InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ A World So Cold ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

Once night had fallen, Naraku left the house that would become his temporary home to further investigate the new world around him. He was surprised at the advanced technology that surrounded him, wondering how such a feeble race of beings could accomplish so much.

 

His thoughts were interrupted though when he noticed a group of men following him. His superb hearing picked up on their conversation, which seemed to center around the idea of cornering him. Disgusting ningen, even if he was in a woman' s form. Deciding to have a bit of fun, he turned around, winking at the men before turning down a dark alley.

 

As he thought, the males followed him, and once they had him cornered, he turned around. A deadly glint shined in his eyes as he gazed up at their grotesque faces. The men just chuckled, thinking the stare was supposed to be seductive, but their assumption was soon proved wrong as one of the men advanced on him.

 

Without a word, he walked up, sliding his slender hand around the human's neck. Before the man could do anything, his limp body fell to the ground, his neck broken.

 

“So who's next” he asked, taking delight in his feminine voice.

 

The men rushed towards him in rage, but within a matter of minutes all lay dead at his feet accept one. He had kept this one alive, seeing as he was the head of the group and could prove useful. The man fell to his knees, shaking in fright as he walked up to him.

 

“Do not worry my pet. You will not be joining them, at least not at the moment. I have use of you.”

 

He reached down to grasp the purple jewel that now hung from his neck. As much as he hated to separate the jewel once more, it was necessary if his plans were going to work. But his fingers had barely grazed the orb when it began to slowly sink into is body.

 

 

 

Kagome watched from inside Naraku's mind as he killed the men. She had become aware of her predicament sometime during the evening, and it had frightened her greatly. She soon realized that the one who had raped her was indeed Naraku, and felt a pain of guilt for even thinking that Inuyasha could have been the one to do such a thing.

 

She felt the tug at the jewel as he reached down for it, his intentions clear in his mind. But she would not have the jewel be divided once more, so calling forth as much of her own energy, she coaxed the jewel to come to her.

 

She felt Naraku's rage grow when it finally came to her. Although she was trapped in his mind, she still retained influence over the jewel if nothing else. She mourned over the thought of being trapped in Naraku's vile mind for the rest of his existence, but had resigned herself to her fate. As long as she continued to protect the jewel and kept it out of his hands, all was not lost for her. She knew that if he gained full control over the object that he would use it to take over her time, and she didn't know if there would be anyone powerful enough to stop him.

 

His angry growl resonated through his body, making her cringe. Deciding that now would be as good a time as any to reveal her presence, she made her intentions known.

 

 

`You will not divide the jewel once again.'

 

Naraku remained silent for a moment. Never had this happened before, the beings that he had absorbed always became a part of him and could only be separated when he willed it so.

 

`Bitch. What are you doing?' he asked, recognizing the voice as Kagome's.

 

`You made one mistake, Naraku. Although you absorbed my body, my soul is not like that of a youkai. It will remain separate until we are divided.'

 

He chuckled maliciously, breaking the man's neck in anger that knelt before him.

 

Kagome watched as he snapped the man's neck, feeling pity for him, but knew that death was a much better fate than being controlled by Naraku.

 

`And what of the jewel?' he asked as he left the alley.

 

`It will remain in my protection. You will not use it' she replied.

 

Her mind was bombarded with images of her rape and the murder of Inuyasha, but she steeled herself against them. Kagome knew what he was trying to do, and she would not be tricked so easily. Inside his mind, she sat in the darkness, the only light coming from the still tainted jewel.

 

Just because she was able to protect it, she couldn't seem to purify it. She assumed that it was due to the fact that she was inside of Naraku and that his youki surrounded her. But as long as it remained out of his reach, she would be satisfied.

 

She watched as he returned to her home, feeling a pang of remorse for the amount of danger her family was in, but knew that there wasn't anything she could do. She had tried to call her purifying powers into play, but they would not release her from her prison. She recognized her room as he entered it, taking a seat on her bed. She pushed her resolve even more, knowing she was in for a long night.

 

 

~~~~~*~~~~~

 

 

Kurama roused when a light tapping resonated through his bedroom. As if it were ritual, he got out of his bed, walked over to the window to unlock it. The window opened itself, and he watched as Hiei stepped inside, the wind rustling his cloak as he closed the window behind him.

 

Kurama walked back to his bed, lying back down.

 

“So what brings you to me Hiei?” he asked as he pulled the blanket up over himself.

 

“I need a place to rest. That is all” he replied indifferently as he removed his cloak.

 

Kurama watched as he walked over to a corner, taking a seat. Seeing this, he propped himself up onto one elbow, as his heart started to race with anxiety.

 

“Hiei, if you want you can always sleep up here with me. It would be more comfortable then sleeping up against the wall” he stated as he patted the spot next to him.

 

Hiei eyed him critically before giving him his reply. “I'm fine down here.”

 

Kurama nodded his head in acceptance as he lay back down. He turned his back to the Hiei, not wanting him to see the disappointment on his face. But it was probably for the best, he didn't know if he would be able to control himself if Hiei was actually lying next to him.

 

After a while, Kurama turned to his other side to peer at the now sleeping Jaganashi. He gazed lovingly at him, wishing that he could gather the courage to tell him. It had taken a while for the kitsune to realize his feelings for his friend. Now that he thought back to it, they had started to develop after their first meeting, when he took him in to care for him after their battle.

 

His feelings began to grow stronger as they survived their many battles as the spirit detectives, each time Hiei was in mortal danger causing the feelings to grow even fiercer. But there was one thing that kept the infamous Youko Kurama from telling him. Fear.

 

Youko Kurama had never been unsure of himself as a youkai, but this was different. He was unsure of what Hiei's reaction would be to such a declaration. Would he accept his love? Or would he scorn him for such weak human emotions. He knew that if the second were to happen, it would destroy their friendship, and that was one thing that kept him hoping.

 

He knew that he could have an ensemble of lovers if he wished. There were more than enough women and even men that threw themselves at him. But he had never taken a liking to any of them, so as far as his human body was concerned, he remained untouched. The only one that so far had gained his attention was now propped up in his bedroom, sleeping comfortably.

 

That was another thing that kept him going. Hiei was not one to give his trust easily, but he knew that he had earned it. The proof of it was right in front of him. Hiei was letting his guard down in his presence. He would do so for no other.

 

He turned his gaze to the ceiling, afraid to fall back to sleep for fear of having another dream. So he remained that way for the rest of the night, pondering on a love that might never be requited.

 

 

~~~~~*~~~~~

 

 

Kagome remained awake the entire night as Naraku kept the unrelenting flashbacks coming. But much to his Naraku's annoyance, she remained unmoved. As she sat in the darkness, surrounded by the purplish light of the Shikon, she reminisced about her days in the past, wondering what became of Sango, Miroku, and Shippo.

 

Surely they found Inuyasha's body, and she hoped that he received a proper burial. She closed her eyes as another pang of guilt swept through her. If she had only realized that it had been Naraku and not Inuyasha attacking her, she might have been able to prevent all that was happening.

 

The images finally ceased with the coming of dawn, and she watched with remorse as her mortal enemy mingled with her family. She only wished there was some way to warn them, but she had not found anyway how as of yet. She could only sit back and observe as her family was put in danger.

 

She was thankful when Naraku finally left the house, knowing that her loved ones were safe, at least for the time being. Her relief left her, however, when a familiar voice called out to her.

 

“Oh there you are Kagome, I have been trying to get a hold of you for some time now. I hope that you are feeling well.”

 

Naraku gazed at the human boy that had approached him.

 

`So I take this human is a friend of yours. I wonder what you would do if her were to die?' he taunted.

 

Kagome fought back her anger. `He is nothing to me. Trust me, he is not worth your time.'

 

`Oh, but I believe he is. I do have some anger to vent.'

 

Kagome chose to remain silent, knowing that if she protested him any more that it would only serve to fuel him even more. Though she still felt nothing more for Houjo than friendship, she did not wish him to die.

 

“So Kagome, would you like to have lunch with me. It's a bit early, but we could always go for a walk” he asked as he offered his arm to her.

 

Naraku just smiled sweetly, taking the boys arm as he led them to a park.

 

“Do you think we could go somewhere more secluded?” Naraku asked, chuckling to himself as a blush lit up the boy's face.

 

“I suppose we could” he replied.

 

After a few minutes, they had walked deeper into the park. All that surrounded them were trees, and after a while, Naraku stopped, pulling his arm from the boy's grasp.

 

`Do you think that this place would be a fitting grave for the boy Kagome?' he asked.

 

His anger elevated when she refused to answer him.

 

`If you give me the jewel, I may reconsider. I'd hate for you to see his expression when he thinks that you are killing him. And I promise it will be a slow death' he taunted.

 

But Kagome still chose to remain quiet as she gazed sadly at the young man who she had gained his attention. She knew that he would die regardless of what she did.

 

“Kagome, is something the matter” asked Houjo, concerned with the way she had just stopped.

 

“Nothing at all” Naraku replied as he closed the distance between them. As much as he despised touching the human, it would make his death more entertaining.

 

He wrapped his arms around the boy's neck, delighting in his sharp intake of breath.

 

`I do believe that this boy likes you, Kagome. This shall be interesting indeed.'

 

Naraku tried not to pull away in disgust as the boy wrapped his arms around his waist.

 

“Kagome” Houjo whispered as he squeezed her body to him.

 

“I want to have some fun” he whispered into his ear, trying his best to sound seductive.

 

Houjo pulled away from her, shock evident in his eyes. “Kagome?”

 

“But I don't think you will enjoy this too much” he replied as he slid a hand underneath his shirt.

 

Houjo's eyes widened even more when he plunged his hand into his chest. He tried to scream, but the only sound that would escape his mouth was a gurgle as blood began to seep out of his mouth.

 

“What's wrong? I though you wanted to give me your heart” Naraku taunted as he twisted his hand, delighting in the way the boys ribs cracked under his grasp.

 

 

Kagome closed her eyes at the scene, wishing to see no more. But it did not shield her from the horrifying sounds that were coming from Houjo. Even more she could feel Naraku's excitement at what he was doing.

 

Once Naraku had found his prize, he grasped the boy's still beating heart, slowly lowering the dying body to the ground. With one quick jerk, he removed the heart, relishing in the sight of the boy's life leaving his eyes.

 

Naraku gazed down at the heart that he held in his blood soaked hands before squeezing the organ. It slid between his fingers before falling to the grass, raising his hand to his mouth to clean the gore from his hand.

 

`Now wasn't that just delightful?' he asked, knowing that Kagome could see everything that was happening. `And to think, his life could have been spared it you had only done what you were asked.'

 

Naraku could feel the grief radiating off the girl, knowing that it had pained her greatly. Now he knew what he had to do to break her. Making sure that there was no more blood on his person, he headed out of the park, intent on finding more of her friends.

 

 

~~~~~*~~~~~

 

 

Once the sun had risen, Kurama slid out of his bed. Once he was dressed, he cast one more look at the still sleeping Jaganashi before heading into the living room. He was glad that he now had his own apartment. It was much easier to hide his other life from his family, especially his friendship with Hiei.

 

His mother knew about him, having met him some time ago when he had come to sleep in his room, but his mother never asked too many questions concerning him. But it still was much better this way, for he did enjoy his privacy.

 

He had just put the kettle on for tea when a knock drew his attention. Heading to the door, he wondered who would be at his house so early in the morning. But his question was soon answered as he stared at two half asleep faces.

 

“Yusuke, Kuwabara. What brings you here this early?” he asked as he let them in.

 

Yusuke plopped down on the couch, resting his feet on the coffee table. Kuwabara followed suit, but refrained from slouching.

 

“It seems that Reikai has another mission for us” Yusuke explained as he stifled a yawn.

 

Kurama took a seat in the chair opposite the couch. He was curious about the mission, for it had been a while since something come up that required his assistance. Usually Yusuke and Kuwabara were more than enough to handle the job.

 

He remained silent, waiting for the detective to elaborate further.

 

“Oy Kurama. You got any caffeine around here?” he asked as he let out another yawn.

 

Kurama sighed as he headed back to the kitchen, knowing he wouldn't get much more out of the man until he was more awake. Once the water had finished, he prepared coffee along with his tea, setting the mugs in front of his two guests.

 

By the time he had finished, Hiei has awakened due to Yusuke and Kuwabara's presence. He resumed his seat, Hiei standing behind him.

 

Yusuke chugged the coffee, not bothering with the fact that it was still fairly hot. After setting the cup down, he continued with his explanation.

 

“It seems that a youkai has been running around loose. Koenma wants us to investigate, and to let him know who it is” he explained, running a hand through his gelled hair.

 

Kurama was puzzled, wondering why they would only be ordered to investigate and to not take down the offender.

 

“What is so special that we cannot destroy the youkai?” Kurama questioned.

 

“I really don't know. The toddler did say something about him possessing an artifact of some kind, but he really didn't go into specifics. Hell, he didn't even know what the guy looks like. That's why I came here. I thought maybe you had picked up on him.”

 

Kurama thought on it for a moment, not recalling any youkai within the last few weeks. He turned an expectant eye towards Hiei, but he only shrugged.

 

“I haven't felt anything in the area, but if I do see something suspicious I'll let you know” Kurama replied.

 

“Alright. Well, there were some murders last night that we're gonna check out. I'll be in contact and let you know when we find something” Yusuke replied as he stood.

 

Kurama and Hiei watched as they left, leaving them both to there own musings.

 

“What do you think is going on Hiei?”

 

“I'm not sure. But I'll keep an eye out as well. I'm curious to see what youkai has gained the attention of the Reikai.”

 

Before Kurama could say another word, Hiei returned to the bedroom. He listened as the window opened, knowing that his friend had left. Seeing that he had nothing to do, he left his seat, determined to do a little investigating himself.

 

 

Thanks to Ryukotsusei for editing!