A Harmless Little Kitten
By Dandragon Wolf
All characters, minus the kitten (I hate cats), do not belong
to me (although I must admit I wish they did), they belong to their
respective creators (you know who they are), I just write stories.
Enjoy. Some yaoi content. No lemons (never any good lemons to be
found when you need them. Besides, my wife would kill me).
"Botan! Damn, we're dead! Botan!"
The summons shook the palace walls. Servants everywhere cringed and
fled.
"Botan! Damn you! Get over here! Now! Oh, we are in so much trouble.
Botan!"
Pace, pace, pace, turn. Pace, pace, pace, turn.
"I'm he-"
"Botan! What took you so long, damnit? Get the YYH team now! Now I
said!"
Pace, pace, pace, turn. Pace, pace, pace...
"What's so urgent?"
"I don't know, she didn't tell me."
"Why not?"
"She doesn't know either, he just told her to get us."
"Strange."
"Hn."
"Hurry up! He's here and unhappy."
"Hn."
"Hey, what's-"
"What do you-"
"You wan-"
"Quiet, all of you!"
The babble of voices sorted themselves out as Koenma silenced them.
"Now, I called you all here because we are in big trouble. An SS plus
demon has escaped from his prison and is on the loose. You have to
try and stop him."
"No problem." Yusuke said confidently.
"No, there's a big problem." Koenma said, looking scared. "He's one
of the most dangerous demons you will ever meet."
"Why?" Kuwabara asked.
"He carries a disease that kills humans and hurts most youkais."
Koenma informed.
"Wow." Kuwabara said, subdued.
"What are the symptoms like?" Yusuke asked.
"Well, the person infected feels like throwing up. Five minutes
later, that person is on the ground, unconscious and twitching."
Koenma described.
"Yuck." Kuwabara said.
Hiei noticed movement and glanced at Kurama, who was looking very
pale.
"Kurama?" Hiei said quietly.
He became alarmed as Kurama sat down suddenly, put a hand to his
mouth, and started shaking.
"Kurama!" Hiei said.
The others turned to them.
"Kurama! What's wrong?" Yusuke asked.
Kurama shook his head violently and clutched Hiei's arm suddenly in
an effort to control himself.
"His name is Bingyow." Koenma continued slowly, watching Kurama's
reaction. "He resembles a small white cat in the Ningenkai and is
actually a small, puffy, pink cat in the Makai."
Kurama's grip tightened on Hiei's arm. Hiei winced in surprise at the
strength behind that grip.
"Kurama?" Yusuke said, reaching out halfway to touch Kurama.
"You know Bingyow, don't you?" Koenma said softly.
Kurama nodded.
"Calm down, Kurama, it can't be that bad." Kuwabara said.
"It's worse." Kurama said hoarsely. "Much worse."
"What happened?" Yusuke asked.
"Bingyow is a Forbidden Child. When he was born, he killed his mother
and father. Not on purpose, just because they touched him. He grew up
in a matter of hours. However, he couldn't touch anyone without
either killing them or hurting them. A lot of demons that he touched
were crippled for life. He craved comfort from his parents, but they
were dead. So he sought comfort from his parent's good friend, who
was at the birthing and had watching them die. In Bingyow's eyes,
this friend was his parent. But because of the disease, the friend
was infected. The friend was sick for days on end. Twitching in pain,
as if fire and ice were coursing through his heart and steel rods
were being run through him. After what seemed like eternity, the
friend recovered, his body building a partial immunity to the
disease. Bingyow was ecstatic. He rushed to the friend and snuggled
up in his lap. Pain went through the friend at the contact, but there
was nothing he could do. He was forced to take care of Bingyow and
feel whiplashes of ice in him whenever they touched, which was
frequent. Bingyow worshipped the friend, calling him 'Father' and
staying beside him at all times. Bingyow learned the friend's trade
but enjoyed infecting people more. The friend was devastated, scared,
and in pain. He did the only thing he could think of, he secretly
told another demon that Bingyow was the one who was killing all the
humans and hurting the demons. That demon contacted the King and,
with the friend's help, they trapped Bingyow in a prison with ten SS
plus demons guarding him at all times. He was trapped in a fortress
surrounded by the demons' ki. The friend was so glad to be rid of
Bingyow that he fled immediately." Kurama said slowly, letting go of
Hiei's arm and clasping his hands together.
"You were the friend, weren't you?" Yusuke said softly.
Kurama managed a nod.
"You're Father." Koenma said incredulously.
"What?" Kuwabara said.
"I've been taking care of the demons who guard Bingyow. They tell me
that he often cries for Father and wants to know why Father ran
away." Koenma said.
Kurama shuddered once.
"I can still remember the feeling of touching him. It was horrible,
like having blunt rods run through your arms and legs. Sometimes, it
was fire coursing through my arteries and veins. I was frozen inside,
as if I had extreme frostbite." Kurama whispered.
"I'm sorry." Koenma said. "I shouldn't have you on this case."
"No." Kurama said. "I'm the only one who can keep him from infecting
others. I'm the only one...the only one that he cares about. I can
put him back in prison. He won't listen to anyone else."
"Kurama, you don't have to. You've already been through a lot."
Yusuke said.
"No! You don't understand him, Yusuke. I do. I can, have to, trap him
again. I can't let him loose in the Ningenkai and Makai. I couldn't
sleep knowing that. You didn't see the demons he killed and crippled.
You didn't feel the pain that I and many others had to go through.
He'll kill every human he can get near. We have to stop him, Yusuke,
we have to." Kurama pleaded.
Yusuke looked at him for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright." He agreed.
"Yusuke, I want you and Kuwabara to get your friends to safety and
alert the humans that a new disease is here." Koenma instructed.
"Kurama, you and Hiei will be in charge of finding Bingyow."
"I should do it by myself. I don't want Hiei to get infected." Kurama
protested.
"Hiei's the only one who's fast enough to avoid Bingyow's reach.
Yusuke and Kuwabara will easily be infected. You need Hiei to go as
back-up." Koenma insisted.
"Hn." Hiei said, unhappy about being back-up.
"Alright. Let's get to it." Yusuke said.
He and Kuwabara nodded and left.
"Do you know approximately where Bingyow is?" Kurama asked.
"Yes."
"Good. Tell us and we'll be on our way."
Kurama and Hiei were searching the city. It was hard to spot
a small white kitten.
"So, you distract it and I'll kill it?" Hiei suggested.
"No." Kurama said. "I don't want to risk the chance that you'll get
infected."
"Hn. Stupid. I'm a lot faster than you are. I can get in and kill
him, no problem." Hiei said.
"No!" Kurama insisted, grabbing Hiei by the arm and making him face
him.
Kurama locked eyes with Hiei.
"It's not worth it, Hiei. I'll be the one to kill him. I've already
got a partial immunity. I can handle it. Promise you won't try and
kill him. Promise!"
Hiei stared back, something flickered in his eyes. Kurama tightened
his grip. Finally, Hiei tore his gaze away.
"Fine." He said gruffly.
"Thank you." Kurama said softly.
They continued on their way.
"Oh, look! What a cute little kitten!" the girl squealed to
her friend.
"Oh, it's soo cute!" the other girl cooed. "Here kitty, kitty..."
The fluffy little white kitten went over to the girls. The first girl
bent down to pick the kitten up.
"Don't touch that cat!"
The girls looked up to see a handsome redhead and a handsome black
haired man standing in front of them.
"Why not?" the second girl demanded.
"He's ours." The redhead said.
"Oh. Well, here you go then."
Before the men could react, the girl picked up the kitten and started
towards them.
"No!" Kurama cried out in horror.
The girl stopped suddenly and dropped the kitten. The other girl
started towards her. The kitten went towards her. Hiei moved to
intercept.
"Hiei, no!" Kurama ordered.
Hiei stopped and look back at him.
"You don't want to be infected." Kurama said.
The kitten continued it's way towards the girl. Hiei gave Kurama a
questioning look. Kurama stared back, eyes frightened and desperate.
Hiei gave a slight snort. Kurama's eyes steadied and he took a deep
breath.
"Bingyow." He called in what he hoped was a familiar tone.
The kitten stopped and stared at Kurama.
"Hello again, Bingyow." Kurama said softly.
"Who are you?" the kitten said.
The girl stared at the kitten, then fainted. The other girl fell to
the ground and started to convulse. Kurama desperately tried to
ignore her. The kitten stepped towards Kurama, who had to mentally
stop himself from flinching back.
"Who are you?" the kitten repeated. "How do you know who I am?"
"Don't you remember me?" Kurama said in a joking tone.
"You don't look familiar." the kitten commented thoughtfully.
" 'Dragons, rocs, unicorns, fauns,
All of the gods, chess pawns...' " Kurama said gently.
" 'Warlocks, sorcerers, witches, and mages
All of the gods, evil pages.
Kings, queens, and royalty,
All of the gods throw them in the sea...' " the kitten said softly.
He gazed at Kurama in disbelief.
"Father?" Bingyow said softly, incredulous.
Kurama managed a nod. Bingyow sat down suddenly, stunned. Kurama
willed himself not to reach out and grab something. Finally, Bingyow
spoke.
"Why Father? Why did you leave me? I needed you." the kitten said
plaintively.
"I...I was scared." Kurama admitted.
"Of what?" Bingyow asked.
Of you. Kurama thought.
"They took you away...and they wouldn't let me see you." he said
instead.
"Why wouldn't they let you see me?" Bingyow asked.
"I don't know. They wouldn't say. I got scared. I thought...they were
going to hurt you. They said you would be fine. I...I tried to get a
message to you, but I couldn't." Kurama lied.
"Oh Father...I didn't realise...I'm sorry if I sounded cross. I
thought you didn't want me anymore." Bingyow said apologetically.
"It's alright." Kurama said. "I'm only sorry that I couldn't have
stopped them."
"Oh no, Father. There were far too many of them for you to have
stopped." Bingyow said comfortingly.
Hiei almost snorted at the thought of a kitten comforting a six foot
plus fox.
"How have you been?" Kurama asked.
"Bored, mostly. But I did spend a lot of time going over the stealing
techniques you taught me." Bingyow said. "And you, Father? Why do you
look so different?"
Kurama coughed slightly.
"I, er, was being, ah, hunted and, um, I was hurt badly. Anyway, I,
erm, had to hide in a, ah, human child's body." Kurama hedged.
"You had to hide? You, the greatest thief in all the Makai?!" Bingyow
said disbelievingly.
Hiei choked on a snicker. 'The greatest thief in all the Makai'?
"Er, yes." Kurama said.
"You must have been near death." Bingyow said solemnly.
Hiei covered his mouth to smother his snickers. Kurama glanced at him
sideways.
"Ah, yes, um, I, er, was." Kurama managed.
"Poor Father. You must hate it." Bingyow said sympathetically.
Hiei clenched his teeth together, but air hissed out of his mouth.
Kurama shot him another glance.
"Er, it's, um, not as bad as, ah, you think." Kurama managed.
"Oh." Bingyow contemplated this thoughtfully. "So, what great
treasures have you stolen while I was gone?"
Hiei made a strangled sound. This was too much.
"I, er, haven't really, uh, stolen anything important. It's, ah, hard
to sneak around in the Makai with this, um, body." Kurama said.
"Oh. I understand." Bingyow said, nodding. "Who's that?"
He pointed a paw at Hiei.
"A good friend of mine." Kurama said, glaring at the chortling Hiei.
"Is he a thief too?" Bingyow asked.
"Actually, Hiei isn't a thief." Kurama said, suddenly giving Hiei a
wicked smile. "And Hiei's actually a she."
Hiei glared at Kurama, not amused.
"Really? Looks male." Bingyow commented.
"Yes, well, that's because she's also had to hide in a human body."
Kurama said. "In fact, we got married. Meet your new mom."
Bingyow looked Hiei up and down.
"I don't have to call her 'Mom' do I?" Bingyow asked.
"No, of course not." Kurama soothed. "I know that no one could, or
should, replace your real mother."
"Well, congratulations Father." Bingyow said with false enthusiasm.
"Now, Bingyow." Kurama said, recognising Bingyow's mood. "I don't
expect you to like Hiei at first, but I'm sure that you'll end up
loving her almost as much as you love me."
Hiei glowered at Kurama.
"She looks mad." Bingyow noticed.
"She doesn't like it when I talk about us being married. She's kind
of embarrassed about the subject. You know most youkais don't get
married." Kurama explained.
"Oh." Bingyow said. "What do we do now, Father?"
Kurama blinked. He had managed to forget that Bingyow was a dangerous
youkai.
"I don't know." He admitted.
Hiei gave him an incredulous look. Kurama had made him promise not to
kill Bingyow and now Kurama had no idea what to do. Bingyow took a
couple steps towards Kurama. Hiei flashed over to Kurama's side,
slightly in front, to protect him. Bingyow stared at Hiei in
incomprehension.
"What's wrong?" Bingyow asked.
"She's afraid that you'll kill me by touching me." Kurama explained
gently.
"But I have touched you before." Bingyow protested.
"But he's in a human body know." Hiei said. "He might be hurt."
"Could you not just revert to your original self?" Bingyow asked.
Kurama shook his head.
"Does that mean that I can't touch you?" Bingyow asked sadly.
"Yes." Kurama said with deliberate slowness.
Bingyow looked mournful.
"Alright." He agreed sadly. "I won't touch you until we know that you
won't be hurt by me."
Kurama nodded and looked sad, trying to hide the glee that he was
feeling.
"Can we go home now, Father?" Bingyow asked.
"Home?" Kurama blinked.
"Yes. I'm tired." Bingyow said in a small voice.
"Alright." Kurama agreed.
Luckily, his parents, as usual, were away on vacation. Bingyow
followed Kurama to Kurama's house. Kurama and Hiei had to ignore the
girls so that Bingyow wouldn't think that they were against him.
Yusuke sighed as Yukina and Keiko finally finished packing.
"We want to be able to leave BEFORE Bingyow comes." Kuwabara said
impatiently.
"We have to prepare for a long term departure." Keiko said calmly.
They hustled out the door and headed for their hiding place.
Kurama, Hiei, and Bingyow were at Kurama's home. Bingyow was
drinking a saucer of milk. Kurama and Hiei were siting beside each
other on the couch, wondering what to do next. Bingyow seemed content
so far to be just near Kurama. Hiei wanted to take out his katana and
slice Bingyow into bits. However, Kurama heavily cautioned against
the idea. Bingyow was tired from his escape and wanted to go to sleep
soon. Kurama set Bingyow up in his bedroom.
"Will you read me the poem, Father?" Bingyow asked he curled up in
Kurama's bed.
Kurama sighed in mock exasperation and rolled his eyes. Bingyow
giggled.
"Very well." Kurama said in an annoyed voice.
Lowering his voice, he started to recite.
" 'All of the Gods
Dragons, rocs, unicorns, fauns,
All of the gods, chess pawns.
Warlocks, sorcerers, witches, and mages.
All of the gods, evil pages.
Kings, queens, and royalty,
All of the gods throw them in the sea.
But a youkai with pink fur, blue eyes, and more,
All of the gods will adore.
If pressed to far and treated like slaves,
All of the gods will not behave.
With floods and famines and people at a loss,
All of the gods show who is boss.
With prayers and offerings and little messages in trees,
All of the gods will be happy and pleased.
Politeness and crawling and grovelling about,
All of the gods will be peaceful, no doubt.
When all of the earth dies away,
All of the gods, forever will stay.' "
Bingyow purred in his sleep. Kurama quietly left the room. He closed
the door and turned around to see Hiei with a big grin on his face.
Kurama put a finger to his lips and motioned for Hiei to follow him
downstairs. They sat down on the couch.
"Who made up that poem?" Hiei asked.
"Me." Kurama said, embarrassed.
Hiei snorted.
"I didn't exactly try very hard." Kurama hissed.
"You seem to be getting along with him quite well." Hiei said.
"He's not touching me." Kurama answered. "I realise now that he
really just wanted attention and I...gave it in a desperate attempt
to keep him from touching me. And that sort of attention wasn't what
he wanted, which is why he still wants me around all the time."
"Hn. Stupid human. Only you would be able to forgive someone who
caused you so much pain." Hiei said.
"You wouldn't." Kurama said.
"Of course I wouldn't. I'd never forgive someone who caused you pain.
I mean, caused me pain." Hiei corrected quickly.
Kurama looked at Hiei oddly for a moment but said nothing. Hiei
looked at the wall and cursed himself silently.
"Still, I can't imagine forgiving him." Hiei muttered to himself.
Kurama grinned slightly but said nothing. They sat in silence for a
while.
"So, what are we going to do?" Hiei asked, finally breaking the
silence.
"I don't know yet." Kurama admitted. "The smart thing to do would be
to kill him but for some reason, I can't bring myself to do that
anymore."
He laughed suddenly.
"Funny, before I wouldn't have hesitated to kill him if I had the
chance." He mused.
Hiei snorted softly in response.
"You think someone would have tried to find a cure by now." He
muttered.
"What was that?" Kurama said softly.
"Nothing." Hiei said quickly.
"No, repeat yourself, please." Kurama said.
"I said, you think someone would have tried to find a cure by now."
Hiei repeated.
Kurama gave him a wondering look. Hiei grew embarrassed under his
penetrating gaze. He mumbled something and turned away.
"Hiei." Kurama said, grabbing Hiei's arm and forcing him to face him.
"You're brilliant."
Hiei stared at him, unaccustomed to praise.
"Hn, of course I am." He said scornfully.
Kurama grinned and tightened his grip on Hiei's arm in excitement.
"We can test Bingyow until we find a cure. Then he will be harmless.
Oh, Hiei, you're a genius. Why didn't I think of that?"
Kurama cursed himself inwardly, then realised that he was still
gripping Hiei's arm.
"Sorry." Kurama said, releasing Hiei. "I think that if I can convince
Bingyow to let me find a cure so that we can be together, he'll stop
infecting people. Thanks Hiei."
Kurama smiled warmly at Hiei, who looked away, uncomfortable.
"We'd better get a good night's sleep." Kurama said. "You can use my
parents' room, I'll take the couch. Good night, my dear."
Hiei glared at Kurama's teasing.
"I'm going to get you for that." Hiei threatened.
"Ooh, I'm scared." Kurama replied mockingly before lying down on the
couch.
Hiei managed to just get off the couch before Kurama lay down. Kurama
grinned at him, closed his eyes, and went to sleep. Hiei looked at
Kurama for a moment before going to the master bedroom.
The next day at breakfast, Kurama told Bingyow about his idea
to find a cure for Kurama so that he could touch Bingyow. The kitten
agreed to the idea instantly, wanting to hug his father joyfully.
Kurama made Bingyow promise to stay in the house until Kurama
returned with the materials he needed to find a cure. Hiei was left
to take care of Bingyow until Kurama returned. Hiei flopped down on
the couch and polished his katana. Bingyow curled up in an armchair
and watched Hiei.
"Why do you carry that?" Bingyow asked.
"To kill others." Hiei said shortly.
"Really?" Bingyow seemed sceptical.
"Yes." Hiei said.
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why do you kill others?"
"Because they want to kill me."
"Really?"
"Yes, really! Why do you kill others?" Hiei shot back, annoyed.
"I don't!" Bingyow protected.
"You killed that girl." Hiei reminded.
"It's fun." Bingyow admitted grudgingly.
"Really?"
It was Hiei's turn to be sceptical.
"Really." Bingyow said reluctantly.
"You don't really find it fun." Hiei stated.
Bingyow nodded.
"Then why?"
"Because...it's the only way to keep Father near me." Bingyow said
quietly.
Hiei sat up suddenly in surprise.
"What?!" he said in disbelief. "You kill others just so that Kurama
will stay near you?"
Bingyow nodded.
"Why?" Hiei asked.
"I love him." Bingyow replied simply. "He's my father. I know he
can't love me the way I want him to because I killed mother and he
can't forgive me completely for that. But I need him to love me."
Hiei stared at him.
"Wouldn't you?" Bingyow defended.
"What?"
"Wouldn't you kill people if it kept Father near you?" Bingyow
asked.
Hiei scowled.
"No. Hn. Who would want to kill people just to get that stupid fox's
attention." He replied.
"I thought you loved him." Bingyow said, confused.
"Hn, that idiot? Causes me nothing but trouble. Ever since I met him
he was nothing but trouble." Hiei trailed off, remembering the first
time he had met Kurama.
"You love him, don't you?" Bingyow said softly.
"Yes." Hiei said just as softly, without thinking.
Then he realised what he had said.
"No." he quickly corrected himself.
"You do love him." Bingyow said, delighted.
"No I don't." Hiei growled.
"Yes you do." Bingyow teased.
"Be quiet." Hiei snarled.
"You love him, you love him." Bingyow sang.
Hiei reached out quickly and swatted Bingyow off the couch in
annoyance.
"No!" Bingyow said suddenly.
Hiei froze as he realised what he had just done.
"Oh no! You touched me. Father's going to be mad." Bingyow moaned in
despair.
Hiei looked at his hand, incredulous. He could believe that he had
done something so stupid.
"Father!!" Bingyow hollered at the top of his tiny lungs. "Father!!"
'Kurama.' Hiei thought, sending his ki out to find Kurama. 'Get back
quick.'
"Oh no, no, no, no." Bingyow wailed. "Uh, lie down and stay calm. Um,
breath deeply, I'll go get a bucket, just in case."
He dashed off into the kitchen. Hiei frowned. Lie down? He felt fine.
Then it hit him. He double over and mashed his face into the cushion.
He tried to retch but nothing happened. He shook and then gasped as
pain shot through him. It was a pain that he had never felt before.
He cried out loud in agony and began convulsing. Bingyow ran in with
the bucket but was unable to help. Hiei screamed as he lost himself
in the pain, pain, pain...
By Dandragon Wolf
All characters, minus the kitten (I hate cats), do not belong
to me (although I must admit I wish they did), they belong to their
respective creators (you know who they are), I just write stories.
Enjoy. Some yaoi content. No lemons (never any good lemons to be
found when you need them. Besides, my wife would kill me).
"Botan! Damn, we're dead! Botan!"
The summons shook the palace walls. Servants everywhere cringed and
fled.
"Botan! Damn you! Get over here! Now! Oh, we are in so much trouble.
Botan!"
Pace, pace, pace, turn. Pace, pace, pace, turn.
"I'm he-"
"Botan! What took you so long, damnit? Get the YYH team now! Now I
said!"
Pace, pace, pace, turn. Pace, pace, pace...
"What's so urgent?"
"I don't know, she didn't tell me."
"Why not?"
"She doesn't know either, he just told her to get us."
"Strange."
"Hn."
"Hurry up! He's here and unhappy."
"Hn."
"Hey, what's-"
"What do you-"
"You wan-"
"Quiet, all of you!"
The babble of voices sorted themselves out as Koenma silenced them.
"Now, I called you all here because we are in big trouble. An SS plus
demon has escaped from his prison and is on the loose. You have to
try and stop him."
"No problem." Yusuke said confidently.
"No, there's a big problem." Koenma said, looking scared. "He's one
of the most dangerous demons you will ever meet."
"Why?" Kuwabara asked.
"He carries a disease that kills humans and hurts most youkais."
Koenma informed.
"Wow." Kuwabara said, subdued.
"What are the symptoms like?" Yusuke asked.
"Well, the person infected feels like throwing up. Five minutes
later, that person is on the ground, unconscious and twitching."
Koenma described.
"Yuck." Kuwabara said.
Hiei noticed movement and glanced at Kurama, who was looking very
pale.
"Kurama?" Hiei said quietly.
He became alarmed as Kurama sat down suddenly, put a hand to his
mouth, and started shaking.
"Kurama!" Hiei said.
The others turned to them.
"Kurama! What's wrong?" Yusuke asked.
Kurama shook his head violently and clutched Hiei's arm suddenly in
an effort to control himself.
"His name is Bingyow." Koenma continued slowly, watching Kurama's
reaction. "He resembles a small white cat in the Ningenkai and is
actually a small, puffy, pink cat in the Makai."
Kurama's grip tightened on Hiei's arm. Hiei winced in surprise at the
strength behind that grip.
"Kurama?" Yusuke said, reaching out halfway to touch Kurama.
"You know Bingyow, don't you?" Koenma said softly.
Kurama nodded.
"Calm down, Kurama, it can't be that bad." Kuwabara said.
"It's worse." Kurama said hoarsely. "Much worse."
"What happened?" Yusuke asked.
"Bingyow is a Forbidden Child. When he was born, he killed his mother
and father. Not on purpose, just because they touched him. He grew up
in a matter of hours. However, he couldn't touch anyone without
either killing them or hurting them. A lot of demons that he touched
were crippled for life. He craved comfort from his parents, but they
were dead. So he sought comfort from his parent's good friend, who
was at the birthing and had watching them die. In Bingyow's eyes,
this friend was his parent. But because of the disease, the friend
was infected. The friend was sick for days on end. Twitching in pain,
as if fire and ice were coursing through his heart and steel rods
were being run through him. After what seemed like eternity, the
friend recovered, his body building a partial immunity to the
disease. Bingyow was ecstatic. He rushed to the friend and snuggled
up in his lap. Pain went through the friend at the contact, but there
was nothing he could do. He was forced to take care of Bingyow and
feel whiplashes of ice in him whenever they touched, which was
frequent. Bingyow worshipped the friend, calling him 'Father' and
staying beside him at all times. Bingyow learned the friend's trade
but enjoyed infecting people more. The friend was devastated, scared,
and in pain. He did the only thing he could think of, he secretly
told another demon that Bingyow was the one who was killing all the
humans and hurting the demons. That demon contacted the King and,
with the friend's help, they trapped Bingyow in a prison with ten SS
plus demons guarding him at all times. He was trapped in a fortress
surrounded by the demons' ki. The friend was so glad to be rid of
Bingyow that he fled immediately." Kurama said slowly, letting go of
Hiei's arm and clasping his hands together.
"You were the friend, weren't you?" Yusuke said softly.
Kurama managed a nod.
"You're Father." Koenma said incredulously.
"What?" Kuwabara said.
"I've been taking care of the demons who guard Bingyow. They tell me
that he often cries for Father and wants to know why Father ran
away." Koenma said.
Kurama shuddered once.
"I can still remember the feeling of touching him. It was horrible,
like having blunt rods run through your arms and legs. Sometimes, it
was fire coursing through my arteries and veins. I was frozen inside,
as if I had extreme frostbite." Kurama whispered.
"I'm sorry." Koenma said. "I shouldn't have you on this case."
"No." Kurama said. "I'm the only one who can keep him from infecting
others. I'm the only one...the only one that he cares about. I can
put him back in prison. He won't listen to anyone else."
"Kurama, you don't have to. You've already been through a lot."
Yusuke said.
"No! You don't understand him, Yusuke. I do. I can, have to, trap him
again. I can't let him loose in the Ningenkai and Makai. I couldn't
sleep knowing that. You didn't see the demons he killed and crippled.
You didn't feel the pain that I and many others had to go through.
He'll kill every human he can get near. We have to stop him, Yusuke,
we have to." Kurama pleaded.
Yusuke looked at him for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright." He agreed.
"Yusuke, I want you and Kuwabara to get your friends to safety and
alert the humans that a new disease is here." Koenma instructed.
"Kurama, you and Hiei will be in charge of finding Bingyow."
"I should do it by myself. I don't want Hiei to get infected." Kurama
protested.
"Hiei's the only one who's fast enough to avoid Bingyow's reach.
Yusuke and Kuwabara will easily be infected. You need Hiei to go as
back-up." Koenma insisted.
"Hn." Hiei said, unhappy about being back-up.
"Alright. Let's get to it." Yusuke said.
He and Kuwabara nodded and left.
"Do you know approximately where Bingyow is?" Kurama asked.
"Yes."
"Good. Tell us and we'll be on our way."
Kurama and Hiei were searching the city. It was hard to spot
a small white kitten.
"So, you distract it and I'll kill it?" Hiei suggested.
"No." Kurama said. "I don't want to risk the chance that you'll get
infected."
"Hn. Stupid. I'm a lot faster than you are. I can get in and kill
him, no problem." Hiei said.
"No!" Kurama insisted, grabbing Hiei by the arm and making him face
him.
Kurama locked eyes with Hiei.
"It's not worth it, Hiei. I'll be the one to kill him. I've already
got a partial immunity. I can handle it. Promise you won't try and
kill him. Promise!"
Hiei stared back, something flickered in his eyes. Kurama tightened
his grip. Finally, Hiei tore his gaze away.
"Fine." He said gruffly.
"Thank you." Kurama said softly.
They continued on their way.
"Oh, look! What a cute little kitten!" the girl squealed to
her friend.
"Oh, it's soo cute!" the other girl cooed. "Here kitty, kitty..."
The fluffy little white kitten went over to the girls. The first girl
bent down to pick the kitten up.
"Don't touch that cat!"
The girls looked up to see a handsome redhead and a handsome black
haired man standing in front of them.
"Why not?" the second girl demanded.
"He's ours." The redhead said.
"Oh. Well, here you go then."
Before the men could react, the girl picked up the kitten and started
towards them.
"No!" Kurama cried out in horror.
The girl stopped suddenly and dropped the kitten. The other girl
started towards her. The kitten went towards her. Hiei moved to
intercept.
"Hiei, no!" Kurama ordered.
Hiei stopped and look back at him.
"You don't want to be infected." Kurama said.
The kitten continued it's way towards the girl. Hiei gave Kurama a
questioning look. Kurama stared back, eyes frightened and desperate.
Hiei gave a slight snort. Kurama's eyes steadied and he took a deep
breath.
"Bingyow." He called in what he hoped was a familiar tone.
The kitten stopped and stared at Kurama.
"Hello again, Bingyow." Kurama said softly.
"Who are you?" the kitten said.
The girl stared at the kitten, then fainted. The other girl fell to
the ground and started to convulse. Kurama desperately tried to
ignore her. The kitten stepped towards Kurama, who had to mentally
stop himself from flinching back.
"Who are you?" the kitten repeated. "How do you know who I am?"
"Don't you remember me?" Kurama said in a joking tone.
"You don't look familiar." the kitten commented thoughtfully.
" 'Dragons, rocs, unicorns, fauns,
All of the gods, chess pawns...' " Kurama said gently.
" 'Warlocks, sorcerers, witches, and mages
All of the gods, evil pages.
Kings, queens, and royalty,
All of the gods throw them in the sea...' " the kitten said softly.
He gazed at Kurama in disbelief.
"Father?" Bingyow said softly, incredulous.
Kurama managed a nod. Bingyow sat down suddenly, stunned. Kurama
willed himself not to reach out and grab something. Finally, Bingyow
spoke.
"Why Father? Why did you leave me? I needed you." the kitten said
plaintively.
"I...I was scared." Kurama admitted.
"Of what?" Bingyow asked.
Of you. Kurama thought.
"They took you away...and they wouldn't let me see you." he said
instead.
"Why wouldn't they let you see me?" Bingyow asked.
"I don't know. They wouldn't say. I got scared. I thought...they were
going to hurt you. They said you would be fine. I...I tried to get a
message to you, but I couldn't." Kurama lied.
"Oh Father...I didn't realise...I'm sorry if I sounded cross. I
thought you didn't want me anymore." Bingyow said apologetically.
"It's alright." Kurama said. "I'm only sorry that I couldn't have
stopped them."
"Oh no, Father. There were far too many of them for you to have
stopped." Bingyow said comfortingly.
Hiei almost snorted at the thought of a kitten comforting a six foot
plus fox.
"How have you been?" Kurama asked.
"Bored, mostly. But I did spend a lot of time going over the stealing
techniques you taught me." Bingyow said. "And you, Father? Why do you
look so different?"
Kurama coughed slightly.
"I, er, was being, ah, hunted and, um, I was hurt badly. Anyway, I,
erm, had to hide in a, ah, human child's body." Kurama hedged.
"You had to hide? You, the greatest thief in all the Makai?!" Bingyow
said disbelievingly.
Hiei choked on a snicker. 'The greatest thief in all the Makai'?
"Er, yes." Kurama said.
"You must have been near death." Bingyow said solemnly.
Hiei covered his mouth to smother his snickers. Kurama glanced at him
sideways.
"Ah, yes, um, I, er, was." Kurama managed.
"Poor Father. You must hate it." Bingyow said sympathetically.
Hiei clenched his teeth together, but air hissed out of his mouth.
Kurama shot him another glance.
"Er, it's, um, not as bad as, ah, you think." Kurama managed.
"Oh." Bingyow contemplated this thoughtfully. "So, what great
treasures have you stolen while I was gone?"
Hiei made a strangled sound. This was too much.
"I, er, haven't really, uh, stolen anything important. It's, ah, hard
to sneak around in the Makai with this, um, body." Kurama said.
"Oh. I understand." Bingyow said, nodding. "Who's that?"
He pointed a paw at Hiei.
"A good friend of mine." Kurama said, glaring at the chortling Hiei.
"Is he a thief too?" Bingyow asked.
"Actually, Hiei isn't a thief." Kurama said, suddenly giving Hiei a
wicked smile. "And Hiei's actually a she."
Hiei glared at Kurama, not amused.
"Really? Looks male." Bingyow commented.
"Yes, well, that's because she's also had to hide in a human body."
Kurama said. "In fact, we got married. Meet your new mom."
Bingyow looked Hiei up and down.
"I don't have to call her 'Mom' do I?" Bingyow asked.
"No, of course not." Kurama soothed. "I know that no one could, or
should, replace your real mother."
"Well, congratulations Father." Bingyow said with false enthusiasm.
"Now, Bingyow." Kurama said, recognising Bingyow's mood. "I don't
expect you to like Hiei at first, but I'm sure that you'll end up
loving her almost as much as you love me."
Hiei glowered at Kurama.
"She looks mad." Bingyow noticed.
"She doesn't like it when I talk about us being married. She's kind
of embarrassed about the subject. You know most youkais don't get
married." Kurama explained.
"Oh." Bingyow said. "What do we do now, Father?"
Kurama blinked. He had managed to forget that Bingyow was a dangerous
youkai.
"I don't know." He admitted.
Hiei gave him an incredulous look. Kurama had made him promise not to
kill Bingyow and now Kurama had no idea what to do. Bingyow took a
couple steps towards Kurama. Hiei flashed over to Kurama's side,
slightly in front, to protect him. Bingyow stared at Hiei in
incomprehension.
"What's wrong?" Bingyow asked.
"She's afraid that you'll kill me by touching me." Kurama explained
gently.
"But I have touched you before." Bingyow protested.
"But he's in a human body know." Hiei said. "He might be hurt."
"Could you not just revert to your original self?" Bingyow asked.
Kurama shook his head.
"Does that mean that I can't touch you?" Bingyow asked sadly.
"Yes." Kurama said with deliberate slowness.
Bingyow looked mournful.
"Alright." He agreed sadly. "I won't touch you until we know that you
won't be hurt by me."
Kurama nodded and looked sad, trying to hide the glee that he was
feeling.
"Can we go home now, Father?" Bingyow asked.
"Home?" Kurama blinked.
"Yes. I'm tired." Bingyow said in a small voice.
"Alright." Kurama agreed.
Luckily, his parents, as usual, were away on vacation. Bingyow
followed Kurama to Kurama's house. Kurama and Hiei had to ignore the
girls so that Bingyow wouldn't think that they were against him.
Yusuke sighed as Yukina and Keiko finally finished packing.
"We want to be able to leave BEFORE Bingyow comes." Kuwabara said
impatiently.
"We have to prepare for a long term departure." Keiko said calmly.
They hustled out the door and headed for their hiding place.
Kurama, Hiei, and Bingyow were at Kurama's home. Bingyow was
drinking a saucer of milk. Kurama and Hiei were siting beside each
other on the couch, wondering what to do next. Bingyow seemed content
so far to be just near Kurama. Hiei wanted to take out his katana and
slice Bingyow into bits. However, Kurama heavily cautioned against
the idea. Bingyow was tired from his escape and wanted to go to sleep
soon. Kurama set Bingyow up in his bedroom.
"Will you read me the poem, Father?" Bingyow asked he curled up in
Kurama's bed.
Kurama sighed in mock exasperation and rolled his eyes. Bingyow
giggled.
"Very well." Kurama said in an annoyed voice.
Lowering his voice, he started to recite.
" 'All of the Gods
Dragons, rocs, unicorns, fauns,
All of the gods, chess pawns.
Warlocks, sorcerers, witches, and mages.
All of the gods, evil pages.
Kings, queens, and royalty,
All of the gods throw them in the sea.
But a youkai with pink fur, blue eyes, and more,
All of the gods will adore.
If pressed to far and treated like slaves,
All of the gods will not behave.
With floods and famines and people at a loss,
All of the gods show who is boss.
With prayers and offerings and little messages in trees,
All of the gods will be happy and pleased.
Politeness and crawling and grovelling about,
All of the gods will be peaceful, no doubt.
When all of the earth dies away,
All of the gods, forever will stay.' "
Bingyow purred in his sleep. Kurama quietly left the room. He closed
the door and turned around to see Hiei with a big grin on his face.
Kurama put a finger to his lips and motioned for Hiei to follow him
downstairs. They sat down on the couch.
"Who made up that poem?" Hiei asked.
"Me." Kurama said, embarrassed.
Hiei snorted.
"I didn't exactly try very hard." Kurama hissed.
"You seem to be getting along with him quite well." Hiei said.
"He's not touching me." Kurama answered. "I realise now that he
really just wanted attention and I...gave it in a desperate attempt
to keep him from touching me. And that sort of attention wasn't what
he wanted, which is why he still wants me around all the time."
"Hn. Stupid human. Only you would be able to forgive someone who
caused you so much pain." Hiei said.
"You wouldn't." Kurama said.
"Of course I wouldn't. I'd never forgive someone who caused you pain.
I mean, caused me pain." Hiei corrected quickly.
Kurama looked at Hiei oddly for a moment but said nothing. Hiei
looked at the wall and cursed himself silently.
"Still, I can't imagine forgiving him." Hiei muttered to himself.
Kurama grinned slightly but said nothing. They sat in silence for a
while.
"So, what are we going to do?" Hiei asked, finally breaking the
silence.
"I don't know yet." Kurama admitted. "The smart thing to do would be
to kill him but for some reason, I can't bring myself to do that
anymore."
He laughed suddenly.
"Funny, before I wouldn't have hesitated to kill him if I had the
chance." He mused.
Hiei snorted softly in response.
"You think someone would have tried to find a cure by now." He
muttered.
"What was that?" Kurama said softly.
"Nothing." Hiei said quickly.
"No, repeat yourself, please." Kurama said.
"I said, you think someone would have tried to find a cure by now."
Hiei repeated.
Kurama gave him a wondering look. Hiei grew embarrassed under his
penetrating gaze. He mumbled something and turned away.
"Hiei." Kurama said, grabbing Hiei's arm and forcing him to face him.
"You're brilliant."
Hiei stared at him, unaccustomed to praise.
"Hn, of course I am." He said scornfully.
Kurama grinned and tightened his grip on Hiei's arm in excitement.
"We can test Bingyow until we find a cure. Then he will be harmless.
Oh, Hiei, you're a genius. Why didn't I think of that?"
Kurama cursed himself inwardly, then realised that he was still
gripping Hiei's arm.
"Sorry." Kurama said, releasing Hiei. "I think that if I can convince
Bingyow to let me find a cure so that we can be together, he'll stop
infecting people. Thanks Hiei."
Kurama smiled warmly at Hiei, who looked away, uncomfortable.
"We'd better get a good night's sleep." Kurama said. "You can use my
parents' room, I'll take the couch. Good night, my dear."
Hiei glared at Kurama's teasing.
"I'm going to get you for that." Hiei threatened.
"Ooh, I'm scared." Kurama replied mockingly before lying down on the
couch.
Hiei managed to just get off the couch before Kurama lay down. Kurama
grinned at him, closed his eyes, and went to sleep. Hiei looked at
Kurama for a moment before going to the master bedroom.
The next day at breakfast, Kurama told Bingyow about his idea
to find a cure for Kurama so that he could touch Bingyow. The kitten
agreed to the idea instantly, wanting to hug his father joyfully.
Kurama made Bingyow promise to stay in the house until Kurama
returned with the materials he needed to find a cure. Hiei was left
to take care of Bingyow until Kurama returned. Hiei flopped down on
the couch and polished his katana. Bingyow curled up in an armchair
and watched Hiei.
"Why do you carry that?" Bingyow asked.
"To kill others." Hiei said shortly.
"Really?" Bingyow seemed sceptical.
"Yes." Hiei said.
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why do you kill others?"
"Because they want to kill me."
"Really?"
"Yes, really! Why do you kill others?" Hiei shot back, annoyed.
"I don't!" Bingyow protected.
"You killed that girl." Hiei reminded.
"It's fun." Bingyow admitted grudgingly.
"Really?"
It was Hiei's turn to be sceptical.
"Really." Bingyow said reluctantly.
"You don't really find it fun." Hiei stated.
Bingyow nodded.
"Then why?"
"Because...it's the only way to keep Father near me." Bingyow said
quietly.
Hiei sat up suddenly in surprise.
"What?!" he said in disbelief. "You kill others just so that Kurama
will stay near you?"
Bingyow nodded.
"Why?" Hiei asked.
"I love him." Bingyow replied simply. "He's my father. I know he
can't love me the way I want him to because I killed mother and he
can't forgive me completely for that. But I need him to love me."
Hiei stared at him.
"Wouldn't you?" Bingyow defended.
"What?"
"Wouldn't you kill people if it kept Father near you?" Bingyow
asked.
Hiei scowled.
"No. Hn. Who would want to kill people just to get that stupid fox's
attention." He replied.
"I thought you loved him." Bingyow said, confused.
"Hn, that idiot? Causes me nothing but trouble. Ever since I met him
he was nothing but trouble." Hiei trailed off, remembering the first
time he had met Kurama.
"You love him, don't you?" Bingyow said softly.
"Yes." Hiei said just as softly, without thinking.
Then he realised what he had said.
"No." he quickly corrected himself.
"You do love him." Bingyow said, delighted.
"No I don't." Hiei growled.
"Yes you do." Bingyow teased.
"Be quiet." Hiei snarled.
"You love him, you love him." Bingyow sang.
Hiei reached out quickly and swatted Bingyow off the couch in
annoyance.
"No!" Bingyow said suddenly.
Hiei froze as he realised what he had just done.
"Oh no! You touched me. Father's going to be mad." Bingyow moaned in
despair.
Hiei looked at his hand, incredulous. He could believe that he had
done something so stupid.
"Father!!" Bingyow hollered at the top of his tiny lungs. "Father!!"
'Kurama.' Hiei thought, sending his ki out to find Kurama. 'Get back
quick.'
"Oh no, no, no, no." Bingyow wailed. "Uh, lie down and stay calm. Um,
breath deeply, I'll go get a bucket, just in case."
He dashed off into the kitchen. Hiei frowned. Lie down? He felt fine.
Then it hit him. He double over and mashed his face into the cushion.
He tried to retch but nothing happened. He shook and then gasped as
pain shot through him. It was a pain that he had never felt before.
He cried out loud in agony and began convulsing. Bingyow ran in with
the bucket but was unable to help. Hiei screamed as he lost himself
in the pain, pain, pain...