Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ The Parting of the Ways ❯ Black Roses ( Chapter 3 )

Yusuke's funeral was a small affair, seeing as he'd told Koenma that he wanted to be buried outside Genkai's temple. Thus, only a few close friends could attend. Kurama stood a short distance away from the others. He cut a very unusual picture, with his rather unruly hair neatly combed back and held there in a low ponytail with a black tie. There was a haunted look about him, partially because of his abnormally pale skin in contrast with the black suit he wore, but also because of an almost tangible sense of anger that surrounded him. He said absolutely nothing during the service, and hung back as the others walked slowly past the grave and back to Genkai's temple.

Later, when Kuwabara was going outside to be by himself, he found something that surprised him. His original intent had been to sit near Yusuke's grave. Yusuke's death was such a shock. He half expected to see his friend digging himself out of the grave, seeing as, up until now, he was seemingly indestructible. Upon arriving at the site, instead of the carefree and daring face of Yusuke that he'd been hoping for, the tall boy found an exquisite rose bush growing behind the tombstone. The buds were closed, but somehow Kuwabara knew that, when they bloomed the next morning, there would be something very special about them. He was right.

The next morning, he got up early and went outside, more in the hope of finding the whole thing to be just a bad dream than to check on the rose bush. The long grass was dripping with dew, and the bottoms of his pajama pants were soon soaked. He found the grave just as he had left it the night before. The sun was just coming up over the trees when he arrived, casting a rosy beam directly on the tombstone, and the rose bush behind it. Kuwabara froze. The bush had bloomed…but such blossoms had never been seen in any of the three worlds. They were black. Not deep purple, or midnight blue, but a pure, deep, velvety black like the deepest darkness of a cave…or a grave. Despite the beauty of the flowers, Kuwabara kept his distance. The dew had collected on the petals and dripped onto the tombstone, catching the rosy color of the sunlight and reflecting it. It looked as if the flowers were bleeding onto the tombstone.