Born of Blood: Chapter Nine
by: Kawaii Kitsune

Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho and all the characters in the wonderful show do not belong to me, blah, blah, blah. You get the point. No money, don't sue, blah, blah, blah. Moving on.

Note: italics indicate thoughts.


It all seemed like a dream. Hiei stood within a gigantic forest, surrounded by tall, overbearing trees. What made it seem so dreamy was the fact that there was a bed made entirely out of flower petals in the middle of the forest. On the flower bed was a smiling Kurama, beckoning Hiei with his green gaze. The fire demon walked towards the redhead and sat down on the bed. The half-human then proceeded to wrap his warm arms around Hiei, enveloping him in a loving embrace. Kurama whispered a sweet 'I love you' to the man he held and placed a tender kiss on his lips. Hiei melted into the embrace and let out a contented sigh. If this is a dream, I don't ever want to wake up.

That wish was broken all too soon.

The landscape shattered into pieces and fell to the ground, disappearing as it dropped. Then the petals started to drift away, blown by a non-existent breeze. Hiei tried desperately to hold onto the redhead in front of him but as soon as all the petals vanished, so did Kurama, and Hiei was left alone in an empty dreamscape. He looked around him and for a while all he could see was darkness, but then a gigantic pair of red eyes appeared in front of him. A hand soon followed the appearance of the eyes, reaching towards the fire demon. Hiei reached for his katana, only to find that he no longer had it with him. He tried to run but the hand was already too near, enclosing itself around the miniscule demon. The red eyes seemed to laugh as the hands grasped the struggling Hiei, and then a voice filled the empty void. "Welcome to your nightmare, Father."

Hiei woke with hand over his mouth. He was about to forcefully remove the hand from his mouth, and its owner, when he realized why it was there in the first place: they were no longer alone. He looked over at Akuma and nodded to her, indicating that she could remove her hand. She slowly removed it. They both knew what was out there: Hikoku's soldiers. It was a good thing Hiei put up the kekkai or else they would have long been discovered.

Hiei and Akuma sat in silence inside the cave, waiting for the troops to leave from their inspection. Hiei fought the urge to rush out there and kill every single one of those bastards. However, he could not risk any more danger to Kurama, for who knows what Hikoku would do if he found out that an entire troop of his soldiers was slaughtered. Also, the fire demon wished to save all his energy to face his daughter in the inevitable battle ahead. So, gritting his teeth and masking his ki, he sat and waited in complete, utter stillness.

"They're gone," Akuma said after what seemed like an eternity.

"Finally," replied Hiei. He stood up from his seated position and put on the cloak that he had discarded before falling asleep.

"Where are you going?" asked Akuma.

"Where do you think, woman?" Hiei then strapped on his sword and put on his boots. "I'm going to the fortress."

"Don't you think that's a little risky?"

"Not for me." And then he disappeared in a blur of black, leaving Akuma alone inside the cavern.

* * * * *

Evangeline slowly and carefully set the unconscious kitsune down on her bed. She would have carried the redhead to his room in the tower but it was farther than her own chamber, five doors from Hikoku's. With her unnatural speed and strength, it would not have been a great burden carrying Kurama up the tower, if he weren't so injured and weak.

After Hikoku left, Evangeline opened the doors and entered the room to find what she already suspected: a tortured being. She quickly walked over to the bed and checked Kurama's conditions. He was lying on his stomach on the bed, unconscious. His pulse was weak, his breathing was ragged and labored, and his youki was almost undetectable. Only after she stabilized his youki did Evangeline allow herself to observe the scene before her.

Kurama's beautiful tunic was in tatters all over the floor, no longer white but stained red with blood. Bits and pieces still remained on the fox's body but it did nothing to conceal the countless cuts and bruises covering his flesh. Deep gashes from the whip still oozed with warm, red blood. Black-and-blue bruises formed up and down his body, concentrated especially on the legs. Milky white liquid mixed with crimson between Kurama's thighs, proof of the rape that occurred. Evangeline almost turned away from the scene with nausea but she knew that if she did not act quickly, her father was going to die.

She covered the redhead with a clean, white blanket, taking great care not to cause more pain than absolutely necessary, and picked him up gently. As she walked out the door with her important package, she saw a half-dozen of servants coming her way, no doubt to clean up Hikoku's mess. She paid no attention to them as she hurried towards her room with the dying kitsune in her arms. By the time she reached her chamber, the white blanket was already soaked in blood and again, she felt queasy just looking at the crimson color. Who would've guessed? Me, getting sick at the sight of blood. I can't believe I'm being so pathetic.

After Evangeline set Kurama down on the soft bed, she took off the blanket that was wrapped around his body to begin the healing process. The blood-soaked blanket burst into flames and turned ashes, as Evangeline never wished to see the sight of it again. She sat down right next to the dying man and placed her hands over the wounds on his back. The girl closed her eyes and concentrated all of her powers into her hands. They began to glow an eerie blue instead of the usual red. As she moved her hands up and down Kurama's body, the cuts and bruises seemed to slowly fade and disappear. She gently flipped him over and began the process all over again until there was not a single wound left. Then, she stood up from the bed and walked to the bathroom to fetch a basin of water and a soft towel. She delicately cleaned off the fox's body, as a mother would do for her child, only this time, the roles were reversed. After it was all done, she covered him up with a soft, warm blanket and let him sleep.

The time passed very slowly. Evangeline watched her father intensely from afar. She was afraid, as much as she hated to admit it, of getting close to him. Every time she's near him, foreign emotions would surface and she would get confused. And so she decided to distance herself from him as much as possible. She was just about to drift off to sleep when she heard him mumble something inaudible. As Evangeline drew near the bed, she made out the mumbling. He was cold. And when she studied him up close, she figured out why. With the amount of blood he lost, Kurama was unable to maintain his body heat. His skin was paler than usual and he was shivering despite the covering he had on top of him.

Before she could think, Evangeline was sitting on the bed, hugging a bundled up Kurama, and feeding him her youki and heat. I can only do this for so long. He needs to regain control of his own body heat. Without a moment's hesitation, she swiped her sharp fingernails across her left wrist, creating a long, bleeding gash. Evangeline then brought the wrist over Kurama's mouth, which latched on immediately. The fox drank the blood thirstily, not caring where it came from, just caring that it's there to take. After some time, the color in Kurama's skin returned and he stopped shivering, but he did not stop drinking. It was too good and there was so much of it. Evangeline became weak from the blood loss and she no longer possessed the strength to detach herself from her father. She began to slump against Kurama's body and soon succumbed to the darkness. Her left arm fell from the kitsune's mouth due to gravity and Kurama, with no more arms to support his unconscious body, fell back to his sleeping position on the bed.

* * * * *

"So that's all?" asked Yusuke.

"Yes, I've told you everything I know," answered Koga. He was the only one still awake from the group of three. Dr. Yamamoto was far too weak that he fell asleep as soon as he entered the doors. The tall carrot-top, Kuwabara, had to carry him into a guestroom. Sazuki followed suit after a short period of time, delaying only to get some food into her system. Koga was the only one of the three to remain awake, as they did promise to answer their gracious hosts' questions. He told the young man, Yusuke, everything from how he was hired for the job to how he was imprisoned and finally to how he was release.

"I'm assuming blood you scientists received were from Kurama and Hiei," deduced Kuwabara. He wasn't as stupid as everyone thought.

"I can bet on it," said Yusuke. He walked over to the door and looked at the sitting Kuwabara. "Well, what are you waiting for? It's quite a walk from here and we'll have to be quick if we want a piece of the action."

"Yes, I, the great Kazuma Kuwabara, wi-"

"Wait," Koga interrupted, "what about us? Are we safe here, alone in the temple?"

"You won't be alone," explained Yusuke, "and you'll be safer here than anywhere else. Genkai-obaasan has put up shields all around the temple. No demon can enter without her knowing it."

Koga nodded, satisfied with the answer given.

"Well, Urameshi, are ya ready?" asked Kuwabara.

"I was born ready. Let's go!"

* * * * *

It was still dark when Kurama regained consciousness. He opened his eyes slowly and studied his surroundings. It looked unfamiliar. He turned his head to the right and stared out a balcony window at the night scene, with the stars and moon still high in the sky. He turned to his left and soundlessly gasped. Evangeline, his enemy and daughter, was sleeping right next to him. Kurama studied her for a moment. She looked beautiful and angelic lying there, asleep, much like Hiei when he slept. She didn't seem like the emotionless person that she was; she just looked like a normal, teenage girl.

His observation was cut short when she began to stir from her slumber. Evangeline's eyes fluttered open. It took a while for her sight to focus but when they finally did, she propped straight up from the bed. That was her mistake. The loss of blood and the quick change of position made her disorientated and dizzy. She would have fallen to the ground if Kurama had not caught her in time.

"Careful there, don't act so fast," suggested Kurama.

"Let me go," the girl demanded, embarrassed that she was even in such a situation.

"Fine." Kurama let go as soon as he was sure she was once again stable and balanced. Evangeline stood up from the bed, slower this time, and walked shakily to the balcony. She took a seat in one of the wicker chairs and looked at everywhere except at Kurama.

Kurama, however, was staring intently at the girl in front of him. "You saved me, didn't you?" Silence. "You shared your youki and your heat." He licked his lips and tasted the dried blood on his lips. "And your blood."

"I was only following my orders." It was soft and expressionless.

"You didn't have to return me to my full power to fulfill your orders, did you?" Again, silence. "Why did you risk so much to save me?"

"I told you, I was only following my orders," she said with a hint of anger and annoyance. Evangeline finally turned to look at her father, hoping to silence him. However, what she displayed on her face was not a look of death but a look of longing. Kurama caught the look and understood. He unwrapped himself from the covers and stepped over to where Evangeline sat. The fox knelt beside the wicker chair and gazed into her blood-red eyes.

Then, he hugged her.

At first, Evangeline didn't know what to do. She was completely in shock. Her first reaction was to push him away and demand an explanation. But she didn't. She realized that she liked the hug. It was different from the hugs her master would give right before they had meaningless sex. The hug from Kurama was far gentler and warmer, more loving. Evangeline found herself closing her eyes and hugging back, holding tight onto her father. Is this what it's like to feel? To have emotions?

The knocks on the door broke her out of the trance. She firmly pushed Kurama away and stood up quickly, putting as much distance as possible between herself and the redheaded kitsune. The door opened to reveal Hikoku, properly dressed and groomed, smiling.

"It's time, my dear."

"Yes, Master, I understand." Without a look back at Kurama, Evangeline walked past Hikoku and out of sight. Just when I thought I was getting through with her, thought Kurama. He didn't have much time to dwell on recent events, however, as Hikoku closed in on him with an evil smile.

"It will all end tonight, Kurama. It will all end tonight."

End of Chapter Nine


Woohoo! One more chapter left (hopefully) and then the epilogue. Please review 'cause those are the only things that are pushing me to update faster.