Chapter Six: Trust

"Why was my mother sick?" Kurama stared coldly at Hiei, waiting for an answer that he thought he knew.

Hiei breathed out. And looked… tired. Weary. Softly, he spoke, "Kurama – your mother had cancer."

It moved Kurama not at all. "Some cancers can be created. Especially by a skilled demon. Your plans were rushed, you said. Was my mother dying too soon for your tastes?" Each sentence was spoken precisely, carefully, no emotion showing in tone or inflection. His face was just as still.

"No." Hiei shook his head, "Kurama – I did not plan your mother’s sickness." He gazed at the white flame and shivered, "It’s true – I knew you wanted the Mirror for that reason. But I did not create the situation."

"You didn’t."

"No."

Coldly, Kurama gazed at demon, "I should believe you?"

"Kurama – if you’ve figured things out that far, you know I was after Yusuke. Your mother became ill five years ago. Yusuke became a Spirit World Detective five weeks ago!" Hiei’s mouth twisted in a grin, "Even for me, that’s pushing it." His grin dropped away at the look on Kurama’s face. Or rather, the absence of one.

"That was no normal cancer my mother had. I have some healing abilities, not much, but some… and that cancer didn’t respond." Kurama showed the first trace of emotion, a frown. "I hadn’t been looking for Other World influence at the time. But by my memory, it’s not unlikely."

Hiei sighed and scratched his forehead where the cloth was bound around it.

"Don’t even think about using your jagan."

Hiei rolled his eyes, "I wasn’t." He sighed again, "Kurama… why don’t you ask your dad?"

The wall of non-emotion was broken on the instant. White flames sparked and died. Icy eyes became shocked green puddles. "WHAT??????????????"

For the second time, Hiei scratched his head, and he restlessly shifted from foot to foot. He coughed, but didn’t say anything more.

Kurama narrowed his eyes, "Hiei – my human father is dead."

"I know that, you idiot!" Hiei snapped. Then he sighed again. "Look, Kurama – Koenma is in charge of the crossing of souls over the River, right? So now that you’re such good buddies with Koenma-kun, why don’t you ask him for a dispensation to go talk to your dad?"

Kurama hadn’t thought of it. In the shock of the moment, the blood draining from his mind, Kurama did something he’d never done before in all his six hundred years of life: He fainted.

   ...   ...   ...               ...   ...   ...               ...   ...   ...

He woke up in warm arms, being held gently and protectively, a smooth hand brushing his hair back over and over again. When he stirred, the hands stopped briefly.

"Kurama, are you okay?" Hiei’s voice was full of concern.

Opening his eyes, Kurama stared up at the soft red irises in the slanted eyes. He didn’t make a movement to free himself from Hiei’s embrace, but… "Hiei – tell me what happened."

Hiei bit his lip.

"Damnit, Hiei – you know something. Tell me now, or…" Kurama let it trail off. If he found out that Hiei had nearly killed his mother… Hiei would die, here and now. It was that simple.

Quietly, Hiei said, "Your father died ten years ago of a heart attack, do you remember?"

"Hiei – just tell me."

"Your father died protecting you and your mother from a demon attack. That’s when your mother was poisoned, though it took five years for the poison to manifest."

After bolting half-upright at the second shock, Kurama closed his eyes and laid back into Hiei’s comforting hold. "Hiei – if something like that had happened, I would have remembered it! Think of a better one."

"Ithioda took you out in the first attack. You were unconscious through the battle." Hiei sighed, "Kurama – go ask your father. You should really talk to him anyhow."

Ithioda… Kurama remembered the demon, from forty years ago. One of Yoko’s enemies. A thief always had a few. Kurama wanted to talk to his dad, he really did. Now that it was a possibility… "If I go back to Koenma’s, the mission is over. Tell me now." And he didn’t think that his dad would have the answers that Hiei could give him. Ithioda…

"But you don’t trust me."

At the utter lack of anything but conviction in the low tones, Kurama opened his eyes again. Hiei… Hiei looked more than weary, he looked defeated, his soul broken. Kurama closed his eyes, not wanting to see such pain anymore. "Just tell me. I’ll decide."

There was the sound of a soft sigh, and then Hiei started brushing his hands through Kurama’s hair again, gently, carefully, longingly… "When you escaped the Spirit World, there were four of us who tracked you back to the human world."

Kurama snorted – four demons had been watching him for fifteen years and he’d never noticed? And Hiei was one of them? He didn’t make a comment, and after a moment, Hiei went on.

"I tended to keep a rather remote watch, through agents at a distance. Yoshinda was even remoter—"

Kurama squawked and sat upright, "MY BROTHER WAS WATCHING ME?????"

"Brother???" Hiei blinked. "Yoshinda is your brother?"

Kurama turned to look at him, "The great Hiei doesn’t know everything?"

Hiei’s mouth tightened momentarily before he explained with a bare semblance of calm, "I was never able to find out anything about Yoko’s past. The kitsune are a very closed community, and even the lone foxes never talk about others. I knew Yoshinda was a kitsune, but… If he was your brother, then why…" Hiei shook his head.

A deep fear was in the pit of Kurama’s stomach, "Don’t tell me Yoshinda had anything to do—"

"No, no, no…" Hiei hastened to assure the fox, "All Yoshinda ever did was watch. Watch, watch, watch… Hell – he was the only one that knew I was watching. And he never did anything. Just watched." Hiei sounded annoyed.

The description fit Yoshinda. Kurama eyed Hiei thoughtfully, wondering if he should just stay sitting up. The short demon… looked fairly normal. But there was a bleakness in his eyes… Kurama laid back down, resting his head on Hiei’s lap, letting the warm hands settle hesitantly on him again. And he kept his mind with his plants, seeds scattered everywhere, trees and moss and ferns and grass ready to help on the instant.

After a moment, Hiei sighed. "Yoshinda and I were there pretty much from the start. Matashiu found you a few years later. He set up agents within your community and interacted fairly closely. A risk," Hiei shrugged, "but I think he was amused at your choice."

"Who?"

"Huh?"

"Who were the agents?"

"Well, the first one was your babysitter, Washiko-san—"

Kurama snorted, "Never did like her. Always thought there was something off. She used to tell me stories of demons that ate little kids… Stupid, I always thought. I guess she thought she was taunting me."

Hiei’s hands had stopped stroking his hair and there was a feeling of astonishment from his youki. Kurama opened his eyes and looked up.

The demon was wide-eyed, staring down at him.

"What?"

"You… remember… but you were only two years old!"

Kurama shrugged, the movement brushing against Hiei’s chest. "Two years in the human life, six-hundred and seventeen in truth."

Hiei let out his breath in a soft exclamation. "You were aware? That whole time? You…"

Kurama frowned up, "Of course. You don’t know much about world-transference, do you?"

Hiei shrugged, embarrassed, "That’s not how I…" He broke off. "I didn’t know you were aware. That could have changed…" he shrugged, "That was good acting."

"Get on with the story, Hiei. Did Matashiu kill my father?"

"No." Hiei cleared his throat, "Matashiu still wanted that artifact he’d hired you to steal. He was willing to wait until you’d healed before approaching you with the job again."

Kurama snorted. That demon had a one-track mind. And paid very, very well…

"Ithioda finally found you when you were five."

"How the hell did Ithioda even know I’d transferred?" Kurama had kept it subtle, he’d thought. Knowing Hiei’s resources, and Matashiu, he could understand how they’d tracked him down, and Yoshinda… But Ithioda? Ithioda was a dolt.

"The land the hunter shot you on was his."

"Like hell!" Kurama sat up and this time turned to face Hiei, crossing his legs and not planning to settle down again.

Hiei sighed again, "Twenty-one hundred years ago, when the demon Uishto challenged the demon Quyatta for his lands and rei—"

"Get to the point, Hiei."

Hiei glared at the fox and then sighed again, "I’m trying – okay? I’m not used to…" He sighed once more, and bit his lip again. It was starting to bleed from the number of times it had been pierced with his fangs.

Even in the middle of his distraction, Kurama had to grin. The poor demon was trying. It wasn’t natural for him to explain so much or be so accommodating or… Hiei loved Kurama so much. Kurama hoped he wouldn’t have to kill Hiei.

"After the war with Uishto and Quyatta, the inhabitants of the Singa lands stayed true to Quyatta’s descendants, being bound by blood-ties."

"I didn’t know that."

"Neither did I," Hiei admitted, "It was kept very quiet. I finally only found it by back-tracking, after…" He stopped and started again, "Anyhow, Ithioda was the most recent of Quyatta’s descendants. So when a kitsune got shot and then disappeared, instead of reporting to Jathodean, who technically owns the lands, and who wouldn’t have cared one whit, the ghosts that witnessed it brought the news instead to Ithioda. Ithioda, who bore a grudge against Yoko for—"

Kurama broke in dryly, "I know why Ithioda hates me."

"Uh, right. Well, Ithioda finally figured out you’d transferred to the human world and was searching for you in a rather incompetent way. Probably wouldn’t have found you, if it weren’t for us."

Kurama blinked slowly, his plants rustling.

"Well, three ghosts concentrating on one area… It had an affect on the area. Ithioda was already sniffing around in the general region. But what really topped the cake was when Matashiu was forced to pull his agent out due to some problems in the demon world that were slipping through. That focused Ithioda’s attention and then he found my agent as well. When Eiko didn’t report on time, her supervisor—"

"Eiko??? Eiko was yours???" Kurama burst out, "But I liked Eiko! She treated me like a normal…" He paused and then sighed, "They never told us kids what happened to Eiko. Go on."

Hiei watched him for a moment, then shrugged. "I’m not sure of the details from that point on, since Eiko was gone. By the time I got there, it was three days later and Ithioda had found your home. Apparently he’d taken you out first with a claw dart, and was then going to make sure of the kill, but..."

"So why aren’t I dead?"

"I’m getting to that!" Hiei snapped. "When I got there, your dad was standing outside the house, holding Ithioda off with a force shield and wards."

Kurama turned pale, "My dad?"

Hiei nodded.

"My dad had power?"

Hiei blinked, "Isn’t that why you chose your parents?"

Kurama shook his head. "No… I liked the way the woman was smiling, laughing, her attention on the breeze and her thoughts so… I was tired, and I never thought to check out her husband." Kurama paused, "Actually, I never checked to see if she was married. Good thing she was."

Hiei collapsed in laughter, falling down in a puddle of quiet giggles.

"Hiei…" Kurama frowned.

"Virgin Birth! I can see it now! Oh!!!" Hiei slowly straightened out, his mirth making his eyes light up, the outside slants raised up in delight, his mouth stretched in a wide grin, high cheekbones seeming even higher. The open amusement was golden through his dark rei.

Kurama regarded him for a moment and then reluctantly grinned also, "I should have checked," he admitted. Then he frowned, "But I still didn’t know my dad had rei power. He never showed it."

Hiei’s laughter disappeared. Softly, he said, "He was a valiant man. Full of courage and honor. I respected him."

"So what happened?"

"Well, I sliced Ithioda, went to find you, your mom was also down – Ithioda’s sting – your dad and I talked a bit. He died. I heale—"

Kurama put his hand out, "Whoa!!!" He glared, "Now is not the time for a summary. Details, Hiei… What did you and Dad talk about? Why was Mom down? How did…"

Hiei sighed, "Talk to your dad about all that, okay?"

He doesn’t want to tell me. He dithers through all the rest and speeds this part of the story. What is it he doesn’t want me to know? "I want you to tell me."

Hiei bit his lip again. Blood ran down his chin. He sighed softly, a capitulating sound, "I sliced Ithioda and went to find you. Your dad followed me in the house and saw as I turned you over. You were so pale, so cold… Your mom had already taken the dart out, and had tried to get the poison out as well, which is why, I think, Ithioda spiked her with his tail. She was lying next to you, also unconscious. I found the spot where the dart had gone in and was trying to neutralize the rest of the poison. You weren’t dead because Ithioda had made it against a kitsune, not a human, and it wasn’t working right. Your dad asked me if you’d be okay. I said I thought so. Then your dad asked about your mom. I said I didn’t care. He stood there quietly for a moment and then said, ‘If she dies – Shuichi will be alone.’ I looked up… and saw that he was burning the last of his life-energy just to talk. He’d used up all his rei and his life holding off Ithioda. I…" Hiei hesitated, "I told him I’d try. He nodded, and then he died. I finished up with you and then looked at your mom… The stinger had broken off in her. I had to make a deep slice to get all out that I could, and then I still didn’t find a sliver. I had a sub-demon make something to clean out the toxins, but I couldn’t find the sliver…" Hiei sighed, "There wasn’t anything more I could do. I waited until your mom woke up – I didn’t show myself – and she seemed okay… upset at your dad’s death, relieved you were alive… She put you to bed and called the hospital to take your dad away. The medical people said it had been a heart-attack and she told you the same thing. She didn’t seem to know anything about Ithioda... But humans will do that. I thought it was okay, that the sliver hadn’t been enough on its own. But then years later, she developed the cancer and I knew what it was." Hiei shrugged helplessly, "There wasn’t anything more I could do. Ithioda was long dead and no two scorpion demons are alike. The toxins had been building for five years. The best healer in the Spirit World said the case was impossible. So I concentrated on finding something else that might work."

Kurama raised his eyebrows, "And the only thing you could find was the Mirror of Utter Dark?"

Hiei looked away, "Yes."

Kurama regarded Hiei silently. The story was a good one. He had to admit that. It fit very well with Kurama's memories. He had been incredibly sick for two months, with what he'd thought was a makai flu, and his mom had been patient and caring and helped him quietly… When Kurama was finally up on his feet again, it took him awhile to figure out his dad wasn't around, and then his mother had quietly told him about the heart-attack. Kurama knew a twinge of guilt for the memory of how little he'd cared. My father died protecting me… But was the story true? Maybe Hiei was just playing off Kurama's desire to think better of the short demon. What the hell did Hiei care about any human? Kurama backtracked for his question, "How long had you been watching me?"

Hiei looked back, a brief grin coming and going across his face, "From before you went across? Fifty-seven years and five months."

57 years… Kurama narrowed his eyes, "That was you?"

Hiei grinned again.

"That was one of the hardest jobs I’d ever done. All for an obscure little book that nobody should have thought twice about. And then it sold for a ridiculously high price on the black web."

"I hadn’t finished it yet. I wanted it back."

"But you chose to buy it back instead of killing the thief that had taken it?"

Hiei grinned, "Why would I do that? A master thief that had broken through my best wards and traps – I really thought the rod/cone was impossible – was a resource I couldn’t let by. I didn’t have any need for a thief at the moment… but I might have in the future. So I watched and waited. When I do use tools, I use only the best."

The rod/cone had very nearly been his undoing. Kurama regarded Hiei thoughtfully. "What would you have done with Koenma’s sword if I hadn’t given you another?"

Involuntarily, Hiei’s hand reached out to one side where his sword was laying next to the fire. He shrugged, "Melted it."

"And left you without?"

Hiei grumped, "I can get by."

I’m sure you can. "Why did you save my mother?"

Hiei shrugged, "I didn’t know you were aware and didn’t feel like raising a five-year old – messy brats at that age. Since your dad was dead, your mom was the next best thing."

Nice try, Hiei. Kurama would have bought that one before he’d found Hiei’s heart. But now he knew it wasn’t as cold as it seemed. A fire to match Hiei’s… And he was starting to believe the demon. So far, even the evasions were consistent with what he knew of the demon. And he could always check this with his dad, now that Kurama knew he could visit him. And Hiei knew that too. "Tell me the truth."

Hiei looked away and didn’t say anything.

"Final question, Hiei. Give me the answer."

So softly that Kurama almost couldn’t hear it, Hiei replied, "You would have been alone. I… I know what that is."

Alone. His dad, fighting off a demon that had come to attack Kurama. His mom, poisoned from it. Caring for an ungrateful spirit child… Kurama owed his parents more than he’d thought. Much, much more. With a sigh, Kurama stretched out next to the fire. He was tired and wanted to rest.

"Kurama?" The demon’s voice was tentative, hesitant…

"Go to sleep, Hiei. I’ll think about it and decide in the morning." There was silence by the fire and eventually Kurama slept.