InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Heart Within ❯ Chapter Forty-Three ( Chapter 45 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, etc., of Inuyasha or Yu Yu Hakusho. This story is for entertainment purposes only, and not for profit.THE HEART WITHINSummary: She has carried vengeance in her shadowed heart for 500 years, sacrificing her self for that dream. Now, Sango just might get her chance… (IY/YYH crossover) A/N: Thank you so very much for all the kind reviews. I was nervous about the last chapter---I am not really a yaoi writer, but the challenge of writing a true FMM love-triangle was what first sparked the idea for this little story. I hope you’ll enjoy reading this next chapter as much as I had writing it. Oh, the drama! ;oP
WARNING! SPOILERS FOR YYH CHAPTER BLACK, THE THREE KINGS SAGA, MAJOR RUN-ON SENTENCES

Chapter Forty-Three

“I’m here for a girl.”

Eying the handsome demon, the receptionist propped her chin on one long tentacle and flirtatiously batted her single, giant eye. “Really?”

“Her name’s Sango.”

“Oh.” The tentacled cyclops gave him a disgusted look. “Her.”

“Yeah, her. Where is she? What room?” He impatiently crossed his arms.

“I can’t tell you that.”

“Why not?” he demanded.

“I don’t want to.”

“What?”

She glared at him. “Well, you don’t have to be so rude.”

“Look, wench, I’m here to see Sango---”

“You and everyone else.” The lip curled. “I swear, that girl has more men coming by to see her than is decent.”

“Look, here, I’m an old friend---”

“Sure, you are,” the youkai drawled out, pointedly curling her lip up even further. She could have made Elvis jealous.

“Look, you crazy b---”

“I wouldn’t even finish that if I were you.” She narrowed her single eye at him. “Unless you want to get kicked out of this hospital for disorderly conduct. And once the girl’s finally able to accept visitors, you won’t get a chance, and then all of those other guys will get one up on you, mutt-face.”

“Mutt-face?” Kouga nearly howled.

“Eh, boss, maybe we should---” Hakkaku quickly steered the boiling wolf away as Ginta made a graceful enough apology that the cyclops let him sign their names into the visitor log before flicking a disdainful tentacle towards the waiting room.

Throwing off his anxious wolf-brother, Kouga stalked down the hallway, nose wrinkling from all the nasty ammonia lingering over everything. Gods, he hated hospitals. His poor schnoz would take months getting over the reek and back to its normal sensitivity. He would have high-tailed it out of this damn place as soon as he’d regained consciousness, but the two meatheads had found out that the slayer had been defeated in the second round of the Great Tournament, and was now somewhere on the third floor recovering.

He’d gone immediately to confront her, the results of which had him standing in the entrance of the lobby, tail swishing irritably from side to side as he glared at the assembled crowd. There wasn’t even a place to sit, damn it!

Not all of these people had to be here to see Sango, despite the receptionist’s snide comments to the contrary. Though a good two-thirds sat together in a rough group, some too tall or huge for even the cheap plastic seats provided. It looked like most of them were just hanging out with the others, for one voluble bitch screeched she couldn’t believe they didn’t serve alcohol, and was thinking of taking the party to the nearest bar. The red mountain currently residing on the floor in the corner patted her arm consolingly even as a grizzled demon with a blue mohawk dolefully shook his head over the dilemma.

“But our friend needs us right now, right?” he said in a thick accent Kouga couldn’t place.

“Right!” The boy in the baseball cap beside him pumped his fist into the air.

“That’s the spirit, bledger!” the demon said, clapping the boy on the shoulder so that he staggered. “Now, go get your old friend Chuu a beer, would ya? As I’m in dire need right now.”

“You can’t be serious!” the boy protested as the others burst out laughing.

“Ah, he’s just ribbing you, Rinku.” A golden blond in ridiculous yellow spandex grinned.

“I was?” Chuu blinked, and the imp beside him dropped his head into his palm.

“I can’t believe this,” Kouga growled under his breath as he stalked inside. He turned a challenging stare on the ice apparition propped against the wall as he passed. The youkai gave him a cool look of appraisal, his light blue eyes at odds with the spiky fall of his aqua-green bangs.

“Kami, can you feel the energy oozing out of this place?” Ginta whispered fearfully to Hakkaku.

“Tell me about it. I can’t believe the jyaki in here!” Hakkaku gulped, surreptitiously edging around a giant wolverine who gave him a toothy grin and licked his chops.

“Quit acting like a bunch of tail-lowered, omega dogs!” Kouga snarled under his breath. Honestly, he didn’t know why he put up with those two nitwits!

Stalking to the far corner, he took up a cross-armed stance against the wall, the two cowards crouching beside him, damned to wait. At least, by listening to the others, he got caught up on what had been happening while he was passed out…


They didn’t bother even checking in with the receptionist, since Kurama already knew what room Sango was in. The cyclops scowled but didn’t interfere as they crossed the main area connecting both wings of the hospital, since they looked like they knew what they were about. Funny how well that always worked. It was only people who looked confused or uncertain that would often raise questions about their business.

Although still a little tired, Hiei was recovering quickly now that he was back on his feet. Whether or not he was fully recuperated, the fire demon wasn’t about to show any sign of weakness. Rather stubborn and proud, was his friend.

More than friend, now. Kurama gave the shorter apparition a soft look, and Hiei only turned his bristly head to snap, “Don’t start getting get all mushy on me, fox. I find it annoying.”

Kurama hid a smile, and pressed the button to summon the elevator.

“Hn.” Hiei smirked, and preceded him into the utilitarian space, where he assumed a cross-armed stance in typical impassive fashion as they rode the short interval up to the third floor. The doors opened with a soft ping, and Kurama exited first.

Open doors led off of the long corridor on either side, and it was near the end that they were looking for. A scruffy red head poked out, and Jin blinked.

“Oh, is it you two, then?”

“Hello, Jin,” Kurama greeted, and then mildly explained, “We’re here for Sango.”

The significance wasn’t lost on the wind demon, who often had the same piercing insight as Yusuke at times. “Oh? Are you then?”

“Yes,” Hiei growled, hand already clamped to his sword as if daring the former shinobi to interfere.

Holding up his hands, Jin grinned. “Well, it’s about time, lads. Go on in, then. There’ll be no argument from me.”

“Good,” Hiei snapped, and disappeared inside.

Shaking his head at the apparition’s manners, Kurama followed. Sango’s room was much like any other, though Lord Tenga had arranged for her to have a bit of privacy in somewhat better quarters. The pricy room included a Monet print on the wall and a private bathroom, as well as two of the padded chairs rather than just one.

It also included round-the-clock care, although it looked like Sango was nearly recovered from the readings on the monitors connected to her arm. Any bruising had already faded, her physical injuries healing as she lay curled on her side, deeply asleep. She looked rather small and pale against the white sheets, her short hair a feathering black tangle across the pillow. Her jyaki levels were still low, and she would spend a little more time hibernating before they returned to normal.

Kurama watched as Hiei slowly reached out to gently brush her cheek with the back of his hand, and his heart tightened at the unusual show of tenderness. The fire demon looked up at him, and he silently nodded in agreement.

Carefully removing the various monitoring devices, Kurama neatly wrapped the dangling cords up as Hiei slipped off his coat and roughly bundled the sleeping taiji-ya into it. Jin watched with a nonchalance Kurama found disconcerting, as the incorrigible wind apparition only met his raised brow with a goofy, knowing grin.

Gathering the taiji-ya up, Kurama straightened. She felt incredibly light in his arms, and he nestled her bent head into the crook of his shoulder. Her warm breaths tickled his throat. He looked at Hiei, and without a word, the fire apparition preceded him out of the room and back down the white hallway.

Jin followed at a distance, arms crossed behind his head and a fat smile on his mobile face. A passing candy-striper tried to protest their abduction once they reached the ground floor, but Hiei only glared.The girl abruptly fled with a petrified squeak. They continued down the sterile corridor, eventually reaching the main area where they were finally stopped by a surprised shout. The cavalcade was unleashed, and even Hiei’s snarl was lost in the chaos that surrounded them as a virtual horde swarmed out of the waiting room to surround them in raised question.

“What are you doing there, mates?” Chuu demanded, Rinku’s brown eyes wide behind the towering Aussie.

“What does it look like?” Hiei snapped, and the ensuing quiet grew ominous.

“That’s what I’d sure like to know.” A harsh voice broke through the silent tension, and everyone turned in surprise at the hard-eyed wolf demon who faced them from the doorway.

*Kouga,* Kurama identified for Hiei, letting him know that it would hurt Sango’s feelings if he were to kill him.

“Hn.” Hiei growled, but let go of his hilt.

It was Jin, however, who answered the wolf demon’s demand. “Why, ain’t it fair obvious? They be claiming their mate, they be!”

“Mate?” The wolf demon’s gargled bark was lost in the sudden uproar as everyone tried to top one another in giving congratulations and bad advice over Koku’s enthusiastic call for champagne to celebrate.

“Well, if she’ll have you, than I have no argument,” Touya blandly said, though the warning in his blue eyes told Kurama that he would have to proceed cautiously with the slayer. Taking the good advice for what it was, Kurama nodded even as Lord Tenga adroitly slipped up beside him to press a key into his hand.

“I have the honeymoon suite,” he murmured with a sly smirk. “Go slow with her, fox. She’s human.”

Kurama frowned, but the pink eyes only glinted wickedly. With a debonair wave, the youkai disappeared back inside the excited throng, who were only growing more boisterous as the outraged receptionist ineffectually waved her tentacles to try and shush them.

“I hope you know what you’re about, younglings,” the lizard Suiketsu slyly called out as several of Raizen’s former teammates snickered.

“Yeah, that certainly helps,” Kuju drawled as his twin sister pinned him with a Look.

Shishi pinned the same Look on his blond friend when Sazuka shouted ingeniously, “It better be beautiful!”

“Just what the hell is going on here?” Kouga bellowed, angry with all the bodies blocking his way. Chuu abruptly threw a companionable arm around his shoulders.

“What’s it look like, mate? Why, it’s a party!”

“Except there’s no booze,” Koku whined.

“Too right, sheila. Can’t have a proper party without the booze,” Chuu agreed.

“Are you drunk?” Kouga glared at him.

“Not yet.” Chuu grinned.

“God, you’re hopeless.” Rinku scowled as Ginta and Hakkaku stared with wide eyes and the others laughed.

Fed up, Hiei growled, “Let’s go, fox.”

More than ready to, Kurama paused as a single, dark form smoothly sat down on its haunches, effectively blocking their exit.

“What the hell is that?” Hiei growled, incredulous.

“You don’t know Skunk? Jeez, shorty, where you been?” Yusuke appeared behind the little, red-eyed demon. He took in the tableau with a raised brow. “Huh. Seems like you two have attracted quite the crowd.”

“Urameshi!” Jin called out in pleasure, as Enki waved. “Raizen Junior!”

Yusuke gave both his friends a calculating grin. “You know you owe me one.”

“For what?” Hiei snapped, annoyed by the interference or inference, Kurama wasn’t sure which.

“For distracting them.” The detective flipped a thumb in the group’s direction.

“Will you two go on?” Jin shook his head. “Makes a lad wonder if you even mean to be doing what you be meaning to do!”

Hiei glared.

Skunk growled ominously.

The burning eyes slowly swung down to the little demon, and then blinked.

“Hiei?” Kurama asked curiously, and Hiei scowled.

“That little bastard just told me in my own head that we better be good to her or he’d gut both of us and dance on our entrails.”

The striped tail neatly wrapped around the demon’s little front paws.

Yusuke laughed, and pushed them both towards the door. “Go on, you two! Get out of here!”

Taking the good advice for what it was, they went.




The honeymoon suite was sumptuous by anyone’s standards. And tacky.

Eying the fat cherubs blowing kisses from every corner, Hiei looked askance at Kurama, who only shrugged. He crossed the thickly carpeted room to the giant bed that stood in appalling glory upon the wide dais. Hearts and cherubs figured largely in the design, as did red velvet and gold tassels. He carefully laid the taiji-ya down, and even her slight weight sunk the mattress in a few inches, which then bulged as the wave undulated across the rest of the bed.

A waterbed. He should have known. They’d have to be careful with anything sharp, like claws. Kurama chuckled, and Hiei only looked at him before a glimpse of himself had the shorter demon frown.

“And why are there mirrors on the ceiling?”

Kurama smirked.

“I find your amusement annoying, fox,” Hiei said, though his smirk belied the testy statement. “This room is ridiculous.”

Yes, it was, but at least there would be room on the wide bed for all three of them. So long as they didn’t get seasick. Shaking his head as the bed undulated again as he sat down, Kurama carefully lifted Sango enough to draw the apparition’s coat from her. Still dressed in the tattered remains of the clothing she’d fought in, Kurama mused that if there was one problem with Demon World hospitals, it was the lack of hospital gowns. They basically parked your unconscious body in a free bed to let you heal on your own, only interfering if something came up while checking on your progress.

Handing Hiei his coat---which the fire demon negligently dropped over the back of a faux Louis XIV chair in gold lamé---Kurama gently lifted Sango so he could slip the sleeveless white top off of her. Hiei took it upon himself to unbutton the slayer’s jeans and drag them over her hips after slipping off her dirty socks. Kurama debated giving her a bath, as the slayer would most likely consider it a violation, especially when she was completely insensate. But the dirt---and dried blood---streaking her skin decided him. Lifting her up in his arms, he told Hiei what he had in mind.

“Hn.” The fire demon simply turned on his heel and preceded him to the bathroom---yet another testament to bad taste in marble and gold and baby-cheeked Cupids. The giant tub had enough space for any sized orgy. Kurama wondered ironically why this was called the “honeymoon” suite. Looked like it was made for group getaways.

Hiei eyed the bathroom with that same look of patent disgust before going and setting the water to a temperature he found pleasing.

“Not too hot,” Kurama cautioned, in case the fiery demon liked his bath boiling.

“Hn.” Hiei only stood back up and quickly stripped his pants and boots off. Kurama blinked, taken aback by the demon’s casual disregard for what had been a faint worry in the back of his mind.

“You think too much, fox,” came the now-familiar growl, before Hiei stepped into the filling tub and held his arms out for the slayer. Arrested by the sight, Kurama flushed even as he gingerly handed the limp girl over. Hiei gently set her on the wide edge of the marbled rim so that he could remove the rest of her clothing. Her dark head leaned into the crook of his wide shoulder, their short, black hair blending together as the wide, capable hands slid up the curve of the taiji-ya’s spine to unhook her bra. There was something so erotic in the simple gesture, and Kurama felt his breath catch as Hiei caught his darkening gaze with his own.

“Here, help me,” he said brusquely, lifting the slayer up off the rim so Kurama could slip her black panties free. The water crested as the fire demon finally sat back, the slayer straddling him. Recalling himself, Kurama quickly peeled his clothing off and joined them. He was conscious of Hiei’s eyes upon him, and smiled, his confidence returning as he sunk his lean hips below the water, wincing slightly at the temperature.

They were all business, though, as they gently bathed the slayer. Kurama was struck anew at how tiny she was, especially when compared to them. Her fierce independence and competent self-assurance typically hid the fact that she was really quite slender. Although firmly muscled, there was a softness to her skin, which flushed under the heat of the water. By the standards of when she was born, she was of average height for a ningen woman, but comparably short by modern standards. She stood maybe an inch taller than the red-eyed demon who held her, but Hiei’s gravity-defying hair made him appear taller when standing side by side.

Kurama could not help comparing them, and the innate beauty and grace of each. They were a study in contrasts. Where Sango appeared soft, Hiei appeared hard. Her creamy skin was pale against the demon’s tanned flesh, although his was unblemished by the scars that laced Sango’s body. They mapped a hard life of struggle, and were testament to the fierce spirit who resided within. Kurama reverently touched the distinctive scar along her spine, the rough star white against the flushed heat from his gentle ministrations as he washed her back. Even Youko had been struck by that stark reminder of Sango’s dark past.

Hiei grunted, and gently pushed the slayer back into the fox’s waiting arms so that he could wash the front of her in turn. The view was breathtakingly erotic, as Hiei’s calloused fingers slowly swept the washcloth across her shoulders and down between her breasts. There was more weight to them than Kurama had expected, although he had felt---through Youko---them cupped in his palm. Her nipples rose, and he closed his eyes a moment to regain his breath and separate himself from the pure sensuality of the sight.

“This is the scar of her heart transplant,” Hiei said quietly, almost to himself. Kurama opened his eyes, studying the way the apparition traced a single, blunt finger down the white scar. A distinctive spider’s mark, near purple-black like a bruise, rested over it. It was a strange tattoo, but not ugly. He wondered why Sango often hid it behind high-necked shirts.

The washcloth in Hiei’s hand dipped lower, and Kurama watched, face impassive as his body betrayed its arousal as Hiei lifted each leg in turn. Water droplets beaded in the tight curls of her womanhood like reflected diamonds, and Kurama smiled wryly at the mirrors placed on the ceiling. Though he had to admit the view was just as appealing from that angle.

Not that Sango was in any way to appreciate it. The fact that they could take such liberties while the slayer was unconscious and vulnerable---since she so rarely let herself be vulnerable---made Kurama’s erection finally subside, and he managed to wash her silky black hair without any embarrassing twitches. It was Hiei who finally lifted the slayer out of the tub to carry her back to the bed, leaving Kurama to pull the plug and bring towels.

Drying her---and themselves---Kurama loosely wrapped the last towel around Sango’s wet hair before pulling back the thick blanket and creamy sheets. Hiei slipped the slayer inside the covers, and a rather hilarious moment ensued as they both climbed in after and the unpredictable swells of the waterbed ungraciously tumbled them against her. The release of their laughter eased the tension of the situation, and Kurama settled himself behind the slayer, spooning her, as she instinctively turned into Hiei’s warmth. The crimson eyes briefly met his over her tousled head, and the fleeting look in the fire demon’s gaze was strangely hesitant. But it was gone so quickly, Kurama dismissed it as an aberration.

Closing his eyes, Kurama thought that it was enough for now, to be here with both of them.


She had never felt so warm.

The thought was so strange, Sango opened her eyes in confusion. She was lying against someone, the heat of their skin radiating up like an electric blanket. Her cheek was nestled into their shoulder as another’s soft breaths warmed hers in turn, for she was spooned by someone whose arm lay loosely thrown about her waist. It took her a good minute to get over the startling fact---which was just not a situation she had ever expected to find herself. And upon that realization came the abrupt awareness that all three of them were naked as the day they were born.And the tickle of a long red hair along her bare arm and the spiky black swirl in front of her wide eyes brought the embarrassed anger burning up with the furious blush that stained her cheeks.

“Hentai!” she shrieked, and reflexively pushed in both directions, feeding her jyaki into the powerful blast of wind-backed force.

The bed exploded, projecting both perverts out of either side of it with startled yells as Sango yelped, for she was suddenly riding a bucking bronco as the mattress convulsed. The plastic abruptly parted under a tidal wave of icy cold water that sent her cresting along with it, tumbling her head-over-heels off the end of the bed to land in a soppy tangle of blankets and sheets on the floor.

“Damn it!” she cursed, fighting free of the drenched blanket, and then skidding back on her bottom as one heel was caught by the wet rope of a sheet. “Ow!”

“Ow?” The snarl in that incredulous demand made Sango push her sodden bangs out of her eyes and glare at the short demon who was climbing to his feet, his red eyes hot.

“Hiei---” Kurama, ever the mediator, tried to calm the fiery-tempered demon, but Sango wasn’t having any of it.

“Have you both completely lost your minds?” she cried, dragging the white sheet over her body, though it did little to hide her nudity beneath its wet folds. “What the hell were you thinking?”

“What we were thinking?” Hiei growled, arm sweeping out over the sopping mess left of the bed. Sango’s cheeks burned as Kurama suddenly sat back and laughed, his eyes glinting gold now in merriment. Hiei scowled at the fox, hands on his hips, and Sango wanted to die as a sharp knock rapped on the hotel door behind them.

“It’s housekeeping---is everything all right in there?”

“No,” she was about to say, but a calloused hand suddenly covered her mouth, a strong arm holding her body tight against his in a way that made her freeze as her eyes widened at the feeling of his naked heat around her. She struggled furiously, but Hiei only dragged her into the bathroom as Kurama went and answered the door.

“Damn you!” she snarled, but it came out as muffled nonsense, so she bit his palm. He hissed, but didn’t remove his hand and tightened his hold. She tried to crack his instep with a vicious stamp of her heel, but he abruptly turned her world upside down as he flipped her up over his shoulder, turning his body in the process so that their positions were reversed. Pinning her hard against the wall, he growled, meeting her hot eyes with his own.

“Gods, hanyou, you’re annoying.”

And then his look softened.

It was such a vulnerable, tender look. One she would never have expected to see from Hiei, of all people. Sango’s breath hitched and she stilled, the red fury replaced by dark brown uncertainty as she searched his eyes with her own. His calloused palm gentled, leaving her mouth to cup her cheek, his thumb trailing the bow of her lips as his smoldering eyes dropped to them.

Shaken, Sango wondered if he meant to kiss her, but that thought finally brought her back to her senses. Damn him for playing her like a fiddle. But she wasn’t a fiddle, she was a human damn being, and she couldn’t forget what he’d done. What they both had done.

“Don’t,” she said, pain in her voice as she turned her head away.

He stiffened, and she hated how her heart contracted, hated how she felt bad for rejecting him when so many had already. But he had rejected her before she had ever rejected him, and the raw pain of that---brought charging to the surface when she thought she’d already dealt with it---made her harden her resolve.

But they weren’t given a chance to say anything more, for Kurama suddenly opened the door, and stood there looking at them. Hiei silently withdrew, and Sango turned away, hugging herself hard and refusing to look at either of them.


Kurama stood there watching them---more him, actually---before quietly pulling a white bathrobe from the attached closet and giving it to him with a nod towards Sango. Hiei scowled; he wasn’t an idiot. Part of the taiji-ya’s indignation was that she was completely naked, and felt vulnerable by it. While Hiei frankly didn’t understand that, he accepted that it was, and with a shrug to show the indifference he didn’t feel, he took the thick terrycloth.

She stiffened when he brusquely dropped the open robe across her shoulders, but grasped it to her like a shield. He hated how she did that, and with them. Didn’t she understand? Wasn’t it fairly obvious that they were supposed to be together, that it was right?

He wanted to kick her as much as he wanted to kiss her right then. Because, god, she was magnificent. With her short hair mussed and her eyes all dark and guarded in their uncertainty, her slight body swathed in a bathrobe too big for her as she firmly double-knotted the sash around her waist. Suddenly amused by the defiance behind the gesture, Hiei smirked, anger dissipating like smoke.

Deliberately ignoring the robe Kurama extended to him, Hiei folded his arms and leaned against the sink. The fox gave him a wry look, but made no comment as he gracefully belted the same robe about his lean frame. “Heh. The hotel is arranging us a new room, since our bed unexpectedly imploded.”

Sango glared. “I don’t need a new room---”

“Sango,” Kurama began, but she cut him off.

“Don’t, Kurama.”

“Don’t?” Hiei growled, willing as always to stoke the fire. “You’re saying that a lot lately, hanyou.”

Her eyes flashed. Good. He could deal with her anger. Reveled in it, actually.

“And what else do you want me to say, Hiei? That I don’t appreciate waking up naked in a bed with two men?” She didn’t even blush, she was too angry for that as she stalked towards him, eyes bleeding now in her rising fury.

“I guess we should apologize for that,” Kurama said, ruefully running a hand through his tousled red hair. “We acted preemptively---”

“Preemptively?!” Her voice rose, and the fox winced, his ears more sensitive now that he was fully youkai.

“Watch your volume,” Hiei growled, eyes on Kurama.

“Or what, demon? You’ll knock me unconscious and take advantage of me?” She rounded on him.

“Don’t tempt me, hanyou,” he shot back.

“Hiei, Sango,” Kurama temporized.

“You can’t keep me here!” she cried, her aura suddenly blazing around her in astral fire as her eyes bled. She made a hoarse sound, as if choking on her anger, and the flaring energies suddenly died, as if she forcefully cut them off.

“We can’t?” Kurama said softly, gold swirling through the verdant green of his gaze.

She flinched.

*What are you doing, fox?* Hiei silently demanded, taken aback by the sudden change in Kurama’s tactics.

*Making her confront her demons,* was all Kurama said, before he morphed into his silver fox form, gaining a good foot in height and more definition across the shoulders as his golden eyes narrowed and the distinctive white ears swiveled towards the slayer.

“Damn you---” Sango seemed to shrink away. Hiei stared at her, startled by the reaction.

“Fight me, slayer,” the fox said softly, his voice roughened by the change.

She inhaled sharply, and Hiei finally understood what truly motivated the fox. Sango, once so inured to the effects of her rejected jyaki, was now afraid to use that rage at all. In a twisted way, she was not embracing her full nature. Oh, she accepted her demon side, perhaps even acknowledged her demonic instincts. But she flinched away from the darker side of her youkai nature, rejecting it just as much as she’d once rejected any overture of friendship, fearing it would interfere with her singular embrace of that very same darkness and the vengeance she had so long sought.

Always so extreme in her tendencies, Sango was now trying to be the polar opposite of what she had been before. Hiei had always admired how she kept both light and dark inside herself, wondering how she managed to keep her inner self pure and untainted by that darkness and bitterness that had seethed through her spirit for so long. But she achieved that separation by willful choice, suppressing one side of her dual nature in favor of the other. While superficially accepting her demonic nature and abilities, she did not embrace it fully, and was now rejecting the darkness that was so much a part of being youkai.

“No,” she said, the hoarse whisper full of such suppressed pain Hiei’s red eyes cut sharply to hers.

“Why?” Kurama taunted softly, slowly stalking her. Hiei’s eyes narrowed, but he didn‘t interfere. At least, not yet. “Are you afraid, taiji-ya? Afraid to let your true emotions out? Afraid your darkest desires will again get the better of you?” He baited her, carefully fanning the flames of her anger with those words most calculated to do so.

She stared at him, her face white and her dark eyes opaque.

“Or are you too weak to stop me?”

“You bastard!” she gritted out between clenched teeth, fists curled so tight at her sides the knuckles stood out in sharp relief. Tension fairly crackled the air around her with suppressed fury as she refused to relinquish her control, even under that typical goad. Her jyaki beat the air around her in dark, seething waves as she silently fought her rising emotions, trying to push them back even as her eyes bled from red to dark and back again, showing the intensity of her internal struggle.

Kurama studied her for a long, silent moment, head tilting slightly to the side as he considered his next move. Hiei tensed, waiting for the axe to fall. When it did, he was startled by the fox’s soft declaration.

“We love you.”

She cold-cocked him right through the wall.