The fire demon was not in the best of moods. He had spent a restless night arguing with himself about the alarming thoughts he had been having regarding Kurama. Then, just when he had fallen into a light doze, a silver owl had joined him on the branch, having failed to see the shadowy figure already occupying it, and when it *had* noticed Hiei it noisily protested his presence. Apparently the little youkai had chosen its favorite perch, and the bird was determined to defend its territory. In a bid for peace and quiet, Hiei had irritably moved to another branch and renewed his futile attempt to get some sleep. Ch, I should have just flamed the dumb bird or plucked its feathers. I'm sure Kurama could have done something with them. They match his hair. Hiei suddenly stopped walking and scowled fiercely. Where had *that* thought come from? Hiei swore to himself. Now I'm thinking of things to give him to *encourage* his vanity?!
The youkai continued on his way toward Kurama's room, his expression ferocious enough to deter the palace guards he passed from making the mistake of challenging his right to be there. It was just as well; Hiei was too busy lecturing himself to pay them any attention. Since when do you care about *fashion*? Hiei asked himself scornfully. After all, he generally wore his serviceable black tunic and pants and had never bothered to think about whether or not the outfit suited him. Now look at him. Here he was, wearing the silver-accented tunic that Kurama had offered, and he was actually nervous about what the stupid fox would say! Hiei stopped abruptly in his path once more and shook his head in frustration. Kuso! *That's* why I'm wearing this idiotic costume. I want to impress him. Well, it was too late to change now, and he decided that maybe if he didn't bring up his choice of outfit, neither would the fox.
Continuing on his way, Hiei knocked softly on the youko's door and, when there was no answer, quietly opened it and poked his head inside. He frowned as he saw his friend still in bed, even though it was almost time for breakfast. Kurama wasn't an early riser at the best of times, but Hiei figured he would have wanted to make an early start--today at least--to continue their mission of trying to find a way home. The fire demon's frown deepened as he noticed that the kitsune seemed to be having an extremely vivid nightmare, judging by the way the youko was tossing and turning and the rumpled state of the bedclothes. Hn, better wake him.
"Kurama." The youkai relaxed as the kitsune opened his eyes and blinked at him in confusion. Hiei carefully wiped all traces of concern from his face in a bid to keep his thoughts to himself.
"It's about time you woke up." He hoped his voice carried the right amount of irritation at being forced to wait for the youko. He stood silently while Kurama dressed, and then they headed out to join their hosts for breakfast. Hiei was unused to socializing with humans, let alone actually sitting down to eat a meal with so many people at once, and he remained quiet as he carefully observed their interactions. Two young men arguing together soon drew his attention. Apparently the redhead had an extremely large grudge against the man they called Tamahome and was bound and determined to let him know it. When the human girl dressed in modern clothing mentioned that they seemed to be getting along, Hiei could only blink at her in disbelief. Is she *serious*? It seemed obvious to him that if there weren't so many witnesses around, the redhead would quite cheerfully kill his teammate.
Kurama asked to see their temple, and Nuriko and Tasuki volunteered to show him. Hiei decided that he had better tag along, since he had nothing better to do, and he still needed to talk to the youko about what their plans were for getting home. Besides, for some reason he was very reluctant to leave Kurama alone with the very attractive Nuriko.
As soon as they entered the building, Hiei could feel the absolute fury that was being focused on his friend. The power and energy behind the presence forced Kurama to his knees, but the stubborn fox struggled to his feet and tried to walk toward the golden statue of their animal god, Suzaku. Within seconds, however, he had once again fallen to the ground. Hiei ran to his side and offered him his support.
Why is it attacking Kurama? The fire demon was startled when he heard Kurama murmur 'yes' and suddenly transform into his youko guise, but he sighed in relief as the anger gradually melted away. He quickly let go of the youko as soon as Kurama regained his equilibrium and seemed able to stand on his own. That brief physical contact had been more than he usually allowed, and he cursed himself for noticing how good the kitsune had felt in his arms.
The two demons turned to face their human companions, and Hiei stood by while Kurama confirmed their true natures to them. Sensing that the redhead was *not* taking the news well at all, Hiei whipped out his sword and held it to the bandit's throat, thus halting Tasuki's attempt to attack them with his iron fan. What did he expect to do with that thing, anyway? Beat us over the head? He grudgingly put his sword away at Kurama's request and stepped back to see what they would do. After some consideration, Nuriko said that she believed they meant no harm, but that she must inform the emperor, Hotohori, immediately. Hiei rolled his eyes in disgust as Kurama smoothed over matters and attempted to charm Nuriko with a rose. How obvious can he *get*?
As they were leaving the temple, however, a dimensional gate opened, and they were suddenly being attacked by creatures who were unmistakably from the Makai. Realizing that Kurama would want to move the fight outside where they would have more room to maneuver, Hiei began to harass the enemies at the back of the group, urging them to follow their comrades, who were busy chasing Kurama out of the temple. In what felt like mere moments, the fight was over to the accompaniment of piercing flute notes fading into the shocked silence following the battle. Everywhere they looked, the dead bodies of the monsters littered the ground. Almost everyone had escaped serious injury, except the healer who had somehow gotten involved; Kurama immediately began to treat his wounds while Hiei brought fresh bandages.
The emperor pointed out something that had occurred to Hiei as well. This attack was no accident. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to try to kill Kurama. Someone with great power. Ch, *now* who has he pissed off?
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