"Welcome to my castle."
The group had traveled far for this moment, yet no one knew what to say now that the time had finally come.
The room which they'd forced entry upon held little more than a throne set upon a high mount lined by steep stairs. The entire chamber was made of crystal, from the walls to the floor, and the domed ceiling was painted with an elaborate mural of stars and clouds. It might have been an ethereal sight were it not for the two women who occupied the room... Shikei, and Rui.
Shikei was upon her throne, her chin propped upon her hand as if she'd grown slightly bored waiting for them to arrive. Her skin was white and waxen across her skull. Her hair was fluid and fine, silver like the snow and wrapped in an elaborate bun atop her fat head. She was short and squat, clothed in a fine white kimono. Her hands were gnarled with age, her feet were petite and bound in traditional shoes... she was as colorless and apathetic as the land that she ruled with an iron fist.
Her eyes, however, were red... and so similar to Hiei and Yukina's that it unnerved the group as a whole.
Laying upon the stairs, covered in rags and looking one good cough away from death, was Rui.
Despite being younger than Shikei, she looked undeniably older. Her face was lined with stress and fear, her brow furrowed even as she moaned unconsciously in pain. Her kimono was speckled with dark red, a clear sign that she'd been injured and her blood had dried. Yukina, distraught at the sight of her crippled caregiver, pushed forward past the others to come to Rui's aid. Dropping to her knees and gathering Rui into her pale arms, Yukina attempted to heal Rui by placing her hands over Rui's wounded stomach. As her energy glowed, she spoke soothing words though Rui could not hear.
"Rui! Rui, I'm here now. It's me, Yukina." Yukina sniffed, trying for a smile despite the dire situation, "I'm here now, everything's going to be alright."
Mukuro, Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara though worried for the fallen koorime on the stairs were far more intrigued with the bitch at the top. Mukuro leered, placing a jaunting hand on her hip and glowering up at Shikei.
"So you're Shikei?" Mukuro sneered, "I've been dying to meet you."
Though Mukuro spoke to Shikei, Shikei did not seem too impressed by her words. Instead, Shikei raised her chin from her hand and looked Hiei dead in the eye. The connection between them was palpable, a horrible swelling silence filled with the rage of a thousand years. The screams of a mother, the tears of a sister, the unspoken screams of a brother far displaced were caught in the air. Though no noise was made... all could hear it.
"Your mother and sister have amused me for quite some time now." Shikei spoke to Hiei, even smiling as if they were on friendly terms, "Would you care to know why, imiko?"
At the term, Hiei's lip quivered. His rage was barely suppressed, and with each snide comment Shikei was coming closer and closer to her undeniable death. He would destroy her with his dragon, that much he was certain of. Yet with the others in the room and Rui in the way, there was no clear shot. He would have to get them to a safe point... but even when he did, the castle was weak in foundation after centuries of ill use. His dragon would bring down the entire structure, and no doubt kill them in the collapse.
He was stuck, and he did not like it.
"Your mother's pathetic trials gave me ample to contemplate about while I grew stronger with true experience." Shikei continued on, slowly rising up from her throne as she fixed Hiei with a disgusted look, "She thought herself above the others. She thought herself... intellectual." At the word, Shikei grimaced. It was clear that ignorance was far more her style, "Your mother might have had some knowledge, but she lacked true wisdom. The ultimate truth that only those blessed by the previous elders of the Hyouga can bear!" Shikei snapped, her eyes growing wide with delight. Her power invigorated her, making her almost giddy with the idea of slaughter.
"Ultimate truths make for fine rulers... and the proof stands before you now, imiko." Shikei smiled, and her crooked yellow teeth looked like fangs in her dark mouth.
Yusuke noticed Hiei's fist curling tight. From underneath his black cloak, a slight waft of smoke was hissing forth. Yusuke shifted uneasily, wary for the power beneath the bandages. He'd seen the dragon up close before, on the ringside of the Dark Tournament. It was fucking insane, and he wasn't keen on getting that close a second time. Catching Kuwabara and Kurama's eyes, Yusuke gently tipped his head towards Hiei's smoking fist. The other two took note of the occurrence, and took a slight step back.
"Such despicable vanity!" Mukuro snarled, speaking up for Hiei; her violet eye was blazing! "But if you have some supposed truth in you as you say, then I will make it my solemn goal to vanquish you!"
Mukuro flexed her muscled arms, and a ripple of electric energy expanded from her. Down on the floor with Rui, Yukina gasped and came to her senses. Looking from Shikei to Mukuro, she grabbed Rui under the armpits and tried desperately to drag her to safety. Kuwabara took a chance, running forward despite Yusuke's shout of warning and grabbing Rui off of the floor in his strong arms. Sheltering the fragile koorime, he glared up at Shikei and stood between Yukina and her elder. Like before in the jail cell, his adoration for Yukina was turning him into a white knight.
"You disgust me!" Kuwabara roared, "And you call yourself a ruler?!"
Shikei was chuffed at the sight of a man in her throne room, sneering aloud as she crossed her frail arms over her sagging chest.
"You're not fit to rule a dung heap!" Kuwabara taunted the elder, "You're a roach! You're a flea on a roach! You're a germ on a flea on a roach, and I won't let you hurt Yukina's family anymore! I love her! I love her brother! And I'll avenge them both!"
Instead of being angry, Shikei looked sourly amused.
"Heat has been moved by Ice..." Shikei murmured, almost to herself. "How... amusing." She sneered again.
Kuwabara looked like he might burst with rage. Hiei, at hearing Kuwabara 'loved' him, looked slightly disgusted and gave Kuwabara a bizarre look which read as 'shuttup' to Kurama's eyes. Yet there was no anger behind the unspoken words.
"So you've come to try and vanquish me... have you?" Shikei taunted, flenching her bony withered hands so that several bones popped in synch. "Well then, try!" Shikei laughed again; a high pitched shrieking laugh that hurt the ears and chilled the spine. "Yes, try, you and your dying friend!" Shikei gestured to where Rui lay in Kuwabara's arms. Rui let out a small, pitiful moan.
Mukuro had had enough.
Like a pitcher at the mound, Mukuro chucked a ball of white hot energy straight at Shikei. Shikei deflected it easily, and it flew off to hit the crystal wall. The resulting explosion was so great that brought everyone to their knees from the force! Smoke, ash, and debris clouded the air so that Shikei vanished into the white mist. Hiei knew that Shikei would use the shield to her advantage, and immediately ripped the covering off his jagan! Several people screamed, giving away their position as their sheltered their heads from the debris which rained down without cease. Mukuro immediately conjured a barrier, surrounding the entire group as she barred herself for the attack which she knew was coming.
Left, right, left, right, zipping through the air with the speed of a wild beast. Dark eyes and hands like talons- upon them!
Aided by his jagan, Hiei pulled back just in time to throw up his arms! Shikei slammed into the forcefield, her face morphed into a horrific vision of a banshee as she revealed her true age for the first time! Yusuke let out something with might have sounded like a scream. Hiei lashed back, shooting flames from the palms of his hands, and Shikei scuttled into the mist again like a dark wraith. The dust was settling, and in the newly revealed chamber Shikei had vanished completely. With six pairs of eyes searching restlessly, no one could find her!
"Where did she go?!" Kuwabara demanded, still well protected by Mukuro's barrier. "Where did that old bat go?! Did you see her face!? It changed! It changed into something horrible!"
"She's dropped the disguise." Hiei snapped, "She means business now. Demons don't live for 100,000 years without learning a few tricks! She's in the room even now, she's hiding!"
"Well no shit." Yusuke snapped, "But where?"
"THERE!" Yukina screamed, petrified as she pointed straight ahead. Everyone looked up just in time as a hellish ghoul in white shot forward out of the clear and slammed into Mukuro's barrier. Shikei bared her yellowed fangs, biting into the electric build as if wanting to tear it open with her mouth! Hiei threw flame left and right into Shikei's now open mouth, but it was all for not!
"We have to do something!" Yukina cried above the roar, sheltering Rui's head even as she lay in Kuwabara's arms, "She'll get through if we don't!"
"I'm- trying!" Mukuro ground out through gritted teeth, straining from the exhausting effort. She was losing her grip, unable to hold her stance against a demon more than ten times her own age. Mukuro was a strong demon, an S class demon, and her power was feared near and far in demon world. But Shikei was an isolated elder, left to grow strong on the weakness of others for over a million centuries. Mukuro was no match!
"We need a distraction!" Kurama snapped, his silver hair bristling with the force of the electricity. "We need open air! We cannot fight like this, cooped as animals!"
"Well how the hell do you suggest we do that?!" Yusuke demanded. "We're fuckin' stuck man!"
Yukina gasped for breath, becoming overly anxious as she trembled at the knees. But as her eyes swiveled back and forth, she spotted Mukuro's thigh which was floundering with activity. Deep within her pants pocket, Mukuro harbored the urn containing Hina's charged ashes- yes!
"That's it!" Yukina screamed with delight, dropping to her knees and lunging for Mukuro's pocket. At the feeling of Yukina crawling over her leg, Mukuro nearly lost all control over her forcefield.
"Goddamnit you stupid broad, this isn't the time to get friendly!" Mukuro snarled, sweating profusely like a pig up for slaughter. Yukina did not listen to Mukuro's foul words, reaching deep within her pocket and grabbing her mother's urn. It was jumping so violently that Yukina could barely get a firm grip, but she withdrew it all the same. Clutching it to her chest, Yukina placed herself squarely between Mukuro and Hiei as Shikei clawed violently at the barrier directly in front of Yukina's face. Yukina looked upon Shikei without fear.
She had her mother with her now. She need not fear anymore.
"Drop the barrier." Yukina ordered Mukuro. Mukuro glanced at Yukina as if thinking her crazed. Yet even as Mukuro opened her mouth to say something rude, she noticed the urn shaking in Yukina's arms.
Ah. Yes. The girl was as sharp as her brother's sword.
"On the count of three." Mukuro hissed, her fingers spazzing as her power began to wane, "You do whatever the hell you need to do, Yukina!"
"Shikei will devour you if you are not quick enough!" Kurama roared above the howl of electricity.
"I am not afraid!" Yukina assured her friend. "I am not afraid." She repeated softly to herself.
And she wasn't.
Mukuro could not hold the barrier any longer.
"I can't hold it!" She screamed, pinching her eyes shut, "I can't hold it!"
"DROP IT!" Yukina screamed, her hand on the warded lid of the urn.
"Drop the fucking thing." Yukina cursed for the first time in living memory, "I've waited far too long for my mother's revenge."
Mukuro dropped it, and in an instant Shikei was upon Yukina.
Yukina smashed the urn to the ground.
For a single second in time, nothing happened and the ashes upon the crystal floor puzzled Shikei out of her immediate attack.
Then, all hell broke loose.
A scream, loud and angry with rage and pain blasted from the ashes as flame sprouted up from the floor in a fiery ring! Hiei grabbed Yukina just in time, pulling her to safety along with Mukuro as from within the fiery ring the shape of a woman appeared! Shikei was blasted back off her feet by the image of the lady in flame!
Mukuro was weakened, feeling like a calf newly born, but she used the distraction to her advantage as Hiei helped her keep to her feet. The door was behind them, the way out was clear. So long as this strange fire kept Shikei at bay, they could gain ground and make for a better battle. She'd come to kill Shikei, and so she would, but she couldn't do it when pinned in against five other people and a half-dead koorime.
"Come on!" Kurama urged, grabbing Kuwabara and pulling him away from the danger zone as Rui lay limp in the taller man's arms. "We have no time to lose!"
"Crazy ass bitch!" Yusuke shouted, firing his spirit gun at random into the flaming spire. Whether they hit their mark or not, he never knew, for Mukuro and Hiei were running for the door with Yukina and he was not going to be left behind. They made it over the threshold just in time, for flares the size of trees were spurting off of the blaze inside. As one came dangerously close to burning Yusuke alive, Kurama grabbed his friend by the front of his jacket and threw him forcibly to the wall. Yusuke was saved by the skin of his teeth, and panted his thanks as he shielded his eyes from another blast! Inside, Shikei screamed in pain.
One explosion was followed by another, and then another! All six of them were knocked to the floor, and Kuwabara risked his own skin to grab both Yukina and Rui out of harms way. Without realizing it Hiei shielded Mukuro, throwing his arms about her scarred flesh and pinning her to the ground. At the sound of falling walls and breaking crystal, Hiei wondered if the castle was going to cave in around them. But as the fire cooled and smoke filled the room, Hiei realized that the charged ashes had finished their fight. Shikei lay completely knocked out, an ashy slump upon the throne room floor that did not stir save for feeble breath.
Hiei coughed through the smoke, groaning as he managed to rise off the floor and rub the back of his sore neck. Debris which had flown out from the blaze had landed upon them so that bruises the size of oranges were scattered upon their skins. The throne room was utterly destroyed, turned from a fine crystal chamber into a blackened mass without detail. The throne itself lay in a puddle at the top of the stairs, which were now cracked right up the middle as if split by a giant's hammer. His muscles quivered upon his bones, unable to retain strength as the power of the blaze shook him to the core. He had not expected such a raging fire... never in his wildest dreams had he imagined his mother's charged ashes would create such a hellish inferno. Yet it seemed that all the anger, fear, pain, and sorrow that Hina had had to suffer silently in life had finally gotten a chance to voice itself.
... and what a mighty voice it was.
Yukina whimpered, sitting up in Kuwabara's arms as she looked over her burnt shoulder. Her kimono was smoking, blackened by the explosion, and her hair was disheveled. As she met Hiei's eyes, she hitched a breath, reaching out to touch his face.
"You're hurt." Yukina whispered.
Hiei reached up to touch his face, and realized it was sticky with blood. A piece of debris had left a sizable gash upon his pate. Damn.
"Don't worry about me." Hiei snapped, looking back at Shikei who still lay silent upon the floor, "Use this time to get out of here. Now!"
Yukina appeared fearful, yet there really was no other option. It was a miracle the castle had survived such a blast. The dragon would bring it about their ears. Hiei knew this; Yukina knew this.
And so she knew it would be his likely end.
"Isn't it funny." Yukina managed to stutter out, "How you can speak to me, like this. Even when death beckons you and life screams at you? We can still speak. We can still hear. It's like the world isn't even falling apart."
Hiei smiled at his sister's gentle words. Clasping her pale hand upon his cheek, he turned his face into her palm to kiss its tender swell. She cupped his face where he offered it, stroking his blackened cheek.
"I wanted to live a life far away from here." Yukina trembled, her eyes welling with tears. She looked about the miserable palace, blackened with fumes, "I think... you wanted the opposite."
Hiei's brow furrowed at this.
Did her words hold truth?
He recalled the struggle of his youth, at how desperately he'd clung to the idea that one day he would be able to mount the cliff of insanity and reach the ancient floating glacier. It had felt like a return to heaven, when he'd first seen the city cloaked in white. Yet at the same time... it had all felt wrong. He'd been alone, he'd been tired and cold.
No one had been there waiting for him to welcome him home.
"Maybe..." Hiei murmured softly, "Maybe I did want to come back, if only... to say goodbye."
He met Yukina's eyes so akin to his own, and swallowed around a knot in his throat.
"Saying goodbye... it means so much." Hiei continued on, "Especially when you don't get the chance to do it."
"Are you saying goodbye to me?" Yukina's voice cracked, her face screwing up as her eyes began to drip with tears. Had it come to that moment, where he would pull away for the final time never to comfort her again. It came for everyone, no matter how strong they thought they were. Everyone had to say goodbye to someone. "Are you telling me to leave now, so that way I can live and you can die?"
Hiei smiled despite his sister's tears, brushing her cheek before hirosekes could form upon her chin.
"You will see me again." Hiei murmured consolingly, his heart skipping a beat as he realized death was upon him. Now was the time for words that would stick, for words that would mean something- anything- for after when he was gone.
But what could he say to her now? He wasn't the eloquent type. He wasn't like fucking Kurama.
Yukina let out a tiny sob, her breath hiccuping. Now she was the one to lean into his touch, grabbing his hand upon her cheek and clenching it so tight that his fingers began to tingle with numbness.
"I don't want to say goodbye." Yukina whimpered. "I don't want to leave you. You're the greatest man I've ever known."
There. Just there.
Hiei felt like he'd been winded by her words, and all the air had been sucked out his chest. Despite himself, he smiled and even laughed.
For such kind words seemed almost heaven sent.
"... You have no idea how wonderful you are." Hiei whispered, stroking his sister's wet cheek, "That's your only flaw, Yukina. You're stuck inside yourself. You can't see the influence you have on other people. I don't think you even realize how beautiful your soul is. But it astounds me, and it makes it easy to die." Hiei paused, looking down at the others who were all passed out from the sulphur and heat. His gaze lingered upon Kuwabara who was still knocked out cold.
"...Marry him, if that's what you want to do." Hiei continued on, looking back to his sister, "You deserve someone who loves you fully, without exception or end. And that's what you'll get from him. I approve of it." Hiei smiled bitterly. Yukina grinned through her tears, managed a tiny hiccup of a laugh, "But don't tell him that."
"So is this it?" Yukina whispered, "All wise words and tender moments? It hardly seems like you to act this way. Where's that stoic voice, telling me to suck it up?"
Hiei's bitter smile slipped away to be replaced by a small frown.
Where had that stoic voice gone?
Hiei did not know, nor did he care.
"... I have loved you too much, perhaps, for my own good." Hiei murmured quietly, "But when things became unbearable, you made it bearable again. You made a healing power come alive inside of me."
Yukina stared endlessly into his soul, soaking up each word as if it were his last.
"I don't think brave brother's lie. I think brave brother's tell the truth." Hiei muttered, "But that was never my path... and so I'll lie again."
"You dare to lie to me?" Yukina whispered, "In this moment?" She sounded almost disappointed.
"I dare to lie." Hiei replied, and he even managed a final smile, "Because I'd like to say to you... that I'm going to be right behind you. That even as you make your way out of here, I'll be hot on your tail. And when you reach the portal, and turn around, you'll see me... coming home to you." Hiei's smile turned bitter.
Yukina's mouth full open, and her face welled up with sorrow for a second time.
She embraced him, throwing her arms around his neck as she buried her face into his chest. Hiei held tight to her, soaking in their final moments as he pressed kiss after kiss into the top of her head. He wanted to pull her into his skin, to keep her with him until the final moments when he'd be able to keep nothing.
Not even his own life.
"I love you." Hiei heard himself utter, in spite of his private nature. "and I'm so sorry I couldn't be a better brother."
"Stop saying that." Yukina wept back, "You complete ass."
The others were coming to, groaning and holding their heads as they rose up from the floor. Mukuro hissed in pain, her scarred flesh humming with the heat of the now dwindling fire. Hiei and Yukina broke apart reluctantly, unwilling to let the others see. Yukina wiped the tears from her cheeks, her eyes never leaving Hiei's face as he silently bid her not to let the others in on their final shared lie.
It would be their burden to bear.
It wasn't their business.
Yukina's heart wept, but she did not show it upon her face. This was the gift of her race's apathy.
"Dude, what the hell?" Kuwabara moaned, "Where are we? Is that evil bitch dead?"
Hiei and Yukina stared at one another.
Their final goodbye was their own to keep.
"Not yet, I'll finish her off." Hiei snapped. "The rest of you get out of here. You'll only be in my way."
"Hey, maybe I want a piece of the action too, you ever think of that?" Yusuke demanded.
"This is Hiei's chore. Not yours." Yukina managed to utter, her voice sounding unnervingly calm despite her inner despair. "He's right... we need to get back to the portal. The ashes were meant to give us time, I don't know how much of it we have left."
"Bitch." Mukuro hissed, rubbing her sweltering scars, "I'll fry her alive for that- ahh!" She gasped, her skin over sensitized.
"You're too weak." Hiei shot down the help at once. "You need to gain as much ground from this place as possible. Your lack of strength will be no help to me once Shikei comes back for a second round."
Yusuke frowned, but looked to Mukuro at this.
"Yeah, you got a point." Yusuke admitted, narrowing his eyes. "We're fucked in tight quarters. I say we head out to the snows and lure the bitch down. What do you think, Hiei? Want to do the honors?"
Hiei did not reply, rising up onto feet that felt like lead.
"... Get out of here." Hiei murmured. "Now."
Yusuke was confused, but got to his feet as well.
"Hiei?" Yusuke asked, sounding worried. "Are you... alright?"
Something seemed different, though Yusuke could not put his finger on what it was. Perhaps the stress of a mission so close to home was fraying Hiei's nerves. The whole affair had been one sordid mess after all... hell, even Yusuke was ready to throw in the towel. Yet it had taken them ages to get this far, so how could they turn back now and still call themselves men?
Hell, if anyone could take a punch it was Hiei.
"... Just go." Hiei grumbled. "I'll make easy work of it. She is my affair."
Mukuro needed help getting to her feet, and Kurama did the honors as Mukuro clung to his shoulders for support. Yukina rose up, and at long last so did Kuwabara with Rui still tucked gently in his arms.
"Are you sure you don't need our help?" Kurama asked, worried as well. "We've come because we wanted to offer assistance."
"You have offered me far more assistance than you know." Hiei murmured softly, his words holding such deep meaning that he was certain his emotions would give his plan away. "Really." Hiei paused, smiling at the others. At his team.
"Thank you." Hiei whispered, his smile turning into a strange frown. "For all your assistance."
And he meant it all. From the sage beasts to this very moment.
Kurama's look of worry only deepened, but Hiei's resolve was firm.
"...You're welcome?" Kurama replied, sounding unsure of his own words.
It was all Hiei needed to hear.
Hiei turned away, looking to the blackened throne room where Shikei was slowly coming to. Their time had come to an end.
"Go." Hiei snapped, "She's waking up. Take the stairs out the kitchen door. Get back to the portal as quick as you can. I'll kill her and... meet you there."
"Sounds like a fuckin' plan to me. I'm ready to get back to normal life." Yusuke chuffed sarcastically, but Mukuro was not ready to go. Digging through her plum vest, she pulled out hiei's white scarf which was now dirtied with ash. She attempted to return to him.
Hiei shook his head, smiling bitterly at her.
Her of all people.
Her, the beauty of all people.
Mukuro sighed exasperatedly, seeming to take his smile for sarcasm. She wrapped it around her own neck.
"Fine, I'll give it to you later." Mukuro snapped. "Just hurry out of this damn place, will you? I've had enough of this land. I'm ready to leave."
She turned to go before Hiei could say his final words to her, and he grimaced.
They were leaving now, heading for the stairs.
He could say something.
He could call them back.
He could tell them everything.
He could leave right now with them.
He could go home and live out the rest of his life.
He could do it.
If he dared.
Yukina glanced over her shoulder; there were tears in her eyes.
No.
He dared not.
Hiei smiled, waving goodbye to her with his bandaged hand.
This would be her final memory of him: blood dripping down the side of his face and from his nose, waving goodbye with his bandaged hand while he smiled as best he could.
She could not bear it, and turned away to lean heavily upon Kuwabara's frame. She would need him more than ever now.
They were rounding the corner.
They were gone.
Hiei let out a quiet breath, smiling.
Fuck them. Let them go.
Let them live.
Let them marry and have children.
Let them see christmases and carnivals.
Let them age together and remember him this way.
He was a solitary figure in the darkened cathedral, his back to Shikei and his eyes to the door through which his final hope for a life well lived had slipped away.
He'd never gotten to say goodbye to Mukuro.
And he wished so dearly that he had been able to kiss her lips one last time.
Death was sour without the taste of Mukuro upon his lips.
"...You have many tricks... up your sleeves."
Shikei had managed to get to her feet.
Hiei sighed, turning around to face his final enemy.
He would not speak to her. There was no need for words now.
His final words would be to them. Not to her.
Undoing the bandages carefully around his arm, Hiei felt the power of the dragon stirring to life. It had been too long since the last time it was unleashed; it was hungry.
"I told your stupid mother!" Shikei spat, groveling and roving with madness as she stumbled forward, "That you would kill us all! And I was right! See how right I was!" Shikei gestured about the now blackened throne room, "Look at what you've done to my home! Look at what you've done to my life!"
HIei paused, his bandages undone.
He stared at Shikei as dark purple flames suddenly flickered to life upon his arms.
"You wanted this!" Shikei screamed, pointing her gnarled finger at him with all the conviction of an angry god. "You wanted this destruction from birth! You bastard! You forbidden child!"
Hiei closed his eyes, shaking his head as he brought his arm up to eye level.
The dragon could feel his wild emotional state. It fed upon his weakness, and grew stronger still. Hiei's breathing labored as images flashed through his mind like fireworks-
He and Mukuro walking down the streets of Sariashiki
Waving to the crowds of the Dark Tournament which were screaming wildly with applause and hate
A house, ruined by snow and stained by time
Mukuro's face, contorted with rage and love
Yusuke, fighting with him fist to fist
Sitting around the ramen shop, eating bitter melon soup
Kurama with short hair and wild green eyes
Feast and famine, fear and joy
His mother smiling down on him.
His lover smiling up at him.
Hiei opened his eyes.
"Look at what you've done to my life!" Shikei screamed again, foaming at the mouth.
"... Look at what you've done to mine." Hiei whispered back.
Shikei paused in her rant, hitching a breathe that almost soundly the tiniest bit fearful at the sight of his flaming arm.
They hobbled as fast as they could, trekking through the snow. Yukina kept looking over her shoulder, back up to the castle which was only five hundred yards away. Her heart was pounding, her hands were shaking- She kept stopping to stare, disbelieving.
Any minute now, his life would end, and so would hers.
"Yukina, come on." Kuwabara urged gently, "We gotta move!"
"No." Yukina resisted his pulling hands.
"Yukina-?"
"I SAID NO!" Yukina screamed, her voice so loud that it startled Yusuke and Kurama into a slight jump. Everyone turned around to stare at her, and even Mukuro was taken aback.
"What are you screaming about?" Mukuro demanded. "What's wrong?"
Yukina did not answer, her eyes locked on the top of the castle which was beginning to smoke violently.
Only moments ago, she held him in her arms.
And she wished with all her heart she could go back in time and love him again.
"Yukina?"
She could hear people saying her name. She could feel their hands upon her shoulders, shaking her to rouse her sense. Yet she was locked in a state of trance like horror, unable to awaken as her eyes remained upon the top of the castle.
Yukina felt her lips forming the word 'no'. She felt air passing through her mouth, and she heard tone somewhere far away.
His face.
His eyes.
His voice
His anger.
His love.
His touch.
His heart-
"Yukina, baby, is something wrong?" Kuwabara asked, passing Rui to Yusuke as he reached out with both hands to comfort her. "Tell me what's wrong."
Yukina almost gave their final shared lie away, almost turned to tell them the truth... but then-
BOOM!
The castle exploded in a mushroom cloud of fire and debris! Everyone screamed, covering their heads and running for the cover of the forest as a ring of fire soared out from the center to sear anything within reach. Marble melted, ice evaporated, and trees became alight! The dragon screamed and thrashed in the sky, it's black and purple flame turning the whole atmosphere dark. It was an evil, violent, and powerful thing. It did not understand sorrow, pity, nor fear. It devoured those who presented such emotions. It knew no other way. It hurt to thrive.
The dragon circled and spiraled before crashing back down upon the castle. The final impact was far too great, and suddenly a great calamity overtook the scene! The ground was shaking, the foundation was splitting!
Kuwabara held onto Yukina with all his might, throwing them both behind a mighty oak tree as the blast overtook the entire landscape. He shielded her from the very worst, his mind racing with panic and hysteria as he though of his teammate inside the now collapsed castle. How could Hiei survive such a fall?! Yusuke had fallen to the ground, and was almost buried by a wall of avalanching snow before Kurama snatched him out of the way! Mukuro was the worst off by far, left to her own defenses in a weakened state. She fell to her knees, snow flying in her face as she screamed out Hiei's name over the roar of the breaking empire.
She screamed it again, this time louder and with more fear, but all that met her cries were more roars as stone collapsed atop stop. The castle broke-caved- and the final walls slammed in upon one another as the entire structure met the ground with ungodly shake.
"HIEI!" Mukuro screamed again and again, unable to control the terror in her voice. Where was he?! Had he survived the fall?! Was he trapped beneath the rubble?! "HIEI ANSWER ME!"
Yet no one did, and the explosion was so great that debris flew a thousand meters high into the air.
None of them were particularly emotional people. Yukina might have been open with her heart, but her race made it impossible to fully rejoice or cry. The rest of them were wizened soldiers, numb to the pain of defeat in battle. Yet as the world shuddered to a halt for one moment in time, emotion flew about them in a flurry. Mukuro blinked again and again, thinking that perhaps if she blinked enough it would un-happen and all would be as it was before. Yusuke thought of the past, and all the things he ought to have noticed when all he did was act like a tough shot. Kurama thought of the days that would come, and all the silence they would bring; after living two lives, he'd seen many a dismal morning... it seemed that god was mocking his heart once more, and he would see another bleak sunrise before he died too.
Too.
Kuwabara cursed violently, praying against his train of logic that Hiei would soon walk from the rubble. Yet no one appeared through the ash and debris, and very slowly Kuwabara's heart began to sink.
Yukina collapsed, her hands useless in her lap as she stared at the dirtied snow.
"Hiei!" Mukuro finally found her strength, even if only for a moment, and struggled out of the snow as she surged forward. She could barely move, weak and dizzy as she coughed through the sulphur and smoke. She couldn't see the castle, but she knew it was before her. Hiei's scarf was around her neck- she had to return it to him. The asshole would freeze if he wasn't dressed properly. But that would be just like him to die as a spiteful gesture. That would be just like him, to shit all over the ideal of decency even as he gasped out his last iron breath. What a chump! What a cheapskate! She would wring his neck when she found him in the rubble; if he thought the castle's collapse was painful well just wait until she got a hold of him.
Then he'd see.
Then he'd see!
"You think this is fucking funny!" Mukuro shrieked angrily, shoveling blackened snow out of the way as she felt great boulders through the ice. "You think this is some kind of game?! You sick bastard?! You think this is funny!?"
Mukuro paused, waiting slackened mouthed for Hiei to reply with some scathing remark.
But he didn't, and so she surged forward once again.
Mukuro couldn't gain her balance, and swayed side to side as she pushed boiling hot brick out of the way. In the thick of the wreckage, her feet were practically smoking from the fire still warm underneath. It was all a jumbled mess of iron, stone, burnt fabric and blackened glass. She couldn't find a single trace of human life, even as she kicked brick over brick over. She tried searching for demonic energy instead.
Nothing came up, and panic began to set in.
"... Hiei?" Mukuro's voice changed as the strength in her legs gave out. She nearly fell into the flaming wreckage, but she managed to keep her footing as she leaned heavily upon a blackened wall of concrete.
So much was on her mind that she felt almost in shock.
Where was he? Why wasn't he answering?
He couldn't be dead, the thought was preposterous.
Hiei couldn't die.
Hiei was an asshole.
Assholes didn't die.
Assholes lived on through thick and thin.
Assholes gave her that cocky sneer as if to say 'What, you thought that was enough to do me in? Idiot woman, you know nothing'.
Mukuro let out a hysterical laugh, for now she realized.
He was being rude and usual. He was hiding to pretend to be dead so that way she'd fall apart.
She wouldn't play to his hand.
"You think I'm going to fall for such a stupid trap?!" Mukuro screamed out to the wreckage. "You think I'm going to fall apart just because you're playing fucking possum. You're the moron, Hiei! Not me!"
Nothing answered her but the smoke which sifted through the pile of debris like a ghost over a grave.
She waited endlessly... endlessly.
Endlessly.
Hours might have passed before she moved. She raised trembling fingers to her neck, touching his scarf and holding it close.
