Disclaimer: I don't own YYH or the characters. Just OCs.
Impromptu story update. I just came to check the notes I had for it, and decided to just write it. Special shout out to dragoscilvio, the whole reason this story exists. Also, thank you for planning out and basically writing the "storage shed scene." Don't worry, those who aren't privy to what that means. You will soon enough XD
Everything had changed in the group's dynamic after the demon attack. Tsukiko had healed quickly thanks to some concoction Kurama had given her to speed healing. She was back to her old self in no time at all. That would have been a relief if it hadn't meant…
Tons of extra training.
Tsukiko was exhausted from all of the drills she had been working at Genkai's instruction. Sure, she wasn't sparring, but she knew that was coming. As much as she wasn't a fan of physical combat, everyone agreed that she should know the basic self-defense. Even Eiko agreed to learn with her which made it a little easier. Still, right now she and her friend were learning different skills.
"I've never used a sword before…" Eiko murmured as she looked to the fire demon in front of her. She saw something glow beneath his headband.
His eyes narrowed at her suspiciously after what he had just seen. "Never?"
Eiko blushed, having been caught in a small fib. Honestly, she had used a fencing sword once before when she was forced by her father to learn the basics ones visit. A sigh escaped her as she told her instructor, "That doesn't count, and it was too long ago that I don't remember."
"We'll have to change that," he retorted, tossing a blade towards her. Eiko squealed and quickly jumped out of the way. She glared at a snickering Hiei. "That wasn't funny."
"On the contrary," Hiei remarked, "I found it hilarious."
Tsukiko was thankful for a well-deserved break after she was forced to endure some running and meditation. Yusuke laughed, standing over her with an impish grin flashed her way. "You know, you have it easy compared to what I had to go through in Grandma's freaky training camp."
"This is easy?" Tsukiko asked, feeling exhausted. "I'm ready for a nap."
"How about lunch instead?" Yusuke offered. "Yukina and I are cooking."
"Mm, sounds good," Tsukiko said as she curled up on the ground. "Wake me when it's ready."
Yusuke chuckled and shook his head. "What are we going to do with you?"
It was after lunch when the real craziness started. During the meal, Tsukiko was being questioned about her gift by everyone, and they were all trying to figure it out. Genkai eventully remembered something. She had some documentation detailing the girl's gift, and she had stored it away because she never expected to see it. It was a skill that only appeared once every thousand years, and random individuals could receive it. They didn't need to be of any specific lineage.
"So, foxy," Yusuke teased, and Kurama glared at a spot on the table. Tsukiko snickered because she had taken to calling him that and found he wasn't fond of the nickname she bestowed. "You're a couple thousand years old, right? You ever heard of it?"
"I have an inkling of a memory," Kurama admitted, "but it's faint. I remember hearing of it and seeking it out for myself, regrettably for similar reasons as Yomi."
"What do you mean?" Eiko questioned warily. She didn't like the sound of what one of her friend's supposed protectors was saying.
"I was not always as I am now," Kurama continued. "I was once a bandit who went after the most heavily guarded treasures, all for the ambition of becoming one of the demon kings. I wanted the power to further that goal. A random psychic entered the demon realm, back before there was ever a barrier, like now except a much darker and more desolate time. The psychic was killed amidst the struggle to take possession of the power, and I had just shrugged it off as being inconsequential." He could see Eiko glaring at him with accusatory eyes and Tsukiko giving him a wide-eyed stared. "I assure you that I am a much different demon now then I was then."
"In any case," Genkai redirected, "the document is in the storage shed. When lunch is over, go and find that. We need as much information as possible."
Tsukiko was actually excited for the moment. After all, this document Genkai spoke of, she was sure it had the history of her ability, and Tsukiko loved history. She wondered what amazing information she'd learn, what other relics were in the storage shed. She knew it had to be the most organized and well thought-out structure to guard sacred texts and items.
It was a total mess.
The team struggled to open the rusty door, its stubborn refusal to budge due to years of neglect, and finally peered inside only to find their jaws dropping in shock at the sight that met their eyes. Here they were, trying to investigate and find an important document, and the shed was filled with junk. Trash, from floor to ceiling, left only the narrowest of pathways that was barely able to snake its way through the mess. It led further into the foreboding building, cobwebs hanging from the ceiling in thick sheets promising those who would enter plenty of company, particularly of the eight-legged variety, whilst they explored. The darkness pervaded every corner save the few feet lit by the afternoon sun pouring in from the door. An aura, not unlike a witch beckoning her prey to the slaughter, drift amongst the rafters.
There were too many boxes to even consider a plan of action, the mess so all-encompassing that even the most intelligent and levelheaded member of the team felt his eyebrow twitch as he ran a hand through his long, red hair. His brain reeled with the hopeless effort to come up with an idea on how to manage crawling through the layers of trash to find their desired item.
Suddenly, the ginger-headed teen could take it no longer, and Kuwabara let out a shriek that echoed within the shed, bouncing off the walls and fading into the distance accompanied by the sound of a small avalanche of papers disturbed by the sudden noise in the back left corner.
Tsukiko felt her knees give out as her friend wailed what was surely the same sound resonating within her own heart, mind, and soul. She slowly sank to the floor. "This is impossible…" she moaned.
Kurama felt sweat drip down his face, and he could only nod in response. Yusuke, for once, was utterly speechless and content with staring slack-jawed at the immense task before them. Hiei shook his head and swiftly turned on his heel, fully intending to walk away and take no part in this endeavor.
Snarky as ever, he sniffed, "I said I wanted to help, but this is above my pay grade."
The miniature demon proceeded to step off the wooden staircase to the dirt pathway leading to the shed behind the shrine, but a hand clamped onto his ankle abruptly, causing him to turn around and give a rather uncharacteristic yelp of fear. Tsukiko, Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama all had darkened faces, and their ears stretched to evil points even as their eyes narrowed becoming stained red. Eager hands tugged and pulled at his coat while voices that seemed to moan from the very puts of hell called him to his doom.
"Come, Hiei…join us…"
"No," Hiei rejected, trying to pull away, to no avail. "Stop it…" He growled slightly, pulling with all his might against the hands and bracing his feat against the lip of the stair. "Let me go!"
"Join us…JOIN US…!"
And, as Hiei was pulled in feet first, he clawed at the ground leaving long scratch marks on the dirt and wood, his voice echoing amongst the leaves of the forest as his desperate fingers were finally dragged across the threshold.
"Nooooooooo!" was the only sound Eiko heard standing outside the shed, and her eyes widened comically before twitching. The scene in front of her was too reminiscent of the horror movies she had despised so much. A chill crawled up her spine.
At that, she turned away and slowly made her trek back to the temple. She wanted no part of this.
At all.
Meanwhile, Hiei's head shot up as he took a deep breath. He was buried up to his neck in papers, glaring at his smiling comrades. "I'm going to kill you all," he assured them. He had one last thought to summarize what he was feeling in that moment.
These humans are going to be the death of me.