We do not own Yu Yu Hakusho
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Key:
*** - Shifting Perspective
~*~ - Dream Scape, New Location
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To Catch Forbidden Tears
By: Obsidian Sphinx & Lonely Wanderer
Chapter 1
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Yusuke! Get down!"
Suddenly, Yusuke Urameshi found himself face to face with the ground as a sound, not too
unlike thunder, sounded overhead. He felt the heat from a well-aimed attack on his head and
legs, but strangely, not on his back. Roughly two seconds later, it was quiet, and yet, the silence
seemed almost misplaced.
Yusuke groaned as he felt a certain weight disappear from atop him. He pulled himself up to a
sitting position and spared a few moments to catch his breath. The impact to the ground had
jarred his ribs and ultimately knocked the wind out of him. To Yusuke, that was perhaps the
most uncomfortable feeling that there was.
Something came to his attention then. The ground and his hitting it had to have been caused by
something. His mind replayed the earlier scene and the voice that had served warning to his fall.
"Hiei!"
Yusuke jumped to his feet in alarm. His chocolate eyes searched around him. The attack had
successfully burnt and singed the ground, uprooting several spots of lush vegetation which lay
strewn about dejectedly.
"Hiei!" he called again.
He heard a slight shuffling behind him, and he turned only to find the petite fire demon facing
him stiffly, his arms crossed at his chest.
Yusuke grinned warmly as he was often known to do. "Um, thanks for saving my ass there a
second ago," he said.
Hiei responded with a fabled, 'hn', but Yusuke had learned quickly Hiei's unofficial language,
and he knew well enough that particular 'hn' translated to, 'you're welcome'.
Yusuke frowned suddenly and slightly tilted his head to the side. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked.
He'd hate to find out that Hiei had been injured because of an attack that was intended for him
and that he really should have been able to dodge without Hiei's assistance.
The shirtless demon rolled his eyes. "Of coarse I'm all right," he replied, seemingly offended.
"You sure?"
"Yes, now go. There are more important matters to attend to right now."
Yusuke shrugged. "Okay, but uh . . . you're sure you're fine?"
Hiei stared at him with those dark crimson eyes and there was a certain flatness to them that
Yusuke dared not ignore. "Right, well, I best be on my way then. Wouldn't want that guy to get
away with the Reikai treasure . . . thingy. I'll meet back up with you guys later, okay? Bye."
With those fleeting words Yusuke sprinted away.
Hiei smirked. It would not take the boy long to catch up to the demon perpetrator. Once Yusuke
was out of sight, he fell to his knees and took labored breaths. He had lied to Yusuke. He was
far from all right. When he had shoved Yusuke to the ground, the energy attack had raked along
his back. Now, Hiei could feel the blood running down what little skin he imagined he had left
and mind numbing pain coursed through him, for the nerves had been destroyed, and if not that
then badly traumatized.
He closed his eyes, willing his body to accept and operate despite the pain. His cloak was not far
from him. He had thrown it off near the beginning of the battle to allow more efficient
movement. There was a battle going on behind him. The youkai, although considerably weak,
were many in number. He needed to help Kurama and that orange haired fool. Hiei recovered
his black cloak, wincing only slightly when he put it on and the fabric touched his injury.
Out of habit, Hiei checked that his beloved katana was at his side, and it was. Satisfied, he flitted
toward the battlefield. The moment his feet touched the bloody ground, a youkai attacked him.
He sensed it, drew his sword, and disposed of the creature in a fraction of a second. After the
initial attack, several youkai bombarded him.
Meanwhile, Kurama took out another dozen or so with his acclaimed Rose Whip. The other
demon's attacks were amateurish in nature and very brash. Really, they were just a distraction
used to allow the main perpetrator to escape virtually unscathed with one of the frequently sought
after Reikai treasures. The problem was that there were so many of these low class demons that
he was getting tired and low on energy, both spiritual and physical. He could already feel
Kuwabara's Rei-ki growing dim, but the good thing was that he could count on the boy to keep
fighting no matter what shape he was in.
Something else bothered him though. He had spotted a familiar black streak just moments ago,
and anyone who knew him could easily tell that black streak was actually Hiei. Normally, he
would feel more assured and confident when the fire demon was fighting with him, but he
couldn't help but notice that Hiei's reaction time was far slower than normal. He could see the
petite youkai's chest heaving as if out of breath, but that wasn't right. Kurama could count the
number of times that Hiei was breathless, and most of those times included the Kokuryuha. He
shook his head. He needed to keep his mind on the battle.
Kurama, Hiei, and Kuwabara continued to slaughter the attacking youkai, and although to them
the battle seemed interminable, it actually only took up a portion of fifteen minutes. When the
last demon fell, Kurama could hear Kuwabara letting out a sigh of relief. He couldn't help but let
one out as well. Situations like the one they had just been engaged in proved that there really
was a strength in numbers.
"Kurama, hey, are you okay?"
The youko, turned human, looked up at Kuwabara. The boy came running toward him, a slightly
worried expression on his face. Kurama smiled easily at him.
"I'm fine Kuwabara. What about you?" he asked.
Kuwabara let out a sound that was a hybrid between a sigh and a growl. "Aw, I'm okay, just a
little
beat up and tired, nothin' that a little nap can't cure. Hey, where's Urameshi?"
Kurama shrugged. He'd lost sight of Yusuke near the beginning of the fight. However, he
imagined that the boy had gone after the criminal who had stolen the treasure. Turning a little to
find Hiei, Kurama winced slightly as he felt an urgent stinging sensation in his side. He looked
down only find a bloody gash courtesy of a pair of particularly sharp claws. He sighed, and then
couldn't help but smirk. The red color of blood clashed with the pink color of his school
uniform, and getting bloodstains out of his clothing was more frustrating to him than fighting the
battle that had caused the problem in the first place. Not to mention that he would have to sew
up the rip in the fabric and then come up with a believable lie to tell his Mother about how it got
there.
"Just once in my human existence I'd like to be bloody and not have to tell anyone why," he
mumbled.
Kuwabara regarded him with a raised eyebrow. "Eh? You say something Kurama?" he asked.
The fox shook his head. "No, nothing."
"Okay. So anyway, I saw Urameshi and the shrimp earlier. You think Hiei knows where he is?"
Kurama shrugged. "Perhaps. Let's ask."
The pair made their way over to the black clad figure. Hiei at first had his back to them, but all
too quickly turned to face them, stoic expression present as per the usual. He slid his sword back
into its protective sheath and kicked at one of the slain demons on the ground.
"Are you all right Hiei?" Kurama asked.
The fire youkai snorted in reply.
But as Hiei stared at him with those crimson eyes, Kurama briefly, ever so, thought he saw
something, perhaps and emotion, flicker within them. Then he thought that maybe it was his
imagination, for in the time it took him to blink, Hiei's eyes were back to their stony ways.
"You don't have to be such a jerk about it. Kurama was just concerned. It wouldn't kill you to be
nice once in a while," Kuwabara cut in, getting right up into Hiei's face.
"It wouldn't kill me to disembowel you either, but I'm nice enough not too."
Kuwabara's face turned a lovely shade of red as his muscles tensed. "You little . . . you're just
damn lucky that I don't know what that word, disembol, er whatever you said, means!"
Hiei smirked. "So tell me Kuwabara, do you enjoy proving your incompetence, or . . . oh wait
I'm sorry, do you not know that word means either?"
At this comment it was fairly obvious that Kuwabara had heard all that he could stand and was
perfectly ready to take a swing at Hiei. Kurama decided that his intervention was past due, and
he stepped between them.
"Now children, let's all play nice," he said with a touch of amusement laced in his voice.
Kuwabara let out a growl, but he stood down, and Hiei merely crossed his arms over his chest.
Kurama thought he saw him wince slightly, but once again, it was probably his imagination. He
cleared his throat to continue.
"Hiei, have you seen Yusuke?"
The jaganshi gave a stiff nod. "He was in pursuit of the youkai thief."
"Ah. Well in that case he should be back here any minute."
And Kurama was right, for just then Yusuke came waltzing up carrying the demon perpetrator
over his right shoulder. He had a particularly satisfied grin on his face. "Hi guys! Brought back a
present," he said.
He looked at all of his friend's faces. They were all exhausted and not nearly in as good a mood
as he was. He raised an eyebrow. "Right, well uh . . . shall we get this dude back to Reikai?"
Kuwabara sighed. "Yeah, let's get outta here. I'm beat."
The pair started walking off, but then stopped. Yusuke looked over his free shoulder. "Aren't you
guys coming?" he asked, addressing Kurama and Hiei who still stood in their places, unmoving.
Kurama shook his head. "I'm going to stay a bit and clean up here."
"Clean up?" Yusuke looked around. "Clean what up?"
The fox motioned toward the devastated vegetation all around them.
"Oh. Well okay then, guess I'll see you around. You comin' Hiei?" Yusuke asked, eyeing his
darkly clad friend.
Hiei shook his head, and Yusuke knew better than to ask why, so he and Kuwabara said their
good-byes and went off on their merry way.
When they could no longer be seen, Kurama turned to Hiei. "You know you don't have to stay
here with me."
Hiei snorted. "You're low on energy, if a youkai decided to jump you, you wouldn't have a
chance," he said.
Kurama sighed and looked toward the sky. "Well I'm glad you have so much confidence in me,"
he replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "In any case, you could help by spreading out these
bodies . . . it'll be good nutrition for the trees once I've got them going again." With that he
turned his back to Hiei and began walking toward a particularly mutilated patch of ground and
set to work.
Hiei waited until he knew Kurama was very interested in his work before he let his face twist
into an undeniable expression of pain. His wound was throbbing, and he'd lost a lot of blood in
the battle. He'd gotten hit there a few times, which hadn't helped, but fortunately, none of his
companions had noticed. He had been careful not to keep his back to them, for if they knew of
the wound they would surely worry, but he didn't want that. They should not waste their feelings
on him . . . he wasn't worth their concern.
Hiei took a moment to compose himself before doing as Kurama had asked. There were a few
youkai corpses that he had to burn so that the various poisons from their bodies would not infect
the ground, and others that he dismembered and spread around for fear that somehow they would
rebuild themselves. Some demons had a tendency to do that, he was just being cautious.
As he worked, he became more tired than he had been before. He could feel his eyelids weighing
down on his eyes, but he fought his weariness. His head began to ache and his vision started to
blur in and out. Nausea set in heavily in the pit of his stomach. He could hear Kurama begin to
speak to him, but the fox's words were blurred together and he could not comprehend them, and
then, all the sounds around him seemed to run into one another and were replaced by the
shockingly loud sound of complete and utter nothingness.
Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat, and it felt like someone was strangling him. His limbs
became unbelievable heavy. Hiei couldn't avoid falling to his knees, and then, though he fought,
he collapsed fully on the ground his body and mind giving way to unconsciousness.
***
Kurama, ever enshrouded in his work, continued talking quite randomly. He had a tendency to
do that around Hiei, though he wasn't sure why. Sometimes when it was just him and the fire
youkai he felt strangely nervous and that was a feeling that the fox had little experience with.
". . . and I guess the truth is . . ." Kurama let his sentence trail off as he realized that he couldn't
feel or hear Hiei's movement behind him. He blinked and pulled his hands away from the
ground. He stood up to turn around. Green eyes went wide at the sight of his partner lying on the
ground. "Hiei!"
He rushed over to his friend and knelt down beside him. The fox quickly, carefully flipped Hiei's
body upward so he could see his face. The youkai was completely unconscious. Kurama stood
up with Hiei in his arms and shook his head. He couldn't imagine why Hiei would have passed
out, he hadn't used the black dragon. That's when he felt it. The blood, it smeared from Hiei's
body onto his hands and the fabric of his arms. Kurama's heart raced. Blood from another's body
was such a sickening feeling. The slimy texture of it dominated the senses and that feeling never
left the memory. No, it lingered . . . especially when the blood belonged to a friend.
He ran. The fox sprinted, tearing open a portal to the Ningenkai. Hiei was injured badly, but he
could help him, he knew he could. Kurama's mind was in frenzy, which ultimately was a foreign
sensation. Calm had always been a valued trait, a signature particularly to him. He did not know
why he was so frantic now, but it didn't matter, only Hiei did.
Kurama's mind pondered over what could have happened to the fire demon, and so, when he saw
his house in front of him, large and strangely imposing in the dark of the human night, he was
surprised. He wondered briefly how far he had run and how quickly before he came to the door
to his house. He cursed as he found that the door was locked. He positioned the darkly clad
burden in his arms and as he fumbled for his keys he smiled in irony. Now he knew why Hiei
loathed doors so much.
The house was dark and quiet. Naturally though, for his mother and stepfather were on their
second honeymoon and his younger stepbrother was away at soccer camp for a few weeks. He
supposed that it had all worked out rather fortunately for him now.
He rushed upstairs to his room and flipped on the light with his shoulder, being the only
body part accessible to him at the time. He sighed as he laid Hiei on his bed face down. His
room was a comfortable sanctuary for him. Its familiarity calmed his nerves. He shook his head
at his wandering mind and pushed his hair behind his ears.
He leaned over Hiei and inspected the dark, red color that stained his black cloak. The fox bit his
lip. Hiei's black cloak indeed. He couldn't very well heal the wound with that article of clothing
so effectively in the way. Carefully, he began to lift the material up off of Hiei's back. He could
still get to the wound then without having to go through the trouble of completely stripping Hiei
of the cloak, ah but then it would be too easy, wouldn't it?
Kurama stopped pulling the garment up when he heard Hiei moan. He cursed yet again. It was
as he had feared. The portion of fabric covering the wound had been, in a metaphoric sense,
glued in place by bodily fluid and thick blood. Kurama took a deep breath as he thought about
what to do. If he pulled it up all in one rush, it could irritate the injury. On the other hand, he
could try and cut the material away, but because of the cloak being black he wouldn't be able to
see exactly was he was doing and that method would take some time to complete and be just as
painful, if not more so than the latter. He knew the obvious choice.
He grabbed hold of the fabric and in one fluid motion pulled it up off of the weeping wound. He
winced as he heard Hiei groan in pain that the fire-koorime could still feel even in the pit of
unconsciousness.
He pulled the cloak over Hiei's head and decided to take the whole thing off so that Hiei's torso
was bared completely. Green eyes widened at the damage they saw. Blood-covered skin that
was burnt and blackened hung in shredded strips, desperately attempting to cover the pussy, gory
mass of abused, bloody muscles that were sleek with traumatized bodily fluid. Kurama made a
face of disgust. It wasn't the WORST he'd ever seen, but that didn't mean it was pretty.
He strode over to the bathroom and grabbed some latex gloves, gauze, and medical scissors then
returned back to Hiei's unmoving form. He sighed. First thing first, he had to cut away all that
dead skin, and so Kurama set to work on the mentioned step one. Hiei only winced or groaned
twice, and the fox thanked Enma for that. He really did hate the idea of hurting his friend.
When he finished, he could get a better idea of the extent of Hiei's burns. Once again, they
weren't as bad as they could have been, but then, they weren't as GOOD as they could have been
either. He dug through his hair and pulled out two seeds. He stared at them for a moment. The
battle hadn't left him with a large amount of you-ki at his disposal but the two plants in question
were fairly basic, and exclusively native to the Makai. It wouldn't take a large amount of coaxing
to get them to grow. And so, Kurama forced the little seedlings to progress into their adulthood
and even then they were small. After that, it was time for Kurama to play apothecary so he
quickly retrieved a bowl and from one plant extracted a bluish liquid, while from the other he
merely plucked its small, star-shaped petals. He mixed the two components together easily, for
the bluish liquid seemed to dissolve the small petals. Together they made a thick sort of salve
that Kurama knew was good for only one thing, and that was serious burns.
Hiei's back would be sensitive to the touch of his hands, but hopefully the cool, numbing effect
of the mixture would relinquish that pain factor. The fox covered his fingertips with the salve
and gently touched the jaganshi's back. Hiei winced and Kurama held his breath until Hiei's
expression of agony had ebbed. Then, and only then did the former youko began to spread the
salve over the injury, carefully, gently, and terribly cautiously. The fire youkai did not react
again at all, much to the redhead's relief.
Kurama finished and washed his hands of the medicine, but his work was not finished. He
grabbed the white gauze and began dressing the wound neatly. It was a strenuous process though
because he had to wrap around Hiei's slender torso, and every time he lifted the petite form, he
was deathly afraid that he would in some way hurt Hiei. When he finally finished, he simply had
to let out a relieved sigh.
A sliver of a smile softly graced Kurama's lips as he examined Hiei's slumbering profile. He
couldn't stop his fingertips from brushing a few of those dark bangs out of the demon's pale face.
"Oh Hiei, what did you do to yourself?" he whispered.
Cleaning up his mess forced him to be very careful, as he couldn't leave any evidence of his work
lying around for his dear Kaasan to accidentally stumble upon some day. Afterwards, he situated
Hiei so that he at least LOOKED comfortable lying on his stomach, and then he pulled the sheet
and the comforter up over his still form. Everything seemed too still for Kurama. Before, he had
felt
that the silence was strangely loud, but such a time of worry was over and he knew his friend
would be okay. Watching Hiei's steady breathing, how it gently rocked his slender form, Kurama
felt lulled. Suddenly, he was reminded of his own fatigue from the fight, and then of coarse it's
aftermath. He still wondered what had happened to cause such an injury, and then why Hiei
hadn't said something earlier. If the youkai had simply spoken of the wound, he would have been
able to avoid the whole process of passing out, which would have saved Kurama an awful
amount of grief. He shook his head and decided he would ask that question of Hiei when he
woke up. A yawn escaped him. But that moment, he needed to sleep.
It took a few moments to grab a spare futon from his closet, slide it next to the bed, and adorn it
with bedding. Kurama changed into his nightclothes, which consisted of a simple pair of gray
sweats and an old white T-shirt. He switched off his room light and climbed under the covers.
Sleep weighed heavily on his emerald eyes, and Kurama did not fight as blissful unconsciousness
claimed him.
That night, it rained, and the strong wind pressed those tiny droplets against the window. Such
sounds were soothing to Kurama, even the small roll of thunder that occasionally rose up above
the howling wind to gently shout its presence was welcome. As it was, these kindred sounds
were not the reason for the foxes awakening.
His green, tired eyes drifted open, greeted by still, darkness. He yawned as he heard the rain, the
wind, and the gentle thunder outside. Storms were lovely things. Usually they had the power to
lull him to sleep and keep him floating in the comforting realms of the dream scape, but such was
not the case.
He yawned, covering his mouth as he slowly pushed himself up to a sitting position. His body
felt lax, and entirely too heavy. Moving at that moment seemed fairly out of the question until he
heard the sound that had pulled him out of his pleasant slumber. He looked up suddenly and saw
Hiei thrashing about in the bed, mumbling incoherent things. Kurama jumped to his feet, nearly
falling off of the futon in his rush. He hesitated at seeing Hiei's panicked state, not knowing
quite what to do. However, he DID know that if his friend kept moving so much he would upset
his wounds as well as the healing process. Kurama frowned. That wasn't going to happen, he'd
gone through hell treating Hiei!
Without another thought, Kurama did the only thing he figured he could and pressed his body
carefully, yet firmly over Hiei's. He slid his hands over Hiei's tightly balled fists and laid his
head in the junction between his neck and shoulder. The fox's crimson locks fell around them in
silky waves as he began whispering soft words of reassurance. His easy tenor joined the melodic
sound of the rain that kept time against the window, and the strong, gentle bass of the thunder.
Even the wind seemed to hum, and Hiei's body began to relax under Kurama's.
Kurama kept whispering as he gradually moved off of Hiei's body. The kitsune straightened out
the disheveled covers, and double-checked his bandages. It was when he was situating the
slender form that Hiei's body drew tense again and his fist lashed out toward an unsuspecting
Kurama. The fox cursed as he was hit right across his right cheekbone. He winced. That would
definitely be a painful bruise in the morning. Sighing, he began to gently coax Hiei back into
calmness, this time determined not to get in the way of any potentially painful strikes.
It took a good ten minutes to completely keep the fire youkai from thrashing in his sleep, and
Kurama was still so tired. Not to mention that, along with his lack of sleep, and low energy, his
cheek was now throbbing. He groaned as he felt the beginnings of a very large migraine coming
on. His eyes meandered longingly over toward the beckoning, comfortable looking futon on the
floor. He shook his head. Oh if only fate were kind. Instead, Kurama grabbed the blanket,
pulled up a chair at the foot of the bed and sat down. He would have to monitor Hiei throughout
the night. Emerald eyes caught sight of a thick book lying on his desk. He flipped on his small
desk light and hugged the book to his chest. "Ah Shakespeare, you are my only friend right
now."
***
~*~
Makai winds were hollow. They cried as they spun throughout the forest and left an empty, cold
feeling inside of all those they came in contact with . . . all but Hiei. The jaganshi was all ready
empty.
What was the cold to a lost soul anyway? What was the cold to someone whose spirit had gone
numb so long ago? The cold was nothing to him but a distant memory. There was only one
thing that was for certain, and that was survival. His instincts bade him to stay alive, to spill the
blood of the ones who dared oppose him. He had followed those instincts and he had defeated
his enemy, but not unscathed. His own blood, thick, and dark ran from a deep cut in his forearm.
Such an injury was the reason that the fire demon found himself sitting cross-legged next to a
waterfall that filled a winding river. The river was nameless, and yet it ran through most of the
northern part of the Makai. Its waters had a fine reputation for having more cleansing
capabilities than most, and so this was where he went to clean and disinfect the gash that
separated his pale skin.
He rinsed the blood from the skin and tore a long strip from his black tank top. He could only do
so well with one hand, but he managed to wrap his wound. His own body would hopefully
provide the problem a quick recovery. As it was, his body had always healed faster than others.
He didn't know why. Perhaps it was due to the fact that he was a hybrid of two opposing forces.
Perhaps it was within him, the Forbidden Child that the elements had learned to coexist.
Hiei snorted at this thought as he quickly retreated to sitting atop a large, gray boulder at the
water's edge. The rushing sound of the falls filled his ears. He allowed his muscles to relax a
little and he closed his red eyes. All that mattered was survival of the fittest. The last one
standing was the only one who deserved to be left alive. Natural selection. Who could argue
with those points? No one.
He must have stayed as he was for at least a half hour before he heard a faint rustling not far in
front of him, but something told him that whatever was there would not harm him. He sighed as
he opened his eyes and found himself staring straight into someone else's. They were large,
young, and amber in color. Hiei scowled as he sat up and backed away slightly so that he could
behold the creature at a proper distance. It was a small, gray fox kit.
"Hello," it greeted with a toothy grin.
Hiei merely stared at it.
The kit tilted its head to the side. "Are you not able to talk?" it questioned.
Hiei rolled his eyes. "Run home kid," he said in a warning tone. The child did not seem to pick
up on the bite in Hiei's low voice.
"Oh I see. You're grumpy because you got a boo-boo."
Hiei's eyes went wide at that comment. He followed the child's pointing index finger to the
blood that was seeping through his make shift bandages. He could think of a thousand things to
say to the kit, but when he opened his mouth, the child began to speak again.
"Does it hurt? I bet so. Whenever I get hurt, my Mommy always kisses it to make it feel better."
The kid's amber eyes looked around the empty area. "Your Mommy must not be here right now.
Want me to kiss it for you?"
Hiei groaned. He didn't need this right now! "Look little kitsune, didn't your Mother ever teach
you that it's dangerous to talk to strangers?"
The kit hopped up on the boulder right next to Hiei, it's little fuzzy feet dangling off the edge.
"Yeah, but you aren't a bad stranger. You got nice eyes. Mommy says that you can tell lot's by
someone's eyes."
Hiei stared at the kit. It was so young, and so unafraid of him. It trusted him. That was, to say
the least, unusual. The mind of a child was something spectacular, something pure. A child's
mind was incomprehensible, so capable, and yet so innocent that the child itself would never
realize any of that. It was so perfect, but how could such a thing be? It made no sense, but then
at the same time, it made all the sense in every world.
Suddenly, the kit's gray ears perked up. "Oops, that's my Mommy callin' me. I gotta go." It
hopped of the boulder and stumbled a little when it hit the ground. Its puffy, sleek gray tail
wagged slightly as it turned its back to the jaganshi. It began trotting away, but then stopped
suddenly. It looked over its shoulder at him. "Wait there. I'll be right back."
The little fox disappeared into the surrounding forest and Hiei could hear it moving about, not
straying far it seemed from the forest edge. Not long later, the child emerged holding something
in its small, chubby little hands. It walked straight up to him and extended one hand to Hiei.
Those tiny fingers held onto the thin, green stem of a little yellow flower. "Mommy says that
flowers heal through bringin' happiness, so now maybe your owie will stop hurtin' so you don't
gotta be grumpy anymore."
Hiei hesitantly accepted the small flower and the little kit opened its mouth to say something
else, but then stopped and scrunched up its face. "Ah! I'm comin' Mommy!" it yelled. The kit
turned on its heel and began to trot away. It cast one last glance at Hiei and waved before
completely disappearing into the woods.
Hiei gazed at the small flower held in the palm of his hand, and he continued to do so for several
minutes to come.
His arm throbbed, but for the most part, the serious bleeding had ebbed. Now, one would have to
strain their eyes in order to see the various spots of blood that had seeped through the black
bandages.
Hiei grunted as he jumped to another tree. To others his form was nothing but a black blur
against the dark green foliage and the wild, stormy Makai sky. Hiei did not know where exactly
it was that he was going, but he was sure that he was going in a direction and that was all he
really needed to know. Somewhere, something would happen to grab his attention. Some beast
of a demon that believed it was powerful would challenge him and he would accept. He would
win the battle and kill the sorry excuse for a demon in cold blood, then go on his merry way.
That was how it was . . . how it had always been really. This was his life, and although many
would say that it wasn't much of one, Hiei didn't care. In the Makai you fought and killed no
matter how pathetic your life was. It wasn't so much that life held any sort of sentimental value it
was actually more about pride and property. Your life belonged to you, and you defend what is
yours. It was sort of an unwritten rule . . . an instinct really.
He stopped as something brushed his senses. His skin tingled slightly. He was picking up a ki
signature. Ironically enough, it was in the opposite direction he was going. He had nothing
better to do and so he turned around and flitted back toward the waterfall he had been at hours
before. The signature wasn't terribly menacing, in fact, it was nothing compared to him. A work
out would be good though, why not? Hiei stopped on the branch of one tree. He was closer he
knew that. The waterfall was several trees ahead of him, but that wasn't the direction that he felt
the energy. He turned his body to the left and couldn't help a smirk as the energy tugged harder
on his senses.
The trees rustled softly as Hiei bounded gently onto their branches, staying for only a fraction of
a second before he was gone. They didn't seem to mind his presence. He was far lighter and
gentler than so many other creatures. He was quieter too. No, the trees didn't mind him at all, in
fact, they liked him quite well and always offered him the shelter that they could provide, their
trust, and kindness. Hiei was always grateful to them.
Suddenly a loud growl broke through the silent air, startling him and making him lose his
footing. Fortunately, he was able to grab onto a sturdy tree branch and steady himself. Ruby
eyes glared toward an up coming clearing. He didn't have to sense the creature anymore . . . he
could smell its fowl stench polluting the surrounding air.
Swiftly, Hiei started toward the clearing. He caught glimpses of it through the leaves and
branches. He could make out figures, in particular, one very large one. It was then that he heard
several screams. Instantly, the over whelming scent of blood rushed into the air. Hiei blinked. It
was young blood.
He hurried his pace. He raised his you-ki level a little as he came to the last tree where he
perched on a branch. The large demon turned its head toward him, one, large eye blinked, and
widened before it slowly backed up, then turned and sprinted away. Hiei was on the verge of
chasing after it. His muscles were tense for a fight, his hands itching to handle his katana. His
eyes crying out see blood.
'Blood . . .' The word echoed in his mind. He snapped his head away from the demon's retreating
form as the painful sound of lamenting filled his ears. Hiei looked down at the clearing and it
felt as though his heart had stopped. There was a youko down there. She was red with tear
filled amber eyes and so were her three little kits. Her white garments were soaked with blood as
she cradled and rocked back and forth with something very small in her arms. Something that,
unlike the others, was gray. A gaping hole taunted him from the child's back.
Hiei could feel himself begin to shake and he closed his fists tightly, not able to tear his eyes
away from the scene. It was not right. That little child . . . was talking to him only hours before.
It was there, sitting with him, trusting him. The kit . . . how could it be . . . be dead? Dead . . .
just like that, for no . . . reason.
'Survival of the fittest,' answered a voice in his mind. A voice that was . . . his voice, but it felt
wrong. It felt foreign.
He shook his head. 'No . . . it was just . . . a kid. It didn't . . . know HOW to survive . . . '
'What are you worried about? You're alive, aren't you?' asked the voice.
Hiei took a few deep breaths as a certain empty realization hit him. Survival of the fittest? By
no means could it be justified. By no mean should that child have died. It had barely had a
chance to live and it was innocent. Completely pure and innocent. It was dead, but he, a
murderer, one who had slaughtered for power and for pleasure was alive, breathing, unscathed.
'I'm alive, but . . . I shouldn't be . . .'
The trees whispered as a dark shadow disappeared. A small, crushed yellow flower floated
toward the ground only to be caught by a lonely breeze and carried away into a lingering void of
dark nothingness.
~*~
Hiei's crimson eyes snapped open and he groaned as rays of sunlight sliced through his vision.
He squinted against the offending light and he tried to steady his breathing. His heart was
beating rapidly in his chest, and he was sweating. He just needed a few moments to calm himself
down. That particular dream always left him in state of panic. It reminded him of the emptiness
inside of him, the darkness, and the self-loathing. His soul felt tired, numb almost.
Hiei blinked slowly, grateful for the fact that his eyes were adjusting to the light. Now that he
could see he decided he needed to find out where he was. The place was not the Makai for
certain. The familiar smell of pine dirt did not greet him, however, the scent of fabric softener
and roses did. He was not lying on the branch of a tree, but rather something soft and very warm.
He felt more at ease than he did in the Makai, and there was only one place that he ever felt like
that in. No doubt, he was in Kurama's Ningen home, specifically, in the fox's bedroom. What he
couldn't figure out was why he was there. Surely there was a reason. Hiei tried to roll over as he
thought, but ended up hissing as thick tendrils of pain drove spikes through his body. At that
point, everything came back to him. Saving Yusuke, his injury, the battle, helping Kurama, his
fatigue.
Hiei let out yet another groan and very carefully he turned onto his side. His stiff muscles
screamed at him to stop, and so Hiei allowed himself a few seconds to rest before slowly pushing
himself up to a sitting position. Much to his dissatisfaction, he found himself panting from the
effort. He positioned himself just enough so that the pain wasn't completely unbearable. His
eyes caught sight of the gauzy bandages wrapped around the better part of his torso and he
sighed. The work was flawless. It had been done carefully and to the exact precessions of an
obvious perfectionist.
A slight shuffling sounded was made, causing Hiei to look to the sound's source. He didn't know
why, but he was surprised to see Kurama. The fox was curled up in a chair right at the foot of the
bed. A blanket was wrapped around his slender, graceful body and he rested his head on his
knees, which were brought up comfortably to his chest. Those crimson locks of silky hair hung
over his shoulder like trapped waves. It was difficult not to notice the way the sunlight had
managed to catch a few strands of hair almost illuminating their dazzling color. Kurama's pale
skin, flawless in every way took on a golden hue in the early morning light. His even breathing
was the only thing that laid proof to the fact that the beautiful fox was an actual living being and
not some figment of the imagination.
Hiei noticed a book lying open on the floor as if it were personally inviting him to read the sacred
words on those off-white pages, and there were a lot of pages. From where he was he managed
to make out a few words, but the print was so small that he couldn't gather much. However, from
what he did pick up and from what he knew of Kurama, Hiei was sure that the book's author was
Shakespeare.
He frowned. That book was one of Kurama's very favorites. The kitsune practically worshiped it
and would never in a million years leave it open and discarded on the floor. Further more,
Kurama was asleep in a chair. That wasn't right because he knew for a fact that Kurama slept in
a bed. His frown deepened. Kurama wasn't in the bed because Hiei was. The next thing that
came to his attention was the empty futon on the floor. Because his frown could not delve any
deeper, Hiei clenched his fists until his knuckles were white.
So, it was obvious that Kurama had taken care of his injuries and allowed him to sleep in his bed.
The fox had planned on sleeping on the floor, but something had happened to make him move to
the chair. Judging by the book, Kurama's intent was to keep watch over him all night. As it was,
the fox had failed and had fallen asleep. The fire youkai cursed under his breath. Kurama's you-
ki was low meaning simply that it hadn't had a lot of time to replenish since the battle happened
the day before.
Frustration and anger boiled up inside of him. No! That wasn't what was supposed to happen. It
wasn't right. Hiei's fingers clutched at the white sheets. He looked down into his lap, gently
shaking his head. He did not want anyone to sacrifice their own well being for the sake of his, it
wasn't worth it. He wasn't worth it.
Lifting his head, he spied his black cloak folded up the desk where Kurama could usually be
found doing his homework or some other ningen activity. He needed to leave. If he stayed,
Kurama would continue to tend to him, still neglecting his own injuries. His body cried out
against the movements that it took for him to climb off the bed and stand up, but that was
expected and completely ignored. He took a few more seconds to catch his breath and then he
was ready to take his first step, but that step had to have been cursed because the moment he took
it, a groggy sounding tenor graced the quiet room.
"Going somewhere?"
Hiei paused, but then looked over to the voice's owner. Kurama was no longer curled up but
rather he was sitting up with the ever-present perfect posture. He sat with his legs crossed and
his hands folded neatly in his lap. His neat, vibrant red hair framed his face and those mysterious
green eyes twinkled. A very small, barely noticeable smile played on his lips. He wore it often,
but it's meaning could never be deciphered or solved even by the greatest detectives.
"I'm leaving," Hiei said. He did not want to stay, so he was going to go. It was that simple.
Kurama's calm exterior did not alter. "I would advise against it Hiei," he replied.
The jaganshi truly did not care what the fox advised. He needed to leave. It was for Kurama's
sake anyway . . . not that he would say so. He was about to respond, but was not given the
chance.
"Hiei, your injury is very delicate. When you passed out yesterday--"
The dark-haired youkai fixed his friend with a piercing gaze. "I passed out?"
Kurama's defined eyebrows rose a little. "Yes. You don't remember?"
"No."
The fox shrugged. "That makes sense, but you remember everything else before that right?"
"Yes."
Hiei's answer was acknowledged by a slight nod. "When you passed out, I picked you up and
ended up covered in blood. I immediately took you back here to tend to you."
Hiei snorted softly and looked out the window. He noticed for the first time that it was splattered
with raindrops. "You tended to my wound, so now I'm going to go."
"Hiei," Kurama started, a sharp tone to his still calm voice, "that injury is very delicate. Despite
what you were attacked with, that injury is still classified as a burn and burns are very susceptible
to infection. You need to rest, heal, and regain your strength."
Hiei stared at Kurama. The fox saw a certain something in his friend's eyes. It was what could
only be described as the essence of nothing. It was like those eyes were empty. His own eyes
narrowed a little. In any case, Hiei wasn't buying what he had just told him.
He sighed. "Well, the least you can do is let me change your bandages. Those have outworn their
use."
Hiei stared at Kurama for a long moment. He didn't want to stay. He didn't want to let Kurama
change his bandages, but something in that kitsune's eyes obligated him to comply. He gave a
curt nod, to which Kurama put on a genuine smile.
"Thank you. Now, go back to the bed and sit down. I'll be back in flash with the supplies."
Hiei reluctantly did as he was told. The bed felt good to him though. It was warm and
comfortable, almost soothing. Had the sound of Kurama coming and going from the room not
been a factor, Hiei imagined he might have fallen over and gone back asleep. He was still so
tired.
***
It was a full ten minutes before Kurama had everything gathered and set up around him. He
walked up to the bedside but then stopped as his foot nudged something on the floor. Looking
down, he discovered that something was a book. He frowned. He had meant to stay awake
to monitor his friend, but he hadn't been able to. He vaguely remembered reaching the final act
of Romeo and Juliet before he fell asleep. He bent down and picked up his beloved book.
Checking it over for bent pages and the likes before closing it, Kurama placed the book on his
bookshelf in its own respectable location. Only then did he walk back to the bedside.
"I'm glad you're awake. This is going to make this entire process ten times easier than it was last
night," he commented as he found the end of the gauze that was held in place by medical tape.
Hiei frowned as he moved his arms out of the way so that Kurama could unwrap him more
easily. "Sorry," he mumbled. He had to say something. Kurama should not have worried about
him.
The kitsune glanced at Hiei as he finished the last of the bandages. "For what?" he asked. He
turned his back to the jaganshi in order to throw the string of gauze away.
Hiei looked to the side, suddenly finding the sheets extremely fascinating. "For being a problem,"
he replied quietly.
Kurama came back over to him, but did not spare him a glance. He pulled out a mixing bowl and
began came up with the two plants he had used the night before. Hiei watched his friend mixing
the two plants out of the corner of his eye. Kurama looked at him then, so he averted his eyes
more out of habit that anything else.
"Okay, lay down on your stomach," came the instructions.
Hiei complied. A shiver ran up his spine as the cool salve was applied to his back. He wondered
how bad it really was. As if reading his thoughts, Kurama spoke up.
"First of all, me fixing you up hardly made you a problem, second, this wound could be a lot
worse than it is, but that doesn't mean it isn't serious. I had to cut away strings of burnt flesh. If
you feel light headed for a while it's because of blood loss. I suppose I don't have to tell you, but
I will anyway. You are going to be terribly sore. You should refrain from making sudden
movements or anything related, otherwise, you risk irritating it."
Hiei snorted. That news wasn't exactly classified information. Another question prodded his
mind. "What about your family?" he asked.
"My mother and father are on their second honeymoon and my step brother is away at soccer
camp. Over all, you couldn't have chosen a more convenient time to get hurt." There was a
slight hint of humor in Kurama's voice, but Hiei wasn't in the mood.
After a while, Hiei noticed that he could no longer feel Kurama's massaging hands and he looked
to see the fox wiping his hands clean with a towel. Kurama smiled at him in a friendly manner
and motioned for Hiei to sit up. Hiei did. The fire demon watched as the fox grabbed a fresh roll
of white gauze and pulled up a chair so that he was sitting right in front of him.
"Tell me if I'm wrapping too tight, I don't want to hurt you," Kurama said as he started.
His work was paced and perfect just like always. Hiei trusted Kurama, but it still wasn't right.
He tilted his head to the side a little. Kurama was paced, yet sluggish. With the sun to the
youko's back, his skin color was not manipulated and so Hiei could tell that although his skin was
pale, it actually had a slight grayish tint to it. Those green eyes were as lively and vivid as ever,
but underneath those eyes the skin was somewhat baggy and dark. Those were all signs of
fatigue, but what he was confused about was the dark bruise that marred Kurama's right cheek.
He didn't remember Kurama having that during the battle; of course it could very well have
developed over night. "Kurama--"
"It's nothing." The fox's voice was mellow as he cut Hiei's statement off. He was well aware that
Hiei was examining the bruise and he wasn't about to tell the youkai that he had put it there. He
felt Hiei's eyes on him and suddenly felt frustrated. "I got smacked in the face by a fairly random
attack . . . like I said, it's nothing." He made himself sound nonchalant. He wasn't sure if Hiei
bought it or not, but either way he didn't consider it a big deal. Hiei would throw a fit if he found
out, which was why Kurama decided that Hiei simply wouldn't.
Kurama finished wrapping in silence. Hiei did not speak to him and he did not speak to Hiei.
The silence wasn't comfortable, but not terribly uncomfortable either. It was just sitting there,
indolently waiting to end. How depressing.
The jaganshi started to get up, but a firm hand on his chest kept him from doing so. "Kurama."
That was all he said.
Kurama didn't acknowledge that he said anything. He just fixed him with an emerald gaze.
"Stay put for a while Hiei, jusT relax and rest up," he said.
Hiei leaned back against the pillow. It hurt, but he didn't care. Pain was a part of life. He folded
his arms over his chest. Kurama busied himself with picking up the room. "You have plenty of
room to talk fox," he said.
Kurama didn't face him. "What are you talking about?" he asked.
"You're tired. You look exhausted and your ki is low. YOU are the one who should be resting,
Kurama."
This time the fox did turn to stare at him. "I'm not the one injured Hiei," he replied back.
"This isn't the first time I've been injured. You're over reacting."
"No, I'm not."
"Yes you are. You've practically got me under house arrest."
Kurama sighed and leaned against the desk. "You wouldn't be stuck here against your will if you
had told someone about your wound. Why didn't you?"
Hiei looked away. "I didn't think it was that bad."
"You knew exactly what it was. I know you knew. What? Did you plan on just letting it go?
Were you going to tell ANYONE? Hiei if that had gotten infected, it could have killed you,"
Kurama's voice was strained now. Something about that last statement shook him up inside.
"It's none of your business Kurama, just leave me alone!" Hiei shouted suddenly. He didn't want
hear it. "Why didn't you just leave me?" he asked then, his usually strong voice soft and shaky.
Kurama's eyes widened. "Leave you? What kind of a question is that!?"
Before any more words could be exchanged, Hiei got up from the bed, ignoring his protesting
body. He had to go. He didn't want to talk about it. He didn't like where the conversation was
going, and just looking at Kurama pained him. The fox was exhausted and all because he spent
what little energy he had on a youkai who could've cared less whether he lived or died. He had to
leave. It just wasn't right.
"Hiei you can't go, you're still hurt," Kurama told him and stepped in his path. Hiei went around
him and grabbed his cloak from the desk. He pushed the window opened and leapt up onto the
sill. He glared one last time at Kurama before he completely disappeared.
"Hiei!" Kurama called after him in one last vain attempt. He knew he couldn't bring Hiei back,
but he was desperate. He shook his head as he closed the window and plopped down in his chair.
How had that gone so horribly wrong? Why had Hiei reacted so badly, and what was with that
question? Leave him behind? Why in the three worlds would Kurama do something like that?
He slammed his fist down on the desktop. It was so frustrating! "Damn it Hiei!" he cursed
aloud. It didn't make sense and then his mind reverted back to when he saw Hiei's eyes. Those
eyes were so . . . void. It was like they were two sheets of beautiful red stain glass with no light
behind them. It didn't make sense. It just didn't make sense. Kurama laid his head down. There
came that migraine again . . .
~*~*~*~*~*~
To be continued . . .
----------
Key:
*** - Shifting Perspective
~*~ - Dream Scape, New Location
----------
To Catch Forbidden Tears
By: Obsidian Sphinx & Lonely Wanderer
Chapter 1
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Yusuke! Get down!"
Suddenly, Yusuke Urameshi found himself face to face with the ground as a sound, not too
unlike thunder, sounded overhead. He felt the heat from a well-aimed attack on his head and
legs, but strangely, not on his back. Roughly two seconds later, it was quiet, and yet, the silence
seemed almost misplaced.
Yusuke groaned as he felt a certain weight disappear from atop him. He pulled himself up to a
sitting position and spared a few moments to catch his breath. The impact to the ground had
jarred his ribs and ultimately knocked the wind out of him. To Yusuke, that was perhaps the
most uncomfortable feeling that there was.
Something came to his attention then. The ground and his hitting it had to have been caused by
something. His mind replayed the earlier scene and the voice that had served warning to his fall.
"Hiei!"
Yusuke jumped to his feet in alarm. His chocolate eyes searched around him. The attack had
successfully burnt and singed the ground, uprooting several spots of lush vegetation which lay
strewn about dejectedly.
"Hiei!" he called again.
He heard a slight shuffling behind him, and he turned only to find the petite fire demon facing
him stiffly, his arms crossed at his chest.
Yusuke grinned warmly as he was often known to do. "Um, thanks for saving my ass there a
second ago," he said.
Hiei responded with a fabled, 'hn', but Yusuke had learned quickly Hiei's unofficial language,
and he knew well enough that particular 'hn' translated to, 'you're welcome'.
Yusuke frowned suddenly and slightly tilted his head to the side. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked.
He'd hate to find out that Hiei had been injured because of an attack that was intended for him
and that he really should have been able to dodge without Hiei's assistance.
The shirtless demon rolled his eyes. "Of coarse I'm all right," he replied, seemingly offended.
"You sure?"
"Yes, now go. There are more important matters to attend to right now."
Yusuke shrugged. "Okay, but uh . . . you're sure you're fine?"
Hiei stared at him with those dark crimson eyes and there was a certain flatness to them that
Yusuke dared not ignore. "Right, well, I best be on my way then. Wouldn't want that guy to get
away with the Reikai treasure . . . thingy. I'll meet back up with you guys later, okay? Bye."
With those fleeting words Yusuke sprinted away.
Hiei smirked. It would not take the boy long to catch up to the demon perpetrator. Once Yusuke
was out of sight, he fell to his knees and took labored breaths. He had lied to Yusuke. He was
far from all right. When he had shoved Yusuke to the ground, the energy attack had raked along
his back. Now, Hiei could feel the blood running down what little skin he imagined he had left
and mind numbing pain coursed through him, for the nerves had been destroyed, and if not that
then badly traumatized.
He closed his eyes, willing his body to accept and operate despite the pain. His cloak was not far
from him. He had thrown it off near the beginning of the battle to allow more efficient
movement. There was a battle going on behind him. The youkai, although considerably weak,
were many in number. He needed to help Kurama and that orange haired fool. Hiei recovered
his black cloak, wincing only slightly when he put it on and the fabric touched his injury.
Out of habit, Hiei checked that his beloved katana was at his side, and it was. Satisfied, he flitted
toward the battlefield. The moment his feet touched the bloody ground, a youkai attacked him.
He sensed it, drew his sword, and disposed of the creature in a fraction of a second. After the
initial attack, several youkai bombarded him.
Meanwhile, Kurama took out another dozen or so with his acclaimed Rose Whip. The other
demon's attacks were amateurish in nature and very brash. Really, they were just a distraction
used to allow the main perpetrator to escape virtually unscathed with one of the frequently sought
after Reikai treasures. The problem was that there were so many of these low class demons that
he was getting tired and low on energy, both spiritual and physical. He could already feel
Kuwabara's Rei-ki growing dim, but the good thing was that he could count on the boy to keep
fighting no matter what shape he was in.
Something else bothered him though. He had spotted a familiar black streak just moments ago,
and anyone who knew him could easily tell that black streak was actually Hiei. Normally, he
would feel more assured and confident when the fire demon was fighting with him, but he
couldn't help but notice that Hiei's reaction time was far slower than normal. He could see the
petite youkai's chest heaving as if out of breath, but that wasn't right. Kurama could count the
number of times that Hiei was breathless, and most of those times included the Kokuryuha. He
shook his head. He needed to keep his mind on the battle.
Kurama, Hiei, and Kuwabara continued to slaughter the attacking youkai, and although to them
the battle seemed interminable, it actually only took up a portion of fifteen minutes. When the
last demon fell, Kurama could hear Kuwabara letting out a sigh of relief. He couldn't help but let
one out as well. Situations like the one they had just been engaged in proved that there really
was a strength in numbers.
"Kurama, hey, are you okay?"
The youko, turned human, looked up at Kuwabara. The boy came running toward him, a slightly
worried expression on his face. Kurama smiled easily at him.
"I'm fine Kuwabara. What about you?" he asked.
Kuwabara let out a sound that was a hybrid between a sigh and a growl. "Aw, I'm okay, just a
little
beat up and tired, nothin' that a little nap can't cure. Hey, where's Urameshi?"
Kurama shrugged. He'd lost sight of Yusuke near the beginning of the fight. However, he
imagined that the boy had gone after the criminal who had stolen the treasure. Turning a little to
find Hiei, Kurama winced slightly as he felt an urgent stinging sensation in his side. He looked
down only find a bloody gash courtesy of a pair of particularly sharp claws. He sighed, and then
couldn't help but smirk. The red color of blood clashed with the pink color of his school
uniform, and getting bloodstains out of his clothing was more frustrating to him than fighting the
battle that had caused the problem in the first place. Not to mention that he would have to sew
up the rip in the fabric and then come up with a believable lie to tell his Mother about how it got
there.
"Just once in my human existence I'd like to be bloody and not have to tell anyone why," he
mumbled.
Kuwabara regarded him with a raised eyebrow. "Eh? You say something Kurama?" he asked.
The fox shook his head. "No, nothing."
"Okay. So anyway, I saw Urameshi and the shrimp earlier. You think Hiei knows where he is?"
Kurama shrugged. "Perhaps. Let's ask."
The pair made their way over to the black clad figure. Hiei at first had his back to them, but all
too quickly turned to face them, stoic expression present as per the usual. He slid his sword back
into its protective sheath and kicked at one of the slain demons on the ground.
"Are you all right Hiei?" Kurama asked.
The fire youkai snorted in reply.
But as Hiei stared at him with those crimson eyes, Kurama briefly, ever so, thought he saw
something, perhaps and emotion, flicker within them. Then he thought that maybe it was his
imagination, for in the time it took him to blink, Hiei's eyes were back to their stony ways.
"You don't have to be such a jerk about it. Kurama was just concerned. It wouldn't kill you to be
nice once in a while," Kuwabara cut in, getting right up into Hiei's face.
"It wouldn't kill me to disembowel you either, but I'm nice enough not too."
Kuwabara's face turned a lovely shade of red as his muscles tensed. "You little . . . you're just
damn lucky that I don't know what that word, disembol, er whatever you said, means!"
Hiei smirked. "So tell me Kuwabara, do you enjoy proving your incompetence, or . . . oh wait
I'm sorry, do you not know that word means either?"
At this comment it was fairly obvious that Kuwabara had heard all that he could stand and was
perfectly ready to take a swing at Hiei. Kurama decided that his intervention was past due, and
he stepped between them.
"Now children, let's all play nice," he said with a touch of amusement laced in his voice.
Kuwabara let out a growl, but he stood down, and Hiei merely crossed his arms over his chest.
Kurama thought he saw him wince slightly, but once again, it was probably his imagination. He
cleared his throat to continue.
"Hiei, have you seen Yusuke?"
The jaganshi gave a stiff nod. "He was in pursuit of the youkai thief."
"Ah. Well in that case he should be back here any minute."
And Kurama was right, for just then Yusuke came waltzing up carrying the demon perpetrator
over his right shoulder. He had a particularly satisfied grin on his face. "Hi guys! Brought back a
present," he said.
He looked at all of his friend's faces. They were all exhausted and not nearly in as good a mood
as he was. He raised an eyebrow. "Right, well uh . . . shall we get this dude back to Reikai?"
Kuwabara sighed. "Yeah, let's get outta here. I'm beat."
The pair started walking off, but then stopped. Yusuke looked over his free shoulder. "Aren't you
guys coming?" he asked, addressing Kurama and Hiei who still stood in their places, unmoving.
Kurama shook his head. "I'm going to stay a bit and clean up here."
"Clean up?" Yusuke looked around. "Clean what up?"
The fox motioned toward the devastated vegetation all around them.
"Oh. Well okay then, guess I'll see you around. You comin' Hiei?" Yusuke asked, eyeing his
darkly clad friend.
Hiei shook his head, and Yusuke knew better than to ask why, so he and Kuwabara said their
good-byes and went off on their merry way.
When they could no longer be seen, Kurama turned to Hiei. "You know you don't have to stay
here with me."
Hiei snorted. "You're low on energy, if a youkai decided to jump you, you wouldn't have a
chance," he said.
Kurama sighed and looked toward the sky. "Well I'm glad you have so much confidence in me,"
he replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "In any case, you could help by spreading out these
bodies . . . it'll be good nutrition for the trees once I've got them going again." With that he
turned his back to Hiei and began walking toward a particularly mutilated patch of ground and
set to work.
Hiei waited until he knew Kurama was very interested in his work before he let his face twist
into an undeniable expression of pain. His wound was throbbing, and he'd lost a lot of blood in
the battle. He'd gotten hit there a few times, which hadn't helped, but fortunately, none of his
companions had noticed. He had been careful not to keep his back to them, for if they knew of
the wound they would surely worry, but he didn't want that. They should not waste their feelings
on him . . . he wasn't worth their concern.
Hiei took a moment to compose himself before doing as Kurama had asked. There were a few
youkai corpses that he had to burn so that the various poisons from their bodies would not infect
the ground, and others that he dismembered and spread around for fear that somehow they would
rebuild themselves. Some demons had a tendency to do that, he was just being cautious.
As he worked, he became more tired than he had been before. He could feel his eyelids weighing
down on his eyes, but he fought his weariness. His head began to ache and his vision started to
blur in and out. Nausea set in heavily in the pit of his stomach. He could hear Kurama begin to
speak to him, but the fox's words were blurred together and he could not comprehend them, and
then, all the sounds around him seemed to run into one another and were replaced by the
shockingly loud sound of complete and utter nothingness.
Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat, and it felt like someone was strangling him. His limbs
became unbelievable heavy. Hiei couldn't avoid falling to his knees, and then, though he fought,
he collapsed fully on the ground his body and mind giving way to unconsciousness.
***
Kurama, ever enshrouded in his work, continued talking quite randomly. He had a tendency to
do that around Hiei, though he wasn't sure why. Sometimes when it was just him and the fire
youkai he felt strangely nervous and that was a feeling that the fox had little experience with.
". . . and I guess the truth is . . ." Kurama let his sentence trail off as he realized that he couldn't
feel or hear Hiei's movement behind him. He blinked and pulled his hands away from the
ground. He stood up to turn around. Green eyes went wide at the sight of his partner lying on the
ground. "Hiei!"
He rushed over to his friend and knelt down beside him. The fox quickly, carefully flipped Hiei's
body upward so he could see his face. The youkai was completely unconscious. Kurama stood
up with Hiei in his arms and shook his head. He couldn't imagine why Hiei would have passed
out, he hadn't used the black dragon. That's when he felt it. The blood, it smeared from Hiei's
body onto his hands and the fabric of his arms. Kurama's heart raced. Blood from another's body
was such a sickening feeling. The slimy texture of it dominated the senses and that feeling never
left the memory. No, it lingered . . . especially when the blood belonged to a friend.
He ran. The fox sprinted, tearing open a portal to the Ningenkai. Hiei was injured badly, but he
could help him, he knew he could. Kurama's mind was in frenzy, which ultimately was a foreign
sensation. Calm had always been a valued trait, a signature particularly to him. He did not know
why he was so frantic now, but it didn't matter, only Hiei did.
Kurama's mind pondered over what could have happened to the fire demon, and so, when he saw
his house in front of him, large and strangely imposing in the dark of the human night, he was
surprised. He wondered briefly how far he had run and how quickly before he came to the door
to his house. He cursed as he found that the door was locked. He positioned the darkly clad
burden in his arms and as he fumbled for his keys he smiled in irony. Now he knew why Hiei
loathed doors so much.
The house was dark and quiet. Naturally though, for his mother and stepfather were on their
second honeymoon and his younger stepbrother was away at soccer camp for a few weeks. He
supposed that it had all worked out rather fortunately for him now.
He rushed upstairs to his room and flipped on the light with his shoulder, being the only
body part accessible to him at the time. He sighed as he laid Hiei on his bed face down. His
room was a comfortable sanctuary for him. Its familiarity calmed his nerves. He shook his head
at his wandering mind and pushed his hair behind his ears.
He leaned over Hiei and inspected the dark, red color that stained his black cloak. The fox bit his
lip. Hiei's black cloak indeed. He couldn't very well heal the wound with that article of clothing
so effectively in the way. Carefully, he began to lift the material up off of Hiei's back. He could
still get to the wound then without having to go through the trouble of completely stripping Hiei
of the cloak, ah but then it would be too easy, wouldn't it?
Kurama stopped pulling the garment up when he heard Hiei moan. He cursed yet again. It was
as he had feared. The portion of fabric covering the wound had been, in a metaphoric sense,
glued in place by bodily fluid and thick blood. Kurama took a deep breath as he thought about
what to do. If he pulled it up all in one rush, it could irritate the injury. On the other hand, he
could try and cut the material away, but because of the cloak being black he wouldn't be able to
see exactly was he was doing and that method would take some time to complete and be just as
painful, if not more so than the latter. He knew the obvious choice.
He grabbed hold of the fabric and in one fluid motion pulled it up off of the weeping wound. He
winced as he heard Hiei groan in pain that the fire-koorime could still feel even in the pit of
unconsciousness.
He pulled the cloak over Hiei's head and decided to take the whole thing off so that Hiei's torso
was bared completely. Green eyes widened at the damage they saw. Blood-covered skin that
was burnt and blackened hung in shredded strips, desperately attempting to cover the pussy, gory
mass of abused, bloody muscles that were sleek with traumatized bodily fluid. Kurama made a
face of disgust. It wasn't the WORST he'd ever seen, but that didn't mean it was pretty.
He strode over to the bathroom and grabbed some latex gloves, gauze, and medical scissors then
returned back to Hiei's unmoving form. He sighed. First thing first, he had to cut away all that
dead skin, and so Kurama set to work on the mentioned step one. Hiei only winced or groaned
twice, and the fox thanked Enma for that. He really did hate the idea of hurting his friend.
When he finished, he could get a better idea of the extent of Hiei's burns. Once again, they
weren't as bad as they could have been, but then, they weren't as GOOD as they could have been
either. He dug through his hair and pulled out two seeds. He stared at them for a moment. The
battle hadn't left him with a large amount of you-ki at his disposal but the two plants in question
were fairly basic, and exclusively native to the Makai. It wouldn't take a large amount of coaxing
to get them to grow. And so, Kurama forced the little seedlings to progress into their adulthood
and even then they were small. After that, it was time for Kurama to play apothecary so he
quickly retrieved a bowl and from one plant extracted a bluish liquid, while from the other he
merely plucked its small, star-shaped petals. He mixed the two components together easily, for
the bluish liquid seemed to dissolve the small petals. Together they made a thick sort of salve
that Kurama knew was good for only one thing, and that was serious burns.
Hiei's back would be sensitive to the touch of his hands, but hopefully the cool, numbing effect
of the mixture would relinquish that pain factor. The fox covered his fingertips with the salve
and gently touched the jaganshi's back. Hiei winced and Kurama held his breath until Hiei's
expression of agony had ebbed. Then, and only then did the former youko began to spread the
salve over the injury, carefully, gently, and terribly cautiously. The fire youkai did not react
again at all, much to the redhead's relief.
Kurama finished and washed his hands of the medicine, but his work was not finished. He
grabbed the white gauze and began dressing the wound neatly. It was a strenuous process though
because he had to wrap around Hiei's slender torso, and every time he lifted the petite form, he
was deathly afraid that he would in some way hurt Hiei. When he finally finished, he simply had
to let out a relieved sigh.
A sliver of a smile softly graced Kurama's lips as he examined Hiei's slumbering profile. He
couldn't stop his fingertips from brushing a few of those dark bangs out of the demon's pale face.
"Oh Hiei, what did you do to yourself?" he whispered.
Cleaning up his mess forced him to be very careful, as he couldn't leave any evidence of his work
lying around for his dear Kaasan to accidentally stumble upon some day. Afterwards, he situated
Hiei so that he at least LOOKED comfortable lying on his stomach, and then he pulled the sheet
and the comforter up over his still form. Everything seemed too still for Kurama. Before, he had
felt
that the silence was strangely loud, but such a time of worry was over and he knew his friend
would be okay. Watching Hiei's steady breathing, how it gently rocked his slender form, Kurama
felt lulled. Suddenly, he was reminded of his own fatigue from the fight, and then of coarse it's
aftermath. He still wondered what had happened to cause such an injury, and then why Hiei
hadn't said something earlier. If the youkai had simply spoken of the wound, he would have been
able to avoid the whole process of passing out, which would have saved Kurama an awful
amount of grief. He shook his head and decided he would ask that question of Hiei when he
woke up. A yawn escaped him. But that moment, he needed to sleep.
It took a few moments to grab a spare futon from his closet, slide it next to the bed, and adorn it
with bedding. Kurama changed into his nightclothes, which consisted of a simple pair of gray
sweats and an old white T-shirt. He switched off his room light and climbed under the covers.
Sleep weighed heavily on his emerald eyes, and Kurama did not fight as blissful unconsciousness
claimed him.
That night, it rained, and the strong wind pressed those tiny droplets against the window. Such
sounds were soothing to Kurama, even the small roll of thunder that occasionally rose up above
the howling wind to gently shout its presence was welcome. As it was, these kindred sounds
were not the reason for the foxes awakening.
His green, tired eyes drifted open, greeted by still, darkness. He yawned as he heard the rain, the
wind, and the gentle thunder outside. Storms were lovely things. Usually they had the power to
lull him to sleep and keep him floating in the comforting realms of the dream scape, but such was
not the case.
He yawned, covering his mouth as he slowly pushed himself up to a sitting position. His body
felt lax, and entirely too heavy. Moving at that moment seemed fairly out of the question until he
heard the sound that had pulled him out of his pleasant slumber. He looked up suddenly and saw
Hiei thrashing about in the bed, mumbling incoherent things. Kurama jumped to his feet, nearly
falling off of the futon in his rush. He hesitated at seeing Hiei's panicked state, not knowing
quite what to do. However, he DID know that if his friend kept moving so much he would upset
his wounds as well as the healing process. Kurama frowned. That wasn't going to happen, he'd
gone through hell treating Hiei!
Without another thought, Kurama did the only thing he figured he could and pressed his body
carefully, yet firmly over Hiei's. He slid his hands over Hiei's tightly balled fists and laid his
head in the junction between his neck and shoulder. The fox's crimson locks fell around them in
silky waves as he began whispering soft words of reassurance. His easy tenor joined the melodic
sound of the rain that kept time against the window, and the strong, gentle bass of the thunder.
Even the wind seemed to hum, and Hiei's body began to relax under Kurama's.
Kurama kept whispering as he gradually moved off of Hiei's body. The kitsune straightened out
the disheveled covers, and double-checked his bandages. It was when he was situating the
slender form that Hiei's body drew tense again and his fist lashed out toward an unsuspecting
Kurama. The fox cursed as he was hit right across his right cheekbone. He winced. That would
definitely be a painful bruise in the morning. Sighing, he began to gently coax Hiei back into
calmness, this time determined not to get in the way of any potentially painful strikes.
It took a good ten minutes to completely keep the fire youkai from thrashing in his sleep, and
Kurama was still so tired. Not to mention that, along with his lack of sleep, and low energy, his
cheek was now throbbing. He groaned as he felt the beginnings of a very large migraine coming
on. His eyes meandered longingly over toward the beckoning, comfortable looking futon on the
floor. He shook his head. Oh if only fate were kind. Instead, Kurama grabbed the blanket,
pulled up a chair at the foot of the bed and sat down. He would have to monitor Hiei throughout
the night. Emerald eyes caught sight of a thick book lying on his desk. He flipped on his small
desk light and hugged the book to his chest. "Ah Shakespeare, you are my only friend right
now."
***
~*~
Makai winds were hollow. They cried as they spun throughout the forest and left an empty, cold
feeling inside of all those they came in contact with . . . all but Hiei. The jaganshi was all ready
empty.
What was the cold to a lost soul anyway? What was the cold to someone whose spirit had gone
numb so long ago? The cold was nothing to him but a distant memory. There was only one
thing that was for certain, and that was survival. His instincts bade him to stay alive, to spill the
blood of the ones who dared oppose him. He had followed those instincts and he had defeated
his enemy, but not unscathed. His own blood, thick, and dark ran from a deep cut in his forearm.
Such an injury was the reason that the fire demon found himself sitting cross-legged next to a
waterfall that filled a winding river. The river was nameless, and yet it ran through most of the
northern part of the Makai. Its waters had a fine reputation for having more cleansing
capabilities than most, and so this was where he went to clean and disinfect the gash that
separated his pale skin.
He rinsed the blood from the skin and tore a long strip from his black tank top. He could only do
so well with one hand, but he managed to wrap his wound. His own body would hopefully
provide the problem a quick recovery. As it was, his body had always healed faster than others.
He didn't know why. Perhaps it was due to the fact that he was a hybrid of two opposing forces.
Perhaps it was within him, the Forbidden Child that the elements had learned to coexist.
Hiei snorted at this thought as he quickly retreated to sitting atop a large, gray boulder at the
water's edge. The rushing sound of the falls filled his ears. He allowed his muscles to relax a
little and he closed his red eyes. All that mattered was survival of the fittest. The last one
standing was the only one who deserved to be left alive. Natural selection. Who could argue
with those points? No one.
He must have stayed as he was for at least a half hour before he heard a faint rustling not far in
front of him, but something told him that whatever was there would not harm him. He sighed as
he opened his eyes and found himself staring straight into someone else's. They were large,
young, and amber in color. Hiei scowled as he sat up and backed away slightly so that he could
behold the creature at a proper distance. It was a small, gray fox kit.
"Hello," it greeted with a toothy grin.
Hiei merely stared at it.
The kit tilted its head to the side. "Are you not able to talk?" it questioned.
Hiei rolled his eyes. "Run home kid," he said in a warning tone. The child did not seem to pick
up on the bite in Hiei's low voice.
"Oh I see. You're grumpy because you got a boo-boo."
Hiei's eyes went wide at that comment. He followed the child's pointing index finger to the
blood that was seeping through his make shift bandages. He could think of a thousand things to
say to the kit, but when he opened his mouth, the child began to speak again.
"Does it hurt? I bet so. Whenever I get hurt, my Mommy always kisses it to make it feel better."
The kid's amber eyes looked around the empty area. "Your Mommy must not be here right now.
Want me to kiss it for you?"
Hiei groaned. He didn't need this right now! "Look little kitsune, didn't your Mother ever teach
you that it's dangerous to talk to strangers?"
The kit hopped up on the boulder right next to Hiei, it's little fuzzy feet dangling off the edge.
"Yeah, but you aren't a bad stranger. You got nice eyes. Mommy says that you can tell lot's by
someone's eyes."
Hiei stared at the kit. It was so young, and so unafraid of him. It trusted him. That was, to say
the least, unusual. The mind of a child was something spectacular, something pure. A child's
mind was incomprehensible, so capable, and yet so innocent that the child itself would never
realize any of that. It was so perfect, but how could such a thing be? It made no sense, but then
at the same time, it made all the sense in every world.
Suddenly, the kit's gray ears perked up. "Oops, that's my Mommy callin' me. I gotta go." It
hopped of the boulder and stumbled a little when it hit the ground. Its puffy, sleek gray tail
wagged slightly as it turned its back to the jaganshi. It began trotting away, but then stopped
suddenly. It looked over its shoulder at him. "Wait there. I'll be right back."
The little fox disappeared into the surrounding forest and Hiei could hear it moving about, not
straying far it seemed from the forest edge. Not long later, the child emerged holding something
in its small, chubby little hands. It walked straight up to him and extended one hand to Hiei.
Those tiny fingers held onto the thin, green stem of a little yellow flower. "Mommy says that
flowers heal through bringin' happiness, so now maybe your owie will stop hurtin' so you don't
gotta be grumpy anymore."
Hiei hesitantly accepted the small flower and the little kit opened its mouth to say something
else, but then stopped and scrunched up its face. "Ah! I'm comin' Mommy!" it yelled. The kit
turned on its heel and began to trot away. It cast one last glance at Hiei and waved before
completely disappearing into the woods.
Hiei gazed at the small flower held in the palm of his hand, and he continued to do so for several
minutes to come.
His arm throbbed, but for the most part, the serious bleeding had ebbed. Now, one would have to
strain their eyes in order to see the various spots of blood that had seeped through the black
bandages.
Hiei grunted as he jumped to another tree. To others his form was nothing but a black blur
against the dark green foliage and the wild, stormy Makai sky. Hiei did not know where exactly
it was that he was going, but he was sure that he was going in a direction and that was all he
really needed to know. Somewhere, something would happen to grab his attention. Some beast
of a demon that believed it was powerful would challenge him and he would accept. He would
win the battle and kill the sorry excuse for a demon in cold blood, then go on his merry way.
That was how it was . . . how it had always been really. This was his life, and although many
would say that it wasn't much of one, Hiei didn't care. In the Makai you fought and killed no
matter how pathetic your life was. It wasn't so much that life held any sort of sentimental value it
was actually more about pride and property. Your life belonged to you, and you defend what is
yours. It was sort of an unwritten rule . . . an instinct really.
He stopped as something brushed his senses. His skin tingled slightly. He was picking up a ki
signature. Ironically enough, it was in the opposite direction he was going. He had nothing
better to do and so he turned around and flitted back toward the waterfall he had been at hours
before. The signature wasn't terribly menacing, in fact, it was nothing compared to him. A work
out would be good though, why not? Hiei stopped on the branch of one tree. He was closer he
knew that. The waterfall was several trees ahead of him, but that wasn't the direction that he felt
the energy. He turned his body to the left and couldn't help a smirk as the energy tugged harder
on his senses.
The trees rustled softly as Hiei bounded gently onto their branches, staying for only a fraction of
a second before he was gone. They didn't seem to mind his presence. He was far lighter and
gentler than so many other creatures. He was quieter too. No, the trees didn't mind him at all, in
fact, they liked him quite well and always offered him the shelter that they could provide, their
trust, and kindness. Hiei was always grateful to them.
Suddenly a loud growl broke through the silent air, startling him and making him lose his
footing. Fortunately, he was able to grab onto a sturdy tree branch and steady himself. Ruby
eyes glared toward an up coming clearing. He didn't have to sense the creature anymore . . . he
could smell its fowl stench polluting the surrounding air.
Swiftly, Hiei started toward the clearing. He caught glimpses of it through the leaves and
branches. He could make out figures, in particular, one very large one. It was then that he heard
several screams. Instantly, the over whelming scent of blood rushed into the air. Hiei blinked. It
was young blood.
He hurried his pace. He raised his you-ki level a little as he came to the last tree where he
perched on a branch. The large demon turned its head toward him, one, large eye blinked, and
widened before it slowly backed up, then turned and sprinted away. Hiei was on the verge of
chasing after it. His muscles were tense for a fight, his hands itching to handle his katana. His
eyes crying out see blood.
'Blood . . .' The word echoed in his mind. He snapped his head away from the demon's retreating
form as the painful sound of lamenting filled his ears. Hiei looked down at the clearing and it
felt as though his heart had stopped. There was a youko down there. She was red with tear
filled amber eyes and so were her three little kits. Her white garments were soaked with blood as
she cradled and rocked back and forth with something very small in her arms. Something that,
unlike the others, was gray. A gaping hole taunted him from the child's back.
Hiei could feel himself begin to shake and he closed his fists tightly, not able to tear his eyes
away from the scene. It was not right. That little child . . . was talking to him only hours before.
It was there, sitting with him, trusting him. The kit . . . how could it be . . . be dead? Dead . . .
just like that, for no . . . reason.
'Survival of the fittest,' answered a voice in his mind. A voice that was . . . his voice, but it felt
wrong. It felt foreign.
He shook his head. 'No . . . it was just . . . a kid. It didn't . . . know HOW to survive . . . '
'What are you worried about? You're alive, aren't you?' asked the voice.
Hiei took a few deep breaths as a certain empty realization hit him. Survival of the fittest? By
no means could it be justified. By no mean should that child have died. It had barely had a
chance to live and it was innocent. Completely pure and innocent. It was dead, but he, a
murderer, one who had slaughtered for power and for pleasure was alive, breathing, unscathed.
'I'm alive, but . . . I shouldn't be . . .'
The trees whispered as a dark shadow disappeared. A small, crushed yellow flower floated
toward the ground only to be caught by a lonely breeze and carried away into a lingering void of
dark nothingness.
~*~
Hiei's crimson eyes snapped open and he groaned as rays of sunlight sliced through his vision.
He squinted against the offending light and he tried to steady his breathing. His heart was
beating rapidly in his chest, and he was sweating. He just needed a few moments to calm himself
down. That particular dream always left him in state of panic. It reminded him of the emptiness
inside of him, the darkness, and the self-loathing. His soul felt tired, numb almost.
Hiei blinked slowly, grateful for the fact that his eyes were adjusting to the light. Now that he
could see he decided he needed to find out where he was. The place was not the Makai for
certain. The familiar smell of pine dirt did not greet him, however, the scent of fabric softener
and roses did. He was not lying on the branch of a tree, but rather something soft and very warm.
He felt more at ease than he did in the Makai, and there was only one place that he ever felt like
that in. No doubt, he was in Kurama's Ningen home, specifically, in the fox's bedroom. What he
couldn't figure out was why he was there. Surely there was a reason. Hiei tried to roll over as he
thought, but ended up hissing as thick tendrils of pain drove spikes through his body. At that
point, everything came back to him. Saving Yusuke, his injury, the battle, helping Kurama, his
fatigue.
Hiei let out yet another groan and very carefully he turned onto his side. His stiff muscles
screamed at him to stop, and so Hiei allowed himself a few seconds to rest before slowly pushing
himself up to a sitting position. Much to his dissatisfaction, he found himself panting from the
effort. He positioned himself just enough so that the pain wasn't completely unbearable. His
eyes caught sight of the gauzy bandages wrapped around the better part of his torso and he
sighed. The work was flawless. It had been done carefully and to the exact precessions of an
obvious perfectionist.
A slight shuffling sounded was made, causing Hiei to look to the sound's source. He didn't know
why, but he was surprised to see Kurama. The fox was curled up in a chair right at the foot of the
bed. A blanket was wrapped around his slender, graceful body and he rested his head on his
knees, which were brought up comfortably to his chest. Those crimson locks of silky hair hung
over his shoulder like trapped waves. It was difficult not to notice the way the sunlight had
managed to catch a few strands of hair almost illuminating their dazzling color. Kurama's pale
skin, flawless in every way took on a golden hue in the early morning light. His even breathing
was the only thing that laid proof to the fact that the beautiful fox was an actual living being and
not some figment of the imagination.
Hiei noticed a book lying open on the floor as if it were personally inviting him to read the sacred
words on those off-white pages, and there were a lot of pages. From where he was he managed
to make out a few words, but the print was so small that he couldn't gather much. However, from
what he did pick up and from what he knew of Kurama, Hiei was sure that the book's author was
Shakespeare.
He frowned. That book was one of Kurama's very favorites. The kitsune practically worshiped it
and would never in a million years leave it open and discarded on the floor. Further more,
Kurama was asleep in a chair. That wasn't right because he knew for a fact that Kurama slept in
a bed. His frown deepened. Kurama wasn't in the bed because Hiei was. The next thing that
came to his attention was the empty futon on the floor. Because his frown could not delve any
deeper, Hiei clenched his fists until his knuckles were white.
So, it was obvious that Kurama had taken care of his injuries and allowed him to sleep in his bed.
The fox had planned on sleeping on the floor, but something had happened to make him move to
the chair. Judging by the book, Kurama's intent was to keep watch over him all night. As it was,
the fox had failed and had fallen asleep. The fire youkai cursed under his breath. Kurama's you-
ki was low meaning simply that it hadn't had a lot of time to replenish since the battle happened
the day before.
Frustration and anger boiled up inside of him. No! That wasn't what was supposed to happen. It
wasn't right. Hiei's fingers clutched at the white sheets. He looked down into his lap, gently
shaking his head. He did not want anyone to sacrifice their own well being for the sake of his, it
wasn't worth it. He wasn't worth it.
Lifting his head, he spied his black cloak folded up the desk where Kurama could usually be
found doing his homework or some other ningen activity. He needed to leave. If he stayed,
Kurama would continue to tend to him, still neglecting his own injuries. His body cried out
against the movements that it took for him to climb off the bed and stand up, but that was
expected and completely ignored. He took a few more seconds to catch his breath and then he
was ready to take his first step, but that step had to have been cursed because the moment he took
it, a groggy sounding tenor graced the quiet room.
"Going somewhere?"
Hiei paused, but then looked over to the voice's owner. Kurama was no longer curled up but
rather he was sitting up with the ever-present perfect posture. He sat with his legs crossed and
his hands folded neatly in his lap. His neat, vibrant red hair framed his face and those mysterious
green eyes twinkled. A very small, barely noticeable smile played on his lips. He wore it often,
but it's meaning could never be deciphered or solved even by the greatest detectives.
"I'm leaving," Hiei said. He did not want to stay, so he was going to go. It was that simple.
Kurama's calm exterior did not alter. "I would advise against it Hiei," he replied.
The jaganshi truly did not care what the fox advised. He needed to leave. It was for Kurama's
sake anyway . . . not that he would say so. He was about to respond, but was not given the
chance.
"Hiei, your injury is very delicate. When you passed out yesterday--"
The dark-haired youkai fixed his friend with a piercing gaze. "I passed out?"
Kurama's defined eyebrows rose a little. "Yes. You don't remember?"
"No."
The fox shrugged. "That makes sense, but you remember everything else before that right?"
"Yes."
Hiei's answer was acknowledged by a slight nod. "When you passed out, I picked you up and
ended up covered in blood. I immediately took you back here to tend to you."
Hiei snorted softly and looked out the window. He noticed for the first time that it was splattered
with raindrops. "You tended to my wound, so now I'm going to go."
"Hiei," Kurama started, a sharp tone to his still calm voice, "that injury is very delicate. Despite
what you were attacked with, that injury is still classified as a burn and burns are very susceptible
to infection. You need to rest, heal, and regain your strength."
Hiei stared at Kurama. The fox saw a certain something in his friend's eyes. It was what could
only be described as the essence of nothing. It was like those eyes were empty. His own eyes
narrowed a little. In any case, Hiei wasn't buying what he had just told him.
He sighed. "Well, the least you can do is let me change your bandages. Those have outworn their
use."
Hiei stared at Kurama for a long moment. He didn't want to stay. He didn't want to let Kurama
change his bandages, but something in that kitsune's eyes obligated him to comply. He gave a
curt nod, to which Kurama put on a genuine smile.
"Thank you. Now, go back to the bed and sit down. I'll be back in flash with the supplies."
Hiei reluctantly did as he was told. The bed felt good to him though. It was warm and
comfortable, almost soothing. Had the sound of Kurama coming and going from the room not
been a factor, Hiei imagined he might have fallen over and gone back asleep. He was still so
tired.
***
It was a full ten minutes before Kurama had everything gathered and set up around him. He
walked up to the bedside but then stopped as his foot nudged something on the floor. Looking
down, he discovered that something was a book. He frowned. He had meant to stay awake
to monitor his friend, but he hadn't been able to. He vaguely remembered reaching the final act
of Romeo and Juliet before he fell asleep. He bent down and picked up his beloved book.
Checking it over for bent pages and the likes before closing it, Kurama placed the book on his
bookshelf in its own respectable location. Only then did he walk back to the bedside.
"I'm glad you're awake. This is going to make this entire process ten times easier than it was last
night," he commented as he found the end of the gauze that was held in place by medical tape.
Hiei frowned as he moved his arms out of the way so that Kurama could unwrap him more
easily. "Sorry," he mumbled. He had to say something. Kurama should not have worried about
him.
The kitsune glanced at Hiei as he finished the last of the bandages. "For what?" he asked. He
turned his back to the jaganshi in order to throw the string of gauze away.
Hiei looked to the side, suddenly finding the sheets extremely fascinating. "For being a problem,"
he replied quietly.
Kurama came back over to him, but did not spare him a glance. He pulled out a mixing bowl and
began came up with the two plants he had used the night before. Hiei watched his friend mixing
the two plants out of the corner of his eye. Kurama looked at him then, so he averted his eyes
more out of habit that anything else.
"Okay, lay down on your stomach," came the instructions.
Hiei complied. A shiver ran up his spine as the cool salve was applied to his back. He wondered
how bad it really was. As if reading his thoughts, Kurama spoke up.
"First of all, me fixing you up hardly made you a problem, second, this wound could be a lot
worse than it is, but that doesn't mean it isn't serious. I had to cut away strings of burnt flesh. If
you feel light headed for a while it's because of blood loss. I suppose I don't have to tell you, but
I will anyway. You are going to be terribly sore. You should refrain from making sudden
movements or anything related, otherwise, you risk irritating it."
Hiei snorted. That news wasn't exactly classified information. Another question prodded his
mind. "What about your family?" he asked.
"My mother and father are on their second honeymoon and my step brother is away at soccer
camp. Over all, you couldn't have chosen a more convenient time to get hurt." There was a
slight hint of humor in Kurama's voice, but Hiei wasn't in the mood.
After a while, Hiei noticed that he could no longer feel Kurama's massaging hands and he looked
to see the fox wiping his hands clean with a towel. Kurama smiled at him in a friendly manner
and motioned for Hiei to sit up. Hiei did. The fire demon watched as the fox grabbed a fresh roll
of white gauze and pulled up a chair so that he was sitting right in front of him.
"Tell me if I'm wrapping too tight, I don't want to hurt you," Kurama said as he started.
His work was paced and perfect just like always. Hiei trusted Kurama, but it still wasn't right.
He tilted his head to the side a little. Kurama was paced, yet sluggish. With the sun to the
youko's back, his skin color was not manipulated and so Hiei could tell that although his skin was
pale, it actually had a slight grayish tint to it. Those green eyes were as lively and vivid as ever,
but underneath those eyes the skin was somewhat baggy and dark. Those were all signs of
fatigue, but what he was confused about was the dark bruise that marred Kurama's right cheek.
He didn't remember Kurama having that during the battle; of course it could very well have
developed over night. "Kurama--"
"It's nothing." The fox's voice was mellow as he cut Hiei's statement off. He was well aware that
Hiei was examining the bruise and he wasn't about to tell the youkai that he had put it there. He
felt Hiei's eyes on him and suddenly felt frustrated. "I got smacked in the face by a fairly random
attack . . . like I said, it's nothing." He made himself sound nonchalant. He wasn't sure if Hiei
bought it or not, but either way he didn't consider it a big deal. Hiei would throw a fit if he found
out, which was why Kurama decided that Hiei simply wouldn't.
Kurama finished wrapping in silence. Hiei did not speak to him and he did not speak to Hiei.
The silence wasn't comfortable, but not terribly uncomfortable either. It was just sitting there,
indolently waiting to end. How depressing.
The jaganshi started to get up, but a firm hand on his chest kept him from doing so. "Kurama."
That was all he said.
Kurama didn't acknowledge that he said anything. He just fixed him with an emerald gaze.
"Stay put for a while Hiei, jusT relax and rest up," he said.
Hiei leaned back against the pillow. It hurt, but he didn't care. Pain was a part of life. He folded
his arms over his chest. Kurama busied himself with picking up the room. "You have plenty of
room to talk fox," he said.
Kurama didn't face him. "What are you talking about?" he asked.
"You're tired. You look exhausted and your ki is low. YOU are the one who should be resting,
Kurama."
This time the fox did turn to stare at him. "I'm not the one injured Hiei," he replied back.
"This isn't the first time I've been injured. You're over reacting."
"No, I'm not."
"Yes you are. You've practically got me under house arrest."
Kurama sighed and leaned against the desk. "You wouldn't be stuck here against your will if you
had told someone about your wound. Why didn't you?"
Hiei looked away. "I didn't think it was that bad."
"You knew exactly what it was. I know you knew. What? Did you plan on just letting it go?
Were you going to tell ANYONE? Hiei if that had gotten infected, it could have killed you,"
Kurama's voice was strained now. Something about that last statement shook him up inside.
"It's none of your business Kurama, just leave me alone!" Hiei shouted suddenly. He didn't want
hear it. "Why didn't you just leave me?" he asked then, his usually strong voice soft and shaky.
Kurama's eyes widened. "Leave you? What kind of a question is that!?"
Before any more words could be exchanged, Hiei got up from the bed, ignoring his protesting
body. He had to go. He didn't want to talk about it. He didn't like where the conversation was
going, and just looking at Kurama pained him. The fox was exhausted and all because he spent
what little energy he had on a youkai who could've cared less whether he lived or died. He had to
leave. It just wasn't right.
"Hiei you can't go, you're still hurt," Kurama told him and stepped in his path. Hiei went around
him and grabbed his cloak from the desk. He pushed the window opened and leapt up onto the
sill. He glared one last time at Kurama before he completely disappeared.
"Hiei!" Kurama called after him in one last vain attempt. He knew he couldn't bring Hiei back,
but he was desperate. He shook his head as he closed the window and plopped down in his chair.
How had that gone so horribly wrong? Why had Hiei reacted so badly, and what was with that
question? Leave him behind? Why in the three worlds would Kurama do something like that?
He slammed his fist down on the desktop. It was so frustrating! "Damn it Hiei!" he cursed
aloud. It didn't make sense and then his mind reverted back to when he saw Hiei's eyes. Those
eyes were so . . . void. It was like they were two sheets of beautiful red stain glass with no light
behind them. It didn't make sense. It just didn't make sense. Kurama laid his head down. There
came that migraine again . . .
~*~*~*~*~*~
To be continued . . .