For Love of a "Pet"

Chapter Five

An entire week passed by quickly, with Kaline spending every night in the kitsune's dreams. Their relationship continued to rapidly grow, much to Kurama's liking. He treasured his time with her, even if it wasn't exactly real. She was a precious gem of a person, overflowing with joy and enthusiasm, and she was easy to get along with. He had a feeling that even Hiei wouldn't mind being around her. Of course, if that did happen to be the truth, the fire demon would never admit to it.

Silently laughing at that thought, Kurama rolled over on the bed. At the moment, he was trying to sleep and failing miserably. He was tired, but the land of dreams evaded him for some reason or another. The kitsune yawned as he opened his eyes. He instantly saw Kaline, her eyes tightly shut, mumbling something in her sleep. He caught only a few words, but they were enough to send his worry level skyrocketing.

"Loki... Leave... OW!"

'He's in her dreams,' he thought. 'I've got to get him out.' Without thinking, he curled up on her stomach, closed his eyes, and concentrated.






Kurama realized that he had succeeded in entering Kaline's dream when he heard Loki laugh.

"You are a fool, little girl. You should have never helped Kurama," he growled out, pointing a sword at her throat. She was hanging from a tree by her wrists.

"I'll help who I want!" she shot back, unfazed by the evil demon. She kicked at the weapon with one foot, missing and accidentally causing herself to swing into the blade. It cut into her neck, leaving a shallow cut; however, it still bleed profusely, soaking the front of her pale blue shirt.

The kitsune stood up, staring across a beautiful courtyard at the demon. "Leave her alone," he ordered, quickly moving to stand between him and the girl. 'How dare he attack her! Kaline is mine! No one else is permitted to enter her dreams! I am her future mate, and I will not allow this to continue.'

"You honestly think you can order me around?" Loki snorted, obviously finding everything rather humorous. "You are a fool."

"You have no right to be here," Kurama stated darkly. "Be gone." He pulled out his rose whip, lashing out at the enemy with it.

Loki dodged the attack, but he didn't expect a tree to attack him from behind. A large tree branch crashed into his head, slamming him into the ground. Growling, the acid-green demon stood back up, only to have his head sliced off by a thorned whip.

Kaline stared as Kurama killed the demon with a whip that had appeared out of no where. She was shocked, to say the least; however, she was not going to allow that to hinder her ability to plead for help. She wanted down!

"Kurama, could you please untie me?" she asked, voice soft, as she watched the remains of the demon vanish. Loki had dissolved into nothing.

The redhead turned to her, noticing that her wound had already healed. Her shirt, however, was still soaked with her own blood. "Yes, of course," he replied, going to stand underneath her. Concentrating, he flicked his wrist, causing the thorn whip to slice through the rope holding her up. Without the rope to hold her up, she fell right into Kurama's waiting arms.

For a few moments, Kaline just nuzzled her face into Kurama's neck, taking deep, calming breaths; she was taking comfort in his scent, his warmth... his very presence. Finally, she decided to speak. "Could you please put me down now? I think I can walk, and I wanna go get changed."

"If you're sure..." The kitsune set her down, keeping his hands on her in case she began to fall.

"I'm positive, koibito." Then, she began to walk towards the main part of the castle. Kurama just sighed and followed, not having a clue as to where she was going.

Kaline led him to a huge room that was obviously meant for royalty. A huge four post bed rested in the center of the room, the foot of it facing a man-sized fireplace. A luxurious rug covered much of the floor, and beautifully woven tapestries hung on the walls. Torches helped light up the room, as well as candles on the bedside table. A large, wooden wardrobe rested in one corner near an old-fashioned vanity.

With a small smile, the blue-gray eyed girl began digging through the wardrobe, finally choosing a royal blue silk gown with pale blue silk trim and elaborate sapphire beading. The long sleeves flared drastically at the ends, and the scooped neckline was very low.

"I'm gonna go change now." After saying that, she went through a door into another room, closing the slab of wood behind her.

A few minutes later, she emerged. The dress fitted her perfectly and the skirt just barely brushed the floor revealing dainty high-heels as she moved. Somehow, she had done up her hair in four braids: one from her forehead to her crown, one from each of ears to her crown, and one from the nape of her neck to her crown. She had even twisted the four braids into an elegant bun, complete with sapphire jeweled pins for decoration. All in all, she looked like royalty, most likely a princess.

"What do you think?" Kaline inquired, slowly twirling for him to see the whole picture.

Kurama gave her a thoughtful look. "You look amazing, but your outfit just needs one more thing to be complete." He looked around the room, his eyes noticing on exactly what he had been thinking of. With a smile on his face, he picked up the small, intricate, silver and sapphire crown. "This is what you need." He placed the crown on her head, noticing how perfectly it suited her, just like the dress. "There. Exquisite."

She blushed. "Thank you." Movements graceful, she headed towards the door. "Now we need to find you something to wear."

The kitsune immediately shook his head. "I know what the men wore in this time period. They dressed in tights. Sorry, but I have no desire to wear a pair of those." 'They'd cling to my body a little too much and reveal just how attracted I am to her,' he mentally added.

"What if I found you something that didn't have tights?" Kaline wanted to know, her tone one of curiosity.

"Then, I might put the outfit on," Kurama replied honestly. "Although 'might' is the key word there."

The girl just laughed at him. "Awww... c'mon. It'll be fun to dress up," she insisted as she led the way down the stone hall.

'I choose normal locations to have my dreams in--Makai... a zoo. What does she choose? A medieval castle.' The kitsune mentally shook his head to clear his thoughts. 'Well, I do have to give her credit for choosing an interesting place.'

"I wonder where Sombra is..." Kaline opened a random door, and Kurama nearly had a heart attack when they came face to face with a black panther; however, the blue-gray eyed girl just giggled and held out her hand for the large cat to lick.

The redhead sighed in relief. "And who is this?" he inquired, not reaching out to touch the creature. After all, he had no clue how friendly it was.

"This is Sombra, my pet kitty." She giggled. "Her name means 'shadow.' It fits her, ne?"

"She is black like one," the kitsune agreed with a nod of his head.

Kaline scratched one of the panther's ears just like she would a house cat. "She follows me like a shadow too." Sombra began to purr loudly. "She's my guardian demon."

"Guardian demon?" Kurama repeated, noticing the creature's bright blue eyes for the first time. They were the same shade as Kaline's whenever she was aroused. 'Strange... very strange. I'm not sure if it's a coincidence or not.'

"Yes. She's suppose to protect me from evil monsters that invade my mind." She frowned. "Which reminds me... where were you when Loki attacked?"

Sombra flicked her tail right under Kaline's nose, making the girl sneeze. 'I thought that you were visiting Kurama again. I did not think that you would be here tonight.'

"I have not visited Kurama in his dreams even once. He's a figment of my imagination. My mind created him. He visits my dreams," she insisted.

The black panther gently pawed the girl's skirt, claws sheathed. 'I know the truth, whether you admit it or not. You found your way into Kurama's dreams.'

"I did not." She had a feeling that Sombra and her were going to go around and around on that one point for a long time if no one called the argument to a halt soon.

'It's alright if you don't believe that right now. There is no danger present to force you into understanding everything right this second; however, you will eventually have to accept that you can enter other people's dreams.' Sombra nuzzled the blue-gray eyed girl's hand. 'I will help you through it all, just like I promised.'

Kaline smiled. "I know," she stated, petting the cat's head.

"Were you just talking to the panther?" Kurama suddenly inquired, a curious expression on his face.

The girl turned to look at him, nodding her head at the same time as Sombra. "She can talk back too, but it seems that only I can hear her," the light brunette replied.

'I can talk to him to if I so desire,' Sombra informed Kaline smugly. 'However, if I do, then you will not be able to hear me.'

Smiling, the female patted the feline on the head. "Kurama, she says that she can talk to you if she wants."

"Does she want to?" the redhead asked, curious.

The black panther nodded her head and switched her link from Kaline to the kitsune. 'Hello, Kurama.'

"Could you please explain this 'guardian demon' position to me?" Kurama requested politely.

'Yes. I am Kaline's guardian demon, which essentially means that I am her demon half. She is half human, half cat demon. I represent the part of her that is demon. Since she doesn't know a thing about being a demon, I can only protect her in her dreams and in her mind; however, once she learns about and accepts me, I will merge with her. After the merger, I will be able to protect her at all times.'

"So that means..." He wasn't sure if he could believe a talking cat in a dream, but he wasn't about to dismiss it without hearing everything it had to say.

'That means that I am Kaline... a small piece of her, actually. I am no different except for my blood.' Sombra sat down, her tail curling around her feet. 'Her parents didn't tell her a thing about her ancestry before they died, and everyone who knows about her past has been sworn to secrecy. Even though Kaline knows nothing about me, I still exist; and, eventually, I will rejoin with her. I just don't know when that is going to happen.'

"Hmmm... interesting," the kitsune commented.

'Yes, very much so.' The cat almost seemed to smile. 'What Kaline knows, I know; however, I know more than she does, as you have probably noticed. I know that we are soul mates, but Kaline can only sense and react to that on a sub-conscious level. Also, I know that in healing you, since you are her soulmate, she gave you the same powers that she has. That is why you could come here.'

"Can you tell me anything else?"

'Of course.' She sounded smug, even in his mind. 'Kaline's remarkable healing ability stems from her father's side; however, her demonic powers come from her mother.'

"That does not make sense," the redhead stated, a small frown on his face. If Kaline was half demon, then only one parent could be a demon with powers. Humans did not usually have special powers. Sure, there were the exceptions to the rule, such as Kuwabara and Genkai, but humans just were not that powerful. Even Yusuke, as strong as he was, had turned out to be a half demon.

'It will if you think about it.' With a nod of her head, Sombra cut off the connection to the fox demon and reestablished the one with Kaline.

"Are you two done talking now?" the blue-gray eyed girl asked as she felt her protector set back up their link.

'Yes, we are,' the feline answered.

"Great." Kaline turned to Kurama. "Well, what do you think of her?"

"I have never seen anything like her," the fox demon answered.

She smiled in response. "I'm glad you approve." She paused. "Now, let's go get you some clothes." Leading the way down the hall, Sombra right on her heels, Kaline opened up doors, peeking inside before walking on.

After a few minutes, she opened a door and actually went inside, gesturing for Kurama to do the same. He followed her, finding himself in another fancy room. He gave a small sigh as the girl pull out a pair of loose dark green breeches, calf-high soft leather boots, and a pale green tunic with dark green trim. The breeches and tunic seemed to be made out of high quality silk.

"I think this should fit you," Kaline stated, holding the tunic up to him. "It looks like it will." After giving a small shrug, she put the clothing into Kurama's arms. "Now, go change in there." She pointed to a door on one side of the room.

The kitsune just sighed and went to do as he had been told.

'He is very cute,' Sombra commented. 'And you and I both know that the tunic is going to be a little snug in the chest area.'

"I know," the light brunette replied, giggling. "That's one of the reasons I picked it."

'And the color goes well with his eyes.' The panther affectionately rubbed her head against the girl's side. 'You picked a good outfit.'

"Do you think that he'll actually wear it for me?" She sounded a little worried.

'This is your dream. If you really want to see him in it, then change the reality so he doesn't have a choice,' the feline replied, mental voice sounding mischievous. 'Although I have a feeling that you can think of better things to put him in.'

Kaline blushed. "Sombra!" she exclaimed, surprised. "I cannot believe you just said that. Shame!"

Kurama came out of the room to find the blue-gray eyed girl lecturing her cat. He chuckled in amusement, drawing the female's attention to him.

"Wow... you look good, koibito," she commented, appreciation in her voice. Her eyes took in every detail, from the perfect fit of his tunic that showed off his muscles, to the breeches that were just large enough to cover things but give her an idea of how well-shaped his legs were, and finally to the black boots that graced his feet. "Very, very, VERY good."

Smiling, she grabbed his hand and began to gently drag him off, Sombra at their heels.

"Where are we going?" the redhead inquired.

"The stables!" Kaline answered happily with a laugh.

He blinked in surprise; he had been expecting something a little more original from her. "The stables?" he repeated.

She turned around to look at him, eyes sparkling. "Of course. Where do you think the unicorns stay?"

'Okay... Kaline comes up with some of the most original ideas I have ever seen. Most people I know dream of normal things, like school or work or some-such. She dreams of castles with a talking cat and a stable full of unicorns.' He mentally laughed at himself, making a note to never jump to conclusions when dealing with Kaline.

Still giggling, she led him through hallways and down flights of stairs until they finally arrived in a large stable, the fresh smell of hay filling the air. Only ten of the stalls were filled, but Kurama was surprised once again when he noticed exactly what kind of unicorns graced the stables with their presence. 'Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, gold, black, white, silver... amazing. They are each a unique color,' the kitsune mused.

Kaline immediately walked up to the blue one, gently petting it on the nose as she pulled a sugar cube out of nowhere. "Here you go, Azul." She fed the unicorn the treat, laughing when it butted its head against her chest, silently asking for more. Feeding the creature another sugar cube, she turned to Kurama. "Well, what do you think of them?"

The redhead studied the mythological animals for a moment. "They're amazing." He reached out and touched the black one gently, watching in amazement as it nuzzled his hand.

"That's Negra. She's a sweetheart," the blue-gray eyed girl informed him. "And they're all spoiled rotten. I've gotten them hooked on sugar."

"What have you named the rest of them?" Kurama asked as he continued to pet Negra.

"Well, the red one is Rojo, the orange is Anaranjado, yellow is Amarilla, green is Verde," she spouted off. "You already know that the blue one is Azul and black is Negra. The purple one is Morada, the silver is Plata, the gold is Ora, and the white is Blanco."

He whistled in amazement, surprised that she could name them all off so quickly. "Where'd you come up with all of those?" Turning to fully face the gold unicorn, he began to pet it.

"Their colors match their names," she answered. "I just use the Spanish versions of the colors." She paused for a moment. "Would you like to ride one of the unicorns?"

Right as he turned back around to look at her, Kaline leaned down to pet Sombra, giving him an excellent view of a certain part of her anatomy. "I can think of something else I'd rather ride," the kitsune answered with a small, lecherous smile.

Kaline blinked in surprise. "Oh? What?"

Kurama was never given a chance to answer, because the entire world suddenly faded to black. He stared at the blank void for a few minutes, and then he woke up, silently cursing his bad luck.









Sam: Stupid security pup. I think ff.net may need to fix it.

AzureDragoness: *laughs* Yes, serious snogging. There will be more of it too.

Iloveinuyasha1029: Thanks! I can't quite remember where the idea for this came from, but I believe it had something to do with the stuffed fox I bought at the World Famous San Diego Zoo while I was on vacation.

Bijin-chan: Yes, it's perfectly natural for you to forget what you said. I do it all the time. *laughs* And I'm glad you liked the chappie. I work hard on them.

PWA: I had to end the dream somehow, and the kid was looking like a good bet.

Rei Akita: *winces* I embarrass easy. Just ask any of my relatives.