Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ The Kaleidoscope Syndrome ❯ Reunion ( Chapter 6 )

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The Kaleidoscope Syndrome

 

Part VI

 

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Yusuke was not in a good mood. Hiei had long recovered from his near encounter with death, and it was now Yusuke who felt sick. They had been traversing nearly every forest in the Makai for the past two weeks and the dark-haired man felt more than a little deprived from civilization; he wanted to be around people again, no matter how brute or uncouth the youkai may be. Hiei was not adequate enough for this purpose. The smaller youkai was focused in on their quest to the point where Yusuke could barely even stand to be around him. Hiei was sometimes far too intense for anyone's liking and Yusuke had known that for a while now, but had never experienced it so fully as in that moment.

 

“Do you like music, Hiei?”

 

Out of the sheer need for some kind of conversation, Yusuke had prompted the least expected question from his silent companion. Hiei raised an eyebrow from where he stood atop a tall tree branch, but did not answer. Yusuke sighed and leaned against the foot of the tree.

 

“There's nothing here you know. I remember this forest being the dullest one of the lot,” he remarked offhandedly.

 

“That might just be altered information in your mind.”

 

Yusuke's eyes flew upwards as he glared at the youkai. “I don't know how Kurama can stand to be around you so much. Do you ever just talk about normal things?” he scolded.

 

Hiei's gaze across the forest never wavered. “There is a task at hand, Yusuke,” he replied nonchalantly, though there was a hint of exasperation in his tone.

 

“Gee, I never would have expected you to work so hard for me,” muttered Yusuke under his breath.

 

Unnoticeably, Hiei's ears perked at the quietly spoken statement and he looked hard at Yusuke for a moment. True, he was not the most amiable of companions, but he was loyal to those who had managed to make their way into his heart. It shocked him to hear such words to be uttered from Yusuke, a person whom Hiei thought to have understood him better than most. The small youkai narrowed his eyes and resumed in his search for any suspicious beings in the forest. He would have to address this issue later with Kurama—he was never much for making encounters on emotions; it was something rare and untouched upon for him.

 

“I want to go back to the Ningenkai.”

 

Hiei glanced at Yusuke briefly. The latter was staring up at the sky dazedly. “There's nothing there,” he remarked impassively.

 

Yusuke blinked once and smiled mysteriously. “You mean there's no one there—not for me anyway. But there's definitely something there,” he said wisely before turning his gaze onto Hiei. “There's the lands, the oceans, the skies… I want to see everything. I didn't get to do this while everyone was alive because, well, I had to take care of them. But now…I have nothing to hold me back. I want to visit the States, Europe, everywhere!”

 

The man's tone had taken on a passionate level. Hiei marveled at the sudden change in his behavior and smiled slightly at Yusuke.

 

“How about you Hiei? Any goals you wish to accomplish?”

 

The smaller youkai had been expecting that inquiry. And when he looked at Yusuke again, the man was staring at him seriously. Hiei closed his eyes while crossing his arms.

 

“I have goals which are to not be publicly announced, as should you, Yusuke,” he answered bluntly.

 

“Were you and Kurama lovers?”

 

It was quite possibly the most unanticipated question Hiei had ever faced in his entire long life. And when he heard it from Yusuke, he nearly lost all his composure just from the shock of it. The dark-haired man changed his mind so frequently, it was hard to keep track of what he was thinking one moment to the next. Just when Yusuke proved to be of a simple and understandable character, he completely surprised Hiei with his irregular pattern of thought. The fiery youkai frowned at the notion, but found it slightly ironic that an old friend thought to have been predictable was slamming him, the entitled “mysterious one,” into a corner.

 

“Why do you ask?”

 

Yusuke tilted his head to the side and smiled. “It's something that I've always thought about ever since I first met you and Kurama oh-so long ago. I mean, let's face it, no one can tolerate being around you that long without having some kind of affection for you,” he replied knowingly.

 

Hiei's eyebrow twitched. “You've been around me for a while,” he pointed out.

 

“Yeah, but half the time I'm shouting at you. Kurama and you, though, you guys just always seemed to have some kind of connection,” shot back Yusuke quickly. He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “So? Were you—or rather—are you?”

 

Hiei barely resisted from grabbing his sword and swinging it at the shrewd man below him. Instead, he turned away and studied the sky, a faint warning in the back of his mind. It was near late afternoon and the setting sun's rays were spilling forth over the horizon, casting it into a splay of purple and red hues. Hiei's instincts were on alert and the youkai frowned outwardly and automatically unsheathed his sword against an invisible foe.

 

Below him, Yusuke watched on with the same wariness. He then narrowed his eyes and shook his head to clear off the blurry images crossing his vision. A resounding pain was echoing across his skull as he tried to maintain his balance and before long, the dark-haired man found himself lying on the ground. Flurries of memories flew at him and he cringed painfully, not noticing Hiei watching him coolly a few feet away.

 

Dread grew deep within the fiery youkai as he witnessed his friend's pain. His sword was still out and ready for battle and that warning in his mind still had not receded. Hiei turned his gaze away from Yusuke and scanned the area darkly. Perhaps the one who did this to Yusuke was near by. Suddenly, a loud crunch was sounded a few yards off. Hiei clenched his sword firmly and looked sidelong at Yusuke. It would be a risk to leave him alone, and taking him with him would slow him down. Hiei cursed to himself.

 

“I thought leaving Yusuke to you would be a good idea, Hiei, but perhaps that was an error on my behalf.”

 

Hiei turned around in surprise and found Kurama standing before him in his youkai counterpart. In his grip was a fallen young demon, squirming about uncomfortably. Hiei stared at her resentfully.

 

“You're the one I detected,” he muttered.

 

Kurama turned his blazing golden eyes on Hiei before looking back at Yusuke. A flash of concern crossed his features. “Hiei… Yusuke is…” he murmured unsurely, watching the dark-haired man gripping the sides of his head painfully while barely discernable whimpers escaped his lips.

 

The fiery youkai didn't even glance back at him. He focused in on the youkai in Kurama's grip. “You know what's causing him this pain. You know who did it. He never reacted like this before. He usually only relives several moments of his memories—this time he's in complete pain, which means you must be related to the one who did this to him,” he said slowly, his tone hardening with every word.

 

The young youkai glared at Hiei haughtily. “How do you know it wasn't me?” she challenged.

 

“Because your youki is too weak for such a curse, and Hiei is never wrong,” interjected Kurama calmly.

 

The female youkai looked around wildly between her captors before settling her eyes on Yusuke. A slow smile made its way across her face. “You can't do anything to help him anyway. He'll be dead soon enough,” she spat out bitterly.

 

Her words disgusted Hiei, but he never showed a glimmer of emotion on his face as he made a quick motion, rendering her unconscious. Kurama watched him steadily. “You're not in a good mood I see,” he murmured before heading over to where Yusuke was lying. His crying had ceased now and he remained still, staring up at the sky while drawing in deep, calming breaths. When he saw Kurama bending down over him, he looked up at him with a small smile.

 

“So, Youko has decided to made his appearance,” he remarked dryly.

 

Kurama smiled back gently and helped Yusuke stand up. “The conference didn't last as long as you said it would, Yusuke. Though I have to admit, it would have had I not made some very outrageous suggestions,” he replied back.

 

Yusuke swayed lightly on his feet before regaining his balance. He eyed Kurama with laughing eyes. “Oh? You must tell me all about it later—I do love the ruling business you know so any advice I can get is handy,” he said sarcastically before glancing at the unconscious demon. “Who's this?”

 

“Someone linked to whoever cursed you,” answered Hiei as he sheathed his sword.

 

Yusuke arched an eyebrow and scratched his nose. “So I was cursed? Goddamn, who did I make so angry in the past year?” he wondered to himself aloud.

 

“That's what we're about to find out,” said Kurama, “together.”

 

Yusuke grinned widely. “So it's the three great lords at it once again, eh?” he commented.

 

“It seems so,” agreed Kurama. “But Yusuke—your condition—we must be wary. If you feel any discomfort, you have to tell us. I have a hunch our captured friend here won't be shedding much light on the subject.”

 

“Blind and worshipful. Whoever she follows has her effectively at their beck and call. No doubt she would rather kill herself before betraying her master,” remarked Hiei.

 

“Yeah, well I just hope we find out whoever this youkai is because I'm tired of having to scream my head off every time I try to remember something,” said Yusuke with a sort of strange glint in his eyes. “There are a few more places I went to besides the forests.”

 

Kurama raised an eyebrow curiously. “Where?” he asked.

 

Yusuke shot him an amused look. “The three most feared places of the Makai: the desert, the marshes, and the plains,” he answered with a smirk.

 

At this, Hiei's eyes widened and he regarded Yusuke with amazement. “Those places are where the oldest of all demons live. None have ever survived a journey to these places because of those demons' wrath at being intruded,” he said.

 

Yusuke winked at him. “Oh, I have my ways. I'm the heir to Raizen and one of the great Lords of Makai! But to be honest, it's not the youkai you need to be scared of—it's the places themselves,” he explained slowly, as if recalling something terrible that had happened.

 

“Yusuke, you certainly are making this very difficult for us,” quipped Kurama coolly.

 

The dark-haired man smiled embarrassingly. “Hey, I can't help it. I just can't stay in one place that long. Besides, I've been putting off exploring the Makai for way too long so when I finally did start on my little tour, I had to go all the way. I mean let's face it, there aren't many left in this world that can perform curses of such a high level. But then again, I guess I might have been a little careless,” he replied sincerely before growing grim. “I really do have the worst luck.”

 

“That's why we're here, though,” said Kurama bracingly.

 

For a moment, Yusuke was silent as he stared at the ground, his long bangs obscuring his vision. He then tilted his head back and greeted the darkening sky with a small smile—one that spoke of genuine happiness and hope. He faced Hiei and Kurama with that expression painted on his face and stared at them equally for several minutes before finally beginning to chuckle. As his shoulders shook with laughter, he eyed his companions closely. He then closed his eyes and changed to his youkai form effortlessly.

 

“I think we can finally start to have some fun now, guys,” he announced formally. “No more of this reminiscing shit from me. I'm Urameshi now, the most feared youkai of all the Makai. If my enemy doesn't want to come to me, then I'll go to them.”

 

It was as if Yusuke had changed altogether—not just physically. In Hiei's eyes he no longer saw the young teenage boy who was known for his quick tongue and rash decisions; standing before him now was a full-grown youkai worthy of respect and awe, and whom was also one of his closest friends. Hiei smirked to himself. Maybe I was wrong about him not changing. The fiery youkai could see clearly now that he had underestimated Yusuke. The latter hadn't cared much before, but now, with the promise of a fight, he emerged as his true self.

 

“Of course a fool like you can never defeat this enemy by yourself,” he commented brusquely.

 

Yusuke looked at him sharply before tilting his head to the side slightly. “Oh? Are you suggesting that I'm weak, Hiei?” he retorted.

 

Hiei crossed his arms. “Don't get cocky,” he said simply.

 

“You may be Urameshi to everyone else, but to us you're still the same Yusuke—just a little more mature,” added in Kurama with a twinkle in his eyes.

 

A smile flitted across Yusuke's face before coming down into a frown. “I guess the flower didn't work. But considering this is a curse… It really shouldn't,” he remarked thoughtfully.

 

“Flower?” repeated Kurama curiously.

 

Yusuke reached into his back pocket and pulled out a few crumpled petals along with the seeds and handed them to Kurama, who reached for them carefully. He examined them silently and looked at Yusuke.

 

“Where did you find this?” he inquired casually, though his voice gave an undertone of forcefulness that didn't slip unnoticed by Yusuke's ears.

 

“A dark and gloomy cave,” answered Yusuke playfully.

 

Kurama nodded and handed the crumpled flowers back to Yusuke. “Keep them at your side. They might come in handy later on,” he advised.

 

“Do you know what they are?” questioned Yusuke mildly.

 

Kurama gave a mysterious smile. “It's legendary,” was all he said before he turned to face Hiei abruptly. “Are you all set?”

 

The smaller youkai grunted and shifted a pack over his shoulder. “While you two were chatting on about nonsense, I gathered everything we needed,” he replied gruffly.

 

Kurama smiled while Yusuke stared at Hiei in surprise. “Wait, we brought things?” he asked.

 

Hiei restrained himself from rolling his eyes. “Supplies, Yusuke, supplies. If we are heading towards those regions we're going to need them,” he stated plainly.

 

“But I didn't bring anything with me. Only an extra set of clothes—oh, and a walking staff. But food and medicinal herbs? They were all there,” he muttered to himself.

 

Kurama raised incredulous eyes on Yusuke. “Food there is scarce and most of it is poisonous—only suited for the creatures already inhabited in those areas for over a millennium,” he pointed out.

 

“Well, I did have some hard time in the beginning with eating it. I threw up a lot in the first week and felt really drained, but I had nothing else to eat! So I just kept eating and I guess I eventually got used to it because I had no more problems afterwards,” explained Yusuke wonderingly.

 

Kurama shook his head slowly, an amused expressing painting his face. “You never do cease to amaze me, Yusuke,” he commented.

 

The youkai shrugged. “Hey, it's what I'm best at, tight?” he replied, tossing his loosely pony-tailed hair behind him. “You know, I used to hate this hair. Now I'm rather fond of it, though when it gets out of control, it drives me nuts. The color is kind of cool, though. Beats normal brunette.”

 

Kurama studied it for a moment. “You just morphed from your ningen form—shouldn't it be wild?” he pondered aloud.

 

Yusuke waved one finger in the air tauntingly. “Come on, Youko. You of all people should know about holding up illusions,” he said charmingly.

 

The silver-haired youkai remained silent, but his eyes glittered in laughter.

 

“Now if both of you are through I suggest we get going,” interjected Hiei as he stood several feet away from them, a hand on his hip for emphasis.

 

Kurama nodded slightly. “Yes, I agree,” he said quietly. Despite Yusuke's aloofness of the situation, he had a strong feeling in his heart that something extraordinary was to come—something devastating. The kitsune shook off the feeling and eyed Yusuke carefully. No matter what he and Hiei would have to be on guard. Kurama didn't feel the need to lose another close companion.

 

As they began walking through the quiet forest, it was Yusuke yet again who broke the silence.

 

“Say, Kurama?” he began.

 

The youkai turned to face him attentively.

 

“Did you and Hiei ever go out?”

 

There was a quick flash of metal and the sound of a slash cutting through the air as Yusuke yelped.

 

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TBC

 

I'm definitely taking liberties on the geography of the Makai. XD