"Kokuryuuha," Hiei growled with all intention of forcing the Dragon back.
"Wow," an awed voice said, drawing Hiei's attention to Yusuke. Yusuke's eyes glimmered with childlike wonder upon seeing the Dragon, and at that, Hiei hesitated.
Kokuryuuha gave Hiei a triumph look, before she opened her wings and flew onto Yusuke's open palm.
"You're that dragon Hiei was riding on yesterday, right?" Yusuke asked with a grin.
The Dragon cocked her head elegantly to a side. "At your service, soulmate of Hiei."
"Name's Yusuke, Dragon," Yusuke said with the roll of his eyes, despite the fact that he knew the dragon's name was Kokuryuuha.
Kokuryuuha let out a chuckle. "Very well, Yusuke," she said. The Dragon turned to Kurama. "Hello, god of life. Do you still remember me?"
Kurama gazed at the Dragon with indescribable eyes, slight recognition and confusion evident. "I've met you, Kokuryuuha," Kurama said slowly, trying to recall. "Your aura is very familiar… you are the manifestation of the Underworld's darkness flames, aren't you? Father called upon you once."
"Exactly," Kokuryuuha said. At the mention of Kurama's father, the Dragon dipped her head a little sadly. "Your father never really allowed you near me, since your parents feared I will negatively affect you as a developing god of life."
"But enough of that," Kokuryuuha said, snapping out of her mood a moment later. "I've appeared for one reason alone and that is to explain the mystery that you two" – she indicated that Hiei and Kurama – "never solved. Tell me," she said, "are you interested in knowing why back then, and you know what I'm talking about, why Kurama suddenly began to fear Hiei?"
The ambient in the room suddenly felt heavy as the two gods' gaze snapped to Kokuryuuha at a frightening speed. Yusuke watched with bated breath, not understanding.
Someone knocked on the door.
"Lord Hi –" the owner of the restaurant began, opening the door to the private room of the restaurant. A strong savory odor drifted into the gap, but even that didn't bring the immortals out of their staring contest.
"Get out," Hiei ordered, not taking his eyes off of the tiny dragon. His energy swirled in the air, not yet threateningly but could certainly turn to at any moment.
"Right away!" the owner exclaimed and then he was gone.
"Yusuke," Kurama said. He pulled his gaze away from Kokuryuuha and tried to breath. A shaky smile made its way across Kurama's sudden paled face. "You must be hungry. Why don't you go get the dish we ordered and order a few more yourself?"
It was how ill-concealed Kurama's intention of sending Yusuke outside of the room that testified just how distracted he was by the subject Kokuryuuha just brought up.
Yusuke blinked at the sudden request, speechless. He looked towards Hiei, but Hiei never took his eyes off of Kokuryuuha. When Yusuke still stared at Hiei without a word, silently demanding a response, Hiei finally tore his eyes away from the Dragon.
"Go," Hiei said curtly.
The Dragon was giving Yusuke a pitying look.
Yusuke stepped away from the table slowly, looking between the three of the immortals with an air of uncomprehending disbelief.
"Get out," Hiei had said before. Yusuke had thought Hiei was only telling the owner of the restaurant that, but no. Hiei was saying that to Yusuke as well.
They didn't want Yusuke to know.
"Next time," Hiei said, interrupting Yusuke. "You don't have to ask Chu."
Kurama looked at Hiei with a smile blooming on his face, before glancing back at Yusuke. "What he meant is that next time if you want to know something, you can ask us directly instead. We will tell you."
What fucking liars, Yusuke thought bitterly.
Yusuke slammed the door close behind him.
Xxx
"Start talking," Hiei commanded once Yusuke was out. Hiei knew Yusuke was hurting. They had just told him that they would tell him anything that he wanted to know not even an hour ago, and now they were excluding him.
But this. This was different. So raw and deeply personal, almost as intimate as Hiei and Yusuke's bond as soulmates. Having someone else listening in would be intrusion of the highest degree. Even having Kokuryuuha here felt intrusive. If it wasn't necessary for her to explain the situation, Hiei would have kicked her out without a second thought too.
After all, even Kurama and Hiei hadn't talked about what happened back then.
Hiei and Kurama's eyes met for the briefest second, before they looked away.
"First of all, what did you think happened?" Kokuryuuha asked, looking at Hiei and Kurama.
Hiei let out a low, displeased growl. "You are supposed to explain!" Hiei said, frustration and annoyance building up within him. Every word, every sentence felt too close, like it was hitting too close to home.
Kurama placed a soothing hand on Hiei.
Hiei's first reaction was to snatch it away, but that was until he realized whose hand it was. He took in a shuddering breath and finally, nodded at Kurama. Thank you.
Kurama nodded back, his face gaining a healthier shade after making contact with Hiei. It's alright.
The Dragon watched their interaction keenly with a knowing glint in her eyes.
Kurama turned to her. "It happened because of our essences, isn't it?" Kurama said slowly, as though to trending on uncertain waters. "We were natural opposites. I am the god of life and Hiei" – Kurama's gaze darted to Hiei – "the god of Underworld."
"The god of Death," Kokuryuuha corrected. Neither of the gods looked surprised. "He's the god of Underworld and Death now."
Kurama nodded.
"Mate of Hiei," the Dragon said a moment later. "You are right only on the most rudimentary level."
Hiei and Kurama each flashed Kokuryuuha a confounded look.
"What do you mean, Kokuryuuha?" Hiei said. "I command you to tell me the truth."
"All will be revealed in time, my lord," Kokuryuuha said, showing deference to Hiei, but at the same time, not losing any bit of her own will. "But as commanded, I will explain."
"You are right on one point. It did have something to do with both of your essence," Kokuryuuha said. "But the rest of what you said could be debated, son of Kazuya."
Kurama's whole body jolted at Kokuryuuha's address to him.
"For example," the Dragon continued, "why have Hiei never caused you any fear before that… let's say, incident."
"He had not yet inherited Father's powers as the god of Underworld," Kurama said. He paused, before tacking on, "and Death."
"Good," Kokuryuuha praised, as though she was proud that her student explained away a particularly hard problem. The glint in her eyes also told the two gods that it appeared that she would enjoy tripping him up with the next question. "But if it was the power of the god of Underworld and Death that you feared, then how come you weren't ever scared of Kazuya?"
Both Hiei and Kurama froze and from their reaction, Kokuryuuha could tell they never ever considered that question.
Xxx
Why? Kurama thought, prompting his mind to thinkthinkthink. How could he have never noticed that? He never once feared Kazuya. Why?
'He's my father,' was the first answer Kurama wanted to give. 'I know he would never harm me.'
All of those statements were right, but so wrong when placed into this context as the answer to the question. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
That wasn't the answer. There must be something. Something that Kurama was missing. Something crucial.
"Giving up?" Kokuryuuha said, sounding so very pleased with herself for stumping them.
"Wait!" Kurama called out as he pushed himself to concentrate. What was he missing? His mind came to an abrupt halt as he recalled something that happened very recently. He whirled in Hiei's direction. "Hiei, what exactly happened between receiving the ultimatum and bringing it to Ehendel?"
Hiei's eyes widened as Kokuryuuha's tiny wings flapped against each other in mimicking of a mocking clap.
"Good job, god of life," the Dragon said. "As expected of Kazuya's son. I'm curious though, why did you ask?"
Kurama's mind flashed back to not even an hour ago.
"What happened to your aura/energy/whatever you call it?" Yusuke had asked Hiei. "…it's not that different but – how to say this – your aura thingy feels more… complete?"
"Yusuke said Hiei's aura felt more complete," Kurama said.
"Ah," Kokuryuuha said, inclining her head. "The soulmate, of course. If anyone could feel the change any more keenly other than Hiei and myself, I suppose it would be him." Kokuryuuha gave Hiei a pointed look. "Why don't you tell him, ruler of the Underworld and of the Dead? Why were you almost late to your appointment?"
Hiei glowered at Kokuryuuha for a moment, before he turned back to Kurama. "Immediately after receiving the ultimatum, Botan came to find me. She told me the Underworld was shaking tremendously due to Kokuryuuha's interference. I went back to the Underworld and there, I fought against Kokuryuuha."
"The battle was not in my favor, but then I recalled Kokuryuuha was the 'embodiment of the Underworld and its flame.' I stopped rejecting the darkness flames of the Underworld and instead, accepted it. As proof of that" – Hiei unraveled his bandages on his right arm, revealing what was underneath – "I received the mark of the dragon."
Kurama's eyes remained riveted on the dragon that twirled up Hiei's entire arm. His hand reached out, stopping only to hover over it as he glanced over at Hiei for permission. At Hiei's nod, Kurama touched it. The dragon on Hiei's arm pulsed warmly. "Father had the same mark," Kurama said slowly.
Hiei nodded. "That's the proof of the Underworld's rule."
Kurama looked at Hiei, mind whirling. "But you only received this recently," Kurama said. "That would mean –"
"Touching, isn't it?" Kokuryuuha asked.
"Kokuryuuha," Hiei growled warningly. "Don't."
"Such a sweet man," Kokuryuuha continued, heedless of Hiei's warning," and a prideful one too. For Hiei – so proud and prideful – to so willingly accept the position of false power for thirty years… doesn't it just say how much he loves you?"
Kurama froze, utterly shocked. "What do you mean?" Kurama asked, not really understanding just yet with Hiei and Kokuryuuha speaking so vaguely, but slowly starting to form a picture. The idea of just what was being built frightened him and made Kurama find it hard to breathe. Surely not… "Hiei?"
"It's nothing, Kurama," Hiei said, not meeting Kurama's eyes.
"I don't believe you," Kurama said. "Tell me."
"That's all I'll say, Kurama, and nothing else," Hiei said, lifting his eyes to Kurama's to show his intention of keeping his words.
"Then I'll say it for you," Kurama said, suddenly angry with so much emotion pulsing through him. "That mark is called the mark of the dragon, meaning it's related to Kokuryuuha. Kokuryuuha is the embodiment of the Underworld and its darkness flames. In other word, Kokuryuuha controls or is the source of the god of Underworld and Death's power. For you to have the mark, it means that you are now officially the god of Underworld and Death. What were you before, then? A ruler in 'the position of false power.' Why have you never claimed the power?" Kurama gazed at Hiei intently. "Because of me, right?"
"You're thinking too highly of yourself –" Hiei started.
The sound of Kokuryuuha's mock clapping interrupted him. "God of life," the Dragon said, "no wonder you are known for your beauty and intelligence."
"Then it's true," Kurama said, his voice trembling with the sheer emotions it held as he continued to stare at Hiei. Hiei didn't reply. "Talk to me, Hiei!"
Hiei unclenched his jaws and looked straight at Kurama. There was a long pause, before he finally closed his eyes briefly and said, "You're right."
Kurama let out a breath, something like resignation of the worse kind. "I didn't know," Kurama said, slowly closing his eyes as his stomach curled at the thought of Hiei – not doing so much for Kurama as he did because of Kurama.
"You weren't supposed to know," Hiei said shortly. He paused, before taking stock of Kurama's expression and added, "It's the past now. Let it go."
"How could I when you –"
"Are such an idiot?" the Dragon finished mockingly.
Kurama's energy flared out, saturating the room with angry and annoyance. Kokuryuuha, in her tiny dragon form, was swept off the table by Kurama's blast of power. Kurama glared at Kokuryuuha, his gaze deadly. "Watch what you say, Dragon."
"Hm," the Dragon said, spreading her wings to keep her balance. When that wasn't enough to support her in midair, a pulse of darkness warmth spread through the room, before the Dragon's wings suddenly doubled in size. "Better," she murmured to herself. She brought her gaze to Kurama's furious ones after a moment. "Are you going to attack me again?"
"Not unless you provoke me," Kurama replied coolly, his gaze dark.
"Fair point," the Dragon said, tilting her head to the side. "But what I said before is relevant to what we're discussing about, so…"She landed on the table and folded her recently enlarged wings, looking a picture of relaxation and being home. She lifted her head briefly to look at Kurama, the smirk not appearing on her face but evident in her voice. "Do you want me to continue, or should I just return to the Underworld?"
"Go on," Kurama said after a moment, "and explain yourself."
"Why did I call Hiei an idiot?" Kokuryuuha said. "Well, to have power right in front of you and not to take it… optimistic people would call it having great self-control. I call that stupidity, mostly because this is a case where well-intentions have opposite effects."
Hiei's eyes dropped to the Dragon. "What do you mean?" he demanded.
The Dragon looked at him with a pitying look. "You not taking the power is exactly the reason why he feared you, silly Hiei," Kokuryuuha confided.
"I had some of Kazuya's power and it was already overwhelming for Kurama. Had I claimed everything –"
"Had you claimed everything, Hiei," Kokuryuuha said loudly, finally abandoning her pretense of calm to rise and hold Hiei's gaze, "you would have been able to control the power that was your birthright. It wasn't the amount that correlates to his fear, but rather the control. You rejected the flame and so in turn, the flame rejected you, making you unable to fully control the power. It's because of that that Kurama feared you. As the god of life, he instinctively knew that you didn't have full control over your power and so, he could not relax in your presence!"
Hiei's eyes widened. "No…"
"Yes," the Dragon said harshly, glaring at Hiei.
Then, abruptly, she relaxed.
"Whew," she said, flexing her neck. Hiei and Kurama looked at her with wide eyes. "You guys have no idea how long I've wanted to say that. Thirty years. Seriously."
"Kokuryuuha," Kurama finally spoke. "What you said was…"
"True," Kokuryuuha said, looking seriously at Hiei and Kurama. "But like Hiei said, it's in the past now, so let it go."
"You could have told me," Hiei finally said, glaring at the Dragon.
"Then what?" Kokuryuuha said, meeting the glare head on. "What would you have done? Accepted the Underworld's darkness flame because of your personal life? You would have been burned, Hiei. The flame is your birthright, but it's also something you have to earn. Why did you think I've been prompting and provoking you to fight me ever since Kazuya's demise? Winning against me would have gained you control over the flames."
"Then why did I gain control over the flames yesterday?" Hiei demanded, latching on something he could argue about.
The Dragon faltered. "Because you accepted the flames, Hiei," Kokuryuuha eventual said, her voice suddenly soft. "I don't know why you had the sudden change in mindset, but you accepted yourself as the god of Underworld and Death. As a result, the flames of the Underworld accepted you."
Hiei became silent, thinking over Kokuryuuha's words. Finally he lifted his head and said, "And Kazuya? How did he gain control over the flames?"
Slowly, Kokuryuuha smiled, proud and fond. "The same way you did. He accepted the flames. I expected you would fight to gain control, but in the end, you're also Kazuya's son, aren't you?"
"Yeah," Hiei said, gaze drifting to Kurama. "I suppose I am."
Kurama leaned forward to kiss Hiei's lips. "Of course you are," Kurama murmured, eyes intent on Hiei. "You were always his son, just like I was."
"That's considered incest, boys," Kokuryuuha drawled, amusement evident in her tone.
"Shut up, Kokuryuuha," Hiei said in annoyance, watching as Kurama drew back away from Hiei. Amusement was in Kurama's eyes, however. "You're beginning to sound like Yusuke."
"Oh, your soulmate?" the Dragon said, her tail swishing behind her. "How interesting that you mentioned him. You know that this story only account for half of the reason why that incident happened, right?"
Hiei and Kurama looked at Kokuryuuha, suddenly alert.
"There's more?" Kurama voiced.
"Of course," Kokuryuuha said. "You didn't think your bond, which was cultivated and strengthened through decades of being together, would be broken so easily, did you?"
"But bond are strange that way, aren't they?" Kurama said, gazing at Hiei. He squeezed the other's hand. "They take so much time and effort to form, yet they can be so easily broken as well."
"True," Kokuryuuha acquiesced. "But there's a little more to this as well. When Hiei came back after you incident with his aura changed, I knew something had happened, but I couldn't tell what." The Dragon huffed a little. "So I ended up paying the goddess of Fate a visit."
"Genkai," Hiei said.
Kokuryuuha nodded. "She told me you two tried to form a bond." At Hiei's unimpressed look, Kokuryuuha rolled her eyes and explained, "A soulmate's bond."
"Impossible," Hiei said immediately. He looked at Kurama, recalled what they were actually doing at the time of the incident, stopped the blush that threatened to take over and glanced back at the Dragon. "We didn't attempt such thing."
"Not intentionally," Kokuryuuha agreed. "But nevertheless, it happened. After all, bonds can be created even between strangers as they spend more time with one another."
"But it's not the same type of bond," Kurama said.
"True, because your" – Kokuryuuha looked at both Hiei and Kurama – "bond is much, much deeper, formed with no other interference other than your own. If you recall, the incident occurred after Kazuya's death. Death is a strange thing that causes grief and makes people exceptionally vulnerable, especially emotionally. It especially impacted you two deeply, because you were close to Kazuya.
"When you two turn to each other for comfort, it was the ultimate sign of trust to allow one another into your personal space during such a time. There was trust, love and plenty of other emotions and experience between both of you. Your bond was strong, but so intangible. You guys unknowingly tried to pull each other closer, to make what was intangible tangible, to have solid proof that each other was there.
"Your energies flared exceptionally during that time, didn't it?" Kokuryuuha asked.
Hiei and Kurama nodded.
"That was your energies trying to fulfill your unspoken wishes to mix into one. It would have been successful, Genkai told me, if only Hiei's energy didn't already began combining with the Underworld's.
"The additional familiar yet foreign energy startled you two, and the process of creating the bond between the both of you was interrupted for a brief second. Creating bonds unassisted is only possible for immortals, but mortals can do it too if they seek Genkai's help. Few – immortals and mortals – risks it since it's such an intricate, delicate process.
"If successful, the bond between two people would be stronger than ever. If not, however, it will create a tear in the bond and eventually, that tear will bring separation between the people involved. Nowadays, mortals do something called marriage instead of attempting something so risky.
"Immortals never attempt those bonds because they live forever. If something goes wrong, the damage will last forever. Hating the person you used to love is the hardest thing and no one wish to experience that, which is why both of your case is special.
"Although it failed, the attempt at bonding created a compulsion stemmed from love between the two of you that irrevocably drew you back to the other. In addition, some of Hiei's powers passed to Kurama. Kurama, you can sense death keenly, can't you?"
"Yes," Kurama said after a moment of hesitation.
Hiei gazed at Kurama, but Kurama only smiled. "Well, that answered one of my question," Kurama said, amused.
Hiei scoffed and after another moment, he looked away.
Kokuryuuha continued after a moment. "And so to answer your original question, the reason why you two broke apart was because 1) Hiei's lack of control over his power made Kurama instinctively feel insecure because of the opposite essence both of you have and 2) the failure of creating a bond between you two unknowingly drove both of you apart. Any questions?"
Kurama and Hiei gazed silently at one another.
"Ah, of course," Kokuryuuha said. "I guess you guys want to talk now. Well, fine. My task is completed here. Hiei, don't neglect to return to the Underworld."
With those final words, Kokuryuuha was gone.
"To think all those years ago, it was due to something like this," Kurama finally spoke after a long spell of silence.
"Hn," Hiei said. He leaned forward and Kurama automatically bent down to let their mouths meet. It was a soft, sweet kiss. "I'm sorry," Hiei said at last when he finally withdrew. "I –"
Kurama placed a finger vertically in front of Hiei's mouth and smiled a little. "It wasn't your fault. Like you said, let the past go. Besides, I'm not exactly discontent with the present either."
"Kurama," Hiei said. He gazed at Kurama for another moment, before finally nodding. "You're right."
A cheeky smile crossed Kurama's face. "Of course I am."
Hiei rolled his eyes. "Of course."
"Should we find Yusuke now? I imagine we hurt him quite a bit."
"He'll understand," Hiei said with quiet confidence. "He always does, even if he is angry at us."
Hiei put his hand on the doorknob of the room
…and opened the door to chaos.
