By Yume
Yu Yu Hakusho, HxK shounen-ai
(A/N: Woot! Nine reviews and counting…and you guys seem to like the story…okay, okay, I know you're all dying to see what Hiei scored so I'll save the notes till after, ne?)
Chapter 4
You and Me…What Are We?
"Eight?!?" He growled at the machine. It had to be defective. He had hit it that hard and it wasn't even registering a full score? Impossible. A brief scowl was directed at the game and he considered trying again, just so he could knock it into working order, but before he realized it the hammer had been taken from his hands and Kurama stood, lifting it ever so slightly. Stupid fox, how could he expect to win anything if he wasn't going to put any effort into it? If it had taken all of his strength just to mark an eight on the damned machine, there was no way the almost lazy swing Kurama was preparing would measure more than maybe a three or four. Then, quite suddenly, Kurama flicked his wrist and the head of the hammer crashed hard onto the base of the game. The small crowd that had gathered cheered and the game's operator blinked.
"Congratulations, man…damn…nobody gets a perfect ten…pick your prize." Kurama smiled, eyeing the selection of cheap plushes and small trinkets, and settled on a little keychain shaped like a dragon. He pocketed it with a thief's grace, musing that it might make a good gift for Hiei…and then he saw the expression on Hiei's face and took out the keychain, fairly certain that giving it to him now might be a good idea.
Hiei was seething. Kurama prayed the little aura of angry youki flickering around him would go unnoticed and quickly steered him away from the machine before he could do any damage to it. He growled and glared up at Kurama.
"How did you…" Kurama fingered the keychain and shrugged.
"All in the wrist."
"Hn." Kurama sighed and held out his prize to Hiei, who took it and looked it over. "Mmhm. The head's too big, though." Kurama smiled, stifling a chuckle at the criticism. "It's not supposed to be realistic…besides, this was made by humans, they wouldn't know quite how a dragon really looks." He was answered with a shrug and a glance back to the park entrance. Sighing quietly, he nodded in response to Hiei's unspoken request. "We can leave…oh, wait---" Kurama paused, turning to deliver a half-smile to his reluctant companion. "One more thing I wanted to show you…" A quick glance over the grounds stopped on a snack stand not far away and he once more took Hiei's hand, leading him over. Even in the wake of his annoyance at being defeated in the strength-test game, the little demon didn't reject Kurama's hand and wearily allowed himself to be brought over to yet another of these booths, wondering what might be in store for him this time. He looked up as Kurama paid one of the people behind the counter and was handed two rather bizarre things…they were paper cones, coated in something ephemeral and pink. There was a sharply sweet smell about them that reminded Hiei vaguely of something Kurama had given him once to snack on, and he eyed the other demon questioningly. A smile greeted his curiosity and he was handed one of the pink things.
"It's cotton candy…it's a snack, try it, I think you'll like it…" He took a bite out of his own, looking to Hiei to see whether he'd do so as well. He did, if a little warily, and blinked.
"Mn.." He raised an eyebrow at the inexplicable fuzzy texture and pulled it away, licking sticky pink fibers off his lips. The sweetness appealed to him, but it felt like eating a cloud, only…not. His mind struggled with an appropriate description until he caught sight of Kurama, watching him with a look of slight amusement.
"Any good?"
"It's bizarre. What is this?" Kurama shrugged and took another bite out of his own. "Sugar, basically." The confused look that Hiei gave him demanded further explanation and he thought for a moment. "Sugar and I guess something to color it…it's spun very quickly in a special machine…" Hiei nodded and nibbled on his as he started to walk towards the park gates. Tasty snacks aside, the place was downright annoying, everything he disliked- loud, crowded, and seeming to lack any real purpose. Kurama quickly followed, cotton candy in hand, and smiled a little at the reassuring thought that Hiei had put up with more of this than he had really expected. He caught up to him and walked alongside Hiei, who was walking at an uncharacteristically unimpressive speed towards the beach. A few more bites found all of Hiei's cotton candy disposed of before a sudden slight burst of his youki caused Kurama to look over at him, a little startled. The first thing he observed upon doing so was not the dropping of the ashes that had been the cotton candy's paper core from Hiei's hand but rather something much more amusing, and he giggled quietly. Hiei raised an eyebrow and turned to face him.
"Something funny, fox?" Kurama quickly placed a demure hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter.
"You have…eh…" He grinned and tapped the tip of Hiei's nose with his finger, brushing off a few stubbornly clinging strands of the pink sugary treat. Hiei's eyes crossed as they followed Kurama's hand and the redhead's musical laugh rang out quietly once again.
"Now what?" Hiei was faintly annoyed, but mostly just curious as to what in the worlds was causing Kurama such amusement. His only response was a chuckle and a dismissive shake of Kurama's head. "It's nothing…" he said cheerfully, managing to suppress the rest of the thought for fear of somehow upsetting his short-tempered friend with it. It's just that you looked so cute right then…Hiei sensed the trailing nature of Kurama's comment and briefly wondered what was being kept from him, but shrugged it off and walked along a small sandy patch towards his usual training area.
He stole a quick glance at his companion and observed that at some point Kurama had finished his cotton-thing as well and tucked the paper into his pocket. The taller boy was now strolling along next to him, and Hiei felt something rather strange…he looked down at his own hand and mused that Kurama's had been latched onto it almost all day, to the point that the separation at that moment was almost foreign somehow. A little unsettled but craving the familiarity of the past hours, he subtlely moved a bit closer and slipped his hand into Kurama's. The reaction was instantaneous on Kurama's part. A blush crept across his face and he slowly lowered his eyes to where their fingers were now woven together. Upon reassuring himself that yes, they were close like this and yes, Hiei had been the one to initiate the contact, he quickly averted his eyes to the rocks ahead of them, smiling to himself. The smile didn't go unnoticed and a very slight one tugged at the corners of Hiei's mouth as well as he looked up at his companion. Like this they walked until they found themselves right where they had started, at the rocky seaside patch where Hiei so often practiced. The fire youkai hopped up and sat on one of the rocks, while Kurama leaned against it and glanced up at him.
"What are we?" The sharpness of the question startled both parties and Hiei blinked, looking curiously down at Kurama.
"What?" There was a momentary pause in which Kurama took a deep breath, and he asked again.
"You and me…what are we?" Hiei raised an eyebrow.
"Hn…last I checked we were demons, fox…" Kurama shook his head quickly, briefly knocking a veil of red hair into his face. He tucked it behind his ears and looked sincerely up at Hiei.
"I mean in relation to each other. We're friends, aren't we?" Hiei blinked again, entirely bewildered by Kurama's train of thought. A slight frown crossed his face as he considered the answer.
"I suppose you could say that…" He was almost reluctant to ask what he did next. "Why do you ask?" There was another meaningful pause and Kurama bit his lip, kicking at the sand beneath his feet as he searched his mind for a reasonable answer. Why had he asked? For the same reason you were clinging to him all day…suggested a nagging voice in the back of his mind somewhere…for the same reason you dream about him practically every night…the same reason you practically glow when he's around…you want more than this… Kurama shook his head quickly, earning a puzzled and slightly concerned inquiry from Hiei.
"Fox?" The confusion in those green eyes seemed contagious and Hiei had to look away, startled by the naked uncertainty he had seen in his usually confident friend. It was a few moments before Kurama could manage a weak sort of smile and an excuse that he prayed didn't show its untruth.
"Oh, no reason…I think I'm going to go home…" It had gotten later than he first realized, and the thought of settling into bed to give the issue some deep thought was terribly enticing. But then…he would only be pulled from his thoughts when Hiei chose to stop by, perching himself silently in the tree outside Kurama's room or in his window, unnoticeable except for his familiar salty-pine scent and flickeringly warm ki. He set his hands in his pockets and turned to look up at the subject of his nightly musings. "Are you coming?" Hiei shrugged, idly fingering the ribbon on the hilt of his sheathed katana, then leapt down next to him and nodded.
"Might as well." Kurama nodded quickly and began the short walk back to his house. As he walked alongside him, Hiei stole an occasional glance up to his companion. A decade and a half in a human life had affected the demi-youko in ways that Hiei noticed more and more each day. One such side effect of these years of humanity was a new sort of warmth and transparency when it came to his emotions. He had gone from ruthless and cold to…well, to what Hiei saw beside him now, a worriedly emotional soul given to patches of both joy and usually well-concealed despair. At that moment all the youkai wanted was to know what it was that lessened the sincerity of the smile Kurama had shown him moments ago, the cause for his unusual silence and lack of cheer. To his own slight bemusement, he found that he wanted more than to know why Kurama wasn't happy…he wanted to fix it. He wanted Kurama to say "I'm fine" and to be able to believe him. He wanted…
No words were spoken, and they arrived at Kurama's home. He very quietly let himself in and turned to hold the door for Hiei, who…wasn't there. Tradition directed Kurama's eyes to the tall maple beside his house where, certain as ever, Hiei's silhouette was faintly visible among the branches, cut out against the starlit sky. He shook his head, sighing quietly to himself…Hiei always chose that tree, except for nights with particularly bad weather or cold temperatures, which would drive him into Kurama's room to sit on his desk or lean nonchalantly against the wall and occasionally exchange a few words…although…Kurama's mind found a new tangent as he locked the door behind him and proceeded quietly up the stairs. It hadn't been cold or rainy last night and Hiei was still there…suddenly he wondered how many times Hiei had crept into his room while he slept and saved him from his nightmares…the idea brought an uninvited blush to his cheeks and he smiled inwardly and let himself into his bedroom. A flick of the light switch shocked his eyes for a moment as he flopped onto his back on the bed and gazed at the ceiling, slowly adjusting to the artificial illumination.
Almost as soon as his eyes had recovered, he closed them wearily and let his mind drift. It never strayed far, though, from the figure resting just outside his window, and he dozed off with Hiei on his mind yet again.
The youkai in question patiently waited as the steady flow of familiar ki from inside the room became subdued and mild. Once he was sure the source of that ki had fallen asleep, he silently unlatched the window and crouched in the sill, watching Kurama's sleeping form. He watched his chest gently rise and fall, watched his face slip into that almost startlingly peaceful expression, watched the way the red hair pooled like spilled wine on the pillow beneath his head…Mentally Hiei scolded himself for getting sentimental and turned to egress back to his treetop perch, then froze at the sound of a muffled sigh behind him. Not another nightmare…He frowned and walked noiselessly to Kurama's bedside, leaning over to look at him. There was no painful draw to his features, no sign of discontent, and Hiei mused that he had imagined the sound…His eyes traced Kurama's face and stopped on a few strands of crimson that had slipped over it, and unthinkingly he reached out and brushed the offending hairs aside, his fingertips barely skimming Kurama's skin.
He's so warm…warm and soft…Hiei blinked and quickly withdrew his hand, the blush on his cheeks thrown into the unflattering light of the bulb overhead. For a moment he looked at his own fingers, then turned his gaze to Kurama who- to his great relief- had slept through the contact. For a moment he thought he saw a hint of a smile on the sleep-muted features, but he passed it off as another trick of his imagination and turned away, switching off the light and retaking his position on a sturdy branch in his favorite maple.
It was some time before Hiei managed to fall asleep.
(A/N:
Yume: Wow, this gets cuter and cuter. And the reviewers like it!
Yami: *nods* Mmhm. Ne, run along a bit, get me a soda or something, I have to talk to the readers for a sec.
Yume: *blinks and runs along* Hai!
Yami: *sigh* Okay, I really, definitely want to thank all you reviewers. Yume's having some personal troubles right now and all this positive feedback is good for her, so…thanks. Even if you don't like the fic, leave a review, just make your presence known.
Yume: *comes back with Diet Coke* What'd I miss?
Yami: Oh, nothing. Go get the next chapter ready for upload.
Yume: Hai! ^.^