Hello! Welcome to the Teen Edition of "The Tree of Life"! This is basically the same story but with the "sexy" scenes cut out. Cover art by the amazing Tojou Sakana. Enjoy!

Hiei awoke to a glaring light in his eyes. It was very irritating. Also, he was alone in bed, which meant Kurama was up and awake, but since it was Saturday, the fox-demon was home. Looking at the clock, Hiei saw that it wasn't morning after all—it was half-past noon. And yet…

There was that feeling he had been waking up with for the past week or so, that not only was he always tired, but he constantly felt sick to his stomach. The last thing he wanted to do was get out of bed, but he had to, because he had to pee again. This was happening way too frequently, and whether it was just annoying or a sign of something actually worrisome, he didn't know. One thing he did know was that it was lucky their bedroom had an adjoining full bathroom.

When he left the bed and got to his feet, Hiei felt like he must have stood up too fast; it seemed like all the blood rushed out of his head and he felt dizzy. At least he made it to the bathroom at all, which was more than you could say for yesterday morning.

I look like death, thought Hiei, gazing at his reflection in disbelief as he washed his hands. Good grief! Maybe I should just go back to bed.

That actually seemed like the best course of action. Hiei felt too tired and too sick to get in the shower, so he just dragged himself back to bed, cuddling Kurama's pillow and trying to ignore his nausea. But about a half an hour later, when he was returning from another trip to the bathroom, he heard his husband knocking at the closed door.

"Hiei?" said Kurama softly. "Want to come downstairs for lunch? I got some rice cakes and cut you up some fruit."

Lunch? That was about the last thing Hiei wanted. Fruit, in particular, was too horrible to even think about; recently, things that tasted sweet seemed to make Hiei feel worse, if that was even possible. Hiei shook his head, but then he remembered Kurama couldn't see him through the door.

"No fruit," he groaned.

"Well, I've got Nama chocolates, your favorite, for dessert," Kurama said. "That sounds good, doesn't it?"

Suddenly, the feeling of nausea was too much to handle. Hiei felt the world spinning as he ran back into the bathroom, and he was throwing up into the toilet when he felt Kurama's hand on his shoulder. As soon as he was finally done vomiting, accompanied by a lingering feeling of self-disgust, Kurama gave him a hug and kiss.

"Poor Hiei, you're ill," Kurama said sympathetically, with more kisses. "Well, not to worry, I'll take care of you. Let's get you back to bed and I'll make tea, okay?"

"Kurama, I'm fine," Hiei said irritably. This was why he had hidden his mysterious symptoms from Kurama for the past week (it was fairly easy to do Monday through Friday, since Kurama had a full-time job at his stepdad's company). Whenever anyone was hurt or sick, it would bring out Kurama's nurturing side, but this was especially true with Hiei. It was almost as if Kurama looked for excuses to nurture Hiei, perhaps because they didn't come along very often, and if he let it get out of hand, he could get more than a little fussy. As for Hiei, it wasn't so much that he didn't like being nurtured, so much as he wasn't used to it, even after working with Kurama for over half a decade and being in a relationship with him for over a year (they had passed their six-month marriage anniversary only a few weeks ago).

"Nonsense, love, just make yourself comfortable in bed while I get the tea and the thermometer." Kurama easily pulled Hiei to his feet, and Hiei was secretly thankful for the help, because he still felt dizzy and sick and he had to pee again. Maybe he should have just invested in a chamber pot.

"Sorry, Kurama, I have to stay in here," said Hiei. "Go down and start the tea, will you?"

"Yes, of course. Do you need anything else?"

"I'm fine, I said! Just GO!"

Kurama walked down to the kitchen, and after Hiei did his business and washed his hands, he tried to figure out how he could get back to the bed without collapsing. Maybe he needed sleep, but sleep wasn't easy to come by these days, and it didn't seem to help much, anyway. So instead of that, Hiei just sat down on the toilet and put his head in his hands with a groan. What was wrong with him? Very rarely did he get sick like this.

Hiei didn't throw up again before Kurama came back upstairs, which was a relief. Of course, he was only gone five minutes, so that wasn't really saying much.

"Are you done in there, Hiei?" Kurama called as he walked into the bedroom. "I have the tea."

"Yeah, I'm done," Hiei said groggily. As much as he didn't want to accept help, he knew he would need it to walk back to the bed. "Can you come in? I-I need some help."

"Sure, honey." Kurama set a tray down on the nightstand (Hiei could hear it) and headed into the bathroom. "What do you need?"

"I just want to get to the bed without passing out on the floor."

"Poor baby, you must really be sick." Kurama helped Hiei walk out of the bathroom and put him back to bed. Hiei was soon nestled in the sheets with a few pillows behind him and a tray in his lap, which had his tea on it, plus some saltine crackers.

"Why are there crackers?" Hiei asked.

"They're a little snack to have something in your system," Kurama explained. "If you have an empty stomach, you're actually more likely to be sick. Now stay still, okay?"

"What are you trying to—Hey, stop it!" Hiei squirmed as he felt something cold and hard inserted into his ear. "That hurts!"

"I have to take your temperature, Hiei," said Kurama, gently holding Hiei's head still with one hand as he held the thermometer in the other. Finally, it beeped, and Kurama took a glance at it. "Hmm. Normal."

"I don't get fevers, you idiot," Hiei reminded him. "I'm a fire demon. My body temperature is supposed to be high."

"But a fever is what the body does naturally to fight off bacteria and viruses that are sensitive to temperature," Kurama argued. "So if you can still control your body's temperature—and you obviously can—it means you don't have a fever."

That was true. Fire demons, like Hiei, were born very hot, because as babies they couldn't control their temperatures (that was why Hiei had to be wrapped in protective tape by the ice maidens). But as they grew, they learned to keep their temperatures at a normal level, and it happened without any conscious effort after a couple of years. If Hiei were to lose control of his body temperature, there was something wrong indeed.

"Fine," said Hiei. "So you don't need to fuss over me, then."

"My guess is that you just ate something funny." Kurama sat down on the edge of the bed. "I can give you something to clear out your system, though it might be messy."

"Yeah, well, I haven't taken a dump in like four days," Hiei replied, "so that's okay with me."

"What?" said Kurama.

"I don't know." Hiei shrugged. "I get really bad gas, so I sit there for hours, but nothing happens."

"Are you still feeling nauseous?"

Hiei wanted Kurama to stop being worried, but at the same time, he didn't think it was a good idea to lie, so he nodded.

"Poor Hiei and his tummy troubles," Kurama said in a baby voice, gently touching Hiei's abdomen, but applying no pressure. "Well, don't worry, I'll make it all better."

"Kurama, please!" Hiei shouted, flaring up at him. "Stop treating me like a child! This is why I didn't tell you I was sick! Every time I come down with the slightest sniffle, you have me dying within twenty-four hours! And you know what? I don't want your tea, I don't want your laxatives, and I don't want your company! So stop fussing and just go away!"

Upon seeing the hurt look in Kurama's green eyes, Hiei immediately regretted this, but it was too late.

"Well, okay then." Kurama stood up, and there was an almost indetectable quaver in his voice. "If that's how you feel, I'll just…let you recover in peace."

And with that, he left the room, though he didn't take the tea tray. Hiei was surprised with himself. Why had he yelled like that? Kurama was just trying to help, after all, and now there was nobody to take Hiei to the bathroom, or even get him a damn chamber pot, seeing as he had to go again.

This really stinks, Hiei thought, falling backwards onto the bed and shutting his eyes.