AN: Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed so far, especially you multi reviewers. Also this chapter gives a little insight into what was going on with Kurama's powers eariler in the story. Now, I have no idea how many tails Kurama has in his fox form but, for the purpose of this story he had five. Does anyone know how many tails Kurama has?
Shadows of the Past
by Yami Yue
I felt my sons' spirit energy at the entrance of the stadium. The opening ceremonies were ending, so I headed to the entrance. "I told you two before, no ticket, no entry," came the voice of the guard. "…and I told you we need to get in to see our father. It's an emergency," Kenji growled. "Sure kid," he said sarcastically. "Do you honestly expect me to believe you're the sons of Hiei the swordsman?" At that moment they were in view. Ryou was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. His tail swished and twitched in a sign of irritation. "I advise you not to anger my brother,' Ryou said, his soft voice taking on a dangerous edge to it." He tends to get violent," I decided I should go ahead and step in. I snuck up behind the guard with my sword drawn and placed the sharp blade against his throat. Kenji smirked." Hi Dad," he said. "Are you denying my sons entry?" I growled. "It won't happen again, I swear," the guard whimpered. "See to it that it doesn't, or I will use a more permanent solution," I warned as I removed my sword from his throat. The guard stepped aside, allowing Kenji and Ryou to enter. "Where is Kurama?' I asked as soon as we were out of earshot. "We were ambushed in the woods," Ryou said." Papa told us to come strait here and that he would join us," I frowned. "Are either of you hurt?" I asked. "No," they answered in unison. "Where exactly were you attacked?" I asked. "About a half day's walk from here," Kenji answered. "Find your uncles and stay with them." I instructed. I took off in the direction I had last felt my mate's sprit energy.
Kurama's POV
I awoke to the sound of footsteps approaching. I opened my eyes and tried to sit up but I was still weakened by whatever Velaska had used on me. A chill went up my spine when I recognized the vixen's scent. "There you are," she said happily. "I've been looking all over for you," "You shouldn't have run away my love," "Come with me now and all will be forgiven," "At the cost of my mate and family?" I replied. "No," Velaska shook her head. "No matter what I say I still can't convince you to give up your so called mate and rejoin your clan in your rightful place by my side," she said. "Perhaps this will," She stepped closer. "Sine dubio, instantatum," she cried. A pinkish colored light surrounded her and I felt myself loosing consciousness again. I tried to get up, to move but my body wouldn't obey. The tinge of human magic was in the air and there was nothing I could do to escape. "You will sleep now and when you wake you remember nothing after your banishment from the clan," she said. Her attention was suddenly diverted and she quickly left the cave. I struggled to keep my eyes open and see what had driven her away, but to no avail. Against my will sleep claimed me.Hiei's POV
Three days . . . we'd been tracking Kurama for three days and aside from finding his necklace and wedding band we had yet to find another sign of the fox. Occasionally we'd sense his spirit energy but it was so faint it was hard to tell. It was now the middle of the fourth day and I was worried sick. We'd stopped to rest for a while when I felt his spirit energy. I climbed to the top of the nearest pine and removed the bandanna covering my jagan. My third eye opened and I felt his spirit energy. It was faint but close. "Did you find him?" Yusuke asked. I nodded. "He's not far from here." I informed him. "Lead the way." He replied. I headed off in the direction his energy had been coming from with the others close behind. I stopped to allow them to catch up when I was close. He was in the cave ahead of me. Together we headed into the cave. "Kurama!" Jin yelled out. No reply. We headed deeper into the cave discovering there were four chambers directly in front of us. "Which way?" Yusuke asked. Ryou pointed to the right, "I hear someone in there." He said softly. " . . . and I smell blood." I headed to the tunnel to the furthest right, feeling Kurama's faint spirit energy coming from within. Yusuke, Jin and Toya followed me with the twins taking up the rear. Yusuke's sprit energy blazed brightly behind me illuminating the small chamber. Kurama lay on the cold earthen floor curled up for warmth. His normally immaculate silver hair was dirty and tangled; his clothes were torn and dirty.
"What happened to you Fox?" I thought as I kneeled beside my mate. There were small cuts and scratches all over his body, obviously where the blood Ryou smelled came from. "Should we wake him?" Yusuke asked. "No," I answered. "Let him rest," "Let's just get him out of here,"Kurama's POV
I awoke in a lavish room. From the look of it, I assumed it was a hotel room. "Who brought me here?" I wondered as I slowly sat up. I noticed bandages on my arms and legs and that I was wearing fresh clothing. "Whoever it was cleaned me, treated my wounds and dressed me in clean clothes," I thought. I got out of bed and stretched. I frowned, I didn't recall being wounded. I realized with a start that I didn't remember anything past the moment I stepped out of the village. Still I felt I was in no danger. For the moment it seemed that whoever had brought me in had treated me had good intentions, but I would still keep my guard up.
My stomach growled calling attention to the fact that I was hungry. I saw no one around so I decided to get some food. I had no money so I would have to hunt. I got to my feet and headed to the door. It opened freely and there was no one outside the room. I was convinced now I wasn't being held against my will. As I left the room I made a note of the number. I wanted to thank the person who'd cared for me later. I left the hotel and headed for the forest.The scent of the pine trees was thick and I breathed in deeply. "I need to find Hiei," I thought, then blinked in puzzlement. Who was Hiei and why did I need to find him? "Perhaps whoever cared for me might know this Hiei," I thought as I switched to my fox form and hid in the brush.
I hadn't been waiting long when the quiet of the forest was broken by voices in the distance. "Papa!" They called. Two young youko males passed by me. The silver haired one struck my eye; he looked as though he could be my twin. I left the cover of the brush to get a better look. They both whirled around to face me. "Papa?" the silver haired one asked. I shifted back to my normal form and shook my head. "I'm sorry, but I'm not him," I said. The twins looked at each other in confusion. "We were actually looking for you," the silver haired one said. "Our father grew concerned when he discovered you missing," The raven haired male looked as though he wanted to say something but a look from his twin silenced him. "Your father was the one who treated me?" I asked. "With a little help from us," the raven haired one said. "We'd better get back," he said to his twin. "Dad's sure to be looking for us and he'll be pissed if he knew we were out here,"
"Weren't you looking for your father?" I asked. "We were out here longer than we thought," the silver haired twin said. "He must be back at the hotel by now," "Why don't you come with us?" the raven haired twin suggested. "Perhaps knowing you're alright will save our hides," His copper colored eyes twinkled with amusement. I nodded my consent. "Forgive me for not introducing myself earlier," I said. "My name is Kurama," "Kenji, and this is my brother Ryou," the raven haired one said. " A pleasure to meet you," I said. "May I ask the name of your father? I wish to thank him by name," "Our father's name is Hiei," Ryou said. "Could it be the same Hiei I'm supposed to find?" I wondered. "...and why do these two seem so familiar?"
When we reached the hotel a raven haired man with brown eyes waved to us. Beside him stood a raven haired boy with a white starburst in his bangs. I couldn't help but notice how handsome he was. "I bet he'll have females of every species chasing after him when he grows up, maybe males too," I thought as we approached them. "If he wasn't a child I might even try to win his affections," I was taken aback by the relief that clearly showed in his ruby eyes. "Kurama, where have you been?" the taller raven haired man asked. "We were looking all over for you?" I blinked in surprise. How did he know my name? "You three had me worried sick," said the shorter male. My eyes widened slightly at the deep tone of his voice. So, he wasn't a child after all. "You speak as though you know me, yet I have no memory of meeting either of you," I said softly. "How did you know my name?"
The shorter male turned to the taller one. "Yusuke, take care of Kenji and Ryou," he said. "Uh, sure," Yusuke said, obviously confused. "Come on guys," A moment later I was left alone with the handsome, boyish looking male. "You don't remember me do you Fox?" he asked softly. I shook my head. "I'm sorry, I don't" I replied. "You seem to know me. How?" "Let's go back to the room where we can talk in private," he suggested. "…and have a meal in peace," Normally I would have been wary of someone in a situation like this, but for some reason I felt I could trust him. "You haven't even told me your name," I said. "Hiei," he informed me.
Hiei's eyes seemed to sparkle as he watched me finish the last of my meal. "This is good chicken," I commented. He nodded in agreement. "We don't get it often at home," "It's a treat for you then?" he asked. "Yes," I answered. "My fiancé doesn't seem to think so though," Hiei's eyes widened. "Your fiancé?" He asked in surprise. "She was," I amended. " I was betrothed to a vixen in our village. Since I've been banished I no longer have a claim to her," "Did you love her?" he asked. I shook my head. "To be honest I didn't much care for her," I answered. To my surprise relief shone in his eyes.
"You still haven't answered my question," I said. "How do you know me?" "It's a very long story," He said. "It will take more time than I have now to tell it all to you," "I have nowhere else to go," I said "First tell me what is the last thing you remember," he said. "Leaving home," I told him. "I had an argument with my father and I left home," "Then I remember running from someone," I said. "I can't remember who," "That must be how you ended up in that cave," he said."Anything else?" I asked. I shook my head. "A lot of time has passed since then," he said. "How much time?" I asked, curiosity building within me. "How much have I forgotten?" "That I can't tell you," he said. "You never told me much about what happened to you before we met,"
I got up and looked around the room. I spotted a dresser with a mirror and walked toward it. The sight of my reflection made me stop in my tracks. Hiei was right. Much time had passed. The refelction I last remembered was that of a youth who had just reached maturity. The one I saw now was not the same. The boyish features had given way to the hard masculine form in front of my eyes.Curious to see if my fox form had changed too, I switched and hopped up onto the dresser where I could see my reflection. Instead of the few tails I remembered there were now five full large tails and two who appeared to be in the beginning stages of growing. I studied them for a moment then hopped off the dresser and returned to my youko form. "You're right," I said softly. "Much time has changed," "Tell me what you know," I said. . "Perhaps it will help me to remember and figure out what made me forget in the first place," He nodded. "Let me figure out where to start," he said. "May I ask you something before you begin?" I asked. He nodded. "When did I aquire seven tails?" Hiei blinked and his eyes widened. "I can't believe we didn't figure it out sooner," He murmered as he shook his head. "After going through Ryou and Kenji's growth spurts we should have known right away why your powers were erratic," I looked at him with confusion. He smiled and looked directly at me. "A month ago," he said, finally answering my question. "...but at the time we had no idea what was going on," "What else would you like to know?" he asked. "How did we meet?" I asked. The memory seemed to renew his smile as he recalled the memory and began to speak.
We talked for several hours. I listened attentively as Hiei recounted our adventures as spirit detectives. The more I heard the more intrigued I became. I sensed sadness within him. Had loosing these memories really hurt him so much? I had a feeling he hadn't yet told me something very important. From what he had told me it sounded as though we were good friends and nothing more, so I wasn't sure what to do about this attraction I felt toward him. For now I decided to just let things be and wait until more was revealed.
"It's getting late," he said. "We should get some rest," I nodded in agreement. "Where do I sleep?" I asked. "You take the bed," he answered. "What about you?" I asked. "I'll be fine," he answered. "The bed is big enough for both of us to share," I suggested. "If you're fine with that, I have no objections," he said. I smiled. I was perfectly fine with the arrangement. As he laid down beside me I couldn't help but feel that somehow this was right.
AN: Can anyone guess what show Velaska's spell came from?