Martyr: Just a strange one-shot that popped up in my head. Not an update, although that is being worked on...really...yeeeeeeah...
Kuro: Disclaimer: We do not own any part of Yu Yu Hakusho.
Standard warnings: Hints of shounen-ai, and some slight violence. That's it.
Laughter rang throughout the forest. A red head darted behind a tree, panting.
"You may be fast, but you can't catch me, Hiei!" he shouted, laughing and bounding away as the Koorime darted towards it.
"Oh, I'll get you, kitsune. You'll get tired soon enough. And then…" Hiei let the sentence trail off. Kurama laughed and ran into a grassy field. He stopped in the middle and stood there, arms outstretched. His chest heaved as he grinned and said,
"Well then? Come and claim me!" Hiei sped up. He was within touching range when the red head took off again, laughing.
"Ah hah, I won't make it that easy!" Kurama cried. The dying sunlight of dusk made his red hair almost glow. The Forbidden Child stopped for a moment to take in the vision. He smiled, then took off after the wily fox again.
"Just for that, I'll show no mercy, fox!" The half human laughed again. The cliff that the field led to was coming on quick. Kurama stopped and turned abruptly. Hiei came to a stop just as fast, only a few feet away. The Koorime smirked.
"I'm going to win," he said as he took a step forward. "You're trapped." The fox stepped backwards, keeping the space between them equal. His head turned to look behind him, a confirmation of the roaring ocean that lay hundreds of feet below. Beads of sweat slid down his face.
Fear danced across his green eyes. He took another step backwards.
The setting sun around them disappeared, leaving nothing but the blackness of night.
Hiei stepped forward again. Then another step.
The youko backed up. The edge of the cliff came closer. His body was trembling in fear, eyes wide and swimming with fear.
The Koorime smirked and unsheathed his katana.
"H-Hiei…please…" Without another thought, Hiei stepped closer, until the tip of the blade pushed into Kurama's stomach. Blood blossomed on his shirt. He stepped backwards unconsciously as the Koorime came closer, driving the katana deeper into his stomach this time.
Another step backwards. One more step and Kurama would fall over the edge. Then the sword was driven all the way through his stomach, the blade being twisted to rip as many organs as possible. The half human cried out in pain, the blood that dribbled down from his mouth the same color as his hair. It spilled from the wound, pouring out by the pints as Hiei pulled his katana out of his stomach. The Koorime's smirk grew wider.
"I win, fox." Emerald met crimson, one filled with pain and fear, the other with satisfaction. The emerald's body staggered backwards, labored groans escaping past the bloody lips.
Kurama's heels left the edge of the cliff. His eyes widened as feet left the sturdy ground.
His mouth opened to cry out as his body began the long descent that would lead to his demise. It had all happened in a matter of seconds. The last seconds of Kurama's life, which would lead to a bright flash, pain then…nothingness.
Suddenly, his body stopped falling. It dangled over the edge.
"Hiei," Kurama breathed. The small demon had grabbed his hand, and was holding on as if his life depended on it.
"I'm not going to let you die, fox. Not yet. I won the game, but I don't want you to leave me yet." The half demon looked down, swallowing as he saw how far below the ground was.
"You're not going to fall. Don't look down." The look in those green eyes. Fear, hurt…and love. That was enough to make Hiei strong enough to hold onto that soft hand for eternity. Kurama had a pained look in his eyes as blood continued to sep from the hold in his abdomen. His hand was slick with blood and sweat, slipping just enough to make the Koorime tighten his hold.
He hadn't meant to be so rough…if only the idiot would hold on a little longer.
"Please…don't let go…not…yet," the voice that sounded so much like his own, but in a way, was not, pleaded. Fright made its appearance again, flickering across emerald eyes like a bolt of lightning.
"I don't want to die here…" Kurama whispered. He dug his heels into the side of the cliff and tried to crawl up, Hiei pulling the entire way.
They had almost succeeded. Kurama was almost there, only a breath away from solid ground, when his foot hit a loose rock. The stone slid out from under the weight, taking the red head's footing with it.
Sweat and grime caused enough friction to made their hands slip, and so, the half demon fell down the side of the cliff. He cried out and tried to regain hold on solid ground, but it was too weak. The dirt crumbled under his fingers. And so he was flying for a moment, the roaring ocean below him fast approaching.
"KURAMA! NO!" Hiei could only watch as the fox fell, his own crimson eyes wide. There was nothing he could do but watch as the red head hit the ocean with forced enough to snap his neck. The sickening crack echoed in the Koorime's ears, reverberating throughout the drums themselves.
Red hair was consumed by the waters fury as Kurama's body sunk down into its dark, icy depths.
The Jaganshi fell to his knees, eyes still wide in disbelief.
"No…no, Kurama…" He clenched his fists, fingers digging into the dirt. "Wh-what have I done?"
'KURAMA!'
"WHAT HAVE I DONE?!"
Hiei shot up like a rocket, panting. He looked around, blinking at the sunlight that streamed down on him through the tree branches.
"…the hell?"
'Was it a…dream…?'
The demon looked around. He was sitting in a tree, and had apparently fallen asleep.
"So…it wasn't real. Just a nightmare." The corners of his lips rose upwards.
"Just a strange nightmare." He frowned. Something was on his hands. Looking down, his stomach churned.
Dry blood covered them. The Koorime unsheathed the katana at his side, crimson eyes widening as he took in the blood that stained the metal.
Thud.
The weapon dropped from his dirty hands. His breaths were coming in short gasps.
'I-I really killed him.'
"NO! KURAMA!"
Martyr: Ah, how many of you were expecting that, hm?