Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho isn't mine. Duh. Though… it IS Christmas. If anyone wants to give me a little gift…
A/N: Nice, fluffy little Christmas fic. You could always read more into the song and interpret this piece as a KuramaxHiei. Or you could ignore the song, because there are a lot of people who play love songs for close friends, and just think of this as a portrayal of the close friendship between Kurama and Hiei. So. Caters to everyone. Except Kurama/Hiei-haters. But come on! How can you hate them? ^-^
Lights All Around Me
He blew on his gloved hands as he leaned against the tree trunk. Snow fell around him softly, cold flakes swirling gently through the air. A few flakes fell on his shoulders, sparkling on his lashes. Childishly, he stuck out his tongue and caught a flake on his tongue.
The girls from school who'd been stalking him giggled, and he frowned, his good mood disappearing abruptly.
There was a reason he was there, of course. He'd been trying to explain what Christmas was to a certain dark-haired friend of his yesterday. Said friend had scoffed at the traditional holiday, writing it off as a stupid human custom. He'd tried to change his mind, but to no avail.
Their conversation had inevitably taken on an increasingly familiar route. He'd been challenged to prove that Christmas was a time to be enjoyed. He'd explained the story behind the birth of Christ to him already, of course, but the sanjiyan had remained singularly unimpressed. Descriptions of how his own family celebrated, with their tree and decorations, and the exchange of presents, hadn't worked either. He'd finally decided that he'd have to take a more personal approach.
They'd done this many times before, with the red-haired boy trying to convince the stubborn demon that humans weren't all that bad.
Kurama had always won out.
Closing his eyes, he felt the familiar dark youki flickering above him. A small smile gracing his lips, he slid to the ground, heedless of the cold snow soaking in around him. There was a small spike in the ki that he felt, caused by worry, but then it eased out. The smile turned into a smirk.
Kurama sat there for a time, letting the demon wait. Finally, he started speaking.
"I still maintain that celebrating Christmas is one of the more enjoyable things in my life," he said, apparently to no one. Fortunately, his stalkers had long since given up on surviving in the cold, and had left. The park where he was, was practically deserted. The clouds above were heavy and dark, and no one had been willing to brave the impending storm.
"But I suppose one thing about Christmas that I really love is singing. You know, they have all sorts of Christmas carols. There's this one called 'Away in a Manger,' which I really like." Kurama paused, pushing a stray lock of hair behind his ear absent-mindedly.
"So… I thought I'd sing you something. It's called 'Lights All Around Me.'"
There was another spike in the dark ki, which was again ruthlessly squashed and evened out. Kurama smiled, took a deep breath and began to sing, his soft tenor voice winding through the frigid air.
"Snowflakes are falling
Pure white and gleaming
The cold air surrounds me
I'm falling
And it isn't that I don't
Or even that I can't
But ooh… with these lights all around me
A feeling within me
Carollers singing and children are laughing
Snow, pristine and white
A child's plaything
I remember, on those snowy Christmas days so long ago
When I used to sit and shiver
I never understood
You tried to show me the meaning
I couldn't believe you
The darkness, the despair of the pain in my heart
Friends torn away
A pale longing for times long gone
Silver tendrils of mist and shadow
A golden gleam in the twilight
And ooh… with these lights all around me
This feeling is growing
Though I can't explain it, it's true
Harsh winds whip by me
Numbing and chilling
Fire flickering, unsheltered
Were you like this once?
Were you all alone?
I've never told you this, but…
Ooh… with these lights all around me
A feeling within me
Can you feel it too?
Christmas is here, my love
People around us
Children bring tidings of joy and of peace
Love, I give you three gifts
Of friendship, comradeship and love
Hold me close to your body
Keep away my demons
And we'll stay together
On this snowy Christmas day
'Cause ooh… with these lights all around me
A feeling within me
Curled up beside you
I can finally tell you… how much I love you…
On this snowy Christmas night…"
He held the last note, letting the sound die away into the air. The wind whistled around him, and he was suddenly aware of the cold, nipping at his ears and hands. Instinctively, he shivered, curling up into a tighter, more compact ball.
A shift in youki was his only warning before Hiei dropped down beside him. The dark-haired demon was frowning at Kurama.
"Kitsune no baka," he muttered. "You'll freeze out here."
Kurama shrugged, or tried to. It came out more as a shiver. "I wanted to sing that for you."
"Hn."
"Oh!" Kurama said suddenly, as he remembered something. He fished around for the bag he had brought with him and produced a small, wrapped box. "Here, Hiei."
Hiei eyed it suspiciously. "What is it?"
"Remember how I told you people who are close to each other exchange gifts on Christmas?" Kurama asked. Hiei nodded shortly. "Well, this is my gift to you."
Hiei's head jerked around sharply, his fierce eyes boring into Kurama's own calm ones. Eventually, his gaze dropped, and he took the present. "I don't have anything for you."
"That's all right," Kurama said serenely. "Did you like the song?"
There was a short pause as Hiei glanced away uncomfortably. "It was… nice," he said eventually. "Who sang it?"
"Me," Kurama said, amused. "I wrote it myself." Lashes lowered over green eyes, almost shyly. "I was thinking of you when I wrote it."
"Oh," Hiei said uncomfortably.
Kurama sighed, moving to get up. He fell back down, thumping his back against the tree painfully. "Ow…" he groaned, rubbing at his right leg, which had given out beneath him. "I think I'm frozen."
Hiei stared at him for a moment, as he tried to rub his leg back into life. The fire demon snorted suddenly, dropping to his knees beside Kurama, moving his katana away easily.
"Hn. Baka," he muttered, running his hands over Kurama's legs. The youki he had gathered around his hands made them almost unbearably hot, but they served the purpose of thawing out the half-frozen youko. Kurama winced as his blood started flowing properly again, and the inevitable sensation of pins and needles started up.
Hiei stood up, looking down at Kurama. "You'll freeze if you stay here any longer," he said bluntly. The youko shrugged, looking down so that Hiei wouldn't see the pain in his eyes. He'd always been great at hiding what he felt from others, but somehow, Hiei was able to see right through him every time.
"Hurts?" Hiei asked, sighing.
"Aa," Kurama replied, shifting uncomfortably, still refusing to meet Hiei's burning crimson gaze. "Don't worry, it'll be gone in a bit, and I'll go home, all right?"
"Hn. Baka, I'm not worried," Hiei muttered. He sat down beside Kurama, slowly reaching up to wrap an arm around Kurama's shoulders. The redhead stiffened slightly in shock – then felt the warmth seeping through him. A soft smile creeping onto his face, he leaned closer to Hiei, who thankfully did not push him away. He felt sleepy all of a sudden…
He woke up later, tucked into his bed, a heavy blanket wrapped around him snugly. Blinking blearily, he sat up slightly, trying to remember what had happened. He remembered being in the park with Hiei, singing that song for him… and then falling asleep curled up against the smaller demon.
Oh yeah, falling asleep in the snow. Real smart, Kurama, he chided himself. He supposed Hiei had brought him back, and only wished he could remember it. Hiei being nice to anyone, even him, was a once-in-a-lifetime thing.
He rolled over and was about to go back to sleep when he saw something white on the pillow beside him. Yawning lazily, he picked up the piece of paper, reading what was written on it.
'You win, kitsune.'
Kurama blinked and realised that the end of the paper was wrapped around something. He unrolled the rest of the paper to reveal a perfect, black gem that sparkled with an internal luminescence. His breath caught in his throat as he recognised it for the tear gem that it was – Hiei's own tear gem. He had not cried often in his life, and this gem was likely one of very few out there. It was a precious thing indeed that Hiei had given him.
Kurama looked back at the note. So he'd won, had he? He'd shown Hiei that Christmas was a good thing? To the point where Hiei had given him a precious belonging as a present?
He smiled softly, drifting back to sleep as he clutched the note and gem to his chest.
"I can finally tell you… how much I love you…
On this snowy Christmas night…"
||owari||
A/N: Please review… I need opinions on the song, it's the first poem I've ever written… I'd love to hear your interpretation of it – I did have something definite (to do with Kurama's past) in mind when I wrote it. What do you think?
Note – the poem/song, for what it's worth, and even if it's really bad, is MINE, so don't use it without permission. Thank you.