Standard disclaimers apply; fanfic contains elements of yaoi and slash.

The Fox's Rose

By MistressTsunami AKA shinchansgirl

Chapter Four

REVISED 08/07/05

You thought I was just a spark.

Something that you could control,

To light the dark.

I am the flame,

That lights the inferno.

-T-shirt from NeonDragonArt "Fire"

Kurama didn't want to wake up; there was nothing else to say, he simply did not want to. His body, however, was not complying with this one request of his wearied mind, and was reminding the fox demon – rather insistently – that something was, for lack of a better term, not normal.

He was comfortable, and warm. Surprisingly enough, this had become a rare occurrence for the demon since he had taken over a human body, and it was also a rare moment indeed when he felt so comfortable it was like being safe in his cave once again. Now he felt both, but as he slowly became aware of the world around him – thanks to the urging his body was giving him – he began to notice the subtle differences that made this place different, and possible unsafe. For one, his cave had always been covered by a roof. It was a rather annoying piece of low-hanging rock that would hit against his head should he attempt to stand at full height. He felt no such restriction here, not to mention the fact that he hadn't slept in his cave in a good 20 to 30 years at least. His cave resided in Demon World, and he had been living in the Human's World for the past few decades. This one small fact didn't bother him so much, though, as he curled closer to the heated, firm wall behind him. This was mostly normal, and therefore acceptable. He could feel the planes of the rock along his back, pressing into his skin and shoulderblades…

And the pulse it gave.

That wasn't right; rocks didn't have hearts – they didn't even have blood, usually – and they most definitely didn't breathe unless you came upon the very rare rock demons. Kurama's eyes shot open as his mind fully registered the danger of having someone else in bed with him, and the redhead would have flown out of said bed had not a single, strong arm locked around his waist like a steel band, keeping him still in the morning's light. Someone was in his bed with him – and he was far from that safe, warm cave he had been dreaming of – it had taken him far too long to come to this conclusion.

Kurama heard the familiar, yet not pleasant, sound of someone breathing, the sound rasping through a metal mask. The wards would have lost effectiveness shortly after the sparring spree, one of the reasons Kurama had insisted that it stop. He should have thought to place new ones, but his tired body had not wanted to put forth the effort, and his mind argued that he would have sensed danger had any arrived. He was still tired, but his arrogance and inattentiveness had allowed for his home to be invaded by a not-so-friendly demon. Or maybe the demon was too friendly. The latter seemed to be more accurate, at least in the eyes of the fox.

Kurama turned his head - hoping against all hope that it was Hiei testing him, although that was about as likely as the sun shining green in the human realm – and stared into violet eyes, open and watching him. Kurama nearly screamed, and backed away, but one hand on the small of his back and another on his lips stopped him from doing either action.

"I have come to visit you, my Kitsune. It's quite a lovely home you have made for yourself, by human standards, at least. Our castle in the Demon World will be more suited to you, of course, as you deserve much better than this," Karasu greeted, watching the red-head attentively, but not warily.

His home.

This was his home.

This was his home.

His.

His mother was here, fragile, and protected by him only.

Yuusuke was still sleeping in the other room.

Where was Hiei?

His mother.

His home.

This was where his pack lived.

This was his home, damnit!

"Get out," Kurama growled – literally growled – under his breath. His fear of the other had been extinguished in his anger and rage; he felt violated, used, and vulnerable. He didn't care if it was Karasu, Botan, or the King of the Demon World (should one exist at the moment, that was always up for debate), he was angry, and he wanted the cause of that anger gone or he would see it dead.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me, dimwit. Either remove yourself from this house or I will kill you, slowly and painfully, and make certain that you suffer much worse in the afterlife. Get out."

"But, my Kitsune – "

"I AM NOT YOURS!" Kurama burst, standing and facing the dark demon with a dark gaze – if only looks could kill, the other would be dead a million times over. The tree outside his window flung itself against the window, almost shattering the glass, and the rose he grew by his bedside sprung into vines, wrapping around his bedposts with thorns an inch long. "I won, Karasu, and I do not wish to be courted. Especially not as you've been doing. You WILL remove yourself from this house, and stay away from my home and my bed, unless I deem it otherwise, and that is not likely to happen," Kurama stated, his voice overflowing with anger and malice. "Harm any in this house or in my pack and you will wish that I had killed you sooner."

"…you're upset," Karasu countered apologetically. "I can understand that. I merely wished to spend time with you, but apparently even that will not do until I have won you over.

"Have it your way, my Fox. I was hoping to simply take you, but now I fear I must do this the hard way. I hope that you will forgive me."

He stood. Kurama glared at him until he was out the window barely escaping being mauled by an angry tree, and then moved, glare still in place, to sit and stare at his desk. His unfinished homework lay before him in heated clarity, but the red-head felt no desire to complete it. He really didn't feel like going to school today, which was really not like him, but he needed the routine, and needed to prove to himself and to his pack that he could survive one night of training and not be out for weeks. He needed to train again tonight, to get back into shape, to get back the strength of Youko in his human body, and that would not happen if the rest of his pack did not feel him up to the task.

Besides, without him Yuusuke would never wake in time for classes.

As it ended up, the pair never made it to classes that day. After informing his mother that he wasn't feeling well – as well as insuring her that she did not need to remain at home, and her visit with her friends did not need to be cancelled – he locked himself in the bathroom and took a long, long shower.

The water had been cold for nearly an hour before the red-haired demon stepped out of the icy spray. It was nearly ten o'clock now, by the clock on the wall, and he would soon need to wake up Yuusuke, if only to help the other catch up with his classes. If they could get a decent amount finished before four, then they could spend some time cleaning up the younger boy's apartment and the fox-demon wouldn't feel so bad about letting his human wander home.

But first, lunch. It was Tuesday, so there wouldn't be a paper, but he didn't think they'd thrown out Sunday's yet. That meant that he could spend some time searching for an apartment while their meal cooked. He would wake Yuusuke – or send Hiei to, if the small fire demon was still around – when it was ready.

Dressing, Kurama headed downstairs, frowning when he came upon the sight of Hiei sprawled haphazardly in a wooden chair. Growling under his breath at the scent of gunpowder in the room – hardly noticeable to any but the spirit fox within him – the demon went to wake up his black-haired partner.

"Hiei," he called gently. "Hiei, wake up."

"Ghn," was the intelligent reply.

"Yes, I know you don't feel well. Karasu must have done something to you when he saw you keeping watch out the window. He was in my room this morning."

"…stupid bird."

Kurama smiled. "I quite agree, but remember Hiei, it's the stupid ones who do more damage."

"…remind me again why that is?"

"Because they don't know when to stop, silly. Should I worry about damage to your eye?"

"Not really, but my head feels like it's on fire."

Kurama frowned. "I don't think that he'd risk doing anything damaging – not while I'm here, at least – but if it doesn't go away soon, let me know. Genkai would know if something was wrong, surely."

"Ch."

Kurama's frown deepened. "Perhaps I shouldn't have let mother leave this morning. It seems that he is willing to go farther than I first believed to damage my pack."

"Don't worry about a little headache, fox," Hiei scolded. "Just do whatever it is you were going to do. I'll check up on that human and let you know if she's all right."

The fox-demon's face lit up in a bright smile at Hiei's surprisingly kind – and very out of character – offer. "Thank you, Hiei. And when you return, would you mind waking up Yuusuke for me. We have things to do today, since we're skipping school."

"And why is that?"

"He threatened my pack, and I'm going to make certain that they remain safe."

"Wards, then?" Hiei asked after a moment.

Kurama nodded. "Stronger than the ones we used last night – ones we won't have to replace. There will have to be more of them, both inside and outside the house. Yuusuke's apartment, too, and possibly Kuwabara's as well, should we have the time. I doubt he'd bother with those two though – they are pack, but not as close to me, his target. Genkai should also be informed; should he attack her, she should at least be prepared. I trust her to be able to defend against him, though, or, at the very least, get away."

Hiei nodded. "I'll stop by the temple while I'm out."

"Thank you. I'll be searching for an apartment while I fix lunch – if we don't have a paper handy, then I'll spend the time making wards, although I believe that best left to yourself. I was best at concealing things, which is not what we need in this case."

"Just get some rest," Hiei said, picking up his sword from where it had fallen in his sleep. "You don't look so good."

Kurama sighed. "Right now, I don't feel so good either. It can't be helped, however. Now get going, before I worry too much. And be back before lunch."

Once more Hiei nodded. It was best not to disturb the fox when he didn't feel well, even if you were pack. He might just steal your soul from you, and that was never a very pleasant experience.

Kurama scowled at the math problem Yuusuke was attempting to answer…for the fifth time. And for the fifth time he said: "Yuusuke, stop. You can't do that."

"Why?"

"You make the equation unbalanced."

"You said that the last time."

"Last time you did the same exact thing."

"Sorry," the human muttered, "but I don't get it."

"Look, it's like…it's like killing demons."

Yuusuke frowned, and Hiei frowned with him. "How do you get that, fox?" the shorter demon spoke up.

"See, both Hiei and yourself like to kill demons, right?" The two nodded. "Well, when Jr. makes up his lists at the end of the year, he wants to make sure that everyone's killed the same number of demons. So if Hiei, who is this side of the equation, kills five more demons, what must you, the other side of the equation, do?"

"I get ta kill five more baddies."

"Right! So when you add five to Hiei, you…"

"Add five to my side."

"And when you take six from Hiei…"

"Subtract six from my side."

"Right! Now, do the problem again."

Amazingly, he was able to get it right this time.

"You know, fox, that is the most twisted logic I have ever heard," Hiei said, impressed when he saw the problem completed.

Kurama shrugged. "It worked, didn't it? Now, next problem…"

Yuusuke groaned.

Sorting through the heaps that made up the Urameshi son's room was getting to be a bit tedious – not to mention the sounds of his mother in the background that grated on the nerves of the two demons. Yuusuke hardly seemed to notice these.

Hiei held up a package of opened year-old pocky with a gloved hand. There were ants crawling in and out of it, and a stain of something that smelled like beer.

With a smirk, the package was incinerated.

"Hey!" Yuusuke protested. "Watch it! Our house went up in flames once already!"

Yes, Yuusuke and his mother had once lived in a house, but after it had burned down Yuusuke's mother – Kurama couldn't bear to ask her name – had insisted on an apartment.

Apparently house insurance didn't cover fires very thoroughly, and in an apartment she could hold the manager liable for damages. Or, more accurately, the people she used to work for could scare the manager into covering for damages.

Hiei didn't comment, but he did start making his flames smaller, mere flickers. Not even enough to give off the amount of smoke a candle did – and Kurama was considering bringing in a few. The room could use a few purifying rituals.

As Hiei turned the 'trash' pile into an 'ash' pile, Kurama added to it. Pizza boxes, old Chinese food, junk food boxes and wrappers, rags with more holes than cloth, anything he couldn't identify, and clothes that he thought the other might wear even though he shouldn't got thrown into the pile to be burned. A few things Yuusuke protested, but when he wanted to keep a pair of pants that were nearly shorts – short shorts at that – for the holes in them, Kurama drew the line.

"But I can still wear 'em!" Yuusuke complained.

"I'll buy you new ones," was the flat answer. "Hiei, burn them. Now."

Yuusuke pouted, but continued sorting threw the papers Kurama had left him with. Had he been cleaning alone, the whole stack would have immediately been trashed, but the older fox demon insisted on them being sorted through for anything of importance or sentimental value, and so the human boy complied.

The two demons winced as, once again, Yuusuke's mother began shouting at the television.

"Doesn't she ever stop?" Kurama asked.

"Huh? Stop what?" Yuusuke said.

"That…cackling. And shouting."

"Nah…mom's like that when 'er soaps are on."

"And when are they not on?" Kurama asked. "Perhaps we should come back then."

"Nah…she only turns 'em off when she's got someone over, and then she's usually screwin' the sick fuck. That's worse. Hey! What are you doin' with that? It hasn't even expired yet!"

Kurama was too busy staring at Yuusuke in horror to notice when he tore the bag of chips out of his hands.

"You know, fox," Hiei commented after a few moments, "I beginning to agree with you. Did you find anything this morning?"

"I'm going to go see Koenma tonight, if possible," was the breathless reply. "I don't care if he has to kick someone out of their complex, this has got to stop."

Yuusuke wasn't paying attention to them, thankfully, as they spoke, instead reading one of the pages before him with unusual interest.

"Ch," Hiei responded. It didn't matter when they got the housing, Kurama wouldn't let Yuusuke come back here, that much was clear. The fox could make geniuses run in circles with his logic – and then, in the end, get the result he wanted.

Yuusuke was still focused on the paper.

"Yuusuke?" Kurama prodded. "Find something?"

"Ever heard of a man named Raizen?" he asked.

Kurama frowned, but answered. "If he's a demon, then the only Raizen I know of is one of the three kings of demon world. He fell in love with a human a while back, and grieved heavily when she died. It's said that every few generations a human from her bloodline appears that looks like a copy of the human he once fell in love with. He then comes to human world to court her and take her to his bed. Rather incestuous if you ask me, but I guess after a few generations the blood is rather thin. I don't know of any human that would take that name – it's rather rare. Why do you ask?"

Yuusuke looked up and held up the paper, pointing to a line on what Kurama instantly recognized as a birth certificate. "He's listed as my father, nationality 'Demon.'"

Kurama continued reading. "City of residence: Makai."

"Isn't that just wonderful," Hiei commented. "We're sorting through the trash of a worthless prince."

"He's half-demon at least, you know, if this is King Raizen," Kurama commented. "More so if his mother is the decent of the original lover."

"Yes, but he's not even strong enough to use that demon blood. Therefore he is worthless."

"Watch your mouth, buddy!" Yuusuke shouted.

"Hiei has a point, though," Kurama replied. "With all the events of the dark tournament, it should have been enough to awaken the demon power in your blood and give you an extra boost, so to speak. And yet you remain the same, brash human you were before the tournament started, albeit more powerful. I wonder what has held that power back?"

"Gah," Yuusuke muttered, crumbling the paper into a ball. "S'nothin'. Probably some joker tryin' ta get away with makin' a girl pregnant. Didn't want ta pay child support or somethin', I dun know." He threw the paper ball into the 'trash' pile and stood up. "I'm gonna head out and get some drinks, you guys want somthin'? I gotta go out if I want anything other than beer anyways."

"No thanks," Kurama said, shaking his head. "You go on ahead."

Yuusuke shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Once the spirit detective was gone, Hiei asked: "Does this complicate things?"

"Only if his powers do show through and Raizen comes to claim him as the heir. There must be a trigger or a lock on his blood, though…something other than power. I don't think there will be any problems, though." Kurama sighed, looking at what was left to be cleaned. The floor was clear, but needed to be vacuumed badly, and the bed needed to be cleared off and made, after the sheets were washed. The desk…well, they hadn't even started on that yet. "He's still pack. All we can do is focus on what's happening now, and not worry about the later. Later will come when it comes." Later also brought thoughts of Karasu, whom Kurama wasn't quite ready to deal with yet.

Neither of them mentioned this, however.

"Memory, hi-ther come,

and tune your merry notes:

and, while up-on the wind

your mu-sic flo-ats,

I'll pour up-on the stre-am

Where sig-hing lo-vers dre-am,

And fish for fan-ci-es as they pass

Wi-thin the wa-te-ry glass."

Kurama winced at the slow, stuttered speech. "Yuusuke, please. You're trying to read English, not butcher it."

"Yeah, well, I still can't believe you conned me into stayin' over again. Three nights in a row, god-dammit!"

"If I recall correctly, I didn't ask you to stay over tonight," Kurama said. Then, after a pause, added: "My mother did."

"Well, you woulda tried if she hadn't."

"True, but it didn't come to that, now did it. Now, your English. The first mistake was in the word hither. While an improvement over hit her, hi there is not correct either. Hither."

"Hither."

"Right. Now read the first line again."

"Memory, hither co-me."

"Come, Yuusuke. You've gotten that correct before. You're not trying to make this longer, are you?"

"Not a chance in Hell, fox-boy."

"Then say it again."

"Memory, hither come."

"Next line."

"And tune your merry notes."

"Next."

"And while up-on the wind."

"Upon is one word, not two. Do it again."

"And while upon the wind."

"Keep going."

"Your mus-ic flo-ats."

Why did this poem have to be tonight of all nights? Kurama thought to himself as Yuusuke stumbled thorough the last lines. It reminds me all too much of him…and I'd rather not think about him at all.

"Fair enough, Yuusuke," Kurama said. "I think you did well. It was an improvement over yesterday, anyways. I think it's time we got some sleep now; the guest room is still turned down for you."

"What happened to Hiei?" the human asked.

Kurama shrugged the question off. "He comes and goes as he pleases; I guess he had other things to do tonight."

"What! So he gets to do what he wants but I don't?"

"He's lived a few hundred years longer, and I trust him to take care of himself. At least…I think he's at least a few hundred years old…I'm not really sure. It's somewhat taboo to ask how old a demon is, as age doesn't really matter, and some can be quite offended if you ask. That's not the point, however. Hiei has several other places in both demon world and human world where he likes to stay, and while he may not be able to access the demon world hideouts he frequents, I trust him to use his human ones wisely. Unlike you. Did you ever consider staying at Kuwabara's or Genkai's for a night? Surely they wouldn't have asked any questions, and then you never would have ended up here.

"Although, personally, I'm rather glad you did. I had no idea you were so far behind in your studies; Youko would not have allowed someone in his pack to be so dim-witted. You're lucky I've had the chance to live in this human body for a while, and come to understand your kind more."

"Lucky my arse," Yuusuke sniffed. "I'm off ta bed, monster; let me sleep. Oh, and I may be a bit late comin' over after classes tomorrow – Keiko wanted ta go off and do something. Said somethin' about a movie, I think."

Kurama didn't say anything, merely smiled and nodded his acceptance. Yuusuke wondered as he closed the door to the red-head's room when he had ever felt the need to explain his actions to Kurama.

And why he suddenly felt guilty for going out on a school day.

Kurama wasn't as bothered by these things as Yuusuke. It was part of the demon within him, the need to care for the pack, and it wasn't something that he could easily cast aside. He had been somewhat relieved when the human boy had told him he would be late instead of simply disappearing, it showed a good deal of trust, and that he was accepting his place as part of the pack.

In time, he would be pack leader. It seemed the blood in him demanded it, Kurama mused as he pulled out the crumpled birth certificate. Could he really be the son of Raizen? That…brash, uneducated boy? He had the power, but none of Raizen's other qualities.

Like leadership.

He did have some attributes Raizen didn't have, though. Compassion. Loyalty. Trust.

But would it be enough?

He put the paper aside and collapsed on his bed, throwing one arm over his eyes to block out the lights from the lamp and the flickering clock.

Memory, hither come,
And tune your merry notes:
And, while upon the wind
Your music floats,
I'll pour upon the stream
Where sighing lovers dream,
And fish for fancies as they pass
Within the watery glass.

I'll drink of the clear stream,
And hear the linnet's song;
And there I'll lie and dream
The day along:
And when night comes, I'll go
To places fit for woe,
Walking along the darkened valley
With silent Melancholy.

The words of the famous poet William Blake…as had been all the poems Yuusuke had been reading for the past three days. But this poem…it was too much like the current situation to let Kurama rest easily. It hadn't been what the poet intended, but…

Remembering the time spent together, that was what the 'day' of the poem spoke of. Remembering the songs of loved ones, and, while Karasu was not a loved one, he was remembered in everything – even daydreams.

And the night…he didn't visit any gravestones, but his memory was good enough for that, as well. It brought him nightmares and visions of what could happen. He could see himself bleeding on the floor, a whore for a man not fit to be his mate. If that wasn't a darkened valley, then Kurama would wish himself dead before his pack.

For once, the night was peaceful, and Kurama didn't feel as if he was being watched or depleted of energy. Still, sleep would not come; it was the curse of Karasu, even after he had gone.