Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. Shocking, huh?
Kurama's mood had fallen exponentially by the time he gathered everyone up and made his way toward the two energy signatures which he identified as Yusuke and Jin. After a less than friendly encounter with a certain fire demon in the hallway, he ached for the promise of a good match. His limbs had grown tense; between the weeks of relative inactivity and the frustration from the other he found himself in a fairly constant state of exasperation.
Why should I care what you do?
The words echoed bitterly in his mind as he trudged through the greenery, making an effort to calm himself but finding it uncharacteristically difficult. Even with his sharp tongue, the fire demon had flitted off in the direction he was now heading, which should have offered him some comfort. He failed to feel it, though, as he fumed over the other's recent behavior. He had become so distant, so unwilling to continue their partnership and even worse their friendship. The fox was lost as to what had brought about this change in his smaller friend, but everytime he reached out he was met with cool indifference. After nearly dying together at the Ankoku Bujutsukai, or more accurately nearly dying for each other's sake, he had hoped that they would have grown closer. Instead, he had been abandoned.
The whole group was arranged in a large clearing toward the far end of Genkai's property, the old warrior herself opting to stay behind and help Yukina tend to some undisclosed chores. Yusuke was babbling happily to Chuu, meeting the fox's eyes with a glimmer. He nodded at him, then turned his attention to the rest of the group.
Hiei was leaning against a tree on the sidelines, eyes closed, looking peaceful. Kurama relaxed for a moment, taking in the sight, then froze. Their gaze had locked, and for a moment the veridian eyed fighter thought he saw something reflected in them. They widened slightly, then were turned away. The fox suppressed a sigh. Apparently progress would not be forthcoming.
Jin had been talking to Touya, but he excused himself when he saw the other redhead approach. He glanced over at Yusuke, who had made the same connection, and called everyone over.
"Alright everyone, so here's how this is gonna work. We're gonna pair off, each of us with someone we've never fought before. We're starting off later than we planned, so let's do two fights at a time. First, Kuwabara, you're with Chuu. Jin, you and Kurama will go at the same time. After that it's me and Touya, and Hiei you're with Rinku. Any questions? Good! Let's get going!"
The air was charged, clear anticipation for the fights about to occur swirling around them. Kuwabara and Chuu took one half of the clearing, which was marked in the middle by a great oak, while Jin and Kurama wandered onto the other side. The first pair went directly into a dialogue on how the other would lose, which was both expected and tedious. The onlookers, knowing that it would be some time before they actually took to fighting, turned their attention to the other pair.
Kurama was kneeling in the center of the space they were allotted, letting his fingers run over the long grass as the last few points in his plan were settled. He stood slowly, breathing deeply before turning to look at the one across from him, ignoring the small group watching them. Jin just stared, waiting to see what the other would do. To his surprise, Kurama only smiled, then gestured for them to meet in the middle. He obliged, but couldn't help but feel hesitant.
"Jin," the kitsune began, speaking lower than he usually would, forcing the other to invade his personal space just to hear him. "This forest is incredibly old, you know. It would be a shame if we harmed it out of sport. What do you say we set the terms for this fight? Only one or two of our basic techniques each, a fight of skill? Winner can choose his prize after. What do you say?" The words were only a breath, carried away before they could reach the ears of the others. Jin suddenly became very aware of his surroundings as one of the fox's long fingers brushed across his wrist, despite it being out of the others' sight. He stepped back, trying to swallow the strangeness he felt as he met the redhead's eyes, nodding in agreement.
"Sounds like a plan to me. But I won't be goin' easy on ya, so don't hold out on me, ya hear?" They had separated by a fair distance, the wind master taking a ready stance in anticipation. Kurama lifted his hand, a signal that he was just as ready.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
Then, the kitsune's eyes closed, his long eyelashes fluttering as a breeze swept past them. His mouth parted, ever so slightly, drawing attention to his soft lips. The raised hand flipped his hair back in an exaggerated arc. Again, there was that peek of flesh. Between the fox and the sunlight, Jin found himself blinded. His muscles had just begun to relax when he realized that the former thief had summoned his rose.
He had barely enough time to move before the rose, which was extending with the movement, flew through the air, nearly taking his feet out from under him. The wind master jumped, fumbling through the air in his surprise, but that didn't stop him from catching the mischievous smile that graced the other's lips. It also didn't stop him from grinning back, his ears twitching in delight at the rise of a new challenge. They were still for a moment, just smirking at each other, then bounded forward.
The onlookers watched with baited curiosity as the two began to dance and twirl around each other, Jin trying to get a close quarters hit while Kurama kept him at a distance through clever use of his whip. Yusuke's eyes were fixed on the scene playing out in front of him. It had been months since he had watched a fight with such attention to detail. Kurama's movement was fluid; his momentum seemed to guide him exactly where he needed to be without the slightest effort. Had Yusuke not known the real reason behind the fight, he might not have even noticed. The almost contact that Jin was allowed to make, the near misses of the whip- they were all intentional. The wind master still seemed oblivious, but Yusuke could tell that Kurama had executed stage one of his plan.
The fox moved slyly, drawing his opponent in, only to slip away at the last moment. Neither fighter had gotten particularly serious, a perfect opportunity for him to show off his physical prowess. Each blow that would have otherwise been blocked by the whip the fox almost let connect, taking every attack as if it were a step in a complicated waltz. He twisted and turned his body, at times letting it brush along the muscled skin of the other, planting the subconscious seeds that he would use in the next stage. Jin's eyes followed him, as he expected of the fighter, as he moved in a sensual circle around the horned demon. With every free moment between blows the kitsune let his free hand wander over his own body: through his hair as it fell unceremoniously in his face, over his torso as Jin's fist almost made contact with it, along his calf as he stretched across the ground in a sideways crouch. The wind master's face scrunched up in thought, and he knew it was time to move on to the second round.
No one seemed to be watching Kuwabara and Chuu, though the drunkard hadn't noticed and the carrot-top was too busy being teased by him to really get a comment in edgewise. All eyes were on the redheads, their interest having been peaked by the difference in the feeling of the fight. Yusuke was surprised at how quickly he had noted the change, and he'd be damned not to admit how good Kurama looked with this change in style. It was like watching a performance, and the detective could feel heat rising to his face as he watched the half human fun his fingers along his own skin, as he feigned an innocent misstep just to get within closer proximity of his target, of how his eyes swept over that half covered skin. Even his own cheeks were flushed from the sight of it- he could only imagine what it must've been doing to Jin.
Or to Hiei.
Suddenly remembering his role, he looked over to the fire demon, who had joined the group once the fight began. The expression painted on his face was a puzzle, each piece a different emotion that he was sorting through silently. There was clear interest- none of them had ever seen the redhead fight as if winning was only secondary to his vanity. It couldn't be helped that he was captivated, even if it was painful to see. That was the second piece, the touch of hurt at such an open display of desire, aimed at another. There was also impatience; his bound left hand twitched as if it itched to jump in and take the wind master's place in the fight, to put a stop to the foolishness. And then the ruby eyes grew large, drawing Yusuke's attention back to the match, earning a small gasp from him as he saw the whip finally connect with Jin, wrapping around his torso with ease.
The Shinobi was thrown to his side of the arena. Using the momentum, he attempted to pull the whip from Kurama's grasp. Knowing that it was a foolish move, but one that still managed to work to his advantage, the fox thief pulled back, digging his feet in the ground and lessening the force of his ki. The wind master slipped from the whip's grasp, his top becoming nothing more than a pile of scraps as he tried to right himself in mid-air. The move had also knocked Kurama off balance, plunging him into the ground on the opposite side of their makeshift arena. Using his tactical advantage, Jin dove, swinging his fist as he descended on the plant master. Kurama didn't move for a moment, not having anywhere to go, before the horned demon came down on him.
Yusuke and Touya both stifled gasps as the fox thief caught the offending fist in his hand, Jin's other arm digging deep into the ground with the force that he had exhausted. The two wrestled for a moment, neither willing to back down. Sweat broke over both of their foreheads as their energy clashed, and Yusuke could see that slowly, Kurama was sinking back into the dirt below at Jin's strength. Then, without warning, the tables turned once more.
At first, no one knew exactly what he was planning. They only watched as the fox turned his head, maneuvering so that he could raise his hips. Jin nearly faltered as his thighs met the other's with a soft brush, distracting him. Suddenly, Kurama let out a cry and his energy surged. Before he had a chance to escape, vines shot from the ground, wrapping themselves around Jin's legs, arms, and torso. The vines twisted around each limb, working their way quickly into the confines of what clothing he had left, pulling him roughly around and into the ground. The fox, from his new position, had no trouble flipping the horned demon onto his back, sliding up to straddle his waist as the other struggled to break free. The wind master, it seemed, was grounded.
Yusuke bit his lip, watching almost breathlessly as the two's positions were switched. His fists were clenched, an attempt at taming the rough beating of his heart and heat down below that had risen when Kurama had taken control. His eyes hadn't deceived him; the fox was incredibly slick. Up until then, he didn't even know it was possible to manipulate a plant so precisely, but Kurama had done exactly that: his vines making their way up the air apparition's thin pants, teasingly sliding over the seams of his legs. The vines around his chest were working similarly, constricting and loosening as they slid over exposed skin, no doubt to encourage blood flow to more sensitive areas. The fox was clever, the movement of the plants seeming random and haphazard to the untrained eye. He might have even missed it, if not for the hitch in the Shinobi's breath as he conceded the fight much too easily.
There really was nothing else he could do. Even if he wasn't out of breath, even if the vines holding him suddenly let up and he was able to break free, Jin knew that he couldn't fight for a second longer. In fact, he never wanted to fight the insane redhead again. Not with the eyes that were staring down at him from a very compromising position, or the hands that were resting against his chest, playing with one of the wriggling vines, or with the pressure that being sat on was putting up against the right places. In fact, if Kurama had asked just about anything of him right then, he'd probably have agreed to it without hesitation- anything to stop the wave of arousal that he was causing him.
In front of their friends no less.
The fox wiggled somewhat in an attempt to straighten his posture, only causing the pressure to grow. The Shinobi dared for a moment to look up at him, swallowing nervously at the implication those eyes showed. They were hard. So, he flushed to admit, was he.
"Okay, Kurama, you win this one. Feel like letting me go?" He struggled weakly against the bindings on his arms, but stopped abruptly when that only made them move more. He bit back a gasp as something slid dangerously close to his nether region. Were there ridges along those vines? It seemed as if they were designed to drive him crazy. The fox shot him a triumphant grin before he spoke, his voice much too casual and unaffected.
"Not at all." He slid off of him despite that, the vines retreating into the ground as he backed away, making his way over to the rest of the gang without looking back. Jin immediately turned to his side, away from the crowd, to catch himself. After a couple hurried, yet deep breaths, he stood, turning to the group that was talking, all fired up from the fight.
He didn't expect it, but then, that's what the other had hoped.
Kurama jerked as he was tackled from behind, nearly losing his footing and falling face first into the grass. Luckily, the blow wasn't hard, only meant to throw him off. He tried to whip around and see what had come over his friend, but was stopped by an arm wrapping around his shoulder, keeping him in place. A pink-faced Shinobi beamed down at him, squeezing him with a playful shake that pulled the fox from his triumphant reverie.
"Geez, Kurama, you sure are frightening with that gleam in your eye!" The sentence came out as a boisterous laugh, the air apparition's eyes crinkled in a smile as he choked the words out. Knowing that laughter was a surefire fix for just about anything, the Shinobi watched and waited as the blank, carefully constructed face the fox wore cracked, and then the air was filled with the twinkle of Kurama's voice, raw and pure, as he broke down under the other's gaze. He reached out, grasping at the Shinobi's chest as the two of them shook, laughing so hard that they nearly fell to the ground.
The rest could only stare, and some smile, as the two made it the rest of the way back, connected by Jin's arm and Kurama's shoulders. They were still laughing, softly, when Yusuke jumped up to offer the proper congratulations and teasings. He almost missed it when the dark fighter turned to slip into the treeline, but yelled over at him just in time.
"Hey, Hiei, aren't you going to stay for your fight?" The response he got was more or less what he expected. The fire demon drew his sword, twirling it before stopping to point the end at Rinku, who at this point had lost all the color in his face.
"Do you want to die, child?" The yo-yo prodigy scampered behind Chuu, who had won his respective fight and looked about ready to sleep off his binge, giving the apparition his answer. Hiei looked back at the threesome quickly, his face stoic yet revealing, before sheathing his sword and vanishing from sight.
The arm around the kitsune tightened again before slipping off, drawing Kurama's attention back to his plan. Something in him softened at the treatment, calming the fire that had been dictating his decision making since the idea crossed him. How could he have thought that the tactics he was employing were right for Jin? No, the wind master was neither any other companion nor was he cold and unfeeling. The games, the underhandedness, they all seemed incredibly silly to him now that the fight was over. Jin was more than just loyal- he was open. Honest. Surely, if anything would convince him to touch the fox, it would be simply to ask.
He turned to Yusuke, who was motioning to Touya to get ready for their match. It was no surprise to the detective when he excused himself, leaving an open ended invitation for the air apparition to follow. The brown haired boy waved them off, hoping that he had played an effective part in bringing the plan to fruition. The air apparition followed behind the kitsune without prompting, stopping him at the door of the compound with a soft hand to his arm.
"Oi, Kurama, where exactly do you think you're goin'?" He asked, suddenly afraid that everything up until then had been in his head. There was a second of silence, then the edges of the former thief's lips turned upward, an almost smile, and the glint returned to his eyes. How he could ever mistake that look, Jin wasn't sure.
"Don't you know? To claim my prize, of course." As if hypnotized, Jin followed the fox inside.
A/N: Hey Everyone, Let's bring the fandom back to life! I'm working on a series of fanfics to breathe new life into the YYH Yaoi community, but to do that I need to know what you want. So please, leave reviews or shoot me a pm with your requests!