Chapter 33: Heating Up

Knock. Knock.

Hiei opened his eyes and turned his head toward the door of his room.

"What?" he snapped. He'd only just barely closed his eyes and he didn't care much for being woken so quickly.

R'mato's dark face peered around the door at him. "You're late for practice," he informed Hiei before pushing the door further forward.

"What?" Hiei repeated, sitting up. He glanced toward the window, noting how the sun's light had shifted, casting a bright shaft across the floor.

"Practice. Late." R'mato's lips quirked in amusement as Hiei turned back to him.

"Sorry. Must've fallen asleep," Hiei muttered.

R'mato's curious eyes scanned the room, landing on the box sitting on the nightstand beside the bed.

"Hey, isn't that the present you got your boyfriend?" he asked, entering the room to pick up the box.

Nosy bastard. Hiei watched warily as R'mato inspected the box.

"Haven't you given it to him yet?" R'mato inquired.

"Clearly not," Hiei responded waspishly.

R'mato gave him a cut stare and a frown before he set the box down.

"Are you and your boyfriend having problems?" he asked. "Because it sure seems to the rest of us like you are. You haven't even introduced him to us yet."

"He's shy," Hiei returned. An outright lie. The group had already met Kurama, who had been anything but shy. He'd also been a fox at the time.

Still was, as far as Hiei knew. Unfortunately, he hadn't seen so much as a whisker of Kurama for quite some time. The wedding was scheduled for tomorrow. Maybe Kurama was focused on that? But, seriously, couldn't he find a moment to slip out of the palace and visit Hiei?

"Some of the others think you don't even have a boyfriend," R'mato informed Hiei. He had moved back toward the door but had turned to lean his back casually against the wall.

"Like I care what they think," Hiei retorted.

"Don't get snippy with me," R'mato told him, though his tone held no annoyance or hurt feelings. "It makes no difference to me if your boyfriend is real or not, or even if this is just a one-sided attraction."

"It's not one-sided!" Hiei said icily, his hands balling into fists.

It wasn't, was it? Kurama had been affectionate during their brief moments together in Tourin. But how could he get an honest reading of Kurama's thoughts when Kurama couldn't communicate properly with him?

Just how much of Kurama's warm demeanour was an act for the benefit of the mortals and how much was genuine?

There was no way to know without asking Kurama himself, and the fox had made himself scarce.

"Just give the box to him already," R'mato advised. "Maybe then you'll know where you stand."

If only it were that simple. Hiei stood and snatched up his practice materials before following R'mato down the stairs.

Hiei's hands ached as he nursed a cup of cold water, his attention shifting between the occupants of the table he sat at. Across from him, N'ara picked at his lunch while Mariko sipped from her own cup.

Hiei had finally been allowed to practice with the group, though they had chosen an easy routine for his benefit. It had been a little patronising, as Hiei knew that they were capable of so much better, but he'd nonetheless enjoyed himself.

"This is such a waste of time," N'ara muttered, setting his fork down.

Though N'ara irritated him, Hiei had to ask for clarification. He strongly suspected that N'ara had been referring to his own training and that rankled.

"What's a waste of time?" he demanded.

"This whole trip," N'ara returned, eyes narrowed. "If they don't want us at the wedding, then why bother sticking around here?"

"What?" Hiei asked. "What's going on with the wedding?" As far as he knew, it was going ahead as planned. He'd almost entirely resigned himself to the possibility that he'd lose the bet with Kurama. If a murder hadn't been enough to call it off, then what was?

That question had stumped Hiei, which was why he'd decided to do nothing and see how things played out.

Since the fire dancers hadn't been asked to perform at the palace again until the wedding, he didn't have the opportunity to interfere anyway. He could imagine Kurama taking smug delight in that fact. Picturing the fox's grin and wagging tail made him feel both annoyed and amused at the same time. Seeing Kurama happy would be nice… even if it might be at Hiei's expense.

Mariko sighed. "There's a rumour going around that it's being postponed," she told Hiei. "Apparently, the princess is unwell." She turned her dark eyes on N'ara. "Postponed," she repeated. "Not cancelled."

N'ara returned her look. "How long do they expect us to wait?" he asked, lips curling in annoyance.

"They're royalty, so probably as long as it takes," Mariko retorted.

Hiei tuned out the rest of the conversation, his mind going back to the matter of Kurama. He was absolutely sure that Kurama was mixed up somehow in this.

Just what was going on in the palace? Was the princess's illness natural? Didn't it seem just a bit convenient?

And, if someone had orchestrated these events, did that mean that Kurama was at risk? Surely even as a fox, he'd be doing whatever he could to protect Princess Keiko. His behaviour during the war had shown Hiei that Kurama had a soft spot for the mortals.

Which put Kurama in direct opposition to whoever was trying to stop the wedding. Someone who had no scruples about killing to achieve their goals. Hiei might have wanted to stop the wedding, but he would never stoop that low. He'd prefer to gracefully admit defeat. He'd lose face with the other deities, but he didn't care about what they thought anyway. The only one whose opinion meant anything to him was Kurama.

Hiei rubbed his fingers into the grain of the wood surface of the table, his cup in his other hand and his eyes far away. Maybe he was just being fanciful. It could just be a coincidence. The princess would probably be fine and the wedding would go ahead eventually.

But the postponement meant that, technically, he'd lost the bet. So why hadn't Kurama come to gloat about it? Why was he still in the palace pretending to be a fox? Had he grown that attached to the princess?

For that matter, if he'd lost the bet, then what was the point of continuing with his own charade? He could shed his mortal form right now and leave. After all, he knew where to find Kurama. The god would return to his garden for certain, once his business here was finished.

But he hadn't accomplished as much with the fire dancing as he'd wanted to. He hoped to at least be able to perform a simple routine flawlessly before he abandoned the group. That would impress Kurama, right?

"Hey, Hiei, are you playing?"

Hiei shook himself out of his daze to see that they had been joined by R'mato, who'd come accompanied by a fresh round of drinks and a deck of cards.

"No, thanks," Hiei said. Though he'd watched the group play, he didn't know the rules of the game yet. He could have simply asked about it, but then that would have drawn attention to yet another thing he was ignorant of.

The game began, allowing Hiei to sink into his thoughts once again.

Now that he'd likely lost the bet, there was the risk that Kurama would refuse to see him. Hiei was honour-bound to respect the agreement they'd made. But he had a strong feeling that Kurama wouldn't do that to him. Now that he'd been uprooted from his garden, Kurama seemed much more receptive to company.

Hiei would have to try extra hard to not irritate him, though, lest Kurama change his mind and decide that Hiei was too much of a nuisance to abide.

But before he could think about wooing Kurama, he'd have to actually make contact with him again.

The date of the wedding passed with no word from Kurama. Hiei's worry grew in a manner reminiscent of the monstrous growth of Kurama's garden on the day they had performed the ritual. All he could do was pay attention to the gossip around him. From what he managed to glean out of the fantastically exaggerated and outright fabricated stories he heard, the princess was sick. Possibly even dying.

Hiei wasn't sure if he believed that rumour. Kurama wouldn't let her die, would he? If he were in Kurama's place, Hiei might have let her illness take its course if saving her meant losing the bet, but Hiei didn't believe that Kurama would feel the same.

Honestly, Hiei thought as he stared down into the murky depths of his tea, that was part of the reason why he liked Kurama. Sure, prying Kurama out of his shell was fiendishly difficult, but Hiei knew that it would be worth it. Once he'd earned Kurama's love, he knew that he'd never lose it.

Also, there was the fact that Kurama seemed… lonely. Hiei had noticed it on the occasions he'd come across Kurama on the battlefields during the war. Kurama wanted to love and he wanted someone to love him in return but somehow he'd gotten the warped idea in his head that he couldn't have that.

Stupid fox.

At least the princess's illness had likely distracted her from her suspicions about Kurama's true nature. Since he'd heard nothing further about the murder, Hiei assumed that Kurama's cover was safe. If not, then Kurama would have taken his true form, dispelling any doubt of his innocence. Hiei was fully confident in Kurama's ability to charm a stone. As a deity, he could handle any mortal.

"You Hiei?"

Hiei glanced up to see that a woman had stopped next to his table. She stared down at him with a mildly irritated frown. Hiei didn't recognise her, though she appeared to be a palace guard.

…But they didn't have female guards, right?

"I'm Hiei," he said. His mortal heart had picked up its pace. He had the sense that something was about to change.

"Come with me."

And that was all. The woman turned and began to walk toward the door of the inn, her strides long. Hiei blinked after her, bewildered by the abruptness of her departure. He hadn't even had the chance to ask where they were going or why she wanted him to come — or even who she was.

Hiei hurried after her, determined not to let her disappear. He ignored the curious stares of the inn's other patrons. If this woman was from the palace, then he might finally have the opportunity to see Kurama again.

And find out what the hell was going on with the wedding.

He caught up to the woman in the street. The moon stared down at them from its high perch in the sky, a king with the stars its own court.

"Who are you?" Hiei demanded.

The woman glanced briefly at him, her brown eyes serious. "Kuwabara Shizuru," she said.

The name did ring a bell. Something to do with the tournament…

"Kuwabara," Hiei muttered. Hadn't the orange-haired finalist been named Kuwabara, the same guard whom Hiei had met with the princess on the day she'd come to the palace…

Oh, this Kuwabara was the woman who had won the tournament. The guard was her brother, Hiei supposed.

The chance of this having something to do with the princess's situation had risen significantly.

"Why do you want me?" Hiei questioned. Keeping stride with her was easier than it would have been had Hiei been in his god form. His mortal legs were longer than his own. One of the few good things about this body.

"The princess is sick. Very sick," Shizuru stated.

Very sick. Meaning that she might actually be dying. What did that mean in regard to Kurama? Why hadn't he taken some sort of action?

Was it because he couldn't?

But… why was this woman looking for him? What did she think Hiei could do for the princess? He was just a performer, as far as the mortals knew. Even as a god, Hiei didn't think he could do anything for the girl. Life and healing was Kurama's domain. Certainly not Hiei's. Fire didn't heal. It destroyed.

Hiei thought of Kurama's stunted tail and winced.

"But why me?" Hiei demanded.

"Someone thought you could help," the woman informed him, her stride not slackening in the slightest. She sure was in a hurry.

But Hiei wanted answers and he was getting very frustrated with the woman's responses. He stopped in the middle of the street and crossed his arms.

She seemed to sense that he'd stopped and turned around, her brown ponytail swinging. "What?" she snapped.

"Who told you about me?" Hiei asked.

Shizuru's eyes narrowed. "You don't need to know," she said. "Now, hurry up."

But Hiei refused to move. "Who?" he demanded.

It couldn't have been anyone other than Kurama. No one else would have any reason to think that Hiei — currently a mortal — would be able to help Princess Keiko unless they knew he was a god. But Kurama couldn't have given the Tourinites that information unless he'd abandoned his fox form.

Karasu also knew about Hiei's identity, but Hiei doubted that he'd interfere with the death of a mortal. It was very unlikely to be Karasu.

The woman's response to his question came in the form of a physical act rather than a verbal reply. She stalked over to Hiei, grabbed his arm and began tugging him along beside her as if he were a stubborn child.

"Hey!" Hiei protested, infuriated. He tried to pull his arm out of her grip but she only tightened her hold.

"If you don't come, I'll have you arrested," she threatened.

Hiei ceased struggling. He was sure that wasn't an idle threat. Besides, he did want to see Kurama. He'd have to wait until then to get his answers.

As Hiei followed the woman into the princess's room, the first thing he looked for was a furry orange ball of fox. Kurama, much to Hiei's disappointment and irritation, was nowhere to be found. Hiei presumed that the basket on the floor was where Kurama slept, but it was empty.

"Take a break. Go and get something to eat."

Hiei frowned as he watched Shizuru usher two haggard-looking nobles from the room. Judging from their features, Hiei guessed that they were the princess's parents.

After some reassurance from Shizuru, the pair left. They wouldn't be gone for long, Hiei suspected. He didn't miss the hopeful look that the queen directed his way before she left. His annoyance with Kurama grew. The fox had just dropped this in his lap and expected him to fix it. He couldn't even be bothered to meet Hiei.

Maybe there was something else going on. Maybe Kurama had left this for Hiei to deal with because he was dealing with something else?

Did Kurama have enough faith in him to leave this situation entirely to him?

Resolutely, Hiei approached the princess's bed as Shizuru leaned against the closed door, her arms crossed. Hiei wondered what she'd do if he couldn't help the princess.

The baby phoenix greeted Hiei with a sleepy chirp. The chick was fluffed up on Keiko's chest. From the heat radiating off him, Hiei was surprised that he wasn't actually on fire. He reached out, intending to pluck the chick from his position. That sort of heat couldn't possibly be doing the princess any good.

But as his hands came to rest on the soft feathers of the chick, Hiei felt a chill wash over them. He rubbed his hands on his robes, bewildered.

The princess's face looked serene, her eyes closed in sleep, but there was a pale cast to it. Hiei fancied that it seemed almost bluish. He touched her cheek. His fingertip went numb.

"What?" Hiei muttered in confusion. This was definitely no mortal illness he'd ever heard of. He turned to give Shizuru an inquiring look.

She shrugged in response. "She's sick, but no one knows why," she said.

"Where's…" Hiei paused. He'd almost said 'Kurama'. But the god was going by… "Where's Shuichi?" he asked.

"The fox?" Shizuru's thin eyebrows rose. "What's he got to do with this?"

"Nothing," Hiei bit out. "But where is he?"

Another shrug. Hiei wanted to choke her.

"I don't know," she said. Her next words turned Hiei's confusion into fear. "No one does."

"No one?" Hiei repeated. "Is he missing?"

Shizuru gave a curt nod. "Yeah," she said.

A missing fox and a sick princess. Kurama had definitely gotten himself mixed up in something he should have stayed well out of.

A hesitant knock came from behind Shizuru. She sighed and turned to open the door. A nervous-looking girl stood there, her hands clasped tightly together.

"It's not a good time, Yukina. If you want to see Keiko, come back a little later," Shizuru told her.

However, Yukina's attention was entirely on Hiei. There was something suspicious about how she looked at him. As if she weren't surprised to see him there.

Well, maybe she wasn't, Hiei supposed. A lot of healers, both authentic and false, had probably visited the princess. The presence of a stranger was probably not unexpected.

"I'm sorry, Lady Shizuru. I'll come back later." Yukina bowed shallowly before she left. Shizuru shut the door and turned back to Hiei, rolling her eyes before addressing him.

"So, can you do anything for Keiko or can't you?" she asked, her tone implying that she thought it would be the latter.

Hiei set aside his worries over Kurama and turned back to the princess. He'd already arguably lost the bet, so letting her die just to ensure the wedding never happened at all would be petty of him. Besides, that would upset Kurama and their future relationship depended on Kurama's willingness to tolerate him.

The chick gave a loud squawk of protest when Hiei lifted him from Keiko's chest. Shizuru took him from Hiei, her expression twisting into a wince briefly as she carried the chick over to the dresser. As she settled the chick, Hiei saw that a thin bead of red was welling up from her right hand. The bird had bitten her.

Hiei turned back to Keiko. He half-expected Shizuru to object when he pulled the covers off, but Shizuru remained silent, her left hand pressed to her right to stem the bleeding.

Even through Keiko's nightdress, Hiei could feel that the unnatural chill had overtaken the princess's entire body. He frowned. An ice deity could probably cause this, but Hiei didn't know of any that would bother. Certainly none who would take it this far.

The only piece of jewellery the girl wore was the gem around her neck, which was part of the reason it caught Hiei's eye. The other reason was that it resembled the hyruski he'd given Kurama before the bet.

Hiei took hold of the gem and studied it suspiciously. He couldn't hold it for more than a few seconds. That definitely wasn't normal. Kurama's gem hadn't been that freezing.

Hiei yanked on it. The chain snapped and Hiei let the gem fall onto the carpet. Behind him, Shizuru started forward.

"Don't touch it," Hiei snapped, quick as a spitting cobra. He wasn't totally sure if the hyruski was to blame for the princess's strange state, but why take risks?

Though the gem was no longer touching her skin, the princess showed no sign of improvement. Hiei glanced back at Shizuru, who had retreated to the door once again, her expression suspicious.

It was a good thing that he'd probably lost the bet already, Hiei decided, because what he was about to do was against the agreement he'd had with Kurama.

"I'm going to change," Hiei warned Shizuru. "Don't kick up a fuss about it."

"What?" Shizuru's eyebrows rose, her expression settling into anger as she pushed herself off the door.

The cords of the ritual that bound his form were surprisingly fragile. They snapped like the thinnest of threads. A veil of black descended to cover Hiei's vision.

He opened his eyes, disorientated. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten onto the floor. Above him floated Shizuru's face, both curious and appalled.

"I thought you were dead," she stated, as blunt as a hammer.

Hiei sat up. His fire hit him like a punch in his guts. He was sure it flared in his eyes before he grasped control of it. Shizuru rocked back, confirming his guess.

Hiei looked down at himself, noting that he was once again wearing the black clothes he was most comfortable in. His hands were his own familiar, calloused ones. He raised his eyes to Shizuru, who now appeared freakishly tall to him. Hiei scowled as he climbed to his feet. There wasn't much improvement. Shizuru still had nearly a foot on him.

Shizuru backed off, though her eyes were narrowed with sharp suspicion. Hiei could see that she was trying to work out if he were a threat or not. Finally, she leaned back against the door.

"I see why she asked for you now," she muttered, having come to her own conclusions about Hiei's nature.

"She?" Hiei repeated, baffled. Kurama was male. Even as a fox, he was unmistakably male. Anyone who thought he was female was an idiot.

…Had it not been Kurama who had asked for him? If it hadn't been Kurama, then who?

Maybe he'd find out if he healed the princess.

Hiei turned back to the girl, fire licking reassuringly along his veins. He could now do something about the chill seeded deep within her.

But the process wouldn't be quick. Hiei started with her feet, teasing out small amounts of his energy and slowly bringing the temperature to a more normal level. His control wasn't good enough to do this with her whole body at once. His power would surely slip like soap out of his grasp. He could already feel a headache blooming behind his eyes as he struggled to keep his focus.

By the time Hiei finished his task, the sun had taken the moon's place in the sky outside the window. He sat down on the edge of the mattress and tried not to look like he needed the rest. Behind him, the princess's body was as warm as a winter fire. Hiei was confident that the chill would not return.

"You must be one of the fire deities."

Hiei looked up, startled. The voice was masculine, not at all the one he'd been expecting. Shizuru was gone. The dark-haired prince had taken her place. His brown eyes glittered with somber curiosity.

"Yeah," Hiei said, without offering anything further.

Yusuke took a step closer to him. "Is she better now?" His brow was creased with worry.

Hiei nodded. He pressed his fingers to his temple, feeling slightly nauseous. It had been a long time since he'd worked so hard.

Yusuke walked over to stare down at the sleeping princess. Some colour had returned to her cheeks. Yusuke smoothed some loose hair from her brow before turning to Hiei.

"Why?" he asked. "You ain't ever helped us out any other time. Why'd you help Keiko?"

Hiei shrugged helplessly. "Someone asked me to," he said.

"Who?" was the prince's rather predictable response.

"None of your business."

Yusuke frowned down at him. "Well, thanks, anyway," he said reluctantly.

Hiei nodded. His headache was ebbing so he decided to leave before anyone else barged in on them and started asking questions. But first, he had a question of his own.

"Where's the fox, Shuichi?" he inquired. Kurama's whereabouts were a mystery that Hiei could not bear to leave unsolved.

Yusuke's frown deepened. "Your guess is as good as mine," he said. "No one's seen him." His eyes narrowed. "That ice princess, Yukina, she said something a while ago about him. That he might be a god. Is that true? Is he a friend of yours, or something? Is that why you're here?"

Hiei froze. That was way, way too close to the truth to have been born from wild speculation or dumb luck. Someone had figured Kurama out? Yukina? The girl Shizuru had turned away earlier?

Now that Hiei thought about it, he'd met her before, the same day he'd met Kurama in his fox form. Nothing about her had struck him as extraordinary. So how had she known that the fox was a god?

And did she know where Kurama was now?

"I need to speak to the girl, Yukina," Hiei informed Yusuke. Though his tone was a little arrogant, the prince didn't seem to be bothered. Hiei was a god, after all. He had reason to be arrogant.

And Hiei had to admit that it felt damn good to be a god again. Being a mortal had been interesting at times, but he'd missed his fire.

A/N:
Sorry this chapter took so long. The good news is that the next one is virtually done as well and the one after that is drafted so the next few updates won't take a month. I'm planning to put chapter 34 up at the end of next week, maybe Friday or Saturday.
Thank you to everyone who's still reading this and thank you for your patience with my inconsistent updating schedule.