Rain, particularly a juicy thunderstorm, can cause most families to curtail their planned outdoor activities. Universally, children hate being stuck inside. In the Makai, rain was just another one of those things that happened on a fairly regular basis. The Makai only had about three true seasons: the damp, humid season; the rainy, very humid season; and the incredibly rainy, always disgustingly humid season. This last season was what the Kurama/Hiei family were trying to live through peacefully, but with a tree-house full of hyperactive demon children, calm was usually what preceded a storm. And being stuck inside, again, could have caused major calamities, not to mention driven certain demon parents crazy.
A surprising distraction saved what could have been a truly horrendous month of whining, crying, and torturing. By the children, of course. Aunt Yukina had given Cousin Kori a very nice birthday party recently, and for favors she gave out crayons, paper and coloring books, items usually not found in the Makai. Favorite demon-children activities usually centered around the death and destruction of small, helpless critters - for educational purposes, of course. The creative aspects of coloring pleased Youko Kurama immensely. He fondly remembered the pleasure he found in coloring for hours on end when he was a young human boy. He now could relive some of his past youth, and so he joined the children on the floor of the tree house as they whiled away the rainy evening in a more tranquil manner. Hiei sat off to one side sharpening his katana, as usual. Hi and Rami were on the other side coloring in one of the books, and Ryu and Yoji were letting their creative juices flow using blank paper. But quiet times often lend themselves to deep thoughts, and Ryu began to wonder about life as he colored in a purple Makai tree with polka dot leaves...
"Kurama-touchan?"
"Hmm, Ryu? Nani?" Kurama asked, looking down at his own handy-work. He remembered that he loved to draw people, so he was attempting to draw a picture of Hiei.
"I was wondering if this was right," their second child asked, moving next to Kurama on the floor, showing him his picture. "Is this our 'family tree'?" Kurama gazed at Ryu's drawing and smiled.
"Well," Kurama chuckled, "that's a picture of our home, and yes, we live in a tree. But that's not really our 'family' tree. Why do you ask? Where did you hear that expression?" Ryu scrunched up his little face and continued to color the leaves.
"At Kori's birthday party last month," Ryu explained, his head down, concentrating on his masterpiece, "she said that in her Ningenkai school she had to draw a picture of her 'family tree,' and I wondered if this is what she meant."
"Actually, a 'family tree' is like a chart of your own family's history," Kurama explained, putting his black crayon down. He looked through the crayons piled in the middle of the artists for the white one to color in his life-partner's starburst. "Remember when we told you about how I was a youko before becoming a human, then youko again? And how my human kaasan Shiori was like your Obaasan? And also how Aunt Yukina and Hiei-touchan are sister and brother like you and your brothers and sister?"
"Yeah. I guess so," Ryu replied, not remembering. Yoji began to snicker.
"Baka," he whispered under his breath. "You thought it was a real tree. Whatta' jerk!" He continued coloring his very gruesome picture of the last critter he had killed, complete with blood and guts oozing from every possible orifice of the poor thing. He glanced up at his touchan. Kurama glared at his oldest son. Yoji blushed. "Gomen, Ryu," he apologized and continued working on his picture. Kurama's features softened, and he resumed his conversation with Ryu.
"Do you want to make a 'family tree,' Ryu?" the youko asked, putting down the white crayon.
"Well, actually, I have a question..." the child with the white, spiky hair with black starburst began. "On Kori's tree, she put the words 'kaasan' and 'touchan' at the top. I was wondering how come we don't have a kaasan."
"Yeah," Yoji added, frowning up at Kurama, then across at Hiei. "How come?" Hi and Rami stopped coloring and looked up as well.
Kurama held his breath and looked up at Hiei, who had been listening to the conversation all the while. Hiei tilted his head, the faintest hint of a smile crossing his lips. Kurama chewed on his lower lip as he gathered his thoughts for the explanation he would offer to his children that they would understand.
"Well," Kurama carefully began, moving to sit cross-legged on the floor, never taking his eyes off the quiet fire demon in the corner. "You guys have two touchan because Hiei and I are both touchan," the kitsune began, matter-of-factly. Rami got up and slid into Kurama's lap, playing with his silver hair that dangled over his shoulder.
"Why did you marry Kurama-touchan?" she asked, looking at Hiei inquisitively.
"I married your touchan because he asked me," the Koorime answered softly, continuing to sharpen his sword. All the children looked back and forth at their touchan. "And because I fell in love with him." Kurama felt his cheeks blush, and his eyes sparkled as he looked up at his husband. Hiei, of course, remained totally expressionless, despite this open declaration before his family.
"Why did you marry Hiei-touchan?" Rami asked, looking up at her youko daddy. Kurama inhaled deeply, searching for just the right words.
"I fell in love with Hiei, and I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him," the fox professed, a warm feeling spreading across his chest.
"Didn't you like any of the kaasan in the Makai or the Ningenkai?" Hi asked, returning to his coloring book. Kurama laughed, remembering his many, MANY years of experience before finding the perfect mate. Rami got up off Kurama's lap and resumed her coloring.
"Oh, I liked a lot of the kaasans I met before I married your touchan. But, you know, none of them were really....none of them had..."
"An eight-inch...."
"Hiei!!" Kurama shouted, eyes wide, lips grinning broadly. He shook his head with a laugh, staring at his fire demon in disbelief.
"Nani?" Hiei asked, innocently. "I was gonna' say an eight-inch....dagger," he teased, staring right back at his kitsune, quite amused.
"Oooh! Could I play with your dagger, Touchan?" Yoji's ears perked up, hearing about anything that had to do with weaponry. "I promise I'll be careful."
"No," Hiei replied, putting his katana back into its sheath, and folded his arms. "You're...too young."
"Nuts," Yoji grumbled, and added some extra blood to his hideous picture. "Kurama-touchan? Have you ever seen Hiei-touchan's dagger?"
The youko giggled, then tried to compose himself. "Umm, hai. I've seen his dagger, and I must say it's just about the finest dagger I've ever laid..." Hiei's left eyebrow rose as he squinted his right eye. "...My hands on."
"Hentai," Hiei mouthed silently with a smirk. Kurama stuck out his tongue.
"When I get older, can I marry a touchan?" Rami asked, playing with several crayons at once.
"Sure, kawaii-hito. You can marry anyone or anything you'd like," Kurama answered, looking down at his sweet musume. "Hiei-touchan and I would want you to marry anyone who treats you with love and respect, and who puts you above all other things."
"Is that what you and Hiei-touchan do?" Hi asked, looking over at Yoji's picture, making a face.
"Hai, it is," the youko whispered, smiling at Hiei. The Koorime returned the smile this time.
"Kurama-touchan?"
"Hai, Hi?"
"Rami just ate an orange."
"That's okay, sweetie. There are more oranges in the basket."
"No," Hi corrected. "She just ate an orange. And she ate a purple and a blue, too." Kurama turned to see Rami smiling, a mosaic of color smeared all over her teeth and cheeks.
"Ewww! Rami-chan! Don't eat the crayons, baka!" Kurama rose quickly and lifted Rami to his hip. The brothers looked at their sister and immediately burst into peals of laughter. Hiei covered his eyes and shook his head, a little bit of an "I told you so" expression on his face, having brought those Ningenkai things into their Makai house.
"Yuck, Rami-chan. Let's get you cleaned up. The rest of you, get ready for bed, ne?" Kurama went outside to the rain barrel to clean off his daughter's teeth, as it had stopped raining momentarily. The rest of the family gathered up the crayons and stuff, and headed off to bed, being somewhat tired from laughing so hard.
As the brood of demon children made its way into their bedchamber, Ryu stopped at the door and proudly showed his touchan his drawing. Kurama looked at the picture and, on closer inspection, smiled broadly.
"Look, Hiei," the kitsune said, pointing at the picture. "Ryu drew you with your dagger." Hiei flitted over immediately and studied the drawing. Sure enough, there were Hiei and Kurama standing under a huge, exotically colored Makai tree. All the kits were on various branches of the tree, and Hiei had a dagger dangling from his belt next to his katana. The Koorime looked at his husband's grinning face and breathed a sigh of relief. "See," Ryu announced proudly. "It's our family tree!" Hiei took the picture and hung it on the wall, held in place with a rose thorn. Then Ryu scrambled into bed.
Kurama knelt down and placed Rami on her futon next to Hi, as he began tucking in the kits. Ryu looked up at his youko father and smiled. "When I grow up, I'm gonna' marry a kaasan and a touchan."
Hiei snorted as he leaned against the windowsill. "Why would you do that?" he asked.
"Well, that way I could have one person to take care of me and one person to play with me, all the time." He rolled onto his side, snuggling his pillow. Kurama smiled down at him.
"And which one would be for which?" the fox asked.
"Hmm," Ryu pondered. "I haven't figured that part out yet. Oh, well. G'night!"
As the children slowly closed their eyes, Hiei tiptoed over to his life-partner. The Koorime pressed his body into the youko's back and began playing with his downy ears. Hiei leaned forward, nibbling on the soft, fuzzy tip of Kurama's left ear.
"If you hurry up, kitsune," Hiei whispered, "I'll show you my 'eight inch dagger,'" and he licked the back of Kurama's right ear. The youko shuddered at the delightful feeling Hiei's warm, wet tongue made.
"Mmm," Kurama moaned. "Will you let me play with it? I promise I'll be careful."
"If you're not, you just might get stabbed," Hiei replied, nipping the tip of his lover's ear. He gave his husband a look known only to lovers, and left the kits' room for their bedchamber.
Kurama smiled contentedly, looking down at his sleeping angels. Then, four demon children were never tucked in so quickly.
The End
Copyright 1998 Julie Farel
Yu Yu Hakusho characters belong to Togashi Yoshihiro, Jump comics, and Studio Pierrot. All other characters belong to Julie. ^.~`