A/N: Hello once again for the first time in a very long time, fanfictiondotnet Lovelies!
Your friendly, neighborhood Star here with another chapter! Yes, I do realize it's been a super long time since the last chapter, hence why the "previously" portion of the chapter will likely be fairly explicit in detail this time around.
To be perfectly honest, CM and I haven't been writing nearly as often on our RP as we were in the past (I believe we had one session last month as opposed to the nearly daily sessions a year ago), however there is currently still quite a few chapters of backlog between where this story is and where we are currently.
For this reason, and because I've been so lacking in posting on the story (apologies!), I will be posting a chapter a day for the next week before likely reducing down to one per week as I was doing a while back. (At least until I start slacking again, eheh ^-^;; Either I'll start slacking or you all will be caught up, ha!)
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 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.
(Words in italics and within parenthesis is dialogue between Hiei and Shikiyoku via the bond between them after Hiei becomes Shikiyoku's Consort. As soon as the 'thought' occurs, it can pass between them, and does not actually have to be formed into exact words-feelings and sensations can pass through as well-in order to be picked up and the meaning translated immediately by the other. For the sake of the coherence by the reader, words and sentences are used as normal. It cannot 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).
The Nabu Exception also applies to anyone when they are in an animal form, if the dialogue is in italics and quotations, unless stated otherwise.
Previously on Yu Yu Hakusho!
Akari continues to be unsuccessful in traversing the layers
without the use of her shadows,
Jin and Chu's assistance notwithstanding.
Chu continues to assert that drinking would help her,
as her pent up anger about the situation is likely impeding her.
Youko still has not stirred within Kurama,
having apparently gone dormant ever since
Kurama refused Youko the ability to go after Shikiyoku
and subsequently made her Consort bond with Hiei.
Kurama talks with Jin and Chu about siding with Yusuke,
expressing concern about Raizen and Yusuke coming up with a plan.
Meanwhile, Akari eats and attempts to slip between layers on her own,
the next day her overall demeanor causes Kurama concern,
when the two of them end up meeting in his plant-covered training room again.
Akari expresses her anger and frustration about her circumstances
when he asks, and she lays down to rest, her energy exhausted
and her body in need of sleep.
After expressing concern about her and afterwards learning
that Akari had considered using her life energy to try and go 'between,'
Kurama ends up leaving Akari to her "training,"
when she asserts it is no one's job to look after her.
When Akari later wakes, it's to Chu, much to her chagrin,
and eventually she takes a swig from his bottle
which turns into being the rest of the bottle in the one swig,
in the hopes that he'll stop bothering her about drinking.
The rest of that bottle turns into another one
which she finishes completely by herself,
eventually finding herself in a drunken conversation with Chu
in which the demon admits he'd be chasing her if the fox wasn't.
Akari decides in her haze to visit Kurama and leaves,
eventually making her way to Kurama's room.
Kurama wakes just as she intrudes unannounced,
and he quickly grows the sound-dampening seeds
he placed about his room to their full form
in preparation for whatever comes next,
able to smell the alcohol on her breath
from where he lay in bed, all the way across the room.
~!**!~
Hiei is summoned in the early morning to Mukuro,
who informs him he has done well in his training
and from now on will be pursuing demons
that are able to walk the layers
and bringing them back to the Mobile Fortress.
Shikiyoku heads down to the labs,
Rikei and Iketeru informing her that they believe
the Crusnik virus is located within her energy,
not her blood like they had thought previously.
They begin harvesting energy from her directly,
but the process is not refined, the machinery
merely a prototype, and much of what they take
is unusable for their purpose,
resulting in the amount of energy they take from her being vast.
She returns to her and Hiei's rooms in pain form
and exhausted, only making it to the couch before collapsing.
Hiei returns from his excursion for Mukuro
and retrieves Shikiyoku from the couch,
taking them both to bed in the other room
before switching Shiki back to her normal form,
the two of them falling asleep quickly after.
Hiei wakes early the next morning,
preparing himself for his day and returning
to eat breakfast with Shiki.
He asks her how she lost so much energy,
and she explains scientists findings to him.
Too soon it comes time for him to leave
and Shikiyoku heads down to the labs herself,
though she is stopped along the way by Nikolai,
a white-haired demon who insists she should not
be walking the halls alone.
Nikolai escorts her to the labs and then takes his leave.
Being blind still, the scientists cannot do
the sorts of testing they would like to do with her,
the three of them batting back and forth ideas
for the scientists have found that there is in fact
something different about her pain form energy
and her normal energy...
Shikiyoku stared down at the floor, mind wandering to her eyesight as she swung her legs back and forth a little where they hung down over the edge of the table.
She could hear Rikei rustling around with the equipment, Iketeru having been called out of the room both at Mukuro's behest as well as to retrieve a bit of machinery for their needs.
Having fully expected for the blindness to be a fluke, Shikiyoku's thoughts trailed back to the moment it had happened, recalling the source of the incident and managing to smile a little.
Foolish demon.
She missed him.
Damn you, Mukuro.
Whatever lightness on her face disappeared as the female's image crossed over her mind, complete with that same strange blankness that had accompanied the introduction, where normally there would be a presence and instead there was a distinct anti-presence.
Shikiyoku did not startle back when she felt the hand on her arm, knowing that it was likely the cloud she knew to be over her eyes was likely unsettling, and while she looked up out of habit, it was the faint scent of Douji that had her placing the hand as to belonging to Rikei.
"What troubles you, woman?"
The voice sounded a shade kinder than it usually did, and in response Shikiyoku found herself answering him in a similar manner.
"Many things." She admitted with a little sigh, "I am sorry to bother you with it."
"Mm." It was not exactly an answer, but the hand at her arm reached up to take a hold of her chin, turning her face this way and that as if inspecting her features. "Brooding does not suit you."
Shikiyoku tried not to scoff, "So I've been told."
"Perhaps you should take the sentiment to heart, then." Rikei murmured back at her.
"It is hard not to brood when there are a plethora of things to worry about."
"Worry? Here? In the relative safety of the fortress?"
"It is the 'relative' part that seems to be troublesome."
Rikei frowned and Shikiyoku only just realized that he had not let go of her yet, finding her eyes staring upwards as if into his face.
"What has happened?"
"I-" It was not that the admittance seemed trivial, but she also did not think it would be helpful for her to share such information with a demon who had Mukuro's ear. "I would rather not say."
Her gaze dropped again, suddenly feeling an uncomfortableness under his stare that she had not felt since she had lost her vision.
"Why do you look at me in such a way?"
Rikei's eyebrow raised questioningly, amused that she thought he was staring at her in any particular way.
"Should I be looking at you in some other way?"
His response brought a reddened color to her neck as she recalled another who had said as much the same thing when she asked.
"Your worry is ill placed." Rikei's voice sounded closer this time, "And your tension will cloud your thoughts."
It was as if he was reading her mind, for Shikiyoku had suddenly started to worry, all at once keenly aware of how she could feel nothing of the desires of this demon, which included what he intended to do about said 'tension,' as it sounded to her as if he certainly had something planned.
In the next moment she discovered what that plan was, for the demon kissed her, leaving her sitting in a sort of shocked freeze as the blush at her neck shot upwards to the top of her head and her core jolted with surprise, flashing yellow across her eyes.
Had she not been so utterly stock-still, she likely would have cringed, for the energy that scattered from the jolt felt as if it would blind her again with its brightness.
All at once Rikei had pulled away, leaving Shikiyoku blinking up at him as she realized the door to the labs had opened moments before and Iketeru's soft steps had entered.
As the energy cascading over her eyes began to face, she realized that with it her vision started to trickle back, like pin-pricks at first as she blinked, seeing Rikei's purple hair and thin-framed glasses still standing over her.
"Am I interrupting something?" Iketeru wanted to know.
The other two demons both looked in his direction, Rikei's expression having returned to that half-bored, neutral appearing look he always seemed to wear and Shikiyoku actually seeing Iketeru where he had stopped around the edge of one of the counters, some amusement or another glittering behind his eyes.
"Just returning her sight." Rikei shrugged off-hand, stepping back over to the other counter and leaving Shikiyoku saying nothing as Iketeru accepted the response and went to place the equipment in his hands next to the rest of what they were working on. 3
~!**!~
Akari's hand seemed to rove over the wooden door, as if unsure if it was actually shut or not. Her lips pursed together as she eyed the frame, finding that it was indeed locked, but what held her there a moment longer was a sudden remembrance.
And the remembrance of Kurama leaving her earlier and her being spiteful towards everyone had her giving a small pout at the door.
I'mma fix it.
Her pout turned into an odd expression that was a mix between said gesture and the attempt to smile as she turned back to look at Kurama, who was laying on the bed. For a moment she considered that he might be sleeping, but she scuffled and stumbled her way to the foot of his bed anyway.
"Shhhh," she began, not wanting him to speak first. And as that sound dragged on, continuing rather loudly in the room, Akari took the liberty of crawling up from the foot of the bed, deciding rather quickly that she wanted to lay on him and not with him.
Or..
Er…
Was there a difference?
She paused briefly, both hands on either side of his legs and one knee propped on the mattress.
Uh…
She blinked once before the thought was gone, forgotten, and she continued crawling up and over Kurama, the sound of shushing him again filling the room as she slowly crawled her way up until she let her arms slide on either side of his head, her face finding the pillow to the left of his own and a hand coming up to cover his lips.
"Shhh," she repeated, quieter this time. "I-" She paused, giving a small breath that could have been a burp if she had allowed it to be, "I'm showwy… I was mean and angry and I felt useless and I don't wanna be mean and I don't want us to fight and be mad and…" She took a breath and let her hand slide away from his face to land on the pillow again. "I just want us to be happy, Kuwama…" *
Kurama continued to watch Akari come further into the room, his expression remaining just about the same as it had been when she came in, even if the plants in the corners would hopefully have masked exactly who had just come in the room, since as far as he knew they were still attempting to keep Akari out of Yomi's line of sight where Kurama was concerned.
...or at least that's what Kurama was still attempting to do.
Akari appeared to have forgotten.
Which may or may not have had something to do with the fact that she had been drinking.
He couldn't deny that the chagrin did manage to become more tinged with amusement as she crawled up from the bottom of his bed, literally crawling over him, until she collapsed on top of his body.
Her continuous shushing also helped with the lifting of his mood, so that by the time she lay down his face had the lightest smile pulling up one corner of his mouth, thankful not for the first time that Youko was not around for this encounter.
~!**!~
Naturally, by the end of the day Shikiyoku sat scarred and grave on top of the table.
As if Rikei had planned on restoring her vision the whole time, they did several tests they had been putting off, Rikei having prepared for them.
It had not put her in a good mood.
If I had known that's all it would take, I might have asked Hiei to just kiss me again.
Might.
Just as Iketeru pulled the last of the patches from her skin and she hopped down to leave, the door to the lab swung inwards and a small group of demons struck up a conversation with the other two that Shikiyoku took little notice of until she made her way through them only to find that they took their leave of Rikei and Iketeru and flanked her once she got out into the hall.
It was only actually at that moment she realized the availability of traversing between the layers of the fortress, but by that time the group had informed her of their intentions to escort her back and Shikiyoku simply kept walking, uncaring as to whether these demons truly did as they claimed to have been assigned to do.
She blocked them out, refusing to become a part of any conversation they tried to start with her and only humoring them insofar as to actually walk the way back.
Upon stepping into her room, she unceremoniously slammed the door in their faces and stalked back towards the bedroom, making her way to the bathroom as if to clean off the filth of their proximity. 3
~!**!~
Akari's thoughts trailed away for a moment as she gave a heavy sigh and her eyelids closed briefly. For a moment, she realized that he hadn't answered, and her eyelids came open again and she turned her face so she could stare at his cheek.
And as he continued to be silent, her thoughts picked up right where they had left off, as if they'd never stopped in the first place.
"I didn' wan' you to leave bu' I fell ashleep before I could shtop you and I know I was mean and made you mad but we don't have to fight no more." She paused as she shifted, moving the hand that had previously been covering his mouth to scratch at her cheek, then resting that hand on his chest. Akari's finger began moving along his chest absently. "I was shtoopid and I just wan' you to know that I like you and…"
This scar is like mine. Just… smaller.
She pursed her lips as her finger continued to follow the trail along Kurama's chest.
"And... " This one is weird. "OH!" Her tone quickly dropped to a whisper and her index finger paused over his skin. "Don't tell Kurama, but I really really really like him. He's my favorite and the bestest person because even when I'm dumb and mean and deserve to be hung upside down from the ceiling, he comes back and hugs me and-"
Her finger had continued tracing scars, and this time the thought about such scars made her realize that he was without a shirt, and her finger paused and her eyes trailed up to look at the redhead, as if only just remembering she was laying on him.
"Are you…" Still whispering, she pursed her lips for a moment before continuing in an even quieter voice, "You have no shirt on." Another pause and her hand trailed further down his chest until it met the fabric of the blankets he lay under. "Are you wearing…" Another pause as she contemplated, trying to remember what the garments were called.
Unable to think of the word, she spoke up again.
"Are you.. naked? I'm sorry I just kinda came in and you were sleeping too and now you're naked and-"
Another pause and her expression lit up, her eyes widening with wonder.
"What kind of underwear do you wear? Boxers?" She grew a little louder. "Briefs? Tightie-whities?"
"...Man thongs?" *
There wasn't really much to say as Akari continued to ramble on in a fashion that Kurama very much recognized.
Inwardly, he was shaking his head at her, though he only watched her with eyes gleaming in the darkness as she started running a finger over his skin. He couldn't help but begin to make guesses with himself as to how long it would take for her to realize what she was doing.
...though he didn't exactly expect her to realize it quite like that. Nor was he certain he particularly wanted to follow her train of thought.
Especially when she started to assume he wasn't actually wearing anything.
Truthfully, he always wore some sort of sweat pants to bed, but there started to be this internal battle between what part of his mind took up the Youko side and himself, neither one winning out just yet and leaving him silent.
~!**!~
The shower was short-lived as the warm water pooled strangely over Shikiyoku's skin, more often than not gathering in the recesses of the deeper scars, a sensation she quickly grew more uncomfortable with than anything else she had experienced while in this form.
As Shikiyoku splashed colder water on her face, the steam from the shower filled the bathroom heavily, making her tired as the events of the day crept up on her.
Towel wrapped firmly around her body, when she opened the door to the bedroom the misty haze billowed out around her while she stepped forward, blinking sleepily.
For possibly the first time since arriving she threw back the covers of the bed as she started to crawl over to the middle of it to lay down, starting to pull the blankets and sheet back up but only getting them to her knees before just collapsing onto the pillow in a half-awake daze. 3
Hiei's sword flashed in the light of the streetlights, the sound of metal clashing with metal ringing loudly on the air as the fire demon tossed away the other's blade from himself. And, due to his opponent's lack in strength, the sword flew a good distance away, skittering across the ground.
The fire demon stood tall, eyes flashing with anger and impatience.
He could've been back two hours ago, were it not for this demon having caught his companion's attention. Apparently, this one was known to have information.
All of which Hiei cared next to nothing about. Except this one had decided that civilized conversation was not on the agenda.
And Hiei was livid. His time had been wasted, he knew. This demon couldn't even actually run the layers like he could.
"Gouka."
Hiei didn't turn from the demon standing in front of him with hands raised and dark eyes. He only listened to the return of the other.
"We have no use for this one any longer. End it."
Hiei stared at the demon that twitched with those words, but didn't move.
"He is to die. He knows too much."
"If you think he knows more than the rest of this layer, then you're just as much a fool as he."
The fire demon gave a harsh glare at his previous opponent, who took a step back, whose mind was flooded with panic and whose mark on his neck stood out against his skin. It was obvious he wanted nothing more than to return to his mate.
Which Hiei understood. He wanted to return to Shikiyoku.
"You have wasted enough of my time as it is." His harsh words were meant for both demons, and before he earned a reply of any kind, he folded the layers over himself and moved to the Eighth Layer, landing atop the fortress and finding that he could actually move through the layers inside the fortress as well.
Which he utilized with great speed, katana now sheathed and hidden beneath his cloak.
He landed just inside the room he wanted, finding himself staring at Shikiyoku who lay on the bed in nothing more than a towel. He didn't seem to care, or perhaps he didn't actually really even notice, but he did notice his own tension leaving just as soon as her scent hit his nose.
(Still awake?)
It was a gentle probing, one that would not wake her if she was not already as such. He did, however, move to the bed and quickly get comfortable atop the covers, wasting no time in pressing his lips to hers for the change.
...Because he'd have to do all of that again tomorrow. And it was simply exhausting.
~!**!~
Akari's lips spread wide in amusement and a small giggle left her. "Please no man-thongs. They're ugly and gross and they look so terrible." Her finger began moving along his skin again, as if the one-sided conversation needed no answer whatsoever. "You'd look best in…" Uh…. In…
Er…
Maybe he doesn't wear any?
She sucked in a breath.
"Do you go commando?"
She went quiet again, staring at him but not really seeing him, unsure if it was fitting for his personality. In the end, she decided she wouldn't find out unless she told her and-
Her finger found another scar. A jagged, rough-feeling one that marred a spot on his biceps. A frown quickly found itself on her features. "This one… is gonna be gone when you wake up one morning," she suddenly declared, voice surprisingly even considering how slurred her speech had been previously, almost as if she'd sobered up a little. "I don' like it."
Her digit continued to trace it, back and forth as if memorizing it.
"Itsh… it shtands out." She frowned, trying to remember if she'd seen him be struck there before.
And after a moment the image of Otento came to mind, followed quickly by a gash in that place that she had cleaned up one day. She frowned even more. "Its not allowed."
How many did he get?
"How many scars do you have, Kurama?" she suddenly asked, eyes staring at him but not seeing him. "I have, like, a ton. And you've seen almost every one of them. Can I see all of yours?"
Pause.
"Wait, first, I'm thirsty…" She swallowed a little, suddenly wishing she had one of those bottles with her and a pout formed on her face again. Her lips pursed together and her brows pulled downward. "I want some…" I dunno what it was… "I'm thirsty," she repeated, complaining in a grumble. "And it was goooooood. We could share." *
Thankfully it didn't seem that Akari needed Kurama to respond in order to continue talking, to keep holding the conversation.
Because really Kurama was having trouble not doing anything at that point.
That little part of him that decided to take Youko's perspective wouldn't shut up, regardless of how often Kurama insisted that he would not take advantage of the situation.
Besides, if he were ever going to do anything, he would certainly want Akari to remember it later. And not to have the memory tinged with drunkenness in any case.
"I think you have had quite enough to drink, beautiful." Kurama inserted quickly into her pause.
~!**!~
Shikiyoku sent Hiei an affirmative before she realized he couldn't hear it when she was like this.
She did not have long to wait, however, as he almost immediately lay down next to her without waiting for a response and kissed her.
Scars slipping away under his desire, when Shikiyoku finally reopened her eyes she lifted her arms to curl them around his neck while giving him a contented smile and slowly blinking once sleepily.
(Always. Waiting for you.) 3
Hiei gave a small hum to Shiki as he pulled just far enough away to break the contact, his arm resting over her midsection as she curled her arms around his neck. His eyelids were quickly closed and whatever leftover tension had been there was gone now, replaced with content at being right where he'd wanted to be all day long.
He had tried to keep her from waiting, honestly.
But that demon had decided to draw out the evening longer than necessary.
He quickly banished the thought and pulled Shikiyoku closer, mind going blank rather quickly now.
(Hn.)
~!**!~
Akari gave a protesting groan. "But Chu had so much of it.." She could still taste it in her mouth, and it made the want that much stronger.
But, he'd said no.
Uuuuuugggghhhhh…
"You're no fun." Her hand flattened against his chest, no longer tracing the scar as she took a deep breath in. "You shmell good." Like always.
"Hey Kurama," she began again, eyes closing. "I feel uncomfortable… I wanna nap but…" She shifted around a little, groaning when the pants she wore constricted a little. Fighting-style clothing was not meant to sleep in. "It's annoying." *
As if he wasn't already in an awkward position, her shifting around did nothing to help the little Youko imitator in his brain. Neither did her starting down the pathway of a subject that Kurama could just feel going nowhere good.
"I can always get up and retrieve you some water." Kurama tried to take the subject that might distract her, "That you will be allowed to drink."
~!**!~
Without being consciously aware of it, Shikiyoku breathed the smallest, silent sigh out of her nose, drinking in the features of the hybrid demon that drew her even closer than before, his actions causing a light blush to settle nicely across her cheeks.
She hadn't really enjoyed these moments of late, but the prickling along her skin told her that she was most definitely enjoying it now.
She still had that little smile coloring her features as she relaxed into his embrace, letting her eyes rove over his face for the first time in what seemed like forever, able to see him once more and finding that it did nothing to help how deeply she blushed, and also finding that she did not particularly care. 3
Hiei felt the warmth that heated Shikiyoku's cheeks, but in his tired state, he didn't think much of it. He did, however, notice the feeling of eyes watching him, and it kept him just aware enough of his surroundings to not allow him to fall into sleep yet. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he registered that she'd been blind earlier that day and seemed able to stare at him now with full intensity, and the thought amused him.
Slight curiosity pulled at his attention, but he did not voice it.
Nor did he remark on her staring, as he had no actual problem with it aside from it keeping him awake a little longer.
~!**!~
"Nooooo…" Akari complained, whining at the thought of him moving, and thus her moving. Because she was quite comfortable where she lay, except-
"Kurammmaaaa," she began in a grouse, "you're trying to dishtract me doeshn't help my pants become comfy." She did still again, but she wasn't exactly happy with it. "Jusht help me… pleeeaaasssseeeee." *
"And how exactly is me not distracting you going to help your pants become comfy?"
~!**!~
After another moment, Shikiyoku closed her eyes and sank further into both Hiei's arms and the bed.
(...I missed you.) 3
Hiei let out a small breath and sent his internal reaction through the bond to her just as his mind fell into sleep.
(You too…)
~!**!~
"I-" What? "I-unno.." She wasn't even sure she understood what he'd just said. Akari made a sound of distress. As the sound died away, she took in a large breath, and then huffed it out in a short puff of air that was very dog-like, and if she'd had ears they would have turned back for a moment.
She shifted a little, trying to lay in a position that might actually help her discomfort, but only achieving more discomfort and she stilled just as quickly.
"Kuramaa…" she complained some more. "Just help me take them off!" Another sound of distress, and her tone became pleading. "I'll leave you alone if you do itt… please?" *
As she shifted around on top of him, Kurama found himself pressing his teeth together and shutting his eyes, having to resist any number of things that he wanted to do to or with her that popped into his head as she moved.
Kurama was not positive she would leave him alone, even if he had any intentions of assisting her in removing her pants.
Youko might actually threaten to kill me when he finds out about this encounter.
"Your pants can stay right where they are, beautiful." As if it would help him, Kurama took the arm that wasn't still underneath his head and lay it over her shoulders. 3
"But… Youko would do it! That'sh why I'm ashking you, becaushe he's not here…" Akari paused, lips pursing in a pout and a whine verberating in her chest. She did quiet for a moment, however, when his arm draped over her shoulder, the warmth from that gesture distracted her. And, purely out of instinct, she returned the gesture with her arms coming up to make a rather pathetic attempt at wrapping around his neck, only managing to simply rest on either side of his cranium instead.
Her next words were a whisper. "Can I tell you a secret?" She paused, though not quite long enough for him to answer. "I really like Kurama. He makes me happy even when I don't wanna be." Another pause. "Don't tell Youko, but I…" What's the word? "I…" Ehhh…..
"Hng.."
It's right there…
"Hey Kurama?" She decided to change the subject entirely all over again. "Do you think Nabu misses me? Because I miss Nabu, and I wanna go home. I don't like it here." *
Really the only thing keeping Kurama from going insane was the fact that with every inhalation he could smell the alcohol on Akari's breath. It continuously reminded him of the mental state of the demon laying on top of him and managed to stave off any wants or desires he may have had.
Plus Youko wasn't yelling inappropriate things in his ear.
Kurama had not actually thought of Nabu in a long while, but felt unsurprised that Akari considered the subject. Hopefully the dog had found Kuwabara should he have been in need of assistance.
"I imagine he misses you very much, beautiful." Kurama murmured, thinking of how much he had missed her when she had very first left to visit her pack. 3
Akari didn't respond for a few minutes, her thoughts stalling as she gave a sigh, all former discomfort forgotten for the moment. Her eyelids squeezed together and she shifted her face closer to Kurama's, but didn't quite manage to get close enough to touch her nose to his skin as she wanted to. "I wanna go home."
She went quiet again, giving a heavy sigh.
"...will you call me beautiful again?" *
"I would call you beautiful any time you like." 3
"I'll call you beautiful too if you wan' me to.." Akari felt her lips pull up in an odd smile. She went quiet again, this time opening her eyes to look at Kurama's face- or what she could see of it anyway. She smacked her lips a little as if she could feel the drink sliding down her throat again, except this time instead of wanting more, she found herself wishing the taste would go away.
"Hey Kurama," she began, but her trail of thought was gone just as quick, and she didn't continue. *
Kurama felt his lips twitch upwards at the prospect of Akari calling him 'beautiful,' which amused him if only because while she had never called him that to his knowledge, it had been an adjective passed around the high school a lot once he started to grow out his hair.
When she did not continue, he prompted her.
"Yes, beautiful?" 3
Akari pursed her lips when Kurama goaded at her. She couldn't remember what she'd been about to say. "I dunno." She admitted with a small shrug. "I just like your name."
She blinked once, and realized that that was indeed the case.
"Kurama. Kurama. Kurama. Kurama." She pursed her lips as she thought of other ways to enunciate his name. "Kuwama." That last one had her giggling a little. "It's like a combo of you and Kuwabara…"
Another giggle.
"Kuwama."
A small snort.
"Ku...ra...ma… Kur...a...ma." She made a face.
"Shuichi." That one had her giggling a little more. "Shoo-ee-chee." More giggles that slowly died away as a small bubble of air made its way up her throat, which escaped her lips in a small sound. *
Letting his eyes close as the female laying on top of him continued to keep herself entertained, the smile that had been only an echo before started creeping further up either side of his mouth.
"So, how much did you and Chu share? A bottle each?" The quantity seemed about right. 3
Akari made a sound as she tried to remember, blinking once and looking up at the redhead. "A bottle…" how much was in the first? "...and a half?"
That felt right…
The thought of it, however, was anything but right. In fact, she felt a little disgusted with just thinking about it, and her throat felt dry. Her stomach gave a little roll as she became very aware of the taste in her mouth.
The thick liquid, the burning sensation as it slid down her throat. The way it just sat in her stomach. The aftertaste...
"Kurma," she began again, her eyes closing and arms moving closer to him. "I.." ...Don't feel so good. *
Aaaaand that's what I was waiting for.
Without hesitation, Kurama immediately shifted around, sitting up and starting to gather Akari into his arms, carrying her towards his bathroom where he set her down near the toilet.
Of course he could have rid her of the drunkenness from the beginning, it wasn't as if he did not have such knowledge of plants at his disposal, but now the girl would know her limit since she did not appear to have been aware of it up to this point.
He did plan on helping relieve her of any hangover. That was a simple matter of getting her rehydrated. 3
Maybe if she just lay still, it would-
The very moment Kurama was moving, Akari was protesting with a loud groan and flails of her arms. "Don't!" Her stomach pitched and rolled with the movements, and her skin suddenly felt clammy and sticky and gross. She stilled in his arms just before he lowered her to the floor, at which point she could feel the sickness traveling up.
Almost as soon as his arms left her on the tiled floor, she was holding her breath just long enough so that she could quite literally hug the toilet seat and lean over just far enough that when she did puke, it wasn't all over the floor.
And so she retched and heaved and puked until she had nothing but air leaving her, at which point she found her cheek resting on the toilet seat and her eyes squeezed shut, her nose crinkled and body trembling from the force of each retch.
Gross..
She leaned away from the toilet to slam the lid of it down while her other hand reached for the lever that flushed the disgustingness away. And, feeling gross and clammy and extremely disgusting, she pulled her shirt over her head, completely forgetting where she was but not that she had some of that sickness down her shirtfront.
She tossed the article aside with a pained groan and proceeded to lean onto the lid of the toilet again, eyes closed and a second groan leaving her. *
Kurama waited patiently nearby as Akari emptied her stomach of the offending contents, making certain her hair stayed out of way until it appeared she had finished, at which point he only turned away long enough to fill a cup with water from the sink and squat next to her to hold it out.
"Drink this. It will help later." He gently moved aside a portion of her hair that had fallen to veil her face, offering the cup as he did so. 3
Akari's eyes came open and while she stared at Kurama, for a moment she didn't actually see him, and her eyelids slid closed again. I don't wanna move. Her stomach hurt and her head pounded, and had she had anything more in her stomach, she would have been retching again. Instead, her body only gave a little jolt as if she'd hiccupped, and another groan left her.
After another moment, she did push herself to sit up, though an arm remained on the lid of the seat to keep her upright as she wiped at her eyes and then reached for the cup, quickly downing the contents, finding her throat thanking her for the moisture and her stomach settling some more.
And now she felt exhausted.
Never… drink with Chu again… *
After dressing her in one of the shirts of his uniform, Kurama lifted Akari up from the floor again and carried her back to bed.
Throughout the night he woke her periodically to make sure she drank more water, though a few hours before dawn he went ahead and let the two of them sleep, finding that despite the interruption, the sleep he did get was sound and restful. 3
When Akari woke the next day, she was extremely comfortable, the blankets over her warm and the pillow under her cheek even warmer. Her fingers gave a small twitch and she shifted just a little, before suddenly deciding it wasn't the best idea and that she didn't exactly feel 100%.
The first thought that came across her mind was that she wanted to go right back to sleep. And she tried to do just that, but instead she found a song on repeat in her head- one that must have been in a dream or something- and it wouldn't quiet down enough to allow her to slip back into consciousness.
So, instead, she let a finger tap to the rhythm for about thirty seconds before she realized the material underneath both her cheek and her hand was not indeed that of a sheet, and the warmth that radiated from it was not exactly…
It wasn't supposed to radiate heat.
The brief mental image of Chu sliding her a bottle had her cringing.
Oh… Oh, no….
Eyes squeezed shut and mind creating a mantra of please don't be who I think it is, the hand on the material gave a little squeeze, and then another before she realized it was a person's skin, a person's chest. And for the life of her, she couldn't remember anything from the day before other than drinking with Chu.
Please no.
Quickly, she checked herself mentally and found that she was indeed wearing a shirt. A large shirt that wasn't… hers… but a shirt nonetheless.
And she was also relieved to know she was wearing pants.
Thank god I'm fully clothed… *
Cruising just below consciousness, set to awaken at the first hint of stirring from Akari, Kurama let himself slowly rise away from sleep when he felt her move without the intention of leaving.
Granted, as soon as the fingers at his chest twitched as if to take his pectoral muscle in her grip, his lips pulled up at one corner as he resisted a chuckle.
If he had to guess, she likely thought him to be Chu.
Would she really have gone to bed with him?
"You don't recognize this?" Kurama let the muscle underneath her hand tense, having to try really hard to maintain a straight face, attempting to sound almost insulted at the idea that she might not. 3
She didn't mean for it to become an actual sound, but a small squeal peeled from her lips at the flexing of the muscles beneath her hand and she pulled away, her first instinct to roll as far away from this person as possible.
Needless to say, it took an extra moment before she actually registered the voice and what had been said, and while it was very comforting to know she had not somehow ended like this with Chu, she still felt as if the metaphorical hackles were on end from the surprise.
Because how in the hell did she get here?
As she began to pull away nervously, her voice came out a strained comment, "Please tell me… you have pants on…" *
Kurama turned as she began to leave his side, letting his grip loosen so that she could do whatever she wished, but he leveled an even stare on her.
"Even if I did not, do you honestly think that I would take advantage of such a situation?" 3
As Akari rolled from atop Kurama and to his side, she became very aware of the larger shirt on her body and adjusted it so that she would not be uncomfortable, her eyes finally coming open to look at Kurama for a brief second before turning away when she caught his stare. She tried very hard to ignore the redness that bloomed on her face and neck, and the sound she made was not one of unsurity, but of embarrassment.
Had it been Youko she'd woken up to-
She cringed visibly at the thought and quickly shifted gears.
"Where… is my shirt?" *
"Drying." He immediately replied, leaving the other subject be. "In the bathroom. You made a mess of it last night and decided to discard it, so I lent you one of my own and cleaned yours. It should be close to dry by now." 3
Gross.
She gave a sound that said she understood, but went quiet again as she struggled to remember anything after the first full bottle with Chu. And the effort had an ache growing behind her eyes, which she rubbed at after a moment.
I'm just gonna…
...Go?
That idea made a pit in her stomach and this time when her eyes opened, she was taking in her surroundings. With each inhale, she smelled Kurama's aroma dominantly, and she recognized that this room was not her own, nor that of the training room.
Oh… no…
Where her cheeks had been red before, they now turned pale.
Oh no..
"I.."
Crap…
"I messed up. I screwed up. We're screwed." Yomi's gonna know… Why did I come down here and when did I come down here and…
"I screwed us so bad… I can't believe…" She gave a loud groan. I'm so stupid. *
Kurama let out a protesting sort of sigh and turned to face her, gathering Akari up in his arms.
"I hope you know you owe me combat pay for this." He mumbled into her hair, changing the subject a little, "You were dead-set on me removing your pants and I just want you to know that I was good and didn't do it."
He paused for a split second.
"...even though I kind of really wanted to...a lot." 3
Akari made a sound somewhere between a grunt and a groan at Kurama's words, her entire being tensing with the new information the redhead delivered as he folded his arms around her and buried his nose in her hair. She didn't remember doing any of that, and to say she was mortified at the thought was an understatement. And she repeated the same sound.
Her mind, completely blank and her nerves shot, supplied her with one retort that flew from her lips.
"What, want a treat? Sorry, I'm out of biscuits." *
"You're out?" Kurama whined playfully, "But I was so nice to you. I even arranged it so that no one would ever know you were here." He pouted a little and huffed a little whine into her hair before grumbling, "You should rectify the lack of treats. As soon as possible." 3
"I-"
Can't think, you pain in my rear.
"-can't do that right now. I'm rather tied up at the moment."
Tongue tied too.
Akari went quiet, trying to gather her bearings and recover, because being told that you'd asked someone to unclothe you was not something she was sure how to handle.
Remember to repay him later…
"Wait, so Yomi doesn't know I'm here?" Thank the lord… "So, what, are we just gonna lay here all day until it's safe for me to leave without him knowing..?" I… dunno what to think about that, considering... *
"Mm," Kurama made a pleased sound, "You know I had not actually considered the idea of having us lay here all day. I like it much better than the plan I came up with. Good thought."
He moved as if to settle down further onto the bed, burying his face in her hair and resting his cheek on her head, murmuring, "This is why I keep you around." 3
Akari opened her mouth to reply, found it shutting, and then reopening again as she searched for a way to rebut his decision. In the end, however, as he settled further into the mattress and brought her closer, she found that part of her that was thankful for this sudden normalcy, despite what he'd said and what she couldn't remember of the day before.
Definitely remember to thank him later…
"So, uh…" How did I get here? "Anything else I should… know?" She was tentative about the subject, but really… she felt it necessary, because she certainly wouldn't be remembering everything any time soon. *
Deciding they could enact his portion of the plan perhaps the next night, Kurama closed his eyes and enjoyed the sensation of having her so close while she was of the right mind.
"Not particularly." He replied in another murmur, "Though I must say I had no idea you wanted me to remove your pants so badly. Next time ask me when you're of the right mind and I would be more than happy to oblige." 3
Erk.
Akari gave a twitch that ran the entire length of her body, and her hands came away from where they had rested against his chest. She made a nervous sound and slowly tried to slide away, that same sound turning into a nervous laugh.
Uh..
"S-sure…"
What do I say to that?
"...sure….." *
Kurama let out a chuckle at her obvious uncomfortableness at the thought, refusing to let her actually move away from him.
"...I'll hold you to that." He said calmly, letting his breathing even out.
~!**!~
Days went by. Or so Shikiyoku assumed. It really was hard to tell when one was so far in the fortress that no outside light was available to gauge.
Each time Hiei left her, she would journey down to the labs, but as of late she had not gotten the opportunity to do so by moving inbetween.
Someone had mandated that she travel by foot, and with an escort of some kind or another, a few of whom she began to recognize and know by name.
Those few were the ones she could honestly tell were simply trying to get to know her, to test the waters with her, who showed interest in her person. The others? Several were actually only attempting to get with her in the most base and carnal sense of the word.
Okay, so really the truth was rest of them were trying to sleep with her save for those few whose intentions, while in the end likely had such a goal in mind, for now were concentrated on learning more about her. It was however getting harder and harder to dissuade the more forward ones from such advances.
Each session spent in the lab always ended with her in pain form, being led back to the room, and usually collapsing somewhere-the couch if too tired, the bed if she could make it that far-and starting to drift off to sleep, but never really managing it until Hiei reappeared.
After changing her back, neither of them had much to say as they almost immediately would fall asleep in each others arms, and so Shikiyoku did not get the chance to ever update Hiei on any progress that was being made as to curing her of the Crusnik that had invaded her body.
They had discovered thus far that the Crusnik were in fact within her energy-as opposed to the blood-and specifically that which she had access to while in pain form.
This made for some sort of plan to begin taking shape as to expel said Crusnik from her body, and led to Shikiyoku staying later and later as the days passed by, until even Iketeru and Rikei were gone and she was left there hunched over one of the counters, trying to work on the formulas they needed in order to make the idea work.
One such night she sat back a little in the stool, staring down at the pad of paper in front of her whose symbols and erased markings and scratched out portions were starting to blend together before her eyes.
Reaching up with the hand not holding the pencil, she rubbed her fingers just above her eyebrows, making a noise of unhappiness before planting her elbow back on the counter and putting her face in her hand to glare at the page some more.
She had reached a block in the formula, unable to come up with a workaround and having sat there for several hours trying every little thing she could come up with to get the result the next portion would require.
And now she had nothing, frustrated and irritated.
Clenching her teeth together, she growled.
The two emotions were nothing new. In fact she had become very well acquainted with them more and more recently, each night she returned to her room leaving her with darker thoughts than the night before that were only lifted by Hiei's presence.
There was no denying in her mind that when they were apart she found herself more susceptible to such things.
Granted, every other night she had arrived at their room in her other form, while this evening in particular she had not been required to switch.
She couldn't decide if that was more or less helpful to the work before her.
Likely less since I can't think straight right now.
Letting out a sigh, she scratched out the error in the work in front of her and tried to tweak it, but came up with nothing and let out another noise of irritation. 3
Hiei landed within the fortress and made his way to the room he hadn't had enough energy to land in, the layers having unfolded from around him as soon as he'd landed on the fifth floor corridors. He could still smell the blood on his arm from where he'd earlier allowed a blow during a fight to land, if only to end the fight quicker when that blow allowed an opening in the other's defences. It had healed relatively quickly, but the dried and crusted blood still bothered him this night.
As did everything else.
He shut the door behind himself and looked at the couch, only half surprised to see Shikiyoku not laying along its cushions in exhaustion. He continued to the bedroom, and found much the same story: no Shiki. It looked as if she hadn't been in here since they'd parted ways that morning.
He moved for the bathroom, already aware that her presence was not inside. With a damp cloth in hand, he cleansed his skin of the offending blood before tossing the used material aside and moving back out the bathroom, through the bedroom and out into the halls again.
Because he refused to sleep without her by his side.
He moved through the silent halls, glad that no other demons roamed at this late hour as he made his way to the labs. It didn't take him too terribly long to travel down that way, pausing at the door to glance about until his eyes landed on a tense, but scarless Shikiyoku.
Curious, he moved into the room until he was standing behind her, looking over her shoulder at the paper she'd been staring at. His tension from the day was gone within moments of being within her company, and whatever impatience he'd felt at her lack of presence in their room melted away into genuine curiosity as he stared at the many numbers and abbreviated words on the paper that was crinkled from many erasings.
He didn't say anything, only watching.
~!**!~
Kurama's arms tightening around her did have Akari pausing, letting him draw her closer even if she still felt discomfort from his declaration. She took a deep breath, realizing that she'd done it to herself, and forced herself to relax into the redhead as he too relaxed.
...It was good to hear a chuckle from him, after so many days of saying nothing to each other aside from the remarks the day before.
"I just want us to be happy…" The words echoed in her mind, and somewhere she realized that it had been something she'd said to him in her drunken stupor the night before.
A small smile twitched at her lips and she let her arms move to encircle his neck, her eyes closing as all thoughts about discomfort gone. *
Kurama smiled as she put her arms around him, deciding that now might be as good a time as any to run a few things by her that she may have missed or may not have heard about yet.
"I am uncertain as to how much you hear passed around the base, but our spies have reported that Raizen is making no effort to increase the numbers of layer-moving demons in his ranks."
~!**!~
Squeezing her eyes shut as tight as possible, when Shikiyoku opened them next it was as if several things fell into place and she sat up a little straighter, blinking at the page even as she started back at the beginning of the section she was adjusting and mentally working her way through the steps, though she already felt confident her sudden revelation had solved the problem.
It was only a beat later that she also realized the vast majority of her irritation had drained away, and somehow she could not completely attribute it to that feeling of satisfaction at discovering the correct answer to her current issue.
In that same moment, she became aware of a great deal of curiosity that she knew was not her own, and while she did not think the demon nearby meant to immediately remove her from the premises, that did not stop her from switching the writing utensil to her other hand to begin filling in the blanks and raising a finger between them.
(Wait. Hold on. Don't move me yet.)
As the answer started pouring out from her mind, she simultaneously reached out with her other hand that had been between them as if to stop his taking her and grabbed for whatever part of him was nearest, dragging him even closer.
(In fact...c'mere.) 3
Hiei watched over Shiki's shoulder, brow raised and eyes roving over every inch of the paper as if he might understand what was going on if he stared long enough. And he noticed she wasn't going to be moving anytime soon, because her pencil began scratching along again, erasing the mistakes and correcting them before moving to the next problem.
He really hadn't felt the need for her to tell him not to move her. He hadn't intended to just yet, despite his exhaustion. After all, he hadn't gotten to see what she did around here much, especially as of late. And they never really had time to discuss it either, as they both usually went to sleep as soon as she was switched back and they were comfortable, before parting ways again in the morning.
When her fingers curled around the cloak near his hip and tugged him closer, he complied and took that last step that would bring his arm to touching her shoulder, his eyes never leaving the paper as if he might somehow understand after a while.
(What's this?)
~!**!~
Akari gave a small hum to Kurama as she settled, her lips pursing for a moment as she wondered what that would mean. Sure, she'd heard a few things here and there when she'd been listening, but most of the time she ignored the other denizens of this place. Maybe I'll start listening for gossip more often.
"What do you think they're planning?" *
"Personally? I can only make guesses at this point, but I feel confident Yusuke and Raizen are plotting something and this is their way of communicating that to those of us who know of Yusuke." Kurama sniffed a little, his tone growing more self-important, "However, on a professional level, if anyone else asks I haven't the slightest idea what it means."
~!**!~
Mind clearer than it had been all day, Shikiyoku did not let go of Hiei's cloak even when he obliged and stepped up to her.
She could vaguely feel bits and pieces of what she knew would not translate as anything but nonsensical jargon to Hiei drifting over the connection as she continued filling in the blanks that would lead her to the next section of the formulas.
There was only a second of pause where she sat up a little, eyes scanning the work before a little smile tugged at her lips and she bent back down, finding the areas that had been closed to her that night unfolding in her mind before she even got to them, leading her right up to where she had intended to halt.
She felt his question filter between them and replied as she kept methodically undoing and redoing the work that blocked her for so long.
(Right now? Conjectures. Guesswork. The Crusnik-the virus-are not in the blood, but reside in my energy. Attempting to cleanse something from the heart is relatively easy. Cleansing from the core has never been done before as far as we know.)
Shikiyoku let out a little sigh.
(It's been a while since we've even attempted a 'cure.' Nothing's worked so far. Now we're concentrating on removing the virus entirely, expelling it.) 3
Hiei took in the information passed to him little by little, his tired mind storing it away for later analyzation when it would make sense. He gave a short nod, not replying to her so he wouldn't distract her from her work. His ears listened to the scratching of the graphite and his eyes followed the lead across the paper, not minding that her grip on his cloak never even lessened.
If he didn't interrupt her, she would accomplish something more for her cure.
And he didn't mind waiting on her.
~!**!~
Akari's lips spread wide in a smile and a small laugh left her lips.
"And what are you plotting, mister?" *
"Me?" Kurama asked almost incredulously, "I haven't plotted a single thing in my entire life. Ask anyone."
~!**!~
It took a few minutes more for Shikiyoku to finally catch up to where the next portion of the steps would start, and even then she made further notes to herself about where to take it from there, only slowing down once when she let go of Hiei's cloak to make a noise of discomfort and rub her other hand at the back of her neck, leaving it there as she finished up.
Giving the page a final once-over, she leaned into Hiei and released a deep breath.
(I'd been stuck on that one little part over half the day.)
The emotion accompanying the admittance was a wry one, given that Hiei had appeared and essentially solved the problem in less time than it had taken to write it all out. 3
(Hn.)
He remained where he stood for a moment, still staring at the paper as she leaned into him, seemingly saying she was done for the night. He carefully turned and slid an arm under her legs, the other behind her back to support her as he lifted her from her stool and turned to carry her from the labs.
(You're welcome.)
He walked up the two flights of stairs necessary before he was moving down the long hallway to their shared room, managing to get the door open with the hand under her knees before closing it with her feet.
He wasted absolutely no time at all in moving for the bedroom and getting comfortable on the bed, arms still around her as he relaxed.
(….Woman.)
~!**!~
Akari's eyes came open and her brows raised. She pulled away enough to peer into the redhead's face with an expression that matched his tone, and she very deliberately turned her attention to herself with a tilt of her head.
"Akari, has Kurama ever plotted anything in his lifetime?"
She paused as her expression changed, turning mock cheerful. "Why, yes, Akari, he has! Too many times to count, actually!"
"Mm-hm, I thought so."
She ended the personal monologue with a nod of her head and a sound of confirmation as her eyes focused on Kurama again, expression serious as if waiting for him to challenge her. *
Kurama's face appeared perfectly serious as she exchange words with herself.
"Anyone besides you. Asking yourself does not count as receiving an answer brings into question your sanity."
~!**!~
Shikiyoku let her pencil fall onto the counter as she sensed Hiei's intention to lift her up, and she felt absolutely no need to protest such an arrangement, only wrapping her arms around his neck.
When they reached the door of the lab, she did get a small sense of hesitation in the back of her mind that disappeared almost as quickly as it had formed when she found there to be no escort that night.
Instead of wondering why they might not be there, she instead let her head rest against his neck as he carried her the rest of the way back to their rooms.
Shifting only a little to get more comfortable after he lay down next to her, she conveyed her curiosity as to his last word, unsure if he simply meant to tack it on to the end of his previous phrase or if he had something more he wished to say to her. 3
Hiei got comfortable very quickly, his body settling into the bed and his arms wrapping firmly about Shikiyoku as if he thought she might get up and leave even though he knew that was not the case by any means. His eyes closed and he was aware that she was unsure of his meaning behind the tack-on of the word, but the only thing he sent to her was mild amusement as his breathing evened out.
~!**!~
Akari's expression remained just as serious when Kurama spoke, and her first reaction was to say you said anyone, but instead a better idea came to mind, and her brow raised high as she took a breath.
"Chu, has Kurama ever plotted anything in his lifetime?"
Her expression changed into a sloppy grin and she took in a deep breath, her words coming out in a heavy accent that was weighed down with slurs from mock drunkenness. "Why, Sheila, I would bet my best bottle of liquor on it!"
She fought to force her expression neutral again as the next one popped into mind. "Youko, has Kurama ever plotted anything in his lifetime?"
Her expression changed as if to mock the fox demon, and when she opened her mouth her tone was taunting, "Well, I don't know. If you-"
She stopped there, blinking as the voice in her head relayed the message she could just hear the kitsune retorting with. One she had almost relayed on her own.
One she didn't like.
And she didn't speak another word, her lips clamping closed firmly and her eyes turning away from the redhead. *
Kurama lowered his voice, adopting Youko's velvety tone as he leaned closer to Akari with a mischievous and teasing gleam in his eyes.
"-take off your pants for me I might tell you."3
Thanks for reading! Bless your face. If you sneezed during this chapter, bless you. Peace off!