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Standard
disclaimers apply. Thanks to Yoshihiro Togashi for coming up with these
magnificent characters. None of these are mine, not the characters, not
most of the storyline as it was adopted from the manga vol. 3 & 4.
Don’t sue me… no money… not making money… just sharing a piece
of my brains with everyone. ^_^; ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gouki
and Hiei had been defeated. Kurama was badly injured. Yuusuke
had returned the stolen Reikai treasures. Even though it was returned, the
Mirror of Utter Darkness was cracked and the Ghost Slayer was stained with
blood, Koenma still had to be punished. With
Enma Diaoh back from vacation, Koenma was assigned back to the
investigating section. And he had a new to case to justify today. The
judgement of Kurama and Hiei. Gouki’s had been easily made and was
thrown into the Makai dungeon. The
room was dark, the air was chilly. As soon as Kurama and Hiei entered the
room, the door was shut. Loudly. Kurama winced his eyes as he made his way
step by step. His wound hadn’t been healed yet though. “Your
wound isn’t healed yet. I’ll help you to carry some of the
sentence,” offered Hiei. As a friend, he knew that he needed to help
Kurama. But that would be as far as it goes. “Doumo
Hiei, demo… daijobu. I could manage it myself,” Hiei gave Kurama
his casual “Hn,” and continued walking, eyeing the wincing Kurama by
the corner of his big almond eyes. Their
case was represented. “The defendants please rise,” said a youkai,
probably the Reikai lawyer. “Name,
Kurama and Hiei. No criminal records before this. Arrested for stealing
the Reikai treasures for personal importance. Kurama had given back one of
the Reikai treasures voluntarily but Hiei had been fighting with one of
the Reikai Tantei. Causing severe injuries to our Tantei. But then, he got
defeated,” the youkai sat down after representing his statement. Koenma
narrowed his eyes at the two youkais in front of him. He remembered that
Yuusuke said that Kurama had changed, so what could he do with the other
one? “Ehem,”
he cleared his throat. As he wanted to speak, Kurama looked up at him.
“Sumimasen, Koenma-sama,” he interrupted. Koenma stopped. “Nan da,
Kurama?” he asked. “Can I have a request?” he asked. “Request?
Saa… let me hear what is it first,” replied Koenma. Kurama
smiled softly. “Whatever our punishment would be, could you please make
it so that we serve our sentence together?” he asked.
:… Well this is a peculiar request …: noted Koenma mentally. He
took a brief moment to think about it. “Well,
I was going to let you have a lighter sentence than Hiei though,” he
paused. “Do you still want to deliver your sentences together?” he
asked Kurama’s assurance. Kurama looked at Hiei who was beside him.
Clutching Hiei’s hand, he nodded. “Hai.” Koenma
sighed. “If I follow the actual Reikai law, Kurama would serve a total
of 10 years in Makai construction services and Hiei would be thrown to the
Makai lion lair,” he continued, but then he saw Kurama bit his lower
lip. Koenma softened his heart a bit. :…
These two are very strong. If I just throw them away, it would be a
waste… hey, but wait a minute. I could make them Reikai Tanteis! …:
thought Koenma, smiling to himself. “But, I will make a change to it. Kurama
would be put in service for the Reikai Tantei instead, together with
Urameshi Yuusuke,” Kurama narrowed his eyes at Koenma’s words. He
can’t let Hiei being thrown in the dungeon when he was going to be set
free with a job as the Reikai Tantei. And he really hoped that Koenma
reconsidered his request, looking down at the cold hard floor. He looked
at his hand when Hiei had let it go abruptly and clutched his fist, hard.
Blood started to trickle down his palms. :…
Inari… Hiei is just a young youkai. He didn’t even have a happy
childhood! How could this happen? Help me Inari-sama …: Kurama prayed
silently. “Ano…
since Kurama requested to have their sentence be performed together,
I’ll let Hiei join him too,” declared Koenma. Kurama’s eyes
lightened up. “Doumo arigatou gozaimasu, Koenma-sama!” Thanked Kurama.
Koenma narrowed his eyes at
the little black youkai. Still no signs of him saying thank you. :… Ah,
what the heck. I know his bad childhood …: said Koenma to himself. “But,
I will keep you guys in the cell until the day comes. Don’t worry,
I’ll put you two in the same room,” said Koenma, raising from his big
chair. Kurama
looked around. This room was equally dark. Only the candles’ light could
be seen. The oni had lighten up the candles earlier when they came in.
Kurama counted it. “One… two… five… ten… fifteen candles in
here,” he said casually, not meaning for Hiei to hear it though. Hiei
snorted. Kurama turned his head and saw Hiei sitting on a pile of hays,
polishing his katana with a cloth he tore from his shirt. Kurama
looked at him and walked nearer to him, sitting in front of Hiei. The
candles from behind him shone directly into those fiery ruby eyes as Hiei
looked up, meeting a pair of solemn green eyes. :…
Damn, here it goes again! …: Hiei always have these odd feelings when
ever Kurama’s eyes met his, those deep tranquillising ones, piercing his
like a sharp dagger. Suddenly
Kurama winced. Hiei shot him an alarmed look. “Nan de?” asked Hiei.
Kurama shook his head. “Don’t lie fox, your stomach still hurts,”
with that, he pushed Kurama on the floor and tore open his shirt,
revealing his injured stomach. It was partly healed, but blood still ooze
out from the centre. Imagine having a sharp sword impaled through you
wasn’t actually Hiei’s favourite thoughts. Hiei
bend down. Kurama opened his eyes. “What are you doing Hiei?” Hiei
didn’t answer but to just lick off the blood that ooze out and deliver
some youki so that the wound close up, preventing blood from coming out of
the youko. “Damn,
they don’t even give us water!” cursed Hiei. He could wash Kurama’s
wound properly even with a glass of water. Kurama straightened up. He
raised his hand and brushed Hiei’s face light with it. “Doumo, Hiei,”
he told Hiei. Hiei turned away quickly. But Kurama swore that he saw the
koorime blushing. Hiei stood up immediately and walked to the door. He
looked through the small glass window. He didn’t knew what to do, he
just wanted to… run away from those soft touches.
:…
You don’t want to run away… you want it badly …: said a voice,
ringing in his head. He tried to shut it up, but it as true. Only that, he
felt uncomfortable about it. It had never occurred to him that this
feelings inside him ever existed. And he didn’t quite like it as it was
unfamiliar. But it felt nice when Kurama did that to him. Kurama
wasn’t sure about what Hiei felt for him. He acted well enough that he
realised about Kurama’s love for him. But did he actually love him too?
Or did he think that they’re just good friends? But Kurama knew that he
liked Hiei very much from the first time he saw Hiei and that ‘like’
feeling had changed greatly into a loving feel for the koorime since he
reached his puberty. And that slender lithe body had been the subject of
every wet dream he could think off. Odd, most of his other friends often
told him about their dreams and they’re all about girls twice their age.
A
sudden snort brought Kurama back to reality. “What’s the matter Hiei?”
asked Kurama, concerned. “Why does that Keiko girl made such a big
influence at Yuusuke?” he suddenly asked, mainly to himself though. Kurama
shrugged “Friendship?” he suggested. “No, there’s more than
that,” Hiei wondered aloud. “The power of love?” well this made Hiei
look up at Kurama. “What do you mean by it?” asked Hiei. Kurama
sighed and was silent for a while. “Love, a simple word with a thousand
complex meanings and powers. When the power of love is over you, the power
that comes from within you would be times more powerful than it is in
normal state,” explained Kurama, Hiei seemed to be understanding it as
he had his thoughtful thinking cap on. :… No wonder… Hiei don’t even
know what is love …: Kurama thought, feeling sorry for the fire demon.
“Does
it make you powerful?” asked Hiei. Kurama hesitated. “Well, maybe and
maybe not,” he told Hiei wryly. “And why is that?” asked the curios
youkai, trying his best to hide his curios tone. “For
one reason, you might loose you pride if you fall in love,” explained
Kurama. Hiei snorted. “Then I don’t want love,” he decided. “Ano
Hiei, demo… it depends on how you make it. If you make it bad, it’ll
go the wrong way. But if you make the right decisions, it’ll turn out
other wise. Love might be the best thing that happened in your life. And
might even be the source of your power,” Kurama, giving Hiei lessons. Hiei
thought for a while and snorted. “Speak not of love to I, who was born
to fight. I would not risk my powers,” he said, crossing his arms on his
chest shutting his eyes. Kurama
sighed, he was right. Hiei didn’t feel anything else about him other
than just friends. Or did he? Love…
was that the feeling he felt for Kurama? No, it wouldn’t be. If he had been, it means that he had been weak. :… I am not
weak and not going to be …: thought Hiei bitterly. But these odd
feelings… Hiei sighed. Even
if I do love Kurama, would he love me? Would he have a forbidden child for
his lover, when he could just pick anyone he liked with those beautiful
eyes, body… :… But he had treated you extremely nice …: said a voice
behind his head. Hiei laughed mentally. :… Kurama ‘is’ nice to
everyone …: snorted another part of his head. Hiei winced painfully at
the second thought. Hiei
decided to leave the matter slip. :… Stupid Hiei …: he retorted to
himself. He took a glance at a sleeping youko, curling a feet away from
him. The
night was cold. Kurama was shivering, partly because his youki level was
low and couldn’t keep him warm. The other part was crying over the
decision made by Hiei. :… Why, Hiei? …: was the question that kept
replaying itself on and on in Kurama’s mind. Kurama’s
youki was going up and down. Hiei was warm and comfy wrapped around his
black cloak. But a forbidden koorime child would never feel cold, even
without his cloak. He
noticed that Kurama was shivering cold. A sigh slipped through Hiei’s
mouth. He crawled near the sleepy cold fox and draped his cloak over him,
hoping that his youki would settle down. But as he waited for a while, his
youki still hadn’t settle itself. :… Shit, only a way to fix this mess
…: he cursed and got under his cloak together with Kurama. A
warm object laid next to Kurama and he unconsciously turned, wrapping his
arms around it for warmth. A sudden rush went up Hiei’s spine as
Kurama’s hand wrapped around his small and compact waist. Hiei was
dumbfounded. What is happening? Kurama
moaned. “Oh… Hiei, how I wish I could… mm… mm…,” Kurama
mumbled in his sleep. Unaware of Hiei. The sentence went silently away
without Hiei understanding it. And the endings, it was blurry. Hiei
couldn’t make out what it was. :… Why are you calling me like that?
What were you wishing? …: was the question that floated in his head. It
didn’t felt bad. It felt rather… nice, but uneasy to Hiei. He
decided to let the matter drop and closed his eyes, trying to get a good
sleep. Even with a pair of arms wrapped around his middle. Two
weeks passed… Hiei
was mostly silent the whole time. He had spent most of his time practising.
Him on this end and Kurama on the other end. Both trying to raise their
youki level. :… Chotto matte, when’s the last time he talked? …:
Kurama thought, trying to remember as the threw a punch in the stuffy air.
:… Saa, a week ago …: Since Kurama’s wound was healed, he normally
sits by himself at a corner silently if he wasn’t practising. Always
avoiding Kurama’s stares. Avoiding Kurama altogether. Feeling
depressed and lonely, Kurama often sigh. But knowing nothing’s wrong
with Kurama, Hiei ignored it. “Someone’s
coming,” suddenly Hiei said, preparing himself into a crouch. Kurama
concentrated hard and finally found a trace of youki coming near to them.
Hiei had always been very alert, more than him. “Kurama,
Hiei, Koenma-sama wants to see you,” said the oni as he opened the door.
They both followed the oni to Koenma’s room. “Doumo, George,” said
Koenma as Kurama and Hiei was already in front of him. “Ano…
Yuusuke is going after a youkai named Suzaku. If you help him, then you
might be excused from your other sentences. Are you willing to?” asked
Koenma. Kurama smiled and nodded. Koenma glanced at Hiei. “Hiei?” Hiei
looked away. “Hn,” was his usual casual reply. “Ja,
they’ll be somewhere in Makai, in Devil’s road. You could easily find
him there. Go now!” said Koenma. Kurama nodded and pulled a surprised
koorime with him. “Don’t be too over excited, Kitsune,” snorted Hiei.
“Ano Hiei, were serving our sentence together. We should ‘be’
excited,” said Kurama, jokingly. Hiei snorted, didn’t quite know how
kitsune minds work. “That’s
their lair, the Maze Town, ne?” noted Yuusuke. Kuwabara shrugged.
Yuusuke turned his gaze to Kuwabara. “Let me remind you that don’t
think about winning this fight after being injured badly like before,”
advised Yuusuke, walking towards the Maze Town. “Cheh, the fate of
humans in our city could be left to you alone? I don’t think so,”
snorted Kuwabara proudly. Suddenly
there were laughing sounds. “Heh… heh… heh…,” Yuusuke and
Kuwabara looked around, alarmed. “Aa… an unusual smell,” said a
voice. “Ah! Ningens! Heh…
heh… heh… ningen smells,” said another. Kuwabara and Yuusuke nearly
jumped out of their awareness as they were surrounded by thousands and
thousands of the Rotten Meat Eater youkais. All wearing a big cloth over
themselves. Maybe to cover their gross existence. “Ah! We could eat! Eat
our asses out!” said another voice. “Heh, heh… Food!,” said a
youkai who pounced on Yuusuke. “Shimatta!,”
exclaimed Yuusuke as he punched the youkai to hell. Hey,
this ‘is’ hell! “Masaka! They’re too much for us, Yuusuke!,”
shouted Kuwabara. “If it goes on like this, we’re going to die!”
noted Yuusuke. “Hey…
if you continue fighting them, when would you be able to enter the Maze
Town?” asked a softer voice. Yuusuke and Kuwabara looked at each other.
“Who’s that?” asked Kuwabara. Yuusuke didn’t answer, but just
looked as two covered youkais beat up the others professionally. Both
came landing in front of Yuusuke and Kuwabara. “Only two? Must
be hard,” said a voice under the cover. This voice was different from
the first one, deeper. Then, both uncover themselves. “Let us help
you,” said the first voice. Yuusuke
gasped. “Why… you…,” Yuusuke uttered. “Who?” asked Kuwabara,
looking at a redhead boy and a shorter one with black spiky hair.
“Aren’t you Kurama and Hiei? How can you…,” Yuusuke was confused,
weren’t they supposed to be punished for stealing the Reikai treasures? “We
are serving our sentence… in a way though. If we help you, we might be
excused from our sentences,” said Kurama, a friendly smile spread over
his lips. “Honto ka? Koenma also offers voluntary services as an
alternative? Sugee,” said Yuusuke, excitedly. Kurama nodded. “Kuwabara,
let me introduce. This is Hiei and Kurama,” said Yuusuke, introducing
them. “Doozo yoroshiku,” said Kuwabara confusingly. “Hajimemashite,”
greeted Kurama cheerfully. Suddenly
there’s a snort. “I don’t know what’s in Kurama’s mind and I
don’t give a damn about it. All I am interested about is the Makai stuff
and the treasure that was stolen by the Four Makai Animals! I have no
intentions on helping you,” announced the little boy with spiky hair,
who has surprisingly deep tones. Which was sexy though, according to
Kurama. Kurama
closed his eyes and smiled at Hiei’s statement. He knew that Hiei was
just being sarcastically ego. “What’s
the matter with this boy? A small size body, inappropriate for it’s big
mouth!” Kuwabara snapped, irritated by Hiei’s statement. “What?
Try me,” snorted Hiei. “Nani?! Shimatta! Wanna fight?” asked
Kuwabara, practically boiling with anger. “Eh! Don’t be like that,
Hiei,” Kurama opened his mouth. Hiei looked away from Kuwabara. “Even
if you still wanna fight, wait until the matter in hand is settled
first!” Kurama continued. “Yuusuke,
‘he’ will find a way to take revenge on us,” said Hiei, referring to
Kuwabara. “Forget it!” snapped Kuwabara, stopping himself from biting
Hiei’s ears. “I will be careful, though,” Hiei said and retrieved a
few steps back to stand beside Kurama. But Hiei and Kuwabara were still
exchanging baleful death spelling stares. “Yosha! The more the
merrier!” exclaimed Yuusuke. “Yabai!
Ano wa Hiei to Kurama! They’re an A-class youkai, why are they with
humans??” the Rotten Meat Eaters shrieked, giving way to four of them. And
with that, four of them settled for their adventures as Reikai Tanteis
together for first time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *Special
thanks to Siew Lee and Ryoko for their inspirations and encouragement!* Bulma
Briefs UIN#13254597 |