he now had her in an embrace, her shoulder covered by the pit of his arm as it hung slantwise across her torso.
She heard the slight click as the pair of swords at his left finished sliding back into their sheaths, and she made the conjecture that he had drawn them and attacked so quickly with his right hand that her eyes did not follow, his body tall enough and his limbs long enough that he had been able to do so by reaching over, around, and in front of her instead of having to step back far enough away that he would have the room.
He did not remove his right arm from around her, Shikiyoku finding her back pressed up against his chest, instead letting his fingers linger lazily over the hilts of the two swords he had drawn, sliced, wiped the blood off of, and resheathed too quickly to follow.
Letting his eyes pass back and forth to the other demons in front of him, the guild leader let his lips part on the one side in a half-grin.
"Are we finished here?"
They hesitated, Shikiyoku's smell beginning to tantalize them as well. 3
Hiei moved through the crowd with almost full speed now, his feet hardly touching the ground as he felt the bond quiver a bit with emotions from Shiki that weren't strong enough for him to define just yet. His own core moved just slightly as he pushed and ran his way through the crowd, his feet now carrying him by sheer instinct as Shikiyoku's scent lingered with others.
A hand moved beneath his cloak as he moved, his keen eyes zeroing in on a scene not too far ahead now, the smell of blood drifting up to his nose, carried by the wind. His expression shifted and his eyes flashed, his lips forming an angry frown as his brows drew down at the scene.
Shikiyoku was standing very, very close to another demon, who had an arm about her body. A single demon fell, but two more still stood in front of her. His vision turned a tint of red and his hand withdrew a sword, the hilt unfamiliar under his palm. He'd get to test its sharpness after all.
The fire demon moved, circling at a speed that made him nothing more than a streak through the crowd as he moved around, behind the demon who held Shikiyoku captive with a sword so obviously drawn. It wasn't hard to keep his own presence hidden, something he'd instinctively done when the unease set in his stomach.
In the next second, he was standing behind Shikiyoku and another demon, a blade just touching the cloth of the demon's outer wear while his eyes sent a very deadly, very silent warning to the other two.
"If you value your life, you'll step away immediately."
~!**!~
Akari blinked at the arm Yusuke tossed over her shoulders, but didn't protest when he moved to guide her into the building filled with various machines that played various types of music, various themes. Her eyes roved around the building, taking in the different colors of flashing light in the darkened room. She had to admit, the atmosphere certainly was a pleasant one, despite the smell of sweat and trash.
She looked down at the game Yusuke stopped in front of, her eyes moving with the gestures the boy made to each button and lever. A grin formed on her features. "Fighting hand to hand isn't enough, so you resort to games?"
She reached into her own pocket and fetched a coin, eyeing it before eyeing the machine's asking amount. She slid the coin inside once confirming it was of equal value needed to play and the plopped herself down on a stool that was poised for long-term gamers. "Do we play together, or separate?" she inquired curiously, wondering if maybe she'd be able to beat him in this fight. *
"Well, I was gonna be nice and let you figure this one out on your own." Yusuke grinned, his eyes never leaving the screen where his game had already started. "But if you really wanna, I'll move over there when I get done." He jerked his head to the machines opposite of where they were sitting, which appeared to be all part of the same unit, and would allow a versus setting for the players on either side. "Just consider that your practice round." He tilted his head to indicate the game that was starting up in front of her.
~!**!~
At Hiei's sudden appearance, the other two living demons across from Shikiyoku found their heads much clearer under the threat of his eyes and they took a couple more steps back before slowly starting to disengage themselves from the encounter and moving beyond them to get away.
Shikiyoku reached up and rested a hand on the arm the guild leader held around her even as he let his sword arm drop just a little, silently indicating to him that he stay where he was.
She sighed long-sufferingly, "It is not good for business to threaten a prospective employer, Hiei." She could not see Hiei from where she stood with the guild leader practically surrounding her vision with his shoulders, but she could just imagine the position he had them in. 3
Darkened eyes narrowed at the two demons that stepped backwards, away from the scene just a little. He hadn't meant that they back away, but it was just as well. The less he killed, the easier it would be to get through the city without problem. Not that demons really cared about skirmishes…
Shikiyoku's voice floated to Hiei's ears almost lazily, as if she had been waiting on him to screw something up and lecture him in the most patient of tones. Bored, perhaps, but still patient.
"Employer?" he repeated, eyes sliding to the demon who blocked his view of the demoness. Why would they need an employer? It was more trouble than it was worth, in his opinion.
He lowered his blade and stepped around, figuring that as long as Shikiyoku seemed calm, observing no threat other than the two brutes in front of her, then he might as well move so he could see her face. But his energy remained hidden for a very specific reason, his eyes taking in the male that held Shikiyoku almost protectively against himself. He didn't see much danger from this one, since his body was so relaxed and he merely stood there, not a single muscle moving to even protest Hiei's appearance.
~!**!~
Akari shrugged at Yusuke, her hands moving into position over the joystick and the buttons, the music from the machine blaring loudly in response to her willingness to play. "Only if you want to." She scrolled through the different characters she could play as while the opposing computer player chose one almost immediately, making her frown as she read the stats of each player. In relation to any demon, these characters were considered weak.
It wasn't very accurate.
She finally settled for a certain character she'd heard the name of many times in her life, and his battle cry as soon as the game continued on was one that made her raise a brow incredulously.
"This is ridiculous. They're not even portrayed correctly."
But she began pressing buttons, easily figuring out a few combinations and sticking to the ones she knew worked, attacks that she had witnessed before. A small smile of amusement played on her lips as her character dashed across the screen, throwing the other to the ground and continuing to stomp at him.
At least the signature move was accurate. *
"Alright, then Miss Contrary, you pick the next game." Yusuke waved a hand randomly behind him at all the other machines to choose from, quickly bringing it back down to mash on the buttons some more. "It's not like this is the only thing here. Racing. Sports. Gambling. Whatever."
"Ha, ha!" he exclaimed as his character pounded the face of its opponent into the ground for another win.
~!**!~
The white-haired demon had felt Shikiyoku beneath him relax at the sound of him being threatened, which would have left him wondering at her had he not known a few things. She didn't look like one of the ones from The Palace though...
As he felt the presence behind him recede from its attacking position, Shikiyoku lowered her hand from his arm and he began to stand up.
"Ah, so you do have an escort." He commented, intentionally letting disappointment drip a little from his words wistfully.
"Were you going to apply for the position?" Shikiyoku rejoined as she turned around to watch the guild leader finish sheathing his weapon and pivot so that he stood to the side of her and Hiei, able to see them both plainly.
"It would certainly make life more interesting, of that I have no doubt." He swept one foot back slightly and made a flourishing bow to Hiei, "I apologize for encroaching upon your territory," here he stood back up, "But I've always found that a dead mercenary is a useless mercenary." His eyes alighted on Shikiyoku, "Even if said mercenary hasn't actually agreed to anything, negotiations seem to fall flat when one of the two involved falls over prematurely."
Shikiyoku had to remind herself that Hiei was not actually accustomed to her line of work, at least what it had been under Youko as well as what it had been here when she still lived on the Ninth Level, so the situation he had barged into was nothing like anything he'd ever seen in regards to her before. Upon reflection, he really had no experience in what he was actually meant to do, though there was not any opportunity for that much in Human World. 3
A single brow twitched, but otherwise, Hiei gave no reaction to the disappointment that lingered in the words from the male. HIei let his blade hand at his side, still gripped in his dominant hand with a hold that was ready for anything.
When Shikiyoku's 'employer' moved, he instinctively shifted, moving a foot backwards to ready for attack, blade moving only a fraction of an inch towards the demon before he realized the motion was one Hiei had never received before.
The demon bowed, voicing an apology, and Hiei wasn't sure what to do. He certainly wouldn't bow back, but was there a type of guideline to something of this nature? He moved to stand up straight again, blade lowering and wrist relaxing at his side. He didn't even know how to reply to the moment other than relinquishing his threat silently, sliding his blade away and out of view in a silent show of peace.
His crimson eyes shifted to Shikiyoku almost expectantly, waiting for her to say or do something that might indicate something he was missing, or perhaps time to leave.
He didn't like being in the city.
~!**!~
Akari's character continued to kick at the opposing character on the screen until the speakers yelled at her and the words "You win" flashed across the screen. She snickered and sat back, leaning the stool backwards as she looked over the character on the screen with familiarity. Perhaps it wasn't too different than him.
"One game," she said to Yusuke, turning to face him with a determined gleam in her eyes. She knew this character inside and out, if he wasn't too butchered, and she was confident that as soon as she figured out the right combination, Yusuke's character wouldn't stand a chance. "Then we'll see about another one." *
Yusuke shrugged, "Sure."
He got up and went to sit down at the machine across from her, putting his coin in, activating the game, and picking his character, waiting for Akari to load in.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku held Hiei's gaze for a moment, gauging her reservations as well as the look in his blood red eyes.
Going into a contract with a Champion as inexperienced as her current acquisition was going to be dangerous, even if she wouldn't actually have trusted the job of her protection to anyone else. In a pinch, only her Champion would have the sense of mind to be able to stop an interrogation session should it dive out of control. Anyone else would be just as susceptible to her wiles as her prey, while the Champion would at least be focused enough should her life stand on the line to kill the informant.
She calmly moved her gaze over to the white-haired demon beside her.
"I'm afraid I am not actively seeking work as a mercenary at this time, so I will have to decline your offer."
The guild leader raised his eyebrows, but his expression did not change otherwise.
"Not even going to allow me to try to persuade you otherwise, princess?" He could already tell that for whatever reasons she kept to herself, she wasn't going to be saying yes today.
Shikiyoku felt her eyes twitch slightly when the guild leader called her a princess, but she gave no actual indication of her feelings on the word otherwise. It sounded to her as if he really thought she were royalty from The Palace she knew lay two cities away, and was not using the word as a pet name.
"Even if I were looking for work, my price is much too high for you." After speaking, her closed lips curled upwards in a wicked grin.
He didn't seem terribly phased, "Doubtful. But I'll take my leave of you anyway. Feel free to give The Palace my regards upon your return."
He leaned forward and slipped a hand behind Shikiyoku's elbow, gently pulling her arm up as he ran his fingers underneath her forearm until he reached her palm, where he maintained hold of her hand in his own and bowed as he brushed his lips against her fingers, gazing directly into her eyes with his piercing blue gaze as he did so.
Shikiyoku blinked once and he let go, releasing her and turning to walk away, one hand resting on the pair of hilts at his hip while the other arm swung freely in the air down by the third sword on his other side.
She found her hand still hanging in mid-air when he let go, her eyes following his retreat, and after he began to disappear into the crowd, she pulled the hand closer to her face, staring at the place where his lips had been, feeling a tingling sensation where they had pressed up against her skin.
Rationally, she knew the tingling was all in her head and not the product of poison or the like. But something else entirely stirred within her and made her eyes trail after the direction the guild leader had taken. And she realized they had never even told one another their names...3
Hiei didn't move from the place where his feet had become planted to the ground, his arms hanging at his sides and fingers slightly twitching. He was curious about the offer he had been ready to make, and why Shikiyoku had not even considered it. Perhaps it was because Hiei himself had no idea of anything to do with her line of work. At least, that's what he assumed, and the thought left him scowling to himself.
For once, Hiei was the one who felt useless.
And that irked him just a little.
So when the white haired demon was gone, Hiei crossed his arms over his chest and watched Shikiyoku carefully, contemplating on inquiring of her… profession. But he refrained for now, since they were within the walls of the city.
He would have lingered longer, if it were not for the next thing that happened.
Several voices shouted out at once, yelling different things such as "Over there!" and "That's him!" Hiei didn't have to turn to know what was going on. A small sneer formed on his features as he glanced over his shoulder, four rather large demons running his direction, each with eyes on him. Glee at the thought of the challenge arose, but he turned to Shikiyoku again.
"Time to go," he stated almost casually, as if leading a friend away from a particular ride in an amusement park.
~!**!~
Akari's grin turned wolfish, her eyes gleaming with mirth as Yusuke agreed, and almost as quickly as her hand would move, she had another coin in the slot of the machine, the music picking up where it had begun the previous round she had played. Her hand pulled at the joystick until the character name Lin Xou popped up, the character with a long, sleek black ponytail bouncing around on the balls of his feet on the screen as she hit ready.
"Y'know, these characters are based on actual people right?" she called across to the boy, suddenly deciding to share her own thoughts. "At least some of them. Lin is actually a demon who lived in my own village a few decades ago. Swell guy, until you made him mad."
She wasn't sure why she babbled like a moron.
Maybe it was because one of the characters slightly resembled Kurama, with the red hair, and her mind wished to be busy. *
"Huh. Really?" Yusuke briefly looked across the profile pictures of the characters he hadn't really considered very far into before.
Well...I guess that one does kinda look like Kurama...but it can't be...
Yusuke glanced up over the machine at Akari, refraining from mentioning that particular notion. She hadn't reacted to Hiei's name, and he knew someone was bothering her. He'd worn that same look often enough in relation to Keiko to recognize it on others. And since she wouldn't so much as consider a human, like say Kuwabara...or anyone else for that matter...Yusuke felt pretty sure it had to be the fox getting under her skin. He wasn't surprised. Bloody intelligent bastard.
Best to get her mind off of these things.
"What about the sumo-wrestler in the corner? You know him too? Best buds?"
~!**!~
All of Shikiyoku's previous occupation with the unknown guild leader, as well as the encounter she'd nearly just had, melted away at the scene she could just imagine Hiei having been responsible for and she found herself grinning foolishly at him, putting her hands on her hips.
"What did you do this time?" 3
Hiei shrugged lightly at her, his eyes flashing with mischief as he glanced back at the group of demons charging through the parting crowd.
"I was given a rather interesting trinket. Why argue over it?"
With that, he turned and decided to take a small run, to find better fighting ground that wouldn't end up destroying parts of the city he had actually began to enjoy. His smirk never left his features as he rushed by Shikiyoku, a hand sliding into his cloak and just touching the blade he wished to test. He didn't withdraw it yet though, since he seriously didn't want to destroy any buildings and cause more trouble, but a little mischief here and there was enough to keep him entertained.
~!**!~
Akari smiled at the screen as she scrolled over to the character the detective had indicated, giving a small sound of thought before shrugging. "As far as I know, if he's a real person, he's either dead or enjoys laying low." She paused as a human passed by, looking at her as if she were completely out of place in the building.
As soon as he was out of earshot, she continued, "Granted, these characters are based pretty loosely on the actual characters. I'm sure the humans had fun using what they considered to be myths for the basis of these people."
She gave a small sigh. "Hit start already! I wanna see if I can kick your butt here!" *
"Oh, uh, right," Yusuke had gotten distracted by attempting to see if he recognized any of the other characters now that Akari had mentioned it.
He started up the game and waited eagerly as it loaded, hands easily curling around either the joystick or the buttons as needed.
As he got into the game and the fight started, he jumped backwards to put some distance between himself and the girl, trying a combo or two quickly before she did anything just to make sure he remembered exactly what this fighter did.
~!**!~
"The only thing I might argue," Shikiyoku turned to follow after him, with the same smile on her face, "Is over your definition of 'given.'"
Her own eyes were bright as she dashed alongside him, wondering what exactly it was that he'd...been 'given.' 3
Hiei didn't reply right away to Shikiyoku, deciding to let her simmer for a moment over the fact that he knew not of the city's make up and was blindly looking for an open area. Of course, he wasn't worried since their pursuers were slow as boar demons.
As he ran, he found himself taking sharp turns, following the widest path through town until eventually, it did open up to a rather large courtyard-like scene, where only a few demons lingered, but otherwise it was barren of people and structures.
Sure, if he wanted to, he could simply get away.
But what was the fun in that?
~!**!~
Slender fingers poised over colored buttons and curled around the single joystick as the countdown began, and as soon as the fame shouted "GO" at her and Yusuke simultaneously, her character moved forward, towards Yusuke's retreating character as a few attacks flew at Lin. With the touch of a single button, her character slid on his knees underneath the attacks and was striking at Yusuke's character, which was, ironically, another character she recognized. Of course, not very well. Only the name, since her family had done a lot of research over specific types of fighters.
The character known as Lin threw punches one after another, followed by kicks. *
Yusuke mashed furiously on his combo buttons, swooping the joystick down, over, and up in order to release one of his character's signature moves, but managed to get kicked in the middle of it as the character closed the distance too rapidly and found Akari's character's foot in his face.
Yusuke snorted at himself for the mistake, holding backwards on the joystick so that the next several punches were blocked as he looked for an opening, thinking he might jump overhead and get behind the other fighter.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku found herself gazing around at the blur of buildings and demons, still interested in seeing more of the town even as they were fleeing from the...
Hiei stopped, or rather slowed, and Shikiyoku raised her eyebrows as she felt he was preparing to turn on the demons who pursued him.
"I'm...pretty sure I don't need to be in the way." She made a path for the nearest building wall and ran up the side of it, getting to the roof and twisting around so that she sat with her legs dangling down over the air, hands next to her thighs, still wondering what a demon like Hiei would steal.
It wasn't like Demon World had sweet snow...3
Hiei glanced over at Shikiyoku as she spoke up, watching her form continue onwards and scale a wall of a nearby building, making a small sneer form on his face as he realized she had no idea what he'd taken. To her, it likely would be a silly thing, but to him, it was an interesting trinket that seemed to resonate with the energy of its wielder, as if becoming an actual part of the fighter who held it.
Even as his hand enclosed around the gems of the hilt at the very moment he turned to face his oncoming challengers, he could feel it almost humming with the resonance of his own energy. He didn't have to wait long before the four larger demons were standing around him, actually huffing from the run they'd had to make.
"You're rather out of shape." he commented, his eyes looking them over again as he reconsidered his observation. "Well, I suppose roundl is a shape.."
A growl resonated from each demon simultaneously, creating one low rumble that echoed on the wind. Without another response, each demon charged at once, two coming from his left, one in front of him, the other on his right.
Hiei only needed to make a lazy hop into the air to evade their clumsy fists, his arm withdrawing from his cloak to reveal the weapon he'd taken, though it was only a mere blur as it was struck down at the shoulders of the two closest demons, disabling the use of those arms entirely.
"Too slow."
~!**!~
Akari's hands pushed against the joystick, urging her character forward and down into a low kick that was aimed low at Yusuke's character's ankles, the sound that resonated from the screen of the grunt from Lin's character actually making her laugh. It was such a ridiculous sound that wasn't anywhere near the voice she vaguely remembered that she was momentarily distracted by her own amusement.
"Ridiculous," she commented again as her eyes turned back to the screen to see her character being tossed around. She didn't really care, since it was just a game. The fact only made her laugh a bit harder. *
Yusuke shrugged as he advanced on her character again.
"It's entertaining enough." He grinned, "And I guess it keeps me out of trouble or something, so that's good right?"
He aimed a few punch/kick combos at her and then danced back briefly to try out another special attack that had his character twirling forward at a near-impossible rate while glowing as it tried to roundhouse kick hers.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku actually scoffed at her foolishness.
What else did she think Hiei would have...been given? Certainly not a shiny bauble like she would have wished for. She wouldn't know what to do with a sword. Except perhaps "don't hold the pointy end."
"He issss fassst."
"Mm." Shikiyoku intoned absently in agreement, feeling pleased. "The fastest."
Shikiyoku had a shiver run through her body as a tongue tickled at her ear, tasting the air near her hair which she had just gotten finished tucking behind one ear.
"Do you mind?" Shikiyoku grumbled, tilting her head away.
A hand roughly met with the back of her head and she could feel it grabbing a hold of her hair and jerking her backwards from the edge of the building.
"Not at all."
The slithering voice had another spine-tingling sensation skip down to Shikiyoku's toes, but her eyes narrowed as she got her footing underneath her, a burst of anger making her spin around, the grip on her hair not tight enough to prevent her from jerking around in spite of the pain it caused.
"Not the hair." Her eyes flashed with power and the demon released her, stumbling back as her energy hit him. "You don't get to touch the hair."
He hissed at her, torso humanoid, lower body snake, his tail lashing harshly behind him, annoyed as he visibly cringed away from her.
His recovery was quick and as Shikiyoku glanced over her shoulder to check Hiei's progress, he whipped his tail out in an effort to bind her, but she noticed just soon enough to leap back out of the way, landing firmly on the edge of the roof, her body bent defensively.
"Wantssss it." He slithered again, forked tongue tasting the air and her smell again, his eyes regarding her hungrily.
"Yeah, you and everyone else in the vicinity." Shikiyoku growled.
Being that his sense of taste was coupled with his sense of smell at how he pinpointed her location, Shikiyoku knew her energy was affecting him three times faster. And she had no idea how long he'd been at her shoulder. Or if he'd been following her since they'd entered the city for that matter.
If only she'd had her demonic form, she wished not for the last time. Everyone would be less likely to mess with her because of Hiei-his connection with her being more obvious with that form-but it seemed her luck was going to be the opposite for as long as this particular stay in Demon World lasted.
The demon was coming at her again and she dodged out of the way, though he seemed to predict her left movement and turned himself fast enough that he did not tumble off the roof of the building, only scattering bits of the materials down the side of the outer wall.
He shifted his weight to come at her with his tail again, but this time when she moved the opposite way he was ready for her, pushing his body forward so that he could capture her in a single hand, his massive fingers easily wrapping around her small form and lifting her off the ground.
Shikiyoku turned her head away and squeezed her eyes shut, but she could feel her scalp already tingling as her power started to shimmer defensively to her so-called 'aid.'
Not now... She pleaded silently.
If she could not keep it under control, every demon within the next mile would be after her, and they would not give up their chase so easily.
"Any time now, Hiei." Shikiyoku growled as the snake-demon pulled her closer to his face and tasted at her scent several more times with his tongue. 3
Hiei was enjoying himself, creating a small game of his own as he moved about, only just dodging the fists that were thrown at him and slowly hacking away at muscles, wondering if any of them would actually shout for mercy. He hardly thought so, since his strikes seemed to only anger them as if he were only prodding them with a cattle stick.
One demon came too close, and his head was rolling to the side in a second's notice, the large body falling with a rumble underneath him as he made another leap into the air, landing on the back of a demon who was hunched over, an arm trying to staunch the bleeding in his torso with an arm that no longer did his bidding.
Something pulled at his attention. Something tangible it seemed, as if a rope were being thrown over him and tugged lightly. He gave pause where he stood and assessed the sensation, but it left in another moment and he was moving away from the demons now, all patience and amusement having left him now.
He felt…
Rushed.
His lip curled upwards as his instincts told him he was wasting valuable time now, his skin crawling and hairs on his arms beginning to rise with an odd sense of panic that bubbled just below the surface. He killed another demon and turned to search for Shikiyoku, his eyes not immediately landing on her form at first.
He didn't have time to search anymore. The two remaining demons were charging, roaring at him, horns pointed in his direction as their heads bent forward in a tell-tale sign of a bull. A sound of irritation left him as he swung his sword again and quickly turned to leave the scene, not even watching as his playthings fell to the ground, as if forgotten.
His feet moved with his instincts, carrying him up the opposite side of the building than Shikiyoku had taken. As soon as his feet touched the roof, a flame formed around the blade he held, his sudden rage at the scene fueling, moving from himself and quite literally to the hilt of the blade and causing the gems to glow a crimson that rivaled even his own irises.
He hadn't appeared to have moved from his spot, but in truth, Hiei had lunged forward and swiped his newest weapon through the torso of the demon holding Shikiyoku, even returning to his previous spot before anyone had time to react.
He was tempted to speak, but his mouth couldn't quite find the words to say, so he settled for flicking his wrist, sending droplets of different colors of blood flying to the right and off of the smooth blade that no longer was aflame.
~!**!~
The game was a pretty close match, with both characters' heath bars just below half gone. Akari's character recovered from Yusuke's strikes and was standing up, fists moving in front of his face while he stood there, Akari thinking for the briefest of moments before making her character move again.
Her fingers mashed buttons just hard enough to create loud sounds, but not hard enough to break the machine, her other hand jerking the joystick around as she attempted her own special move.
Up, left, right, left, blue button, green, yellow. No matter what button she pushed, none of them lead to a combination that she was looking for, only sending more jabs and kicks or even making her character spin across the screen in an odd windmill like fashion, arms glowing yellowish with power whether or not the strike landed.
And it was beginning to frustrate her that she couldn't figure out how to use the best move of them all. Without it, she figured she would lose this game, but regardless of that thought, her character continued to fly around the screen just as fast as he could go, spinning, kicking, punching, whatever it was he could do, but each attack missing, sadly. *
As Yusuke dipped, ducked, and dodged Akari's furious series of attacks, he watched the glowing meter in the corner of his screen every so often, seeing that he was close to filling it up.
He spun forward again, following the roundhouse kick with a combo of air attacks and a throw, eyes lighting up satisfactorily when that closed the gap he needed and the meter started to flash, glowing a bright blue.
Yusuke quickly jumped back and started executed the combination needed to release his character's final attack.
~!**!~
The snake-demon did not move for a moment, frozen in time, then his grip on Shikiyoku loosened and she fell to the ground, catching herself on one knee as the snake-demon crashed over onto the ground.
She coughed furiously as he had been squeezing and her vision swam before her until another wave of anger washed through her body and she growled as she stood, holding a hand up to her ribcage as she glared down at the empty shell of the snake-demon.
By this time her energy was weaving in the air around her, agitated, her hair waving just slightly as if a breeze were brushing through it.
The longer she glared, the more her eyes started to glow a dangerously green color, completely preventing any sight of her pupils or irises as the energy around her stopped in place for a moment before a giant pulsating wave nearly shook the building underneath her feet.
Damn this stupid BODY.
Her demonic energy blasted out into a radius around her at least five feet wide, and thick enough that her features were indistinct.
Within it, Shikiyoku threw her head back as her eyes gleamed outwards with power, snarling up into the air as her entire body shimmered, suddenly covered in something akin to darkness as her shape beneath appeared to start changing, morphing into something altogether different.
The pulsating wave that had instigated this event imploded back towards her and everything froze for a brief second before it all collapsed, something obviously going very wrong as everything that had just happened reversed with a snap and Shikiyoku was left standing hunched over, several drops of sweat trickling down from her hairline as even her hair settled back down her back. She breathed heavily, her chest rising and falling with obvious strain, and then her eyes cleared, the final piece of the unsuccessful attempt quivering away from her.
The air around them had stilled, everything in the area holding its breath for another moment.
Shikiyoku glanced out over the city, most of which they had traversed at this point, and let loose a curse.
That's when all activity started again, but its buzzing seemed strangely humming towards her direction.
Without looking back, she dashed off the roof of the building towards the exit-gate of the city, feeling with a certainty she did not need to explain that she needed to get out of there.
Now. 3
Hiei stayed where he had landed, sword in hand and eyes trained on Shikiyoku as she landed on her own feet, her expression becoming more severe in the few moments he lingered where he stood. One moment, he was watching her breathing pick up in rhythm, become heavier with each breath she took.
And in the next, he couldn't even see her. But that wasn't what made his muscles tense up, his body rigid with complete and utter awareness of everything to do with the woman.
Her energy positively exploded around her, hitting him full force and making his core shake with the intensity behind it, the anger that motivated such a release. The fire he had almost forgotten about in his stomach moved rapidly, swirling about and keeping him focused enough to know that moving away from where he stood was not a wise decision.
But still, he wanted to move.
At first, it was not away from Shikiyoku, but towards her that he desired to travel. His body fought against his wish to move closer, to find the face that was hidden by the energy around himself. But as that fog seemed to clear, his desire to move forward shifted to another desire that was much more important at the moment. He could feel the shift in the air of the city, and his crimson orbs instinctively moved to the ground below.
Demons, hundreds of them, perhaps thousands, had turned their eyes up to him and Shikiyoku. Simultaneously.
He blinked as the fire in his stomach roiled again, as if telling him to get a move on, and without any hesitation, he turned and took off as well, his feet carrying him up to Shikiyoku and keeping pace with her easily, his eyes sliding over to her silently as small inklings of odd emotions slipped across the forefront of his mind here and there.
But he was too fueled by the fire to linger on those thoughts. He was too preoccupied with the idea of such sheer numbers coming after himself and Shikiyoku to even consider another thought for just a second. "Do not fight me," he suddenly voiced as he reached out and grabbed her around the waist, hoisting her up so that she sat on his left shoulder as his feet picked up the speed, making him now able to move at full speed without any delaying their escape.
He wouldn't dare give any other demon a chance to catch up, because if one even so much as delayed them, he wouldn't be able to fend all the rest of them off.
~!**!~
Akari's character spun and kicked across the screen, Yusuke's own character making contact with hers before dancing away to the furthest side of the screen, as far as could be from her own character. She huffed to herself, though her smile had never faltered since the game began, and she continuously tapped on buttons as if it would make her character get up any faster.
"C'mon, you lazy bum, Lin!" she tried coaxing at the pixelated character, her eyes suddenly moving to Yusuke's character and realizing he was creating a combo she hadn't seen before. "Uh-uh. I don't think so," she said to the detective as her character finally stood, but she doubted it was in time to block a special move, as this game had explained earlier. *
In a similar fashion to Yusuke's spirit gun, albeit fired with the heels of both hands together and a blast at least a hundred times in width of his usual bullet, a blue wall of energy shot across the screen from his character into hers, throwing her character up into the air as the words K.O. popped up across the screen.
Yusuke stuck his tongue out at her and winked, "It's just not fair, is it?"
~!**!~
Shikiyoku was glad for the sudden rush of air that now stung at her eyes, for tears of anger and hatred had formed there as she started running. Anger at herself for being unable to control her emotions, for erupting like that, even if her attempt to change had been a valid effort for her to take. Hatred boiled up underneath that though, a hatred for the impenetrable wall she had almost literally run headlong into just as she could taste her true form returning.
And the source behind that wall?
Toriko.
If Shikiyoku hadn't been rushing by whatever it was Hiei sped them past she would have spat in disgust at the ground below them.
Instead she gnashed her teeth together in fury.
A sort of sense of self returned to her just enough that she could tell Hiei wasn't running quite as fast as he was able, having to adjust for her height above him, which also prevented him from slipping through smaller passageways, having to skirt in various directions to regain their path.
She squeezed at his shoulder slightly with her right hand in warning to let him know she was going to shift and with a dexterity only a demon could have achieved, she dropped her weight behind his shoulder, pulling her legs over and behind it as she simultaneously shifted enough to have her right hand over to the other side of his head, positioning her legs on either side of his waist and draping her arms lightly underneath his neck in a piggy-back ride.
She proceeded to bury her face between her left arm and his neck as she clenched her jaw together with a barely contained wrath, knowing if at that moment she had contained the ability, she would have obliterated the stupid "human" side of her without hesitation. 3
Hiei continued moving along a path that was wide and open, surprisingly void of other demons considering the situation. He cut through alleyways anyway, his Jagan forcing itself open to look ahead, burning away his bandage that veiled it since he hadn't had the ability to remove it with a hand. The third eye looked ahead, acting like a mapping system and easily creating a route for their escape that, while was not the shortest, was the best route in relation to very little interaction with other demons.
He was about to glance over his shoulder when Shikiyoku's hand squeezed the very shoulder he had been about to look over, and her jostling around momentarily slowed him before she was set again, his arms instinctively curling beneath her legs to act as support for her body against his, his feet now moving with every single ounce of speed he was capable of.
He glanced over his shoulder to see very few demons able to keep him within their sights, and his Jagan adjusted the route accordingly, making more rapid turns and random shifts through alleys in the city to better relieve himself of any pursuers until, finally, he was seeing the gate that would let him escape the walls of this place and disappear into the dense forestry outside.
And, not to his surprise, the gates had begun to close at the sight of the sheer number of demons making way to it, Hiei managing to get through just before they slammed shut with a rumble that shook the ground under his feet. Only then did he slow, and it wasn't even enough of a slow down to allow his form to be seen other than a blur.
He didn't want to take any chances, so he merely continued on, and if he were to go in the wrong direction, Shikiyoku could simply point him the right way.
~!**!~
As the game ended, her screen playing sad music as Yusuke's machine blared music of triumph, she looked up to catch the expression on his face, her eyes staring at the tongue he stuck out at her. If she had been close enough, she would have grabbed that tongue between her thumb and index finger.
Instead, she settled for mocking the gesture in a child-like manner. "I'm Yusuke, and I think I'm the biggest, baddest wolf in town," she grumbled, her eyes still shining with mirth and a smile still plainly plastered on her face while her hands waved by her face, her body making a small dancing move to accompany her teasing, causing the stool to rock slightly back and forth.
"I guess I'm done gaming for the day," she said as she recovered from her own taunting. "They're not as enjoyable to me as they are to you." *
"I'm so glad you've finally seen the light." Yusuke took the opportunity to let out a little howl, his eyes dancing until she said she was done.
"Aw, really?" His expression obviously grew disheartened, "I mean, there's other stuff you could try too..."3
Thanks for reading! Bless your face. If you sneezed during this chapter, bless you. Peace off! -Star