Covet

Summary: Look only at me. Want only me. Be mine only. Otherwise, I'll break you. Dark!Kurama and Botan.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.

Chapter 5

Shouji's feet spun around, turning him into a dark, empty alleyway as his crimson orbs fixated on the plastic bag in his right hand, the black fabric of a jacket and the hint of a white dress shirt peeking through the flimsy material as a smile climbed its way to his lips. Excitement filled his aura, spiking it slightly in small, elated waves as the slight recollection of Botan came into his mind, serving to widen the quirk at the corners of his mouth.

Despite his obvious eagerness for the night to come, Shouji suppressed his enthusiasm almost as instantly as it came, brown head whirling around to spare a few glances here and there to ensure no one else was there. Reikai had unspoken but strict laws that forbade them from letting humans know of their existence, thus any foolish errors from ferry girls, and SDF members, was not to be forgiven that easily. Whilst it was easy to spot a grim reaper flying across the sky, any mortal beings who had the rare fortune to catch a glimpse would usually brush it off as their imagination. However, it was not as simple for SDF members as they were subjected with harsher rules to secure their existence from the human realm. They were to make certain no human was in close proximity during their time of opening the portal to the Spirit World, due to the blatant truth that seeing a black hole was not so effortless enough to be shrugged off as their minds playing tricks on them if a human were to witness the scene.

Caution still evident in his rigid form, Shouji took a mental note of an absence of breathing creatures around him as he started to let his guard down just a bit. The moment didn't last long though, as he sensed a surge of powerful, menacing demon energy from behind him, the bloodlust in the aura causing a breath to hitch in his throat, but his body was rendered immobile by fear as a cold sweat began to manifest itself on his forehead before dribbling down his chin.

His ears caught the loud, echoing sounds of footsteps before an icy set of fingers came into contact with his shoulders, and he flinched at the slight jump of fear that he had no time to conceal from the touch. Nails dug into the fabric of his white shirt - he had worn a casual outfit in order to avoid attracting unwanted attention - the action simple yet managed to elicit an intense fear from deep within his stomach as it was accompanied by the promise of death if he were to move a muscle.

"W-who are you?" he managed to croak out, fighting to subdue the bile that threatened to come up his throat as he felt the cold hand on his shoulder slide to the back of his neck.

A sweet fragrance invaded his nostrils, but by the time he noticed the scent, he was too late as he was a step behind before it went up his nose and traveled to his brain, almost crushing his consciousness. His vision started to blur, and he gritted his teeth, battling to stay awake. But his efforts proved to be fruitless as his eyelids threatened to shut close, black spots assaulting his sight before darkness eventually claimed him and his mind, one that had been roaring at him to do something, came to a dead end.

A flash of red, and a glint of gold through gleaming emeralds, and Kurama let go of the grip he had around Shouji's neck, watching in sadistic satisfaction as the man's body collapsed in front of him. A malicious smirk crept up his countenance as his tongue darted out to lick at his lips. His voice cold as it resonated in the dimly lit area.

"Sleep for now. We'll talk somewhere else."

Black eyelashes trembled and slowly fluttered open before Shouji woke with a start, memories of the earlier encounter flooding his currently alarmed brain. But the moment he was awakened from his forced slumber, he found that his movements were restricted as he could not motion for his limbs to do anything. Sirens rang in his head before he shoved down the panic that nearly overwhelmed his senses in favor of collecting himself. Once he was calm, he studied the surroundings around him and realized two things. One was that it was a room that he couldn't recognize and that it had little to no light, excluding the moonlight peeking through the windows and only barely providing a blue glow on half of the floor and some parts of the walls. And two, was that upon further inspection, he discerned that both his ankles and wrists were tied up expertly by a pair of rope, leaving him restrained. A savage curse building in his throat as he struggled to free himself before it was replaced by a startled gasp as he felt the rope, unexpectedly, coiled tighter around him, further squashing any hope for escape. The rope... moved by itself? But how was that possible?

It took him a moment to notice the sharp, prickly thorns and the faint yet familiar stench of blood; whoever responsible for capturing him was careful enough not to let them touch his skin, but thanks to his earlier incessant writhing, some had managed to dig into the flesh of his wrists and succeeded to draw out the red liquid as he could vaguely feel it drizzle down his palm. A look of recognition crossed his visage as the revelation hit him who his abductor might be. He could only ever think of one person capable of such a thing.

In spite the rush of anger ignited by the piece of information, Shouji gathered himself and narrowed his eyes at the darkness at the left corner of the room.

"Kurama," he growled, low and dangerous, "I know you're there. Come out wherever you are."

Silence hung in the air for a couple of fleeting moments before, as if on cue, a tall, muscular figure stepped out from the shadows. By the time he caught the redhead's peridot irises, Shouji was already seething with wrath.

"What the fuck do you thing you're doing?" he barked at the fox who merely regarded him with disinterest in return.

Kurama's hands clenched into fists in their confinements in his pockets and he quelled the urge to render Shouji's vocal chords useless as the other male's obnoxious shout caused his ears to twitch in pain. Was all of the SDF members this loud?

He threw his head back as he studied the brown-haired man in front of him with a vehement stare. "I suppose you deserve a round of applause." A smirk spread on his face before his eyes flashed dangerously in spite. "You are quite perceptive. I did not think you would figure out my identity so soon."

The feigned surprise on Kurama's boyish features sent Shouji reeling with an intense fury he didn't know he was capable of withholding as he hissed and shot a heated glare at the grinning former thief. It was almost gut-wrenchingly conspicuous that whatever Kurama had planned, he had expected him to find out who he was, had probably even looked forward to it, if the smug curve at his lips was anything to go by.

"Where is this? Is this... your domain?" he asked slowly, despite the hint of trepidation crawling underneath his skin and combining with the unhidden hostility on the surface. "What are you trying to pull?" he went on, voice holding an edge of resentment when his question was unjustified with a response.

"I assure you," Kurama supplied, voice piercing as he stalked towards the bounded SDF member, and halted in his tracks just as they were a mere step away from each other, "you won't be here much longer. And I'm afraid I cannot tell you my plans, not that it makes much of a difference considering your predicament.

Shouji clutched his fingers into angry, curled up fists as his glare intensified. "If you think you can get away with whatever this is, you're awfully wrong. I'll make sure that you get the rightful punishment you deserve." His tone was quiet as if calm before it was briskly replaced by contempt and his voice started to rise a few notches. "This is treason! I knew you and your dirty demon friends were trouble the moment I laid eyes on you people! I don't even understand why Koenma-sama has so much trust in you."

The former thief observed with a vacant expression on his mug as Shouji lurched his body forward in a failed attempt to bite him, his actions futile as Kurama took a controlled step back. He was used to being undermined by reigens, was even accustomed to being called a traitor by demons he didn't even know, to the point that it didn't even bother him in the slightest. Even so, for some reason, hearing such a phrase that indicated so much prejudice towards his kind from a filthy mouth like the vermin before him brought on his more malevolent side as he mouthed a silent command for his vines to slither from the creaks on the ceiling, before they glided down the walls, trailed along the floor and proceeded to climb up Shouji's form. Relishing in the panic that overtook the once hateful look in his prisoner's scarlet orbs, Kurama couldn't help but smirk in self-gratification as the vines wrapped around Shouji's throat, twisting hard and tight enough to rob the male of oxygen as they strangled him, the thorns breaking into skin and drawing out blood from the wounds.

"I assumed you were a little smarter than this, but it would seem my assumptions were far off the mark." The normally composed timbre in his voice dropped a few octaves lower as he gazed coldly down the SDF scum struggling to breathe. "Contrary to your beliefs, my friends have nothing to do with this. And I haven't even done anything but restrain you to a chair. Besides," He continued to watch in evil glee as drool began to leak from both edges of Shouji's mouth, and the man was consumed by a violent fit of coughing, "you're hardly in a place where you should start spouting empty threats. I don't reckon you're foolish enough to believe you can do anything in your position."

Shouji felt an insult threatening to roll off his tongue, but his words failed to leave him as the fox not only stole his capability to breathe but also rendered him unable to speak. With a tilt of his head, Kurama smiled in a manner that bordered on too sickeningly sweet, as he mutedly commanded his vines to loosen their hold around Shouji's neck, not enough to fully release him but enough to feed his hunger for air and to return his ability for speech. As much as he would love to watch the man being choked to his death by his precious plants, it wouldn't do Kurama any good for him to get too excited and wind up killing him a little too soon. After all, death was like a blessing compared to what he had in stored for Shouji, and he was not about to grant him such a bliss.

He surveyed with dull lack of interest as Shouji took in deep, shaky intakes of air, greedily sucking in any oxygen his brief freedom could allow him.

Horror still deeply rooted within each cell of his being, but it was overwhelmed by an outrage beyond comprehension as Shouji recalled himself fainting in the dark alleyway where he had foolishly let his guard down and let his momentary show of weakness to lead to his eventual capture, and vividly remembered Kurama soaking in delight to see him desperately coughing as he was nearly strangled to death.

"Fuck you," he growled, loathing the dripping of his saliva down his chin and further lower still to coat his throat with a thin strip of drool. "You drugged me," he went on to hiss as the memory of a fragrance that rendered him unconscious came intruding his barely able to think brain.

"Trust me, it wasn't that strong," Kurama sounded a demeaning scoff as he scowled at Shouji with intense detest. "I could have killed you with an overdose if I wanted to."

Shouji hated how easy the redhead made it sound to get rid of him. "Then why don't you?" he snorted back in response, spitting at the fox, though his saliva landed nowhere near Kurama's face as he elegantly avoided the foolish and pre-matured attempt at assault.

"Because I still have some use for you. And despite how tempting it is, I will not kill you." He paused as a maniacal grin tugged at the corners of his lips. "Not yet at the very least."

The SDF wanted to put up a tough act and roar at him a string of insults, but the dread and anxiety that he had managed to curb finally reared its head, scratching away any grit he had left.

"I don't understand. Why are you doing this?" he whispered, flinching as his body trembled and voice shook in absolute fright. Kurama's pools of peridots terrifyingly brightened in a way that sent cold shivers down his spine, as if he found pleasure in seeing Shouji's once obstinate defiance melt away like acid stripping off skin and gave way to acute distress that resulted in him nearly sobbing in fear.

Kurama wanted to laugh at the display. After all thatbrave front and irritating yelling, this is who he really is? A coward on the verge of urinating his pants. How laughable. Emerald eyes darkened into forest green as they narrowed into dangerous slits. This pest did not deserve Botan. In fact, no one deserved her but him but Shouji stooped lower than many and was not even worthy of being rewarded with respect.

His voice was unsympathetic, but harboured a hint of fury underlying beneath as he spoke. "You tried to lay your hands on something that you should have never touched." He bit back a malicious growl, fists clenching at his sides as he removed his hands from his pockets, his eyes now wide as all humanity was stripped away, leaving in its wake only pure, unadulterated anger. "You could have left it alone but you didn't and look at where that has led you to."

Shouji's brows furrowed in bewilderment as his trepidation dissipated slightly at the fox's words. The silence lingered before the gears in his head clicked and his eyes broadened in complete shock. The surprise combined with horror that created a whirlwind of negative bursts of emotions that he did not welcome as he uttered, low yet somewhat clear, "Oh my god- do you mean her?"

Botan. It was Botan! He always thought the redhead was a bit too close to her but never did he expect he would go to such extremes. The crease on his forehead deepened as his initial terror scurried back into his flesh, permitting another wave of rage. He felt bile coming up his throat but immediately swallowed it down. "You want her? Why her?"

Kurama arched an eyebrow at him with moderate curiosity as his ears distinctly caught the resolve that had returned in the SDF's member's once quivering voice. Still, it was not enough to pique his interest as he threw his head back once more and snorted out loud. "I don't believe I have any obligation to answer that question."

"I'm not gonna let you hurt her. You don't deserve her," Shouji growled and Kurama nearly burst out laughing, not even feeling threatened by his words even the tiniest bit.

"I know," he replied all too knowingly, but didn't seem to care, "but neither do you." He watched the other male part his lips to sound out another snide remark but rolled his eyes as he clamped his mouth shut, almost as if too afraid to muster the courage to even savagely curse at him.

"Now be quiet and fall asleep," Kurama told him before flicking his wrist, and as if in sync with his actions, Shouji breathed in a familiar scent. He panicked but couldn't really do anything to close his nose and mouth as his hands were still tied up. "By the time you wake up, you won't have any arms or legs to help you struggle anymore. I'll keep you locked up in here for however long I want, and whenever I feel like it, I'll dispose of you."

The fox bent down until they were to eye to eye, his voice barely above a hushed whisper but sharp enough to pierce through skin, "But don't worry, it will be a slow, painful death. It would be immensely painful to you, but I would certainly enjoy every second of it."

Then Shouji's writhing body came to a stop, his form slumping down as his head fell to his chest. A cruel smirk spread on his face, his eyes flashing a dangerous gold before reverting to their previous greens.

"And if I feel like it, when I'm generous enough, I'll let you watch me claim her as mine."

A/N: Phooey. Finally done! I apologise for the long wait.