InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ The Blue Anshan ❯ Interlude 1 - Warmth ( Chapter 4 )

The Blue Anshan

By Alesyira

Summary: The warmth of the morning sun...

Chapter Rating: G.

Disclaimer: This is original content.

Author's Note: The four interludes are very important chapters. Originally posted 5/10/07.

Interlude 1 - Warmth

a long time ago

Small hands stretched out from beneath the warm blanket, revealing tiny, claw-tipped fingers splayed wide. The muffled squeak of a girlish yawn was barely audible beneath the thick layers piled upon the small bed, and after some wiggling about, the lump beneath the covers finally sat up to rub her sleepy eyes.

Their den was a series of alcoves and hollows collected underneath the roots of a massive tree, and through her parents' careful and deliberate nurturing, many of the gaps between roots had been filled with flowering vines that wove together in many abstract, intricate patterns. Morning light spilled through natural windows along the eastern wall, filling her room with a warm golden glow.

She slid from her bedding and called out softly, "Mama?"

There was no answer, but she wasn't surprised. Her parents and sisters were almost always awake before her, and they spent most of their time away from their home. She stepped outside and plucked a small yellow fruit from a basket placed by the narrow entrance to their cozy home. She nipped a small piece from the sweet rind and chewed it thoughtfully between her front teeth as she stared out into the peaceful woods, thinking about where her sisters might be on such a pretty morning.

Of course, her parents allowed their eldest children to go wherever they wished, coddling and protecting only their youngest, Hananoki, from the dangers of the world beyond their secluded grove.

Recently, Hananoki had overheard whispers that her eldest sister had taken a liking to a human male in the village, which left Hana feeling terribly confused. She'd only seen one or two humans before, and they seemed dull, slow and fragile –beneath the attentions of her kind, the forest kitsune.

She knew what her sisters were capable of, for her sisters would come home with such terrible little boasts about villagers and creatures that they'd fooled; lives that they'd ruined through various games. It made Hana sad sometimes to hear those stories and know that the victims were nearly always helpless against the tricks played against them. Hana could never understand why they had to act so terribly. She understood that her kind was meant to help the forest grow. Her parents worked every day to guide the new crops to fruition and enhance the woods to better provide for the creatures of the forest.

Her mother had expressly forbade her from ever venturing out into the woods, especially at her young age of five summers. There were far too many creatures that would leap on the opportunity to seize the youngest kitsune daughter in retribution for the mean behavior of her sisters, but this morning, she felt a strong desire to leave the safety of the grove and see something new.

Orange light filtered through a precious glass trinket hanging from the low branch of a nearby tree, sparkling brightly in the morning light. It was meant to serve as a reminder to the children that the concealing enchantments surrounding their grove would fade as they stepped into the surrounding woods, but the trinket seemed to twinkle a merry greeting with the promise of something special should she venture out on that fine morning.

The lush foliage overhead brushed together in the breeze, whispering stories of daring adventure and secret romance. It filled Hana with a growing thrill of new discovery, and she quickened her pace to the east toward a gap in the trees. She could see the morning light filtering brightly through the trunks as she raced up the gentle slope, and although she knew she had not traveled very far from the den, she felt a surprising level of freedom and a rush of exhilaration that she'd disobeyed her mother's wishes.

She burst through the treeline and the sunlight pouring over the eastern mountain range temporarily blinded her to the colorful cliffside she had discovered. She blinked quickly to clear her eyes of the glare and stepped toward the lip of earth jutting raggedly from the forest at her back. She rose up on the tips of her toes to stare beyond the soft grass lining the edge at the grey-green abyss of endless valleys below and grinned at the marvelous sight.

Something caught her eye as she took another step forward, and she glanced to her right. Her footing faltered in surprise at the sight of a young man sitting a short distance away, and she stumbled backwards away from the steep cliff to fall on her behind. She felt the shortest twinge of fear at discovering that she wasn't alone, but it was quickly forgotten as she noticed his right arm and shoulder seemed to suffer from extensive, angry red wounds only halfway scabbed over.

"Are... are you okay?" she asked, rushing uninvited to his side. "What happened?"

He didn't even turn to look at her. "Go away." His voice was cool and even, and Hana was momentarily amazed by the distinct orange color of his eyes.

"But you're hurt," she insisted, as she reached out to gingerly take hold of his arm. "Ouch!" She jerked her fingers back in surprise to cradle them in her free hand and blew on the burnt fingertips.

"Foolish girl, I told you to go away." Hana merely stared at him in confusion, upset that he would refuse her attentions. He was obviously not human, judging from the extreme temperature exuding from his 'wounded' arm.

"Your arm, though..." she muttered. "Can't I do something to help?"

The young man released a barely audible sigh and turned his head just enough to look at her. "That's normal. Just leave it alone."

"Normal? Who are you? I've never seen anyone like you before." She watched him in open curiosity as she waited for a response. Hana guessed he was several summers older than her, but he still looked very young. His hair was very dark, but it shone in the morning light with strange highlights of red and orange. Even though she had burnt her fingers by merely touching his arm, she didn't feel threatened by his presence. He did not answer her question, but he didn't move to leave, either, so she gave him a cheerful smile and continued to speak. "You look lonely. Maybe I can sit here and talk with you for a while?"

He narrowed his eyes at her for a brief moment, but turned his gaze back toward the lightening horizon and didn't say anything more. She grinned and sat comfortably beside him to look out over the valley.

Hana sat at the boy's side for some time, content to remain silent and look out over the lush landscape below them. She watched in amazement as a flock of brilliant white birds burst from the trees in the distance and swirled through the air unlike anything she'd seen before. As the birds ducked once more beneath the canopy of trees, she turned her attention to the silent boy at her side. "My name's Hananoki. What's yours?"

He looked down at his hand while he closed and opened his fist. "Girl, why are you bothering me?"

"Because no one else will play with me; they're all too busy." She turned back toward the brilliant blue sky and frowned. "My sisters go out and cause mischief all day, and I get stuck at home, inside most of the time. My mother never lets me go anywhere."

"Yet you are here now. Why did your mother let you go today?" He glanced sideways at her, slightly curious of her response.

"She didn't." Hana turned toward him and smiled brilliantly. "I felt like this was going to be a grand day, so I just went for a walk." The boy made a sound of amusement before turning back to stare out over the horizon. Hana moved slightly so that she could see his face as she continued to speak. "So, you must be pretty bored, sitting up here all day. What are you going to do when you're done?"

The boy sighed in irritation before looking at her again. "I'm going to sit here until I feel like leaving."

"And then what?"

"Why does it matter to you?"

"I'm just curious. Maybe you'd like to go for a walk with me in the forest?"

"Why would I want to do that?"

"There's a lot to see in the forest."

"Girl-"

"Hana," she interrupted.

The boy rolled his eyes in frustration. "Hana, you don't even know me. Why would you want to go walking around with a stranger?"

"If you told me your name, then I'd know you."

He sighed again and stood up. She stood as well and stared up at him with a happy smile on her face. "You'll go for a walk with me, then?"

"No."

Her expression immediately fell in disappointment. "Wait, where are you going?" Her voice quivered with sadness as he walked toward the edge of the cliff.

He paused to look back at her curiously. "What does it matter to you?"

"I don't want you to go, yet." Hana felt tears well in her eyes. "I just met you, and you want to leave already..."

His expression softened slightly as he turned. "Maybe I'll come back tomorrow, if you want to talk again."

She nodded slightly and wrung her hands together. "Okay..."

Without another word, he stepped off the cliff and disappeared out of sight. Hana rushed to the edge and dropped to her hands and knees to peer down into the trees below.

He was gone.

Hana sniffled once, but held firm to the thought that he would come back the next day. She stood and brushed the dirt from her knees before turning to walk back into the trees toward her home.

Her mother was upset that she'd wandered beyond the safety of their grove, but as she'd returned unharmed and hadn't traveled very far, she was forgiven. Her mother warned her of dangers that sometimes lurked within the forest and that she should be vigilant at all times. Hana smiled up at her mother with a bright expression. "Can I go out again tomorrow, then?"

Her mother brushed fingers through Hana's bangs and nodded. "Just be careful. You never know who you might meet."

When Hana woke the next morning, she immediately sped out the front door, pausing only to snatch two pieces of the same succulent fruit she'd eaten the day before. Within a short time, she'd made her way back to the cliff, but there was no sign of the boy. Her heart sank in dejection, but she stepped forward and sat down with a hope that he might come soon.

She stared at the fruits in her lap for what seemed like hours as the normally cheerful sun warmed her shoulders. She sighed aloud, feeling a strange wave of sadness at the boy's absence. A tear escaped her eye and rolled down her cheek as she watched another flock of white birds erupt from the trees in a cacophony of distant chirps. She leaned forward to peer over the edge of the cliff, wondering if he might be down there somewhere. A sound from behind startled her and one of the pieces of fruit fell from her hand to bounce over the edge. She whirled around to see the boy standing a short distance away.

"You scared me!" she exclaimed. "And I dropped one of the fruits…" she muttered, looking sad.

"Have you been waiting for me to come back?" He stepped closer and knelt before her, placing an arm across his bent knee.

She nodded and held out her last piece of fruit. "I thought you might like to try some."

He looked at it in confusion. "I don't eat that."

"You don't? Would you like to just try a little piece, at least? It's very good..." she offered. She clutched the fruit carefully between her small hands and carefully slipped her claws into the yellow rind. As she pulled outwards, a small piece came off in her fingers and she held it out for him to take. "It's very sweet. You might like it."

He didn't seem too interested in the fruit, but he held out his left hand and she dropped the piece into his palm. She watched him as he stared at the glistening fruit for a moment. "I've never eaten something like this before."

"What do you eat, then?" she asked after taking a bite of the remaining fruit.

"Sometimes I eat meat, but usually I don't need anything but red water."

"Red water?"

He nodded and pointed toward a distant mountain. "The red water flows inside our home. It's all I need to live. It's… very hot."

Hana gave him a strange look. "I've never heard of that before."

He finally placed the small piece of fruit in his mouth, and Hana was amazed at what happened. The fruit immediately hissed and crackled as he chewed, and with his exhalation she could see the fine vapors of moisture that had evaporated. "That was really good," he remarked, licking the palm of his hand, which caused another hiss from the evaporating water.

"That only happens when we put water over the fire in the evening. Are you that hot all over?"

"You ask a lot of questions."

"I want to know, though."

"My skin is cooler than my mouth is, I think."

Hana bit her lip and held out a finger. Quickly understanding what she wanted, he held out his hand so she could touch his palm. "You're warm, just like I am." She gave him a brilliant smile before snatching his hand and pulling him to his feet. "Let's go far a walk today!"

"Um, okay…"

"You still haven't told me your name!"

"My name?"

She nodded up at him.

"Youganryuu."

"Oh." She said his name quietly a few times, familiarizing herself with the syllables. She grinned at him in mischief. "Youganryuu… Can I call you Ryuu-chan?"

He gave her a look of near-comic disbelief. "I don't think that-"

"Come on!" she interrupted, pulling him behind her as she ran back into the trees. Neither of the two knew much about the forest, but they enjoyed the time walking and looking at animals and strange plants. Youganryuu didn't say very much, but Hananoki spoke endlessly about anything she could see, and asked him too many questions that he didn't have an answer for.

Hana found some more of the fruits around midday to share with her new friend. "Will you play with me?" she asked as she stood.

"Play?"

Hana felt confused at his question. "Yeah, play. Um, I'll run, and you try to catch me, okay?"

"Why?"

"Because it's fun!"

Hananoki shot off in a sprint through the trees, not giving him a chance to respond. After a short moment, she turned to see if he was following her. There wasn't a sound and he was nowhere in sight. "Ryuu-chan?"

She shrieked in fright as he touched her shoulder, having somehow snuck up behind her. When she turned to scold him for scaring her, she was surprised by his smile and laugh. "I didn't think you'd scream," he stated. "Let's do that again!"

She giggled and took off running again, but this time she didn't stop to see if he followed. She darted quickly between the trees and doubled back on her path once before dashing into a small thicket to hide. She peered out from the branches of her hiding place and watched as he ran by. A moment later, he came back again, this time at a slower jog. He looked confused as he stared around at the woods, looking for any trace of where she'd gone. "Hana?" he said quietly. She bit her lip to keep from giggling and watched as he circled around some trees. "Hana!" he said, a little louder this time.

She couldn't contain the laughter anymore and broke out in a fit of giggles that she failed to muffle with her hand. In a blink he had found her, and she crawled out from her hiding place.

"I couldn't find you."

"Were you scared?" she asked, smiling up at him.

"No. I never get scared."

"I don't believe you," she grinned, poking his arm.

When the sun began to set that evening, Hana turned to him with hope shining in her eyes. "Can we play again tomorrow?"

He shook his head, albeit sadly. "I can't come back tomorrow."

"Oh..." she frowned. "Then maybe the next day?"

"I can't come back for a while, Hana."

"Where are you going, then?"

"I have to go back to my mountain."

"When will you come back?" she asked, taking his hand.

"I don't know. It will be a long time, I think."

Hana felt terrible and desperate, because her only friend was going to leave for a long time. "But why?"

He squeezed her hand. "When I come back, we'll play again, okay? I promise."

"Alright." She made a valiant effort to hold back her tears, but to no avail. They slipped over her cheeks as her lip quivered in sadness. "I really don't want you to go."

"It'll be okay. I'll play with you a little longer today until you have to go home, okay?" She nodded and smiled at him as she wiped away the tears. "This time, you catch me!"

She giggled and chased after him in the deepening gloom, which was remarkably easy, as his rocky right arm glowed like a fire. They ran after one another until night had fallen and Hana could hear her mother calling for her.

"I'll see you again someday, Hana," he said as he walked with her toward her home. When she turned back to tell him goodbye, he was gone.

Hana was very sad for some time after he went home, but every morning she would take two pieces of fruit to the cliff where they'd met and eat in silence. She knew that one day, he'd come play with her again, and she'd have an extra fruit for him to eat.

The summers came and went, and it wasn't until she had reached her ninth year that Youganryuu came back to play once more. That particular morning bore witness to the first snowfall of the year, and as Hana wrapped herself in warm clothes and took the two pieces of fruit, she almost didn't want to go back to the cliff. It would be very cold for a few more hours, and the only reason why she went was to see a boy she hadn't heard from in over four years. She sighed sadly and tucked the fruit into her pouch before stepping out into the snow-dusted woods.

An eddy of wind swirled sparkles of frost around her ankles as she walked toward her destination. She felt strangely depressed that morning, like she should just get back into bed to sleep away the sadness. She sighed aloud and stepped into the light, her gaze trained on her feet. As she approached the cliff edge, she looked up and frowned at the sight of snow lining the spot she'd intended to sit. "I should have brought something to sit on," she muttered.

"Do you always talk to yourself when I'm not here?"

Hana whirled around in surprised happiness to throw her arms around the waist of the boy. He froze at the unexpected contact. "I missed you so much!" she exclaimed.

She stilled in the realization that she had hugged him; she had nearly forgotten that some of him could very easily burn her. She pulled back slightly and released him, thankful that he'd pulled his burning arm away from her before she'd had a chance to hurt herself. "Be careful next time, okay?"

She blushed slightly and nodded, embarrassed that she had just done such a thing. "I brought you some fruit."

He grinned and held out his hand. "Do you bring an extra with you every day?" She nodded in response and gave him his piece.

She noticed that he wore a strange wrap over the rocky parts of his arm and shoulder. "What is that for?"

He touched it with a strange look in his eyes. "I need it to contain the heat of my arm. It's too cold for me to keep motion without expending a lot of energy."

"Oh, okay." They ate in relative silence and watched the sunlight spread into the shadows still lingering in the valleys below. "So, you've been at your mountain this whole time, then?"

He nodded and looked at her. "I've been asleep." He looked like he wanted to say more, but he remained silent, and Hana didn't want to bother him with her endless questions… Not yet, at least. "What would you like to do today?" he asked, resting his head on a palm as he watched her eat the last bite of her fruit.

"I don't know. Maybe we can go to the river. The edges are trying to freeze over, so there are some spots of really beautiful ice there." He smiled and stood, holding out his hand to help her up.

"Are you cold, Hana?" She shook her head and held tight to his hand as they stepped back into the forest.

Suddenly she stopped and turned to look up at his face. "When will you have to go away again?"

"I have to go back in eight days." She nodded and sighed before she let go of his hand to walk ahead of him. He jogged slightly to catch up with her. "What's wrong?"

"Why do you always have to go?"

"Because…" he paused, trying to find the right words. "…Because I live there, in the mountain. When I go back, I go to sleep, and it takes me a long time to wake up again."

"Why do you have to go to sleep for so long?"

"It's just the way that I am. Mother and Father haven't told me why; it just is." He sidled a glance at her. "Have you been running any while I've been away?"

"Not really, why?"

"Because you'll never be able to catch me if you haven't been practicing!" he said, running ahead of her with a laugh.

"Hey!" she shouted, running after him.

They played chase and talked for many hours that day, and Hana felt happier than she had in a long time. Youganryuu seemed so enthusiastic to hear everything that she knew about the world around them, for she had learned many things while he'd been asleep. She showed him a trick she'd learned with the flowers, forcing a frozen bud to come to life and bloom with bright pink petals.

He smiled at the brilliant colors, and as they sat in their little patch of forest, the snow around the two began to melt. Hana eventually shrugged out of her extra wraps and reclined back on them to stare up at the sunlight sparkling between the branches above. "I'm glad you came back," she said, rolling the flower stem between her fingers. "I missed talking to you."

He grinned mischievously at her, "You do like to talk a lot. I'm not surprised."

"Hey," she smirked, pushing his arm slightly. "I don't talk that much."

He chuckled and lay back against the ground, tucking his folded hands underneath his head. "I wish it could be like this every day."

"Yeah, me too," she agreed.

The two sighed and stared up at the trees above.

Over the next week, Hana and Ryuu played in the woods and explored the hillside, learning everything about each other. Hana learned that his parents were very quiet, never telling him much and expecting him to learn it for himself. She told him of her parents and sisters and all the mischief they caused in the villages nearby. On one day, the two crept up to the edge of a village to watch one of her sisters steal the pants from an unsuspecting man as he napped beneath a tree.

"Why would she do that?" he whispered to her.

"I don't know. She thinks it's funny."

He shook his head in disgust. "Your sisters aren't as nice as you are."

"No, they aren't."

When the time came for Youganryuu to go back to his mountain, Hana was reluctant to let him go. "I never want you to go again, Ryuu-chan."

He grinned at her and ruffled her hair playfully. "You need to stop calling me that. I'm not so small, you know, Hana-chan."

"I know…" she sighed. "I'll really miss you while you're gone."

"I'll miss you too. Maybe we'll see each other in our dreams."

"Maybe…" she muttered, looking at him sideways. "I didn't know we could do that."

He shrugged. "I don't think we can, but it would be neat, wouldn't it? Then you could talk to me and keep me company during the time I have to sleep."

She smiled sadly and held his hand. "I hope you aren't too lonely while you're gone."

"I'll be alright. I'll see you again someday, Hana. Be safe, okay?" He pulled her into a one-armed hug and squeezed her tight as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Sweet dreams..."

He looked down and gave her a slow smile. "I'm sure they will be."