Chapter 9: Back Again

…Bri…

My arm wouldn't stop bleeding and it was throbbing where I'd landed on the floor. If I ever saw Kurama again, I was going to make sure he realized just how much I love him. I knew that once he did, or if he did, find me, he would be even more guilt ridden. I didn't want him to be that way. He didn't want for me to be pushed through that portal.

"You tried to run away, didn't you?"

Kuronue was back. I sighed and glared at him with my best Hiei-ish glare. It didn't even faze him. I let my eyes go back to the dull, miserable one instead. Kuronue would kill me and realize that he couldn't. Then they'd probably…

I didn't want to think about it. God, just let me die.

"Give me your arm."

I cradled the bleeding appendage with a bleary scowl. Lightheaded, the world was a dizzy piece of art. Maybe watercolors. Kuronue reached out and took my arm, a twinge of pain coming from the muscle I'd landed on. I raised my Dream energy just enough to sense what was at the uppermost parts of his mind.

The same warm feeling that I'd felt on my neck shot into my arm. He lapped at the blood, stifling the flow as he went.

Her blood tastes so good…

I instinctively tried to pull back, but I had no strength. His forked tongue was soothing, yet hot as an iron to my bare skin. My back shivered. Kurama, where are you?

After the bleeding stopped, he gently pressed his purple clawed fingers at my upper arm, where I'd landed. A scowl fell from his lips.

"Broken arm."

Why isn't she crying? All the other humans I've ever met would be screaming in pain from something like this. She isn't even flinching!

At that very moment, Youko came back.

Back already? He said he'd be gone a week!

"Change of plans, Youko?" Kuronue asked. "Or do you want to hurt the quarter again?"

"I have no interest in her," he said. "One of the wenches is birthing. I need your help."

Bri. Bri, can you hear me!

Kurama! My Kurama.

"Ku—"

No, don't respond! It's me. I'm in my past form…Listen to me. There's a back door to this hideout. Hiei is waiting for you. Go through the hallway and get going. I'll deal with Kuronue.

"Hey, Youko, you feeling all right?" Kuronue blinked at him. "None of the girls are pregnant at the moment."

Uh oh.

"Kuronue," I said. "Where did Youko go?"

"Huh? What are you, blind, he's standing right—" It seemed to dawn on the bat demon at just that moment. "You're not this time's Youko, are you?"

Kurama cocked his head at me. "You told him?"

"I didn't have a choice," I shrugged. "Besides, he's nice. Now, where did he go, Kuronue?"

This is really bizarre…

"Tell me about it," I rolled my eyes.

A flash of surprise flickered through his eyes. "He went to the market in Grindel," Kuronue said. "For supplies. He won't be back for a week."

"Good, then we can just get out of here now," I said. "Kurama…do you think you can go back to your human form? That one is a little…um…scary."

Human?

Kuronue chuckled quietly. "Your choice in mates is still interesting, as always, Youko."

"She's right. Things have changed in our time, Kuronue. It is…good to see you alive again," he sighed. After a moment, his hair changed to red and his eyes to his normal, wide green. He wore his usual blue jeans and t-shirt again.

Kuronue stared at him. "You weren't kidding."

Kurama smiled and sat next to me. "No. We were not."

I snuggled into my real boyfriend. Forget Youko Kurama and forget Kuronue, forget Tsuki and forget Gun Wa. I loved my Kurama.

Then someone just had to go and ruin it all.

"Sorry to bring this little reunion home on a bad note, but, oh, I'm afraid you won't be going any time soon."

I gripped Kurama's shirt tighter in my fists. Why was she here?

"Tsuki," Kurama growled. "What do you want? I killed you myself."

What?

"Oh, nothing. I just want my Keiko back to the way she was before that little cretin wormed her way into my life," she glowered at me.

Kurama pulled a rose from his hair. I could only watch between his legs as Tsuki smirked at him.

Too bad he'll kill Keiko along with me! Then what will she do?

"Kurama, no!" I whispered. "She has Koko."

A low growl left Kurama's throat, so low that I wasn't even sure I'd heard it. Tsuki pulled a limp Koko from behind her.

"Your sister?" Kuronue asked softly. I'd almost forgotten that he was there. I nodded.

"Where are the others?" Kurama's calm, cool voice was nothing compared to the screaming tide of questions coming from his head. I had to hand it to him, he knew how to keep his façade.

Tsuki's smile was his only answer. She held Koko up in front of her like a shield and opened up a portal behind her. I recognized it as the same kind that she'd pushed me through. The half cat demon backed into the portal and vanished with Koko.

"You know, the last time this happened, I was struck by a lightnin' bolt," I grumbled, trying to stop the tears. "Now we're stuck here!"

Kuronue looked at me, then at Kurama, and back again. "It seems there is more to this story that I first assumed."

"You would be correct," Kurama said quietly. "Bri, are you all right?"

"Nah, I'm frickin' hilarious," I said. "I just got through fallin' down the stairs, which you created, and bat boy here's trying his best not to kill me himself. Yeah, I'm good. Just a little bloodied up and—"

I was cut off by a kiss.

"I'm sorry, Bri," Kurama murmured. "I'm so sorry."

I sighed. "Fine, fine, I forgive you. But keep me the hell away from your past self, he's scary."

Kurama chuckled. "Yes, the old Youko built a rather unpleasant wall around him prior to my rebirth." He looked at Kuronue. There was a longing in his eyes, one I'd rarely seen before. "Hello, Kuronue."

"Hello to you, too," he said.

We fell into silence.

"I kinda let slip that he dies, Kurama," I said.

"Then we're in deeper trouble than I thought," Kurama said. "This is thirty years in the past from where we are from. You haven't even been born yet, Bri."

"You said 'others'," Kuronue said. "There were more with you aside from that girl?"

"I'm guessing you brought Hiei, at least," I said. "Who else?"

I got my answer from behind. "You know, Kurama, when you said there was a back way in, you forgot to mention just how long the frickin' tunnel was. Yo, Bri, what the hell happened to you?"

"Yusuke!" I smiled over my good shoulder. "Where's Hiei? Oh, hello, who is this?"

"Ayame. One of my past self's slaves. I freed her in exchange for her assistance in getting Hiei and Yusuke into the back tunnel. Don't worry about it too much, Youko was planning to kill her today, anyway."

"Quite cheerfully bring that up again and I'll be sure you and I can't have kids," I said, watching the poor girl's eyes light up in fear. Kuronue and Yusuke chuckled.

"I can tell now why she's your mate," Kuronue said. "A sharp tongue when she isn't scared out of her mind."

"A little birdie told me that you might have already marked her as your own," Kurama said, his gaze going slightly cool. "She is still unmarked. You should be glad."

"I think she would have blasted me with those mind powers of hers before I tried anything," Kuronue admitted. "I merely made sure the wounds that you…er…well, the past you gave her were tended."

I showed Kurama my neck and arm gashes. He used some silk from nearby to make a sling for my broken arm. "If I had known as much, I would have brought Botan along."

"And have Yusuke constantly irked to death? Even if he is part demon."

"Point taken," Kurama smiled. He hugged me close to him. I felt my heart begin to beat again in my chest. How much I missed this…

"As amusing as this little argument is, how are we going to get back?" Yusuke said, sounding just like Hiei. Speaking of the short dude, where was he?

"The only way I see it is if you find someone to teach your mate how to time rip," said Kuronue with a shrug. "That'll have to wait a while, though."

"Why is that?" I asked. "You didn't want to point out the way earlier, either."

"This is the cat's mating season," Kuronue said. "You may proclaim that you are already mated, but as you are not marked yet…" He trailed off before adding a blunt comment. "Any male cat in the immediate vicinity will sense you and rape you."

Kurama's arms tightened around me.

"So I could go to the cat's village…if I was marked," I said quietly.

"I promised to wait until after we were married," Kurama said. "I plan to keep that promise, Bri."

"But isn't the mating mark really marriage in the demon sense?" I asked. He bit his lip, something rarely seen even around me. "Isn't it?"

He hesitated before giving a short, curt answer. "Yes."

"Wait a second!" Yusuke shouted. "Um…you, bat boy. How long is the cat's mating season?"

"Two months long," Kuronue answered. "My name is Kuronue."

"Okay, fine. Bri, we can wait that—"

"No, we can't," I glared at Yusuke. "Tsuki has Koko. It's going to take time as it is for me to learn how to time rip. We can't afford to wait."

"Bri…"

"We have higher priorities than a few misplaced morals, Kurama," I said. "Come on. Let's at least find someplace private. And quiet." I stood up and offered him my good arm.

"E-Excuse me," said Ayame. I'd nearly forgotten that she was there. "Master, she is hurt. I know some healing…If you will allow me?"

"Ayame, you are no longer a slave," Kurama said. "Of course you may."

I looked at the part coyote girl. She reached out a ginger hand and touched my broken arm with trembling gentleness. The dull pain that had been there was gone. I took off the silken sling and rolled and flexed the arm. Nothing. She'd healed a broken arm in a single touch.

"Now there's a useful talent," I said. "Forget the mind-reading and the time-rippin', give me good ol' fashioned healing any day."

Kurama laughed quietly. "Thank you, Ayame."

He began to lead me away.

"Wait," Kuronue placed his hand on Kurama's shoulder. "One week. Just wait one week, and Youko and I can get the time rip scrolls. We were planning to steal from the cat's castle when he got back anyway."

"But Koko," I said. "She…"

"I'm sure Tsuki won't kill her," Kurama said quietly. "And there is the little fact that Hiei is not here, as well."

"Yeah, where is shortie, anyway?" Yusuke asked.

"He said something about following Mistress Koko before he left us in the tunnel," Ayame said. "I think I saw him just before that woman and Mistress Koko vanished."

I relaxed with a sigh. "Hiei's with them, then. Okay. One week. We can manage a week."

Kuronue, Kurama, and Yusuke all sighed inwardly. Thank the gods.

I hid my smile. I was glad, myself, that I would get to wait until after Kurama and I were married to mate.

O.o Okay…um…yah…that chapter just kinda weirded me out. Kurama and Bri are reunited, Bri won't be raped by Kuronue, and she gets to wait (yea!) until marriage to lose her virginity.

But there are unforeseen troubles on the horizon…(EVIL LAUGHTER!) Eh…I'm going to give ya'll a two-for-one special…see my answers to last chapter's reviews in chapter ten!