Kurama had been planning on helping with the move, and though, as with almost everything these days, he wasn't able to help as much as he'd like, he did manage to help in some ways. He knew it was a good idea for them to get rid of the things they didn't need, so as Hiei tried his best to relax on the couch, they sorted everything into three piles—keep, sell/donate, and throw away.

They even hosted a yard sale, although since their house was so secluded, they didn't expect (or get) much of a turnout. Some of their friends invited their neighbors, and their friends bought things too. Most of their unwanted items got sold; the rest, they donated.

As the actual moving day approached, Kurama was pleased that he could help a lot more than he previously thought. He could carry things that were small, the size of his lap. He could pack things into boxes by putting the box on a level surface like a table instead of on the floor. They always had someone on hand—usually Yusuke, Kuwabara, Shizuru, or Homura—to do things Kurama couldn't, and Yukina or Shiori usually came by to stay with Hiei.

Ru-Ru was known to be a handful, and when she came along, they figured the best way to keep her occupied was to find things she could do to help. Although of course she couldn't lift heavy objects or label boxes, she did help put things into boxes, and oftentimes she worked with Kurama, grabbing things that were out of his reach. Being Kurama's official "assistant" had her bursting with self-importance, but her favorite thing to do was fetch items that were too high up; as a kitsune, she could jump extremely high, from the floor to a shelf with no problem. Then she'd grab whatever it was and hop right back down again. To her, preparing to move was all just a fun game.

When moving day finally arrived, they hired some moving men to take care of the actual process. Kurama was there to answer any questions and to take care of Hiei, and Homura was there to take care of any physical tasks. Strangely enough, Hiei was the one who had asked Homura to come over, and although none of them said it, Kurama had the feeling that Hiei wanted to be close to his remaining parent in such a physically and emotionally taxing state, especially since Homura was the same type of demon, and he had also been pregnant once. He was also a male and a family member, giving him two more common denominators with Hiei, as well as providing a genetic precedent. Shiori came, too, not only to keep Ru-Ru occupied, but to help cook and keep the house clean for future tenants. She even offered refreshments to the moving men, which Kurama thought was nice. Yukina and Kuwabara insisted on getting the new apartment ready, since it was in their building.

"Onii-san!" Ru-Ru screamed happily, zooming around the living room with speed reminiscent of Hiei (it was clear where she and her half-brother had inherited this ability). She pounced on top of Hiei and gave him a tight hug; unfortunately, Hiei had been trying to sleep, and Kurama knew she would only annoy him.

"Come on now, Ru-Ru," said Homura, lifting her off him. "Let's let Hiei rest. Why don't you go see if Mrs. Hatanaka needs any help in the kitchen?"

"Okay!" said Ru-Ru, heading for the kitchen. Shiori had to be a little creative with what she served to the moving men, as it couldn't be anything sweet, and most of their cooking supplies were packed away, but she would definitely find something for Ru-Ru to do.

"Thanks," Hiei mumbled.

"Not at all, son," said Homura, sitting on the edge of the couch. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm not," Hiei moaned. "Everything hurts, I just want to meet my baby already, and I'm so damn hot! Why won't he just come out?"

"I'm sorry, honey, but there's not much we can do besides wait," said Kurama, rubbing Hiei's belly. There was the option of induction, but Hiei had made it clear than if and when he wanted to be inducted, he would be the one to suggest it, so Kurama didn't mention it.

"I think I know what will help," said Homura, heading to the kitchen and coming back with an ice pack. When he set it on Hiei's forehead, the moan of relief let out by the pregnant demon sounded almost orgasmic. Since the moving men were over, he'd had to wear clothes, which made him even more overheated.

"Better," he said, setting his hands on top of the ice pack to hold it still.

"Pregnant fire demons can't use youki to lower their body temperatures, so the trick is to find other ways to do it," Homura explained. "Sometimes you have to get a bit creative. I remember that hot feeling all too well."

"Let's see what we can do about that back pain," Kurama added, reaching over to massage Hiei's back. Homura put one of the couch pillows in between Hiei's legs and massaged his feet. Kurama was relieved that Hiei was beginning to look a bit more relaxed, but that was when two moving men showed up.

"I'm sorry, sir, but we have to take the couch now," one of them said, addressing Kurama. Hiei groaned, but didn't say anything, as his back and foot massages suddenly came to an end.

"Oh, yes, of course," said Kurama. "Just a minute."

Homura helped Hiei off the couch, and the moving men lifted it to take it to the truck. By this time, the house was almost completely empty. Hiei, Kurama, and Homura stood there, staring at the living room, Hiei holding the ice pack to his forehead. It seemed crazy to say goodbye. So much had happened here. Kurama heard Hiei sniff.

"I-I can't believe we're moving," he mumbled, burying his face in his hands.

"It's all right, honey," Kurama whispered, holding out his arms so that Hiei could lean on him (this was a time in which Hiei being short was actually convenient). "We're renting it out, you know. We can always move back in if we want. And we can tell the tenants they're not allowed to cut down the Tree of Life, of course. We can even make it part of the contract."

"R-Really?" Hiei sniffled.

"Really." Kurama pulled Hiei a little closer, and gave him a kiss.

…

Hiei was surprised at how…involved he wanted to be when it came to moving in. Before the actual move-in, he thought he would be too tired and fat to help out or even care where everything went. On the contrary! He found himself obsessed with everything going in the exact right place in the house, even if it previously had no "right place" in particular, and especially if it was something the baby was going to use once he was born. When the rest of them were taking breaks, Hiei found himself compulsively repeating tasks that were already taken care of, like rearranging the cutlery or sorting the pots and pans according to size. He could not for the life of him explain it, but he just felt neurotic in making sure the house was just so.

This weird feeling was at its strongest when he entered the bedroom he was going to be sharing with Kurama. They had already decided the baby would co-sleep, which was what demons usually did, and even after Yukina unpacked and washed the sheets, then made the bed for them, Hiei couldn't stop rearranging the bed. Nothing in the bedroom or, for that matter, the entire apartment, looked right, even after days of straightening up.

"Moving was a mistake," he said to Kurama one evening in early July, his voice unnaturally high-pitched, even for a pregnant demon. "Everything looks wrong!"

"It's okay," said Homura, who seemed to be spending more and more time as their caretaker as Hiei approached the birth. He helped Hiei sit up on the couch, where Kurama sat next to him in the wheelchair. "These types of feelings are normal near the end of pregnancy. It'll work itself out."

"This is your nesting instinct, Hiei," Kurama added. "You just want to give our baby the best home you possibly can, that's all—even better than the home he has now," he finished, reaching out to rub Hiei's belly.

Hiei leaned back on the couch, out of Kurama's reach. His skin was stretched and itchy. He had heartburn. He was scorching hot. He couldn't hold in his pee barely at all. He had mood swings and cravings. He couldn't eat sweet foods. He had leaky, tender breasts. His belly was huge. Every single part of his body hurt. His hips were burning with pain from having to support his belly every minute of the day, not to mention the pain in his back and feet, for similar reasons. And now he was nesting?

"I am SO SICK OF BEING PREGNANT!" Hiei burst out, feeling once again that he either wanted to kill someone or burst into tears. "I hate it, I hate it, I HATE IT! JUST COME OUT! WHY WON'T YOU FUCKING COME OUT?!"

"Hiei, don't yell at the baby," said Kurama, looking concerned. "And don't swear, either."

"SHUT UP!" Hiei hollered. The tears were even harder to fight back now, not only because he was angry and upset, but also because he felt like he had wet himself again and that was extremely embarrassing. "That is IT! I'm getting the induction! If he can't come out on his own, they can just take him out!"

And with that, Hiei couldn't stop himself from sobbing hysterically. He didn't want to give birth with any medical interventions, and not in the hospital. He didn't want to get induced. And yet, he didn't think he could stand being pregnant one minute longer than he had to. What was right for the baby? What was right for him? Why was this happening?

"Come here, love," Kurama soothed, and Hiei crawled into his arms, tears still streaming down his face and turning into precious stones. Once Hiei was too tired to cry anymore (which took a surprisingly short amount of time), Kurama told him, "I'll make the appointment right now."

…

Kurama felt so bad for Hiei, and he was incredibly relieved when Hiei finally agreed to get induced. Sure, this wasn't ideal, but Kurama hated seeing Hiei in pain, and pregnancy was becoming that way for him.

"Hello, may I speak to Dr. Setchi?" Kurama asked the receptionist politely, after putting her on speakerphone.

"She's already left for the day," said the receptionist. "Is it something I can help you with?"

"Probably," Kurama replied. "I just want to book an appointment for an induction of labor, ideally as soon as possible."

"The earliest Dr. Setchi is available is Sunday the thirteenth," said the receptionist.

"It's the tenth today!" Hiei shouted. "I can't wait that long!"

"We have several other doctors that can perform inductions," the receptionist told him. "Only a few, but I'm sure you'll find them nice."

Kurama knew Hiei was having a debate with himself over this. Of course he wanted to give birth as soon as possible…but did he want someone he didn't even know doing the induction, especially if he hadn't been keen on induction to begin with?

"No," Hiei said. "Only Dr. Setchi."

"Well, then, I'm afraid you'll just have to wait until Sunday."

Hiei groaned, rubbing his hands all over his belly. Not only did he have to get induced, but he had to suffer three more days of pregnancy before he could get it. Fuck.