Apparently the last chapter was a hit. I confess it wasn't a spur of the moment thing. I planned on killing Rui from the start. In fact, that was the purpose of the curse, so she'd have a reason to do what she did. Did you like my teargem science there? FYI: keep that tidbit of information in mind for later stories in this series. Alright, now some explanations and long overdue fluff. Enjoy! ON WITH THE FIC!
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Kurama, who had dozed off in his chair, awoke as a hand gently touched his shoulder. Looking up he met his mother's worried gaze.
"You should rest," she stated simply, noting the uncharacteristic groggy look in his eyes. He shook his head.
"I want to be here when he wakes up," he replied, turning to the bed with an almost anxious stare. Hiei laid in the bed he and Kurama shared in the redhead's apartment. He had been asleep for almost three days now. Kurama hadn't slept at all during that time, excluding the few times he fell into a light sleep from pure exhaustion. Shiori had had the foresight to suggest a long father-son weekend to her husband and Kazuya was "experiencing nature and all it's wonder" in the mountains with Suichi, leaving her to help her son in any way she could.
She followed her son's gaze to the one in the bed. Kurama had explained numerous times (most likely more to convince himself then Shiori) that Hiei was "hibernating" until all of his energy returned, a process that was slow due not only to the child but the amount of time the ki had been suppressed. Hiei was not malnourished, but he was slightly underweight. It was apparent that he had been fed just enough to keep himself and his child from starving. However, she didn't see any reason why he wouldn't recover quickly once he had woken up.
Kurama had been gone for almost a full day when he left to retrieve Hiei and Shiori had taken that time to clean up the apartment…and to think. She thought about everything her son had told her about himself. She had accepted it all at the time for his sake, but she still needed to know if she truly was okay with it.
In truth she could find no reason to hate him for lying to her, or for being a demon. He loved her. That much she knew to be true. He had nearly died to save her when she had become sick. He had even put himself willingly at the mercy of others (Yomi for example) to ensure her safety. No, she couldn't hate him for what he was or what had transpired over a decade ago. His intensions may not have been the best at first, but they had changed over time. The person he was then was not the person he was now. She understood that and so could find no fault in him worth hating.
As for Hiei and the child they shared… At first she honestly didn't know what to think. Then she began to form opinions of the subject and argued back and forth with herself for a long time over whether or not it bothered her. She seemed caught in the middle of if that type of relationship was wrong or not and, without a clear answer to the previous question, had an even more difficult time deciding if she was upset her son was in that kind of relationship. She had seemingly reached a decision, finally, when her son had returned.
One look at Hiei and she was plunged again into indecision. He seemed so helpless, so fragile. Like a lost child. Her heart went out to him. She helped her son clean him up and get him into the bed, all the while observing the worried expression on her son's face and the way he handled the smaller one with such gentleness and caring.
Looking at the fire demon now she felt a tug on her heart. She observed the look on his face as he slept, so innocent and serene. He didn't deserve all that had happened to him. He didn't deserve any of it. Though he shrugged it off, accepted it and moved on, she could tell it hurt her son. Kurama wanted to give Hiei the happiness he did deserve, wanted to be the person to teach the half-Koorime love the way Shiori had taught it to him. At the same time he didn't pity the demon, Hiei wouldn't tolerate pity and he knew it. He didn't try to atone for the past, but counterbalance it with the present. At the same time, Hiei understood Kurama's motives and gave into them willingly. He had grown to trust Kurama, so much so that he could acknowledge that he wanted what Kurama had to give. He accepted Kurama's love and, through their trust, had grown to love him in return. Shiori couldn't hate Hiei or the love he shared with her son anymore then she could hate Kurama himself.
She turned her worried gaze from the bed to her son. He felt her gaze and turned to meet it, giving her a gentle smile when he saw the look on her face.
"I'm fine, Kaasan," he answered her unasked question. "I'll only stay up for a little while longer, I promise. He should wake up soon. I'll sleep then." He felt like a child asking to stay up past bedtime.
She sighed, but returned his smile, resting a hand on his shoulder. She nodded.
"Alright. I'll be in the living room if you need me." She made to leave but he grabbed her hand and pulled her back. He pressed a soft kiss to the back of her hand.
"Arigato, Kaasan," he whispered.
"For what?" she asked.
"Everything," he said simply, but she saw the real answer dancing in his emerald eyes. 'For accepting me.' She smiled and ruffled his hair playfully.
"What are mothers for?" she replied, laughing. He chuckled as well, feeling better, lighter, then he had in months. Leaning down, she kissed his brow gently.
"Get some sleep soon, alright musuko-chan?" He nodded.
"Alright Kaasan." He watched her leave and when the door closed turned back to the bed. In truth he was fearful of sleep. As he had predicted he was experiencing a recurring nightmare involving that gruesome pseudo-head. He shuddered at the thought of it. Despite the horror of the plan, however, he had to admit it had surprised him a bit that it had been his own mother who had orchestrated it. She had been the one to find the third option.
xxx
He led the way through the Reikai palace, his mother in tow. She glanced curiously around but said nothing as they walked. Many oni stopped what they were doing to stare at them as they passed but he ignored them. He had no idea what the policies were for bringing humans to Reikai, it was strictly taboo no doubt, but he didn't care what the consequences. At the moment he cared about very little, except getting Hiei back.
After numerous twists and turns down never ending halls they finally reached the enormous double doors that marked the entrance to the prince's office. Without even knocking he went in.
"Kurama?" the prince of Reikai looked up, startled. His pacifier nearly fell out of his mouth when he saw who Kurama was with. He tried to stutter out a question to Kurama and an explanation to the woman both at the same time, the resulting gibberish cut short by a glare from Kurama. Koenma took in his friend's disheveled appearance and was immediately worried.
Kurama lunched into an explanation of what had happened, leaving out Hiei's pregnancy and tolerating no interruptions from the toddler. Koenma listened attentively until Kurama had finished and then sucked on his pacifier in concentration.
"I don't see why you're worried," he stated after a moment. "Hiei can handle the Koorime. I'm sure he's fine." Kurama sighed in frustration.
"But he's been gone for two months." Koenma shrugged.
"So? You know how he disappears sometimes. You're overacting. Are you alright? You don't look so good." Kurama clenched his fists, trying desperately to remain calm.
"You don't understand," he tried, but Koenma cut him off, reaching for his stamp.
"You're just tired. You don't look like you've slept in a week. He's fine, Kurama. Hiei can take care of himself. I'm sure he— "
"Are you aware that he's pregnant?" Shiori spoke up for the first time. Her son hadn't mentioned it, but perhaps he had told this strange toddler before. The pacifier bounced to the desktop.
"What?" Koenma asked hoarsely. Kurama sighed again. He had been trying to avoid that bit of information, not really in the mood to explain at the moment.
"Yes, it's true, he is."
"But…but how…?"
"Later," Kurama said impatiently, beginning to feel anxious. Gods, why was this so hard? Why couldn't anyone just have an answer? Why didn't anyone have the time or the intelligence to save Hiei? WHY COULDN'T HE SEE THE ANSWER?
Shiori noticed her son's state, she could tell he was near another breakdown. She turned to Koenma determined to resolve this quickly.
"Koenma-sama," she said respectfully. He turned to her, eyes still wide with dazed shock. "Is there anyway we could…er…replicate your head for this 'Anei'? A clone or something?"
Koenma finally closed his mouth, replacing the fallen pacifier. He seemed to understand that explanations could wait and focused on her question. Finally he shook his head.
"No, nothing I can think of."
"What about you," she turned to her son. "A plant of some sort perhaps?" He stared at her blankly for a moment, his mind grasping the idea slowly. Replication. Why in the name of all the gods hadn't he thought of that? That was it. The third option. THAT WAS IT!
His eyes lit up immediately and he reached up, searching fingers probing his scalp for the right seed. Finding it, he pulled it out. It was simple, the size of a pumpkin seed, and blood red. Feeding a bit of his energy into it a long needle-like appendage sprouted from one side.
"Koenma, if I could get some of your blood," he said, unable to contain the smile on his face. Koenma nodded, getting the idea. He extended his hand. Kurama pricked the prince's finger with the plant and blood was sucked almost greedily up the appendage. He held it there for about a minute, allowing it to drink Koenma's blood. Then he pulled it away and placed it on the desk.
Feeding a bit more of his energy into it the plant grew. It began to expand and took on a round shape that gradually began to resemble a head. As the growth progressed features began to appear: eyes, ears, nose, a bulbous blue pacifier. Soon a perfect replica of Koenma's head sat on his desk, closed eyed and seemingly asleep.
"What is it?" Shiori asked in awe.
"Head of Distraction," he replied. Both Koenma and Shiori raised an eyebrow.
"Like…head of lettuce?" Shiori asked after a moment. Kurama smiled sheepishly.
"I didn't name it," he said defensively.
"Will he really buy this?" Koenma asked, examining the head before him. "It looks…too peaceful."
"I can fix that," Kurama answered. Feeding his energy into the plant once more he contorted the features. The eyes opened wide in shock, the mouth opening slightly as well. A look of confusion and betrayal donned the fair childish features.
"I can simulate your blood to make it appear as though the head was severed from a body as well," Kurama explained. "But I'll wait to do that until later," he added hastily at the slightly sick look his mother gave him. He smiled. This could work. He was no longer lost in the dark. He was in control again.
xxx
He sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly. His anxiety grew with each passing hour. So many questions were still left unanswered. What had the Koorime done to Hiei? Why had they done it? How had he escaped to meet Kurama? What was that wave of Hiei's energy Kurama had felt just before the half-Koorime fainted? And what about their child, was it okay? Had it suffered from this experience somehow as well?
He sighed again, resting his elbows on his knees and dropping his face into his hands, covering his eyes with long fingers. What about his relationships with Hiei? He had left him there for two months. No excuse was good enough to make up for that. Hiei had seemed happy enough to see Kurama when they had met in the snow, but it could have been a momentary thing. There was still every chance that the fire demon would feel their love had died, that Kurama felt nothing but physical attraction and had never really loved him. 'The Koorime were probably delighted to fill his head with such thoughts,' he thought bitterly.
Unbeknownst to the worried redhead the demon on the bed twitched. One crimson eye cracked opened, followed by the other. It took a moment before Hiei recognized his surroundings. When he did he closed his eyes and allowed a smile to grace his lips for a moment. Home, gods finally he was home.
The smile melted as quickly as it appeared and he opened his eyes again, looking around. He was quick to catch sight of the fox sitting in a chair by the bed. He looked sleep deprived and not at all like his usual self. His clothes were wrinkled and his hair looked in need of a good brushing. He was hunched over, his head in his hands.
"You look like hell."
Kurama's head shot up at the sound of the familiar baritone. Emerald met crimson. Hiei seemed to grow impatient with the staring but Kurama found himself unable to move. Should he hug the fire demon? Were they on good enough terms for that? What if they were? What if they weren't? A torrent of doubts and 'what if's buzzed through his head until his mind simply decided that the safest course of action was to do nothing.
Hiei sat up, his movements were stiff and his body felt sore. He watched the fox for a long moment. Was Kurama mad at him? Was he mad at him for leaving? Was he mad at him for betraying him and reading his mind? Was that why he did nothing but sit and stare? Was he relieved that Hiei was alright but still too angry to show affection?
Kurama willed himself to do something, say something.
Hiei clenched his fists, praying the redhead would do anything.
The silence was maddening.
"I'm sorry!" they both blurted at the same time. They both blinked in surprise.
"Hiei…what…?"
"I left when you told me not to. I betrayed you and read your mind. I put both my life and the life of our child in needless danger," he looked down, waiting for the inevitable, the angry yells, the testament to his worthlessness, the abandonment. Instead warm arms wrapped around him. He melted into the embrace.
"No, don't be sorry. I know why you did it. You did it for us, for our child. You never have to apologize for something so clearly justified, no matter what comes of it." Silence rang through the room. Kurama buried his nose in his lover's hair. "I'm sorry as well," he whispered after a moment. "I never intended to leave you there that long. I'm so sorry Hiei."
Hiei shook his head. "You shouldn't be sorry either, fox. More good came out of it than you know." Kurama blinked in confusion but Hiei said no more, ducking his head to rest it under Kurama's chin.
"You look tired," the half-Koorime spoke after a moment. "Go to sleep, fox." Kurama smiled. Repositioning himself so that he and his lover lay on the bed, he hugged the smaller body as close to him as he could, Hiei doing the same. An almost awkward silence followed. Hiei thought he found the words that would amend it.
"I still love you, fox." Kurama felt his eyes grow moist and smiled wider.
"And I still love you, Quickfire." Hiei chuckled at the use of the name and Kurama did as well. Soon they both were drifting off to a dreamless sleep, Hiei lulled by the heartbeat of the redhead and Kurama by the fire demon's scent.