Soft
A gargantuan fox growled when the little sprite appeared again, always appearing at night in the cold chambers of these barren wastelands. It was annoying how he could never get the annoying brat to go away or even scare her. He wondered if that redhaired bitch was doing it on purpose, allowing the kid to intrude her mindscape.
Blue embers lit the icy air, warming the chains binding him as she laid next to his red eyes and used her arms as a pillow. Fragile thin arms that he more than wanted to snap off and could so easily do so if he just had a limb loose. She gazed at him with her usual chestnut colored eyes, smiling softly,
"Kurami looks as soft as always." He ignored the girly nickname the girl gave him and he ignored the insult to his image. To talk was to lose. "Too bad Kurami can't show it off. Ne, Kurami, I heard about your rampages — I read about them too. Kurami must really really hate us, huh. Not all of us are bad though… Do you only hurt the bad us?"
He didn't answer and she knew he wouldn't as she closed her eyes, "Is it weird to like sleeping in a dream? Kurami scares all the bad things away without doing anything so it's better… to sleep… here…"
He scoffed as the brat as always fell asleep. He was not some kind of fucking ward. Still, he couldn't help but notice the lingering darkness around her.
…
Name
"Everyone always call you Kyuubi. Kyuubi no Yoko this. Kyuubi that." The little girl said one day, her bluish silver hair illuminating with the blue wisps of her flames again. She pouted, "No one ever says your name though. How rude. If they're going to make you a legend, then they might as well know your name. It's kind of evil — only remembering their famous deeds, but not the person themselves. Like what was Rikudo Sennin like? Was he really fatherly? Or was he really quirky in reality? No one would ever know now because no one cares. Don't you think people these days are forgetting too much of their ancestors?" She sniffed, "All they care about is waving mass produced metal sticks and killing people. I think humans are the only ones that can promote peace while killing."
If it wasn't for his rule, then he would have snorted. His old man really was quirky. It was sad how no one would ever know that now though. The man that created them…
"Ne, Kurami, what name did your father give you? You have to have some kind of family. Everyone does. No matter how annoying or hateful they could be… No matter how useless or uncaring — there's always something you can love. And there's always someone that will love you. I'm sure Kurami has someone like that. Everything even monsters don't appear out of nowhere. They all have a purpose — a good purpose in this world."
…
Demon
"Do you believe in demons, Kurami?"
There had to be some irony in asking a Bijuu famously known as a demon, a soulless monster, a natural disaster that question. But he said nothing as she raised a hand to touch the lingering orbs of fire once again spread around his world like fireflies. They filled the empty desert of a landscape which she had once described as pitiful for foxes were forest animals. He agreed. To make it even sadder, it was the only thing he saw… for what? 50 years? More, less?
"I believe in them… I don't believe Kurami's one, but demons exist. The reason why they do bad things… is because demons are what humans create through their every action, every mistake, every fear, and every emotion…" The Kyuubi wondered why he wasn't one then, because technically it was a human called Hagoromo Ootsutsuki the Rikudo Sennin that created him and the negative emotions that began his actions.
She smiled at him as always though, cheekily and innocently like all other brats, "Kurami's not one because he's too proud to let humans influence him though. Every action has a reason, but great Kyuubi no Yoko-sama is too great of a Bijuu to not have his own reasons to do things, right?"
He snorted and she blinked along with him at the first reaction he allowed himself to show throughout all their meetings. She laughed and he found that he didn't really mind it. Because he really was too proud, huh.
…
Story
"There's a really funny story about a strong old man who wanted to bring peace to this world. He could not do this within his time, however, and thus entrusted his dream to his two sons. On his deathbed, he asked them how they will achieve peace. The older son, a solitary genius, believed in power. The younger son, a befriending idiot, believed in love. The Sage of the Six Paths chose his younger son to be his successor."
The passed down story of Rikudo Sennin, he idly recognized. He wondered what was so funny about it when it was what started generations of fights between the Senju and Uchiha, when it was the story regarded as legend to all shinobi.
The girl continued idly, yawning as she made animal shapes with her flames. She was getting better at controlling them day by day.
"It's a funny story… because why? Because if love and cooperation are the keys to peace, then why choose one successor?"
Her eyes furrowed as she laughed bitterly, "If cooperation was the key to peace, then why choose one? If you truly loved your sons, then why compare them and favor just one? If peace was what he wanted… then why start a fight between two brothers? I think the reason why he could not achieve peace was because he failed to understand humanity. The genius was alone and spoiled. He did not understand bonds and he could not accept defeat. The idiot was popular and hardworking. He could not understand loneliness and hate. And they were never together because one was by himself and the other was with others. They knew nothing about each other but the bare minimal which they believed to be the full truth. Which is why when faced with a common goal, they shared no teamwork and instead strove to be the successor himself. They had a fight when they could have made a compromise for the sake of the peace their father wanted. And it wasn't really even their fault. They were raised that way, never understanding the other side."
'Kurami' lived for many years, generations and generations… but he had no answer as to why the conflict was never ended. Perhaps, it was simply just because it was hard to overcome the already created hate? Or just the pride?
…
Freedom
"Kurami. If you became free, then what would you do? Where would you go? Would you attack people again? Would you hate people again? Would you be hated again?"
He wondered about that too. Before, he just wanted to destroy breeding grounds of the darkest aspects of human nature. Then, he was used by the stupid Uchiha and then caged as he was. Would he get revenge if he was free? Revenge on who first, the village, the Uchiha, or the Uzumaki?
Or would he just leave to a place where he couldn't be found, not by war-mongerers looking for a weapon, not by hateful humans who roared in their rages in something he couldn't unhear.
("If you use your power, only hatred will come from it. Stay tranquil deep inside me.")
In a way, she was right. Because he could sense negative emotions, he couldn't ignore it. Because he hated, he killed. Because he killed, he was hated. It was only another cycle of hatred like that stupid Indra. He scoffed.
("The genius was alone and spoiled. He did not understand bonds and he could not accept defeat.")
He was not Indra however.
Because he wasn't that stupid. He wasn't…
"Ne, Kurami, if you became free, then you better say goodbye to me first. We're friends, right?" When she received no reaction, she pouted, "Mou, we're sleeping buddies at the very least! Ne, Kurami—"
…
Love
"Ne, Kurami, do you looove anyone?"
As if sensing his disbelief, she persisted, "Come on, Kurami has to have someone that he loves — even if he's caged all day or a chakra beast!"
He would have rolled his eyes if it weren't for—
"Like what about the two tailed cat — I bet she's really cute — or the oh I don't know, tanuki—"
"Hell no."
—his personal… rule…
The brat's face brightened, even more so than her fireballs.
"You spoke!"
If his limbs was free, then he would have held his face in shame. Damn that stupid Shukaku that always somehow managed to ruin his tempo even kilometers away.
"That was so cool! I really love your voice! You should speak more often — it's so deep and amazing! You were just so quiet that I almost thought you were mute — unconsciously though because I know you're a really smart kit, but still!"
He groaned. Maybe if he focused all his energy on his left arm, he could break at least that free to shield his reddening fur.
…
History
The girl never expected him to speak after that, continuing on her way the next day and the next and he was mildly grateful for it. That there was no triumphant gloating (that he would immediately squash) or difference in treatment. It was just the same normal thing that he wondered if he already got used to as she told more of her stories or things she read or even just asked questions about him that he never answered.
"A boy came up to me today." She began this time and he was quite surprised, having never heard a personal story about another person. Perhaps, she was warily hiding those she knew from him? "He asked why I always seemed to be reading history."
Considering how she was talking about history a lot, it was a valid question.
"And I said…" The fire lights flickered as her eyes narrowed, "those who don't know history were only doomed to repeat it."
Shinobi weren't known for recording much and they hid much of their secrets and past as any other in the shadows. An odd thought came in the ancient being, an odd thought of whether any of Indra's or Ashura's descendents knew about the original fight, if they ever took the time to look at their past and try correcting it. Tried changing things besides killing each other and coming up with more war tactics for more war.
Has he ever done that instead of just killing cockroaches because he hated them?
When she didn't say anything more, he threw his rule to hell. "And he said?" He prompted and she didn't even deign his voice attention as she recounted absently,
"And he asked… Then do you know a way to end wars?"
It was not the same question as Rikudo's, but it was similar enough to make him wonder what way she would choose, whether she would say 'power' or 'love' or—
"And I said 'no'."
He almost laughed because her eyes weren't those of someone giving up or uncaring as she gazed up at him; the chestnut brown illuminated like the lights that brightened his cold empty world.
"I said no… but that I would help him try."
…
Approach
Days passed and he never saw her again for those nights. He wondered if she abandoned him. If she finally caught up to common sense. Or if she just became busy with her new project, forgetting about him. It was quiet like always and cold and barren as always. Just like he wanted it to be before. It was back to normal and the girl was gone.
Now that he thought about it… she never told him her name as well. Not even once mentioned it and as natural as it felt during those nights, he wondered if she planned it. Though he sensed no negative emotions other than the occasional little ones, he wondered if she tricked him or was planning to and just quit…
"Ne, Kurami."
He almost jumped when she appeared and he growled at her sudden return — the nerve of her to—
"Ne, Kurami." She repeated and he just stared. There was something wrong wrong wrong— "We never promised, but I suggested it so I shouldn't go against it. Since I want Kurami to be approachable to kind others, you know? Since I want Kurami to rise above history, to find love, to be free, to tell stories, to remember the origin of demons, to be proud of who he is and his name, and…"
For the first time in almost forever, he felt the warm touch of a human… soft fingers that gently lingered on his fur as the chains broke and blue orbs lit the forests he once inhabited in like fireflies in all their ephemeral beauty. When was the last time he felt free — from everything, even if he in all actuality wasn't.
"...to remain soft because this is his beautiful mindscape, you know?"
She wasn't one of the Uzumaki's or the village's sent. She wasn't there to torment him or to hate… She wasn't… someone he wanted to kill.
"Hey—"
Her hair burst into similar flames that slowly coursed from her dissipating body as she leaned into him with as much of an embrace she could give him with those small hands, with the lull of closed eyes that he saw all the time when she finally fell asleep only this time she…
"Is it weird to like sleeping in a dream?" She smiled in memories of her first encounter within the sad dreams of the sullen. "Ne, Kurami… don't hate anybody… give them a chance."
"Brat—"
"...Masaki Misaki." She smiled, "I just realized… I forgot to tell you my name, Kurami… Then, jya… Good night."
"Goddamnit, wait! Brat! Misaki—"
…was gone for the last time. And although he was free and proud-standing in his mindscape once again, even after changing vessels and binds, no one ever stepped into it ever again.
Years later, however, he would finally tell someone - another annoying brat - his name.
"Kurama."
A/N: 'Kurami' means 'Dark Beauty' and Masaki Misaki is just a random OC who for the drabble's sake can appear in mindscapes. This is set in Mito's time, and thus Misaki might have been killed in the Shinobi Wars. I wouldn't know because I just wrote this since I thought Kurama might have been lonely in all those years alone with no one who would amiably talk to him :)