A/N: I know I haven't updated anything for a good long time, and I've been trying to do so, but this story would not stop entering my mind. The story starts out with a young Touya and Jin, and progresses up to after the Dark Tournament. I don't own Jin, Touya, or anything associated with Yu Yu Hakusho. I don't own the song or lyrics or anything. R&R, enjoy.
Hysteric
It was an odd first meeting, to say the least. After being run off from my home village, I got lost in the immense woods. Having not the slightest clue about where I was, I wandered around aimlessly. Though I'm not entirely positive, about the forth day on my own I was attacked. A band of three rogue demons came out of nowhere and stole everything I had on me. They became enraged once they realized I had nothing of value and beat me to near death.
All I can remember was the pain and soon I became so numb that I couldn't even feel it anymore. Somewhere amidst the fighting I blacked out, but not before I caught a glimpse of a forth demon. I do know that the last thought that crossed my mind was, "I'm going to die."
When I awoke, a good time after I was attacked, I was floating in the air, the ground far below me. Afraid and shocked, I quickly jerked up, gasping in surprise. That was the first time I heard his voice.
No longer, no longer
What you ask
Strange steps
Heels turn black
"Oi, boy-o! Calm down. Ye ain' feelin' too fine, and Aye still got a good ways yet t' go."
I turned to look at the person holding me. Once more, I gasped. He had bright red hair with a small horn sticking out from it; although I could only see one eye, I saw that it was blue. But what made me gasp again were his ears. They were pointed and twitching. I'd never seen anything like them before.
"They twitch when I'm happy or excited, an' Aye haven' been either for a long time now," he spoke with a strange but interesting accent, and he sounded rather cheerful.
I blushed; he had caught me starring at his ears. Looking down, I realized we were flying high over a dense forest, and I screamed, jerking in such a manner that I fell free from his grasp and started down towards the ground fast. I couldn't think, I couldn't do anything, but gaze at the fast approaching trees. I didn't even realize if I was screaming or not.
Just before I hit the canopy of trees, just in the nick of time, my rescuer caught me; I didn't even realize he had followed my descent.
"Holy heck! Now why'd ya go an' do a thin' like that for?" he asked as he lowered us down slowly below the trees and to the ground. "Ye almost made me heart burst from me chest and th' like." He let me go and sighed in relief. I sat down on a near by boulder, feeling a bit queasy.
"Ya look something' awful. O' course, Aye'd be too if Aye got the crap beat out o' me. Good thin' I found ye just in time ter stop 'em."
Still dazed and dizzy from nearly falling to death, I stared up at the red headed demon with wide eyes. "What?"
"Don'tcha remember? Ya got beat up by 'em demons an' I stopped 'em. Made 'em run in fear Aye did. O' course, Aye got carried away. It happens when Aye get excited. Sent 'em flyin' Aye did."
"Who are you?" I had asked him, interrupting his rant.
"Oh… Listen ter me blabbin' away like a mad man an' Aye haven' even given ya me name yet." He laughed, a deep hearty sound which reflected his happy and carefree manner. "Me name's Jin, boy-o. Who be ye?" He held out his hand for me to shake, a wide grin on his face that spread wider when his ears started twitching again. Somewhat hesitantly, I shook his hand, smiling slightly myself.
"I'm Touya."
The cinders, the cinders
They light the paths
And these strange steps
Take us back, take us back
After that, he took me back to the other members of the Shinobi sect. I hadn't told him that I was an ice demon, yet that's how he introduced me. The ice master, an elderly demon who was soon to expire, took me under his wing and taught me all that I know today. He was the second person I admired, next to Jin.
During my apprenticeship, Jin and I bonded greatly. He was always so free spirited and cheerful, but he was also intelligent and strong, as any master of wind should be. I believe at first, Jin was more protective of me than he is now. Risho and Bakken both made it very clear that they didn't need or want a little runt like me around. I was young and had far less training and experience. To them, I was a mere burden and not worth recognition, unless they desired a punching bag.
However, the old ice master didn't seem to mind my inexperience and youth, no did Jin or Gama. And although the elder ice demon frowned upon Risho and Bakken's behavior towards me, it was Jin that took it upon himself to act out against them. It frightened me when Jin got angry, for he truly was a force to be reckoned with. It was plain to see that Bakken feared the wind master; Risho, though he rarely showed he was intimidated, just brushed it off.
Once I had completed all of my training, my mentor passed on, leaving me to the title of Ice Master. Gama was pleased, as were Risho and Bakken who finally saw me as officially one of them, even if I was a runt. Jin was the one most excited though, perhaps more so than myself. He hugged me tight, not for the first time, but it meant more to me than the other times he's done so. For once, I was truly proud of myself, and glad to have made Jin proud as well.
Flow sweetly, hang heavy
You suddenly complete me
You suddenly complete me
Centuries passed before the Dark Tournament came along. We had been in service as mercenaries for hire, constantly in the shadows, hiding. We desperately wanted to get away from the darkness we dwelled in. We wanted something beyond what we were forced to have and become. Even Jin, who was the least concerned about finding out light. I both admired him and thought him foolish.
It was a good two years before the Dark Tournament when we were approached by a business man, Butajiri. Him and Risho spoke in private for a good while, before the strange man left. Risho explained that we'd enter the tournament, and that should we win, the island it was hosted on, Hanging Neck Island, would be ours. Our very own island, a place in the light.
Flow sweetly, hang heavy
You suddenly complete me
You suddenly complete me
From that day up until the start of the Dark Tournament, I trained. I vowed that I'd become even strong than I already was; I vowed to win. The others trained as well, but none as hard as I. I wanted to get out of the dark and away from all of these forbidden thoughts, for I had started to see Jin as something more than a friend. I started placing hidden meanings behind the actions and words he gave me. I became frightened, ashamed, and disgusted with myself. So I started focusing more on getting to the light; I needed to distract myself. The sect and my friendship with Jin would suffer immensely if I were to expose how I felt.
Already withdrawn and quiet, I became even quieter and more focused on my training. If the others noticed, I couldn't tell. Jin was the only person that finally detected my change in behavior. But the only thing he did was cast me worried glances and would constantly as how I was. He got used to it after awhile.
Ohh, ohh, ohh, hysteric
Ohh, ohh, ohh, hysterical
Once the Dark Tournament began, my determination to win increased. We were all more than ready to fight for our island, for we'd all trained hard. I did begin to notice a change in Risho however. Although he was always arrogant and self centered, it worsened up until our match with Team Urameshi; he was so calm that it frightened me and he didn't even care about Gama's sacrifice.
After my defeat to Kurama, it sunk in. the realization that I'd never reach the light, that none of us would. That simple fact impacted me more than the plant that had cut through my body. Along with the slow loss of my blood came the agonizing depression; the sorrow, shame, and regret.
Weakened significantly by Kurama, I could barely watch Jin fight Yusuke, and I caught only glimpses of it. But I could tell that Jin hadn't given up on the light; more importantly, I knew Jin was truly enjoying himself and that made me happy. Jin hadn't had a decent opponent for a long time, so for him to have found one worthy enough to make those ears of his twitch was a blessing. Although I desired the light more than anything for myself, for Jin, I desired for him to be happy. It shocked me to see Yusuke hit Jin hard enough to send him forcefully flying through the air. And I didn't need to look to know that Jin hit the audience stand pretty hard.
No wonder, no wonder
Other half
Strange steps
Heels turned black
What shocked me even more was what Risho had done. I knew that that businessman Butajiri and Risho had plotted to win the competition deceitfully once I heard the committee announcing Yusuke's disqualification. Such an act made Gama and even Bakken's sacrifices meaningless and dishonorable. How Risho could do something like that, I'll never understand. I tried to make him see reason, to realize and make him understand, but he wouldn't listen. Instead, he knocked me out, hitting my wounds hard and breaking a few bones.
I was taken to the medical ward to be cleaned and bandaged before I was sent back to the team room. After a few hours, Risho entered, bandaged up a bit, but nothing serious.
"Jin will arrive later. The oaf hit the stands hard and needs to stay in the ward for a good bit yet." He explained before falling on his bed, ready for sleep.
I, however, couldn't sleep. I had lost my match; lost my light. I let my team down after all of the training. Not only had I let the others down, but I disgraced the Shinobi. More importantly, I let Jin down, and he certainly wouldn't need someone as weak as me. So I left; left the room, the hotel, and entered the woods, not caring if a demon saw fit to kill me.
It was raining hard, making it difficult to see, but I didn't care. A sharp pain from my wound reminded me to take it easy, but I refused, even when it started to bleed again. Holding my arm to my wound, I kept walking, though I was tired. I tripped over the root of a tree and fell onto the wet ground. Cringing, I curled into a ball and wished for my death. Slowly, I began to drift off to sleep, unable to stop myself.
I awoke hours later and it was still raining. Curling tighter into my position, I closed my eyes, ready for more sleep, when I heard a familiar voice calling my name. It was difficult to guess who it was, for I knew Jin's voice well. But I was horrified by the idea of confronting him; I had let him down. I had let my love down, and he'd probably be disappointed if not angry. I tried to get up, to run, for his voice was getting closer by the minute, but I felt too weak to carry on. So I laid on the ground, panting from struggling and pushing myself far beyond my limits, and curled myself back into a ball. That was how he found me, sighing in relief when he had.
The cinders, they splinter
And light the paths
And these strange steps
Trace us back, trace us back
"Oi, there ya are Tou'. Aye've been lookin' all ove' for ya." He crouched down beside me, a smiling spreading across his face, bringing light to his features. "Why're ya on th' ground? It's rainin', don'tcha know? Ye'll catch a cold. Let's get ye back ter bed."
I moved away when he reached for me. "No. L-leave me here."
Tilting his head to the side in confusion, his smile faded. "What're ya talkin' about'? I ain' gunna leave ya 'ere Touya. I couldn' do tha'; ye should know."
"Please, just…just leave me here Jin. Let me die here."
"I don' think so Tou'. Ye wounds aren' tha' serious, so ya ain' gunna die from tha'. An' I won' leave ya 'ere by yerself. No way Aye'm letting' ya die and go away from me Touya. Ain' no way in hell so ferget it. Aye'm gunna carry ya back so sorry before hand if ya wounds bleed some more cos of it."
Flow sweetly, hang heavy
You suddenly complete me
You suddenly compete me
Flow sweetly, hang heavy
You suddenly complete me
You suddenly complete me
Hysteric
Once Jin's mind was made up, there was no changing it. Carefully, as if he were handling a precious flower, he picked me up bridal style and started back towards the hotel. His skin was so warm, I couldn't help myself, and I cuddled up against his chest. I sighed, knowing I should apologize now for my defeat before we got inside.
"I'm sorry Jin." His steps didn't falter, but the confusion was evident on his face.
"Wha' fer? Ya got nothing' t' be sorry fer."
I bit my lip and pressed my face closer to his chest. I feared his rejection above all else, but I had no other option. Either I'd tell him or he'd find a way to wrestle it out of me.
Hysteric
"For messing up; for failing you and the team. I'm sorry that I'm not strong enough or dependable. I'm sorry I couldn't reach the light; for being a burden and dishonorable and useless. For not being able to make you happy and for being a horrible teammate and friend. But most of all, I'm sorry for disappointing you, Jin." After my confession, it grew quiet, aside from the rainfall. By that point, Jin had stopped walking and stood still. It didn't know what he was thinking and I refused to look at his face. Finally, he spoke.
"Yer all wrong Touya. Ye ain' weak or useless or dishonorable. An' ye sure as hell ain' no burden. Ye didn' let th' team down or me down. Hell, Aye though' ya did jus' fine today; at leas' ya didn' go flyin' through th' air all balloon like an' what not."
Hysteric
Even though I was shocked, I couldn't help but laugh. Jin had a colorful way of putting words together. When I finally did look up at him, he was staring down at me with gentle, dancing eyes and a warm smile on his face.
"Trus' me Tou'. Ye ain' a failure an' ye've done nothing t' be ashamed of. An' ye know better than anyone tha' I don' waste me time on people who aren' worth it. An' yer worth it, Touya. Always 'ave been an' always will be."
I smiled and he bent his head to kiss me. His lips felt so soft and warm against my own. I loved how it felt. It saddened me when we parted, but his bright smile made up for the loss.
Hysteric
"Aye've been waitin' t' tell ya something Tou', but Aye was holdin' it back. Aye can' no more. Aye love ye, Touya, an' I 'ave since I firs' saw ya." Not being able to help myself, I started to cry. This shocked Jin considerably.
"Don' cry, Tou'! Aye won' say it e'er again if it makes ya cry so. Hones', Aye swear Aye won'!"
I shook my head. "Don't say such things like that Jin. I…I love you as well. So, so please… Don't swear that you'll never say it again.
Once more, we kissed, a small, sweet, shy kiss. Never before had I experienced such a thing as that kiss, or the one before it.
Hysteric
After that, we returned back to our room. We stayed to watch the remainder of the tournament. Our Shinobi sect was pretty much destroyed, what with Gama and Bakken both death. Risho left us as soon as the tournament ended, and we haven't heard from him since. Of course, being with Jin made up for everything, and I couldn't ask for more even if I wanted too.
Hysterical