Chapter Nineteen: Wisdom of the Fox

Kurama couldn't help but feel curious over Hiei's quick departure after his questions. Perhaps he had struck a nerve with his question about Botan, and that made him wonder. Hiei was not acting like himself of late, and he couldn't help but wonder if what Hiei had told him about Botan had something to do with this moodiness he had taken on.

Was it possible, he wondered? The more he thought about it, the more questions he had. It was a fairly rare happening, a Reikai spirit and a Makai demon falling in love. But he wondered more and more, as he walked down that lonely street, if it was possible. Hiei had never been the kind of tender, caring person he always figured Botan would go for, but the question of her attraction had already been answered. So now, all he could wonder was if it was possible. Could a fire demon love her back?

A part of him ached at the question, however. Botan was a beautiful, incredible spirit. She had a certain angelic greatness to her, one that he had admired from time to time. But, he supposed, there were others. He had spent much of his demon life alone, and spent his human life with no one but his human mother. And this left Kurama to lament, from time to time. He hid it well, with a smile, with a kind, compassionate gesture, but inside, he felt alone.

Hiei was probably the best friend he had, and that alone was a crushing blow to him. There had been one girl, one time. Her name was Maya, and she shared classes with him. However, he couldn't bring himself to involve her, especially now, in his life. She had been involved once, been taken prisoner by the demon Eight-Hands, and had almost died because of him. He had erased her memory, erased any and all feelings she had for him, to keep her safe.

And now...now, more than ever, he knew he could not involve someone like her in his life. She was a very sweet, very innocent girl, and that was her failing. If he brought her in, she would only get herself killed. He had seen what had happened to Keiko since she fell in love with Yusuke, and he had no desire to put Maya through the same.

And so, he found himself alone, as always. But now was not the time to dwell on it. He still needed to find Kuwabara, and if he was not at his home...hmm...Kurama began to think. He brought one hand up to his forehead, rubbing it softly, while trying to remember. Where was it that Yusuke and Kuwabara were wont to go on school days like this, when they weren't in class?

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The knocking came again, and Botan groaned it away. She'd been wracked again and again this past night by the nightmares, by his horrible, wretched voice inside her once more. "Don't fight it, sweetheart. You and I are going to have a lot of fun together." She had tossed and turned all night, haunted by the visions of Tsarakino, by the memories that just wouldn't go away.

Her pillow was stained with the tears of heartache, tears of sorrow. She hurt inside, a pain that refused to heal. She didn't know what she wanted, what she needed. She just wanted to not have his shadow over her any longer. She wanted to be free from his horrible voice, to live her life again without his memory tormenting her. She wanted...she wanted to not be alone anymore.

"Botan?" The voice came again from the other side of her door. Ayame had come to visit her again, just like she had every day since Botan had holed herself up in here. She knew Ayame wanted to help her, that she was just trying to do what she could, but she just didn't understand. Botan was in love. She was in love with a man she could never see again, and haunted by a shadow of a man she hoped would die a very painful, agonizing death.

"Botan, I'm coming in." Ayame's voice was cautious, her tone careful to avoid accidentally slipping. She twisted the knob slowly, easing it open and letting light shine in on the dark, dead room within. "Botan..." she sagged when she saw her. Botan had not gotten better since her last visit, when she promised to eat. She'd actually gotten worse.

"Go away," Botan grumbled. Her stomach pained her, nagged at her to eat, but she wouldn't listen. She couldn't, not while she was here, alone. Tears streaked down her cheeks, and she stayed turned away from Ayame. She didn't want her friend to see her like this, not now, not here. But the more she pushed, the more Ayame pushed back.

"Botan..." Ayame struggled to think of what she could do. Koenma had given her permission to take this day off, so that she could spend it with Botan. "You know what you need?" she pondered aloud. "You need to get out of this dreary place, Botan. Have some fun. You remember fun?"

Botan snarled her response, "I need to be left alone,"

Ayame shook her head. "No, no, that won't do. Botan, this place is killing you. What happened to that cheerful spirit, that happy, hyper nature you always had? You've had too long to just sit here and sulk, and it's killing you." Ayame was borderline pleading now. To say that she was worried was a grand understatement.

Botan closed her eyes tightly, ignoring Ayame's voice. "This is where I belong. Alone."

Ayame pleaded. "Botan, please. I care about you. I know you may not realize it, but I do. I can't just sit here and watch you waste away like this, I can't! I know that you're going through something difficult–"

"You don't have a clue what I'm going through!" Botan snapped, upright in her bed, anger blazing on her face now.

"No," Ayame conceded, "I don't. But I want to help you. Please, Botan. Let me help you."

Botan ran her hands up to her face, the anger fading into sorrow and the tears starting to come back. She fell silent, and after a moment, Ayame moved to sit down beside her, resting her arms around Botan and pulling her close. Botan sobbed, her tears staining Ayame's shoulder. She was alone, always alone, but at least she had company.

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Yusuke tipped his chair back, at the local food court. He rest with one knee against the table to stabilize himself, while he sipped a soft drink he'd purchased. He cast his expression across the table to Kuwabara, continuing their conversation. "Guy's really starting to grate my nerves, y'know? I mean, how the heck do you fight something like that?" They had gone over this conversation at least a half dozen times already. Tsarakino had done a good job capturing their attention, and his usage of Keiko only served to piss Yusuke off.

"If I could just get my hands on him," Kuwabara wished, "...I mean, a man doesn't do those kinds of things! This coward hides behind little girls and picks on women. What kind of man gets away with that!"

Yusuke sighed. "An invincible one."

Kuwabara opened his mouth to speak, but then spotted something else to take their attention off the astral specter they still couldn't figure out how to fight. "Kurama!" He waved his hand up in the air, to grab the fox's attention.

Kurama smiled and hurried towards their table. "I've been looking for you," he greeted Kuwabara. He decided it was best to leave out what had happened with Shizuru, especially since he was still having difficulty processing it. "Both of you, actually. I was thinking about–"

Kurama was cut off by a chime from Yusuke's pocket. The sound filled all three boys with dread, for they all knew what that was. The pocket communicator Botan had given him before, the little pink compact that made him feel like an idiot carrying around. "...I better answer this," Yusuke sighed, and lifted the compact out of his pocket.

He was not ready for the chaos that greeted him when he opened it, however. Koenma was seated at his desk on the other end, but both his ogres seemed panicked, scouring the office for objects to barricade the door with. "Yusuke, Hiei's gone berserk, we need you here, now!" was all Koenma said before shutting down the communication.

The boys exchanged glances, taking a moment to register what Koenma had just shouted at them. Yusuke felt concern and a lack of understanding. Had Hiei really turned against them? He had to get down there, fast. He looked to Kurama for guidance, "How do we get to Reikai?"

Kurama stammered a moment, trying to make sense of this. Koenma was not the type to make jokes, especially about something like this. But what would compel Hiei to attack the palace of Reikai? "I...I'll show you...it's...um..." he struggled for words, trying to find the right way to put his sentence together, but his mind was too fractured. He couldn't understand what was happening.

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And so it was that, less than twenty minutes later, the boys had found themselves at a standoff. Hiei stood defiantly before Koenma's office, with a proud smirk emblazoned upon his face. His sword rested powerfully in his left hand, while he lifted his right arm to display the darkness energy that was burning down it, the black flame that had already encompassed it.

Yusuke stood dominantly, his Spirit Gun charging and aimed at Hiei, ready to fire if it became necessary to do so. He didn't know what had led them to this moment, what had brought them here and made Hiei their enemy, but he knew he couldn't allow this to continue. Come what may, he had to do his job. He was the Spirit Detective, and no demon, not even Hiei, would be allowed to trash this palace.

Kuwabara kept his Spirit Sword carefully between himself and Hiei. Though a powerful look of courage stood across his face, he was afraid. He would do what he must, and he would fight Hiei if he had to, but he hoped there would be another solution. He had seen what Hiei was capable of during the Dark Tournament, had seen the Black Dragon Hellfire that now swirled around Hiei's arm, and he knew just how powerful that demon was. Courage compelled him to stand his ground, and so he did. He was a man, a brave, powerful man. But inside, he was afraid.

Kurama struggled to understand what was happening here. Why would Hiei attack this place, why would he be here? "Hiei..." he took a step forward, his hand gesturing to Yusuke, telling him to hold off on attacking. "What's going on? What are you trying to do?" His eyes pleaded with the fire demon for reason, trying to understand what would lead him here.

Hiei took a step back, holding out his right arm threateningly. "Get out of here, Kurama, if you want to remain intact. This is not your fight." Of all of them, Kurama was the one least objectionable to Hiei. He knew that this was about to explode into violence, and if anyone here had been kind enough to Hiei to not deserve this, it was Kurama.

Kurama positioned himself carefully, planting himself directly between Yusuke and Hiei, right in the line of fire. "Hiei, please, talk to me. What is going on? What happened?"

Hiei snarled, "I think I've said enough to you. I will not be Koenma's lap dog any longer. This is how it should be, this is what I was always meant for. We're demons, Kurama. We're not his servants, and we're certainly not human, no matter how hard you try to disguise yourself. This is what we do, demons and spirits alike. We fight."

Kurama tried to make sense of Hiei's words. "Hiei, that can't be...I mean...I don't understand."

Hiei continued, "We're not them. We don't beg at their doorstep for what we want, we take it. You had no problem taking the Forlorn Hope," he reminded the fox demon. "This is what we do." Kurama began to ponder Hiei's words. He was here for something he wanted...Botan?

"Hiei," Kurama stepped forward. "Is this about Botan?" He was trying once more to make sense of it, and it was starting to come together. "Is that why you're here? Because he won't let you see Botan?"

Hiei snarled. Kurama had chosen a poor word. "There is nothing that I do because he lets me. He does not control my life any longer. This is who I am, Kurama. I am the most powerful demon that has ever lived! I don't have to bend to his will!"

The black flame on Hiei's arm swirled larger, to illustrate his point. Yusuke tensed, for a moment he thought Hiei was about to strike. He had no clue what was going on at this point, he just trusted that Kurama knew what he was talking about. He'd caught Botan's name, but didn't know what she could possibly have to do with any of this.

Koenma tucked himself down in his chair. He was frightened now, he knew that together, Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama could defeat Hiei. But he didn't know how much of his office...nay, his palace would be intact after they were done. Not to mention losses caught in the crossfire.

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"Now, see, Botan? Isn't this better than sitting up in your dreary little room?" Ayame smiled, nudging Botan for a response. After several minutes of crying on her shoulder, Botan had agreed that maybe Ayame was right, she did need to get out of there.

But she found herself questioning whether she was ready, the more she was out. Ayame had taken her on a walk through the palace, on their way to get out into town. They were going to go see some of the sights that could be found in the royal city, but Botan was nervous about leaving the palace. She had this horrible feeling that somewhere out there, Tsarakino was waiting for her. But she nodded her head anyway, trying to be brave. She had to take her first steps out of here, she knew that. She had to be strong.

She opened her mouth to speak, but was distracted by two ogres racing past. More were coming down the hall, reinforcements, and it sent a chill down Botan's spine. Was it the Tomorrow? Were they launching another attack? She grabbed the arm of one of the ogres as it passed, fear and insecurity welling up inside her. "What's going on!"

The ogre wrestled out of her grip and kept running, tossing back to her, "The fire demon called Hiei is attacking Koenma's office!" before continuing on his path. His words, Botan found more terrifying than a second assault.

"Hiei..." the name came through her lips, but she couldn't believe it. What was happening down there? She took off, racing after the ogre, moving on pure instinct. It had to be a lie, it had to be wrong, he couldn't be here. She knew in her heart, he wouldn't attack Koenma, he was better than that, she knew it!

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Kurama spoke softly, his words echoing compassion, trying to reason with the fire demon. "Hiei, what you're looking for...this isn't the way to get it. I know you're upset, I know you're angry, but I want to help you. Please, let me–"

Hiei scoffed. "You know, I think you've helped enough, Kurama. This has gone on long enough." He raised his arm directly towards Kurama, and Yusuke behind him. The black flame burned stronger, ready to be unleashed. "This is how it has to be. This is how it was always meant to be. Now you can stand aside, or you can–"

"Hiei?" The voice came from the broken-in doors to Koenma's office. That soft, feminine voice resonated in his soul, and he hesitated. He heard the voice, but a part of him couldn't believe it. His eyes softened and his arm lowered only an inch, before he tried to shake it off. But he couldn't and he found his attention turning to the door, to the blue-haired ponytail that stood so gorgeously within it. Her eyes had begun to water, and there was terror on her face. She couldn't believe what she was seeing here.

Kurama saw his opportunity, maintaining his calm, cautious tone. He knew that he would have to play this very, very carefully. He said nothing at first, watching carefully, waiting for the moment. He backed slowly towards Yusuke, taking a gamble he knew would mean either victory or defeat for them. "Lower your weapon," he whispered to the Spirit Detective.

"What? Are you nuts?" Yusuke hissed back, keeping his Spirit Gun trained on Hiei. He didn't know what was happening, but he didn't dare give Hiei the advantage.

"Yusuke," Kurama insisted, "have I ever, in the past, given you reason to doubt my judgment?" Kurama knew this was their one shot, that he couldn't pass this up.

"No," Yusuke admitted.

"Then please," Kurama pressed, "I can't explain it, there isn't time, but I ask that you trust me now. Trust that I know what I'm doing, and lower your weapon. You'll understand soon."

Yusuke lowered his Spirit Gun, unraveling his fingers from the gun hand position. As he did, he watched Hiei, whose attention was now off him, take one, then two steps towards Botan. The black flame faded from Hiei's arm, as the demon's mind was once more wracked by questions, by a lack of understanding. Here she was, the girl he had come all this way for, and he didn't know what to do about it. Pride and confusion swirled within him, and he didn't have an answer.

Kurama took a deep breath, stepping towards Hiei, eyes on Botan. "Look at her," he smiled, his soft voice trying to appeal to what he knew had to be growing within Hiei. "Isn't she beautiful?"

Botan clasped her hands together nervously, uncertain what to do. She saw Hiei's black flame fade, and she watched Yusuke lower his Spirit Gun. But for the most part, her eyes were fixed on Hiei, pleading, begging for this not to be what it looked like.

"Is this what you want?" Kurama asked, appealing to Hiei without waiting for an answer. "Is this why you're here? Everything you said before...is this what it was all about?" He gestured to Botan for a moment, then continued. "You could do it, you know. You could bring this place burning to rubble, be infamous, a legend to Makai and the most powerful demon that ever lived." He drew in a deep breath, continuing. "You might be able to kill us all, perhaps. I don't know, and I don't wish to know. But, Hiei...is that what you really want? Is that why you're here?"

Hiei's face softened, his eyes locked on Botan, locked on the nervous fear that she now looked at him with. Kurama continued, "Hiei...you could do all that, but is that what you want? Look at her. Her soft, blue hair...those beautiful lips of hers...tell me, Hiei. Look at her and tell me, what do you really want?"

Hiei stood, silently, his eyes studying Botan. His grip around his sword remained firm, unsteady, as he struggled to decide. His mind was wracked by conflicting forces, and her presence had only made it worse. He didn't know what to do.

Yusuke watched Hiei carefully, his fingers slowly clasping back together. He wasn't sure what was going on, and though he was beginning to grip it, he was reluctant to admit it. The idea was simply too strange, as he watched Hiei and Botan, he only found himself more confused.

Kuwabara had stayed silent, his Spirit Sword still wavering in the air. He had no clue what was going on, was just trying to keep up with the situation.

Kurama sucked in a deep breath, hoping, praying for his gambit to work. This was their last chance, and he knew it. He had taken a great risk in having Yusuke release his Spirit Gun, and he knew that if it didn't work, he would be the first to pay for it. He backed off, slowly, leaving the two. His part was done, and now he could only wait and hope.

Botan stepped back, nervously, her hands wrapping behind her back. She was frightened, she didn't know what to do. Was this really the man she had fallen in love with? She didn't know. She knew what he would do, but she didn't know if he was this man. But...if what Kurama had said was correct...had he done this for her? That question echoed in her mind now, and she was uncertain whether to approach him or run. If he had...then she didn't know what to think.

Silence filled the office, a silent tension creeping over the room. Hiei struggled to make his decision, unknowing, undetermined, trying his hardest to fight with his own natural instincts, to make some sense of what he was doing here. The silence went on, longer and longer, creeping over everyone. Until finally,

CLANG

The silence was split by the sound of Hiei's sword clattering against the floor. He had released his grip, and with that sound, the conflict was over. His eyes remained studiously on Botan, and he watched a smile begin to creep over her face. She knew, inside, that he could do it. She knew he was better than this, she knew it.

"Botan," Hiei began, but he didn't know where to go with that. He couldn't deny what he felt inside any longer. He was a demon, and every fiber of his being went against this one, irrefutable truth, that he had fallen in love with a Reikai spirit. Words wouldn't describe it, they couldn't describe it, and he didn't know how to explain what he knew he must.

He turned his gaze to Kurama, confused, and Kurama simply nodded. The fox understood without words, and he nodded his head, gesturing Hiei forward. Hiei turned his head back to Botan, and he watched her smile, watched her step slowly towards him. Words would not explain it, but actions spoke infinitely louder than words.

And so it was that he was gone, in a flash of speed he had vanished from his place, and she found herself lifted back by his movement. In less than a second, he stood over her, his arms wrapped around her as she lay back in his arms. He had tipped her off her feet, holding her up carefully, and for the first time, she saw an actual smile begin to cross his face. But she only saw it for a moment, before she found his lips pressing against hers, in a moment she had longed for days to find. Her arms wrapped around his neck, while her legs rest against the floor, her height being the only bane of their position. Her eyes closed softly, and her fingers traced against his back, as she pressed herself up into the long, passionate kiss that she had waited her whole life for. The spirit knew now, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she was in love.

END PART TWO: THE LONELY SOULS