AU: Sweet zombie Jesus this chapter is long and I didn't even notice until I submitted it. Some of it was going to be part of the next chapter and I realized that while editing it I just kinda put the title in the wrong place...no matter, long chapters are nice. Also I'd like to say THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to all the people who favorite-ed or subscribed to my story as of recent you know who you are and I wanna say thanks to sweet Kagome and Wolvesrain who never fail to send me comment about the new chapter. You two are too sweet and I love you for it

PLEASE READ AND REVIEW for those of you that haven't, it helps motivate me and prevents me from getting writers block and dropping the story, you can be brutally honest its ok. Also...

Important!: I'm requesting ideas (mostly for the romance) for this story I really want to communicate with the fans I have and really make the fanfiction for you guys. I really want this to be a fan friendly story and while can't promise your ideas will be used I will take them into consideration and try out as many as I can. Hearing ideas helps my ideas to flow so the story can continue for you guys! So yeah that's something to think about while you read

I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of its characters.

Terryal's Gift's

Terryal cuddled closer into the warmth that was wrapped around her, a familiar voice sang a sweet lullaby.

"Mother…" she whispered, her eyes fluttering open to look up at the face she had almost forgotten.

Flowing ebony hair cascaded down the face of the figure but the demoness had to see, she had to look upon the face of her mother.

"Mother," She whispered again reaching her hand up to caress the face of the woman.

But there was something wrong, her face felt cold and wet, almost slimy, Terryal tore her hand away her heart pounding now aware that there was something very wrong. She stared with wide eyes at her hand and saw thick sticky blood had covered it to the point that you could no longer see her dark skin, just red. Despite all her instincts screaming against the thought she looked up again just as a strange wind blew the hair from the woman's face. Terryal screamed, at the sight. It was indeed her mother but face was drenched in blood, skin was torn away showing the raw muscle and bone beneath, the remaining flesh wasn't just torn it was melted and burnt. Every second that she stared at the woman there were more and more disgusting sights to be seen and she couldn't take it. The demon mother smiled down at her child baring her rotten and missing teeth as she clutched the girl tighter in her arms and traced her face with a gnarled, melting hand. While her arms still held the young oracle she burst into flames the once comfortable heat now overbearing, the stench of rotten and burning flesh filled Terryal's nostrils and she cried out once more.

"Mother no!" Terryal gasped jolting up from her sleep.

Her breath was ragged and her body drenched in sweat, she studied her surroundings and found that she was still in the hotel room in the Ningenkai. Botan was curled up on her side facing away from her roommate clearly oblivious to what had just occurred.

"Perhaps…I should re-unite my inner realms…" Terryal muttered to herself, crawling out of bed and moving to the main room.

She took a moment before settling on the couch to peek out the window and see how early it was. She realized that she had slept clean through to the morning of the next day and judging by the sun Terryal decided it was probably a good time for everyone to get up so when she settled for her meditation she called on the same abilities and gifts that were used to wake her up every morning back home…

Hiei felt as though he was blanketed in a warm calm ocean, he could feel the tides pushing and pulling against him rocking him slowly and comforting him in his slumber. He floated hundreds of feet below the surface of his vast sea of sleep completely content, so much so that even the jagan and the many eyes that would sometimes appear with it were all closed. But even in his relaxed state his demon energy was still present, swarming around him and stroking his green skin like a fine silk a blanket. The man resembled a tamed lion, graceful and calm but still dangerous all the same. The water moved in a way that was unusual, someone else had entered his world so he looked up to meet the creature and found a woman. The ocean tides pushed her deep black hair to and fro like a wild storm; her yellow eyes gazed into his with the gentleness of a mother. A small smile crossed her pink lips when she floated closer to him carefully taking his hand and cupping his face and he vaguely thought about how her brown skin looked strange against his.

She kicked against the water, pushing herself up towards the surface taking her new demon companion with her and Hiei felt strange. He followed her willingly for a while but then a thought occurred to him and he knew he shouldn't. If he broke the surface then he would wake up in his demon form, if he went into the sun it would be difficult to subdue himself so he struggled and pulled back towards the depths he came from. The girl turned to face him, her hand not leaving his and her eyes locked on him once more, in a fleeting moment Hiei thought she looked like an angel but banished the thought as soon as it came. She leaned towards him, her mouth to his ear and whispered perfectly through the water…

"Come Hiei. Morning is upon us."

There was something in her voice that banished his fear and he found himself back in her trance floating towards the surface once more. In one swift moment the water opened up for him like a gate then the same feeling again as though the sky was opening for him as well then the moon and stars after that. A rejuvenating feeling swarmed the fire apparition as though every blockade in his own body was opened allowing his full potential to flow through him like a vast river. He could breathe like never before and he took a moment to search for the girl responsible and found…

Two red orbs snapped open and stared at the off white ceiling the owner of them took a moment to think and remember the dream. Hiei didn't dream often and when he did it wasn't anything like that. Before he could ponder the oddity further a thought struck him and he sat up quickly and rushed to the mirror in the corner of the room but what he saw was not what he expected. He had dreamt about his demon form breaking through the gate that held it captive before. However when he last dreamt of such a thing he was young and still learning control the jagan and himself. Hiei recalled that when he had this dream he would always wake in his demon form, some days he would wake up mid attack as his more violent side would get bored and go on a rampage without his mind being any the wiser. What was strange to the fire apparition is that instead of a green skinned multi-eyed creature staring back at him, it was simply himself no changes no alterations as if nothing had happened. Hiei took some more time to ponder the strangeness of the situation before realizing the cause and upon this epiphany he could feel his blood boil as anger rose up inside of him.

"That damn woman…"

Kurama was the first to wonder out of his room and into the main entry were he found Terryal sitting cross legged on the floor in front of the wall sized window, which she had drawn the curtains on so the sun shone in and caught the glimmer of the many gold colored trinkets in the room. The psychic looked up from her seat at Kurama and noticed him stretching his muscles like a cat that just had a very pleasant nap. She didn't even attempt to hide her accomplished smile.

"I think it's safe to assume that you were responsible for my wake up call?" He asked while moving towards the coffee machine that was set up in the small kitchen area.

"Every morning at home the elders would wake us from our slumber using that gift." She responded, "I have never known a more pleasant way to begin a morning, I felt that I should share the gift with you as my gratitude."

"How do you do it?" Kurama asked; his fox-like curiosity shining in the emeralds he called eyes.

Terryal looked at him as though making sure he was serious and when she saw honesty in his eyes she rotated so her back was facing towards the window and began.

"At home, the elders called this gift "Taming the Beast". It is said that inside every being are three vital pools that hold the body's ki. The elders named them after the three absolute worlds, the inner Reikai," She held her hands open palmed at her forehead, "for it is the topmost point and it is where stress and logic mingle. The inner Ningenkai," She moved her hands down to her chest palms facing up now.

"For this pool is where emotion flows over logic and it is also the middle point on one's physical form." she moved her hands downward somewhere between her stomach and pelvis, palms facing towards her once more and one hand placed gently on top of the other. "Last is the inner Makai, for this is bottom-most part of the physical body and it controls the more instinctual and animalistic of a beings behavior."

"There are two places where the inner Makai can reside depending on the heart of the being. Makai energy flows through the stomach then the person is of a practical nature and seeks their hearts desire in needs such as food or strength. However if the Makai's ki river runs lower into the pelvis then the being is frivolous and will find content in desires such as sex or luxury. Forgive me…I have found myself wavering from my original purpose, I shall return my attention to your inquiry,"

She placed her hands at her sides before continuing. "The process of "Taming the Beast" calls for a psychic to dive into the pools of a persons inner Makai. Once awakened, the metaphorical demon is pulled upward and is sent to mingle with the being's inner human then after that both are sent higher to join with the being's inner spirit. This gift or technique as you would refer to it, tears down the walls that prevent the complete circulation of ki. Once the doors have been unlocked your ki can flow better and more freely throughout the body, making the gift receiver more skilled and more relaxed as well."

"So it's a matter of opening key points to restore the proper flow of demon energy. Like an internal acupuncture." Kurama mused, now blowing on the hot liquid inside the foam cup.

He poured a second cup and held it up towards his cross legged companion like a peace offering. She looked upon the steaming cup skeptically but she slowly stood up and stepped towards the boy.

"I suppose similar outcomes will be had…" Terryal agreed as wrapped her fingers around the bottom of the decorative cup keeping them as close to the edge as possible intending to keep from touching the demon fox. "Although my gift can restore many at once and can also reunite the inner realms of humans and spiritual beings alike."

She blew gently on the steaming black liquid and once she was quite sure she'd be able to handle the heat she drank only to swiftly spit it out in the sink on the counter. Glaring down at the bitter drink she vaguely wondered if Kurama had just attempted to poison her; she looked up at the boy in question with a naïve and dejected look that sort of asked "Why would you do that to me?"

"Is it too bitter?" Kurama asked with a chuckle, he slid the creamer and sugar across the counter towards her. "Those should help,"

She stared at him skeptically, before taking a large helping of both and stirring it into her drink. By the time she was completely satisfied with the taste the drink looked like chocolate milk that didn't have enough syrup. She asked what the formerly disgusting substance was causing her and the demon boy to share some idle chatter about the subject while sounds of life were beginning to stir around the suite. Botan wandered past the two towards the community bathroom stopping to give them both a cheery good morning before entering after her Yusuke exited his room. Terryal blushed at the site of him, he was in nothing but his boxers, his hair fell messily around his face without the gel to hold it back.

"Botan's already in the bathroom Yusuke," Kurama said as though reading his thoughts.

"Dammit! The one time I wake up early enough to actually get a shower before everyone and I still don't make it." He complained flopping the upper half of his body on the island that separated the kitchen from the living room.

Terryal turned her face away from the detective, she had snapped her eyes shut and her cheeks were bright pink.

"I would find myself very joyous…if you were to return to your quarters and cover yourself." She mumbled into her coffee that she now had her face shoved into.

Yusuke looked up at her with confusion; he examined her face carefully while Kurama asked if she was feeling ill. Her eyes glanced at him for a quick second before retreating once more to stare at the khaki colored liquid in her cup and realization hit Yusuke like a hammer and instead of moving immediately to his room his face broke into a grin and he started laughing hysterically.

"Who ever thought a mighty demon could be such a puss?" he howled while complying with her wishes and wandering back to his room to get more clothes, passing Hiei along the way back to his room.

Kurama waved a greeting to his companion but the bad tempered demon ignored it completely, heading straight for the newest female added into their group. The fox saw the glimmer in the other man's eyes and reached out to stop him before he hit his target but he wasn't fast enough. The cup in Terryal's hand practically burst in an angled half splattering coffee all over the shirt she had borrowed from the reaper. She felt a sting on her left cheek before she was thrust against the counter Hiei's katana at her throat.

"Hiei-" Kurama began but was swiftly interrupted.

"The only thing that's keeping me from killing you is my job, but if you go into my head again my hand might just slip." He threatened as he pulled his sword away sheathing it as quickly as he had brought it out; without saying another word to anyone he left the hotel room and as he was leaving Terryal vaguely noticed that he wasn't wearing a shirt either.

The rest of the morning was quiet and uneventful, each person took their turn in the shower after Botan left and spent a few minutes with Terryal patching up the small cut Hiei had put on her left cheek. Among the party it was Terryal who had stayed in the longest being thoroughly impressed by the contraption, there were so many interesting things in the human world. The coffee maker, the shower, the light bulbs, all simple things but all were so different from what she was used to, the amazing amount convenience humans had in their everyday life was beginning to make her jealous of the demons who had lived a more technologically advanced lifestyle then she.

Botan had scheduled the flight back to be for that afternoon so there wasn't much time left. Everyone spent their time packing, even Hiei had returned at some point to clean up and put together his things. All were packing hurriedly except for Terryal who clearly had nothing to take with her on the journey except the odd outfit that she had insisted on wearing back despite the protests of the young reaper.

It wasn't all that odd for the country they were in but it would certainly get a few stares back in Japan. It looked much like an Indian style sari; the top was short sleeved with a scooped neck and stopped a few inches below the breasts leaving her tattooed stomach bare. Then there was the elegant silk wrap that started at the front and then curled around the back of her waist only to have the end be carelessly tossed over her left shoulder in a look that showed a sort of haphazard sense of elegance. The wrap ended a little above her knees but the legs remained covered by soft baggy pants that tied off in neat little bows just under the knees; the top and wrap were a lovely sunny day blue that was lined with gold trim (however the wrap had golden emblems embroidered in a lovely pattern along the fabric) and stitching that was the blue of the dark night sky, the pants however, were the color of the darkest of nights leaving the tie at the bottom and the unseen sash at the waistband to have the same gold color as the many patterns on the garb.

It was about two thirty in the afternoon when the team boarded their flight back, they were on full alert now that they had their target but so far their lives seemed to be running quiet and smoothly. However Terryal didn't think anything was going smoothly at all, she was thoroughly confused by the airport and the etiquette that you had to know while there, not to mention Botan seemed to insist on trying to make friends with her. Though she appreciated the effort she couldn't really feel attachment to these people, none of them were family, none of them came from her home; she felt as though there were two different types of people in her new group: them and her. It was a very unsettling feeling that she couldn't quite shake, her people had taught her that this was the way it always was, her people against The Others so she felt obligated to feel the same. She pondered her complex feelings in the back right seat of first class; perfectly mirroring Hiei's chosen spot but while pondering her family she also wandered more about the giant metal contraption she was sitting in and how in the world it would be able to fly. It had no feathers and it was surly too heavy to ever leave the ground. Terryal was beginning to question the intelligence of the men she found herself with but after some time the ingenuity of the Ningenkai once again surprised the demon female when she felt the plane begin to lift into the air.

"Oh great skies!" she gasped practically pressing her face to the window to get a view of the slowly retreating ground. "Botan!" she called almost instinctively since the reaper seemed the most interested in the extra female.

Terryal perked her head up and craned her neck in a desperate attempt to look over all the empty seats to Botan but was just surprised to hear Botan actually shout a response.

"We're flying like a great bird! It's amazing is it not?" Terryal called back to the blue haired beauty.

Little did the psychic know, her reaction to this experience was causing shock and smiles to appear on Botan's face as well as all the boys save for one boy that found himself downright frustrated by her antics. Terryal remained oblivious to Hiei's expression for she was too immersed in the wonder of it all, as she continued to stare out the window she couldn't help but wish her brother Svein could be with her to see this. He was the relative she was closest to but as Fate had predicted he left the village to explore the world beyond and she hadn't heard from him since he had left.

Once the plane stabilized and the seatbelt light went off Botan wondered to the back to sit with Terryal who was still staring in a childish wonder out the window. Botan was glad that Terryal seemed to have lifted her spirits; it was almost as though the demon was still a child.

"You're going to love Japan," Botan said, looking over her shoulder out the window as well. Terryal jumped a little and turned to look at Botan for a moment before moving her eyes back to the blue sky floating just outside the window.

"Once we get you settled I can take you out shopping for the necessary things to blend in since you might be here for a while and Koenma is working on something that will help you hide your tattoos without using so much of your demon energy." Botan commented.

"Can I not just remain indoors? I do not wish to hide my Fate; they are the markings of a noble heritage." She pleaded.

"I understand but it won't be permanent, you'd be able to put it on and take it off whenever you please and it's a must if you're going to stay here. Leaving you in an empty home will be too dangerous; you're more likely to get attacked that way so the easiest thing to do would be to let you travel with the boys." Explained the reaper, her voice was kind and understanding.

Terryal nodded while letting out a light sigh, she really didn't want to hide her markings but her family had established a very strong go with the flow sort of mentality because they had all felt that arguing with where their life was taking them was pointless. Though Terryal was beginning to regret her beliefs however she figured it might be for the best to just except the help she was getting from these people and hope that wherever this path took her it would end in something pleasant.

Terryal, being in a much more cheery mood after witnessing the magic of flight was actually convinced to leave her seat and join Kuwabara, Yusuke and Botan in a game of cards. Teaching her the rules was easy but establishing that she wasn't allowed to peak into the minds of the other three was a bit more difficult but once she understood she had a surprisingly good time. No one tried to shower pity on her, no one tried to pry into who she was or what she was, and the only things that were shared between them were friendly jokes, laugher and an overall joy for life. Kurama joined in on the fun as well even if only for a few games, his laughter and kindness was slowly growing on Terryal as was everyone else's. However despite her slowly lowering defenses she was still afraid to touch the boys physically, she was actually surprised that their laughter and smiles didn't remind her of the day she had first met these boys, which is what she feared most. Much to Terryal's relief, that wasn't a problem, the boys seemed to be completely different while laughing in this setting and seeing this gave her hope for the future.

It was early in the morning when they finally arrived in back in Japan; on the plane the three boys that had residence in the country discussed who would take Terryal into their home. After much debating it seemed best for Kuwabara to take her in since his sister knew of his double life unlike Yusuke and Kurama's mothers.

Much to Yusuke's dismay it was early Monday morning when they had gotten off the plane, which meant that school would start in a few hours. He had slept on the plane enough that it really shouldn't have been much of a problem but the jet lag made it awful enough for him to complain about it. He would just skip like he did in middle school but after much begging from a certain brunette haired girl and some last minute effort on his part he had made it into High School and Keiko was doing her damned best to make sure he stuck with it. She made the point to stop by his house every morning to make sure that he was up and with the intention of going to class. Remembering that Botan had said she would have to accompany the boys, Terryal began to wonder what she would do when Kuwabara left the house to go to school.