Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Slight Problem ❯ Questions ( Chapter 4 )

Here's Chapter four!! Please R&R!!

 

I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho!! All I own are my own two characters, Natalie and Lisa!!

 

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Lisa hovered by her friend's side, facing the door leading into the room from the hall outside. Natalie was currently sitting against the wall, one hand holding her side where the gash was still bleeding. She was taking in deep calculated breaths, her teeth gritted together and she kept her eyes shut tight.

The blonde looked at her friend. “Natalie... tell me the truth. How bad is it?” Lisa asked, her voice stern, but not without a hint of fear.

Natalie opened her eyes and looked at her friend for a long moment before letting out a sigh. “I'm not going to lie to you, Lisa... It's pretty bad. I don't know if it's the loss of blood or a concussion but... I can't focus on anything. I can't detect energy right now. In fact, I'm even having problems seeing straight and keeping my eyes open.” She took in a shaky breath and let it out slowly. “We're screwed. They're definitely going to find us, and this time I can't do anything to get us away from them.” She looked at her friend, her eyes looking slightly glazed. “Just remember... try to keep your thoughts from them, all right?”

Lisa gulped, and then nodded, trying to squash the fear in her mind with little success. Natalie was hurt bad... really bad. Her eyes went wide when she saw her friend's head start to fall into her chest.

“HEY!! Don't you DARE lose consciousness on me, Natalie!!” She said, quickly giving her friend a light slap across the face.

Natalie's eyes opened weakly again, and she managed a weak smile. “Sorry. I'm just... real tired. Those guys really beat the shit outta me.”

Lisa shook her head. “Look, if you have a concussion like you say you might, then going to sleep is the last thing you want to do, right? And we don't know what other injuries you might have... broken ribs, collapsed lung... who knows? And I am telling you right now that if you go and DIE on me, I am going to have a total and utter panic attack! You're the one who got us here, and you're the one who understand's what's going on! I don't know ANYTHING about this kinda stuff! Demons, dimensional travel... whatever the hell else is involved in this, I have no clue about it at all! So when those guys catch up with us, if they have questions, I have no idea what I'm going to do! I have no idea what to tell them if you zonk out on me!!” Lisa had been rambling on, her mind almost numb with worry, terror and confusion when she caught a movement by the door. Her head jerked up and she let out a yelp when she saw Yusuke and Kurama standing in the doorway.

Natalie saw her friend's movement and reaction and instinctually got to her feet immediately, placing herself protectively between the men and her friend. She saw Yusuke and Kurama enter the room, the fox demon holding his hands up in a gesture of peace. They were soon followed by Kuwabara and Hiei, the fire apparation's expression completely void of emotion as his fiery eyes gazed at her coldly.

Then the world wavered in her sight and she felt her legs quivering weakly beneath her. The sudden movement had sent a jarring pain shooting through her side and she was unnable to keep herself from wincing in pain.

“I'm... sorry, Kiddo. You're.... on... your own....” she managed to get out before she simply collapsed.

Lisa cried out in horror as she dropped to her friend's side. Then she blinked when she saw someone else kneeling down right across from her. She looked up and wasn't very surprised to see a certain fox demon.

“Kurama, please help her....” she managed to get out. The boy's eyes widened a little, and from where he stood, Hiei's own eyes narrowed dangerously, but neither one of them said anything. The girl was obviously terrified and very concerned about her friend's well being, and so, albeit hesitantly, both demons decided that any questions could wait for another time.

Kurama simply started checking the girl over carefully, casting a glance back at Yusuke. “Once I have ascertained the extent of her injuries, you get Botan here so she can transport us all back to the Otherworld.”

The boy nodded, reaching into a jacket pocket to pull out a mirror that was his connection to the reaper. He crossed his arms and waited patiently for the fox demon to check the girl over.

Lisa cast a glance at Hiei as she waited anxiously and shivered when he saw his fiery eyes squarely on her, his mouth set in a deep frown. She quickly looked away and made her mind go blank, remembering what her friend had said about keeping her thoughts to herself. Instead, she tried to focus on watching Kurama stabilize Natalie, using his fox magic to bring her bleeding to a stop and making sure that she was okay to move.

After a few minutes, he nodded. “That should do for now, but when we get to Koenma's, we should bring her to the medical facilities.” He very carefully scooped the girl up in his arms. He looked down at Lisa then. “I'm afraid you will have to come with us, Miss. Our employer has a few questions for you and your friend.”

Lisa turned white, not wanting to go through this at all. She tried to keep her stomach from doing flip flops as she feebly nodded and shakily got to her feet. She felt a hand on her shoulder and almost jumped clean out of her skin, and then found a smiling Kuwabara looking at her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yusuke talking to Botan through the mirror.

“Easy, it's okay. We ain't gonna hurt you. I'm Kazuma Kuwabara, the guy talking to the mirror is Yusuke Urameshi, this is Hiei, and this is Kurama. We're Spirit Detectives.”

Lisa wasn't very good at playing dumb, but given the circumstances and the overwhelming feelings of unease she was experiencing, it was convincing enough. “Spirit... Detectives...?”

Kurama nodded. “Yes. We work for another realm, known as the Spirit World. Our Employer is the second in command of that place, Koenma. A few hours ago, he detected your mysterious arrival in our world, and now we are all very much curious as to how it is that you came to be here.”

The blonde girl indicated her friend, lying unconscious in the arms of the kitsune. “She's the one who's going to have to tell you how we got here. She's the one with the know-how out of the two of us. I don't follow any of it.”

Yusuke came up to them, then, putting the mirror back in his jacket. “Botan'll be here soon.” Then he grinned at Lisa. “So, were you introduced yet? What's your name?”

She tried to avoid making eye contact with anybody. “I'm Lisa. And my friend is Natalie.”

Hiei frowned slightly watching her. She seems to be taking this all fairly well, considering the fact that she claims to be a normal human.

Kurama nodded mentally. True, but we can't discount the fact that her friend appears to be a fighter as well. And if I understood the conversation she was having with her friend before we entered the room, I believe that her friend is somehow responsible for their being here in the first place.

The thing that bothers me, Hiei said, is that Lisa called you by name before even being introduced to you. I do believe that these girls know more about us than we first thought... although how or why that should be, I don't know.

Kurama frowned slightly in his friend's direction. Don't go using your jagen eye on them, Hiei. Not yet, at least. We'll see what the two of them say when we get back to Otherworld. And don't try questioning them yourself, please. Especially Lisa. The poor girl looks scared as it is without you threatening to decapitate her.

We'll see, Fox. But if I suspect they know too much...

Hiei let the sentence hang, and Kurama knew better than to pursue the matter right now. He cast a glance at Lisa and saw that the girl was avoiding looking at any of them, her features a little pale and her face more than just a little worried.

In that moment, Botan appeared, floating on her oar. She blinked when she saw the unconscious woman. “What happened? I thought Koenma told you not to hurt them unless...”

Yusuke shook his head. “It wasn't us. It was a group of wayward demons that picked up on her energy. We barely got there in time to save them. Ya mind opening that portal for us now, Botan?”

The blue haired girl blinked and then nodded, smiling at them. She was a little surprised that Lisa didn't seem to be at all shocked by her sudden appearance, but shrugged it off for now. There was time enough to find out what these girls were all about.

The girl opened the portal as asked, and the Spirit Detectives all entered, Lisa being sure to keep Kurama between herself and Hiei. He was even a little shorter than Natalie, but after watching him in the series, she knew she wanted to keep some distance between them. Besides that, the murderous glint in his eyes, and knowing about his speed... there was no doubt that the little fire demon intimidated the hell out of her.

Lisa mentally bit her tongue. Thoughts to myself, she told herself. No more thoughts like that...

Once she had stepped into the portal, she felt an almost overwhelming sense of vertigo and almost fell backwards before feeling two strong arms holding her upright. Blinking, she saw Kuwabara had come up to her from behind and catch her before she could go crashing to the floor. He grinned a little sheepishly.

“Sorry, we should have warned you... your first time going through a portal can be pretty harsh. It takes a few times before you get used to it.”

The girl blinked. “Um... thanks.”

Before anything else could be said, they heard a relieved voice coming from the far side of the room. “Ah, you found them! Good, good...” Koenma stopped speaking for a few seconds, seeing the one girl lying unconscious in the arms of the kitsune. “What happened? I thought I told you...”

Yusuke scowled a little. “Before you go accusing us of hurting her, Toddler, there was a group of wayward demons that picked up on her energy and picked the fight with her. We saved them, so don't go making accusations! Besides, aren't you supposed to be the one who knows all this stuff? You'd think you'd be keeping tabs on situations such as wayward demons and our movements in these assignments that you keep giving us!”

Koenma frowned at him a little. “Hey, you try running the Otherworld for a few days, Yusuke! It's a lot harder than it looks, you know! I can't keep track of every single little detail of what happens on earth!” Then he composed himself, clearing his throat. “Well, I guess there's no helping it. Kuwabara, you bring that girl to the medical ward, would you please? The rest of you, I'd like to hear a report of what happened.”

Kurama carefully handed the injured girl to the human and Kuwabara headed out of the room. Lisa almost went to follow him, but felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Kurama shaking his head at her. It was evident that she was to stay here... probably to answer some questions. She felt her stomach drop.

Yusuke was giving the account of what had happened, Kurama stepping in sometimes to clean up some detail that he thought was worth mentioning. The two demons felt it best, for the time being, to conveniently forget that Lisa had seemed to know the fox demon by name before having been introduced to him. Lisa made it a point to avoid eye contact with any of them while they relayed the story.

When they were finished, Koenma looked straight at her pointedly. It also escaped none of their attention that the girl didn't seem to be shocked at the sight of a floating, talking baby... or making fun of the detectives for having to take orders from him.

“Your name is Lisa, right?” Koenma asked.

She nodded silently, trying to keep herself from trembling. She hated facing this by herself. Now, more than ever, she wished that Natalie was here with her to help her out with this stuff. She just knew that she was about to face a few hard questions and she had no idea what she was going to say in response to them.

“Would you mind explaining to us how it is that you and your friend got here?”

She fidgeted a little uneasily, fully aware that the entire time she had been in the throne room, that Hiei's eyes had been squarely on her. She could feel his eyes drilling into her right now, and it was making her all the more uneasy by the second.

“Well... to be quite honest... I'm not really sure how we got here,” she started carefully. “My friend... she practices magick, and there's this technique she knows that allows your spirit to leave your body. Using this technique, you can even travel to other dimensions... but it's not supposed to be physical. We were exploring other realms, but the second we entered this one... for some reason it was as if we were suddenly trapped in some weird vacuum and...” She shrugged. “We found ourselves here physically. I don't think even Natalie knows how it happened.”

Hiei spoke up then. “Your friend practices this magick, and you say you are nothing more than a normal woman, so how is it that you were able to use this technique as well?”

Lisa blinked, a little relieved that this question was easy to answer, with no need to lie. “It's a mental technique, more than a magickal one. You don't have to be a practioner of magick to use it. Natalie just gave me some strange ointment on certain areas of my body to induce a...” She blinked. “What did she call it? An altered state of consciousness?” She shrugged. “Anyway, it was something that allowed my spirit to leave my body, regardless of my lack of knowledge with the techniques. Natalie didn't need any because she's trained herself to do it without having to.”

Kuwabara, who had returned in the middle of the report, looked at her. “How come the two of you ran off even when we helped you with those demons?”

Lisa shrugged. “That was Natalie's idea. I wanted her to stay put because she was hurt, but she's not one to really listen to reason. I guess, because she doesn't know much about this world, and the fact that we're here physically, she didn't want to take any risks. She felt you guys earlier, sensed at least two of you were demons, and decided to be as cautious as she could be and that we should just retreat, rather than having a possible fight. I don't know much about demons myself, but Natalie says that at least in our world, you should avoid contact with them if you can.”

She was actually a little surprised at how well she was able to lie. Well, maybe not lie, but twisting the truth. Besides, she really didn't know much about demons in the first place and had been simply following her friend's lead. But still, casting a glance off to her left, she saw Hiei's fiery eyes still staring holes into her unwaveringly. She suppressed a shiver and quickly looked away.

Kurama was looking at her with a curious expression. “Your friend is a fighter as well, isn't she?”

Lisa nodded. “Yes. Growing up, one of her neighbors was an old buddhist monk who immigrated to Canada from Japan. He taught her martial arts and chi control.”

Yusuke blinked. “Canada? You girls are from Canada?”

She blinked slowly and nodded.

He let out a bit of a whistle. “Wow... so... how did you two figure out that this was a Japan in another dimension, and not just the Japan of your world?”

She blinked slowly again. “Because... we went through a doorway in our astral state that lead us to another dimension. Besides, teleportation is impossible in our world. People can't vanish from one area of the world and show up in another area an instant later. And aside from that, just to be sure, Natalie looked at some of the headlines in the newspapers and NONE of the world news matches our own. In our world, the President of the United States is named George Bush.”

Koenma nodded, casting a look at Yusuke. “Yes, that is most definitely different from our own realm. The president here is named Nathan Longheed.”

Lisa suppressed a tired sigh. Now that her adrenaline rush had come to an end, she felt really tired. When they had first got to this dimension, she had been pumped full of adrenaline, especially when Natalie felt the Spirit Detectives coming for them and they had started trying to avoid them. All that running around and worrying now left her feeling completely exhausted.

Koenma looked at her for a long moment, and then nodded, seeming to come to a decision. “You look tired, Lisa. You must be exhausted and more than a little confused by everything that's happened today, so we'll give you a room to stay in.” Then he looked at her a little pointedly. “However, I have to insist that someone stay with you, merely as a precaution.”

Lisa, who had known a few seconds of relief, suddenly felt herself turn white. But she breathed a slight sigh of relief when the second in command looked at Kurama questioningly and the fox demon nodded.

“I will stay with her, Koenma.”

Hiei let a half sinister smile come to his face. “Well, since it appears that these girls are to be kept under observation for the time being, I will take it upon myself to keep an eye on the one in the medical ward. Just in case she decides to try something.”

Lisa swallowed a lump in her throat and silently prayed that Natalie didn't do anything stupid... which was anything that might piss the little fire demon off.

She saw Kurama give Hiei a somewhat warning look, and almost wished she could hear what mental conversation was going on between the two of them, just to put her own mind at ease. One thing she knew for sure from watching them, was that Hiei was NOT one who trusted easily, and if he felt that someone was a threat to him in any way whatsoever, he didn't hesitate to kill them.

She slapped herself mentally, giving herself shit for thinking potentially suspicious thoughts again. It was then that she noticed that Kurama was gently leading her out of the room and down a hall.

She felt a little more at ease with him, and was greatly relieved that the one who volunteered to keep an eye on her was him. If Hiei had been the one... She shivered at the thought and once again hoped that Natalie was going to be okay under his watchful eye.

“Um... is Natalie going to be okay?” she asked.

Kurama cast a glance down at her, giving her a gentle smile. “Don't worry, Lisa. Your friend was badly injured, but the medical staff here will have her on her feet in only a day or two.”

She seems to be a little nervous, Youko stated matter of factly, observing the girl carefully through his hosts eyes.

Yes, I see that as well. Once we are alone, I intend to question her a little myself... and we can see what comes of it. But I have a feeling we will have to wait until her friend is well once again before we get all our questions answered.

They were at a guest room in only a few minutes and Kurama opened the door, ushering the girl in. Lisa looked around herself with some awe for a few moments, no doubt unused to the extravagance of the room she was going to be staying in. There was a large fireplace, a huge fluffy carpet covering the floor, an ornate dresser, and a door leading out to a balcony. There was only one bed, a king size just across from the fireplace, and a door that lead into an adjoining bathroom. There was also a large couch nestled against another wall, large fluffy pillows in either corner of it.

Lisa sat on the edge of the bed and sighed in relief. She had been on her feet for what felt like hours and she was just happy that the hard questions had passed.

Or so she thought.

She blinked when Kurama seated himself beside her on the bed, his gentle green eyes filled with curiosity as he looked at her. “May I ask you a question, Lisa?"

She blinked again, looking at him. “Um... okay...”

His eyes gazed into her own unwaveringly and she suddenly felt a warning sensation in the pit of her stomach that she was not looking forward to the next few minutes at least.

“When we caught up with you in the abandoned building... how is it that you knew my name before we had been introduced? I know for a fact that when we first caught up with you, fighting off the demons that were attacking you, no one called out my name, and so I am very much curious how it is that you knew who I was before being told.”

Kurama and Youko knew immediately that they had hit a sensitive topic, because in that instant, the woman's face went white as a sheet, and her eyes went huge.

SHIT!!!!!!! Lisa screamed in her mind. Oh, my GOD!! I DID DO THAT!!! HOW COULD I HAVE BEEN SO STUPID?! OMIGOD!!! What am I going to tell him?! I can't tell him the truth!! But I can't lie to him either, he'd pick up on it in a second if I did! What do I say? 'Well, the truth is, in our world you guys are all a part of a cartoon show called 'Yu Yu Hakusho' and both me and Natalie know pretty much everything about you'? Well, there is more to it than that, actually, but I'm not quite sure how that whole 'everything that can be imagined exists somewhere' stuff that Natalie tried explaining to me before we went on this trip...

Kurama's expression never wavered at all, waiting expectantly for her to answer his question.

Lisa did the only thing she could think of. She quickly broke eye contact with him and stood, needing movement to distract her. “I'm sorry, but I can't answer that.” she said, getting ready to move a few feet away from him, and trying to think of what she was going to say after, when her intended short trip was stopped by a hand grabbing hold of her wrist in an iron grip.

Her heart almost stopped in that instant, and then it leaped into her throat as the kitsune, still holding her wrist, stood up and circled around to face her. His gentle green eyes were now hard and had turned golden. That meant that Youko was now in the control of Suichi's body. This knowledge sent her heart rate through the roof.

“Are you implying that I have no right to know how it is possible for a woman I have never met before to know my name?” he asked, his voice now low, and holding a slight threat. “Hiei and I both suspect that you girls know more than you are telling us, and I intend to find out how much you know, and how it is that you came across this information, seeing as how you are both from another realm. I felt it would not be fair to question you about such a sensitive topic in the presence of all of us, since it would be unfair to intimidate you in such an extreme manner, but I will NOT stand for such a vague response to my question. It is clear to me now that you know FAR more about me than I initially thought, and I intend to know how that is, Lisa.”

The girl quickly shut her eyes and turned her head away from him. She couldn't look into those eyes, and she couldn't stop herself from trembling. Right now, Kurama was larger than life itself, and he scared her almost as much as Hiei. Almost, because if it were Hiei with her and she had responded to him in the manner that she had with Kurama, she probably would have a sword at her throat right now.

“Please... don't ask me this....” she managed to get out. Her heart rate was through the roof and she felt tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes. This was too much for her to handle. She felt her throat constricting and she had to swallow a few times to allow her to keep talking. “I...” She cleared her throat. “You're right... that Natalie and I... know things about you... but... I have no idea how to explain HOW to you in a way that would make sense... That is... She tried explaining it to me before... and I thought I got it, but to try explaining to you... without Natalie here to help me do it...” She shook her head. “I just... I can't.” She opened her eyes and dared look at him again, her expression pleading. “Please... wait until Natalie is better... and she will explain it. I promise. She's the one who can explain it in a way that you'll understand. I just... I don't know enough about it to explain...”

Kurama's expression was now a little curious as he looked at the obviously petrified woman still in his grasp. How was it that she could know of them, and yet not be able to explain HOW... in a manner that he would understand? But he could tell, just by looking at her, that she was speaking the truth. Suichi was just as confused as he was with her response, but agreed that she seemed to be honest in her dealings with them.

Lisa almost fell over in relief when she saw the golden color in his eyes be replaced by the gentle green once more. Kurama gave her a small smile and a nod. “Very well, Lisa. Until your friend is well again, I will not question you on how it is that you came across your information about us. Although... now that you know that I know you have information about us... may I ask just how much you know?”

She took in a deep breath. “Um... we know... a lot.... actually.”

Kurama had loosened his grip on her wrist considerably and examined it for a moment to ensure he had not caused her injury before seating her on the bed once again. “How much is a lot?” he asked, unable to hide his curiosity.

She took in another deep breath and cleared her throat. “Okay... this is probably going to freak you out a bit but... Your full name is Youko Kurama, and you're a Fox Demon... correction: SILVER fox demon, who used to be one of the most notorious thieves in the demon realm. Years ago, you were attacked by demon hunters and used the last of your strength to open a portal leading to earth and entered the womb of a pregnant woman named Shiori, who soon became your mother. She named her son Suichi Minamino, and, although you were planning on leaving the moment your strength returned, you changed your mind when you saw how much your mother loved you, and she ultimately changed you as a result. You are now indivisibly Suichi Minamino and Youko Kurama. Your specialty is plants, you have a great deal of knowledge on both plants on Earth and the demon world and you have the ability to control and fight with them.”

When she dared to cast a glance at Kurama's face, she saw his eyebrows had shot up and he looked at her with a great amount of curiosity on his features.

Then his lips formed a smirk. “I must admit that both Youko and myself are now very curious. However, since I have promised not to question you on how you gained this knowledge, I will not pry until your friend has regained her health.” Then a thought seemed to come to him and he looked at her curiously once again. “And... how much do you know about... Hiei?”

Her face went white again and she cleared her throat, wringing her hands in her lap. “Um... actually... that's... one of the main reasons that Natalie insisted that we... run. The both of us know... about... his... sister. And his jagen eye... and his considerable bloodlust. And temper. And how badly he wants Yukina to remain in the dark about his relations to her... We kinda figured that if he used his jagen eye on one of us and found out about what we know about him... and Yukina... that he would either kill us or come very close to it. Natalie's tough, but she sure as hell can't match his speed.”

Kurama frowned deeply hearing this. “That definitely sheds light on why the two of you ran... even in your friends condition. Although Hiei has not used his jagen eye on either one of you yet... right now he is alone with your friend. If he should learn what you've told me... then we may not get the chance to question your friend on how it is that you came to be here and about how you both came across this knowledge in the first place.”

Kristi shook her head. “If he was the one watching ME, then I'd be worried. Natalie put a ward up around her mind and so Hiei would have to use some force if he wanted to peek inside her head... and I don't think he's willing to do that just yet. Hiei has more patience than that. Me, on the other hand... I don't have a clue how to put up a ward of my own... and the only advice Natalie could give me was trying to keep my thoughts away from any knowledge that pertained to you guys in the hopes that Hiei wouldn't be able to access it.” She shrugged. “Besides, Natalie knows more about you guys than I do, so I think she might have a better idea on how to deal with Hiei, even though she's never met him personally before.”

He smiled at her a little mischeviously. “May I assume that you and your friend also have knowledge about Yusuke, Kuwabara, Botan and Koenma... especially considering the fact that you didn't seem surprised or amused that we take our orders from a leader that appears to be a toddler, and that a blue haired woman with the distinction of being a reaper appeared floating on a oar to open a portal for us to the Otherworld?”

She blushed a little and nodded silently. Then, before she could even think of trying to suppress it, she let out a yawn.

Kurama's smile grew. “Forgive me. You are exhausted and I have kept you up with my questioning. You should get some rest now.” Then he blinked, looking at her. “Were you injured in the fight earlier? Do you hurt anywhere?”

She blinked and shook her head. “Natalie did good at keeping them away from me.” She considered. “She got the crap kicked out of her for her troubles, but she always was protective of me.”

He nodded. “Very well. I just thought I would check. I will go sit on the couch until you wake up once more, Lisa. You just lie down and get some sleep. If I hear any change regarding your friend's condition, I will wake you up.”

Lisa nodded tiredly and Kurama stood up from the side of the bed. The young woman wordlessly pulled back the blankets and zonked out the second her head hit the pillow.

 

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Kay, there was chapter four!! Please R&R!!! In the next chapter, Natalie wakes up and has a conversation with Hiei!! Find out what happens!!