Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Draw in the Rain ❯ Chapter 5: Chaos in the Storm ( Chapter 5 )

CHAPTER 5: Chaos in the Storm

"Now, who should we kill first? The human? Or the traitor?" The youkai smiled. "It's such a hard decision. Maybe we should just flip a coin."

Though the ring of youkai laughed, the figures caught in the center of them were wholly un-amused. Keiko and Kurama eyed them warily, adding up their numbers and not liking the odds.

"Well," Keiko murmured, "at least they're better looking than the other ones."

Kurama stifled a laugh.

Youko, who could be heard by only by Kurama, had no such compunction and chortled gleefully. `I really do adore her! Any other human would be screaming in terror right now. Or passed out in fear. But our little goddess is making jokes! Let's kiss her!'

`Really not the time or place for it, Youko.'

`Spoilsport.' Youko pouted. `Then hurry up and finish them off so we can get back to were we left off with our lover.'

`It won't be that easy.'

`Oh, don't such a cowering kit. Their level of power is lower than that bunch of trash that I just defeated.'

`I know that. But there are twice as many this time.'

`If you're so afraid, then move over and I'll-'

`No!' Kurama was emphatic. `You've had your turn. This is mine.'

`Ooooooh, I see. You want to show off for our lover, don't you?'

Kurama ignored him.

`Well, you're not doing a very good job if all you're doing is standing around. It's action that impresses, not nothing.'

`I'm studying them, you overactive kit. So shut up and let me study.'

`Well, study a little faster, will you? I'm getting bored and I'd much rather be spending time with our lover without all the…company.'

On that last sentiment, Kurama could wholeheartedly concur. There were many things he'd rather be doing with his time and -

This wasn't one of them.

Hoping to put an end to this as soon as possible, Kurama examined his opponents with a sharp eye, taking in every detail his senses could process. As Youko had said, these youkai had about half of the power their predecessors had though their doubled numbers bumped them up to a more equal level. But on the bright side -

`Keiko was right - they are better looking.'

`Hmm.' Youko studied the youkai critically through Kurama's eyes. `You don't think she was attracted to one of them, do you?'

Kurama twitched. `Is this the time to be worrying about something so petty?'

`It's not petty; it's important. If she was, we need to know.' His fangs flashed. `So we can kill that one first!'

Kurama resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. `The only way to find out if she was would be to ask her - and I am definitely not doing that!'

`Then let me out and I will!'

`And make her think we're jealous paranoid freaks? I don't think so!'

`Why not? We are jealous and paranoid!'

`Maybe. But she doesn't need to know that!'

`Fine,' was the huffy response. `Then just kill them all and that will take care of whichever one attracted our lover's eye.'

`We don't know that she was actually attracted to any of them,' Kurama pointed out.

`We don't know that she wasn't, either.'

He had a point.

Kurama's observation of his opponents turned more purposeful as he studied them. They were human in appearance though a few showed sharp fangs that protruded out from closed mouths, slightly pointed ears, or natural colored markings on their faces that a regular person would not have. No doubt a few of the members among these were the ones responsible for capturing them in the city; their appearances would certainly have enabled them to blend in amongst a crowd of humans easily enough.

But the only way to know for certain would be to ask.

"Were you the ones that kidnapped us?" Kurama questioned boldly.

"Yes, we were," was the immediate response.

It was the same youkai that had spoken before. He was handsome and well groomed, according to human standards. He had closely cropped hair of a blond so pale it was a shade away from being white while sapphire blue eyes glittered from a setting of finely sculpted features that were strong and masculine. His body was muscular and well proportioned and he was definitely the more attractive member of the group. And the commanding way he carried himself while the other youkai canted themselves attentively towards him clearly revealed that he was the proclaimed leader.

A movement caught Kurama's attention and, out of his peripheral vision, he saw Keiko tilt her head as she regarded the blond leader intently. He could make out curiosity on her features, but it was the other things he couldn't read so easily that bothered him.

And it only worsened when he noticed the blond leader regarding her just as curiously.

`That's him. That's the one!' Youko claimed urgently. `That's the one she's attracted to!'

`We can't know that for certain.'

`Are you blind? He's clearly the better looking of the low level lot. And she's obviously admiring him - why else would she be staring at him for so long?!'

Kurama didn't have an answer for that one.

`And look at the way he's staring back at her. He's mooning at her - it's disgusting!'

`He can't be mooning at her - he's trying to kill her. Don't exaggerate.'

`Who's exaggerating? There's no rule that says you can't lust after the enemy you're trying to kill.'

Kurama tensed at both Youko's words and the half step the blond youkai took towards them, his narrowed sapphire eyes still intent upon Keiko. Kurama's fingers curled into a fist as he fought back the urge to lunge at this threat who didn't seem to be capable of tearing his gaze from the woman beside him.

"So," the blond youkai drawled, "this is the brown-haired human girl that rumors have been talking about? She doesn't look like she has the power that tales have told of. But it must be true for you both to have managed to escape the trap."

Kurama went blank. `What is he talking about?'

`I don't know,' Youko answered, just as clueless.

"Uh, I think you've got the wrong girl," Keiko said nervously as she eyed the youkai warily. "I don't see why there'd be rumors of me having any sort of power. I'm just a normal human female."

"Are you not the woman of Urameshi Yusuke?"

Her brows snapped together in annoyance. "That's ex-woman, er, girlfriend. We're not together anymore."

"Then there's no mistake - you're the one."

"What are you talking about?" she asked in frustrated exasperation. "You're not making any sense at all."

"Don't play ignorant. It doesn't suit one such as yourself."

Keiko turned to Kurama. "Do you know what he's talking about?"

He shook his head.

"You can't hide the truth from me," the youkai scoffed. "Pretending to be a normal human is a good ruse-"

"I am a normal human!"

"-but I know who you are, girl. The one with power, the one who can help a youkai level up in class - you can't hide it."

Keiko stared at him, incredulous. "Are you insane?! Where'd you get an idea like that?!"

"There's no use denying it." The youkai's gaze shifted to Kurama. "His presence just proves it."

Her expression was as bewildered as her tone. "Proves what?"

"The results of anyone who possesses you." A grim smile touched his lips. "It's plain for anyone with eyes to see. The man named Urameshi Yusuke achieved a leveling up of power after being with you and was able to defeat high-class youkai he should never have been able to beat - even when he still stank of the stench of full human. The legendary Youko Kurama trapped in human shell was finally able to break free of his prison of flesh, able to transform at will back and forth between full human and youkai when such a thing should be impossible - all after being with you."

Keiko eyed him suspiciously. "Just what are you implying?"

"It's obvious, anyone that possesses you can use you to boost his power beyond the unknown limits." His smile turned wolfish. "Don't worry, girl. We won't kill you. We've still got a use for you."

"How comforting," she retorted sarcastically, not liking the murmurings amongst the youkai surround them as what their leader said struck a chord with them and had them eyeing her in a way she'd be more than happy to do without. "But I think you've got the wrong impression of me - I can't do anything like what you're saying. Any leveling up done by Yusuke and Kurama was done completely on their own. You're better off looking elsewhere if you want a power boost."

"That remains to be seen." He glanced at Kurama, almost dismissive in the gesture. "But first, we need to deal with your companion." He laughed, a sound that would have been pleasant under different circumstances. "In your human form, your power is halved. And having been through the rigors of one transformation already, that means you're too weak to shift back so soon to your true form with the drug still in effect!"

Keiko shot him an angry glare while Kurama remained silent.

"That's enough for us to take you on. It's a good thing you didn't die in that trap." He stepped on a clump of charred flesh and kicked it aside with an expression of disgust. "Putrid vermin! Good riddance to them - thinking they could control us and treat us like lesser things just because we accepted work from them. Hah! Now who has the upper hand?" He turned back to Kurama. "I thank you for getting rid of them for us. We were going to do it ourselves, but you beat us to it and saved us the trouble. As a reward, we'll kill you quickly. We'll kill you and earn ourselves a reputation for having been the ones to destroy the legendary thief." He smirked. "Don't worry. After you're dead, we'll take very good care of the woman."

"You haven't killed me yet."

Kurama's voice was soft, deadly. It had Keiko sliding him a quick wary glance but he wasn't looking at her. His focus was on the youkai before him and it had the living ring around them shifting uneasily.

Kurama had spent the duration of the blond youkai's loquaciousness taking inventory of his opponents while listening to his revelations of the rumors surrounding Keiko. The rumors, while interesting, wouldn't help so he only paid attention with half an ear. He could mull over it at a later date but the now needed him to concentrate on getting Keiko out of this mess.

Despite the numbers, he knew he could do this. He just had to be precise, fast, his timing perfect to eliminate them all as quickly as possible before they had enough leeway to do much damage with whatever their attacks might be.

And he had to be sure Keiko was safe while doing it.

The best strategy to enable him an opening for attack would be to make them lose control, shake their focus. And the best way to do that…would be to make them angry.

Unlike Youko with his ready taunts, Kurama decided to take a subtler route, for the moment anyway. Though weaker in power, these youkai - or at least the leader - appeared to have slightly more intelligence and cunning than the previous ones. That is, aside from their gullibility in taking such stock in rumors. If Kurama verbally attacked these youkai with words right off the bat, he had a feeling the blond leader would see through it.

So that meant he'd have to be more devious in sliding in the insults.

The youkai was already angered by Kurama's words. "I didn't realize you were in such a hurry to die, human."

Kurama's lips curved, but he said nothing. He merely stared back, quiet, waiting. The lengthening quiet while the blond and redhead locked gazes in a silent contest neither was willing to back away from made the surrounding youkai obviously nervous as they shifted restlessly, casting Kurama wary and nervous glances while tension seemed to double in the clearing with each passing moment.

"Roki," muttered one of the other youkai whose nerve broke first, "maybe we should just kill him now and take the girl."

"Yeah," growled another uneasily. "Just kill him now and get this over with."

Murmured agreement rose from others in the group.

"SILENCE!"

The blond youkai, or Roki, roared the command when the noise from his followers became too much for him. He tore his gaze away from Kurama to glare at the group to back up the threat in his voice with his black expression, his fury turning even darker at the realization of the unintentional `win' he'd just given to the enemy by being the first to break contact. It caused his words to come out harsh, vibrating with the force of his wrath as he snarled at his compatriots.

"I give the orders here - not you! I say when or when not to kill him, or anything else I think of to do to him. I command - you listen. And if any of you have an opinion to the contrary," sapphire blazed while his smile bared his teeth, "then you take it up with me right here, right now, though I think we all know what the results of confrontation will be. Don't we?" When the other youkai shrank back, afraid and cowed, Roki turned his furious attention back to Kurama and growled his heated demand. "Now, what was so damn funny?"

Kurama merely kept his silence, gaze cool and watchful, and lips slightly curved.

"Is the thought of your death really so amusing?" Roki sneered angrily, unfazed by the intimidating look. It was only adding fuel to his ire. "You human."

"You say it like it's an insult," Kurama finally responded, tone relaxed and calm.

"And you don't think it is?" Incredulity was stamped on his features. "Knowing the full glory of what you once were as true youkai, you're satisfied being reduced to the pitiful half-creature that you are now?"

"It has its compensations," was the easy reply.

"You've been corrupted," Roki spat in disgust. "Siding with the humans - you're a disgrace, betraying your own kind. Traitor!"

"As youkai are normally naturally treacherous, you're hardly in the position to label me such."

Roki's fists clenched at the coolly uttered comment as he glared at Kurama with a revolted sneer. "You've become tainted by living amongst humans so long, by living as a human so long. You really are a human. You've forgotten the pride and glory of being pure youkai like us."

"Pure youkai?" A red brow arched. "Now there's an oxymoron if I ever heard one."

"What?" growled Roki.

"I believe you understood me; you're more well-spoken than most others of your kind," Kurama said smoothly. "But drawing any sort of correlation between me and you…that's the true insult right there."

Sapphire eyes widened before narrowing with rage. "You dare to say that being human is better than us?"

"You said it, not me."

As Keiko's nervous glance darted back and forth between Kurama and Roki, she was sorely tempted to move away from the brewing disaster about to break over them. Much, she sensed, like it had when Youko had acted out a similar scenario. And she would have followed through on her instincts to shy away from immediate danger if doing so wouldn't have placed her closer to the other youkai positioned at their backs.

There was nowhere else to go.

`I certainly hope he knows what he's doing,' Keiko thought worriedly. `I'm going to be really ticked off if he gets us killed.'

Despite the wayward thought, she had the utmost confidence in Kurama. She'd put his keen intelligence over anyone else's any day of the week. Plus, he had an ancient kitsune spirit on his side who'd probably seen and done just about everything by now and she trusted that neither of them would let anything happen to her.

She believed in Kurama.

But she still wished he wouldn't taunt the dangerous youkai quite so much.

His style was subtler than Youko's had been, that she could see. Whereas Youko had been blatant and direct from the start with his insults almost to the point of exaggeration, Kurama's method was more slippery. He egged his opponent on with deliberate silences that the youkai clearly found offensive and then turned the enemy's own words against him!

Somehow, it was an insult worse than a direct barb.

And the youkai knew it too.

Even as she observed watchfully, the handsome features of the blond youkai contorted in his fury into a sight that was distinctly…less pretty. Anger caused the jewel-like sapphires of his eyes to darken in color until they were almost black while lips pulled back from his teeth in an enraged snarl, the visible muscles in his neck and arms bulging and trembling with the extreme effort it seemed to be taking to rein in his stormy wrath over having his pride mocked.

"What's the matter?" Kurama's cool voice slid through the taut silence. "Don't tell me a simple lowly human has managed to strike a mighty full-blooded youkai dumb with mere words?"

`Uh-oh,' was all Keiko had time to think before all hell broke loose.

"ATTACK!" Roki roared with a slicing motion of his hand.

Whether it was the roared order or commanding gesture, all surrounding youkai obeyed instantly and went into immediate action and moved as one -

Towards them.

Keiko tensed, sucking in a frightened gasp when a quick movement in her peripheral vision caught her eye. She focused on the activity just in time to see Kurama reach beneath the red of his hair and flick a wrist outwards.

"Rose whip!"

It was a blur of motion her eyes couldn't track no matter how hard she tried to strain her eyes and do just that. The only things she could pick up was the splash of red that seemed to spray the air around her, clouding her vision, while agonized screams clamored all about her, too numerous and coming from too many different locations for her to pinpoint any individual one while pieces of bodies fell to the earth in successive dull thuds.

Then steely bands suddenly snapped around her, dragged her backwards, and she screamed.

"Kurama!"

He whirled around towards the cry just in time to see her struggling in the grips of Roki whose muscled arms were coiled around her in a tight bind as he forcefully dragged her towards the edge of trees. The sight had fury clouding his vision in a dark mist and, without ever taking his eyes off of the scene playing out before him, a quick flick of his wrist had the neck of the youkai wrapped in the end of his whip abruptly snapping with a meaty crack, sending the head spinning off into the distance. Where it landed, he didn't care. The only thing on his mind was -

Keiko.

Full of rage, consumed with the need to take her back from the filthy grips of the youkai that held her prisoner, he headed towards them, his every step purposeful and radiating a danger that any intelligent creature would be wise to flee from. Roki looked up from the struggling girl, saw his furious figure -

And he grinned.

"Stop!" Roki commanded authoritatively.

Kurama ignored the order, continued approaching purposefully, slow and steady.

Roki just shifted an arm, one wrapped firmly around the struggling woman to keep her in place while the other crisscrossed over her chest with the hand positioned just inches from her face. The fingers of that hand were curled inward and, as any who cared to look on watched, the nails lengthened, sharpened until they resembled a handful of extended daggers.

And they were all aimed at Keiko's face.

She froze, struggles ceasing as she tried to be as still as she could for fear that any motion on her part would push those knife-like appendages across the scant distance that separated them.

Likewise, Kurama froze in place as well.

"That's right." Roki smiled maliciously. "You'd better do as I say from here on out. Or I'll kill her right now."

"You're bluffing." Kurama never took his eyes off of him. "You need her to increase your power."

"There are other ways to do that. She'd just be more convenient since we already have her at hand. I'd prefer to keep her but…if you force my hand, she'll prove to be expendable."

Emerald eyes flashed with gold.

`Let me out! Let me out, Kurama! Let me out right now!'

`No.'

`Kurama! You-!'

`He's serious. He'll kill her without hesitation if we don't play along. If we switch now, the sudden change could set him off and Keiko will be the one who winds up hurt. And neither of us wants that.'

`She'll be hurt if we don't do anything too!'

`I know that. But you have to calm down. We need to wait for the right moment to attack to prevent the least possible harm from coming to her.'

`Then make it soon,' Youko growled restlessly. `I don't like seeing another man's hands on her.'

`Neither do I.'

"No need to glare at me like that," Roki was telling him smugly. "You can't kill me with a look and there's not much else you can do otherwise."

Kurama just continued to glare, gaze chaotically swirling emerald and gold.

Roki's eyes narrowed at the odd gaze, made uneasy by it and angry by his uncertain reaction to a simple look. It made him edgy and he subconsciously tightened his hold on the frozen woman in his clutches as he swept a visual around the clearing, taking in the remaining members of his group that were still alive.

There were only a handful left.

"Restrain him!" Roki snapped at the youkai.

None of them moved.

They cast fearful glances from the pieces of their fallen comrades littering the ground to the slender young redhead who wasn't supposed to have been capable of doing as much damage as he had. And seeing how afraid they'd become of human-tainted dirt to the point where they disobeyed a direct command from him made Roki absolutely furious!

"What are you waiting for?" he growled harshly. "He won't do anything while I've got the woman's life in my hands. This is our chance to make a name for ourselves by killing off a legend and have other youkai recognizing us, respecting us - fearing us. You don't want to miss out on that, do you?" His smile was sharp as he noted the temptation in their expressions. "This is an opportunity we can't possibly lose, not when we've got this little sweetie," he gave Keiko a squeeze, missing the fury that flashed in her eyes, "in our grasp."

A couple of the youkai murmured agreement, nodded.

"Good." His gaze was hard. "Now make sure our red-headed friend here is a…bit more uncomfortable."

During the entire exchange, Kurama never said a word, never took his eyes off Keiko or her captor. He was unresisting when his arms were roughly grabbed, each restrained by a different youkai, and his rose whip discarded. He made no sound as Keiko gasped in protest when another youkai him gave him a sharp kick to the back of his legs, sending him crashing to the wet earth onto his knees while the ones gripping his arms twisted them painfully behind him as they all laughed cruelly at his ignoble position.

Throughout it all, he never said a word.

"Not so high and mighty now, are you?" Roki sneered.

Roki was taking full pleasure at the sight of his enemy's humiliation, a fitting punishment for the disrespectful tainted youkai that proved just who the superior race was. Smirking, never taking his eyes off the redhead whose contained fury was practically palpable, Roki's expression turned wicked as he decided to taunt him even further

He shifted his grip on the woman, adjusted his hold so that the hand that threatened to skewer her at any moment remained in place while the arm attached to it changed position so that it pressed hard against her upper torso, keeping her body pinned to his with a strong clasp that she'd be unable to break, even if she dared to risk an attempt to struggle free. Meanwhile, the arm wrapped around her waist loosened as he dragged his hand across the length of her body, stroking over hip and thigh before coming to rest just below the hemline of her skirt. His hand curved over the soft flesh, molding to it - and squeezed.

Green-gold eyes flared with chaotic fury while the woman went rigid.

The obvious displeasure the two expressed at the action only tripled Roki's satisfaction as his lips twisted cruelly as he gazed at the helpless redhead with dark triumph. Secure in his position of power, Roki took it to the next level and slipped his hand under the dark cloth of her skirt, burrowing beneath until -

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Roki leered. "Such a naughty girl."

Flushing furiously with anger and embarrassment, Keiko opened her mouth to voice a scathing retort when -

Kurama growled.

There were no words to it, but the message in the low rolling snarl was clear. Rage, warning, leashed power, and the promise of death - all were combined into that wordless sound that had the hair prickling on more than one being's neck.

But Roki…

Roki just smiled.

Unaffected, sure of his power, his victory, Roki enjoyed inspiring the rage and worry that he was drawing from the two captives. Especially the one once known throughout the Makai as a legend, the one that had fallen when he had cast his lot with humans, the one that dared to think even for a moment that he with his tainted blood was above them - above him. The tainted one needed to be taught a lesson about his place in the hierarchy of the world and Roki was just the youkai to do it.

"I can see the two of you found some way to entertain yourself down in that hole," taunted Roki. "Correction, I can feel it."

He acted on his words, squeezing the bare flesh within his cupping hand with a leering smirk aimed at the furious prisoner glaring back with a dagger sharp gaze of swirling gold and green. His smirk widened while his youkai compatriots chuckled meanly when another low snarl rolled through the air.

Roki could feel the fury and hate directed towards him from the helpless kitsune and the revulsion emanating from the girl in his arms as she shuddered, head bowing in shame as her long hair fell forward with the motion and concealed her features from view. They were powerless before him and the evidence gave Roki such a rush that his harsh triumphant laughter rang out into the darkening day that continued to rain its tears upon them all.

"I have to admit that you do have that famed kitsune cleverness," goaded Roki. "It's smart to keep her this way, makes her more easily accessible, doesn't it?" He chuckled as he mused, "She's very warm to the touch - makes me wonder if she'll be even hotter inside?" He cast the kitsune a sly look. "Shall we do a little test to see?"

Roki shifted his grip below the skirt.

The girl stiffened even more and made a low, rough sound.

And the kitsune…the kitsune lunged -

Only to be brought up short as the group of youkai that had hold of him tightened their grip. They drew his arms back sharply, painfully, but still he struggled madly, never taking his furious gaze off of the woman and the male who held her captive.

Kurama fought his encumbering restraints, desperate to get to Keiko and tear the bastard that held her to shreds. The rain aided him, made their grips on him more slippery and difficult to hold. He almost succeeded in breaking free too before a sudden pain exploded in his head and sent him reeling.

"Kurama!"

The desperate feminine cry steadied him, helped him swim through the pain and focus past the rage as he hunched over the ground. He stilled, breathing heavily as he tried to compose himself.

`Don't faint on me, Kurama.'

Despite himself, a small smile curled his lips. `I won't.'

`You'd better not. We still have a lover to win back.'

`Not going to try convincing me to let you take over?' Kurama asked curiously. `I know you were, are, just as angry as I am. Don't you want to finish this?'

`Of course I do! But you were right, it's too risky to shift right now and tip them off to how much power we still have. And also…you were the one who was struck. You deserve the right to this.'

Kurama read the underlying meaning to his words. `I didn't know you had such confidence in me.'

`Hmph…just don't disappoint me.'

"Enough of this!"

The roughly barked words drew his gaze upwards. Kurama paused to take in the worried expression on Keiko's pale face before shifting behind her to the one that had spoken.

No longer smirking, Roki's features were tense as he looked back angrily and Kurama knew then and there that his opponent was no longer fooled. Foreboding stole over him, Youko sharing his concern as Kurama calculated just how likely his chances were of breaking free and getting to Keiko before Roki acted.

`The odds are not good, Kurama.'

It was unfortunate that Kurama could only agree.

Their concerns were quite valid as the skirmish had put things in a new light in Roki's mind. The way the kitsune had almost shaken loose from the others, something he shouldn't have been able to do while still under effects of the drug that had been administered to him, told Roki more than words that the enemy had more power than originally suspected.

And that made him a threat.

Furious that he had miscalculated and made angry that that miscalculation had been brought to light by a tainted human-youkai, Roki couldn't let the insult go unpunished. And also, because the limits of the kitsune's power were unknown, he couldn't be allowed to live a moment longer and given even the slightest of chances to ruin all of Roki's plans.

Roki couldn't take that risk.

And that left only one option.

"Kill him," Roki ordered sharply as the woman in his arms gasped and the other youkai gave him their attention. "And remember, kitsune," he pressed the tips of his razor sharp nails against pale flesh until a trickle of red ran down only to be washed away by the rain, "you'd better hold still because one wrong move from you will mean the girl's death."

Roki's expression told all that he meant business. Disregarding the feminine bundle in his hold who was suddenly overset with a fine trembling, Roki swept his gaze over his remaining followers who were looking back at him with anticipatory glee before settling on the red-headed man who held an inscrutable expression on his features as he returned the stare with silent regard devoid of fear or any other discernable emotions. To Roki's mind, the kitsune's actions were mocking, almost daring, and it was with great pleasure that he reiterated his growled command.

"Kill him now. And make sure it's brutal."

With ugly chuckles, obeying the command with obvious mean pleasure, the youkai began to descend. And while the kitsune remained motionless, staring silently ahead, the terrified cry of one lone female rang out through the clearing as the youkai closed in on their hapless victim.

"Kurama!"