A/N: Hello once again, Denizens of this FanFiction Realm!
Nothing to say except that I hope you enjoy it!
Symbols Guide:
* : Written by CM; She writes for Akari and Hiei
3 : Written by Star (supposed to be the 'heart' symbol, but FF doesn't like the 'less-than' sign, so it's a 3 instead); She writes for Toriko/Shikiyoku and Youko/Kurama
~!**!~ : A universal transition between scenes or characters, sometimes used to indicate a passage of time, but most often used to transition between major scenes that are happening. As the story progresses, this will evolve into mainly separating the (usually two) scenes happening between authors/characters.
As a general rule, anything in italics is thoughts.
Unless it's used in a sentence like this, which merely indicates emphasis.
[Anything written in italics inside square brackets is Youko speaking to Shuichi/Kurama inside their mind and is private conversation, unable to be picked up by telepathy.]{Anything written in italics inside curly brackets is inner dialogue by Shuichi/Kurama to Youko, and is also private conversation, unable to be picked up by telepathy.}
"Quotations are usually reserved specifically for telepathic dialogue being transmitted from one being to another, but sometimes this can also mean a character isn't being careful about what they're thinking and anyone with telepathy in the nearby vicinity can listen in without taking any effort."
The only exception to that last rule is for the Shiba Inu dog, Nabu. All of his "spoken" dialogue will be in italics and quotations, but is communicated through body language or dog-like noises, so unless a character is able to translate those they are unlikely to pick up on what he is saying any more than the average person might understand his general moods like aggression (bared teeth, ears back) or excitement (wagging tail).
Previously on Yu Yu Hakusho!
As Shikiyoku is trimming Hiei's hair, Kitoushi in pet-form appears and takes note of Hiei's mark,
wondering when Youko will show as it is likely the other former Champion is marked as well.
Once he leaves, Shikiyoku finishes and a tired Hiei helps himself to her bed,
plopping down and only opening his eyes once he realizes Shikiyoku means to leave.
Unwilling that she spend her time with Taka, though unaware that he himself is marked,
Hiei tells her to stay with him, and after a moment she obliges him, laying down on the other side of the bed.
The two of them fall asleep a few feet from one another.
~!**!~
Meanwhile, Kurama and Akari had fallen asleep in together Youko's meadow.
The next morning...
"Come home for a week, love. Visit your family. Our family."
Behind her eyelids was the ever-smiling face of Isamu, whose eyes were bright and smile wide.
"You'll love it again. You'll get to run with us again, like the old days."
Her eyelids suddenly snapped open, and Akari was staring at an unfamiliar sky, with dark clouds moving across her view. Her jaw was clenched and she huffed out a breath through her teeth. Whatever plant her arm was tangled in, she quickly untangled it and tossed it over her eyes, but not before she saw the mark on her wrist- the mark that hadn't moved an inch, just as the demon had promised. The mark that had likely caused the dreams in the first place.
I don't want to.
"Come home, love."
Akari gave another huff, then decided she needed to figure out where she was, and why she was laying in the grass. Disoriented as she was, she had no idea even what layer she was on, much less why she was there in the first place. *
Kurama's eyes came open of their own accord, though what had grabbed his attention was internal.
[She's awake, Red.]
The words still echoed across his consciousness, sounding much more patient than the voice had been the day before.
"Sleep well?" He murmured, making his voice sound as if he weren't as wide-awake as Youko made him, watching her carefully.
[The mark might draw her home. She gets there...and you'll likely never see her again.]
The fox answered Kurama's query before the thing fully formed in his head. It led to him releasing an internal sigh.
{In the end, it's up to her.}
[You'd just...let her go? As easy as that? Won't put up a fight?]
{You know better than anyone that I wouldn't particularly want her to go. But neither do I think her pack would readily allow a fox to join their ranks.}
[Maybe not...'readily.']
~!**!~
She was drifting at the edge of awareness, the steady increase of light in the room doing more to draw her away from sleep than anything in particular, but the pathway was slow and without rush, because in sleep there were no worries, in sleep there was no concern.
To say that she acknowledged that she had been moved would have been giving her too much credit. Sure, she felt herself being shifted in a forward manner, but there was nothing to fear about such things when one was home, now was there? After all, home was a fortress of safety within which one could not be touched by outside forces who sought to do one harm.
That wasn't to say she didn't, after a second of settling, cozy up to the warmth she could feel radiating in her direction, even if she didn't entirely understand it yet. It did, however, earn itself a rather complete sigh that felt like came from her entire body instead of just out her nose, that speck of tension her subconscious had been so desperately clutching as she slept-the one that had made sure she did not so much as inch forward during the night-disappearing all at once when the source of said tension alleviated the situation for it.
Home. 3
Hiei stopped moving as Shikiyoku's body began to shift, though his arms never left her. He allowed her room to get comfortable, which she didn't really need since she drew closer, and once she was settled, he too settled again. His nose remained against her skull of messy hair, his arms around her midsection loosely, as if afraid she'd suddenly need room to breathe if he held her too tightly.
The scent he drank in was one he'd missed for months. While he'd had her scent on his cloak for a while, it was nothing compared to actually being with her again.
Even if he still feared she'd suddenly shift demeanors and attack. He'd defend himself in any way he could, no problem.
And if she did, well…
Hm.
He really couldn't care less. He would handle as best he could. The thought fizzled away into nothingness, and Hiei was completely comfortable all over again, his eyelids sliding shut once more. His mind, however, did not return to sleep. Instead, he listened to the sounds of the morning, and, more specifically, Shikiyoku's even breathing that said she was here, and she was perfectly fine.
~!**!~
Akari nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of another's voice, her entire body tensing for just a moment before she realized she'd, somehow, not felt Kurama's presence or registered his scent on the air. And once she realized who it was, she was fully capable of telling where she was, how long she'd been there, and why she'd come.
She slid the arm away from her eyes and blinked a few times, trying to rid herself of the blur that her vision had taken on.
"Not too bad, considering I momentarily forgot where I was," she said with a half-hearted smile, not turning to look at him. Her eyes stared at the clouds above, her hand now resting on her stomach.
"Come home."
"It was definitely more restful than any night I've had recently. Portal work sucked."
"The pack needs you."
"What about you?" *
"I think this bed is quite likely the most comfortable I've ever slept in."
[You're welcome.]
"Now that you've gotten me to sleep next to you again, what's your second act as a free woman going to be?"
~!**!~
Before actually realizing what she was doing, still mostly asleep, Shikiyoku's arms slid almost automatically out from where they had come to rest pressed against her chest, between herself and Hiei, and slipped themselves loosely around the fire demon, her face burying itself against him.
She subsequently let out a loud push of air out her nose before taking in a silent breath, her lips parting themselves as she grasped something in the aura around him even while not completely present in mind.
"I only switch...if I feel physically threatened..." She wasn't coherent enough to remind him of her former defenselessness-and how her 'switch' was the solution to that and the cause for the dissolving of her ability to pact-and her words came out mumbled through barely parting lips, so she turned her head to the left until her cheek was pressed against him so the words wouldn't be too muffled by his clothing to understand, "S'long as you don' plan on...tryin' tah kill me or somefin'..." That thought was amusing to consider, her chest briefly releasing a sound in reference to that amusement, "...heh... ...you've gah no reas'n...tah be concerned...flame-boy." She smiled a rather sleepy smile. 3
Hiei pulled his nose away from her hair when she moved, instead resting his chin near her head and letting his eyelids stay closed even as she spoke. He made the quietest of hums in recognition of her reassurances, knowing that she was still asleep, mostly, and giving her the chance to fall back into sleep entirely should she wish it.
With her so close and his arm draped over her, it made it much easier for Hiei's fingers to just brush her hair, though he wasn't really aware of the motion, and a small twitch of his lips occurred when he recalled the time he'd wanted nothing more than to do just this.
Because he'd been totally convinced she'd had strawberries in her hair at the time. Fool.
~!**!~
Akari took a deep breath of the heavy air, her eyes still staring at the clouds that slid across her view. She nodded once in agreement with his statement of this bed, and after another moment she turned to look at him finally, staring at him evenly as she considered his question.
I shouldn't feel so lousy. I mean, look. Look who you're with. Remember, you craved this moment, Akari? Come on, let it go, even just for a minute.
Akari suddenly rolled over, closing the distance between herself and Kurama to lay with her face buried in his shoulder. "Jus' gimme a minute' mmkay?" she grumbled against him. "I'm… not awake ye'." *
Kurama's expression softened when she drew closer, though he had every intention of giving her all the time in the world should she wish it.
The arm that was not pillowed underneath his head reach out as if to encircle her, changing direction after passing over her back and coming up to find its way to her hair, gently tangling inside it and resting there softly, draped over her shoulder.
"You take all the time you need." He murmured.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku let out a breath of air, momentarily curling closer into Hiei before relaxing again.
"Don'..." How did she put it? She wasn't really awake enough to know. "Don' go anywhere...m'kay?" As if a dream, the emotions she'd felt when separated from him entire years ago drifted over her mind, when she'd spent, what, practically a week attempting to tear her way through a mountain?
Sure, he hadn't exactly gone anywhere, they'd been forced apart, but how was she supposed to put that into words. 'Don't get torn away from me again 'cuz I don't like it 'cuz it sucked.'
Right. 3
Hiei's lips twitched ever so slightly at Shikiyoku's request. Foolish woman. He wouldn't leave her right now for… well, anything. Not a single thing in this realm could draw him away at this moment. "Whatever you say," he responded just as quietly, completely and utterly amused at the turn of events.
Just a year ago, he wouldn't have even come within a foot's radius of another's bed. Much less actually shared it with them. And he sure as heck wouldn't have told the other that he'd willingly stay.
And yet here he was, hoping she didn't randomly decide to get up and wander away.
I missed you.
What an odd thing to admit to himself, that he missed someone. It was… certainly a first for him.
~!**!~
AKari's eyes were squeezed shut and her nose buried in Kurama's shoulder, her lips only parting for a moment to release a small breath of air, her mind creating a mantra to shove away all other thoughts. After all, this was her time. Not his. Not Isamu's… He wasn't allowed to be the sole thing on her mind. It just wasn't acceptable.
Not when she could just get comfortable right where she was.
...If only her mind would stop.
Why did he come here anyway?
Stop it.
Her hand grabbed at his shirt just a bit. "Thank you."
For letting me just be here. Because I know there's probably a million other things you could be doing right now, but you aren't. Because I asked. *
"Mm." He intoned, letting his eyes slide closed again, his nose filling with the scent of rosemary as she drew still. "You should know by now that I would be here in an instant should you want it." He dipped his face down until he touched her head. "You only need ask."
He of course meant here next to her, regardless of location, meadow or otherwise.
Sometimes she might be dragged here when he felt she didn't know how to ask, however. Like with the day before. Everyone needs a place of safety. Of escape.
[You're welcome.]
Kurama could feel the fox was watching, waiting, but Youko did not urge him further in any manner.
[You know what I wish. And I can wait. For this.]
~!**!~
'And because I do crazy things when we're not together.'
That one was sure to go over well, should she figure out how to make her lips form the phrase. As if she hadn't already proved that, the evidence still somewhere in the house below them in the form of two demons Marked for her.
"I mmmm," She still hadn't decided if she wanted to wake up or not, almost afraid that she was dreaming, that she'd wake up alone and unable to remember the dream, much less who she was. Almost afraid that she'd break whatever spell had been woven into the air around her, the one that had drawn her into Hiei's arms.
...because if she did wake up, he might now be there at all. It hardly seemed likely she could feel so very warm and, well, happy, because something like this didn't happen to her. Not where he was concerned. Not when she could still remember clearly how stiff his interactions on this level had always been with her.
But that was...a decade ago, right?
How long was it for him? I should ask.
"I missed you." The admission came out breathy, and at that exact moment she couldn't remember if she had said as much before or not. If she had, maybe he needed to be reminded. And if she hadn't, he needed to be told. 3
Hiei wound a finger into Shikiyoku's hair, then let the locks slide from his digit before letting his hand simply rest against it, the silky-smoothness of her hair just as he'd imagined it would be, but hadn't ever tested until this moment.
His eyelids slid open again to regard the calm expression of Shikiyoku, his own expression just as calm, with a hint of amusement and… something else he couldn't rightly place. And when she spoke, he realized he hadn't told her the same, that perhaps she too needed to hear those words from him. No matter how odd it was to taste those words on his tongue.
"I... " he paused, wondering of other ways to say it, but instead just jumped in and said the words anyway, "...missed you too." It was as simple as that.
~!**!~
Akari released a small hum against Kurama's shoulder, her thought slowly, but surely, turning away from what had woken her and to the peaceful moment, to the person she had rolled over to and took refuge in. She was entirely enveloped in the calm air around this person now, and with her nose in his shirt and his arm over her, it was actually difficult to ignore his absolutely wonderful presence now, his absolutely marvelous reassurances likely more potent to her than he realized.
Her body released the last vestiges of tension the moment he was done speaking, her fingers loosening their hold on his shirt just slightly as she gave a small sigh to herself.
"I'll bear that in mind," she grumbled to him, ignoring the itching of her wrist that said Isamu was checking her state of being. *
"Be sure that you do." He replied, finding that he had begun to smile.
You don't even have to need me here. Or even want me here. Truth is, I'd just be here.
He shifted imperceptibly, the meadow feeling as soft as heather underneath him.
[Funny how one inconsequential being can have you so utterly wrapped up in them that you don't even realize it at the time.]
{And how did that happen for you exactly?}
[...I don't want to talk about it.]
~!**!~
She felt a little foolish at how completely incapable of removing the idiotic smile from her face she was at that moment, the gesture plastered over her features and her skin buzzing a little at his admission.
Not enough to be out of control, because in her lack of awareness there wasn't much of it to access, but enough that her scalp prickled pleasantly, the feeling spreading down the rest of her body.
If she had the sense of mind, she would have analyzed the phenomenon, but at that exact moment she had little else to do but let it happen.
"...stupid fire-prince." Making me do things I can't control. 3
Hiei could see the smile that formed on Shikiyoku's lips, and he took the moment to simply stare, to note the way her eyes crinkled even while still closed and a dimple formed in her cheek. It was such a pleasant expression, and he found it hard to believe that he'd caused that smile. That she was smiling because he'd admitted to missing her. That had been all it took?
He'd have to do it more often then. Speak words he hadn't ever considered using before he'd met her.
You make me do ridiculous things, woman.
"Foolish woman."
~!**!~
Akari didn't respond to Kurama. She simply lay there, eyes closed and lips twitching just a fraction before her expression turned to a calm one again. She turned her head to rest her cheek against his shoulder now, her eyes opening halfway to peer at the redhead almost curiously.
When did this begin, exactly?
When had she become so comfortable around him that she actually didn't mind being so close to him, even at times wanted to be like this when she'd had a hard day or… just wanted to be here? When exactly did she realize that not only did she enjoy this, but he'd let her?
….
"You know… I never asked…" she began, suddenly voicing a curiosity she'd harbored for… a while. "What caused the sudden change in demeanor that day in the park? One day I was the equivalent to Toguro, the next you sent me up a tree for fun. Why?" *
It didn't take long for the redhead to remember his reasoning at the time.
"There is not a single person who is ever truly meant to be alone." He opened his eyes, looking absently but not really seeing. "And believing such can be quite dangerous. You were..."
[Careful, Red.]
"No longer alone." He smiled and blinked, focusing in on her hair. "If an innocent pup had befriended you, then you couldn't really have been all that bad. They sense things naturally, without prejudice. In a way...he changed my mind."
~!**!~
Her energy buzzed a little more and she frowned.
"Dammit. Stop that." She told herself in a mumble.
She didn't want to wake up yet, but it was getting harder not to. And, truthfully, she really did fear she was dreaming, that everything would simply evaporate around her into nothingness and he'd...and he'd be gone again. 3
Hiei released a scoff of amusement and shifted around a bit, stretching his legs out as far as they could go and earning a satisfying pop of one knee and crack of his lower back. He settled into place again afterwards and released another scoff.
"You started it, woman." Don't tell me what to do.
The tug on his lips made his thoughts much less harsher than they should have been, his irises sparking in amusement.
~!**!~
"Nabu." Akari breathed out the dog's name, her lips turning up in a fond smile of her friend. It reminded her that she needed to spend a day with him soon, like they used to do, before he went insane about it. Because, really, he'd worked just as hard as she had. Being dragged around wasn't fun, she knew.
She released a breathy laugh.
"Even now, he still refers to you as 'Flowers' on occasion."
Silly dog.
Had she been told at the time the dog had started following her that it would, in some odd way, lead to this, she would have very likely barked out a laugh at whoever had said it and made an escape from the loon. *
Kurama let out a little chuckle at the knowledge, reaching smoothly for the meadow grass behind her head and coaxing one of the flowers to his fingers, plucking it and filling it with his energy to make it bloom.
Its light was faded in the sun, but still gave it a bit of a glow and he pulled his arm back between the two of them so the glow might be that much more pronounced, twirling the stem gently to make the petals dance just shy of Akari's face.
"I did say they were rather perceptive creatures. I can't imagine a more appropriate name for him to christen me with."
~!**!~
Her frown melted as she felt his chest rumbling when he spoke, fading into a faint smile.
"Not you." She clarified. "I don't want you to stop." Never want you to stop. Not when I feel so warm and...safe in your arms. Like...like home. Like you said. 3
Hiei gave another scoff of amusement at Shikiyoku's response, the air around her giving him more of a response than she'd verbally given him. As if she didn't mind because… well, she rather enjoyed his taunting. Which made the moment all the more satisfying.
He didn't say anything for a minute, deciding to let silence hang in the air between them for a while since they both seemed relaxed enough to not need speech to actually communicate.
~!**!~
Akari's eyes opened all the way when Kurama moved, tucking herself closer to him in the moment that he reached over her for the flower he plucked before placing it in the space she allowed between them in the next moment. She could still see the glow giving the flower it's blueish-green color, even in the light of the few rays of the sun that managed to slip between the clouds.
"He could've just called you Fox, since I am pretty sure he sees Youko's attributes too. But, hey, Flowers works, and I can't say it isn't a good one." She gave him a lopsided grin. *
"Which do I seem more like to you, hm? A fox or a flower?" He let his arm move back over her shoulders once she'd taken the bloom from him, burying his hand in her hair again and doing much the same with his face, eyes closing though he smiled against her head.
~!**!~
Am I dreaming? It's hard to tell.
She blinked slowly, eyes finally opening a fraction to the darkness afforded her by both the color of Hiei's cloak and how his body blocked the light from the window for her. She let them close again.
Shikiyoku let the stillness grow around her, almost able to sense this bubble they'd created for themselves, one that outside influences had yet to penetrate.
She might kill anything that tried.
"Hiei...am I dreaming?" 3
"If this were a dream, do you actually think your dream would tell you?" Hiei responded easily, lips twitching up into a sneer. "Hardly." He made a sound of amusement and pulled his arm from around her so that he may scratch at the side of his head, then proceeding to smooth down the hair that he felt was sticking up there.
"Though, if you wanted, you could be dreaming."
~!**!~
Akari took the flower in her hand and proceeded to move her arm to lay cross Kurama's midsection, her hand holding the flower even as it hung over his back. She took a deep breath, readied to say something, but instead released the breath as her wrist began to itch again.
Stop it.
Another twinge and she was giving another sigh.
No.
"Are you hungry?"
Another itch, and she was fighting the urge to rub at her wrist. I don't come to you when called, moron. *
"I have no intention of leaving this spot until you do." He announced mildly, growing quieter after a moment.
"You don't...ever have to tell me anything, and I'm unlikely to press you for answers in any case should you not wish to speak about something, but I will listen. If you wish." His eyes opened again and he watched his fingers weave into her hair.
~!**!~
"It might." She retorted, "Though I can see how it wouldn't tell me if it were you." Her voice lowered, "That would be just like you."
"...if I'm not dreaming right now," She took up again at his last words, a hand moving to smooth along the back of his cloak before coming to a rest against him. "Then why would I want to start?" 3
"You asked." Hiei retorted calmly, even giving a small shrug of his shoulders. He would hardly give an attempt to convince her she wasn't dreaming. She'd just have to see for herself, he decided. "Unless," he suddenly thought, mischief coloring his entire being, "you want me to pinch you."
~!**!~
Akari felt probably a bit too much satisfaction at Kurama's answer than she should have, but there was a part of her that was monumentally glad she didn't have to get up at that moment. She'd strongly considered it, but really, she was too comfortable now.
Another itch of her wrist and she shifted, looping her arm through the space between his neck and the ground where, for a brief moment, she reached to rub at the mark on her right wrist. Pain in my backside, you are.
"It's.." she paused, both in speaking and in rubbing to give a small sigh. Part of her wanted to tell him, but at the same time, there was just so much she'd have to explain. Such as the actual reason she'd be going back. That was something… she didn't want to touch on. It was the reason she said an absolute no to returning home, even after things settled down.
"Isamu's.. I grew up with him. Rather, he actually watched over me for most of my life back home. The marking thing is how he used to keep me out of trouble, because I wasn't a fighter. It's not really a big deal, it's just… irritating when he tugs on his energy." She rubbed again at her wrist before letting her arm settle again. *
"He must have some reason for marking you now of all times." Kurama mentioned, feeling within him Youko shifting at the reminders of being 'marked.' The fox said nothing though.
"Of course, now that you've been released from the main portion of your duties, I suppose you can do anything you like." And he would...accept it. Quite possibly begrudgingly, depending on her choice. And he wasn't going to promise not to suddenly decide no one else was allowed to monopolize her time but him.
...but that might have just been the Youko in him.
[You're much more like me than you wish to admit, Red.]
~!**!~
That had her tensing up as if he might do it, her eyes fluttering open again as she tried to sort through a pleasantly tired brain that couldn't tell if he desired to do so or not.
"Noooo," She finally managed to protest through her lips, scrunching up smaller against him. 3
Hiei's lips pulled into a larger sneer, his teeth momentarily showing through the gesture before his lips closed again as he noted the sudden tension that built up in her shoulders. And her response was that much better in his eyes. And why not?
"Just a suggestion." He finally intoned, his tone mirroring the amusement that flashed in his eyes and the mischief that momentarily ingrained in his very being. But he let it go, deciding he really didn't want to. His luck, she'd get up and leave him. All alone and comfortable, but not near as comfortable as he had been.
And he certainly didn't want that.
~!**!~
Akari refused the shrug she almost gave, since really, it would be a downright lie. She knew why Isamu was around, for the most part. He'd come outright with it almost as soon as he'd known it was her. But, at the same time…
She didn't want to share that reason. Because… because she didn't want to face it yet. Didn't want to admit that, after eleven years, it was a possibility still.
"It's a habit for him, I suppose. Every time I left him he used to do this. A security blanket, I guess." she responded, and really, it was how she saw the mark itself, if she didn't think about the actual meanings behind it and such.
"It really isn't, where I come from, anything more than a way to keep track of someone." But the reasons for keeping track of someone… that was different from person to person. "Especially for the Alpha, who usually used it to keep track of his warriors." Not his family. "Just in case, you know?" *
"Mm. A security blanket more for you or for him?" Kurama replied, refraining of calling it something else, even with Youko simultaneously agreeing with his viewpoint.
When their viewpoints aligned, it made things especially difficult to keep under wraps, to hold his tongue when there were two who might simultaneously speak with it.
{And how is it any different from the Mark you bear?}
[Would you really like me to start listing the reasons in regards to how they're very similar? Because that's where I think we might both go crazy.]
~!**!~
"A rather poor one," She murmured, "If I do say so myself."
That didn't, however, mean she couldn't help but smirk against him, "Besides, my luck you'd probably make me switch. And then where would I be?" 3
"In a house." Hiei replied snarkily. "Probably not next to me anymore, but likely still in a house." He paused and took a breath. "A house with your eligible consorts, might I add. Eligibles who'd likely come running as soon as you changed."
He blinked once at her.
"I don't see it being much of a problem."
~!**!~
Akari huffed. Him. Definitely for him. That much is obvious. She shifted a little against him, moving closer and burying her nose in his shirt again. "It doesn't really matter." Because I'm right here, right now. "I'm too comfortable to care at the moment." *
"Are you now?" He wondered rhetorically, "Should I be making notes? A list, perhaps? 'How To Keep Akari All To Myself.' Step One."
~!**!~
"True." She murmured, tucking her head underneath his chin and breathing in his scent.
Luckily for me, I know exactly which one of them could actually catch me if I started running.
It was a strangely comforting thought, one that led to her shifting her head back until her nose was able to nudge against the underside of his jaw, which she did once.
"I'd have a head start on them though, if I started to run myself." 3
Hiei raised a brow. What did it matter if he caught her? All he'd be able to do was distract her until the others got to her, at which point he'd probably disappear anyway. He wasn't one of them, in any way. He wouldn't have the capability to change her back, even if he did catch her before the others. Because there was no way he could predict how quick the other two were.
Then again, he was the only one able to sift between the layers. That he knew of, anyway.
He knew for sure Taka couldn't.
There was no telling about Kitoushi.
It doesn't, in actuality, matter.
He didn't reply.
~!**!~
"Hey," Akari grumbled, "No one asked for that sass." She gave a small huff. "Plus, the fact that you've told me that tells me you've already thought of it." Her lips turned up into a wicked grin against his shoulder, one she only let him see with the glance she cast up at him. "Moot." *
His expression neutral, he turned down to meet her gaze.
"Well?" He paused before going on to prompt her, "Is it working?"
~!**!~
A small puff of air escaped from between Shikiyoku lips with amusement.
"Did you know, Master Hybrid," She slipped her other hand out from underneath him to poke gently at his chest, "That I'm quite certain you're the only demon who's ever bothered to try and catch me? Much less actually succeed at it." And more than you know. 3
"Master Hybrid?" Hiei repeated, incredulity coloring his expression. "I'm no master of hybrids." Why would you call me that anyway? "Foolish woman." He shifted only slightly again, stretching his legs just an inch further.
As for the only one able to catch her…
"I was the only one smart enough not to challenge you." He made a scoff and gave a sneer. "Otherwise I'd likely be dead." You're quite the powerful being.
~!**!~
Akari's irises flashed again, her lips twitching. "I'm still here, aren't I?" she retorted before moving her face to his shirt again and closing her eyes.
"Stupid fox." *
"Oh, so I'm a fox now am I? Not a flower? How strange. When I was but a moment ago a simple flower."
[Tch. A flower with hidden thorns perhaps.]
{You would know as well as anyone.}
[Indeed.]
~!**!~
Not a Master of Hybrids, you fool. Only the Master of me.
"The patience of the Koorime-" Or was that 'stubbornness' in your determination to find me? "With the ferocity of a fire apparition." Her face did not so much as twitch from neutral, even as she made a very specific hommage to a conversation she quite distinctly remembered having with him no more than a day or so ago. A conversation she wasn't soon likely to forget.
"What an absolutely deadly combination." 3
Hiei kept a single brow raised, but otherwise gave no other reaction to Shikiyoku's words. He considered her words, and then followed up with thinking back on the first few months he'd begun searching for her. He remembered, quite clearly, how he started out with an odd sense of feeling lost, when the bond had been in place but he couldn't reach her. How that feeling had turned to determination to find her once the bond had been broken. And then how that determination had turned to stubbornness, which easily lead to anger at every turn, at every dead end. And then, in the end, how that anger had almost decided to remain, but instead turned to his simple drive to find her again.
And here's where it had gotten him.
Oh, how it had been worth it.
"Deadly indeed."
~!**!~
"I said Nabu calls you Flowers. Never once did I say what I thought of you. Until now." She twirled the flower she held behind his back, as if she could see its wonderful petals spinning, even with her eyes closed as they were. She twirled it around and around between her index and thumb, listening momentarily to the whisper of sound it made against his shirt.
"Are we back to hearing things we wished the other would have said?" *
"If you mean to imply that I wish you to consider me as a flower, I think we've lost something in the translation." Kurama let himself smile, "And I also think regarding me as simply a flower would be unwise. That is all I really meant to say."
[...]
{Shut up, Youko.}
[I didn't say anything.]
{You didn't have to.}
~!**!~
Shikiyoku pulled her lips into her mouth so that her silent laughter wouldn't audibly sneak past her teeth, though it was easy enough to see both her grin and her shoulders did shake a little with amusement.
It was that moment which actually had her waking, or at least coming enough into the world to feel where she happened to be at that moment.
Her eyes came open easily enough, but it wasn't so much the sight that sent her core skipping a beat in a moment of panic.
Uh...wait, what? She didn't have the sense of mind to say anything, her muscles tensing and her throat tightening as if to protest, when the truth was she just didn't know what to make of the situation in which she found herself. 3
"You know, you really should make it easier to tell when you actually don't hate someone."
The words slid across his mind from many years ago, and it brought Hiei's eyes down to the demoness he'd pulled closer, brows raising even further at the expression he caught once her silent amusement passed. And where her amusement ended, his began.
He pulled his lips into a sneer that let his teeth show just a bit, his irises brightening in amusement at the expression Shikiyoku wore. An expression that was… out of place, and yet so fun to see he'd created.
"Problem?"
And he didn't move an inch one way or the other.
~!**!~
"Well, really, a flower doesn't cut it." Akari stated, almost shrugging her shoulders but instead simply giving a small huff through her nose. "I mean, you're pretty and all that, and smell like a flower, but it's just too.. innocent." Akari couldn't help the grin that formed now. "And, really, you aren't near as… frail by any means." *
"I'm not innocent?" His eyes widened in an approximation of the word, "When did this come about? And why did no one have the heart to tell me?"
[She's right about the other stuff though.]
{Shup up, silver-tail.}
[You know, really she ought to be thanking me. It's mostly my fault anyway.]
~!**!~
Her 'shock' was belied by the slight buzz she felt under her skin as her energy began to react, catching up to her predicament.
As if to answer him, her mouth opened a little, words on the tip of her tongue ranging from a hastily put together 'no,' to 'I haven't decided yet.' Because, really, the last time she'd found herself in another's arms like this had been ages ago.
Her second response was mild irritation that he had dragged such a reaction from her, and she summarily glared at him while fighting back a smile, trying to decide whether she should kiss him for the sole purpose of making him completely uncomfortable. Just so he'd know how it felt. 3
The fire demon waited another second, watching with complete and utter satisfaction before he decided he'd done enough. He was satisfied for the time being, so he pulled away for a moment, before he proceeded to shift his body weight around until he was standing on the bed, then proceeded to meander his way to the end of the mattress and simply step over Shikiyoku's ankles, dropping to the floor in the next moment and turning to look back at the female he'd sensed an odd feeling of warning erupt from.
He gave a sneer for a mere second before turning to head for the door, determined to find some sweet snow since he'd missed out on it the day before.
~!**!~
"We thought you were aware." Akari mused, pulling away enough to look up at him with a smile that thinned out her lips. "I mean, you're so smart we thought you'd figure it out and all that." She gave a shrug this time as she pulled her arm back over him to reach up and brush the flower against his nose. "But I guess even you miss a few things, hm?" *
Kurama just let his green eyes gleam at her from over the flower petals.
"I'm fairly certain that when one is considered 'smart' about oneself, it's often mistaken for 'conceit.' And that's certainly nothing I want anyone making me out to be."
~!**!~
As soon as Hiei distanced himself, Shikiyoku calmed down from...whatever her reaction had been, shaking her head slightly.
You're a pain.
"You're lucky you have me around." She began, sitting up and swinging her legs over the side of the bed facing the door. "Otherwise there wouldn't be but a soupy mess left of your precious sweet snow." 3
"And yet all I would have to do is acquire more. An easy feat, compared to worms that swallow a person whole."
Hiei couldn't help bringing up the time he and Shikiyoku had both been bombarded by the creatures of the ninth level, where he'd been not only half-swallowed, but come back out covered in bile. Thinking back on it, he wondered why he hadn't just released the dragon in the first sign of trouble.
Then again, he hadn't noticed the first sign, he supposed.
"And without the stench." He added as he moved out the door and to the stairs.
~!**!~
"Hm." Akari hummed out, brushing the flower against his nose one last time before retreating, resting her arm on the ground the small space between them that was afforded to her.
And it made her realize how close they were.
And just as quickly as the realization hit, she felt the beginnings of discomfort, which she remedied by slowly pulling away, suddenly feeling as if she might be smothered by his body heat adding to her own.
It was…
She didn't know what brought it out, but she didn't like the feeling of it. *
Kurama regarded her shift mildly, though Youko took larger note of it than he.
[I believe your time is coming to a close, Red. If you remember, I have business of my own to attend.]
{How could I forget?}
"So, you never did tell me what exactly your next plans were. Outside of more work that is." He teased.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku watched Hiei as he left, fully intending on following him downstairs, but struck by the memory he referenced and becoming accosted by several other emotions at once.
She wasn't sure if he was complaining about his former occupation, the thought that he might be in and of itself causing her to hesitate as she meant to stand and go after him.
Attempting to dismiss it-you've as much told him you still wanted him around, and he didn't up and leave, right?-she went ahead and got up, absently following in his wake.
"How...how long has it been since I saw you last?" 3
Hiei didn't even so much as glance over his shoulder, but several thoughts did pass by the forefront of his mind, ranging from mild irritation at the repetitive question to amusement for the same thing, to other reactions he considered for a moment as he descended the stairs in a lazy meander.
Long enough for your scent to fade from my cloak.
"You've repeated this question three times now, woman." He retorted instead, an even tone that hinted no irritation at the matter. "And the first two times I answered almost a year, but it isn't actually that simple." He left it at that as he turned to head into the kitchen, eyes set on the freezer.
~!**!~
Akari pulled away and proceeded to push herself into a sitting position, rubbing at her face a little as she considered Kurama's query. Aside from work, she… Besides work?
Well…
"I plan on playing with Nabu. Throw a ball or something, and then nap in the sun because I don't do it enough. and he enjoys it." Her lips twitched into a small smile as she turned to look at the redhead. "Is that sufficient enough for you?" *
Kurama turned over on his back, eyes closing as his hands went behind his head, "I suppose it will do for now."
He paused, "I know you could likely send a shadow to find me should you have the need, but-" He opened his eyes, taking in the peaceful sky above them, "The rose ought to work just as well for a calling card."
~!**!~
I did? Her memories were a little fuzzy on that one, but she didn't see any reason for him to be lying about it.
"Gimme a break," She mumbled, "Everything within the last decade or so is a little fuzzy overall." She hadn't exactly had a moment to sit down and sift through her memories yet, though she felt confident enough that they would return to her easily enough once she tried.
Her eyes flashed as she followed Hiei into the kitchen.
"I have a trade you might be interested in. Something that goes quite well with the sweet snow that I'd be willing to share in exchange for what I saved." Her eyes flickered towards the freezer. 3
Hiei waited a moment before giving a small, inaudible sigh to himself, mentally going over the time he'd spent searching for her. "On this layer, eleven months. However, much of that time was spent on other layers, making it a considerably larger amount of time, though the exact, I'm not… quite sure."
I'd lost count of the days, really.
Probably up there with the body count.
The last thought had him sneering in self satisfaction.
At Shikiyoku's words, proposal, Hiei paused, at first not really interested, but curiosity slowly bubbled up even as he reached for the handle to the freezer door. His fingers encircled the handle, but didn't pull it open. Instead, he released it and turned to face her with a patient expression that read 'I'm listening'.
~!**!~
Akari raised a brow, ready to press him about what would satisfy the redhead, but he continue speaking before she could form the words, which caused her lips to pull up in a smile again anyway. "You know, I only send shadows if it's a short message to someone I don't have any desire to actually see in person for any extended amount of time. So, I'd probably end up just hunting you down." She turned to look out over the meadow of closed-petal flowers and grass. "But, the rose works too."
Akari felt a twinge at her wrist, a signal different than the last one, and she gave a very dog-like huff through her nose. "And of course, you know how to find me." She flashed a smile at the redhead, despite the second, more noticeable twinge at her wrist. "May I ask what you did with it,?" *
"You may." He responded calmly, sitting up to loosely cross his legs with his hands planted behind him holding him up. "I'm considering whether or not to demand ransom for it though."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku reached up to flip her hair over her shoulder, coming up with a single red fruit in her fingers that she held out for a moment, gauging Hiei's face before turning it around in her grasp as if inspecting it.
"Of course, if you aren't interested, I can eat them all myself." 3
Hiei took a moment to inspect the red fruit Shikiyoku had produced, and after a moment of I knew it, he regained his natural thought processes and gave her a slight downturn of his lips. He considered her seriously for a few moments before turning to the freezer, not saying a word as he pulled the tub of sweet snow from inside and turned to face her again, taking two steps to close the distance and extend the tub out to her.
"You make the bowls," he informed as he inspected her hair a little before determining it was a one-time trick.
~!**!~
Akari gave the redhead a withering look before huffing through her nostrils for the second time. She crossed her arms at her stomach and turned to face him with her entire body, giving an unblinking stare of not-so-withheld impatience.
"You're impossible." *
He leaned towards her, resting an elbow on his knee and his face on his hand, eyes flashing.
"Tell me something I don't know."
~!**!~
She let the slightest grin flicker over her features as she impishly popped the fruit into her mouth, the green stem facing out, and reached for the ice cream, her other hand running behind her neck and coming up with another strawberry as she turned away from him, this one redder than the last.
The tub got placed on the counter, bowls coming out of the cabinets overhead and spoons pulled from the drawer as she reached for a knife from the block nearby. 3
Hiei moved the opposite direction Shikiyoku took, his eyes taking in the next room and telling him what his senses had already noticed: the house was empty save for himself and Shikiyoku. And he found that thought a very pleasing one.
He brushed the thought aside as he slid into a chair at the table, his eyes turning to Shikiyoku to watch her work, as he had the first time she'd introduced him to this.
"How did you manage that?" He asked suddenly, his curiosity of the strawberries in her hair getting the best of him.
Because, obviously, they weren't always there.
Right?
~!**!~
Akari gave a frown. "No." She stated simply, as if she already knew what he wanted in "ransom" for the rose. Of course, she didn't, but if he was anything like Youko, she could only imagine what a fox's brain would come up with and-
She gave a sigh. "I dislike you." *
"Not even going to bother to ask?" He didn't move, "Surely you don't think I'm going to listen to anything Youko is suggesting. I'm half-tempted to let him out just so you can slap him."
~!**!~
"The strawberries?" Shikiyoku specified a bit absently as the ice cream was slowly dished out. "Oh, they've always been there." 3
"Liar." Hiei was quick to state, eyes narrowing and brows furrowing. He leaned into the table, both arms crossing upon the surface as he eyed her more carefully. "Liar." He repeated, without intentionally doing so.
~!**!~
Akari rolled her eyes. "As deserving as it may be, I feel it wouldn't be worth the effort." Her lips twitched, but only slightly at the thought. "And I'm sure I wouldn't be quick enough anyway." She gave a shrug.
After a moment of silence, she resigned. "Fine. What is it, fox?" *
Kurama didn't bother mentioning how he had intended to make sure she got the chance to take a swing at the kitsune.
"All you have to do...is promise to meet me here again tonight."
~!**!~
"Liar?" She didn't bother turning around. "You wouldn't really have any idea, now would you?" 3
Hiei's brows furrowed further, his eyes narrowed to slits. Was she challenging him? He'd thought of it once before, but really, she didn't hold the ability to carry random seeds about like the fox. If she did, he could imagine her carrying seeds of the fruit from the Ninth Layer around with her, for whenever she decided to eat one. Or, in the very least, other seeds for the same reason. Yes?
But, in the end, he merely continued to stare at the back of her head, at her hair, with calculating eyes that wanted to pick her apart and figure out how.
~!**!~
Akari raised a brow. "You aren't going to make me spit in my hand and shake on it, are you?" she asked, a frown deepening on her features at the thought that had, originally, been a teasing one. "I can offer my pinkie finger if my word isn't good enough for you." *
"I am fairly certain I can live with simply your word on it." He shifted until he was sitting upright again. "I wouldn't suggest breaking the promise though, as I can assure you I'll come after you if you don't show." He smiled.
~!**!~
Knowing perfectly well that he was staring at her, feeling his eyes scrutinizing her hair even from that distance, Shikiyoku deliberately reached back, her hand disappearing into her straight, dark hair, and produced another strawberry, placing it beside the other on the counter, next to the discarded stem of the one that had been in her mouth a minute or so ago, and then calmly resumed scooping out more of the ice cream, forced to work steadily as the treat was still rather solid and the consistency had changed a little from the time it had spent out of the freezer before she'd a chance to replace it inside. 3
Surely this was a trick. Surely she was goading him, doing this merely to keep him as he was: confused, curious, and very much so wanting to search her hair himself because there was just no way. And the more he thought about it, the more he tried to rationalize it, the more tempted he bacame to simply get up and search himself.
Though, he knew she wouldn't let him once she knew what he was doing. And should he make her feel as if she were in danger, He'd be the one in danger.
So he settled for glaring at the back of her head and more attempts at rationalization.
~!**!~
Akari gave the barest of sounds of amusement at the redhead as she nodded once. "Fine, fine. I'll be here. I promise." She shifted her weight around a little. "Now, will you please tell me?" *
Kurama gave the slightest shrug and leaned forward towards Akari, coming within inches of her shoulder as he reached into her hair and came back with the seed in his hand.
"You had it all along."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku calmly retrieved another strawberry from the depths of her hair after cutting the first too, this time not intentionally provoking the demon behind her.
The air just behind her blurred a little and suddenly the tall, dark-headed cat-demon had circled his arms over her shoulders, planting a single kiss on the top of her head.
His nose stayed near her scalp for a moment, "You smell of something sweet, m'lady."
Curiously, one of his hands started to reach up for her hair and she simply batted it away.
"Sleep well?"
"Very."
"Oh?" There was no mistaking, through the telepathic bond he had quickly opened between them, how utterly laced with suggestiveness that one word was.
Shikiyoku blurred between layers herself, leaving Kitoushi grasping at nothing as she turned and walked through him, reappearing at the refrigerator and reaching inside for the container of strawberries hidden deep within, turning back to where she had stationed her stuff and shoving him out of the way with a hand on his shoulder.
"Do you think me incapable of desiring anything else?"
"I have yet to be proven otherwise."
Appearing to ignore the cat-demon, who leaned up against the counter wearing a neutral expression, his arms crossed over his chest, Shikiyoku continued slicing strawberries.
"You have yet to see me without a Champion, without my purpose driven by another."
For that matter, she had yet to see herself that way and Kit knew it as well as she.
"CAT!" Taka burst in the front door. "I HATE you!" He tromped across the living room and into the kitchen. "Just so you know."
Shikiyoku didn't so much as turn when the bird entered the room, though he surely took notice of her and started to move forward. His intention was to greet her in the same way Kit had, though the bird didn't know that precisely.
As he came up behind her, Shikiyoku pulled the layers around herself again, a bowl in either hand, and sent the bird demon stumbling a little towards the counter when he leaned forward, completely missing her or even the direction she went as she passed through him and walked to the table, coming back to the First Layer as soon as she was free of where Taka stood.
The bowls got slid onto the table as Shikiyoku took a seat, leaving Taka standing behind her, confused for a moment with Kit looking on in amusement. 3
Hiei was watching Shikiyoku one second, and within the next he was glowering at a newcomer, who'd shown much too soon for the fire demon's liking. It effectively put an end to the demon's curiosity, instead turning his red gaze to the side, ire slowly bubbling up but stubbornness keeping him rooted to the chair.
He wasn't going to miss Sweet Snow a second time.
Especially since Strawberries were involved.
The silence in the room was charged with energy that he recognized, but had no interest in testing. He held no interest in overhearing the telepathing conversation, even if he was allowed to do so. And, he held no interest for the other demon who bombarded into the house and shattered the silence, reminding him momentarily of a detective he hadn't seen in a while.
By the time a bowl slid across the table to him, his eyes were closed and a vein had begun to show in his temple- though one likely wouldn't see it for his hair.
He opened his eyes to regard the ice cream and little red fruits, satisfaction hitting him before he'd even had a single bite of it, and his mouth watering as he scooped the spoon into the bowl. For a moment after the ice cream touched his tongue, the world seemed silent and the satisfaction of tasting this substance again was enough to calm him.
And then he swallowed and was staring at a confused bird demon with carefully concealed irritation.
Why must you be loud? At least the feline is quiet enough to not be a bother.
~!**!~
"As I said, you're a fox, not a flower." Akari grumbled as she reached for the seed, sighing only slightly at the redhead. "Of course you would do that." *
"Alas, I've been found out." If he had the ears of his counterpart, they would have been twitching slightly in good-humor as he allowed her to take the seed from him, not responding to her second comment, though he didn't bother defending himself.
~!**!~
Kitoushi stood up, uncrossing his arms.
"You should have distracted him longer." Shikiyoku grumbled as the cat started to flow past her into the other room, his tail slowly weaving behind him.
"I did try. But you can only amuse him for so long before he gets bored." He told her as he kept moving, going to sit at the couch again after turning on the television, the sound at the lowest possible setting.
Taka glared after Kit, turning his expression onto the back of Shikiyoku's head as he leaned back against the counter in much the same way Kit had been, arms crossed over his chest. 3
Blissful silence.
Hiei slid another small scoop of the sweet snow into his mouth, this time fishing out a chunk of strawberry and popping it into his mouth just as soon as he could, though the sweet, coldness of the ice cream melted rather quickly and he was left with just chewing on the larger bit of fruit he had procured from his bowl.
And for the moment, he didn't mind the way the house was.
~!**!~
"You're adding to that list of yours, aren't you?" Akari mused with a smile, suddenly aware that she'd been sitting here for longer than she'd intended, especially since the twinge at her wrist had become non-stop irritation under her skin.
Likely from not having this sort of contact with another's shadow in so long.
Or it could be a mild distress signal. Who knows?
Who cares?
"Clever." And yet she still didn't make a move to leave. *
Kurama kept that same self-satisfied smirk in place, "Are you getting hungry yet?"
~!**!~
Taka only remained in place long enough to attempt to glare a hole in the back of Shikiyoku's head. But upon being unsuccessful, he let out a low growl and stood up from the counter, stalking out of the room, the front door eventually slamming behind him as he left.
Shikiyoku hardly seemed to notice, resting her face in a hand whose elbow was propped upon the table, spoon stirring absently in the bowl of ice cream that she barely touched, only rarely moving a spoonful up to her lips and even then only bothering to nibble on the tip of whatever she had gotten on the utensil. 3
Hiei had half of his own bowl of sweet snow eaten before his eyes traveled up to peer at Shikiyoku, noticing her treat was almost entirely untouched. While his first instinct was to tauntingly tell her he'd eat it if she didn't, he found himself instead simply watching her, spoon hanging from his lips for a moment longer than it should have before he realized he'd paused.
He decided to leave her be for the moment, watching her with a neutral gaze as he slid more of the sweet snow past his lips.
Thanks for reading! Bless your face. If you sneezed during this chapter, bless you. Peace off! -Star