Learning to Live Again

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho, its characters, universe, or any of that.

Notes: Possibly some pairings later on. Also, there are additions of characters of my own creation; I do own those. :) Comments, reviews, suggestions, etc. are greatly appreciated and encouraged! :)

Thanks and enjoy...

Chapter Eighteen: Casting a Shadow

Kurama squeezed his eyes shut after he felt Yusuke's last breath leave him. "Goodbye, Yusuke..." he whispered. The tears ran unhindered now as he sobbed in earnest...

Slowly, the numbing agony and loss was being replaced by blinding anger and rage; there would be time later to succumb to the grief. Now was the time for revenge. Gently, he closed Yusuke's blank brown eyes as he rested his dearest friend's body onto the dirt beside him, then he and Hiei got to their feet. "Ready?"

"Always."

It seemed Hiei and Kurama were not the only ones to notice the fading of Yusuke's energy. An eruption of anguished fury could be heard from behind them, back in the direction of Yusuke's fortress. Glancing for one single moment to look, Kurama saw Jin screaming and running towards them, followed closely by Touya, silent but also running, and a yelling Chuu being half-carried by Mukuro. Haunted expressions marred their faces, giving life to the feelings they all felt at the loss of their leader and friend. Jin was throwing off mini-tornadoes and had nearly succeeded in hitting Aurora with one before she quickly stopped their advance.

With a flick of her wrist, she constructed a wall of ice a few feet in front of them before creating one behind it, as well, then sealing it with a roof. This would be enough to halt them until Touya could gain enough control over the ice she wielded to lower it. Aurora gazed back at her twin. "Come, Yoko," she called. "I'll give you the honor of trying to kill me." There was something sparkling in her eyes, but Kurama couldn't put a finger on what it was exactly. It didn't really matter to him anyway now.

"Oh, trust me, I won't simply be trying." He steeled his resolve, as much as it hurt him. "You'll die for your actions tonight." He did not take his eyes off her, but he spoke to Hiei, "Hiei, you take that man... She's mine."

"Hn. Be careful, Fox."

"Always."

And so, it began. Kurama's rose snapped into life, and he took a few steps away from where Yusuke's body lay. Aurora began making her bow. "Thrice Ice," she breathed. Three arrows sang off their string towards him. He simply snapped his Rose whip. The three arrows fell to the ground, split in half. As the faded away, she sighed.

"Don't play games with me, Aurora. Either fight your best or allow me to kill you. If you give in now, I'll consider ending your life quickly."

Hiei, while distracted in his own fight, took a moment to think about what an impressive fight was about to take place between the two foxes. He had only ever seen that particular fire ignite in Kurama's eyes once before and never to the brightness it burned with now. Aurora was, for some reason, not yet calling that thing she had shown Yusuke and the rest of them in the training grounds that day. Trying to forget how difficult this fight may be, he turned his eyes and his focus back onto the man called Nikolai.

Kurama snapped his whip again. He had tried to crack it against her but failed as she dodged gently to the left. Again, three arrows sang off her bow. This time, they averted his whip twice, before sinking themselves into his left arm. Hissing with sudden pain, he snapped his whip one last time before pulling a seed from his hair. With the distraction of the Rose Whip, he was able to free the seed without catching Aurora's attention to it. Though it looked at though it wasn't going to matter much. She was using her fingertips, she turned the ground all around them into a thick sheet of ice. This would prevent any plants from taking root in this soil. He sighed allowing the seed to drop, rendered, for the moment, useless.

Using her fluent grace, she began approaching him. The thorny vine cracked through the air, as much as an attack as a warning not to come any closer. Finally, she voice whispered through his head. Please, come closer... He growled in a negative response and held his ground. You must understand. Please! He didn't like this. He simply could not trust her after what she had done to Yusuke... But he so badly wanted to trust her. Kurama took three slow, hesitant steps towards her. She raised her bow again, but gave him a tiny, nearly unnoticeable nod. He took three more steps. She fired the arrows, which were destroyed in the same way the first three had been; sliced neatly in half by an angry, thorned whip. "Not going to fight back, brother?" she called. But she mouthed, Please, closer. Finally, after several tense moments, he was right in front of her. She flicked a glance over at the man named Nikolai. He was busy with Hiei.

"What is it?" he snapped coldly.

"Take this. I trust you know what to do with it." she murmured so quietly he almost didn't catch all of her words. She thrust a small vile into his hands. "I had to do it. Now it's your job to right it." She looked him in the eyes and kissed his cheek. "I'm sorry. I'll do what I can, brother. I can only hope it will be enough..."

Kurama gazed at her, lost somewhere between confusion and shock. She took a few steps back from him, raised her arms towards the heavens, and began chanting quietly. Though she was speaking the same language she had when she called the storm, Kurama knew the words to this one. He remembered the day Aurora had told him about it. And what happened to the one who used it... "I call you from the lowest depths of Hell. Come forth; answer my call," Aurora's voice was eerie and echoed over the land. "I require the assistance only you can provide. Aid me in completing the last task of my life, as I offer my soul as payment. Heed my call!" She took a deep breath and screamed at the sky, "I call upon you, one final time, Holy Bringer of Death!"

Hiei whirled and jumped away from the man. He landed lightly in front of Kurama. He believed this attack was meant for her brother. "Oh, no, witch. You shall not kill two this night," he growled at her. She wasn't listening.

She cried out as black liquid light engulfed her. She was beginning to float, feet leaving the ground. Her hair and long dress seemed suddenly unaffected by gravity and swirled slowly in the air around her."End him," she whispered and it echoed eerily into the night. She was thrown backwards and towards the ground as the being burst forth from her. The being gave a wild, haunting call.

Kurama took two involuntary steps back, pulling Hiei with him. He looked over at Aurora. She was climbing back to her feet. She looked extremely ill; she could hardly hold her arm out in front of her as she directed the great beast. "Nikolai, I'll see you in Hell!" There was something wrong with her voice, Kurama noticed absently. It seemed to carry out and echo into the night.

"What is this?" Hiei whispered. "She's killing... him?"

"No, you goddamned bitch! I knew you betrayed me! How dare you!" Nikolai roared.

The Bringer pulled his sword from it's sheath with another deathly cry before he plunged his blade into the man's chest. "Die!" both Aurora and the Bringer screamed out.

However, the man did not die. He merely began to laugh. There was blood coming out of his mouth as he said, "Do you think I hadn't planned for this, you insolent child?"

Aurora fell to her knees. "Kill him..." she panted weakly. "Kill him, Bringer!" The creature born by the horse gave a cry and removed his blade from the man's chest. With one smooth swipe, he took off his head. Aurora smiled faintly before collapsing forward onto her hands. Now on all-fours, she took a ragged breath before heaving herself to her feet once more. She glanced at Kurama, eyes brimmed with emotion, "Destroy the weapon in his pocket... Now, get out of the way..."

Kurama pulled Hiei backwards with him. He eyes, however, remained on the creature of his sister's. The horse was rearing. The man riding it turned glowing red eyes to Aurora. "Come!" she called faintly. "Take your price." She body was trembling. The horse reared once more before the being charged at her. She looked over to Kurama as the Bringer closed in on her. Goodbye, brother...

Hiei grabbed Kurama's shirt when he took a few steps towards his sister. "No, Fox, there's nothing that'll do but get you killed, too," he warned quietly.

Kurama stopped walking with a slight nod. The creature was upon her now. She closed her eyes as the blackness engulfed her once more. She screamed and the now unidentifiable dark mass exploded and imploded all at once. The black seared into a blinding white. Kurama covered his eyes with his arm; Hiei did the same. After a few moments in which the dust settled, Kurama removed his arm and looked to where his twin was before. She was lying, quite still, in the same place she had previously been standing. "Aurora..."

Before Kurama could do much else, the ice holding their friends dissolved into a puddle as they rushed forward again. Touya was looking particularly irate. Apparently the ice hadn't succumbed to his will until after Aurora's hold over it ceased. Before any words could be spoken, they stopped moving forward to rest eyes on Yusuke. "So... he really is...?" Dead... went unspoken.

"What is that in your hand?" Hiei asked suddenly.

Kurama remembered the vile and scrap of paper he had, until that moment, forgotten about completely. He began with the note. It was Aurora's handwriting.

Brother,

Destroy the weapon in Nikolai's possession, even if I have killed him.

Then, use the liquid in the vile. It is Essence of the Phoenix.

I trust you know what to do with it. I hope we are to meet again in the afterlife.

I love you, always.

Aurora

Kurama's eyes watered against his will. Clearing his throat, he turned to Hiei, "Go to that dead man. Search his pockets until you find something of value. Destroy it as soon as you've found it."

"Hn. And what will you do?"

"Just go!" Kurama replied, running forward. Please, let this work...

Hiei frowned, but flitted off to do as Kurama told him. He wasn't fool enough to disregard something the fox obviously thought was important. He knelt at the beheaded man's side and began his search. He silently wished Kurama had been a little more specific in his instructions. Something of value. What the hell did that mean?

Kurama raced to Yusuke. "Please let this work, Inari, please." He dropped to the ground beside the still form of his friend. Carefully uncorking the vile, he took a breath then held it as he moved the vile to the boy's mouth. With his free hand, he gently forced his mouth open. He poured the liquid down Yusuke's throat slowly and painstakingly with trembling hands. Please...

When the vile was nearly empty, Kurama removed his hand. He'd used more than enough, now he just had to wait. He hated to wait. He looked over to see how Hiei was fairing. Quite well, it would seem. He had something small, round and glittering in his left hand. He was drawing his sword with his right. "Destroy this, Fox?" The kitsune nodded. Hiei unceremoniously dropped the thing to the ground.

Just before Hiei plunged his sword into the small round thing, harsh coughing caught everyone's attention. Hiei's head snapped up, and he moved quickly to Yusuke's other side, the device momentarily forgotten. Kurama's gently trembling lips twitched into a fragile smile. Yusuke's head turned to the side as he cleared the blood out of his airways and throat and spit it out on the ground. "Goddamn," he muttered, eyes still closed. "I feel like I got hit by a truck... about fifty times."

Hiei's expression said it all. He couldn't believe it. Yusuke was alive! He wasn't the only one who noticed. "Urameshi? !" was the general consensus. Smiles broke over one than one face, weak laughter could even be heard. Yusuke was alive!

Weary brown eyes flickered open, landing first on Hiei, then Kurama, then the rest of his friends, before finally resting on Aurora. She was lying still several feet away. His eyes widened slightly, several emotions overtaking his expression, one after another. "So it really wasn't a lie, then...?"

Kurama looked a bit confused. "What wasn't a lie, Yusuke?" he asked gently.

His eyes remaining on her for a moment longer before flitting to Kurama, Yusuke murmured, "Just before she stabbed me, she told me to trust her. Told me that she was going to fix everything before it was too late." And that she had said she loved him, Yusuke left out. "I thought it was just a lie when I realized I really was dying. But now... Damn. I'm impressed. She's a good actor." He looked at Kurama again. "Is she okay? Shouldn't you be helping her?"

Tears sprung to the kitsune's eyes. Yusuke caught sight of them before Kurama turned his head away. "No, Yusuke..." was all he could say before his voice refused to remain at an audible volume.

"No?" Yusuke breathed, sitting up. He realized a second after his head hit the ground again that it wasn't such a good idea to move right now. Squeezing his eyes shut against the dizziness and the fact that world seemed to be tilting, he spoke to Kurama, "Well, what happened?" The emotionless tone he used was almost as good as Kurama's own.

"She called forth that being of Hell. It requires the summoner to pay a price for its assistance. In this case, the price was her life," Hiei explained quietly, as it was apparent Kurama was currently unable to do so.

Yusuke kept his eyes closed as he fought against the wetness behind his eyes and the closing of his throat. Oh...

I knew after what happened in the last chapter, a quick update was in order. So, in exchange for killing our poor, favorite Yusuke momentarily, here is another quick update. Thank you, thank you, diligent readers and reviewers! I hope you've enjoyed thus-far. It may be a few days before I get the next one up, but please in the meantime, leave me your reviews. :)