Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Broken ❯ Twilight ( Chapter 3 )

Twilight

Another chapter…I didn't set out for this to be a running fic, but I guess it just grew into one. I am glad everyone who reviewed enjoyed it so far, and hope you continue to enjoy it. I appreciate the reviews greatly. Arigato, minna-san! -bows-

BTW, I would like to thank shuui-kun for pointing out that Hiei is OOC in this fic… You all probably figured that out by now…but… Kudos for pointing out I forgot to put it in the A/N.

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Kurama and the others had grown more and more worried as the hours passed without an appearance from their dark friend. They talked about when they had last seen him, thinking it would give them a clue as to where Hiei was. But their discussion only worried them further. None of them had seen the youkai since the morning he returned from that fake mission- three days ago.

Hiei…where are you? Kurama was the most worried. Even if Hiei was mad at them, he would have showed up, if only for the chance to insult them or burn them. The fox was pacing a furrow in the carpet of the living room.

What was worse, though, was that he swore he kept seeing Hiei. Every time he looked out the window, he thought he saw Hiei. He could picture it in his mind, Hiei gazing broodingly out the window. Unable to resist, he looked at the window again. And again, he thought he caught a fleeting glimpse of a reflection. But when he blinked and looked again, it was gone.

Kurama sighed and turned to the kitchen. The food was cold and the cake was most likely all dried out in the oven. Kuwabara and Yusuke were again talking in the corner about the fire demon. They sounded worried. Kurama walked over and joined their discussion.

"I'm really starting to worry," Yusuke said, frowning. "This isn't like him."

"Yeah," Kuwabara agreed. "Not even the shrimp can hold a grudge this long."

"Let's go look for him," Kurama suggested. "This has gone on long enough."

"You're right," Yusuke said. "Let's split up."

Yusuke went to search the town. Hiei sometimes hid out in the tall, dark buildings there. Kuwabara went to Genkai's temple and grounds, where Hiei could often be found sleeping or visiting the Koorime. Kurama went to search the park, one of Hiei's favorite haunts.

Knowing that if anyone would be able to find the elusive demon, it would be he, Kurama carefully thought of all the places he knew Hiei liked inside the park, making a mental checklist for himself; ranking the myriad hiding spots in order of how often he had seen Hiei there.

Gathering a few seeds, mostly healing plants, he set out for the park. Luckily, the sun had long set and it was too dark for anyone to notice the silver fox with nine tails running through the streets towards the park. As he ran, he had time to think of what could have happened to his best friend. And with each step he took, he began to feel with increasing certainty that something terrible had happened to the small youkai.

Upon his arrival at the park, Kurama returned to his human form and extended his youki, looking for any sign of the fire demon's ki signature. Nothing…? But I'm sure he's here… Kurama started to look in all the places he had marked as "Hiei haunts."

Maybe up that tree... Nothing…

By the exit…?

Here? By the fountains…? No…

There…in that clearing by the pond…no…Hiei…where are you?

Kurama had only one more place to check; a small, isolated clearing surrounded by trees. It was completely hidden from view and a small stream ran through it. Hiei…please be there…and…please, be okay…

He commanded the trees to part, allowing him access to the glen. At first glance, Kurama didn't see or sense anything. He's got to be here… The fox focused all his resources on tagging any trace of Hiei's youki. He stepped further into the clearing. Damn...nothing…

Kurama sighed, then turned to go to the designated meeting point. But just when he was about to leave, he felt a small brush of the fire demon's ki. He turned back around and followed the weak trail. There… He must have been masking it…

In a small, dark nook of trees, Kurama spied a white starburst. His gaze moved down to Hiei's face; his eyes were closed. He's sleeping…

Kurama smiled, and knelt down next to him, "Hiei…wake up." He reached out to shake him gently, "Hiei."

Hiei didn't stir, just continued to sleep. Persistent… "Hiei!" He shook the demon harder, grabbing both shoulders. Hiei slumped over into his arms, "Hiei!" Kurama moved the demon to look into his face, realizing that, rather than sleeping, he was unconscious. "Hiei, what's wrong!?"

He quickly scanned the demon for injuries and found…his wrists were slit?! He searched for Hiei's katana, which rested loosely in his grip, stained with dried blood. Kurama looked down at the ground to find it was also covered in dried blood. He cursed, that was why it was so hard to find his youki. It was just weak, not masked.

Kurama quickly checked his vitals- they were weak, but present- before picking him up. He raced back to his home, sending a mental message out to the others. He asked Kuwabara to bring Yukina, knowing if anyone could pull him back from death's door; she could.

He glanced down at the still form cradled in his arms. What could have driven you to this…? Thousands of possibilities and questions raced through his head, but he shook himself when he felt Hiei's ki drop slightly. It doesn't matter right now…Hang on Hiei!!

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Hmm…I just couldn't bring myself to kill Hiei… Was this expected? Or surprising?

Oh well. All that's important is that someone liked it. But I hope everyone liked it. Please review!

Oh, and here's a reward for those of you who bother to read the stuff down here. For a hint on what will happen next, look up the FULL definition of the word "twilight." If you have beaten the fourth part of .hack you can probably figure out what I am going to do… -sweat drop- Hopefully you haven't so you'll be surprised. Hee hee…

Ja mata, minna-sama! ^_^