FW: Meh.
Botan: All this time you spend away, and that's all you have to say?
FW: Yeah, that's about it.
Yu Yu gang: (sweat drop)
FW: So anyway, I had this idea a while back, but never finished it. So now, see what happens.
Kurama: (noticing FW has forgotten an important thing) She'd also like to point out this story is based off the song "Unbalanced Kisses".
FW: That's right! I was just watching the end song, "Unbalanced Kisses", and I was thinking, "What the hey's going on here? What's with the fire?" So I wrote, er, started, to write what I thought of it. So now I'm gonna finish and post it!
Yusuke: Unless it's crap.
FW: Naw, I'll post it anyway! After all, that never stopped me before!
Kuwabara: She does have a point.
Hiei: Hn.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho
START
Yusuke walked beside his most trusted teammates and friends, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei. The atmosphere between them was solemn, and rightly so.
The human world was in ruins. Even now, no one really understood how or when the S-class demons broke through the barrier, but it no longer mattered. The damage was done, and it was irreparable.
The four detectives walked in silence, not bothering to dodge the fire around them; it wouldn't hurt them, it never did. Sometimes, Yusuke almost wished it would.
He looked through the flames, absently wondering if this is what the world Hiei had wanted way back when would look like. Maybe. The detective had never asked; he never would.
The teenager glanced at the fire demon, silent and unshakable, as always. It wasn't right though; the detective couldn't quiet put his finger on the change, he could feel it more than he could see it. Like the rest of them, Hiei hated what he saw.
FLASHBACK
"Hiei, try to calm down!" Koenma yelled desperately, doing his best to avoid the black flames leaping from the demon's furious body.
"Calm down?" Hie voice was chillingly calm, contrasting his body language. "Once she's safe, I gladly will!"
Hiei unsheathed his sword, and may have ended the ruler's life there if not for the swift reflexes of a watching on Kurama. He pushed the sword aside with his bare hands, face never showing any hesitation. In the second Hiei fell off guard, the fox managed to grab his friend's arms, using his height advantage to keep him still.
Yusuke looked on, stunned into silence. Kurama was bleeding, and the flame engulfing Hiei must be burning the redhead's hands, still grasping the demon's wrists. Still, to tell him to let go would mean certain death for a fearful prince.
"Hiei, if you should kill Koenma, he won't be able to aid us in searching for Yukina," Kurama softly reasoned. "His murder will not help your sister." The name could be used in this situation, since it was only the four of them in the room.
Hiei glared at the compromise, and Yusuke held his breath. He had known the short man would be angered when Yukina wasn't instantly taken to safety when the demons attacked, but knowing that she was missing was even worse. She'd disappeared in the first wave of the assault, and the odds she'd managed to survive were dwindling by the day.
Hiei never answered, but roughly shoved his friend away. He turned abruptly and left the room, ignoring the sound of the plant-wielder colliding with Koenma's desk.
PRESENT TIME
Standing next to his shortest friend, Kurama's hands still showed the telltale burns.
Yukina had been found. Shizuru had felt the danger ahead of time, and taken Keiko, Yukina, and even Genkai into hiding. The old psychic's barrier had been enough to save them until they'd been carted off to Spirit World, where they'd be safest.
The memory of Hiei's anger was still fresh in Yusuke's mind. "No, not anger," he corrected himself silently. In truth, it wasn't. It was pain, fear. Hiei, always refusing to show such "weak" emotions, masked it with anger, but those who could tell could tell. Yusuke could tell. He hoped his short friend never experienced that kind of insecurity and horror again.
Remembering Kurama's physical pain he had endured to stop Hiei was nothing compared to the emotional he later would. Yusuke found himself being taken back, seemingly in time, though in reality it was only his memory.
FLASHBACK
"YUSUKE!"
Yusuke looked up at the sound of his name, to find Botan flying top-speed over to him. Her oar was swaying slightly, and it was obvious to anyone watching that she didn't have very much control of it. He could see why even from where he was sitting at the far end of the room; tears were streaming down her face.
Kuwabara and Hiei looked up also, though the former's face was stuffed to capacity with the poor food Spirit World had to offer. They were no longer permitted to live in Human World, each having been relocated to Spirit World two days ago. They left everyday to try and save humans, or destroy a few demons, for the most part, this was their new home.
With the exception of Keiko, Yukina, Shizuru, and Genkai, plans to move other humans were still in the making.
Botan clumsily landed in front of the table they were eating at, barely refraining from falling. In her condition, Yusuke was impressed she was there at all. "What is it?" He asked gently, hands comfortingly on her shoulders.
She only managed to choke out one word "Minamino," before collapsing into a crying fit.
"Minamino…" Kuwabara murmured, trying to remember how he knew the word. "Wait, that's Kurama's last name!"
By that time, both Yusuke and Hiei were long gone.
In the human world, Kurama ran almost blindly toward his street. He didn't have authorization to be in human world, and it was practically suicide to come without backup these days, especially now that the demons had identified him. He knew if he survived, Koenma would have a fit and punish him. He also knew he didn't care.
Kurama had a bad feeling.
The streets were empty as he ran by and through them. After what seemed like an eternity, he managed to find his own. The door was unlocked, and he ran inside without taking off his shoes. Manners didn't matter anymore. All that did was the scent of blood invading his senses.
"Mother!" He called, fearing the worst. He ran into room after room, trying to find her. When he did, he almost wished he hadn't.
Shiori was lying in a pool of her own blood. The couch was ripped, broken glass littered the carpet from a shattered picture frame, and he couldn't see her breathing.
The fox rushed forward. He lifted his into a sitting position, not caring about the blood staining his white shirt. "Mother?" He asked softly.
She struggled to open her eyes. "Shu..ichii?"
"It's me. Don't worry. You'll be all right. Just rest," he commanded gently, trying to convince himself just as much.
She struggled to smile. "It's ok," she said, blank eyes starting to glaze over. She reached up. "But you need… to get out… of here," she continued. Every word was causing her pain, but Kurama knew better than to stop her. Every person deserves closure. "Shuichii… you're such a… little… angel."
Slowly, Shiori drew her last, pained breathe before him. Kurama waited, to see if she was really gone, before letting his eyes glisten with unshed tears. The irony of her last words didn't escape him. It was then that his eye caught the small photograph whose frame had been shattered. It lay on the floor, a photo of his mother sitting on a straight-backed chair, with her son standing directly behind her. They both looked so happy. That was when Kurama lost composure, and wept into his mother's still body.
She was beginning to grow cold, and, knowing all the while it was foolish, Kurama held her closer, hoping to warm her up again. Forgotten were the demons seeking to kill him, who'd destroyed her in effort to take him instead. Forgotten were his friends. Forgotten was everything but the pain of loss.
Botan, in her astro form stood beside him, come to collect the soul. Her eyes mirrored the fox's; she was crying as well. She prayed he'd pull together.
PRESENT TIME
He hadn't pulled together, Yusuke knew. He laughed with the others in their jokes, he trained with Hiei, he stategized their next move, but he wasn't the same. Yusuke knew there was more Youko surfaced now than ever before, he could see it in everything he did. He knew Youko would become the puppeteer when he and Hiei had reached that house, and had to pry Kurama's hands off her body.
Mentally, he sighed. Shiori and Atsuko were to be taken to Spirit World that night too. If only she'd managed to hang on….
Kuwabara coughed a little, bringing their leader out of his pity filled trance. Apparently, the tallest had inhaled too much smoke. "Weird," Yusuke thought, "fire that doesn't burn, but gives off smoke. What has the world come too." He might have laughed a little at his joke, if it wasn't so ironic.
His thoughts circled to Kuwabara next. The only human of their team, or at least, the most recently human.
FLASHBACK
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Koenma asked hesitantly. Kuwabara could only nod. Yusuke suspected he couldn't bring himself to say the confirming words. "Very well," he said reluctantly, leading two best friends into the hospital room.
A team of surgeons waited for them. They talked hurriedly with Koenam, deciding finally what they would do. During the few moments they had together, the humans didn't talk, they scarcely looked at each other. When they did, a nervous smile was traded, and both would hastily look away.
Yusuke couldn't help but feel a newfound respect for his friend. He was giving a high price. Kuwabara was giving his humanity. By tomorrow, he would be a demon.
Yusuke could remember when Kuwabara first told them of his decision. Yusuke had been drinking something, he could no longer remember what, Kurama and Hiei had been playing chess, Kurama had taught the demon the game out of boredom, and Botan had been knitting. "I've decided to become a demon," he'd said. Yusuke had then spat the liquid all over his taller friend.
"A demon," Botan repeated, dumbfounded. Kurama and Hiei had put down their pieces.
"Yeah. I figure I'm not strong enough to do anything worthwhile as a human," Kuwabara stated, something he would never had admitted a month ago. "So I'll give it another shot as a demon."
"Have you forgotten about the Toguros?" Kurama asked quietly.
"No, but I'm not going to be one of the either!"
Yusuke had spoken up then. "Look, Kuwabara, don't do it." He didn't give any fancy reasoning, but every reason in the world was behind those few words. They could all hear it. Even Hiei nodded, showing he didn't want his "friend" to sacrifice something so important.
In the end though, it didn't matter. Kuwabara had made up his mind, and now only Yusuke was permitted to stay with him through the operation.
"We're ready for you now," one of the medical profession announced. After a deep breathe, Kuwabara walked up to them, savoring his last moments as a human. Yusuke trailed behind.
He'd never forget Kuwabara's screams of agony.
PRESENT TIME
A week later, and Kuwabara looked exactly as he had before. No visible scars, no extra arms, or anything like that. Yusuke had to admit, it was a good bargain. He was much stronger now; maybe if he hadn't he would have been killed. Still, for a sentimental guy like Kuwabara, he could only imagine what he thought of himself when he looked in the mirror. He wasn't even related to Shizuru anymore.
Yusuke couldn't help but feel a wave of guilt wash over him. His friends had suffered so much, giving so much of themselves, and he'd barely taken a hit. True, his marriage plans with Keiko had been put off, what with the end of the world and everything, but that was a very small price to pay.
He stopped when his friends did, not having paid any attention to where they'd been going. He looked up now. A giant fortress loomed ahead of them, gothic in its structure. He looked at each of his friends in turn. This was it. The enemy's stronghold. All their pain had come to this.
Silently, he vowed to avenge each of them. Hiei's insecurity, Kurama's loss, and Kuwabara's sacrifice.
They would go in strong, a united force of friends. The human world was riding on this. They would defeat him together, or die together.
As the four walked through the massive doors, Yusuke Urameshi already knew which it would be.
END
FW: So, did they live or die. Reader's choice.
Hiei: Live. No one could kill me.
FW: Yeah, sure.
Kurama: (gone home to spend time with Shiori)
FW: So this was my first go at a more sad type of fic, not bad, right?
Yusuke: Do you really want me to answer that?
FW: Probably not.
Kuwabara: (just grateful to be human)
FW: This is a one shot, I think, but still, review if you want, don't if you don't, and you can always flame! I'll take it in stride!