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YYH
PJLMF
Chapter [04]
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.
Loser: Well...sorry for the wait, but ... all in all this has been a horrible 4 months. In this order all this crap happened. My dog died, my aunt died, and then some punk slashed the front tire on my parents van... and their insurance doesn't cover vandalism. Then, my dad gets pneumonia, and my other dog breaks his leg. So back and forth to the hospital and vet, I don't know what else can go wrong. What the hell does Karma have against me?
Aniki: Dude, your life sucks.
Loser: Shut up Aniki. Anyway, I hope it's not to painfully obvious that I've never been to a Japanese Garden/Park...or Japan for that matter.
Aniki: Really? I never would have guessed.
Loser: _ Just another note, when I use the /italics like this/ it's the dark voice, but when it's just 'blahblah' It's just Aniki talking to himself like normal people do, so I hope I don't confuse you all. Also, I made up the horrible horrible name for the Asylum... I just have no imagination right now. And some coupling might spring up from the abyss that is my mind. You'll have to read to find out. Anyway, I'm taking this story and spinning in some of George R. R. Martin's story 'Only Kids Are Afraid of the Dark', and the animated movie of and mixing the elements altogether. (I hope I didn't confuse the characters with each other. Prolly did. One's Dr. Strange, and the other is Dr. Weird.) Whatever. Just read it, dammit.
Aniki: Bossy. Anyway, this poem was taken from Martin's story:
Through the silent, shifting shadows
Grotesque forms go drifting by:
Phantom shapes prowl o'er the darkness:
Great winged hellions stalk the sky.
In the ghostly, ghastly grayness
Soul-less horrors make their home.
Know they well this land of evil-
Corlos is the land they roam.
-Found in a Central European cavern, once the temple of a dark sect: Author unknown.
Chapter 4
It's Name
- 1 -
Aniki Toguro had been living at his house for a while now. And he'd been very patient. Aniki had been growing out of the shell he'd put around himself, and his eyes weren't pale anymore, like they were when he first came to live here. A much richer gold. He'd never really noticed that before just this moment. Something about that made him feel at ease. Like that color change was a good thing. A physical transition forming from what was going on inside of Aniki's very soul. It sounded like a bunch of bull when he thought about it. But today, he'd give Aniki a little nudge. It was a weekend so he didn't have anything planned. So this afternoon he would take Aniki to the park. Nyuu would come too of course, she really seemed to calm him down, especially at night when he had those nightmares. He never told Kuwabara about them, but he knew.
'He'll tell me when he's ready.' He thought to himself.
But they've been getting worse, sometimes Aniki would wake up panting. Sometimes it was so bad, Aniki would go into the bathroom and wash his hands of some filth only he could see, that never seemed to go away.
"Mrow?" Nyuu tilted her head and raised her paw at Kuwabara. He'd left the water running, staring out of the window, a half filled bento box in front of him.
"Thank you Nyuu. What would I ever do without you?" He asked playfully. "I'm sure you'd like some salmon on your day out?"
"Myyaow!" she licked her chops to say, "Hell ya!" and jumped up onto the counter.
"Where are you taking her, Kuwabara?" Aniki asked from the doorway looking a little sad, thinking that he was going to be left alone today.
"Ah, you can call me Kazuma if you want to. And, no place special. Just a park nearby. A cat needs to live a little too, chase some butterflies out of the tall grass you know?" Kuwabara gave his trademark goofy grin and set the three bento boxes on the table. "Would you like to come? Or am I going to eat two of these by myself?"
"The cat gets it's own bento box?" Aniki tried to joke, even though he was nervous. He hadn't been out alone for a long while, but he wouldn't be alone. Kuwabara would be there.
/It's a trap./ the sinister whisper crept it's way unwanted in the corners of Aniki's mind, but he blatantly ignored it. /think about it. This can only be a dream./
"Sure she gets her own," Kuwabara laughed, "It's just some salmon and cheese, a toy with catnip inside it, and you can't forget her milk." he said playfully as he stroked her along her back.
'It's not a dream. It can't be. I won't let it be.' He argued. "Ah, no. You can't forget her milk. She'd shred you to ribbons." He smiled despite his worry.
/Things don't add up. Why hasn't he been called out for a mission from Koenma?/ the voice hissed. /And he found you in demon world. That should have been the only clue you needed. A human cannot survive there./
"So I got you some shoes the other day." Kuwabara explained. "I hope they fit. I wanted this trip to be a surprise till the last minuet.", he looked back to Nyuu. "And why didn't you tell me he was right there, hmm? Usually you're good at that sort of thing."
Aniki came full way into the kitchen, committing himself to ignoring the whisperings and doubts of his mind for the rest of the day, "You know what?" he asked in a concerned voice, "She's been acting very strange lately. This morning she didn't wake me up like she usually does."
"Huh..." Kuwabara chewed this new information, "Do you know if she's snuck outside or anything?"
"I don't think so... You think she might be...?" his eyes brightened with the speculation.
"Could be." He chuckled and patted her head. "Nyuu, you naughty kitty." he scolded playfully. "Well, Aniki. I think you should go and try those shoes on and see if they fit."
- 2 -
The sun felt warm on his face, the grass cool on his feet, and the scent of the blooming cherry blossoms filled the air. Aniki breathed in the air that was still damp from the morning mist. The shoes that Kuwabara had gotten him fit, but there was no need to wear them if they were just going to get wet. For the first time in months he could hear the birds sing, though it gave him a pang of guilt. He could still remember the little ice-demon girl. The one whose tears turned to jewels. The way he had crushed one of her bird friends to make those priceless jewels. Aniki tried to shake the memory from his mind, but it lingered on. He sat in the shade of a cherry tree and watched Nyuu as she chased some of the blossoms that had been shaken loose by the gentle breeze. He felt at ease, even though unbeknownst to him Kuwabara was having a very important conversation concerning his own future.
"Do you think he's had enough time?" Kuwabara asked. "This is the first time he's agreed to come outside with me."
"This is the first time you've asked him to come out with you." Koenma corrected. He stood in his teenage form. He hardly used his infant form anymore, unless he had a tantrum over something.
"True." Kuwabara smiled sheepishly.
"I've pulled a lot of strings for you on this one Kuwabara. It's becoming difficult to keep this a secret from my father." Koenma continued. "If what you said about him was true, then he will have to have absolutely no help from you on his test."
"None at all?"
"None whatsoever. I mean it Kuwabara. No help from you. So... When are you going to tell him?"
"I think the question is how I'm going to tell him." Kuwabara sighed.
"Well, that’s obvious. With words of course." Koenma said.
Kuwabara just gave him a 'well-duh' look, and sighed.
"Don't you think you're being a little over-protective with him Kuwabara?"
A blushed crossed over Kuwabara's face. "Maybe a little. But seriously, come on! You know what he's been through, and how he was treated."
"Which is why he Can Not Have any help from you. He needs to learn to do things on his own again." Koenma argued, "He's spent to much time relying on others, doing whatever they told him to do for acceptance. Be serious about this Kuwabara. He needs to know that he can do something on his own for once, and make his own decisions."
"All right, all right. Sheesh." Kuwabara agreed. "Give me some credit."
"Perhaps he should go on your mission that's coming up. You're overdue." Koenma suggested.
"It's not in demon world again is it? I'm still recovering from that." he said, patting his chest.
"Still? Well, I don't feel sorry for you. If you would have gotten back on time, the miasma wouldn't have effected you like it did. I told you the allotment would only last twenty-four hours."
Kuwabara stuck his tongue out at him, Koenma just smiled. "You always had a soft spot for people who've tried to kill you." he joked.
"Tch. Well, when you put it that way!" Kuwabara huffed.
"And another thing, " he continued, "He'll be on probation for a long while. Aside from going on missions with you as a part of his community service, he'll not be allowed outside of the city limits."
- 4 -
At home, Nyuu asleep in his arms, Aniki pondered over the memories of today. The scent of flowers, and the wet grass. The birds singing, and Nyuu prowling. But there was ... something. He wasn't sure what. But there was something important.
"Kazuma?" he inquired.
"Yeah? What? " Kuwabara had nodded off in the plush, overstuffed recliner.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know you'd fallen asleep. " Aniki apologized, "I was just going to ask you if... if you wanted anything from the kitchen?"
"No, no. But uh..." he hesitated. "We need to have a serious talk, Aniki."
/He grows tired of you/ the dark whisper lurked through the shadows of his mind, restless.
"Yes, Kazuma?" Aniki shivered, though it wasn't cold. The voice had extra malice dripping from its edges after being ignored all day.
Kuwabara took a deep breath. "Look, I spoke with-"
"Koenma." Aniki interrupted. "I saw you."
"Oh, you did." He cleared his throat before continuing. "Well. He - he has a proposition for you."
- 5 -
Aniki held the golden egg in his hand, he felt it's warmth and admired it's sheen. Kazuma had said that Urameshi had taken this same test. Kazuma had said that Urameshi passed easily. Kazuma had said that he would pass easily too. It didn't make Aniki any less nervous about it. A spirit beast, his spirit beast lived in this egg. Feeding off of his spirit energy. Of course this made him very very nervous. If the beast fed on bad energy, it would most likely devour him. Aniki bit his lower lip. As soon as he had touched the egg, the dark voice had laughed cynically, the hate and cold rang in his mind, but the egg grew hot and the laughter died away.
'I should have declined the test.' he thought to himself. They were on their way home now walking past the park from the other day. Almost home.
/A trap, a trap. I always warn, you never listen. It will devour you, you've no chance./ the voice was quiet, like it was straining to speak. The egg again grew warm in his hands, pulsing, glowing, making it's presence known.
'Little beast. Do you devour this energy, or do you ward it away?' Aniki was so caught up in his thoughts that Kuwabara had surprised him by grabbing him by the collar and pulling him back. The sound of a blaring car horn told him what happened before he even asked. Aniki could feel the heat creeping across his face in a blush.
"What say we eat an early dinner and have you in bed strait after, ne?" Kuwabara suggested in the same soothing voice he'd used during the wait to see Koenma.
"No. No, I'm fine. Just..." Aniki trailed off.
Kuwabara raised his eyebrow, but didn't say anything.
- flashback -
Aniki waited alone in the receptionists room. To bright florescent lighting bounced off from the pale blue walls. The desk that belonged to Ogre was piled high with paperwork. He could hear the bustle of paper-pushers outside the door. Ogre and Kuwabara both had gone onto Koenma's office, leaving Aniki to sweat it out. He had chosen his favorite yellow sweater, his locket was tucked underneath. His hands were clasped tightly in his lap, biting his lower lip. His hair cascaded down in front of his face so he didn't see her until she sat down beside him. Aniki looked up to see a blue haired girl with deep and wide red eyes, and a kind smile. The ice demon, he remembered her name being Yukaina.
"Nervous?" she enquired.
Aniki looked away and nodded.
"You're here for the 'Second Chance' test." it was more statement than question. Again Aniki nodded. "Good luck then." she patted his shoulder and went to stand up. Aniki gulped and mustered up what little courage he had and said,
"I'm sorry."
Yukaina turned back to him with a bright smile. "I forgive you, Toguro." She left the room and closed the door behind her.
"Ani?" Kuwabara poked his head from Koenma's office, "You can come in now." he smiled.
Aniki stood, feeling much lighter than he did before.
- 6 -
Summer school was over, and Nyuu's tummy had plumped heavy with kittens. The warm air shifted nervously knowing the cooler north wind would soon take it's place, though the sun still shone hotly in the cloudless blue sky. Aniki had tied his hair back, jeans and a plain T-shirt his only protection from the blaze. He and Kuwabara were being briefed on the latest case, the third one this week but it felt like the millionth this month. They weren't difficult cases, just the usual smuggler or parasite. This time it was different. Humans have gone missing, a number of them children. There were very little leads, and none of them very promising. But something had to be done, and soon.
"It isn't proven yet, be there is reason to believe that all of these missing humans are all connected." Koenma continued.
"Most of them were children, right?" Kuwabara asked.
"You don't think it's a soul eater? It seems so random." Aniki added.
"That’s what we have spirit detectives for." Koenma pointed out, "To figure it out. We have one promising lead. A woman in the Riverside Asylum."
"The Asylum?" Aniki asked.
"She's a nurse there. One of ours. She'll know you when she see's you." Koenma nodded and left, leaving the two to fend for themselves.
Kuwabara shrugged his shoulders and walked to the bus stop. The bus ride was uneventful and seemed longer than it was. It was mostly empty, the occasional passenger, but nothing to keep the mind occupied. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, but Aniki was bored. He turned to the taller man, his eyes were closed and his hands were folded in his lap.
"Kazuma?" he asked.
"Hmm?" he responded, not opening his eyes.
"Wh... How...I mean." Kuwabara turned to look at him. "Isn't Urameshi a Spirit Detective anymore?"
"No, he isn't. He retired a long while ago. He wanted nothing more than to lay back and be with his girl. Kaeko, and him got married soon after."
"Oh." Ani said dumbly.
"But, they had a falling out. Got divorced, you see." He continued. "He moved back to the demon world to the territory his father left him. Kurama lives with him there." Kuwabara smiled a sad smile. "And Hiei lives with Mukoro his wife, er, 'life-mate' as he says it. They visit once a year on New Years Eve, but the thing is, they still look the same. Like teenagers, while I." he sighed.
Aniki also sighed, and leaned his head on Kuwabara's arm, "I didn't mean to upset you."
"You didn't." he stared blankly out the window. "We're here."
- 7 -
The building was neat and squat two story in a 'u' shape with a beautiful garden in the courtyard. The outdoor walls were a striking white, but the inside walls were a warm yellow. Not to bright, not to pale. The carpet was short and stiff, like a classroom's, a mottled grey that when you looks closely you could see red, blue, and white threads in no considerable pattern. A cheery but unimportant looking girl sat behind the front desk with signs that stated 'No Smoking' and 'Please turn your cell phones off in this area'.
"Hello. May I help you?" she asked.
"Um, yes." Kuwabara started, "We're looking for-"
"Me." A stern looking woman with a short temper and a sharp tongue interrupted. "Kishimoto-san, And you are Kuwabara-sama and Togoru-san I presume? You're late if you are."
Kuwabara looked dumb-struck," I didn't know we had to be here at a specific time."
Kishimoto sniffed and turned on her heel. "Follow me." She led them down hallway after hallway, down a long flight of stairs, finally stopping in front of a blank wall. She turned toward it, eyes closed in concentration. A small pinkish light emitted from her finger, and she pressed her spirit energy into the wall, the pink light forming a double doorway. The doors opened inwardly into a long room with six rows of beds, with twenty in each. Almost three rows were filled, all of them children.
Aniki gasped, "Are these all-"
"Yes." she interrupted again. "The children who've gone missing. As you can see they are not missing. We keep them here."
"But why?" Kuwabara asked.
Kishimoto gave him a look, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, "We do not know what has afflicted them." she said with a cold stern voice, "They have come into contact with an unknown demon. They could have some sort of parasite or disease that could spread to other humans. So far, no one has awakened. A coma induced by an unknown force or entity. You wish to have them put in hospitals were the doctors and nurses touch and handle them, breath the contaminated air, and then go on to the next patient?"
"Um... no." Kuwabara said uncertainly.
"We have not found the adults who've disappeared, Kuwabara-sama." she continued. "Nothing we have done can awaken the children. We've tried the best of our mind healers, but nothing."
Kuwabara was quiet for a while. Being called sama made him uncomfortable, but he didn't correct her. "Aniki? Do you think you could?"
"I-I don't know. It's been so long." Aniki's eyes widened. The thought of touching another’s mind made him queasy. Remembering the feeling of fear and panic that was always present before.
"You can try, can't you?" His face was stern.
Aniki nodded once, and turned to the nearest child. She was a small girl who couldn't be any more than four years old with dark hair cropped close to her face. He took a deep breath and concentrated. As soon as he placed his hand on her forehead, his spirit beast egg grew hot in his pocket. The walls melted away, and the beds grew foggy and incoherent. Suddenly, it was bright. So bright it hurt Ani's eyes, even though they were still closed. As soon as it was, the brightness was gone, leaving a dark and smoky world. For a while, Aniki simply watched the smoke ebb and flow, dancing in the shadows. He was suddenly aware of the little girl next to him. She was only a few inches shorter than him, but the shadows creeped across her face making her features look grossly disfigured. He reached to touch her face, and immediately the shadows dissipated. The little girl looked up at him, eyes wide with fear... no, she wasn't looking at him, but past him. He looked behind him, where she was looking and found a dark entity. Darker than black. An indescribable feeling rolled off from the shadow-creature, filling Aniki with fear, dread, anticipation, and a longing to run. But it felt familiar at the same time. Like it's been with him forever. Realization kicked him right in the gut. This was the Darkness that spoke to him. The Dark Voice that antagonized him, chided him, bade him to do things that would tear at his heart. He knew now that the Voice was as real to others as it was to him. It was real, and It wanted out. Faint whispers or just the wind, he didn't know, but it said a word. A strange word, a name. "Sssssaaagaaaaaeeeeel." The feeling became stronger, and he knew that it was his name, like kindness was good and pain was bad he knew it. He forced himself to look back at the girl.
"What's your name, sweetie." he asked gently.
Her voice was quiet and froggy, like she hadn't spoken in a very long time. "Are you a bad man?"
Her question pulled at his heart. "No, no, sweetie. I want to take you home." he held out his hand, noticing many other children seemingly floating, trancelike, staring at the Dark Thing.
"Merile." she said, and took his hand.
"Merile-chan. That’s a very pretty name." He wrapped his other arm around her shoulders, hugging her tightly, and pulled.
- 8 -
"Ani! Aniki!" he felt himself being shaken. He mumbled something about letting him sleep a little more, but Kuwabara was relentless. He heard another voice saying something, then a pressure on his lips. Warmth spread from this contact, making him aware of how deathly cold he was. He pressed against the unknown presence, wanting, needing more warmth, but the warmth moved away from him. "Aniki, open your eyes damn it!" That snapped him fully awake. Kuwabara almost never cursed. Blessed air rushed back into his burning lungs. "Are you okay?" Kuwabara had him propped up in his lap and was gently stroking his hair back out of his face.
"Did it work?" Aniki croaked, his lids getting heavy again. Content at just breathing, he lay limp against Kuwabara's chest, shivering, trying to make the room stay still.
"I can't believe it." Kishimoto sighed, "You almost die, and you're worried about the girl? She's fine, by the way. Awake."
"Hmmm." was his only response before falling into a dreamless slumber.
Sensing the worry from Kuwabara, Kishimoto laid her hand on his shoulder and gestured to one of the empty beds. "You should lay down too. He took quite a bit of energy from you." she helped him lay back into a bed after Aniki had been made comfortable. "It's interesting. Usually only ... "
"What?" Kuwabara asked. His interest peaked.
"Well," Kishimoto continued, "Usually only life-mates can accept spirit energy so easily. Are you? I mean, I don't judge, but two males as life-mates is a rare thing."
Kuwabara was taken aback, he couldn't even say anything at first, for the thought never presented itself to him before and her accusation caught him by surprise. It was as if a light went on, and every smile, every want for attention, everything Aniki did, was somehow seen in a different way, had a different meaning.
"Aniki and I aren't life-mates, Kishimoto-chan." his mind uncertain of the fact, but before he could say more she had pushed him down into the bed and tucked the blankets around him. He didn't want to sleep, but his body fought him. He needed to know what Aniki saw to make him scream like he did. Such a horrible sound, like he was dying. He did almost die, his heart had stopped. Whatever he saw in the child’s mind presented such a fear that it would have killed him just sensing it near him, even through his immense power of regeneration. He waited until he heard Kishimoto leave the room and rose from his bed. He padded over to Aniki's bed and lay next to small sleeping figure.
"Kazu...mmm" Aniki mewled, not waking fully but enough to snuggle next to his warmth. It wasn't love. It couldn't be. He liked women. He was merely protective of this small creature. This grey demon who sleeps curled in a ball, such as kittens. This demon who is tentive, quiet, curious, and could and would kill if the need arouse. Whatever it was that Aniki saw, Kazuma made a silent vow to protect him from it.
- 9 -
"I think you're going to need some help on this. Do you want me to call them?" Koenma said. Aniki had told him everything he knew of this Darkness. Even the hardest parts, where this thing had a link with him. He felt disgusted with himself.
"No." Kuwabara knew who he meant by 'them'. Yusuke, Kurama, and Hiei would undoubtedly be, to put it nicely, 'tiffed' that they knew nothing of his current tenant at his home. No, he would tell them when he felt Aniki could face it.
Koenma had never heard of the name Saagael before. "He must have hidden very well over the years, or he's new. No one can find any info on this guy. Even little newborns have a record."
"Perhaps he gave himself a new name?" Aniki suggested.
Koenma was silent. Files never lied, this entity must be so ancient that the files have been lost. It sometimes happened with much older demons. some paper work gets lost, but never a whole file.
"I have someone in mind. To help you. He has strong mind healing, he can help revive the rest of the children." Koenma said. "I'll send for him. In the mean while, get to Genkai's shrine. He'll meet you there." he left them alone to speak with Kishimoto.
"Genkai's still alive." Aniki said.
"Yep." was Kuwabara's curt reply.
- 10 -
In a cave, hidden, but not for long, was a man and his companion. He wasn't to tall, nor to short. not handsome, but not ugly. All around average for his part of the country, England. There he could blend in with the background and not be noticed. But he was not in England. He was in Japan, near the outskirts of a small town, not frequented by tourists. Here his pale skin and fair hair made him stand out. His companion lead him here. But not by his own choice. The companion was small, not nearly as tall as the man's hand width, grey skin and purple hair, with sharp teeth and a sharper tongue. The poor man had no choice but to follow, his mind not his own anymore. The English man was being followed for acting suspicious, by a police officer. The fair haired man was forced deeper into the cave by the little demon, towards an indention carved out in the side. A shelf it looked to some people, an altar to those who knew the truth. He was forced to lay on the altar, the little demon chanting incoherently, holding the man still with only a touch spirit energy and waited.
"Halt!" Officer Moshimo had followed a suspicious looking character for some time now. Ending up in this cave was a bad omen. He wasn't a religious man, but he knew about omens. The towns-folk all had their myths and stories of this place, none of them good. But they were just stories, right? Of course they were. Deeper into the cave Moshimo went, unknown to him, he was expected.
"I know you have come in here. Show yourself! And throw your weapon down!" of course, he didn't know if the pale skinned man had any weapons, but as a cop, you could never be to careful. It was dark. To dark to see. He pulled his flashlight from his belt and swung the harsh white light across the floor. Seeing nothing, he edged his way to the wall of the cave, near the altar he could not see, though his light fell right on it several times.
"NOW!" The little demon cried. The poor man was pulled back, shots were fired. The flashlight fell and it's light fell across the floor. Blood pooled from the altar, and in the dim light, if you were to squint your eyes just right, you could swear that the darkness was eating both of the dead, tangled, blood soaked men.
"For you, my Dark Lord." he whispered.
- End Chapter -
Loser: Well, there you have it.
Aniki: Ooh, creepy.
Loser: Please review!
 loser-by-choice · Mon Mar 21, 2011 @ 03:58am · 0 Comments |
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