For the longest time I tried to figure out why I wanted to include these chapters about Hiroko and Korohi. I couldn't come up with anything. Then, one day, I thought, "Hiroko is a uke and will have lots of information. AND it makes for a good plot device. Plus, I just love Hiroko." He's so cool…

Hiroko ran through the halls of the mansion, not caring who he hit or what he knocked over. He needed to find Sesshomaru. He couldn't just leave, he knew that.

"Where is that damn dog?" He thought, jumping over a stunned servant girl.

"Hiroko."
Hiroko skidded to a halt and looked around. "Lord Sesshomaru!"
The dog demon looked mildly surprised as Hiroko bounded over to him. The crane demon was shaking, his mind straining as he tried to fight back the urge to obey his mate. "I-I need to go home. Please!"
"Why?"
"Korohi."
Sesshomaru nodded, "Go for as many days as you need."
Hiroko bowed so low Sesshomaru thought he was going to break, "Thank you!"

--

Hiroko jumped from tree to tree, trying not to fall. Bird demons where considered the most graceful demons because even when they walked they looked like they where flying. Hiroko was not doing his race justice at this point. In his panicking state he occasionally lost his footing and would fall through the tree tops to the ground, catching his long two toned hair on branches.

Bird demons feel safest in trees, in the air, or in generally high places. Most build their homes high in the trees, away from the eyes of ground dwellers. Hiroko was glad for this but at times like this cursed whoever decided birds should fly. No matter how much he begged Korohi he would not allow his family to move to the ground and especially not into Sesshomaru's home, as the demon had offered many times.
Because of Korohi's stubbornness they lived in a home that was to small, that was to cold in winter, to hot in summer, and in a tree that was barely alive.

With a final leap Hiroko landed silently on the small platform outside the entrance to his home. He slowly swung the old door open and entered.
"Hiroko."
The crane demon flinched at the harsh way his mate said his name. He shuffled farther into the one room home, his head down. He crossed the room and knelt next to Korohi's western style bed, not daring to look at him.

He felt Korohi's sharp black claws carefully caressing his cheek.
"Hiroko, look at me."
The crane looked at his mate, almost bursting into tears.

Korohi was a black hawk demon. He was the complete opposite of Hiroko, who was the complete opposite of his own race. His hair was cut short and solid white with two rows of black near the nape of his neck. His skin was a dark caramel color and his eyes bright yellow. Unlike Hiroko, he had demon markings. His eyes where rimmed with black and single black stripes curved from his ears to his tear ducts. He had always been muscular and strong, even with his sickness but now, in the three months since Hiroko had last seen him, he had grown thin and weak.

Korohi ignored Hiroko's look of shock and lifted a tangled lock of his hair. It was tangled with leaves and twigs from his falling so many times. He frowned and gently tugged. "Come sit with me."
Hiroko blinked, "But...I went against you! Why aren't you angry?"
Korohi smiled tiredly, "I'm just glad you're here."

--

"Where are Kiiro and Ichi?" Hiroko asked. He had his head in Korohi's lap as the hawk gently removed the foreign material from his hair. Such displays of affection where often criticized by other demon species and even by some birds.

"Bathing. Kiiro thought it would be fun to go through the trash dump at your stupid dog's palace." Korohi said, snorting. He hated Sesshomaru. He took his mate away.

Hiroko glared up at him, "You shouldn't say things like that. We live on his land."
"It was mine first. His father took it...He was a good man though. He let you come home every night." The hawk said, pulling the last twig from Hiroko's hair.

"We where new mates. He had to or we'd both go mad."

Hiroko sat up and smiled. "Thank you."

They leaned in to kiss but the door swung open.

"I told you Mama was home!"
Hiroko blinked as he was tackled by his youngest son, Kiiro, and almost knocked off the bed.
"Oh yay. Our useless mother is home. Maybe he'll do nothing. That'll help."
"Shut up Ichi! Mama has a hard job!" Kiiro said, glaring at his brother.

Kiiro was a hawk demon, taking after his father in his looks. Ichi was a crane demon with dark skin, black hair, and black eyes. His demon markings where the same as Korohi, just in red. he was completely blind as well, though it was almost impossible to tell. The black eyes he and Hiroko had where actually a defect in the crane demon race and Hiroko was lucky he wasn't blind as well.

Ichi rolled his eyes, "Yeah. Follow around a dog and tell him how to do things he's to stupid to know. That's hard."
Hiroko stared at his son and said nothing.
"Silence." Korohi hissed.
"No! He's useless! He doesn't make any money and what he does doesn't help. He gets to eat all the food he wants and sleep in a warm place. We have to scrounge for food and hope it doesn't snow." Ichi yelled, his demon marks glowing brightly. Japanese crane demon marking glow when they are angry or excited.

"Mama, don't cry." Kiiro said, hugging Hiroko tightly.
Hiroko wasn't usually emotional but the upcoming mating season weakened his mind so that he'd look for his mate for constant protection. The smallest thing would cause him to cry.

Korohi hissed and flew out of the bed he had been confined to for so long. He pinned his son against the wall by the neck. "You need to learn when to shut the hell up boy." He hissed, staring into the boy's unseeing but frightened eyes. "You do not upset my mate. I would kill you if it wouldn't upset him more."
"I'm your son!" Ichi gasped.
Korohi sneered, "I have another to replace you." He released his hold, watching the teen scramble away.

"Leave. Both of you." He said lowly. Ichi quickly ran out the door, frightened his father would kill him.
"I want to stay with Mama..." Kiiro said softly.
Hiroko smiled softly at his son, "Go and make sure your brother is okay. I need to speak with your father."
Kiiro sighed, "Okay..." He jumped off of the bed and ran out the door, "Ichi! Wait for me!"

--

"You shouldn't strain yourself." Hiroko scolded, poking Korohi's forehead with a long finger. The hawk demon glared at him but said nothing.

He knew Hiroko was right. Even the smallest things took all of his effort. "He deserved it..."
Hiroko's mouth formed a thin line, "Yes. Just traumatize them both more. That will be good for them."
Korohi grunted and pulled the sheets closer to himself. "Why don't you try and find the egg? We did a good job of hiding it this time." He said, trying to distract him.
Hiroko's dark eyes seemed to brighten. Bird demons where paranoid creatures and always went to great lengths to hide their eggs. It may, in fact, be where we get our idea to hide Easter eggs. Anyway, they thought it was great fun and a fun way to show of thier intelligence by hiding them and trying to find them.

"You know I'm the best at this game." The crane said, folding his arms into his white sleeves. He always wore white, the color of mourning.
Korohi snorted, "You won't find it."
"...Did you swallow it?" Hiroko said suddenly, eyeing his made suspiciously.
Korohi rolled his eyes, "No."

Hiroko leaned down and stared into his mates eyes. "It's in a hole in the support beam."
Korohi's eyes widened in surprise. "Damn you!"
The crane smiled brightly and jumped straight up, gracefully landing on the beam running horizontally on the thatch ceiling. He looked down around and saw a hole in one of the horizontal beams. he easily balanced on the thin beam and reached into the hole, pulling out a large white and brown egg.
"It's warmer." he said, jumping down silently. The egg was the size of a newborn baby. It was white with large irregularly shaped brown spots.

He sat at Korohi's feet, the egg in his lap. "Another hawk it seems." He said lowly.
Korohi tiredly looked at his mate, "Why do you sound so upset about that?"
"I'm not upset! It's a good thing." Hiroko said quickly.
"Is it?"
"Yes! It won't have a chance to have black eyes and then it won't be laughed at or abandoned or hated." As Hiroko spoke his entire being seemed to darken with hate.
Korohi sat up suddenly, alarmed by Hiroko's sudden change. he reached out and grabbed his arm, pulling him closer.

Hiroko blinked and squirmed. He had fallen next to Korohi, the egg now under his stomach. "What was that for?"
Korohi yawned, "You where being...Odd."
"Oh..." Hiroko mumbled, sitting up on his knees, moving the egg. "You should sleep Korohi. You've stressed yourself to much today and I haven't even had a chance to examine you. Also, I'm sure you haven't been eating properly and you re-" Hiroko's eyes widened as Korohi pulled him down into a kiss.
"Shut up Hiroko." He said lowly, breaking the kiss.
"But...You shouldn't strain yourself." Hiroko squeaked, silenced immediately by Korohi's tongue and hands.

--

Hiroko stared at the egg in his lap. He had been sitting at Korohi's feet for a little more than an hour. He had tried to convince Korohi to rest but it didn't take much persuading for his mate to have Hiroko on his back and crying out his name.
Hiroko grunted and blushed at the thought. "You won't be like me, huh?" He said, suddenly holding the heavy egg up. "Well, just don't look like me. You can be like me though. I don't think I want a child who's a sex fiend."
Hiroko sighed and placed the egg on the bed. "Where did my clothes go?"

The crane stood from the bed and stretched, cursing as something from his arm knocked against the bed. "Stupid things..." He mumbled. On each of Hiroko's arms where three long white feathers. Another defect.

He remembered being picked on by the other children of his treetop village. That wasn't very long ago. He was barely two hundred years older than Sesshomaru.

He could remember one day the children went to far. They'd grabbed the young demon and ripped off his clothes. They'd laughed and tried to pull his feathers out. Hiroko had always been weak in body and couldn't fight back. Then, out of no where, a tall man with dark skin and odd clothes appeared behind the fallen child. He brandished a long thin blade called a saif and threatened Hiroko's tormentors in an unknown language.

When the children had run away the man had covered Hiroko with the cloth wrapped around his head and mouth. He didn't seem to speak Japanese and simply pointed to himself saying, "Mansour."
Little Hiroko had been afraid of this big dark hawk but had pointed to himself saying, "Hiroko."