Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Strange and Unexpected Beginnings ❯ Reversal ( Chapter 9 )

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

Ah, after a bit more procrastinating, finally decided to get off my arse and upload chapter nine! AS always, I want to thank my readers and reviewers. *blows kisses* Here's the next chapter for y'all.

“Random” dialogue

` Random' thoughts Random emphasis

() () (): Denotes scene and/or time change

Vocabulary Corner: (Pay attention, children!)

Kitsune: Fox

Youkai: Just demon pretty much in this case

Sweatdrop: (Yes, there are some readers that are unfamiliar with this!) A large tear-shaped drop that appears on the back of characters heads; denotes embarrassment.

Suffix “Chan”: Used at the end of one's name; a term of affection for girls or crushes

Suffix “ Kun”: Same as Chan except for Males

Previously:

“If you expect to be one of them, you must obey like on e of them. Because if you continue down the path you've started…” He nuzzled her cheek with his own

“I'll be forced to administer the same punishment on you. Neither of us wants that, do we?” His grip loosened. Natsumi slowly shook her head, not admitting to herself that for at least an instant, he had terrified her.

The smallest trace of a smile crossed his face. “ I knew you were intelligent enough to understand.” He gently rubbed the dried blood from her cheek.

“…You seem so tense. I'm not going to murder you now, you know.” He stood up and walked away, leaving Natsumi staring after him.

“Let's head back. I'm sure they all think I did murder you or something….and as for your injuries…those wounds will heal fairly rapidly on their own.”

Natsumi followed hesitantly, careful to stay out of his way.

He turned to face her again.

“I couldn't be more overjoyed with the way you turned out. You…you're really going to be something. I can hardly wait to see you in another few years…” He left the clearing, leaving a confused and startled Natsumi to follow.

Chapter 9: Reversal

Time's being continued to move on, each day an ephemeral existence. With every celestial wakening came more developments. Everything seemed to move on at such a rapid pace no matter what occurred.

Lurking in the forest, sheltered by the shadows of the trees, the figure went unnoticed by the unwary demons below. Absorbed in their meaningless banter, they would hardly notice their company, whose youki was well suppressed anyway. Fools, as they all were, but what kind of thief would she be if they had noticed. She'd be laughed out of the camp. Thank kami-sama, her skills were far from amateurish. Gazing down at her targets, she was disappointed to find that they didn't seem to have much. She was always given the little assignments like this, but it was better than nothing at all. Better than being completely babied like before. Another demon took his place beside her.

“ Hmm…they don't look that rich, but we've gotten some pretty good stuff at times. The lack of security's gonna be a huge plus.” Kitanaru grinned in anticipation, although part of him was still embarrassed to be forced into babysitting Natsumi. Why did they always have to force these kinds of jobs on him?

“…”

Natsumi didn't really like the situation either, but how else would she be allowed to go?

“Do they really have good stuff in there? They look so poor…” She frowned.

Kitanaru laughed. “ You'd be surprised at what you can find. Like one time, we went to these run-down, shabby-looking ruins, and found this huge diamond statue buried under there! Of course, Youko took it for himself before we got much of a look at the thing, but it was gorgeous!”

Natsumi smirked. “ Well, he won't get the next one!”

“ Heh. You've become possessive too I see. God, now we have two of `em.”

She shrugged. “ I just want my slice of the pie.”

Behind, them, the remainder of the small group snorted. What the hell was their leader thinking, assigning them to the lowest group, with a little kit even? These morons had better have some decent junk for this kind of inconvenience.

The demons approached a rundown building, a `mini-mansion' seemed to be the best word, though it wasn't nearly as extravagant looking as it's relatives. It seemed to be the only establishment around this area. No witnesses; an added bonus, not that they needed such handicaps. Their victims (some type of reptilians) entered, still unaware of their stalkers.

“ When do we attack!” Natsumi inquired eagerly. They may be insignificant jobs, but it was still fun for her.

“Now. Let's go.”

Natsumi didn't need to be told twice. In an instant she and the elfin one were flying toward the ramshackle building. Grumbling and complaining, the stragglers were left to follow the trail.

Inside the demi-mansion, it was almost completely empty, there were barely any furnishings to be seen. Cobwebs blanketed the walls and the rusted chandelier that was suspended above them. Everything seems to be black, white or gray, with no hint of any color in the atmosphere, a bleak, hallow room.

“ How can they live in a place like this?” Natsumi frowned at a strong odor coming from who knew where. What a creepy place.

“ It's a good hideout, a haven. They look like criminals themselves.”

“Well, then they gotta have something to steal.” Kitanaru could almost see the saliva coming from the child.

“ Yeah.” He smirked

“So, do we attack them first, or get the treasure first.”

“…” An eager young girl.

Behind them, the demons were growing impatient.

“Come on, Kitanaru! Why are we wasting time worrying about the child! We could have killed them and been on our way by now!”

“Yeah!” More irritated grumbles.

“ Shut up….damn. “ Before he could address Natsumi again, there were outraged cries. The `reptiles' had found out someone was in their home that wasn't supposed to be

“What the hell do you think you're doing!” The first drew a sword

“ Heh. Some thieves to be caught off guard like this. What idiots. “

The second of the two grabbed some object that looked like it had two scythes on each end. He swung it around, in a poor attempt to frighten the group, which of course it didn't,

Natsumi couldn't have looked more overjoyed.

“Why don't you do the honors and get the treasure? I'll keep these fools busy,.” Kitanaru asked.

“ Really! Hell yes!” She took off down one of the seemingly never -ending hallways, in search of the loot.

“You guys go with her, and don't give the girl any trouble. These bastards are mine.” Kitanaru geared himself up for battle as the reptile attacked. His subordinates were understandably unhappy to have to answer to a child. Their threats and curses made that clear.

“Now. ..” Kitanaru drew his own swords, his hands protected with what seemed to resemble metal knuckles

“ Come on, suckers.”

“ You little prick!”

“ We'll butcher you!”

Kitanaru attacked, showing no mercy. After all, ignorance didn't merit compassion.

“ Come and get it!”

In the meantime, Natsumi hadn't found the treasure yet, but instinct told her she was steadily making progress. She loved the bloody fights as much as the treasure, if not more. They wouldn't be troublesome at all. Turning a corner, she stopped to explore a random room, sniffing out the rewards. An empty room, save for some rotted skeletons. Several of the rooms after that were identical, to the group's annoyance and disappointment. It looked like mutiny for while. Eventually the thieves were facing the rear side of the staircase from which the reptiles had attacked, but Natsumi still kept running, sprinting up the stairs. Looking back down, they saw Kitanaru had come through his fight unscathed. At least the hardwood floor had some new decorations; a couple of corpse sofas, which went pretty well with the rest of the room.

“What the hell...didn't find it, I take it?” He laughed.

Natsumi scowled. “Yeah.” She spit on the floor, obviously a habit picked up from her elders.

“What about through there?” he motioned to the open doorway at the top of the staircase.

“It's probably through there.” By the time he finished Natsumi was already through the doors.

“Heh…sharp one. “ They sprinted off in her dust.

It seemed to be one gigantic hallway with faded red carpeting, the ONLY thing of color. There were old pieces of armor and weapons that were too dull to have any real use or value in the Black Market. They passed through an old dining hall, though it was hard to tell with all the dust and lack of light. Chair's were overturned, and battered and shattered plates (some with rotted) food remained on the tabletop. No doubt the whole place was like this.

“ I think we're getting closer…I might have seen a layout at some point.”

At the right end of the dreary dining room, there was ANOTHER set of black doors, metal.

“ Heh…extra reinforcements…now I KNOW we're getting close.” He took out what looked like some kind of crowbar, and forced it into the lock. He put his full strength into it, and after several minutes, the doors opened slightly. Eager to get to the goods, the other demons pushed on the doors, eventually forcing them fully ajar.

“Some protection.” Kitanaru snorted. Everyone attempted to shove past each other in their greedy eagerness.

“Geez, calm down , calm down. Now I remember...we HAVE been here on a few occasions...they always have some pretty little trinkets.”

“ Never brought me..” Natsumi stared pointedly at her playful partner-in-crime.

“ Oops...hehe...Well, you're here now..” He shrugged.

The search for the treasure room was a time consuming event, but no one knew how much time exactly. Eventually Natsumi had wandered away, probably thinking she could find it by herself.

“ Damn it…” Kitanaru cursed. “She always does this. Not my fault if she falls into someone's trap and dies a horrible death…”

“Oi! C'mere!”

He and the remainder of the grouchy team went to see what she wanted.

“Don't tell me you found it, Son of a bitch…”

The excited glitter of gorgeous riches gleamed in Natsumi's eyes as she emerged from one of the rooms with a small sapphire bust, of some rich demoness from a long time ago.

“…Sure you ain't Youko's long lost love child?”

She giggled, and motioned for the others to go and grab their share as well. Within about fifteen minutes, they all were burdened with multiple sacks, except for Natsumi, who choose to carry one large bundle. It didn't seem to bother her though, as seen by her grinning throughout the trip back through the vacant place.

“Damn. This is just sad…why do we keep coming back here? There's no challenge at all.” An anonymous demon piped up.

“Well, we've come so many times we've taken care of most of 'em. Wouldn't put it past Youko.”

“I doubt it. Why would they still be staying here?”

“The same reason we keep coming back. Morons. “

“Heh…we're just saps for this crap, huh?”

Kitanaru smirked. “You forget that your dashing leader took care of the bulk of them out in the Main Hall before…” He ran a hand through his hair. “ It wouldn't be so easy if it hadn't been for this brave thief.”

The others groaned in exasperation.

“ You give yourself too much credit”

“Oh, brother.”

“No more goddamn narcissists!”

“ Don't forget me!” Natsumi spoke up. “ I'm even better than you!”

More groans.

Kitanaru burst out laughing. “That's a good one.”

“…” There was a lot of arguing on the trip back to the camp. Only a few weaker demons had challenged them, but they didn't live to tell about it. Back at the campsite, another group was getting ready for a raid of a much larger scale. They were preparing to leave just as Natsumi's group returned. Being the curious child she was, Natsumi was harassing the members of the group about the assignment.

“Where ya going?”

“What're ya stealing!”

“Is there lots and lots of pretty gems and gold?”

“Can I go?”

“What if you hid me in a sack?”

“Why're you all so grumpy?”

Many were irritated within a few more minutes. What kind of sweets was Youko feeding the girl? After a while, their only responses were submissive grunts, choosing to ignore her for the most part. Their leaders emerged from one of the tents.

“ Damn. This is supposed to be a raid, not a funeral.” Kuronue laughed. “ What the hell is wrong with you guys?”

Over the mumbling he heard something about a `kit whose mouth never closed.'

“ Ah.” He spotted Natsumi. “ Feh. Go away..” He shooed her away, inviting her assault at the same time. He ducked to avoid the blow.

“Whatever. Let's go, before I'm old.”

“Too late.” Natsumi retorted.

Kuronue stood still and counted to ten before stalking off, so he wouldn't end up beating the hell out of her. Despite popular belief, he couldcontrol his temper.

Youko sighed. “beats the hell out of me why you two hate each other.”

“I don't hate him, I just need SOMEONE to bug.” She shrugged, and went her own way, wherever that was, as did the kitsune.

By the time they approached the target of their agenda, dusk was already upon them , and the moon was beginning to make it's first appearance of the evening. Although it would still be a few more hours before night fell, and they would be out by then. The group was not known for time-consuming raids, after all. Their were surrounded by exotic forests on all sides, which more resembled a jungle of some sort than one of the usually opaque forests of Makai. Deep within this tropical forest was said to be a rather expansive and extravagant mansion, that supposedly housed particularly rare and exquisite items. It was also said to have top-notch security, an aspect that surely had to be tested. The place was far more luxurious than the ramshackle palaces they assigned to satisfy the kit. Their view of it's unique structure widened every step they took toward it, until they were at the front, and then through the doors nearly as quickly. Although it was pretty, it was nothing they hadn't seen before; a large marble structure with the typical statues of demonic gods and such at the gates. No guards out front? Strange, well rather stupid. It would have been pointless anyway, but they could at least afford the effort. Youko sincerely hoped that it would be somewhat challenging this time, and not a complete insult to his intelligence.

“ Yawn ” Kuronue stretched. “ Let's just get this over with, so I can catch some sleep.”

“ That's all we ever seem to do.” Youko smirked.

“You're a bad influence on me. Lazy bastard.” Kuronue retorted.

“ Maybe you wouldn't be so tired if you got rid of that fifty-pound necklace.” He motioned at a moderately sized pendant around the bat's neck.

“ Like hell I will, asshole. This baby's too valuable…” Kuronue fondled it with a certain affection that had always confused Kurama, but he rarely said anything about it.

The inside of the mansion was all marble as well, the interior decorated with silver statues. The sofas in the den were black as well , but the drapery was either black or a very deep shade of red. Black and silver seem to be the to basic colors for many of the larger rooms and the great hall. Now and then a guard would walk by, making sure there were no troublemakers. Most of the time the thieves concealed themselves, or quietly disposed of a body.

“Mmm…maybe most of them are near the treasure. That would make more sense.” Kuronue offered.

“Likely,” Youko replied in a lowered voice. It would not do well to draw attention to themselves, and he still wasn't fully sure about the security. One never knew where some fatal trap lay.

“ Heh. Bet even your sixth sense couldn't get us through here.”

“ You're on. For your information, my nose knows the way.”

“ Ok, great leader. Show us.”

“ No faith in my ability?”

“ None at all, sir.”

“ Fine, be a bitch. Go steal your own treasure, then.”

Even through the seemingly endless hallways, with an infinite number of different rooms, the fox seemed to have an idea of where he was going. No one knew how. The fox DID have a nose for treasure. There was little light in most of the hallways, save for the occasion torch, but Youko didn't really need it . They were all trained to complete raids in the dark. Kurama would never tolerate weak fools who had a need for such trivial things. No `ordinary' thieves were permitted in his band; no amateurs.

Kuronue fiddled with his pendant again.

“ Will you cut that out! It's annoying.”

“ …I'm bored.”

“We've only been wandering around the place maybe an hour.”

Children, they all were. Simple minded children in grown up bodies.

“Are we there yet?”

“ sigh ”

“Well, are we?”

“….”

“Can you hear me? Can you hear me now?” Kuronue spoke directly into Youko's ear.

“ I hate you all…”

“Annoyed?”

“Not in the least.”

“Liar.” Kuronue grinned.

“Tch. Oh look, we're here.”

Before them stood one large doorway set with heavy steel, mixed with the black marble they'd seen throughout the rest of the manor. At least, it looked like one door, maybe two but they'd still be good sized, seven by twelve at the least. Playing across it's surface were scriptures of runes untranslatable to the group, with the possible exception of Youko. In the center there appeared to be a large series of locks, each made of either copper, silver, gold or some other material, so that one might have to find several types of keys. A thin barrier, barely visible to the eye shielded the gateway, two small stone statues on either side of the door.

“ Feh. It all amounts to the same thing in the end. How disappointing.” Youko pouted.

A gruesome plant wormed it's way up his arm, yellow saliva melting the ground where it hit. The instant it's multiple heads touched the barrier, it faded.

“Mm…still not gone yet. It's a little stronger than the others. And this was one of my stronger pets…not too bad. But if this is all they have for security, I almost weep for them.”

Kuronue snorted.

“ Pets, he calls them. More like freaks of nature that'll bite your head off the moment you blink.”

They found themselves in a vast room, far larger in surface area than each of the rooms surveyed before. It's ceiling was not a ceiling, but what seemed to be a glass dome, of what color it was difficult to confirm, perhaps a tone of blue. Around it's perimeter, there was a lit torch that provided adequate light to catch at glance at the fruits of their labor. They scattered, in pursuit of specific things that caught their interest. It seemed that anything went treasure-wise…there was weapons and armor, gold and silver statues, murals and mirrors, which weren't nearly as common in a typical home. These were what caught the head bandit's curiosity. The first thing of interest was a large mirror with gold framing, and so he took the opportunity for a through examination.

` Hmm... this is top-quality material. I bet I could get a pretty penny for something for this.' He took the moment to gaze at the reflection, as if checking to see that he still looked his best. Satisfied that he was still the best looking of the bunch, he turned to check the status of his theft-mates. They were all still slobbering over their bounty, what a shock, not that they could really be blamed.

“ A mirror?” Kuronue questioned. “ Insecure again?” He grinned.

“Shut up. My tastes are more complex; I am a complex man you know.”

“ * snort* What a prissy man.” Kuronue had gems a plenty hidden all over his body. His was set for now. He'd swiped a particularly nice set of daggers as well.

“ Heh. Say what you like. I have a finer appreciation for the simpler things, unlike the ignorant around me. Besides, I can always come back for more. And I did get some other things…” He motioned to his various pockets, all presumably stuffed with the usual precious gems.

“ Good. For a moment there, I thought youhad lost your pride.”

Just as Kurama was about to make another smart reply, some sort of siren went off, at volume enough to break some eardrums.

“What the hell?” Kuronue swore. “ How'd it get set off?” The entrances to the room were beginning to seal up .

“ Who gives a damn! Move it! Unless you want to rot in here forever!”

The situation worsened as a violent storm of spikes and swords fell from the ceiling, slaughtering bandits immediately upon impact. It must have been at least half the group's innards that kissed the air in a sea of crimson, with bergs of remains floating the midst. Youko and Kuronue managed to slide under one of the doors before they were diced to pieces, but there was no time to see if anyone else did. And even they did not come out unscathed, both were bleeding profusely from puncture wounds in their abdomens and/or arms. There was no time to slow down, however, as all the exits in the place seemed to be sealing up, and the moment they got caught they were as good as dead. Someone was trailing them, Youko could pick up that scent anywhere.

“Feh. Someone tipped off the hunters.” He frowned. That was why they'd bed dead if they were busted. He narrowly ducked a spear sent his way. The solid gold statue crumbed upon impact with the assault too. A brief glimpse back at the barred gateway to the treasure room informed the kitsune they no one else had made it. Their remains would not even exist now.

“ If I ever get my hands on those sons of bitches…” Kuronue winced in pain. They'd got him good, the bastards.

The escape route was never-ending, one turn led to a hallway that seemed to stretch forever, and their bleeding hadn't exactly slowed. Their pursuers were not left behind for an instant. There wasn't even time for Youko to leave behind some of his plants. It was obvious they really wanted the bounty on the two, dead or alive.

“Shit.” Kuronue was beginning to run out of steam. Even he was doubting whether he'd make it out this time. Thankfully the main entrance hall has just ten or so meters ahead, not that it would stop the predators in this ironically reversed game of cat and mouse. He felt something loosen and turned to see his pendant fall back into the corridor.

“Damn it!” Kuronue leaped after it, forgetting his lack of energy and the mansion's exit, which was merely a matter of feet now.

Kurama turned when he felt Kuronue's youki moving in the wrong direction.

“ Kuronue! What the hell are you doing!”

“ My pendant! I'm not going any damn place without it!”

“ We don't have time for your sentimental bullshit, leave it!” He responded tensely. Why did Kuronue have to pull this crap now, of all times? He could steal something even better then that damn scrap of junk later on..

Kurama stopped.

“Damn it!” He started off in the same direction his partner had gone, and froze when there was a crashing sound and Kuronue's scream.

“That dumbass…!” He dashed as quickly as he could to his cohort to hurry up and get them the hell out of there. It would only be a matter of time before they were trapped now, and from the sounds of it, Kuronue had botched it. Highly unlike a high-class thief.

“….”

The sight was horrific. AT first glimpse, one would say Kuronue was trapped inside of a cage that appeared to be made of some type of bamboo, but it was more that that. The `bars' of the `cage' seemed to have passed right through Kuronue, to the kitsune's horror. As he approached, Youko sincerely hoped it was some kind of optical illusion. The blood-bed forming around his of his comrade butchered that possibility. Kuronue was alive, but his youki was beginning to fade. He yelped as he tried to adjust himself to face Kurama, his breath staggered

“ Why the hell did you do that!” Kurama demanded angrily, plotting a way to get him out of this without actually killing him.. The bamboo carried a potentially fatal amount of reiki, no doubt a plot by the bounty hunters to ensure that they got something out of all this. Kuronue voiced what the subconscious part of Youko knew.

“ Forget it. There's no time left, and I'll have already bled to death anyway .” Kuronue smirked. “ You'd be an idiot t waste this time anyway.”

“ Look who's talking. Listen to the bullshit you're spewing, already delusional.”

“…* hack* *wheeze *” Kuronue gagged and coughed up what looked like a gallon of blood, to Kurama's dismay.

“ You'd better go on…. “ He was starting to struggle in his speech. “ What the hell's the point in both of us getting knocked off here?”

Kurama was furious, but there had to be a decision made and fast. He could hear the footsteps now. It wouldn't be long before they had his head…HE just couldn't admit to himself that there was nothing that could be done….he couldn't accept it.

Kuronue heard the sounds echoing from behind as well.

“Run damn it! You can still save yourself, so your reign of terror c an go on.” HE grinned a bit, then his facial expression tensed as he noticed Youko still faltering.

“ Run!”

Kurama reluctantly obeyed, not letting any emotion take advantage of him at this stage.

Behind him, Kuronue smirked.

“ Catch you later.” A group of hunters approached the captive, smirks etched upon their facial features.

Kurama hurtled through the forest, keeping well aware of the fact that he was managing to put some distance between himself and the hunters. He knew he would…he always did. No surprise there. It was a bitter victory this time however. The taste of bile rose in his throat, but he kept it down. Such weaknesses should best be left for the fools. It was harder this time to keep going on, a little bit harder to go back, but he would. Weaklings would run away from facing such things…death was a natural occurrence in the Makai, he needed to remember that. But he would never forget Kuronue. Nor the last sound he uttered; a terrible shriek that echoed for a very short time before falling into silence.

Natsumi grumbled as she lay stretched out across the grass.

“ Where are they?”

It was getting a bit late, and they should have been back by now. They were just probably loading up a bit more. Heaven forbid they should ever have enough. Not that she was bitter about her own collection of treasure as compared to theirs. Not at all.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a slightly beaten-up kitsune's appearance, to her surprise. She ran over with many questions on her tongue.

“What took you so long?” “ What happened?” “Where's everyone else…?”

She was silenced by the blank look she received.

“ There were…hunters.” He started in a monotone. “ “Everyone was killed.” He walked over to the kit and embraced her, ignoring his wound.

“What about that annoying bat…?” It scared Nat5sumi to see him acting this way.

He nuzzled her, not bothering to lift his head.

“He's gone. He won't be coming back”

Ah, finally got that done. I have to reformat my chapters ever so slightly for mm.org so that's part of the reason why they're not up right away. Hope you enjoyed it, though I never wanted to be cruel to Kuronue…just his death fit. I really like him despite my portrayal of him…really did that for the humor. Ah well, nearly bedtime so I better hurry up and upload this. R+R and Later days!