Now, first of all, I am really terribly sorry for not updating last week. I'm so sorry. I feel so bad because I felt like I left you guys hanging. Uwaah. TT_TT

Reason? I got grounded. I think I deserve it though. But I won't go into detail.

At first I thought I won't be able to post this today because writer's block started to haunt me again too. But lookie here, I managed to get it done. Thank God for that. :D Literally. Oh, and maybe because YYH is on TV here in our country again! And today's episode is about Kurama! Kya~! Haha.

Okay, so I thought I would write a long apology, but now I found myself at a loss for words. Oh well, enough ranting. Here you go guys!

Kurama's POV

The faint moonlight from the window shone on Yana's face as she slept. Her hair was a mess. It covered most of her face, but I still think it's adorable. Her hands lay limply close to my chest.

It was the middle of the night, and as usual, I woke up just to watch her sleep. It has always been such a delightful sight for me. Especially this time.

The only nights she slept this close to me are when we fall asleep on the floor after a study session, when both of us were too exhausted to get up. Even so, I couldn't touch her, for certainly she'd get upset. Besides, I couldn't bring myself to be happy for long because the floor isn't very comfortable to sleep on to begin with.

I sighed as I caressed Yana's cheek. Now she's so near to me, unguarded; I can barely ignore the frustratingly persistent feeling down there. It pushed me to pull her even closer so I could fully feel her warmth, hear her relaxed breathing, and smell her sweet scent. And before I knew it, my lips were already traveling down her neck.

And then she let out a soft moan.

She hasn't waked up yet when I checked, but that was all it took to pull myself away from her. I have to get a hold of myself or else I'd lose all the self-restraint I've been trying so hard to maintain when she's alone with me.

I gazed at her again. She looked so peaceful, content, and... innocent. I sighed again. I really can't take that away from her yet. I still have to wait some more.

I picked up the pillow I threw on the floor hours ago. It had unfortunately crashed into a vase, shattering it in pieces. I shook off the bits of broken glass from the pillow before placing it beside Yana. Thinking it was still me, she immediately hugged it tight. It caused a small smile on my lips as I went outside.

Others have also gotten up from their slumber; most of them are those included in today's raid. On missions like these, I require my men to wake up early for us to leave before sunrise. I hate delaying things. Knowing this, they have no choice but to comply to my rules, or else they won't get the spoils of the heist.

We go on raids that are either planned out by myself, or requested by clients—like this current one. I negotiate with them through deals. Deals determine whether one's life is worth keeping. If the other party violates the agreement's terms, I never hesitate a punishment.

I could smell the faint aroma of food being cooked in the kitchen downstairs. It won't be long before the huge breakfast would be served, so I decided to check on the treasure room while waiting. Aside from thieving, I also get money from trading and selling the treasures we acquired.

I tried not to spend a lot of time in there though. I left as soon as I've set aside a golden goblet and a fancy music box for trading. As I made my way back to Yana's bedroom, I saw someone by her door.

"Yomi," I stopped at an arm's length from him. "What are you doing here?"

He grinned. "Having a great morning, Youko?"

I remained expressionless. "You're better off not wasting my time."

Yomi chuckled. "Fine then," he smirked. "I was just wondering if Yana's still asleep."

"That's none of your business," I clenched my fists, which Yomi didn't fail to notice.

He laughed lightly. "Pretty overprotective, are you?"

"From people like you, of course I am."

Yomi raised an eyebrow. "Oh, how sweet."

I grabbed the doorknob. "Just go prepare for the raid. I don't want anyone slowing the teams down. "

He scoffed as he started walking past me. "But maybe getting injured later would be worth it, don't you think? Yana gets to heal me then."

I turned to glare dangerously at him. "Keep your hands off her. And don't you dare try anything silly at the raid."

"Tch. You're no fun." And then he was off.

If he ever dares to lay a finger on her, I swear I'll…

"Master Youko?" a female voice interrupted my thoughts. I turned to see one of the maids, a cat demon assigned to work in the kitchen. "Breakfast is ready," she continued.

I exhaled loudly in an attempt to calm myself down. "Fine. I'll be there in a moment."

Yana was still asleep when I got back, so I took this time to step into the shower. As the cold water touched my skin, I allowed my thoughts to wander towards the kitsune still sleeping on the other side of the door.

It was after a day of trading treasures that I saw a small family of silver kitsune by a small cottage in the woods—a father, a mother, and their young teenage daughter. The daughter, Yana, was still young back then, fresh out of puberty it seems. Yet at the moment I saw her, I knew I already want her for myself only.

I watched her everyday since then; watched her grow and bloom into more desirable standards. Careful not to be discovered, I waited for the right moment to grab her from her family. Now that I've found a virgin silver kitsune for myself, I surprisingly became patient over a girl for the first time.

And then that day came…

I sighed as I shook off the memory. Now's not the time to remember it.

I immediately got dressed afterwards. My eyes then drifted to the window. It was still too early in the morning. It was pitch black outside; the perfect time to leave for our destination to get a chance to secure safe hiding places near it.

"Kurama?"

I turned to the bed. Yana was already sitting up, staring at me innocently. I smiled and held out my arms, "Come here."

Yana crossed the floor in an instant. I wrapped her into a tight hug. "I thought you were leaving early," she said as I pulled her close to my chest.

I let out a low chuckle. "You want me to go now?"

"No!" she looked up. "I didn't mean it that way."

"I know," I slowly kissed the top of her head, then her forehead, her nose, and finally resting my lips on hers. I clutched her frame with one arm while my other hand dug into her hair. I actually lifted her from the ground a bit, making her stand on her toes. Yet I kept the kiss slow and gentle, afraid that I might surprise her with my desperate want.

"Master Youko," I suddenly heard Kurosagi's voice outside accompanied with three quick knocks on the door. "Yomi-san wants to know if you're ready to leave."

I grunted, pulling away from the kitsune. I was just getting started. "He really knows how to piss me off," I hesitatingly let go of Yana's waist.

She laughed lightly. "Calm down. You'll be working with him for a while longer today, right?"

I sighed when I saw her childlike smile. Come to think of it, I could've lost control if I didn't stop there. "Yes, too bad," I replied, ruffling her hair. "Good luck with training then."

"I'm actually very excited," she smirked.

"We'll see about that."

She gasped,"You and Kuronue said the exact same thing! You both make it seem like it'll be unpleasant."

I laughed. "It depends though. But I believe you'll be able to handle it." I kissed her cheek, "And like I said, be ready for the casualties."

I turned to leave, but Yana caught me by the hand. "Please stay safe, Kurama," she looked up at me, her hazel eyes full of worry.

"I'll be fine," I smiled before finally exiting. Kurosagi closed the door for me.

"Should we bring in her breakfast already?" her twin, Shirosagi, asked me.

"Let her sleep some more," I waved off as I started walking away. "And tell Kuronue to start her training late in the morning."

A castle is filled with a lot of fancy items, but there is at least one that's valued the most. This is the castle's main treasure, the one item a particular castle gets famous for.

In this case, we're robbing a castle of its most valued treasure—a gem said to hold the power to bring back someone who's already dead.

Our client has a deep grudge against the ruler of this castle, who just recently killed our client's friend. It was some sort of betrayal. We were hired to steal the gem to bring his friend back to life and then take revenge. Not like I care about his intentions though; things like these are quite normal in Demon World.

As long as we were paid right, and as long as we don't get further involved, I didn't care about the consequences of what may happen to the client.

We reached our destination not long after we left—a castle deep in the woods in the next city. Usually I investigate the area myself, but since I was busy on Yana's training, I decided to get an informant. Based on his report, the security wasn't that tight, but there are a lot of traps as you get closer to where the targeted treasure is.

We work on missions by teams. A team is composed of five members each, and as much as possible, I only bring one team along with me. Since I don't fully trust an informant, I decided to be cautious by bringing two teams along. I also get either Kuronue or Yomi—the superiors among my comrades—to partner up with me. Because Kuronue came with me on our last raid, it was Yomi's turn this time—much to my irritation.

Now my instruction was simple. One team gets to come inside for the treasure, while the other would serve as reinforcements. Yomi and I would lead the way.

Most of all, we are to follow the rule I always set as the most important of all—get everyone out alive, with or without the treasure.

We were able to infiltrate the castle without getting noticed. We came upon the first set of traps. It was actually disappointing to see the same basic traps set up before us. As we advanced, the traps got even more boring.

This mission just might be too easy. How frustrating.

Nevertheless, I expected the mission to go smoothly. I expected us to easily acquire the gem and get back home safely.

But who knew I was to be proved wrong?

The deafening sound of the security alarm echoed through the whole building. With the gem in my hand, I ran along with the others.

I've been a thief for a very, very long time. I gained an experience on tinkering with security alarms, easily finding a way to disable all kinds of them, no matter how much technology gets developed. This is my game.

A number of security alarms have been set up before us. I was able to deactivate them all though, so we were able to pass through and get to the room where the precious gem is.

The white round gem rests on a pillow inside a glass case. Before we got inside, I deactivated the only remaining trap. Or so I thought.

Carefully lifting the glass case, I immediately got hold of the gem. Huge mistake.

Little did I know that inside the glass case were infinitesimal sensors surrounding the white gem.

Now we have to run as fast as we could as the alarms wailed. The guards had started to come for us. I considered transforming into my full fox form, but that would be too selfish a move, because I know I'd be the only one to escape safely that way. So I resorted to throwing little bombs disguised as plant seeds to the guards that block our way.

Running from them didn't bother me at all though. Only an amateur would be scared.

I was starting to get thrilled. Excited. I haven't been caught and chased like this in a long time.

However, I never expected the sudden turn of events.

As the chase continued, I suddenly found ourselves running in a path we haven't taken on our way in.

"Stop," I ordered, noticing that we have lost the recent set of guards who were after us. "Look around us."

They immediately followed.

"Wow. Just the perfect time to get lost," Yomi remarked sarcastically.

"Shut it," I said rather calmly. "No reason to worry anyway. We've got Shin with us," I gestured to one of our companions, a dog demon who is an excellent tracker.

Understanding what I want him to do, Shin then started sniffing around. "We're not far from the exit," he said after a while. "Apparently, we can take a shortcut from here."

"Hmph," Yomi crossed his arms. "You know, we won't be put in this situation if it weren't for you, Youko."

I raised an eyebrow. "It was a simple mistake. And we're all still alive, aren't we? No harm done."

He scoffed. "Right. If others messed up the mission, you'd get all enraged. But your own slip-ups are never a big deal, huh?"

"Yomi-san, this isn't the time to pick a fight," one of our comrades, a wolf demon, grunted.

"I wasn't picking a fight. I was just stating the obvious," Yomi smirked. "Because our leader Youko Kurama never takes the blame for his own mistakes."

I smirked back. "Speak for yourself, hypocrite."

"What?"

"If I don't take the blame for my mistakes, the teams would've long been disbanded, won't it? You're actually the one guilty of your own accusation."

"Why you—"

"Are you trying to divide this team's opinion about me? Why, may I ask? Are you trying to see who would turn against me?" I turned my back on him and nodded for Shin to lead the way. "Good luck with that, Yomi."

The rest of us started walking, but Yomi was persistent. He lunged at me from behind, but his lame attempt only got him tossed into a wall.

And that was it.

Turns out, the wall he got thrown into is a trap itself. One of its bricks, which he had unfortunately bumped into, triggered the sensors on the other walls to fire arrows at us.

We were on the run once again, with Shin leading the way. And just when we were about to reach the end of the arrow-firing hallway, Yomi got shot on the arm.

I cursed under my breath. As much as I hated Yomi, he was still a comrade. And my partner for this raid. Before he could fall on his knees, I dragged him into a safer hallway. I sat him against a wall and examined his arm. The others have stopped with us.

"Oh, you couldn't be any unluckier…" I shook my head.

"What do you mean?" he winced in pain.

"We need to get out of here as soon as we can. It's a poisonous arrow," I stood, offering my hand to help him up.

He slapped the hand away. "You don't have to take pity on me, Youko. I can take care of myself," he said.

"Fine then. Pride could really kill, you know," I nodded for the men to proceed walking with me, letting Yomi stand up by himself. "But you have to remember that I don't want anyone slowing us down."

An ambush. I had expected it all along, right from the moment the alarms went off. I knew it'd come sooner or later, and I prepared myself for it.

But why… why did this happen to me?

We were pushed to fight off the guards waiting for us near the exit. I've cracked the Rose Whip just in time, allowing me to kill as many as I can within the whip's proximity.

However, one of the guards got too close. I was able to shove him away, but that was because I reacted to the sudden pain on my side. The guy had managed to lash at me with his sword.

I suddenly found myself falling face down. I couldn't breathe. It's like my lungs are starting to constrict. I could only clutch at the gem inside my pocket as I felt the rest of my body get immobilized.

Poison. Only a special kind of poison could put me in this state.

Was there poison on that blade? First the arrows, and now the guard's swords... it's making me suspicious.

"Youko-sama!" I heard my comrades come for me.

It angered me that I look so helpless now. I tried to reach for the whip that had slipped out of my hand when I fell, but I couldn't even move a muscle. The sounds around me suddenly receded to an irritating ringing in my ears. I opened my mouth to speak, but no sound came out. My vision got blurrier by the second.

And then everything went black.

There you go! Cliffhanger! Hahaha. I'm sorry I had to hurt you Kurama...

So I tried to delve into Youko Kurama's sly and perverted mind. It's pretty fun.

And I guess I also liked writing Youko and Yomi's never-ending rivalry. Haha. I liked writing their arguments. xD

Anyway, tell me what you guys think through reviews!

And again, I'm so sorry for this super late update.

So, until next week then! Ja'ne! :)