Trails of Eros

Thank you you SensationalK for my first review, here's the next chapter! As for the title, I'll explain it at the end of the chapter.

---

Hiei was surrounded by warmth when he woke up. The light was still dim enough that it didn’t’t bother his closed eyes. He sighed in contentment before nuzzling into his warm ‘pillow’, ready to fall back asleep. A hand began to rub circles on his back, effectively massaging the soreness from his tense back muscles. A deep purr rumbled from Hiei’s throat while he was still under his sleepy morning haze. He tightened his embrace, content on nuzzling the pillow a second time before inhaling deeply. Hiei tensed as soon as Kuwabara’s scent hit his nose and a deep growl left his throat when he heard the human laugh.

“Aw take it easy Hiei; it’s not my fault you purr like a kitten!” Kuwabara choked out before bursting into another fit of laughter.

Hiei growled again, bit Kuwabara’s arm to stop the human from rubbing his back, and sat against the cave wall a good meter towards the entrance. Even though the demon had slept in a deep slumber he felt as if he had not slept at all. He rubbed his eyes and yawned before lying down and going back to sleep.

Kuwabara frowned as he watched Hiei slump side ways and fall asleep. The small demon looked sickly and it worried him. He waited until he heard Hiei’s breathing even out before he picked the small demon up and carried him out of the cave. Hiei barely stirred and Kuwa wondered if he was caught in a dream, especially when he started murmuring. He remembered Hiei admitting that his heat drained his energy but he never imagined it would be that bad. After picking up Hiei’s cloak Kuwabara carried him back to the village know that Kurama would be able to help him. He found their group waiting on a hill outside the demon village.

“About damn time you got here you lazy sack o- wait, what’s wrong with him?” Yusuke blurted while Kurama had already begun to exam Hiei’s sleeping form.

“This is much worse than I imagined.” Kurama stated while pulling a vial out of his pocket.

“Wha-what do you mean it’s much worse?” Kuwabara stuttered.

“Well his condition seems to be deteriorating quiet rapidly, I will give him some medicine to dull the effects of his heat on his body but that’s all I can do for him until he finds a mate.”

“And if he doesn’t’t?”

“He will die.”

The finality of the statement struck the group hard. Kuwabara gazed down at Hiei in bewilderment. He couldn’t’t understand why the demon would risk himself. There didn’t’t seem to be any reason for it. Hiei stirred gently when Kuwabara brushed his finger through his hair and the boy blushed lightly.

“Are you sure there isn't anything else you can do Kurama?” He asked.

“I-I have an idea.” Yukina said; Kuwabara and Kurama looked at her hopefully. “There’s a village not to far from here, it has a nice hotel and a… matchmaking service of sorts.”

“You mean a whore house?” Yusuke received very disproving looks from the other two boys.

“O-oh heavens no Yusuke I’m just not sure how to explain it.”

“Then let me,” Kurama interjected. “It’s much like a speed dating service you find in the human world, though to be completely honest I don’t know how they run things there. Such services in demon world are highly unusual and were only introduced after the barrier between the human and demon worlds was brought down. I’m not sure how Hiei would take to such a service but it is the best chance for him.”

“Well it sounds like a great deal and all but how are we going to get him there?”

“I’ll take him.” Kuwabara answered. “I’m already carrying him anyways.”

“Make sure he doesn’t take off your head when he wakes up then.” Yusuke said as he slapped Kuwabara on the back.

“Yes that would be most unfortunate.” Kurama chuckled. “Now I really must administer the medicine before you leave Kuwabara, if you could just open Hiei’s mouth.”

Kuwabara did as he was told and began to gently open Hiei’s with his fingers. A quiet murmur left Hiei’s lips before they wrapped around Kuwabara’s fingers and suckled them. Kuwabara’s face was coated in a deep red blush that only grew when he heard Kurama laughing.

“Shut up fox boy!” Kuwabara sputtered as he finally pried Hiei’s mouth open and let Kurama pour the vials contents down the small demons throat.

“Are you sure that’s going to be enough?”

“Anymore Kuwabara and we risk some unfortunate side effects. I’ll give you another vile for tomorrow as well as some others filled with a wake up solution.” Kurama handed Kuwabara a small black pouch filled with the medicine and ‘wake up’ solution.

“You should also take these.” Said Yukina while holding up another small pouch made of a silver fabric and tied with a royal blue ribbon.

Kuwabara adjusted Hiei so that he had the small demon balanced on his shoulder before taking the pouch from Yukina and pouring some of the contents out onto his hand. He was shocked to see the small tear gems roll onto his palm.

“Yukina I can’t take your Hiroseki stones from you!” Kuwa said while trying to hand the gems back.

Yukina only smiled at him before closing his hand over her solidified tears.

“You don’t have any demon currency Kazuma-san and one of the stones will be more than enough to pay for the hotel room. Consider these a payback for not telling you earlier about my leaving.”

Kuwabara looked down at the small ice maiden in wonder before nodding with a small smile. She embraced him shortly, whispering “I’m glad we’re still friends.” Before letting him go.

“Now Kuwabara, the hotel is named ‘Aromai’, it’s a day’s walk from here going northeast. The journey should be fairly uneventful as that part of the forest is uninhabited by demons. We will meet up with you tomorrow evening at some hot springs that are northwest of Aromai.”

Kuwabara nodded and said thanks to everyone before taking a small map from Kurama and began to walk towards Aromai. Hiei stirred in his sleep occasionally but never woke up; Kuwabara would try and walk a little faster each time. It was dusk when he walked through the Aromai hotel doors. He wiped the sweat from his brow and caught his breath before walking to the receptionist’s desk. A plump woman with purple skin, large circular glasses, and long black hair tied back in a bun sat behind the desk, her lime green eyes focused on the boisterous crowd in the restaurant area.

“Um excuse me, could I book a room?” He almost flinched when the demons bright eyes snapped their focus onto him.

“Did you book a room in advanced?”

“Err no but-“

“Then I’m afraid I can’t help you.” She snapped letting her eyes drift back towards the restaurant. “I swear ever since they started playing clips from the dark tournament we’ve always been busy.”

“Maybe this will change your mind.” Kuwabara held up one of the Hiroseki stones and grinned when he saw the demon woman eyes grow wide.

“I-I’ll see what I can do for you.” She stood and left through a wooden door, Kuwabara waited a full five minutes before the woman came back.

“We’ve been able to clear one room for you, is there anything else you would like?”

“Well I heard you guys have that matchmaking thing.”

“Yes I assume you would like to sign up for it?”

“No, no, no! It’s for my friend here!” Kuwabara yelled before showing the receptionist the sleeping Hiei in his arms.

“Oh… he’s a real cutie too.” She said with a blush. “Uh um well we have a two for one special so I’ll just sign you both up. Now I’ll need both your names on these papers here and any other information needed for your stay.”

Kuwabara sighed in defeat and filled out the papers the receptionist handed him. When he was finally finished she looked the pages over and smiled.

“Everything looks to be in order. Now here’s how the matchmaking works, we post your picture up on the wall over there. Under your picture is a mail slot. If someone is interested in matching with you they’ll drop their biography card into your mail box. Biography cards are just pictures with your information printed on the back. Room service will deliver your cards to you when order your food if you’re able to wait the twenty minutes for them to be ready. Now here’s your key, your room is on the top floor, take the elevator and head down the fourth hallway towards your left.”

Kuwabara said a small “Thanks,” to the woman before taking the key and going to the elevator. He looked down at the key tag, reading ‘1314’ when the elevator stopped on his floor. Room 1314 was at the end of the hall and Kuwabara was happy to find that their rooms was located on a top corner of the building, the room beside them was labeled as the janitor closet while the one across from them was labeled for storage meaning they had no immediate neighbors. Kuwabara hastily unlocked the door and nearly dropped Hiei when it swung open.

Behind the solid oak door a black plush carpet coated the floor, only breaking for the peach marble tiles in front of the extremely large fire place. The walls had been painted a dark crimson while the crown molding was lustrous black, perfectly framing the amber tinted mirrors that circled around Sitting a meter and a half in front of the fireplace was a large leather armchair with a glass side table. A matching glass table sat in front of a wall that held long rectangular mirrors framing a dark mahogany bathroom door. To the far side of the room was a larger than king sized canopy bed. Its curtains were a shimmering copper while the golden frame had been molded to look like it was made of the leaves and branches of a Maple tree. Kuwabara laid Hiei down on the bed, taking care to tuck the demon under the scarlet blankets and set his head on one of the cream colored silk pillows.

Kuwabara ran his fingers through Hiei’s hair, making the small demon relax under his gentle touch. He had been tense while Kuwabara was carrying making the human worry. A small smile graced Kuwabara’s lips when he heard the quiet sound of Hiei’s purring.

Once Kuwabara was sure that Hiei’s sleep was peaceful he lit the fire place, letting its warm light bathe the room and heat the chilled air. He then grabbed the small pamphlet off of the large glass table and flipped through its contents before dropping it back down and leaving through the bathroom door. He was awestruck a second time by the grandness of the room. The floor was covered in peach marble tiles, smaller versions of them climbed half way up the wall before small lines of them climbed to the roof. The un-tiled portions of the wall were painted an iridescent white, mimicking a pearls shine with the different colors it shone as the lighting hit it. The roof was painted the same color but had been indented with ripples focused around a gold chandelier. A glass incased shower sat at the far end of the room, while the large square bath sat opposite of the toilet and sink. All the visible metal had been furnished to look like gold.

Kuwabara stripped himself of his clothing and entered the shower. The long day of walking while carrying Hiei had left him both grubby and tired and he hoped that a good hot shower would rid him of both. After twisting and turning the taps a sigh escaped Kuwabara lips as the perfectly tempered water cascaded onto his sore muscles. He found a large variety of soaps, shampoos, and conditioners inside a wire basket hanging under a shower head; each set had a different scent to them. He simply grabbed the nearest set and began scrubbing, not really caring about the scent of it. He finished his shower quickly and dried himself with one of the many red towels before dressing in one of the white robes hanging from the door hooks. The plush softness of the robe surprised Kuwabara, who had never felt such a fabric.

After leaving the bathroom Kuwabara left his pouches medicine vials and tear gems on the table along before dropping his filthy clothes in a laundry bag he found under the bed. He checked the clock hanging above the main door and decided that it was time to wake Hiei. He grabbed one of the vials off the table and uncorked it. The flowery smell of the fluorescent orange liquid made Kuwabara wrinkle his nose before walking over to the bed. He gently opened Hiei’s mouth for the second time that day, blushing brightly as the demon nursed his fingers, and poured two drops of the vials contents into Hiei’s mouth. He watched as Hiei swallowed and frowned at the taste before his eyelids fluttered open. Hiei yawned and looked up at Kuwabara with a blank stare.

“Your robe is open.”

Kuwabara yelped, frantically retying the robe closed while he tripped over himself and fell back on to the floor. Hiei flinched at the noise and covered his ears before he curled into a ball and groaned. Kuwabara quit fidgeting and frowned at Hiei’s actions. He knelt beside the bed and rubbed gentle circles on Hiei’s back until the demon stopped covering his ears.

“Hey, are you okay there buddy?” Kuwa asked softly.

“Aside from being in pain?” Hiei snapped, cringing when he sat up and was struck by an extremely painful headache.

“I thought Kurama’s medicine would fix that.” Hiei watched Kuwabara as he held up the medicine. “He called it a wake up solution so it’ll probably help your headache. If that doesn’t work you can take a shower. I’ll order some food while you’re in there.”

“Fine, now where have you brought me human?” Kuwabara rolled his eyes as Hiei snatched the vial from him.

The demon glanced at the vials the vials contents before pouring it down his throat.

“We’re in a hotel called Aromai; I don’t think you should drink that stuff so fast.” Hiei glared at him. “You’ve been out for the entire day; I don’t want that wake up stuff shocking your system.”

Hiei returned the comment with a ‘Hn’ before curling back up into a ball. Kuwabara sighed and ran his hand through Hiei’s hair soothingly. The small demon couldn’t help but lean into the comforting touch that his body craved. It slightly worried him that he couldn’t help himself but he didn’t dwell on the thought, preferring to focus on the wonderful feeling of the human petting his head.

“Are you ready for your shower now?” When Kuwa didn’t receive an answer he stopped petting Hiei hair and lifted the demon chin so that he could look into his eyes. “Are you feeling alright?”

Hiei snorted “Of course I’m alright.” He said while smacking Kuwabara’s hand away and leaving for the bathroom.

He felt nauseous; his head was pounding from keeping his aura contained for so long. Hiei stripped off his clothing, taking special care to wrap his two Hiroseki stones in his scarf. He sighed and stepped into the shower, eager to rid himself of any grime. Hiei turned the taps so that the water was just below burning before inspecting the array of soaps and seeing that Kuwabara had opened the set of peach. A shiver ran down his spine as he thought of the smell of peaches mingling with the cinnamon aroma of Kuwabara’s musk. Hiei licked his lips when the thought of tasting the scent crossed his mind but those thoughts quickly transformed into tasting the humans flesh, marking it with his teeth. He shook his head vigorously in an attempt to rid his mind of such thoughts. It was bad enough that he had grown hard when Kuwabara had pet his hair, it was worse that his heat now clouded his thoughts with pornography. He growled before scrubbing his skin roughly, using the pain from his raw skin to distract him from his mind. Unfortunately it didn’t seem to work well and Hiei began to suspect his Jagan eye had something to do with it. His frustration only grew when he finished his shower.

“Where the hell did you put my clothes human!” Hiei yelled while stomping out of the bathroom, a towel firmly tied around his waist.

Kuwabara blinked up at Hiei from where he sat at the table.

“I gave ‘em to the cleaning lady so they could get washed.” Hiei’s eyes widened in panic.

“Where is my scarf?”

“Oh the material felt silky and I didn’t want them to wreck it so I put it on the bed.”

Hiei was quick to grab his scarf and visibly relaxed when he felt it in his grasp. His relaxation didn’t last long as he didn’t feel his two Hiroseki stones in the fabric.

“Are these what you’re looking for?” Hiei froze at Kuwabara’s voice and slowly turned his head to see that the two Hiroseki stones hung from Kuwabara’s fingers. “Yukina showed me her mothers Hiroseki stone a few months after we rescued her, at first I just thought it was odd that she would lend it to you, but then I found another Hiroseki with the same energy signature as Yukina’s and after thinking about it, everything just made sense.” Hiei growled with fury.

“If you tell her I swear I’ll-“

“Kill me in the most painful way possible by blah blah blah, ooh I’m so scared. Listen tiny I ain’t telling her nothing ‘cause that’s your job!”

“No one will be telling her anything, especially not me.”

“Well then I guess I have to!”

“Like hell you will!” Hiei yelled before tackling Kuwabara.

The chair clattered into the wall while Hiei pinned Kuwabara to the floor. He pulled his fist back ready to strike the human, until he looked into his eyes. Hurt, helplessness, betrayal, anger, he knew those emotions well and he hated to see them reflecting through Kuwabara’s eyes. Memories, things he had worked hard to suppress, were flooding his mind. The smell of a frosty swamp, his own blood spilt on the muddy ground, the stink of sweat from demon bandits.

Kuwabara knew something was wrong from the moment that Hiei had frozen mid punch. The demon eyes were unfocused, like they were seeing something that he could not. A small whimper escaped Hiei’s lips before he doubled over with his hands covering his ears. His body began to shake and Kuwabara was quick to catch the demon before he hit the ground.

“Hiei? Hiei! Aw come on man snap at of it, you’re really freaking me out.” Kuwabara pleaded with no use. Hiei’s eyes had glazed over to a milky white and he had begun muttering nonsense.

Kuwabara swore and held Hiei with one arm while he grabbed his medicine bag off the table. In it he found exactly what he was looking for. A communicator, similar to Yusuke’s; Botan had given each of the boys one at their last reunion. He pressed the red button on the keypad and Kurama soon appeared on the screen.

“Ah, Kuwabara, have you called to say that you made it to Aromai?”

“No, something’s really wrong with Hiei.” Kuwabara replied before tilting the view screen down at Hiei. He could see Kurama flinch at the site of their friend.

“Kuwabara, answer me honestly, how much of the medicine has Hiei had?”

“A full vial of it.” He pale when he heard Kurama curse.

“Listen to me closely Kuwabara. That medicine I gave you is designed to stimulate the mind and body. He was only supposed to take one drop of it. Now his mind is over charged and he can’t control his own thoughts, I’m afraid that his actions will also become affected. Please be careful, Hiei could become dangerous. I’m on my way; Yusuke will be able to take care of bringing Yukina to the hot springs. I will be there before morning, see you then.” The screen went blank and Kuwabara closed the communicator.

A small whimper brought his attention back to the small demon he held. Hiei was now squirming and Kuwabara used his free hand to rub circles on his back. He walked over to the bed and took one of the blankets over to the arm chair where he wrapped Hiei up so that he couldn’t flail his limbs and injure himself. Kuwabara then held him close and rubbed circles on his back while whispering comforting words in his ear. Hiei seemed to calm slightly but he still made quiet murmurs. A shiver ran down Kuwabara’s spine as he finally understood the words the small demon spoke.

“N-no…stop, please….stop.”

---

And the chapter ends just in time for you to wonder what the hell Hiei's muttering is about XD

Well as you probably already noticed, Room 1314 is their hotel room but there's a little extra part to it. Now grab a calculator and type in 1314. Yes I'm serious. Now flip that calculator with the numbers typed upside down and you'll see a certain demons name. And tada! There you go, a little calculator trick from someone who has too much time on their hands Xp