Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Half-Breed's Curse ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

Half-Breed's Curse

 

by Rose Thorne

 

Yu Yu Hakusho is the property of Yoshihiro Togashi, Studio Perriot, Shonen Jump, et al. I do not acknowledge FUNimation with anything but the destruction of the series.

 

 

Chapter Four

They had only been moving a few hours, but Hiei was lagging badly. They slowed down, but it wasn't helping. Kurama didn't understand it; Hiei probably had more stamina than any of them, but now he wasn't able to keep up. The fact that he was sweating through his shirt was slightly more worrying.

 

Yuusuke glanced at Kurama, and the redhead nodded. "Break," Yuusuke said.

 

Kuwabara sat down. "Good. How long have we been moving?"

 

"Three hours," Botan said, checking her watch.

 

Kurama moved toward Hiei, who was leaning against a tree and trying not to breathe heavily. "What's wrong," he asked softly.

 

The youkai wiped sweat from his brow, looking irritated. "It's hot. And these damned hips make walking difficult."

 

"Ride with Botan, then."

 

Hiei glared at him. "I'll manage."

 

Kurama sighed. "Look, Hiei, I know it damages your pride, but you're slowing us down. Besides, if you keep this up you're going to make yourself sick, and then you'll really be embarrassed."

 

Hiei looked away. "Fine."

 

Kurama handed Hiei a canteen. "Sit down and rest for a bit."

 

His friend scowled at him, but obeyed. The redhead settled beside him, and Hiei scooted away from him slightly. That stung.

 

"I'm not going to rape you, you know," Kurama muttered sullenly as Hiei drank from the canteen. His words evidently surprised Hiei, and the fire demon coughed as the water went down the wrong way. "And I'm offended that you seem to think I would take advantage of you like that. I thought you trusted me more than this."

 

"It's not like that," Hiei hissed, his eyes wide. "It's... like I've been warded. And unless you're damned lucky you know exactly how that feels."

 

That surprised Kurama. "You have no access to your youki at all?"

 

Hiei looked away. "Basically."

 

"Basically?"

 

"It's ice." The words were a frustrated whisper.

 

Kurama suddenly realized the problem. Normally to Hiei, with his fiery essence, ice could easily mean death, and nearly had just after his birth. "You're afraid of your youki?"

 

"Kisama!" Hiei growled, standing suddenly and throwing the canteen at him. "This conversation is over." He stalked toward the others.

 

The youko let him go, frowning. He wasn't sure how to help Hiei, or if Hiei could overcome this in the first place. The youkai wasn't exactly skilled when it came to psychological battles, probably in part because he was a mess inside. And it was starting to look as though his physiology mirrored it.

 

--

 

Twilight found them still traipsing through the forest looking for a relatively safe place to set up camp, this time with the tower much closer. They had eventually found camp in the form of a defensible rocky area with plenty of cover. It had been a long day, and they were all exhausted. Even so, the only person who would be getting a full night of sleep was Botan, as Hiei insisted that he could keep watch even if he couldn't fight.

 

As with the night before, they had decided to have two people on duty, though Yuusuke had insisted that he and Kuwabara would take first watch and they had all agreed that there would be no fire. The teen looked concerned about Hiei, Kurama had noted, which wasn't at all surprising given that the youkai looked strained and exhausted.

 

Hiei, for his part, hadn't argued or even commented, eating what Kurama grew for them in silence and shortly afterward fell so deeply asleep that he didn't even stir when Kurama grew a cushion of moss under and around him, then settled a few feet away to sleep as well.

 

Later, after Yuusuke woke him, Kurama noted that his friend was still curled in the same position. He seriously considered leaving Hiei to sleep through the night, but he knew the youkai would not appreciate the gesture.

 

It only took a gentle touch to the shoulder to wake Hiei. The youkai tensed briefly before realizing his surroundings and sitting up.

 

"Our watch?" he asked gruffly.

 

Kurama nodded. "I was tempted to just let you sleep," he admitted.

 

"Good thing you didn't. I need to get used to fighting in this damned body. Can't do that while we're hiking. It's cooler at night anyway."

 

There was Hiei's practicality. "And the youki?"

 

Hiei glowered at him. "Drop it."

 

And it was gone. Kurama shrugged, closing his eyes and allowing his senses to spread through the forest, turning their surroundings into an alarm.

 

By the time he opened his eyes, Hiei had brought out his katana and was doing simple katas, his movements slow and unsteady. The youkai corrected his stance and rebalanced himself before running through them again a little faster. He continued his repetitions, speeding up each time until he was satisfied with his balance. By that point, he was sweating and breathing heavily.

 

Kurama handed him a canteen when he sat down, and the sanjiyan took it gratefully, leaning back and draining it.

 

"Getting used to it?"

 

Hiei sighed. "There are a lot of differences. The hips have a different way of moving. I can't walk the way I normally do. And the wrists are more flexible as well, which might be a problem. I'm not going to be able to fight very well." He shook his head. "I don't know why that brat thought I'd be able to help."

 

"He probably felt he had no choice."

 

"There's always a choice." Hiei hesitated for a moment, then admitted, "There's a distinct possibility that I'll be a liability on this mission."

 

Kurama frowned at him for a moment before responding. "Unless you get over the problem with your youki." Most people would have backed off at the glare Hiei leveled at him, but the fox was unfazed. "I know you prefer not to have to rely on anyone."

 

Hiei looked away. "It's not a simple thing, Kurama."

 

"I'm well aware of that. Normally embracing ice youki would kill you. And I have no doubt that your past with the Koorime only complicates your instinct to stay away from it."

 

Hiei threw the canteen at him, this time without malice. "Why do you insist on poking your nose into my business?"

 

"Because I'm your friend and you're in trouble."

 

The youkai was silent for a moment. "You're an idiot," he finally muttered, and rose to go back to his katas.

 

 

If you're looking for someone to blame for getting me back into writing this, blame Bluegrass Elf. She's the one who wrote some damned good ficlets that made me want to write fanfiction. Of course, I SHOULD be revising one of my short stories and prepping it to be sent out to literary magazines, or writing new short stories from the multitude of plot bunnies sitting on my computer, in my notebooks, and in my head, but I had writers block anyway, so I guess I can thank Blue for ending it. Go read her fanfiction and harass her into finishing "Where Is Your Heart?" for me.

 

No, this probably doesn't mean I'm back. My god does grad school take up a ton of time, and teaching college freshmen how to write certainly doesn't help. Yes, I'm a teacher now, with students calling me "Professor" even though I'm not. Fear my power!