A/N: This chapter picks up where chapter four left off.

Before I kick it off this time, I want to apologize for two things.
1) The lateness of this chapter.
2) The crappiness of this chapter.
I will inevitably come back and rewrite it after I've put it up, but for now, I'm afraid this is the best my brain would spit out. Chapter seven, on the other hand, I think is going to be my strongest chapter yet, so yay! Can anybody say weird dreams? XD

And, just incase anybody is interested, this will probably be my last post on FFN. All this crap about the lack of dashes for scene breaks and the rule against musical quotes had finally rubbed me just the wrong way. And by 'last post' I don't mean to say that it will be my last update on FFN, I mean to say that I'm probably going to get removed before I can get the next chapter out, because I refuse to take out my quotes. If you're interested in continuing the fic, it's also up on w w w . media miner . org.

Oh, and huge thanks to my sister Tyries for editing this confusing SOB! Wuv wu. XD

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Playing the Game
- Tenika Dargan

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I've discovered a way to stay friends forever-
There's really nothing to it.
I simply tell you what to do
And you do it!

"Friendship," Shel Silverstein

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Chapter Six: The Game is Presented

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Youko hadn't had this much fun in centuries.

He had been trying to decide on a way to get that damn seed for nearly four months now - and here, amazingly, the solution fell right into his lap. When had he ever looked a gift from Inari in the eye and sent it away? This dark youkai was perfect; naturally fast, powerful, and inexperienced enough to fall into Kurama's game without any trouble.

That was the difficulty with playing such games; as often as not, the other party didn't want to join in the fun, and then all Kurama could do was kill them. It just wasn't as pleasurable as he wanted it to be. He had come to find that the younger demons -the ones who had been raised in isolation or ignorance, with little idea of the kind of manipulations that could be used by older youkai- were the most fun to play with. This particular creature was, in every respect, perfect: brought up as a minority demon, probably in seclusion, with nothing but a parent or friend's advice to carry him through his life. He would, if all the labels fit, be simple enough to prevail over. There were exceptions, of course, but he doubted that this youkai would be one.

Kurama hadn't had a partner for several long centuries; he did have to admit that fact to himself. But really, where could the harm be in training a new one? He had liked them well enough before. They provided entertainment on the more boring evenings, at least. He would have to spend a while training this one (he seemed, despite his young mind frame, to be very intelligently stubborn), but it would probably be worth the effort in the end. If it turned out to be a wasted venture, he could simply ruin the other and send him on his way. Or kill him.

Most intriguing of all things about this 'Kuronue,' though, was that he refused to be afraid of Kurama, refused to bow his head and cower. Dealing with that sort of stubbornness would be even better than obtaining the rewards of an extra set of hands - it wasn't every day that the youko got to teach another demon exactly what fear tasted like.

How much would the other fight, though? That was something that he, unfortunately, could not really predict. Youkai actions were sometimes surprising, even to one who had been alive as long as he had. As much as he was inclined to typecast him, this bat demon might turn out to be far more tenacious than even he had considered. He would have to be careful . . .

But, even though no decisions had been made yet - it was thrilling to think that he might have a partner again.

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Kurama felt a sheerly pleased laugh roll from his throat even as the bat demon fell, arms wind milling as he yelled in shock. After a few seconds of this the other finally spread his wings, catching himself and jerking upwards with a loud growl. As the red arms of the desu tree began to move and hiss slowly, the heavy sounds of acid filling the air around them, Kuronue turned a tight, spiraling circle to regain his balance, shouting as he did, "You BASTARD--!"

"I would suggest that you defend yourself, Kuronue!" Kurama laughed, cupping his hands around his mouth to better carry the sound. One of his eyebrows lifted in a grin as he noticed the heads turning suddenly to look at the bat demon, and, unable to help himself, mischievously added, "Sometime soon!"

"How am I supposed to fight without a weapon--?" cried Kuronue as he finished his spiral, almost tipping onto one side as his still stiff left wing stuck in movement. His eyes were wide as he stared at all of the fang-filled heads, lined up in row upon row as they focused with waking comprehension on their prey.

Kurama was tempted to remind the bat of the fact that he was, after all, a demon, which of course meant that he would have youki . . . but it was more fun to watch him panic. Besides, he had something better for the other youkai.

In his hand he still held the scythe blade that Kuronue had dropped, and pulling his arm back, he spun it briefly on its cord and then threw it toward the bat demon. The dark youkai barely caught it (he apparently was still very stiff), jerking his arm up and snatching the silver snake chain out of midair. The scythe snapped to a sudden halt, and Kuronue directed his head around to blink at Kurama, obviously surprised.

The silver youko winked at him and ducked out of sight.

Turning, Kuronue found himself just in time to witness all of the heads rushing forward at once, and he couldn't help the terrified yelp that escaped his mouth as he dove to avoid them.

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Kurama didn't have any time to worry about how the bat demon was doing; if the youkai couldn't hold his own against the tree, then he would have to be done with his job in time to run away. He wasn't stupid or vain enough to believe that he could deal with a plant as old as this one, and frankly, he didn't feel like testing his luck; four tails wasn't enough to wager against death.

Jumping from the lip of the chasm, he landed with a thief's lightness on one of the many large red arms of the tree, finding that it was more than large enough to travel along. He had to make up for the constant shifting of the plant as it tried to catch Kuronue, but he didn't doubt his abilities there. Darting down the length of the arm, he jumped to another branch and continued on his path to the heart of the tree.

This would have to work; he wasn't going to get a second chance of this kind.

Desu seeds develop in the center of the female variant of the plant, he repeated again and again in thought, recalling as much of what he had learned about the tree as he could, eyes fixed on his target. The heads growing from the middle point out are for protection, to keep the seeds from youkai (such as myself) who might find them useful . . . So, in other words, this was where he needed to be. Jumping onto one of the few inactive, immature branches, he caught sight of Kuronue as he twisted in midair, a bright silver line following him as he swung his arms, effectively beheading one of the many branches rushing towards him.

Kurama hesitated for a moment to appreciate the dark youkai (who was doing quite a masterful job of defending himself, beheading, ducking and maneuvering with surprising grace), silently congratulating himself on the excellent choice. Why hadn't he considered a youkai capable of flight before? It made the distraction much better, and gave him all the more time.

The bat demon was doing a startlingly good job, too. Even Kurama hadn't expected him to be able to kill some of the branches while he was trying to avoid them, and it made his choice to consider him as a partner (if he survived) seem all the better. If he could have someone who would kill all the opponents, while he went and stole whatever he wanted . . . well, his thieving would be much faster than it had been in the past, and twice as easy.

Crouching to continue his journey along the branch, he was stopped by a sudden shout from Kuronue: so, looking up, his eyebrows lifted in shock as he found the other diving towards him. Incredulous, he opened his mouth on the word, "What--!" and then immediately had to flatten himself against the branch he was kneeling on to avoid being sliced in half as Kuronue swung his scythe around.

Properly incensed (what in the seven hells did the bat think he was doing?), Kurama lifted his head to glower up at the dark youkai furiously. "What do you--" he began angrily, only to be interrupted by the bat demon's snarled reply.

"Get moving!" Kuronue cut around sharply as he said this, calling the next words over his shoulder; "And try to be thankful! You owe me now!"

Confused, Kurama looked over his own shoulder . . . and caught sight of a falling, headless branch of the desu tree, obviously freshly killed. Was it going to attack me? Analytical mind instantly putting two and two together, it hit Kurama barely a second later that he really was in debt - and angrier than ever, he leapt back to his feet.

"Come back here!" he yelled after the retreating form of Kuronue. "I refuse to return you anything for that! Take it back!"

"Yes, I'll just reattach its head! That should be simple!" The response was infuriatingly sarcastic.

"You know what I mean!" Kurama hissed venomously back. "I refuse to be indebted!"

"Deal with it!" yelled the bat demon as he successfully beheaded another branch, drawing farther away from the silver character.

"No!" came Kurama's indignant reply. "Come back here and revoke your attack!"

"Fuck you!" Kuronue shouted in return, apparently fed up with the exchange. He then refused to answer any other reproaches from the pale youko, who eventually gave up with a bitter snarl.

How dare he act with such presumption? Kurama kept on glowering as he continued on his way toward the center of the plant, jumping a little more stiffly than before. No low class, mercenary status half-thief had any right to say that he owed anything! Inari, what he would give to simply kill the impudent demon . . . but he really didn't want to have to dispose of this one to keep from paying the favor - not after such a brilliant game had just hatched in his mind. Kurama bit his lip lightly. It wasn't fair.

And how had he missed a branch sneaking up behind him? He couldn't have been that absorbed in his observation. It had looked young, just past maturity . . . its energy must have been too low. It must have escaped his senses. He refused to admit that he might not have been paying full attention. His life had not just been saved.

But it had. And, as he brooded further, he realized that it was exactly the same kind of trick that he might pull, were an opportunity of the same kind to present itself. As a matter of fact, he could recall several occasions where he had put others in debt on purpose. More than several, actually . . . now that he thought about it, the trick had been one of his favorites in the past, when he'd dealt with other demons on a more regular (and personal) basis. He didn't stop to think that maybe Kuronue had just done the deed, and then considered the possibilities afterwards: instead he supposed that, in one way or another, he was meeting a youkai similar himself- only younger and much less experienced.

He had already determined years earlier, however, that as another demon he would probably hate himself; so he felt quite comfortable and justified in his quiet seething.

Kurama really couldn't stay angry for long, though. The task at hand was much more pressing, and he put his grievances to the back of his mind in favor of concentrating on his goal. The movements of the branches had become much more erratic as the desu tree woke fully from its sleep, diving after the stubborn prey with much greater speed than before. It was growing more difficult to keep up with its shifting, and he soon found that he was having to struggle just to keep the ground he had gained.

He was set back almost a full twenty feet when one branch (which had looked stable from a distance) gave a violent heave when he landed on it, tossing him down to the lower branches deeper in the chasm. He barely caught himself on another branch, hoisting himself up lightly and regaining his footing. Gritting his teeth, he began to fight his way back up, determined to reach the seeds even if it killed him.

Well . . . maybe not if it killed him.

Kuronue looked to be having a much more difficult time as well; he was expending all of his energy dodging, unable to do anything but defend. His scythe had been tucked beneath his arm, as he had no more time to spend on beheading the plant's many branches. Kurama couldn't help but wonder why he wasn't speeding up, blurring, as he had with the caravan, but he didn't really have the option of stopping to ask the dark youkai.

It seemed to take an age to finally reach the lip of the center of the tree- one long, agonizing millennia of fighting against the angry red monoliths, each of which seemed to try and get in his way on purpose. In reality, though, he knew that the expenditure of time had doubtlessly been much less than he imagined. It always felt that way when he had to work hard; time seemed to rush by, to flow endlessly, when only a minute had actually passed.

Now, standing there, triumphant and smiling, he looked down into the center of the plant-- and again, he flew right in the face of his senses without a second thought, coming to a dead stop and staring with unadulterated surprise and wonder.

It was like a miniature red valley: the rouge-colored walls sloped sharply down, nearly thirty feet in length, effectively closing in those too weak to jump a distance that great. These walls, like the branches, appeared puckered and aged, bright red at the top and nearly black when comprising the floor of the unusual formation. The gradual fading effect gave the impression that one stood on the horizon, ready and eager to jump into the darkening night sky. The only missing pieces were the stars.

Dotting the floor of this ridiculously well guarded haven were small pale purple pods (like domes whose centers had been grabbed and pulled, so that the entire thing stretched and became pointed), each resting peacefully in the shadows. These were exactly what he had been looking for. Smirking, Kurama took a leap, ready to drop directly into the center of the stage and take his prize.

Jumping that far was a mistake. He had forgotten about the swinging arms of the plant above him, and it wasn't until he looked to the side that he noticed the trunk of one rushing toward him. The head had not caught sight of him (it was actually going after Kuronue), but the fast-moving bulk of the branch slammed into Kurama, knocking him straight from midair with a surprising amount of force.

Fortunately, Kurama was not pushed out of the center of the plant. He hit one of the red walls instead, rolling the entire way down and coming to rest in a very indignant huff. Nursing only a bruised ego (his entrance had been ruined--), he hopped quickly back to his feet and resolved to get out of the tree as soon as possible, making his way quickly toward the nearest pod.

There were four sections to each one, triangular in shape. These sections met at the top, making a pointed, black-spotted dome that was as high as Kurama's knee. The edges of the sections were easy to see, as there were four obvious grooves where each of the thick shells met. Kurama wedged his fingers and claws into the grooves at the very top, and with a heave, pried at the stubborn pod until he felt it begin to give way.

It came apart with the sound of one's foot coming out of deep mud, heavy and reluctant. Kurama made a face, but continued to pull. The insides of the shell were coated in a thick red substance that dripped out onto the floor of the valley (this liquid was responsible for the noise), and the youko, not knowing exactly what it might do, was careful not to touch it.

And there, lined up in neat row upon neat row on the ground beneath the shell, were the tiny brown-green seeds, each of which nurtured the potential to grow into one of the most deadly plants in the whole of the makai. Kurama found himself shaking his head as he looked at them, amazed at the effort it had taken to get something so small.

He wasted as little time as possible, pulling one of the protective sections entirely off of the pod and carefully taking hold of one of the seeds. He misjudged the amount of strength needed in the beginning, and the first one burst between his fingers. Frowning, he shook off the remains and tried again. His luck with the second seed was much better, and as soon as he was sure that it was whole and undamaged, he tucked it away into his hair and rose back to his feet.

Then he turned to his next obstacle - the climb back out of the plant.

Thirty feet wasn't really that far . . . he was more worried about the temperamental arms swinging around above. The last thing he wanted was to be knocked out of the air in such a humiliating way a second time. It was bad enough in the first place that the bat demon might have seen; he wasn't about to offer the sight again.

Darting over the plant wall, he drew a deep breath, crouched, and allowed his powerful legs to uncoil, sending him easily back to the rim of the plant with controlled grace (and a small burst of youki). Cautious, he made sure to adjust the strength of his leap, trying instead to aim for the very lip. His pains paid off, and seconds later his hands were grasping nimbly at the top of the wall, drawing him up and over.

From there he jumped back to the frenetically waving arms, body snapping with excitement - he had finally gotten it! It wasn't every day that he managed such a satisfying thievery. And to top it all off, he had his new little game as well. A dark smirk lit his face at this thought; nothing was more enjoyable than having a new plaything.

But then he found himself frowning slightly, glancing into the velvety black sky above, crisscrossed again and again with the shifting pattern of red branches, in search of the bat demon. He hoped that the youkai hadn't been killed already. After all, there would be no fun in that, and it always was a shame to see such promise so easily annihilated.

But his curiosity was unnecessary; Kuronue, still swiftly darting back and forth, up and down and around, looked entirely untouched (if a little ragged around the edges). Somehow he had managed to wrap the snake chain of his scythe around his stomach, so he arms were free for better control in flight. His defensive journey had taken him a great deal higher into the air, giving Kurama quite the advantage; most of the branches no longer had any chance of noticing him, with their heads turned up to follow their prey.

Greatly pleased, Kurama darted back along the branches, finding it infinitely easier to get back to the edge of the chasm than it had been to get to the seeds. It seemed that the rolls and the dips threw him toward the grass and trees surrounding the demon plant, perhaps as an intrinsic part of any of the tree's attacks.

So, barely five minutes later, he had managed to return to the grassy ridge, which was still littered with the vines he had cut from the bat demon barely a half-hour before. And thinking of the bat demon . . .

"Kuronue!" he called, turning and frowning up into the sky. High above, he could barely make out the other demon's head turning down towards him in response to his voice. "I've finished! You can stop!"

Kuronue's response was instantaneous; without so much as a word of reply, he folded his wings to his back and dove toward the earth again, moving in the direction of the woods. To Kurama's dismay, the branches followed him, and the fox ended up having to beat a hasty retreat into the woods to avoid being seen, barely remembering to grab onto the leather bags he had brought along with the bat demon before he did.

As he dodged through the pervasive trunks, hardly feeling the incline of the earth as he began to move uphill once more, he heard trees at the edge of the woods exploding or being torn from the earth as the destructive branches pursued Kuronue, who he assumed was gliding above the trees as he retreated. Cursing -he had forgotten that the branches could grow longer to chase prey- he sped up a little more, hoping that the entire venture wouldn't be ruined after all.

A crash above him sent his pulse racing for a brief second, before the darkly clad form of the bat tumbled haphazardly through the canopy; apparently he had chosen a rather graceless landing in favor of getting out of sight. Twigs and leaves rained down as he hit the ground with a thump, instantly leaping back to his feet and beginning to run, an expression of absolute terror and concentration on his face. Kurama couldn't help a somewhat amused smirk as he drew abreast of the other, before he realized that the trees behind them still sounded like they were being uprooted, and focused again on getting away as fast as he could.

It took nearly ten minutes of non-stop running for the tree to get bored and fall back, though neither of the demons stopped immediately. Both waited until the sounds of destruction had faded into the distance: one cautious, and the other too focused on surviving to think of stopping.

Eventually Kurama slowed to a jog, and then a walk as they entered one of the many treeless clearings in the area. The open expanse was now barely lit by moonlight, and seemed almost disturbingly quiet when compared to the noise they had just come from.

Kuronue halted at around the same time as the fox, first leaning over and placing his hands on his knees, gasping harshly for breath, and then collapsing bonelessly into the waist length grass, rolling onto his back and panting with his mouth wide open. Kurama thought he heard him gasp, "Never again . . .!" and smiled even as he tried to regain his own breath.

Some minutes later, once he was sufficiently recovered (and once he felt like he could manage to smirk and purr without having to cough for breath in the middle of speaking), Kurama glanced slyly over at the other, who had also managed to garner some control over his breathing. Well: that had gone very well in the end. The other had passed his preliminary test; he was worthy of perhaps becoming the youko's partner. Most demons were never granted such an honor. It had turned out to be a good thing after all, then, that he had stolen the thief's prey in the caravan-

Abruptly a wide smile lit his face, as happily he realized that the other had owed him something right from the beginning. Kuronue saving his life was adequate retribution for the theft- and it meant that he no longer had anything to return!

More satisfied than ever, he folded his arms smoothly, dropping his two bags onto the ground as he did. "Well," he said, breaking the silence for the first time since they had stopped. The other twitched lightly at the sound of his voice, but said nothing. "Congratulations; you survived."

"Y-you bastard . . ." the other choked weakly; Kurama grinned. "I can't believe you did that . . ."

"It worked, didn't it?"

"Barely!" came the indignant cry of response. Kuronue sat up then, glaring darkly at Kurama. "You're lucky I'm so agile when I'm flying, otherwise you wouldn't have made it."

Kurama lifted a curious eyebrow, amused. "You think?" Kuronue's baleful glare spoke volumes of response, and Kurama chuckled silently for a moment before remembering one of his earlier confusions. "Why did you not speed up? You moved more than quickly enough while you were attacking the caravan. Why didn't you use that attack?"

Kuronue frowned slightly, beginning to unwind his scythe's cordfrom around his waist as he responded. "Because it's a special attack. I can only use it for . . ." he almost specified the number of minutes, then seemed to realize how stupid that would be, and said instead, "for several minutes."

He finished unwrapping his weapon, and was still for a moment before he suddenly put his face in both of his hands, his broad back heaving with a heavy sigh. Kurama noticed for the first time that the vest he wore did not cover his shoulder blades or even upper back, and he watched what must have been insanely powerful muscles shifting beneath the bat demon's white skin with some fascination.

"Enma save me . . ." the bat breathed shakily into his palms, shaking his head slightly. "I can't believe I survived." Abruptly he lifted his head, frowning at Kurama. "I suppose you got what you wanted?"

Smirking, Kurama removed the seed from his hair and held it in view, so that the bat could see it. Kuronue eyed it emotionlessly for several seconds before nodding and frowning down at the ground. "Well . . ." he murmured. "At least you still owe me. You can't go tying me up anymore . . ."

Kurama grinned unashamedly. "That is where you are wrong," he said pleasantly. The other looked up at him, violet eyes widening in incredulity. "I'm afraid that I've just remembered . . . you stole from me, and so were in my debt, from the moment of our acquaintance. So, we're simply even now."

He watched with delight as Kuronue's face grew suddenly dismayed, before the other lowered his head into one of his hands again with a sigh. Since he seemed less than inclined to respond, Kurama instead watched the red gem of the necklace glittering against his milky collarbones (obviously forgotten), and smiled as he remembered that he had been the one to put it there.

Another question rose in his mind at this. "You were quite upset when I stole your necklace earlier. I assume it has some importance?"

Kuronue jerked very slightly at the first word breathed about the necklace; seconds later his head rose, and the hand it had rested in immediately went to grasp the red gem tightly. "Yes," he murmured softly. "Yes, it's important." He glared slightly at Kurama. "And I won't tell you why, either, before you ask."

Ears flickering back slightly, Kurama gave his most charming smile. "I'm wounded. But I wasn't going to ask." He smirked as Kuronue shrank slightly, apparently realizing how petulant he had sounded.

Kurama did not particularly care at the moment, though.Bigger things were about to happen. Power was not all that he wanted in a partner; intelligence (but only the right amount) was an important factor, and instinct. So, a bit of a verbal test was needed, to round things out. The tricky part was coming up with inquiries that would give him information without being obvious.

"Actually, I'm more curious about you," he said to start, and the other looked at him with some surprise. Kurama regarded him coolly, careful not to smile. "You interest me. What is a bat demon doing so far from his home? I assume you come from the east." And this really was one of his curiosities- that, and whether or not the bat was expected back.

Kuronue frowned lightly at him, his hand twitching around the necklace. "Of course I come from the jungle," he said, sounding mildly irritated. "Do you think I could have been born in this cold, dry climate? (Kurama had to bite back a smile at these words; he had chosen this climate because it was warm, after all) No. I was born in the Mitsurin district."

Now, that was a surprise . . . "Mitsurin?" Kurama repeated curiously, and the bat demon nodded. "How odd. I was there once, collecting mimosa. I never saw any bat demons in those jungles."

Kuronue cocked his head to the side, frowning. "When did you come?"

"At least two centuries ago."

The bat demon nodded coolly. "We had moved to another district by that time. We didn't return there until only a century ago." He frowned slightly. "And that turned out to be a mistake anyway."

Kurama blinked at him, moving one of his slippered feet back and forth in the grass slightly and listening to the rustle. "And why is that?"

Oddly, Kuronue seemed to grow slightly bitter, nearly glaring at Kurama. "Surely you know that we're hunted," he answered. "We . . . spread disease more rapidly than other demon species because we live in such close proximity. Other youkai kill us because of it, to keep us from starting another plague." His face grew slightly confused. "But you have to have known that."

"I did," Kurama admitted, halting his foot and drawing his left knee to his chest instead. "Was your colony wiped out, then? Was that why you came here?"

"No . . . to both," Kuronue replied, a smirk of his own painting his lips very vaguely. "There was an attack that night, yes . . . but I left because I didn't belong. I'm not like other bat demons. I can't stand colony life. Solitude suits me much better. (Kurama did smile here; this was exactly what he was looking for.) My family was just too large - it felt like I was suffocating sometimes."

So, he had indeed left permanently. Now curious about what had just been said, however, Kurama tilted one ear back. "You had many siblings, then?"

Kuronue snorted softly, his eyes taking on a far away look. "Too many. I . . ." But he paused suddenly, his face darkening. "Why are you asking me this? You can't be interested in my life. I've heard too much about you to believe that."

Inwardly, Kurama grinned. He had been waiting for the other to ask this - and to his pleasure, he had taken a good amount of time to do so; not acting suspicious immediately, but realizing after only a short exchange that he was being questioned needlessly. Just the right level of intelligence, it seemed.

"I'm bored," he said lightly in response, telling a half-lie that he knew that the other demon would accept. "I have no desire to kill you; as I said before, you interest me." When the other still looked reluctant to continue, Kurama sighed delicately. "Will you at least finish the sentence that you began? It bothers me when others do not finish what they've started."

Kuronue still looked unhappy about continuing, but finally, he hesitantly said, "I had twenty-four brothers and sisters. Most of them died before they were twenty, but I had them at some point. Like I said, too many."

Even Kurama was taken aback by this number. He had heard of families of twelve, even families of sixteen, but into the twenties in a humanoid variant of youkai? That was an inordinately large amount. "Did you have two mothers?"

Kuronue smirked lightly, forgetting to be suspicious in favor of reveling in Kurama's rare surprise; apparently he had a slight sadistic streak, too. "Two fathers. My mother had a child every ten years. I was from her first mate, along with eleven others. Half of them died before she chose another mate, though. The rest were all only half siblings to me, but that doesn't really make a difference when you all live together at the same time."

"Where were you in your brood? Were you older or younger?" Kurama was genuinely curious now; he had the basics, but the more information he had, the better he could judge the bat's character- and he didn't know how much more he would be able to garner from the other demon in the future, so better to gather it now.

"I was the fourth born." Kuronue paused briefly, and then added, "By the time I had turned ten, my oldest sibling was forty."

Kurama nodded, trying to imagine such an age difference- and then realizing that he couldn't even imagine how having a sibling would feel. His own mother had been extremely picky; he had been her first and last. Though, he always thought he might have killed his own brothers or sisters in the end anyway, so there would have been no point to their existence in the first place. Perhaps his mother had known that . . .

A breeze whistled musically by, and turning his ears, he caught the faint whisper of his trees conversing; barely five minutes til the moon set. He wanted to be back in his den by then- he was tired, after all, not being a nocturnal creature by habit. But if he did choose to take Kuronue as a partner, he would have to shift his body clock around to work with the bat'sobstacle of non-existent day vision. Well . . . he hadn't thought of that yet, actually. Would it be too great a hassle?

"Well," he said after the silence had rustled along for several seconds, deciding that he would think about it later, after he had rested. He had nearly everything he needed now; the other had proved to be relatively intelligent, and just unbalanced enough for Kurama's uses. There seemed to be a relative experience gap, but that could be breached easily enough. It was time to wrap things up. "You said that you left on a night when you were attacked. Was your home destroyed?"

The bat demon stiffened visibly, the stark white-and-black line of his shoulders becoming immediately rigid. "I . . . I wasn't there to see the extent of the damage. I know that they were jaguar youkai, though. They didn't like that we had returned, after they had just run us off two centuries before. But no, our home wasn't destroyed." His face had grown suddenly expressionless and far away, as though he were revisiting the whole thing with no small amount of bitterness. Kurama found it all very intriguing.

"So what caused you to leave?" He settled his right arm onto his knee, resting his chin in his large white palm lazily and allowing his tail to stir the grass behind him.

"Well . . ." The other hesitated. "Well, most of them died. And my mother and father."

Kurama blinked, startled. How odd . . . the bat demon hadn't carried the air of one who had seen a great deal of death- at least not among creatures that had been close in some way. "So you were devoid of family then? That is why you left?"

Kuronue began to nod and agree, but abruptly stopped. "No," he amended, "there were still five of them. But I left anyway; I didn't have a reason to do it, except that I couldn't stand any of them. Even Gyoukou, who was understanding when the others weren't." A smile flickered across his face. "But I should have been grateful, instead of despising her. A reaction like that doesn't make any sense, does it?"

The silver thief smiled pleasantly, shaking his head and absently enjoying the feel of his hair moving over his bare shoulders. "No. You really are quite imperfect in mind." He gave a noncommittal shrug at the other's vaguely hurt expression. "I'm not bothered by the fact. I have met other demons that grasp at emotions such as regret, as your expression seems to say that you do. You must simply understand that I am not one of them."

Stark ivory teeth were revealed as the bat's impossibly pale lips, almost bloodless in appearance, drew back in a cold grin. "You're as much of a bastard as they say, aren't you?"

A single, delicate white eyebrow was arched in response. "Can they think of nothing more creative than simply 'bastard' anymore? I'll admit, I'm disappointed, if that is the case."

Silence filled the air for several measuring seconds, Kuronue fixing the youko with an oddly searching gaze. Kurama, amused, held himself perfectly still. Was he now being tested, in an extremely tactless sort of way?

"You're charming . . ." Kuronue said slowly, and a smile stole across Kurama's face against his will, the familiar blush of pride at being complimented swelling pleasantly in his chest. His mother had groomed him to be admired, after all. "But I'd be a fool to be drawn in by that alone. Charm is only ever the surface of anything."

Kurama continued to smile, though inwardly he frowned rather darkly. If Kuronue saw such things already, it would be harder to manipulate him. Perhaps this demon wouldn't be as easy to make a game of as he'd first thought. Still, he always had other options . . . "Yes, of course," he murmured back, covering the second of hesitation with his lowered tone. "But even charm has its place."

He stood then, flashing a suddenly calm smirk down at the now inquisitive bat demon. "So, we have spoken. Perhaps we see each other in different lighting now. But regardless, I don't like any demons of any kind, under any circumstances, sneaking around my lands. So, you may either leave now," he allowed his smirk to widen as Kuronue stared at him, obviously trying to fathom where he was going with these words, "or you may follow, and you can see if there is anything beneath the charm. I only walk in one direction, though, and that is straight ahead; I won't have you turning around halfway through the journey, should you choose to accompany me. I can't stand cowards."

So he turned and walked away.

There was no point in stopping to see the other's expression, or waiting for a reaction, or even in tilting his ears back to determine whether he was following or not. He knew that his carefully worded offer would be either irresistible, or enough of a warning to drive the bat off, before he entered a world he couldn't survive in. Kurama had not spoken a single word that he didn't mean; he really couldn't stand cowards, and it was very unlikely that he would be willing to pardon the other for any sort of weak-willed afterthoughts. He didn't need fools for partners- not that the bat would be partner material for quite a while, anyway. He wanted to know more about him before anything truly final was decided.

Kurama knew that he was being hasty with this decision- he didn't even need a partner, after all. He had moved beyond that necessity some centuries before. But quite frankly, he was bored, and this was the first entertaining distraction to wander along for quite a while; if he woke the next day and thought that his offer had been rash, he would simply hunt the bat demon down and dispose of him, and no one would be the wiser, or the sadder; mourning was not made for those who lived in solitude.

He heard footsteps some minutes later, very quiet and nearly hidden. The bat demon's stealth was certainly not what one would call pathetic. Laughable to a master thief, certainly - but in the grand scheme of things, it was far above average ability. Folding his arms behind his back, he smiled and settled into a leisurely step through the plush grass, ears trained for any attempt on the bat's part to draw closer.

When nothing was said for several full moments, Kurama finally chose to cast an unhurriedly sly glance over his shoulder, golden eyes narrowed and glowing in the darkness. The trees shifted quietly around them, and outside of the whispering and their own touching of presences, there was nothing. "Are you following me?"

A moment of still silence followed his words, which rung almost audibly in the air. Kuronue had established himself some seven feet behind Kurama, but he fell a little further back into the shadows with the arrival of the question, invisible save for his glowing white skin and luminescent eyes. "Well," he hesitated after a moment more, ". . . I suppose I am."

"Hm." His inward reaction was far more pleased; he had honestly thought that it would take longer for the other to consider his offer. This whole reaction was very convenient. "Both our debts are paid, you are aware." Best to remind him, just in case . . .

"Yes."

Even better: there was hesitance in Kuronue's voice, but also fascination. He had caught the bat's interested. "And you still wish to follow?

". . . Yes."

Kurama stopped then, and Kuronue stopped as well, violet eyes wincing almost imperceptibly in nervousness. Ignoring the minute reaction in favor of turning fully, Kurama gave a long, searching stare that seemed to pass directly through the bat demon, his eyes narrowed and face expressionless. The leaves around them shifted, whispering, and were still again. Above, the dulled moon finally dipped below the horizon, and both figures were cast into the odd kind of pre-dawn darkness that seemed to move and whisper with light and greyness, though neither of those things had come yet. Despite this distraction, their eyes remained where they had been, focused on one another.

Then a long, slow smirk spread across the youko's lips and he inclined his head, pale side locks falling in twin whispers over his shoulders.

"Very well then."

(BREAK)

A/N: If that ending scene seemed a little odd in comparison to the rest of my writing, it was because I'd been reading gratuitous amounts of Interview With the Vampire beforehand. Blame Anne Rice; she brings out the description beast in me. I'm easily influenced by whatever I'm reading at the time. Expect long, Steinbeck-ish sentences soon; I've justfinished The Grapes of Wrath. (Fear, fear!)

And now . . . Response Time! (Man, I love you guys! (cries as she reads some of the reviews))

To shadow dragon: Hello again:) You have no idea how happy it makes me to see you back - I was worried that I'd lost people due to the long pause between chapters. O.o Guess I should be even more worried by this pause, ne? Now, as to your questions . . . very good choices. ;) About Kuronue leaving - perhaps some of you wondered exactly what events I was going to stuff into the flashback theme? That is one of them. ;) And, as to the paper - I shall say that it was very important. I'd like to say more, but then I'd be spoiling things. :P

To Sunathaer: SWEETIE! You reviewed me! Alright, now I'm all jazzed. XD I'm so glad that you like it so far - I'd like to say something more best-friend like (such as "How're you doing?"), but FFN is knuckling down, and I'd rather not get this story frozen for interactive review chatting until I've finished it. :P So, until I e-mail next - many hugs, m'dear!

To Kabuki Malice: Ola!As usual, you are my first reviewer for chapters. You make me feel so loved! ;.; What has been your favorite chapter so far, then? It's odd, but I think chapter five has been my favorite, just from a writing standpoint. Kurama especially was interesting to deal with in that one. And by deal with, I mean that he wrote himself - I've long since lost the characters in this piece. They're just using my fingers to speak with at this point. :P

To kuranga108: Oh my god! You have no idea how happy your review made me - I was literally bouncing up and down in my chair all while I was reading it. XD I'm so glad that people are enjoying this drivel! I'm also glad that the game is entertaining and not repetitive, and that the flashback/present day theme seems to be making sense; I didn't even think that it might be confusing when I started the fic. O.o There was one thing I wanted to warn you about, though - you mentioned in your review on media miner (you reviewed me twice! XD) that you weren't a yaoi fan.

I don't want to ward you away from the fic, but I really don't want you to be upset by some of the content. Kuronue and Kurama will be paired later in the fic, and while I don't plan on doing any particularly gratuitous scenes (I don't think I can), I also don't plan on pulling any punches; what I do mention, I'll be honest about, and describe thoroughly. This isn't an action/adventure piece, it's a relationship fic; I'm not even trying to focus on this relationship as much as I'm trying to focus on a demon relationship. I really want to delve into trying to fathom how a youkai relationship differs from a human one, and the most effective way to do that is to have examples- a.k.a, Kuronue and Youko.

Like I said, there won't be anything extremely graphic, but I thought it would be unfair to leave you unwarned. Whatever you decide, I'll completely understand. Thank you for the reviews, and I do hope to see you again in the future!

TD

FANON/CANON

1) "Kurama hadn't had a partner for several long centuries." - Totally made up. We never know if he had any partners (other than the Yomi thing, which I know nothing about, and plan to learn nothing about until I'm done with this story), so I'm taking creative license with this one.

2) Again, everything involving the desu tree is totally made up, and much of it isn't even accurate to the show. I have my fanony little excuses, but I'm not going to bore you with them (unless you e-mail me and request to be bored); I'll just claim creative author's license instead. :)

3) ""My mother had a child every ten years. I was from her first mate, along with eleven others."" - Hoo boy, is this stuff made up. I think I went temporarily insane with character growth. O.o And yes, before anybody asks, there is a one shot that I've written about Kuronue called Smoother than Sunlight, which covers all of his past, and is also one of three other fics that will accompany this one. Have I dropped any jaws yet? You all didn't think I was just going to stick to Youko Kurama, did you?

4) "But quite frankly, he was bored, and this was the first entertaining distraction to wander along for quite a while." - I couldn't really touch on this in the chapter because I'm writing it as a POV piece, and Kurama wouldn't dwell on a decision he'd already made- but this is really the ultimate reason for everything. That partnership offer may have seemed sudden, and I sort of made it that way on purpose. It all boils down to this; Kurama was bored, Kuronue was interesting, there was nothing more entertaining to do, killing him would have been too easy, and he likes manipulating people. Thus, he will take him as a partner, use him, mess with his head, etc. I always envisioned Youko as a sort of fickle character, and this kind proves the point, hm?