What Price Love?

A/N: I know... I know... it's been almost a year since I've updated this story, but rest assured, I will NOT abandon it (or any of my others), so it WILL be finished... you have my word.

That said, please be warned that this chapter is total fluff!! I hope you enjoy, though.
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Ueno Zoological Gardens was the oldest zoo in Japan. Begun in 1882, it had grown over the years that followed so that it now encompassed 14.3 hectares of land and was considered the flagship of the Japanese zoological world. Currently, it housed over 2600 animals from 464 different species.

The gardens also included a five-storied Pagoda as well as a tea ceremony house; giving the zoo a distinctly Japanese flare. The pagoda, built in 1631 was rebuilt after destruction by fire and in 1958 the owner, Kan’ei-ji Temple, gifted the pagoda to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The government, in turn, assigned its management to the zoological gardens.

The tea ceremony house was built to entertain Shoguns in the 17th century and still stands as a historic structure on the zoo grounds.

The zoo also boasted a Petting Zoo for small children, which could be gotten to through a short ride via monorail to the west lower area of the gardens.

The only thing lacking at the gardens seemed to be vehicle parking. Oh, there were toll lots in the vicinity of the zoo, but no actual on-site parking. This, however, in no way deterred Hiei and his party from their planned outing

Though Hiei abhorred the very idea of encasing himself within what he dubbed ‘that damned ningen contraption’, he bore the ride from Kurama’s house to the Hatanaka residence with his usual silent stoicism. He thanked whatever gods were listening, however, when they’d finally arrived and he was able to breathe fresh air once more. No sooner had Shiori parked the car then he’d popped the seatbelt mechanism, releasing himself from the restricting harness; opened the door and hopped out. Quickly he’d opened the rear passenger door and removed Ryuushin from his smaller, but no less restrictive, children’s safety seat, hefting the boy to his shoulders and shutting the door to the vehicle just as Shiori exited the driver’s side.

His reprieve, however, was short-lived as Shiori gave him an apologetic smile. “I fear you’ll find the next part of our journey even more unpleasant than the trip in my car,” she said, “Ueno has no parking of its own, so I’m afraid we’re going to have to take the train.”

Hiei inclined his head briefly in acquiescence. “Hn. I was aware,” he replied. And he was, having done some on-line research on the zoo and its environs once Ryuushin had said that was where he wanted to go.

Though he had absolutely no desire whatsoever to enclose himself within a long, metal tube with strange ningen (the automobile had been bad enough), he would do so – for his son and for this woman.

“Fortunately,” Shiori’s voice interrupted his thoughts; her smile brightening, “as it’s mid-morning and a work day, the train should not be overly crowded at this time of the day.”

“Then shall we?” Hiei raised his hand and gestured toward the street.

“YAY!” The shout was heard from the vicinity of his head, accompanied by the clapping of small hands, and Hiei couldn’t quite hide his grin at his son’s exuberance. Shiori fell into step beside him and they set off in the direction of the station.

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Hiei had to admit, as they exited the JR Ueno Station, the ride hadn’t been all that bad, perhaps because as Shiori predicted, due to the time of day, the train had not been overly crowded with humans. As the trio made the ten minute walk from the station to the zoo though, the hiyoukai had resolved that there would most definitely be an alternate mode of transportation utilized for the return trip; namely, his taking to the rooftops with Shiori secure in his arms and Ryuushin safely in hers. He could only hope that his fox’s mother would not be too opposed to that idea.

Tickets purchased and in hand, they walked the short distance from the ticket booth to the turnstile. Shiori passed through first, handing her ticket to the waiting attendant. Hiei followed; Ryuushin, still perched securely on the little demon’s shoulders, had only to lean down slightly to hand the man their tickets before they passed as one through the turnstile.

Together, the three consulted the complimentary map they’d been given before setting off in the direction of the giant panda exhibit. Once they’d viewed both the larger bears and the smaller red pandas, the trio continued on in a leisurely fashion, stopping at whatever exhibits and animal habitats struck their fancy. As they walked, Shiori and Hiei spoke intermittently, though Shiori felt in no way uncomfortable at the small demon’s reticence and the stretches of silences that followed.

Ryuushin had been content, at first, to remain on his father’s shoulders, but soon began to squirm about until Hiei, sensing his son’s unspoken request to be put down, reached up and lifted the boy from his shoulders then settled him firmly on his feet between Shiori and himself. His son rewarded him with a wide smile and a “thank you, Daddy” before taking the fire demon’s hand and walking at his side. Shiori, watching them, smiled softly at the obvious love of the hiyoukai for his son. ‘So like Shuuichi’ she thought.

They had just reached the East Garden Cafeteria area when Shiori felt her stomach rumble. “Oh my!” she giggled as she placed a hand to her abdomen, a soft pink suffusing her cheeks. “I don’t know about anyone else, but I think I’m ready for lunch. Hiei? Ryu-chan?”

Hiei nodded. “I believe we could all do with something to eat. And” he glanced down to where Ryuushin was leaning against his side. “Perhaps a bit of rest as well,” he finished, lifting the boy into his arms.

“All right, then, this way.” And Shiori led them through the glass doors of the restaurant.

They found a table by one of the windows and Hiei sat down, shifting his hold so that Ryuushin was now sitting in his lap. A small sigh escaped the tiny lips as Ryuushin settled himself more comfortably, leaning into his father’s chest and closing his eyes.

Shiori had been studying the menu, displayed on a large board behind the counter where patrons ordered and picked up their selections, while Hiei had been settling Ryuushin onto his lap. She turned now and contemplated the two for a moment before she spoke.

“Is there anything in particular you’d care to have for lunch, Hiei?” she asked the small demon.

“Whatever you and Ryuushin are having is fine with me,” he answered, returning her gaze.

Shiori focused her attention to the tiny form held securely in the circle of his father’s arms. “And you, Ryu-chan? What would you like for lunch?”

Almost immediately, Ryuushin straightened and looked up at his grandmother. “Pizza, Gwamma, please!” he answered without hesitation, giving her a wide, toothy grin.

“Of course.” She nodded, returning his smile before turning and making her way to the counter to place their order.

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Lunch passed pleasantly for this particular trio of visitors. Conversation between Shiori and Hiei during that time was brief but enjoyable. As she ate, Shiori quietly observed the interaction between the small Koorime and his son. She smiled gently as she watched Hiei help Ryuushin with his lunch: the fire demon cutting the large slice of pizza into smaller, more manageable bites for his son (though he did scowl at the tiny plastic knife he was forced to use) and helping to hold Ryuushin’s cup so that it rested between them, making it easier for the small boy to sip from the straw attached to the lid.

Once Ryuushin had eaten his fill, he climbed into his father’s lap. Nestling against the fire demon’s strong chest, he closed his eyes, smiling in contentment as Hiei slipped an arm protectively around the small boy. It was only after Ryuushin had settled himself that Hiei used his unoccupied hand and arm to begin eating his own lunch.

As he reached for his cup, Hiei noticed Shiori watching him, that gentle smile still on her face and in the brown eyes looking back at him. “What is it?” he asked softly so as not to disturb Ryuushin as he slept.

Shiori shook her head. “It’s nothing, really,” she replied. Hiei raised a skeptical eyebrow and Shiori couldn’t help the blush that suffused her face or the soft, somewhat embarrassed laugh that followed. “All right. I admit it. I like watching you… seeing the way you are with Ryuushin; the love you have for your son, Hiei.” Again she smiled, a dreamy, faraway look appearing in her eyes. “It reminds me so much of the way Shuuichi’s father had been with him.”

“My grandson is fortunate, indeed, to have both you and my son as his parents,” she finished, the wistful expression fading into a smile of joy, her dark eyes sparkling as she gazed at the demi-Koorime. “Thank you, Hiei.” She reached across the small table and took his free hand in hers, given the small appendage an affectionate squeeze.

Hiei felt his own face flush at Shiori’s words. He bent his head, her praise filling him with something akin to the peace he’d only every found in his fox’s presence… something he thought one such as he would never feel. Of course, he had never expected the Imiko, the Forbidden One, curse of the Koorime, would ever have felt love either, and yet, Kurama had taught him to do just that. Yet, had it not been for the woman smiling at him now, even the legendary King of Thieves would not have known that particular emotion.

He returned the squeeze and lifted his head, wine-red eyes meeting Shiori’s own brown gaze. “It is I who should thank you,” he said, “your words mean more to me than you could possibly know.”

He glanced down, taking in the small form sleeping peacefully in his arms before raising his eyes to meet hers once more. Choosing his words with care, he continued. “Before I met Kurama, I knew nothing but hate… the hatred of others for me, and the hatred I felt for them in turn. It was he who taught me not only what love was, but also how to love. And yet, had he not chosen your unborn child as the vessel to house his soul, he would not have known love as well. It was you who taught him, by your example, what it was to love and to be loved. It is because of you that we can love our son as we do.” A smile… only the barest raising of one corner of his mouth, yet Shiori knew it for what it was. “And so… thank you.”

She acknowledged both his words and that brief smile with a gentle squeeze to hand she held. “You’re welcome.”

The silence that followed their exchange was not at all uncomfortable. Shiori took her hand from Hiei’s and sat back in her chair, clasping her hands in her lap as she continued to watch the fire youkai tend to his son.

Hiei, who had returned his attention to Ryuushin, watched the boy as he napped and found himself reflecting that this quiet was not unlike those times he’d found himself perched on his fox’s window sill, watching as Kurama did his ningen schoolwork, tended the plants he’d kept in his room, or simply sat on the bed, content just to be with the small fire demon. ‘Shiori’s influence again’ the hiyoukai found himself thinking as he remembered those not-so-very long ago days and savoring this brief respite just as he had then.

The respite was, indeed, short-lived. A mere 15 minutes had passed in that companionable silence before a small head lifted from its place against Hiei’s muscular chest; tiny, leaf-green eyes opening at the same moment. A wide yawn escaped Ryuushin’s lips as he looked up and into red eyes; the yawn quickly replaced by a wide grin as he snuggled closer (if that was possible) into his father’s embrace.

“Hi Daddy!” Ryuushin chirped brightly as though he’d not been fast asleep just moments ago. He raised his head and look around, smiling again as his eyes fell upon Shiori. When he’d received his grandmother’s answering smile, Ryuushin returned his attention to his father and asked, “Can we go now?”

Hiei looked down at the small being he held and smirked. “Hn. Are you certain you’d rather not go back to sleep for the rest of the afternoon, musuko-chan?” he teased, raising his head and giving Shiori a quick wink.

“Couwse not, Daddy,” came Ryuushin’s immediate reply, followed by a reproachful frown at his sire. “I wanna’ see more animals and Gwamma says that they have a place where you can even pet them. Please, Daddy, can we go now?”

This time, the question was accompanied by a pair of large, round emerald eyes that gazed pleadingly at his father, and Hiei could not help the short laugh that escaped him as he looked into those eyes. Looking up, he met Shiori’s gaze and found that she, too, was chuckling softly.

Shiori rose. “Shall we, then?” she asked.

“Hn,” was Hiei’s only response as he, too, rose from his place and set Ryuushin onto his feet, then took his hand as they continued on with their visit.

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The rest of the afternoon passed rather quickly as the trio continued wandering the zoo grounds, stopping briefly before the cages to peer at the animals inside before moving to the next exhibit.

Ryuushin could not contain his excitement as they neared the children’s petting zoo, squirming in his father’s arms until Hiei finally relented and let the boy down. As soon as his feet touched the pavement, Ryuushin started to run ahead, but the hand firmly holding his stopped him. Impatiently he looked up at his fire demon father and pulled at the hand.

“Huwy Daddy… Gwamma,” he implored, causing several heads to turn and indulgent smiles to appear as those visitors watched the youngster tug impatiently at the hand of a short male figure and exhorting said male and the woman with them.

Shiori, too, smiled at her grandson, while Hiei shook his head in mock exasperation at the boy. “Hn. Wonder from which of his parents he inherited such an impatient nature,” he commented to Shiori, one black brow lifting.

Bright laughter answered this sarcastic comment before Shiori followed her grandson and Hiei through the fenced enclosure that housed the children’s petting zoo. Ryuushin’s eyes widened and he immediately dragged his father over to a pen containing a miniature horse.

“Look, Daddy, look!” he cried. “Can I pet ‘im… pleeeaase?”

Hiei had no chance to respond, as Ryuushin stepped right into the pen, held his hand out to the tiny creature, and once acknowledged, began gently stroking the white star that graced the small head. The little horse responded with a soft whinny and then nuzzled its nose against Ryuushin’s cheek, delighting the child. Shiori watched this interplay with a soft smile, as Hiei stood by, arms crossed and red eyes alert as he kept close watch on his son.

Ryuushin spent several more moments petting the small horse before he bid the animal a whispered goodbye and turned to his father and grandmother. Smiling up at the fire demon, he took Hiei’s hand and walked to the next pen, Shiori trailing behind. This pen housed several small goats as well as a small, roan-colored calf. Ryuushin took a few minutes to pet each of the goats in turn and to run his hands along the tiny horns of the black and white one.

Dutifully, he also pet the little calf before the trio moved on, going in a circular fashion around the enclosure until they came to final pen. Ryuushin squealed with delight at seeing the tiny, red fox kit it contained. The kit responded immediately to the boy, running over to the little figure that had bent down and now held out his arms in welcome, all but jumping into those small, outstretched arms.

Ryuushin straightened and turned to face his father and grandmother, a huge grin on his small face and green eyes bright with wonder and joy. “Daddy, Gwamma,” he happily exclaimed as the little fox nuzzled his neck. “Look! His fuh’s the same color as Papa’s hai-uh!”

While Shiori’s smile was as wide as her grandson’s, watching him with the kit, Hiei hid his own grin, opting instead for a soft ‘hn’ and watching his son with gentle eyes, though those eyes immediately became wary as a shadow fell on the small group.
A young woman, dressed in the khaki trousers and shirt that were the uniform of the zoo’s animal care specialists, crouched down next to the tiny, raven-haired child cradling the tiny fox kit, a small bottle in her hands.

“He likes you.” She smiled at the youngster. “It’s about time for Shinta’s afternoon feeding. Would you like to feed him?” she asked, holding out the bottle.

Green eyes widened in surprise as Ryuushin turned his attention from the kit in his arms to the young woman. She watched as those same eyes then looked up, hers following, at the young man in black who stood with his feet slightly apart and arms crossed over his chest, unusual red eyes narrowed protectively as he watched the boy and the woman beside him. She had assumed, from the man’s stature, that he was the child’s elder brother, especially with the older woman (obviously their mother) standing next to him, watching them both with tender eyes. So why did the boy’s look suggest something other than that type of familial relationship? It was the child’s next words, though, that let her know her assumption about the trio had been very wrong.

“Shinta? That’s his name?” Ryuushin shifted his attention from his father to the young woman at his side. When she nodded, he looked back up, his eyes shining with anticipation.

“Can I, Daddy?” the small boy asked.

“Hn.” The fire demon nodded his acquiescence and watched as his son’s face lit up, a grin stretching the small lips from ear to ear. A rare smile, the barest lifting of one corner of Hiei’s mouth, answered that grin. Shiori and the young woman beamed, witnessing the brief, but tender moment, before the girl turned her attention to the little boy at her side.

“Why don’t we sit over here?” she asked Ryuushin, guiding him to a wood and concrete bench just outside the fox’s habitat. They seated themselves and she turned slightly to face the boy. Reaching over, she re-settled the fox kit on Ryuushin’s lap, wrapping one small arm around the kit to hold him steady.

The kit instinctively stilled in the arm that encircled his small body, seeming to know that it was time to eat. His small nose sniffed the air, head darting back and forth as his eyes searched for his meal. His antics had Ryuushin giggling until the young woman placed the bottle into his hand and directed that hand to the kit’s eager mouth. The woman maintained a light hold on the boy’s hand, tipping the bottle so that a steady stream of milk flowed from it to the waiting mouth. After a few moments, she removed her hand and allowed Ryuushin to continue feeding the kit on his own.

Excitedly, Ryuushin watched the little fox eagerly sucking at the nipple, the tiny throat bobbing as the milk was swallowed. Green eyes shone with pride as they look up to meet the crimson gaze of his father.

“I’m feedin’ him! Daddy… Gwamma… Look! He’s weally dwinkin’ the milk!” The small boy’s voice was filled with awe as he shifted his gaze from his father to Shiori.

Turning his attention from the building he’d just been looking at to his son, Hiei once again, gave a soft ‘hn’ of acquiescence. He inclined his head briefly, the same small smile playing about the corner of his mouth. Shiori, too, smiled as she continued watching her grandson feed the tiny, red fox. A touch on her arm drew her attention from the tender scene, and she glanced over, her gaze meeting that of the hiyoukai at her side.

“A tradesman?” Hiei raised his eyes and inclined his head toward the whitewashed building that stood just past the fox’s habitat, next to the exit from the petting zoo into the zoo proper. It was a souvenir shop, the wide front window displaying a selection of zoo memorabilia as well as several stuffed animals.

Shiori nodded. “Though here, it’s called a souvenir shop. They specialize in merchandise geared specifically to promoting the zoo to visitors. We can stop on the way out if you’d like.”

“Thank you, I would.” Hiei returned her nod before turning is attention back to Ryuushin who was still grinning widely as he finished feeding the little fox his bottle.

When the bottle was completely empty, Ryuushin pulled it from the tiny fox’s mouth. Content with his meal, Shinta wriggled around until he was out of the boy’s arms and seated on his lap. He then rose up on his hindquarters; his front paws ‘walking’ up the small boy’s chest, until he was almost eye level with Ryuushin. A tiny pink tongue emerged and began enthusiastically licking the boy’s face. Ryuushin dissolved into a fit of giggles. Shiori and the young animal care specialist joined in, laughing aloud, while a solitary ‘hn’ could be heard coming from the direction of the vertically challenged half-Koorime who stood watching his son.

It was Shiori’s voice that ended the sweet tableau as she glanced at her watch. She cleared her throat with a soft ‘ahem’ to gain the attention of the small fire demon at her side. When crimson eyes met hers, she pointed at the timepiece on her wrist.

“It’s getting late, Hiei,” she commented. “I think we should be leaving if we want to avoid rush hour on the trains.”

Hiei nodded in response before he raised his eyes from her face and looked up at the sun. He studied the golden orb for moment, noting it had begun its daily trek toward the west then turned his face to his son. The small boy was giggling hysterically as the fox kit continued its rather enthusiastic tongue washing of his face.

“Ryuushin,” he called, getting the boy’s attention. “It’s time to go home.”

“Say goodbye to your friend, dear,” Shiori added, smiling at the boy.

Ryuushin and the animal care specialist rose from the bench together, the fox still licking his face. The small boy cuddled the tiny body in his arms to his chest.

“Goodbye, Shinta.” He placed a kiss on the top of the little fox’s head. “I’ll see you again.” With a smile, he held the kit out to the young woman, petting the tiny head as she took the fox into her arms.

Ryuushin then bowed to the woman. “Thank you for letting me feed him.”

As his head rose and his eyes met hers again, she smiled at him. “You are very welcome, Ryuushin. Come and feed him again, won’t you?”

Ryuushin answered her smile with his own wide grin, green eyes sparkling. “I will!”

With a final caress of the small fox’s head and a wave to the animal caregiver, the trio turned and made their way toward the exit and the small shop that stood beside it.