I had this written, but I wanted to write the side story first. That was taking forever though, and I couldn't keep you waiting any longer. I really like this chapter, it's very Hiei-centered.
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Chapter 8: The Promise
Not three months later, Kurama told me that the wedding day was approaching. I'd had relatively few assignments since Kuronue was beaten, so I'd gotten to spend more time near Kurama.
He even watched me training a few times. Once, I tried to teach him to fight, but he was hopeless. I couldn't help but thinking that was as it should be. Even though he needed protection from his brothers, I don't think fighting suits him. I'll protect him, so there's no need for him to learn.
Besides, he seemed content with just watching me, smiling from where he sat. I always felt just a little warmer than I should when those green eyes were fixed on me. Speaking of green eyes, I'd had a dream- or rather, a memory- about someone else with eyes just like those.
I'd been in a city to receive an assignment, when a drunken young demon stumbled across my path. She fell against a tree and lifted and dropped her legs as if she wasn't in public, but rather the confines of a lover's bedroom.
Still, I was an assassin, what did I care? Demons everywhere eyed her lustfully. I wouldn't have given it a second thought if it weren't for those eyes. She looked up at me with watery, half-lidded green eyes, just like Kurama does when he watches me. Those eyes were clear and innocent, not appropriate for the girl's condition at all.
I saw all manner of demons watching, a couple even inching closer to the girl. I never showed up to get my assignment that day. I reached the girl before the others, and took her away from them.
Even in her drunken state, she clung to me for protection. I doubt she was a virgin, given the state she was in. I didn't have any bad intentions either; I rented a room to let her sleep. But the girl seemed to think I had other reasons. She kissed me, assassin though I was.
It seemed she kissed indiscriminately. I really shouldn't have, but I gave into her touch. And touch me she did, until the alcohol caught up with her. We were both young, but her eyes were still unhardened.
The next morning, she woke up angry. Her memory was fuzzy, but she got the idea pretty fast. She seemed offended, even though I was a random stranger. I remember her eyes then, sad and shining at me. I think that I may have inadvertently helped to harden them to the world.
She left then, and I don't know what happened to her. She probably ended up worse off than she would have been otherwise. After that, I never tried to help anyone again. I ended up being one of the villains I'd tried to save her from.
Then, when I saw Kurama watching me with those same eyes, and when I felt that strange, yet familiar warmth, I did everything I could to suppress it. I didn't want to be the villain again. I was going to save Kurama from those brothers, not become one of them.
So when he told me the wedding day was approaching, my curiosity got the better of me. I asked how he ended up betrothed to them in the first place. He hadn't been very explanatory, merely whispering "It was a promise."
Later that day, I decided to question Kuronue about it. He'd gone back to his brothers, and all three of them acted as if nothing had happened. Except now, he randomly came to visit me.
After witnessing my conversation with Kuronue that day, he'd been insecure. I almost pitied him; he loved somebody who was terrified of him. Then, he saw that beautiful smile directed at another.
The more I met with the bat, the more I realized that he really did love Kurama. If he wasn't coming onto me, or Karasu, he was talking about the red-haired demon in the forest.
So naturally, when I mentioned that Kurama said the wedding day was approaching, he became more distressed. "I really don't know what to do." He practically pleaded, "I love him even more when he's happy, but he won't be happy with us. Even so, I still want him. Even if he's sad, I still want him."
I ignored the irritation that always came about when I thought that he and Kurama really could be happy together. The lovesick bat would do anything for Kurama. I didn't like the thought of losing Kurama either, but I tried to push those feelings aside. Kurama wasn't mine to begin with… was he?
I asked him to tell me about the promise. He started at first, but he did tell me. When Kurama was just an infant, he was promised to the brothers. The upcoming wedding day was actually Kurama's sixteenth birthday. That was when his race 'grew up' as Kuronue put it. I asked what that entailed, but his brothers had never told him.
That brought up something I'd been wondering about for a while. What race was he anyway? I asked, and got an answer I did not expect. He is a Kitsune.
I'd never met a Kitsune before Kurama, and I knew nothing about them. I also knew, however, that Kurama did not look like a fox.
Thinking that, I touched the bandana over my forehead. I didn't look like what I was either.
Kuronue warned me that Kurama's existence as I knew it was growing short. I asked what he meant, and the bat simply accosted me. I knew he was changing the subject, but there was nothing I could do about it.
Soon after we had that conversation, Karasu appeared and summoned me. He and Yomi reminded me that my year of service was almost over. They just had one last assignment for me.
They wanted me to make sure nothing went wrong on their wedding night. Neither of them knew that I'd met Kurama yet, and at first, I considered refusing.
But then, I realized that this ensured that I would be there. This offered me the perfect opportunity to interfere.
I nodded and muttered something about baby work. Neither of them realized that I'd just agreed to trap someone I'd sworn to protect. And if they'd known, they might have realized how unlikely my assistance actually was.
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Next chapter is The Eldest. Summary: Karasu talks to Kurama one morning. The next morning, Yomi visits his fiancé.