"It's about time."
Kurama smiled at the dry tone of his once friend, glad for the familiarity of the sound.
"It's good to see you, Hiei." He looked up towards the treetops, spotting the figure in black military garb. Hiei leaped down and landed less than 10 feet away. He'd matured in the time since their last meeting, features becoming more defined and less childish, an added couple of inches to his height and straightened posture allowing him some semblance of authority. The most notable change, however, was the relative softness in his gaze. Hiei, who had been known for his abrasiveness and sharp glares, looked calm and composed, even, Kurama might go so far as to say, content.
He grunted, and Kurama nearly chuckled at the sound. Some things never change.
"Are you ready?"
It was a loaded question, and Hiei knew it. Kurama hesitated for a movement, not wavering, simply reflecting.
When his mother passed, Kurama had found himself at a crossroads, unwilling to let go and yet yearning for freedom. His human half ached at the loss, while some part of him, the deeper, more primal demon that lurked below the surface, felt a strange sense of…
...of what, exactly?
Relief was not befitting, given how much even the darkest parts of his soul had irrevocably changed as a result of this human woman's influence. No, it was something simpler.
Finality, perhaps. He'd done it, lived out his human life beside his mother and experienced all his humanity had to offer. And now…
...now what?
It had always been his plan to return to the Makai when his human life was over-a deadline he'd silently translated to "when mother is gone"-but now he felt rather hollow at the prospect.
It took him a long time to realize that this too, was a form of grief. Not over his human mother, but his own humanity. He'd grown used to his heart, it's constant rhythm and it's erratic fluctuation in emotion. The idea of halting it was disconcerting in more ways than one.
So he didn't. For five years, Kurama continued to live and work as a human, visiting other human relatives and completing mundane human tasks. He traveled some, and saw how humans of other cultures lived. He took time to visit with the earth itself, expanding his seed collection with rare plants from far-off places, and occasionally, staying still, letting his senses explore this world, committing it to memory. He would come back to visit on occasion, he was sure, but never again would he live on this plane. Never again, would he be human.
And so, when he'd had his fill and his soul was stated, Kurama gave into that finality. He said goodbye to his mother's grave, walked away, and did not look back.
Kurama looked once more at the demon in front of him. Despite his maturation, Hiei would always appear youthful to Kurama. Young and reckless and full of fire. He could feel the sparks between them now, restless even in this quiet, slow moment. Hiei, child of the Makai, was here to escort him from the human world and into a new life. He wasn't returning, not really. There was no going back to his days of unfeeling cruelty, just as there would be no going back to being human. This life will be something shaped from his experience and blended with new freedoms.
Amazing, that after all of his years alive, there were still new experiences to be had.
Hiei showed no impatience at Kurama's hesitation, a definitive sign that he too had changed in the interim. He was still youthful, eager to prove himself, headstrong and rough around the edges, but Kurama could see a wisdom growing in Hiei, a kind of peace that came from purposefulness, a sharp contrast from the agitated child he'd once known. Hiei grew up, in the same way Shuichi, and in turn, Youko had.
On that thought, a playful notion arose. These two demons, forever altered by their time among humans, by the incredible people around them: Shori, Mukuro, Kuwabara,
And Yusuke.
They stood together once more as partners, ready to begin something new, something utterly unique, with each other.
Hiei removed his outer cloak, discarding his military honors received under Mukoro, and cast it aside. Underneath he wore a simple black shirt and pants, not dissimilar to what he'd worn the first time Kurama met him.
Kurama responded by raising his energy, shifting to his demon form, discarding the form of Shuichi Minamino for the last time. It didn't matter, Shuichi's soul was forever melded with Youko's; he would carry his humanity forever.
The fond, hopeful expression looked strange on Youko Kurama's face, but Hiei did not waver.
"Yes," Kurama answered. "Let's go."