~Once Burned~

Come now, you didn't think I was going to end it like that for real, did you? This is the real chapter 5, just like the chapter title says. This won't be the end of the fic either; I'm using this chapter to adress a potential obstacle or two in the growing relationship between characters. Also, due to a suggestion from one of my reviewers, I've pulled Yusuke back into the plot for a short amount of time. Due to another suggestion, I'm gonna try to put more imagery into my writing. This will be a gradual change, so don't expect my style to alter itself overnight! Thank you all for your suggestions, and I'm sorry if I scared anyone with that joke chapter. Read and enjoy (and forgive me!)


“Wake up, Detective.”

Yusuke cracked open one eye and glared at the black shadow crouched at the foot of his bed. “Damn it, Hiei, do you know what time it is?”

“As a matter of fact, it’s nearly 10:00 am.”

The retired (well, more like ‘fired’ if he were to be honest with himself) tantei loosed a long-suffering groan. “That’s too early to wake up during the summer! Go away and come back at noon.”

The sound of a katana being drawn caused the half-human’s eyes to shoot wide open. “All right! I’m awake, you little psychopath! What do you want?”

Hiei calmly re-sheathed his favorite weapon. “I need an opinion, and since you proved useful the last time I came to you, I thought I’d try it again.”

A wide yawn took Yusuke before he could make any reply, and since it was early and he felt Hiei deserved to be punished for waking him, he went through his entire twenty-minute, stretch-and-wake-up process before returning his attention to the fire demon (who, by the time this was done, was looking ready to kill him in the worst way). He smiled sweetly at his visitor. “Spill; what happened?”

/Must not kill my only source of information,/ Hiei told himself sternly, /Must refrain from gutting him for being a fool; it is his nature and I can’t blame him—too much—for it./ Finally, his sword hand stopped twitching. “He said he loves me.”

Sienna eyes widened, but Yusuke did not interrupt. The half-Koorime took this as a sign to continue.

“I’m not sure I believe it. He’s Youko Kurama, the most infamous kitsune in the Makai. Even as he is now he could probably have anyone he wanted. I’m not exactly special, so why choose me? That, and I don’t just trust what people tell me; that’s not how I operate. So, do I believe him, or do I flat out refuse his affections? What would you do, Yusuke, if you were me?”

“That’s a good question,” Yusuke replied, “Considering I’m not you. Hell, I’m not even into guys, and even if I was, I’ve got Keiko. You’ve gotta go with your own feeling on this. Does it feel right to you, or not?”

That was indeed a valid query. Hiei thought he just might know how to answer it, too.

Now if there was one thing Yusuke had *NEVER* expected to happen, it was to find Hiei abruptly sitting on him. The fire demon loomed over him, hands braced against the pillow on either side of the hanyou’s head, glaring down at him determinedly. Yusuke laughed nervously. “Hey, look, I know it wasn’t a very good answer, but—”

The mouth that closed over his own cut him off quite efficiently. If it had been the manly thing to do, the spirit detective might have squeaked in shock. Since it wasn’t, he settled for a muffled exclamation of “EH!?”

Hiei ignored the way Raizen’s heir had gone still and rigid beneath him, instead concentrating on the feel of their lips together. He compared it to the way Kurama’s had felt, his mind dutifully cataloguing the differences. First there was texture; whereas Kurama’s lips were soft, as though he took care of them, Yusuke’s were slightly rougher, and as one might have expected from the way he was always mouthing off, they were a bit wider. Hiei felt hands pushing at him and ignored that too, instead nipping to make the stubborn half-Toushin open his mouth. He deepened the kiss, and discovered another difference: taste. Yusuke had a taste that reminded Hiei of curry, a little spicy and a little wild. Kurama had tasted like a kind of Makai berry, tart and sweet, even a tad bitter in a nice sort of way.

The most profound difference was something Hiei could not name. This kiss lacked that strange electricity, that sense of warmth that had tingled beneath his skin when it had been Kurama’s lips on his.

Before he could think about it any longer, a fist connected with his cheekbone, causing a loud, ‘crunch’ sound. He tumbled off the edge of the bed, cursing when he realized he had bitten the inside of his cheek almost hard enough to bleed. Yusuke was glaring at him indignantly, or at least as indignantly as he could manage while trying to breathe.

“Yeesh,” the black-haired teen growled, “What the hell was that for!?”

“Never mind,” Hiei answered dismissively, “I have my answer.” He turned to leave through the window (no using the doors for *this* sociopath, no sir). “Oh, and by the way,” he said with a smug smirk, “Kurama is a much better kisser than you.”

“Aw, kiss my ass!” Yusuke yelled, but the short demon was already gone. He sighed. “Maaaaan…why’d he have to use me as a guinea pig?” A blush rose to his face, and he glared down at a certain place in his bedcovers. “That little spark rat! I’m not gay, I’m not, I’m not! Think good thoughts! Keiko-ish thoughts. Oh, damn it. That made it worse....”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Still smirking, Hiei landed in the tree outside Kurama’s room. The fox would be off running errands for Shiori by now, so Hiei would be alone with his thoughts. He had definitely come to the conclusion that Kurama’s kisses were special somehow, however ridiculous that sounded, even to him. Was it because the fox really did love him? He thought it had to be; otherwise, why would the kiss he had shared with Kurama feel so different from the one with Yusuke?

He unconsciously ran his tongue over his lips, wondering as he did whether the redhead’s taste would be any different the next time. Surely it would vary depending on what he’d most recently eaten. It would be nice to kiss Kurama right after he had eaten something minty. Mint would heighten that sweetness from before.

He shook his head. /When did I start thinking about kissing so much? It isn’t as though it was that enormous of a thing./

His eyes became twice their normal size as he realized he had begun to want more of the kitsune. Doubtless that had been the bastard fox’s intention all along, and doubtless it was working. He was already wondering when Kurama would be home, and thoughts like that indicated a desire for the other’s company. Since when had he *ever* wanted someone else’s company?

/If I want to be around him, does that mean I’m starting to love him?/ He disregarded that thought quickly. He could not afford to jump to conclusions, not with such a delicate matter. If he just suddenly decided he loved Kurama back, and then realized later he had been wrong, things could get ugly very fast. No, he would wait a while longer before making up his mind.

He sensed Shiori milling around inside the house, doing laundry and other things that human mothers did. A thought struck him and an uneasy feeling began to churn in his stomach. Kurama’s mother was the most important person in the fox’s life, and she was also the one person who absolutely could not know about *him*. If Shiori found out about Hiei, the repercussions could be serious. She still had no idea that Kurama wasn’t human. How would she handle knowing he was in love with a demon?

And if Shiori could not know, how long could they last together? Would Kurama choose that woman over him?

/I can’t think that way,/ he growled at himself inwardly, /If he means what he told me, he won’t betray me./

He settled himself into a more comfortable position in the branches of the tree. Stupid of him, really, to doubt so easily. How was he ever going to learn to trust the kitsune if he let every possible roadblock throw him off?

“Bah,” he muttered, “Emotions are too complicated. This ‘love’ thing had better be worth it.”

He leaned back against the trunk of the tree to wait for Kurama’s return. He and the fox had some things to discuss, concerning how permanent their relationship was to be.


On a side note, I'd like to give all the other writers out there a clue as to why a chapter like the one before this is funny, and should not be considered offensive in any way. I received a wonderful review because of that chapter, and it went like this:

r u an idiot u had nice story there then u just ruin it at the end STUPID STUPID STUPID STUPID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I would personally like to thank the anonymous reviewer who left me that bit of praise, and remind said reviewer that it isn't nice to flame when you can't even spell "you" or "are." Have a Nice Day. :)