Disclaimer: I do not own Yuu Yuu Hakusho nor do I make any money from this piece of fan fiction.

Reader Warnings: AU-ish (you'll see the reason for this as I write), shounen-ai, lime, pairings: Hiei x Kurama, Yuusuke x Keiko, Kuwabara x Yukina

AN: My inspiration for this fanfic was another that was posted on five or six years ago, in which Kurama was a reincarnation of Inari and Yuusuke and Hiei were both reincarnations dragons. I'm sad to say that I have since been unable to find the story. But there were two things from that story that stuck with me: the idea that Kurama and Hiei have always been reincarnated together, and that they were always at least friends, if not lovers, in all of them. So, I have decided to write this. I hope you enjoy! Oh, and go read "Sacrifice" if you haven't done so. This prologue was written with that fic in mind.

Meikai Monogatari

Prologue

Koenma grumbles, his father had sent him searching for the files on the four members of his Reikai Tantei team. "There is something about those four that seem really familiar," his father had said. "Find their files; there must be something in there to tell us more!"

Which led Koenma to his current predicament: half-buried in the Reikai file vault, looking through older and older files on his Tantei team. Who knew those four had been reincarnated so many times? Who knew their souls were even that old? Koenma was getting nervous; he had a sense of foreboding that told him he was digging into secrets that were best kept forgotten. But his father's orders were absolute, so he had no choice.

The first big surprise he had discovered was that Kurama's human alias, Minamino Shuuichi, actually had a soul; he actually existed. And, to Koenma's surprise, Minamino Shuuichi had already died, and at the Dark Tournament, no less. How the release of the soul managed to escape both him and Botan was beyond the young Reikai god. But the fact that it had existed was a surprise to him.

But it made no sense, really, why not only was the team reincarnated simultaneously, but also Keiko, Yukina, and Shuuichi's souls as well. And even more nonsensical, was that all of them were reincarnated in different universes. The Reikai, Koenma knew, was merely the central hub to the multiverse. Every being that had ever lived came to the Reikai for judgment when they died. Reincarnation was usually restricted to the dimension the soul originated from. It added to the mystery, and before long, Koenma discovered he had a pile of folders sitting next to him.

Kurama formerly reincarnated as Mikagami Tokiya, Shinomori Aoshi, and Piccolo. Hiei formerly reincarnated as Koganei Kaoru, Hajime Saitou, and Vegita. Yuusuke formerly reincarnated as Hanabishi Recca, Himura Kenshin, and Son Goku. Kuwabara reincarnated as Ishijima Domon, Sagara Sanosuke, and Krillin. And that was only the tip of the iceberg. Every time trouble was mentioned in a dimension, these four would be reincarnated. And, without a doubt, they would go, fix what was wrong, and live happily ever after until their physical bodies gave out. The seals on their death papers had been stamped by Enma himself.

Sighing, Koenma finally reaches one of the deepest parts of the vault. There, he found the end of his trail. But to his surprise, the period of time for these files was from the Meikai War. Four large folders told him these were the ones that he had been looking for. Koenma's eyes widen as he reads the names on those four folders. They were legendary in the Reikai as having saved the multiverse. Their names were bedtime stories to young gods. Even Koenma himself had heard the stories. But he had no idea that his own father had known them.

Kohaku, one of Inari's many bastard sons, born to Yumeru, Yakumo's own sister. Ryuunosuke, heir to Makai Fire Youkai clans, son of Kouen, the then leader of the Makai Fire Youkai, and Hinoko, adoptive daughter of the Makai Black Fire dragons. Kouki, a human who had served the Reikai so well in the early years of the Meikai war that Enma himself gave him Yumi, a minor artifact weapon. Akio, a warrior renown in Reikai mythology as the embodiment of honor, son of Yashiro, the then First General of the Reikai Army, and Hanako, lead Healer of the healer units of the Reikai Army.

Flipping through the folder, Koenma begins reading, trying to discover why his Reikai Tantei team was reincarnates of such powerful beings. And perhaps, he would be able to solve the biggest mystery of all: Their deaths.

To be continued . . .

AN: Short, I know. I'm already working on the first real chapter. Candy to those who know where I got the names for reincarnations. Brownies to those who can tell who's who from the list of four names!