Chapter 2

Petrified

When Kari opened her eyes she was no longer at her house. She sat straight up and let out a scream of terror. "Where in the hell am I?" She screamed. Kari got up off the hard cave floor. Tears flooded into her eyes as her mind began to race in fright. "Where am I? Where am I?" She continued to scream as her eyes came upon the bones lying on the cave floor.

Suddenly a hand touched her shoulder. Kari gasped and twirled around so quickly her body was a blur. Her hand came into contact with someone's skin. She was about to smack the body again but a strong hand grabbed it firmly and squeezed it hard. She was thrown roughly to the floor.

"Youko got another wild one," a man's voice snickered.

Another one's laughed, "That damn fox! How come he can't bring any of the nice, tame ones?"

Kari looked up at a group of men. They were horrifying. One of them had pointed ears, somewhat like elf ears. He was smiling at Kari evilly. His eyes narrowed as he looked at her. Kari could clearly see his sharp fangs as he smiled. His eyes had a frightening red glow to them. Kari whimpered as the man grabbed her arm and yanked her to her feet.

"Let me go!" Kari screamed.

The man just laughed. "Okay… I'll let you go!" With that he flung her towards another man.

Kari screamed and tried to pull away but the man held her firmly. "Let me go! Let me go!" Kari cried.

The men continued to pass her around the cave like a rag doll. She finally came back to the fanged man. He gave her another evil grin and a small growl vibrated in his throat. "Well, Youko hasn't gotten a chance to claim you," he hissed. "Maybe I should take advantage of this." He moved to kiss her but Kari, eyes narrowed dangerously, jabbed her fingers into his eyes.

"You little bitch!" The man cried in pain. He released Kari and brought both hands to his bleeding eyes. Kari was about to run when some more of the men grabbed her. They kicked her in the side and stomach. Finally Kari fell to the floor in defeat. Tears flowed from her eyes as the pain began to come to her body.

The man that she had wounded lunged at her with hate. Kari was almost on her knees when the man tackled her. His weight crushed her. Kari let out a scream and tried to free herself from underneath the man. "Get off of me!" She cried. The man pinned her wrists down and Kari let out a scream in agony and fear as she felt his fangs sink right into the skin on the back of her neck.

Suddenly, the pain wasn't there anymore. The man was no longer on top of her. Instead he was pinned beneath, an extremely furious, Youko Kurama. "What the hell were you doing!" He yelled.

"Get off of me, Youko! I didn't touch your plaything!"

Youko's eyes narrowed and he brought his arm up over his head. "Go on, Youko! Hit me! Strike me if you think you've got the nerve!"

Youko's arm lowered and he released the man. "You're not worth it!" Youko snarled. He then turned his attention to the frightened Kari. She was staring at him, pure fear glowing from her eyes. Tears ran down her cheeks and she had her hand on the back of her neck. The fangs had made her bleed badly and when she brought her hand to look at it. She screamed in fright as she saw how much blood covered her palm.

Youko walked over to her and kneeled down by her. He took the side of his index finger and put it on the bottom of her chin. He lifted her head so that he could look into her eyes. They were a sparkling hazel color. Youko swallowed hard. His mind went completely blank and he forgot what he was going to say. He was lost in those gorgeous eyes. He suddenly had a strange desire to wrap his arms around her and press his lips to hers.

"Why do I feel this way?" He thought to himself. "This human female makes me feel so odd."

"What's the matter, Youko?" The man laughed. "Can't even talk to a woman?"

Youko's head spun around and he glared at the man dangerously. "If you say one more word, Sakyou… just one more word… I will rip your throat out and use it to satisfy my hunger for your flesh and blood!"

Sakyou's eyes flashed a bit of fear but he turned around and snorted. Youko growled and then turned his attention back to Kari. "Let me see that wound," he said quietly, so as not to frighten her.

Kari pulled away from his outstretched hand. She scooted back against the cave wall and whimpered. "It's all right now, I will not harm you," Youko once again tried to coax her out of the shadows but Kari stayed there. Youko sighed and turned to his men. "Get out of here!" He ordered.

The men nodded and left. Sakyou held back. "You won't be able to boss me around much longer, Youko," he thought. Then he ran off to join the others.

Youko sighed again and looked at Kari. She was shaking badly and refused to move. He got to his feet and walked towards her. "Stay away from me!" Kari screamed.

Youko hesitated a moment but then continued his way towards her. "I'm warning you!" Kari cried. "Stay away!"

Youko did not stop. Once he was over Kari he looked her right in the eye. Once again he lost himself in those gorgeous eyes. For a long moment the two just seemed to stare at one another. The cave went completely silent and not even the men's talking outside could be heard.

The silence was broken with Youko's scream. The men quickly ran inside to see what had happened to their leader. Youko was on the ground clutching himself between the legs. A triumphant Kari held her head high in the air.

Sakyou looked at Kari. "This girl, alone, has brought down Youko Kurama," he thought. He smiled allowing his fangs to show. "This could be very interesting."

The men's eyes traveled from Youko to Kari and back again to Youko. Sakyou saw his chance. He walked towards Kari. "No one hurts our leader!" He shouted. He rolled his eyes and silently cursed that Youko would be considered "his" leader. He was about to grab her when Youko's voice made him come to an abrupt halt.

"Leave her be, Sakyou!" He shouted. Youko got to his feet weakly and smiled at Kari. "And I told no one to come back in here! Leave now!" With that, all the men (including Sakyou) left.

Youko shook his head. "Thieves," he muttered. He then looked at Kari. She still showed some fear but she also had a courageous smile upon her face. It quickly vanished when she realized Youko was staring at her.

"I guess I had that coming," Youko said. "I was so foolish as to think that you, a mere human, could not hurt me."

Kari remained silent. "But I guess I have underestimated you," Youko continued. He walked towards her. Kari narrowed her eyes and twitched her leg. Youko stopped and saw that she was about to defend herself yet again. "If you kick me again, I will order my men to do as they wish to you," Youko's cold voice came to Kari's ears. She shuddered at the thought of what his men would do to her.

Youko saw her jerky movement and he smiled. He walked towards her and kneeled down beside her. He then took his hand and wiped away some of her tears. "Please do not cry," he whispered quietly.

Kari looked at him again and a few more tears rolled down her cheeks. "She's so scared," Youko thought. He sat down next to her and leaned his back against the cave. His eyes never removed themselves from hers. Those eyes were like jewels. Jewels Youko could never steal but yet he wanted. He put an arm around Kari's shoulder.

She looked at the arm and then at Youko. She didn't understand how this man could be so much different than the others. She tried to scoot away but Youko held her firmly.

"Do not move," he ordered quietly. "I will not harm you."

Kari stopped struggling. He hadn't hurt her at all yet so maybe she could trust him. Youko looked into Kari's hazel eyes. Once again he felt that strange feeling. "Why do I feel this way?" He thought. He then said to Kari, "You are very quiet. Why don't you talk?"

Kari kept her mouth tightly shut. She turned her head away from Youko and faced the cave wall. He took one hand and turned her head back. He gazed into her eyes again. "They're so addicting," he thought.

"You do not have to fear me," he said quietly. "I promised already not to harm you, so why do you still fear me?"

Kari tried to pull away but Youko's grip held her where she was. "Why are you resisting me?" He asked calmly.

Kari was about to smack him across the face. Youko grabbed her hand but did not apply pressure to it. Kari tried to pull it away from him but Youko did not let go. "I will only release you if you answer my question."

Kari shook her head and tried again to pull her hand away. This time Youko squeezed it gently. Kari eyed him with hate. "I simply want you to answer a question!" He shouted. Youko was losing his patience with this girl.

Kari stopped struggling and sighed. "I do not fear you," she whispered. "But I fear the men whom follow you."

Youko finally realized why she was so frightened. "Sakyou must've really scared her," he thought to himself. Kari suddenly rested her head on Youko's shoulder but jerked it up abruptly and blushed. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Youko looked at her in confusion. "Why did she do that?" he thought. He then released her hand and removed his arm from behind her head. Getting to his feet he asked, "Are you hungry?"

Kari looked up at him in shock. "Why are you helping me?" She asked.

Youko once again gazed into her eyes. "Not all demons are bad and it's the least I can do after dragging you here against your will," he answered calmly.

Kari smiled weakly. Youko's tail flicked a bit when she smiled at him. He felt himself blush. His mind went blank and he continued to stare into Kari's eyes. The cave once again became silent. After a couple moments Kari's stomach growled, cracking the silence.

Youko's ears perked at the sound. "I shall go get you some food," he said quietly, tearing his eyes away from hers. He was about to take a step towards the entrance when Kari's voice stopped him.

"Please don't leave!" She cried. Youko looked at her again. She had a frightened look on her face. "Please, don't leave me alone with them," she begged. "Please."

Youko saw the tears build up in her eyes. His expression softened and he walked towards her. He crouched down in front of her and gazed right into her eyes. "They will not harm you. I will make sure of that," he assured her.

Kari shook her head. "No they won't! They'll hurt me again!" She cried.

Youko saw the blood trickle down her neck from Sakyou's attack. He took his hand and wiped it away. He then turned her head to the side with his other hand. Taking the other one he raised her long brown hair about two inches away from her neck. Then he took his tongue and began to lick her wound.

At first Kari was shocked at this but then she allowed Youko to lick her. Youko suddenly jerked his head up and blushed. "I'm sorry," he muttered shyly. "My instincts took over me. I apologize." With that he stood to his feet and tore off some of his shirt. He handed it to her. "Wipe the blood away with this."

Kari took it in her hand. She too was red like Youko. "Th-Thank you, Youko," she stuttered.

Youko smiled at her and quickly ran out of the cave. When he got to the entrance he stopped. He looked around the group of men and motioned Sakyou to come towards him. Sakyou muttered something under his breath but obeyed. When he was about a foot away from Youko his collar was grabbed roughly.

Youko pulled him closer to his face and glared at him. "I will be gone looking for some food. If you touch her once… Just once! I will knaw your head off and use your body to practice my attacks on!"

The men all went quiet. They didn't want to piss Youko off and feared that saying something would do just that.

"I won't touch her, Youko," Sakyou spat. "Now let me go!"

Youko growled at him and threw him down on the ground. "You had better keep that promise. Or else you know what will happen to you, coyote demon."

Then Youko sped off to find some food for Kari. All the while thinking of what a fool he was to leave Kari alone with the men but somehow knowing that he had made the right decision.

Inside the cave, Kari was still huddled in the shadows. She was rubbing the back of her neck with the cloth. "Please return soon, Youko," she thought. "Please return soon. Please."