Partners by Moonlight

(AN: ^^; Sorry this took so long, I've been horribly neglecting this story for several other short lemons that will be posted soon. For YYH and Shaman King, as well as a cross over, for those who are interested, email me and I'll tell you when they are posted. And thanks to my editor (yay I got one for this chapter) HimeAndi for looking this over on such short notice.)

The sensation of floating in inky water was the only thing he felt. There were voices that were too distant to hear, all he could tell was that they sounded alarmed. When ever he tried to concentrate on hearing the voices, his head would split open and he would be pushed further into the darkness. After a few times of trying this, he decided it wasn’t the best idea. Instead he relaxed, letting himself be pulled down further and away from the voices. A blinding light made him wince, but a sudden coolness spread through out him, making his bones like jelly.

One voice came to him, soothing and calm, definitely feminine by the tones and higher pitch. “It’s okay Kuronue... Sleep dreamlessly and rest, when you wake next you’ll be in better shape.” The voice rippled with amusement. “You have to get better, or your kitsune will drive us crazy. Take your time though, I’ll watch over him while you can’t.... Thank you for saving me, Kuronue... Now sleep.” His mind relaxed and he drifted off, smiling to himself at her words.

~oOo~

Yoriko opened her eyes, smiling up at Kurama. “He’ll be okay.” Kurama let out the breath he’d been holding while she worked on his partner. His old friend was a rare demon; one that time mattered not to. She could peer into the future, or look into the past. Or in Kuronue’s case, she could freeze time then peddle it back. That was how she healed, turning back time to a point where the wounds didn’t exist on that specific part of the body. The body wouldn’t suffer from it, nor would the person’s mind. Time was truly at her beck and call.

After Kuronue had fallen she froze him instantly, grateful for his actions in saving her. That gave her and Kurama enough time to get back to Avur and Tamenai’s house. The sight of Yoriko appeased the demons living in Avur, a little more comfortable with seeing Kuronue now that they knew he was one of the reasons she was safe. Once they had Kuronue set up in one of Tamenai’s spare rooms, Yoriko went to work on healing him.

“There’s only so much I can do, I’m sorry.” The orange eyed girl looked wearily up at him. Her powers had apparently taken its toll on her. She was a bit more pale than usual, and moved carefully, as if a sudden movement would knock her off balance. “I made sure he was out of death’s hands. It’ll take me at least a month to regain enough power to heal him fully. He’ll ache, but he’s still intact... Just about everything hit by that blast was ruptured or broken. Make sure he doesn’t move around a lot, I rather not have all that work destroyed by some demon’s pride.” She rose, adjusting her tattered dress. “Restrain him if you have to, and remind him how close he was to death, okay?” Yoriko yawned, politely covering it with her hand. “Ah, excuse me... I think I’ll go sleep now. Tell Tamenai to make him some pain killers...” She narrowed her eyes at Kurama. "No sex. At all. For a month. If I hear anything that sounds like sex from this room I’ll pound both of you... Got it?”

Kurama laughed, winking at his old friend. “A whole month? Dunno if I can wait that long...” All joking aside, he was worried about Kuronue. Sex, at the moment, matter not to him. Yoriko lightly swatted at Kurama’s arm then left, closing the door behind her. Kurama looked down at his partner, who seemed more relaxed than he’d ever seen him before. The bed he laid in was huge, leaving more than enough room to sit down on. While he knew Kuronue was out of danger and wouldn’t wake soon, he felt the need to watch over him. All of his chest and mid-section were covered in heavy bandages, including a few on his arms and legs. The sight of his lover wrapped in bandages made Kurama nervous. It wasn’t because of how close he had come to death, or how banged up he still looked... It was because Kuronue had taken the blow for him. Part of him screamed to leave now and not look back, to not let himself care for his beautiful winged demon. Now that it was obvious that Kuronue cared deeply for him, far more than just sex buddies or partnership, Kurama didn’t know what to do. Slowly he reached out, brushing a few stray strands of hair from Kuronue’s face. His guard must have been down because of the deepness of his sleep; Kurama’s touch caused him lean into it, smiling slightly. The kitsune blinked in surprise. Quickly he rose from the bed, walking toward the door. The stirring in his heart as Kuronue leaned into his touch was not something he wanted to feel, not for anyone. He knew he was supposed to look after Kuronue, but at the moment a breath of fresh air seemed more important.

“Mmm...” Kuronue turned in his sleep, suddenly waking because of the sharp pain in his side. “Ah!” The pain radiated out from his side, spreading to his chest and stomach. It didn’t hurt as much as it did before he passed out, but pain was pain... there wasn’t an inch of him that didn’t ache in one way, shape, or form.

Kurama hesitated at the door, torn by his need to leave and to take care of his partner. He sighed, what he thought of as the weaker side of him won out. “Don’t move stupid... How are you feeling?”

“Peachy,” Kuronue said through his clenched teeth. “Yeah, I kind of figured that moving was a bad idea a few second ago... Thanks for the warning.”

The kitsune shrugged, “you were asleep, what was I supposed to do? If I had woken you up, you would have yelled at me.” Waking Kuronue up was an art form Kurama took joy in practicing. It took a lot to wake the stubborn demon.

“There are other ways to wake me than to plug my nose. One day... I’m going to wake up before you and do it back to you.” Kuronue glared, “just so you know what it's like. Of course I’d yell at you for it.”

“I’m glad you’re feeling well enough to bitch. I don’t know what I’d do without it.” Kurama rolled his eyes, their argument a familiar one. “I know there are other ways to wake you up,” the kitsune smirked deviously, “and I believe you enjoyed those times very much, if your moans were any indication.” Kuronue smiled as he remembered just how Kurama would wake him up, on rare occasions. “I would have... but we’re forbidden from having sex, and any activities that would lead to that, I’m sure are on that list.”

“Sex is the last thing I would think of right now any way. I don’t mind.”

Kurama snorted. “It wouldn’t be if I tri

“It would...” Kuronue let out a small shuddering sigh, settling into a more comfortable position. “I feel like hundreds of little demons beat and poked me with sharp sticks...”

“If you promise to stay still, I’ll go get something that’ll lessen the pain.”

“I don’t think I could move if I tried...”

Kurama nodded then opened the door, stepping out into the hallway. Tamenai was just doing the same, more than likely putting Yoriko to bed. The wizened demon jerked his head to the one empty room, opening the door to it. Kurama followed him, entering the musky scented room. There was barely any light, a single candle lit on a candelabrum. “I need you to make some pain killers for Kuro, Yoriko asked me to tell you... He’s awake now, and in need of them.”

“Yes, of course... I’ll make the extra strong kind, the stuff I don’t usually give people. Just as a thanks, plus he deserves it.” Tamenai set to mixing the powders he kept in small vials, putting them in a grey stone bowl that was shaped like an hour glass. Kurama watched intently; his medicine making was always interesting. The old demon added a few different powdered ingredients then used a spoon to mix them all together. When that was done Tamenai grabbed two more jars and set them aside a brass rectangle which had many groves in it. Carefully he added some powder from another jar then started adding a drop of the excipient carefully, working the mixture as he did so. The excipient was the thick syrup of liquid glucose, the last ingredient that bound the other mixes together and formed a stiff dough. He took the mixture and rolled it in his hands to make a long pipe, then rolled it out along the brass plate. Picking up another tool, a handle with grooves that matched the ones on the plate, he cut the dough into many little pieces. He then took the little pieces and rolled them around between his thumb and index finger, making something close to a ball. “Almost done,” he muttered, putting the pills in a box and rubbing it in a clockwise circle. Those pills were taken out, now small balls, and set aside as he repeated the process until all the pills were ball shaped. “These will need time to dry, but I have a spare one I keep incase I need it.” Reaching up he withdrew a wooden box from a shelf and opened it. “By the time these are done drying, it should still be working on him. Hopefully... I’ve never been wounded as he has been, he might need something stronger than this. He’ll have to wait of course, but this will at least make him a little more comfortable.” Tamenai handed the pill to Kurama then headed for the door. Kurama nodded and left as well, returning to Kuronue’s room.

“Finally! What took you so long?” Kuronue grumbled loudly, clutching his sides. “Unless you and the guard had to have a quickie while incapacitated.”

Kurama folded his ears back against his head. “Jerk... I’ll ignore your rudeness, for now, because you’re in pain. Here,” the kitsune handed his partner the pill Tamenai gave him. “Now quit being an asshole... I wouldn’t leave you right now, you need me.”

The winged demon swallowed the pill with out the aid of water, eyes anywhere but on Kurama. “I don’t need anyone.” Kuronue rubbed his temples, willing the pain to drain from his body. Kurama was right, even to his own ears he sounded as querulous as a child with a fever. “Tch... Thank you for the pill...”

“Mm, your welcome.” Kurama sat beside his partner, eyeing the bandages. “You didn’t have to take that blow for me.”

“If I hadn’t, then you and the girl would have been hurt. There’s no sense in having two people suffer instead of one.” His reason seemed thin, the only thing he could come up with his mind clouded in pain. The last thing he wanted to do was tell Kurama the real reason why he took the blast. Damn it, Kuronue thought to himself, in the heat of the moment it seemed like the right thing to do... to protect Kurama. “Besides, you’re my partner,; I need to keep you around. If nothing but for entertainment purposes.”

“Of course,” Kurama smirked. “Now go back to sleep, you’ll need all the rest you...” The silver youko blinked then chuckled quietly. Kuronue was already sleeping, chest rising and falling slowly but in a more steady pattern than before. He shrugged and lay beside his partner; close enough to touch, but far away enough that were he to roll over in his sleep he would harm Kuronue. “Sleep well...”

~oOo~

Kuronue was blessed with yet another dreamless sleep, the medicine the old man had given him was indeed good enough to help him. He felt aches in what was probably the worst of his wounds, but he felt too good to really grasp where they were. When he opened his eyes the room swam, blurring at several points. The winged demon chuckled at the sensations, knowing they were only created from the pill Tamenai had made. Half of him felt well enough to get up and move around. He knew better, nothing had changed, he just felt... more comfortable. Opening up his injuries wasn’t appealing, and he knew he would do that if he were to get up. Besides, the medicine would wear off, and he’d be in worse shape. He turned his head noticing the kitsune sleeping peacefully beside him. Kurama was most beautiful when sleeping,; almost innocent looking if one didn’t know him well. Despite the tug at his heart and the wish to watch Kurama in his serene state... there was revenge to be had. He raised his arm so his hand was even with Kurama’s face, and then plugged the kitsune’s nose. A few seconds went by before Kurama flinched a little, and then finally pulled away, gasping for air.

“Damn it Kuro!” He glared at Kuronue, who had a half grin on his face.

“Not so nice to wake up that way, is it?”

Kurama just glared icily at him. If Kuronue wasn’t hurt, he’d show him just how much he appreciated that. “That was a bit childish, wasn’t it?” Kurama mumbled, struggling to keep his temper.

It wasn’t fooling Kuronue for a moment. One look at the fur on the kitsune’s tail, which was almost as fully bristled as it could be, told him exactly how Kurama felt. “Possibly...” He reached out again, this time stroking the soft but thickly furred tail. Kurama moaned softly, eyelids drooping a little. “You can’t be mad at me for doing something you do to me,” he said with a smirk, continuing to pet the tail.

“Kuro... stop.” Kurama flipped his tail out of Kuronue’s reach. “You know what that does to me.”

“Exactly why I was doing it.”

Kurama’s ears swiveled to the side. “Don’t tease me; you’re too injured to have any fun...”

“Are you sure about that? You know, you could work on being more gentle...”

“Hn... You like it rough, and you know it. Although... if I was careful...” Kurama blinked then laughed.

“What?” Kuronue eyed his partner warily.

“Those pills make you horny,” the kitsune managed to get out between bouts of laughter.

Kuronue frowned, “they do not.” Well... there’s a possibility that they did. He wasn’t going to complain though. “Is there a problem with that?”

“No.” Kurama smirked then leaned down and kissed Kuronue’s lips softly. “I’m going to make us some food.” He pointed to Kuronue’s arm. “That seems to work well enough; you can use it when I’m gone. Less stress on your poor battered body,” Kurama snickered at his partner. “Come on, we were all boys who were too young to really get some at one point, I’m sure you can remember how to do it on your own.” He ducked under the pillow that was launched at his head, and then left the room, chuckling the whole time.