InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Tales of the Night ❯ Night XXIII: Vicissitude ( Chapter 7 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Kurai Mori 
Change was sometimes like the willow, slow and subtle.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Psychological / Hentai / Angst | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 10.04.2008 | Updated On: 06.03.2010 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.7K | Visits: 1.5K | Status: Work In Progress
Change was sometimes like the willow, slow and subtle.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Psychological / Hentai / Angst | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 10.04.2008 | Updated On: 06.03.2010 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.7K | Visits: 1.5K | Status: Work In Progress
Title: Night XXIII: Vicissitude
Disclaimer: I claim no ownership of Sengoku Otogizoushi - InuYasha or Yuu Yuu Hakusho. InuYasha belongs to Takahashi Rumiko, Shogakukan, Viz Media, ShoPro Entertainment, and Shounen; while Yuu Yuu Hakusho belongs to Togashi Yoshihiro, Shueisha, Viz Media, and Shounen. No profit or money of any kind is made from this fan-created crossover.
Warning(s): None
She was not a pessimistic person who thought the worst of situations--in fact, she was usually the one who remained optimistic even though the worst times--however, she knew her luck. They might not be separated tomorrow or the next day or the next month, but she knew it was likely to happen one day. It was simply how life went at times. Something would always come up; it had ever since she was fifteen.
Now she was close to her sixteenth year and inching ever closer to her diploma. A year ago, it had seemed like that diploma was too far out of reach to even hope for, as if she would never obtain it. Yet here she was that much closer to receiving it. She even had some of the excitement back in her life, courtesy of one temperamental youkai. And at the same time, it was not the same. Nothing could ever replace the feudal era, her friends or her adventure. Just like nothing could ever ease the ache in her heart that came with that knowledge.
Though he was a good distraction. Her eyes slid over to his waiting form and took in the view he offered. She knew that underneath his black cloak there existed nothing but cruel, hard, hot muscle. It took ever ounce of restraint she possessed to keep from pressing up closer against him when she sat down next to him. The warmth and strange safety his body exuded called to something deep within her; she had never felt in such a way with Inuyasha. She was, at heart, a young teenage girl after all, she was allowed to look.
"Stop gawking and sit."
"Yes, oh great youkai-sensei!"
Thus began their new routine that had started a few nights ago, after she had healed him. It was, in some twisted way, his way of paying her back for healing him (or so she liked to believe), though they both knew he would have been fine if she had done nothing. But that was not to say he was thankful for it.
Oh, no.
He had said a few things along the lines of "stupid and idiotic" before telling her in no uncertain terms that he "refused to be associated with anyone as weak as to have no control over their own abilities." Meditation had been what he had in mind, as it was all he could teach her. Youki and hama no reiryoku were very different, though there were some points of similarity. She had to figure out from there how to control and manipulate her own powers. And meditation was harder than she first thought. Especially the way in which they meditated.
He would always be waiting for her at the base of Goshinboku, and they would sit together. Even though they had a few nights like that, she still was not used to sitting so close to him. His aura was so dark that it called to her light. It would throw her off-balance when he would get lost within in his mind enough to let the auras around his forehead and arm to be released. Those two foreign auras would always nip at the edges of of her own, wanting to devour her hama no reiryoku as her own abilities attempted to purify them. He would chuckle at her when it would break her concentration.
Yet she was getting used to it all. Sitting next to each other, hardly ever speaking but becoming attuned to the nature that surrounded them both inside and out. She had gotten used to the feeling of Goshinboku's cool bark biting into her back, but there were two things she was not yet used to. He always sat right next to her, Indian-style the same as her, and so close that she could just barely feel his knee brush against hers. The feeling of not-touching was enough to drive her crazy, but she had an idea as to why he was doing it.
It was to improve her concentration, and to teach her how to lose herself without losing her sense of her surroundings. And it was damn hard. He always knew the second she overlooked his closeness and was rewarded with a scathing comment about either her humanity or her obvious lack of training. Then he was glancing into her eyes every time he pushed her far enough for her to lose her temper. If she was not wary of what it meant, she would have said that he enjoyed getting her angry and looked forward to it.
As she sat side-by-side with him, she had to wonder when their relationship actually had become this. For that matter, when did they even start to have any kind of relationship that did not involve stalking? It had been such a subtle change that she never noticed it until now. What would Inuyasha say if he knew how much she was starting to care for the enigma sitting so close to her? She would not even be able to tell Inuyasha what his name was...
"Stop day-dreaming or I'll have to show you first-hand the consequences."
Kagome sighed, her shoulders slumping forward. This always happened because she could not keep her mind off him or Inuyasha. It was depressing to think that she was that boy-obsessed. "Sorry, I just can't clear my mind that easily."
"How surprising. I thought that would be the easiest thing for you to do." She could hear his smirk in his voice and wanted to roll her eyes. "Find a way. Unlike you, this doesn't benefit me and I can walk away."
She almost growled at him. "Well if you would tell me your name, I would have an easier time of doing that! Or will I simply have to call you 'youkai'? Or perhaps I could call you Yanagi?"
She looked at him just as his glared. "'Yanagi'? Where did you get that ridiculous name from?"
His words caused her to smirk in her own smiling way; it seemed everything he did proved he fit the connotations of the willow. "You. There is one thing associated with yanagi that you exemplify: patience. I don't know enough about you yet to know if you have its flexibility, but I think you probably do."
It hurt to watch him turn his head abruptly away, denying her the ability to look deep into his eyes and face to try and see what he was feeling. He was so closed off from the world and everyone in it that it made it nearly impossible for her to tell how he felt or what he was thinking. And at moments like this, when she would say something that intimate or private to him, she always felt like a fool when he would turn away.
Had he had such a terrible childhood and past that he had no idea as to how to respond to something so private and teasing?
"Go back to your meditation."
The way he said those words caused her to smile. Though they were gruff and, on the surface seemed to hold an edge as sharp as his sword, underneath they held an unspoken softness. She knew by now that if he disliked something, he would not hesitate to let her know. He said nothing about what she had said, so her feelings of foolishness disappeared. It was his way, and she was learning.
With a smile still on her face, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, turning her attention inward again. Her concentration soon slipped as the night inched ever closer to dawn. Sleep was so hard to push away when one was already within oneself, and it had a sneaking way of ensnaring its victims. This battle was one she had never won.
She was feeling so tired... So very tired.
And he was so very warm.
As the night wrapped its cold fingers around them, her head found a resting spot on his shoulder. Her soft breaths easily heard by him at such a close distance.
"Hiei."
She had barely heard him whisper that word. In the place between sleep and awake, she did not know if she had imagined it, the wind teasing her by making words through the use of the foliage, or if he had actually said it.
Word count: 1475
Edited: 3 June 2010
Disclaimer: I claim no ownership of Sengoku Otogizoushi - InuYasha or Yuu Yuu Hakusho. InuYasha belongs to Takahashi Rumiko, Shogakukan, Viz Media, ShoPro Entertainment, and Shounen; while Yuu Yuu Hakusho belongs to Togashi Yoshihiro, Shueisha, Viz Media, and Shounen. No profit or money of any kind is made from this fan-created crossover.
Warning(s): None
- - - - - - - -
Kagome would always be amazed at how time flowed. It was all relevant on what was going on in her life, and she could not decide if it was a good or bad thing. When she first found herself stuck in her true time, the days could not pass quickly enough. Now, she wanted time to slow down just a little bit. She wanted to savor the time spent with her mysterious youkai before something happened to tear them apart.She was not a pessimistic person who thought the worst of situations--in fact, she was usually the one who remained optimistic even though the worst times--however, she knew her luck. They might not be separated tomorrow or the next day or the next month, but she knew it was likely to happen one day. It was simply how life went at times. Something would always come up; it had ever since she was fifteen.
Now she was close to her sixteenth year and inching ever closer to her diploma. A year ago, it had seemed like that diploma was too far out of reach to even hope for, as if she would never obtain it. Yet here she was that much closer to receiving it. She even had some of the excitement back in her life, courtesy of one temperamental youkai. And at the same time, it was not the same. Nothing could ever replace the feudal era, her friends or her adventure. Just like nothing could ever ease the ache in her heart that came with that knowledge.
Though he was a good distraction. Her eyes slid over to his waiting form and took in the view he offered. She knew that underneath his black cloak there existed nothing but cruel, hard, hot muscle. It took ever ounce of restraint she possessed to keep from pressing up closer against him when she sat down next to him. The warmth and strange safety his body exuded called to something deep within her; she had never felt in such a way with Inuyasha. She was, at heart, a young teenage girl after all, she was allowed to look.
"Stop gawking and sit."
"Yes, oh great youkai-sensei!"
Thus began their new routine that had started a few nights ago, after she had healed him. It was, in some twisted way, his way of paying her back for healing him (or so she liked to believe), though they both knew he would have been fine if she had done nothing. But that was not to say he was thankful for it.
Oh, no.
He had said a few things along the lines of "stupid and idiotic" before telling her in no uncertain terms that he "refused to be associated with anyone as weak as to have no control over their own abilities." Meditation had been what he had in mind, as it was all he could teach her. Youki and hama no reiryoku were very different, though there were some points of similarity. She had to figure out from there how to control and manipulate her own powers. And meditation was harder than she first thought. Especially the way in which they meditated.
He would always be waiting for her at the base of Goshinboku, and they would sit together. Even though they had a few nights like that, she still was not used to sitting so close to him. His aura was so dark that it called to her light. It would throw her off-balance when he would get lost within in his mind enough to let the auras around his forehead and arm to be released. Those two foreign auras would always nip at the edges of of her own, wanting to devour her hama no reiryoku as her own abilities attempted to purify them. He would chuckle at her when it would break her concentration.
Yet she was getting used to it all. Sitting next to each other, hardly ever speaking but becoming attuned to the nature that surrounded them both inside and out. She had gotten used to the feeling of Goshinboku's cool bark biting into her back, but there were two things she was not yet used to. He always sat right next to her, Indian-style the same as her, and so close that she could just barely feel his knee brush against hers. The feeling of not-touching was enough to drive her crazy, but she had an idea as to why he was doing it.
It was to improve her concentration, and to teach her how to lose herself without losing her sense of her surroundings. And it was damn hard. He always knew the second she overlooked his closeness and was rewarded with a scathing comment about either her humanity or her obvious lack of training. Then he was glancing into her eyes every time he pushed her far enough for her to lose her temper. If she was not wary of what it meant, she would have said that he enjoyed getting her angry and looked forward to it.
As she sat side-by-side with him, she had to wonder when their relationship actually had become this. For that matter, when did they even start to have any kind of relationship that did not involve stalking? It had been such a subtle change that she never noticed it until now. What would Inuyasha say if he knew how much she was starting to care for the enigma sitting so close to her? She would not even be able to tell Inuyasha what his name was...
"Stop day-dreaming or I'll have to show you first-hand the consequences."
Kagome sighed, her shoulders slumping forward. This always happened because she could not keep her mind off him or Inuyasha. It was depressing to think that she was that boy-obsessed. "Sorry, I just can't clear my mind that easily."
"How surprising. I thought that would be the easiest thing for you to do." She could hear his smirk in his voice and wanted to roll her eyes. "Find a way. Unlike you, this doesn't benefit me and I can walk away."
She almost growled at him. "Well if you would tell me your name, I would have an easier time of doing that! Or will I simply have to call you 'youkai'? Or perhaps I could call you Yanagi?"
She looked at him just as his glared. "'Yanagi'? Where did you get that ridiculous name from?"
His words caused her to smirk in her own smiling way; it seemed everything he did proved he fit the connotations of the willow. "You. There is one thing associated with yanagi that you exemplify: patience. I don't know enough about you yet to know if you have its flexibility, but I think you probably do."
It hurt to watch him turn his head abruptly away, denying her the ability to look deep into his eyes and face to try and see what he was feeling. He was so closed off from the world and everyone in it that it made it nearly impossible for her to tell how he felt or what he was thinking. And at moments like this, when she would say something that intimate or private to him, she always felt like a fool when he would turn away.
Had he had such a terrible childhood and past that he had no idea as to how to respond to something so private and teasing?
"Go back to your meditation."
The way he said those words caused her to smile. Though they were gruff and, on the surface seemed to hold an edge as sharp as his sword, underneath they held an unspoken softness. She knew by now that if he disliked something, he would not hesitate to let her know. He said nothing about what she had said, so her feelings of foolishness disappeared. It was his way, and she was learning.
With a smile still on her face, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, turning her attention inward again. Her concentration soon slipped as the night inched ever closer to dawn. Sleep was so hard to push away when one was already within oneself, and it had a sneaking way of ensnaring its victims. This battle was one she had never won.
She was feeling so tired... So very tired.
And he was so very warm.
As the night wrapped its cold fingers around them, her head found a resting spot on his shoulder. Her soft breaths easily heard by him at such a close distance.
"Hiei."
She had barely heard him whisper that word. In the place between sleep and awake, she did not know if she had imagined it, the wind teasing her by making words through the use of the foliage, or if he had actually said it.
- - - - - - - -
A version of this chapter was posted to the livejournal community 30_Nights for their theme #025: Release of the evils.Word count: 1475
Edited: 3 June 2010