Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Before I Die ❯ Chapter 15

Piper listened to the end of Touya's part of the story with her knuckles resting against her cheek. When the ice demon refused to speak another word afterwards, she raised her head slightly. “And that is how you ended up in Zexen under the disguise as humans?”

 

The narrow, icy, cold eyes of the ice master shifted through the candlelight over to the curious Piper. “Jin and I traveled through the forests together, only able to find shelter in abandoned caves or under the canopy of the woodlands. We managed to scrounge up some money and rent the inn within Vinay Del Zexay.” Touya sighed, massaging in between his eyes as he could feel himself starting to get dizzy. “We've stayed there for awhile now, but with the economy being so bad, the price on the room has gone up.”

 

“Well, whatever happened to your True Water Rune?” Piper wondered with a shrug. “If you had that, you could at least heal yourself.”

 

“I lost it sometime during our travels together and beast slaying,” Touya admitted sorrowfully. “During a rainy run we had in a demon village, one of the warriors knocked my weapon from my hand causing the blade to smash against the rocks near the stream. It fell out of my sword, and I lost it to the river.” The ice master remembered hitting his back against one of the rock formations harshly causing him to lose his grip upon the sword he normally fought with aside from his ice sword he could generate. The sword hit the watery surface of the rushing river, disappearing in the dark, murky depths. He remembered panicking, not wanting to lose his rune above anything.

 

“That is horrible.” Piper's voice seemed to snap him back to reality as she furrowed her brow in worry. “I am sorry to hear that.”

 

Touya merely shrugged, acting as though his heart were still cold about the thought of dying. “So right now my only hope, if any, is to find somebody who can diagnose me and find a cure for this sickness.” He closed his eyes, wrinkling his nose in the candlelight. “I honestly don't think there is any hope, but I cannot say anything to Jin about it. He will cry like a big child.”

 

Hearing Touya actually say such a thing out loud almost made Piper herself want to cry. Instead, she got angry. “How could you say that!” She exclaimed, gripping tightly onto her dress. “He cares a lot about you! He cares so much that he drinks himself sick!” Piper witnessed as Touya snapped his head over at her almost appearing irritated at her outburst, but she refused to pull back now. “Why do you give up all hope when Jin still clings so tightly to it?” The Chisha woman asked softly this time.

 

The ice master stared long and hard at Piper, not saying a thing for awhile. He turned away from her, looking down at the foot of his bed. “I don't believe in giving people false hope. I believe in accepting what is to come.”

 

Piper was at a loss for words as she shook her head at the ice master's cold nature. She couldn't think of what else to say or do to make him more hopeful.

 

The creaking of the door alerted both the demon and Piper as they glanced quickly over at the opening door. The doctor who had left before was re-entering with a few books in his possession. When he felt the others staring at him, he looked up only to draw back at the realization that the ice demon's eyes were open. “Great Spirits…! That thing is awake now!”

 

Being called such a name made Touya growl slightly with a hiss in irritation. “I am not a thing, thank you.” Touya crossed his arms over his chest to show he wasn't amused.

 

“Touya, please,” Piper begged, placing her hand boldly on the ice demon's shoulder. “You have to understand that not many people here are used to tending to demons in the Grasslands. We're used to them attacking our villages and killing our ken.”

 

The doctor blinked confusingly at the two. “It seems you've reached an understanding with the demon.” He closed the door behind him before sneaking cautiously into the room. “That is rather…interesting.” The doctor couldn't find the courage to get any closer than he was behind the table with Touya wide awake and watching his every step. “Young lady, can I see you over here a moment?”

 

Piper got up off of the stool she was upon to make it over to the doctor who quickly grabbed her wrist to pull her into the corner of the room. “What? What is it?”

 

“Exactly how do you manage to get that close to something that dangerous?” The doctor felt need to whisper. “What are you, a demon whisperer?” He could tell that the ice master was watching them closely from across the room, making his knees threaten to buckle.

 

Piper followed his gaze to find Touya apparently glaring over at the doctor making her shake her head at him. “No, I just got to know them both. They are both really nice and don't mean any harm.” She sighed, embracing herself. “Just don't treat him like he's some beast, okay? He hates that.”

 

“I've noticed,” the doctor grumbled, still leery about Touya.

 

“Just-promise me you'll take care of him for the sake of everybody.” Piper pleaded with the young man, biting her lower lip in concern.

 

The doctor could see the worry in her expression making him sigh with a shake of his head. “Alright, alright, I promise I will find an answer.” Here, he started to guide Piper towards the door. “Just leave this to me, and you go take care of the other demon. All I have to do is get the courage I need to face this…Touya.”

 

Piper tried to find her feet as she was hurried out the door. “W-Wait a minute!” She was unheard as the doctor excused her completely from Touya's sight. Turning around quickly, Piper was met with the door closed in front of her face making her jump back. “Well, that was rude.” Seeing as there was no point in her waiting around for the doctor to let her back in, Piper headed down the hallway to make it back to Jin who she was still concerned about.

 

His hands still against the door to make sure Piper stayed out of the room, the doctor eventually turned around to look over at the ice demon. “So…it is just you and me now.” He kept his back against the wooden door, afraid to move at first until finding the courage to start walking towards Touya. “You're not going to…eat me or anything are you?”

 

Touya closed his eyes and grumbled at the human's remark. “Hn, no, I don't eat junk food.”

 

The doctor laughed nervously at Touya's snide remark. “Sorry, I am used to the human eaters always being around.” He made his way over to the empty stool Piper had previously sat upon. His fingers nervously gripped onto the sides of it as he sat down hesitantly.

 

The demon rolled his eyes. “Not many demons eat humans, so you are safe. Besides, I am a vegetarian.”

 

“A demon who is a vegetarian?” The doctor found this rather strange. “I am used to them tearing into cattle and other things, not trying to make off with our vegetables.”

 

Touya narrowed his eyes at the man who continued to dig his own grave. “You're just asking for it, aren't you?” Powering up his icy powers, he unleashed the freezing air into the room causing the doctor to shiver.

 

“I'm sorry; I'm sorry!” He apologized quickly, shivering from the sudden temperature change. “Please, allow me to start over as I am your only hope!”

 

Knowing it wouldn't be right to freeze the man even given his remarks to him, Touya withdrew his powers to have the room temperature return to normal. “Just hurry up and diagnose me.”

 

“Easier said than done,” he whispered with a chatter of his teeth. “Anyways, I am Dr. Sur'don. I have experienced a lot within my line of work, but I had to admit that your symptoms baffle me.” Dr. Sur'don opened the book he found nestled in his belongings in his room. “I have thousands of illnesses and types of injuries in this book, but not one of them describes what you're going through.” He closed the large book and put it down on the table. “I will have to look you over and try different cures to see which one is more affective.”

 

“So I am your test subject?” Touya wrinkled his nose at the thought of being tested on. “I would rather die if that is what is going to happen to me.”

 

“I am not going to do anything harmful to you, demon,” the doctor promised. “From what I have seen, you apparently have a good bit of lung problems.” Moving closer to Touya, he hesitantly outstretched his hands towards the ice master's throat. “I promise I am not going to strangle you or anything.”

 

Touya didn't back away or make any sudden movements. He continued to watch the doctor closely. “Even if you tried, I'd still be able to do away with you. I am not scared of your kind.”

 

The doctor laughed nervously. “Heh, you sure have a way with people, don't you?” His hands touched Touya's throat, his fingers becoming too cold to continue after a minute or two. “Goodness, your skin is freezing.” He wiggled his hands a bit to try and get them to respond to the heat afterwards as they were about to freeze over. “But there is something wrong with the inside of your throat. I can feel lumps about it that are probably constricting your airflow. It might be swelling from something. Are you allergic to anything that you eat?”

 

Touya sighed, closing his eyes as if annoyed though he was trying to think of any food allergies he might have. His narrow eyes reopening, he shifted them upon the doctor with a shake of his head. “No, I am not. Demons rarely have allergies to anything.”

 

Dr. Sur'don rolled his teeth nervously about his lower lip, thinking of his next course of action. “Alright, I have another idea that might help me see what is going on, but it is risky.”

 

The ice master raised his brow to show his curiosity in what the doctor might have in mind. “I am listening.”

 

“Well, I have a medical team with me that can help me perform this. It is tricky, and I rarely have to perform this,” Dr. Sur'don went on to explain. “I could drug you back to sleep and cut open your chest to find what the problem is as your lugs and throat seems to be the main issue. This is called exploration surgery as I don't know what the real issue is here.”

 

“So, you're going to cut me open entirely to find out the problem while I sleep?” Touya clarified to himself and the doctor to see if he got that right. He sighed with his eyes slightly widened wondering if he wanted to go through with that one. “What is the success on this `operation'?”

 

The doctor looked up at the ceiling, squinting out of one eye to try and recall the number figuration for that question. “About a fifty-fifty percent chance of me actually getting in and out with what I need and to have you surviving it.”

 

“You're saying it is half and half then?” Touya inquired about to lose his breath at those number stats.

 

Dr. Sur'don nodded sorrowfully. “I am sorry. It hasn't been perfected yet to where the loss is less than the success. However, with you being a demon and your body having a better recovery rate and tolerance to pain, you might make it.”

 

“'Might'!” The ice demon exclaimed not sure what to say to that. He covered his head with his hands not wanting to think of the possibility of him dying in his sleep due to a botched surgery. He just kept thinking of Jin over and over again, not wanting to really devastate the wind master with his passing.

 

“Look at it this way, demon,” Dr. Sur'don began, folding his hands in his lap, “with how shallow your breathing is and how restricted it sounds, you are going to die anyways. Even as a demon, you cannot survive without the ability to breathe.”

 

Touya cupped his face in his hands, pulling them away from his eyes to look over at the doctor. He was hesitant to say anything at first, still thinking on. “Alright…alright,” the ice master finally whispered with a shake of his head knowing that Dr. Sur'don was right. “I will go through with it. Just don't tell Jin. If you do, he'll get upset, and I don't want him upset around here.”

 

“Okay, okay,” the doctor acknowledged Touya's plead with a nod. “When do you wish to go through with this? I can do it as soon as possible, or I can wait for when you feel ready. It is up to you.”

 

“Let me…let me wait until I see Jin again.” Touya didn't want to go through with the surgery only to have it go wrong and never get to see his companion again. “I want to see him again before deciding to go through with this.”

 

The doctor got up slowly from the stool he was sitting upon near the ice master's bed. “Do you wish that I go retrieve him or that young lady who was in here previously?”

 

Touya rubbed his eyes to show he was getting tired. He gazed at the doctor, shaking his head with a slight hum of `no'. “I'll wait. I heard from Piper that he was sleeping off some drunken state he got into.”

 

The Grassland doctor got up and waved for Touya to lie down knowing the demon had to get some rest if the surgery was to go well at all. “You yourself need to do the same. You'll need all the energy you can muster for what is to come.” The demon lying upon his side, Dr. Sur'don pulled the covers up to his shoulders before walking over to one of the lit candles in the room. “Do you want me to blow them out for you?”

 

“All but one,” Touya answered almost to himself, staring off at nothing in particular.

 

Doing as he was asked, the doctor headed for the door to make it out of the room to leave the ice demon alone. Closing the door behind him, he shook his head with a sigh. “I never knew such a patient could put so much pressure on me.”

 

Jin was dead asleep with Piper sitting back by his side. She watched the wind demon sleep carefully in the candlelight making sure to dampen the cloth she had over the sweating Jin's forehead. Piper placed the cloth back upon his forehead when she rang it out. With the redhead's wild bangs getting in his face, Piper moved them with her finger to make sure they wouldn't bother his eyes. “You're going to be okay. You just drank yourself sick,” she whispered between the two of them.

 

The wind demon moaned softly as he continued to fight his hangover, which the medicine was trying to relieve him of. His fingers tensed and relaxed upon the bedcovers. Batting his eyes open, Jin tried to focus on the room he had been given for his stay there in the village. His baby blue eyes looked over at Piper as he removed the cold cloth from his forehead.

 

“How are you feeling?” Piper inquired, taking the wet rag from his hand. “Is your headache gone?”

 

“Aye,” Jin mumbled, rubbing his forehead just for the sake of making the small twinge of pain go away. Resting his hand upon his chest, he looked over at Piper once more with a raise of his brows. “So how is Touya?”

 

A small smile crept onto Piper's face, humming softly whilst doing so. “He means a great deal to you. As soon as you wake up, he is the first thing on your mind.” She saw Jin tilt his head and eye her in a confused manner as to what she was implying by that given Piper already knew. “I am sorry,” she apologized against her hand, which she brought close to her lips. “I just find it…very touching.”

 

Jin was oblivious to the touch of longing in her tone when she spoke those words to him. He merely smiled back at her, moving his hand over to hers to grip onto the back of her hand tenderly. “Did the doctor say anything about Touya? Is he going to be okay?”

 

Before piper could hope to answer there came a knock at the door. “Come in,” she beckoned softly from where she was sitting. The door opened to reveal the doctor putting everyone on edge as to what he had to say. “Doctor, is everything okay?”

 

The doctor merely nodded at Piper knowing it wasn't her opinion that mattered on the subject, but the wind demon's. “I haven't found out what is wrong yet, but I have a way of doing so. Before I carry that out, your friend would like to see you first.”

 

Jin looked over at Piper as Piper did to Jin before the two eyed the doctor once more. “Is something the matter? What is it you have to do?” The wind master asked eagerly from where he was lying down, his fingers gripped tightly onto the bedcovers about his chest.

 

The doctor was hesitant to even say what he had to do to the wind demon's companion making him fidget nervously. “Well, whenever you're ready I can take you to him and have him explain the details to you.”

 

The redheaded demon could tell the doctor was attempting to save himself from any bodily harm whatsoever at Jin's hands. Jin lowered his head slightly, gazing up at the doctor through his bangs. “You don't have to worry about me destroying you for bad news. I promise I am too tired to even consider it at this moment anyways.”

 

It was hardly relaxing to hear the demon say it that way, but Dr. Sur'don coughed nervously into his fist considering his words wisely. “Well, your friend's symptoms baffle me, and I don't know what could possibly be the problem unless I…” Dr. Sur'don paused a moment, scratching the back of his head thinking of how to put it. “…unless I cut your friend open and take a direct look at his lungs.”

 

“What!” Jin exclaimed, his baby blue eyes widening at the thought. “What if something goes wrong! Touya may be a demon, but he isn't immune to such things!”

 

Dr. Sur'don hunched over slightly, shaking his head at the demon's exclaims to him. “I am truly sorry, demon, but unless I do this, your friend is going to die slowly.” With the wind demon still looking at him in shock and apparently speechless, he continued. “It is a long and difficult process to be honest, but it has to be done for me to know for sure what is wrong with him. With him being a demon, I have no doubt his recovery rate will be high.” Dr. Sur'don didn't feel like telling Jin what the success rate of the operation was, hoping to avoid that entirely yet again.

 

Jin closed his eyes almost appearing in pain as he shook his head back and forth not wanting to accept that. Piper watched as he brought his hand up over his eyes to hide the fact that the beast would be caught crying. She gently grabbed onto his wrists only to have the demon fight against her. Pulling her hands back steadily, she rested her cheek against the wind demon's shoulder, rubbing his back for comfort.

 

“The ice demon wishes to see you before I go through with it,” the doctor continued, motioning at the door. “Do you feel well enough to go now? The sooner we get this done, the better.”

 

Piper felt need to ask him not to rush the hung-over demon only to hear Jin respond with a `yes'. She looked worryingly over at him as he pulled his hands from his face. “Jin, are you sure you feel up to it?” Piper felt need to ask as the demon removed the covers from his body to get to his feet.

 

“I can make it,” Jin assured as he stood with Piper's help as apparently he was still unable to walk well no thanks to the wine binge. When Piper insisted on helping him towards the door, the wind master raised his hand slightly with a shake of his hand. “I promise I am fine, dear.”

 

Removing her hands from the wind demon's sides, she brought them close to her chest watching as he made it just fine to the door by himself. “Just be careful. That cure needs a longer period to work on you, Jin.”

 

Jin gripped tightly onto the doorknob of the wooden door before managing a smile over at Piper. “I know. Thank you,” was all he felt need to say before parting from the bedroom to make it to his icy companion.

 

The walls seemed to still want to move from him as Jin made his way throughout the underground village with his hand pressed against the cobblestone to prevent himself from falling over. “I can do this,” he muttered to himself as he made it out into the hallway to find some of the villagers fleeing in fear of the wind demon. Jin rolled his eyes at their reaction as he picked up on Touya's scent, finding his way to the ice demon in the underground maze.

 

Touya was staring up at the ceiling while on his back, watching the shadows from the single lit candle dance before him. Hearing the door starting to open, he blinked down past his chest to watch as the handle slightly jostled before the door was slowly opened by the wind master. “Jin?” He inquired, pushing himself up off of the bed to watch as the skinny demon made his way into the bedroom belonging temporarily to Touya. “What are you doing here? Did that fool of a doctor relay the message to you when I told him to wait?”

 

Jin didn't say a thing to that as he hastily made his way over towards the demon he loved with his arms wide open to accept Touya there within his embrace. He fell to his knees upon making it to the side of Touya's bed, burying his face into his cold neck. “I don't want to lose you,” he whispered breathlessly at the thought.

 

The ice demon was caught off guard by Jin's reaction leaving Touya there in surprise in his lover's hold before tightly hugging him in return. “I am fighting the best I can,” Touya whispered honestly, moving his lips to Jin's neck to kiss him tenderly there.

 

“I don't want you to go through that surgery,” Jin pleaded to Touya, holding the ice demon closer to his chest. Cupping the back of Touya's head, he swayed slightly with his partner.

 

Hearing those words, Touya sighed softly. “Jin, honestly, what choice do I have?” He pulled back from the tight hug to look seriously into Jin's eyes though the wind demon tried to avoid Touya's gaze. “The other alternative I have is to go home and just wait to die. Would you rather I do that or find some chance of surviving here?”

 

Jin's elfin ears faltered as he shook his head at the thought. The whole purpose of him coming to the Grassland village was to find Touya some help. It would have been all for nothing if he turned back now. He shook his head, causing his wild red hair to fly about his face almost hiding the sadness and worry he had for his love further. “No…I would rather you didn't die at all.”

 

Touya reached his hand up to Jin's cheek to stroke the flesh tenderly before bringing his other hand up to do the same to the other cheek. It prompted Jin to look into his eyes finally. The ice master inched closer to Jin's lips, lidding his eyes the closer he got before kissing the lower lip of Jin to taste of his love. Tasting that addictive flavor of the wind demon's warm breath and saliva, Touya tilted his head and kissed Jin once more while wrapping his arms about the wind demon's strong neck.

 

Feeling that enticing kiss, Jin closed his eyes to enjoy the sensation raking through his body upon kissing Touya back. Sliding his tongue out to greet his icy companion's Jin scrubbed his over the cold, wet muscle of his lover's with a muffled moan upon their lips meeting once more. Pulling back from the kiss, Jin's breath could be seen upon the air given the uncontrollable chill Touya was emitting from his body. His hands scrolling down the chilly form of the ice master, Jin rested his cheek against Touya's. “I love you,” he whispered hoarsely into Touya's ear.

 

Touya smiled wearily, keeping his arms about Jin's neck. “I love you too.” Staying contently against Jin's chest, he felt as the wind demon boldly trailed his wandering hand down to his crotch making Touya widen his eyes in surprise. His icy fingers quickly grabbed onto Jin's wrist to stop him. “Don't,” he insisted breathlessly. “Don't do that.”

 

“Why not?” Jin wondered playfully, letting Touya think he had his wrists tightly. “Nobody is going to come in on us. They are scared of us.”

 

A bright, irritated blush formed across the ice demon's face at Jin's words. “I am aware of that, but I don't find it appropriate regardless!” He whispered between the two of them.

 

Jin grinned widely, resting his lips close to Touya's ear as he reached back down to touch his lover's crotch yet again. “Don't freeze up on me now. I know you want it as much as I do.”

 

Touya rolled his head back, closing his eyes tightly as he did so. Inhaling sharply and breathing steadily upon his concealed member being caressed, the ice master released Jin's wrist not able to find the strength to fight any longer. “You sneaky bastard…!” He insulted hoarsely.

 

The wind demon said nothing as he kissed his way down Touya's chest before bothering to remove his shirt to actually taste the pallid flesh of his companion. The chill was refreshing to him as he moved further down to where his hand was resting. Jin could feel Touya tense up making his baby blue eyes shift upwards at the nervous ice demon. Hooking his fingers upon the rim of Touya's pants, he removed the fabric to allow him access to the ice demon's length, which was already slightly erected. Grabbing the base of it, he started to rub the sensitive skin slowly at first before doing it quicker.

 

The ice assassin's toes curled in growing ecstasy. Panting heavily, he could feel his manhood growing bigger by the second. “J-Jin…!” He breathed heavily against his right hand, which he brought close to his mouth.

 

His nose pressed against Touya's growing length, Jin glided his tongue up against the flesh to taste of it with a slight hum. “I promise I will be gentle.” Moving back up the erected manhood of his companion, Jin started to caress the head of the organ before taking it into his mouth.

 

Piper felt bad for what was going on pertaining to the two demon lovers as she made her way back to where Touya was being housed for the time being. Standing soon before the door, she was about to knock only to stop herself from the muffled sounds she could just make out from the other side. Her hand pressing against the wooden door, she moved in closer to the entrance to try and receive the sounds better. When she realized what was going on, she gasped softly to herself and turned away quickly with a bright blush set upon her face.

 

Sliding her fingers from her mouth, Piper bit her lower lip before resting her back against the door. They are both lucky to have found one another. While embarrassed a part of me is…envious. Her eyes shifting over towards the door behind her, she sighed and parted from the area.