"Mom, I'm going to take a walk in the woods!" you yell over your shoulder.
Your
mom nods as she looks up from her paper as you walk out. Following the
trail up
to the eaves of the forest, you notice a shiny something in the dappled
light
further on through the forest trail. You walk over to it and pick it up. It
is
a
beautiful necklace made of silver, with a rose made of rubies and emeralds
dangling from it. Clasping it around your neck, you stop and think about
what
your mother always said about picking up strange thing-"You had better be
careful, or you'll end up picking some demon's jewel and have to marry
him!!"
You then think about your lineage. You are the daughter of Alley (I know
that's
me, just live with it!), a vampiric human, and Hiei, a fire demon. You have
never seen your father, because you're always out when he comes to visit
your
mother. However, you know when he's been visiting your mother because
there's
always this smoky smell around the house. There are no pictures of your
father,
but you have been told by your mother, Yusuke, Keiko, and Kuwabara that you
have
your father's black hair with white highlights, you mothers stunning blue
eyes,
your father's skill in martial arts, but your mother's disposition.
Suddenly,
you were jolted out of your thoughts by a small white animal hurling itself
at
you and knocking you down. Prying it off your neck, you see it is a white
fox!
Pulling your mother's "magic" leash out of your pocket, you clip it around
his
neck. "This magic will prevent you from getting off," you whisper to the
fox.
As you walk in the back door, you plead to be able to keep the fox- "Please please please, mom? I promise I'll be the one to take care of him!"
"Well, okay honey, just as long as you let me breed him"
"Of course mom, sure!" Three weeks later.
"Uh, mom? Why did you wake me up at three in the morning?" you say groggily, rubbing your eyes.
"Quick, get the fox! One of the dogs is in heat and ready to breed!!" she says.
"Ok," you say. Tugging on the leash, you can't move him. He just won't budge. Finally, Alley goes over to pick him up, but the minute she touches him, there is a flash of blinding light. When the light subsides and your eyes grow used to the dark again, you find yourself staring at a very tall man who had silver hair, fox ears, and a foxtail. Too scared to move, you crouch on the floor beside your bed. But Alley looks up at the tall man, and reaches out her hand. Stroking his cheek, she whispers, "Yoko? Yoko Kurama, is that you?" The man smiles and holds your mother's hand. "Where's Hiei?'
"Hiei is coming. Soon," says Yoko. Your mother smiles.
"Hear that? Hiei's coming, honey!"
"Yeah, mom, that's great," you reply sarcastically. "Just another time for me to be shunted out of the house." Yoko looks at you.
"Has she never met her father?" he asks concernedly.
"It was Hiei's.. wish that he not be revealed to her until her 16th birthday." Your mother stammers.
"That's next year!" you exclaim.
"I dare not go against Hiei's wishes," your beautiful mother mumbles. The doorbell rings. "I'll get it." Alley leaves the room. Yoko watches her, then turns to you.
"Come, we must leave!" he says, pulling you out the window and into the forest.
"Why doesn't my dad want me to see him till I'm 16?" you ask Yoko.
"That's the age your mother was when she met him. 1 year, later, you were born."
"My mom's only 32? I thought she just looked young!"
"When your father got her pregnant (he didn't mean to I'm sure) he transferred some of his ability to age well. Not that your mother needed it, being a vampire. However, you and your parents will both live to be about 1000 years old, but only look 40 when you die."
"Why did we leave?"
"The necklace is leading its master to you! We can't endanger innocent lives!"
"Oh! The necklace!' you exclaim, having forgotten all about it. Yoko led you into the forest.
"Hurry, we must find the sacred tree!" Two hours later. With your feet torn and bleeding, you arms scratched to shreds, and your legs unrecognizable, you reach the sacred tree. Yoko nods at it and touches a knot on the trunk. It immediately widens into a door. Grabbing your waist and jumping in, Yoko soars through darkness, you in his arms. He hugs you to his chest, and when you look up at him, he smiles at you and whispers into your hair, "I don't want to lose you like I lost your mother to Hiei. Promise me you'll never leave me!"
"I promise!" you whisper back. He lifts you higher and kisses you. You suddenly feel quite awkward. Your bones seem to be melting, a sweet weakness is stealing through your blood, and a peculiar ache is growing in your body. It makes you dizzy.
You wake up lying in a green clearing, your head in Yoko's lap. His hands and mouth are stained with blood. You quickly sit up and move away from him, eyeing him nervously. He looks up at you, surprised, and then comprehension dawned on him.
"It's not like that! I promise," he said. "The evil one's minions preyed on you while you slept, and I changed to fox to drive them away."
"I remember my promise, Yoko," you say, hugging him. He smiles down on you.
"I bandaged you. you were hurt so badly." he says.
"Thank you. Sleep now, and I will watch over you," you tell him. He changed to fox form, curled up in your lap, and went to sleep. As you watched him, strange thoughts passed through your head. He was your father's best friend, and had loved your mother. But he was such a beautiful and sensitive creature. Every time you were around him, though, it just felt right. A snapping noise behind you made you jump. A dark figure stood just out the ring of firelight. Grabbing Yoko, you ran up into a tree and put Yoko in a spot where he wouldn't fall while you kept watch. Then breaking off a tree branch, you advance towards the ugly oni, and poke out his eyes before he even realizes what happened. Then pulling out your pocketknife, you plunge it into the soft and unprotected skin on his neck. Orange blood spurts everywhere, and you grin in satisfaction. If that's the only effort the evil one sends to get his necklace back, he must not want it very badly, you think to yourself. But then, from behind every tree around the clearing, steps one of the oni that you just killed. Now you had all of these beasts to deal with, too. Turning you see an oni trying to shake Yoko out of a tree. Streaking towards the evil being, you scream, "Damn it, don't you ever fucking touch him! If you hurt him, I'll have your own balls shoved down your throat!!" Leaping onto the oni's back, you start stabbing it with your tiny knife. The beast shakes you off, then turns to you, club raised. Swinging it mightily around, it connects with your ribcage, and you fly through the air and smash against a tree outside of the circle of fire. You were sure that at least four of your ribs were broken, but you weren't sure. Two voices yelled, "Bastard!!!!!" on unison, and the oni was dead before you could say, "Ningen". The other oni were now dropping like flies, but Yoko wasn't the killer. He was looking for you. But you find yourself being picked up and carried by a pair of strong arms, back into the circle of firelight. The man set you down and leaned over you. You open your eyes, expecting to see Yoko's cool grey eyes, but instead, you find a pair of intense red ones staring straight through you, it seems. The man is wearing a mask, and you cannot see his face. You realize he is saying something.
"Damned bastards. This whole thing is a setup. I guess I'll have to go with you to keep you two out of trouble. Look at her Kurama, she looks just like me. Except the eyes. She has Alley's eyes." The man closed his eyes and two tear gems plink onto the ground in front of him. Plink, plink. Then it clicked.
"Daddy? Dad, is that you?" you whispered, not daring to move for fear of the wracking pain. Yoko heard you, and cried out your name in relief that you were alive. Rushing to your side, he brushes your hair from your face.
"Yes, (script prompt, please Akira), I am here," whispers Hiei. You sit up to hug him, but before you can get your arms around him, a pain in your ribs streaks through you like a hundred daggers being plunged into your side, and you scream. Yoko immediately leans down and kisses you, then starts to check your ribs. Hiei looks at the two of you together, and then it clicks for him.
"Kurama, leave her alone. You stay away from my daughter!" he growled. Yoko's head jerks up as he hears a tone in Hiei's voice he has never heard before.
"Hiei. But I- and she. and," he stutters, but Hiei silences him with a glance.
"I'm just kidding, fox." He snaps. Yoko looks surprised, but then turns back to tend to you with a small smile playing about his lips.
"So, where's Alley?" Yoko asks, pulling off your shirt to bind your ribs while Hiei cuts up cloth to use. Hiei is silent and he keeps toying with his dagger. "Well?" Hiei slams his dagger into the earth and gets up.
"That bastard kidnapped her!" he exploded.
"What?" exclaimed Yoko.
"Mama!" you cry, and then groan because your ribs were on fire.
"Careful, I'm not quite done yet," cautioned Yoko. Hiei comes over to you and crouches in front of you.
"We will save your mother, (script prompt here, please Akira). I promise it!" he alleged. Three Days Later. Leaning on a walking stick and Yoko's arm, you finally manage to get up and walk away from the clearing where you have been staying for the past three days. Your group has been attacked three more times since, but Hiei handled them grandly. It has been four days since the brute that kidnapped your beautiful mother (ME!) has been on the run, but now Yoko said that the energy signal has finally stopped moving and has settled in the City of Ghosts and Apparitions. Hiei and Yoko were both very wary as they stepped inside the large stone gates with one wooden door hanging off its hinge. You keep your head down and cover yourself with a large black cloak as Hiei told you to because even if he was your father, you could sense that he could get very angry if someone disobeyed him. You know realize why your mother never told you about your father. She knew about his wrath, and wanted to steer clear of it. You could see her clearly in your mind, and then another face appeared beside hers. Yoko. He had said, "I don't want to lose you like I lost your mother to Hiei!" Like I lost your mother. So he had loved her too. But you banished their faces from your mind, and soon another floated to the surface. One wearing a black facemask, with red eyes glaring out of the eyeholes. Hiei. He was a mystery to you, yet. you had to focus on your surroundings. Glancing about you, you notice transparent beings and hunched over monsters prowling about the town, and quickly hide your face back under the cloak. You walk for what seems like hours until you finally stop. By this time, you're gasping for breath and each one is killing you. However, on the outside you look cold and ready, and no one can really tell what you feel. Except they can.
"(Script prompt please, Akira), are you okay? You look utterly exhausted!" says Yoko. You hold up your hand and nod.
"I'm fine, Yoko-kun. Don't worry about me!" He nods, but still looks worried. Hiei on the other hand is checking out the gate t the castle.
"So, we have been led here yet again. Only this time the secrets of the castle belong to us, and they cannot fool us. I will go first." Hiei announces. Yoko nods, and the two of you watch as he streaks through the castle. Then, leaning on Yoko, you process through, and come to the end safely. Hiei points you up a staircase, and then says,
"Your mother is here in this castle. I must rescue her."
"Please, can I just see your face?" you plead, turning to him, but Hiei is gone. Yoko pulls you into a tight embrace and then releases you towards the staircase. Climbing up the large stone stairs, you trip and stumble. Yoko immediately swoops down and picks up, starting to carry you up the stairs.
"Yoko! Put me down!" you say, squirming until he lets go. Reluctantly, he sets you down and lets you walk, watching your every move, concern brimming in his eyes. He leads you up the stairs for what seems like forever, and finally stops before a great pair of wooden doors.
"We must go thru here to get to the creep who destroyed your life," hr chokes out.
"Yoko. I am lost for words," you say gently, turning to him.
"There are four oni in there. That's three for me and one for you."
"Nani? Yoko, no! I want two and two!"
"Listen, (script prompt please, Akira), I don't want to risk you! You are too precious to me please.don't endanger yourself for me. I will fight all four of the beasts if the need arises." He approaches you and, taking your chin in his hand, tilts your face up to his. Leaning down, his lips meet yours and you tense up. When he runs his tongue over your lips, you relax and part your lips slightly to let him in. He ends the kiss rather abruptly and faces the door, saying, "If we are about to die, I just want you to know that I love you."
"I love you too, Yoko," you reply, telling yourself that you must not die; you have something to live for now. Pushing open the door, Yoko pulls his whip out, and produces a shining silver dagger, which he presents to you.
"Just in case," he says with a wink. You nod and creep into the room after him.
You slide thru the door as best you can, given your condition, and slip behind a large pillar. You plan to throw the dagger, then grab the fallen oni's weapon and fight more. But, before you can make any moves, you feel a large presence behind you.
A large hand clamps itself over your mouth and you are lifted into the air. You squirm so much that a couple of bandages pop off, but the beast still doesn't let you down. Taking Yoko's silver dagger, you raise it to plunge it into the beast, but it knocks the dagger away. You are now completely helpless, and the beast's claws are digging holes into your skin. You bite the hand clamped over your mouth as hard as you can, and the beast roars in pain. Yoko turns and sees you struggling in the grasp of the demon, and growls. Something deep inside him reawakens, and he hurtles over to where you are. Pulling a seed out from behind his ear, he rakes a deep gash in the creature's stomach. Then, plunging the small object into the wound, he yanks you out of its arms and cradles you gently, all the while intently watching the creature. Presently there is a deep rumbling noise from inside the creature, and you would bet it's not that he's hungry. A huge plant suddenly erupts from the creature's body, splattering-stuff- everywhere. Yoko looks around the room and sees the destruction that has been dealt to the enemy forces. Hardly anything is left whole. You see the destruction that he has caused and are suddenly afraid. You close your eyes until you feel an arm go around your waist. Pushing Yoko away, you scream,
"Get away from me, you blood-thirsty fox!" Yoko grabs you, and hold onto you, even as you thrash and kick and scream for him to let you go. He holds onto you as you cry and struggle, but eventually you wear yourself out. The pain in your ribs is more prominent, and you are exhausted. Yoko's arms go around your waist, his breath is on your neck, and his hair flows around you.
"It will all be fine. Sleep now," Yoko whispers tenderly in your ear, and soon, you are asleep.
~*~
When you wake up, you are behind a large stone pillar, and you have no memory of where you are, or how you got there. Peering out from behind the pillar you see.you gasp as you see Keiko, plunging daggers into the prone form of Yoko, which is tied to a nearby pillar. You shove your fist into your mouth to keep from screaming out his name, and focus on what Keiko is saying to him.
"You're pathetic, fox. You thought you could kill me so as not to endanger your precious ningen girl? Well, as soon as I've killed you, she's next! And there's not a damn thing you can do about it!! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Yoko lifted his head and chuckled softly.
"You will not have such an easy time getting rid of me." Keiko rolled her eyes and laughed again. Your mind races as you try to think of what you know about her. She's married to Yusuke, but neither of them is ever home to care for their twins. Shizuru is always over there for them. That's pretty much it. But now? Why is she attacking Yoko? You decide not to kill her now, but she must be stopped. Pulling out Yoko's dagger, you balance it on your fingertips. You measure the distance, aim, and . the dagger flashes thru the air and sinks deep into Keiko's stomach. She grunts and falls over. Running out, you grab her by the collar and punch her straight in the nose. The blood flies as she topples over backwards and thuds onto the floor, unconscious. Panting hard, you turn towards Yoko, who slumps against the ropes. You race to his side to cut the ropes and he falls to the floor. Cradling him in your lap, he breathes slower, slower, and finally, his breathing stops. Your heart stops beating for a minute. You can't believe that he's dead.. He can't be!!! You scream a wordless scream of anger and despair and slump to the floor beside Yoko. You don't even hear the door open, or your mother kneel beside you. She's bleeding, but the blood is not red. It's black. She lifts you to your feet and embraces you tightly.
"I'm so sorry, honey." Her tears are your consolation. But Hiei will have none of this.
"You ningens are so pathetic. Yoko cannot die. Watch, he will come around. You will see." You nod and sit down to wait for Yoko to come around. He did about the same time as Keiko, who you had bound with her own ropes. Yoko looked terrible. His wounds had been treated by your mother (ME), but he still looked bad. He opened his eyes finally, and the first thing he did was reach up to stroke your face.
"I was so worried about you. I thought that she might have killed you after I had passed out. But you're safe, and that's all that matters." You smile at him. But Hiei suddenly gets up and walks over to Keiko. He grabs her face and as soon as a small green demon pops out of her mouth, he kills it. Then he picks up Keiko and slings her over his shoulder.
"Hn. Let's go." He announces. You agree. Three years and ten months later...
"Kuwei! Puubicha! Yuuskina! Kuroenma!" you call your kits to you. They all come running, hair and tails flying. The two girls have black hair and tails, and the boys have silver. They run and embrace your knees tightly. Yoko comes in with an envelope.
"You got a letter." He says. You reach for it, but he jerks it back. "Only for a kiss!" he laughs. Tweaking his ears you reply,
"Not in front of the kits!" The babes tackle their father, and you think to yourself, all the hardship in the world is worth the joy of a family!
As you walk in the back door, you plead to be able to keep the fox- "Please please please, mom? I promise I'll be the one to take care of him!"
"Well, okay honey, just as long as you let me breed him"
"Of course mom, sure!" Three weeks later.
"Uh, mom? Why did you wake me up at three in the morning?" you say groggily, rubbing your eyes.
"Quick, get the fox! One of the dogs is in heat and ready to breed!!" she says.
"Ok," you say. Tugging on the leash, you can't move him. He just won't budge. Finally, Alley goes over to pick him up, but the minute she touches him, there is a flash of blinding light. When the light subsides and your eyes grow used to the dark again, you find yourself staring at a very tall man who had silver hair, fox ears, and a foxtail. Too scared to move, you crouch on the floor beside your bed. But Alley looks up at the tall man, and reaches out her hand. Stroking his cheek, she whispers, "Yoko? Yoko Kurama, is that you?" The man smiles and holds your mother's hand. "Where's Hiei?'
"Hiei is coming. Soon," says Yoko. Your mother smiles.
"Hear that? Hiei's coming, honey!"
"Yeah, mom, that's great," you reply sarcastically. "Just another time for me to be shunted out of the house." Yoko looks at you.
"Has she never met her father?" he asks concernedly.
"It was Hiei's.. wish that he not be revealed to her until her 16th birthday." Your mother stammers.
"That's next year!" you exclaim.
"I dare not go against Hiei's wishes," your beautiful mother mumbles. The doorbell rings. "I'll get it." Alley leaves the room. Yoko watches her, then turns to you.
"Come, we must leave!" he says, pulling you out the window and into the forest.
"Why doesn't my dad want me to see him till I'm 16?" you ask Yoko.
"That's the age your mother was when she met him. 1 year, later, you were born."
"My mom's only 32? I thought she just looked young!"
"When your father got her pregnant (he didn't mean to I'm sure) he transferred some of his ability to age well. Not that your mother needed it, being a vampire. However, you and your parents will both live to be about 1000 years old, but only look 40 when you die."
"Why did we leave?"
"The necklace is leading its master to you! We can't endanger innocent lives!"
"Oh! The necklace!' you exclaim, having forgotten all about it. Yoko led you into the forest.
"Hurry, we must find the sacred tree!" Two hours later. With your feet torn and bleeding, you arms scratched to shreds, and your legs unrecognizable, you reach the sacred tree. Yoko nods at it and touches a knot on the trunk. It immediately widens into a door. Grabbing your waist and jumping in, Yoko soars through darkness, you in his arms. He hugs you to his chest, and when you look up at him, he smiles at you and whispers into your hair, "I don't want to lose you like I lost your mother to Hiei. Promise me you'll never leave me!"
"I promise!" you whisper back. He lifts you higher and kisses you. You suddenly feel quite awkward. Your bones seem to be melting, a sweet weakness is stealing through your blood, and a peculiar ache is growing in your body. It makes you dizzy.
You wake up lying in a green clearing, your head in Yoko's lap. His hands and mouth are stained with blood. You quickly sit up and move away from him, eyeing him nervously. He looks up at you, surprised, and then comprehension dawned on him.
"It's not like that! I promise," he said. "The evil one's minions preyed on you while you slept, and I changed to fox to drive them away."
"I remember my promise, Yoko," you say, hugging him. He smiles down on you.
"I bandaged you. you were hurt so badly." he says.
"Thank you. Sleep now, and I will watch over you," you tell him. He changed to fox form, curled up in your lap, and went to sleep. As you watched him, strange thoughts passed through your head. He was your father's best friend, and had loved your mother. But he was such a beautiful and sensitive creature. Every time you were around him, though, it just felt right. A snapping noise behind you made you jump. A dark figure stood just out the ring of firelight. Grabbing Yoko, you ran up into a tree and put Yoko in a spot where he wouldn't fall while you kept watch. Then breaking off a tree branch, you advance towards the ugly oni, and poke out his eyes before he even realizes what happened. Then pulling out your pocketknife, you plunge it into the soft and unprotected skin on his neck. Orange blood spurts everywhere, and you grin in satisfaction. If that's the only effort the evil one sends to get his necklace back, he must not want it very badly, you think to yourself. But then, from behind every tree around the clearing, steps one of the oni that you just killed. Now you had all of these beasts to deal with, too. Turning you see an oni trying to shake Yoko out of a tree. Streaking towards the evil being, you scream, "Damn it, don't you ever fucking touch him! If you hurt him, I'll have your own balls shoved down your throat!!" Leaping onto the oni's back, you start stabbing it with your tiny knife. The beast shakes you off, then turns to you, club raised. Swinging it mightily around, it connects with your ribcage, and you fly through the air and smash against a tree outside of the circle of fire. You were sure that at least four of your ribs were broken, but you weren't sure. Two voices yelled, "Bastard!!!!!" on unison, and the oni was dead before you could say, "Ningen". The other oni were now dropping like flies, but Yoko wasn't the killer. He was looking for you. But you find yourself being picked up and carried by a pair of strong arms, back into the circle of firelight. The man set you down and leaned over you. You open your eyes, expecting to see Yoko's cool grey eyes, but instead, you find a pair of intense red ones staring straight through you, it seems. The man is wearing a mask, and you cannot see his face. You realize he is saying something.
"Damned bastards. This whole thing is a setup. I guess I'll have to go with you to keep you two out of trouble. Look at her Kurama, she looks just like me. Except the eyes. She has Alley's eyes." The man closed his eyes and two tear gems plink onto the ground in front of him. Plink, plink. Then it clicked.
"Daddy? Dad, is that you?" you whispered, not daring to move for fear of the wracking pain. Yoko heard you, and cried out your name in relief that you were alive. Rushing to your side, he brushes your hair from your face.
"Yes, (script prompt, please Akira), I am here," whispers Hiei. You sit up to hug him, but before you can get your arms around him, a pain in your ribs streaks through you like a hundred daggers being plunged into your side, and you scream. Yoko immediately leans down and kisses you, then starts to check your ribs. Hiei looks at the two of you together, and then it clicks for him.
"Kurama, leave her alone. You stay away from my daughter!" he growled. Yoko's head jerks up as he hears a tone in Hiei's voice he has never heard before.
"Hiei. But I- and she. and," he stutters, but Hiei silences him with a glance.
"I'm just kidding, fox." He snaps. Yoko looks surprised, but then turns back to tend to you with a small smile playing about his lips.
"So, where's Alley?" Yoko asks, pulling off your shirt to bind your ribs while Hiei cuts up cloth to use. Hiei is silent and he keeps toying with his dagger. "Well?" Hiei slams his dagger into the earth and gets up.
"That bastard kidnapped her!" he exploded.
"What?" exclaimed Yoko.
"Mama!" you cry, and then groan because your ribs were on fire.
"Careful, I'm not quite done yet," cautioned Yoko. Hiei comes over to you and crouches in front of you.
"We will save your mother, (script prompt here, please Akira). I promise it!" he alleged. Three Days Later. Leaning on a walking stick and Yoko's arm, you finally manage to get up and walk away from the clearing where you have been staying for the past three days. Your group has been attacked three more times since, but Hiei handled them grandly. It has been four days since the brute that kidnapped your beautiful mother (ME!) has been on the run, but now Yoko said that the energy signal has finally stopped moving and has settled in the City of Ghosts and Apparitions. Hiei and Yoko were both very wary as they stepped inside the large stone gates with one wooden door hanging off its hinge. You keep your head down and cover yourself with a large black cloak as Hiei told you to because even if he was your father, you could sense that he could get very angry if someone disobeyed him. You know realize why your mother never told you about your father. She knew about his wrath, and wanted to steer clear of it. You could see her clearly in your mind, and then another face appeared beside hers. Yoko. He had said, "I don't want to lose you like I lost your mother to Hiei!" Like I lost your mother. So he had loved her too. But you banished their faces from your mind, and soon another floated to the surface. One wearing a black facemask, with red eyes glaring out of the eyeholes. Hiei. He was a mystery to you, yet. you had to focus on your surroundings. Glancing about you, you notice transparent beings and hunched over monsters prowling about the town, and quickly hide your face back under the cloak. You walk for what seems like hours until you finally stop. By this time, you're gasping for breath and each one is killing you. However, on the outside you look cold and ready, and no one can really tell what you feel. Except they can.
"(Script prompt please, Akira), are you okay? You look utterly exhausted!" says Yoko. You hold up your hand and nod.
"I'm fine, Yoko-kun. Don't worry about me!" He nods, but still looks worried. Hiei on the other hand is checking out the gate t the castle.
"So, we have been led here yet again. Only this time the secrets of the castle belong to us, and they cannot fool us. I will go first." Hiei announces. Yoko nods, and the two of you watch as he streaks through the castle. Then, leaning on Yoko, you process through, and come to the end safely. Hiei points you up a staircase, and then says,
"Your mother is here in this castle. I must rescue her."
"Please, can I just see your face?" you plead, turning to him, but Hiei is gone. Yoko pulls you into a tight embrace and then releases you towards the staircase. Climbing up the large stone stairs, you trip and stumble. Yoko immediately swoops down and picks up, starting to carry you up the stairs.
"Yoko! Put me down!" you say, squirming until he lets go. Reluctantly, he sets you down and lets you walk, watching your every move, concern brimming in his eyes. He leads you up the stairs for what seems like forever, and finally stops before a great pair of wooden doors.
"We must go thru here to get to the creep who destroyed your life," hr chokes out.
"Yoko. I am lost for words," you say gently, turning to him.
"There are four oni in there. That's three for me and one for you."
"Nani? Yoko, no! I want two and two!"
"Listen, (script prompt please, Akira), I don't want to risk you! You are too precious to me please.don't endanger yourself for me. I will fight all four of the beasts if the need arises." He approaches you and, taking your chin in his hand, tilts your face up to his. Leaning down, his lips meet yours and you tense up. When he runs his tongue over your lips, you relax and part your lips slightly to let him in. He ends the kiss rather abruptly and faces the door, saying, "If we are about to die, I just want you to know that I love you."
"I love you too, Yoko," you reply, telling yourself that you must not die; you have something to live for now. Pushing open the door, Yoko pulls his whip out, and produces a shining silver dagger, which he presents to you.
"Just in case," he says with a wink. You nod and creep into the room after him.
You slide thru the door as best you can, given your condition, and slip behind a large pillar. You plan to throw the dagger, then grab the fallen oni's weapon and fight more. But, before you can make any moves, you feel a large presence behind you.
A large hand clamps itself over your mouth and you are lifted into the air. You squirm so much that a couple of bandages pop off, but the beast still doesn't let you down. Taking Yoko's silver dagger, you raise it to plunge it into the beast, but it knocks the dagger away. You are now completely helpless, and the beast's claws are digging holes into your skin. You bite the hand clamped over your mouth as hard as you can, and the beast roars in pain. Yoko turns and sees you struggling in the grasp of the demon, and growls. Something deep inside him reawakens, and he hurtles over to where you are. Pulling a seed out from behind his ear, he rakes a deep gash in the creature's stomach. Then, plunging the small object into the wound, he yanks you out of its arms and cradles you gently, all the while intently watching the creature. Presently there is a deep rumbling noise from inside the creature, and you would bet it's not that he's hungry. A huge plant suddenly erupts from the creature's body, splattering-stuff- everywhere. Yoko looks around the room and sees the destruction that has been dealt to the enemy forces. Hardly anything is left whole. You see the destruction that he has caused and are suddenly afraid. You close your eyes until you feel an arm go around your waist. Pushing Yoko away, you scream,
"Get away from me, you blood-thirsty fox!" Yoko grabs you, and hold onto you, even as you thrash and kick and scream for him to let you go. He holds onto you as you cry and struggle, but eventually you wear yourself out. The pain in your ribs is more prominent, and you are exhausted. Yoko's arms go around your waist, his breath is on your neck, and his hair flows around you.
"It will all be fine. Sleep now," Yoko whispers tenderly in your ear, and soon, you are asleep.
~*~
When you wake up, you are behind a large stone pillar, and you have no memory of where you are, or how you got there. Peering out from behind the pillar you see.you gasp as you see Keiko, plunging daggers into the prone form of Yoko, which is tied to a nearby pillar. You shove your fist into your mouth to keep from screaming out his name, and focus on what Keiko is saying to him.
"You're pathetic, fox. You thought you could kill me so as not to endanger your precious ningen girl? Well, as soon as I've killed you, she's next! And there's not a damn thing you can do about it!! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Yoko lifted his head and chuckled softly.
"You will not have such an easy time getting rid of me." Keiko rolled her eyes and laughed again. Your mind races as you try to think of what you know about her. She's married to Yusuke, but neither of them is ever home to care for their twins. Shizuru is always over there for them. That's pretty much it. But now? Why is she attacking Yoko? You decide not to kill her now, but she must be stopped. Pulling out Yoko's dagger, you balance it on your fingertips. You measure the distance, aim, and . the dagger flashes thru the air and sinks deep into Keiko's stomach. She grunts and falls over. Running out, you grab her by the collar and punch her straight in the nose. The blood flies as she topples over backwards and thuds onto the floor, unconscious. Panting hard, you turn towards Yoko, who slumps against the ropes. You race to his side to cut the ropes and he falls to the floor. Cradling him in your lap, he breathes slower, slower, and finally, his breathing stops. Your heart stops beating for a minute. You can't believe that he's dead.. He can't be!!! You scream a wordless scream of anger and despair and slump to the floor beside Yoko. You don't even hear the door open, or your mother kneel beside you. She's bleeding, but the blood is not red. It's black. She lifts you to your feet and embraces you tightly.
"I'm so sorry, honey." Her tears are your consolation. But Hiei will have none of this.
"You ningens are so pathetic. Yoko cannot die. Watch, he will come around. You will see." You nod and sit down to wait for Yoko to come around. He did about the same time as Keiko, who you had bound with her own ropes. Yoko looked terrible. His wounds had been treated by your mother (ME), but he still looked bad. He opened his eyes finally, and the first thing he did was reach up to stroke your face.
"I was so worried about you. I thought that she might have killed you after I had passed out. But you're safe, and that's all that matters." You smile at him. But Hiei suddenly gets up and walks over to Keiko. He grabs her face and as soon as a small green demon pops out of her mouth, he kills it. Then he picks up Keiko and slings her over his shoulder.
"Hn. Let's go." He announces. You agree. Three years and ten months later...
"Kuwei! Puubicha! Yuuskina! Kuroenma!" you call your kits to you. They all come running, hair and tails flying. The two girls have black hair and tails, and the boys have silver. They run and embrace your knees tightly. Yoko comes in with an envelope.
"You got a letter." He says. You reach for it, but he jerks it back. "Only for a kiss!" he laughs. Tweaking his ears you reply,
"Not in front of the kits!" The babes tackle their father, and you think to yourself, all the hardship in the world is worth the joy of a family!