A/N:
HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I'm experimenting with slow motion talking. HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRE YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU?
WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL, OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONTTTTTTTTTTTTTTO TTTTTTTTTTTTTTHHHHHHHHHE DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!
(HOW ARE YOU? WELL, ONTO THE DISCLAIMER!!!! If you didn't catch the slow-mo talk)
I do not, in anyway, own Yu Yu Hakusho. GOT IT?! Why must you dash my dreams by forcing me to write this disclaimer?????!!!! WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!
(That last part wasn't slow mo talk) -goes emo- happy now? You've dashed my hopes. -slits wrist-
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Zura's POV
I was having a wonderful dream. I was sitting by a campfire, crying out of happiness because Seraphath had just given me my tears.
Then, there was a poking in my side that woke me out of my beloved dream. I opened my eyes angrily to find Kurama poking me at 5 a.m. My eye twitched, WHAT COULD HE POSSIBLY WANT?
"What?" I spat through gritted teeth, trying not to kill my cousin.
"Let's go for a walk." He smiled.
My hand twitched, "You woke me up... at 5 in the morning... to go on a walk?"
He nodded, "Now, get up you bundle of lazy fur. We don't want mom waking up." He left the room.
I sat in shock. He called me lazy, and a bundle of fur. Without even a tone of fond teasing. And that was only the first weird thing that day.
Kurama and I walked down the street, and whenever someone nearly got hurt, Kurama would snap in disappointment that they didn't. I looked at him strangely.
He once even teased me about wearing baggy clothes and asked me if I even had boobs since no one could tell. I just glared and walked in front of him at the question.
Then, he grabbed my bra strap and let it fly, hitting my shoulder with a loud SNAP! He just shrugged when I turned to him and he said, "I guess you do have boobs. Otherwise, you wouldn't wear a bra, right?" and started walking again.
Now, I admit I hadn't known Kurama as long as the others, but this just couldn't be normal.
I eyed him suspiciously the rest of the day. I started getting freaked out when he began asking me questions.
"SO..." He began asking as we walked through Hiei's park, "Do you like anyone, Zura?" He asked me.
"No." I glared at him. Why was he asking me that anyway?
"Not even me?" He smiled sexily. I shivered in discomfort.
"What? NO! You're related to me. There's no way I'd like you like that! What's up with you today, anyway?" His eyes sparked a moment as I said 'related'.
He only nodded, "But, do you like anyone?"
"No." I said again, angry that he didn't answer my question. This couldn't be Kurama, but it smelt like him, smiled like him, and looked EXACTLY like him. It was only his mannerisms that weren't him.
"Are you sure? There are some pretty good looking guys on the team."
I snorted, "Yeah, Yusuke with his jelled back hair and Kuwabara being the carrot-headed Elvis." I rolled my eyes and searched the leaves in the trees, unsure as to why, "And then, you, who's my cousin, but admittedly not that bad looking. But, you're MY COUSIN! So, that's a no. And little baby breath Koenma who, may not be BUGLY in teenager form, is still pervy, bratty, selfish, and cheap... WAIT A MINUTE HE OWES THE A TEAM A BUFFET!!! KOENMA!!!!!!!!"
With that, I ran off to find Yusuke and use his communicator.
I ran down the street and saw a red headed person and a copper headed person a little way down the road. I slowed down so I didn't hit the poor unsuspecting people, "Excuse me." I said politely, as Kurama had explained to me was a nice way of saying, "Move".
They turned to me. My mouth went dry.
"K-Kura?" I asked, hadn't he just been in the park.
"Z-Zura?" He asked, afraid of me seeing his girlfriend, but I actually hadn't noticed her.
"What are you doing here? I left you at the park!"
Kurama cocked an eyebrow, "No, I wasn't. Autumn and I were just on our way to the Botanical Gardens."
I blinked. Who was Autumn? I turned to the girl beside Kurama. I could smell that she was a wolf demon like me, but not a pure and not an original.
I smiled evilly, "Oh, so, you got yourself a girlfriend." I chuckled as Autumn and my cousin blushed in unison.
Kurama took me by the shoulders, "That's not important right now. You said I was with you at the park, but I've been here with Autumn for the past hour."
"Huh? But I'VE been with you for the past hour!" Though I had to admit, this guy acted MUCH more like Kurama.
"No, Zura. You haven't. I left the house when you were still sleeping."
Suddenly, it came to me, "... Trentone... THAT SNEAKY -censored word-!!!!!!!!!! HE'S DISGUISED HIMSELF AS YOU!!!" With that, I began to run away.
I could smell Kurama and Autumn following me, but they were in the air.
"Zura! Calm down and tell us what's going on!" I heard Kurama yell down to me.
I turned to see Kurama and his girlfriend flying on an elongated flute, "NO!" I shouted.
They swooped down in front of me as Kurama nodded, "Sorry, Zura. Just try not to kill me when you wake up."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHEN I WAKE--" I stopped as Autumn began to blow on her flute. The tune was enchanting, but, before long my eyes became heavy and my vision went black.
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The Now Normal POV And About An Hour Later...
Zura was lying on the couch, unconscious; Autumn and Kurama were shakily holding each other's hands so as not to hyperventilate.
Hiei was sitting in the windowsill, secretly wondering if the mutt was okay. Yukina was happily and obliviously serene while Kuwabara and Yusuke were fighting as was usual.
Botan was trying to persuade Shizuru into letting her give her a make-over, and Keiko was playing with her hands nervously waiting for the wolf demon that she had just been told about to wake up.
"No, Botan. Anyway, little brother, stop fighting." Shizuru hit Kuwabara over the head, "Now listen! You dragged Botan, Keiko, and I to Genkai's temple, only just now telling us about this demon wolf, AND NOW, YOU'RE WASTING YOUR TIME FIGHTING INSTEAD OF TELLING US WHAT'S GOING ON!" With every word Shizuru hit Kuwabara hard.
"Hey, sis! Stop! I don't know what's going on either! Urameshi doesn't even know!" Kuwabara said out of his now black and blue face.
"I don't care! I just want answers!"
"Calm down, woman," Hiei said calmly as he stared out the window, "Just ask the fox. He's the only one that really knows what's going on."
"Don't call me woman." Was all Shizuru said before dropping her brother carelessly and turned to Kurama, "Well then, Kurama, I suggest you start explaining."
"Shizuru's right, I hate being kept in the dark! Tell us what's going on!" Keiko stood up by Shizuru's side.
"Calm down, calm down. I will tell you all I know, but I'm mostly in the dark, too. Only Zura herself can truly tell you what's been happening. All right, I woke up at 5 a.m. to go on a date with Autumn." There were a few 'oh's' from Kuwabara and Yusuke that made the couple blush, but he continued, "We went to a bookstore and stayed there for about an hour. Then we left and began walking to the Botanical Gardens. We heard someone say 'excuse me', and I turned to see Zura there. She was as shocked to see me, as I was to see her, if not more. Then she started babbling on about how I was just with her at the park. She also mentioned something about a 'Trentone'."
Botan started at this, "Did you say 'Trentone'?"
Kurama nodded.
Botan's eyes doubled in size, "Oh my. We all have to get to Lord Koenma's office at once." She opened her communicator and started to push buttons. Then a portal appeared, "Come on, everyone. You'll understand when we get there."
Kuwabara pronounced his love for Yukina once again before taking her by the hand and jumping into the portal.
Kurama and Autumn tightened their grips on each other's hands before walking through together. Yusuke, Keiko, and Shizuru walked through the portal in that order. Botan hopped through, leaving a fire demon and an unconscious wolf demon behind in her distress.
Hiei rolled his eyes at where the portal had been. Sure, he was annoyed that they had left him, but he didn't want to hop through those creepy portals anyway.
He sat in the windowsill above the sleeping Zura's couch. It was quiet for a while before Zura began to shiver in her sleep.
It was barely noticeable at first, but as the minutes passed, it was even audible.
Hiei hopped down from the windowsill in time to see Zura's eyes open. They were a crystal blue with pupils dangerously small. Hiei's hand automatically went to his katana, but he did not unsheathe it. This was still Zura, but something was wrong.
"H-he's c-c-coming." She choked out in a hollow whisper.
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"Alright, Koenma, tell us what's going on!" Yusuke shouted, leaning over the desk and advancing on the frightened toddler.
"Calm down, Yusuke! I'll tell you everything I know."
He cleared his throat, "It all began about a thousand and ten years ago. The moon goddess, Seraphath, was on the run from a group of cloaked men known as 'The Light Killers'.
In those days, Seraphath moved freely between the heavens and earth. But because of The Light Killers, she had to stay in hiding, less they kill her and take away her glowing power."
"Wait, you said she was a goddess, right? Then, how could they kill her?" Kuwabara asked.
"Kuwabara makes a good point. Why should she have anything to fear from people with less power than she?" Kurama asked seriously.
"Well, The Light Killers were said to have a special water that they dipped all their weapons into. It is said to be able to kill not only immortals, but also to cancel out all their defenses and attacks."
"Well, that sucks." Shizuru muttered.
"Anyway, so, she realized that she could no longer stay on earth, but she had to remain in the heavens. This is when she created five special demons. Wolf demons, the original ones.
They were said to be the only ones to know how to contact her in her heavenly home. These demons were the ones from which all wolf demons sprung from. But, out of the five there was said to be a single one that was special."
"Why was he special?" Yukina asked quietly.
"Not he, Yukina, she. She was special because she remained a virgin. The legend goes that once the original demons lost that, they no longer held the key to where Seraphath is and the secret was then known to everyone."
"But you said that four of them were no longer virgins... doesn't that mean we should know the secret to where she lives?" Shizuru asked.
"No, because as long as one of them is still pure, the secret is kept safe."
"That must have been an awfully big burden to that wolf demon. She could never find a mate and be happy." Yukina said, tears of sympathy in her red eyes.
"Indeed, Yukina, and it still is."
"What do you mean 'still'? And what in the world does this have to do with anything?" Yusuke asked.
"I mean 'still' because Zura is the fifth wolf demon. The Light Killers are after her, just like they were five hundred years ago!"
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Zura's skin was rapidly turning blue. It seemed like she was being frozen from the inside out. Hiei built up some demonic heat in his hands and touched her skin.
He pulled back instantly. She was even colder than the weather on his birthplace, Glacier Island. She turned to him, obviously not really aware that it was him next to her.
She launched herself on him, tackling him to the floor. Her nails were sharper than usual, but not quite claws as she clung to him, burying her frozen face into his warm chest.
This, obviously, wasn't enough, Zura needed more. She needed more heat. She swiped at his shirt and took it off in one swift blow. She put her arms around Hiei as he felt himself grow hotter, which earned a growl of utmost pleasure from the wolf demon.
Hiei felt her grow colder. She clung onto him tighter, but it was to no avail. Hiei closed his eyes, somehow knowing he had to keep Zura warm. He was ablaze with heat now.
Most things would have been baked alive by now, but the icy wolf demon wasn't. In fact, she was starting to get cozy.
Zura stirred. She closed her eyes and reopened them, finding herself against something deliciously warm. She growled in pleasure and snuggled closer.
Then, she realized that the thing was skin colored, and that her legs were entangled with black clad ones.
"H-Hiei?" She squeaked, hoping that maybe Kurama had some kind of wardrobe change or something.
"Hn." Yeah, that was him.
Zura knew she should have pushed off. She should have leaped to the other side of the room, yet she didn't. She stayed in the arms of the handsome fire apparition.
Hiei's POV
She should have jumped. She should have been freaked out and afraid like the last time, yet I felt her relax against my chest. I knew I should be pushing her off and telling her not to touch me, but for some reason, I couldn't do it.
Her body was much warmer now so I lowered my body heat.
I stood up, scooping the mutt into my arms as I did. I went and sat down on the couch. I suddenly realized she was falling asleep again.
I was relieved to see her eyes were a dark brown again. Her eyes closed.
It was silent for a while as I felt strangely at ease with the tailed girl in my arms. I took off her hat so her ears could be free.
They were slightly crumpled. I hesitantly grabbed her ear and started to smooth it out. She growled again and pushed her body tightly against mine, and for some reason, I liked it.
Oh, darn it all to the depths of Spirit World! It was just the fact that the mating season was coming up soon, nothing more.
But, I did admit something to myself. The mutt was relatively attractive.
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"So, you're saying that five hundred year ago, the other four wolf demons were killed right in front of Zura, in an effort to make her tell them the secret of where Seraphath was?" Yusuke asked, astonished.
Koenma nodded, "That is exactly it, Yusuke. The only thing is, their plan didn't work. Zura didn't love the other four wolves as she was meant to. She had found them too brutal and uncaring for her liking.
But, she had cared for them, that is true, but not enough to lose control of herself. After all, five hundred years is a long time practicing to have power over yourself. Zura's never been one to trust someone, always knowing that they could be used against her if she let them fully into her heart, or they could always just betray her, too."
"So, that's why she refused to tell us what was happening." Kurama said, furrowing his eyebrows.
Koenma nodded.
"And now The Light Killers are after her again." Kurama worried.
"Yes, that's who Trentone is. He's a member, the one who actually did the killing of the four wolf demons."
"Zura said that this man had disguised himself as me."
"Yes, that's why he's such a formidable foe. He can copy everything about the person he wishes to copy, down to their very scent, but his one down fall is personality."
"Who leads these Light Killers?" Yusuke asked, seriously angry.
"That we don't know. Only Zura knows the details. I don't know the secret to getting to Seraphath either. If she told, we would all be in danger anyway."
Kurama nodded, "Well, then our first priority is to keep Zura safe. Right, Hiei?"
Not a sound was heard. Everyone turned around; there was no Hiei, "Hiei?"
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Zura suddenly jerked awake, "TRENTONE, DON'T YOU DARE!" She screamed, pupils dilated, ears curled in fear, panting desperately for air.
Zura realized Trentone was not here as he had promised he would be in her dream. She did not relax, however; he would be there soon.
She turned her head to the right and saw that Hiei was looking at her questionably.
She blushed, though she didn't know why. Maybe it had something to do with the fact he had no shirt on and her head had been resting in his lap.
Zura stood up shakily, her adrenaline not yet gone, "Thanks for taking care of me, Hiei..." She said quietly as she dusted her gray sweat pants off.
"Hn."
Zura smiled slightly, he was not a man of many words, "I've got to go."
She headed towards the door, but before she could even reach for the handle, Hiei was in front of her.
"You're not going anywhere, mutt."
She winced inside, but glared on the out, "You can't tell me what to do!"
He smirked, "I just did."
She growled, displeased, "I HAVE to go, Hiei. Everyone's in danger if I don't."
"Hn."
She clenched her fists, "I need to--" She stopped. Her now smoothed ears twitched, "He's here." A dread filled her eyes.
"Who's here?" Hiei moved closer to her, as if guarding her.
"Trentone." Her throat was closing up. It looked like she'd cry any second. Her voice dropped to a whisper, "He's outside."
