Chapter Six

"Put me down!" Sari shouted. "Untie me and let me go! I won't go back! I won't!" She struggled against the belts Hiei had used to bind her arms to her side. He was carrying her bridal style (to prevent another one of her kicks from coming in contact with him) as he ran through the forest, jumping from tree branch to tree branch every so often.

"No. Now, shut up," Hiei growled back. The girl certainly had guts, and she was persistent, but she was also annoying.

"NO!" She continued to shout, insulting him to the best of her abilities, which were pretty good. After a little while, she calmed down enough to talk reasonably decent. "You jerk! Let me go!" She wiggled for a few moments, not caring about how high off the ground she was. "You wouldn't know what to do with a girl if she wasn't tied up!"

He rolled his eyes. He had already tried controlling her with his jagan eye, but her willpower was too strong. She was just too stubborn to do anything with.

As Hiei stopped in the front yard of Tonya's safe house, Sari continued to rant. "Now I know why the koorime's dropped you off that fucking floating island! You're a complete asshole!"

The fire demon froze and stared at Sari for a few moments. "Shut up, ningen." He could remember Tonya saying that Sari knew quite a bit about him, so he brushed her statement off. Still annoyed, he carried her inside.

They were both greeted by the sight of Tonya chasing Jake around the living room, while the other guys watched and laughed. "Jake-kun! Come back here so I can kill you!" Tonya growled darkly. "And give me back my drawing notebook!"

Sari shook her head. "Hiei, you can put me fucking down now."

Hiei considered that for a moment. 'If I set her down, she might kick me and run away. Someone needs to impress upon her that she had damn well better stay here and not cause me problems.' He shook his head. "No."

"WHAT?" Sari exclaimed.

Tonya came to a screeching halt and finally noticed that her friend was back. "Sari-chan!" She smiled. "Put her down, Hiei-sama. You brought her back, so I'll keep my mouth shut."

Of course, Hiei dropped her. Then, after quickly collecting his belts, he left.

Sari, obviously, continued to fume. "Tonya-chan, you fucking sent him after me, didn't you?" Tonya nodded, and then Sari went off on her. Tonya calmly took it while the guys watched in amazement. The whole thing ended with Sari storming back to her room and slamming the door.

"Well... that was interesting. She has a rather dirty mouth," Yusuke commented, sounding amused.

"She needs to wash her mouth out with soap," Kuwabara added.

"Nah," Tonya replied. "Her mouth ain't that bad." She paused. "Well, I'm going to take this..." She snatched her drawing notebook out of Jake's hands. "And now I'm going to camp out in my room until Sari decides to yell at me again. Bye-bye." Then, smiling, she walked off.

Three days later, the boys had gone back to rotating shifts (with Hiei, Kurama and Jake forming one shift and Yusuke and Kuwabara forming another) and Sari was still ticked. She had yelled at Tonya quite a few times, but Hiei tended to avoid her, so she hadn't been able to yell at him. She still didn't feel like being nice, so she didn't, which was mostly Hiei's fault.

Tonya was fine though. After acquiring a wonderful computer, she spent quite a bit of time typing in her stories. Sari used hers to get on HOL, even though she couldn't vent there because of Koenma's rules, which were enforced. If she began to tell anyone anything, the computer instantly shut down.

It was sometime after supper when Tonya heard a knock on her bedroom door. "C'mon in!" she shouted.

"Tonya-chan, I believe you left this out in the living room this afternoon," Kurama said as he entered. Instantly, Tonya's scent surrounded him, practically begging him to come in even farther. He did.

She turned to see what the redhead had in his hands. It was her drawing notebook, open to a particular picture that she had drawn. It was of Kurama and Kaline.

"Thanks." Blushing furiously, she stood up and took the notebook from him.

"Who's the girl?" Kurama inquired, curiosity shining in his green eyes.

"Ummm... just someone I made up." Tonya continued to blush like mad as she rubbed her thumb and index finger along the edge of the pages. "OW!" she yelped when a sheet cut into her finger. She stuck the digit in her mouth, whimpering softly.

"Are you okay?" He was instantly by her side, trying to see what had happened.

She pulled her finger out of her mouth and wrapped it in the hem of her shirt. "Paper cut. Damn it hurts."

"Let me see," Kurama suggested gently, reaching down for her injured finger. Tonya didn't fight against him, so he examined the tiny wound. He understood that humans found paper cuts painful, but he had thought a person who was three-quarters demon would not have been susceptible to them.

He pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket and wrapped it around her finger. Tonya rewarded him with a kind smile.

"Thanks," she said brightly, hugging him before giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. "That was so sweet of you."

With her arms around him and her face so close, Kurama couldn't help but kiss her. He eased his mouth over hers, wasting no time in deepening the kiss, his tongue exploring her mouth.

Tonya just relaxed when his arms tightly wrapped around her, kissing him back. It felt good to kiss him, and she saw nothing wrong with enjoying herself for a while. Besides, Kurama was the one who had never pushed it with her. He was trustworthy.

Kurama abandoned her mouth after a few minutes, moving to nibble on her ear. Then, he lightly nipped and kissed his way down her neck. He could smell her body's response to what he was doing, so he reacted appropriately. He bit down on the juncture of her neck and shoulder.

Gasping as a sharp pain went through her, Tonya's eyes flew open. 'Kurama's marking me,' she thought. Then, the pain was gone, replaced with waves of pleasure that swept through her over and over again. She had never felt anything like it.

Neither knew how long they stood there, Kurama's teeth in Tonya's neck, but he eventually drew away, ending the waves of pleasure. He noticed the mark he had left on her skin and gently licked it, soothing the slightly red skin.

"Mmmm..." Tonya felt warm and sluggish, as if she had just woken up from a wonderful dream. Actually, she felt better than that; she just didn't know how to describe it. Sitting down sounded pretty good to her though. She was beyond exhausted.

Kurama kissed the mark he had just placed on her, feeling much more relaxed than he had felt in ages. The scent wasn't affecting him as much since he had marked her, which meant that he didn't have to waste so much energy in fighting it. Of course, her scent would spike later on, making sure that he wouldn't be able to forget what was supposed to come next. Although how he could forget, he didn't know.

"Kurama?" she mumbled softly, resting her head against his chest. She even sounded exhausted.

"Yes?" he inquired. "What is it?"

She yawned. "Why am I so tired?"

"Marking uses up energy... even the female's," Kurama answered. "This is perfectly normal."

"Okay." Tonya rubbed her cheek against his chest, sighing contentedly. "Does that mean I can go to sleep now?"

"Yes." He kissed the top of her head before picking her up and carrying her to her bed. Before he even laid her down, she was dead asleep. Kurama smiled at her, ran his fingers through her hair, and then left.

Tonya woke up about an hour later, feeling refreshed but hungry. Her neck felt a little sore, but she didn't feel like worrying about it. In a week, it'd be gone. No big deal.

Smiling, she walked out to the kitchen, quickly raiding the fridge for some leftover stir-fry that Kurama had prepared the previous night.

While she was heating her food up in the microwave, Jake walked in, instantly noticing the mark on her neck. "Tonya-chan!" he exclaimed, surprise and jealousy flowing throughout him. "What? How? Who?"

Tonya turned and stared at him in confusion. "What's your problem, Jake-kun? Are you okay?" She pulled her food out of the microwave and began eating as Jake recovered from his shock.

"Who marked you?" he demanded to know.

"Kurama-kun," she calmly answered in-between bites. "He did it about an hour ago." For some reason, she couldn't call the fox demon Kurama-dono anymore, not after he had marked her. It just didn't seem right. Besides, they were friends.

Jake growled softly. Not only had Kurama marked the girl, but he had also been upgraded to kun—his level. It probably meant that Tonya liked them equally, which was something he didn't like. "Don't you know what that means?"

Tonya frowned. "What's wrong? I thought that marking was no big deal?" she inquired. "It does fade in a week if I don't mate with him, right?"

"Yes, but..." He ran a hand through his short black hair. "Because Kurama marked you, you'll instinctively let him get away with more. You won't get angry if he pushes things too far, and as the week progresses, your instincts will become more and more predominate, making it so you won't even become angry if he jumps and mates you in your room... even if you don't want to deep inside."

She blinked. "Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" she asked, voice neutral. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to be angry or just plain surprised as hell.

"Because I never thought that you'd allow one of us to mark you!" Jake exclaimed, sighing in frustration.

Tonya shook her head as she finished off her food, putting her plate in the sink. "I'll be fine," she promised him, walking up and patting him gently on the cheek. "Really I will. I'll just have to be really careful and never be alone with him." She smiled at him. "But thanks for your concern." She kissed him on the forehead.

That was all it took to make his jealousy, his anger at Kurama, and his desire for Tonya combine. He was not going to lose the girl to the fox demon. There was just no way.

Jake kissed her possessively, gently but firmly pressing her back against the fridge. He didn't want to scare or anger her so she'd send him flying, but he also didn't want her to walk away. Remembering past mistakes, he fought to keep his hands on her hips, actually succeeding somehow. He was planning on marking Tonya, and he was not going to fail.

Tonya had no problem with letting Jake kiss her, and she didn't feel like she was betraying Kurama. After all, she was going to let the mark fade. Kurama wasn't going to become her mate. No one was going to become her mate. She was going to stay single, no matter what.

She rested her hands on Jake's shoulders, tilting her head to the side and opening her mouth to him. She wanted him to kiss her, really kiss her, like Kurama had. Of course, she was thrilled when Jake took the hint, bringing out his tongue to play with hers.

Jake heard Tonya whimper softly when he tore his lips away from hers, but he ignored the sound. He placed light kisses all over her face, kissed her lips one last time, and then moved to her neck, kissing his way down the left side.

Unlike the last time, when he reached the juncture of neck and shoulder, he didn't hesitate. He bit down before she could send him flying or freeze him.

For the second time that day, Tonya felt the sharp pain of being bitten before it was replaced by the pleasure. It was amazing, especially since the pleasure was more intense than when Kurama had marked her. She stood there, her back against the cold fridge, her front covered with Jake's warm body, as the waves of ecstasy swept through her.

As Jake drew away, he heard a soft moan escape Tonya's lips. The look on her face was priceless though, and he made sure to ingrain that look in his memory so he could never forget it. Her lips, full and pink from kissing, were parted, allowing her quick breaths to flow in and out. Her half-closed blue eyes had a glazed look to them, and they were filled with a look of extreme contentment. Her entire body was relaxed, and he couldn't help but smile smugly.

"Jake-kun?" Tonya whispered, fully closing her eyes.

"Yes, Tonya-chan?" he inquired, but she was already asleep. Chuckling, he swept her into his arms and carried her into the living room. Kurama may have been willing to leave her alone after the marking, but he wasn't. He planned on having her wake up in his arms, not alone.

There was more than one reason to his choice. The first was that it was his way of showing that Tonya would be his... not Kurama's. The second was that he just wanted to hold her.

Still smiling, he laid down on the couch on his side, Tonya's back pressed tightly against his chest by the arm he had slung around her waist. Then, with her situated, he turned on the television and resigned himself to wait for her to wake up.

Tonya woke up and immediately yawned. She could hear the TV and feel someone's warm arm around her waist. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Hiei sitting in her favorite chair. It took her brain a few moments to recall what had happened earlier. 'Oh yeah. Jake-kun marked me.'

She rolled to face Jake, resting her hands on his chest as she snuggled close. He was so warm, which was something she had found out during camp. He was always warm.

"Finally awake, huh?" Jake asked, laughing quietly.

"Yeah, I'm awake," Tonya replied softly. "How long was I out?"

"About an hour and a half," he answered, affectionately nuzzling her neck. He had marked her, which meant that she was close to being his. All he had to do was keep Kurama from mating with her. How hard could that be?

Tonya just let Jake hold her while she gathered up the willpower to stand up. She was extremely comfortable, so she really didn't want to move. Also, she enjoyed snuggling with Jake. It was peaceful.

After a few minutes, she rolled off the couch, literally, and went crashing to the floor, all of which she did on purpose.

"Tonya-chan?" Jake studied her form, eyes sweeping over her body to check for injuries. He remembered her rolling off the couches at camp, but he still wasn't entirely comfortable with it. It looked a little painful.

"I'm gonna go talk to Sari-chan," she responded, standing up. He sighed. 'I should have seen that coming,' he thought, amused by her attitude. "Okay."

"I'll see you later," Tonya promised, quickly kissing him on the lips before running off.

Seconds later, Tonya was right outside of Sari's room. The door was shut, and the only thing she could hear was the tapping of keys. Someone was on the computer. "Sari-chan?" She knocked on her friend's door.

"What?" Sari shouted back, sounding exasperated. 'Can't I get some time alone?'

"Can I talk to you?" Tonya inquired.

"Has me saying 'no' ever stopped you before?" she retorted.

"Nope." Tonya opened the door and walked into the room, closing the door behind her. Then, she sat down on Sari's bed Indian style, while Sari sat up and closed her laptop.

"Okay, what is it now?" Sari asked.

Tonya pointed at the sides of her neck. "Jake-kun and Kurama-kun marked me today."

"And...?" She didn't sound impressed.

"The marks are supposed to fade in a week but..." She paused. "Jake-kun said that I'll naturally let him and Kurama-kun get away with more." 'No anger... no flying or freezing... Crap! I'm defenseless!'

"Okay... you're letting them get away with more. Big deal," Sari replied. "And it sounds like you have a week to get jiggy with it."

"WHAT?" Tonya's eyes became wide, but she quickly calmed back down. "I should have known you would say something like that."

"Duh."

The demon female shook her head. "If I don't get angry at the guys for pushing it, then I can't freeze them or send them flying. This is kind of a problem."

"I don't care about your guy problems," Sari retorted. "I'm still pissed at Hiei, especially since my butt's still bruised because of him, and he's avoiding me. I haven't been able to fucking yell at him! And if I tried, he'd probably try to kill me."

Tonya huffed. "Fine. You wanna yell at him without being killed? I can arrange that. He was in the living room last time I checked." She got up off the bed and left the room.

Sari followed, feeling that whatever was going to happen would be interesting. She entered the living room right as Jake left, which meant that it was just her, Hiei, and Tonya. Good.

"Well, have at it," Tonya stated as she leaned back against a nearby wall. 'If Hiei-sama tries to kill her, I'll just freeze him. It can't be that hard. I froze Jake, and I can do it to the fire demon.'

Sari walked a little farther into the room, not quite sure if she still wanted to yell at Hiei right then. Her amusement with Tonya's attitude had lessened her anger.

"What do you want, baka ningen?" Hiei snapped rudely.

That did it for Sari, making her blood boil. "I'm not a stupid human!" she shouted, storming up to Hiei and glaring down at his form in the chair. "You're an arrogant asshole who doesn't have the guts to face me. You're the bastard who fucking dropped me on my ass three times and forced me to come back here! And if I'm so stupid, how in the flying fuck did I know what you were saying?"

Tonya smiled. 'I knew there was a reason I taught her a little Japanese.'

"You're a son of a bitch who can't even tell Yukina that she's your sister! You're a pathetic wussy with no backbone and a serious attitude problem because you're terrified of people!"

Hiei stood up and pointed his naked sword at Sari's throat, instantly making her shut up. "Ningen..."

"Stop right there, Hiei-sama!" Tonya ordered, and he immediately froze, unable to move. She calmly walked over and uncurled his fingers from around the hilt of his sword. "I'll be taking this." Hiei voiced some protests (a.k.a. threats), but the girls ignored him.

"He's frozen?" Sari inquired curiously, earning a nod from Tonya in response. "Can I 'torture' him for a while then?" 'Normal torture won't work with Hiei. Pain doesn't affect him, but... I can think of something else that might. It'd be perfect for getting my revenge.'

"Sure. I'll go, while you enjoy yourself. Tell me when you're done, so I can unfreeze him, and don't kill the little fire demon. I'd hate to explain to Koenma-sama that I let my friend kill one of my guards."

Sari nodded, an evil glint in her eyes. "Sure thing."

"I'm gonna go add this to my collection." Then, humming to herself, Tonya skipped off.

'Oh, no...' Hiei thought. He had a bad feeling, and the look in Sari's eyes almost scared him... almost. Whatever she had planned for him was not going to be fun or pleasant in the least.

'Let the games begin.' Sari grinned. "Mine," she said softly, her eyes sweeping over the fire demon's form. He had a great body, that she knew, and he was right in front of her. He was hers for the taking. She could do just about anything, and he wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Revenge was going to be sweet.

He glared at her. "I'm not yours."

"Oh... I don't think so. You're mine until Tonya-chan unfreezes you," she replied, lightly running her fingers down one side of his face, just to see how he would react. He basically ignored the touch, much to her disappointment. She would just have to do something more drastic then to fully gain his attention. Excellent. He was giving her just what she wanted-a challenge.

'Damn. She does have a point there,' he thought darkly as he tried to jerk away from her soft touch. He couldn't. "Don't touch me," he ordered gruffly after a moment. If he couldn't physically stop her, then he would have to do it verbally.

"Huh?" Sari allowed her hand to run down his chest, mentally noting all the muscles she could feel. He was most definitely well built, which meant that she was going to enjoy torturing him. "Touch you? Okay." Remembering that Tonya had been able to move his fingers, she raised his arms above his head. 'I can move him around and position him however I like. Nice... This has so many possibilities.'

"What are you doing?" Hiei demanded to know.

She shrugged slightly. She wanted him to sweat a little before she answered, so she leaned close to him, her lips so close that they almost brushed his. "Taking off your shirt, of course." Before he could even attempt to protest, she pulled his shirt up over his head, tossing it on the ground nearby. His sheath quickly joined the shirt on the floor. "Nice," she commented, admiring his muscles with both her eyes and hands. He had one of those amazing bodies that was hard to keep her hands off of. "Someone's been working out."

"Get your hands off of me," he growled, tensing under her touch. Her touch was light enough to be teasing, leaving his skin with a desire for more. He hated that.

"Why should I?" Sari countered evenly as she lowered his arms back down to his sides, watching his muscles ripple in the process. "You refused to let me leave this house or to put me down when you finally brought me back. You dropped me on my ass. This is my revenge." She smiled evilly as she slowly dragged her hands lower to his abdomen, gently resting them on his six-pack. "Sweet, sweet revenge."

"You wouldn't know what to do with a man if he wasn't frozen," Hiei snapped, hoping that he could somehow make her back off.

"That's where you're wrong," Sari responded, letting her hands slide down even farther, brushing against a certain object in his pants, which she felt react accordingly. "I know exactly what to do with a guy; it's just that you're so fast, it's kind of hard to do anything to you without having you possibly move away. I think you'd quickly run if I tried anything." She paused long enough to suggestively tug on the waistline of his pants. "I hope you're slower in other things."

Hiei growled. "Stop touching me."

"Now, why would I do something like that?" She giggled, tugging on his pants again, just to torment him. She wasn't going to take them off, but he didn't know that.

"Go away!" he shouted, hoping that Kurama or even Jake would come back and put a stop to all of it. He would have even settled for Tonya coming to her senses and freeing him. Above all, he wanted to get away from Sari.

"No." She kissed him when he opened his mouth to say something else, tired of his protests. They were quickly becoming old and annoying, which meant that she needed to give him something new to think about.

Hiei kept perfectly still for a few moments, thinking that she'd abandon the kissing if he didn't respond; however, when she kept it up, he mentally sighed and tried a new strategy-kissing her back. If he didn't act like it was torture, perhaps she would stop it.

The instant he began to kiss her back, Sari drew away, slowly dragging her hands down his chest and then his abdomen. Her hands finally rested on the bulge in his pants, her touch feather-light.

"A lot of people have theorized that... other parts of your body make up for your lack of height," Sari commented, a strange look in her eyes. "I wonder... is it true?"

"You wouldn't," he growled.

"That was the wrong thing to say..." she trailed off, her eyes glinting brighter. She was going to have fun with him now.

"Stop. Now." His voice was strained, as if he was fighting against something internal.

"You can't make demands, Hiei. Last time I checked, I was in control. And, just as a suggestion, unless you want an audience, which I wouldn't mind in the least, you should be quiet."

Hiei's mouth was slightly open, but he quickly snapped it shut and began to grit his teeth. He refused to give Sari the pleasure of torturing him in front of people. He would take whatever she dished out in perfect silence, even if it killed him.

Sari grinned devilishly as she took a step away from him. Then, she slowly circled around him until she could study his back. His back was muscular too, and the view of his lower half was nice, so she paused for a few moments to appreciate it.

"What are you doing?" the fire demon asked ominously. He didn't trust her at all. For all he knew, she was planning on humiliating him. She couldn't kill him, since she had made that promise to Tonya, but there were a lot of things she could do that wouldn't lead to death.

Sari said nothing to him, but she skimmed a hand lightly over his shoulder blades as she returned to the front. Then, placing her hands on his shoulders, she pushed him down into the armchair, which was supposedly Tonya's favorite. 'I wonder if she'll still want to sit in it after this,' she thought. 'I wonder if Hiei will want to sit in it once I'm through with him.'

"I'm planning on having fun, that's what I'm doing." She grinned unrepentantly before sitting in his lap, straddling him. "You know what? I think they were right about compensation."

Red eyes widened at that statement. 'This is insane,' he thought as Sari lightly brushed her fingertips over his skin, teasing him. 'I'm being tortured by a human female.' He successfully fought back a groan when Sari moved against him. She was driving him mad and loving every minute of it.

"Hmmm..." Sari nibbled on his ear, noticing just how tense he was. Her style of torture was definitely affecting him. Good.

She slowly slid off his lap and to the floor, her eyes never leaving his. 'Now for the part he's going to love and hate me for,' she mused, placing her hands on top of his feet. Then, she gradually drew her hands up his shin, over his knees, and along his inner thighs, massaging his muscles with her fingertips as she continued to advance.

Hiei gritted his teeth even harder, fighting to remain silent. He didn't know what else he could do. He couldn't move, which gave him no options what so ever. Inside, he was torn between wanting Sari to leave him alone and wanting her to continue torturing him.

When her hands closed around his hard manhood, pants and all, Hiei made his decision. He didn't want her to stop. Of course, he would never admit that out loud, but on the inside, he needed her to continue.

Sari slowly rubbed her hand up and down his length, noting how the slow pace seemed to have little effect on him. So, she quickened it, carefully watching his face. His red eyes stared down at her, practically glowing as he struggled not to make a single noise. 'Well, he certainly stopped complaining,' she thought with some amusement. She rubbed him even faster, smiling evilly when he closed his eyes and all his muscles tensed. Right then, she drew away from him, sitting back to watch the emotions play across his face.

So close. He had been so close, but she had stopped at the last second, leaving him completely helpless and wanting. She was watching him too, a smug look on her face. She was proud of herself as she watched him writhe on the inside.

"What? Don't have the guts to finish?" Hiei wanted to know, voice strained. He was doing good just to talk.

Sari laughed. "What's wrong? Having a few... hard problems?" She leaned forward and rested her arms on his knees, placing her chin on her interlocked fingers. She gazed up at him, the evil glint in her teal eyes still there. "I wonder how long you'll be able to take my torture, don't you?"

"Bitch," he spat out.

"I never said I wasn't," she replied calmly, reaching up to stroke him a few times, bringing him back up to just below the breaking point. 'How long should I keep this up? After a while, it'll become just plain cruel, and I don't want to take my revenge too far.'

Sari climbed back in his lap, pressing her forehead to his and staring him directly in the eyes. "I don't think you'll be dropping me on my ass again, will you?"

"I have other plans for you," Hiei snapped, tone dark and forbidding.

She smiled. "I hope it's something akin to what I've done to you." She kissed the tip of his nose and then his lips, deciding that she was done. "I'll get Tonya so she can free you."

Hiei was shocked. Sari had gone from a sadistic vixen to a calm, reasonable person. She wasn't going to finish what she had started, damn her. He growled softly, struggling to move. He wanted to jump Sari and give her a taste of her own medicine, if only to make her see that torturing him was a bad idea.

Sari climbed off his lap and walked off, leaving Hiei alone in the living room.

"Kurama-kun, please don't go out there," Tonya pleaded. Jake, Kurama, and her were all in her bedroom, waiting for the torture session to end. "Sari-chan won't hurt Hiei-sama; I don't even think she's strong enough to do that. She only wants revenge."

The redhead frowned. "She has been at it for over a half hour. I think it's time to call the torture session to an end."

"It'll be awfully hard to stop her," she pointed out, crossing her arms as she felt arms wrap around her from behind. Jake, at least, was being supportive of her.

"I know that she's your best friend, but Hiei is my friend," Kurama replied, walking up to Tonya, lifting her chin with his hand, and brushing his lips against hers. "We both want to side with our friends, but even you have to admit that Hiei does not deserve to be tortured for this long."

Jake growled softly at the kitsune. 'Mine,' he thought, tightening his grip on the female. 'Don't touch.'

"It is a long time, but... Sari-chan was really ticked. Hiei-sama did hurt her, and he hasn't exactly been the nicest person to her." Tonya chewed on her bottom lip. "Jake-kun, you can be the tie-breaker. Do we go out there and save Hiei-sama? Or do we wait for Sari-chan to finish?"

"Wait," the neko youkai replied, resting his chin on her shoulder. "From everything you've told me about Sari-san, his torture session won't be all that bad. If anything, it'll be more like a make-out session than actual torture."

Tonya giggled. "Probably. Although, that may be torture for Hiei-sama."

Kurama shook his head in amusement. If it was only going to be kissing, he felt Hiei could deal with it. "Very well. I'll wait," he stated.

"Tonya-chan!" Sari barged into the room right then. "You can free Hiei now. I'm done."

Jake sighed. "Well, that was a wasted conversation."

"You're telling me," Tonya said in agreement. "But, I'd better go unfreeze him."

A mischievous grin on his face, Jake swept the female demon in his arms, surprising her. Kurama glared at the cat demon but didn't say a word. Tonya just squeaked, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"JAKE-KUN!"

Sari laughed. 'It seems that Jake is definitely trying hard to be the one Tonya-chan mates with,' she thought.

Tonya turned her attention to the other girl. "Are you feeling better now? No more anger?" she inquired curiously.

"Yes." Sari smiled and nodded. "Although I believe Hiei might be a little ticked at me right now." She walked out of the room, leaving the others to wonder.

"Jake-kun... I really should get out to the living room now," Tonya said softly. He nodded in agreement, heading off after Sari. Kurama followed.

Tonya's eyes widened when she saw Hiei. He was sitting in her favorite armchair, his chest bare and his whole body tense. His shirt and sheath were a few feet away, and she couldn't help but notice the bulge in his pants. 'What did Sari-chan do? He looks like he's about ready to go nuts, the poor guy.'

"Please put me down, Jake-kun," Tonya ordered gently.

He obeyed, letting her go over to Hiei while Sari stayed in the door frame between the living room and the hallway. 'I hated being frozen, and it must have been a lot worse for Hiei-san,' he thought, watching the demon female kneel in front of Hiei. 'Whatever Sari-san did to Hiei-san, I really hope she doesn't do to me.'

Hiei glared down at Tonya, seeing her as the reason why he had been tortured. After all, she was the one who had frozen him. "Unfreeze me, now." Of course, he planned on punishing her, and her scent invading his system chose the form of punishment for him.

Tonya smiled softly at him, feeling a little guilty for freezing him so he could be subjected to Sari's torture. "You can move now."

As soon as those words were out of her mouth, Hiei was on her, pinning her to the ground. His lips crashed down on hers, the kiss rough and hard. He was punishing her for allowing him to be put through everything.

Before Tonya could respond, both Jake and Kurama dragged the fire demon off her, their protective instincts raging. While Kurama could accept Jake, his rival, touching Tonya, Hiei was a totally different story. Hiei had no claim to her, so he also had no right to kiss her. She was off-limits to the fire demon, whether he liked it or not.

Hiei quickly calmed down, and as soon as the other two demons released him, he was out the front door.

Tonya blinked, not moving from her spot on the floor. "What just happened?" She turned to look at Sari. "What did you do to him?"

Sari smiled as an evil glint entered her eyes. "I'll tell you later."