Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Yusuke or Yume? ❯ Rebirth 4: Ordeals of Life and Death ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter Four: The Ordeal of Life and Death   Darkness…it was cold. She shivered. Her sweater wasn’t providing any warmth. For some reason she felt like she was floating…she was floating? Why was it so cold? Wasn’t it just fall? Why would it be so cold? All around her was dark…but maybe that was because she had her eyes closed. Damn it. Kuwabaka’s stupidity is rubbin’ off on me. What happened? Where am I? Why can’t I feel the ground?   Yume groaned and opened her eyes…was it just her or was she floating in the air? “Gackt!” Yume floundered around for a second, but managed to get from being upside down, her skirt up around her hips. Yume hurriedly fixed her skirt, smoothing out the wrinkles. “What is going on? Where am I? And why am I up above the city?” Yume looked down at the ground. A group of people had gathered around a car, a bunch of medics rushing this way and that. A single figure, black and red, lay on the ground. The legs were partly crossed over each other, the person lying on their side, the left arm was laying across their side, while the other was bent at an odd angle near their head. But the outfit and skin and hair stood out… “Hey, that’s me!” “But if I’m up here…then how can I be down there?” A sudden flash of images crossed her mind. She watched as the little yellow ball rolled into the middle of the lane. The little boy ran out to retrieve it. A swerving car was coming his way. Yume’s eyes widened. “Watch out kid!” She ran across the road, and pushed the little kid out of the way. She sat in a kneeling position, but her head turned as the car sped towards her. Her eyes widened, her mouth open in shock and fear. A scream was torn out of her throat as the car slammed straight into her, the hot metal burning part of her skin. She toppled to the hot asphalt, the car having squealed to a stop just as it hit her. The car backed up in a hurry, and the driver ran out to check on her. Pain was exploding all over her body. Everything around her was going dark. Her brown eyes were half-lidded, and she looked at the crowd around her. The last thing she saw were a familiar pair of emerald green eyes looking at her sadly…like their heart had been torn out and shredded. Blood was pooling under her head, chest and legs. The medics came, sirens screaming. They checked her out. Apparently her leg bones were shattered, as were her arms…one of her rib bones had been snapped out of place and had impaled her heart. Her head had been hit on the way to the ground. No pulse reigned over her body…   “So…that’s it? I’m road kill?” she looked up at the sky. “I’ve…turned into a ghost?”   “Bingo! Bingo, you win the prize!” Yume jumped, and turned around. There, floating in the air, was a girl no older than Yume herself. “Who are you?!” “Botan’s the name, the Pilot of the River Styx, I take care of people like you. I believe in your culture they call me the Grim Reaper, ring a bell?” She chirped. Damn it, I hate overly-happy people! “Okay, there is something wrong with this picture. The Grim Reaper is supposed to be tall, scary, and wear a big black cloak with the body of a skeleton!” “Oh now I understand what kind of person you are, it’s here in my guide book.” Botan pulled out a small book. “Instead of getting angry or frustrated, you yell at me and tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. Let me see…Yume Urameshi…loud-mouthed, arrogant, has no regard for rules and is a poor student. Has no boyfriend because guys are intimidated by her. Wow, things weren’t looking up for you, were they?” “Shut up! Like I care!” “Hey…” “What?” “Would you like to go see that boy?” “What boy?” “The one you saved?” A ghost of a smile graced Yume’s face. “Sure.”   Yume watched a doctor check the little guy over. “He’s really okay. Great thing too. Okay now Botan. I got no regrets, so just send me to Heaven or Hell…wherever.” “Well, actually Yume…we haven’t cleared a spot for you yet. We hadn’t planned for you to die today. We ran a person with your personality through that scenario thousands of times and none of them saved that boy. You threw us all for a loop!” “So what are you saying, that that little boy was going to die?!” “Actually, the car would have swerved to the left and the boy would have escaped with a scraped elbow from falling down. So in short you’re death was a total waste!” Yume face-faulted, but DAMN was she angry. “Calm down, calm down! Listen, all you need to do is go through this itty-bitty little ordeal and you can have your life back. Sound good?” “Huh? You guys are gonna try to give me my life back?” Yume looked out at the city, cinnamon eyes clouded over with thought. “No thanks.” “Huh?” Botan blinked her bubble-gum lavender eyes. “I kinda like being dead. I don’t have to put up with anybody, and the teachers can finally rest their traps from yelling at me. Everyone will be better off. My life sucked anyway, just like you said. So why would I wanna go back? My mom is still pretty damn young, so maybe now she can find herself a decent boyfriend.” Botan sighed. “So cynical at such a young age. Well.” She boarded her oar. “I’ll let you attend your wake and then think it over. I’ll be back when you’ve decided.” She flew off. “Do you have worms in your ears lady?!” Yume yelled after her. “I DID DECIDE!”   Hey! There’s the end of the chapter. And…without further ado, here are the