Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ That Which Remains Unspoken ❯ Chapter IX ( Chapter 9 )

That Which Remains Unspoken:

Chapter 9

The stars wheeled overhead and the forest sang with the night. Hiei wove quickly in and out through the interlocked maze of branches, high up in the trees, and unsheathed his sword. He sniffed and then a wolfish smile spread across his face. Perfect.

Five minutes later, he was once again weaving in and out among the branches, but slower this time, a fat wallet of gold hanging from his waist and jingling with every step he took. Yes, there had been no shortage of work for this fire demon, and he now found himself living quite well in the Makai, alone in a secluded tree house high up above the ground. And that was the way he wanted it. There was nothing and no one to remind him of Kurama here and he liked it that way. He almost started whistling as he headed back towards his small dwelling, bad a nagging instinct in the pit of his stomach stopped him. Shaking it off and shoving it to the back of his mind, he quickened his pace towards home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kuwabara pounded frantically on the door of Kurama's house, his breathing labored and harsh. When Kurama's mother opened the door, he issued a quick greeting and brushed right by her and up the stairs. As he ran, his plan was already formulating in his mind; the events of the past hour had been perfect! He couldn't have planned it better himself.

Not even bothering to knock, he barged right on into Kurama's room and found the red-haired boy lying on his bed, tearstained face turned towards the window. Stepping quietly, the tall boy shut the door softly behind him and went over to the side of Kurama's bed, crouching down in his direct line of vision. Red-rimmed eyes stared at him emptily. "Kurama?" he asked, and got no response. Sighing, he sat down cross-legged on the wooden floor and stared at the fox for a second. Finally, he opened his mouth and was about to say something, when he was cut off.

"Where is he?" Kuwabara looked at him strangely. "Urameshi?!" he exclaimed. "No," came the soft reply. "Hiei." Kuwabara's face radiated surprise. "I don't know. He didn't tell me anything." Kurama sighed and turned over so that Kuwabara wouldn't see the fresh tears pooling in his eyes. They trickled down his cheeks, leaving trails of salty sadness wherever they touched. Kuwabara sighed also and stood up abruptly. "I love him…" Kurama said softly, almost to himself. Scowling Kuwabara retorted, "Well he loves Keiko! He used you!" The carrot-headed boy turned away in disgust. "No…not him…Hiei…" A wide grin split Kuwabara's face, whistling he left the room and ran once more down the steps and out of the house, pausing only to grab his shoes.

The wind blew by his face in a cool, sweet rush as he bolted down the sidewalks, dodging people and children, heading back towards Yusuke's house. He chuckled in spite of himself and grinned gleefully as his plan played itself over and over in his mind. "I am such a genius!" he thought smugly. "This time, we'll see who's the smart one!" And he tore up the steps, and down the hall into his best friend's room.

"Urameshi! Urameshi!" he yelled, skidding to a stop on the smooth floor. Yusuke, who had been dozing in bed, woke with a start and glared daggers at him. Sitting up woozily, he asked in an exasperated tone, "What is it, Kuwabara?" "Can I see your mirror? You know, the one you talk to Boton on?" Yusuke arched one fine eyebrow and gave Kuwabara a strange look. "Yeah…sure…what did you need it for?" He rummaged in the pockets of his dirty jeans, which were lying on the floor and tossed the small, purple object at his friend. Kuwabara laughed. "Thanks Urameshi!" Sighing, Yusuke flopped back onto the bed and threw an arm over his eyes. "How is he?"

Kuwabara looked up from the small, round mirror, where he had been about to contact Boton. "Kurama?" A slight nod from the other boy bade him to continue. "He's heartbroken. Barely spoke three sentences to me. He's been sitting in his room, staring at nothing all this time." Yusuke groaned and rolled over, burying his face in his pillow. He mumbled something into it, but Kuwabara couldn't have cared less what he said. "Hi Boton!" he exclaimed, grinning. "Hello, Kuwabara. Is everything alright?" "Well sort of, here's the deal…"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And the next day, the tall youth found himself in a particularly dense part of the Makai forest, standing beneath an exceptionally large tree, peering up through the heavy foliage and trying to catch a glimpse of what was supposedly at the top. He muttered various curses beneath his breath, then yelled at the top of his lungs, "HIEI?! ARE YOU UP THERE?!" He got no response. The morning sun slanted down through the trees and speckled him and the surrounded vegetation with sunbeams. Dust motes and pollen spores danced and whirled in the slanting beams, sparkling as they slowly drifted towards the ground. The very earth itself seemed to spring alive on that morning, with sight and color, sound and music. Hundreds, it seemed, of different birds' songs reached his ears and created a clashing symphony that was somehow still beautiful. The colors and vivid images swirled around him, splashing the dew-covered with rainbows and prisms.

Breathing in the cooler morning air, Kuwabara walked forward and heaved himself up onto the first branch of the tree. A flock of yellow and blue birds startled from the leaves, scattering in all directions and screeching loudly to him. "Stupid harpies…" he muttered and set foot on the next branch up.

Half an hour later, he glanced up and realized that he still couldn't see the top or Hiei's tree house. Looking down, he noticed that he also couldn't see the ground and with a loud exclamation he grabbed onto the nearest branch for support. "What the hell do you think you're doing, you big moron?" came a sardonic voice near his left ear. Jumping again, he whirled around, his heart pounding, to come face-to-face with Hiei.

"Hiei!" he shouted, his trademark goofy grin showing. "There you are! I've been looking for you!" "Hn," the little demon replied, not impressed. "I thought I had made it clear I didn't want to see any of you again!" "Well, that might change…" Kuwabara told him. "Oh really? And why might that be?"

Here, the orange haired youth stopped and the goofy grin was wiped from his face. "Hiei, Kurama needs you. He-" But the fire demon cut him off sharply. "Kurama doesn't need me! He has his precious Yusuke to see to his every need!" And he turned to go, disgusted. "Wait!" Kuwabara called franticly. "Yusuke ditched him! Went back to Keiko! And now Kurama's really upset and all he does is lie in bed all day and stare at nothing!" He stopped to catch his breath.

Hiei had frozen in place and now slowly turned around to look at the other boy, his face shocked, and his eyes worried. Kuwabara mentally crowed in triumph. "He what?!" the little demon yelled. "He-" Kuwabara began. "How dare he do that to Kurama?!" he shouted, startling another flock of birds from the tree. "He will pay for that!" And in a blur of black, he disappeared. Kuwabara found himself once again alone in the tree.

Glancing down towards the ground once more he gulped and clung tighter to the branch. "What am I gonna do now?" he wondered aloud.