On My Honor
by Momo no Hana
Part One
Where am I?
The sharp tang of disinfectant hung in the air around him. To his keen sense of smell, it was a brutal assault. Frowning, he opened his eyes slowly and glanced around the room.
He was nestled on a mattress, raised several feet above the floor by a metal frame. A soft wind came through the open windows, ruffling through the sheer curtains and playing across his face comfortably. The white blankets seemed to glow harshly, reflecting the light from the ceiling, and even the clothes of the three women across the room were unbearably pale. My eyes hurt…
The blankets had been pulled up to cover his bandaged chest and a stuffed bear. This told him two things. One, the presence of that stuffed animal meant that someone had been visiting him. Well, that was nice, but the cutesy pink bow fastened around the bear's neck was almost enough to make him wince. Two, the bandages were covering a wound in his chest. There was blood seeping through, so the wound must be serious... Why couldn't he feel it?
One of the women on the other side of the room gave him a cursory glance, looked away to continue talking, and then did a double take.
"Kurama-san, you're awake!" the woman said, bustling over to him. As he seemed to be the only patient in the room, she must be talking to him. Kurama… Is that my name? He clenched his eyes shut as pain shot through him. Agh, my head - !
"Kurama-san!" All three nurses were suddenly crowded around the bed. "Are you okay? Where does it hurt?"
"I'm fine," he murmured as the sharp pain suddenly faded. Where had that pain come from? "It's just my head."
"Oh! We put you on pain medication a little while ago, it should have taken effect by now," the woman said quickly. She glanced over her shoulder. "Momo-chan, go tell Koenma-sama that Kurama-san is awake."
One of the nurses hurried out the door, and Kurama frowned, beginning to push himself up. He was stopped by a dull, throbbing pain from the back of his head. Frowning and closing his eyes as a headache set in, he leaned back into the pillows.
A short while later, he heard the door open again. Kurama kept his eyes shut, since he was reluctant to see the blindingly white room again, but he listened closely as the nurses conversed with the visitor.
"Yes, Koenma-sama, he woke up a few minutes ago..."
"How is he?" Koenma asked. "Does he seem okay?"
"Perhaps we should talk in my office, Koenma-sama," the nurse suggested. "I can give you a report on his condition."
"Fine," Koenma agreed.
The door opened, and Kurama opened one of his eyes, peering at the closed door. Nearly fifteen minutes passed before Koenma returned, still talking with the nurse.
"- also, I suggest that he see a psychologist. He's been through a very traumatic experience, and with his family -"
"Shh, don't let him hear. I think I want one of the others to tell him, he might take it better." There were footsteps crossing the room, and then someone sat down on the edge of the bed. "Kurama?"
"Mm?" Kurama murmured. He opened his eyes, and found a young man with brown hair smiling down at him. He had an aristocratic look about him, despite the tattoo on his forehead and the pale blue pacifier in his mouth. "Yes?"
"Hey," the youth said warmly. "How are you feeling?"
Kurama considered the question for a moment.
"My head hurts," he said honestly. Koenma looked ready to laugh.
"Sorry about that. They've already put you on pain meds, so there isn't much I can do," Koenma said. "Do you hurt anywhere else?"
Kurama shook his head, feeling a little confused.
"I… How did I get here?" Kurama asked.
"We found you. They dropped you off in front of the palace. I guess they wanted us to see..." Koenma looked at the sheets on the bed. "Never mind. That isn't going to make up for what happened." He glanced at the bear tucked into the sheets beside Kurama, and a weak laugh left him. "I told Botan that thing was too girly, but she thought you'd like it."
Kurama picked up the stuffed animal, peering at it. Besides the lacy pink bow, the bear was actually nice. It was very soft, with pale brown fur and big brown eyes.
"It's cute," he said. As if to prove he was speaking the truth, he pulled the bear onto his stomach and looped an arm about it. "I do like it. Could you thank Botan-san for me?"
Koenma raised an eyebrow.
"Sure," he answered. He paused for a minute. "Do you want me to get anyone? Hiei will be here with Shigure later, so we don't need to worry about that. Do you want Yusuke or Kuwabara?"
Kurama glanced down at the sheets on the bed. Oh, they were white. How nice.
"I… I don't know," Kurama said uncertainly.
"Don't know?" Koenma blinked at him. "You mean you don't want them to see you? I understand if you're embarrassed about what happened, but you shouldn't push them away. They can help you through this. Besides, Hiei's going to see you no matter what."
Kurama shook his head, hugging the bear against him.
"No, I mean…" He looked up at Koenma, feeling guilty for being so ignorant. "I don't know who any of those people are."
Koenma jerked backward.
"What?" he yelped. He leaned forward quickly. "You don't… Do you know me?"
Kurama bit his lip delicately. He wanted to say that he did know him, but he couldn't lie, not when Koenma was being so nice to him. Feeling something stinging at his eyes, Kurama shook his head.
"I-I'm sorry. No."
"But there's got to be…" Koenma paused. "What's the last thing you remember?"
He thought back. He tried. A shaky breath passed his lips, and he closed his eyes, turning his head so that one cheek was pressed to the cool cloth of the pillow.
"I can't," Kurama whispered. Something damp splashed over his face, and he felt his breath hitch. "I'm sorry… I can't."
A/N: Poor Kurama. Hope you like. No, Kurama having amnesia is NOT the main part of the story - it's just a subplot. Ooh, can anyone guess why Hiei and Shigure are showing up no matter what? Bonus points on your Math B exam if you get it right!
