"Are we almost there?" Masaki asked for about the millionth time, as the party of four headed to the gate, Ryu in Hiei's arms, while Shiori held onto Masaki's hand.

"Yes, it's not far now, dear," Shiori said, smiling down at her grandson.

"And remember," Hiei added, "it's supposed to be a surprise."

Shiori and Hiei looked at each other and smiled. They both knew perfectly well, within that look, that Masaki wasn't going to be able to keep this a surprise. Ryu was now three days old, and just as powerful as the day he was born. As a more long-term solution to the baby's apparent ability to burn people when they touched him, Hiei had wrapped Ryu's wrists in wards—the same kind he used to keep the Dragon reigned in when he wasn't using it. He supposed some people were wondering why his newborn had bandages tied to his wrists, but it kept Ryu's heat energy from getting out of control, so that he was the temperature of a normal baby, and this way, anyone could hold him without getting burned.

But the flight was taking a long time to get in. Masaki had to be taken to the bathroom, and Ryu needed a feeding, and then Masaki was hungry too, so Shiori left to buy them snacks, while Hiei was stuck worrying that Kurama would arrive before she got back. They had told Kurama that Shiori was picking Kurama up at the airport and that Hiei had been too pregnant to come, so he'd be sure to be surprised…that is, if Kurama ever could be surprised. When Shiori was back and they were eating the snacks, Hiei and Masaki played a game, "competing" over who could spot Kurama first.

And finally, there he was. Kurama looked the way you would expect a businessman to look after a fourteen-hour flight; his eyes were a little bloodshot, his suit and hair were rumpled, and he looked overall very tired and jet-lagged. But he was obviously scanning the airport for his mother. Hiei, letting Masaki win their game, pretended to look the other way when Kurama approached the seating area, but Masaki jumped up and ran towards his father like a missile powered by pure joy, his arms stretched wide, shrieking, "Otou-san! Otou-san!"

"Masaki," said Kurama, bending down to give his son a tight hug; Hiei smiled as he watched Masaki gleefully bury his face in Kurama's chest. "How nice to see you."

"I missed you so much!" Masaki kept repeating over and over as Kurama picked him up, hugging him tight with both arms. It was as if Kurama had been gone for seven years, not seven days. "I missed you so, so, so much!"

"I missed you too, son," Kurama replied, giving him a kiss. "Where's your grandma?"

In response, the toddler stifled a giggle and pointed to where Hiei was standing with Shiori, the baby still sleeping in his arms. Kurama looked up, a smile on his face, but when he saw who was waiting, his cheerfulness soon turned to shock.

So it was possible to surprise him after all. Hiei loved to see that expression on Kurama's face, and he could practically taste the anticipation in the air, waiting for the facts to truly sink in, for Kurama's mind to believe what his eyes were telling him. He held Masaki in one arm, pulling his roller bag along with the other, as he slowly walked towards Shiori, Hiei, and Ryu, Masaki's arms wrapped lovingly around his neck.

"Hiei," he said softly, a look of wonder still etched across his face as he set Masaki down. "Did you…I mean, have you…"

"Yes," Hiei replied, smiling up at Kurama. "And he's been waiting his whole life to meet you."

It was Hiei's turn to be surprised now. One second, Kurama was standing there, gaping, and the next, he had wrapped his husband up in one of the warmest, tightest, most loving hugs Hiei had ever received. Masaki was sobbing by now, caught up in the emotion as he hugged Kurama's leg, and Shiori was dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief.

After they separated, Hiei passed Ryu to Kurama to hold, at which the small fire demon noticed that Kurama's cheeks were glistening with tears as well. He held the newborn baby against his shoulder, then in his arms so he could look at the baby's face, all the while laughing in disbelief.

"So, Kurama," said Hiei, who would be lying if he said he wasn't a little choked up himself. "Have I finally caught you by surprise?"

"Yes, Hiei," Kurama sniffed, not even bothering to wipe his tears as he gently bounced the baby. "Yes…yes you did."

Kurama held out his finger for the baby to grab, and sure enough, he did, one soft baby hand wrapped tightly around just one of Kurama's fingers. It seemed like Kurama never wanted to let go of his little redheaded baby, but finally, after exchanging a couple pecks on the lips with Hiei, he handed the baby back to him and gave his mother a hug and a kiss hello.

"It's so wonderful to see you again, Shuichi," she told him. "We all missed you so much, and we can't wait to hear about all of your adventures in New York."

"You've obviously never been on a business trip," he joked. "Adventure is a strong word. But I do have some things for you all."

Kurama handed Hiei a bouquet of red roses, yellow poppies, and Hiei's favorite flower, bright-orange begonias. For his mother he had a beautiful golden necklace, and for Masaki, he had a big bag of cookies.

"Thank you!" Masaki hugged Kurama again and looked up at him with bright green eyes. "Cookies before dinner?"

"Of course, Masaki." Kurama nodded, still looking a little tearful as he handed them over. "Today, you can have all the cookies you want."

Hiei handed the baby to Kurama again, and Kurama gave the baby a kiss, cradling him in his arms.

"He's perfect, Hiei," he said. "I'm so sorry I missed the birth."

"The important thing is that you're here now," Hiei told him. "I hope you liked your surprise."

"I loved it," Kurama declared. "Did you give him a name yet? I named Masaki, after all, so it's only fair that you should name our second child."

"Well, we can change it if you don't like it," said Hiei, "but he's a fire demon, like me, so I called him Ryu. It means 'Dragon.' Homura said he might be able to use that attack someday."

"I think Ryu is a wonderful name," said Kurama. "But still, he's the temperature of a normal baby right now. How did you know he was a fire demon?"

"On his own, he's hot," Hiei explained. "But he has a bad habit of burning people when they touch him, so I gave him wards on his wrists to hold in his heat energy until he can control it himself."

"Yes, good thinking." Kurama nodded. And then, addressing the baby, "Nice to meet you, Ryu. Welcome to the world."

-end-