Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Elementals ❯ Chapter One ( Chapter 1 )

Title: Elementals
Author: Natala
Rating: Eh, PG-13
Crossover: Multiples eventually but right now just a simple Yu Yu Hakusho/Inuyasha cross.
Spoilers: For YYH, if you don't know about Yusuke and the Raizen stuff, that might be a bit of a spoiler as it is mentioned.

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Chapter One
Heat - Part 1/2

Simple things like fires could be a great asset. They cooked people's meals, made heat for people. But the other side, the other side of this great element was deadly. A fire too big, a fire too hot, and there it would go. Sometimes it was surprising the whole world didn't burst into flames. It was hot inside, the sun was heating it from the outside, and the creatures on the surface certainly couldn't do a thing if it did happen.

When the weather began to get a little too warm for the year, no one worried too much. When the first girl and boy screamed about something over the city, no one paid attention except for a few who knew what was going on, and even they, the former Spirit Detectives, once again called upon to save the world, thought they were just crazy.

One girl heard about it and felt the air warming up, her own aura wrapping around her to protect her from the unnatural heat. She tried to turn away, knowing others would take care of it. She continued teaching her younger brother about the energy awakening in his body. It was only when their grandfather collapsed on a day that was much too hot and their mother could barely move to help him that she left them to Souta's care and went down the shrine steps. Into the city of Tokyo she descended wrapped in an aura of purity.

She stopped on one street, noting the four boys coming up the street. She knew who they were. Kagome had not been very active in the supernatural world, but once Shippo had found her again, grown up and with the oddest sense of humor, he kept her updated. They were the ones collecting the "crazy people" who were strangely affected by the heat.

She glanced away towards the horizon, seeing the smoke even from here. Another part of the city was on fire today. The boys were watching her. They sensed the same thing around her as the people going crazy. Kagome clicked her tongue gently and then smirked. Obviously they were a bit rusty if they didn't recognize her kind when they saw it.

No one saw it but them, no one else was around who could see it. But they saw it, they saw her let her power flow out in a gentle wave that stained everything a light pink. There was a choked sound from the red head. Good. At least one remembered.

She turned slightly and smirked at them before saying simply, "There really is something over the city you know. How many have said that now? Ten, twenty?"

"Three hundred, actually," The redhead said in quiet awe. Kagome's eyes widened. Her eyes shone suddenly with hope. Three hundred with power to some degree like hers. They could be trained, trained to be mikos and monks.

"Not all in this city, I imagine," Kagome whispered. She couldn't even imagine that many left in all of the country. She had thought them to be so rare now. Perhaps they just needed something like this to activate them.

"No, but all in this country. All of them from Japan." The other three were all staring at the kitsune giving away all of their information.

"Thank you," Kagome murmured before turning away and heading towards the center of the city.

"Wait... What the hell is going on? There isn't anything over the city! You're like all the crazies!" Kagome's blue-gray eyes went cold and she glared at the powerful brown-eyed demon.

"Like those 'crazies', am I? Did it ever occur to you they went crazy because this creature purposefully targeted those who could see above the city? Idiots, all of you. Just because you can't see something doesn't mean it's not there." Kagome's lips curled up into a half sneer and the answering sneer was much better.

"And what makes you so special?"

"Demon, haven't you ever heard of a miko?" The scorn in her voice was nearly solid. He actually stared at her. "No."

"Then stay out of my way." Her sharp command was followed by the sharp click of pavement against her shoes as the miko weaved her way towards the center, only to be drawn back by a whip blocking her way. She followed it from the tip to the hand holding it, peering up questioningly at the emerald-eyed kitsune.

"Can you help them?" She understood whom he was referring to. It was obvious. She tilted her head, considering, and then looking up.

"By destroying that," She decided.

"Some of them may die from this." The threat in his voice was unmistakable now. He had someone he cared about among those who were being attacked mentally.

"Then you should let me help them by destroying that," Kagome's calm facade was wearing thin. Any minute now the snappish, easy to anger and easy to forgive little girl she was would be the one to strike out at them. Not Kagome Higurashi the miko, but the girl who was also a miko.

"Shield them first. Block them. Help them! They're the same as you!" She frowned as she watched the assumed leader, the one with slicked back hair and brown eyes, step forward, appraising her and silently supporting his friend. Another of them was solidly supporting them because he believed they would do what was right. The last, the shortest, shook his head.

"Fox. Detective." The monotone voice was apparently scolding them by the way they both turned and scowled, a snarl accompanying the kitsune, at the small being of fire.

"Shouldn't you be able to sense who's doing this Hiei? They use heat!" The snapping tone from the "Detective" had no affect on Hiei.

"I am a fire apparition. While heat can cause fire, and fire causes heat, we are not the same." Kagome smiled slightly, then silently began to move again, bolting when the kitsune's now golden eyes turned angrily towards her.

'Center, center, center,' Her mind chanted. She didn't get far, or she wouldn't have. They obviously hadn't expected the automatic barrier she had set up. No more than she had expected her feet to take a turn away from the center. Where was she going?

Kagome sighed, letting the soft sound fall as she slowed, closed her eyes, and tilted her head. Not the center then. The others were calling to her. Mikos, monks, soosaara, all of those who used the pure type of energy. Fine. A little bit longer couldn't hurt the city, right?

Even as the thoughts ran through her head a small fire randomly began in a nearby trash barrel. The detectives were staring at her. She gave a very good impression of a demonic growl, followed by a curse. "Damn it! Fine!"

"You'll come see Ke- the ones who are sick?" The kitsune's eager expression was put off by the intense anger on the miko's face.

"I don't have a choice. They're calling and they are a stronger call than my own will it seems." With that bitter statement she swung on one heel, letting the call guide her. It never occurred to her that while her mind did in fact want to go to the center, her heart yearned to help her sisters and brothers. If not of blood, of power.

It didn't take a large amount of time to find them. The Spirit Detectives trailed behind. She didn't care, or notice. The call was strong. So many. Many more than she had ever expected. When she opened the door, she immediately gave the tiniest sob. "Damn it!"

Hands caught her as she fell, as her knees buckled under the clamoring feelings, the moans, the intense pain they were feeling. All of them, so open, so new. They weren't able to feel each other, but they could feel her, and she could feel them. "Kami-sama. Make them stop!"

"What's wrong with her?" Detective was holding her. Wasn't that nice of him? Dizzyingly, she managed to stumble away from the supporting hold, to the first bed. A little girl, no more than five, holding the hand of a boy who looked to be her fraternal twin.

"Shh. No more, little sister, little brother." A little bit of energy, to wash it away, a bit more to block. She walked to the next one, feeling stronger already. An old man, already near death as it was. But, if his powers were taught properly, and he so wished it, he could live so much longer. And behind the walls of her shrine, all of them would have been safe, behind the barriers she had set up against anyone attacking her and Souta mentally or physically.

But they were not. They were in the city, unprotected and getting worse. So she went to each one, not healing so much as clearing the attack from their mind and putting up small blocks. This wasn't a true sickness. If it were, she would be having more difficulties. She had never been the greatest healer.

By the time she was near the last, the one in the separate room, the first few were beginning to stir. Kagome's hand hovered on the door and she tilted her head quizzically. This must be their special one. Not anything special. She'd put her somewhere in the middle, not the weakest of the three hundred, not the strongest, just in the middle. Then again, it wasn't the strength of power, it was knowledge and control.

"Well?"

"Impatient kitsune. Be quiet." She was one hundred percent miko now. Sorceress, shrine maiden, and priestess. Some picked one, she was all. She had her shrine, but she was more than just tied to that shrine. 'What,' she wondered, 'will this girl be?'

The doorknob twisted under her tanned hand and a solid wooden door pushed forward. She stepped forward and studied the girl. She was pretty, but no one you'd think to look twice at. She looked utterly normal, with brown hair just past her shoulders and normal clothes and an aura that would have never been able to see even a lick of extra energy unless this had happened. Even now it would take some training before she'd be able to do more than just see a few things here and there.

Would she be able to sense the Shikon no Tama from far away? That was doubtful. Besides her, almost no one could sense it unless it was under their nose unless they were a demon. With her shield, it was rare that a demon would sense it either.

The room was silent as she stood beside the bed, studying the girl. There was a sharp intake of breath from two males as she laid her hand on the girl's forehead. Another instant and the girl's body was taking care of the rest of the recovery. Her job was done.

She went back a few paces until her body hit the bed behind her. Now that her duty was done, she allowed the exhausted feeling to sweep through her. She leaned back and placed herself on the bed, managing to take off her shoes. At the rumbles of protests she knew were going to come she allowed her eyes to flicker up to meet brown eyes already fixed on her. "Don't wake me. I'll wake up when my energy is replenished."

The kitsune's eyes, an instant before fixed upon the unstirring female in the only other bed in the room, shot to her and his mouth opened to protest. Detective cut him off. "Sure. But you'd better be here tomorrow."

"Really, where else would I go?" He snorted but said nothing as her eyes closed. She was asleep in seconds and Yusuke turned to stare at Kurama. The red head stared back and the majin finally shrugged. "None of my business anymore. But let that girl sleep. Least we can do after she saved Keiko and the other three hundred odd people in this building."

Kurama said nothing and instead slumped against the wall. Hiei eyed him and sat cross-legged next to him. With a sigh, the other two boys did the same, Yusuke closing his eyes. "Two weeks since I've had any sleep."

"Three," Kurama whispered, a small competitive smile on his lips. Kuwabara frowned and said, "It has only been a week for me."

"Weaklings. Two months since I've last hibernated." Three disbelieving stares cheered Hiei into smirking victoriously.

"Votes that we take a few hours off while the people recover and that girl gets her energy back?" Yusuke glanced around and then simply stood up and flopped down onto one of the extra beds. "Good, glad we've got that sorted out."

"We didn't say anything," Kuwabara pointed out, but he too took one of the extra hospital beds and Kurama chuckled as he relieved one of the beds of some blankets and curled up just inside the door of Keiko's room, settling himself on the floor. "We didn't have too."

Hiei stared at them before sneering and jumping out the window. Glancing inside and being sure to make sure all three were sleeping, the fire apparition settled himself on a large branch halfway up a large tree. He rested one hand on his sword and briefly let himself slip into hibernation.

---

Kagome cracked her eyes open, keeping them to slits and then slowly sat up. It was still dark out. She sighed and glanced at the sleeping brunette in the next bed and the kitsune curled up like a waiting dog next to her on the floor. She winced at the comparison but couldn't help a similar vision of Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha and Kouga all in similar positions for those they loved. Kouga she had seen like that for both herself and Ayame. It was a canine thing, to be so loyal. Even kitsune's had it, as Shippo constantly showed her.

The kitsune cared for the sleeping girl. She imagined he was in love with her, though even if he simply loved her as a friend it was quite possible he'd be like that. With a soft sigh she shoved her legs over the side of the bed and kicked them into her waiting shoes. It was time for her to go.

She snuck past the sleeping canine demon and past the first bed with the orange haired man. She even made it past the sleeping majin. On the other hand, she didn't make it past the demon waiting for her at the door.

"I was wondering when you'd wake up. You almost lied to them." He fell into step beside her. She opened up the door and stepped out with him following behind.

"Almost. I never said I'd actually be there. Were you listening the whole time?" There was a soft chuckle beside her and green eyes twinkled at her from the darkness.

"Where else would I be, Mama?"

"Ya know, I think the real question should be: Who the hell are you?" Both turned to look at the detective standing in the doorway and Shippo peered at him.

"Spirit Detective Yusuke Urameshi. Reinstated briefly because of this mess as a favor to Koenma. The majin, the human who had an active S-gene, allowing you to become a demon. What a surprise. I really thought you were asleep." The kitsune rattled off facts and Kagome ate them up as she to stared at the angry Toushin.

"Great, except I already know my fucking life story. How about we get yours?" There was a dangerous anger to his tone and Kagome closed her eyes. What had she done to deserve this? What had she...

Kagome's eyes flew open as an image came to her mind and she gave a strangled whimper. A sight before her eyes, the one she didn't want to see. "No! No, no, NO! Shippo! Souta's in trouble!"

The kitsune's eyes widened and then he snarled and she caught the tint of red coming into his eyes as he raised his head to catch the scent. "I can't smell them. Not when I'm like this anyway."

"I don't know where he is. I just know he's in trouble," She whispered to the transforming kitsune. Green eyes glanced down at her from the golden muzzle and he nudged her gently with his overlarge nose before he was suddenly bounding away, his enhanced senses catching the scent of Higurashi blood in the air.

There were brown eyes on her again as she collapsed in relief. He'd be all right. Shippo would never allow anything different. She glanced up when once again a pair of arms held her up from hitting the ground. "So, his name is Shippo. Who is he? And Souta?"

"None of your-" She winced as the stare turned into a glare and closed her eyes. "Shippo is my... Well, the relationship is hard to explain, but we're family of the adopted kind. Souta is family by blood. He's my little brother. We can sometimes sense when the other is in trouble. A lot of normal siblings have that, you know, just with supernatural ones it's... enhanced."

"You tried to leave," Yusuke pointed out.

"I need to get to the jewel in the center of the city," Kagome retaliated.

"What are we supposed to tell those people when they wake up?" That hit home. Kagome winced, then pushed him away and tried to walk off.

"Whatever you want." Hands held her back, pinned her to an all too male body as anger flashed through his aura. She gulped for an altogether different reason than fear and told herself it was just the situation. Danger and the fact that besides Souta and Shippo she rarely even talked to a boy, never mind a hot one who had the power to destroy a city and would rather save the world. Oh, he just radiated good intentions, and damn it if she wasn't one to fall for that.

But she wouldn't. She had a job to do. She had no time for boys. "They aren't our responsibility."

"They are no ones responsibility but their own. And one is yours. Let me go." Did she dare raise her powers against him? No, he could overpower her eventually and the in-between, a fight, would take too much energy and cause too much damage.

"No. You have to stay." There was something besides good intentions now, something that had to do with her. He was... curious? She didn't have time for boys, and she certainly didn't have time for cute majin boys with insatiable curiosity.

"I don't have time for this," She murmured just loud enough for him to hear. He tightened the arm holding her around the waist, the one pinning her to him and she winced. Too close, much too close.

"Let go," She whispered and this time it was a bit breathy.

"Make me if you want to leave so much," Yusuke answered.

Kagome closed her eyes, groaned, and gave in. "Fine. I'll stay until morning." Damn males. Damn demons. Damn demons who teetered between man and boy and whose aura was as intoxicating as their looks.

"Damn it," Kagome hissed as twists of her own aura twisted around his. Bad, very bad. She wrapped her aura around herself tightly, making it into a mental shield, a physical one, anything but letting her emotions influence it right now.

"Damn right you will," Yusuke muttered and let go of her, eyeing her altogether too tense form. She followed him inside willingly enough, but now seemed skittish of getting to close to him. Had he used too much strength on her? What was her problem?

Kagome was wondering much the same thing as her face burned brightly under the lights and she was extremely grateful for the darkness surrounding them. Sure, sudden attraction could happen, but the thing with her aura? That never happened! Well, she'd heard about it, but it was a legend and certainly didn't just happen with a boy...man...demon...whatever!… that she'd just met. She had to be wrong. Because that meant...

It didn't matter. She wouldn't be around them much longer and later she'd find out it wasn't what she'd thought and laugh at herself for her foolishness. Now she definitely needed more rest. Lots of it. Until this made sense.

She'd need a lot of rest for her life to make sense. Maybe she would get just enough so she'd calm down a bit. That sounded nice.

---

The next time Kagome awoke there were bodies all around her. Warm bodies, on her bed, beneath it, around it, and extending out into the room. Not all three hundred, no, some had already left, making up an excuse to themselves that they had imagined it all. But there were still at least one hundred of them, most of them her around her age or a bit older or younger. Some much younger. There were some who were old, her grandfather's age old, but fortunately only a few.

The two twins she had noticed the day before were on either side of her, their hands connected over her stomach. On the edge of the bed a young teenager had his arms folded to make a pillow. His aura was a weird silver color. Kagome briefly wondered why.

"You're the one that saved us, aren't you?" The soft voice had her head travelling to the other bed in the room. There was only one occupant, the same as before, except now dressed and sitting up.

"What time is it?" The air was hotter. She could feel it. Her powers kept her from being bothered by it, but it was already breaking through the weaker mikos and soosaaras defences. She smiled briefly as she looked at the younger teenage boy. A young soosaara. A word first used by Souta.

A sorcerer. They didn't have the training to be monks, so the best word for them had to be sorcerer. But they would need some sort of training. She'd been training Souta, in a roundabout way. Could she take on nearly a hundred more? She'd need to pick up some tents to place on the shrine. Now would be the time to get that fund her father had left to her open and see what was in it. These ones needed a future.

"It's almost noon," The girl answered from seemingly faraway. "I think they're waking now."

Kagome almost asked whom until she gasped. The twins on her stomach opened their eyes at the same time and she almost choked. There was something wrong with them. Like they were missing a part of themselves. Both had liquid brown eyes and they couldn't have been more than five years old. She quickly hid her shock and smiled at them.

"They were driven insane by the fire things. Most of the time they're fine, but sometimes they start acting weird. Outside of their little dream speech of course. They see things, ya know?" The young teenage boy had woken up and blinked as she saw his eyes. They were an uncommon silver-gray to match the aura on him.

"Things in the future? That's a rare talent. I can sometimes see when my brother is in trouble, but never when he will be, only in the present. What's your name?" The boy seemed to know a lot about the twins. Later, when she'd defeated the thing in the city, she'd have to ask why.

"I'm Taji."

"And we're Hoshiko-" The little girl twin spoke up, her eyes round as she snuggled into Kagome's side, showing none of the craziness Taji testified to and Kagome sensed.

"-and Kenjiro. Our parents are gone. You saved us." He was looking at her with pleading chocolate eyes and she couldn't help but melt into that gaze.

"Can we stay with you? You could make a good mother." The girl turned her own gaze on and Kagome could have let herself drown in the cuteness of small little hands and big eyes in the small, slightly rumpled faces.

"Of course," She said automatically, only realizing what she'd done when they both screamed in joy. Shiny black hair was all she saw as they wrapped themselves around her middle again.

"So... do we have a daddy?" Kenjiro's innocent comment had Kagome choking. There was something very wicked about them. Not bad, they just had a bit of wickedness in them. She grinned at them after a bit.

"Not yet. I suppose I can work on it, if you want." Faintly, Kagome heard the girl on the other bed gasp at her ready answer. Taji's head snapped back before he began howling with laughter. The twins both giggled and Kagome smiled as she carefully moved Hoshiko to one side, giving her a comforting pat on the head as she did so.

"So, where are those oh-so-polite boys that brought me in last night?" Kagome looked inquiringly towards the brunette still sitting on the other bed who seemed taken aback by the question.

"I think they went out to get something to eat. After they made sure I was healthy and sorted things out with the ones who left they realized they hadn't eaten in almost as long as they hadn't slept. I don't see how making themselves unhealthy would have helped any of us that were laying here." Kagome listened and heard and the last words struck a chord.

"Sometimes you do strange things when people you care about are in trouble. Your own health doesn't matter. Even death seems a small thing compared to making sure the ones you care about are safe, now and forever." Kagome smiled slightly, not noticing the two children and Taji staring at her, Taji's eyes showing his own new resolution.

"I'm gonna help. Not just be trained and defend just my friends, and myself I'm going to help save the world. I want everyone to be able to have people to care about. Not just me." Kagome almost winced, remembering a resolution she'd made so similar, and then her brother's eyes when he'd asked for her to help him become stronger. Instead she turned to the boy and tilted her head.

"It's hard. You'll want to give up sometimes."

"I can take it. Train me?" She could hear the unasked words. Help me? Let me help you? Can I join you?

"Yes," she answered.

--------------------- End Part One

soosaara - a male with purification energy without the training of a monk. The real translation is sorcerer, bus as one of the translations of miko is sorceress I'm using soosaara as a male term for the untrained.
majin - demonman. Used to refer to Yusuke after the Sensui arc. Human who has become a demon. A hybrid but not a hanyou.