A/N: Chapters will be coming a little slower these next few weeks because my work schedule has picked up again, so I apologize in advance if they are posted late. Thank you for all your kind words on the previous chapters, I appreciate every single review, you guys are awesome! Hiei doesn't speak much in this one; he does more observing than anything, which coincides with his nature, just an fyi. So, here we are on chapter twelve, I hope you like it! Happy reading!
Disclaimer: I do not own the fabulousness that is Yu Yu Hakusho and I'm not making any money by writing this.
Warnings: This chapter is in Hiei's POV! Violence, lots of curse words, adult themes, blood/gore, etc.
P.S. I'm going to use female pronouns when speaking of Chronos because it's inside Kasumi's body and she is a woman. In the legends of Chronos from ancient Greece he is depicted as a man, "Father Time" with a long white beard. Because there is no true evidence that Chronos was really a man (or existed at all) for the sake of this story Chronos is whatever gender their current vessel happens to be. Thanks!
. . .
Thunder cracked in the distance, a deluge of rain could be heard pounding against the roof of the temple and the rice paper doors rattled with the force of the wind. The calm before the storm had passed and the rain had come to wash the world clean. But inside the temple, the storm was ignored in favor of getting lost inside of a galaxy…a galaxy so vast it paled in comparison to the raging of the Gods just outside.
I remembered the story of Chronos, the God of Time as believed by ancient Greeks and Romans. I had idly read about it within a book I had found at Kurama's some years ago. Known as the creator of time, Chronos was often portrayed as a male with a long white beard. He once ruled the heavens but he was overthrown by a more powerful god and Chronos became the ruler over Elysium. Elysium was the cross roads between heaven or hell…and it would make perfect sense to make the time god also the guardian of the gate to purgatory, which lay somewhere in between the two if legends were to be believed.
But this time, it was apparently keeping the form of a young, human girl with flaming red hair instead of an old man. When the girl's eyes opened and Genkai's greeting filled my ears, I was lost within those fathomless depths. Kasumi's body slowly sat up, her hair sliding over her shoulder, and her eyes landed directly on me. I was frozen to the spot, unable to move but unable to look away either. So much power lay hidden in that gaze…
When she finally looked away it was only so she could look her own body up and down. Gracefully she rose to her feet and stretched, the bones Yusuke had broken popped and realigned themselves with a noise that would be enough to turn a weaker man's stomach. With a hiss and a bit of steam the wounds marring her pale skin disappeared as if they were never there but on both of her hands and her forehead appeared dark, blood red runes. Just as Genkai had said they looked like they had been carved into her skin with a knife and I recognized the symbols, as ancient as they were. The large prominent one on her forehead read simply Time, whereas the one on her left hand stood for Recall and the final one on her right hand stood for Insight or Foresight. These marks were a physical reminder of the power Chronos possessed – a power that could control the past, present, and future.
This creature was literally older than time and to think I would find it here of all places, inside a tiny human woman. It had never once occurred to me that meeting Morimoto Kasumi would lead me to this.
No one spoke after Genkai, but everyone had grown tense and wary as we waited for Chronos to do or say something, but I only became more and more stressed as the entity continued to look itself over, poking and prodding at Kasumi's body as if fascinated by it. After a while of this, Genkai grew tired of it and broke the silence, "Your human vessel is much older now."
Kasumi's head snapped up to pin Genkai with a dead stare, but the old woman would not be weathered by it. She stood from her zabuton and even though she was much shorter than Kasumi she glared directly into Chronos' black eyes.
"Gods hold no power over me," she said.
Kasumi's head cocked to the side at this statement and a twisted smile crossed over her lips, she flicked out a hand and the rune on her forehead flared to life and began to glow a bright red. I couldn't help the sharp intake of breath that slipped past my lips when I watched, stunned, as Genkai reverted back to her much younger form. Her hair a bright pink now and features lacking the wrinkles they had been covered in just seconds before. This should not have been possible at this point, given that Genkai had long ago given up most of her power to Yusuke but yet there she stood.
Genkai chuckled darkly and it came out sounding much younger and far less haggard than it normally sounded thanks to years of smoking, "You've made your point, now change me back."
It happened instantaneously, Chronos snapped Kasumi's fingers and Genkai was back in her stooped, old, and wrinkled human body. The last thing to go was the pink in her hair which slowly faded back to the pink tinged white it had been before. After her transformation Genkai stood out of Chronos' way as she stepped over the black runes on the floor (which lit up as soon as she placed a leg on the other side) and picked a spot in the room that was emptier to stand in.
"Get caught up if you need to," the old woman rasped and waved a hand about the room in mock hospitality.
Chronos held out the hand that had RECALL etched into it, the rune glowed, and before her a three dimensional image of a little girl appeared. It was unmistakably Kasumi, the red hair being a dead giveaway, and I watched closely as Chronos played through each stage of Kasumi's life. Beginning from the time Chronos had seen the girl's form last to how Kasumi stood in the present. I watched as the little girl changed to an adolescent, to a teenager, and finally to the adult standing before us now.
Several other projections appeared around her, her sister Hitomi who was truly her mirror image other than the striking green eyes housed within her face, an old man I assumed was her grandfather, and last to appear was Hideki. A series of events occurred, in which it was shown that Kasumi's sister had gone missing, that Hideki was out for her life, and that her grandfather had passed away some time ago. As those images faded two more came to take their place…the man who we had found near death the night of the police operation…what had his name been…Ren?
And then slowly another made itself known, at first the image was blurry as if Chronos was having trouble bringing it to the surface but when it cleared a chorus of gasps rose up around the room. I stood so suddenly that my sword rattled to the stone floor and bounced away from me. I couldn't help the strangled gasp that escaped my throat a moment later.
Because the second man who appeared was none other than myself – a perfect replica, right down to my Jagan and sword. I watched as my projection walked around Kasumi and stopped in front of her, Chronos' eyes never strayed from the image and after a moment of staring she swiped a hand through it. With a flash it dissipated, turning into shattered pieces like a broken mirror, until they faded into nothing. The projection of Kasumi's human lover remained, but it had stood off to the side, with its hands shoved into the pockets of the pants it was wearing. Chronos made this one recede as well after she had given it a once over and deemed the projection unnecessary, but the way she disposed of it was completely different than what she had done to the one of me. It just faded from view, like a fog that was lifting. It led me to believe she had wanted to stop the image of me from doing something undesirable…but what?
"Was that Hiei…?" I heard Kuwabara whisper to Yusuke. The detective didn't answer him, too intent on Kasumi. He knew just as well as I did that Chronos could be a serious threat and I was quickly regretting allowing them to bring Kasumi to the temple…if anything happened to Yukina I would kill the girl without a second thought.
Without another vessel to transfer to I will have disposed of Chronos as well. I wondered at the fact Enma had managed to bring something so sinister within his control and I turned accusing eyes towards Koenma. The prince had sweat dripping down his face but he met my gaze and I could see the fear there in his eyes…this thing could probably kill Koenma if it wanted to. The only saving grace was that Chronos was weaker than Enma in some way and I was positive the god's powers must be limited while inside a human vessel. It was probably a good thing that Kasumi's bloodline hadn't mixed with a demon, or we might have had a vengeful god on our hands.
Koenma turned away from me, gulped, and then addressed Chronos, "We need your help, Father Time."
Those galactic eyes moved lazily to rest on the demi-god and Chronos stepped around Genkai so she could stop in front of Koenma and laugh.
The voice that came out of Kasumi's mouth sounded nothing like the girl's. It was high pitched and watery, neither feminine nor masculine sounding, but somewhere in between. It sounded inhuman, but unlike a voice made from demonic origin either. I'd never heard anything like it and it was both grating and hypnotizing at the same time. It would be impossible not to listen to what she said, impossible to ignore her, no matter how annoying I thought the sound of her voice to be.
"Calling me "Father Time" is rather odd, considering my vessel," Chronos laughed again and then crudely grasped Kasumi's breasts, "See, boobs."
"HEY!" shouted Kuwabara, even as a bright blush spread across his cheeks.
Chronos paid no attention to the oaf and continued to speak with Koenma, "How are you Little Koenma?"
"Don't call me that," the demi-god snapped, "…and unhand the girl's breasts, please."
Koenma had averted his eyes from the sight, his face also a bright red. I rolled my own eyes, for I had seen plenty of breasts in my lifetime and they were nothing special. They were just another part of a woman's body and they certainly weren't the most important ones. It was nothing to be embarrassed about, though I hadn't expected Chronos to act in such a manner. For a fallen god Chronos certainly didn't seem to take things very seriously.
"Whoops," Chronos released Kasumi's breasts and winked at Koenma.
"You haven't changed I see…" mumbled the prince.
"I've been sealed up for 12 years and that's what I get for a greeting? Gee, thanks!"
"That was self-inflicted and I promise I didn't miss you."
"Oh, so harsh Prince Koenma," Chronos tut-tutted and waved a finger at the other man, "You should learn to be more polite, considering your station."
Koenma pretended he hadn't heard her and asked again, "Will you help us or not?"
Chronos' face turned serious, her eyes shuttering and darkening until the white flecks began to swirl around each other chaotically within their depths. She hummed to herself and placed her forefinger to her lips and thumb to her chin in thought. Briefly those eyes darted towards me and my own narrowed dangerously but it only brought a lopsided smirk across Chronos' lips, a look that might have been attractive if it had been directed at me by Kasumi herself, but the effect of Chronos' eyes and the aura coming off of the girl's body was enough to make my blood speed up through my veins. She looked away and then down to Kasumi's arm, the one with the mark Hideki had left.
"I'm assuming help with this is what you seek?" she gestured with her other hand towards the mark.
"Yes," Koenma answered.
"Fine, but I need Genkai's cooperation again."
The woman in question stepped forward, "I am no longer strong enough to complete the ritual, and I ask that you allow my disciple to do it in my stead."
The white flecks swirled faster in Chronos' eyes and they darted towards Yusuke who had been eerily silent through the whole affair. He sucked in a breath and took a step back, as if to escape the time lord's gaze, but it was a futile effort. Chronos stepped up to Yusuke and backed him into a corner of the room, which admittedly, is not the smartest course of action when dealing with the detective. He gave her one warning – a low, animalistic growl deep from within his throat. When this went unheeded Yusuke balled his hand into a fist and let off his Shotgun technique.
In closed quarters such as these it was a bad move and the detective's energy bounced off the walls and we were all forced to dodge, I groaned in pain when I was unable to avoid them all and one grazed my side. Kurama was unharmed across the room having used his acrobatics to escape, Kuwabara had been hit in the chest and slammed into one of the walls, Genkai was standing just the same except for the aura shield surrounding her, and Koenma was cowering under his cape in the opposite corner of the room from Yusuke. I sneered in disgust at him before turning back to see what had become of Chronos.
In Kasumi's body she had grabbed the hand Yusuke had used to release his attack and her other hand was around his throat. She had him lifted a few inches off the floor and a light golden aura had appeared around her body. Her skin was red and inflamed in certain areas, but other than that it looked as if she hadn't suffered much damage from the sudden burst of energy. She dropped Yusuke, hauled him off the floor with the fist she still had clutched in her hand, and spun him around. She pulled his arm behind him and then kicked him in the back to send him sprawling forward onto the floor once again.
"You have a strong one here Genkai, but he has a lot to learn," then Chronos brushed herself off and removed the remains of Kasumi's tattered shirt, "Woo, if I hadn't been in control of the vessel that would have killed her."
Chronos now stood in the center of the room, shirtless with nothing but Kasumi's undergarments and leather jacket over her top half. The jacket had a large hole in the shoulder where Hideki had pierced it with his sword so even when Chronos zipped it up to try and save the girl's modesty you could still see the barest hints of her pale skin. It didn't help when she folded her arms across her chest and widened the hole further.
Incensed from being toyed with and deciding to make a bold move the detective had jumped up from the floor and launched himself at Chronos. Yusuke's first swing of a fist missed by a mile when Chronos shot into the air, folded her legs beneath her, and stayed hovering close to the ceiling where she stuck her tongue out at him. This only angered the boy further who proceeded to jump and snatch at her legs as if trying to pull a balloon down after it had floated away. Chronos grew bored of this rather quickly and when Yusuke jumped one final time she took the opportunity to kick him hard in the side of the head. It sent him skidding across the floor and he slammed into the stone wall behind him, causing several cracks to form across its surface.
Chronos was undoubtedly strong and also completely different from the human vessel it resided in. Its emotions were all over the place, one second laughing the next as serious as death. It grated on my very last nerve and I would give anything to leave this place and forget I had ever witnessed what went on today.
Yusuke was peeling himself from the small indentation his body had made upon impact with the wall and I could tell he was preparing to attack Chronos once more. The time lord floated back to the ground, planted her feet, and waited. I figured Genkai would put a stop to this foolishness, but she only stood back and observed as her pupil took on an opponent that only had plans to play with him. Yusuke might have been taking the fight seriously, but Chronos sure as hell wasn't it if the crooked grin across Kasumi's face was anything to go by.
Yusuke charged again and Chronos engaged him in a session of hand to hand combat. Kasumi was highly trained and Chronos used this to her advantage as she dodged Yusuke's punches and proceeded to counterattack. With a speed I didn't think Kasumi's body would be capable of she hit Yusuke in the stomach, solar plexus, and finally his jaw. Each punch had enough force behind it to snap bone and the detective was lucky he was a Halfling because it could have caused some serious damage.
As he fell onto bended knee, Chronos kicked out at him and smashed him in the side of the head again. It sent him flying back into the wall, where he slumped to the floor and stayed there. She hadn't knocked him out and though he was dazed he still had a scathing glare plastered to his face. The brown of his eyes was slowly bleeding into the red of the Mazoku and I could see through the snarl on his lips that his eyeteeth had elongated into fangs.
"Well…this is surprising," Chronos hummed thoughtfully, "A Mazoku for a pupil?"
With a flash of golden light Chronos disappeared and then reappeared across the room so she was standing in front of Yusuke. The detective growled at her but she only leaned forward until her hypnotizing eyes were directly in line with the boy's. He stiffened instinctually and that same twisted smile graced Chronos' face once more.
"I want to offer you some advice, kozou…" Chronos crouched, so they were at the same height, "When this is over and Kasumi is once again in control…ask her to train you."
Yusuke's face contorted into a look of confusion and the red in his eyes began to recede. Chronos' eyes swirled and the smile on her face turned a bit more genuine, "I'm not a threat to you."
"If you two are done playing around, I'd like to get a move on."
Chronos ignored Genkai and continued to stare at Yusuke, "Don't fear me boy, it will only make things worse. Heed my advice, she can help you."
Chronos stood and offered Yusuke a hand up who slapped it away disdainfully and drew a laugh from the time lord's lips. It didn't deter her in the slightest; she just grabbed his upper arm and hauled him to his feet. She ushered him over towards Kuwabara and let go of him so she could slap the taller man on the back.
"This one trained with her and now he actually knows how to properly handle a blade!"
"How do you know that?" demanded Kuwabara.
Chronos turned serious again, her moods changing just as fast as the flashes of lightning and the rumbling of thunder outside of the temple. She pursed her lips and stared Kuwabara down, but surprisingly, unlike Yusuke, Kuwabara did not grow nervous or back down from her. He planted his feet and narrowed his eyes, no doubt trying to look menacing and not quite succeeding.
"I know many things, but I know everything there is to know about this girl. Her past, present and future," she tapped her forehead, "It's all inside here."
She circled the two boys, ran her hands down Kuwabara's back who shivered, and then stopped in front of them once more.
"I know you…I know Keiko, I know these men surrounding us, and the women that are cooking your supper as we speak…
"I know of the men who have ravaged this woman's body and of the man who will save her soul while crushing it at the same time…"
A smirk spread across Kasumi's lips and she took Kuwabara's hand and ran her fingers over his palm, tracing the lines there as I had seen him do to her on the first day I'd ever met Kasumi. When she had traced them all, she held his hand within hers, her thumb nestled in the hollow of his palm and the smirk widened. Without a hint of warning she dug her thumb into his hand, a well of blood seeped up and poured to the floor and Kuwabara's face contorted into a mask of pain as he gritted his teeth and watched as Chronos only dug in deeper. He didn't try to pull his hand away, he didn't scream, or even speak up. He just stood there and took the abuse.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" yelled Yusuke, who had finally found his voice in the face of his friend being injured.
"Be quiet Urameshi," said Kuwabara, his face cold and set in a harsh glare.
"What?!" he stared at Kuwabara in disbelief, "You're just going to let her do that to you?!"
"Of course he is…" said Chronos, "He won't hurt Kasumi."
She retracted her thumb and I watched as she licked the blood off her hand. The rune on her forehead flared to life and just like Kasumi's body had done earlier, the wound on Kuwabara's hand hissed closed. He inspected it carefully as it did and then let the hand hang dejectedly at his side.
"If you know so much about Kasumi, than you know how much she means to me, " he said seriously, "You hurt her and I'll kill you."
Chronos smiled, "Of that I have no doubts but I think you will have to get in line…they will all wish to defend her eventually."
"Huh?" clearly confused, Kuwabara's eyebrows drew down over his narrow eyes.
"By law I am not allowed to release information about the future and considering the prince of the Reikai is right over there…" she tossed her head in the general direction of where Koenma was now standing and shrugged.
"Enough," snapped Genkai, "It's time to get this over with."
"Hmph, you were always too serious Genkai," said Chronos.
"I don't have time to waste with your foolishness. I couldn't careless that you haven't had a chance to be out in the open in twelve years."
"No, I suppose you don't have a second to waste, considering how old you are. I can only hope you will drop dead soon," Chronos laughed darkly and then turned back to Koenma.
"Have you located the key?"
Koenma gulped and looked as if he were about to be sick, "No…we have no idea where Hitomi is."
Chronos' eyes darkened, the white specks swirling ever faster and it was obvious she was displeased with this answer. "Please tell me this is a joke?"
Koenma didn't answer her but his silence was enough for her, "You have lost the key? YOU FOOL!"
Her outburst made him flinch and he tried to melt into the wall he was standing near, but Chronos would have none of that. "If the key is missing than how am I supposed to seal myself back up?! HUH?!"
"Chronos…" said Genkai, a hint of warning in her tone.
"Shut up you hag, you were going to seal me back up and not even think about the repercussions."
"Lest you have forgotten, it was your idea in the first place," she said.
This caused Chronos to pause and she placed her forefinger and thumb to her chin in thought, "I can't be sealed up then…"
"Kasumi can't control you…and you can't control yourself while inside her. That is why you came to me twelve years ago."
"Don't you think I know that?! But what choice do I have now?"
"She is older; perhaps it is time she learned to utilize the powers you have bestowed upon her body."
Chronos hummed thoughtfully, "It would be unsafe…deadly even…"
"Not if she was trained properly," replied Genkai.
"By who, you? Don't make me laugh," Chronos waved a hand at her in dismissal, but looked far from laughing.
"I wouldn't be so quick to throw the idea out…" said the old woman.
"At this point you realize what would happen don't you? Having me in her head would drive her mad."
"Not necessarily…"
"Perhaps we can come to a compromise," Kurama had stepped forward and spoke for the first time, "What if we were all to assist in Kasumi's training?"
Chronos burst out laughing, great guffaws that didn't fit the situation in the slightest. "I think you'd be hard pressed convincing the fire demon and the Toushin to join you in such a plan!"
I didn't like that she was speaking for me…though the creature was correct. I had no desire to train Kasumi, even if she were to be granted powers from this…thing inside her. It disgusted me on some level I couldn't understand. I did not like that it had control over her body and her consciousness. It made me wary, not to mention listening and watching it had every single one of my nerve endings firing off tirelessly. I was tense, ready for an attack at all times in the presence of this being. I would abhor having to train with Kasumi only to be constantly vigilant for the appearance of Chronos. I could tell Yusuke felt much the same as I did, if the look of horrified disgust on his face was telling me anything.
"And if we were to convince them?" asked Kurama.
"It wouldn't stop the destruction of her body…no matter the amount of training or the gifts of knowledge from multiple fighters."
"How did the others handle you before then?" inquired the fox.
Chronos eyed Kurama, her eyes calculating, searching and finding nothing because Kurama had made sure his face was carefully blank. I knew he was curious and in his roundabout way, was trying to find out more information on this being. But Chronos was no fool and she saw through it easily enough.
"You wish to know about my past…not the girl's," Chronos sighed and wandered over to a zabuton so she could flop down onto it. She crossed her legs and stared up at Kurama for a long while.
The fox, for his credit, did his best to look innocent and demure. Given that Chronos was once a god, it was to be believed that she would prefer to be revered and respected. No one in this room held gods in much regard though and Chronos would be hard pressed to make that change.
Lazily, she looked the fox over and then propped her chin on the palm of her hand, an elbow resting on one of her knees. Looking up at him sideways now, she spoke, "The other vessels were all powerful psychics…the ones that weren't were either driven mad from my presence or they died from trying to use my power."
She twirled a bit of Kasumi's hair around a finger and brought the strands to her lips so she may feel the softness of it. Kurama took a seat across from her and tried to smile kindly, but failed miserably. Chronos chuckled and then flipped Kasumi's hair over her shoulder and went back to staring at the fox with her fathomless eyes.
"Don't force yourself kitsune, not many like me, and I'm fine with that."
"Yes well, your personality…it leaves something to be desired."
She burst out with laughter, "That's one way to put it!"
"I think…" Kurama began tentatively, "That Kasumi would be able to handle it if you were to give her the chance."
"Mentally, yes…she's strong willed, stubborn…but physically…" Chronos trailed off.
"She has some spiritual powers, does she not?"
"Ay, but not enough to stop my power from tearing her apart."
Kurama looked away, towards Genkai who shrugged at him. They were both trying to find a solution that just wasn't there. If the girl was too weak to handle it there was nothing to be done. Either Chronos would need to remain sealed or she would die.
Genkai came to sit beside Kurama and slowly but surely Kuwabara and Yusuke took seats as well. I remained standing, having picked up my fallen sword some time ago, I now had it shoved into the belts around my waist and I kept a hand resting on the hilt should I need to draw the sword at a moment's notice. Koenma, much like me, kept his distance from Chronos and this did not go unnoticed by her.
"I understand Koenma's fear of me, for I once raged war in the heavens, but I expected more from you Hiei."
She never turned around, still sitting in the same bored position as before but I stiffened at her words. A snarl tore itself from between my lips for I was angry she had accused me of being afraid of her. I was not afraid of anything, least of all this creature. I just didn't much like what I couldn't understand. I had no need for it and I had no desire to be involved in this farce. Just to prove a point I flashed over to the zabutons and took the one farthest away from Chronos, she spared me the briefest of glances, and another smirk flitted across her face before she looked away. I was only growing more irritated by the second.
"Ever prideful…" she mumbled.
Weary of her continued insolence, I spoke to it for the first time, "You know nothing of me, do not speak as if you do."
She snorted derisively and refused to even look in my general direction, "I know more than you think."
My eyes narrowed and I repressed another growl from rising up in my throat. This being put me on the defensive but I wished to know about the projection I had seen earlier and I would need to put my wariness aside if I was to gain any insight.
"Why did that projection appear earlier?"
The other men and Genkai had turned to stare at me, Kurama was just as curious as I, but Kuwabara and Yusuke were looking at me as if I had gone mad. I just glared at them to keep them silent, for I wanted no interruptions. I couldn't risk Chronos being engaged in a different conversation and thus forgetting what I needed to know.
"What projection?" she asked. Though I could tell she knew exactly what I was speaking of and was only trying to evade the question.
"You know of what I speak."
She rolled her eyes and finally allowed them to land on me…I wished she hadn't.
"The projection of you, I'm assuming?" she said, her tone annoyed at having it brought up.
"Obviously," I said.
She pursed her lips, opened her mouth to speak, but then stopped and snapped it closed again. Trying to think of the best answer, she finally said, "It is something you will have to figure out on your own."
"No, you will tell me now or – "
"Or what, Jaganshi?" she interrupted. "You will kill me? I dare you to, for you will only kill Kasumi and then you will have learned nothing."
I opened my mouth to retort, to put this fallen god in their place, but she stopped me with a piercing gaze.
"If I tell you, the course of events in Kasumi's future…and your future will change. It wouldn't benefit anyone."
"What do you mean, it will change my future?"
"Don't you worry your pretty little head, fire demon, you will know in due time." Then she clapped her hands together and turned towards Genkai, completely dismissing me.
"What say you to getting rid of ole' Hideki here?" she held up the arm with the palm mark and grinned at the old woman.
"About damn time," griped Genkai.
I had a hard time reigning in my rage after being so blatantly tossed aside. Genkai and the fallen god had begun to converse quietly and I was left to seethe silently in my seat. After a while of being ignored, Chronos finally ended the conversation, nodded and stood from her spot. As if she had been inside the temple many times before, she walked out of the room and Genkai gestured for us all to follow her.
Chronos walked with a slow gait, her feet soundless upon the polished wood of Genkai's floors. As we passed the kitchen Chronos stopped at the doorway, which hung open and the sounds of feminine laughter along with the bubbling of pots and sizzling of frying pans could be heard. I bristled, because I didn't want Chronos anywhere near my sister, but she did little other than wave cheerily at Keiko whose mouth had fallen open in shock. She had zeroed in on the difference in Kasumi's eyes and considering she was fairly smart as far as I could tell, she quickly realized that it wasn't Kasumi who was currently smiling at her. Instead of backing away in fear, as would be expected of a human girl to do, she marched up to Chronos and poked it in the chest. The time lord only smiled, her eyes sparking with amusement at the girl's actions.
"Hello Keiko-chan, how are you?"
"You're not Kasumi and I can see through the act!"
Keiko turned angry eyes on all of us and stared hard at Yusuke, "What is this nonsense?! What have you done to her?!"
"They did nothing…I suppose you don't recognize me. We met once before."
Keiko turned her gaze back on Chronos, her eyes confused briefly until they lightened with sudden memory. Her mouth fell open and she backed away from Chronos, but only slightly.
"You're who possessed her that one night…"
"Not so much possessed, but I suppose that was the only conclusion you could find at the time."
"What are you two going on about?" Yusuke had shoved his way to the forefront of the group so he could make his way over to his lover. He stood protectively beside her, as if daring Chronos to try and come any closer.
The time lord merely rolled her eyes, "I was having a nice conversation with Keiko, that doesn't include you."
"Anything that has to do with Keiko has to do with me," he said.
"I think she would disagree," said Chronos.
"Stop…I remember you. It was during that one competition – "she paused to turn to Kuwabara, "Don't you remember Kazuma? You were there too."
Being that he was such a fool, it did not surprise me when he could not readily recall what the girl spoke of. Keiko continued to stare at him expectantly as Kuwabara began to sweat from having everyone's attention directed at him. You could see when it finally surfaced, because a genuine look of relief crossed over his features. I rolled my eyes, though it went unnoticed, because his stupidity must be never ending.
"…Yeah, I remember that. That time she almost killed the other competitor."
I raised an eyebrow at that; I found it odd that Kuwabara would forget such a scenario…unless it was something that occurred in every competition she had fought in. I doubted this and felt the need to point out his blatant idiocy, "Why did it take so long to recall it then?"
He scratched the back of his head, "It wasn't something I wanted to remember about her." He said honestly.
Any further comments I had for him left me then, for if it had been terrible enough to make him wish to forget it, I needed to know what had happened. I turned to Yusuke's woman and barked at her, "Well, what happened that would cause this fool to practically wet himself?"
"I did not piss myself, you asshole!" Kuwabara snapped at me, but I paid him no mind. His insults were both unimaginative and pointless.
"Allow me," interjected Chronos before Keiko could even open her mouth, "Kasumi competed in a country wide competition a little over a year ago, right after she graduated from high school."
"So before the police academy then?" asked Kurama.
"Yes, they would never have allowed such a thing, you see."
"Get to the part where you met Keiko," the detective snapped.
Chronos ignored his outburst, "During this competition Kasumi was pitted against a rather formidable opponent."
Kuwabara's face had morphed into a look of rage and he spit out, "Yeah, a co-ed competition and they put her against the biggest guy there!"
"Yes…and as the fight progressed she was deathly wounded. One of her ribs snapped and punctured a lung."
Keiko had a faraway look in her eyes as she finally joined the conversation, "I remember her falling to the mat and…and she…well, she'd stopped breathing, even the medic said so!"
"She was not that way for long. I had Genkai put a failsafe in the seal, should Kasumi become incapacitated to the point her life was in grave danger…I would be given a short amount of time to prevent her from dying."
"So it was you that almost killed that boy…" Kuwabara said in horror.
Chronos turned to him with a twisted lopsided smirk, making Kasumi's face seem inhuman and so unlike her I was forced to turn away in disgust. If I was a sympathetic person…I could have felt bad for her. Having someone control you…to have real, actual control over your every action, was something I couldn't even comprehend. I would rather commit seppuku than ever be subjected to what Kasumi was being put through now.
"I couldn't let him leave unpunished…could I?" Chronos said with a laugh.
The resounding noise of skin being harshly slapped against skin reverberated through my skull and it didn't take very long to discover it had been Yusuke's woman who had brought on the sound. She had struck Chronos so hard across the cheek that one entire side of Kasumi's face was bright red. The anger in Keiko's eyes was apparent and she stared the fallen god down with enough hatred it would make a lesser person cower in a corner.
"How dare you, when you went away and Kasumi-chan came back to her body…she was devastated! She locked herself up in her apartment for a whole week!"
Chronos looked ready to murder her, her face so cold it could have frozen the blood in Keiko's veins and only then did the woman realize the damage she had done. She backed away from the god further, allowing Yusuke to step in front of her. In the background I could see Botan and Yukina standing near the stove with twin looks of fear in their eyes as they watched the proceedings without comment.
"I spoke to you that time…didn't I Keiko?" said Chronos.
Keiko didn't answer her, so she just went on as if she had, "I didn't tell you what I was, but perhaps I should have."
"Don't even think about it," warned the detective.
"Do you remember what I told you, when you were rude to me back then too?" Chronos ignored Yusuke again, eyes intent and completely focused on the human girl cowering behind her lover.
Keiko gulped, but answered her, "That you would put me in my place."
"That's right…now; do you want me to do that?"
Keiko shook her head no, tears gathering in her eyes but not yet spilling down her cheeks.
"Then I expect an apology."
"Don't do it Keiko, you had every right!" shouted Yusuke.
But she didn't listen to him. Quietly she said, "I apologize for my actions, they were rude of me."
"Speak up, I'm quite old and don't hear as well as I used to."
That was obviously a lie, one used only to torment the girl further and even I could feel my hackles rising at the continued mistreatment of my comrade's mate.
I was stopped from taking action when Kuwabara grabbed Chronos' shoulder and whirled her around to face him.
"I remember you too, asshole. I thought Kasumi had gone mad back then, the pain making her crazy, but now I remember that it was you and boy, do I have a fucking bone to pick."
Chronos stared at him in disbelief, "What is wrong with you human? I could kill you with a flick of a finger!"
"Go ahead and try, but I'll still say my piece!"
Chronos glared at him, her lips turning up into a snarl. "You're lucky this girl loves you so much," she spit.
Love? What a strange choice of wording. Did Kasumi have feelings for the moron? No…that couldn't be right…she was involved with that other one there…Ren. It was still confusing to me; the use of that word, for it was something that didn't often get tossed around in the human or demon realm. It was respected, revered even. I found it disgusting and degrading. A weak and vile emotion that did nothing but drag you down and ruin you, I had been lucky to have never experienced it and I planned to keep it that way. I didn't have the capacity to love…but it still intrigued me to know why Chronos would say such a thing.
"And I love her; she's been a great friend to me over the past three years which is why I'm glad I get a second chance to speak with you."
"Oh?" Chronos looked bored, her face now impassive, as stoic as I always was.
"Do you know what you did to her? What you did to us?" asked Kuwabara.
"Can't say that I do," Chronos said uninterestedly.
"Keiko and I were too scared to comfort her after that…we thought she had two personalities and it brought back some shitty memories…"
Sensui flashed through my mind, though I was positive Keiko knew much less about it than the rest of us. I'm sure she knew that Yusuke had died again because it was what had led him to the Makai in the first place. It was what forced him to leave her behind so he could become stronger. I'm sure the detective had told her snippets about Sensui, about his multiple personalities, his sick and twisted mind.
"Nope, just me," she smirked, "Kasumi is too strong willed to have a personality disorder."
"And it took me a while to realize that…she was a wreck when I finally went to her."
"What do you mean?" Chronos asked, like it actually cared.
"She had holed herself up in her apartment…hadn't eaten, showered, or slept in a week. Only thing she'd put in her stomach was straight liquor. She was hallucinating by then, sick as a dog."
"All I can say is…I hope someday she will grow to be less of a gutless child."
That was when Kuwabara reared back and threw a punch at Chronos. It went through nothing but air when Chronos disappeared in flash of light and reappeared further down the hall.
"I care little for her wellbeing, as long as her life force is maintained. I care even less about what you think of that."
Yusuke held Kuwabara back from attacking Chronos again, though I could see in the detective's eyes how much he wished to do so himself. It wouldn't get them anywhere; frankly, Chronos probably had more tricks up her sleeves than all of us combined.
Keiko stepped around the two struggling men so she could stare at Chronos once more. That same twistedly disgusting smile stretched her teeth over her lips again and she waved at Keiko in mock cheeriness. Keiko's eyes narrowed and her mouth thinned into a straight line.
"Don't hurt her anymore," was all she said and then she turned and stalked back into the kitchen.
I could hear Botan burst forth with questions for the girl, but she dismissed them all. The sound of a knife violently chopping something was heard soon after and then the girls went back to making the midday meal. A long stretch of silence followed, where in Kuwabara finally broke Yusuke's hold and shrugged him off angrily. He stalked off somewhere in the opposite direction, having forgotten about the reason we had left the ritual room to begin with. I supposed it was better that way, the less he witnessed the less he would have to gripe about later.
"If you've had your fun harassing my charges…" started Genkai.
"Yeah, yeah, let's go," and then Chronos continued on through the temple, marching straight outside into the pouring rain.
The course of events that occurred after this were ones I made sure to observe closely. I took a seat on Genkai's wrap around porch under the large overhang that hung down from the roof of the temple. The wind had splashed the rain onto all of its surfaces, but I had spent my fair share of time outdoors during every type of weather you could imagine and this did little to faze me. Yusuke stood huddled in a spot he figured would be safer from the deluge but he was wrong, which was obvious from the way his clothes became soaked within minutes. Kurama took a seat nearby me, but did not speak, and for that I was thankful. I had very little need for conversation and the fox was one of the few people who understood that.
Kuwabara never returned, allowing the proceedings to commence uninterrupted. Genkai stood out in the rain with Chronos, the old woman's gaze locked on the fallen god's back. Without being able to see her eyes, you could pretend that it was Kasumi who was reaching up towards the sky with both arms stretched as far as they would go. Her face lifted up to greet the storm and water rushed down her wrists to pour inside the sleeves of her jacket. Noticing this, Chronos removed the offending item of clothing and tossed it aside in the mud. In just a black bra now, I could see the expanse of pale skin that made up Kasumi's back. The large scar from Hideki a bright pink compared to the rest of it, so jagged it had healed lumpy and made her flesh look distorted. Her back dipped in at the base and muscles rippled down from her shoulder blades as Chronos stretched her arms out again, as if reaching for the dark clouds above.
Whatever it was Chronos had decided to do to remove Hideki's mark, it started without a single hint of warning. A large, intricate circle of light, filled with the same runes that appeared on her skin though varying in their meanings, appeared below her feet. She began to chant in an ancient language, calling forth the powers of nature and the gods combined. The fiery mane that graced Kasumi's head had plastered to her shoulder blades and back, soaked through. The chanting became louder and louder, until it had hypnotized us all and the bright light of the circle had changed from gold to a horrible fluorescent pink. This sudden difference both hurt my eyes and caught my attention, for it did not look the same as Chronos' holy golden energy.
A bolt of lightning struck her and it coalesced and collected beneath her skin, instead of injuring or killing her like it would a normal human. Genkai had jumped out of the way and landed beside Kurama and I. She had her hands clasped behind her back and watched Chronos with shrewd eyes. The ring of light was still that same color pink and it only seemed to glow brighter as the energy garnered from the lightning bolt spread out from Chronos' feet and traveled around the circle.
Genkai noticed my gaze and explained, "The pink is Kasumi's…strengthened by the spell Chronos is using."
"Neon pink energy huh? She'll never live that down," Yusuke said laughingly from across the porch.
"It won't make a difference what damn color it is if she can't use it by herself!" snapped the old woman.
"I don't see anything wrong with it…" mumbled Kurama.
"Why's that, because your life energy is magenta?" Kurama shot Yusuke a flat look at the insult and I couldn't help the small grin that spread across my lips. It was always nice to see the fox get knocked down a peg or two.
Mentions of his feminine like qualities were often good for that…and the detective had a plethora of them.
"You might want to rethink that grin…considering your soul is purple," Kurama had turned to look at me sweetly, as if the look of innocence would save him from my wrath.
"What business is it of yours?"
"Oh, merely making a statement."
"If you are trying to say the color of my soul is unmanly I couldn't care less."
"Then why are you glaring at me so, Hiei?"
I turned away from him with a huff, no longer interested in being involved in such a foolish conversation. I heard Yusuke laugh off to my side, but paid him no mind. The ritual had not ended yet and I had better things to occupy myself with than the morons on the porch with me.
I had picked the right time to avert my attention, for Chronos had stopped chanting and was now holding out Kasumi's arm parallel to the ground. I watched in fascination as the pink energy within the circle started to float up to her arm in little globules, as if it were being siphoned off the ground. Soon enough the runes beneath her had turned black with the life drained from them and Kasumi's entire arm now glowed that same fluorescent pink as the circle. The palm mark was still visible but with one shouted word, "RELEASE!"
The pink energy exploded from her arm and took the pieces of Hideki with it. It formed into a solid black ball in the center of the burst of energy that now resided high in the sky. The pink engulfed it, picked it apart piece by piece until it had swallowed the darkness whole. Then it imploded and blew outward and if we hadn't been prepared for it the shockwave would have sent us flying. As it was, I had to form a rather strong Ki barrier to keep myself seated and it still managed to tear through and slice at my skin. Warm droplets of blood dripped down my cheeks and I had a few new holes in my cloak that weren't there before. As for the others, Kurama was in about the same shape as I was, Yusuke had several more cuts than we did (but only because he was inexperienced with defense, too used to barraging his opponents with physical attacks) and Genkai had remained unharmed, though the force had pushed her back several feet until she was almost in the doorway.
On the ground, Chronos had fallen to her knees, her hands splayed out in the mud and Kasumi's sopping hair hung over her shoulders to hide her face. She was breathing heavily meaning the ritual had taken its toll on her – she was not as infallible as she had led us to believe.
Genkai had made her way closer to the edge of the porch and with a strangled cry she jumped down from her perch and ran towards Chronos. She came up behind her and placed her gnarled hands on her shoulders, trying to lift her from the muddy ground.
Chronos screamed, "Who are you?! Don't touch me!"
That was when I and the other two men on the porch realized Chronos had played a disappearing act…and left Kasumi behind to clean up the aftermath.
"Shit…I should get Kuwabara," and then Yusuke ran off to do just that.
In the meantime Genkai was having issues getting the girl out of the mud, she kept shoving the old woman away and before I could watch anymore sorry attempts, I jumped from the porch to join them.
"Kasumi," I said and just the sound of her name leaving my mouth had made her still. She stopped screaming at Genkai and looked up in the direction my voice had come from.
She squinted at me through the rain, "H-hiei?"
Her voice was shaky, small…scared. This also did not sound like the woman I had first met…but I had yet to see all sides of Kasumi and I supposed this was one of them.
"Can you see me?" I asked.
"Vaguely…" she mumbled.
She had no glasses on I realized…though she hadn't earlier either. I didn't understand why she suddenly couldn't see now.
"What is different now from before?"
She was momentarily confused, but caught up quickly enough, "N-no contacts…they fell out."
Contacts? What were those? My Jagan flared to life so I could pick it out from her mind, too impatient to ask for an explanation and Kasumi didn't have time for such trivial things anyway. I needed to get her out of the storm and inside. It was in the forefront of her mind, having just thought of them, and I learned from viewing one of her memories that they were clear little discs that humans used in their eyes to enhance their sight. She had lost her pair during her fight with Hideki. Her glasses were broken. And I would bet her eyesight was horrible, considering she had not even recognized Genkai.
I didn't wait for her to speak again, she was still having trouble breathing and her face only grew more terrified by the second. I could see the area where the mark of Hideki's hand once was had started to bleed profusely and even though Chronos had removed it; Kasumi may very well have a scar in the shape of that hand if it wasn't healed properly. Her hands dug deep into the mud and she slipped, I grabbed her before she could fall into it face first, holding her up by her shoulders. Her hair had fallen into the slop and I had been forced onto bended knee in order to catch her. We would both be covered in the sludge at this rate.
I was about to pick her up and carry her inside because I had a feeling her legs would be unable to support her when Yusuke finally returned with Kuwabara. The fool came barreling out of the temple, running as fast as his feet would carry him. He slid in the mud on his way to Kasumi but didn't fall (much to my disappointment) and came to rest at her side. He shot a glare at me which I easily returned. I was more than happy to concede this chore over to him.
I flickered away from the mess, back to the porch and inside. I needed a change of clothes now and I always kept a spare pair in the chambers that Genkai had assigned me some time ago, after the Tantei had spent so many nights here. I didn't often sleep in it, but it was nice to have on rainy or snowy nights. I had awoken more than once to be buried under a pile of snow after falling asleep in a tree for too long. Lucky for me (if you can even call it luck) I am a fire demon and hypothermia is one affliction that shall never affect me.
Before I left to go inside, I stopped in the open rice paper door and looked back at the scene one last time. Kuwabara had picked Kasumi up and cradled her in his arms, he did not care about the mud that coated him afterwards or the fact she had reached up and wrapped her arms so tightly around his neck she might as well be choking him. He just held her. Held her closer than I liked – for a man that was supposedly so devoted to my sister, he sure as hell didn't act like it when he was around that girl.
I sneered at the sight; beyond disgusted at the weakness of it…but deep down, burning away inside me was something I did not dare acknowledge…something I did not dare even touch. It made my blood boil and my hands clench. It brought on thoughts of murder and pain and feelings I had no experience with…
As the tall man began his trek through the slop to bring the girl inside, I fled. They no longer had a need for me here…I could watch the rest from a distance. It was safer that way.
. . .
A/N: Can't decide if I hate this chapter or not. Chronos is wonky, huh? I want him/her to be a bit on the weirder side. Also, first glimpse at what Kasumi's energy would look like if she ever gets any! I liked the idea of neon pink for some reason…I played around with red, but thought it would be too similar to other characters' energies. I've been getting an odd influx of anon reviews, which are great, but wish you guys had accounts! I'm wondering if it's because I promoted this on Tumblr. I assumed I'd get a bunch of hate, but none so far! Hope you guys liked it, lemme know what you thought and thanks for reading!
P.S. So happy to be back to Kasumi's POV in the next one! Writing Hiei is hard!