“Let’s Fly as the Birds Do…” Chapter Sixteen

8/9/01

By: Hikari

E-mail: [email protected]

Notes: Music theme: “ Passionate” (track 18 in OST 1; LOVELY postmodern orchestra piece- very jazzy) From Shoujo Kakumei Utena.

 

~*~*~*~

           

            Love is intangible to my knowledge… and yet I know it when I feel it…

 

~*~*~*~

 

            She left him there. At home. Alone. To keep him busy, and to insure that he would not take the chance to leave the household, Shiori ordered him to clean all the bathroom mirrors and windows in the house. It was a simple task, but it had to be done. After all, if Hiei were to be living with them now, it would only be decent if he did his part of work. Shuiichi had school and his own chores. Shiori had home- office work to do and the usual bills. Hiei got mirrors and windows. Mirrors and windows. How drab, giving someone such a simple errand is downright insulting.

 

            Indignantly, he picked up the pail, paper towels, and Windex. The demon walked around the house, taking his easy time knowing full well he could be finished in less than one or two minutes if he wished. But why rush? There was nothing else to do. They already had sorted out the boxes and bags to be sent out to the ‘Good Will’ corporation, plus doing the dishes was over and done. So as he went into the first bathroom, and then the second, next the third, and lastly the fourth- his mind flew off to distant places, while his body performed what needed to be accomplished. At the slow pace he forced himself to run at, he did everything in half an hour. Had Shiori been home, she would have been amazed by his sluggishness. Yet, even after killing thirty minutes, Hiei was stuck with three crawling hours until Kurama would come back from school- that was unless he decided to stay for a track meet or anything of that sort. He sighed. Nothing to do. Nothing, but think about what the redhead was going through day after painstaking day. The youkai replaced the pail under the sink along with the other cleaning supplies. After doing this, he walked from the kitchen and into the living room where he slumped onto the couch.

 

            He COULD leave. He WOULD leave. He SHOULD leave, but he didn’t. Hiei didn’t know why, but Shuiichi’s mother had something in her disposition that made you want to obey her. Rolling his eyes at the idea- he reached for the remote. He was about to flick he tube on, when he stopped himself. It dawned on him that he didn’t want to watch television, not alone like this anyway. The remote found its way back on floor table, while Hiei re-slouched himself. Slouching. He hated slouching. He began to sit upright.

 

            Sitting. Sitting and not moving. His eyes started stirring around from corner to corner until there was nothing left for his irises to dart on in the room. “Day one…” He mumbled, deciding to stand and commence walking around. The Minnamino household wasn’t large. There were three rooms for inhabitance, each of which had its own personal washroom. Upstairs was where two of the bedrooms were- a moderate hall separating the two of them. In the middle of that hall was the upstairs laundry closet- where the washer and dryer were stored behind two shutter doors. Downstairs, there was the kitchen- conveniently located by the main entry. Opposite to the kitchen was the isolated washroom. Further down was the dining area, which, Hiei knew, was really a part of the living room itself. Across from the living room was the guestroom- or rather HIS quarters. Like the other two bedrooms, he had his own toilet, sink, and shower. Very practical, although- as funny as it may sound- the room he had wasn’t all that roomy.

 

            There wasn’t much to explore. While he had practically analyzed the entire schematics of the house, he had been strolling around aimlessly. That made sense. Where would your destination be indoors anyhow? At any rate, Hiei had somehow landed dead inside of his lover’s room. It must have been out of sub-consciousness.  How foolish, it wasn’t like he would be able to find Kurama NOW, especially with all the new regulations set by the mistress herself.

 

            He sighed again- very bored. Hiei couldn’t help thinking about Kurama. How his face appeared that one Monday night. How he suddenly became very irritable on Tuesday. Then to be discovered and broken by his mother on Wednesday. Thursday- pure humiliation. PURE. And now there was Friday. Images of people degrading Kurama waltzed in and out of his head like a mad marching band. ‘Damn kiss…’He thought. That was abnormal. Regret was literally the last thing Hiei ever practiced.

 

            Out of inclination, the demon had seated himself on the edge of Kurama’s bed. His eyes started feeling sore at all the things he was seeing, but weren’t really there. Manifestations of his imagination- created by guilt and aggravation combined. Wonderful.

 

            It was so quiet inside the house. So quiet the silence was blaring loudly. Hiei pulled his palm from the top of his face and all the way down- stretching his cheeks to weird proportions. He then rested his elbow against his knee, and later leaned his head against the fist attached to the arm of that elbow.

 

            “Where’s that idiot when you need him?” Hiei moaned. “Outrageous stupidity is better than this…”

 

            Finally, the stillness was broken with the sound of the water heater. The split in peace didn’t last long- it hushed after five minutes that Hiei thought to be five years. The demon stood again- his hands reaching out and opening whatever drawer he could find. It wasn’t exactly civil to snoop around other people’s belongings- regardless of how well you know them- but at this point, nosing around looked to be a good form of entertainment. More to the point, Hiei wasn’t the Prince of Etiquette like Kurama- he had excuses.

 

              Nothing particularly intriguing. He had previously known about the redhead’s secret stash of Makai herbs… and his secret stash of chocolate covered cranberries. They weren’t that good, in his opinion. The first time Kurama fed him one, his lips puckered so much that his friend took this as an opportunity to kiss him lightly. Hiei wilted.

 

“I wonder what he’s doing now…”

 

*****

 

            Arisu lifted her bow and let it slide gracefully along the tightly pulled strings.        The violin sang as she did that- as though it were a cat being petted by its master. Kurama sat at the piano in the music room, his fingers stroking lightly- and at the same time- intensely at the selected keys. With every touch, his hands would settle and suddenly jerk as they moved about the octaves.

This was fun, and it was nice too... Making music- just to forget about everything for a while.

 

            “I like simple jazz…” The redhead said- not removing his eyes from the piano.  

           

            “Me too…” the blonde smiled, hitting at her own instrument rather vigorously. “I play for Shidou sometimes…” she continued.  “He likes what I perform, but he never can identify the composer of the pieces I do…”

             

            “…Just as Hiei…” Kurama whispered.

 

            “You play for him too?” asked Arisu, pulling up her bow and forcing it down with much passion.

 

            “…Yes…” The redhead smiled, allowing his fingers to play the harmony on their own. “Come to think of it… He has always been the one to listen to me…”

 

            “Honto ni?”

 

            “Mm.” Kurama nodded. “Shall we bring this to a finish?”

 

            “With style- I hope.”

 

            They laughed. It had been such a long time since Kurama laughed, and it felt so good to do it for the first time in days. The hostility Arisu had when he had been discovered appeared to have completely faded. She was kind to him- very blasé even.  The manner in which she acted was as though she knew nothing about his secret life- as though time was somehow pulled back. But that wasn’t true. Time progresses. You can’t look back. So why, then, was she acting as thus? The redhead wasn’t used to this. Not anymore. He needed- almost wanted to be ridiculed. That didn’t make sense. Just a moment ago, he thought he was happy. Presently, however, Kurama found himself growing relatively anxious.

 

            “…Arisu…?”

 

            She was about to replace her violin in its case before he called her name. “Ne?”

 

            “Are you still angry with me?”

 

            The blonde closed the lid and snapped it shut with its silver clips. “Well… Part of me is, but you know- I can’t stay mad at you forever…”

 

            “And Shidou?” He lowered the cover of the keys until the lids rim hit the wood.

 

            “Upset- enough that I honestly don’t wish to leave his side…”

 

            “…Sou…”

 

            Leaving her instrument on top of one of the music tables, Arisu walked over to Shuiichi’s side and sat to his right at the piano seat.  “Now my turn to ask…”

 

            “Nani?”

 

            As she folded her palms over her pleated skirt humbly, she raised her gorgeous eyes up to him with a sparkle of prod. “When did you realize that you loved the one you love?”

 

            Now HE lowered his eyes. “Hm.”

 

            Tilting her head to the side, she tested him. “You don’t know?”

 

            “It’s not that.” Her old friend responded. “I simply can’t deduce…”

 

            “Doishiite?”

 

            “…Because… there’ve been many instances where I’ve become aware of just how valuable Hiei is to me… However, everyday his worth changes…”

           

An eyebrow arched. “For better or worse?”

 

            Kurama grinned. “More often than not, for the better…”

 

*****

 

           

            “But that’s not fair! We have nothing to do with them!” Botan slammed her hands on the table- causing some of the highly stacked papers to topple over and shower down onto the tiled floor like snow.

 

            “Of COURSE it isn’t fair! But it is my liability to make sure that none of my personnel will affect- in any way or form- the lives of another! Do you realize what severe a risk has been taken? All four of them could have been killed! I have absolutely no intention of having any of their lives jeopardized on the count of private intimacy!” Koenma was standing on his leather chair. His expression, oddly enough, was held firm in its young face. When he came to the conclusion that it was no time to be raising voices, the child went back to sitting on his chair casually. With solemn, he leaned against one of his infantile fists. “I don’t want to do it… But you saw what happened in our last mission…”

 

            “Yes…” The fairy sighed, coming to her own senses. “I’ve seen… But- but I’m sure it won’t happen again…”

 

            “I wouldn’t count on it. You have no idea as to how far their camaraderie has gotten.”

 

            “HOW far?”

 

            The young prince raised his eyebrows and allowed his pacifier to sag irreverently. Botan stood there- silence penetrating into her ears until a little light bulb glew inside her head. A corner of her lip twitched, notably pulled to the lower right-hand corner.

 

            “You’re… You’re kidding.”

 

            He shook his head. “No, they did. I’m sure of it. Which is why I know we should enforce discipline between them. It isn’t out of spite, but rather for the protection of the whole team. Think carefully, if Hiei hadn’t been pierced- he would not have dropped the elixir we’ve been searching for decades. Do you grasp what we could have done with that mixture? We could have cured illnesses there are no known medicines for! But since the bottle shattered, we have no way of using or creating any of it… The whole assignment was in vain!”

 

            “Oh…” His associate pinched the sleeve of her kimono- arms innocently raised “Well, if anyone should deliver the proposal, it should be you…”

 

            Eyes bugged out. “ME?!?!”

 

            She scowled. “Yes, YOU! You’re their employer! If you think I’M going to do it, you’re out of your mind! I’m sick of doing your dirty work! Besides….” Botan cringed and hid her face behind her sleeves. “I’m too young to die…”

 

            Koenma grinned mischievously. “Oh, Botan… Hiei’s kokuryhua is painless… Fast and quick- you won’t feel a thing…”

 

            Revealing her visage, the prince was met with a mouth of fangs and narrowed eyes. “Funny funny… But since YOU’RE the one going, you’ll have to deal with Kurama first- THEN Hiei…” As she strided to the desk menacingly, Botan towered over the other and smiled. “…Slow, excruciating torture… with black fire to finish you off…”

 

            Smiling apprehensively now, with sweat beading ubiquitously, Koenma raised a finger. “…You’re coming with me…”

 

*****

 

            Closing the front door quietly behind him, Kurama leaned against it and sighed. Shidou came into the music room the moment he and Arisu were conversing with one another. His friend didn’t say a word to him- only signaled to Arisu with his eyes that it was time to leave. Arisu bade him good-bye, finding her place under Shidou’s protective arm as they exited soundlessly. Supposedly there was an intention of antagonism when he came for his girlfriend, and yet the redhead caught a glimpse of Shidou taking a peek over his shoulder, as if to make sure Kurama would be fine by himself.

 

            Everything went downhill after that. Ever since the incident in the cafeteria, something akin to the domino effect occurred. One prank led to another. With his shirt and part of his pants still soiled with rice pudding, he had to get through the day with people shouting: ‘Oh my God! He ejaculated!’ Normally, he would zone out such bantering, however it was grueling to do so. He was surrounded- entirely surrounded. Calculus was a living hellhole. Someone found humor in filling the inside of his desk with condoms. If that weren’t enough, his homework was torn to shreds. SHREDS. Fifty-eight LONG problems- including subproblems. For every question there was a.), b.), c.).  The total of this work taxed three hours of Kurama’s time at best. Photography class was just as bad. In the developing station- someone locked him in the room. For an hour he was trapped within the boundaries of tight walls- the solitary light available being a red low-burning bulb. A miracle he didn’t turn claustrophobic.  

 

            Kurama came close to swearing in front of them all, but fastened his lips tightly when acknowledging the unconcealed fact that he would be degrading himself to their level. That was the last thing he wanted- to be like them, and worse for being what he was.

             

            Approaching the stairs, he bumped into Hiei- chest to chest.

 

            “…Hi…”

           

The demon nodded. “Your mother went to her office- to pick up some folders…”

 

            “Oh…”

 

            They tried to pass each other, but whenever one tried to go one way, the other would mirror that action. Hiei backed to the wall.

 

            “You first.”

 

            “Thank-you.”

 

            With Kurama’s back facing him as the redhead advanced up the stairs, the smaller scrutinized the grease stains smeared about the usually pressed and unsullied red uniform. The grease triangled from the top where the neckline was, tapered down his back, and flared again towards the matching pants. The smears looked similar to the shape of an hourglass.

 

            “What happened?”

 

            He didn’t turn. Instead, he continued for his room. “Things… Stupid things…”