The Celestial Tiger's Notes: I got the manga so I've now got Kurama's account of his story. It included a few more details but is still pretty open to interpretation so I'll keep going. I have one question remaining. Where might I find the account of Kurama's first encounter with Hiei? I'll get to that some day and I'd like to get it right.

This chapter is a bit short but I went over it several times trying to find something to add to it and it just seemed complete as it was. I suppose after such a lengthy absence, I'm doing good to get this much up. I hope it is enjoyable.

Chapter 4: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow… (Shakespeare, 'Macbeth' (V, v, 19))

Much to Youko's great relief, as time progressed, so did the development of his senses…particularly his eyesight. Things ceased to be blurry, incoherent forms and started taking shape. His perceptions of depth, movement and color all improved in a matter of a couple of months. He also developed far greater control of his eyes than he had before. They now moved and focused where he wanted them to instead of wandering uncooperatively.

To say that his vision was still a far cry from what his demon vision had been would have been an understatement in the least, but he was just grateful to be able to identify objects now. In fact, he had finally been able to make out what the mobile looked like. It was a strange oddity of tiny fake animals, each hanging from a string. They dangled lifelessly as if strung up by the neck, their eyes open and vapid. Youko laughed internally at this. Such a morbid thing for humans to suspend above their young.

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Day by day ticked by, each filled with excruciating boredom. He was running out of things to occupy his mind with. He had learned all that he could possibly learn given the current limitations of his scope. The days passed with nothing to do but contemplate. The problem was that he had exhausted all possible trains of thought. There was only so much that one could think on things before they became absolutely tiresome to think on any longer. And he had long since decided that revisiting memories of his demon life was out of the question. It merely served to make him that much more restless and frustrated, thinking on what he'd lost and reinforcing through comparison just how pathetic his current state was.

He found that he had taken to sighing a lot. He tried to avoid it when the humans were around because they seemed to think that it was cute. At times he found himself just staring blankly at the wall, trying with all of his might to escape reality for a few moments. It seemed, however, that every time he would achieve the de-realization that he desired, one of those damned humans would hover around him, seemingly concerned that something was wrong. So it was with great acrimony that he decided he would have to cease this method of escape.

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It was terribly frustrating having to be carried everywhere. The best he could do to express his displeasure was to turn his head away from them, stiffen at their touch and frown discontentedly. He could hardly wait until he had use of his limbs for mobility. At least then he would have some semblance of independence. It would also mean that he would minimize the amount of time he was forced to spend in the arms of humans. And the sooner this disaffection happened, the better, because it seemed that his human heart prompted him to desire being held. It was really becoming a great nuisance and he fiercely dismissed any twinges of contentment that threatened to arise.

He worked every day at using his limbs. He was disgusted at how weak his human musculature was but he knew that it would grow stronger if he exercised it. He did this only when he was alone, however, because he really didn't want to suffer an audience and all of the burbling and cooing that usually accompanied every new thing he did.

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Even at four months of age, Shiori and Ryuuichi knew that their baby was not a normal child. Aside from what they had experienced with him right after his birth, they had begun to notice other idiosyncrasies...yet more behavioral peculiarities that they added to their list of concerns. By this time, they had quite a list.

Shuuichi was supposed to start vocalizing more, according to the books they had on baby development, but he was still as silent as the grave. They tried to coax him to make noise but he only responded to this by avoiding eye contact and scowling. He still didn't cry or fuss, but it was now more apparent than ever that he was thoroughly discontent with human interaction. Anytime they picked him up to hold him, he became withdrawn and distant. Shiori couldn't shake the feeling that he was merely tolerating the interaction. She couldn't stand the thought that her own son didn't want her affections.

In addition, he didn't seem to want to grab at things or put anything into his mouth. He seemed thoroughly disinterested in toys of any kind or in any other thing that would normally captivate a child's attention. Instead, his attention always seemed to be diverted to adult happenings and affairs and little details that an infant shouldn't even be aware of. To those things, he watched and listened with an intensity uncharacteristic of any normal baby. Often, they imagined that he expressed a broader range of emotions than he should have been capable of and he showed signs of understanding that went far beyond infantile comprehension. At times, they would even almost swear that he had an ear directed toward their conversations and thought they glimpsed him deliberately divert his eyes when they looked at him.

This seemingly keen awareness was very much inconsistent with his dour and withdrawn demeanor. One moment he was staring blankly into space, the next moment his eyes would glint with something akin to shrewdness. This, together with his growing aversion to human interaction, was frightening Shiori and Ryuuichi more and more each day.

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"Ryuuichi?" Shiori suddenly interrupted the silence that had stretched throughout most of their dinner one evening.

"What is it, Shiori?" Ryuuichi asked, snapping out of the mental distraction that was causing him to poke at his meal more than eat it.

"What are we going to do?" Shiori blurted out, her eyes already misting over. "We have to do something...find someone who can give us some answers. I want to know why my baby is acting like this!"

Ryuuichi closed his eyes and sighed deeply, placing his fork gently down on his plate with a soft clink. "I know. I've already started looking into some people...specialists on autism and personality disorders."

Shiori stared at him in horror. "Oh god...do you really think it could be something like that?" she asked, her voice quivering.

"I don't know. I did some research and it is possible, but I'm not going to jump to any conclusions before we consult a professional." Shiori pushed her plate of nearly untouched food away as if it were something vile. Then she buried her face in her hands and began to cry softly. Ryuuichi rose from his seat and came around to her, wrapping his arms around her from the back. "It'll be ok, sweetheart. Whatever happens, we'll get through it together, ok?"

Shiori stood and turned to let Ryuuichi draw her into a full embrace. She cried softly into his chest but found his strength and reassurances a source of comfort. She finally nodded, sniffling as she tried to quell her tears. "I'll be ok as long as I have you," she said softly.

Ryuuichi smiled gently. "Then you have nothing to fear...I'm not going anywhere."

Additional Notes: Gotta love foreshadowing...hehheh. Anyhow, please leave me a review. :)