Part Two
 

Yusuke turned to the other side, covering his head with the pillow. His demonic senses made him too sensitive to the slightest sounds. And that scraping that was coming  from his window was ruining his sleep.

But the damned noise continued.

He pulled the covers off and sat up in bed. Then he rubbed his eyes till his sight could devise better what was happening.

There was a small porch along the outer side of the apartment. It was dark, and the reflections on the panes blurred the visibility but he could see very well there was something or someone outside.

Yusuke stood up carefully so as not to wake up Keiko, and took some slow steps towards the porch's locked glass doors. Then he noticed the spiky hair and the pointed ears cut against the dark night...

Hiei? And Youko Kurama in the Ningenkai? What was the special occasion?

He indicated them to follow the porch till the next window; the living room's one. Yusuke did not want Keiko to know they were there.

He grabbed a robe, wearing it over his pajamas and left the bedroom then. Even forced to be on his tip toes so as not to awake his better half, the boy stormed into the living room, very curious about such an unexpected visit.

The two demons were already in. Kurama had forced the window open with a plant Yusuke had still the chance to see disappear in a flick of his hand.

Yusuke shut the door connecting the rooms; Keiko was always pressing him about not getting himself into trouble again. The coming of his demon friends would certainly trigger a discussion between them afterwards. She'd better not knowing a thing...

"Hiei! Kurama! What are you doing here! Coming to spend Chirstmas in the Ningenkai?"

Hiei offered Yusuke a scowl, as he stood in the corner, leaning against the wall. He was perfectly at ease with Kurama doing the socials. The youko complimented their friend very kindly. Hiei became very aware of the strangeness as Shuuichi Minamino's politeness appeared again before his eyes; but this time under the form of a tall, sensual youko.

It was even shocking to see Kurama's different temperaments merging together for a little while...

"It's been so long, my friend... How are you and Keiko?"

"Fine! And you, Kurama?"

"Fine, It couldn't be better.  We're very happy together in the Makai."

"Are you visiting Yukina and Kuwabara?"

"No... I don't think so, ne Hiei?"

Hiei said nothing. He stuck his hands in his cloak's pockets and snorted. He wanted to go back to his Makai home the soonest possible.

Kurama smiled very softly.

"You have to visit us sometime, Yusuke. We have children now...."

Yusuke opened a pair of flabbergasted, wide eyes. He stared very grievously at Kurama, and then his eyes traced a very straight, slow line towards Hiei.

The boy looked up and down at the small Fire demon, with an outraged expression.

"Hiei... How did you... and Kurama..." Yusuke mumbled, leaving the rest of the sentence hanging.

Hiei aimed a very angry gaze at Yusuke. He shook one clenched fist in the air, threatening him.

"Hey! What are you thinking?"

Kurama interfered hastily.

"No, no, Yusuke. They're some abandoned kids we found and adopted over the years..."

Hiei crossed the room to sit on the sofa next to Kurama. He still kept a menacing black look towards Yusuke. Just as he sat down, The youko circled his shoulders with his arm and a caressing hand. Hiei blushed, and looked to the opposite direction. Such public displays still left him a bit vexed; even before the best friend they both possessed.

"They're very nice kids," Kurama continued then. "It's because of one of these kids we found that we're here."

Yusuke sat down on a chair right across from the couple. He sprang forwards, very interestedly.

"It's not just a social visit then; I should have suspected..."

Kurama could not help but feel a little guilty. It seemed he had abandoned not only his family, but his friend. Living in the Makai made everything else feel so very distant...

"We found a human boy. He was a bit hurt," Hiei bursted out.

"We healed him. Hiei tried to use his Jagan to wipe his memory clear, but..."

"My Jagan doesn't affect the boy," Hiei completed, a bit vexed about having to admit a frail human boy had resisted his power. "Kurama wants to find out why."

"That's why we need you to contact Koenma-sama. I hope he tells us what to do."

Yusuke laughed silently. It was funny to see how perfectly Hiei and Kurama interacted; one could even complete the other's sentence... But in fact, it had always been much like this. Even before they were officially together - Those demons were really meant for each other.

The former Reikai Tantei thought for a while, tapping his fingers against his thigh while looking up at the ceiling. It had been such a long while... Living with Keiko had blunted his life into a normal routine and he would apreciate a change for a while. All in all, he was a demon too...

Hiei and Kurama had taken the best decision leaving the Ningenkai... If he could... Well, at least he would be back to the Reikai Tantei business for a little while, to try to help his friends.

"I still have that Communicator. I kept it here without Keiko's knowledge. She doesn't want me to get involved with any dangerous adventures anymore." Yusuke searched for some support in his friends' faces then. They just looked back at him, totally expressionless. Yusuke knew they did not want to poke into his private life, but he'd be grateful for some interference and suggestion...

Well, let them exert their discretion. Maybe it was better anyway.

"Things here are a bore. Helping you will break the routine." He stood up then. "Wait here. I'm gonna fetch you the equipment."

Kurama waited till Yusuke left the room to talk to his Hiei.

"If you want to visit Yukina, we could..."

"No. She's well. That's all I need to know."

"But we could..."

Hiei covered the fox's mouth with a very soft touch of his bandaged hand, silencing him. He knew his sister was fine. But he would not like to see her. It would be like letting a torrent of old memories and hurting flow back into his mind and his heart.

"I don't want open old wounds, youko. Please..."

The tall youko assented softly, patting his lover's shoulder. He brought Hiei closer then, making him lean his head on his chest. He was right. Hiei's relationship with Yukina would never be casual; it would always be enveloped in pain...

"Sorry, baby..."

Hiei nodded against Kurama's chest, caressing him as he did it.

The couple became silent again when Yusuke re-entered the room, bringing a briefcase. Kurama recalled that equipment very well.

"Wasn't Botan supposed to take this stuff back to the Reikai?" The youko asked.

"It seems they had forgotten it with me on purpose, in case something urgent happened..." Yusuke stared at the couple then. It felt a bit odd to be so near the youko. He knew it was his old friend Kurama who was there, just in a different body, but even then it still felt weird. He could not help imagining it must have been hard for Hiei to put up with the differences between those two very distinct aspects of his lover.
 
He placed the briefcase on the low table in the middle of the room. He sat on the floor and waved the two demons to join him.

"I hope it's not out of battery power," Yusuke commented playfully,  as he unlocked the briefcase.
 
 
 

It seemed Hiei and Kurama were in deep shit.

The talk with Koenma over the transmitter had been very brief. The Lord of the Reikai was relieved and nervous at the same time with the news that the demon couple had found a human boy lost in the Makai.

It was dead serious. Koenma just told them to wait, because he would be coming down to the Ningenkai to talk to them in person.

My... Koenma would not come all the way from the Reikai to the Ningenkai if the case was not important...

Hiei and Kurama knew it too. They looked one at the other with very concerned expressions. Yusuke took a glimpse at the way they held each other's hands, supportively, when he shut the transmitter off and closed the suitcase.

Yusuke changed clothes very swiftly and stealthily. Then, they stepped outside, to wait for Koenma. They slipped out to a playground in front on his building. It was good that Keiko was not a light sleeper; even then, he did not want to risk it.

The darkness and the after hours would be a guarantee the demons would not be noticed by the neighbors. Outside the night was very cold, but it was good to stay out, in the open, under the stars.  He looked up to the cold winter sky. Yusuke had found himself a good point of observation sitting atop the slide. That park was very peaceful now; it was almost 2 in the morning, and no noisy kids and hysterical mothers could be found around. That quietness made him feel very good; it made him feel free... It was the same feeling he had as he roamed through the Makai, in a search he imagined finished when he rested  in Keiko's arms, but in fact...

The three friends talked for a while. Yusuke could almost envy them.  He was even a bit ashamed of himself. Yes, he knew it had been his choice, but running a mere Ramen stand was too ordinary for one who had been a finalist of the Makai Tournament.

Hiei and Kurama said they were living peacefully and comfortably. They had gathered a true family now that they had 4 adopted kids to care about.

Keiko was bothering him that it was about time for them to have children. However   Yusuke was a bit worried about his demon blood. Moreover, he was not sure yet about his own future. A child would link him inexorably to the Ningenkai, and he was not sure he wanted it...

Kurama said something to Hiei, very softly. They were sitting on the seats of a double swing. The youko moved back and forth slowly, but Hiei just hanged still.  The youko had found a newspaper, and was flipping its pages slowly, looking for something, under the pale lamplight.

He called Hiei then. He had found what he looked for. He announced it aloud, very softly.

"Here, baby. It is all in the obituary section. Takeshi San... He's a very rich business man. He and his wife were found dead in the mountains after their car slipped off the road and crashed down a precipice."

Hiei kept an expectant silence as he looked deeply right into his youko's eyes. He did not need to ask.

"The boy is lost. Rescue Teams have tried to find him with no success. It is thought  he might be lost in the mountains, where he is not supposed to survive due to the extreme cold..." Kurama let the newspaper fall to the ground then, after folding that specific page very neatly. He reserved it under his clothes then. "That's him; Michael Takeshi, age 12."

"He's an orphan now..."

"Yes, baby.. Poor kid..." Kurama whispered. He already suffered in advance for the terrible pain the boy would feel when he knew about it all... It would be very difficult for him... "How are we gonna tell him about his parents?" Kurama continued, painfully, addressing his lover with a very gloomy, hurt voice.

Hiei shook his head in the dark, very slowly.

"I don't know, youko..." Hiei replied, as sad and distressed as his lover, looking down at his own hands, in a dejected manner.

Yusuke looked at them, wondering how much different they had become. Living a life together made them that way. It was very apparent, mainly in Hiei... Kurama's love had worked miracles on the Fire youkai.

"You've found this boy, right?"

Kurama and Hiei nodded to Yusuke at the same time.

"Did he show any type of special powers apart from resisting the Jagan?"

Hiei uttered a slow, deep negative, as he looked down to the ground. He shuddered involuntarily then. He had just noticed Koenma's energy closing in.

The Reikai Lord walked slowly. Botan came by his side showing a smile while waving animatedly. She greeted them with her high pitched voice, so loud that Yusuke had to signal her to be quiet.

Gods! It was past two in the morning, he did not want to wake up everyone in the neighborhood!

The youko looked over his shoulder to Koenma, who was in his adult form. Both he and Botan were disguised, wearing normal Ningen clothes. And the Reikai boss seemed very upset and tight.

Oh-ho; it did not mean anything good...

Yusuke pushed himself down the slide. Then he walked closer to the others. Botan complimented them all again, this time with a softer voice, as Koenma stood right before Hiei and Kurama. He paid a special attention to Kurama's youko form, observing him in detail; it must be the first time he was face to face with his silvery aspect. But Koenma did not allow any of his emotions to show. Kurama bowed his head to him very slightly, and Hiei just continued to look at him with his chin very proudly up.

Koenma was dry and straightforward.

"You need to bring this boy back to the Ningenkai, the soonest possible."

Hiei did not care. He offered the Reikai boss a contemptuous half smile, and snorted, defiantly.

"Why?" Kurama asked. "We know there's something special about Takeshi, but we won't do a thing unless you tell us the whole story."

Koenma took one brief glance towards Yusuke. He was also staring at him, very insistently, demanding the truth.

Well...

"That boy should be dead. We followed his case closely, because his death would avoid future problems. Takeshi is a very strong boy. His mind and his spirit are as strong as the ones of our best Spiritual Detectives."

"You want him dead just because he's strong?" Yusuke interfered, angrily.

Koenma seemed angry with Yusuke's remark. He shook his head in a very resolute denial.

"What do you think we are? We do have responsibilities! These things are fixed by Superior Powers, and we can't alter them! His death was not planned like that! His form was already scheduled for an early death by accident."

Kurama nudged Hiei with a poking finger, calling the youkai's attention to Koenma's last words. Reikai officers seemed anxious not to worry about the kid any more... 

"That boy is very powerful, but he is also too rebelious. It would be very risky to have him as a Reikai Tantei. He could soon grow into another Sensui," Koenma continued. "He has not yet developed his full might, but he will very soon. He doesn't respect authority, and has emotional problems as well; he's not sane enough to manage so much power."

Kurama and Hiei exchanged very significant, suspicious glances, starting to grasp the whole story. But yet they just listened to Koenma, not saying anything.

"Michael Takeshi is like a psychic Time bomb, ready to explode at any minute. Therefore, his scheduled death came in handy for all of us above."

Kurama crossed his arms. His ears twitched as he looked up at Koenma. His youko aspect made him very threatening. Hiei arched his eyebrows, letting one glinting fang show in between his parted lips.

"How can you say the death of such a small boy would come in handy for you? Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" Kurama declared in a very annoyed accusation.

Koenma cleared his throat, giving himself time to think on an answer. But Hiei sprang forwards, and locked intense, fierce eyes on the Reikai master.

"What will happen to the boy if we take him back to the Ningenkai?" Hiei asked, with his voice turned into a low murmur. However his words still sounded deep and commanding.

Everyone looked at Koenma. Botan was visibly distressed.

"The boy managed to leave the car wreckage and walk away alive. The Death Godess in charge of his case waited a lot for him. It was planned he would perish of cold in the mountains, but somehow he found a passage into the Makai. Crossing the frontier made him out of reach; Reikai personnel are not allowed to enter the Demon Land," Botan explained.

"Does it mean the kid's safe now?" Yusuke asked the pretty Death goddess.

"For as long as he remains there, he will be untouchable by anyone of the Reikai," Koenma clarified. "Staying in the Makai keeps him out of my jurisdiction. We from the Reikai have power and influence solely upon our own kingdom and the Ningenkai. That's why I need your help to bring Takeshi back."

"What do you mean jurisdiction? I thought you took care of  the Three worlds!" Yusuke asked, a little surprised at that revelation. 

Koenma started a very slow and patient explanation. It was something he'd prefer not to reveal so bluntly.

"We have no power or authority over the demons in the Makai, or the events that take place there.  That's why it is so important to prevent humans from entering the Makai. It is a dangerous environment for them and they are totally out of our influence."

"Oh, yeah? It's good to know that..." Yusuke commented, with a murmur so soft that no one around seemed to hear it. But he soon made his voice go back to its normal tone. "That's why the leaders of the Makai, Yomi, Mukuro and Raizen scared the shit outta you, huh?"

Koenma refused to give any reply to that. Lord Emma's son frowned, but Botan smiled softly, with the good mood which was so peculiar to her.

"Remember when we went the Makai Tournament, Yusuke? We had to wear disguises, because it was dangerous; if we were caught there..." The graceful Death Goddess added then, letting the sentence hang for dramatic purposes, as she tugged an elbow at Yusuke's side, playfully.

He chuckled, amused as he just now realized the truth that his Reikai friends were not omnipotent.  He had never seen the situation under such an angle. But now, on looking back...

No one at the Reikai could go against Kurama when he took refuge in a human's body. Koenma could do nothing when Itsuki stole Sensui's body and soul to keep under his own care. He had the power to condemn Toguro, but then it was because his crimes were committed in the human world, against youkai and ningen alike... Kurama and Hiei, during their parole; they had to abide by the Reikai's laws only because they were living in the Ningenkai then. But now - Living in the Makai they could do as they wanted... And if Koenma had any complaint, he should present it formally to either Enki or Yomi; and pray to be attended...

Yusuke could almost laugh at all that now that he realized the fragility of the Reikai's position...

"You need to put order there, Koenma! Your office always screws things up! I died when I was supposed to continue living, this boy is scheduled to die and escapes... You need to undergo some serious auditing!", Yusuke commented, with a sharp and accusative irony.

Koenma was ready to protest, but Kurama cut him off, repeating Hiei's question, this time with a more urgent voice.

"What will happen to Takeshi if he crosses the frontier to the Ningenkai, Koenma? We won't bring him unless we know all the details!" The youko urged, with his imperious mood and deeper voice, details which made him so much different from Shuuichi Minamino.
 
 Koenma hesitated to answer. He looked down and huddled a bit, visibly avoiding facing the demon couple.

Botan interfered.

"It is written in this boy's form, it's his destiny. Lord Koenma can't change it..."

"What do you mean? What will happen to the kid anyway?" Yusuke insisted, tired of Koenma's evading behaviour.

Koenma cleared his throat, fidgeting in place, nervous because he knew he could not avoid the subject anymore.

"It will happen as written on his form. He has avoided his fate because of his escape to the Makai; a return to the Ningenkai will trigger the whole process again. He will be bound to suffer a violent death."

Kurama jumped out of the swing seat showing furious eyes. Yusuke had the impression he was ready to summon dozens of plants and make them attack Koenma, such was the intensity of his anger.

"Do you expect me to bring the kid back to a certain death? Get a life!" Kurama exclaimed, with a very loud voice, gesticulating boldly.

Hiei remained very still, gloomy and apparently untouched by any emotion. But his feelings showed when he spoke in a very grave, low voice.

"The boy stays with us. You will never have him again."

Koenma tried to put forth an argument, but Kurama cut him off as he stood right before him, extremely defiant in his badass youko aspect.

"He's orphaned, so we are gonna raise him," the youko continued.

Yusuke felt he could even cheer Kurama for his decision. He had not yet forgotten how those Reikai officers had screwed up his life in the beginning. They deserved someone to bully them up.

"Kurama! You can't force the kid to remain in the Makai! It would make you a criminal!"

The youko offered Koenma a very cynical sideways smile.

"I've always been a criminal. You could only stop me when I was living as Shuuichi Minamino.  Now I am Youko Kurama, so try to stop me!"

Koenma still tried to offer argument.

"That boy is going to be very powerful! You won't be able to teach and control him!"

"Hn..." Was all Hiei said, as he softly tugged at his youko's arm. "Let's leave, Kurama. I'm fed up of all this crap!"

The youko assented. Then he turned his angry eyes towards Koenma and Botan for one last time.

"We will help Takeshi write a new Fate for himself. Now leave us alone and go take care of your damned paperwork!"

"There are things that you can't control, even if you try. No one's Fate is immutable! We found the boy, and he will be our son from now on," Hiei added then, in a passionate assurance.

Yusuke had the impression Hiei was ready to unsheathe his katana and point it at Koenma. The Fire demon's outrage was too intense.

"We will keep him with us, under our protection. If you want Takeshi so badly, cross the frontier and try to catch him," Kurama continued.

The couple was too pissed about Koenma's attitude. Kurama barely had the chance to wave Yusuke goodbye. Hiei merely bowed his head in a silent gesture of gratitude. Botan watched them leave dumbfounded. Koenma still tried to discuss the matter, gesticulating nervously, bothered by his impotence before the demon couple's firm, fearless decision.

Raizen's son observed Hiei and Kurama leave with a soft smile on his lips; he supported their attitude completely. And as they left, he even thought to himself he might very soon be paying them a long visit...
 

Ikki, the boy with the white thatch, had lent him his own futon, saying he could share his baby brother's one. Takeshi resisted it for a while, but as he realized the evenings in that place were a bit chilly, he promptly accepted the offer.

They all slept together in a weird den fenced by living, tall trees forming a circle. The space inside was very wide and cosy, as the earthen ground was covered by dry leaves and moss. The young ones gathered to sleep, but the older one, that blonde bimbette, reposed a little away from them, at a corner, behind a curtain made with long strings of seeds and beads.

He had never enjoyed at all the camping experience...  To have a bath in the river was very nice, but it had been terrible to have to go behind the bushes for ... ah, well, you know...

At least most of the area seemed free of the usual stinging bugs and slimy snails and worms.

The dinner had not been all that bad. Those kids tried to cheer him all the while, and now he was warm and comfortable. But that did not change things. He still wanted to go back home.

In the dark Takeshi could not help but start imagining what must have occurred to his parents. He tried hard to remember what had happened, but nothing but darkness and a deep, chilling cold came to his mind.

Takeshi tried to keep himself calm, but the more time he spent in that strange land, the more nervous he became. His chest grew tighter at every passing hour, as a hurting sorrowfulness filled him. He could not understand why, but he felt more and more helpless inside.

He was starting to feel alone, and the frightening thought that he might never see his parents again would not leave him.

He knew there must be something wrong. A whole day and a whole night had passed, and his mom and dad had not showed up to take him home. Could it be that they had decided to dump him? They always complained so much that he did not want to study, that they were tired of him, and that he was not a good boy as they'd like...

If he had been really kidnapped by those weird monsters, would his father pay the ransom?

He opened his eyes to look at the faint light coming from the cracks between the trees' trunks, and filtering through the trees' crowns forming the ceiling. It was almost morning. He had not slept a single minute the whole night.

All he did was to hold tight to the futon, huddle and think that the worst might happen To be abandoned in a strange land, among strange people like that.

Takeshi felt his eyes fill with a sudden, uncontrollable flow of tears. He huddled tight inside the futon, hugging his knees and shutting his eyes hard to try to make his weeping stop. But it didn't work. His tears continued to fall, and as when he thought once more that his father would not want to pay to have him back, he burst into a convulsive sobbing.

He pressed one hand firm against his own mouth, as his cheeks grew warm with the hot teary flow from his eyes. His nose became congested, his throat tightened as he struggled to keep himself as silent as possible.

He knew, he knew he would never see his parents again... It must be that. They had money enough to make everyone in the world forget he ever existed... Police, his parents in the States, his friends, his teachers, the house servants... Everyone must have received a lot of money to forget him so they could dump him in the bushes and never be bothered again.

He knew he had never been the good boy his mom wanted, but he didn't deserve to be stuck into a place where there was not even toilet paper!

He wanted to go home!

He sniffled his cry noisily, unable to hold back his tears and his soobing anymore. It was then he sensed a hand on his shoulder.

He hastily rubbed his eyes with his hands and dried his wet face on his sleeve. Only then he turned around, showing a bothered, ill-humored face.

"What's up? Won't you let me sleep?" He asked angrily.

It was that guy with the eye in the middle of his brow. He had entered the den unnoticed to anyone, and kneeled next to him. He just placed his index finger before his lips, and shushed Takeshi silent.

"You were crying. Are you feeling fine?" Hiei asked with a very soft, low murmur.

"I wasn't crying!" Takeshi reacted, in an energetic but low murmur, trying to shove the guy away from him. "Leave me alone!"

Hiei stared very deeply at Takeshi. The youkai didn't seem annoyed by the boy's hard manners. On the contrary, Hiei smiled at him, and caressed his shoulder with a warm and long touch.

"My partner wants to talk to you. He's waiting outside." Hiei breathed deeply then. "We have news for you."

The boy showed a large smile. He jumped out of the futon, animatedly, but Hiei detained him for a while. He held him by one arm, and reached out to pat his head.

"They might be bad news, boy. Be prepared, and be strong."

The boy looked down his nose at that small guy. He gave his back on Hiei then, in a very bad mood, visibly not giving a damn about his advice.

Hiei watched him leave feeling a grave sorrowfulness for the kid. He had pushed the task to tell the boy the truth about his parents to Kurama. The youko could do the job much better than he...

Hiei stood up to go closer to the children, shaking them out of sleep, and calling their names vigorously. They woke up and sat up slowly, one by one, yawning and rubbing their eyes, stretching and greeting their father with smiling good morning compliments.

Kinno tried to just roll over to his other side and go back to sleep, but Hiei grabbed him by one of his beaded tresses and pulled, demanding his attention. He had good news and bad news...

He called the kid's names one by one, and even Hyoko remained quiet; he recognized by the tone of voice Hiei really meant a serious talk with them. The youkai sat in the middle of the circle the children formed around him. The bunch aimed wide, curious eyes to their youkai father.

"You're five now. Kurama and I are gonna keep that human boy in the Makai with us."

A loud cheer muffled Hiei's voice, as Kinno and Hyoko laughed and cried aloud joyfully about their new brother. And as always, only Ikki and Eiko remained quiet. Those two were always a little suspicious about everything.

"Shut up! You have no reason to celebrate like that! Takeshi's parents are dead; we have just found it out!"

Kinno immediately turned his beautiful eyes down, mumbling an excuse. Hyoko's smile vanished into a pale expression of pain and sorrow. The small youko ran to Hiei's arms, hugging him tight.

Hiei patted his baby youko's spiky hair, and played with one of his ears before sitting him down on his lap.

"You have to be very gentle to the boy from here on. He is going to suffer a lot..." Hiei continued. His own sadness was so intense his voice seemed to fail. "It is against all laws of the Makai or Reikai, but Kurama and I are keeping him here. Takeshi is going to die if he returns to his world, and we can't allow that. I count on you to offer him a happy and comforting stay."

Everyone around Hiei nodded to his words, in a deep silence.
 

The Silver youko was sitting by the edge of the calm river which cut his territory. The bright new day shed brilliant golden reflections all along the water, and the river sparkled like a beautiful,  murmuring jewel.

But he was not in a mood to enjoy all that beauty properly. His heart ached, and he felt too gloomy inside. He had no idea how to tell the boy the truth about the radical changes in his life. He did not know how to begin, what to say...

The only decision the youko took for granted was that he would not lie to the boy. He would not tell him not even the slightest, most naive little white lie. He would say all there was to be said...

His silver ears twitched as the youko caught the sound of the incoming steps, muffled by the grass, and yet perfectly audible by his senses.

His fingers fidgeted uncomfortably on his lap. The pain inside him grew, as he anticipated the pain he knew he would cause that child when he told him about...

"Hey, that small guy wanted me to come and talk to you! So what's going on?"

The youko turned a smiling face to Takeshi, signaling him to come and sit by his side.

"We're gonna have a long talk, boy,"The silver youko started, struggling within to try to find the right words and the right tone. "Hiei and I have been to Tokyo to try to find out what happened."

The blond boy sat next to Kurama. But he promptly refused the circling arm the youko wanted to close around his shoulders.

"Hey, stand back! I'm not a fag!"

Kurama stared at the boy with a very concerned curiosity.

"Who said you were?"

"I just don't want you to touch me, OK? My dad told me a lot about guys like you!"

Kurama agreed. He thought it would be better to concede it to the boy. He just patted his beautiful blond head then, with a very soft touch. And the youko smiled softly to himself when he noticed that boy had the same hue of blond hair as his son Kinno.

"You don't like us, am I right?" Kurama asked very softly to the boy.

"You're damn right." Takeshi replied, with a very direct antipathy. "I don't like any of you, and I hate this fucking wild place."

The youko cast down his golden eyes. He had to do it. He had to be tough to himself and to the boy and tell him... It would be cruel, but more cruel would be to let the boy slip back into a world in which he had nothing more left... No parents and in a short time, not even his own life.

"You can't go back to your home, boy..."

The boy jumped back, and his blue eyes grew wide with a sudden mixture of shock and anger. It took him one second to actually comprehend the meaning of Kurama's words. When he finally understood it, he glared at the youko, with such a bitterness and fury that Kurama pulled himself back a little.

"What?" Takeshi asked the youko abruptly. His small hands clenched firmly, and Kurama noticed very well the boy's body became very tense, tied up in small hard knots of fury and nervousness. "I want go back home and I wanna go back home now!" He demanded with a very loud, very commanding voice for a boy his age.

"You need to understand that lots of things changed in your life..."

"Cut the crap! Don't gimme this sweet sissy talk! I wanna go home!"

The boy offered the youko the blackest look possible. He was so tense his small chest rose and fall in convulsive short gasps of pure outrage and anger.

"You have to listen to me... Be calm, and I'll tell you everything..."

The soft touch patted his head again. Taksehi frowned, but yet he shut up. Only his intense eyes and his tight body spoke out of his anger and resentment. But he stared at the youko urgently, demanding the many explanations he craved for.

"First I need to tell you where you are, and why," Kurama continued. "You know we're not normal human people, right?"

The blond boy agreed. Those weird kids spent a lot of time having fun at his expense, performing weird tricks all afternoon and evening long.

"Well. We're demons. We're the beings you've only met before in tales. We do exist, boy. I'm a youko, a ..."

"A demonic fox... And you've got five, no six tails... Those kids told me all about  it. And what do I have to do with all that?"

Kurama didn't mind being interrupted. Takeshi was too hasty, but the youko was determined to tell it all to the boy very slowly, to give him time to get used to the terrible news.

"You crossed the border into our world.  There is a thin void separating this world, the land of the Demons, and the world you lived in, the human world. You managed to sneak through this barrier somehow."

Takeshi wanted to ask more, but Kurama halted his impulse with a very calm gesture. The youko shifted and reached forward, bending over to touch the surface of the water with the tip of his fingers. He broke one grass leaf and laid it on the water, where it started to flow, very softly under Takeshi's curious eyes.

"This is your human world. You were calm and quiet living your life there; a subtle balance kept you locked into that reality..." The youko agitated the water with his hand then, forming ripples, and making the small leave sink into the clear waters. "But something happened that unsettled this balance. And you submerged into this place, where demons dwell. Here it is like a world lying under your human world."

Kurama's eyes watched the water recover its normal calm flow. The reflection of his own face showed once again as the ripples vanished.

"Alternate realities...  There's nothing new, I've seen lots of films about it... What I want to know is how I can go back."

Kurama smiled very softly.

"You can't go back, boy; not on your own. You don't have power enough to cross  the passage by your own efforts."

"Take me home then. You said you've been to the Ningenkai and came back. Why don't you take me there?"

"No. I can't do it... For your own sake." Kurama spoke very softly, avoiding making his eyes meet that boy's ones. The most painful moment for the boy was coming... "Your life has changed too much, Takeshi... There's no way I can allow you to go back to the human world."

The youko tried to stroke the boy's back, but he shuddered and pulled himself away from him with an angry move.

"I wanna go back! Now!" He yelled. He tried to punch Kurama, and shoved the youko away from him, loathing any type of contact with such a kinky fag.
 
"Boy! You're here for a reason... Your fate has changed a lot..."

"You're a liar! You're a sick pervert! But I'm not going to do anything you tell me!"

Kurama spoke very softly. Takeshi didn't seem to hear him, so the youko insisted, with a voice stricken by sadness.

"You are alone now, boy..."

"Huh?" Takeshi retorted, finally grasping what the youko was telling him. "What do you mean?"

Kurama breathed very deeply. His fingers held tight the hem of his white tunic. It would hurt inside him as well...

"Your parents are not among the living any more."

The boy was shut silent by Kurama's words. His face grew intensely pale, and his blue eyes froze into a wide astonishment as he stared at the youko. For a little while Takeshi could not breathe with so much tension inside.

Kurama tried to comfort the boy once again. This time Takeshi seemed so shocked he did not repel the youko's slender hands. Takeshi could not say anything. His lips trembled around one faint attempt to utter a complaining, hurt sound.

"H-how d-o you know?" Takeshi stuttered faintly.

"You must remember something, dear... You suffered a car accident in the mountains. Your lifeforce was strong enough to let you escape death and cross the void between the worlds... You're a very brave kid..."

The boy shut his eyes and hid his face with his hands. He shook his head in a vehement negative refusing to listen to any more of those lies...

"No... There was no accident.. There was a loud noise, but there was no accident... It was.. a... a crashing sound... But..." Takeshi made a long, painful pause, shutting his eyes tighter as he tried to recall details, and yet could not bring forth any conclusive memories. "It was dark, very dark... And it was so cold... I called my mom and my dad, but I could not find them and it was very dark..."

Kurama's hand slid slowly to the boy's back. He stroked him very tenderly.

"But they're not dead! They can't be!" Takeshi shouted with energy, refusing to accept the tragedy.

Kurama shook his head in a helpless attempt to convince the boy.

"It was a very serious accident. It's hard to accept it, I know..." The youko made a small pause, suffering with that boy's pain. "Your parents could not make it, my child... I'm very sorry..."

The stern, angry face of the boy seemed to dismantle into a grimace of pain. Takeshi's pale lips quivered as he tried to say something but all he did was to start a very deep, hurt cry. His eyes locked on Kurama as the boy desperately fought within to understand the anguishing scope of all he had been told.
 
"Nothing happened to mom and dad! There was no accident! You're just lying to me because you're a fucking psycho!" He cried, in a paroxysm of grief and pain. Kurama tried to cuddle Takeshi against his chest to offer him some solace, but he hastily shoved the youko away.

"Let go off me!"

Kurama just shook his head very calmly.

"Oh, boy, I understand your pain..." The youko recovered a piece of paper from the folds of his tunic and handed it to the kid. "I didn't want to show it to you, but it will show the truth."

Takeshi grabbed the piece of paper from Kurama's hand so nervously that it was almost torn to pieces.

"Shut up! I don't wanna hear your lies!" Takeshi yelled, glaring at the youko. He even punched the youko in the chest, in a nervous attempt to keep him away.

Kurama crossed his arms decided to allow the boy more room, shifting backwards a little. His golden eyes accompanied the boy's trembling lips and his darting eyes as he read the article in a low, hurt murmur.

"They died in the accident, my son."

The boy lifted his blue eyes towards the youko in a grave, extremely furious stare. He crumpled the newspaper page into a small, very tight ball. He crushed and squished the paper with an evil, ireful clenched fist for a while. Then he threw the crumpled ball against Kurama's face.

"Don't call me son! I ain't your son! I ain't nothing of yours! Leave me alone!"

The boy was trembling with the intense anger he felt. The youko tried to come near to Takeshi, but it was then he felt it...

It was the boy's energy, rising up, being summoned involuntarily as his anger and frustration grew.

"Boy... I'm just trying to help..." Kurama murmured, surprised with the intense manifestation of  ki the boy displayed.

The vibration surrounded the youko and the boy, still expanding, as the kid cast a choleric stare at Kurama.

"I don't need your fucking help!" He yelled, the loudest he could.

The Youko only had time to lay one arm before his eyes, for protection. Then he felt the violent blast of energy hit him, hard like a wall and yet invisible to his eyes.

Kurama needed to summon some of his own you-ki not to be thrown meters away by the impact of  the boy's fury.

"Takeshi! Try to control yourself!" Kurama cried, but an intense vibration, like a roar surrounded the boy, muffling the youko's cry. The silvery demon looked at the kid then. His energy level had just grown high enough to be seen and heard around him, like a whizzing reddish haze.

He tried to hold the boy, but Takeshi jostled Kurama away.

And the boy was not aware, but the youko was - He was pushed away but the boy never touched him; it was his ki, alone, which had forced Kurama out of his way.

"I'm going home! And don't try to stop me!" He yelled, leaving in a deep, furious aggravation.

The youko gave way to the boy. He looked at him while he left, angry and too nervous to be stopped. He was really furious, and the pain was obviously blocking his sense. It made him dangerous with all that intense and uncontrolled energy.

Kurama stood up. He did not want to leave the boy on his own. The pain inside his little young heart must be unbearable.

The youko lamented not to be of help. Uneasy, he tilted his head, as his eyes followed Takeshi away. He had always suspected he did not know how to deal with children most of the time. It seems his heart was yet to cold too offer all the succor the poor human boy needed.

As Kurama was about to go after Takeshi, he noticed a black shadow flit into his field of vision.

"Hiei... The boy was too nervous; I was not of much help..." Kurama sighed out. "In fact, I think I made matters worse..."

The youkai came closer to his lover, letting Kurama encircle him with one tender arm.

"Don't worry. I'm gonna watch him, and try to keep him out of any trouble."

"Can you go talk to him, baby? You're so good with kids..." Kurama proposed. Then he added, a little vexed as he had to bend to Hiei's unquestionable talent. "You know how to deal with children; you're much better a father than I..."

Hiei snorted, disapproving Kurama's self judgement. He stroked his youko and patted his buttocks animatedly, trying to cheer him a bit.

"Takeshi's gonna be fine. It's good for him to be alone for a while."

"Did you see his ki rise?"

Hiei nodded.

"He's really gonna be very powerful. Let him release all that extra energy;  It will help relieve his pain."

 
TO BE CONTINUED