O.K. Next bit...let me know what you think, any typo's, wierdnesses,
ect...or if it's juuuuus' fine...yeah, right...

Enjoy!

Windlily


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


	Kurama laid on his stomach, his chin supported on his crossed hands
and watched the bower with amusement as another pillow flew out of the
small entrance. Hiei had wandered in after dinner to stand in front of the
pile of pillows and blankets stacked against the wall while Kurama worked
on putting up the laundry, then had crawled into the dome of plants
dragging some of the bedding after him. He had now been lining his nest for
the last forty minutes. He seemed to have settled on what blankets were
acceptable, though Kurama wasn't going to fold the rejects until he was
certain Hiei was done. It was dangerous to get too close to the mouth of
the bower since there was a steady stream of pillows being tossed out and
then dragged back in and then tossed back out. Though it seemed like they
were going through the final cull. Two of the pillows had come out and not
been retrieved.

	Yukina had advised him to make the bower last Friday for two
reasons. One was to give Hiei time to get used to the idea of using it for
his 'nest' and the second was to give his rei plenty of time to re-charge
for this up-coming week. He had woven it while Hiei was napping and Yukina
had sat quietly next to him, watching. He smiled softly. Yukina had grown
as protective of him as she was of her twin. He knew that she had been
observing his rei, still unsure that he had recovered enough to let Hiei
feed off of him. She had been delighted with the results of his effort and
demanded that he make one for her the next time she conceived. Hiei had
inspected the interior of the small dome of tightly intertwined vines and
flowers when he woke up and had pronounced it acceptable with a shrug and a
"Hn," and had totally ignored it up until now.

	He watched Hiei emerge and crawl over to him, his belly so big it
was almost dragging on the ground. He frowned a little at the tiredness
that was apparent in his lovers face, knowing that Hiei was crawling
because it was too much work to get up to his feet. Hiei arranged himself
so he sat cross-legged with his back to his lover.

	"My back hurts," he grumbled.

	Kurama sat up and obediently began to rub.

	"What brought that on?"

	"Just wanted to get it out of the way," Hiei answered with a one
shouldered shrug.

	"Shiori's going to drop by on Sunday," he informed Hiei as his
lover relaxed and leaned back into his hands.

	"Fine. I'll go see Yukina."

	"Hiei, she's coming to see you!"

	"Why?" Hiei suddenly stiffened under his hands. "You told her,
didn't you?"

	"Of course I told her," he said with a little smile, remembering
Shiori's delight in the news.

	Hiei turned himself around and glared at him. "Why?"

	Kurama rolled his eyes and sighed patiently. "She's my mother, Hiei."

	Hiei gritted his teeth as a wave of annoyance swept over him. His
lover's insistence on that fact had always bothered him.  He had held his
tongue on his thoughts about the subject so far, but suddenly he decided it
was time to let Kurama know just how he felt about it.

	"No. She's not. She's just a human you used to survive."

	"I owe her my life, Hiei.  I owe her..."

	"You owe her nothing! She's just a human. And one who you have let
trap you here. Don't you realize that? How do you think she would react if
she knew what you really were? If she knew what you did to her real child?
I should tell her. If I'm lucky, she'll just drop dead from shock. No
matter what, it would solve this insanity that is keeping you here!"

	Kurama's expression went from gentle tolerance to cold fury in an
instant and Hiei actually leaned backwards, startled, as he realized
exactly what he had blurted out. It might be the truth, but it was a truth
that Kurama did not want to hear or accept. And he had threatened the human
woman Kurama was so attached to. For a moment he saw the promise of
violence and pain in Kurama's eyes and tense stillness, then his lover rose
in one fast, graceful movement and was running for the door. He realized he
had crossed the line of what Kurama would accept from him. Shit. He needed
to fix this, fast!

	"Kurama! Wait!"

	It took forever to struggle to his feet and it started the pain
stabbing up in his lower back again. By the time he waddled to the door,
cursing his ungainly body and stupidity the whole way, Kurama was out of
sight.

	*Fuck!* He started out the door anyway, but as soon as he stepped
out onto the walkway the night sky and open space beyond the railing seemed
to focus on him and pressed down. He couldn't stand it and retreated back
into the apartment. He slammed the door shut against the outside that was
trying to follow him in and glared at the barrier, panting. What the hell
was that all about?

	*BE STILL!* he willed the babies as he clutched at the pain that
radiated across his belly and then went to shoot up his back. They were so
big now they couldn't move much, but they were kicking like crazy and it
hurt. He took a few deep breaths as he headed back for the bedroom, trying
to relax. He knew that if he calmed down, they would. It was impossible to
do as the normal, confining space of the apartment seemed to expand around
him as it pressed in at the same time. He had to get into someplace small
and safe. He crawled into the nest Kurama had made for him and curled up as
much as he could around his belly and waited for the pain to pass.

	It hadn't and now Hiei wandered in and out of a haze of agony. As
soon as he had realized something was seriously wrong, he'd been in too
much pain to crawl out of his nest for the phone thing to call Yukina. He
didn't know anything could survive hurting this much, and he'd been through
a whole lot of hurting. He was sure he wasn't going to survive as the hot
iron band clamped around his middle again and squeezed until he couldn't
breathe. As much as that hurt, he dreaded the next part more. It let up and
fire radiated in searing waves across his lower back, then erupted up his
spine.

	He worked on breathing knowing the next pain was coming soon. Too
soon. How could he be so stupid? Kurama was gone. Probably for good. He had
finally managed to do it, found something that his Fox wouldn't forgive him
for. No matter what he thought, Shiori was taboo. He knew that! Shit. He
knew that her life span was short, only a blink by youkai standards and she
was old already. Why couldn't he just have let it pass? He had driven
Kurama away forever over a human who would be dead in a few years
anyway...stupid, stupid...he swallowed the scream as the next pain hit him
without warning.


* * *


	Kurama ran until he was winded and then ran some more. Finally he
had to stop or pass out. He leaned forwards and put his hands on his knees
as he waited for the dark spots to clear his vision. Gods...he had been
ready to kill Hiei for that. And as coldly as he would any youkai who
threatened Shiori or himself. He got enough breath back to start walking
again and did, heedless of the direction, just as long as it was away from
Hiei.

	Hiei had hit a very tender nerve and he knew that almost everything
his lover had said was true. He was terrified of how Shiori would react if
she ever found out what she had carried in her womb, nursed at her breast,
loved and raised as her own child. It would kill her if she ever found out
what he had done. How he had forced out the soul of the girl child she had
been shaping in her body and rearranged that flesh to suit himself with as
little thought as he would kill a rabbit for dinner. He snorted to himself.
He hadn't done a very good job on the body. But what could he expect? He
had been almost dead.

	Kurama shook his head, Hiei just couldn't understand. Shiori hadn't
trapped him here. He had trapped himself as soon as he had refused to die
and entered into the human world by his own choice. Shiori had taught him
so much, some of it wonderful and some of it terrible. But it was a part of
him now, a part of his experiences. And one of those things which he
thought was wonderful and terrible at the same time was the ability to love
as humans did. It was different from what he knew as 'love' as a Youko. It
was something else, something beyond. He still didn't understand it, nor
could explain it. He just felt it.

	Shiori was his mother, not the Youko vixen that spawned him and
left him to die. He sighed and berated himself quite harshly as he walked
in and out of the bright pools thrown by the street lights. Now that he had
calmed down he knew that he had over-reacted. Hiei would never tell Shiori,
the same way that he would never have told Yukina Hiei's secret. That
confession had come on Hiei's own initiative.

	Hiei had just been blowing off steam. An idle threat born of his
temper and the discomfort of the kits inside him. He knew that his lover
was frustrated by his insistence at staying in the Ningenkai and that was
all it was.  He looked up to take his bearings and smiled as he shook his
head. His steps had unconsciously brought him back to where he should be.
Had brought him home to Hiei.

to be continued...