Red

by Take
 
 
 

Itoshii hito wo mamore tara… [1] ~~~~~~
 
 

The wind howled around her, a lonely forbidding cry that bespoke death.  The  maiden stood tall against the gusts of winds, seemingly unmoved by the frigid air.  In truth, she had never felt colder, though she gave no outward sign of  feeling the icy bite.
 
 

Spiky green hair fell over closed ruby eyes as the kimono-clad figure stood on the edge of a cliff, the rest of the Makai spread out beneath her like a textured blanket.  She had lost track of the number of times she had come to stand in this particular spot, surrounded by shards of ice that reflected her  image, though she had no need of any mirror. After all, she saw that face when she looked at her mother.
 
 

Yukina listened to the wind as it cried, as if searching for a particular voice…her brother's.
 
 

He was out there somewhere; she knew that with a bone-deep certainty through the bond she had always shared with her twin.  There were times when she could keenly sense his pain or anger at the world, the link intensified by the strength of his emotions.
 
 
 

She wished she knew his name.
 

She would leave this wintry, unfeeling place soon for the vibrant colors of life below.  Her mother was dying…it wouldn't be long before she was free to go.  Hina had wanted to leave, but years of pressure from the Elders had left  her a beaten woman.   Yukina hadn't known the woman Hina had been; she couldn't imagine her mother and the woman who'd defied Koorime law as one and the same.  What she knew had come from Rui and spiteful tongues of the Elder  crones, and she couldn't always be sure that it was the truth; Koorime tended   to distort facts when it suited them.   In her own way she loved her mother, and was glad that Hina would soon be free to join the fire youkai she had loved…her father…
 
 

Yukina grasped the shining gem that hung at her throat, hidden by the folds of her kimono. She felt nervous, excited and scared, but above all she felt a fierce determination to find the brother she'd waited all her life to meet.
What would she find?

She was sure that her oniisan would be strong - he would have to be to survive alone from infancy.  Other than that…other than that Yukina could only imagine.   He would be her brother, and she loved him.  That was all that mattered.
 
 

Just then the clouds that had gathered during her musings broke, letting the sunlight through the dense bank.  Below, the deep green of a Makai forest lit up like a sparkling jewel, dazzling the Koorime maiden.
 
 

Her oniisan was down there, and she would find him, no matter what the cost.

"Yakusoku shimasu, oniisan," she said softly, her promise borne to the Makai on a whisper of wind.
 
 

~~~~~~
Dou suru no? ~~~~~~
 
 

The compact figure lay strapped to the operating table, his face a stoic mask, his crimson eyes giving nothing away.  The cold, impersonal white light   flooding the room made his skin crawl, but his mind was made up.  For *her*  he would go through with this.
 
 

Hiei could hear Shigure as the other youkai moved about, preparing himself  and his equipment.  He willed himself to relax, concentrating on the presence of his sister, hidden deep inside where none could intrude upon their bond. What would she be like?
 
 

If their bond was anything to go by, she'd be beautiful, loving…innocent.  She deserved to be protected from life's harsh reality, to have her illusions  kept intact.  And Hiei knew that if needed, he would die for her.   Not that  she'd ever know who he was…
 
 

Shigure's voice intruded on his thoughts and Hiei schooled his features into a blank mask.   To find his sister he would do anything.
 
 

As he watched the mechanical apparatus descend from above, Hiei heard Shigure's chilling final words before his world exploded with pain.
 
 

"You can scream if it hurts."

Then there was darkness.
 

~~~~~~
Dou suru no? ~~~~~~
 
 

~Owari
 

[1] From Kawamura Ryuichi's "Red"

Itoshii hito wo mamore tara…
Dou suru no?
 

If you could protect your loved one…
What would you do?