Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ The Lady of Green ❯ In which the twins update ( Chapter 10 )

Firelung: We're finally back!

Icelung: Ok, now before all you happy readers decide to go bizerk on us, we have some very good excuses for not updating.

Hiei: This ought to be good.

Kurama: * nods *

Fl: First our computer caught a virus and had to be completely nuked…

Kurama: It was a useless piece of junk for over a month…

IL: Then our dog got a hold of the floppy disc we were saving everything on…

Hiei: The only thing left was a chunk of mauled plastic…

Fl: And we had to see to the reconstruction of our house…

Kurama: Evil demon armies are not meant to build houses…

IL: And we had to get a restraining order for VAOH…

Hiei: Not that it does any good…

Fl: And deal with disgruntled piñata-stick wielding fans…

Kurama: She's still tied up in the closet you know…

IL: O.o Why don't you go and get her out?

Kurama: Why me?

IL: Because she likes you. She won't snap you in two the minute she sees you.

Fl: And last but not least- we got stuck again!

IL: ^_^ So now that that's over, Firelung can do the disclaimer!

Fl: I/We do not own YYH. I/We only own Noric, Nova, Josie, Ivy, Enya, Vlad, and Roogie!

Kurama: My chapter is next, right?

Fl: Right! And we're going to revert back to the "I" P.O.V., so the "I" in this is Nova.

Hiei: * smirk * And I know what's going to happen…

Kurama: … should I be worried… ?

IL: Absolutely! ^_^

Kurama: O.o * gulp *

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

About ten feet down the tunnel I released Kurama's arm and started laughing, with his soft chuckle only moments behind.

"Do you often treat him like that?" Kurama asked, turning his head to look at me while we walked.

I shook my head. "No. to tell you the truth, he probably could have gone down this tunnel as easily as I could. He's good at sitting back and noticing the little things."

"So, why did you say he should go down the fourth tunnel?" Kurama raised a quizzical eyebrow.

I felt a conspirator's grin grow on my face. "He needs to spend more time with Ivy."

"Oh really? Are they a couple?" he asked, sounding politely interested.

"Not yet, anyway." I looked at him frankly as a crooked smile grew on my face.

He nodded in an `oooohhhhhh' way. "So the spies have a devious side too?" he teased.

I made a noise between a snort and a laugh and said, "More then you'll ever know. It actually started out as Josie's idea, and Enya and I just kind of jumped in."

The corners of his mouth twitched upward.

We fell silent after that, but the silence was a comfortable one.

~He's a handsome one, ~ Lianna commented at the back of my mind. ~Perhaps you two could get together at Murky Waters when this is over…~

~Maybe… ~ I started… then realized what I was doing. ~No! I can't think of that kind of stuff! Not with him! ~ I shouted back at Lianna, half desperate, half surprised.

~Why not? ~ The elf-maiden demanded, ~he's intelligent, suave, handsome…~

~and on probation. ~ I stated flatly. ~he's a bad guy, remember? ~

I could almost feel the sly grin she grew on her non-existent face. ~You always did have a thing for the handsome villain, didn't you? ~

ACK! I blanched and sputtered a bit mentally before forming a suitable retort, but was prevented from sending it by a soft voice asking, "Nova is something wrong?"

I blinked a couple of times before I realized the emotions of my conversation with Lianna must have shown on my face. I felt my cheeks heat up. "Err, no, just… thinking."

He sent me a look I couldn't quite decipher, then in a split second it was gone, and he was back to being polite and mildly interested. "Forgot to turn off the coffee pot, perhaps?" he smiled at me then, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. Something inside me rankled. (A/N: am I using that word right?)

"Something like that," I answered cautiously and pasted a small, semi-frigid smile on my face. Oh yes, he's wonderfully charming. He writes me off as a boy-crazy air-head the first chance he gets. Although I had a smile on my face, I sneered inwardly. Go ahead and think I'm a dimwit. You'll see.

~I knew you were a smart girl, but this is wonderful! ~ Lianna gushed. ~Playing hard to get! This should be fun! ~

It took a massive effort not to fall over, and I chose not to comment.

Then the lights went out.

"Oh great," I muttered to the darkness, "hang on a sec. I'll get us some light."

"Did you bring a flashlight?" he asked.

I shook my head, then realized he couldn't see me in the dark. "No," I said, "I have something better." I dug around in one of the pouches on by belt for a moment, silently thanking Ivy for having the common sense to suggest we stop by and get our gear. I finally pulled out a small seed about the size of my pinky nail and slowly began to feed my spirit energy into it. As the newborn plant slowly wrapped its tiny vines up my arm, I secured the base of the plant to my hand by twining the spindly roots around my fingers. Meanwhile, a tiny, glowing bud was sprouting up near my shoulder and growing in size. When it was about as big as a shooter marble it slowly opened to reveal a large, six-petaled flower with a brightly glowing center. When I was sure it was firmly attached to my arm, I turned to look at Kurama. "Better?" I asked.

His look of surprise was quickly replaced by intense curiosity and he asked, "What is that?"

I gave a lopsided grin and answered, "According to the scientists of the world each new species must have a scientific name- in Latin." I grimaced. "I could tell you the full name but it might take a while to get it all out. We generally call them Stellas, short for Terra Stella, which roughly means earthbound star."

"I've never seen anything like it." He reached out to touch a petal, then pulled back and asked, "Is it safe to touch?" I nodded and he gently stroked a petal, feeling the texture and thickness with careful fingers. "They look vaguely familiar, but I can't quite place them… Where did you find them?"

"I created them." I couldn't help the hint of smug pride that crept into my voice.

"Created them?" came the surprised response. "How?"

I shrugged. "Plant genetics. And I spend a lot of time in the spirit world greenhouses. You'd be amazed at what a little T.L.C. can accomplish. Shall we move on?" At his nod, we moved forward again.

For a few moments after that, I was too happy at showing Kurama up to notice anything strange, and probably wouldn't have noticed anything at all if Lianna hadn't said, ~Nova, do you sense that?~

I snapped out of my happy euphoria and concentrated on the area around me. ~What am I looking for? ~

~Its odd… an old power. Older then the elves even. But trapped. ~ She was silent for a moment before saying; ~I honestly can't make heads or tails of it. ~

"Welcome wise travelers" a voice from beyond the circle of light said. It was even and low, with a touch of a feminine tone to it.

"Who's there?" Kurama called to the darkness. I noticed he held a rose in right hand. Where did that come from? I wondered.

"Worry not Rose-Wielder, for your true fears lie beyond me."

I pulled my daggers from their sheaths. "Show yourself!" I shouted, sounding more confident then I felt.

"If that is what you desire, Light-Maiden." A single sandy colored paw revealed itself to us as the source of the voice crept into our globe of light. After the first paw came another, followed by two powerful legs, and the sleek, sandy-brown body of a lion. Attached to the lion's body was the head of a young woman.

"A sphinx." I said in awe.

"The Sphinx." She corrected. "Singular. One."

I chewed on by bottom lip in nervousness, but didn't lower my guard. Maybe Noric should have come.

"Sphinx. I believe I've heard that term before. They were the tomb guardians of ancient Egyptian culture. They were riddlers and puzzle makers and were often used to guard pharaoh's tombs," Kurama remarked thoughtfully.

The Sphinx nodded once. "I am here to guide you through the obstacles this tunnel will present. There will be puzzles, riddles, and other such occurrences. I cannot help you in anyway, other then to guide you to the next obstacle. Should you fail to pass any of the tests, I will kill you." And at that she turned and started to pad down the tunnel. "Follow me."

Kurama and I looked at each other, with me still trying to comprehend the equation of failure = death.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"This is your first test." The Sphinx turned to us and sat on her haunches. "I will wait for you at the end." And then she disappeared.

"Well that was helpful," I stated flatly.

Kurama looked at the bare walls and turned in a slow circle. "Do you see anything? If this is a puzz-"

~slish~

"WATCH OUT!" I tackled Kurama as a bladed pendulum swung across the spot he had been standing in only seconds ago.

"You ok?" I asked, sitting up.

Kurama sat up also. "My pride is a bit wounded, but I think I'll manage. Thanks for that."

I ginned widely at him. "Not a prob-"

~slish~

~slish~

~slish~

~slish~

~slish~

~slish~

Six more bladed pendulums fell from the ceiling, as Kurama grabbed my shoulders, pulled me against him, and rolled us across the floor, with each pendulum missing us by mere centimeters.

When we finally rolled to a stop I blinked a few times and asked, "Are we still alive?"

Kurama chucked above me, wait… above me? ACK! I felt my cheeks flame as I realized our roll to safety had put us in the "interesting" situation of him on top, me underneath. I struggled for a tactful way to ask him to get off. "Err… uh… Kurama, uh…"

Kurama's head jerked up and we rolled again as a last blade came flying at us out of the wall, and hit the floor with enough force to send fragments of stone through the air at us. We stopped again, and I let my head sag to the floor with my eyes squeezed shut. No more blades, I chanted mentally, no more blades, no more blades, no more blades…

"Hmmm… Nova?" Kurama interrupted my thoughts, sounding hesitant. "I think it's, uh… safe. We can, um… move… if you want."

I opened my eyes and discovered that Kurama and I had traded positions. With my cheeks on fire again, I quickly sat up and pulled myself away. "Oops…" I laughed nervously, "sorry."

He sat up and rubbed the back of his head, smiling tentively. "I suppose we're even now…"

WHAT?! What did he mean by even? Does that mean he had planned on us landing the way we did? My heart suddenly started beating faster. Of course not, I told myself, don't be stupid.

"Congratulations, Wise Travelers." The Sphinx appeared out of the shadows. "You have made it through the first task. I must say, in all the centuries I have guarded this pass, I have never seen anyone cross the pendulums in such a way. Perhaps I will go hungry tonight after all."

Kurama and I gave each other sidelong glances. I wasn't sure about him, but being eaten was not high on my list of things I wanted to do today.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A little while later I wasn't so sure that being eaten was as horrible a death as I first thought compared to a few of the deaths I could have suffered in those traps.

Speaking of traps, we were kind of in the middle of one.

"What next?" I called to Kurama, who was hanging from the ceiling by his rose whip.

"Can you reach the blue tile? It's a little to your right."

I was in a handstand, with more blood in my head then I'd ever had, and beginning to lose my balance. The thing was, losing my balance would be fatal, as the entire room was rigged with bombs under the floor. Only the star-shaped tiles were safe.

"I think so," I called back and slowly began shifting my weight to my left hand, in order to move my right to the blue tile.

"Easy now…" Kurama cautioned. Easy for him to say, hanging safely from the ceiling.

My hand eased gently onto the tile and I held my breath. Oh please, oh please, oh please… I was rewarded by a soft clicking noise.

~That doesn't sound good, ~ Lianna cautioned.

"YA THINK?" I accidentally shouted aloud, recognizing the sound of a second trap being set.

"Nova!" Kurama suddenly called, "The walls are closing in! They'll put pressure on the other tiles!"

I swore violently, aware that if we didn't hurry we were going to be blown to pieces. "I have an idea!" I yelled over the growing din of moving stone. "Can you swing to the other edge of the tiles?"

"Yes!"

"Then do it! And hurry!"

"What about you?"

Damn his chivalrous ways. "I'll be ok! I'll figure something out!"

"Not a chance!" Kurama shouted back and I felt something wrap around my ankle. I looked up (or …down…O.o) and saw a thick vine had wrapped itself around my ankle and Kurama was pulling it in. "On the count of three I'm going to pull you up! One…"

"Three!" I shouted pulling my hands out from under me to grasp the vine in one of the most painful maneuvers my abs had ever done. "Pull me up! We've got to go!"

He didn't need to be told twice. I was hanging next to him, clinging to the rose whip, in less then three seconds.

"Swing!" he shouted.

Swing? SWING?! That's right. As in swing and jump. Which is exactly what we did… Sort of. Only this time it was more of a swing and jump accidentally when the rose whip gives out from too much weight hanging on it. We landed with painful thuds, luckily off the tiles, in a tangle of vines and limbs.

"We gotta go," Kurama urged, standing.

I tried to find my balance to stand but all that time spent upside down in a handstand had messed up my equilibrium. I finally got to my feet, only to have my knees collapse under me.

Kurama caught me and steadied me asking, "You can't walk yet can you?" It was more of a statement then a question. "All right then," he said, not waiting for my answer, "I hope you'll forgive me for this," and he picked me up, bridal style then took off running.

~Of course you'll forgive him! ~ Lianna gushed. ~He's saving your life! What an absolute gentleman! ~

~Now is NOT the time Lianna! ~ I responded. What to calm first? My spinning head or my pounding heart?

We rounded a corner as the first explosion rocked the tunnel and sent a wave of heat rushing after us. Amazingly, Kurama didn't even stumble, his handsome features set in a grim mask of determination. The second and the third explosions were quick to follow, and all the others after that were too close together to count.

Finally, Kurama slowed and eventually stopped and, breathing hard, leaned against a wall. "Do you… think you … can stand … now?" he asked between short gasps for air.

Although I had done none of the running, I was a little short of breath myself. "Yes. I think I'm fine now." I answered simply, and quickly scrambled out of his arms. "Ummm," cleverly said I, "… Thank you. You, uh… you saved my butt back there. Are you ok?"

He waved a hand at me, `fine, fine', and continued attempting to catch his breath.

"You have done well Rose-wielder and Light-maiden." The sphinx, enigmatic as always, slipped out of the shadows. "And you Rose-wielder risked your life to save hers. That was a most noble deed."

Kurama didn't answer, watching the sphinx through his bangs suspiciously.

"And now you are at the end."

I felt my heart skip a beat. The end?

"The final riddle," the sphinx continued, "is the riddle of the door. Solve the lock mechanism and you can leave. But," she paused for emphasis, "you cannot pass me to solve it. It must be done where you are."

I held the Stella on my shoulder up a bit higher to see the door. I couldn't. Kurama and I looked at each other in shock. How were we supposed to do this?

"What happens if we move?" I asked, almost dreading the answer.

"You will die by my claws," the sphinx said calmly.

"Right." Kurama suddenly stood up strait and grabbed my elbow, pulling me aside. "This will be just a moment," he called over his shoulder to the sphinx.

"Ok," he said quietly, turning back to me. "Do you have any ideas?"

"Not a one." I said tiredly, shaking my head.

"Then we'll have to do this the hard way… Do you think you can figure out the door's mechanism?"

"I think so…" I replied slowly, not liking where this was going.

Kurama nodded. "Then I'll hold her off while you solve the puzzle."

"Are you insane?" I gasped. "She could shred you into tiny little chunks before you'd even have time to think about it!"

"No she won't," Kurama retorted matter-of-factly. He placed his hands on my shoulders and looked deep into my eyes, "not if you get that door open."

~I think I just turned into a puddle, ~ I told Lianna weakly. But on the outside I said jokingly, "Oh good. No pressure."

Kurama grinned wryly. "Right. No pressure" He turned away to summon his rose whip then looked at me again. "Ready?"

I nodded drawing my daggers.

"GO!"

We both bolted towards the door at the same time, rushing past the surprised sphinx. With a roar of fury, she came charging after us.

"THERE IT IS!" I shouted when I spotted the door, "RUN!"

The last thing I saw of Kurama was him skidding to a halt and spinning to face the sphinx head-on.

I slowed, but didn't bother to take the time to stop completely as I slammed into the door. At least… I thought it was a door… "Where's the door?" I shouted more to myself then to anyone else.

There was a complex looking pattern of swirls and loops on the wall, studded with semi-precious stones.

"Hurry Nova!" Kurama shouted, "I can't keep her at bay much longer!"

"Ooohh…" I moaned, running my hands over the wall. There had to be something! When my hand caught on an unusual dip in the wall I could have cried with relief.

"I GOT IT!" I shouted happily and pushed the button, allowing the door to swing open. I slipped through with as much speed as I could manage, quickly followed by Kurama.

"Shutthedoor,shutthedoor,shutthedoor,shutthedoor." I chanted pushing it shut with Kurama's help. There was a loud bang on the other side of the door followed by an even louder roar of rage. I slid down to my knees and rested my forehead on the cool stone of the door, sighing mightily.

Kurama chuckled weakly. "No offence Nova, but I think your brother should have come instead."

I turned around to lean my back against the wall. "You and me both."

I nearly jumped out of my skin when someone yelled, "AHA!" and swooped down to encompass me in a massive hug. "You do need me! Admit it! You do need me!"

"Noric!?" I laughed happily and returned the hug, vaguely aware of Yuske, Ivy, Josie, Kuwabara, and some monkey looking thing in the background.

"Oh, powers girl!" Noric continued. "I haven't been that worried about you since you went after the Saint Beasts! What was in there?"

"DIRTY FUCKING TRAITOR! PUT ME DOWN!" Eight pairs of eyes grew wide as they looked at the tunnel from which the voice came. "OH NO!" some mumbled words then, "GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE!"

"That would be Enya." Ivy said, and started to giggle into her palm.

I bit my lip to hold back laughter as Enya, Hiei, and a strange new man appeared. "Welcome back you two," I finally managed, "I think Ivy was right, we should have sent a referee." Although I joked, it didn't escape my attention that Enya was hurt, and so was the blond man.

Enya scowled and finally said, "We're wasting time. We should be moving on"

Noric nodded and agreed, "She's right, let's keep moving."

We all filed into a haphazard line, with Noric and me in the front. ~Away from Kurama at last...~

~Shame on you! ~ Lianna scolded. ~The man saves your life and you can hardly wait to get away from him! You can at least thank him! ~

~I did thank him…~ my words were followed by a silence from Lianna.

~That's not the kind of thank you I was talking about. ~

ACK! ~I. Beg. Your. Pardon.~

"LIKE HELL YOU WON!" Enya's spontaneous outburst was punctuated by her fist flying into Hiei's face.

Thank you Enya…I laughed after exchanging worried glances with Ivy and Josie. So Enya had been a little moody lately, that didn't mean anything in particular, right?

~*~*~*~*~*~

Fl: Bum bum bum…

Kurama: I am not a convict!!!

Il: Then why did you leave Yin-Jins tied in the closet?

Fl: Because She's another one of his semi-rabid fangirls.

Hiei: Only semi-rabid?

Fl: *nods* Yup. She saves all fully-rabidness for Cloud Strife. ^__^

Il: He's still mad about his bike you know.

Fl: Heh… ^__^;;

KuramaandHiei:??

Il: She completely TOTALED-

Fl: *slaps her hand over his mouth* That's enough of that…

KuramaandHiei: O.O

Fl: Review. *goes to let Yin out of the closet*