Chapter two: meant to be?
song: I wanna hold your hand - the Beatles
Hiei raced around his tent, picking up scraps of clothing and tossing them into a pile on the bed. He was three years old now, and though he remembered his mother, he chose to call Thea his mother. She and Malik had told him on his last birthday how they had found him in the woods, and how she had loved him at first sight. It made his tiny heart glow to know that such a caring woman could love him, despite his mischievousness.
"Hurry Hiei. Your mother will leave without you soon!" Malik's voice called in through the tent flap. The young boy grabbed his cape from the head of his bed and rushed for the flap. "But I'm ready!" he shouted triumphantly, coming to an abrupt stop beside Malik and Thea. "Now Hiei," Malik said with a firm voice, catching the attention of the energetic child, "I want you to protect your mother when you're in town. I will be there in an hour to come and fetch you both." Little Hiei looked up at Malik in awe of the responsibility being bestowed upon him, "I'll do my best!"
Thea smiled down at Hiei, resting her hands on her swollen stomach. She had convinced her mate that the boy should take a day off from training and accompany her into town. He had only begun training two months ago because he had taken a shine to swordplay. Though Malik only ever let the boy use wooden swords, he was only a little over three after all.
She took Hiei's hand and gave her mate a peck on the cheek, "We will be fine. We'll see you in an hour." She gently led the young boy through the tree line, towards the closest village. They needed to fetch supplies for the baby that was on the way. She pondered about the strange little fire demon holding her hand as she walked. Most demon children tended to develop fairly quick, but for one to be able to begin training at three was almost unheard of. Five or six was the general age that they become able to control themselves on any level.
They walked into the small town and made their way to the closest clothing store. "Okay, Hiei, we need to get some blankets, and some dresses." She said softly, ushering the little boy over to a very feminine side of the store. Hiei knew better than to struggle against her, but he really didn't want to be seen picking out pink blankets and dresses. "But kaa-san, dresses will be too cold!"
Thea sighed and looked down at the boy, "How did you get to be so smart, hm? Okay, we'll get something warmer." She supposed she could wait until her baby was a few months old before she bought any dresses. Fleecy jumpers would be better for winter weather anyway.
She let Hiei tug her over to a shelf full of blue jumpers and blankets, deciding against reminding him the baby was going to be a girl. The young fire demon picked up a baby blue blanket covered in yellow ducks, "This'll match her better!" He exclaimed proudly, although he wasn't quite sure how he knew that.
Thea raised a blond eyebrow at the boy and rested a hand on her stomach, feeling the baby kick. "Hmm, well, she seems to agree with you. But, what do you mean it will match her better?" She had long ago discovered the boy's knack for knowing things, he had been the one to tell her she was going to have a girl, several months before she had even been pregnant. "It's going to match her hair." He said simply, as if it was common knowledge.
Malik walked into the town a few minutes late, frustrated to no end. Just as he had been getting ready to go, who should show up but Youko himself. Any other day he may have been flattered to have the legendary theif ask him for assistance. However, he was incredibly anxious to ensure the safety of his family. He had a foreboding feeling in his gut, like something was going to happen.
He searched the market place until he saw his mate sipping a cup of tea, while Hiei was looing through a small book. He let out a sigh of relief and made his way over to them, thankful that his foreboding feeling had been wrong, or so he thought.
Hiei looked up as he felt the youki of his father approach, "Tou-san! You missed all the fun!" He called out, feeling quite proud of himself. As he and his mother had left the clothing store, two thugs tried to corner them.
The older male froze beside their table, "What kind of fun Hiei?" He asked hesitantly, looking the young fire demon in the eye.
Thea couldn't help but smile softly as her adoptive son's eyes filled with pride as he began his story.
flash back
Hiei held the door of the shop open for Thea as they were leaving, when he felt something odd in the air. He looked both ways down the street until he saw two particularly tall demons. He couldn't see their faces, because their hoods dipped over their eyes, and he got a weird feeling coming off them.
As Thea was about to step out the door, he held up his hand and spoke quietly, "Kaa-san, wait. I feel something." He struggled with the last word, as he tried to decipher if it was a bad feeling or not. She froze at his words and looked around for whatever could be causing such a reaction in the boy.
Her eyes fell on the two approaching figures, and she reached out to pull Hiei back into the store when she saw the faces under the hoods. Those were not demons. She panicked as Hiei closed the door, and took a protective stance in front of it. He had noticed the strange weapons they were drawing from within the depths of their cloaks, and decided they were definitely bad.
The two figures stopped in front of the fired demon and smirked, clearly unafraid of the child. As if he could keep two Rekai black ops from their bounty, especially one worth as much as she was. The one on the right reached out for the door, ignoring the growl from the boy.
Hiei glared at the man as he reached for the door, and growled in warning. The strange man ignored him, leaving the boy no choice but to lash out. He launched himself at the man reaching for the door, kicking him in the jaw.
The other man reacted first, trying to catch him before he could land another blow, but Hiei was too quick. He spun around in mid air and slammed his fist into the other man's stomach. He landed in a crouch, and shot his leg out to knock both men off their feet.
As both men landed on their backs, Hiei held his hands out at his arms length and concentrated as much youki as he could into them. The Rekai black ops starred at the boy with wide eyes as his arms caught fire. They wouldn't have been even half as worried, had they not felt a dark power bubbling up in the demon child. They spared each other a glance, neither wanting to see just what kind of dark power the child possessed.
They were on their feet and gone before Thea could even blink. She felt her daughter kick as Hiei's youki spread, increasing the dark power. She opened the door and placed her hand on the boys shoulder, causing him to lose his focus, putting an end to the flow of youki.
He looked up at her with wide eyes, "Are you okay Kaa-san?"
End flash back
Malik was conflicted. On one hand, he was horrified that the Rekai black ops had hunted them down again, but on the other he was so proud that Hiei had been able to defeat them. Ofcourse, there was the troublesome little matter of the dark powers. He had thought that he would have more time to find someone to help train to child in controlling them, but it appeared he was running out of time.
Oh yeah, I´ll tell you something
I think you'll understand
Seeing the smile slowly falling from the boys face, he snapped back to reality and placed a hand on his adopted son's shoulder, "I'm proud of you boy. You protected your mother well."
When I say that something
As time passed, cold winds began to blow through the Makai, forcing the travelling theives to retreat to their cave hide outs. It was very close to the due date of Thea and Malik's daughter. Being the worrisome demon that he is, Malik had sent his fastest member of the group to fetch the midwife they had had deliver both previous children.
I wanna hold your hand
Hiei would spend every moment he wasn't training beside his mother, making sure she didn't do anything bad for her or the baby. Although his training had doubled since the incident in the village, and he now had another tutor. Youko. He had protested at first, to bring the strange persopn into such close quarters of his mother, but he grew very attached to the older kitsune demon. Youko was merely twelve, and the closest to Hiei's age.
I wanna hold your hand
Malik had been surprised that the crafty kitsune had agreed to train the young fire demon, at the cost of shelter for the winter with them. He had thought Thea crazy when she proposed the idea to him, but he could not find himself suspicious or ungrateful in the least. It was good for Hiei to have a young friend.
I wanna hold your hand
The snow fell heavily as a young fire apparition sat in the middle of a field. He had finished training with Youko an hour ago and gone to find his mother. When he got to her tent, she ushered him out and told him to get the midwife. And when he had brought the midwife to her, he had been pushed out of the tent and told the baby was coming.
Oh, please, say to me
There was a small pout etched into his face as he glared into the forest. He wanted to be there in case he needed to protect his mother! But even Malik had told him he wouldn't be able to do anything until the baby came. When he heard the first shout of pain, he left the caves. He couldn't stand the thought of his mother figure in pain.
Hina sat solemnly on her bed, watching her daughter string together some thin branches to make a wreath. She was smiling on the outside, but on the inside she was dying. For three and a half long years she had watched her daughter flourish, and wondered what had become of her son. She and Rui had been forbidden from leaving the village, so she had no idea if the boy had lived or not.
The little girl looked up at her mother, her long mint green hair swaying softly, "Mommy, do you think, if I drop this wreath off the cliff, my brother will find it?" Her voice was as smooth and delicate as satin, and her words wrapped themselves around Hona's mind, until they were all she could think.
"Perhaps, Yukina, is that what you wish to do?" She didn't have the heart to express her pessimistic feeling about the hopelessness of the idea. The little girl nodded eagerly.
As soon as the child deemed the wreath done, she had tied it with a blue ribbon and lots of pretty red berries, they left the hut to go and find Rui.
The three koorimes stood together at the edge of town, watching the wreath float down on the snow, until it dissapeared from sight. All three hoping that perhaps the little boy would find it, if he was still alive.
Hiei was still sitting in the field several hours later, covered in a thick layer of snow, when he caught movement in the sky. He watched, curious, as the object floated to the ground. He starred at it for a few moments, trying to decide if it was a trap, but there was no movement to be heard in the field or forest.
You'll let me be your man
He jumped to his feet and shook off the snow that had settled on him. With slow, cautious steps, he made his way over to the fallen object. He was genuinely surprised to find that it was a hand made wreath. He picked it up carefully, and looked it over. There was a blue ribbon tied to it, and in childish letters, it said 'for Hiei.'
and please, say to me
He was so thrilled when he saw his name, that he didn't think to wonder where it had come from. He knew it wasn't from his mother or father down here, as they had gotten him a sword for the holidays, and they would have given it to him face to face. He raced back to the cave, wreath in hand, contenting himself to believe it was from his other family.
Yukina was sitting at the table, eating her dinner when she suddenly stopped and looked up. "He found it mama!" She said happily, clapping her hands together in joy, startling both Hina and Rui. "How do you know that sweetie?" Rui asked, seeing that her friend was in shock.
The little girl gave a wide smile and said, "I felt him smile."
The two fully grown koorime shared a look, both wondering when the two children had formed such a bond. By koorime law, the babies were kept seperate, so such an event could not take place.
Hina watched her daughter continue eating with a smile and felt herself smile slightly. Perhaps, all that was needed for the bond to form, was the giving of a gift. They would never know though.
Thea was sitting up in bed when Hiei raced into her tent. She motioned for him to be quiet, showing him the bundle in her arms.
You'll let me hold your hand
He slowed to a stop as he reached the bed, and leaned over as far as he could, trying to see what was in the blankets. He was startled when it moved, until a tiny hand popped out of the blanket. "Is that her?" He asked in a whisper, watching the small hand wave about.
Now let me hold your hand
"Yes, this is Botan." Thea carefully moved the blanket away from the baby's face, revealing her startling pink eyes and small tuft of ocean blue hair to the young boy. "Woah." He said, reaching his hand out to the baby's. Her little fingers wrapped around his thumb as soon as he was within her reach.
I wanna hold your hand
Thea smiled at the two children as they got their first look at each other, and spotted the wreath in Hiei's other hand out of the corner of her eye. "Where did you get that pretty wreath from Hiei?" She asked, dragging his attention away from little Botan, whom had fallen asleep.
And when I touch you i feel happy, inside
He looked at the wreathe for a moment, and looked back at his mother, "It fell from the sky, and it had my name on it. I think it was from my sister." He wasn't sure how he knew he had a sister, but now that he had said it out loud, he was certain it was the truth. "Well, your sister made you a beautiful present." She said with a smile, not ready to doubt the possibility. They were quite close to where the floating island hovered this time of year.
Training hours had increased after Botan was born, Hiei was determined he would protect her no matter what. He began to ask Youko to increase his hours, and when that had been secured, he asked Malik and the rest of the group to help him practice when he wasn't with the kitsune.
It's such a feeling
That my love
He couldn't be sure, because he was still so young, but he knew he didn't feel very brotherly towards Botan. He really wanted to protect her, and be close to her, but he wasn't so sure it was in a brotherly way.
Spring settled over the forest and mountains almost a month later than usual, and they came to believe it was the little girl's doing. If the sun and warmth tried to peek through the clouds, she would cry until the snow returned. Her mother and father were surprised at first, neither of them were elemental demons after all. They'd had the midwife search for information about the occurrences, and were surprised to discover that, in rare cases like this, some children were born with powers linked to the weather at the time of their birth.
I can't hide
As it had been snowing so heavily on the day of her birth, she was linked to the snow by her very soul. Thea had gotten over her shock almost instantly, not caring about the odd turn of events, she was just thrilled to see her daughter so gifted.
I can't hide
Hiei had taken to the job of cheering Botan up to try and keep the snow away so that they would be able to leave the caves for some supplies. He was one of the few people that could keep the little girl contented, and he was convinced she had felt the same tug he had when he's laid eyes on her for the first time.
I can't hide
She was now just old enough to be crawling, and she had since stopped making it snow. She hadn't liked how cold the snow was on her tiny hands and pudgy knees. Hiei had been right behind her as she ventured into the snow, trying to tell her it would be cold, but he knew she was too little to understand him.
Yukina spent her days watching the snow fall from the edge of town. She had heard her mother say that the snow should have stopped a while ago, and she was curious to know if her brother was the cause for the snow. She'd never been told about what type of demon he was, her mother had barely been willing to speak his name, for the sorrow of her loss was so great.
She thought she could feel him in the middle of the snow swirls, but she couldn't be sure. The young koorime stood quickly as she heard footsteps come up behind her. "You shouldn't spend your days wondering what could have been." She recognized the voice of her great grandmother Rin and spun around to face her elder.
"Granny-san," Yukina said quickly, a blush colouring her face at being caught thinking of her brother, "I was just watching the snow."
Rin smiled softly at her great grandchild, the only one she would ever have the chance to know, she was sure. "It's alright child. I know you were thinking about your brother. I do not mind." Until this past fall, when she had ventured down to the Makai, she had not thought of the young boy.
When she had been in a small town, she had spotted a young boy, with eyes identical to her beloved Yukina's, telling two demons he had called mother and father, though there had been no resemblance of relation, about how he defeated two men in cloaks. It had seemed to her, that the boy spoke with a koorime accent, but she had been unable to tell from the distance she had been at.
Rin sat beside Yukina, motioning for the girl to sit back down as well. The little girl complied, her wide eyes trained on the elder koorime's face. "I saw a boy, when I went to town a few months ago. I think it was him."
Rin could feel change coming in the air, or she would not have mentioned this to the child. She could feel that the future had shifted, and the end of the koorime race would come before Yukina was even half grown. "When you leave the village, I suggest you find him. He looks to have found a nice little family." She knew she was confusing the child, so she stood and left without another word. Unable to bear the thought of revealing the tragedy awaiting the village.
Yukina stayed at the end of the village until night fell, mulling over her great grandmother's words. She had been told she would never leave this place, and she couldn't even imagine what could cause the elders to change their mind on the subject.
Hiei sat on the edge of a lake with Youko, they had gone to the woods to train away from distraction. The young fire apparition was not far from his fourth birthday now, and the summer heat had begun to roll into the air.
Yeah you, got that something
I think you'll understand
The kitsune was proud of his student, in just the past few weeks the power he could control had doubled. Youko knew the fire demon at his side was destined for great things, and that he had been an aid to the control of the powers hidden inside, was an honor. Not that he would voice such an opinion, and risk over-inflating the ego of the gifted boy.
When I say that something
Their silent rest was interrupted by a shout of fear, in a flash Hiei had headed towards the campsite. He could have sworn the shout was his mother's voice. Youko chased after him, in case he should be needed to help, though he doubted that thought.
I wanna hold your hand
Hiei burst into the camp to find Thea and Botan alone. "Where is everyone?" He asked hurriedly, checking them both for injuries. When he was satisfied that they were both fine, Thea smiled and replied, "A wild dog ran through the camp, made a pass at Botan, and they've chased it off."
I wanna hold your hand
He seemed satisfied with the answer, and allowed his muscles to be at rest again as Youko burst through the clearing. The twelve year old kitsune looked around, his silver hair flashing in the sun, "What happened?" He asked, noting that nothing seemed to be out of place, aside from some dirt.
I wanna hold your hand
"Wild dog." Was all Hiei replied with, his full attention was now focused on Botan, whom was standing in her mother's hold. She looked like she was thinking very hard about something until she wiggled out of her mothers grip.
And when I touch you I feel happy, inside
It's such a feeling
The little blue haired girl set her eyes on Hiei, her favourite friend, and she lifted her left foot. She shifted it in front of her and brought it back down, smiling in triumph, until she lost her balance and fell on her backside. She was far from deterred though, by her stumble, and she stood back up unsteadily. He could see her shoulders shake slightly with the force she used to stay upright.
That my love
I can't hide
She repeated her last step, and continued to do so as she slowly made her was towards Hiei.
I can't hide
Thea held back her gasp as her little girl walked carefully over to the fire apparition. She had expected her first steps to be in the direction of the boy. She felt joy swell in her heart as her baby wrapped her arms around Hiei and mumbled a soft "Mine."
I can't hide
The little girl had been saying "mine" for a week already, and she couldn't help but smile at the blush on the boys face at being claimed. She had a feeling the two would be much closer than brother and sister as they grew.
Yeah you, got that something
I think you'll understand
Malik entered the camp shortly after, his group behind him, carrying a fresh kill for dinner. He tried to hide his smile as he saw his little girl clinging to the boy. It was cute now, he knew, but he was worried for what it would be in the future. Eventually it would lose its innocence, and he feared the day he would have to have 'the talk' with either of the children.
When I say that something
I wanna hold your hand
The summer passed with little incident, and the bond between Hiei and Botan grew deeper every day.
I wanna hold your hand
I wanna hold your hand
I wanna hold your ha-a-a-a-a-a-and
I sincerely hope the spelling errors stayed fixed just now, as I saved and lost my formatting, and everything went bold. I'm sorry if there is any errors.
Hiei is OOC, but he is only three in this chapter.
next chapter coming out soon