Guess who? :D
This one's relatively short guys! And don't worry, I've got more to say at the bottom xD
Enjoy!
Chapter 20- What the Inside Knows is Real
I'm not really sure what woke me up, but one moment I was watching Kuri's happiness and the next, I was blinking awake to darkness, feeling cold and terrible. We were back at Kuwabara's house and the boys had just let me fall asleep in his room. Other than asking me if I was okay and checking that I hadn't been hurt, they'd all been eerily silent on the way back.
I turned over slowly, not remembering ever closing my eyes in the first place. I couldn't even call it sleep: it had been more like a restless unconsciousness. Kuri had looked so happy in my dream… but I felt the exact opposite. It was as if a stone had replaced my heart, dragging itself to the soles of my feet.
I must've been asleep for only a couple of hours at most because I could still see the moon from the window. On the other side of the room, the door was slightly ajar, letting in a thin warm sliver that was the only light source in the room. I lay there for a few moments, until my ears gradually picked up the chaotic string of voices coming from the other room. I could tell that they belonged to the boys, but I could barely make out their hushed murmurs... Frowning, I slid out of the covers and crawled on my hands and knees towards the door, stopping at the edge and pressing my back against the wall. Cautiously, I tried looking through the small gap.
I had the perfect view of Kuwabara resting on one end of his sofa and I could see Kurama wrapping his entire torso in white bandages. I was comforted by the fact that rather than mortally wounded he only looked slightly frustrated and appeared to be arguing with the others about something.
Making myself go absolutely still and only breathing when necessary, I tried concentrating on what was being said. In retrospect, I should've known better than to eavesdrop, especially since I was going to regret ever listening.
"...at all fishy? I mean, think about it! She just happened to conveniently be there to save your life and it didn't take her more than a day to win us over after that. None of us even questioned it!"
"What are you trying to suggest?" came a bitterly cold reply. Hiei. My earlier sinking heart leaped to my throat.
Kuwabara stared hard, unblinking, "Do I really have to spell it out? How do we know that Ren hasn't been in on it with Asami from the start? I mean, if you think about it, it all fits!"
He might as well have punched me in the stomach; I couldn't breathe. No...!
Kuwabara continued his accusation angrily, "She obviously has something to do with Asami personally and always avoids getting the worst of anything from any of Asami's cronies! How can you not think that that's not even a little suspicious?"
"What-" Hiei snarled, but Kurama shot him a look and interrupted in an attempt to keep the conversation civilized.
"I seriously doubt it Kuwabara." Kurama paused his medical work, frowning. Somewhere across the room, Yusuke started speaking.
"Hang on Kurama... maybe," Yusuke hesitated, "Maybe Kuwabara's got a point. It's only reasonable though! I mean, how can we trust her after pulling a stunt like that? With all we know, Minoru could've been filling her in with more of their plans."
Hiei couldn't hold back any longer, "Do you even hear yourselves? That's ridiculous. You actually think she's on their side? After all this time?"
"Well, what else could explain what she was doing with him tonight?" Yusuke promptly spat back, getting angry now.
"Doing with him-" Hiei faltered for an instant, sounding appalled, "Doing- I'm not sure what you saw Yusuke, but if my eyes do not betray me, I'm almost certain that he was strangling her when we found her!"
Another punch to the stomach. The tears were quickly welling in my eyes the longer I listened as I carefully touched my neck. It both felt tender and burned where Minoru had choked me, but I couldn't ignore how the situation looked. Even I couldn't deny it, though I knew it was completely untrue. It really did seem possible that I could be working with Asami.
Yusuke sighed sharply, "Ok, I'm not really saying that she is an enemy! I just think we have to be open to the possibility that she is... Innocent till proven guilty!"
Their voices became louder as Hiei began to argue more hotly but I couldn't listen anymore. I was feeling physically sick and I wrenched myself away from the open door. Innocent till proven guilty. Just how long would it take for them to decide I was guilty? I felt guilty enough as it was.
I stuffed myself back in the futon, feeling hot tears building quickly and furiously behind my adamantly shut eyelids. A ton of emotions tumbled around inside my body that I couldn't pick out easily- anger and sorrow that I had possibly just lost their trust, despair and pain, fear.
Several large drops managed to stubbornly work their way out of my eyes and then there was no stopping them. I held back the sobs, but I could only bury my head in the pillow as I wept. Even though Hiei seemed dead set on defending me, it was only a matter of time before he was convinced as well...
I shut my eyes again in the pitiful effort to stop the flow. It didn't.
~.~.~.~.~
"What about her uncle? Was that all fake then, too?" Hiei demanded stubbornly. Maybe he could expect this from the carrot-topped moron, but from Yusuke and even from Kurama? He had actually thought he knew them better than that.
"I-I don't know! But still." Kuwabara relented, but sulkily crossed his arms much to Kurama's annoyance, as he was still tending his wounds.
"We've had no reason not to trust her until now. Something must have happened, obviously. Why else would she even cooperate with demons after her life?" Hiei argued.
"Maybe that's what they're trying to get us to believe!" Yusuke snapped back, "Calm down and think about it Hiei- the weird mood she's been in, the way she's been on edge. She's obviously hiding something, we all know that much. There's a chance that this could really be it. Like I said, we don't want to be against her, but if this is really the truth, then what? Were we supposed to just keep going along with it?"
"No, because she hadn't done anything against us!" Hiei snarled back.
"Why are you getting so defensive Hiei? It's not like I'm accusing you!" Yusuke stood up, fist raised. "What? Does the great, stone Hiei actually give a shit this time?"
Hiei stood up as well, baring his fangs, "Shut your mouth detective!" His entire frame was almost shaking with how angry he was.
"Hiei settle down!" Kurama finally stood up, intending to hold him back if it came to that. "Think rationally. You're being blinded by your feelings!"
"Kurama stay out of this! If Hiei's got something to say, I want to hear him loud and clear!" Yusuke snapped angrily but had already gone completely oblivious to how Hiei visibly deflated and tensed, his face drawing a blank. Of course, it didn't go unnoticed by Kurama who watched his reaction curiously.
Openly caught off guard, a look of honest confusion crossed Hiei's face for a solid beat until he fixed it with a typical expression. It happened so quick that only Kurama noticed it- with slightly arched brows in awe- but Hiei only threw himself back against the sofa with a huff.
"Kurama, what are you talking about? The runt doesn't have feelings! A brick has more emotions than him." Kuwabara grumbled, promptly being suffocated with a large throw pillow by Yusuke.
But Hiei had already lost interest in the rest of them and had gone silent, clearly lost in his own thoughts.
Kurama stood across from him, observing him in silence. Hm... Interesting.
~.~.~.~.~
Hiei quietly slipped into the room, flinching when the door squeaked loudly. He paused, his body taunt, and stared at the covered figure on the floor. The futon rustled slightly, then settled, a quiet exhale stirring the hush of the shadowy room.
Half a minute must've passed by the time he decided that Ren was really sound asleep. Feeling the familiar presence of the other end of the bond comforted him and he settled down by her side. Letting the darkness and peace permeate his mind, Hiei realized how fatigued he really was. His sore muscles, that he hadn't been paying attention to, began relaxing and stretching in relief. However, there was no way he was about to allow himself to let his guard down no matter how tired he was, not with what happened tonight.
Rubbing his arm, he was pleased to note how most of the numbness was already gone and that he'd regained feeling despite Aya's poisonous attack. The actual area where the skin had split, on the other hand, still stung slightly though Kurama had already cleaned and wrapped it. But he could care less about the pain- rather, just looking at it served as a bitter reminder of his failure to keep Ren out of danger.
Even in the shadows, he could see her body turned towards him, her face blank and at peace, at least for the time being. She stirred slightly again, coming into the moonlight and Hiei paused, taking another moment to re-examine her in the new light. There were shiny streaks that trailed down her face and if he really looked, the skin underneath her eyes were slightly puffy. She'd been crying...
Frowning, he leaned closer, though aware he couldn't actually do anything, and stayed there in indecision, battling through a series of emotions. On one hand, the need to comfort had been practically instantaneous, but following that reaction the overwhelming confusion of why?
Recently he hadn't much time to really brood, but in the stillness of the night, the thoughts he'd been brushing to the side promptly flowed out. He hadn't allowed it to show either, but the Kurama's off-hand comment just a half-hour earlier had affected him more than he'd expected or liked.
Blinded by feelings... The statement barely registered. After the words had been cast into the open, they'd burrowed themselves deeply into Hiei's senses, echoing around in his head. What could Kurama possibly be suggesting? Blinded by feelings?
Hiei had never exactly been a person to be affected by such trivial things like human emotion, as was known by anyone who'd ever had the pleasure of surviving an encounter with him. After he'd met Kurama, he'd witnessed first-hand what the fox had tried to do for the life of his human mother, one meek little life at the cost of his own which had so much more worth than hers in years and significance. The ghost of a smile played on Hiei's face: reflecting back on it now, he was aware of how cruel and merciless he used to be and taking that into account, he could follow his previous way of thinking about Kurama's attempted sacrifice. However, as time had passed and he'd found... companionship in others, it was even clear to him no matter what kind of attitude he displayed that he'd obviously grown (he even managed a chuckle at how far he'd fallen) soft. Now, rather than considering Kurama's action as a mark of weakness, he only felt honest confusion.
It frustrated him to no end; he just couldn't understand, couldn't wrap his head around the reason. That was what he found so incredibly defective about emotions: if allowed control, they could be the cause of irrational and dangerous behavior that could result in terrible and avoidable consequences. He found himself wishing he could ask Kurama outright, though he knew his pride would never allow it. He'd never actually tried questioning him about it before, only keeping his personal opinions to himself, but now the desire to know why he'd done it pestered him insistently.
Ren exhaled lightly in her sleep, catching Hiei's attention once again, but this time when she moved, the hair at the nape of her neck slid down her face, revealing deep purple shadows tattooed around her neck. Where that disgusting excuse for a demon had dared to... His blood began to boil and another, more urgent desire swept through him.
This anger... At just a glance, I'm already filled with this inexplicable rage... Settling into a troubled calm, he closed his eyes gladly shutting it all out in an attempt to bring back peace to his mind.
There was a slight rustling outside the window, and Hiei snapped back from his thoughts, tensing up in caution. It had sounded like nothing more than the whisper of trees in the breeze, but he didn't want to make any assumptions.
Feeling stiff from sitting still for such a while and having lost all sense of time in the dark room, Hiei slowly started to pick himself up, trying to be quiet but quick.
However, he never managed to get up because something abruptly grabbed his hand and he felt a familiar warm tingling trail its way up through his fingertips, a warmth that lingered even after being let go. Surprised and caught off guard, Hiei froze but Ren didn't make any sudden movements. Even in the dark, he could see her eyes shining softly.
"Wait..." She whispered quietly, "Don't leave."
After not saying anything for several moments, he was startled see the brightness in her eyes dim in sadness as her grip began to go slack and pull away. Hiei automatically tugged it back without thinking; other than a startled twitch in her fingers, she didn't say anything.
Forgetting about the window, Hiei sank back down, eyes scanning her face for different signs. Without him realizing it, Ren must've stopped up her end of the bond at one point because she was totally closed off.
They stayed like that for a while until Hiei couldn't bring himself to avoid it any longer. Not one to cut corners, Hiei started straight out and to the point.
"What happened last night?"
Her gaze, which hadn't been trained on anything, darted to meet his steady and unyielding one. Though he seemed calm and collected, she could tell how serious he was. She pulled her hand away, just short of yanking, as if he'd shocked her like he used to and she turned away.
"... I can't."
He sighed in frustration, closing his eyes for a moment. If there was anything he'd learned about Ren, it was how annoyingly obstinate she was, but it was time for the truth to come out. Regardless of what the others said, Hiei couldn't be convinced that Ren was anything but on their side. After everything that's happened, she hadn't ever given him the impression that she was out to harm any of them, and she'd had countless of opportunities. Even so, he did realize that the secrets had been building up over time. Previously, he hadn't necessarily been concerned but now that she was in immediate danger he needed to know everything.
"Ren," Hiei slightly growled. Didn't she realize the importance of what this all meant? For her? He wasn't going to play this game.
"No...I can't." Ren wasn't mumbling anymore, her voice hard and strained.
Hiei paused to debate whether or not continuing the gentle approach would bear any fruit or if he should just dangle her out the window. Instead, he just sighed and rested his head on a fist, the ghost of a smile playing on his lips.
"You're a moron."
As expected, she started at that one. Pulling roughly at the covers, she twisted around, incredulous. Now that he had her attention, he went on.
"I know you've been hiding a lot. I've had my own suspicions but for your own sake it's important that you don't hold anything back anymore. What benefit do you have in keeping these heavy secrets on your own, meager shoulders?" He hadn't meant to cause the streak of hurt that crossed her face, but he was only being honest; he wasn't one really known for being as gentle. However, with her battling emotions, Hiei felt the blockade on her mind significantly weaken and her inner conflict began to leak out. He could feel the hurt, the despair, and the fear as if they were his own.
He felt... sick inside.
"Ren..." Suddenly he was struck by the overwhelming desire to take all of the bad away, even if just so that she wouldn't feel like this; not by herself. Surprising both her and himself, he snatched her hand once more. Her breathing hitched and her eyes went wide.
"Hiei...?" She whispered in confusion. Hiei tightened his hold, eyes closed and gritting his teeth. The words had suddenly stopped coming so easily.
"I… can feel your pain," He paused in an attempt to collect the words he was struggling to say, "...It's causing me pain to feel it. By taking all of this on your own shoulders, it hasn't made anything better. You were never alone in this... and you never will be." Here he looked straight at her with an unfaltering gaze.
"You were able to get away from us once and with that you were almost killed. I'll never let that happen to you again. You don't have to worry anymore; I'll be there to protect you." The more he spoke, the harder it became: talking like this was extremely uncomfortable, but he felt compelled to say it.
Hiei watched Ren's stunned expression for a moment and then said, "I'm telling you to depend on us. I can admit that I haven't ever been the most sociable being in this existence, but we have more in common than you think." He snorted lightly at her confused expression, "For a long time, I was perfectly fine being alone because I always was and eventually grew to welcome it. In turn, I acted according to my will alone and trusted no one."
Ren slowly sat up and quietly asked, "Why were you always alone?"
Hiei didn't know if it was the sad shine in her eyes, the soft tremor of her voice, or something in the night air, but when the next words out of his mouth came out, he was shocked. Unexpectedly, he suddenly found himself telling her everything: his beginning, his childhood, his past... everything.
Beginning with his taboo birth and into his bloody, twisted childhood, to the implant of his jagan eye (though he told her he did in fact have a sister, he was careful to avoid giving her a name, which in his defense, must've been the only thing he didn't tell her), to the present, Hiei told her his whole story without hesitation while all the while Ren remained absolutely silent, engrossed.
In a fuzzy memory of a cold, wet night that rang with laughter and a sorrowful legend, Hiei recalled that he'd once mentioned his mother and Ren had seen his precious keepsake, but now he went so far as to pull the beautiful blue tear from around his neck with his free hand, turned over her hand that he was still holding and gently let it slide into her open palm. Slightly overwhelmed, she handled the delicate jewel as if she were holding his heart in her hands.
It was a long time before Hiei was done with his tale. Telling it all at once really put a lot of what he'd done into perspective and for the first time since starting he wondered if maybe he'd been wrong to tell her any of it, but when he met her eyes, for the tiniest of moments, he felt as if he couldn't breathe.
They were shining with wonder, curiosity, and even confusion but there were no traces of doubt or fear; they were also shining with unshed tears, but in the dim light, they only shimmered like the stars.
Torn between being stunned and moved, Ren's fingers trembled around the glass tear. When she finally found her voice, it only came out as a whisper.
"Why are you telling me this?"
Hiei couldn't answer. Why was he telling her all of this? She hadn't asked, the topic hadn't come up, and yet... It was as if his body had truly been possessed, he began to move forward and without a second thought, he'd taken her warm hand which held his mother's tear once again and pulled.
Ren could barely breathe. Hiei wasn't holding her tightly at all, but he was holding her. But this kind of holding was different; it felt much warmer and made it hard to think or do anything. The brush of his jet black hair tickled her cheek as his arms held her firmly in place. The tears were desperate to fall more than ever.
However, if Ren was surprised, Hiei was at least double that, but he didn't let go.
"...It's because I trust you."
Like a broken record, Kurama's voice was once again inside his head.
'You're being blinded by your feelings."
Something was really going on with him.
~.~.~.~.~
That did it.
The tears began to fall and I heard Hiei sigh so I could only guess that he was thinking once again about how weak and stupid I was being by crying, but what did he expect? He was just going to open up so completely to me like that, then tell me straight out that he trusted me and not expect me to blubber like a baby? Well clearly, he still didn't know me that well. But actually...
If I thought about it, what did Hiei know about me? Had all this time really been spent together with knowing next to nothing about each other until right this moment? And it had been Hiei who'd finally opened up. Hiei! What did that say about me?
As crazy and unreal as it sounded, he was right. There really was a lot we shared in common. Of course, I couldn't even try to compare my past to his, but there were key parallels in each of our lives. From the beginning, we'd both been forsaken by a mother we never met, and we've dealt with things on our own, turning our backs on everything and everyone else, never really able to trust.
And right now, when I'd thought I'd just lost any and all trust I had managed to develop with everyone, here was Hiei telling me otherwise.
Hiei trustedme.
He hadn't just told me either; he'd proved it by telling me what he did right now. Looking at myself, I couldn't help but feel ashamed; what had I done to earn any of his trust? Certainly not by keeping all of these secrets. But still for some reason, Hiei, who hated humans, who was always alone, who didn't trust... chose to trust me. I had to bite my tongue to keep from crying out.
And he called me a fool.
"Hn." Even in that abrupt grunt, I could hear his smirk.
I gripped his shirt tightly. Hiei really was thinking that I was being stupid, wasn't he!
...He would be right then, but I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of seeing my free-falling tears though, so I kept my face down, but I couldn't hold myself back anymore. He'd really managed to bring me to my knees: everything that I had managed to keep hidden was flooding out, the barrier keeping Hiei out of my mind practically disappearing all together.
Like releasing a drawn arrow with stiff fingers, a barrage of my emotions and thoughts rushed towards Hiei and I felt him stiffen and groan in slight pain, releasing his hold around me to grab my shoulders and grit out for me to calm down before his head exploded, but everything was coming out so fast that I couldn't stop. I was even so caught up in it all that I didn't even remember that I hadn't wanted to show Hiei my tears when I looked at him.
"You're right... you've been right all along. I… I've been such a stupid idiot this whole time and I can't believe that I haven't been completely honest from the very start." My breath came out raggedly as I struggled with heavy guilt in my heart. "I don't deserve your trust, an-and I'm sorry- for everything. " I slumped over in defeat, feeling disgusted with myself as the tears threatened to spill again for the nth time. I had to hold them in though for the sake of looking pathetic.
Hiei didn't say anything and only patiently waited for me to collect myself, gazing at me steadily, waiting for me to gather my courage and talk.
After a few moments of silence, I finally pulled myself together and set my mind of telling Hiei everything. Instead of speaking out loud though, I help up my hand, and making sure he was watching, tapped the bruises around my throat lightly. Hiei growled, but didn't understand. Then the obviously simple solution dawned on me. Our bond! Minoru might be able to monitor my voice and what I said, but he had no control over my thoughts.
Closing my eyes, I concentrated for a moment, "Sorry, I'm just going to have to tell you like this."
Hiei, although momentarily surprised, let me continue though the question shone in his eyes.
"When Minoru grabbed my throat, he did something: I'm not sure if it was a spell or what, but as of right now he knows and is keeping track of everything that I say, so I have to be careful about what I say out loud.
Realization flashed in Hiei's eyes, "The bastard..."
I sniffed, "I'm so, so sorry Hiei, for not telling or confiding in you when you've never doubted me. I've just been so scared, and- and he'd threatened to hurt Yukina and Botan! I didn't know what to do except what he told me to. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if anything happened to them because of me." My vision was once again going blurry with tears and I buried my face in my hands.
"I'm the reason they're in danger. It's all me."
I didn't even give Hiei a chance to reciprocate because I was suddenly confessing all of it.
"When Kuro showed up in Koenma's office, he slipped me a message telling me that I had to go to the center of the park at midnight and when I did, it was Minoru who met with me. They've been using Yukina and Botan as bait. Then he told me he had a message for me from Asami: I've been officially invited to her palace; I even know how to get there now too. He also said they were willing to exchange Yukina and Botan for something, which he didn't tell me."
"There's more that happened though. At one point, he cut off a piece of my hair and took it with him. I'd asked him why he'd called me out alone in the first place. He said he needed to make sure of something- that I was the one they needed. And then I asked him what Asami wanted with me..." The memory was clear as day in my head... and now it was in Hiei's.
His eyes widened as his mind absorbed the memory, but I wasn't done. When I said everything, I meant everything.
"Every day, I feel like I'm closer and closer to understanding what Asami is after and why she's after me specifically." I took a deep breath even though I hadn't said any of this out loud. I was really about to take the plunge with this; I didn't know if this was the right thing to do or how Hiei would react, but it had to be done now. No more secrets.
"I think I know what my nightmares are really about- and they're not just dreams. There's something else, something I discovered back in the Makai that I kept from Koenma and you and I know I should have told someone right away but I-" I faltered, but the truth seemed to be dawning on Hiei, so without another pause, I revealed the truth. About Raizen's secret past, his wife, Asami, and daughter, Kuri... and me, their descendant. There was no reason for him not to believe me either: it all made sense. It would explain of my spiritual abilities and why Asami may have wanted me. Besides, I had no reason to lie to him now.
Hiei's face had gone blank and unreadable, registering everything I'd just told him. He'd probably had his own theories, so I could only wonder how what I'd just told him was affecting him or if he'd had no clue at all and this was a complete shock.
When Hiei finally did say something, I was stunned to see the smirk on his face.
"Talk about spilling your guts."
I blinked, speechless. Finally, out loud, I said, "... That's all you're going to say? You don't want to take back what you said? You're not even going to react, or get angry?You always get angry at me. "
Hiei grunted, "Hn. What would getting angry solve? And how exactly would you expect me to react?"
I searched his eyes and was amazed: he really wasn't angry.
My body decided just then to turn into jelly and I didn't resist as gravity carried my entire weight straight into Hiei with a light whoosh, almost knocking him over. Alarmed, Hiei tensed instantly, but I could only smile into his chest.
"I don't really know," I paused, thinking,"... I guess we have to tell everyone else now too, huh?"
I felt Hiei slowly rest his hands on my shoulders to keep me from completely keeling over, "Yes. When we share this with Koenma, we'll be able to use it to our advantage."
I closed my eyes, "What will they say when they find out?"
"I can't say, but it will be up to them to pass their own judgment; by then, we'll know who the true fools are."
I laughed. Even now in the midst of this disaster here Hiei was trying to cheer me up. For someone who claimed to be (although most of the time was) cold and reserved, Hiei had been acting quite... uncharacteristically recently.
"Well, that's me in a nutshell, but what about you?" I mumbled, feeling troubled. Hiei spent so much time being concerned about me, but how was he doing?
"Hn? What about me?"
"I mean, are you ok with everything? You waste so much time in comforting me that I'm starting to worry about you now. I- I'm here too you know. For you that is," I explained, a badly timed blush coming to my cheeks.
He smirked, "Who do you take me for? I'm not a sentimental weakling like you."
Usually a comment like that would make me mad, but it was the most Hiei-like comment I'd heard in a while. I smiled and pulled myself up a little to meet his startled expression.
"You don't have to keep pretending, Hiei," I laughed, "No one believes that tough exterior of yours anymore anyways." It was amazing how easily it was to laugh now. The situation hadn't changed much, our friends were still in danger and we still had to relay all I knew, but I couldn't help but feel like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I really wasn't alone.
"Hiei," I began quietly, "Ever since I can remember, I've always been by myself and, though I can't possibly compare it to your own pain, I can at least relate on how you always did everything by yourself. I've always been doing things by myself too, so that's why I did what I did. I've never had people to rely on... until now. I'm sorry."
I was quite shocked to find a pillow abruptly stuffed in my face. Grappling with the fluffy enemy, I yanked it away from my face with a gasp. Hiei looked back at me with an almost bored expression, but it was impossible to miss the humor shining in his eyes.
Almost seriously, Hiei said, "If you apologize one more time, I'm going to have to smother you so I can put myself out of my misery." And then he did the last thing I expected him to.
He smiled.
He might as well have suffocated me; my breath had been stolen away anyways. This wasn't the first time I've seen one of Hiei's genuine smiles, but one thing that I couldn't explain each time was the way I felt like my heart was being squeezed or the warmth that would flood throughout my body not unlike the warmth of his direct touch.
But right now was different. I realized how little distance there was between us and then suddenly everything came into perspective and space around us grew heavy, the entire moment now so... intimate. His smile melted away; the shift in the air was thick and felt nearly tangible. No one was speaking anymore and all thoughts were gone from my head. It was absolutely silent now except for the drum that was my heart.
I couldn't help the question that popped into my head at that exact instance and I'm not sure if Hiei had already withdrawn into his own conscience to even hear it, but if he did he didn't let show.
What exactly was going on between us?
~.~.~.~.~
"WAIT!"
Everyone skidded to a halt, tense and alert.
"So... does this make Ren, like, my long distant niece, but a couple of generations removed?" Yusuke said slowly, looking utterly confused.
I scrubbed my face with a sigh. Where were Botan and Keiko when you needed them? They'd have no qualms about slapping some sense into him.
"Are you trying to be an idiot?" Hiei said, "We don't have time for this!"
"I agree, Yusuke." Kurama said, "We'll discuss this later."
"Come on Urameshi, don't you dare hold us up! Now that we know how to save Yukina we can't stop now!"
"And Botan." I added with a huff. Kuwabara gave me a frustrated glance over and abruptly turned away. I slumped a little. After telling them, I'd definitely been shocked by how relatively accepting they'd all been so I guess that the fact that Kuwabara still hadn't completely forgiven me shouldn't have hurt me so much. It was so much more than I deserved, and I could understand Kuwabara's irritation with me. It was obvious how much he loved and was worried for Yukina and it had been me who had put her (and Botan) in danger. I sighed.
We were at the park now and Hiei and I had revealed all the details only about an hour ago. It took a little while to convince them all that I really was telling the truth about Raizen, Asami, and Kuri (though I understood how unbelievable it all sounded) which required telling them more about my dreams. Thankfully, Hiei was kind enough to threaten anyone who began to pry into the details that weren't necessary to talk about.
Between Kurama just listening in surprised silence, Yusuke too caught off guard to actually think of anything to say, and Kuwabara barely able to stammer, Koenma won the prize for being the most vocal and visibly reactive about it. At first, I was worried he'd gone comatose because as soon as I let slip the fact of my lineage, he'd gone milk-white and absolutely still until we were done explaining, and then he exploded. I wasn't so much in trouble as Koenma was more alarmed about the information I'd kept hidden that they could've acted on sooner. Then he'd started mumbling something about how his dad was going to kill him.
After I'd thoroughly apologized repeatedly, we were finally able to get him to calm down long enough for Hiei and me to finish and for me to pull out the small mirror Minoru had given me. I explained to them (though I was obviously doubtful myself) that it was supposed to grant us entrance into Asami's palace and that they were all 'invited' to accompany me. The invitation had obviously been a subliminal hint from the start that not coming wasn't a smart idea which was perfectly fine; they definitely would've all just come anyways.
They hadn't wasted any time in deciding that they were prepared to leave immediately and I had to agree as frightened as I was about the impending visit. After we would cross into enemy territory, we would lose home field advantage. But between the risk of the unknown and the risk of Yukina and Botan's lives, the choice was no less than obvious.
Koenma had told us he wouldn't be accompanying us and promptly vanished once more with a wary word of warning and a bid to be careful more than ever since now we knew that we were in fact dealing with Raizen's insane wife. At the time, someone had even cracked a joke about how that made Asami Yusuke's ancestral step-mother. He'd face palmed and mumbled something about how he didn't know how his family could be any more messed up.
"So where did you say this entrance was?" Kuwabara asked in the present, pointing into the park.
"Minoru didn't say where exactly," I said and stared at the small mirror in my hands dubiously. "I just assumed he wanted us to go back to the Siren's fountain and then he said when we were all gathered, all I had to do was tell the mirror to let us in and it would lead us to her palace."
"An opening in time-space perhaps," Kurama said contemplatively, "Regardless, we should remain on high alert from now on and take care in not splitting up; I feel as if our chances at successfully recovering the girls would be significantly higher that way."
Hiei turned to Kuwabara with a dark stare, "Kuwabara, you should consider staying behind. Your wounds haven't even completely healed, and as such, you'll only be extra baggage."
"Shut up! I'm fine!" He did in fact look fine...and with each passing second, maybe better than fine as he continued getting worked up, "Speak for yourself. Besides, how can you possibly expect me to sit back on the sidelines when they're in trouble?"
"I was only making a suggestion. There's no point in uselessly throwing away your life." Hiei replied.
"Why you-" Before Kuwabara could completely lunge for Hiei, I paused once the familiar gurgle of the fountain could be heard above the whistling trees.
"We're here."
It was as if the events from a couple of hours ago hadn't even happened (except for the very abnormal steeples of rock at the entrance) and some of the only proof that was left were the purple shadows around my neck. Which still felt sore, I thought with a grimace.
I turned to the others, unsure, "Okay, I'm going to do it." I took a calming breath and looked at the mirror.
"We're all here. Open the way to Asami's palace!" I said out loud, trying to sound like I actually knew what I was doing. I waited with bated breath.
Except, nothing happened. Birds crowed in the distance, flapping out of some branches, the morning sun just beginning to peak up.
After a minute of awkward silence, Yusuke finally came up behind my shoulder, "Maybe you said the wrong thing?"
"I don't know," I muttered with a flush and then tried a different approach, squeaking timidly and obviously unsure, "Can you please open the way to Asami's?" I felt like an idiot talking to the mirror, but I didn't remember Minoru mentioning any kind of password or special phrase that needed to make it work.
However, I didn't have to worry because just then I let out a startled gasp and instantly dropped the piece of glass; it had started burning white-hot, but when I checked my hands there were no marks on them. Hiei pulled me back as we watched the surface of the mirror began to glow brighter and stretch out like a widening hole. Before, there had been no breeze in the early hours of dawn, but now it was as if the lightest of forces was pulling us into the opening. Like an enormous black hole, it loomed in front of us cold and empty, waiting.
"It does appear to be a rip in space," Kurama remarked, "I don't doubt that there will be something waiting for us on the other side."
"Well, no point in stalling anymore. Ready or not, here we come!" Yusuke was the first to step up and without even flinching, leapt through the door.
"I'm coming for you, my love!" Kuwabara cried and hurdled through right after. With a sigh, Kurama gave Hiei and me a firm nod before going in.
Taking a deep breath for courage, I was about to take the plunge before Hiei put a hand on my shoulder and gave me a stern look.
"I've already told you I'll protect you, so don't worry; we'll get them back. Just stay close to me at all times." He ordered seriously. I didn't need the bond to read between the lines though his thoughts came to me anyways.
"If you even try to get away again, you will regret it."
Although I nodded quickly, the tiny hint of a smile flickered on my face and some of the fear was replaced with Hiei's strength. I would never betray him again.
Together, we went through the portal just as the hole sucking itself closed, promptly swallowing us in darkness.
This one felt so much shorter than normal! Well, it's been 2 months and a half now? Quicker than last time! :D
(Notice how I'm trying to be optimistic... OTL)
I really am sorry :( This chapter felt very forced so I hope it was still enjoyable and trust me, it was absolutely terrible when I first started getting it out. My lovely Betim came to my rescue though (my beta~!) and I feel so much better about it c:
Do any of you guys like the game Ib? :D If you don't know what it is, go watch Pewdiepie or Cry's videos on YouTube or go download it because it's such a good game! And speaking of Ib, PLEASE go check out KC-Z's account (aka my beta xD) because she's started writing her own Ib fanfic and it's really good o_o Go go go! It'd mean so much if you could check it out because she's the greatest :3
So guess where I've been? :D I've been traveling the whole month of June in EL SALVADOR and got back last week on Saturday and also turned 18 on the same day! WOOO~ legal now ;D And I'm SO happy to be home OTL *homesweethome*
I've got a new goal too! Though it's definitely unlikely that this story will be finished by the end up summer because I've got Freshman year at college coming up (Gig'em Aggies! b ) I'm challenging myself to write it all! O_o So if anything, regular updates might become my thing in a little bit. So look forward to that.
Holy $hit guys. If you knew me, you'd know how I tend to space out/miss a lot of things all the time, so just today I was looking through this story and my eyes go up and I suddenly realize that I have OVER 100 FOLLOWERS. THAT'S INSANE. ;A;
Last but not least, my reviewers :3 I'm sorry, but I won't include any responses this time around because there are just so many now xD I'm trying to PM as many people as possible, but please don't be offended if I miss you D: If I do, it wasn't done intentionally! I want to thank everyone who's ever reviewed this story and helped me get this far! I feel like we're so close to the end now, though we still have maybe about 8-ish chapters to go :')
Okay, I'm done boring you guys now! Please stay tuned and I love you all! :3
Love, InuChimera7410
PS- congrats to stacikate16 for being the 200th reviewer and getting another one-shot dedication! We're already close to the next 50 mark, so keep the reviews coming xD