Part 8: Training
After everyone returned home and Kurama arranged with his mother to let Leilani stay while she was in town, lives returned some-what normal. Leilani found a garden that she could train Kurama in after school.
While she waited for him to come home after his first day back, she conversed with Bob over her assignment.
“I’m trusting you won’t be there while I’m training him,” Leilani warned.
“After that fiasco on the boat, I don’t dare leave you alone with him!” expressed Bob.
“Come on, when you weren’t there, I made a lot of progress with him!”
“Progress of what sort? You can’t go toying with his emotions!”
“Okay, I get the point! No-touchy!’ Leilani rolled her eyes.
Hesitant, Bob said, “I’m not sure, you may still need me.”
“Come on, its not even standard procedure to have you here with me in the cartoon! I’ve got the hang of how things work here, I’ll be fine!” she pouted.
Bob rolled his eyes and said, “Sure, whatever. I’ll still keep an eye on you; but I promise not to interfere unless I deem it necessary.”
“Thank you,” Leilani sincerely expressed.
A knock came at the bedroom door and Leilani opened it to find Kurama.
“Good afternoon, Leilani,” Kurama smiled and pulled a rose from his hair and offered it to her.
Blushing, she accepted the rose and placed it on her dresser. She then grabbed a book bag and they headed off to begin Kurama’s training.
In the garden, they found a secluded place and sat on the grass. Leilani instructed Kurama into a yoga pose.
“Now for today, we will meditate. I want you to explore your inner self. You must first connect and be in tune with your demons before you can progress.”
“So today its all a mental exercise?”
“Pretty much!” Leilani smiled.
“Then what’s the book bag for?”
“Oh that’s to keep me occupied. I figured I could real all of Lord of the Rings while you trained! (I’ve been stuck in the Barrow Downs for ages!)”
Kurama fell over.
He got up and sighed, “You must tell me about it over dinner or breakfast sometime.”
“Don’t worry, I can still coach you. Just close, your eyes and relax. Now let me be your guide to your thoughts…”
Kurama meditated until sunset with occasional instructions from Leilani. Afterwards they chatted while walking home. They had dinner, following which, Leilani helped Kurama’s mom with the dishes. She then joined the family for card games. When they had played themselves out, Kurama escorted Leilani to her room and they said their goodnights.
Leilani plopped on her bed and sighed happily.
“Were you finally able to say goodbye to Tom Bombadil?” Bob greeted her.
“Not bad for being on my own, huh?”
“Other than reminding me of Madam Trelawney, I guess you did alright.”
Day after day, Kurama went to school while Leilani helped his mother around the house. Upon his return, Leilani would train him while a bookmark progressed through her reading.
“You are doing very well,” encouraged Leilani as they finished one day.
“Will I be able to transform soon?” asked Kurama.
“Not by a long shot! And the first time will take the longest, so I wouldn’t recommend trying it unless you had enough time to figure out how to turn back.”
“Do you have a clue how much longer it will take me?”
“I warned you it would take a long time,” reminded Leilani.
“I know,” Kurama sighed.
They faced each other, admiring the rays of light the setting sun played upon their faces. Suddenly, Kurama grabbed Leilaini's hands.
“Leilani, there was something that I’vewanted to give you for a while. I didn’t earlier because I was afraid that you would not accept it,” Kurama said.
He slowly drew a rose from his hair, but instead of being in bloom like the ones he normally produces, it was still a bud. He presented it to her. She looked, puzzled at the gift.
“It’s a rose, like the others you’ve given me,” entreated Leilani.
“Not exactly,” Kurama explained, “This one has a part of my soul in it so it won’t fade and die like the others. It is a symbol of my love for you. Don’t blame it on hormones; I talked with my mother about them. What I have been feeling is more than that. Please accept it."
Leilani carefully took the rose and stared at it.
She whispered, “A part of your soul, and yet you give it so freely.”
She looked back at Kurama. She gazed deep into his sincere eyes that were fully convinced that he knew what he was doing.
Barely audible, Leilani mouthed, “You have never had your heart broken before, have you?”
Now was the time that feelings were brought out into the open. For most of her mission, she tried her hardest to hold her teenage body back, but now with this symbolic offering of part of his soul, she could hold back no longer. She fell on him in a warm embrace and he wrapped his arms around her.
“Thank you," Leilani cried into Kurama's shirt, "I’m glad you waited, I…I wouldn’t have been able to accept it before…Bob would’ve smacked me!”
Kurama chuckled, he had observed how Bob and Leilani could get along. He eased back so he could raise her chin with his hand to look at her face. They gazed into each others eyes. Leilani loosened herself enough to move her arms. She formed a purple rose bud that she pulled out and presented to Kurama.
“Here, take this symbol of my love for you as well,” she stated, longing in her eyes.
“I will treasure it greatly,” confirmed Kurama.
They walked home that night hand in hand. Dinner was more delicious than usual and the chores went quicker than normal. They gave each other a prolonged hug as they said goodnight in front of Leilani’s room.
After he left, Leilani set his rose on her dresser. She could tell the rose was slightly bigger than before.
“I’ll need to get a vase for this one,” she mused.
“You know it won’t work out,” Bob warned her over her shoulder.
Leilani's smile dimmed, “Oh, come on Bob, I think its sweet.”
“You’ll only be here till the next episode starts, you know that.”
“Can’t I stay?”
“No! We went over this before you left for this mission.”
Leilani sighed; she knew it was useless to argue. The time would eventually come when they would have to part. It was all part of the job, no matter how much she refused to think about it.
By the next day, her sorrow of the reality melted away when she was with Kurama again. They continued his training, naïve to what they would do when the inevitable time of their separation would come.
