My Pet Fox

Chapter 3

His day was just like every other day. He could barely handle the mind numbing boredom. By the time that school ended, he had a headache and was ready to rip apart small animals. His long legs climbed the stairs to the roof with unusual ease. Being in the human world was just too easy for him. He wanted, more the anything, to be back where danger was a big part of his life. He missed the violence, he really did. Opening the door to the roof, the dying sunlight poured into his eyes, but it didn't bother him for long.

Karasu's face was soft, withdrawn, and completely stoic. There was no way to tell what he was thinking. Walking up to his dearest little fox, he stood in front of him with that same smug, patronizing air that he had during their fight. Even when he had won, he had lost. "Why, I've never gotten a note before, Kurama. I was just utterly impressed." His tone was more than sarcastic, but he was certainly amused. Kurama really thought that he was going to win this little game. Kurama really thought that he had any sort of chance. It was so adorable, really he was.

Karasu loved nothing more than innocence and naivety

At first, Kurama thought this was some sort of sick joke when he began to unbutton his shirt but his eyes widened in fear when he saw the scar. Painful memories came sweeping back to him the moment he showed him the scar that the seed of one of his demon plants, being one of the most deadliest fights he has ever fought and the most painful. He clenched his fist, remembering the feeling of being blown up alive, bleeding to death on the concrete ring, and fighting for his life. He remembered when his screams only further excited the crow demon. There was no way in hell he was going to to fall for that now.

Karasu then went on about how he really did love the fox but his time, he knew that this wasn't a joke, he was serious. This made him fear for his life even more. However he then stopped to think for a moment. Fear is the feeling that this guy wants him to feel and if he gave it to him, it would only encourage his actions. He bit his lip and stood frozen, trying his best not to feel any emotion at all. He stood completely still, not daring to move from his spot, closely watching the crow demon.

He was not going to let this crow demon get the best of him. As his purple orbs stared into his soul, he remained still. His expression remained angry, but still as cold and emotionless as he possibly could. This was not an easy task for the fox, knowing that he still cared about the well being of his family and hoping that the crow demon would not bring them into this mess. He then finally had the courage to say what he always wanted to say to him.

"You are a sick corrupt man, Karasu. If it was only me you wanted all along, why not kidnap me and force me to do what you wanted. You don't scare me Karasu and I don't plan on losing this little game you set up"

"If I don't scare you, my dear, you wouldn't be losing your cool." His voice was so cold, so collected, but there was some strange underpinning of possession. Karasu felt like he knew everything there was to know about Kurama. He felt this partially because he had stalked him for a very long time, and partially because he had paid a good amount of money to a well-trained physic to pry into his mind. Karasu knew all about the fox's childhood, he knew all sorts of things the fox would have wanted to keep a secret.

In a flurry of movement too quick for most people to see, the crow grabbed the fox's neck, his nails digging just a bit into the soft, unmarred flesh. "This game?" He growled with an obvious sort of anger in his eyes. "Do you think my love for you is a game?" His nails did slip into flesh, slowly bringing a ribbon of blood running down the fox's neck. Another short, malicious growl bubbled up from his throat, and he got his face uncomfortable close to the fox's face.

"I love you, Kurama. And I will have you. If you decide to fight back, I will slowly kill everything that you have ever held dear." His mother included. Most threats, even when not spoken this close up, sounded idle and like overcompensation. When Karasu started to threaten his lovely little red-head, he seemed so deadly serious that he might have already killed the two and just not informed the fox of it yet. (Luckily, however, that was not the case.)

Karasu did not let his grip go, however, but he pulled his nails out of the skin, letting the blood trickle down the fox's neck slowly. Karasu looked the fox over, searching for something, calculating something. It was so hard to understand what the crow felt, to understand what he was thinking. "Do you understand me, fox?" His voice was much more calm, much more in control then the growls before this. If he wasn't mentally unstable, no one was.

The moment that Karasu's hand went to his neck, Kurama gripped his own hand on Karasu's own pale wrist to pull his hand away. He could barely breathe and he tried his miserable attempt to gasp for air. Even worse now that his nails were starting to dig into his neck. Kurama held off on screaming the best he could, because he recalled that he loved it when he screamed in pain. He winced in pain and struggled to get free, but every attempt just made the situation worse and worse. He couldn't move and he had to do what this man says...or else.

He couldn't hide the fear that he had from this man. If it was his own life, he wouldn't hesitate any further and fight him. However, now he was bringing his mother into this which made it all the more difficult. No, he wouldn't! He didn't want to bring any more people into this. Even if he had Hiei or Yusuke's help, he would still say that this wasn't their battle. Kurama was stubborn when it came to outside help. Plus his own mother was involved, the thing he cared most about. If this man laid one finger on her...

However, he can't fight back. So he decided it was best to do as Karasu said. If he didn't really want to kill him what did he want? He was sure what ever he wanted to do, it wasn't going to be as bad as his mother dying in front of him. What ever humiliating thing he had planned, it couldn't be worse than that.

As his nails released from his neck he grunted. With the tiny amount of oxygen he had left, he rasped,

"Alright...I'll do what you say....just...please...leave her out of it"

With those faithful, damning words, Karasu let go of Kurama. He pulled his blood hand away and smirked, obviously pleased with himself. Violence always gave you what you wanted, didn't it? His eyes seemed to gleam with a perverse pleasure at the thought of Kurama doing what he said. And Karasu was bound to say a lot of things, you know.

His plan was simple, he supposed. It was clear and almost fool proof. He wanted to own Kurama. To have a pet, something he could love and cherish for as long as he wanted. Also, something he could torture and abuse for as long as he wanted. After Kurama had killed him, all Karasu could think about was how perfect the fox was. How much he wanted to be with him. To burn him, to cut him open and drink his blood, to bury him and coddle him and to love him like no other could love him. Karasu loved Kurama so much that it hurt him. It physically hurt him.

"You have one day, then, my dearest. Spend it with that woman, tell her you love her. But , before dawn, you'll meet me at the park nearest the school. Don't bother bringing anything—I've got everything set up perfectly." His tone was serious, devoid of emotional, and mostly said in a matter-of-fact way. He would give the fox one day to say goodbye to his loved ones, and then he would force the lovely young man to travel with him back home. To his real home—not the shallow excuse for a life he had here in the human world.

Karasu did not bother with goodbyes. Why did he need to? If Kurama didn't listen, he killed Shiori. He had said all he needed to say, and now it was his turn to leave and finish preparing everything. In a puff of displaced air, the crow was gone, his extreme speed carrying him away almost too quickly to notice. In a day he'd have his fox all to himself. And he'd be able to do whatever he wanted.

That prospect excited him greatly.