Just Bonded

Disclaimer: This story was written by me, mhmartini, for enjoyment purposes only. All characters taken from a show/series/book/etc. are property of their respective creators; I am only borrowing them. Original characters are mine. The storyline is mine. I am making no money from this endeavor. The only “profit” involved is the joy of writing and the reviews of my readers. No copyright infringement is intended.

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This story is a series of anecdotes in Hiei and Kurama's life together after they performed the demon mating ritual at the end of my story, Coming Clean. These events do not follow a specific timeline; they are just a taste of our demons' new life together as a mated pair, and chronicle some of their discoveries as they learn that mating is not the destination, but the beginning of the journey.

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Catch Me if You Can

Kurama sighed as he awakened. He had no desire to move, but rather to bask in the soft warmth of his bed. Shifting his head slightly, he smiled. He could feel Hiei's arm draped over him.

The fox was lying on his back. Hiei was curled tightly to his left side. The smaller demon was resting his head on the kitsune's chest with one arm draped across the red head's waist.

The sun crept higher in the sky, and still the couple did not move. They had mated only a few days prior, and they were still adjusting to each other's energy. Although their bodies would forever recognize the youki and reiki of his mate as it recognized his own, the adjustment period proved to be longer than they had anticipated. Many times they took naps together during the day, as their bodies simply craved sleep and togetherness.

Hiei moved in his sleep. Unconsciously his hand caressed Kurama's side, trailing down to his hip and hugging him possessively. The fox reveled in the feeling. Deep within, he knew no other would ever lay claim to him like this again. His body belonged only to the small demon beside him. And likewise, the small form curled to him was his to treasure, to worship. Stretching languidly, flexing and curling his toes, Kurama opened his eyes to look at his new mate.

Hiei had always been an early riser. Being a demon, he could easily survive on a mere hour of sleep each night. But lately his life was less about surviving and more about living. As he adjusted to the fox's energy pulsing through his own body, he slept peacefully. He always felt safe with Kurama. If he were angry or afraid (even though he would never admit the latter) the mere scent of his kitsune would calm him. For years he had found solace in the feeling of the fox fighting back to back with him, but now he found a new level of comfort simply by holding his lover. Kurama was there to support him, physically and emotionally, which was something he had never before understood. He still could not understand it; his mind could not fully embrace the simple feeling of having Kurama near him. Slowly he was learning that his mind did not need to understand what he felt. As long as he had Kurama, everything would be all right.

Finally the fox decided he had to get out of bed. More to the point, his bladder decided for him. Gently he tried to extricate himself from the hiyoukai's grip. This was no easy task, as Hiei snuggled closer every time Kurama tried to move away. By the time the kitsune had reached the edge of the mattress, the hiyoukai was sprawled across the bed with his feet in their original position and his arm still firmly wrapped around Kurama's hips.

"Hiei, Love, I need to get up," Kurama said, breaking the trancelike silence of the room.

Hiei heard his mate speak, but ignored it. He wanted just a few more minutes to bask in the contact he shared with the taller demon. Kurama, however, was persistent and gently disengaged himself from Hiei's grasp.

"I'll be right back, Love. I just need to get up for a moment," Kurama whispered with a gentle kiss to Hiei's temple as he finally arose from the bed. Quickly he traversed the room and entered the master bathroom.

When Kurama reentered the bedroom, Hiei was no longer in bed. With a sigh, Kurama closed his eyes and reached out, trying to find his mate's energy.

There were many rumors in Makai about the connection between mated demons. Since the true mating ritual was so rarely performed, many of the rumors had evolved into nonsensical tales told by those too frightened to risk their lives by mating. So the fox and fire demon were learning as they went about this new connection they shared.

One rumor was that they could read each other's minds. This turned out to be false. They could not have telepathic conversations in their heads, but they did find they could pick up very easily on each other's moods by reading the energy the other emitted. Although most empaths could do the same thing, their mating had shared their energy, so each demon could read the other's mood as easily as he knew his own. They could still guard their mood from each other, if they did not feel like sharing, but so far, they had not had any reason to do so.

As Kurama reached out with his senses, he felt Hiei's energy flare mischievously. It seemed the fire demon wanted to play. With a smile, Kurama left the bedroom to find his mate.

Although he could feel Hiei's energy as a soft, gentle presence, as he had been able to feel it since they had mated, Kurama could not use it to track down the smaller demon. With his jagan, Hiei was able to track energy, but Kurama did not have so precise an ability. So the kitsune stealthily crept through the house. Soundlessly the King of Thieves checked each room, one by one, making his way down the hall to the back staircase.

At the bottom of the stairs, Kurama had a choice. He could check the bathroom or the spare bedroom first. Silently he crept between the doorways just enough to peer into the bedroom. The closet door was ajar. The fox immediately recognized the trap and slipped back towards the staircase.

Reaching into his hair, Kurama pulled out a seed. Placing it on the ground, he fed his ki into it until it germinated and sprouted. Growing quickly, a small vine snaked along the floor and slipped into the bathroom. Within minutes a startled grunt came from the small room.

Sensing that his vine had distracted his prey, Kurama pounced into the room. Hiei, preoccupied with the vine that had encircled his ankle, looked up just in time to see his mate descending upon him. With his incredible speed, the hiyoukai blurred out of the way. The small vine released his foot as he deftly maneuvered out of the bathroom and down the hall. Not wanting his quarry to escape, Kurama took off after him.

For quite a while the two mates chased each other around their home. Each time Kurama nearly caught Hiei, the hiyoukai would slip around the fox and try to capture him from behind. The crafty kitsune would either sidestep or turn to counter attack, and the chase would begin anew.

Finally the mates decided that the catch would be more fun than the chase. Slowing down, Hiei waited for his fox to catch him. Nothing happened.

Slowly, Hiei began to wander through the house. Kurama was masking his energy. Hiei could just feel its presence; he could always feel his mate's presence. But he could not pinpoint it without using the jagan, and somehow that felt like cheating.

As he walked past the downstairs bedroom, the same room in which he had planted the open closet door trap, he felt a flicker of Kurama's ki. Entering slowly, he reached out his senses. It was coming from under the bed. Lightly, the hiyoukai sprang over the bed to land on the other side and dropped down to reach under and grab his fox. He was quite surprised when there was nothing under the bed.

Standing up, Hiei looked to the door to see if his mate had escaped, and was completely surprised when he was tackled from behind. The attacking force pushed him forward to land face down on the bed as the attacker laid his own body over the smaller form of the fire demon.

"Got you," Kurama's voice purred into his ear. Hearing the lust in his mate's voice almost made Hiei moan. Kurama's hands shifted from their position to begin roaming over Hiei's sides, the fox's body still covering Hiei completely and keeping him pinned to the bed.

Hiei put up no resistance as his mate rubbed and explored his body. The fox had caught him, fair and square. The clever kitsune had used his own trap against him by hiding in the very closet he had opened earlier that morning. Hiei had only one question: how did Kurama make his ki seem to emanate from under the bed? The question fled his mind when Kurama flipped him onto his back and began to lick and kiss his chest.

Hiei writhed in pleasure at the feeling of Kurama's lips and fingers touching him. As Kurama trailed kisses down Hiei's stomach, the fire demon placed his hands on the fox's shoulders and squeezed gently. Kurama smiled as he continued his journey, making his way lower on Hiei's body.

When he reached Hiei's groin, the hiyoukai shifted his hands into Kurama's red hair. Again the kitsune smiled as he shifted his body lower yet, completely ignoring the one spot Hiei needed contact the most.

"Fox." Hiei moaned, trying to direct Kurama's head back up. The fox, however, would not be rushed, and simply kissed and licked his mate's thigh.

When Hiei's urging became more aggressive, Kurama finally stopped and looked up at his mate. When Hiei looked at him with a desperate, pleading look in his eyes, the kitsune almost succumbed. But instead he simply shook his head.

Hiei dropped his head back onto the mattress below him and released Kurama's hair. "Fine," he said huskily. "Do as you will."

In an instant, Kurama's body once ore covered his own; the fox's lips pressed against his ruthlessly. Unconsciously Hiei wrapped his arms around his mate, knowing nothing beyond the amazing sensations this simple contact inspired in him.

Hiei broke the kiss long enough to whisper, "Please, Fox, I need you."

Kurama panted back, "Let me show you something new." With no more words, the kitsune again covered Hiei's mouth with his own, roughly pushing his tongue past Hiei's lips. The hiyoukai did not resist; Kurama's forcefulness excited him.

Kurama continued his assault on Hiei's lips as he drove his pelvis forward, grinding into Hiei. The fox moved his hips in a circular motion, letting the friction between their skin arouse them both further. He felt Hiei's arms tighten their hold around him. Determined to please his mate, he continued his movement, never entering his mate. Pressing and circling his hips, he had the fire demon hovering on the edge of climax within minutes.

Hiei's body screamed for release. He wanted his fox inside of him, but he wanted Kurama to keep doing whatever it was that made his body feel so hot. To Hiei, the fox seemed to be everywhere at once: touching his lips, holding his small form close, rubbing against his legs, and still always there, between his legs, pressing and circling and causing sparks of pleasure to radiate throughout his body.

Hiei clenched his fists against Kurama's back, his claws drawing tiny, glistening droplets of blood. The wounds healed almost instantly, but Kurama hissed anyway, savoring the gentle sting. Arching his back, he pressed down harder with his groin, eliciting a cry from the hiyoukai.

Hiei couldn't stop the yelp from escaping him as Kurama pressed hard against him. He wasn't sure if it hurt or not; the sheer pleasure he received from his lover blurred all lines and every sensation he felt now fed that pleasure, that hot sensation growing inside of him and threatening to take him over completely. As Kurama adjusted again, shifting his weight slightly, Hiei felt the dam breaking as waves of pleasure began to consume him. He could not even moan his release, he was gasping for breath, clinging to his fox, and abandoning himself in the feeling.

A few seconds after Hiei found his release, Kurama followed. The demons shared panted breaths as Kurama collapsed on top of Hiei. Although the kitsune's full weight lay on the smaller form, the fox was light enough not to harm his mate. Hiei's demon body adjusted easily to the burden on top of it. The hiyoukai enjoyed it, actually. Feeling Kurama covering him made him feel safe and secure, and he allowed his eyes to close as his body slowly stopped shaking and came back under his control.

The two mates lay in each other's embrace for a long time. Eventually they realized they had to get up to get cleaned up for breakfast, or more appropriately, lunch. Kurama arose first and reached out to his lover.

In an uncharacteristic display, Hiei reached out and accepted Kurama's hand, allowing the fox to pull him to his feet. With a grin, Kurama pulled Hiei close enough for a quick kiss before the two began heading towards the bathroom. Hiei stopped short before they left the spare bedroom, though.

"Fox," he began. "I felt your energy coming from under the bed."

Kurama smiled deviously. Squatting down, he reached under the bed and pulled out a small seed. He showed it to Hiei before raking his fingers through is hair and returning it to its proper place. "I used the seed to create an illusion, sort of like energy ventriloquism," he explained. "I know we cannot use our energy bond to track each other, but I wondered if we could use it to call out to each other. Apparently, with enough concentration, we can."

Hiei shook his head. "Clever fox," he muttered as Kurama stepped lightly past him and continued to the bathroom. But his sarcastic tone belied his amusement. He did not mind if Kurama played such tricks on him in private. Besides, it was good to know they could call out to each other if they needed to do so. They would have to play some new games to see just how far their range was, but that could wait until after they had bathed and eaten. Smirking and shaking his head, the hiyoukai followed his mate.