InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Cavern ❯ Chapter 3

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

By: mspotts

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or YuYuHakusho.

~CavernIII~

And there he goes…Kagome's eyes trailed after the demon's pristine white form, watching as he strolled silently away. His footsteps made no more sound upon the granite floor than would a feather; the thick silver tail protruding from his behind swished back and forth in a soothing rhythm. She frowned, still rather unsure about everything that had just happened - a Cavern of Mysteries, huh? How lame could you get? - and her brown eyes darted side to side with indecision. What in the world am I supposed to do now?

And then in a moment of sudden clarity she gasped, shocked.

“HEY! You can't just leave me here!”

She jogged, hurrying to catch up to him. “Hey, wait a sec!” she called loudly. “Wait for me!”

He didn't, and by the time she finally managed to catch up, her body had had a thorough work out. “Eurgh…” she panted, still making a conscious effort to keep up with his lengthy strides. Damn his legs were long! “Could-you-” pant, pant. “Please- slow-” pant, “-down?” Pant, pant. Sweat began to form on her brow.

He made no move to show that he had heard her, his pale face remaining just as stony and unreachable as ever. And yet…when we first met he wasn't like this - he was practically teasing me! The contrast was almost unbelievable. It made her wonder just what sort of demon she was dealing with here. She snorted. Obviously an unstable one.

Kagome felt like sighing. This had to be, by far, the very worst experience she'd suffered while lost in the feudal era, to date. Things kept getting worse and worse as time went on. For example, she mentally ticked off points off her fingers; she'd been forced into entering an unknown place without any friends she could trust, without any weapons to defend herself with.

Two, she puffed, her breath coming out in short, sharp bursts, the only companion she did have, and was now stuck with - if she wanted to stay alive that is - was an extremely arrogant and supposedly powerful demon. Who just happens to look like Inuyasha, she added in her mind.

Actually…her brows furrowed in concentration. He didn't really look so much like Inuyasha - it was only his hair and his ears that were the same. In fact, she decided, squinting her eyes, he seemed to bear a greater resemblance to Inuyasha's older full-demon brother, Sesshoumaru, the Lord of the West. Weirdly enough their similarities weren't just in looks alone - both of them had that same aristocratic elegance that practically oozed from their pores, and held themselves with an aloofness that often bordered on insolence. Not to mention their arrogance, deadliness and huge demonic power. And they're both seriously hot, she thought without thinking, and then winced. It was bad enough she was having thoughts about Inuyasha's older brother in that way, but some stranger she barely even knew? Honestly Kagome, get a grip!

Though in reality, it was much easier said than done. Now that she'd begun it, no matter how hard she tried she couldn't quite get the image of him out of her head, watching as it flickered on and off behind her eyelids, made all the worse by the vision of his lean body strolling languidly in the road ahead of her.

Well, he is really handsome, she continued, giving in to temptation against her better judgement. Heck, he's not just handsome! The guy's gorgeous. Completely divine! Maybe even more so than the demon lord. For while Inuyasha had a very boyish handsomeness to him; the silver kitsune before her remained strikingly beautiful and proud. A wild mixture of a courtier's face with the forceful, self-assurance of any strong youkai male. And he had to be very strong, and very, very powerful to act the way he did.

At that precise moment, Kagome jolted to a halt, things clicking into place like puzzle pieces in her mind for the first time. “Aaaaaaargghh!!” She shrieked. The shrill cry would have pierced even the strongest of eardrums. “OH MY GOD!!!”

Youko flicked his head towards her, unintentionally concerned. “What's wrong?” He questioned blankly. He hadn't sensed anything amiss, so why was the girl screaming?

She stared up at him, eyes impossibly wide, her gaze fixed entirely upon his face. “Oh my god, oh my goodness- oh my- word!”

“What?” He said impatiently. He looked distinctly annoyed. “What is it?”

She raised a hand, pointing an accusing finger at his chest. “You- you-” she was so distressed she could barely get the words out. Youko resisted an urge to shake her. “You-you're a-a t-thief!”

For two short seconds he blinked in disbelief.

“And?” he asked. Surely this couldn't be the reason for her outburst? Even human women couldn't be that brainless.

“No!” She quickly shook her head. “No, no. You-you're that thief! The Youko Kurama!” She looked stunned, like she didn't quite believe what she was saying.

He processed her words and tone for a long moment. Then…

Oh…once again, boredom recovered his expression. The faint interest he'd previously shown had already disappeared. So she'd figured out who he was had she? He raised an eyebrow. “Does that disturb you, girl?”

Of course it did, but she wasn't going to say so. “No, of course not! Why would it? I'm fine. I was just …surprised, that's all.”

“Right.” His stare made her feel lower than low. It was clear as day that he'd seen right through her flimsy lie. “Very well…girl,” he held out a hand, calling to her as you would a pet. “Come over here. If you truly don't fear me, then come stand by my side.” He didn't smile but the challenge was all in his eyes.

She bristled, anger overriding any fear she may have felt for the notorious gang leader. How dare he make fun of her! Who did he think he was?

Well…one of the scariest demons alive, for starters, she answered her own question in her mind, but it hardly soothed the raging fury that flamed her body. She flounced towards him, ignoring his eyebrow rising even higher, and took the hand he held out to her.

There was no way she was going to act all scared in front of him! She raised her chin, “I'm ready when you are.” She said, meeting his eyes.

Something indiscernible flickered beneath the golden surfaces, too fast for her to read. “I can see.” He stated impassively, and then a slight smirk settled upon his perfect features. “Come along then.” And then before she had time to adjust, they were sprinting.

Kagome frowned. Maybe it was her imagination, but in her mind it suddenly seemed as though the fox demon had begun to move just that bit faster, making it nearly impossible for her to keep up. Already he was dragging her along, her feet barely making the single patters against the ground needed to keep her upright. That jerk! She cried mentally. She was sure he was doing this on purpose. If she hadn't been so tired out she would have given him an earful.

There's no way I'm getting left behind this time. Once was bad enough, but she wasn't completely sure she could handle the stress of running after him again.

“Kurama? I mean, er, Youko Kurama-sama…” she wasn't totally clear on demon protocols but she could at least give it a shot. “Could you slow it down a little bit, please?”

He tilted his head, “I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that,” there was distinct humour in his voice. “Could you say that again?”

She gritted her teeth. “Could you…slow down. Please.”

He sighed. “No, I don't think so.”

Her face flamed. “Why not?!”

“We need to keep moving if we're ever going to reach the end of this tunnel.” He glanced down at her sparingly, tugging on her fragile wrist. “Your human speed is too slow, so you'll have to stay by me for the time being.”

“But that's the point!” She cried breathlessly. “I can't keep up with you!”

He frowned, the amusement fading fast. He looked a tad disturbed, almost put-out. “Hm. I suppose I'll simply have to…”

His golden gaze landed on her for a moment, making her flinch. And then in a flash movement too fast for her eyes to see, she was suddenly being cradled in his strong arms, her body firmly pressed up against his hard chest.

“Wha-!”

Her eyes bugged out, her arms flailing to the sides. “Hey, put me down!”

“No.”

“Put-me-down!”

“Stop squirming.”

“I said, `put me down', now!”

The frustration he felt was audible when he next spoke. “Your voice is grating on my ears, girl. I suggest you shut up or I'll have to silence you myself.” And at the rate she was going, he'd probably enjoy doing it too.

Despite knowing how dangerous he was, and how easily he could carry out his vicious threat, Kagome remained unfazed.

“And that's another thing,” she shouted, disregarding his words entirely. “My name's not `girl' or `human', it's Kagome! K-A-G-O-M-E. If I can show you a decent amount of respect by calling you your name, then why won't you do the same? It doesn't take much; it's just a few syllables. Got that?”

She fidgeted around in his arms for a few moments, unaware of his hold tightening on her. She peered into his face, her expression darkening. “Hey, Youko! Are you even listening to me?!”

He very nearly sighed out loud. What he wouldn't give to be able to kill the girl right now. But as much as he would have liked to, he already knew that both of them would have to be alive if they wanted to get out of this place. So that means no killing. He felt sad at the thought.

But you have to admit, a voice popped up inside his head, she had been quite amusing at times.

No, Youko disagreed irritably. On the contrary. He didn't think he'd ever met anyone more irksome in his life.

Kagome apparently still hadnt finished complaining.

“You are an absolute basta-” she didn't finish. He covered her mouth with his palm, cutting off her insult mid-speech.

“Quiet,” he demanded, seriousness entering his face. “We are no longer alone.”

“Apt as always, Kurama. It seems you never fail to impress.”

He stopped jogging, halting in the middle of the path and quickly released Kagome from his hold. Ignoring her, his eyes flickered around the room suspiciously; they narrowed into tiny golden slits when he continued to feel nothing.

The cave they had entered was nothing unusual, although it appeared they had travelled further underground than he'd first thought. A little lake sat in the centre of the wide expanse of dark rock, completely still except for the odd pattering of water from the crevices above. He sniffed, hoping to detect any ulterior presences, and it was by this that he caught scent of a distinct aroma.

“Look out,” he drew Kagome behind him, wordlessly offering his protection, and then stiffened, his body turning away in reaction to the sudden spurting of liquid from the clear pond.

Bubbles - a deep indigo at first - spread like spilled ink, bubbling and frothing over onto parchment. The colour spread, staining the pure water till all was covered with the murky substance. One by one, the bubbles dissipated into the air, leaving a foul stench of warped corruption behind them.

To Kagome everything reminded her of Naraku, of his under-handed tricks and unsurpassable skills at manipulating people. She would have suspected it to be one of his more elaborate schemes if not for the fact that her shards were already gone, so what else could he possibly achieve from setting her up like this?

“And who is this lovely young creature at your side, Kurama? Dear me, she looks so pure; surely she cannot be your type.” The bodiless voice was filled with pleasure, not malice.

The words came from nowhere, but still Kagome flushed, her ears burning red with embarrassment. God, she wished the floor would just swallow her up right now. Urgh. How humiliating. Though despite her feelings, she couldn't help from thinking - Pure, huh? Not after the way I've been thinking about him...

Youko looked neither affected nor displeased. An enlightened glint had entered his eye.

He spoke slowly. “Wherever you are, Yomi, I suggest you come out now. I don't have time for anymore games.”

“True, enough, I suppose.” The voice laughed. “But you can't blame me for being a little bit surprised. I mean, honestly! How the hell did you manage to end up here, of all places?”

Kagome started. It had happened so gradually she hadn't been aware of its progress. Little by little, like nature taking its course upon the world, a column of whitish pale mist had begun to coalesce into position. The jumble of foggy matter soon became a shape, which soon became a form, which soon became a body. Kagome gulped and stifled the urge to run when she looked up and she realised that she was staring into the eyes of a very pale, very see-through image of a man.

“Hello,” he nodded cheerfully at her, smiling with super-bright demonic teeth. “I'm Youko's old friend, Yomi.”

And he was a ghost.