Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ The Parting of the Ways ❯ Release and Death ( Chapter 2 )

“Kurama? Are you here?” Yusuke stepped into the entry of his friend's home. A potted ivy plant shifted to point at the stairs. Used to this sort of thing, Yusuke headed up to Kurama's room. “Kurama?” he said, knocking on the door.

“Yusuke? Is that you?”

“Who else? Are you still in bed?” Kurama ignored the question.

“Come in. I need to talk to you.” Yusuke turned the knob and entered. Kurama sat up when he saw him.

“Is something wrong?” Kurama smiled slightly and got out of bed. His knees buckled, and Yusuke ran over to catch him. “Are you okay?” Kurama rolled his eyes.

“Not really. Let's go outside. I could use the-ahh!” The teen gasped, and clutched at his chest. “Move! Get away!” he cried. Yusuke backed away and watched, shocked, as Kurama's form grew slightly transparent and shifted, almost as if he was a snakeskin being shed. He convulsed, obviously trying to stop whatever was happening. His eyes flashed gold for a moment, then, it was over.

“What was that!?” Yusuke yelped. Kurama staggered into him, resting his full weight on Yusuke.

“That was what I need to talk to you about. Come on, let's go outside. I definitely need fresh air.” The two managed to get out into the backyard. They sat down beneath a towering oak tree.

“Okay, spill. It's not like you to miss school.”

“You remember that my body is human, but it's controlled by a demon's soul?”

“Yeah. Go on.”

“As of late, the soul which belongs in my body, the human one, well, it's trying to take over. The soul of Yoko is not pleased, and is making that known by rejecting my body. I need help getting him out.”

“Meaning?”

“I did some research and found a spell which should do the trick. It's a dual spell, which is where you come in. I've just got one problem.”

“What?”

“It would seem that, due to the battle being waged within me, my immune system is being weakened. As a result, I've caught some bug from school, and it's making holding Yoko back really difficult. If he's not out of me soon, he'll destroy my body to gain freedom. Will you help?”

“Sure. I've just got one question. If you're sick, will it affect the spell?” Yusuke wanted to help, but didn't want anything to go wrong. After all, a mistake could mean Kurama's life.

“It shouldn't. One of us might end up sick, but it's not at all likely. Don't worry.”

“Okay. Umm… will you still be the Kurama I know when this is over?” Kurama chuckled.

“Yes. I will be the Kurama you know, and Yoko will be Yoko.”

“Got it. Can we start?” Kurama nodded.

“Hold out your hands.” Yusuke obeyed. He yelped when Kurama quickly drew a small dagger across his palms. The redhead repeated the action on his own hands. “Before we go any farther, you have to promise that when I tell you, you'll run back into the house and stay there. Do not, under any circumstances, come out to me. I'll come back in when the spell is completed. Understand?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Hold my left hand with yours.” Yusuke did, and Kurama clasped their right hands together. The blood dripped from their hands to pool in mid-air six inches below. Kurama began chanting in a soft tone, his voice rising and falling in a manner that brought to mind ocean waves, and the gathering blood turned brilliant neon green. The clouds overhead darkened, and an ominous rumble of thunder sounded. “Now. Go Yusuke!”

Yusuke leaped to his feet and took off for the house, just as he'd been told to. Kurama watched, waiting until he saw the door close. Another rumble of thunder, louder now, rolled over the fox.

“Okay. Here goes.” Am I forgetting anything? The last three lines of the incantation spilled from his lips in a fast, fluid stream. The green blood began to bubble, steam rising from its surface. Kurama gritted his teeth against the pain; it felt as though he was holding his hands in a forge. I think I did. The blood began to ooze upward towards him, and engulfed his hands. The redhead stiffened. Nothing had ever hurt like this. The blood continued on its single-minded quest to completely cover Kurama, and he was soon coated with the stuff, writhing on the grass. The feeling changed, and now it felt as though his very blood had turned to ice, freezing him from the inside out.

Inside the house, Yusuke watched, helpless, as Kurama continued with the spell. He nearly screamed when his friend was covered by the green blood, and when a bolt of lightning slammed into the green form under the oak tree, he did scream. He couldn't stand by and watch any longer. Kurama's orders forgotten, he opened the door and dashed out to Kurama.

The youth saw Yusuke coming, knew that it was too dangerous for him to be that close, and tried to warn him, but his voice didn't work, and his throat was tight and sore with the contained screams, so the warnings died on his tongue. Then a searing pain tore through his chest. Kurama convulsed, back arched, body taut as a bowstring. It felt as though someone had torn his chest open, and was using a dull knife to rip his insides apart. He could feel Yoko, struggling to free himself from the confines of a living prison, and could feel the barrier that kept the demon restrained beginning to give under the spell. With a soft pop it broke. Oh no. The restraining charms! I forgot them! Yoko's spirit shot out of Kurama with explosive force, shattering the house windows and uprooting the oak tree. His aura spiked to astronomical levels, killing off most of the plant life in the yard with its uncontained, superheated power. It zoomed upwards, into the sky and away, but the damage was already done. A soft rain began to fall. When Kurama could gather the strength to get up, all he saw was Yusuke. The oak had fallen on the young Spirit Detective, pinning him to the ground and rendering him unable to defend himself against the uncontrollable burst of aura that had followed the release of Yoko's spirit.

“Yusuke!” Painfully, he went to his friend, dropping to his knees in front of the boy. Summoning all the power he had left, he shoved the charred tree off. He was shocked at the damage done. Yusuke lay in a pool of his own blood.

“Hey.” Yusuke whispered. His voice was tight with pain.

“D-don't talk. I-I'll call an ambulance. You'll b-b-be okay.”

“M-maybe. Did it work? The spell, I mean.”

“Yeah, it d-did. But I forgot the restraining charms. He's loose now, without a b-b-body.”

“Are you mad at me?”

“Mad? Why would I b-be m-m-m-mad?”

“I didn't do what you told me to do…I came back out here to help you.” Yusuke coughed slightly, and a trickle of blood traced a fresh crimson trail from his mouth to his chin.

“I'm not mad at you.”

“That's nice to hear. I'd hate to die with one of my friends mad at me.”

“Don't be silly. You're not going to die! You're going to be fine!” Kurama's voice took on a slightly crazy tone. Yusuke smiled sadly.

“Kurama, I've already died once. I know what it feels like. At least this time I'm gonna go with a friend close by.”

Kurama could hardly walk, but he somehow made it into the house and called 911. An ambulance arrived in less than ten minutes, loading Yusuke quickly. At first, the paramedics thought that Kurama was the one they were supposed to treat, until the redhead showed them Yusuke. In a controlled panic, they got both young men into the ambulance and left, sirens blaring, straight for the hospital. But the combination of broken bones, internal injuries, and severe burns took their toll. Yusuke Urameshi was pronounced dead on arrival.

 

When Kuwabara, Genkai, Yukina, Botan, Koenma, and Shizuru arrived at the hospital, Kurama was curled in a ball in one of the chairs in the waiting room. His numerous injuries had been cared for, but he looked like a ghost. His eyes were red, his skin pale, and he was shaking.

"Kurama? What happened?" Shizuru asked. Kurama didn't respond. "It's Yusuke, isn't it?" Kurama nodded. "What happened to him?"

"He...he's...oh god, what have I done!" The redhead burst into tears. Shizuru seemed surprised, but hid it and wrapped her arms around the sobbing figure.

"Shhhh. Yusuke's a tough kid. He'll be fine." The response to this comment was instant. Kurama shook her arms off him.

"No he won't! He's DEAD! I KILLED HIM!"