This is my attempt at actually writing something good for a change. You know, complete with plot, discription and not from someone's POV because I have no right, really, to assume I know what the characters would actually think.
Please send me flames. I enjoy laughing at your stupidity. That said, yes, this is yaoi. I'm not going to say what the pairing is because, again, I'm writing something I consider good for a change and telling you the pairing lacks suspense. If that pisses you off, hit the back button right now. I'm not forcing you to read my word vomit.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or anything associated with it. Although, I do have a pretty Yusuke key-chain which my friend from the Pillapines likes to call my Eugene key-chain. Weird, I know. They also call Hiei Vincent. Kurama is Dennis, formerly Denise because the people thought he was a girl. Weird. Also, the title of this story was stolen from a line from a doujinshi
I Long For The Oasis in Your Eyes
Chapter One: Who said the world was fair?
Sitting on the ledge of a building, the demon surveyed the scene below him. It was awfully quiet for noon in such a large city. No one was out shopping for dinner, no one was on lunch break, no one was even gracing the streets with their presence. The reason for this sudden lack of people rushing around and going about their business was a news-broadcast. All over the country of Japan, people were sitting in their living rooms, watching the afternoon news for updated information on the latest debacle.
A mad-man was on the loose in Tokyo, so said the news anchors, killing people with brutal abandon; indiscriminately. The murderer slaughtered whomsoever happened to be on-hand at the time he saw fit to kill. Rumor had it that the murderer was eating the severed body-parts of his victims, which the police were unable to locate.
The demon on the ledge of the building alone knew the truth. He was the only one to ever have laid eyes on the murderer who was not a man, not a woman, but a demon. A demon he knew all too well. A demon who had lost her mind the moment she lost her 'lover' and was now terrorizing Tokyo.
Hiei sighed and jumped down from the building into the street and ran so fast he was invisable all the way to the only person whom he thought could help him.
Unlike his country-men, Yusuke Urameshi was out and about, actually enjoying the lack of responsiblilty, the tentative closing of his school and the silence of millions of absent people. He sensed his friend coming miles off so he was prepared when the smaller demon approached him.
"Hey, Hiei!" said Yusuke. "You wouldn't happen to be a mad-man on the loose in Tokyo killing people, would you?"
Hiei stared at Yusuke. "If you are going to behave like a bafoon, I'll ask Kurama for help. But if we end up dead because of you, I will haunt you to your grave."
"Okay, Hiei, relax. You said you needed help?"
"I know who the mad-man is."
"You do? That's great! Let's go to the NPA and tell the-"
"We cannot involve the human authorities, they will only be killed."
"So, the mad-man is a demon is he? Koenma must be shitting his pants. I'm surprised he hasn't drafted me to take care of him yet. What's the problem? Let's go find the bastard and put him in jail."
"Jail could not hold this demon. She must be k-killed."
"Hiei, you're shaking like crazy, what's wrong? I don't have a problem killing a female demon."
"That's not the problem, fool. The problem is that the demon is Mukuro."
Yusuke stared at his friend for a moment, trying to digest the information. He'd had his suspicions that the mad-man was a demon but hadn't wanted to believe it. Now that Hiei had told him that not only was it a demon, but it was one with whom he was aquainted, Yusuke was at a loss for words.
"Why?" was all Yusuke could come up with to say.
"She is having a hissy-fit. That is all you need to know."
"That's some hissy-fit. She's killed like what, two-hundred people?"
"One-hundred and seventy-three."
"Well, shouldn't we get Kurama's help too?"
"I suppose it would be best. But do not involve Kuwabara. I would hate to have to rescue his sorry ass from Mukuro if she decides to eat him."
"Eww… so she really is eating her victims?"
Hiei stared off past Yusuke's shoulder into the distance at an approaching storm. "It is going to start raining soon," he said. He turned his gaze back to Yusuke. "We should seek shelter."
"Yeah, Kurama's new place is actually closest so we should head there." Yusuke turned around and started walking, Hiei at his side.
It was eerie for both demons that the streets were so silent and deserted. Newspaper articles with headlines such as 'The Psycho-Killer Strikes Again' and 'Authorities Baffled by Canibalistic Evidence' were swept up by the wind across the ever-darkening street. The pair kept a swift but steady pace all the way to their friend's house.
Kurama was just about to make dinner when he heard a knock and felt his friends presence at the door. He answered the knock with a somber expression and a barely audible 'hello.'
Yusuke bowed, which Hiei found puzzling until he spoke. "I am so sorry for your loss," Yusuke said respectfully. Kurama merely inclined his head slightly and stepped aside to admit his friends.
Hiei, having never been tactful came right out and asked, "Who did you lose?"
Yusuke gave Hiei a threatening glare.
"My mother," Kurama replied. "The mad-man killed her while she was on her way home from shopping for a birthday present for me. She died on my birthday. Ironic in its own way, I suppose. Have a seat in the living room, I will go make tea."
"Don't bother, Kurama. It's not nesassary to make tea," said Yusuke.
"I must be a proper host," Kurama objected.
"This is me and Hiei; we don't care if you fall to pieces and don't make tea. It's no big deal."
The trio walked into the living room and sat down across from each other on two couches. Hiei next to Yusuke and Kurama on the other side.
"I assume you have a reason for visiting," said Kurama. No up-talk, he knew they weren't there just to chat.
"Mukuro is the killer," said Hiei.
Kurama blinked at Hiei confusedly for a moment before the information had the chance to sink in. "Why?" he repeated Yusuke's earlier question.
Hiei remained silent. Lying to Yusuke was fine, but lying to Kurama was a damnable offense. Not only would Kurama be able to tell that Hiei was lying immediately, but Hiei knew that Kurama would find out the truth eventually.
"Hiei?" said Kurama.
"I refused to be her mate and now she's taking it out on Japan at large." Hiei hooked a finger in his collar and pulled his shirt down so Kurama could see what Mukuro had done to him. Over his chest was what looked like an ordinary burn, the only things remarkable about it were that it was on a fire demon's skin and was in the shape of a hand.
Kurama inhaled sharply through his teeth. "It looks very painful," he said tactfully avoiding asking what he really wanted to know which was why Hiei had refused her. "Would you like me to heal it?"
"It cannot be healed. It was made with Divine Flame," replied Hiei.
"What's that?" asked Yusuke.
"A higher flame then the Immortal one," said Kurama. "It is a figure of speech; it isn't really divine. It is very difficult to survive an attack from Divine Flame and even harder to heal."
"I thought Hiei said it can't be healed."
"He is mistaken. I have the proper ingredients to heal it in my house. But it is very dangerous to do as it could end up burning his healthy skin."
"How do you heal a Divine burn?"
"With bleach and ammonia."
"Okay, I'm no chemistry expert but even I know you shouldn't mix that stuff together. Don't the fumes cause, like, instant death?"
"No, not instant, and not if applied properly."
"What in blue hell are you two talking about? Divine Flame burns are impossible to heal," Hiei reiterated. "What is bleach and ammonia?"
"Two cleaning products with very high pH values. They can burn your skin by themselves but when mixed, they give off fumes comparable to crude mustard gas."
"And why would you ever try and treat a burn with base chemicals?" asked Hiei.
"The burn from ammonia and bleach destroys the original burn and allows me to heal the skin underneath. It will be very painful and dangerous."
"I don't care. Do it."
"I will go get the equipment. In the meantime, open all the windows in the living room." Kurama stood up and walked out of the room.
Yusuke stood up and started opening windows.
"Did that seem odd to you?" asked Hiei.
"What?" asked Yusuke.
"The fact that Kurama was barely functioning when we came here and now he is acting as if nothing ever happened."
"It's shock, that's all. It's normal."
"He should have hit me."
"Why would he do that?'
"Because it is my fault that his mother is dead."
"Not hardly, Hiei. I wouldn't have mated with that bitch either. You had no way of knowing she'd go all Hannibal Lecter on Tokyo. Don't blame yourself. We just need to come up with a plan on how to kill her."
"I already know how. But it is very risky and could kill us both."
"I'm in. You know what an adreniline junkie I am."
"We have to combine your Spirit Wave with my Dragon. It would create a massive explosion which would likely-"
"Knock us clear to Pluto?"
"Not what I had in mind but you seem to understand the concept. We have to lure her back to the Makai in order to keep humans from being affected."
"Sounds like you have a good solid plan. I'll just have to practice my landings in case I end up on Pluto. You know… Not a lot of gravity up there."
Kurama came back with two bottles of cleaning products, an empty bowl, measuring cups and cotton balls.
"What? No gas-masks?" asked Yusuke. It was a pitiful attempt to make light of the situation and he knew it but that was just Yusuke's way of dispelling anxiety, to make fun of what made him nervous.
Kurama ignored Yusuke and started measuring out equal parts ammonia and bleach into the bowl. The resulting smell was enough to make all demons present cringe but had an even greater affect on Kurama, whose sense of smell was more refined then his two friends.
"Take off your shirt," said Kurama.
Hiei obeyed Kurama's command.
"Now, lie down and try not to breathe."
Hiei lay down on the floor as it was stone and would not likely be as stained from the chemicals as the sofa would.
Kurama knelt beside his friend and dipped a cotton ball into the solution. Yusuke walked over to the window because the smell was starting to make him gag slightly. Not to mention the fact that the burn was gruesome and was enough to turn Yusuke's stomach on its own.
Kurama dabbed at the burn on Hiei's chest, noting that it was right over Hiei's heart. He may lose sensation in this area, Kurama thought. He didn't bother telling his friend. He was too preoccupied in making sure that he didn't touch the chemicals to Hiei's healthy skin.
"We should have done this outside," said Yusuke who was staring out the window at the drizzle of rain.
"Except that it is raining, you moron," said Hiei.
"Don't take your anger out on me," said Yusuke.
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm being burned with base chemicals right now. I am in no mood to hear your idiotic ramblings which do not even make sense."
"I'm sorry," Yusuke said in a defeated tone. The overall mood from being in a grieving friend's house coupled with the rain and the fact that he would soon have to embark on a dangerous and possibly suicidal mission did nothing to lift his spirits. "Kurama, why aren't you wearing gloves?" asked Yusuke.
"I hadn't thought of it," Kurama said dismissively. He looked into Hiei's eyes to gauge his reaction to the burn but saw only an empty expression. It pained Kurama to see his friend so emotionless but he merely continued his work.
"That stuff is dangerous, you're gonna burn your hands," said Yusuke.
"I don't care, Yusuke," Kurama replied. "Be quiet so I can concentrate."
Although there was no harshness in Kurama's tone, Yusuke took it as a warning that his friend was in no mood to talk. He could feel Kurama's anger growing.
Kurama finished his work and went outside to pour the chemicals out in the rain where they would be washed away and hopefully not damage his plants.
"How are you feeling, Hiei?" Kurama asked upon re-entry.
"Like my chest is on fire," Hiei replied.
Kurama went to his coffee table and pulled out a drawer which contained his demonic first aid kit. He started with an antiseptic mixed with aloe vera to help ease the burn, then wrapped Hiei's chest in tincture-soaked bandages which would help further heal the skin.
Hiei stood up and turned toward Yusuke, who had still not turned away from the window. "Go wash your hands, baka," Hiei snapped at Kurama. This was odd, Hiei rarely called anyone except Kuwabara a baka. He had certainly never called Kurama one.
Kurama left.
"Don't you think that was a bit harsh?' asked Yusuke.
Hiei pulled his shirt back on. "He needs to be shocked back into reality."
"Yeah, but calling him baka like that… I don't know, I guess I expected more from you concerning Kurama."
"It is unnerving to speak to someone's back. Turn around."
Yusuke faced Hiei. "I know I can't really understand what you're going through because, well, who can? But you need to chill out. Kurama's mom just died. That's kind of a big deal. Shiori was his life. He loved her more than any kid ever loved his mom. Did he ever tell you why he stole the Forelorn Hope?"
"No, I never understood it once I learned that you received a granted wish in exchange for your life. I assumed he never used it."
"His mom was dying of some really awful disease and he wanted to use it to save his mother's life. In exchange for his own. He didn't care that he was going to die. But I wouldn't let him. I told the mirror to take my life instead because it was just too ironic for my taste. The mirror granted the wish without taking either of our lives because I was being noble or whatever. I know you're not used to understanding how people feel coz you're like emotionally bankrupt but try okay? He's in a bad place right now. He needs comfort. I don't think trying to make him face reality is gonna make him feel better faster. He knows his mom is dead. He knows he's not right in the head but his heart is broken. Am I getting any of this through to you?"
"I honestly don't care how Kurama feels right now. We should just leave him behind if he isn't going to be helpful. He will only get in the way of our goal."
"If it weren't for the fact that your cause is righteous, I wouldn't help you. I don't think your motives are pure at all. I don't think you give two shits about whether another hundred humans die. We're all expendable to you. We're just food."
Hiei grabbed Yusuke and slammed him into the wall a few times. "Shut up! Shut up! I do not eat humans. And you are not a human. I don't care who your mother is, you are a demon. Do not insult yourself by lowering yourself to the standard of a common human."
"I can't believe this shit. Where the hell is Kurama? Washing your hands shouldn't take so long."
"He's in the back room, crying. He heard every word we said."
"Fuck you, Hiei. I'm going to talk to him. Stay here and try not to hurt anybody else, okay?" Yusuke pushed Hiei away and walked into the back room to find Kurama. His friend was sitting in the corner on a chair with his face buried in his hands.
"I'm sorry, Kurama," Yusuke said.
"Don't apologize for him," Kurama said in a not-so-steady voice. "He was right. My emotions will only get in the way. You would be right to leave me behind."
"You have a right to revenge. Just because Hiei is being an asshole doesn't mean you have to listen to him. Don't you think we're all emotionally attached to this… this situation? Hiei's just venting his rage. I don't know why he wants to kill Mukuro. He could care less about humans."
"Hiei is not heartless."
"How do you know?"
"If you are heartless, you can not suffer from a broken heart. It's as simple as that."
"When did Hiei's heart ever break?"
"Two minutes ago when you refered to yourself as food. Hiei doesn't slam his friends into walls for saying something rude and cruel. He brushes it off as if it does not matter to him. You are very capable of breaking his heart, Yusuke. You should know better then to say such things to Hiei. His temper is made worse by emotional trauma."
"You shouldn't make excuses for his rotten personality. He's rotten. There's nothing else to it. How would you even know his heart was broken?"
"Has he ever slammed you into a wall before?"
"No, except for just now."
"He did the same thing to me when I broke his heart seven years ago."
"Which was when?"
"When he thought Karasu had killed me. I was in the locker room with him and he slammed me against the wall saying 'don't you ever do that again. Do you hear me? I won't tolerate you dying.' He was nearly in tears when he said it. It was the most dreadful experience of my life up to that point. Heart-broken Koorime are… well, you felt the energy around Yukina. You know." Kurama dropped his hands into his lap. "He cares about me. If he didn't, he wouldn't mind not telling me the truth."
"I better go apologize to him then. Wash your face and come back out when you're ready." He touched Kurama's shoulder. "I'm here for you, you know that right?'
Kurama nodded and Yusuke left.
Yusuke walked into the living room with his hands up. "I'm sorry, man, I was way out of line," he said.
Hiei said nothing.
"I was too harsh."
Hiei stayed silent.
"I'm sorry I called myself food. That was just wrong. I'm sorry I called myself a human, although, it's not as insulting to me as it is to you."
No reply.
"Hiei, talk to me."
"Do you expect me to forgive you just because you apologize?" Hiei growled.
"No, but I do expect you to reply scathingly when I say something stupid."
"Is this a game to you?"
"What?"
"Do you enjoy making me feel worthless?"
"No, Hiei. I already apologized for that. I don't want to make anyone feel bad. I was just angry because you said you didn't care about Kurama."
"You are putting words in my mouth. I never said I didn't care about Kurama, I said I didn't care about how he was feeling. In the sense that it was irrelevant. I should have phrased that better. I'm worried about his welfare. I'm worried that he will get caught up in his need for vengence and make a careless mistake. He could die. We all could. And if one of you dies, and I don't… I don't even want to go down that road. Do we understand each other? Do you realize that I do have feelings?"
"Yeah, I do."
"Good. I need sleep." With that, Hiei fell to the floor and passed out.
Yusuke sighed and moved Hiei to the couch where he would, presumably, be more comfortable.
Kurama walked in moments later. "Oh good, will you be staying the night too?' he asked.
"Yeah, it's kinda late, thanks."
"We should get an early start tomorrow, we must make a plan."
Yusuke nodded.
"Good night," Kurama said as he headed up the stairs to his room.
I guess I'll sleep on the other couch then… thought Yusuke. He lay down facing Hiei's feet and drifted off into, thankfully, dreamless sleep.
An unprecidented ten pages long! Woot! REVIEW MY DRIVIL!!