Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Fox or Snake? ❯ A New Hope ( Chapter 6 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Fox or Snake?
a fanfic by: Tori Singer

Disclaimers: I don't own shit.

Warnings: This fic contains Yaoi, male male love. ditto..

Notes: A special thank you to all the readers and reviewers. I'd like to state again that this idea came from an old Aladdin episode I watched on TV. So don't come ranting to me about it, like a certain SOMEONE did. I'm aware of it, so tell me something I don't know. Sheesh.

Hope:

"Well...we made it." Kurama stated, looking at the surrounding area of the park. Yuusuke snorted and crossed his arms.

"If you call using a tree for a landing pad and wrecking my MOTHER's car 'making it'!" Kurama cringed at the accusing tone in his friend's voice. Kuwabara agreed.

"Yeah, K'rama, I told you that you should've let me drive and not that little shrimp!!" He huffed and slumped in the seat. Kurama noted that Hiei was very quiet, unusually silent. He stared a bit more before noticing the solemn look on his lover's features. He tilted his head to the side.

"Hm? What's wrong koibito? We made it, now we just have to find the portal." He smiled and reached for the door handle. Before he got a chance, the door opened and there was Hiei, holding his hand out in invitation. Kurama blinked and glanced over at the vacant driver's seat next to him. Blinking, he turned and placed his hand in Hiei's. The fire demon pulled the snake/fox/human out of the car. Kurama immediantly stretched, straightening his 'tail'. Kuwabara shuddered at the scaly tail. Yuusuke scowled, taking a final look at the car before hunting around for the Reikai portal. Kurama slithered behind Yuusuke, but not before taking Hiei's hand in his for reassurance. Hiei glared at the joining with disdain, a small flush on his cheeks. Kuwabara sighed and sauntered along after them.

After what seemed like hours, they finally came upon the portal. Kurama sighed in relief.

"Finally, we'll be able to find some answers." He turned and faced all his friends and his lover.

"I'd like to say my gratitude to you all. You don't know how much this means to me." His emerald orbs shimmered in the afternoon sun. Yuusuke flushed and jammed his hands in his pockets. Kuwabara laughed nervously and scuffed his feet.

"Aww, K'rama, we're your friends, we'd follow you to the depths of Hell if need be." Kuwabara stated truthfully. Hiei scowled at the orange haired oaf. He swore if Kuwabara made a move on Kurama......
Hiei was brought out of his thoughts by a slight squeeze to his hand. He turned his eyes upward and met two curious green eyes.

"Hiei, what's wrong?" Kurama was genuinely worried. Hiei had been solemn since the car and he was barely short of killing Kuwabara with a glare. Hiei hn'd and averted his gaze. He pulled out of Kurama's grasp and approached the portal. The team watched as Hiei slightly turned his head.

"Yuusuke, sorry about the car." He whispered before jumping through the portal. Yuusuke's mouth dropped open. Kuwabara started sputtering incoherintly. Kurama just raised his eyebrows and smiled. He put a hand on Yuusuke's shoulder.
The teen looked at his redheaded friend.

"Yuusuke, I'm sure he meant it. Don't feel bad, I'll get you another car...." He smiled before joining his lover on the other side of the portal. Finally gaining composure, Yuusuke grabbed Kuwabara's shoulder and stepped through.
************************************************************************ ***************************************************

"Hmm, quite a predicament indeed..." Koenma trailed off, rubbing his chubby chin with an index finger. Hiei scowled.

"Well?! Don't you have any information at all?!" Hiei fumed, glaring at the little god. Koenma sighed.

"I was getting to that you foul mouthed jerk!" Hiei snarled.

"Why you little pompous-" Kurama wrapped his arms around his lover's shoulders to keep Koenma's health in tact. Yuusuke sweatdropped.

"If you are all done fighting, can we please get some answers?" He rubbed his temple. Koenma cleared his throat.

"A direct cure for this....disease is unheard of-" Kurama's eyes widened.

"WHAT?!" Came a cry from the Reikai Tantei. Koenma sighed.

"BUT, there is a certain tree that grows in the Makai. It's said to heal any kind of illness, or disfigurings. This tree existed in the old world, but none are sure if the tree even still exists. It's your only shot. I'm sorry Kurama."
Kurama averted his gaze to the floor.

"I see...." He murmured, mainly to himself. Hiei scowled again.

"That.........tree will be there." He said low and menacing. Kurama jerked his eyes to Hiei, who was looking pretty darn dangerous at the moment. He let a small smile play across his face.

"Thanks Hiei." He meant it, he was glad to have his lover be so supportive. And Yuusuke and Kuwabara are a great help as well. Kuwabara took this moment to put in his two cents.

"But.....what happens if there isn't a tree?" Three pairs of eyes glared at him while one stared at the floor. Kuwabara backed up.

"Was it....something I said...?" Yuusuke smacked the orange haired teen upside the head.

"The tree will exist! Kuwabara! You know as well as I do that there HAS to be some kind of cure!" Kuwabara rubbed his head. He smirked and puffed out his chest.

"I the Great Kuwabara will find this tree and save you K'rama!" He started his annoying horse laugh. The group cringed. Yuusuke ran to the door.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" He went to open the door but Koenma stopped him.

"Yuusuke, don't you want this file? It shows the tree's estimate location, what it looks like, stuff like that." Yuusuke sweatdropped.

"Oh...oh yeah." He laughed nervously before snatching the paper from his boss. Looking it over, he handed it to the redhead, who stuffed it in his shirt pocket gracefully. Hiei stroud over to the door in his little menacing way and swung it open. Looking back to the group, he signaled for them to come on. When they left, Koenma sat at his chair, pondering aloud.

"I've only heard of one person using spells like this. And if it's who I think it is.......be careful Kurama, Hiei. This will put your love to the test. If you hold out, I'm sure everything will be alright." He picked up one of the many papers on his desk before stamping it and putting it in another pile.
'I hate paperwork.'
************************************************************************ ***************************************************

"So K'rama, where's this tree s'pposed to be located?" Kuwabara walked along the path, hands behind his head. Kurama stopped slithering and pulled out the folded piece of paper.

"According to this, it's located in the old part of the Makai, far to the East." Kuwabara had a blank look on his face.

"What? What do you mean, the old part?" Kuwabara stopped walking and let his redheaded friend catch up. Yuusuke, in the lead, also stopped. Hiei trudged along closely to his lover. Kurama stopped in front of Kuwabara.

"Yes, years ago, the old Makai used to be the only part of this world that had civilization. Then, Makai lords fought over lands, destroying their own lands and homes. A lot of the smaller demons escaped the living hell and started adapting to the bare lands to the West, North, and South. Soon, the old Makai was unsuitable for life, and the demon lords and other demons took refuge in these lands, and over the years, the Makai as we know it was born." The fox flipped his hair over his shoulder and stared at Kuwabara. Yuusuke looked awed.

"Wow, I never knew that....how'd you know Kurama?" Yuusuke pondered. Kurama smiled.

"Because Yuusuke, I was there as a kit." Yuusuke about fell over.

"What?! How old are you? Really?!" His face showed disbelief. Kurama chuckled.

"I am thousands of years old Yuusuke. A Youko's lifespan is extremely long, as long as the Youko takes care of itself, they will last for many centuries Yuusuke." Kurama stated matter of factly. Yuusuke stared. Kuwabara looked baffled, and Hiei just looked indifferent. Kurama sighed.

"Enough questions, let's head East and see what we come up with." He stated, changing direction. Hiei hn'd and followed closely. The others shook their heads before following the two lovers into the forests.
************************************************************************ ***************************************************

"DAMN!! They know about the tree?! Curse that little god. He's too smart for his own diaper. But we'll see if they make it. Hiei.....watch your lover closely....anytime now....." Malicious laughter echoed throughout the kingdom. Mukuro settled back in her chair, watching.

"I've just got to see what Hiei does when his sees this.....heh hee eh."
************************************************************************ ***************************************************

Kurama slithered along, feeling hot in the Makai heat. The others weren't fairing too much better. Kuwabara knew that plant life would die if he lifted his arms. Yuusuke thought along the same line. Hiei thought about who would be stupid enough to mess with his fox. Kurama stopped, causing the others to stop too.

"It's hot, let's get some water. There should be a stream over in that area." With that, he started off the path and through some bushes. Hiei went to follow but Yuusuke stopped him. Hiei snarled. Yuusuke quickly defended himself.

"I think Kurama wants to be alone for a while, y'know?" When Hiei only snarled again, Yuusuke let his friend go. Hiei hopped up in a tree directly above him. Yuusuke smiled.

"Thanks Hiei..." The teen sat down at the trunk of the tree, next to an exausted looking Kuwabara.

Kurama slithered on down through the trees, reaching a crystal clear stream. Smiling, he took the cantine he had and started filling it up. Hearing a rustle behind him, he turned around in time to see two strong looking demons leering at him. Startled, Kurama leapt up...uh..sort of..

"ROSEWHIP!" Hearing the familiar cry, Yuusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei took off toward their friend. Kurama waited, the rose didn't transform. Baffled, Kurama cried out when he was struck in the face by a large fist. Kurama struggled to right himself. He tried summoning plants, but that failed too. It seemed his Youko side was being blocked by something. The two demons sauntered closer, confidance in their steps. Kurama back up into a tree. By this time, Yuusuke and the others arrived. Quickly noting the situation, Hiei took action against the first youkai, while Yuusuke and Kuwabara unleashed thereselves on the second. Kurama could just stand there, baffled about his predicament.

'It has to do with my snake part, I'm sure of it. Maybe it's canceling out my Youko side?' Before he could think more, a fist slammed through the tree next to his head. Kurama unattached himself from the tree and backed up against the hillside, cornered. The third demon closed in on the frightened looking kitsune. Fearing for his life, Kurama felt a power surge through him. He felt his body twist and groan. He opened his mouth and two poison covered fangs popped out, along with a forked tongue instead of his human one. Feeling his senses grow sharper, Kurama felt the sudden need to distribute his newly aquired poison into the nearest target. Unfortunatly, it happened to be the demon, who looked unsure all of a sudden. With a hiss, Kurama launched himself onto the demon, sinking his fangs into the flailing demon's neck. A few gurgle sounds later, and the demon fell to the ground, skin purple from poison, dead. Kurama breathed deeply. He felt his fangs retract a little, apparentally because he got rid of some of the poison in his system. He looked around, noting the two other dead demons and his three friends who were looking at him funny. Kurama blinked.

"What?" He asked innocentally. Hiei's face was pale as a ghost. Kuwabara looked short of passing out. Yuusuke's eyes were bulged as he frantically gestured to the water. Kurama was puzzled. He slithered down the bank and took a look in the water's surface. He gasped and looked down at his hands. He was now snake all the way up. The red scaly skin went all the way up to his neck. His red locks remained intact, but he felt the difference inside his mouth, his tongue was thin and forked. He ran his new tongue over the tips of his fangs. He reached up and felt around his face. Noting seemed out of place, the water didn't show any difference other than his now amber colored eyes. They had a thin black slit as pupils. He pulled his tail around and looked at it. He had some sort of spikes on the back, going all the way up to his lower back. The quills looked like they had poison in them as his teeth did. He glanced once more at his hidious discovery before turning toward his friends. They seemed to be relatively normal, with the exeption of Kuwabara laying unconcious on the ground. He averted his gaze from his friends' sympathetic looks. Hiei felt a pain in his heart. He slowly approached the fox, before placing a hand on his shoulder. He marveled at the roughness of the skin. Kurama flinched away.

"Please.....don't touch one as hidieous as I..." He slithered away from his lover's touch. Hiei was taken aback.

"Greeneyes..I.." He didn't know what to say. What could you say to someone when something like this happened? Hiei tried again, and Kurama backed away. Hiei didn't let him. He grabbed Kurama's chin and forced him to look in his eyes.

"Kurama, don't worry, I'm sure we'll get things back to normal, in the meantime, don't be saddened. We're here for you..." Kurama was touched. He was positive they'd abandon him now.

"But....what if these new instincts take over or something? What will happen if I bite one of you?" Kurama choked back a sob. Hiei pulled Kurama against him. He felt the kitsune tense and then relax.

"Greeneyes, listen, nothing like that will happen, I'm sure of it. I love you Kurama." He nestled against Kurama red locks. The fox wrapped his scaly arms around the koorime.

"I love you too Hiei. Always." The lovers sat like that for a minute or two. Yuusuke finally got Kuwabara into the waking world. Standing next to a tree, they waited til' the two lovebirds finished and walked over to them. Yuusuke unfolded his arms.

"Ready to go?" he asked. Kurama sniffled and nodded. Hiei grabbed Kurama's hand and gave it a tight squeeze. Kurama gently squeezed back. Smiling at eachother, they followed Yuusuke and Kuwabara down the path. Where it leads? They will just have to find out....

Author's Notes: Sorry about taking so long to update. My internet had been shut off, so sorry. Hope you liked! Peace out.
-Tori