Chapter 9
True to his word, Kurama returned to is apartment to nurse his broken heart. He spent a week by himself, only calling his mother and Yusuke to tell them he was back and okay but wanted to be left alone. With a promise to contact them both in a week they honored his wish. Now, after a week of thinking, mostly about Hiei's last question, he was no closer to an answer than before. Would Hiei have a place in his life? His heart was torn in two. He loved Hiei without a doubt. Yet he was afraid to trust him. Yes he, Yoko the spirit fox, was afraid. To think he could face demons and even death in battle but was afraid of one little fire demon. He who had broken more hearts than he could count was afraid of having his broken again. He hadn't found any answers on his own, maybe Yusuke or his mother would have some advice that could help, so he set off for the ramen shop.
Keiko greeted him with a warm hug. Concerned, she asked, "Are you alright, Kurama?". With a sad little smile and a shrug, he let the question hang. Keiko just smiled back, nodding her understanding.
"Hey Kurama!" Yusuke called the greeting as he came around the counter. Seeing his friend's sad expression he asked, "Keiko-chan, can you send two bowls of ramen upstairs? My pal here looks like he could use a meal and a friend."
Upstairs they talked about what happened in Makai. Kurama told Yusuke of his fears and how confused he was. Yusuke listened patiently to all his friend said. As Kurama prepared to leave Yusuke said, "Kurama I'm going to tell you what I told Hiei. Your two are soul mates. You found each other again through time, across worlds and even transcending death. Kurama, maybe the choice was never yours to make. Fate has given you two another chance. Who are you to question it?"
Surprised the fox asked, "You told Hiei we were soul mates?"
Smiling Yusuke answered, "Yea, and it sounds to me like Hiei's stopped fighting fate. He's accepted his destiny…you." After Kurama left, having barely rounded the corner, Yusuke turned to see Hiei's somber figure approching. With a grin he called into the ramen shop, "Keiko-chan, looks like it's time for round two."
-
Kurama had learned one very important lesson in the last few weeks. You can't protect the ones you love by lying and keeping secrets from them. That was how he found himself at his mother's that afternoon. He had decided to tell her the truth about everything. He took his time, telling his tale slowly, patiently answering all of her questions, even showing her his Youko form. She was shocked at first, not ready to believe what she heard, but she couldn't deny what she saw. In the end she was happy to finally know the truth about her unique and special son. Kurama felt good about his relationship with his mother for the first time in his life. He even confided in her about his relationship with Hiei, though he later realized she had suspected for years. Like Yusuke she didn't tell him what to do, just told him what to her seemed so obvious.
"Shuu-chan, you seem so unhappy without Hiei. You could accept that, and try to move on with your life, or you could take a chance on the one you love, and who I think loves you. Yes, you could get hurt again, or you could end up living happily ever after. Only you can decide if you're willing to take that chance."
-
Back at the ramen shop Hiei and Yusuke had been closeted away making plans. "Yusuke, are you sure this will work?"
"Listen Hiei, when a guy gets in trouble with his gir…um…in a relationship, he's got to suck it up and be romantic. Trust me, Kurama will love it. This is perfect, he went to his mom's, he'll be there for hours." Yusuke said with a devious grin.
-
When Kurama got home he couldn't help thinking he needed to get some exercise. All he did was talk all day and he was exhausted. As soon as he entered the apartment he went on alert, someone had been there. Sniffing the air he smelled… "Roses?"
Turning on the lights he relaxed a little, then smiled. On the table was a beautiful crystal vase with three roses and a note. Moving closer, he saw the vase was painted with a serpent like black dragon encircling it. It had ruby red eyes and in it's mouth was a blood red rose with a green stem and leaves. It was beautiful. In the vase the roses were three different colors. Yellow for friendship, blue for loyalty and red for love. Smiling at the symbolism, Kurama leaned closer to smell them better. As he did he noticed a thin silver ring hanging from a string attached to the stems. He removed the ring before sitting to read the note.
"My dearest Fox,
The ring is an Irish Cladaugh ring. The hands represent friendship, the crown loyalty and the heart love. It should only be given to a loved one and worn on the ring finger of the left hand facing your heart. This shows others that you are taken. Will you wear it for me?
Kurama, both times that we fell in love we started as friends. Can we start over as friends again? Please?
Everyone is meeting in the park tomorrow for a picnic. Will you join us?
Your best friend forever,
Hiei"
With tears in his eyes, he looked down at the ring in his hand, the symbol of Hiei's intentions. Without another thought Kurama placed the ring on his finger.
For the first time in weeks Kurama felt the heavy weight that had been in his heart lifting. Hiei wanted to be friends again. Yes, he was ready for that. He would wait to see if there could be more. As Hiei said, they had always started as friends and he knew now that no matter what, they always would be.
Later, as Kurama prepared for bed, he could not resist the urge to look down at Hiei's ring often. Even after getting in bed, he didn't turn the light off right away, thinking of the fire demon, he looked at his ring again. With a smile he turned out the light and fell asleep only to dream of Hiei and his beautiful gift.
In the tree across the street, Hiei sat watching his fox admire the ring he was wearing. 'I'll be damned, Yusuke was right.'