Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Coming Clean ❯ Return ( Chapter 16 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: This story was written by me, mhmartini, for enjoyment purposes only. All characters taken from a show/series/book/etc. are property of their respective creators; I am only borrowing them. Original characters are mine. The storyline is mine. I am making no money from this endeavor. The only �profit� involved is the joy of writing and the reviews of my readers. No copyright infringement is intended.

Anime/Manga: Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Fantasy / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 11.27.2004 | Updated On: 06.03.2007 | Pages: 3 | Words: 3.2K | Visits: 904 | Status: Completed

When Kuwabara woke up, he was pleasantly surprised to find Yukina curled into his side, sleeping peacefully. After a few minutes of staring at her, he began to look around at his companions.

Yusuke was still sleeping. Every now and them he would mumble something incoherent. Once he managed to grumble out what sounded like, "Not now, Keiko. The demons don't care about algebra," before rolling over and snoring lightly. Kurama was still asleep, curled up under Hiei's cloak. He didn't stir at all, so soundly was he sleeping. Hiei was leaning against the wall, beside the kitsune. His crimson eyes were narrowed, and were watching Kuwabara like those of a hawk. The look gave the tall boy a shiver. As he nervously averted his eyes, Kuwabara noticed there was no light coming through the plants hanging in front of the cave. It was still nighttime.

After another hour, Yusuke woke up. Yukina awoke shortly thereafter. As the exhausted kitsune continued sleeping, the others began planning. "We need to get back to human world before daytime. Once the sun comes up, those demons will have no trouble finding us," Yusuke pointed out. "That, and Keiko will kill me if I'm not there to be dragged to school," he added.

"As tantalizing as they are, your academic and love lives are hardly at the top of our priorities, Detective," Hiei replied coldly. "I suggest we go now. It's roughly three am in Ningenkai, and we should be able to get back before five. No one needs to know that any of us has been missing." All those awake nodded in agreement. Yukina stood.

"There is a small stream outside. I would like to freshen up before we set out," she said in her calm, soft voice. She carefully parted the hanging vines and leaves, and slipped out of the cave.

Hiei watched his sister leave, and decided to go with her to keep her safe. Before he left, he turned to Kurama, and gently shook the sleeping boy's shoulder. "Kurama, wake up. We need to get moving before dawn." The kitsune grumbled, and opened his eyes. "I'm going outside with Yukina, will you be alright?" Kurama nodded groggily. Hiei arose, and quietly followed Yukina out to the stream.

Kuwabara also wanted to escort Yukina outside, but the nobler part of him wished to give her some privacy as she washed up. When he saw Hiei follow her, he crept to the door of the cave to watch what happened in the sparse moonlight.

Yukina knelt at the nearby stream, cupping her hands and drawing the water up to her face. She felt immeasurably better as she washed to grit and dirt from her face and neck. She was aware of Hiei's approach. He knelt beside her, but did not speak. Yukina stopped her cleaning, and looked at him. "Brother?" she asked, hesitantly.

Hiei found he could not raise his eyes to look her in the face. Yukina reached out, and gently laid her hand on his arm. "Why are you so secretive, Hiei? You have kept your identity secret, and even now you are blocking me out. What have I done? I know you must hate Koorime. Am I so repulsive to you?"

Hiei's head snapped up to meet his sister's gaze. "No. You are not repulsive at all. I...I am the one who is repulsive."

"What?" Yukina asked, shocked at the answer.

"I am forbidden. By my very birth, I am corrupted. I have hurt and killed, stolen and murdered. I am the opposite of you. So, I never said anything to you."

"You would rather lie to me, and have me continue searching for you in vain, than just admit to your true heritage?" she asked, all the repressed pain and anger seeping into her voice.

"No," Hiei whispered. "I would rather deceive you, and allow to keep believing your brother to be someone worth looking for." As he said this, his gaze lowered again to the ground. The dejection in his voice was clear, as well as the fear.

"Why would I think you were not worth looking for?" Yukina pressed.

"I've been thrown away before. I never wanted you to know that your brother is trash."

All of the anger and betrayal inside of her melted instantly, as Yukina's eyes filled with wetness. "Oh, Hiei. You ARE worth looking for. I always hoped my brother was like you. I am so glad it is you. Hiei, Brother, I will never throw you away. Why do you think I left the floating island? They tried to keep me there. They tried to stop me. I needed to find you. And now that I have found you, I will never, ever let you go. You are my brother. I love you." With that, Yukina reached out and gathered her brother into her arms. With only sight hesitation, Hiei wrapped his arms around his sister as well. After a few moments, his shoulders began shaking. Yukina drew back to look at him, and was surprised at what she saw. "Brother, are you...laughing?" Hiei drew back, and wiped his eyes, drawing a deep breath, and halting his chuckles.

"It's almost funny. My entire life, I have been cast aside. I have fought to stay alive. In the past day, the two people I care the most for have told me that they love me, and I can't...I...I..."

"I know, Brother. It's hard to say it after all you have been through. It's hard to open your heart. I will wait. I have waited to find you for this long; I will stand beside you forever." Hiei smiled, and leaned back, landing on his bottom in the wet grass.

"Thank you," he said. Yukina smiled at him.

At the mouth of the cave, Kuwabara looked on, his heart breaking. His beloved Yukina just threw herself into a hug with his rival. He hung his head. He could barely make out the smile on her face in the moonlight, but the glowing happiness was unmistakable. He wished only for her happiness, so with a sigh he turned to leave the two together. Kurama's form at his side surprised him. The fox's energy was low, if he could not sense its approach.

Kurama looked out to the stream. He had seen the hug, and although the conversation was too soft, even for his sensitive hearing, he knew the twins were taking the first steps towards healing the rift between them. Kuwabara's stricken expression drew his attention from the two outside. "What is wrong, Kuwabara?" he asked.

"Nothing!" the carrot top replied, raising his hands before him, and plastering a pathetically fake smile to his lips. "Everything's great!"

"Really? Good. It seems Yukina and Hiei have made some progress," the fox continued, carefully gauging the taller boy's response. Kuwabara's expression fell, as he looked back at the two outside.

"If this is her choice, I just want her to be happy," he said, dejectedly.

"I believe you misunderstand what you are seeing. Look closer. Look with your spiritual awareness. What do you see?" Kurama prompted.

Kuwabara sighed, and did as he was told. He could instantly sense the connection between them. This only frustrated him. "They're so close. How could I ever hope to be that close to her?"

"Look again, Kuwabara, Look closely at their connection," Kurama directed.

"It's strong. It's bright gold. It's like...it's like...Shizuru and me. It's like...wait, it's like Shizuru and me...."

"I believe you understand now," the fox concluded. Kuwabara turned to face the kitsune.

"Hiei is her long lost brother?" Kurama merely nodded. "Hiei's her brother! Her brother! He's not competition! She's still my little ice-bunny-wunny-hunn... Wait, Hiei's her brother! I have to ask him for permission to court her. Oh no."

Kurama just shook his head at the antics of the teen before, and gathered the cloak tighter around his shoulders. As he did this, Kuwabara could not help but notice the caked blood on the kitsune's hidden form. "Kurama, is that blood?" he blurted out.

Kurama nodded uncomfortably, and drew the cloak even tighter around him. "We need to get going," he whispered, effectively ending the conversation there.

After another few minutes, the entire group was ready to move out. They crept towards the portal, through the darkness, suppressing their ki so the enemy could not detect them. After about an hour and a half, they found the portal site. A brief call to Koenma yielded two portals, the first for Yukina, to return to Genkai's shrine, and the second for the four boys, to return to the city. The tired, dirty group finally reentered the human world.

Yusuke went straight home, determined to get some more sleep before the torture known as school began. He entered through the front door, with no stealth, no secrecy. As he had guessed, his mom was out cold on a futon on the floor, the television still blaring. Shaking his head, Yusuke went to the bathroom to get cleaned up.

Kuwabara was a bit stealthier. He tiptoed through the door, careful not wake his elder sister. Reaching his room successfully, he was greeted with a pile of unfinished homework. Grumbling, he sat down to work on it.

Kurama and Hiei reached the Hatanaka house as the sun was beginning to rise. Hiei led the way up his favorite tree, and the two entered Kurama's room through the ever open window. Just as they were breathing easier, they heard footsteps approaching. Kurama slipped into his bed, and pulled the covers up to his chin, turning his smudged face away from the doorway. Hiei practically melted into the shadows. The door opened slightly, and Shiori peeked in. Seeing her son sleeping peacefully, she closed the door quietly, and continued downstairs. Relieved, Kurama got back out of bed, and began gathering things for his shower.

When Kurama returned from the bathroom, he looked healthier than he had in weeks. Yukina had healed him entirely, and although he was still a little tired, physically he felt great. As he reentered his room, he scanned the area for the small fire demon. He was surprised to find Hiei not in the windowsill, but sitting on his bed, deep in thought.

"While you were in the bathroom, this was delivered," the hiyoukai stated, holding out a scrap of parchment. The paper bore Mukuro's seal.

"No shadowball?" the kitsune asked with interest. Usually the Makai lords would send a glowing ball that, when broken, would leak shadows that would speak their messages. The idea of paper was just too novel a concept.

"No. She stopped using those when three were intercepted. Once you start the message, you cannot stop it if someone intrudes, and you cannot repeat it. Also, the low class demons who stole the shadowballs could not read. Written communication is lost on them. So this week, it's parchment. Who knows what she'll come up with next week," the somewhat amused youkai replied.

He and Mukuro had reached an arrangement of sorts a while back. Although Hiei preferred being in Makai, after a few months in her service, he had grown very cold and irritable. He missed his sister. He had also missed the fox, but at the time he could not admit that. So she had released him to do his own thing, with the understanding that he was still her general, and would return at her summons. "I have to go, Fox. I don't know when I will be back. Usually the missions last two to three weeks. While I am there, I will try to find out about this Intaro character. Mukuro's spy network is vast. Are you going to be okay?"

Kurama nodded. "Be careful, Hiei. I'll miss you," he said.

Hiei arose, and approached his fox. Reaching up, he placed a hand behind the kitsune's neck, drawing him closer. "I will miss you, too, Fox," he whispered as their lips met. After a long while they finally parted. With a small smile, Hiei flitted out the window into the morning air, and Kurama sighed. Tiredly, the kitsune climbed back into bed and fell immediately to sleep.