Chapter Four
I Wish That I Wasn't A Prince
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except those characters that are quite obviously nobody elses.
Kurama pushed his way into the cell, which Karasu had opened, keeping the slimeball's back to the slave. Carefully Kurama caught the slaves eye. He winked at her, hoping that she'd understand what he wanted her to do.
Sango nodded back, understanding not the wink, but the sly acceptance for her and the dislike towards the man that mirrored her own.
Just as Karasu was getting a bit overenthusiastic, Kurama caught his hands.
"I have something for you," Kurama said silkily, "Turn around." Karasu in his perverted greed did so.
It was at that point in time that he became very well acquainted with the hard edge of Sango's massive boomerang. Sango brought her boomerang back around and dealt him another blow that threw the slimy cretin through the supposedly shatterproof window. Karasu landed on his back in a shower of glass, a few deep cuts marring his "perfect" face.
He was knocked out cold.
Kiara jumped out of the shattered window seeing as she could fit through virtually any little crack in anything.
She wrestled the keys out of the unconscious slavers hand, and after picking her way carefully through the shards of broken glass, she sat down and watched them as if to say, come on slowpokes. What's taking you so long. I'm already out.
Kurama and Sango walked out through the door instead of leaping out through the window. As soon as they were outside the now trashed cell the little kitten darted up the hallway and started scrabbling at a door, the keys hanging from her mouth. Sango stretched before she walked out after her, a bit more slowly as she didn't want to slice her feet up (all of the slaves went barefoot. They got shoes when they were bought.), and followed after her little demon cat.
"Thank You" she said to Kurama, pausing for a heartbeat. She smiled at him, "I owe you for giving me the permission to brain that heartless teme."
By that time Kurama had walked through the door and kicked Karasu aside. He raised an eyebrow at her statement but reached out and grabbed her arm as she was walking away.
"Young lady, as far as I'm concerned, the second I sign that contract, you have my permission to brain anybody as long as they thoroughly deserve it."
"Y-you're going to take me home with you?" she spluttered.
Kurama smiled at the stunned slave. "Who's door is your cat clawing at?" He asked, inclining his head towards her little demon cat.
"Her name's Kiara." She said, still so stunned that she didn't hear the second part of the question.
"Who is?" Kurama asked "the person in the cell or the cat?"
Sango blushed, realizing that she'd not answered his question completely. " I'm sorry. My cat's name is Kiara. The girl who's in the cell is one of my good friends. I have no idea what her real name is, but everyone's always called her 39. which is short for her fill slave ID#." Sango smiled hopefully at the door that restricted her friend's movements.
"Then let's go free your friend." Kurama said smiling at her. He walked over to the doorway, retrieved the keys from Kiara and after finding the correct key, opened the door.
"Kyyyyyoooooow!" Kiara squealed happily as she streaked into the room, leaping lightly onto a table. It was virtually pitch black in her little cell.
The tiny cat's loud purring filled the room.
After Sango warned her, she flipped on the lights so that they could see, and Kurama got his first look at her.
The girl sitting at the table was to say the least, in need of some serious rehabilitation. The table that she sitting at was covered with a few hundred or more little paper figurines. All of which she'd apparently folded with her own hands. Her own hands that were so pale and so skeletal they appeared to be made of bleached bone. She was wearing the ¾ sleeved skintight spandex suit that the female slaves who were used for breeding wore.
The girl looked like a living skeleton. He could've played music on the poor girl's ribcage. He could see the faint outline of her organs. Even through the stretchy spandex.
Her hair, which was blacker than Sango's, was floor length, and though it was neatly braided, it was greasy and dull. Her legs were longer than Sango's, and Kurama estimated her to be about his height. Her skin was translucent, so white; it reminded him of the pictures of the ancient milk jade bowls that were nearly 40,000 years old. He wondered what she'd done in order to deserve being treated like she was.
Kurama felt as though he was going to throw up. All he wanted to do was run as far and as fast as he could in the opposite direction. She was sickening.
Kurama bumped into the wall. He hadn't realized it but he was involuntarily backing up. The girl looked up at the nearly silent thump of his back hitting the wall.
My gods Kurama thought terrified. She'll kill me.
At that moment Sango burst through the doors, having gone back to her cell to gather a few things together.
"Hey guess what? Prince Kurama just let me brain that bastard Karasu. Isn't that great? He also said that he was going to take us both home."
Sango continued on in that vein for a bit, while Kurama and 39 stared at each other.
39 was the first to look away. If the prince hadn't been watching her then he would have never seen the single silver tear that fell limply down the side of her face.
"I'm sorry." He blurted. He didn't know why he'd done it, he just had.
The girl looked at him. And blinked.
Hiei snarled softly to himself. He hated being a slave, and he vowed that the minute that he was out of the King's sight he was going to rip the chip right out of his neck. Unfortunately the only way that that was going to happen was if his "masters" forgot to give him the orders to leave the chip alone or if someone else ripped it out for him, which wasn't likely to happen.
He trudged along behind the King Raiko hating that nasty little chip in his neck, Naraku who spouted orders like an open tap, the King who's service he was going into, and life in general.
He wanted to see Aka. He wanted to see the brilliant violet and silver of her eyes. He just wanted to see that sweet little kitten who could comfort someone better than their own mother. Just one glimpse. That was all he asked.
He also wanted to see his best friend, Yoko, who was also Aka's mate, and strangely enough he wanted to see that massive orange and red war stallion that was as meek as a kitten for Aka or Yoko, tolerated him, hated the rest of the staff, and would slaughter any other fool that dared to come within striking range.
Hiei found himself on the front office. If it hadn't been for Naraku who very quickly forbade him from going anywhere, Hiei'd have been gone. As it was he was forced to stand in one spot while the doorway, the sunlight, fresh air, the trees, and everything else that he had been longing for for the last three hundred years.
Kurama saw the girl's nostrils flare. As if she was scenting him.
Kurama noticed that her eyes were a dull, flat blue, and showed none of the life that they should've. She sniffed again and then went back to folding her paper.
I'm not so sure that I really want this girl. He thought. Oh well I promised Sango that I'd take her with us. Besides if I really don't like her, he gulped and wanted to shoot himself for his next thought, I can always give her to one of my friends.
"Are you girls coming?" he asked them. They looked at each other and Sango nodded. "Gather your things together," he said. He walked over to the door and waited.
He watched as #39 picked up what appeared to be a silver fox with nine tails, a black and silver tiger, and a tiny little black kit. The girl stood up and nearly fell over. She was so thin that she could barely stand upright.
Kurama absently stuck his arm out and caught the girl. She weighed less than a dog.
"Why?" Kurama muttered. The girl whimpered, most likely from pain. Kurama picked her up. Setting her back onto her feet he dug around in his pockets. He seemed to remember shoving a bag of cookies into one of his pockets. "Here" he said, handing her the food. "Don't inhale it. You will most likely get sick from eating that, just because you're so starved, but it's at the very least something." The girl looked at him and then at the package. She snarled and shoved the cookies into Kurama's chest. She stumbled through the door and then staggered her way along the wall.
It took Kurama a few seconds to realize that the reason #39 had given the cookies back was because she couldn't open them. He tried and found that he was having a tough time opening them himself. He meandered out of the room, determined to get them open.
POW! The bottom of the bag split apart. If he hadn't been startled himself, he would've laughed at Sango's reaction and started running at #39's. he walked over to 39 and offered her the bag again.
"Was that the problem?" he asked. "That you couldn't open it?"
39 looked at him her head slightly cocked. She whimpered, as if asking if she could really have them.
"Well take them." Kurama said laughing lightly. "It's not like I'm going to eat them." He laughed as she snapped the bag out of his hands. "Like I said before, don't inhale it. You'll make yourself sick." She chirped and retreated to hide in the shadows. "Come on guys. I'd like to get the three of you signed and paid for so that way not even my father can harm you.
Kurama managed to get the three of them, (39, dog-demon, and the girl named Kayko) registered, paid for and in his name.
He gathered them together and together they made their way towards the front office where they would meet Kurama's parents.
Hiei was, to put it lightly, just short of blood-thirsty. They had just finished reprogramming the little chip in his neck when he felt a dark and oppressive aura pop up. He was watching.
He saw a red-headed boy walk in with a pretty black haired girl.
AN: Sorry 'bout that. I tried to get this out during spring break, but, obviously, I didn't. Gomen- nasai gozaimos. I'll finish the next chapter asap. Though you may have to wait untill exams are over... ..>
