Hey Guys! ^-^

Drum roll please!

{..Pretend there's drums playing in the background…Hehe!...]

I now welcome you to read…

Soul Mates, Chappie No. 7!

Yayyy!

LOL! :D

But first, as always,

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Yu Yu HAKUSHO OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS IN IT. (However, everybody else present within the story (Kiara, Megumi, Damious, etc…) are my original characters.)

AND

There happens to be and will be (…definitely in the near future…) mature content (a.k.a lime and lemons). SO IF NOT PREPARED FOR THIS, DON'T READ MY STORY. Keep your innocence. (Hahaha LOL ^-^) ALSO, you should be made aware that there will be profanity in this chapter and in all the other chapters that follow.

Just to let you know, there may be times where I have characters portray their thoughts to you lovely readers. So if you see something italicized with ellipsis before and after it—whether it be a word or a sentence—that's a thought. Telepathy will also be italicized, but they will have dashes before and after what's being said instead of the ellipsis.

Thought: …I want ice cream!...

Telepathy: Kiara —Next fight, I make the shots!—

Megumi —In your dreams.—

Okay, now with everything said, ENJOY THE STORY! ^-^

Soul Mates!

Previously on Soul Mates:

"D-don't h-hu-rt Meg…..P-please."

At the mention of her name, the fox demon turned its head in Megumi's direction, growling low, when Kiara suddenly had a coughing attack, spitting up blood. Her coughs caused the sword within her to move, giving her unimaginable pain that she expressed through whimpers and screams.

But she quieted a bit, the instant two strong, protective hands embraced her. Looking up, Kiara was stunned, though she could hardly express it.

It was Youko in his demon-humanoid form. When had he transformed back? And though she had a hunch the fox demon was Youko, she wasn't entirely sure.

Now there was no doubt in her mind.

Lifting her, he picked her up in the bridal style position, gently, as if she were truly made of the finest glass. How he managed to not agitate the sword still in her while doing so, was a miracle.

Without a word, he placed her against his body and turned toward the inner belly of the woods…

As if he was ready to depart.

But he couldn't. Meg was still here, unconscious on the ground. Kiara couldn't leave her here. Alone. She wanted to be with her sister, especially when she…died.

But before she could get a word out, he sprinted off, further into the forest, taking her with him.

Chapter 7: "Cannot Be"

"Ugh! Shit…My head." Megumi groaned, positioned face down on the ground. She slowly lifted herself up from the earth, palms baring the majority of her weight. However, she soon realized that doing so was actually a big mistake because her right arm gave way before she could fully sit upright, causing her to fall back to the ground, hard. She screamed then cursed over and over, as the pain—sharp as a searing knife—ran up her arm, hitting her very core to leave an enflamed trail behind. Throbbing without mercy, Megumi bit back the pain in order to concentrate leaning her entire weight on her left side instead. Pushing off of her left arm, she swerved her legs into her body to sit upright. Then she let out a ragged breath as she assessed her right arm.

She cursed for the umpteenth time that minute.

Her bone located in her upper arm—the humerus—was completely shattered. She could feel it, let alone see the loss of depth in that area as it lay limp.

A wound like this would have taken a few days to heal with her Lunarian powers. Three days max. But she wasn't at full capacity still due to fighting a horde of demons, the cougars, and one large, lethal fox de—

Megumi's eyes widened as she remembered the fight she was in with the large beast. Turning her head violently in search of him, her right arm moved with her and she bit her lip hard drawing blood, as an onslaught of pain took over her body.

Ignoring it as best she could, she slowly looked around and saw no beast, but she felt her blood run cold, her pain forgotten once she realized her sister too was nowhere in sight.

"No. No. NO!" She cried, her eyes frantically looking all over the clearing for Kiara.

Where was she!? Who took her!? She prayed to heaven above that it wasn't the cougars. Anyone but them. They would have taken her straight to Damious and that would have been the end of everything. The end of Kiara for sure with her condition. Damious would only prolong Kiara's life to use her as bait, setting a trap for Megumi, which she knew she would willingly run into because there was no way in hell she was going to leave her sister in the hands of that monster. And as a result she would surely die, especially in the condition she was currently in now. All these years of training to one day fight and defeat Damious, once and for all, would have been for not.

But Megumi knew the cougars had not taken her sister. One because she was still here. There's no way they would not have taken her as well, especially when she was out cold, in no position to fight back. And two, there was no way that beast would have let them. Which meant…

"He has her." Megumi uttered, vengeance and fear evident in her voice.

Her heart racing in panic, Megumi used her left arm to steady her right one as she lifted herself up off the floor. Vertigo hit her hard causing her to lose some of her balance. So she closed her eyes, took deep breaths against the ongoing, wrenching pain and stilled herself. Once she knew she could keep her own, she opened her eyes as she heard a loud groan off to her left. Looking in that very direction, Megumi spotted Kuroune on his hands and knees, shaking his head.

It was as if her body had suddenly been possessed because what she did next didn't register until he was sending death glares her way.

"What the fucking hell was that for!" Kuroune yelled, holding his side as it throbbed in pain. He was now on his back, kicked into this position by the leg of crazy, raging woman. A woman he to this very moment craved stupidly for even after the abuse.

…I think I've really lost it… He thought to himself. …Woman tries to kill me and my dick gets hard….It makes no sense!...

Showing no remorse for what she had just done, Megumi bellowed, "WHERE THE HELL IS MY SISTER?! WHERE DID THAT FUCKING DEMON TAKE HER?!." almost in hysterics. Almost.

Looking at her in confusion, Kuronue replied, "What the hell are you talking about—" then yelled, "AH SHIT, WOMAN! STOP THAT!" He grabbed his now completely bruised side once more after blocking an attack that would have knocked him out cold for sure. Pain lacerated through his body as he turned on all fours, forehead on the ground.

…Ah man, I think she broke my rib!...

He moved slightly to assess his theory.

…SHIT! DAMN IT! She DID! She REALLY DID!…

"I don't have time to play shitty games with you, you bat! So ANSWER ME DAMMIT! WHERE DID HE TAKE MY—"

She paused, and was actually stunned for she could not believe the sound the reached her ears. He was…

Laughing.

Like a mad man, on the floor of the forest, while she stood a good three feet away from him in physical and emotional pain, worried sick over her sister's whereabouts and wellbeing.

At that very second, destructive anger ignited from her heart then with a speed consumed every inch of her body. She hated this demon with every fiber of her being and planned on killing him the minute she got what she needed.

Wanting so badly to make him cry out in pain instead, she went to kick him hard on his side for the third time, but he caught her ankle just in time and pulled it up towards him, causing her to lose her balance and fall hard on the floor. Caught off guard, Megumi was unable to keep her right arm from getting hit and when it collided with the ground, she screamed so loud due to her severe pain that she was sure her vocal cords were damaged for life.

…Dammit! DAMMIT! The painnnnn….it's…shit! I'm going to pass out!...

And she would have too if there suddenly wasn't a gentle, but firm hand running across her forehead, wiping the sweat away before repeatedly brushing back the top of her head with his fingers, rapids words of apology said simultaneously.

Megumi wasn't sure whether it was Kuronue or the actual gesture that suddenly calmed her down and brought the level of pain down a notch, but she didn't care to find out. She had a mission to complete, and that was find Kiara and save her at all costs. With that thought solidified in her mind, she used her good hand and tried to blast the bat demon off of her, who was now straddling her below her waist, on the forest floor.

Kuroune's reflexes were quick. Always have been. Always will be. And so he used them to his advantage against the beautiful vixen straddled between his tight, muscled legs. Fast reflexes mixed in with the element of surprise was the only way to get her to do what he wanted, which right now was to surrender to him completely.

The rage she harbored inside her, this consuming hatred for men was….well,genuine. The real deal. At first, Kuronue played along, thinking this 'I-hate-all-men' façade was some stimulating form of foreplay. And he sort of had the right to assume because this was not the first time he'd witnessed a woman do this. Women actual played this 'I-hate-all-men' role often, just so they could get him to notice them. And he had to admit, it did turn him on at times…but somehow this was different because she was different and to be quite honest, Kuronue actually didn't like the fact that she sported this attitude for real.

So the big question of the day, why should he bother dealing with her when there are so many other 'cooperative and willing' fish in the sea? To tell you the truth that is a very good question, especially for a womanizing demon like himself. However, never had Kuronue ever felt so drawn to another being, especially a being who time and time again tried to maim or kill him. There was something about her that called to him and he was going to answer that call, logical reasoning be damned.

Highly alert and vigilant, Kuronue grabbed her good wrist and with great haste, moved it to the side away from him as a blast of purple-black energy escaped her palm, blowing the trees to the side of him into several, tiny, broken pieces.

She growled out her anger and frustration, furiously trying to yank her arm free from its hold. But the vicious tug on her arm caused the right side of her body to move along with her right arm, inducing more agonizing pain that took hold of her entire body.

She screamed out loud once more and Kuronue's entire being cringed in response. He needed to get her to a priestess who could if not heal her, speed along the healing process because he could read her energy level perfectly. She was nowhere near fully recovered. But honestly this was as good a plan as purposefully running into a 9-foot deep ditch with no ladder.

Taking a deep breath, Kuronue tried to speak reason into her. "Megumi, you need to remain still so that I can—"

"LET GO OF MY ARM!" She bellowed, rage and utter pain written all over her face.

"Not until you listen to me!" He stated, his insides churning at seeing her in such a state. It actually tugged at his heart strings to see her like this. He had no clue why. He didn't really think of himself as a man of compassion, especially towards women because he knew what they were capable of doing. But anything that involved Megumi affected him more than it should.

And that was a dangerous thing.

Eyeing him down like the horny bastard he was, Megumi inquired, "Are you going to tell me where my sister is?"

Annoyed, Kuronue replied, "Gosh woman! For the last time! I don't know where she is—"

"THEN GO FUCK YOURSELF!" She spat, fuming as she tried to pull her arm free once more.

For a woman who was severely injured and low in energy, she could definitely put up a fight. A fight he wanted no part of but knew he had to get into in order to get his way.

…Stubborn woman… He growled mentally, fighting to hold her down still.

"WILL YOU LET GO OF MY ARM! AND GET THE FUCK OFF—" A shock wave of pain flew straight through Megumi and as a result she screamed in pure agony. The magnitude of the pain overwhelmed her to the point where all she knew was pain and if she did not find relief soon…she would die.

However, since this wasn't an option, Megumi started to take in deep breaths, as deep as she could possibly go to steadily fill her lungs with air. Difficult as it may be, concentrating on her breathing allowed her to take her mind of the pain if only for a second and as she did so she closed her eyes.

…How the hell did this happen?... She thought to herself as she reflected back on the day.

Just a few hours ago, she and Kiara were in the springs, bathing their current problems away. But now…

…She's on the brink of death and I'm injured and at the fucking mercy of bat demon, whose motives I can't discern…What the hell am I going to do?!…

Kuronue cursed as he witnessed her pain once more. "Will you fucking stay still and stop fighting me! You're only causing more pain for yourself. So stop and let me help you, dammit!"

Though the pain was doing a number on her, she opened her eye to stare him down. "So what exactly are your plans for me, Kuronue. Huh?" Her tone of voice was dark, void of something that was there but only a moment ago.

Kuronue eyed her as he continued to straddle her and keep a tight grip on her left wrist, which was now secured between his hand and the earth beneath them. He didn't like whatever this change was. It wasn't…her.

"I don't—"

"Kill me." She ordered, her voice, her face devoid of emotion.

Stunned, Kuronue's entire body froze at the unexpected command. Making his answer clear he responded with a, "No."

"Kill. Me. Now."

"No."

Anger lighting her eyes, she yelled, "I said KILL ME, DAMMIT!"

"AND I SAID NO!" He yelled right back.

"Then if you won't kill me, what do you have planned for me?! Huh? Because I rather die than be a whore to a demon like you! You understand?! And if you so much as even think of taking me by force, I swear to you I will kill you, slowly, myself."

Kuronue didn't utter a word. He just looked straight into her eyes, scanned her face and saw the rage, the pent up anger, her dying resilience, her struggling determination. It was all there, plain as day to see. Speaking to him on a level that has never been breached before. But what he knew was there locked far away deep, deep within her was her sorrows, her fears, her complete pain. Emotions he realized he wanted to take away from her. There was a hopelessness settling now and it was killing him to see it in such a strong, fearless woman as she.

"Megumi. I am here to help you—"

"BULLSHIT!" She hollered, utter rage coming to the forefront. "If you SERIOUSLY wanted to help me you let me go, get the fuck off me, and tell me where your bastard of a friend TOOK MY SISTER!" And then she was utterly horrified at what she did next.

She cried full tears. Full, silent tears that fell from her eyes, down her cheeks to rest into the earth of the forest.

She could have very well had died right then because to cry in front of an enemy? Even worse a man? She vowed to herself never to do so and had never did so until….now.

But….she couldn't help it.

…Kiara…My baby sister….I failed you. I should have been there to protect you. And now your…

She felt the pads of soft fingers, strong and firm, caress one side of her cheek, wiping her tears away. The simple motion did something to her that caught her attention as her heart suddenly skipped a beat. But that was nothing compared to what she felt as a result of what happened next.

Megumi hadn't realized when he had gotten so close to brush his tongue slowly up her cheek, but he did, following the wet trail just below her eye. He did this several times and every time his tongue stroke her, her heart felt like giving way and her stomach clenched, but not in pain, no. In fact the horrible pain she was in was momentarily forgotten, miraculously so. And in its place for but a moment was a light, pleasurable feeling that left her body wanting….more.

She became breathless, speechless as she watched him lift his head slightly to get a better look at her and there was something about that moment that became irreversible. Something unspoken that was now permanent between them. Megumi couldn't place it and in reality didn't want to, so instead she focused on the one thing that caught her attention irrevocably. His eyes. They were a beautiful shade of lavender that had a hint of green-blue near the inner iris, a small detail that would have never seen from a far.

Breaking the silence first, Kuronue tried to reassure her. "Megumi. Your sister believe it or not will be fine."

She looked away, unable to look at him anymore. She couldn't take the lies or empty promises of men any longer. They were all talk. No action.

"Megumi—"

"Bullshit! K-Kiara is in the hands of the fucking, ruthless King of Thieves! No, my sister doesn't stand a chance alone with that demon. For all I know he already killed her."

"Megumi, trust me, Youko—"

"I don't."

Kuronue frowned. Though her response to his statement made complete sense, her words had actually bothered him more than he had liked.

Choosing to ignore it, Kuronue continued. "Contrary to your beliefs, Youko wouldn't kill your sister, let alone harm her. Actually, he's the only chance of survival your sister has."

That last bit had actually gotten her head to turn back and look at him as question and doubt flickered across her face. Before she could voice her thoughts, he asked, "But let me ask you this. How do you know for sure Youko took her? The cougars could have—"

"They would have taken me as well." She replied, her voice neutral, unnatural. At her statement Megumi literally saw his eyes shift, the lavender becoming hard as steel and slightly darker in color to resemble a deep purple. Crazy how that happened. She hadn't noticed such a shift before and she actually wished she hadn't because she was fond of it. It was a truly amazing transformation to see take place. But then curiosity seeped through those stunning orbs and that ended this awe moment because she was not in the mood to explain anything of herself to him.

"You said my sister's only chance of survival is Youko Kurama, the King of Thieves." She began, cutting whatever questions were plaguing his mind. "Ask me why I don't believe you."

A smirk tugged at his lips. Normally, he would have put an end to a woman who thought they could order him around. But…when she did so, it was kind of cute if not sexy. So he complied. "Why don't you believe me?"

"Because a silver fox would not benefit from mating someone who could not produce him an offspring, let alone an offspring of a purebred blood line, which Youko would need, am I right?"

Kuronue schooled his expression, remaining passive as he looked at her and took in the words she just uttered. She knew. Knew of information that only a handful of Youko's trusted men even knew.

"Youko can only have an offspring with his soul mate, a woman of his own species. You know this don't you."

"Yes." She replied, not missing a beat. "And since he doesn't look like he's lost the other half of his soul that would mean his soul mate—a woman of his kind—is in fact alive out there somewhere, terminating the theory that Kiara actually is his."

"But actually on the contrary, there is evidence disproving your theory." When she didn't say anything, he explained. "Youko's sudden shift in behavior. What you saw today, that wasn't normal Youko behavior mind you. Yes, he can be an arrogant asshole and a bossy prick at times, but not at the level I saw today and taking the time to fight with your sister? Um yeah, that was a fucking sight to behold. Youko doesn't give those not worthy of him the time of day. And the very fact that your sister hadn't been killed for half the stuff she did, is evidence that there is something more. You should have seen the change in his behavior the second he got a whiff of your sister's scent. I probably wouldn't be here if at that moment I had been interested in her instead of you. His transformation, the release of his beast, that sealed the—"

"Get. Off." Megumi muttered, anger pulsing through her veins, the heat from it warming his skin. Her eyes, blazed dark indigo in color, would have struck fear in the heart of many, but seemed to only spike up his heart rate and sexual arousal. Kuronue spotted the challenge within them and smirked in response.

Her face contorted in anger. "GET OFF ME NOW!"

Keeping her pinned to the floor and caged in between his wings for reinforcement, he replied, "You can't deny what is Megumi."

"LIKE HELL, I CAN'T!" She yelled, fighting for her freedom once more, her injured arm forgotten until it wreaked havoc over her entire body, practically sending her into a comatose state by this point.

Kuronue growled low in warning. "I told you to stop moving."

"Fuck off." She growled back, glaring up at him.

"Don't bet on it, kitten."

Megumi's glare intensified at his chosen word of endearment. Oh how she hated it with all her being. He made it sound dammed…intimate. And she wanted nothing to do with him, let alone be intimate. Never again would she willingly put herself in such a position. But destiny had other plans for her it seemed. Plans she would do everything in her power to evade. So how the hell was she going to get out of this mess…

Then she remembered.

..My spell…

Without a second thought, she opened her mouth to utter the word that would be her saving grace. Bassiaeta, would have him off her in seconds in which she would flee without a backwards glance. So she quickly parted her lips to say it, but out of nowhere he closed the gap between them, a foreign tongue inserting its way into her cavern with a speed that rendered her utterly immobile. Her body, her feelings. They reacted with no control. And she suddenly whimpered against him, an electric shock striking her very core.

Taking complete advantage of her state, Kuronue's tongue began a thorough exploration of her mouth, starting a war with her own tongue for dominance. It was unwanted and Megumi suddenly snapped out of her shock, trying to drag herself back to separate them. However, her action only served to agitate her injured arm and without thinking she mistakenly bit down on his tongue, drawing blood. He growled in response, but didn't pull back. In fact, he suddenly increased his pace, angling his head so as to ravish her mouth even deeper than before. This caused his blood to fill her mouth and within seconds, Megumi was no longer trying to escape, her demeanor changed.

She pushed against his mouth wanting more of his blood. His blood, it fueled her, gave her energy where she had not. But the taste….Oh, the taste! It was so…..good! Never had she experienced anything better. So she sucked, and she sucked, and continued to suck on his tongue as if to run it dry. She wanted more, so much more of him to taste and ended up lifting her head to get even closer. Her nether region elevated itself of its own accord, eagerly searching for the bulge that was his groin, needing relief. She moaned long and hard as they rubbed together, causing a friction that was too emotional for words. Her blood was on fire, rushing through her veins, setting her entire body a blaze and she became so needy. And wanting. Wanting of what she did not understand, but of what she knew she must have…

In quick retreat, Kuronue pulled away, releasing her from the mercy of his lips. And as a result, her body screamed at her in rebuttal, her mind a hazy fog that wanted one thing.

His blood.

But before she could grab him again for more, soft words were spoken to her, a light, sweet caress of the early night. And then the next thing she knew everything was dark, fully unconscious.

Within seconds of her unconsciousness, Kuronue used every curse word known to man. Megumi's sudden change in reaction after taking in his blood, that change, that fucking change in her character meant only one thing…

"Ah shit." Kuronue sighed heavily at this realization. Why they hell had he not put any of the fucking clues together? His interest in her was purely evident and he had honestly planned on keeping her. But never in his right mind did he think to keep her for eternity? He wasn't that senile. Cause heck, she'd probably kill him before the week was over…Actually, that might just be too generous a statement.

"Yeah, she'll probably have my life by tomorrow….Gosh Darnit! Just my fucking luck that the woman whom I've been highly interested in is my mate…..But in actuality that would explain a lot of things." He muttered to himself. Looking down at the sleeping beauty before him, his heart suddenly clenched.

…She's not going to accept our bond at all! For pete's sake, she fucking hates my guts! And I scored no brownie points pointing out her sister is most likely Youko's soul mate. Ughhhhh, this is fucking ridiculous!...

Sighing deeply once more, Kuronue ripped off whatever was left of his shirt and used it as a cast to keep Megumi's injured arm locked against her. Rearranging his position, Kuronue cradled Megumi close against him, her injured arm between his chest and her body so that he could keep it locked in as they traveled.

Moving to find a clearer exit for takeoff, he eyed the woman who he this morning never knew existed and who has honestly brought him nothing but hell, hell, and more hell. And as he thought more about it, it was probably wiser to just leave Megumi here and escape having to deal with all that she is. But…

Kuronue smiled.

"Where would the fun be in that?" With that he took off into the sky, the late night sun warming his skin. He would first find help to heal her injuries. Then he'd go after information on who she was, why a bunch of cougars—who were unnaturally powerful—wanted her and her sister, and why she had an obvious distaste for men…..all in one night. Yeah, that would work. And after all that he just might add in the part where they are tied together for like all eternity.

Sighing deeply once more, Kuronue muttered, "Youko, my man, I hope you're having way more luck then I am bro. And for all our sakes," He looked down at his mate, his soul mate rather—which he was told he would never, ever have by the way—and smiled lightly as the wind blew away at her dark tresses. She looked so peaceful, asleep in his arms, no worries plaguing her mind. If only that were the truth. The only person he assumed she trusted in this world was on the very cusp of death, alone with a bandit who was known more so for his killings rather than the number of lives he might have saved, if any at all. And to be injured and unable to do anything about this, when one is used to responsibility and being in control at all times—like he assumed she definitely was—this must be tough on her. So Kuronue vowed that once she was fully healed, he would help her find her sister…if she wasn't dead by then.

Letting out the last breath of the night, Kuronue prayed. "Keep that girl alive Youko, please. Whatever you do, don't let her die."

So how did you like it? I hope it was an okay read. To be quite honest, this chappie was one of my hardest to write and to some extent I even feel that I didn't fully capture what I wanted to see happen. So I'll let you guys be the judge of that.

And so that means your reviews are very much needed and appreciated!

I say thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to all who have stuck with me (YOU'RE THE BEST! :D) and to all who have took the time to send me a review (I VALUE YOU SOOOOOOO MUCH)!

So stay tuned for the next chappie which will reveal Kiara's fate.

LOVE YOU ALL!

SEE YA! ^-^