Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Radical Dreamers ❯ Mine for the Taking ( Chapter 4 )
[ P - Pre-Teen ]
By: Tsu-chanB 
Anime/Manga: Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 05.11.2009 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.6K | Visits: 244 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 05.11.2009 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.6K | Visits: 244 | Status: Completed
Chapter 4: Mine for the Taking
Erev remained silent for a long minute as she made certain that her voice was devoid of all shakiness. There was no need to give the demon another reason to lord his power over her. She rolled herself into a sitting position facing her newest captor.
“What’s the point in that?” The surety of her voice gave Erev a new confidence and she slowly began to see that the demon’s demand was anything but rational. “First you want to kill me for not leaving and now you want to kill me if I try to do just that. Make up your mind or just kill me and get it over with.”
His first response was to remove the katana from beneath the folds of his cloak and set it on the ground beside him: a warning. Then he spoke.
“You do not know what possesses you. While not strong enough against me, the demonic spirit you house could prove an asset in the raid I plan to carry out. He is the one I want. You’re just the medium.”
Erev crossed her arms over her chest, affronted that she was being rescued by Serith even while he was unconscious. “Too bad for you he’s out. You shouldn’t have hit so hard.”
With a ‘hmph’ of annoyed disinterest the demon closed his eyes again and ignored Erev completely. The girl glared at him in turn, a growl growing low in her throat. Anger began to overtake her fear. She fumed in silence for several moments, mad at the demon, at Serith, and even at Yusuke for unknowingly forcing her into her current situation.
Erev was sick of this ‘adventure.’ She wanted nothing more than to go back home and mourn her brother’s death like a normal person. She wanted to go back to school, to normalcy, and forget all about the existence of spirits and demons. There was no need for all that, her life was complicated enough as it was.
But as the pounding of Serith’s presence in the back of her mind began, she knew that would never be possible. She was too deep in it. Erev was unbreakably connected to the spirit awakening inside her. And although he had promised her control and the ability to return to normal life, she had a feeling that the small demon before her would negate that agreement and draw Serith further into the world of the supernatural. Erev had no choice, no say in the matter. Her life was never going to be the same again.
Erev’s train of though stopped cold as she groaned and clutched at her aching head. Serith was pressing against her control, pushing for dominance and driving her painfully into submission.
‘Girl,’ he finally snarled, annoyed at her resistance. ‘Do not fight against me. It is better for both of us if I have control.’
‘No,’ was Erev’s forceful response. “We had an agreement and I already know if you talk to this demon that you’re going to break it. I’m not going to just stand by and watch you throw my life away.’
Erev crumpled against the ground and shut her eyes tightly, blocking out the rest of the world. The pressure opposing her mind increased tenfold as the spirit began to speak. ‘I don’t need your cooperation. This body is mine when I choose and yours when I allow it. And now it’s time I put you in your place.’
Rather suddenly the pain stopped. Erev had lost. Her eyes opened and she regained her sitting position under Serith’s direction. Erev pushed against him, too stubborn to give up despite her mental weariness. Serith easily brushed her attacks off, turning most of his attention to the now alert demon across from Erev.
“I will admit that you have some skill,” Serith said. “But be aware that I am not in my true form. If I was, you would have been the one on the floor.”
“I don’t give a damn. You’re weaker now. And the only reason I didn’t kill you is because I thought you might become an asset for me.”
“I am no one’s lackey.” Serith fairly snarled. After a moment he relaxed and continued. “However, I am indebted to you and I am not against the idea of a partnership. Explain.”
The demon nodded. “Myself and two others are interested in obtaining the three Dark Treasures. We are still gathering information and our veteran thief suggested getting another member for our group as a precaution. You are entitled to anything in the Underworld Vault that you can grab while we pick up our items. You’ll be watching your own back once we get there. Got it?”
“That does sound entertaining. And there is an item of value to me contained in that Vault.” Serith smirked. “I accept your offer.”
“Good.”
Erev sat bored in the background of the conversation. She lost track of time as the demon, who she later learned was named Hiei, continued to give Serith information on their heist.
Erev had finally given up. She knew the position she was in was a bad one, and she knew she had no power to get out of it. Her feeble attempts to overpower her possessor gave weight to that fact. At some rare moment she would gain control, either by happenstance or a lack of concentration on Serith’s part. But these lucky freedoms were few and far between; not enough to raise any hope over.
So for Erev the next month passed in slow agony. Serith never allowed her to regain control of his own volition. There were a few slip ups, but Erev never went anywhere. It wouldn’t matter if she did, Serith would just come running back to the group of thieves. She silently hoped that once the heist was over that Serith would let her have control so she could go back home. She worried about her mother, about Keiko and her school friends; she wanted more than anything to let her mother know she was okay, that Atsuko hadn’t lost both children in one day. But that wasn’t possible in her position and her pleas with Serith went unheeded.
Serith did nothing useful during that month of waiting. He either slept, ate, or picked fights with other demons. Erev wanted to forget those days, to block them out of her mind completely. Because unlike her counterpart she was affected by the blood spilt and lives destroyed, even if they did look like monsters. She didn’t wish that sort of death on anyone.
But there was good that came of her interactions with the demons. She met Kurama, who was empathetic of her situation even though he did nothing to help free her. He explained it in one of those instances when Erev was free of Serith’s control. While he wanted to help her with her problems he had his own to deal with first, namely obtaining the Dark Treasures from the Underworld. He did promise to help her afterwards though, and that gave Erev enough hope to retain some sanity in those hours and days of mental confinement.
Then that fateful day arrived. They had already been prepared for some time, but the four bandits were waiting for a chance to actually get to the Underworld. Erev wasn’t sure how, but Hiei caught wind of a portal large enough for all of them to fit through. And the hunt was on.
Once they arrived Kurama took control. The other three kept out of his way for the most part while he broke through the various seals and locks on the doors. Any guards that happened to see them were quickly dealt with by Serith, Hiei, and Goki.
But then one of the guards tripped an alarm just when Goki was about to finish him off as they stood outside of the opened vault. Red lights blinked in sequence as an annoying blaring began. A whole slew of the weaker guards rushed down the hall to greet them. The four retreated into the vault, quickly taking hold of the three Dark Treasures on display in the center of the room.
Serith helped fight against the guards spilling in through the door for a little while. As soon as the opportunity presented itself he retreated to the lesser items lining the eastern wall, leaving the others to fight off the diminishing number of sentinels.
Erev observed the spectacle with growing curiosity, wondering what kind of supernatural item Serith would choose to take. The answer was less than impressive. Erev was almost disappointed.
Serith broke the glass container perched upon a slender pedestal. There were two small jewels within, one a deep sable and the other a dull white with slivers of blue running through it. He took only one, the darker of the two. It looked unimposing to Erev, but then again she didn’t know what it could do or what powers it contained. It could have been the most powerful item in the room. Wasn’t there a saying that big things came in small packages?
Serith returned to the others, killing two of the four remaining guards in the process. Hiei took care of one and Goki prolonged the last one’s death, squeezing the guard’s skull in one of his large hands until even Erev could hear the bones breaking.
“That’s enough, Goki,” Hiei commanded irately.
“Yes,” Kurama agreed. “Our time runs short.”
Serith was already walking out the door. “Leave him to his fun. He can stay and get caught so we don’t have to.”
“Shut up,” Goki snarled, releasing the guard and following the three as they made their escape.
They returned the way they came, barely making it past the closing exits and increasingly stronger sentinels. The portal the four entered through was still standing where they left it and they returned to the human world, landing in a rundown back alleyway. They had made it out of the Underworld’s reach unhindered.
Hiei silently led them into heavier commuter traffic. The four walked for a long while until they came upon a shopping plaza. They quickly became lost from sight in the crowd. Erev knew that they had already decided on a place to go after the heist: the beginnings of a large forest outside of town.
“Erev!?”
Hearing her name, Erev instinctually thought to turn in the direction she heard the voice come from. Her head didn’t move and she realized Serith did not share that intuition. But that voice! She knew who it sounded like, who she wanted it to sound like and wished desperately for only a chance to look. She knew it really wasn’t possible, but she could never mistake her brother’s voice for anyone else’s.
There was nothing to be done about it. A crowd of people passed between them in Erev’s peripheral vision and she knew she had lost him in the throng. It was just another dead hope.
The bandits continued on until they came out from under the shadow of the city. Hiei and Goki almost immediately began gloating and testing out their new magical items. Kurama slowly began fading into the background.
Serith stared at the small gem in Erev’s hands, smirking lightly.
‘What does it do?’ Erev finally asked. She didn’t really expect him to answer.
‘While extremely rare, soul mergers are not completely unheard of. This, the Tear of Hate, allows for a partial separation between souls bonded together.’
‘So . . . I guess that’s a good thing.’ Erev wasn’t sure what to think of it. While not having to see all the same things that Serith did sounded like a good thing, she didn’t know how exactly a partial separation would look, or feel for that matter. She hoped it wouldn’t be painful, but knowing how the rest of the merger worked she doubted it would be that easy.
“What!?” An exclamatory snarl from Hiei reigned in Serith’s attention.
“What do you mean?” he continued, facing Kurama. “Are you bailing out on us?”
“That’s right,” Kurama responded. He stood relaxed with hands in his pockets.
Hiei spat, “Whimp. You’ve gone soft since you started living among the humans.”
‘He says it like that’s the worst thing Kurama could ever do,’ Erev thought. ‘Besides, he’s not a complete pushover. He is the one that got us into the vault, after all.’
“Don’t think you can just walk off with a split of the loot,” Goki added. “Give us that mirror.”
“Yes,” Serith cut in, moving to join the others. “I’d be more than willing to use it for you. It’s been a while since I’ve done any real terrorizing.”
Kurama’s eyes narrowed a fraction. “I’ll keep it, thanks. I need it for something.”
“You always had a smart mouth,” Goki growled, rearing an arm back for a punch. “And it’s been asking for this!”
“How about this: I take all three treasures,” a new voice interrupted from the edge of the circle of trees. “And you guys save me some trouble by taking each other out.”
Erev couldn’t believe her eyes. She knew it was his voice she heard earlier, but wasn’t willing to believe it was the truth. Yusuke had been dead to her, after all.
‘Did he never really die in the first place?’ She wondered. ‘Did I get in this mess for nothing?’
Erev wanted to talk to him, to hug him and beat his face into the ground. It was always like her idiot brother to drag her into all of his messes and she was sure this would be another of them. That was the only way she could explain how he was there in the first place.
“How do you know about the Dark Treasures?” Goki asked.
Yusuke opened his mouth to spout out some sarcastic answer, but stopped as he finally caught sight of his sister.
“I knew it!” He shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at her. “I knew it was you, Erev! What the hell are you doing hanging out with these creeps? And dammit, don’t you know I’ve been tearing down the city looking for you? Where have you been?”
Serith let out a laugh that settled into a dark grin. “I’m not quite what you’re looking for, boy.”
Erev remained silent for a long minute as she made certain that her voice was devoid of all shakiness. There was no need to give the demon another reason to lord his power over her. She rolled herself into a sitting position facing her newest captor.
“What’s the point in that?” The surety of her voice gave Erev a new confidence and she slowly began to see that the demon’s demand was anything but rational. “First you want to kill me for not leaving and now you want to kill me if I try to do just that. Make up your mind or just kill me and get it over with.”
His first response was to remove the katana from beneath the folds of his cloak and set it on the ground beside him: a warning. Then he spoke.
“You do not know what possesses you. While not strong enough against me, the demonic spirit you house could prove an asset in the raid I plan to carry out. He is the one I want. You’re just the medium.”
Erev crossed her arms over her chest, affronted that she was being rescued by Serith even while he was unconscious. “Too bad for you he’s out. You shouldn’t have hit so hard.”
With a ‘hmph’ of annoyed disinterest the demon closed his eyes again and ignored Erev completely. The girl glared at him in turn, a growl growing low in her throat. Anger began to overtake her fear. She fumed in silence for several moments, mad at the demon, at Serith, and even at Yusuke for unknowingly forcing her into her current situation.
Erev was sick of this ‘adventure.’ She wanted nothing more than to go back home and mourn her brother’s death like a normal person. She wanted to go back to school, to normalcy, and forget all about the existence of spirits and demons. There was no need for all that, her life was complicated enough as it was.
But as the pounding of Serith’s presence in the back of her mind began, she knew that would never be possible. She was too deep in it. Erev was unbreakably connected to the spirit awakening inside her. And although he had promised her control and the ability to return to normal life, she had a feeling that the small demon before her would negate that agreement and draw Serith further into the world of the supernatural. Erev had no choice, no say in the matter. Her life was never going to be the same again.
Erev’s train of though stopped cold as she groaned and clutched at her aching head. Serith was pressing against her control, pushing for dominance and driving her painfully into submission.
‘Girl,’ he finally snarled, annoyed at her resistance. ‘Do not fight against me. It is better for both of us if I have control.’
‘No,’ was Erev’s forceful response. “We had an agreement and I already know if you talk to this demon that you’re going to break it. I’m not going to just stand by and watch you throw my life away.’
Erev crumpled against the ground and shut her eyes tightly, blocking out the rest of the world. The pressure opposing her mind increased tenfold as the spirit began to speak. ‘I don’t need your cooperation. This body is mine when I choose and yours when I allow it. And now it’s time I put you in your place.’
Rather suddenly the pain stopped. Erev had lost. Her eyes opened and she regained her sitting position under Serith’s direction. Erev pushed against him, too stubborn to give up despite her mental weariness. Serith easily brushed her attacks off, turning most of his attention to the now alert demon across from Erev.
“I will admit that you have some skill,” Serith said. “But be aware that I am not in my true form. If I was, you would have been the one on the floor.”
“I don’t give a damn. You’re weaker now. And the only reason I didn’t kill you is because I thought you might become an asset for me.”
“I am no one’s lackey.” Serith fairly snarled. After a moment he relaxed and continued. “However, I am indebted to you and I am not against the idea of a partnership. Explain.”
The demon nodded. “Myself and two others are interested in obtaining the three Dark Treasures. We are still gathering information and our veteran thief suggested getting another member for our group as a precaution. You are entitled to anything in the Underworld Vault that you can grab while we pick up our items. You’ll be watching your own back once we get there. Got it?”
“That does sound entertaining. And there is an item of value to me contained in that Vault.” Serith smirked. “I accept your offer.”
“Good.”
Erev sat bored in the background of the conversation. She lost track of time as the demon, who she later learned was named Hiei, continued to give Serith information on their heist.
Erev had finally given up. She knew the position she was in was a bad one, and she knew she had no power to get out of it. Her feeble attempts to overpower her possessor gave weight to that fact. At some rare moment she would gain control, either by happenstance or a lack of concentration on Serith’s part. But these lucky freedoms were few and far between; not enough to raise any hope over.
So for Erev the next month passed in slow agony. Serith never allowed her to regain control of his own volition. There were a few slip ups, but Erev never went anywhere. It wouldn’t matter if she did, Serith would just come running back to the group of thieves. She silently hoped that once the heist was over that Serith would let her have control so she could go back home. She worried about her mother, about Keiko and her school friends; she wanted more than anything to let her mother know she was okay, that Atsuko hadn’t lost both children in one day. But that wasn’t possible in her position and her pleas with Serith went unheeded.
Serith did nothing useful during that month of waiting. He either slept, ate, or picked fights with other demons. Erev wanted to forget those days, to block them out of her mind completely. Because unlike her counterpart she was affected by the blood spilt and lives destroyed, even if they did look like monsters. She didn’t wish that sort of death on anyone.
But there was good that came of her interactions with the demons. She met Kurama, who was empathetic of her situation even though he did nothing to help free her. He explained it in one of those instances when Erev was free of Serith’s control. While he wanted to help her with her problems he had his own to deal with first, namely obtaining the Dark Treasures from the Underworld. He did promise to help her afterwards though, and that gave Erev enough hope to retain some sanity in those hours and days of mental confinement.
Then that fateful day arrived. They had already been prepared for some time, but the four bandits were waiting for a chance to actually get to the Underworld. Erev wasn’t sure how, but Hiei caught wind of a portal large enough for all of them to fit through. And the hunt was on.
Once they arrived Kurama took control. The other three kept out of his way for the most part while he broke through the various seals and locks on the doors. Any guards that happened to see them were quickly dealt with by Serith, Hiei, and Goki.
But then one of the guards tripped an alarm just when Goki was about to finish him off as they stood outside of the opened vault. Red lights blinked in sequence as an annoying blaring began. A whole slew of the weaker guards rushed down the hall to greet them. The four retreated into the vault, quickly taking hold of the three Dark Treasures on display in the center of the room.
Serith helped fight against the guards spilling in through the door for a little while. As soon as the opportunity presented itself he retreated to the lesser items lining the eastern wall, leaving the others to fight off the diminishing number of sentinels.
Erev observed the spectacle with growing curiosity, wondering what kind of supernatural item Serith would choose to take. The answer was less than impressive. Erev was almost disappointed.
Serith broke the glass container perched upon a slender pedestal. There were two small jewels within, one a deep sable and the other a dull white with slivers of blue running through it. He took only one, the darker of the two. It looked unimposing to Erev, but then again she didn’t know what it could do or what powers it contained. It could have been the most powerful item in the room. Wasn’t there a saying that big things came in small packages?
Serith returned to the others, killing two of the four remaining guards in the process. Hiei took care of one and Goki prolonged the last one’s death, squeezing the guard’s skull in one of his large hands until even Erev could hear the bones breaking.
“That’s enough, Goki,” Hiei commanded irately.
“Yes,” Kurama agreed. “Our time runs short.”
Serith was already walking out the door. “Leave him to his fun. He can stay and get caught so we don’t have to.”
“Shut up,” Goki snarled, releasing the guard and following the three as they made their escape.
They returned the way they came, barely making it past the closing exits and increasingly stronger sentinels. The portal the four entered through was still standing where they left it and they returned to the human world, landing in a rundown back alleyway. They had made it out of the Underworld’s reach unhindered.
Hiei silently led them into heavier commuter traffic. The four walked for a long while until they came upon a shopping plaza. They quickly became lost from sight in the crowd. Erev knew that they had already decided on a place to go after the heist: the beginnings of a large forest outside of town.
“Erev!?”
Hearing her name, Erev instinctually thought to turn in the direction she heard the voice come from. Her head didn’t move and she realized Serith did not share that intuition. But that voice! She knew who it sounded like, who she wanted it to sound like and wished desperately for only a chance to look. She knew it really wasn’t possible, but she could never mistake her brother’s voice for anyone else’s.
There was nothing to be done about it. A crowd of people passed between them in Erev’s peripheral vision and she knew she had lost him in the throng. It was just another dead hope.
The bandits continued on until they came out from under the shadow of the city. Hiei and Goki almost immediately began gloating and testing out their new magical items. Kurama slowly began fading into the background.
Serith stared at the small gem in Erev’s hands, smirking lightly.
‘What does it do?’ Erev finally asked. She didn’t really expect him to answer.
‘While extremely rare, soul mergers are not completely unheard of. This, the Tear of Hate, allows for a partial separation between souls bonded together.’
‘So . . . I guess that’s a good thing.’ Erev wasn’t sure what to think of it. While not having to see all the same things that Serith did sounded like a good thing, she didn’t know how exactly a partial separation would look, or feel for that matter. She hoped it wouldn’t be painful, but knowing how the rest of the merger worked she doubted it would be that easy.
“What!?” An exclamatory snarl from Hiei reigned in Serith’s attention.
“What do you mean?” he continued, facing Kurama. “Are you bailing out on us?”
“That’s right,” Kurama responded. He stood relaxed with hands in his pockets.
Hiei spat, “Whimp. You’ve gone soft since you started living among the humans.”
‘He says it like that’s the worst thing Kurama could ever do,’ Erev thought. ‘Besides, he’s not a complete pushover. He is the one that got us into the vault, after all.’
“Don’t think you can just walk off with a split of the loot,” Goki added. “Give us that mirror.”
“Yes,” Serith cut in, moving to join the others. “I’d be more than willing to use it for you. It’s been a while since I’ve done any real terrorizing.”
Kurama’s eyes narrowed a fraction. “I’ll keep it, thanks. I need it for something.”
“You always had a smart mouth,” Goki growled, rearing an arm back for a punch. “And it’s been asking for this!”
“How about this: I take all three treasures,” a new voice interrupted from the edge of the circle of trees. “And you guys save me some trouble by taking each other out.”
Erev couldn’t believe her eyes. She knew it was his voice she heard earlier, but wasn’t willing to believe it was the truth. Yusuke had been dead to her, after all.
‘Did he never really die in the first place?’ She wondered. ‘Did I get in this mess for nothing?’
Erev wanted to talk to him, to hug him and beat his face into the ground. It was always like her idiot brother to drag her into all of his messes and she was sure this would be another of them. That was the only way she could explain how he was there in the first place.
“How do you know about the Dark Treasures?” Goki asked.
Yusuke opened his mouth to spout out some sarcastic answer, but stopped as he finally caught sight of his sister.
“I knew it!” He shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at her. “I knew it was you, Erev! What the hell are you doing hanging out with these creeps? And dammit, don’t you know I’ve been tearing down the city looking for you? Where have you been?”
Serith let out a laugh that settled into a dark grin. “I’m not quite what you’re looking for, boy.”