Here we are! My first update of the new year! Sorry for the break...well... It started out as a break and then it was more of a 'Dane accident'. For those that don't know what that is... When you own a Great Dane... things happen. Things like tails swiping glasses of water off tables and soaking laptops. So I had to wait until Christmas for a new laptop and then transfer files and it was just a big mess. My plan was to use the break to write non-stop and get up a system so I could update once a week but... With the events that occurred that just didn't happen. Anyway... forward ho!
Nothing seemed to feel right when I woke the next morning. My body ached, my head hurt, and worst of all my eyes felt like they were being scooped out with a sharp spoon. I changed into a clean combat outfit similar in color and make to the one I wore yesterday, managed to wrap myself without help, and pushed from the room. Everyone was already awake, sitting and eating breakfast.
"Teki! About time you woke up! We thought we'd have to drag your whole futon down to the arena!" Yusuke's loud voice and laugh pounded my head painfully. I glared at him wholeheartedly and snatched a piece of toast from the plate sitting on the coffee table.
"Whoa, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Kuwabara mumbled, but even that grated against the throbbing behind my eyes.
"I'm heading down…" I whispered, needing to get away from the constant chatter that filled the room. If this headache didn't go away, I would lose my match with certainty.
"Be careful." Kurama waved as I left, the others didn't seem to notice. I glanced around, searching for those angular, crimson eyes, but they weren't there. As I went downstairs, I wondered where I could find the fire demon. I was positive if the pain originated in my mind, the Jaganshi was the cause of it.
I wandered around the grounds and tried to munch a little on the toast, but the sound of my own crunching almost immobilized me. I threw it down and soon found a cliff that overlooked the ocean. The sound of waves crashing below racked through my body like physical blows. Then I saw him. His eyes were closed, and black energy swirled around his right arm. I knew that's where he sealed the Dragon of the Darkness Flame, usually it was covered but I had seen him practice with it many times. It seemed like so long ago that I would sit and watch him train. Just as I was about to call out and tell him to stop whatever he was doing to my mind, another wave crashed and the pain brought me to my knees.
"On'na, what are you doing?"
I swung out at his deep voice, growing nauseous and closing my eyes. I felt his hand grab my wrist, and the familiar click of him entering my mind. I tried to fight it, I couldn't let him do any more damage than he already did, but the effort was too much for me right now.
'Relax.' His thoughts felt like a purr against the sharp pain, and I couldn't help but pull the feeling closer. Slowly, the pain kneaded away, leaving my body relaxed.
"Thank you…" I whispered the words softly, afraid any sound would flip a switch and bring everything back.
"You spent too much time in that damned hot spring, are you stupid?" Hiei hissed, pulling me up by my wrist. I stumbled, leaning against his solid frame. I still felt weak. He didn't push me away, no. Instead he held me to keep me steady.
"I didn't know a bath could do so much damage." I almost laughed, digging my toes into the soil and slowly regaining energy.
"You should've soaked for another hour. I can still smell that idiot wind demon on you." His voice was a growl, buried deep in my hair. I felt the heat that always surrounded him intensify, carrying the soft scent of burning along with it. It washed over me, engulfing my senses. It seeped into my clothes and skin, so intense and hot my eyes started to water and my mouth became dry. I looked up at the demon, a question echoing in my mind.
I couldn't ask.
After another minute the sensation pulled away. Goosebumps crawled up my arms and neck, craving the warmth again. I looked into his bottomless eyes, searching for something, but before I could find it a loud bell rang from the direction of the arena. My jaw tensed, but I pulled away from Hiei and started towards the day. I could figure out what had just happened if I survived.
When we arrived, they were describing how the first round would be fought. I listened closely as Hiei closed his hand around my wrist and lead me through the thick crowd. His touch allowed my mind to stay away from the bodies pressed against me, cramping the air.
"For our first official round, we will have one match from each block fighting at the same time all day. All fights will be displayed on the main screen, with separate screens dedicated to one match throughout the compound. We'll be starting soon, so everyone keep your ears open for your names!" Yusuke was in the first block, the second fight. Hiei fought first in Block B. Kurama was fifth in the third block. I was tenth in Block D.
I glanced up at the fire demon. We had stopped and he had to go, but he had not let go of my wrist.
"Good luck." I mumbled, watching his stony face.
"Hn. Luck is for weaklings." His fingers brushed my palm as he left, leaving me alone in the bustling crowd.
I started to panic as he left my sight, swallowed by bodies. I could feel everything close in around me, suffocating me. It happened so quickly I didn't have time to defend myself. I started crumpling in on myself, bringing my knees to my chest.
Then the crowd parted around me. I looked up, and there was Kurama.
"There you are. We found a screen that shows Hiei's fight." He extended a hand to help me up, but before I could take it he pulled away, eyes wide. My eyebrows knit together as I stood on my own. "Hiei's scent?"
I swallowed thickly, preparing myself to push through the crowd without his assistance.
"Suteki, wait. What happened?" Kurama made sure to only grab my shirt momentarily.
"I don't know. I was sick from the hot spring last night and Hiei fixed it. Then…"
"He marked you? A scent mark will only last until you wash, and it can be easily overpowered, but Hiei wouldn't do it without purpose. Are the two of you…?" He trailed off, but his question was clear.
"No. Now come on, I'm tired of this place." He gave me one last strange look, but led me to a quiet room containing only our group.
"Suteki, I'm so glad you're okay. I thought you had gotten lost." Botan patted the seat next to her.
"No, just disoriented by the crowd." It wasn't a complete lie. I sat on the couch in the offered spot.
We watched as Hiei fought against a slender woman, easily dodging her attacks. He didn't even draw his sword until he got behind her and used it to knock her unconscious.
"Well that sure was boring. I guess there are still some weaklings tagging along." Yusuke groaned as his name was called over the loudspeaker in the room. "I'll tell Hiei where you guys are." He pushed himself up and headed out the door.
Time seemed to fly by. Hiei walked in, leaning against the wall behind me. Yusuke won his fight and came back, not even sweating. An hour passed and Kurama left for his fight, coming back with only a few scratches. Then time slowed. I could physically feel every tick of the clock. My heart pounded in my ears. The fights were starting to last longer. It felt like days before I heard my name.
"Suteki, they called you. If you don't go you'll miss your fight." Yusuke grabbed my shoulder and shook me. I flinched at the touch, but nodded. He told me where to go, and I went out the door. A glimpse of crimson eyes was the last I saw before I started towards the area where my match was to be held, keeping one hand on the wall at all times to avoid being swallowed by the forever-present crowd.
The man that stood before me was lean, with white hair that partially hid purple irises. His skin was almost as tan as mine.
"Fight ten of Block D, Kashu verses Suteki. Begin!"
Neither of us moved. I watched him closely, digging my toes into the soil and thanking Enma first round matches were held in an open area. I would have to move a great deal to be able to manipulate any trees, but the earth around me would do just as well. Finally he moved, but it wasn't a forward motion. He pulled what looked to be some sort of folding knife from his pocket. I crouched, ready to dodge if he threw it at me. He kept it to his side and opened his mouth.
A sound breached my ears, and I fell to my knees trying to cover them and block the wretched noise. I screamed out, feeling blood start to run from my ears. It was one-hundred times as painful as the headache from this morning, and then sound stopped. Every sound stopped. I was cloaked in silence. I saw him flit towards me, but I managed to roll away right before he brought down his retractable blade. I forced the earth to part beneath him, but he jumped high to avoid falling.
"Damn it!" The words left my mouth, or I thought they did. I saw his face curl into laughter, and he seemed to be saying something. He hovered in the air and opened his mouth wide again. "Are you stupid? You can only use an attack like that when I can hear!" I screamed at him and launched myself towards him in the air. I felt his short knife bite my thigh, but I brought my hands together and brought the clenched fists down hard onto his head. I saw the ground crumble and cloud after he hit. Landing hard on my feet, I realized I should have held back the attack. The cloud of dust blinded me, and I couldn't hear it if he made any sound. He underestimated me though. I thrust my fingers in the loose soil and felt everything. He bumped a small pebble two feet away from behind and I kept still, waiting. He stalked towards me, knife posed to slice my spine and keep me immobile forever. When he was close enough, I swung my leg out, memorizing where he would land as he fell.
"Don't underestimate me, you bastard!" I flipped backward, bringing my heel down hard on his collarbone. I felt it snap and jumped away, just as the dust settled. He struggled up, one arm limp, and seemed to laugh again. I felt my body begin to vibrate, my vision blurring as the effect spread. He was saying something, of that I was sure. Suddenly I felt the sensation focus in my left leg, the frequency of vibration so high that my shin seemed to explode from the inside. I screamed in pain, crumpling down, but my cry morphed into rage. I forced myself back up, ignoring the blinding pain that shot up my leg and through my spine. I glanced around and spotted the nearest tree. One-hundred yards away. I could risk it from here, but it would be weak. If I could get closer…
The willow-like Kashu caught my glance and stepped between me and the twisted tree. His face had morphed from when I first saw him. He looked sadistic. I snarled, hobbling toward him. I could feel my leg start to set itself, my energy trying to focus toward it. If I waited any longer, it would drain itself. I would have to risk accuracy and finish this quickly. I stopped, filling my body so full of energy I could feel it starting to whip my hair and clothes around.
I let myself lose control.
A smile flitted across my lips and in a flash my hands were wrist deep in soil. I pulled the roots up, trying to snare his ankles. I growled deep in my chest and bared my fangs when I saw him dodge. He landed near another root, yet to be exposed. I unearthed it and managed to snag his ankle, but he cut it away. He stayed in the air this time, but I noticed that when he hovered, he couldn't move. A column of vibrating air was the only thing keeping him up. I smiled again and swung a root from the first tree, breaking the column. As he fell, I brought a branch down to speed him forward, crashing him into the ground. Roots wrapped around his chest when he made contact. Others followed, binding his arms and legs, one covering his mouth. Soon he was covered and the roots started to pull him under.
The haze that I allowed to cloud my mind cleared and I stopped the roots when he was almost completely underground. Only his face peered up at the sky. I glanced up at the woman hovering above the arena on her flying camera.
"I can't hear, has he surrendered yet?" When she shook her head with a shocked look plastered across her face, I sighed and sat back. I would have to wait at least five minutes before he was disqualified for being immobile. I used the time to use my remaining energy to heal my leg and try to fix my eardrums. I wasn't sure if that would restore my hearing, but it was worth a try. I moaned in pain as bones shoved themselves around in my leg and my ears rang. At least that was a good sign. Before they closed up completely, I tilted my head sideways and hit my palm against my skull, trying to push any blood out of my inner ear. I repeated for the other side and yelped as they closed with a pop.
"With that, the winner of match ten from Block D is Suteki!" The words were extremely muffled, like I was ten feet underwater, but I smiled. I stood, treating my leg tenderly and limped back towards the main arena. I hadn't had enough energy to treat the stab in my thigh or draw anymore in to close it up, but I barely felt that. My shin was still bruised and very sore. Pain still throbbed through the bone with each step. While I was limping back, I saw Jin heading toward the arena. He saw me as well and smiled that large toothy smile of his, winding picking up and speeding him towards me.
"Ya did great out there, don't ya think? Use that power against me tomorrow, ya better." I had to strain just to hear him, let alone understand his thick accent. His nose twitched and for a moment his giddy smile faltered before coming back twice as determined. Before I could tell what was happening his lips were pressed against mine, fang nipping excitedly. My eyes widened considerably in surprise, but it was over before I had a chance to pull away. "Cheer for me, will ya?" Jin smirked and twirled a piece of my hair with a breeze. I swallowed the hard lump in my throat and nodded quickly.
I watched him grin and zoom off, and shook the embarrassment from my head. My hearing was still foggy, it felt as though there was a strange curtain of static separating reality's sound from making it all the way through, but it was gradually getting better.
Walking through the crowd wasn't as bad with my hearing dysfunctional, and I made it back to the room that held the others quickly. When I entered, there were muffled cheers and questions of concern, but a glare seemed to burn through my mind. I glanced to the corner of the square room.
Hiei's look was murderous, and for a moment I couldn't figure out why. Then I heard Botan's veiled voice.
"Looks like Jin really likes you! The camera was still following you when he kissed you. It was so adorable!"
I felt a chill run down my spine and looked back again. He was already barging out the door. I clenched my jaw and tried to ignore it. Yukina sat me down and started rinsing out my ears and healing the cut on my thigh. As she did, I watched Jin's match, trying to get a feel for his fighting technique. He seemed to be like Yusuke in the sense that he had fun when he was fighting, and he liked to use his fists when he could. I vaguely noticed Botan and Keiko gesturing at how hard I was watching the screen, but Yusuke seemed to understand what I was actually doing and told them to be quiet when they started giggling. It was difficult to hear everything going on at once, I had to focus to catch every word. After Yukina finished washing out the blood that caked in my ears she let me know that it might be tomorrow morning before I gained my full hearing back. I nodded and thanked her, catching the very end of Jin's match.
It was official, I would be fighting him.
The others still wanted to watch the remaining fights, but I felt Kurama's hand on my shoulder. When I looked at him, his eyes slid to the door and I caught his drift. I pursed my lips and told everyone I was going back to the hotel.
"Geez, no need to scream!" Yusuke laughed and prodded my side teasingly. I rolled my eyes and left the room, bracing myself for the crowd. I needed to get on soil. I walked towards the hotel and stopped on the dirt path before I entered. I dug my toes in and closed my eyes, focusing in on the familiar energy. I opened my eyes back up and turned towards the cliff from this morning.
Instead of practicing with his dragon, he was slicing through trees with his katana. I leaned against a tall pine and laughed internally at my plan. I pulled at what little energy I could and used it to yank up a root in his next direction. I saw him stumbled slightly and couldn't hold back a chuckle. He was in front of me in an instant, blade pressed against the ragged scar on my throat, face twisted into a look of disgust.
"You know I can't control what others do like you can, right?" I hoped my voice wasn't too loud. I saw his lips part into what I was sure was a menacing snarl. His mind slid into mine with a click more forceful than usual.
'You could've stopped him easily. You like the pathetic wind demon.' He had obviously paid attention to my match enough to know I was hard of hearing.
"No, I couldn't. And so what if I do? How does that affect you, Hiei?" I narrowed my eyes up at him and felt the blade press just a hair's weight harder. Then it released and he sheathed his sword. For a moment I was confused, but then I saw.
"I just fought, I don't have the energy to play your games." I turned to leave, giving up on the fire demon, but his foot hit my shin right on the tender bruise. When I stumbled and cursed I felt his elbow hit my back, pushing me to my knees. I stood and growled at him, daring him to touch me again. He swung at my face, moving faster than any opponent I'd fought before, and I managed to duck at the last second. He continued to throw blows at me and I dodged until one brushed against my cheekbone. The feather-light touch startled me still and he used this moment to bury his hand in my hair, pulling hard so my neck was arching and exposed. I winced but glared up at him.
"It doesn't matter what I do, does it? You'll still think I'm still this weak little child that you had to save."
His face stayed stony, unwavering. I felt my resolve weakening by the second. Pulling hard against his hand, I crashed my mouth to his. I closed my eyes and weaved my fingers into his silky locks. His burning scent filled my senses for the second time today, but this time I forced it back, trying to overpower it with mine. His hand relaxed from its hard fist, but stayed where it was, while the free one wrapped around my waist. I felt a growl shudder through his chest and vibrate against me as his pushed his energy forward, carrying his scent with it.
I slid my tongue softly against his lower lip hesitantly, all while trying to wash my scent over his. The power battle ended in a draw as our mouths pulled apart. His hand moved from my hair to the side of my neck.
"Hiei…" The moan was whisper quiet, so quiet I wasn't sure it happened at all, but it left my lips parted.
'No one else can have you.' I felt him nuzzle the open side of my neck. I sighed, relaxing into his touch and almost allowing his fangs to mark my neck permanently. Almost. When I felt the sharp points graze against the junction of my throat and shoulder, I tensed. Stepping away from his grasp I shook my head, avoiding his furious gaze.
"No…" I whispered, his stare of contempt forming a hot stone in my gut. "I will not be owned again."
I paused for a moment, glancing up to see the firm line his mouth set.
'You're choosing that wind demon.'
"No." I glared back into his cold red eyes. "I am choosing myself. I…"
My resolve fell and my back curved in submission while he stood tall and strong. Why could I not do the same? No, I could not let myself be owned until I learned to stand on my own two feet. I owed that to myself.
His eyes softened momentarily as I felt him rifle through my thoughts and without a word he flitted from my sight. I pinched the bridge of my nose in annoyance at myself. I needed to run. I looked out into the forest that claimed the land behind the arena and took off without a second thought.
So... Whatcha' think? Again, I'm really sorry about the wait. :( Please forgive me?