The friends had been out there for five of the seven-day camping trip. Yusuke was getting the hang of being a demon a bit more, and Keiko was making good progress in her acceptance of the changes that Yusuke had undergone. She spent most of her time with Kagome, watching as Shippo, Kurama and Hiei trained with Yusuke and Puu. Sometimes it was hard for her, and she yelled a lot between quailing and trying not to faint, but she was getting better at being able to handle watching Yusuke fight, even if she still didn't like that he felt the need to.
"He can't be a normal person Keiko," Kagome said. "He's got the wrong temperament to be completely content following someone else's plan for his life, and with his demon heritage he really doesn't have to."
"So me wishing he'd stop skipping school and shape up -" Keiko said.
"Is detrimental to Yusuke as he is. The lessons Yusuke needs for his life aren't the ones he's going to get in a classroom from teachers who hate him. The lessons he received from Master Genkai, and now from this experience, are the lessons that matter to who he is and who he wants to be," Kagome said gently. "He loves you, but that doesn't mean he's going to change who he is. If you love him too, then he shouldn't have to. You don't have to nag at him to do better, because he pushes himself to do better on his own. Just because school isn't what he wants to do better at, you can't blame him for it. I'd bet good money that the only thing keeping him from feeling in a funk right now, after that fight with Sensui, is that these guys are giving him a challenge."
They'd been having this conversation on and off since the morning after Kagome's story about InuYasha. Keiko was worried that she would become too much like Kikyo, a fear Kagome had quickly put to rest, but that they were still working through as far as the details went.
"I guess, apart from anything else, he and Puu couldn't just live in an apartment in the city," Keiko said, trying to laugh.
"I think that Puu's probably going to get bigger as well, as Yusuke gets more powerful," Kagome answered, then fell quiet for a while as they just watched the fighting continue. "He doesn't just love you, you know," Kagome said suddenly.
"Huh?"
"He needs you, and he needs to know that you love him as he is. If he forgets that, or you give him reason to doubt it, then he'll get hurt, in more ways than one," Kagome said. "He's your idiot Keiko," she added with a chuckle. "You've got to take care of him, even when he runs off to do something dangerous, you've got to trust that he'll come back to you, just like he has before. Can you do that?"
Keiko was silent for a while, thinking about that. "I don't know," she said at last. "I'd have to give him a time limit, or just risk my own heart breaking."
Kagome frowned slightly. "Keiko, he's never going to leave you permanently. He'll always come back unless you specifically tell him not to, and even then I think he still would. Heck, he'd probably hang around until you got reincarnated just so he could come back to you," Kagome said. "Shippo waited five hundred years to see me, and he showed up at the shrine the exact day I said it would be when I left him behind that last time in the past. Your demon loves you, and he's enough like InuYasha that I am completely confident that he'd do whatever it takes to get back to you, even if things keep demanding his immediate attention, you are his long-term goal."
Keiko smiled and sighed. "You really think so?"
"Yep."
"Excuse us, but we are here for Yusuke Urameshi," a voice said from three feet behind them, where Kagome's barrier kept out uninvited guests with demonic energies.
From their left, also at the border of the barrier, another voice came. "I bear a spirit of words for Hiei of the Jagan Eye from Lord Mukuro."
"I bear a spirit of words for the Yoko, Kurama, from King Yomi," stated a voice to the right.
"Well, isn't that nice," Kagome said drolly. "They're all busy right now. You can leave your word-balls in the cave, we'll get to them, and as for you," Kagome said, turning to see who was there for Yusuke, "Baldy," she added, "you can just sit down and shut up for a while, or else go catch us a couple of rabbits or fish for dinner."
"And what reason do we have to listen to you?" the bald one demanded.
Kagome narrowed her eyes and flared her energy, causing them all to flinch back in surprise, and maybe even a little fear of the energy that could turn them to dust. "That answer your question?"
The three bald heads nodded and sat, while the other messengers left their glassy orbs behind and made a run for it. Such powers may not have been felt for a few hundred years, but there was still no mistaking the power of a miko.
"Who are they?" Keiko asked quietly, glancing over her should at them. "What do they want?"
"My guess is that they've come to take Yusuke to Demon World, and that the other two bore similar invitations," Kagome answered, an idea that she had been slowly easing Keiko into. She knew that this little boot-camp she was giving him was only going to keep him from crying for the moon for so long. She glanced back at the fight and stood. "And Kurama wins in five, four, three, two -" she counted off.
Plants erupted in the clearing suddenly, binding Yusuke completely. Kurama, Hiei and Shippo were all fighting against Yusuke, but they didn't do it as a team. They simply took any opportunity they saw to attack, using each other and all going for the win for themselves.
"You've got visitors boys," Kagome called out to them.
"We noticed," Shippo answered. "Their breath stinks," he added, wrinkling his nose distastefully.
Training broke off and Yusuke was released from his green prison, the two full demons and two part-humans walking over to the girls and the visitors. Kagome checked the Tetsusaiga as Yusuke reached them quickly, handed it back, and then motioned for him to go ahead first, as these demons were there to see him, after all.
"If we didn't have guests, I would have left you there to try and get yourself out while they ganged up on each other," Kagome told the Mazoku quietly. "No telling when King Enma is going to send more goons after you, after all. These ones however, are demons."
"You're really looking out for me, aren't you?" Yusuke asked sarcastically before tying the scabbard to his belt again and turning to face their visitors. "So, you wanna explain why you're interrupting our camping trip, and how the hell you found us out in the middle of nowhere?"
"We followed your demon energy. We have come on a mandate from Demon World, to tell you your destiny and take you to the place where you actually belong. Not through jokes, nor flight, nor fists will you escape your call," one of the three bald demons said.
"I kinda figured it was something like that," Yusuke growled. "So cut to the chase, will ya?"
"Kagome?" Keiko whispered nervously.
"Ignore the fatalist," she murmured back. "A lot of the more powerful demons are like that, but they're also quite wrong. It's all up to the decision an individual makes."
"There is someone in Demon World who has requested to have an audience with you Yusuke. Of course, I'm talking of your ancestor."
"You mean he sent you here to escort me to Demon World, is that more like it?"
"Yes it is."
"I'd love to get my fingers around his throat. So the old bastard is still alive, huh?"
Keiko was nearly ready to cry at how eager Yusuke seemed to be to leave, but Kagome wrapped an arm around her and whispered reassurances.
"What was I just telling you?" she said softly. "He needs to go to Demon World, but however long it takes, he will come back to you. You can't let yourself forget that."
"Of course he is," the demon answered Yusuke.
"What'd I tell ya?" Kagome chuckled quietly, getting a small smile from Keiko.
"He still got some power left in him?" Yusuke demanded.
"Very much."
"Then I'm tempted to go right now and follow up on my fingers around his throat idea," Yusuke said, though he sat down at last, and beside Keiko, rather than simply across from the demons.
"We cannot do that right now, we must abide strictly by the rules of our territory, just as those of the other two territories."
"You mean the ones who sent those spirit of word things to Hiei and Kurama?" Yusuke asked, gesturing vaguely to the two orbs that were still resting just inside the small cave.
"Yomi didn't have that much power when I knew him," Kurama said, a deep scowl on his face. He did not like to be reminded of that demon.
"Oh joy, power struggles and politics. So who is my ancestor, anyway? And for that matter, you haven't introduced yourselves yet," Yusuke said, more calm now as he sat beside Keiko.
"These two are Seitei and Tou-ou, both are A class demons. I am Haukushin, an S class demon. Your ancestor is Raizen."
"I thought the tunnel and the barrier had been sealed up, though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised when the story changes any more," Yusuke said. "So I'd ask how A and S class demons get through the Kekai barrier, and how it is that such supposedly powerful demons feel like they've got as much power as a bowl of pea-soup, but I'm gonna take a guess and say the two are related, and leave it alone."
Haukushin smirked slightly.
"Getting back to the political power-play," Kagome said clearly. "Give us the scoop, and be succinct pal or I'll purify you."
Haukushin gulped in nervousness. It had been a long time since humans with such an ability had existed, and he was faced with one now. He found it unnerving, even as powerful as he was, and decided to speak clearly.
"The three demons fought one another, and it should have, would have, ended quickly if they weren't the rulers of all of Demon World. The main falling out was over food. All three demons required a staple diet of humans," Haukushin said.
"That, I admit, Yomi did do when I knew him. It was part of the reason I decided to disassociate myself with him back then," Kurama said, curling his nose with disgust.
"Regardless of that, it was Raizen who said one day that they should stop eating humans. Mukuro immediately objected, saying he couldn't stand the taste of anything else, though he was already trying to curb his own appetite – as though to eat at all was distasteful. It was Yomi who said they should eat as many was they wanted, that humans multiplied like they fought extinction anyway. The problem is that the three of them are of approximately equal strength, and should two of them face off and one be killed, the third would be waiting in the wings for the opportune moment. They've been locked in a stand off for over four hundred years," Haukushin explained.
"Four hundred years?" Yusuke said. "How have they not gone crazy?"
"Because these demons have the ability to ground their emotions in patience and endurance," answered Seitei.
"The balance of power is shifting though, the dissenting demon, our king, your ancestor Toushin Raizen, is now on the brink of death," Haukushin said. "His illness is caused by malnutrition. He hasn't eaten anything for nearly a thousand years."
"Raizen went off his feed, Mukuro was sick of the taste, and Yomi was content to eat as much as he liked huh?" Kagome asked, then smirked. "One starving to death, one on a diet, one eating regularly, and they're all still pretty equal? Makes me wonder what would happen if someone handed Raizen a few dozen condemned criminals to eat and he got his strength back up. I think this Yomi guy might just piss his pants."
Kurama, Hiei, Shippo and Yusuke all chuckled.
"Kagome, how can you say that?" Keiko asked, wide eyed.
"I'm not a vegetarian, but I know how they look at me when I'm eating a burger. Hang on!" Kagome said, snapping her fingers. "You said that they ate humans, but you claim Mukuro couldn't stand the taste of anything else, so they should be able to eat other stuff, right?"
Haukushin and the others blinked in surprise. "Like what?" they asked.
"Right, so you three eat humans too," Kagome said, narrowing her eyes. "Rabbit, for example, makes a really good meal. Beef, pork, chicken, turkey, eggs, noodles, rice! There's so many different things a person can eat."
"He won't eat anything, no matter who brings him food," Seitei said.
"We don't know why he stopped eating humans, knowing it would risk his life. As it is his decision, however, we shall obey his order to the letter and to the end," Haukushin said.
"Great," Yusuke drawled. "So what do you want me to do about it again?"
"If he dies, we will fight for him, but in our current conditions we are not strong enough. The king is aware that you have been to Demon World once," Haukushin stated.
"I remember, and thank you for opening an old wound," Yusuke snapped.
"The way I understand it is that he recognised you were not strong enough at the time, but foresaw that you would be a saviour to us in the future," Haukushin explained.
"I don't like it," Yusuke answered. "You sound desperate, like your clutching at straws and anything will do."
"In part, that is true. I confess that I don't even come close to the power of our king, or the other two, and I do not believe that you do either, but I'm sure you could tell you don't even have the power to defeat me."
"That's very cocky."
"But that is why we want you to come and train in Demon World."
"I'll think about it," Yusuke answered, scowling. "I sure as hell don't want to have to eat people-burgers if I go with you for one thing. For another, I'm not the only one who says if I'm good to go."
Haukushin narrowed his eyes. "What could possibly hold you back?"
"See now that's a funny thing. I've got school to skip out on, good friends to pick fights with, and then of course I'd have to talk it over with Keiko," he answered.
The girl smiled brightly, almost crying with joy that she meant so much to him that he wouldn't go without talking to her first. Happily, she covered his hand with hers and squeezed a little.
Yusuke smiled back at her, turning his hand to lace their fingers together.
"Besides, if I decide to go to Demon World, I'll get there on my own," Yusuke said, turning back to Haukushin. "So if you don't mind, I can smell your putrid breath from here."
"That's your cue to leave, if you didn't catch it," Shippo added with a slightly cruel smile.
"We'll be back in a week for your decision," Haukushin said, standing. The other two with him also stood, and they disappeared.
"So, shall we hear what the other two have to say?" Kagome said, indicating the glowing orbs that waited for Kurama and Hiei.
Both demons nodded and picked them up. Kurama threw his against the base of the cave wall first.
"It's been a long time Kurama. It's good to see you, though I can't really see you as this is just a spirit of words. I do hope to meet you again in person soon."
"Idiot," Shippo quipped.
"Back when you knew me, neither of us were very powerful, but that's changed. I've grown stronger, much stronger. Strong enough to rival Raizen and Mukuro for control of Demon World. You remember those names don't you? They were already in power when you left. But several hundred years ago, I joined their ranks."
"Cocky," Kagome added with a sneer.
"And now? I prepare for my next ascension. I plan to dethrone the two of them, and then we'll unify the whole of Demon World as one nation under me, but if I am to succeed in this, I will require your assistance Kurama, and so my friend I plead with you to join my crusade. If you believe in the unification, then I beg you to return to us. Oh, and one more thing, I almost forgot to tell you, I apprehended the one who stole the light from me. I think you'll be amused, as was I, when you see who it was. Another incentive to come back to Demon World I guess."
"I think he likes the sound of his own voice too much," Shippo said when the image of Yomi faded.
"I agree," Hiei said. "How did you get tangled up with such an arrogant, deficient creature?"
"For a while he was in my gang of thieves. He was impulsive though, and a danger to every mission we went on. I hired another demon to kill him when I overheard him planning to go on a raid without me, trying to prove his own greatness. I had thought he was dead," Kurama answered with a growl, angry that he had allowed Yomi to slip away and survive all this time.
Kagome shifted closer to him, snuggling closer to provide him comfort.
"You could always just not go," she said. "That would send the message that you don't care about his unification, or about the demon you sent."
Kurama sighed and wrapped his arms around Kagome. "It sounds so tempting," he admitted. "I just don't know if I can get away with it. If we can get away with it. A situation like this, it would benefit us to have someone watching every demon lord very closely."
"Hn, I agree," Hiei said. "Let's see what Lord Mukuro has to say, if it's anything interesting."
"Greetings Hiei. I am Mukuro. I would have been there in person, but I seldom show my face in public. Not out of fear, but out of the annoyance of being mobbed by my adoring fans."
"Lord Mukuro's a Lady," Kagome declared then. "That's a female voice."
"Your recent appearance here has come to my attention, and I had to wonder; why aren't you working for me? Think of it, you could be my right hand man."
"I do believe Kagome's right," Kurama said, his eyebrows shooting up in shock. "That's the tone of a woman trying to be seductive."
"I'll even let you in on a little secret, for your ears only."
"Bet it's that Raizen's about to kick the bucket," Yusuke said.
"Raizen's on the brink of death, and when he has breathed his very last breath, I will strike Yomi with full force."
"Half right," Yusuke muttered.
"He pushes for a peaceful, unified Demon World. I'm sure even the thought of such a desecration of our home land disgusts you. If I am correct in my assumption, you should join me."
"Mukuro is as talkative and self-important as Yomi," Hiei observed before turning from the faded image of Mukuro to look at Kagome. "A woman?"
"Definitely, which means: tread much more carefully. Women can be very tricky about getting what they want," Kagome said. "Human women are bad enough with only a few decades to perfect that skill. The idea of a demon female with centuries of experience in toying with people worries me."
"Mukuro has always been a dangerous and tyrannical ruler," Kurama said. "You have no idea of the damage she could do. Demon World thrown into chaos."
"Then I suppose this is going to be interesting," Hiei said with a smirk, clearly pleased.
"Puu!"
The large bird's interjection broke the tension, and made everybody laugh and relax a little bit.
"So," Kagome said with a smile. "Who wants to play a game of Demon Lord Gamble?"
Shippo chuckled. "That depends on the rules," he said.
"I've never played before," Kurama said with a smile, "though I have heard it's quite thrilling."
"Hn. I may make an exception to my opinion of games if this is what it sounds like," Hiei added, smirking.
"Never heard of it," Yusuke admitted. "Sounds like fun though."
"Umm, what – what's -" Keiko tried to ask.
Kagome smiled and patted the girl's shoulder. "Basically, we're going to pull the trick of the century on these guys. Mukuro wants Hiei, Yomi wants Kurama, Raizen wants his descendant. Now, two of these lords want two of our friends for completely selfish reasons. The third lord probably wants to meet his son and teach him a thing or two about being a Mazoku – ya know, as well as so that the other two don't get a leg up on Demon World. You following so far?"
"Yeah. That much I get, it's after that I get confused," Keiko said.
"So Yusuke needs to go and see Raizen, for his own good apart from everything else," Kagome said gently.
Keiko looked to Yusuke so quickly at those words she almost gave herself whiplash.
"No guarantees that this sword is gonna keep me all there all the time," Yusuke told her, wrapping his arms around his childhood friend and favourite girl. "I don't ever want to do anything that could put you or anybody else in danger."
Keiko nodded. "I understand," she said. "Will you come back?"
"Unless you don't want me to."
"I don't even want you to leave, but I know you have to," Keiko said, burying her face in Yusuke's chest. "Just promise me you'll be back, that you won't be too long?"
"You know, you could always go with him," Shippo said casually. "Do high school by home study, then you wouldn't have to worry about attendance, and Puu could probably take you back and forth for exams, and bring your work to the shrine for the Higurashi's to post for you."
Keiko blinked and looked at Yusuke, who was smiling crookedly at the thought.
"I kinda like that idea," he said, his eyes fixed on Keiko. "You'd be around all the time to keep an eye on me, and I'd never forget why I'm there, cause my reason would be right there with me: keeping you safe."
"Demon World is going to be dangerous for you Keiko. You don't have any special powers or weapon skills. You're either going to have to become a very fast learner, or never leave Yusuke's sight," Kagome cautioned.
"I'd be a burden, and a worry, and I'd miss my parents and other friends," Keiko said, shaking her head. "I couldn't even handle all of the Dark Tournament, I don't think I'd handle Demon World any better. Just, don't disappear on me?"
"I'll find a way to make phone calls from Demon World," Yusuke promised, "and I probably won't be more than three years."
Keiko smiled. "I think I can live with that," she said, hugging him tightly.
"Now, about this game of Demon Lord Gamble," Hiei said, actually touched by how much those two cared about each other, rather than horrified or disgusted. "Yusuke's role is understood. What about the rest of us?"
Kagome smirked. "Hiei, how do you feel about going to visit Yomi?"
"What!"
"Or Shippo could go, if you don't want to. Actually, that might be better," Kagome mused, tapping her chin. "Hm, yes. The point is that Yomi and Mukuro don't get exactly what they want. Either Hiei goes to Yomi, and Shippo or Kurama to Mukuro, or Shippo goes to Yomi, and Kurama goes to Mukuro."
"I was thinking of using Mukuro to further my own interests," Hiei said, a quiet danger in his voice.
"Power?" Kurama asked.
Hiei nodded.
"Then how about this: Hiei goes with Yusuke and Puu to Raizen. You get him to eat a few burgers or something so that he isn't dying, he trains you up, you get stronger. Kurama goes to Mukuro saying that Hiei doesn't give a damn about being her right hand man, or Yomi. Shippo goes to visit Yomi and gets to tell him that Kurama really wasn't interested in his plans for unification, and could care less about who 'stole his light', but surely one fox is as good as another, so he came instead. How's this sounding for a good game?" Kagome suggested.
"I would feel much better knowing that someone was with Yusuke," Keiko said quietly. "Especially someone as smart and talented as Hiei."
The demons all shared smirks of varying sizes.
"Kagome, when did you get so sneaky?" Kurama asked, delighted.
"I hang around you, Shippo and Hiei a lot, a girl has got to learn something eventually," she answered. "Watching Souta play his video games isn't so bad of an idea-generator either."
"So what am I going to need to know about Yomi?" Shippo asked. "Of all of them, he seems the slimiest."
"He will probably want some way to make himself even stronger than he already is. There are some fighters from the Dark Tournament we could probably get in touch with, maybe have them train with Genkai and Kagome for a few months, present them to Yomi. That should get him to trust you and grant you a high position," Kurama said. "Yomi isn't as smart as he likes to think he is, though he is fairly manipulating, and seems to have developed some patience by now."
"So I give him strong fighters, and some insight, and he'll like me," Shippo said, rubbing his finger under his nose before he nodded. Transforming into Kurama's human form, rather than his own, Shippo said in Kurama's voice "I think I can handle that."
Kurama laughed first, and everyone followed him.
"Oh, do that when you meet him. Let him think for a while that you're actually me," Kurama begged once he'd calmed his laughter.
"Whatever you like Father," Shippo said, nodding his head.
"Woah, father?" Yusuke asked.
"Well, Kurama was like a father to me when I was little, after my real father had been killed and Kagome had taken me in. He taught me a lot of tricks and how to control my power. That, and he's dating my Kagome-Kaa-san," Shippo explained.
"I'm honoured Shippo," Kurama said, closing the subject.
Yusuke just shrugged. "Okay. So Shippo pulls the wool over Yomi's eyes. What will you do Kurama? Mukuro is expecting Hiei, it's gonna be a surprise to get a tall, suave, red head when she's expecting short, dark, and grumpy here," Yusuke said, jerking his thumb at Hiei.
"I confess that Mukuro worries me. When I was just a thief with Yomi, Mukuro was already powerful, and very secretive as well. Kagome seems to be the one full of ideas tonight though," Kurama said, looking down at his girlfriend happily.
"Tell her you got a message from Yomi, and from what he said you'd rather be with her or Raizen, but since Raizen is weakening, despite that you agree more with his views, it is illogical to ally yourself with someone who is dying. Your main interests are Human World now, but you want to be in Demon World to see that when the balance of power shifts, as it will when Raizen dies, it's not going to be a problem for your Human World interests," Kagome said.
"You're talking about Raizen dying pretty easily, considering you already said we were going to force feed him some normal food," Keiko said.
"Exactly. Yomi and Mukuro can be fooled into thinking Raizen dead, I'm sure. Imagine their surprise when they find out he isn't. I expect that they wouldn't like that very much. When Raizen is believed dead, Yusuke will pay a visit to Yomi," Kagome said, smiling. "Propose a tournament, every demon for themselves in a bid for complete control of demon world. Mukuro and Yomi may be powerful, but I'm willing to bet they'd make a real dent in each other's powers if they had to fight each other before the final round, and then we're back to what Haukashin said: one dies, the other is weakened, and the third is waiting in the wings to take them out."
"Kagome," Kurama said sternly. "Where's the jewel? I want to check that it's still pure with you thinking such devious, delicious thoughts."
Kagome laughed and pulled out the chain the gem was hanging from. Pure as ever, it was even glowing paler than usual, which surprised everyone.
"I can only guess that that's good," she said quietly.
~oOo~