Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Trembling Roses ❯ Stories of Surprises ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter Seven

Towering shelves lined the walls as far as the eye could see within the cavernous room. Where most people would have taken the largest room in a mansion and immediately made it their personal domain, Youko Kurama had converted the former audience chamber into a bibliophile's paradise.

One had only to look around to find vast quantities of knowledge bound in parchment, vellum, and wood. In some cases, it was etched in stone. Although the coverings may have differed from one item to the next, all of the meticulously placed denizens awaited eager minds to come unravel their secrets.

Much like the rest of the room, the ceiling had also been renovated to allow natural sunlight inside. Even now, it shone down on readers from overhead.

It was often noted by frequent patrons that no matter what time of day it was, the shafts of light never moved around enough to harm any of the shelved material.

Once or twice, the word 'magic' was tossed about as an easy explanation for whatever invisible barrier held the beams at bay.

The whisperers would have been floored if they knew the answer was only solar mirrors, but to each his own.

Tucked away in a cubicle filled with the books required of him, Shippo took a moment to appreciate the library for its aesthetic beauty since he honestly wanted to escape from it as fast as possible.

Listlessly flipping a page, he sighed. It wasn't that he didn't like learning about things, it was just that he liked it more when it was Youko-sama showing it to him. In a messy scrawl that would have made the sensei in question cringe, the distracted kit wrote down something or another about memory boosting properties.

Understandably, the notes soon trailed off into gibberish and doodles.

Suddenly, his sight was cut off by a pair of hands.

"Guess who?" Perky and pleasant, the voice beside his head was one that was as familiar as it was exasperating.

With a sigh, Shippo wondered what else could go wrong.

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Hiei normally had three placement levels when dealing with a new foe.

On the first level were people he could destroy with little more than a stray thought.

That standard applied to almost every basic human and spiritual weakling that lived. Needless to say, when he first met the man, Kuwabara had been immediately placed in that section.

The miko Kagome had been sectioned there along with her half-breed companion and friends, although the monk had been a tough call.

Yusuke Urameshi had never been put there in the first place.

On the second level were people that might prove a challenge to kill, but would still be dead in the end.

Higher-ranking demonic beings, unusually empowered humans and assorted entities had populated that niche but not as of late. The Dark Tournament and subsequent battles had raised the bar for entrance onto that level to tougher requisites.

After some time observing the man, Kuwabara had unknowingly graduated to this area to sit alongside Yusuke and Kurama.

The last and third level was reserved for those that he knew would require his undivided attention and flat-out effort to defeat. These god-like beings might even cause him to call forth the might of the dark beast that lay dormant upon his arm.

Honestly, the fight might take his life but in the end, he would personally escort his opponent to hell before he himself drew a final breath.

Not many people had made it to that level, not even Genki.

Stepping between the intruder and his friend, Hiei held the sword at the ready. Any other person would have been driven away by the force of his glare alone, but not this man.

Hiei wondered if it might not be too late to create a fourth level.

Behind him, Kurama's breathing stopped and started in fitful bursts that echoed loudly within the confined space. All around them, the fire demon could sense the undulating touch of chilled ki that emanated from the man like an oppressive mist.

It grew ever more stifling as the dark figure continued to smile cruelly at Kurama. "Move aside little man. The fox and I have matters to…discuss."

As unruffled as ever, Hiei's eyes narrowed dangerously. "State your business so that I may mark it on your tombstone as completed." He wasn't sure, but he thought that he could hear words hidden within the stricken kitsune's spasmodic gasps.

Outwardly, Hiei was calm. Inside, he felt a growing sense of trepidation because the choked words he heard sounded suspiciously like 'Oh god please no.'

Curiously dark eyes tore themselves away from the catatonic youkai, orienting fully on him instead. Although he would never admit it, Hiei privately wished that raptor gaze would look somewhere else.

Mellow and unpleasantly sensuous, the voice dropped lower than before. "The business is my own little man and I will conduct it uninterrupted."

"Not today. I suggest that you leave here while you still have legs with which to do so." At the bold threat, the man actually laughed. The sound of it was as distasteful as his voice. Never before had Hiei seen eyes so utterly devoid of life, but before he could say more, he found a slender finger pressed to his lips.

Normally, such a presumptuous act would garner a swift death as well as a surgical removal of the offending digit. The brittle clink of metal striking the floor sang out as the sword slipped from his grasp.

With his mind churning sluggishly, Hiei tried to fight off the numbness taking hold of him.

For a moment he experienced a disorienting sense of déjà vu, as if time was looping in upon itself. 'What the?' The disjointed thought fell apart more and more as the unblinking eyes seemed to grow larger and larger. After a while, all there was to see was the obsidian depths of those engorged pupils and the fire demon was drowning within them.

The half-lidded eyes drew him further still, "Believe this if you believe nothing else in your life demon-childe. There was nothing that you should have desired less than to be considered my business."

Never moving his eyes, the visitor called out, "Isn't that right Little Fox?"

Hiei only half-heard a pained whimper but his focus was on the finger laid against his face. Unused to being touched as he was, even he sensed something intrinsically amiss with what he was feeling.

Not with the touch itself, but with the flesh it was comprised of.

It didn't feel…wrong?

No…it didn't.

A hesitant smile tugged at the corners of Hiei's lips as the digit moved away, gaining strength until his mouth was stretched into an all-encompassing grin.

In fact, everything was fine.

Just fine.

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Listening just outside the black-papered doors of the Training Room, Yusuke fingered the paper in his pocket with a smile.

This should be interesting indeed.

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A/N: Okay, now I'm as hooked as the rest of you. Since he's going to continue to literally make his "literary bitch", I'll try to pump Youko for more info.

Youko: This should be amusing…

Okay, exactly who is this guy?

Youko: The straight-forward approach? Very original…

Would you like to bite me?

Youko: You ask a lot of questions, do you know that?

How else am I supposed to find out what's going on? Wait for you to keep showing up with more dictation demands? Why me anyway?

Youko: More questions. I think I just made my point.

Fine then, here's a dandy one. Do you know you're going to die soon at the hands of a seriously ticked kokujin?

Youko: Ah, but if you kill me you'll never find out how this ends.

…damn…your…eyes…

Youko: Virgo curiosity. It's so amusing.