Choices
L.A.: Hello everyone! I hope you are doing well.
Amu: (is glaring at L.A.)
L.A.: Please excuse Amu. She is upset that I'll be in Australia for the month of January for my Aboriginal studies course.
Amu: Yeah, and you'll have no internet access and you're leaving me! (sulks in corner)
L.A.: That is true. I'm not going to have internet access so I won't be able to update my stories for the month of January. (sighs) Anywho, I made this chapter especially long so that hopefully you'll forgive me.
Out-Of-Control-Authoress: Thanks for the review! I guess now you can scold Haku. Though you might not want to at the end of the chapter…
Lokelani87: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you think my poem is cool. I was rather proud of it.
Valinor's Twilight: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked it!
Yume Ninja: Thanks for the reviews! I'm glad you are enjoying my fic.!
Angel of Randomosity: Thanks for the review! I'm glad that I haven't ceased to amaze you. In regards to Haku's invention, you will find out this chapter. And in regards to Carl's employer, you find out later…
Spidey: Ha, ha, thanks for the extra reviews! W.T. should be proud that you waited.
Firefairy2917: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you loved it. Yeah! You got your friend to love it as well! Thanks so much!
Dreamz15: Thanks for the review! You'll find out Carl's employer in a few chapters.
UpperClassK9: Thanks for the review! Yeah, I wrote the poem. I was rather proud of it so I'm glad you like it.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. I only own the strange imaginings of my mind.
As she stopped at the top of a hill, Tori finally allowed herself to take a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down. Her problems with Kurama and Carl were sure to make her blood pressure surge sky high.
Stretching her arms, she tried to get her mind off her problems.
"Hey Tori," a voice said causing her to jump.
Glancing back, she saw Alexis standing behind her smiling.
"Um hey," Tori said, frowning, "How did you get here?"
"I came with Keiko," Alexis said. "They said you had wandered off so I came to look for you."
"Oh, okay," She said as she shifted back and forth.
"Are you okay?" Alexis asked.
"I'm fine," Tori said with a hint of irritation. "Why does everyone keep asking me that?"
"Well, you do seem distracted."
The two stood in silence for a moment.
"Hey, I've got an idea," Alexis said with a grin. "How about we go for a walk? We could both use the exercise and it could help clear your head."
Tori nodded. "You know, that idea doesn't sound have bad."
Still smiling, Alexis and Tori started to walk.
Sira was beyond mad. She was furious. Patience had never been one of her virtues and after searching for Haku for over an hour she was not only about to kill whoever came up with that clichéd phrase but also beat up the next person who happened to walk near her.
A squeaky sound interrupted her thoughts. Frowning, she turned in the direction of the sound. "Was that a rubber ducky?"
Curious, she followed the sound to a clearing. As she drew closer, she felt her foot catch on something. She let out a yelp as an umbrella flew open near her. The umbrella hit a switch on a container which immediately started to blow a balloon up.
"What the hell?" Sira said as she watched the balloon in confusion. The balloon started to push on a long wooden pole thus forcing it to tip. A bowling ball was released. It rolled down the pole and into a bucket. The added weight caused the bucket to plummet to the ground.
She was so distracted by it that she failed to notice the net that was being pulled up around her until it was too late.
With a loud yelp, she was pulled up into the net and left dangling in the air.
"You have got to be kidding me!" Sira said as she tried to desperately get out of the net. "Why the hell does this stuff keep happening to me?"
A bark caused her to look down. Standing underneath her was Haku. He was panting as he happily wagged his tail.
"Did you do this?" Sira asked.
Haku cocked his head as he stared at her confused.
Sira's eyes narrowed. "Oh, don't give me that. I know you can understand English." She struggled in the net again. "Just get me out of this damn thing!"
Haku let out a bark as he scampered away.
"What the…" She trailed off. Clinching her fists she yelled. "You're a dead dog. You hear me Haku. You are a dead dog!"
Tori frowned as she took stock of where they were. They were at the edge of Genkai's property where a forest loomed before them. "Um, Alexis?" Tori said. "Maybe we should head back." She turned to walk away. "This place gives me the creeps." She paused and looked back when she noticed Alexis wasn't following her. "Alexis?"
"Why should we leave?" Alexis asked as a sinister grin appeared on her face.
"Yesss," a familiar voice hissed behind Tori. "The party isss jussst getting ssstarted."
Whirling around, she came face to face with Viper. He grinned as he crossed his arms.
"You!" Tori said as she took several steps back.
"Yesss, me," Viper said. "And I sssee you've met my little ssspy."
She looked at Alexis in surprise. "What?"
"Of course," Viper added as he casually strolled over to Alexis and draped his arm over her. "She needed to be brainwashed. You know, she is a total bitch."
"Yeah, I know," Tori said as she quickly glanced behind her.
"No use running," Viper said. "I'd catch you in a heartbeat." He grinned as he extended his hand. "You might as well come with me since no one knows you're here."
"That's what you think," a voice said as the rose whip appeared from the nearby bushes and lashed at Viper's hand. Viper immediately withdrew his hand as he cursed.
Kurama materialized between Tori and Viper. "Of course you had to pick the most remote spot to get in trouble," Kurama snapped at her.
"Geez, no hello?" Tori asked. "No, I'm glad you're not dead?"
He was about to answer when Viper spoke up. "Alright, pretty boy. You want to danssse. Let'sss danssse."
The two immediately began to fight. As she watched them fight, Tori was surprised to see how angry Kurama was. His attacks were still elegant but they held a more dangerous, stronger, quality than usual. It was as if he was striking to kill instead of maim. She was startled when she felt her arm pulled roughly behind her back.
"Did you forget about little old me?" Alexis hissed in her ear.
"You don't want to do this," Tori said as she winced. "We can help you."
Alexis laughed. "Help me?" Her pupil's became slits as her eyes turned a golden color. "Viper is going to give me amazing power. Power that can help me return to my world. All I have to do, is bring Sira and you to him."
"You know what, Alexis," Tori said as she gritted her teeth. "Sira was right, you really are a bitch." With one swift movement, she grabbed a chunk of Alexis' hair and yanked it out.
Alexis let out a howl as she let Tori go. Smiling smugly, Tori stumbled backwards as she let the hair fall out of her hand.
With another howl, Alexis lunged at her causing both girls to fall to the ground. Alexis pinned Tori to the ground as she tried to claw at her face.
Tori was able to get a leg free and kneed Alexis in the groin.
Alexis groaned but didn't stop her attacks.
Well, that would have worked on a boy, Tori thought as she was roughly dragged to her feet and forced into a headlock.
"Stop squirming," Alexis said as she tightened her hold on Tori to the point that she felt she couldn't breathe.
"I suggest you let her go before I chop your head off," Kurama said as he glared at Alexis. His rose whip was poised for attack.
Tori wondered briefly what had become of Viper. When she glanced to the right, she saw a carnivorous plant happily chewing at the remains of Viper.
She immediately turned away, already feeling her stomach churn.
Alexis and Kurama stared at each other for a heated moment before she let Tori go and disappeared into the woods.
As Tori gasped for breath, Kurama allowed his rose whip to revert back to its original form.
"Thanks for the help," Tori grinned sheepishly at his calculating stare. "Uh, look I know I was stupid for wandering off so you don't have to tell me. Trust me, I'm already not going to hear the end of it from Sira."
With three steps, Kurama was in front of her, pulling her into his arms. "Don't ever, ever do that again," He said as he rested his chin on her head.
Although Tori was surprised by Kurama's sudden mood swing, she couldn't say she wasn't enjoying it. Her nostrils were filled with the sweet smell of roses. Ordinarily, if she knew a guy who smelled of roses she would be slightly weirded out but for some reason the smell fit Kurama. He was gentle like a rose's petals but as dangerous as a rose's thorn.
Tori grinned against his shirt. "I guess Sira's danger prone problem is starting to rub off on me."
She was secretly delighted when she felt him chuckle.
After a few moments, they pulled away. Kurama, however, still kept his hands on her shoulders as he studied her.
"What?" Tori asked curiously.
"Nothing," Kurama said. "I just never noticed how green your eyes were."
Immediately, Tori turned three different shades of red. "Uh," she said as she laughed awkwardly. "Well, they've always been green. I mean, I'm not saying that you can't observe. I'm just saying that they don't change colors. You know, like people with hazel eyes. Sometimes I get confused with people with hazel eyes..." She trailed off as she mentally kicked herself for brainless rambling.
When she risked a glance up at Kurama, she saw that a strange look had fallen over his face. Before she realized what was happening, he leaned in and kissed her.
Sira sighed as she shifted to a more comfortable position. "Okay, I've been stuck in a net for half an hour that was invented by a wolf puppy." She moaned. "Why am I so pathetic?"
The sound of someone clearing their throat caused her to look down. Hiei and Haku were standing underneath her.
She groaned. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me. You brought him! Out of all the people there, you decided to bring him?"
Instead of being angry with her comment, Hiei started to laugh.
Both Sira and Haku were surprised by his behavior. In fact, Haku took a couple steps away from him as a precaution.
"Okay, you're kind of creeping me out with the whole laughing bit," Sira said.
Hiei calmed down for a second as he said. "Only you would be stupid enough to fall in this piece of crap of a trap."
Sira glared at him as she crossed her arms. "Hardy, har, har. Just get me down from here."
Still smirking, Hiei cut the rope. With a yelp, Sira fell to the ground.
A huge gust of wind came out of nowhere and in the blink of an eye, Sira disappeared.
There was a whine, and as Hiei turned around he saw that Haku had disappeared too.
"What the…" He trailed off as a flash of light appeared before him. After it had died down, Hiei saw Haku and Sira trapped in separate cages on opposite sides of the clearing. Hovering above each cage was a five ton block of stone.
Sira let out a groan as she slapped her hand against her forehead. "Not again. What is this? Pick on Sira day?"
A chilling laughter caused all three to look to the right. A woman walked towards them. She had blue tinted skin with long blue hair that fell to her ankles. She wore scantily clad blue clothes and her eyes were bright red.
"Who are you?" Sira asked as she glared at her.
The woman grinned revealing her fangs. "The name's Etheria. I happen to be one of the ones sent to collect you two human girls."
As Hiei drew his sword, Etheria laughed. "You might as well put that away. Unlike my cohorts, I don't like to fight in the general boring way." She floated in the air and crossed her left leg over her right as if she were sitting in a chair. "My way is more entertaining."
Hiei made to lunge for her. "Na-ah-ah," She said as she wagged her finger. "You shouldn't act rashly until you hear what I have to say. After all," she motioned her hand towards Sira and Haky. "I do have the advantage."
Reluctantly, Hiei put his sword away, however, he continued to eye her warily.
"So," Etheria continued cheerfully. "As I said, I do not prefer to play physically with my toys. I'd rather play with their minds. As you see before you, I have an ingenious trap. Hovering over each of my captors is a five ton stone which on impact, will smash your two little friends as flat as pancakes. They will fall so fast that even your speed won't let you get there in time." She grinned. "However, I am in a generous mood at the moment and so, I have decided to give you enough time to save one of your friends." She laughed. "The choice is yours, demon. Save the girl or a piece of your soul."
"What!" Sira said enraged. "That is unfair. I swear, I am going to rip you to shreds."
Etheria ignored her as she smirked at Hiei. "Your time starts." She snapped her fingers. "Now."
With a snap of her fingers, the stones started to fall.
"Damn," Hiei muttered as he sprinted towards them.
Sira quickly curled up in a ball as she closed her eyes. She knew Hiei wasn't going to come for her. After all, why would he choose her when his spirit beast was on the line? This is going to hurt, she thought as she waited for the impact.
She was surprised when moments later, she was lifted into the air. She looked up and saw Hiei pulling her away from her trap. "But that means…" she looked back to down to see Haku staring up at them. He let out a whine as he frantically gnawed and dug at his cage. The stone was merely a few feet from him.
She couldn't let this happen. Although Haku was Hiei's spirit beast, he had become a spirit beast for her as well.
"No!" She shouted as her outstretched hand reached towards Haku's direction. And as if by some miracle, time froze. Hiei, Etheria, Haku, the stones, everything froze in time around Sira.
"What in the world?" Sira murmured. She quickly shook herself out of her stupor. She wasn't about to lose the opportunity.
She raced quickly to Haku's cage. To her left, she saw a key lying a few feet away. She quickly unlocked the cage, grabbed Haku, and bolted away from the cage.
A second later, time unfroze as the stones smashed into the now empty cages. Hiei was surprised to see Haku cradled in Sira's arms.
"Hmm," Etheria said as she cocked her head. "That was an interesting development."
"What the hell are you doing here?" Socrates said as he materialized beside Etheria.
"I heard of yours and Viper's little scheme with the other girl and thought I would take part in the festivities." Seeing Socrate's angry expression, she added. "I take it things didn't go as planned?"
"Come on," he growled. "We need to make our report."
A moment later, both vanished.
Hiei turned his attention back to Sira who was busy laughing as Haku licked her face. "How did you get there in time?"
Sira frowned as she looked at him. "I think a time inconsistency must have kicked in. It's strange but it didn't act like it normally did." Her frown turned into a mischievous grin as she walked up to him. "So, why did you choose me?"
"Hn," Hiei said as he turned to walk away.
"Oh come on," she said as she caught up with him. "It's just a simple question."
"I suggest you be quiet if you don't want me to change my mind."
Sira became silent however the grin remained on her face.
Hiei's eye twitched. "Stop looking so damned pleased about yourself."
Haku snuggled in her arms as his eyelids fluttered closed. Obviously, it had been a tough day for him. Sira sighed as she thought back to what Etheria and Socrates had been talking about. I hope you're okay, Tori.
L.A.: (winces) Okay, so it's kind of a cliffhanger even though I didn't attend to do that.
Amu: Eh, you can't help it. You are addicted to it.
L.A.: So, because I'm bored I've decided to do a poll.
Amu: On the wonderful me!
L.A.: So, it seems some people don't really know who Amu is.
Amu: (grins mysteriously)
L.A.: So, I put a poll on my profile where you tell me who she is.
Amu: And don't cheat.
L.A.: So, if you're bored check it out.
Amu: Alright, so you know what to do. READ and REVIEW!
