I'll be there if you want me to

AN: Hello! Nice to meet you, dear reader! This is my first fanfic and I'm really looking forward to your reviws so I can continue to write a fic pleasurable to you all. As I said, I included a new character and I hope you'll like her. If you don't then i'll kill her... (just jocking - I don't usually kill my characters). Well, I'll let you read and admire my literary genius... :-)

The rain was rapping on the dark window. It had to be pretty late at night but she still was at her desk, writing with her eyes sore and barely managing to concentrate… She lowered her head over the sheet of paper until the long wavy tresses were gently lying on it and rubbed her watery eyes. No…she couldn’t write any more… not with all the thoughts that were racing trough her mind…
“What am I going to do? Kurama is feeling worse as the days pass. And he barely is conscious any more…I never thought that he would be so affected by flu. I didn’t think he could even be infected with ningen illnesses!”
She walked to the window and gazed outside trying to pierce trough the pitch black. It was cold and raining for two days already for it was late autumn. The warm breath against the cold glass made little droplets of water on the window as if the rain had started inside as well. As she almost fell asleep on her knees by the window still, a strange and almost completely hidden presence stroke her as fast as lightning, barely leaving any detectable trails. But she couldn’t mistake that familiar youki…
“Gods, what is he doing outside on this weather?!” She opened the window all the way up and started to scan the area looking for him, hoping he still might be there. It was not like him to come but she had to try.
“Hiei! Hiei, where are you?” “Please come…”
Nothing could be heard except for the deafening thunder. Moments went by as she was still on her knees looking out the window… hoping, her body getting cold…
“He isn’t coming…” But remained near the window, her eyes in the cold dark until she fell asleep.

She awoke early the next morning even though the warmth of her bed tempted her to linger a bit more.
It was Monday, the day she absolutely hated but it didn’t seem so bad then. She woke up with a good feeling and hummed a song while brushing her hair preparing for school.
The tapping of her steps on the sidewalk…the smell of the fresh and moist air…the gloomy clouds almost broken from place to place and the familiar sound of life…
The rain had stopped and the students were pouring in the schoolyard.
“So many people…so many and yet I have so very few friends…what am I to expect? I feel that I am admired and appreciated but I never let anyone too close. If I did I would have a difficult time keeping my real life hidden and even put them in danger.” She shook her head as if trying to get rid of the sad thoughts. “No…I do have some friends. They know me, as I am, who I am… a little… Yusuke, Kuwabara, Botan, Kurama…Hiei...” She stopped. “Hiei…I am not sure you consider me your friend, but I always will be…yes…my window will always be open for you.” And with that final thought, she entered the classroom and sat at her desk by the window.

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“K’so! This stupid rain isn’t going to stop soon.”
Leaping from tree to tree, he tried to keep dry but the wind and the cold made it difficult even for his speed. In mid leap he stopped, looking around as if being hit.
“Someone is scanning the area… “
Suddenly he heard a faint and distant voice calling his name.
“Kurara…”
Her window was open and Hiei could see the frail looking girl leaning on the still. The light in the room contrasted with the darkness outside, creating a pale halo around her wavy, pink hair. (Yes, you heard me! Pink. And it’s natural. Don’t ask me how. I don’t even like the color…).
“Why on earth would she call for me?”
Even though he would have said something like “stupid ningens” and left, he didn’t. Masking his youki carefully he sat in the tree not far away from her house and watched.
“She’s still waiting for me. Why doesn’t she just give up?”
Minutes went by and he was still watching her fall asleep with her head nestled on her arms by the window, her hair getting wet and almost unnoticeable shudders passing her body.
“ Baka…” He left the tree and leaped on her window still; climbed in making sure he didn’t wake her up. Hiei didn’t want to explain his presence in her room. What could he say? He dropped by because he heard her call? Get serious! Hiei never answered to anyone’s call, unless it was in his interest. And he didn’t have any interest in the ningen girl…
He watched her shiver slightly against the window and couldn’t hold back a slight chuckle. She looked so fragile, delicate and helpless in her sleep, but he knew better. Even her name was enough for anyone to feel at least a tinge of fear and curiosity – her fighter name – Kurara…the name of the deadliest poison in the world, silent, untraceable, fast and painful…Yes, at least a tinge of fear.
Knowing her for quite a while, since the Dark Tournament, Hiei had seen the other side of the ruthless and skilful fighter – the soft part that he considered unfit with her warrior profile. She was a lot like Kurama and that puzzled him. No wonder they were friends since before the tournament, Kurama having brought her as their fifth companion.
A heavy thunder broke the thread of his thoughts and he looked again at her. With gentle hands he lifted her off the floor and amazed at her almost feather light body, placed her on the bed.
“If anyone I know would see me now, they’d think I’ve gone mad…” He covered the sound asleep girl with a blanket and flitted away trough the open window.

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“Hikari-chan! Hikari-chan!”
Only the touch on her shoulder dragged her back to reality.
“Hai. What is it Emi-chan?”
“We’d better get going to Gym class. We don’t want to be late…”
“I’ll be with you in a minute.”

Outside was chilly and moist so she couldn’t repress a shudder that went trough her body. The white blouse and black shorts were not very suitable for that kind of weather. With a sigh she walked to the pitch and started warming up. “What am I going to do? Kurama is terribly ill and I can’t do a thing… Every time I went to see him he looked worse and his mother more worried. Oh…Kurama…don’t die on me, please, or I will surely die of pain as well!”

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“Why is Ningenkai so damned boring? Nothing to do even if… Where the hell did I just go?!” He stopped in his track and blinked surprised. Meiou High. Strange… Why did he go there? And the answer struck him in the head the instant he saw Kurara on the sports pitch. “You are the stupidest creature alive!”, he thought to himself but jumped up a tree and kept watching the slender figure of the girl. Her graceful and fluid moves were enchanting indeed. Although concentrated, she didn’t seem so be fully there. She seemed troubled. “Why in the world would she be upset about?” He was answered later that day when he saw where she was going - Kurama’s house. “The fox is still ill?”

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“Thank Inari school is over…I don’t know how much longer I could resist…” The way to Kurama’s house was quiet and gloomy. The weather was no better – clouds were forming again and the cold wind was blowing dead leaves into furious circles in the air. All of Kurama’s beautiful roses were long withered and the carefully attended garden was depressingly empty and brown. Shiori opened the door and welcomed the girl inside.
“Hikari, come in. It’s so thoughtful of you to come.”
“Thank you. How is Shuuichi feeling?”
The woman gave a deep sigh. “No better, I’m afraid…” Hikari could see that she was on the verge of tears. Ever since Kurama’s illness the two women became quite close, so Hikari gave Shiori a gentle pat on the arm and a sympathetic and reassuring smile.
“I think you would want to see him. Come.”
But even though she knew perfectly well what she would see, a sharp pain tore her chest. No… it was worse… Kurama was getting worse…
It took all her will power to hold her tears inside. Knelling at his side she took the kitsune’s hand in hers and noted how terribly warm it was.
Although she was troubled, Shiori couldn’t help but smile at the sight. For a while now she had become aware of the girl’s feelings for Shuuichi. She was the only friend that came to visit her ill son. They would sooth each other, pray and tend to him together. Seeing the burning in Hikari’s eyes while she looked at the unconscious boy, Shiori decided to leave them alone.

She was really grateful that Shiori left the room. Concentrating, she extended her aura and started searching deep inside her loved one’s body for an answer to what was slowly killing him.

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Jumping from tree to tree he followed her to Kurama’s house. She looked so lonely and consumed… Even her vivid pink hair seamed to have dimmed. Taking refuge in a tree no far away from the fox’s window but out of sight for those inside, Hiei waited for Kurara to appear. “Damn! He looks terrible! Hn… Never thought he’d be that weak…” He didn’t have a bad impression about the kitsune, but now it was ridiculous! He should have been back on his feet within a week… but he wasn’t… Seeing the almost desperate look in Kurara’s eyes when she saw Kurama, he felt a strange cold sting in his heart and a hot burn in the pit of his stomach. Reaching further on his branch and stretching his neck to have a better view, Hiei saw the concentrated expression on the girl’s face and the tears slipping past her tightly closed eyelashes. “She’s wasting her energy on his stupid Makai flu.” But an annoying little voice in his mind noted that he would like someone to do that for him too. Not as if he needed it… of course not!
The sun was almost kissing the horizon when she finally left, heading for home.

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Frowning when he felt the cold wind against his face filled with little iced droplets of water, Hiei kept his vigil on the branch across Hikari’s window. She seemed tired and about to break when she dropped her school bag on the floor near her desk. Slowly she started undressing, the reddish light of the dying sun mingling with the pale colour of her bare skin. Hiei blinked in surprise at the image before his wide, shocked eyes. Her nudity gave him goose bumps and he could feel a hot drop of sweat trickle along his spine making him tense and shudder. “Gods, she’s beautiful… I would have never though that such a lean and slender figure could carry such strength…” Seeing her dressed in the silk nightgown didn’t help much as he was still staring at her lying down. “Why doesn’t she close the window?” He thought again about the previous night when she had called him. Was she still expecting him to come? No… it couldn’t be…
Almost an hour passed and Hiei was starting to doze off on his branch. A sudden cry of despair broke trough his sleepy state.
“No… please don’t! … Why? … “
Within a second he was in her room looking for any threat that might have endangered Kurara. But he found none. Puzzled, he looked around and saw her still asleep… an agitated slumber, tormented by a terrible nightmare by the pain, terror and anger-filled expression on her drenched face. She was clutching the sheets tightly, twisting and turning as if in agony. The sight worried Hiei even more than the perspective of an intruding foe.
Getting closer he reached a hesitant hand and touched her forehead. Her ki was pulsing like mad as if she was fighting with someone. Hiei was torn between waking her up and letting her be. He just didn’t want her to know that he was there and was even worried about her, but he didn’t want to let her suffer any longer either.
He placed his hand on the warm and soaked forehead. “I have to wake her up…” “Kurara.” Nothing happened. She didn’t finch. “Kurara!” Not even when he shook her, the girl didn’t respond. Panic started to clutch its cold hand on Hiei’s heart. “K’so! She’s not waking up!” Not thinking too much about it, he started channeling his ki in her body, calling her from wherever she was struggling to escape.

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Her ki was low and she knew it very well. Soon she wouldn’t be able to give her healing power to Kurama anymore. Every step she took was a noticeable effort and the wind was pushing hard against her already heavy chest. The roof of her home soon came to view and she sighed. Only after she unceremoniously dropped her school bag on the floor and took off her coat she breathed in relieved. Her uniform was the only obstacle keeping her away from the bliss of the welcoming bed.
But as she had fallen asleep, peace hadn’t followed. She knew it was a dream but the fact didn’t diminish her tension. Kurara could see a bizarre but not senseless image. Kurama was lying on a bed of crawling snakes, his ki sucked by their greedy parted mouths. An unfamiliar youki surrounded the place and when she turned around her eyes fell upon the master puppeteer that maneuvered the whole plot. Rage filled her when she saw the serpent-like youkai entwine his fingers in Kurama’s hair and lick the pale cheek. “Damn you! Get your hands off him!” But there was no response… as if the
filthy creature didn’t hear. Not even when she tried to push him away there was no result. “No… This can’t be… I get to watch here while Kurama is dying?” “Damn you! Why am I seeing this?”
Falling to her knees she wept. There was nothing she could do. Waking up was impossible.
“Ah… At last… It has begun.”
The creature had spoken for the first time and the voice was like torn silk. Kurara slowly raised her head and almost fainted at the site of a fourth person. The silhouette was almost completely formed… of ki… Kurama’s ki. She gasped. The new person in the room was Kurama… Youko Kurama.
“Finally you have responded to my call… Good… It was very clever of you to hide in that frail human body. But you should have known better! I had sworn to take revenge and I will, Kurama, I will. You won’t die, at least not yet; you will serve me until I break your spirit. Then, perhaps, if you beg me I’ll kill you.” The youkai was groping Kurama shamelessly while purring his threats to the unresponsive kitsune. “Too bad you can’t lift a finger against me… I know you would. You see, Kurama, I’ve made sure that I have complete control over you but keep your conscience along too. You don’t know how satisfying it is to know that you are doing everything I want while watching helplessly your own actions. I could even order you to kill your friends one by one…”
She couldn’t even move. Comprehension didn’t come and she just stood there watching them with wide, tear-filled eyes. That monster was torturing Kurama…both of them. Another look at the redhead made her want to scream. He was white as chalk and… “No! … Please don’t! …Kurama! … Why is this happening? Why!”
Sudden warmth wrapped her and she felt dragged away from there.
She opened her eyes hesitantly and saw two blood red orbs.
“Hiei! What… what are you doing here?”
“Hn!”
“Gomen…”
“Hn.”
“Arigato, Hiei. I don’t know how much longer I could have handled that dream…”
Her statement really surprised him. What could have she seen that terrified her like that?
“’Thought you were tougher than that. Stupid ningen… getting so wound up because of a dream.”
“Maybe I am not that tough, but I know what is slowly killing Kurama…”
“Huh?”
Blinking surprised for the second time, Hiei watched her slide off the bed and start skimming through her wardrobe. She knew very well that she would be forced to fight and opted for her gray worn out jeans, dark red tank top, leather boots and trench coat.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Seeing her contour behind the paper slider getting dressed he couldn’t repress the question.
“I have to go to the Makai and stop the bastard that is hurting Kurama.”
“Stop fooling yourself. You barely have any ki left. You can’t fight a low class demon now, not to mention a powerful one.”
“You underestimate me, Hiei…”
Coming back into view, he observed that even if she was tired and didn’t take care of the way she looked… she was still stunning. She opened a drawer and to Hiei’s even bigger surprise she held out a katana and a strange looking weapon that he didn’t recognize.