A/N: Hello once again, Dearest Readers!
I meant to say something a while back (in fact I meant to say something when we reached Episode 113 which was Chapter Twenty-Eight so at this point it seems a little silly) about the fact that we have surpassed how many episodes the anime itself actually has, heheh. The last episode of the anime is 112, and while the manga does actually go past the point the anime reaches, we're admittedly basing our YYH world more on the universe from the anime that the manga, though there are a few things we borrow form the manga on occasion.
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!
Using the same spell that her first Champion had once taught her,
Shikiyoku successfully merges Hiei's energy with her own,
using it to supplement and spread hers farther so that she can finish the ritual.
Almost before she even finishes, Shikiyoku goes directly up to Hiei
and kneels before him, asking if he would allow her to be in his presence that evening,
to which he answers affirmatively, leaving the other demons who had also received double loops from her
in a slightly disappointed mood.
Both Hiei and Shikiyoku take note of the different way in which the demons of the tribe regard them,
Hiei mentioning that it was 'better than a ballroom' as the demons here appear to respect them,
and Shikiyoku realizes that it is the intertwining of their energy that is dampening her own usual, provocative aura.
Exhausted from the ritual, Shikiyoku falls asleep against Hiei, and at the Elder's behest,
Hiei carries her off to the Elders' Tent for the night.
They are both kept busy the next day, though by the time Shikiyoku and Hiei cross paths again,
it is Hiei walking up to Shikiyoku who is being propositioned by an outsider to become his mate.
~!**!~
Akari calls on Kamiya, who arrives at her home and subsequently heals Kurama of his physical ailments.
Akari is eager to get things moving at that point, but Kurama points out that they don't have much to go on.
Akari counters by saying they need to get ahead while they can, as their enemy is likely still moving,
and that they should at least, if not gather the others, inform them as to the going-ons.
They leave her place with the intentions of calling on all the others that they can,
but Akari takes notice of the state of Kurama's clothing, which is ripped and torn,
and their destination changes to that of Kurama's home so he can make himself presentable.
Having lost his key during the interaction with Otento,
Kurama accesses a small, carnivorous plant in a pot outside his front door with his blood,
relinquishing it of the key he placed in its mouth in order to let them in,
a precaution he took since the last time he lost touch with his energy
and couldn't just "pick the lock" and get inside...
Akari waited for Kurama to get the door open, ignoring the scent of his blood, figuring it was of his own doing. She moved after him into the house, looking around for the first time at the cozy home that she had run from the last time she'd been here. The memory of her last visit had her glancing at Kurama, even running a hand through her bangs before she turned away from him and wandered further inside, towards the kitchen.
"Cozy," she commented, eyeing the well-kept dining area, the spotless kitchen, the clean couches. Everything her own home lacked. Cleanliness, organization, even basic furniture and utilities. It reminded her that she needed to find a way to work on her current place of residence, find a way to make it… cleaner. More like a home than a run-down, abandoned building.
I'll get on that…. when this is over. *
"I get my cleanliness from my mother." Kurama replied with his nose sticking slightly in the air. He immediately was reminded of the condition of his clothes and glanced downward, "Which is why this is going to be taken care of now." He moved towards the stairs, waving a hand lazily to Akari. "Don't wait up!"
~!**!~
"Ah, Champion!" The demon turned with a flourish and it was difficult to tell if he had simply decided to ignore the slights upon his person or if he had not actually understood them. "You have an excellent head on your shoulders, I'm sure. Do you not agree that the 'Iro,' as I have heard the natives here call her, would make an exquisite mate for any demon she deems worthy enough to share in her presence?"
Shikiyoku regarded the back of the demon's head with an amused expression. 3
Hiei was unsurprised by the flourished motion of this one. He'd met one such demon before. Ended his life in a second. This situation, while similar, had stark differences. For instance, this one irritated him more.
The expression that crossed the fire demon's face was, originally, one of incredulity. However, it transitioned to an even gaze, not a single muscle twitching, not even his brow that wished so dearly to turn up at this demon's question.
"And you just so happen to… decide you're worthy?" he said slowly, tone even and almost… bored sounding. "It seems that out of the three here, only two of us have brains that function properly." He paused for a second to glance at Shikiyoku before turning again to the male. "And you're not one of them."
~!**!~
Akari's brow shot up faster than it ever had in her life at Kurama's words, but she didn't turn to the male. She didn't have to look to know his chin had lifted higher. His tone had implied the motion. However, she did turn to look at him when he dismissed her with a wave. She frowned at the place where he left her eyesight, momentarily unhappy with his wording. She wasn't waiting up for him. She was simply… waiting.
She turned and continued surveying the room, glancing at pictures here and there, hands behind her back to refuse touching the trinkets and such. However, she did pause at a picture of a woman and a man, standing shoulder-to-shoulder, warm smiles on their faces and gleams in their eyes. Even from the simple picture, she could see that they were happy, probably the happiest they'd been in their life, and they were as close to each other as they could get.
After a moment, she noted their intertwined hands between their hips, and she stood upright again, leaning away as she took in the picture a bit more.
Itsuki had told her of such an emotion that made these two faces glow. But to her, it was alien.
Love, hm?
She moved away from that picture, easily stepping around the dog that had silently sat at her feet. She wandered a bit more, looking at pictures that seemed very similar to the one she'd looked at before. And then she was bored.
"They look happy." Akari turned her eyes to Nabu, who wasn't looking at her, but at the picture she'd first paused at. She glanced at it again, and again found herself staring at it. "I bet you could be that happy one day. I mean, you're happy now, but not as happy as they are."
"Their happiness is different, Nabu."
"I know. It's the same happiness I feel when I'm around you!"
"No, not quite I don't think."
"But I love you! You're my family!" Akari sighed. "Don't you love me too?"
She didn't reply. "You stay here, okay?"
"But I thought we were waiting?"
"You're waiting. I'm going to the store."
"Steak!"
"Nope. Wrong kind of store." she replied as she pulled the door open. "Just stay here. If you need me… bark I guess. I'll be listening." With that, she closed the door behind herself and walked back the way she'd come, down the busy sidewalk and towards the shop she'd seen earlier. *
Kurama immediately made his way to the bathroom to turn on the water and strip off his ruined clothes before thinking he might call Shizuru before he took a luxurious shower-just in case-and wrapped a towel around his waist to head back downstairs.
The phone rang twice before she answered.
"Shizuru? It's Kurama. We've got a slight problem…"
~!**!~
"Hm. That's funny." Shikiyoku put a thoughtful finger to her chin as the demon turned back to her with a slightly irritated expression, "I don't really see any demons worthy enough to-oh wait there's one."
She pointed directly at Hiei, getting the demon to whip back around as if he didn't know who she pointed at, and she immediately stepped around the demon while he turned, up to Hiei's side where she gave him a quick, poignant kiss on the cheek in front of the other demon and linked arms with Hiei like they had last night, turning her back on the demon and beginning to pull Hiei to walk off before appearing to change her mind, and pausing to toss her next words over her shoulder.
Shikiyoku picked up on the demon's slight accent and imitated it, "You're amusing, darling, you really are, but you're just a little too...foppish for me." She wiggled her fingers on the word 'foppish' and kept going, leading Hiei away. To anywhere but here.
The demon just smiled royally and shook his head a little.
"Your rejection only makes me want you more, Iro!" He spread his arms out to either side.
"I know!" She called back with a sing-song tone, "But that doesn't make the rejection any less permanent!" 3
Hiei didn't react to Shikiyoku's words of his... candidacy… for a potential mate. To him, it was her excuse to get away from the other demon, and quite frankly, he couldn't care less. However, when she practically skipped his way, he shifted his hold on the rope that tied the dead creatures together for easy haul, letting the rope rest higher on his shoulder as Shikiyoku's small hand grabbed hold of that particular arm. Her lips to his cheek was unexpected, but the only way he gave that away was with a glance at her from the corner of his eye before they turned to leave.
At which point he entirely ignored the other demon, shifting his right hand's hold on the spiked tail of the largest creature he'd killed. Maybe he'd go hunting more often-
Wait, they were returning to Human World.
Damn.
~!**!~
Akari moved through the crowds expertly, only pausing between Kurama's house and her destination when she caught sight of a bank- one she hadn't known had been in the area. Instead of going inside like she normally would, she stopped at the ATM, used the numbers she had memorized of Sensui's information, and then was, just as quickly, moving away from the machine with a good amount of money in her pocket.
Minutes later, she was inside the shop, the only customer in the building due to the early hour, and the fact that she'd arrived as soon as the doors had opened. Her hands roved over fabrics of shirts, pulled on hangers so she could see such articles better, and then put the item back.
She did this several times before finding a jacket, very similar to the simple grey one she wore now, and a couple of shirts that… weren't so bad.
After a bit more browsing, Akari found herself leaving the store with a single new outfit and a new destination in mind. She again maneuvered around the crowds, eyes searching for the building she knew to be near.
~!**!~
Being clean felt so much better. Her hair was still wet despite her efforts to dry it, but as Akari moved back towards Kurama's house, she felt certain it'd be dry by the time she got back. That was one of the perks of her breed of demon: Hair dried just as fast as, well, fur, no matter the thickness. This was mainly due to…
Well, what did it matter?
She slung the plastic bag that now held her dirty clothes over her shoulder as she marched up the steps to Kurama's door, hesitating none as she pushed it open and stepped inside, first looking to the stairs and wondering what she'd do with her other outfit.
After all, the new one felt so much more comfortable… *
"No, Genkai was the second person I called." Kurama said patiently into the phone.
He was partially leaning over the counter in the kitchen, one hand pressed down onto the countertop, the other at his ear with the phone. His long red hair was pulled over one shoulder and still dripping down his bare chest, though he had enough sense of mind to wrap a towel around his waist again when the phone rang in the middle of his shower.
"Because, Yusuke, both she and Shizuru are more likely to sense something before either you or I. Especially since Otento-" Kurama waited as Yusuke went on. "You'll have to talk to them about it." Another pause. "She said she would get back to me on that, and I explicitly trust her judgement, as should you."
Kurama didn't even look up when the front door opened.
~!**!~
"We need to go soon." Shikiyoku said wistfully after they were out of earshot of the other demon as she dropped her arm from Hiei's to clasp her hands together behind her back. She started to grin, "Or never go at all, I suppose." 3
Hiei, on some level or another, was a bit surprised Shikiyoku had stepped away from him so quickly, but he wrote it off. Ignored it, because he still had things to do. For instance, return his kills to the others, help gutting if necessary, and-
Shikiyoku's last words caught his attention, entirely pulling him from his thoughts and his eyes down to her. "Do not tempt me, woman." he said in a low tone, though his gaze was not one of threat. He'd already talked himself out of it once.
~!**!~
Akari paused with the door only half-closed, hearing Kurama's voice and, for a moment, thinking she'd missed someone's energy signature. After listening for a second, however, she was aware that the person he was talking to was not here, but at home, using the same device the redhead surely had to his ear to speak through. So she let the door shut on its own and moved through the living area, mouth opening to ask the male a question.
That is, until she caught sight of him. With her head peering around the corner, she noted first that the male's hair was still wet. All fine and good, except so was his back. Wouldn't that cause sickness after a while, if one didn't have the immunity for it? Such as, demon energy?
Next, her eyes found a particular line across Kurama's back, obviously rougher than the rest of his skin, but made by, say, a blade. There were others similar to this one, some smaller, some less noticeable. Some of them even looked identical to ones she herself had, which were very obviously made by the same type of weapon.
The one that stood out the most was one that went the length of the arm that was extended, that hand propped on the counter to provide support as he leaned against the countertop. It was… newer, she could tell. She assumed it was one from a fight he'd had with the Spirit Detective team, likely the tournament they'd been tossed into. The one Sensui had kept tabs on.
This scar was, in a word…. grotesque. Its edges were jagged, as if the skin there had simply been ripped open and hadn't healed the way it should have. And while the scar itself was smooth, it also appeared rough, not just around the edges, but all over.
A frown settled over her lips and she glanced down at her own arms, hidden beneath the half rolled-up sleeve of the white button up shirt she'd bought. From the elbows to her wrists, there were no visible markings. However, the elbow and up…
How'd he get the confidence to show them? Why did he not care if others saw those marks?
She took a deep breath and looked up, again preparing to speak.
But this time, her eyes caught the whole scene. Not just the bits that stood out at first. She blinked, and then promptly turned her eyes away from the male who wore nothing more than the white towel around his waist. After a moment, she turned and left the area that would give her the ability to see the male, instead taking to sitting on the couch while Nabu sat curled on the floor, looking up at her curiously.
"What's wrong?"
She didn't reply. Instead, she made herself comfortable on the couch, leaning back and putting her bag on the cushion beside her. *
"Yes. You can call him." Kurama shook his head, smiling a little. "I'll leave it to you then."
He hung up the phone and moved towards the front door, peering at it curiously.
He'd thought he heard someone come in, which would be disconcerting if he didn't think it was probably-
When he turned around he caught sight of Akari, moving closer and then nodding approval at her new clothing.
"You look lovely. Allow me to go finish getting ready and then I'll tell you what I've heard." Kurama moved past to head back up the stairs.
~!**!~
Both of Shikiyoku's eyebrows raised at Hiei's choice of words, her expression turning sultry as she looked up at him through her eyelashes from his side, her next words low and seductive.
"Oh, but that's what I do, Hiei." Her lips curled into a mysterious smile, "I'm not called the temptress for nothing." 3
The fire demon chose to ignore the words Shikiyoku purred at him, his eyes only momentarily looking over at her before turning away again. His lips were tempted to twitch at her retort, but his expression remained as neutral as before as he approached the demon who had, earlier, allowed Hiei use of his bow for hunting the particular creature he'd wanted so dearly to kill.
"Ah, there he is!" the demon's booming voice echoed, chest moving with laughter that followed suit. "We'd thought you ran away."
"I don't run away." he retorted as he offered his kills to the demon.
"Of course not!"
~!**!~
Akari heard Kurama's approach and made a point to let her eyelids slide shut and her head lay back on the cushion of the couch, face turned away from the direction he'd be coming from, just in case. Nabu made an inquiring sound just before Kurama spoke up.
It took a great amount of self control to appear as if she hadn't noticed a thing. "You-" she began, about to say you go do that, but instead, "aren't allowed to say that. Now go… away." *
Kurama stopped, curious expression on his face at first.
"I'm...not allowed to say I'm going to get ready?" He appeared to consider it and shrugged, "I could just tell you now, I suppose, but I didn't really uncover anything terribly urgent."
~!**!~
Of course, if he did, it's not like you'd notice. Shikiyoku thought wryly about the demon who addressed her Champion.
It felt...strange. If they really did want to stay, there was nothing holding them back from staying here. In fact, the Elders would probably welcome them with open arms. 3
Hiei looked about at the different carcasses that were being skinned and gutted, several demons sitting with two or three creatures in front of them as they chattered and got through their work. It was obvious these demons were skilled at this, likely the normal hunting group while the rest did whatever other duties needed to be fulfilled. Though, for as many demons as were here, there sure weren't a lot of them.
"Well, we've got plenty here if you'd like to join us. The other groups are just now heading out."
Ah. Waves.
Hiei glanced at Shikiyoku, catching her thoughts about him running. His lips twitched before he moved to sit on the only available log, catching a blade tossed at him by the demon across from him. "Make sure to keep the skins and furs of all of them. They'll be put to use soon." The demon turned to Shikiyoku, offering her a knife as well, a smirk of amusement on his face. "Wanna help your Champion? You're welcome to."
~!**!~
Akari's eyelids slid open and she turned an almost bored gaze onto Kurama, meeting his gaze pointedly with her own. "No," she responded in an even tone. "You're not… you don't compliment someone when you're…" she paused, not sure how to say it, "...unclothed." She promptly turned her back to him again. *
Kurama's head tilted slightly to the side as if in consideration of her statement and he lifted a finger to his cheek thoughtfully.
"That's strange. I've always been told that's the perfect time to be throwing compliments around. In various states of undress of both parties, of course."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku took the offered knife with a blasé expression, moving her hand up and down a fraction to test the balance before meeting the eyes of the demon who handed it to her dead-on.
"I really don't think it's a very good idea." Her face may have appeared bored, but her tone was anything but. Almost absently, she began weaving it dextrously through her fingers, "Hand me a knife and demons tend to have this bad habit of becoming, shall we say...distracted. From whatever they're supposed to be doing." She easily caught the knife on the flat of her palm and gave the edge of the blade a flick with her finger, letting it twirl twice before catching it at the hilt, then flipping it around with a quick motion to pass it hilt-first back to the demon with a slightly lewd expression on her face. 3
Hiei seemed to be ignoring the banter around him, both from Shikiyoku and the demon who addressed her and the others who spoke amongst themselves. His hands made quick work of untying his own creatures from the length of rope he'd been carrying, and then he was busy first drawing the knife over the underbelly, and then easily, with practice that he'd learned decades ago, began skinning the furs first.
"Suit yourself," the demon responded with a wicked grin, taking the knife from Shikiyoku and using it with his own work. "Though, nothing bonds demons more than skinning a good hunt."
Hiei paused briefly and glanced up with a raised brow before turning back to his work.
"That only applies in the battlefield." he retorted, tone even but lips forming a sneer. "I suppose this is… similar."
"He's a fighter, not a lover. Good to know!"
~!**!~
Akari was momentarily taken aback by Kurama's straightforward retort, and for a minute she wasn't able to think of anything to counter him. Except..
"But we are not…" she paused, again searching for better vocabulary, and coming up short, "in such a situation. Thus, you are not allowed, and should get ready so we can go. oh I dunno, visit your friends." *
Kurama made it a point to stand for a moment longer smiling down at Akari.
"First of all, we don't have to go anywhere yet. And secondly, there's no need for that look. I'm sure you'll learn how to outfox a fox someday."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku felt her eyebrow, no her entire body, quirk at the last comment the demon made.
You're telling me.
She chose to address his first comment.
"Am I really one you need to lecture about bonding with, love?" Shikiyoku lazily reached her hand out, palm up like she had when she'd taken the knife, and ribbons of her yellow energy sensuously extended seemingly out of nowhere from along her arm upper arm below the elbow, wrapping about it like living snakes before twirling away from her skin and twisting through the air to caress gently at the demon's cheek and neck before Shikiyoku moved her fingers towards her palm and then moved her hand and arm back towards her torso, the ribbons reluctantly pulling away, uncurling back towards her before disappearing as they moved up her arm from where they came. 3
For a moment, Hiei wasn't paying attention, only skinning the creature before him. So, when Shikiyoku's energy wove into the air about him, he briefly glanced up to see why, then turned back down to his work, deciding to let her do as she wished. It wasn't like he could stop her anyway, even if he so desired to do so.
The other, however, grinned even wider at Shikiyoku as her energy snaked across the way to him, just touching his cheek and leaving behind remnants of warmth and the scent of her being. His eyes stayed trained on hers, and despite the spell she seemed to weave about him, his mouth moved with the words he'd been about to say. "Even if you wanted me as your love, it simply wouldn't happen." His lips twitched again, almost knowingly at her, and he turned his eyes to the coils of energy that disappeared again.
"Though, I'm sure you could change that, but it would not be what either of us really desire, now would it?" He met her gaze again, this time to wink at her and turn his eyes down to the pile of small creatures near him.
~!**!~
There were several things that popped into Akari's mind at that moment, but they all seemed to jumble together and she found herself momentarily scowling at Kurama. She sorted through her thoughts with a huff before opening her mouth again.
"First off, no," she said, though she wasn't sure why. "Second," she paused, sensing a bit of hesitation within herself but choosing to ignore it altogether, "you yourself, at this very moment, are not a fox. Simply a redheaded boy with a smart mouth." *
"Fox or not at this exact moment, I have learned from the best." Kurama grin wickedly, "There's no denying my heritage, currently able to manifest or not." He dropped the expression and shrugged, "But if that's the best you can do, we'll simply have to train you better."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku's face remained in the expression she'd had the whole time, with one eyebrow raised archly and a half-smile on her lips.
"'It simply wouldn't happen?'" Shikiyoku repeated skeptically, "I'm afraid you simply can't imagine what I desire. And I could easily convince you to desire whatever I wished." Her sparkling eyes belied her apparent eagerness to mold him to her will. 3
The demon paused, again looking up to meet Shikiyoku's gaze, this time with a calm, thoughtful stare as he considered her words, her expression, and even what he could feel from her. He blinked slowly at her once before turning his eyes to the Champion, who appeared deaf to the subject at hand, and then turned his eyes meaningfully back at Shikiyoku.
"I'm sure you could. I don't doubt your abilities, Lover." The emphasis on the word was, quite frankly, meant to contradict what he'd said earlier about her Champion, the fighter.
Two sides of one coin at times.
"I hope you have no place to be. We plan on putting together an actual feast today, in your honor and for our gratitude."
~!**!~
Akari's jaw flexed a bit, her teeth grinding at Kurama's words as she turned to look at him again. And then her expression shifted to a neutral one and she was shrugging. For a moment, she had nothing to say since the facade was rather difficult to keep up. "I bet that would be fun." she said, tone sarcastic, "Spending several hours with one person, reading a dictionary for a warm up and making sexual jokes as the first exercise." *
Kurama blanched, "A dictionary? Oh no. That sounds terribly tedious. Not to mention the fact that the point of innuendo is that you aren't directly coming out and saying something. No, not just studying, that simply won't do. It would definitely be more of a hands-on experience."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku couldn't help what she knew was a visible flinch that time, making a slight noise of protest through her nose. The demon's eyes passing from her to Hiei and back was not wasted on her and her jaw snapped shut, teeth clenching together as this time her eyebrow really did quirk. The right one.
She worked her tongue around in her mouth, but refused to so much as glance at the fire demon who sat diligently working nearby.
"Tch," She finally scoffed, her voice very low in a mutter as she finally turned away, "As if anyone cares what I do."
As if he cares what I do.
She stalked for the white-haired Elder she knew to be on the other side of the encampment. 3
The demon raised a single bronze brow at Shikiyoku's flinch, before resettling back into place and even pulling downwards into a silent apology that was, truthfully, only half serious. He couldn't feel their bond, as he knew there was one, but what he could feel was the underlying trust they had in one another, the underlying dependence upon the other.
And it seemed only one of them knew they depended on the other.
"You'd be surprised, Iro." he responded to her before turning back to his work, allowing her to take her leave without his protest. He didn't glance up when the curiosity of the Champion made the red-eyed demon check the area, eyes obviously following the seductress before turning down again.
"Hey, Kitseki, you still have that extra blade?" someone called to him from a few yards away.
~!**!~
The sound Akari made broke all forms of her facade, making her eyes narrow at Kurama and her jaw flex again from… several different emotions. Ire was the first to be registered, and the first to be acted upon. She stood abruptly, hand grabbing her bag of clothes, and she moved around the couch.
As she passed Kurama, she tossed the bag at him, aimed for his face and not tossed very lightly, before continuing on without pause.
Out the door, slamming it as she went, at which point she took to pacing the sidewalk outside. "Stupid, irritating," a few more words came to mind, but wouldn't leave her lips, "fox!" *
"Oh dear." Kurama easily caught the bag, "Was that too far? I can never tell with you." His expression never faltered until she had left the building, at which his free hand came up to cover his lips lightly with his fingers in the tiniest of smiles.
"I like you too, Akari!" He called, louder after the door was shut, finally losing it and biting his lips to keep from laughing so hard that she might hear. He glanced down at the dog still in the room.
"I haven't the faintest idea what could have possibly made her storm out like that." He told Nabu innocently, "She has such irrational moods."
Kurama glanced in the bag, seeing that these clothes were at least salvageable-unlike his own-and tossed them in the direction of the washer and dryer units before finally turning to go upstairs and actually get dressed.
...as amusing as it would be to just follow her outside.
Kurama paused on the steps.
A smile spread across his lips, but he shook his head.
I'll save that one for next time.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku nearly threw her hands up in the air.
Of course, she also nearly made a grab for the nearest attractive male demon-of which she passed three in Northern garb along her path.
Neither happened of course.
The foppish demon's offer doesn't sound quite so bad anymore, does it, lover? She thought to herself ruefully, even going so far as to glance about and see if she spotted him.
Luckily, or perhaps unluckily as her mood stipulated at that exact moment, she did not in fact see him in the immediate area, otherwise she might have marched right up to him and taken him for herself. And then run away with him.
Her skin twinged at that last part.
Okay, maybe not run away with him.
...
"I desire your presence."
...
Shikiyoku grumbled nonsensically to herself.
Fine, fine. Not run away with him.
But nine levels did that offer sound amazing right about now.
"Ah, Iro. Good." The white-haired Elder said as Shikiyoku approached. "A few of us were hoping you would demonstrate the fire dance you did for us last night."
"You gotta fire demon on yah?" Shikiyoku rumbled, still in her previous mood.
The Elder either did not notice or chose to ignore her.
"At your shervish, lady!" Uryo grinned, stepping up from somewhere behind the Elder.
Shikiyoku gave Uryo a dry look.
"Are you sure this is a good idea for you right now?"
"When have I ever shteared you wrong, my lady?"
The flushed across Uryo's face was impossible to ignore, but Shikiyoku only lifted an eyebrow and said nothing.
"That's settled then." The Elder began walking back towards the bonfire from the night before and Shikiyoku held out a hand to stop her and shook her head.
"Oooh no, I'm not going to be paraded around for the entire village here." She folded her arms over her chest obstinately. "You want a lesson with a few of the tribe present, sure. But I start dancing for everyone and you'll never let me stop."
"Fair enough." The Elder conceded mildly, as if she had expected Shikiyoku to say as much, and turned to lead them away from the main tents.
Uryo fell back to walk alongside Shikiyoku, hand resting on the hilt of his sword.
"Shomething's bothering you."
"Oh really." Shikiyoku replied blandly.
"Yesh." Uryo scratched his head. "Want to talk about it?"
Shikiyoku stared up at him and for once the fire apparition felt a trifle uncomfortable under her gaze, shifting his shoulders about absently as he broke the eye-contact first.
"You don't want to know." Shikiyoku said darkly, finally turning away.
"I don't?" Uryo looked up at the sky a little, pondering the question. "Then why'd I ask?"
"Over fifteen years now." Shikiyoku seethed at him from between her teeth as they walked, almost causing the words to come out like a hiss. "That's how long it's been, Uryo."
And getting an offer like that demon just gave me seems to have reminded my body of that.
She nearly twitched.
He mouthed 'fifteen years' with a puzzled look as if he didn't understand what it meant at first, a little slow on the uptake, and then his head began to nod and his mouth formed an 'o' shape.
"But what about your Ch-" He interrupted himself before he went any farther, his eyes growing big, his brows drawing together tightly a moment after, and his mouth forming the 'O' as if he had just seen someone get smacked across the face with a ton of bricks.
Shikiyoku didn't really know how much Uryo actually understood in that moment, and frankly, neither did she want to know. Suffice it to say that it appeared to stop him before he questioned her about it into his own grave. Or possibly into her bed. One of the two.
A few demons from the tribe had gathered together for the demonstration, all of which Shikiyoku was fairly sure she recognized as among those dancing the night before.
If she did it right, this would be a fantastic way to let off some steam.
"Do you require some sort of outer covering, Iro?" A dancer asked of her.
Shikiyoku shook her head slightly, face frowning as she walked through the would-be onlookers and stretched her neck to either side.
As much as she may have made it seem that Uryo being drunk would be a hindrance, in truth she figured his focus was likely better in such a state than it had been when they did this previously.
"What we did last night, Uryo, if you please." Shikiyoku faced them and closed her eyes, taking a relatively relaxed stand as the dancers moved to sit down several feet away in front of her, all the tension across her forehead vanishing. She took a deep breath. "Fans as well." She added.
There was a moment of held breath as they saw her shoulders relax, and then Shikiyoku's arms began to move meticulously, wrists leading the motion, the left rising straight towards the onlookers and moving to stretch above her head, the right at the same speed extending out perpendicular with her body.
Just as they reached the peak of their movement, several things happened at once. Shikiyoku's wrists snapped into position, finishing their pose, her head whipped with exact timing to look over her right shoulder, and in that same instant, her entire body was set aflame with roiling red and orange and yellow fire, little tongues leaping out from her blazing face and wrists when she snapped them, the same fiery fans from the night before whooshing into existence as if held in her fingers.
Her movements after that were measured with pinpoint accuracy, first her arms coming back to the middle with the fans as well as her profile turning forward so they could see her burning countenance, eyes shut calmly.
Her feet started next as she deliberately began taking steps, heel to toe curving delicately upon the grass mere inches at a time before lifting again, never singing a single blade despite the inferno. Her back would arch, flames encasing her entirely as from the beginning, licking along her skin, but never appearing to cause pain or sear her flesh as their intensity might suggest.
Each time she would snap the fans into position when required, flutters of fire would wave off the ends of them into the air, and the heat around her made for a hazy aura to the eye.
Her audience sat mesmerized, even though her eyes remained closed and she released no power, all of them able to hear in their heads the ancient music she followed from an era long past, the sound nearly floating in the air about them as they looked on.
As Uryo watched, his eyes lost a bit of their drunken glaze, a portion of him concentrating almost without his direct influence upon the fire that did not just hover above her skin, but was actually in full contact with it.
His soberness grew out of the realization that he knew the steps she was taking, knew what was coming next.
Her dance was a double-sword technique he had not seen used in ages-modified to be used with fans, but still, all the steps were there-but one he had been trained in, and his eyes followed her zen-like motions, taking appreciative note of exactly how precise she made each movement of the deadly art.
Her skill was...unmatched.
This was most definitely not the dance he, his fire, had done with her the night before, and upon reflection he felt no surprise at her choice of the meditative style which she had decided to perform.
After all...fifteen years was a, uh, long time for such a thing, to put it mildly. Especially since it was her. He had no idea how she of all demons had managed that one. And keeping in mind all the things he had come to realize of her Champion last night...he found himself unable to quantify just how much longer it would be, if her circumstances did not change.
Suffice it to say he thought she might be using this routine a lot more in the future, if she had not been doing so already. 3
~!**!~
Hiei glanced up briefly when he felt eyes on him, meeting the gaze of the demon across from him. He didn't blink, and neither did Hiei, though there was no tension between the red gaze and the grey one. There was curiosity from the other, while Hiei merely waited for a moment, waiting for whatever he seemed to be calculating, before giving up and turning down again. This time when his eyes followed his hand's movement, he wasn't consumed by his work.
He was aware of his surroundings again, listening for whatever-
"I don't think we've formally introduced ourselves, Champion." Again, Hiei glanced up, though his hands continued working slowly, peeling skin away from meat and bone. "I'm Kiseki, leader of the hunts in the Northern Tribe." From there, he went about naming demons, who either nodded and waved at him when they noticed, or simply continued their offhand banter with one another.
"Hiei." came his lone, even response as he, for the third time, turned his eyes down.
"I bet being referred to only as Champion gets a bit…. monotonous from time to time, hm?" When the fire demon didn't respond, Kiseki gave a chuckle. "Then again, you seem indifferent to both." There was a pause, a lull in the one-sided conversation where they both continued skinning and gutting, tossing away unnecessary bits of the creatures and piling up the meats and skins that would be of use.
"I had expected you two to be gone by dawn."
Truthfully, Hiei had planned on being gone by then. But… whether he wanted to be gone or not… that was a different story. He actually enjoyed this group, as he had the last, and it brought back older memories of times long past for him. Times he'd almost forgotten while in Human World.
And the thought of staying was becoming much more than a simple thought, turning into a dangerous temptation that he was having trouble talking himself out of.
They can handle a few rogues. They aren't the first, nor last to provide a challenge.
"What has you staying here, when you could be elsewhere?"
"Business, I suppose."
"Isn't it always, with your line of work?"
Hiei glanced up briefly. "Line of work isn't how I'd put it."
"Oh?" Kiseki waited, quietly working but with a curious air, for the fire demon to continue. And after a few moments of silence, he gave a chuckle. "Don't talk much, do you?"
Again, Hiei gave no answer.
~!**!~
AKari paced for a bit outside the house, grumbling nonsensically to herself with a hand occasionally rubbing roughly at her face, over her lips and chin. And then she huffed once, turned back to face the house with crossed arms at the shout she heard, and considered yelling back. But she didn't.
Instead, she moved to sit on the porch steps, her elbows finding her knees and her chin resting in her hands, her body leaning forward as she sighed.
Okay, so I did that to myself. You win.
Her eyes took to watching the crowds move in front of her, a couple of people glancing in her direction from the sidewalk as they passed, but otherwise paying her no mind whatsoever. And she did just the same to the passersby. *
Kurama came out of the house dressed in mundane, normal clothes with Nabu at his heels.
"There isn't particularly anyplace that I need to go." Kurama told Akari as he stood in the doorway. "Though if we are going to leave, I would rather head to Kuwabara's because I told Shizuru to call me if she got wind of anything."
~!**!~
When Shikiyoku came to the last steps, her mind had stilled like a glass lake undisturbed by ripples of thought.
She finished, and the fire peeled away from her skin into nothingness and she finally reopened her eyes, blinking twice in the light of the day before they cleared to look beyond those gathered relatively near her feet.
The Elder and Uryo stood still, for a moment entranced until Shikiyoku gave a small smile that broke the moment and the other demons at her feet took a collective breath before bursting up onto their feet and rushing for her, all talking excitedly as they gathered around.
The Elder finally came back to herself and let out a long, silent woosh of air as if she'd been holding it back the whole time.
Her eyes flickered to Uryo, who was still gazing thoughtfully at the demon in their midst.
"Quite an enchanting display, Iro." The Elder took her eyes off of Uryo and the demons around Shikiyoku quieted a trifle.
Shikiyoku's small smile was a calm one, her green eyes reflecting that same peace, "You should have seen the form I cut as a true demon." Her eyes grew wickedly self-assured.
"A sight to experience, I'm sure." 3
~!**!~
Hiei tossed aside the last of the small creatures, the fur to his right and the salvageable meats to the left, the meat slapping onto a pile that had been growing for a while now. He gathered the intestines, the unneeded insides and tossed those too into a growing pile, the same sound as before floating through the air. Then he stretched his back and reached to the side, grabbing the larger, lizard-like creature and dragging it towards himself, just as quickly taking the knife in his hand and beginning to scrape the scales away.
The sound was one he hadn't been expecting, the sound of blade on scale. Instead of the normal sound he had been accustomed to, even expected from such a creature, the sound was more like…. dragging claws down a board, but… a bit less severe.
He paused and glared at the creature, ignoring the laughter from a few demons nearby as he shifted the body, testing the stroke this time and finding that there was no sound when the knife was dragged the opposite direction than normal.
"Tell me, Ch- Hiei. Which level are you from?"
"Doesn't mean much, does it?"
There was a chuckle from Kiseki. "You're right. Though, it would be easier to describe the creatures around here with other creatures to refer to."
"No need."
Another chuckle and the demon was turning to the others, saying something or another about some subject Hiei didn't listen in to.
"Tell you what," Kiseki said suddenly, voice loud to gain Hiei's attention. "Since you killed that one, it is reserved specifically for you and your… partner. It's a rarity around these woods, so you'll be eating better than anyone else here. It's part of our thanks."
What does that matter?
~!**!~
Akari didn't look back at Kurama when she heard the door open, nor did she open her eyes that had, at some point, slid closed as he spoke. She didn't move from her spot either, momentarily confused. "I thought the point of leaving was to find Yusuke and the others? I mean, you called him, but I figured you'd want to see them as well."
Her eyes finally slid open and she shifted, turning her head so that she could peer over her shoulder at the redhead. "It's… whatever you wish to do, quite frankly." *
Kurama said nothing at first, moving to sit down next to her and recline on the steps, leaving the door open behind him so that he might hear if the phone were to ring.
"I'm satisfied for the moment that notifying the correct people has been enough. I really don't see much point in doing anything else when we don't know more."
~!**!~
"Alright, you've had your fun." The Elder said in a no-nonsense sort of way, clapping her hands together twice at the demons who had scrambled to start speaking to Shikiyoku again. They grew quiet, if a little sullen that she was breaking them up. "I would like to speak with the Iro. Alone." Her eyes gleamed meaningfully at the others.
"But you hadn't even asked her yet!" One of the dancers complained.
"We want to know!"
"We want the answer to be yes." A third pointed out with a grin.
Shikiyoku looked at the Elder as if waiting.
The Elder sniffed derisively, "They wish you to give lessons."
The demons clamored to correct her, but Shikiyoku could make no sense of their arguments.
The Elder held a hand up and the demons hushed.
"On dancing."
"It's been done before." Shikiyoku allowed, the demons around her growing excited again.
"But not right now." The Elder insisted, voice loud enough to cut through the demons.
They grumbled and dispersed when she gave them another grave look.
"Uh, might I exchange a quick word with Shikiyoku first?" Uryo turned to the Elder for permission and she nodded.
Uryo closed the distance between them and put a hand at Shikiyoku's back to lead her a little bit further before turning to her.
"I'm growing restless here." His eyes darted about the clearing, "And it would ease my mind to know what Rae is up to, so I'm going to take my leave for the moment." He turned back to Shikiyoku. "If I get word of anything I'll likely come myself rather than sending a message along."
Shikiyoku nodded. "You are greatly appreciated, Uryo."
Uryo gave her a lopsided grin, a portion of his dark bangs falling over his eyes.
"If you happen to see Ryou...tell him I've been looking for him."
"Will do."
The fire demon nodded farewell and took a step to the left to get clear of Shikiyoku before he disappeared completely, disturbing not so much as the wind near her as he left.
The Elder stepped forward and gestured for Shikiyoku to join her in a walk.
"Shall we?" 3
~!**!~
AKari let one of her hands fall from her chin, that elbow still lazily draped over her knee and her hand hanging lazily in the space between her knees. Her eyes followed Kurama as he sat, inclining back almost as lazily as Akari suddenly felt. She nodded once at the redhead before turning her eyes to the moving crowds at the sidewalk again, watching humans pass by, some in a hurry and others sauntering by.
"I have… nothing in mind for the day." she finally replied, feeling a bit reluctant after the scene a few minutes ago. "Or rather, what I want to do is out of the question, because where I want to be is currently locked to all patrons, in and out." *
"Agreed." Kurama appeared slightly irked at the remembrance. "We simply don't have the capacity or the...'technology' at our disposal. Neither do we have a way of contacting them."
He fell silent for a moment.
"You know, Spirit World was already backed up. Behind. Can you imagine what this is doing to their quota? I'm thankful I'm not dead right now, that's all I have to say about it."
~!**!~
The Elder did not speak until they had reached the treeline of the forest that surrounded the clearing, and then she turned so that her and Shikiyoku would be walking along it.
"You cannot stay long."
It was not a question, but neither was it a statement meant to say they were not wanted. Simply a fact.
Shikiyoku nodded, "For now it would seem my presence is of little consequence, but while you may wish it otherwise, due to the circumstances of my current Champion and I's relationship, the dampening effect currently reducing my aura will not last."
It was the Elder's turn to nod. She had thought as much.
"You do not seem in a hurry to leave at least."
Shikiyoku felt...conflicted about the observation. And for the first time wondered if she would ever be able to find a home among others, or if she would be forced to stay on the move, perhaps wandering from dance to dance once more as in the past. If for slightly different reasons.
"The other tribes will be clamoring for an audience with you. News that the North is on the rise has already traveled to the borders of the level."
"I do not know if returning to the old days is an option for me." There would be many complications for such, the least of which being the pending return to Human, or rather Spirit World. Shikiyoku thought that if she provided Koenma with all the information she knew of Otento, plus that which they gathered from Gekijou, that perhaps she could garner her own return to Demon World, warrant be damned, along with Hiei's.
They could figure things out together from there.
"It is something to consider." The Elder's eyes turned in towards the encampment as they traversed the circumference of it. "Our lands will always be open to you. As I'm sure Central Tribe has said the same and so would the others were they here to speak with you."
"Well, for that at least, you all have my thanks."
The Elder smiled, "Strange. For it is truly us who should be thanking you."
Shikiyoku did not reply. 3
~!**!~
Akari gave no response to Kurama for a minute, taking to considering the amount of paperwork and such piling up. Quite frankly, being dead at this moment couldn't be near as bad as being Koenma at this moment. The thought made her release a single snicker at the thought, one she tried to keep within by pursing her lips together.
Akari's eyes moved, pointing towards an area of the crowd she'd thought she'd seen one of her own shadows move, but saw nothing out of the norm and turned to Kurama calmly. "It wouldn't be so bad, I'm sure, if we didn't know what was going on and know the cause of it. I think that makes it more… pressing." she released a long breath through her nostrils. "Because we have nothing to do but wait, and I don't know about you, but I feel like it's getting close to time for waiting to not be a possibility anymore." *
Kurama wasn't sure about feeling since he wasn't feeling much of anything at that exact moment, but he could rationalize that her words held much truth to them.
And yet he still couldn't figure out what the point of it all was. Okay, sure, they bring demons to Human World to attack Spirit World, but to overthrow Enma? Was that really possible?
Not to mention the fact that he for some reason kept coming back to his 'shiny' idea; Youko would only make such an elaborate ruse in the event that a shiny object might be obtained as a reward.
But what on earth-perhaps, 'what in Spirit World'-would drive someone to gather an entire army? 3
A long sigh was released from Akari's lungs and her eyelids slid shut for a moment as she listened to the area around her, to the sound of humans moving by and the breeze beginning to pick up. She could hear, some distance away, a fire engine blaring its sirens down the road as it moved towards whatever catastrophe had struck the world of Humans.
She could smell the cold front coming closer, feel the minute changes in the air as it began to cool down. And she could feel the sun's rays beginning to fade, hiding behind clouds that rolled through.
When her eyes opened again, she was searching for the shadow she had thought she'd seen earlier, eyes roving the crowd for a dark mass of nothingness, and finding no such thing. And yet she felt watched.
Akari shifted and pushed herself to stand, turning her head to Kurama. She thought of various places to go that wouldn't be here, and then turned again towards the street. Where are you? "You know, I liked a few of the shops we passed earlier." she said nonchalantly, though not looking at Kurama as she again searched for the shadow she was now sure was moving about freely, without her consent. Yet, it wasn't requiring her energy to do so… *
Kurama hesitated, reluctant to go anywhere when they could be called and needed at a moments notice from the phone inside the house.
He stood up anyway, choosing his words carefully, "If they're on the way to Kuwabara's apartment, I suppose I wouldn't object." 3
Akari didn't object, only nodded to Kurama and waved for him to lead the way, not exactly remembering where Kuwabara's apartment actually was. At the time, she hadn't made note of its location, but really, the point was not to shop, but for her to weed out the alien shadow that-
No, I would have felt another presence.
So, it didn't belong to another Shadow Wielder. But then, what had the creatures of darkness moving? Watching? If they left the area, and she no longer felt watched, then she'd know that it was Kurama's home being watched, and that could mean something completely different.
If it lingered with her and Kurama, then… She'd simply figure out why it was interested. *
Kurama went back into the house to grab the spare key, as well as an extra set up in the drawer in his room, and put on his shoes, Nabu following him out the front door when he went past it again.
He put the spare key back in the plant-pod, locked the door with the extra set, and then turned to lead the way down the sidewalk, crossing the street to where he knew the shops would be and meandering down that side of the road, waiting for Akari to indicate which one she wished to explore. 3
Quietly, Akari meandered down the sidewalk, eyes roving over the shops but entire mind consumed with the presence she could still feel. Meaning it wasn't locked on Kurama's home and was not a potential danger to his family. Her eyes found a shop that smelled of a fresh bakery within when the doors opened, and without pause, she turned and headed inside, deciding that she'd kill two birds with one stone here: grab Nabu his favorite non-meaty treat and see just how far the shadow was willing to follow.
She moved inside through the automatic doors, pausing only to take in the fresh smell of rolls and donuts and fresh-baked loaves of bread. She didn't know why, but Nabu's favorite just so happened to mirror her own: the buttery, cheesy bread that was normally fresh baked whenever she found it. Never stale, always steaming when she tore it apart.
Of course, Nabu sat outside, knowing that he wasn't allowed inside such a store due to all of the open produce areas and such.
As she approached the counter at the back of the store, she pointed, finger just touching the glass casing that separated her from the mouthwatering varieties. "Two of those, please." She asked, then turned to Kurama with a curious gaze of do you want anything?
And behind him she saw the shadow creature dissipate altogether when her eyes found it. "I'm paying, if you want anything." *
Kurama absently followed Akari, lost in his intertwining thoughts which were leading him nowhere nearer to an answer as to why the fake Youko wanted to get in Spirit World.
He missed Akari's expression completely, only giving her a mild, "Hm?" When she finally spoke.
He shook his head slightly once his brain played back her question which took a beat, eyes still turned inward and musing upon the possibilities, ignoring entirely the grumbling sound his stomach made as if unaware of it. 3
Kiseki - miracle; wonder; marvel
Thanks for reading! Bless your face. If you sneezed during this chapter, bless you. Peace off! -Star