Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Wings of a Butterfly ❯ The Sealed Ones ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: I do NOT (not, not, not) own any characters in the anime series Yu Yu Hakusho. They belong to their creator, Togashi Yoshihiro-sama. I wish (wish, wish, wish) that I OWNED Kurama. ^^;

 

She slept silently on his bed—peacefully being a word probably unknown to dreams. Though slight, Kurama could make out the restlessness of her features as she slept. Past experiences alerted him that her dreams were in no way pleasant, constantly referring to a dark past. His empathy for this girl rang stronger than others, especially his bizarre curiosity for her.

 

A foreigner slept in his bed, discovered in the most peculiar of places with eyes that reflected the storm she appeared in. At times he very much doubted the concepts of fate and destiny, yet now they seemed tempting thoughts to consider. Maybe he was thinking too much into it, but...but when he first locked eyes with her...it was as though the emptiness of his bitter loneliness was full somehow...

 

While lost in his thoughts, Kurama didn't notice Cho's awakening or the fact that he was being studied crucially by her. Her expression hadn't changed much, but deep within she was going through a list of reactions her body normally would have responded to.

 

Finally tossing the matter aside, Kurama rose from the chair placed beside his bed and moved to exit. Just as he turned to turn off the light, he froze the moment he saw Cho's eyes focused on him. He felt as though he'd been suddenly caught in the headlights, but nevertheless recovered rather quickly.

 

“It would seem you've finally awaken. Are you alright?” he spoke as fluently as he could.

The girl analyzed him for a little while longer before turning her back to him. It was a reaction he had not anticipated at all.

 

Kurama slowly walked deeper into his room, curious yet strangely cautious as well. He stopped when he saw her arm reach out for the photo upon his bedside desk. He almost rushed to her and snatched the photo away, but fought down such a selfish notion.

 

“I thought you looked familiar...” she said.

 

Kurama blinked, surprised by the statement. He drew closer to her, close enough to meet her lovely gray eyes once more.

 

“You're their friend...Kurama.”

He was even more taken aback by that comment, “Where'd you hear that name from?”

She pointed to Kuwabara on the photo, “Kazuma was talking with Yusuke and Shizuru. Your real name was covered by another when they realized I had been in the room for a minute.”

“And you are?”

“Not important, they're not my friends.” she admitted.

 

He didn't like the way the words came out as a confession rather than a statement. He sat once more in the chair, initiating his own analysis of her. Afterwards, he said, “Well, I only find it right that you give your name to the stranger who has currently give you shelter in his home.”

 

“If you're friends with them, then you should already know my name. They called you and told you to find me, didn't they?”

Kurama sighed, “I'm afraid I haven't had any close contact with my friends for the past three years. It'll be another four months until the wedding.”

 

Pain flitted across Cho's face. The lingering pains of happiness were still a memory to her body. Being reminded didn't lessen the pain any further.

 

“I see...” she said, placing the photo back.

Kurama quickly took note of her brief change in expression. It, however, was gone as quickly as it arrived.

“How do you know them?” he asked.

Cho seemed hesitant to reply. In the end, she sighed submissively, “Kazuma found me in an alley on a rainy day. He nursed me back to health and they both took me in, him and Shizuru. Yusuke came by on the day I woke up and he decided to care for me as well.”

“And you don't consider them friends?”

 

Cho looked directly into his eyes, “I've never had a friend in my life.”

 

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Kurama slumped against the wall of his kitchen. He felt tired, drained somehow. Talking with her was...dangerous. The way she imposed her thoughts, the way her tone held no emotion...it was almost unbearable to face. Joy seemed so vicious and loneliness so welcoming. Who was this girl?

 

He shook himself from his unwilling musings and commenced to prepare tea and soup for her. Despite how calm she was, she still had a very high fever. How her pale skin managed such a subtle tone was beyond his reasoning at the moment. Right now, he simply has to focus on one thing so that he may think properly again. The mind never uses all five senses at once—for fear that it will lose a sense in the process.

 

Just as he was able to forge five-letter words in his mind, a nearly dreading voice disturbed him, “Does my company disturb you?”

Kurama quickly recovered and looked to Cho, standing underneath the threshold of kitchen and hallway. He noticed how large his pajamas were on her small frame.

 

His face began to flush, so he turned away, “My apologies for undressing you without your permission, but it was absolutely necessary for me to—”

“You already apologized for that,” she interjected. Her steps were nearly inexistent as she made her way towards him.

“O-oh did I?” he said, uneasily.

 

She was right next to him now...so close he could hear her soft breathing...

 

“You avoided my question, does my company disturb you?”

“N-not at all.”

“You don't convince me.” she stated.

He looked to her, unable to stop swallowing his anxiety. What was it that made him feel so...off balance? Fear? Or is it intrigue? Deciding merely on reason would not help the anxious knot tied in the pit of his stomach.

 

His trembling eyes shifted up to her face, unconsciously to her own eyes. They rested there, more out of surprise than captivation—this time. This entire time he's seen her, he had always believed her eyes were of the pure raging storms. But instead, a tranquil blue hue resided in her tempest-colored orbs. It gave her a pure and less threatening demeanor, and revealed a true human being beneath this hollow shell. To observe them so closely gave him opportunity to realize the rare beauty she withheld.

 

Cho lifted her hand, about to touch his face. In response, he flinched and shut his eyes closed.

 

Cho was intrigued by this...Kurama character. He was so strange. She's known others to fear her, both humans and demons, even the dead and the damned. But she's never known fear so close...to be feared so close. It stirred a morbid curiosity within her, one that made her want to know how far she could push him.

 

Kurama appeared to be a rather collected person—one with a very strong mind. The very moment she laid eyes on him, she knew; she could feel it. In her previous state of bordering madness, those around her would be driven into a killing frenzy full of insanity fueled by illusions. When the girl had left him, she couldn't hold back on her powers anymore. And yet despite so, this man managed to withstand the powerful telepathic waves she emitted; unconsciously sealing them in a twelve foot radius all around for more than thirty minutes.

 

Cho has met these types before; many. Each one she's met, she's grown to fear. That would explain the twisted intent behind her curiosity. She's never met one not immune to her abilities. He was immune, yet that imperviousness of his obviously could last for but so long. Was he...a Sealed One?

 

*Cho trembled feverishly, her eyes and teeth clenched in pain. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop her trembling or the bloodied tear that stealthily seeped from the corner of her eyes. Nothing could ever be missed by him—nothing. He saw all, knew all. Being enveloped in nearly perpetual darkness didn't make much of a difference.

 

She felt the tear lifted from her face by his finger, and thus trembled even more. She could feel herself being quickly drenched in a cold sweat. The salted fluids were quick to merge with the blood flowing from one of many cuts and wounds, and sting as they mixed.

 

She heard his amused grunt, which turned her blood cold. She felt his presence beside her; he was kneeling and now holding up her chin by his mere forefinger and thumb. Fluorescent lights shut on, blinding her even behind closed lids.

 

He clucked his tongue and said, “Open your eyes, Cho.”

She didn't want to, but she knew that it couldn't be avoided. She'd be punished if she didn't obey. Slowly the small child opened her eyes, twitching as she did so.

 

His finger stretched before her, the blood pearl nestled neatly on the tip. “It would seem you no longer cry tears of a human, my little butterfly. Instead, you've cried your first tear of blood—your last tear of humanity. Soon there will be no more tears, soon you'll forget pain and suffering and fear no one. Soon you'll surpass them all; soon you'll overcome creatures like these.”

 

He grabbed her chin and jerked it to her left. She found herself facing her training subject, a human—at least that's what it seemed. It was a man with long white hair and fierce, piercing cold green eyes. He wore an icy look on his face, hollow and emotionless. What sent a tremble down her spine was the fact that his eyes were resting solely on her. He was staring directly at her.

 

“You see, my child? He is the one which caused you so much pain. There are many of his kind still in existence; all born to see to your destruction. You and that beautiful gift of yours. And the longer you live, one by one they will awaken—the Sealed Ones will rise to destroy you. But you will be ready my wondrous butterfly; oh yes, you will be ready. And once you're ready,” he kissed her brow, “once you're ready...we will take on the Universe together and become rulers of all—of the living and the dead, and the Forgotten.”*

 

By being here, she ran a risk of being destroyed. If his words were true, then Kurama could possibly be awakening in reaction to her arrival. But he wasn't aware of it. This could be an advantage for Cho, or a serious disadvantage. By not knowing what she was, he wouldn't hurt her—not intentionally. The `not intentionally' could also alert her demise. By not knowing what he was capable of, he surely couldn't know how to control his powers—especially not around her.

 

A hurt expression crossed Cho's face as realization dawned on her. Her hand slowly dropped as the thought ran through her head, No matter where I go... She pulled away from Kurama. There will never be a place where I'm safe... She turned heel and walked away. For me, there will never be a sanctuary...

 

Cho suddenly found her unable to move. It took a few seconds to realize that she had been stopped.

 

Somehow her vision expanded and she no longer saw the world through normal eyes. She was enveloped in darkness, lost in its perpetual existence. And then she felt the arms which stopped her, the arms which now encased her—powerful, protective arms.

 

A wind picked up about her and she was suddenly struck with the vision of a silver-haired man holding her small form. He was a fox apparition, a powerful one. By the power he emitted, he was clearly one of Ceres' Chosen—one she should fear. And yet, despite so, she couldn't help but feel safe in the arms that held her so.

 

“Why?” A deep, powerful voice asked her, “Why can't you find sanctuary with me?”