By: Minuiko
Summary: AU. Civil War era. "Just what is the key to survival here?" Hiei crushed the bottle beneath his feet before answering quietly, "Kill or be killed. It's how I've lived all my life, and it's how you'll have to learn how to live."
The only reason I wanted to write this was because I wanted to write something where the Tantei meet for the first time, because there are NO stories where they don't know each other. No specific pairing, although there will be slight bits of implied KuramaHiei. Oh yeah. And their ages have been slightly altered; Yusuke is sixteen, Kurama is eighteen, Hiei is eighteen, Kuwabara is sixteen, and anyone else will be anonymous until I choose to reveal their ages. Actually, I just don't want to type it all here, so… yeah.
General, Action/Adventure. PG-13. Some angst/death in later chapters.
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Chapter One: April 1, 1862!#$&
Kill or be killed. Live only for yourself. Divide and conquer. Strength is the only thing to strive for in the world. Friends are a crutch for the weak. The weak are the food for the strong. Crossing the boundaries is forbidden. Slaves are forever to stay slaves, and masters always reign supreme. These are the rules of the world, or at least, of the continent. Remember that if you want to live, boy. Bullshit. The dark-haired boy nearly growled as he stared, incomprehensible, at the slip of paper he held in his hand, but refrained from it as he stalked out of his shady corner into the sunlight. Just outside the door of the apartment, a taller teen demanded from him in a breathless voice, "Did you get it too?"
!#$&
"Yuusuke! Ugh! Are you skipping work again?"
Keiko's voice rang through the barnyard, before she turned on her heels with a huff and grabbed the old, worn rope just outside the huge wooden door. Climbing up onto a stack of hay, she stood to her full height, her hands on her hips. As she opened her mouth, about to rebuke the insolent boy who was lounging on the straw with a stalk of oat in his mouth, he told her quietly, "Save it, Keiko."
Something wasn't right. "Yuusuke?"
The usually bright, teasing lights in his eyes were missing. He turned determined eyes onto her, before taking a deep breath and saying, "I got drafted into the Union army. The telegraph was sent yesterday."
"Are— are you serious? Really, Yuusuke?" Keiko wasn't prepared to accept this fact. This was Yuusuke here— he was her childhood friend, he was only sixteen, he couldn't have been drafted, he wouldn't go, he couldn't! She knew that he could get killed, or worse, captured or enslaved or tortured or-or— whatever else those evil Rebels did to people they captured! "Yuusuke?"
He was slightly annoyed as he answered, "Yes, I'm sure, and I have to go. Today. Now."
Suddenly, she clung to him, afraid to let him go, but knowing that once his mind was made up, even if it wasn't a government order, he'd go through with it. He held her for a moment, his eyes understanding, saying, "Look, you don't have to worry yet, Keiko… we first have to start with military training, so I'll be safe and sound," she could tell he was teasing her for her concern, but this was no laughing matter, "for the first two months I'm gone. And by then, the whole bloody war will be over, and then everything'll go back to what it was before this war ever happened, okay? So don't cry."
Her voice was muffled in his clothing as she retorted, "I'm not crying."
But they both knew that the war would last much longer than just two months, and that he was saying that just to comfort her. It wasn't okay with her; how could it be? But they had to live with it. They stood in that pose for a few more moments, before Yuusuke whispered fiercely into her chocolate-brown hair, "I will come back. Wait for me."
Keiko's eyes lowered as she let go of him. As her grip slackened, she told him, "I will wait."
!#$&
Yuusuke looked around the station. They'd go, it seemed, by railroad to a designated camp, and from there, train for two months in proper attire, equipment, rules and regulations, and the like. He yawned. Especially after the scene he'd had with Keiko a while ago, this, this waiting, was so boring.
"Gimme back my cat, shorty!"
This was coming from a tall, well-built, broad-shouldered, and orange-haired teenager no older that Yuusuke was. Except… not as well built as me, Yuusuke mused to himself. Not as good-looking as me either. He wasn't a narcissist like his landowner's son, Shishiwakamaru (Shishi for short), but no one could deny that he had a good face and a good body. Must be all the farm work…
The "shorty" that the orange-haired boy had yelled at was a limber, black-haired boy who was obviously not a kid, but strangely, barely came up to Yuusuke's chest. He had a face that was recognizably austere, but was currently smirking at the said orange-haired boy. "Make me."
"Damn you, shrimp! Eikuchi!"
Yuusuke found himself starting to smile in spite of himself. He watched them with interest, but made no move to help either the black-haired boy or the orange-haired one, though personally, if it came to it, he'd help the orange-haired one. The black-haired boy looked more competent and able to defend himself. A light voice behind Yuusuke said with apparent amusement, "They're always like that, although Hiei isn't usually so open."
Yuusuke turned abruptly. A tall, slender boy with long crimson hair that was tied up into a loose ponytail was smiling at him, one hand reaching towards Yuusuke. Yuusuke noticed that he was wearing a blue military uniform with a badge that told the world his rank and name: First Lieutenant Minamino. He looked back into the bright face. "My name is Shuuichi Minamino. My friends call me Kurama. I'd like you to do the same."
Yuusuke grinned back, taking the offered hand, replying, "Yuusuke Urameshi."
Kurama still kept the polite smile in both his face and his green eyes as he explained about his accomplices who were currently running in circles. "The black-haired one is Hiei Jaganshi. He isn't very talkative, but he bites back, so don't get on his bad side. No, actually, let me rephrase that. It's good to know what hits him hard, because you can't make friends with him any other way, but don't overdo it or you're dead. Literally. The orange-haired one is Kazuma Kuwabara. To be brutally honest, he's a cat-lover and just as lacking in brains as any teenager at sixteen— and you can take that any way you want to. He's easier to talk to than Hiei off the bat, and has a good, honest heart, although you might think of it as a weakness. The rest, you find out by yourself."
Yuusuke noticed that Kurama didn't mention anything about himself, but bit his tongue on that. If Kurama didn't want to talk about it, then he didn't need to dig for answers. Besides, he'd basically given away his two friends' entire personalities, not that it'd be of any advantage to Yuusuke. But he was nice about it. And that had to count. Yuusuke was just about to explain who he was and where he was from when the train whistled, the signal for them to get on. The black-haired boy— Hiei, Yuusuke reminded himself— threw the cat to Kuwabara with a small, almost condescending, frown, as though he was disappointed that Kuwabara couldn't get it back by himself, and walked towards the train right besides Kurama, silent.
Red, Yuusuke realized with a slight jolt. He has red eyes. I thought that was supposed to be demonic. That was stupid— of course red eyes were demonic. And come to think about it… Kurama's eyes are just a shade too bright for green… they were nearly emerald. But that was, well, acceptable, Yuusuke thought. Kuwabara had normal, black eyes, and his own were a dark shade of brown. And why am I fussing about appearances like some Miss Priss, alias, Keiko?
Yuusuke followed in their wake as they formed a line with the other men getting onto the train. Yuusuke just looked forward without a word until he heard a familiar, snobbish voice yelling his name. Oh shit…
"Yuusuke Urameshi! Is that you, goatherd boy?"
"Lord Shishiwakamaru. Why am I not surprised?" He gave a little, mocking bow, ending with a pathetic attempt at an elegant flourish. Shishi smirked and told him, "I wasn't expecting you to be here, but that aside, did you follow me just to show your loyalty to your master?
"If I remember correctly, I never pledged loyalty to you in my life. You're just my family's landlord's son."
Shishi replied, "Well, you should pledge it. Have you seen such beauty as mine anywhere else?"
Yuusuke just shook his head sadly and scoffed, "Narcissist."
They were nearly at the door when a middle-aged, dark-haired female cried out, "Shuuichi! You forgot your lunch!"
Yuusuke turned a curious face to the scene. Lunch? No one else has brought their lunches…why the hell would we need them anyway? We're supposed to have enough to eat in order to fight, right? Even if we're just in training…
Kurama didn't look abashed, as Yuusuke thought he would've— how many nearly grown men had their mothers still pack their lunches for them?— he merely smiled softly and thanked her. She was still holding another package in her hand, which she thrust into Hiei's arms, beaming.
"Yukina sends her love, Hiei! As do I, to all of you. I hope that you'll be careful?"
Yuusuke didn't rain in on their little picnic, but silently whistled. Whoa-o-oa, Hiei! Who's Yu-ki-na? Okay, that was a bit too assumptive; he didn't even know who this Yukina was. Kuwabara seemed to be frowning a bit when the girl's name was mentioned in the first sentence with regards to Hiei.
Kurama's mother, whose name was Shiori, Yuusuke realized, said everything so cheerfully, yet beneath it was a mother's worry. After all, the Union had already lost the battle of Bull Run to the damn Rebels, and many soldiers were killed. Yuusuke had never really paid attention to the number of casualties; he just knew there were a lot. Kurama looked tenderly at his mother as he answered, "I will. Thank you again, Mother."
Yuusuke coughed lightly into his hand, "Mother's boy!" at the touching yet utterly sappy scene as Shiori Minamino tearfully exchanged her goodbyes with her son and waved her handkerchief. They finally boarded the train without interruption. Hiei and Kuwabara didn't make a sound as Yuusuke sat in their compartment, next to Kurama.
The small compartment was cold and metal, but otherwise rather cozy, with just enough room for four grown, 200-something-pound men, and the four of them weren't very big save for Kuwabara. Yuusuke suddenly realized what an idiot he'd been for laughing at Kurama and the lunch exchange— by his third hour on the stupid train, his stomach was growling so loud the next compartment could hear it. He was also a farm boy, so money was something to be careful with. He had no idea how his mother managed the money, with her somewhat licentious and carefree ways, but she did. He didn't have much money on him, and he couldn't exactly buy whatever he wanted on the train, so he'd just have to starve, he guessed.
It was then that he realized that Kurama was holding a hand out to him, a piece of sushi resting on his palm. There was a wry grin on his face as he told Yuusuke, "I'm pretty sure that it's your stomach that's making that abysmal noise right now, and as I don't want you to drop dead in the compartment, I want you to take some. Right now."
Is he trying to be funny? Yuusuke wondered. He took the piece of sushi and thanked Kurama, who shook it off and told them that he needed to use the latrines, so don't eat too much of his food. As he closed the compartment door after him, Hiei commented bluntly, "He likes you."
"Huh? What gave you that impression?"
Hiei closed his eyes lazily and answered matter-of-factly, "The fact that he actually offered you his inarizushi that his mother made and the fact that you took it without him ripping your jaws off proves that. But as he said, don't take too much."
What… the… fuck? Yuusuke decided not to ask, as Hiei seemed comfortable with the answer, and as it was plain from his tone that this was a common thing. Kuwabara, who had been basically ignoring Yuusuke since they'd met, explained in Hiei's stead, "Look, man, it's like this: anyone who takes his sushi is dead, got it? I don't know much more than that; Kurama's got some kinda fetish for sushi. Add to that his devotion to his mother. Anyway, it's a sort of… ritual of his. Does it every year. He asks us whether we would like any and we have to say no… if we don't, well, you don't want to know what happens."
"Uh… huh," Yuusuke said. He took one more piece and willed himself to keep it at that. He'd respect Kurama's… so-called fetish for sushi and creepy, weird ritual. Besides, the first piece, which was like some sort of peace offering according to Hiei and Kuwabara, was enough sustenance. With it, he had gained a friend, and a first lieutenant at that (the sushi had staved off a little bit of his hunger as well). And with Kurama on his side, Hiei (also a first lieutenant) and Kuwabara (a second lieutenant) should be, too. Not that he should assume things, but they were Kurama's friends, right? Yuusuke's logic didn't leave room for argument.
Kurama came back freshly washed and smiling queerly. "Only two pieces, Yuusuke? I thought you were hungry."
… That is not a normal smile. Is it his "ritual smile?" Did he know that Hiei and Kuwabara would tell me about his strange habit? Is he testing me? Er… "Ahh… it's okay. I'm fine now. See? Not hungry anymore."
Now Kurama's smile changed slightly. Creepy… you can tell what his emotions are in his smile…this one probably signals relief. Relief! Over his sushi…? He really does have a weird fetish for sushi…and I was being tested…
Kurama sat down, his long hair still tied up in a loose ponytail that made Yuusuke think he was slightly effeminate, and asked smoothly whether Hiei or Kuwabara would like some. Both declined.
!#$&
Kurama showed Yuusuke and the newer recruits to their new accommodations, as befitted his rank. Hiei took a slightly more advanced group of second lieutenants, and the two first lieutenants joined up in the mess hall. Hiei began speaking first, in a flat voice.
"This is where you eat. There are makeshift tents outside for you to live in; individual tents are harder for the enemy to siege than a single barrack holding ten men. You have thirty minutes at six in the morning to wash, dress, associate, and get breakfast. Training begins promptly at six thirty. Anyone who is late is punished with a part of his ration taken off. Understood?"
They mumbled a reply. "I DIDN'T HEAR YOU!"
"SIR, YES, SIR!"
"That is not the proper way to salute. You hold arm precisely at this spot in the air, and keep your elbow at a ninety degree angle, and you answer promptly and audibly the next time I ask, DO YOU HEAR ME?"
"SIR, YES, SIR!"
"Pathetic," Hiei shook his head, "but I expect you to improve next time."
The Civil War doesn't ask for perfection in salutes, thought Yuusuke dryly. Hiei had all of a sudden changed from the boy teasing Kuwabara with the cat back at the train to a strict, commanding, higher-ranking officer, and they had to obey his orders. Or what? Yuusuke wondered. How would they be punished? Kurama now was talking, but he didn't pay attention to him any more. Hello? I'm working with a limited attention span here.
After the perfectly mundane speech, they were dismissed and assigned separate tents. Thus life in the training camps began.
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.:Owari:.
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A/N: Okay, I know, crappy ending and maybe Hiei OOCness? I did the entire Kurama/sushi weirdness completely on a whim, so blame me if you like. And I know, the Hiei quote that probably attracted you guys here is not in this chapter. It appears later, in their first battle. If I ever get to it.
Should I continue this or not? I'm not entirely sure I can do this… if I get enough reviews (no specific numbers; I just wanna know if people like my story or not), I'll definitely continue. If not… I don't know.
Review!