by Ryoma
- Part 3
-
Saephan sighed gently, and sat down. He had roped himself into having to tell Mukuro why he didn't find Kuromeru, his mistress, someone to hate.
He had wanted to tell her, but wasn't sure she'd listen. He had sort of hoped she'd say something that would lead to this moment, but he never imagined that when he got there, it'd feel so odd, and so stressful.
He supposed that that feeling came due to the fact he was still not sure she would listen, and he wasn't terribly sure he could explain things the way he wanted. Not sure he could make it so that what he wanted to emphasize would really be emphasized.
"Well?" Mukuro said, tones cold. She was growing a little impatient.
If this fox were telling the truth, then he'd be able to convince Mukuro he was, and she wasn't terribly sure he could manage that.
"Mistress Kuromeru isn't really cruel," Saephan said, quietly. "She didn't grab you to hurt you, or anything of that nature. She doesn't really want you at all."
"What do you mean?" Mukuro asked. "And why would she grab me if she didn't want me, or to hurt me?"
"She doesn't want to hurt anyone." Saephan replied, quickly moving on before Mukuro could ask another question. "But she has to do what she is."
"You see, I'm very sickly, despite the fact I look healthy. I get things frequently, but it's always very easy to cure them, after we have some money. I've often told Mistress Kuromeru not to bother about me, but she insists on healing me every time, even if it causes her to have to do something illegal."
"I've recently gotten very sick from some rare illness, or maybe some poison, we've never even heard of. The healer who diagnosed me, he has the cure for it, but it's very expensive."
Saephan stopped and looked at Mukuro. Seeing she was still listening to him, face neither trusting, nor distrusting him, he continued. "As I said, it's very expensive medicine, and we don't have the money for it."
"The Healer offered to give me the treatment if Mistress Kuromeru and I..." Saephan paused a bit, and took in a bit of a breath. He made sure not to meet Mukuro's eyes. "He said he'd give me the treatment if Mistress Kuromeru and I could somehow defeat Hiei..."
Saephan peeked at Mukuro carefully, and saw her blink, a bit startled. He lowered his eyes again, and spoke. "The Mistress knew Hiei lived with you, and figured he'd come here if we grabbed you."
"Why would you think that?" Mukuro asked. "And does that mean your 'Mistress' intends to kill Hiei, or just defeat him in battle?"
Saephan shook his head softly. "I think the agreement was to kill him, but I wasn't in the room... As for why, we just figured. The Mistress made sure to challenge him a bit as well, just to make sure. We knew he'd take that."
Saephan looked fully up at Mukuro now. "But, that's why... It isn't to be mean, but because she wants to save me. I'd prefer she didn't, but... I can't seem to make her stop."
Mukuro blinked softly, and looked down.
Silence took over the room for several minutes, before Saephan stood. He left quietly without a word, leaving Mukuro to her thoughts and the food he had brought. It was apparent that he didn't think Mukuro understood, or was too afraid to know if she had.
So the silence remained.
"If they had wanted me in the first place, why this elaborate plan?!" Hiei roared, trying to snatch the wire and paper from Kurama, and ignoring the fact that if anyone happened to be around, they would have heard him and freaked out.
He also ignored the fact that grabbing wire could slice him, and was lucky for Kurama's fast reflexes, as the youko quickly drew it away from his grasp. "Hiei..."
Hiei snarled, frustrated, and turned around, facing away from Kurama. He was quite lucky. Just Kurama stating his name had given him enough time to cool the initial flare of anger, but the deeper anger was there.
Kurama fiddled with the wire and paper, aware of Hiei's anger, and aware he would bring it under a semblance of control if left alone a moment.
In the meantime, he reread the small note that had come attached to the wire.
It outlined the location Kuromeru was staying in, presumably with Mukuro, and basically stated that they wanted Hiei to come to them. It was a direct implication that Mukuro had never been the target in the first place.
"I don't even know a Kuromeru." Hiei said suddenly, back still turned away from Kurama. "So what could he want with me that he'd do some elaborate plan he doesn't even know will work?"
"I don't know, Hiei." Kurama replied, truthfully, and stood from a crouched position he had been in to face Hiei. "But I don't think a lot of people like us remember each and every one of our enemies."
"Don't you think I'd remember one with wire, fox?" Hiei said, finally turning. His face looked normal, impassive and angered, but frustration and maybe a bit of worry tinged his eyes.
Kurama frowned at this. He wondered if Hiei was okay. "Maybe not... but I guess you have a point."
"Hmph!" Hiei replied, turning away again and starting to walk.
Kurama followed close behind. "So that's it, huh? We know where to go and you're not going to stop for a plan?"
"You put too much weight on plans." Hiei replied.
"And you always listen to them." Kurama shot back.
The silence that followed could be read in a few ways, and Kurama chose the one that indicated Hiei basically stating 'screw you' without words as the correct silence.
Mukuro sat silently, playing with the little bit of food that remained on her plate, watching it in the silent fascination that those who lay deep in thought watched many very uninteresting objects.
She wasn't sure what to think of any of the events that had transpired in the last day or so. To start, she had been kidnapped by someone who she didn't even know, then was told by that person's fox friend that the only reason they had grabbed her was to get to Hiei.
That part made little sense. Even with what Saephan had told her, that he was sick and that the medicine he needed was expensive, why had they grabbed her instead of directly grabbing, or fighting, Hiei?
It was some sort of deal between Kuromeru and the Healer for Saephan's cure, that's what he had said at least. Meaning it was the Healer who wanted Hiei, and meaning, who was the Healer? What exactly did he want with Hiei?
'And why the hell does Kuromeru protect that fox so well?' Mukuro thought, frowning. 'He looks healthy enough to me, but, if he is sick, why does she go out of her way to make sure he's better? She treats him more like a servant than anything else.'
Of course, that left Mukuro stuck in a nice little cycle. She had been grabbed, instead of Hiei, and she wasn't sure why. Perhaps there was some hidden plan to bringing Mukuro here and leading Hiei here as well. Hard to say.
She groaned slightly. Nothing made a lot of sense, and she wasn't even sure if what she had been told was the truth. She didn't know any sort of illness that had such an expensive cure, or anything that rare.
"He has to be lying, then," Mukuro frowned. "But that doesn't explain anything, and he looked fairly serious..."
She sighed. It was going to be a long, confusing, time.
"Mistress..." Saephan quietly entered the room he and Kuromeru shared to find her propped up against some pillows, reading a book on the bed.
She looked up at him, and then returned to her book momentarily, finishing off her paragraph, then bookmarking her place and looking at Saephan again. She smiled warmly.
"Close the door, Saephan. Don't hide behind it." Her voice was filled with laughter, and she laughed out loud once she saw the fox blush.
He frowned a little bit, but shut the door and moved to the bed. He sat quietly on it, and Kuromeru automatically hugged him.
"Where have you been?" She asked, gently nuzzling at one of his ears.
"In the garden, Mistress..." He responded.
"I should have known." Kuromeru said, and gently dropped back against the pillows she had originally been propped on. "You love that thing to death, and always seem so much happier and healthier when you can mess with it."
Saephan nodded softly. "I told her..."
Kuromeru blinked a little. "Why did you do that?"
"I didn't want her to hate you..."
"Ah..." Kuromeru nodded softly, then frowned. "It's like you to tell her, but, she's going to hate me anyway, Saephan..." Saephan looked at Kuromeru quietly, confused. She smiled at him faintly. "In the end, she just will... It's easier to say that than explain."
Saephan nodded softly, and curled near Kuromeru's feet quietly. She sighed, and pulled him up nearby her. "Will you quit doing that? We're on equal ground, you know?"
Saephan only nodded gently, and Kuromeru knew he still wouldn't quite believe that. Since they had met, their roles had turned into a master and slave, despite the actual feelings there were between them. Or at least the feelings that she expressed towards him. She still wasn't sure what he felt exactly.
She rolled softly to face him and watch him.
"Hiei, slow up." Kurama said, halting in mid-track to look around the area they were going into.
Hiei stopped as well, and looked at Kurama. His eyes asked what Kurama wanted, but his mouth stayed closed.
The area of the Makai they had been led to was a thickly forested area. It was the kind of area Kurama would like for many different reasons, but it now made him a little leery.
"We should be careful in here," Kurama said. "It's not a place I'm familiar with, and we don't know what's in it."
"Hn," Hiei said, turning to get back on the move. "Don't point out the obvious, fox."
Hiei started moving again, and Kurama frowned. "He's being such a pain..." Kurama quickly took off after Hiei.
They had gone several feet into the forest, which had quickly thickened more, making it almost pitch black underneath.
Kurama looked around as he moved. He was really getting a strange feeling about this forest, but there seemed to be nothing at all wrong with it, and he wasn't detecting any energies either. It seemed to be just a very creepy forest.
'I just hope Hiei has his senses going...' Kurama thought, going over a log that lay on the bottom of the forest.
Hiei, flitting up between trees, was also detecting something wrong with the forest, but he also couldn't place what. He wasn't seeing, or feeling, anything unusual. However, he knew as well as Kurama that what you see and feel can sometimes be misleading, so he kept himself alert.
Kuromeru rose quietly. It was still night, but more nearing morning. The sun would be up in an hour or two, but for now, the moon was doing its final descent.
Kuromeru watched it silently for a moment through the window, before looking back at Saephan. He lay fast asleep on the bed, sleep restful right now, and, to Kuromeru at least, beautiful.
She knew she was foolish to think that way so much, about what he looked like, but without any keys to see all of him inside, it was all she could really see.
'If only you'd open up to me...' She thought, and moved to dress in her day clothes. 'If only you'd open up, maybe it wouldn't feel so odd to lay with you all the time... And maybe you'd understand why I do this.'
Quietly, she left out into the halls, letting Saephan to sleep.
It was just a bit later when the two stopped, meeting up on the ground. They both knew the sun had risen, but the forest remained dark. They also knew that they had been moving for quite some time, and hadn't found any sign of Kuromeru, despite the directions to where he was at being left for them. And, also, that feeling about the forest hadn't gone away.
"Think they tricked us?" Kurama asked, looking around once again. No light entered the forest, and he was starting to get very edgy because of it.
Hiei shrugged. "You're the one with brains, Kurama."
Kurama frowned and looked at Hiei. "Will you quit being so testy? You've been in a mood since you came to my house last night."
"Hmph!" Hiei turned away from Kurama, also looking around the lightless forest.
Kurama sighed. 'That wasn't supposed to come out...' He thought, and frowned. "Do you think maybe we're heading in circles, Hiei? That perhaps Kuromeru isn't ready for us yet?"
"Perhaps..." Hiei said, and walked to one of the trees nearby him. "But how would he manage to alter things like that?"
Kurama shrugged. "He's already done the invisible, ki-less trick, so I wouldn't put it past him to be able to do this."
"He has nothing to worry about." Hiei stroked the tree with his hand, and Kurama looked at him curiously. "He's a lot stronger than I am, so there wouldn't be a reason to hide."
"Maybe he isn't that strong normally?" Kurama suggested, and Hiei half-looked at him, curious. "Maybe his powers fluctuate. It's not common, but Kuromeru doesn't seem common."
"Or maybe he really wanted Mukuro and just led us out here..." Hiei said, and unsheathed his katana. Kurama watched quietly and Hiei sliced a large X in the tree, and then turned to Kurama. "If we are going in circles, we'll come back to this tree. Now let's go." Hiei started darting ahead of Kurama, this time staying on the ground.
Kurama frowned, looking at the X, and thinking about what Hiei had said. Though it was possible, something about that assumption didn't seem quite right. Then, nothing did.
Quickly, he took off after Hiei.
Kuromeru moved into the room Mukuro was in. She carried her food this time, as she had let Saephan out into the gardens, though he had protested that he wanted to serve Lady Mukuro again.
Mukuro looked up, and glared lightly.
Kuromeru expected nothing less, and laid the tray down on the table, then looking to the still-glaring Mukuro.
They stared that way at one another for a long time, before Kuromeru turned and left abruptly.
Mukuro blinked softly. She was sure Kuromeru was going to say something, but she hadn't.
"We ARE going in circles." Kurama said, and it was apparent that he was annoyed.
They were standing near the tree that Hiei had conveniently marked with his katana earlier, and just staring at that mark.
Hiei grunted softly, and silently kicked at the ground, hoping Kurama wouldn't notice his minor temper tantrum.
"I guess he really doesn't want us coming." Kurama sat down on the ground. "But how long will we be stuck in here?"
Hiei shrugged and jumped onto one of the branches of the X tree, sitting there. Kurama frowned up at him, looking very much like a fox with his nose all scrunched up.
Hiei would usually have laughed, but wasn't in the mood. He had been awake all night looking for Mukuro, and was beginning to become frustrated. He could last without sleep, if only there were some sign of something, or someone, and not a forest where they could only go around and around.
Kurama sighed lightly. "I guess for now we should probably just rest. We've been at this a while, and I'm getting tired. Will you take the first watch, and wake me in a few hours?"
Hiei nodded softly, drawing his katana up into his arms carefully. Kurama knew this to be the way Hiei sat watch, and so he quickly scrounged together what he could find to act as bedding, and laid down to sleep.
"It's getting dark, Mistress..." Saephan said, looking at Kuromeru, who stood silently staring out their bedroom window. "Should we go find them now...?"
"You know where they are." Kuromeru replied, turning to look at Saephan. "So there isn't any rush. Let's make sure we're ready, and wait till it's dark before we do anything."
Saephan nodded a little, and withdrew from the room.
Kuromeru frowned softly at that, and turned back to the window. The sun was beginning to redden the sky, and she associated it with blood today, instead of anything else she could have thought of.
Slowly, she moved to grab her cloak and wires.
"Kurama."
Kurama heard the voice, and felt Hiei shaking at him gently. He was having trouble waking, however, and felt very groggy.
He soon sat up though, and looked at Hiei. "Is it my watch already?"
"No." Hiei replied, and gestured behind himself quietly, where the marked tree still stood.
Kurama looked to that tree, and blinked at what he saw. Sometime recently, the area behind the tree had changed. There was still plenty of trees, but now in the distance, a lake with the pale glimmer of the beginning moon could be seen. Before, there were only trees.
"When did that happen?" Kurama asked, and saw Hiei shrug.
"I somehow fell asleep up until a few minutes ago..." Hiei sounded more confused with his statement, than the annoyance Kurama would have thought he would have had.
Slowly, Kurama stood, brushing the leaves from his clothing, and running a hand through his hair to shake the leaves from it. Hiei stood as well, but took no time to dust himself off, but was instead quickly on his way to the lake.
Kurama sighed and followed.
Hiei arrived quickly at the lake, and looked at it, then across it. On the other side, he saw merely trees, and, looking to the sides he saw more trees one way, and a path the other.
He moved towards the path, not really knowing why he felt the way he did, but he felt very tense, and his senses were open to their fullest, as if an attack was already being sent against him. But nothing was there to truly make that so.
Kurama seemed calm enough, but he could sense Hiei's anxiousness, and felt a slight bit of it as well. Something in the forest, the feeling from the day before, was still there, but now it was stronger, and more desperate.
It's like the forest's having changed itself had caused whatever had been held back before by the forest's refusal to change to be released at last. And, unfortunately, neither of them knew what that was.
Hiei stopped abruptly on the path, and Kurama stopped behind him. They both looked around, having sensed a movement somewhere in the trees.
There was silence for several minutes however, before the fox demon and Kuromeru, now covered in brown cloak again, came available from another path in the forest.
Hiei's eyes squinted dangerously at Kuromeru's form, and his hand instinctively fell to his katana, ready to pull it at a moment’s notice.
Kurama went to a ready position as well, but he was more startled than Hiei. This was the first time he had either seen Kuromeru or the fox demon with him, and he could feel the power levels from both were quite strong, though Kuromeru's seemed more honed.
"Welcome to my home..." Kuromeru said quietly.