Yu Yu Hakusho © Yoshihiro Togashi.
Existence
A Yu Yu Hakusho fan-fiction.
By Zelia Theb
The dark embers burned around him. Hall of Candles, huh? Tch...just another over-glorified den. Soon its resident will cease to exist. It sure was empty, though. Despite the quiet intentions of the flighty shadow, he could still hear the echoes of his heels reverberate against the mighty stone walls; weaving their ominous march of death through the behemoth pillars.
He felt small; much smaller than usual. It was a simple yet redundant plan for demon lords of this world; make everyone feel as if they are mere insects, able to be squashed at any moment by the giant foot of their lord and master.
A particular altar caught his attention. The glisten...it was different. Is that glitter...? No...a string of beads. It can't be! Within seconds he had ignored his stealthy motions and dashed to the candlelit display. Tear gems. Dozens of translucent icy pearls strung decadently like curtains.
"Is this what you have done with your free time, you bastard!" he shouted, ignoring the headache of his own voice. "Is this some sort of joke?"
"Heh." He turned around to face the sound of the voice; a voice which was far closer than he had expected.
A hand of a hook crouched possessively over the only comforting thing in his life; his katana. This...thing...it would be slaughtered mercilessly. Without taking a moment to recognize his opponent in the dim light, he attacked. The harsh shrieking of his blade's unveiling echoed throughout the Hall of Candles, and the clinks of steel against steel warned all trespassers to stay away.
But they did not.
"Hiei!" exclaimed a familiar voice among the chorus of heels, battle, and grunts.
"Stay away, Detective!" he yelled in return. Can't you see that I need my focus? Can't you see how quick this one is?
"Hiei!" a voice belonging to his cherry-haired comrade Kurama called out from afar, "Hiei you have to stop!"
"Feh," Hiei's opponent grunted, "Do you hear them? Will you take that chance to listen to them? Haha!"
Burning rouge glowed brightly in his eyes. The demon could not make out much of his opponent. His features were jutted, that was for sure by the way the shadows were cast across his face. And deep.
"Kya!" shouted Hiei as he thrust forward, only to be parried by the quick swordsmanship of his clouded foe.
A softer set of hurried footsteps now played the dynamic crescendo creeping melody. And the lyric of his name was becoming all too repetitive.
"Hiei! Please don't hurt him!" her delayed voice pleaded with him.
If time had stopped for that instant, he would have known to pause. He would have been able to make sense of his allies' incessant pleas to stop. Did the Detective just offer to finish it? He would have been able to register the sweet tone of voice belonging to the one he loved the most; his sister.
"Please! Hiei!" she cried. In a moment of shock he was caught off-guard, only to have the shadowed foe toss him back-first into a pillar. He would have to work quickly...Yukina there or not. This lord was ruthless! How many other sisters of brothers would be tortured if he were left alive?
"Yukina!" Kurama shouted, running up to the frail ice maiden. He tugged on her wrist and said, "You have to get out of here! It's dangerous!" His companion, Yusuke, darted over to the scene as the battle raged on. He gripped the girl's other wrist in an attempt to help Kurama drag the frantic apparition away.
It was no use. She continued to wriggle until the noir-locked detective grabbed her at the waist and attempted to lift her. But she further protested, using her powers to send a gale of snow towards her two would-be captors. Snow and hail rained down upon them in an instant. The sheer force of her emotion had lifted them further than they desired to be; far enough that they would never; with all of their speed; be able to save her in time.
The small draperies of gems scattered across the floor like cockroaches caught in light. They were torn from their delicate string of silk as Hiei's small frame tumbled into them.
The demon spat the blood that boiled from his stomach. Gripping his katana, he epically moved forward in a slow pace, glaring at his foe with much more than just hatred or a desire to kill.
Yukina, I saw everything. The forceful way that this shadow stole her from what he thought was the safety of Genkai's temple. The droplets of cold violet blood that adorned the floor of what was said to be a secure room; most likely shed from a wound the demon lord had inflicted upon her to keep her quiet. Koenma had been hesitant at first to show them the recorded images, but he had insisted. He wanted to hate whomever had done this.
He wanted more of a reason to kill the one who had captured his estranged sister.
He wanted to enrage himself.
He wanted to wipe this being's existence off the record! I shouldn't wait any longer, he mused, glancing at the purple scar across the fair skin of his sibling's face.
Two seconds passed.
"Don't!"
He heard nothing except for the rapid sound of his cold demon heart. He perceived nothing but a shadow...until it was intercepted by a beauty; a beauty so blinding and radiant that no corridor of luminance could compete with it.
"Don't kill him, Hiei!"
"We'll never make it!" Yusuke remarked to his comrade, who was running in close proximity to him.
"Stockholm Syndrome...of course..." Kurama's eyes closed quickly, reflecting on the events of the near future. Oh Hiei, please don't be fooled.
A smirk of both victory and defeat beset the shadowed foe's lips. That brief moment where Hiei adjusted his thrust away from his dear sister...that was when...
"Hiei! No don-!"
...When he, the demon Lord Gouka, pulled Yukina even closer into his bosom, using her love for him as a shield against her brother's sword. He had anticipated the correction for the girl...and thus...parried the only way he could.
Immediately Hiei withdrew the narrow blade, which was now dressed in the liquid of his own flesh and blood. He tossed it to the side, letting loose a roar of anguish, and then leapt for Gouka's throat; digging his ivory claws into the flesh of the other demon's neck. In a reactive state, Gouka let the peridot maiden fall from his arms and then stumbled backwards; landing with a hard thud upon the stone floor. Within seconds his very insides were set afire with the dark ebon flames of darkness, and soon after he was nothing more than a true shadow of ash among the cracks of stone.
It couldn't be fatal, could it? He was certain not to hurt her!
"H-how..." he uttered hopelessly. Yusuke was holding a bleeding Yukina in his arms, and Kurama was standing by, playing the role of healer.
"It's not your fault, Hiei," Kurama assured him, caring not to look up but instead to focus on the unconscious girl.
"It is!" Hiei cried out with fervor, "Is that not my sword stained with her blood? Aren't I the one who-"
"Shut up, Hiei!" demanded a tearful Yusuke, "Just...shut up!" Thin black bangs fell from their gelled cage as Yusuke winced the water from his eyes. "We've got to get her back to Koenma, and quick."
The redhead looked to Hiei, and remarked, "Hiei. You need to carry her. You are the quickest. You will reach Botan first."
"No, Kurama," replied Hiei. He stared blankly at the remnants of Gouka, and murmured, "I don't deserve to."
"Damn it, Hiei!" Yusuke cursed, still cradling Yukina, "Do you want to prove to Yukina that you are nothing but a murderer? Do you want to live the rest of your life knowing that you killed your own s-"
"Yusuke!" scolded Kurama with a fox-like hiss. They settled down, trying to make sense of the urgency factor, and soon Yusuke stood, walking over to the sullen-faced demon.
Hiei cringed when Yusuke placed Yukina in his arms. He could smell everything, her smooth natural scent, yet also the scent of pain; of blood.
"We'll be right behind you," he whispered gently, "Just go. And then..." And then you can leave us all if you want to, the seasoned detective thought.
...And then I will leave, Hiei noted in his own mind, I can never be forgiven.
"We should follow," Kurama noted, watching as the candles died in the wake of Hiei's speed. "He is not himself."
After a quick foot forward, Yusuke nodded in agreement and asked, "Is she gonna die?"
Kurama winced; "I'm not sure...it's a near fatal wound. Blood loss, maybe." Yusuke noticed the overly-noticeable trail of said lost blood. Kurama was going to be more than right...
Please stop bleeding.
Please.
"Yukina! Come on!" he yelled, gripping her tighter as he ran. Stay with me now, and then you don't ever have to see me again.
To be continued.
OOC? Nope.
Comments, questions, flames, reviews, whatever are welcome. Just try and leave enough reviews to match the hit counts to the story. Unlike usual, I am not really seeking any sort of in-depth critique for this work, though if you want to leave one, feel free.
Also, this story has been written down in a notebook. Therefore, while it may not be on the internet yet, it is still Copyrighted. That means any original ideas or plots or anything not related to Yu Yu Hakusho hereby belong to me.
This fic was inspired by Kuwa-chan, Agent Dark Moose, FortySeventhLight, and various muses dancing in my head.
For those that have been wondering where I've been, I've been keeping everyone updated in my blog. I did not magically disappear. Regular, steady, and very Zelia-ish style updates will occur near the end of August (aka - Otakon in Baltimore and Jury Duty the week before).
Zelia