- Chapter 11 -

"Please... don't go."

Kurama did not reply vocally. Instead, he wordlessly crawled into bed beside the woman he loved, pausing only long enough to remove his shoes before wrapping her once again in his arms. The couple remained cuddled that way as the night progressed; sleep finally overtaking them only moments after final words of love for one another were whispered into the darkness.

Hiei blinked his eyes as he woke up in completely unfamiliar territory. He obviously wasn't in a tree, and he knew he wasn't in a tent at the slave camp. Then, as the fog cleared, he remembered the details of the previous night and looked down at the still slumbering Shizuru. A small smile crept onto his features as he noticed the way she was snuggled up against him.

Even though she would be mad at him when she woke up and he explained what he had done, she obviously accepted him, in some way or another. Some unconscious level. Hiei just hoped she would accept him on a conscious level.

Hiei leaned back down on Shizuru's bed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, noticing that she was still only wrapped in the sheet he had grabbed from the slave traders. His nose wrinkled as he picked up the disgusting scent that covered the sheet. Wanting to remove the scent from near his mate, he unwrapped the sheet from around her body and tossed it towards her door.

Covering her body back up with her own sheets, he snuggled down into the bed to relax against her as he let his mind wander. He knew that no matter what her response to him was, he would stay close by and protect her from anything. But he didn't want to think about what would happen if she didn't accept his mark and claim on her.

Just as he was about to drift back to sleep, he felt her beginning to stir against him. He knew she would be awake in a few moments.

"What are you still doing here?" Shizuru demanded, still snuggled up against his chest.

"I wanted to make sure you were okay," Hiei told her, his arm around her shoulder holding her tightly against him.

"Well, since you're still here. You mind telling me what the hell that demon guy was talking about last night when he said you mated with me?" Shizuru demanded, sitting up while making sure to hold the sheet to her chest.

Hiei sat up as well, though he didn't look at her. "He meant the mark on your neck, from when I bit you," he told her.

"What?! You guys said it was just temporary," Shizuru raged.

"Not the first one. The one from when I bit you in the hot spring," Hiei clarified.

"Oh," Shizuru said, blushing at the memory of what had happened before he had bit her. "So what does it mean?" she questioned.

"You are now my mate. It represents the same kind of thing as marriage is for humans," he explained.

"So I don't get a say in this? You just screw me and then think you can bind me to you for life?" she demanded to know.

Hiei fought smiling. At least he knew she didn't believe in divorce. "You can reject me, but the same thing that happened to Ankoku when he tried to touch you will happen with others."

After letting his words sink in for a moment, he leaned over and took her chin in his hand, making her look at him. "But tell me one thing," Hiei told her as he leaned close enough to take her lips in a gentle kiss. He nibbled on her lower lip for a second before she opened her mouth to him in a gasp, and he slipped his tongue inside her mouth.

When they were both in need of air, he pulled back, still keeping her chin in his hand. "Do you really want to give me, and that, up because I was a little impulsive?" Hiei asked her.

Shizuru glared at him, though it was made less intimidating by her flushed cheeks and panting breath. "You could have asked me before you did it," she told him, still out of breath from his intense kiss.

"Not exactly. I didn't know I was going to do it until almost after I had bitten you," Hiei told her.

Shizuru shook her head at him. "What am I going to do with you?" she asked, a slight laugh in her voice.

"Does that mean you'll accept me as your mate," Hiei asked, not letting his hope shine through in his voice.

Shizuru nodded. "I suppose I can put up with you."

Hiei grinned wickedly at her. "Good, cause there have been things I've been wanting to do to you all night."

Shizuru smirked. "What kinds of things?" she asked; hoping none of them involved her on her knees.

"Here. Let me show you," Hiei growled possessively as he pounced on her, knocking on onto her back with him straddling her hips.

Hiei leaned down and began to lavish kisses along Shizuru's jaw line before trailing down her neck to where he'd made his mark on her. The tattoo was beginning to appear, flaring with the light blue glow against her pale skin. Hiei traced it with his tongue before moving further down her body.

Shizuru moaned as his tongue traced her collarbone, her hands going up to his shoulders, and was disappointed to find he was still fully clothed. Well, she would just have to do something about that. Her fingers found the clasp for his cloak and quickly removed that from his body, glad to find that he wore no shirt underneath. She trailed her fingertips along the contours of his body, delighting in the feel of his sculpted muscles dancing underneath his skin.

Hiei nipped playfully at Shizuru's flesh as her fingers moved to his nipples, tweaking them, almost hinting at what she wanted. Not one to deny his mate, Hiei lowered his head to her right breast and suckled greedily, his hand moving to her other mound to imitate his mouth's actions.

Shizuru gasped as his mouth switched breasts, her body arching up into him, giving her mate better access to her body. But he was still too clothed for her liking. Her hands trailed down his back to the front of his waist, her hands searching out the belt buckles she knew would be there.

Her fingers made short work of the only thing securing his pants to his waist, and she shoved the offending pants down his hips, surprised to find that he went commando. Though, she never did see any signs of underwear under his pants. Not that she ever looked.

Hiei pulled away long enough to rid himself of the pants completely and then leaned down and took her lips in a heated kiss. "Impatient, aren't we," He teased as he nipped her nose.

Shizuru growled at him. "Yes. Now hurry up. I don't want my brother walking in on us," She ordered, her arms going around his neck to pull him down for a demanding kiss.

Hiei smirked. He knew the baka wouldn't be there for a while. They had to drop the unconscious demon off and then make their way all the way back to the human world. He had plenty of time. But if his mate wanted a quickie, who was he to deny her her pleasure.

Trailing a hand down to the vee of her thighs, Hiei tested her wetness with teasing fingers. Shizuru moaned at his touch and arched against his hand. He could feel the evidence of her arousal dampen his hand and knew she was ready for him. Rising above her slightly, Hiei positioned himself at her entrance, sliding the length of him against her slick folds teasingly.

In the mood to see her pant a little bit more, Hiei grabbed his shaft and instead of entering her body he firmly rubbed it against her clit. Shizuru's voice was a mix between a growl and a moan and Hiei smiled smugly at the sound.

'Lets see if we can't get her to moan a little louder...' Hiei thought to himself.

Quickly, he placed his thumb on her clit, in replace of his cock, and partially entered her, so that only the tip was inside. Gritting his teeth against the urge to just surge inside her welcoming body, he instead moved inside just a little more before withdrawing, all the while massaging her clit with his thumb.

Repeatedly teasing her with these inadequate, shallow thrusts, Hiei was rewarded for his efforts when his mate moaned loudly beneath him. Reveling in that sound, he noticed a moment too late that it had been accompanied by her legs locking firmly around his waist as her hips surged up to slam against his, effectively burying his length deep inside her.

Hiei shuddered at the sensation her unexpected action brought. Leaning forward, he grabbed her hips tightly and withdrew once more and then slammed hard into her body.

"You are impatient...aren't you," Hiei growled approvingly between slow, hard thrusts.

Shizuru arched her back as she met the pounding of his hips. " You were...ugh! Taking too...long," She panted.

"Hhmmmm... Then, I'll just have to speed things up..."

And suddenly, he was lifting her legs over his shoulders, entering impossibly deep into her body. Shizuru cried out as the warm friction between their joined bodies suddenly tripled when her demon lover used some of his unholy speed to quicken his pace.

"Oh - OH, GOD! HIEI - UHNN!" She screamed.

Everything in her body was winding impossibly tight and she felt like she was about to explode. Hiei felt his mate's inner walls clench around him, heralding her oncoming orgasm. Sweat beginning to glaze over his body; he increased the pressure of his thrusts even more, needing to feel every inch of her hot flesh around him. Suddenly, her body arched sharply, her hands clawing desperately at his arms as her body tightened, muscles contorting pleasurably in powerful spasms.

Hiei let out an animalistic growl as he watched her face as she came. One, two, three hard thrusts and he felt his own wave of pleasure wash over him as he released his seed into his mate's body. Her tight walls were still constricting impossibly tight, and it prolonged both of their orgasms in sweet agony till they were both left weak and panting.

Small tremors still coursing through both of them, Hiei lowered Shizuru's legs and collapsed on top of her, resting his forehead in the valley between her breasts as he fought to even out his breathing.

Why did he always lose control when he mated with this particular female? What was it about her that caused his blood to heat and his passion to rise in a way that no one else before her had ever achieved. Glancing up, Hiei studied his mate as she struggled with her own breathing.

Face flushed, a fine sheen of perspiration glistening all over her body, her well rounded chest rising and falling with each breath... To him, she was the most enticing thing he had ever seen.

Hiei adjusted the sheets that had been nearly knocked off the bed so that they were once again covered and rested with his head on one breast while his tongue lazily licked over the other. He could feel her shuddering underneath him, around him, and he grinned with male pride that he did this to her.

He was about to tell her to rest some more, but was interrupted when the door to her room was flung open, revealing the orange haired young man.

"Kazuma, don't you know how to knock?" Shizuru yelled at her younger brother, gripping the sheet, and Hiei's head, to her chest.

"I was worried about you. Koenma said he sent you on a mission. I can't believe you'd be so stupid," Kuwabara chastised.

"This coming from the man that has nearly died because he thought it would help Yusuke win some fights," Hiei droned from underneath the sheet.

Before Kuwabara could even process that it was Hiei's voice, something whizzed past his head and imbedded itself in the wall next to his head. He turned to his left; slightly apprehensive of what he might find, and nearly jumped twenty feet in the air when he saw Hiei's katana buried at least six inches in the wall.

Peeking into the hallway, he shrieked when he saw two inches of the tip sticking out into the hall.

"Hiei, no maiming my baby brother," Shizuru mumbled as she wrapped her arms around her mate and pulled the sheet over her head.

"I won't if he leaves us alone," Hiei replied, gently nipping her collarbone.

"Uhh, sure," Kuwabara backed out of the room, closing the door in front of him, keeping his eyes on the lump on his sisters bed until the door blocked his view. He turned to leave, thinking he would talk to Yusuke, and squeaked and ran when he saw the katana still protruding from the wall.

Kurama could feel the warm sunshine filtering through the open window, bathing the bed that he and Keiko both occupied. He could feel Keiko curled up against his side and wanted nothing more than to remain there forever in her arms.

But we can't. Youko's deep voice, still echoing his previous dead tone, conveyed to his human counterpart.

Sighing deeply, Kurama began to disengage himself from Keiko's arms, intending on leaving before she awoke. Before he could accomplish his task, however, the red head felt a soft grip take hold of his forearm, stilling his retreat. Turning his gaze back toward the bed's other occupant, his eyes locked with Keiko's own sleep filled ones.

"Where do you think your going?" she questioned, stifling a yawn.

Kurama hid his 'deer caught in the headlights' feeling and plastered on a smile for her sake. "I was .. uh .. just going to... uh," he stuttered, trying to think of a good excuse. He never was any good with pop quizzes first thing in the morning.

"Leave?" Keiko questioned, eyebrow arched.

"Yes," Kurama sighed as he sat on the edge of her bed. "I didn't want to face you this morning. I ... We failed you last night," he said, his head hanging, not looking at her at all.

"I thought I told you last night. You didn't fail me. You stopped him before he really did anything to me. I think I'm going to need about a dozen showers to get his dirt off me, but otherwise, I'm fine," Keiko reassured him.

Keiko moved so that she sat behind him, not caring that she left the sheet behind on her bed. Once she was free of the silky material, she threw it away from her bed and wrapped her arms around Kurama's shoulders, leaning against his back.

Kurama tensed when he realized that Keiko was kneeling behind him, completely naked, hugging him. He honestly didn't know what to do. He couldn't take advantage of her; she was probably still traumatized from the night before, and that was the only reason she was acting like this. But if that was the case, he couldn't just leave her there alone. So he did the only reasonable thing he could think of at the moment; he raised his hands and covered hers with his own, offering her what little strength he could.

Kurama's mind just could not wrap around the idea that she would still be interested in him; he had broken a very important promise to her. Even the usually sex-crazed Youko was quiet; feeling just as guilty, if not worse, for his inability to protect the woman behind him.

Keiko leaned her head down, resting her chin upon Kurama's shoulder.

"Keiko, I..." Kurama began, but found that words failed him.

"Kurama, just because you got to me a little late doesn't mean I love you any less," Keiko told him, trying to soothe the young man's/old demon's fears, catching what had come out of her mouth after she had said it. She couldn't take it back and she didn't want to. She loved him, and it was time he knew it.

Kurama stiffened at Keiko's words. Had he heard her right? Had she really said what he thought she'd said? Turning ever so slightly, Kurama glanced over as he tried to see the expression that was evident on her face.

"You... you love me?" his awed whisper ruffled her hair as he spoke.

She smiled tentatively. "You really think I would have put myself through everything that I did if I didn't love you? Especially Youko. He's quite insatiable," Keiko joked, her mouth right by Kurama's ear causing her breath to blow over his sensitive flesh.

"But, I broke my promise to protect you," Kurama whispered, his voice sounding almost like a whimper.

"And you think that because you were tied up with ropes the Godzilla couldn't break through, that you're somehow unworthy?" she asked, nuzzling her nose into the crook of his neck, inhaling his comforting scent.

"I never should have allowed myself to be distracted enough to get knocked out in the first place," Kurama growled out.

"But you were distracted by me. To think that I could make the great thief, Youko Kurama, distracted enough that someone snuck up on him is very thrilling for me," Keiko told him, a smile in her voice.

"But ..." Kurama began to protest, but was stopped when Keiko pulled him back so that he was laying on his back with her straddling his hips.

Keiko grabbed both of Kurama's hands and pinned them above his head so that he couldn't move.

"I don't care. Whatever excuse you have, I don't care what it is. I love you, you baka fox, and there's nothing that could ever make me change my mind," She told him.

To prove her point, she lowered her head until her lips with less than an inch from his, her eyes intently watching his as she lowered the last little bit. As she felt him relax into the kiss some, she allowed her eyes to slide closed, her hands moving to his shoulders.

With his hands free, Kurama grabbed Keiko's shoulders, rolled them over, and regrettably pulled away from her lips. "I'm sorry, Keiko, but I can't."

Keiko could feel Kurama's reluctance and knew it was actually the fox spirit that was resisting. She was quite sure that Shuichi would rather stay right where he was without protest. Determined to make the stubborn kitsune see reason, she reached up and cupped Kurama's face with her hands, forcing him to look at her directly.

"I want to talk to Youko." she stated firmly, determination burning in her soft brown gaze.

Noticing the look that Keiko had often used against Yusuke while they were dating, Kurama knew he had no other choice than to do as she had requested. Closing his eyes a moment, he allowed the change to overtake his human body, conforming it to that of the silver kitsune spirit within him.

Almost reluctantly, the fox's eyelids opened to reveal sorrow-filled amber pools that stared down at her with a mixture of longing and regret.

"Keiko-" he began, intending on telling her once more how sorry he was and how unworthy he felt. He was no better at protecting her than Yusuke had been. If it hadn't worked out between them, then how could it possibly work for them?

Keiko cut him off though, knowing what was running through his mind. It had entered hers too, though only briefly, as he'd been taking her through the portal home.

"Don't even start, Youko. I know what you're thinking. It's not the same. Yusuke was more concerned with beating the demon than he was with saving me. That's what makes you and Yusuke different. You have different priorities," she told him, her thumbs brushing over his cheeks, tears welling up in her eyes and spilling over.

"And I make you cry," Youko responded, averting his eyes from hers.

"Only because I'm afraid of losing you. Not just you or Shuichi. All of you. I don't know what I would do without you in my life," Keiko said, tears freely falling from her eyes.

It seemed like an eternity before Youko's eyes redirected their gaze back to her. She knew he had been contemplating, as he always seemed to do when faced with an important decision, and could tell he had definitely come to one when their eyes met.

Keiko felt as if her heart were shattering in her chest when she saw such a look of defeat in the proud fox demon's eyes. "I am sorry, Keiko. I love you, but... I cannot risk you getting hurt again due to my inept abilities to protect you." With a final whispered "I'm sorry." Youko began to pull away again.

Keiko, in a last ditch effort to keep her from leaving her, brought her hands up from his shoulders to capture the sensitive tips of his ears and began to stroke them in earnest. She was rewarded when Youko stilled suddenly as the all to familiar pleasant sensation sprang forth and spread throughout his body. With wide eyes, Youko stared down at the woman beneath him who was obviously not about to let him go so easily.

Youko whimpered, leaning into her touch. "Keiko, what are you doing?" he asked, his saddened eyes looking at her.

"I'm not going to let you leave me. You would hurt me more than anyone else possibly could if you leave me now," Keiko told him, fresh tears coming to her eyes as she increased her efforts on his ear.

Youko gasped at what she said and looked her in the eyes, looking for the truth behind her words. Finding nothing but love and honesty in her eyes, he knew she couldn't possibly be lying. But he never wanted her to be in danger again. But if he walked away now, he would be hurting her. How could he protect her from himself?

"I don't care if I get wounded in the future, as long as you're there to take care of me while I heal," Keiko confessed. "I said I love you, and I don't know what else to do to get you to stay with me."

Keiko tossed her other arm around his neck as she buried her face in his shoulder as she cried. As a last resort, she trailed her hands down his back until she reached the waist of his pants, and her hand slipped inside his pants, quickly finding the base of his tail. "I don't want you to leave me, please," She begged into his shoulder as her fingers began to massage the furry appendage.

Youko groaned as he wrapped his arms around her torso and kissed her cheek. "I promise," He whispered as he nipped at her neck. "I'm yours, now and always," He confessed. He threw himself off balance so that they both landed on their sides on her bed and caught her lips in a chaste kiss.

"Good..." Keiko whispered against his lips. "good."

Youko continued to kiss her tenderly, not attempting to deepen this kiss, just simply relishing the softness of her lips against his own. After a few moments of this, Keiko grew restless beneath him. Allowing her hands to stray from his tail and ear that she had been rubbing, they began the tedious process of relieving the fox of his clothing. Youko pulled back, his lips quirking at the longing look in her eyes. Keiko returned his gaze and practically growled as she continued to tug at his clothes.

"You've got too many clothes on." she stated as her hands finally slipped the top from his shoulders before returning to massage the sculpted muscles of his back.

Youko chuckled darkly as he rose up and removed the top completely, flinging it across the room before turning his attention back to Keiko. Leaning down to kiss her again, this time his tongue also came into play, parting her lips and delving into the sweetness within, drawing a contented sigh from his partner.

Keiko's hands gradually made their way down his back, but pouted when her hands met with the cloth of his pants still covering him. Tugging on the material with a growl, she tried to relieve the fox of his pants, but stopped when she heard his chuckle. "You've still got more clothes on than I do," She complained, tugging on the waist of his pants once more.

Youko chuckled at her again, shaking his head as he took her hands from his waist. "You're too impatient. You need to relax," He told her as he pinned her hands above her head, leaning down to kiss her again.

Keiko sighed happily into Youko's mouth, responding to the kiss immediately. Getting an idea, she hooked her legs around his waist, pulling him closer to her body. Locking her ankles behind his back, she used her legs as leverage to grind her hips against his.

Youko groaned at the pleasurable torture. "You're cruel," he groaned against her neck.

"No... just desperate to have you inside of me again." she said, surprising both Youko as well as herself at her bold statement.

"You fight dirty, you know that?"

Keiko giggled. "But you love me anyway..."

Youko growled as he pulled away to pull his pants off. He moved back to hover over her body, a cocky smirk on his face as he bumped up against her wet heat.

Not caring if she seemed wanton or not (there just simply wasn't any other option when she was naked and in bed with Youko) Keiko wrapped her legs more firmly around his waist and lifted her hips until she felt the tip of him push into her slightly and moaned happily.

Youko hissed in pleasure as he sank deeper into her scorching depths, the tightness of her serving to fuel the fire of raging desire he had been fighting to hold back since she'd first begun to massage his ears and tail. Moving his hands to her hips, he grasped her firmly to him as he proceeded to sink into her welcoming heat at an agonizingly slow pace.

Keiko's moans intensified and her head began to thrash back and forth as the kitsune continued to torture her at his leisure. "You ... ko," Keiko managed to groan out. "Quit teas ..." Her sentence was cut off as all the air in her lungs rushed out as Youko plunged his length the rest of the way in.

As he began to thrust, hands firmly in place on her hips, Youko leaned down to take her right nipple into his mouth. He gently nipped at the flesh before soothing the little red marks with his tongue.

Keiko's lungs emptied as she let out a low moan. Thrusting her hands into Youko's long, lush hair, she tugged on it in effort to hold him closer as he continued to nuzzle and nip at her breasts. The pleasure he was giving her was almost unbearable and she tightened her legs around him, arching up to meet him for every thrust as her inner muscles convulsed around him, teasing him.

Youko raised his head, letting out a harsh growl at the erotic sensation he was experiencing as her vaginal walls continued to milk his pistoning length. She had never done that before!

Keiko gasped as Youko hit a particularly deep spot. Being struck with an idea, she moved a hand to the top of his head and began massaging one of his ears. Youko growled as he felt his peek building. Wanting to make Keiko come before he did, he increased his speed, moving a hand between them where their bodies met, and began rubbing her clit.

Keiko let out a gasp of surprise, her body beginning to quiver as she felt herself reach and begin to fall over the edge of oblivion. She tried to hold on, to make the feeling last longer. She did not want to give it up, but she knew her time was growing short. Determined to last at least as long as Youko, she tightened her hold on Youko, refusing to let him go or the sensation he was causing within her. Youko continued his ministrations, increasing his pace as he gave her everything he had...and more.

Youko moved his head to her neck, nuzzling it as he felt the vibrations of her moans of pleasure. Mind drowning in a fog of passion, it finally focused on one simple thought: Mark her. Make her mine. Forever.

With her hot sheath clenching him tightly in her try to hold out longer, Youko felt his control slipping. Thrusting in deeply one last time, he let himself fall over the edge of oblivion, knowing she would follow him. He sank his fangs into her neck as he came, infusing the fresh wound with his power, claiming her as his mate.

Keiko felt Youko lose control, and couldn't hold back anymore. She came and she came hard. To muffle her scream, she bit down on the closest thing to her mouth, which happened to be Youko's shoulder. Her teeth broke through the skin, but neither of them noticed it immediately.

After Youko recovered from his orgasm, he pulled his fangs from Keiko's flesh and gently licked the spot as the wound healed and the form of his mark took its place on her neck. He noticed that Keiko had also somehow managed to bury her teeth in his shoulder and smirked. His attention drew back to her neck as the claiming tattoo finally emerged.

There, blazoned across her neck was the image of a long stemmed, red rose, its petals closed tightly into a tender bud.

Yusuke growled under his breath as he used his spare key to get in the back door of Keiko's home. 'That baka fox better not have let anything happen to her,' Yusuke thought sourly as he made his way upstairs, towards her room.

"Keiko, where the hell are you?" Yusuke yelled as he roughly pushed open her bedroom door.

He stopped dead in his tracks when the sight before him was processed fully in his mind. There was the red headed Kurama in bed with Keiko, her snuggled peacefully against his side as she used his shoulder for a pillow.

"Yusuke, do you think you could possibly keep your voice down?" Kurama asked in a quiet voice.

"The hell I will. What are you doing in ..." Yusuke had started yelling, but was cut short when something whizzed past his head, brushing against his hair. He turned to the wall behind the door and his eyes bugged out when he saw a red rose embedded in the wall almost directly behind him.

As Yusuke was gawking at the rose that had obviously been launched warningly at him, Keiko finally roused from her bout of exhaustion due to her and Kurama's previous activities. She snuggled against the warm body beside her, opening her eyes as she did. The first sight to register was that of Yusuke Urameshi standing across the room near her bedroom door. Keiko's eyes widened and she squeaked in surprised embarrassment, realizing she was still naked beneath her sheets, not to mention cuddled up beside an equally naked Kurama.

With a mortified moan, Keiko proceeded to burrow beneath the sheets to hide her suddenly flushed face. Keiko's noises drew Yusuke's attention, and he noticed the girl burying herself under her sheet while Kurama smiled at her.

"Well, as you can see, Yusuke, your presence is disturbing my mate. I would appreciate it if you would leave us alone now," Kurama said, the smile still on his lips, but there was a warning glint in his eyes.

Yusuke glared defiantly. He didn't want to leave, but Keiko seemed like she felt more protected around the fox, and he didn't exactly want to see what Kurama would do to him if he didn't leave. "You better not hurt her, Kurama," he warned. With an angry growl, Yusuke left the room, closing the door, and went back outside, making sure the door was locked before he turned to head home.

Epilogue

"Is he gone yet?" Keiko's voice drifted, somewhat muffled, from beneath the bed sheets.

"Yes, it's safe now," Kurama replied, a smile in his voice.

"It's not funny, Kurama." Keiko pouted, knowing that the source of her embarrassment was the source of his amusement.

"I know, but you're just so cute," he chided.

"Oh, really," Keiko finally brought her head out from beneath the sheet. "Why do you say that?"

Kurama fought back a laugh when he saw Keiko's tousled hair sticking up here and there. "Because I said so," He told her, tweaking her nose with a smile.

Keiko blushed and buried her face in Kurama's chest. Nuzzling the chiseled surface, she lovingly began to apply kisses here and there before glancing up at him. Kurama's eyes were closed, his lips parted slightly as he lay there, thoroughly enjoying her ministrations.

"I love you. You know that, right?" she whispered against his flesh.

"How could I not?" he asked, pulling her up his body. "I love you, too," Kurama told her before their lips connected in a sweet kiss.

"Hey, Urameshi, wait up," Kuwabara yelled as he jogged to catch up with the spirit detective.

Yusuke turned his gaze up from the sidewalk he had been glowering at ever since he'd left the scene at Keiko's house. "Hey Kuwabara, how'd things go with Shizuru?"

Kuwabara rubbed the back of his head, slowing down once he caught up with his friend. "Uh, well, she's fine," he responded, "Though I think she needs her head examined," he added quietly.

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean?" Yusuke asked in bewilderment.

"I found her in bed with Hiei," Kuwabara mumbled, shaking his head in disbelief.

"WHAT!?"

"Yeah. He threw his sword at my head when I walked in on them. At least they were covered by the sheet," he relayed, his cheeks reddening dramatically.

Yusuke could feel his eyebrow twitching spasmically. "Shizuru... in bed... with HIEI?!" He shook his head. "I guess I shouldn't be too shocked. I just walked in on Keiko and Kurama."

"What's so bad about that?" Kuwabara asked.

"Theeey were pretty much in the same position as your sister and Hiei..."

"Huh. What did you get thrown at your head?" Kuwabara asked sarcastically.

"One of his damned roses," Yusuke grumbled, a bit embarrassed.

Kuwabara snickered. "Makes me feel a little better about having a sword thrown at my head," he mumbled as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Hey, Urameshi, you mind if I stay at your place for a few days? Hiei and my sister make a scary pair."

"Sure, why not."

"Come on, I didn't get any breakfast this morning. I kinda got kicked out of my house right after I got there," Kuwabara said.

Yusuke agreed and together they headed towards his home in hopes of finding some food.

The End