Chapter 35: Interlude - Into the Light
Yusuke waited until Lord Hiei and Princess Yukina had made it down the stairs before pulling the door shut behind them. He leaned against the wall and tried to look casual in order to avoid drawing suspicion. His presence alone in a hall that was seldom used was suspicious enough.
Yusuke didn't relish going down to the lowest floors of the palace. The cells were small, stale and damp. They hadn't been tended in a very long time since no prisoners were kept down there anymore. His father never even bothered to have the door guarded.
Yusuke wondered if Keiko would be surprised by the news that her fox Shuichi was actually Lord Kurama. Somehow, Yusuke doubted it. She must have taken Yukina's suggestion that Shuichi was actually a god seriously, which probably explained why she'd wanted to see the fire dancers. She might have thought that Shuichi had something to do with the murder since he'd not been around during the tournament.
But if Lord Kurama was dead then Yusuke could avoid the whole 'Shuichi is actually a god' talk. But then he'd have to tell Keiko that Shuichi was dead.
Yusuke grimaced as he recalled how upset Keiko had been when Shuichi had disappeared. How devastated would she be if she found out that he was dead?
Yusuke considered the option of not telling Keiko anything at all. Maybe it was better for her to believe that Shuichi had run off. That he was still alive out there somewhere.
You're such a coward, Yusuke, he told himself.
"Yusuke? What are you doing?"
Yusuke jumped at the unexpected voice. He looked down the hall to see Kuwabara loping toward him, looking puzzled.
"I thought you'd be with Keiko," he said. "Haven't you heard? She's improving really fast."
"Uh, yeah," Yusuke said awkwardly. "I heard. That's great."
He tried to sound enthusiastic but from the way Kuwabara's face scrunched up, he guessed that he hadn't succeeded.
"Yeah, it is," Kuwabara said uncertainly. "'Bout time something went right, huh?" He leaned against the wall next to Yusuke. Yusuke did his best to avoid looking at the door across from them.
"That means you'll be getting married for sure, right?" Kuwabara continued.
"Um, yeah," Yusuke agreed.
"I can't imagine getting married," Kuwabara admitted. "Some of my friends got married before the war, but they never came back. That'd be awful."
"I don't really have a choice," Yusuke muttered. "I gotta marry someone eventually."
"Yeah."
Kuwabara blew out a huff of air. Yusuke turned his head to study Kuwabara's face, noting that, for once, his eyes weren't puffy or red. He hadn't been crying today. That was good news.
"Shizuru says she's never getting married," Kuwabara continued. "She says that men are too much work."
Yusuke laughed. "She probably means that you're too much work," he suggested.
Kuwabara elbowed him in the ribs. "Shut up," he said. Then his face sobered.
"Seriously, though, why aren't you with Keiko? You're not getting scared about the wedding, are you?"
Scared? Yusuke rolled his eyes and shoved Kuwabara back. "I'm not scared," he snapped. "I did see her earlier, but she's still sleeping so there's no point in sticking around."
"I guess not."
Kuwabara's small eyes stared at the door across from them. The intensity of his gaze made Yusuke wonder if it would burn a hole in the wooden surface.
"Let's go get something to eat," Kuwabara suddenly suggested.
"Uh, I can't," Yusuke said. He felt his confidence shrink down to the size of a chicken.
Kuwabara finally tore his eyes away from the door to give Yusuke a narrow-eyed, suspicious look.
"Why not?" he asked. "'Cause it don't look like you're doing much right now, Yusuke."
"Uh." Yusuke stopped, at a loss. Would Kuwabara even believe him if he said that another god had shown up? That Shuichi was a god too? That another god may have been killed?
And what did Yukina have to do with that anyway? The idea that such a sweet girl could commit murder seemed ridiculous to Yusuke. He couldn't think of anyone less like a killer than Yukina. Yet she knew too much, proving that she was somehow involved in the situation.
But if she was involved, why help them find Lord Kurama now? It would have been better for her if she'd kept her mouth shut, especially if Lord Kurama was dead.
Yusuke was saved from having to answer Kuwabara by the door squeaking open. Yukina stepped through, looking as if she'd been crying. Spots of dirt splattered her kimono. Behind her emerged two figures: the short god Hiei and a taller, red-haired man whom Yusuke had never seen before.
Was that Lord Kurama?
He didn't look particularly god-like. His clothes were stained and his hair was in disarray. His face presented a weary, though relieved, facade, as if he'd just completed one of Toguro's inhumanly brutal training exercises.
Lord Hiei met Yusuke's inquisitive stare with an icy glare as Yukina shifted to the side, hands wringing themselves in agitation.
The red-haired male gave Yusuke a startled, but warm smile. He had pretty eyes, Yusuke decided. Much kinder than Lord Hiei's. Actually, they kind of reminded him of the fox's eyes.
"Hello, Prince Yusuke," the stranger said. "Kuwabara."
"Huh? Uh, have we met?" Kuwabara asked awkwardly. "'Cause I don't think I remember you."
The man, who had to be Lord Kurama, turned his warm smile on Kuwabara. "We have met," he said, "Though I looked rather different at the time..."
