FicWad

I Kissed a Boy

Due to the sensitive nature of the mission, Kuwabara was not invited. Though, he hadn't technically been invited to any mission, ever; he had always jumped in of his own accord, much to Koenma's gratitude. However, this time he was expressly told not to try and accompany his best friends to the rendezvous spot.

If it was any comfort to Kuwabara, Hiei wasn't going on the mission either, but his were different reasons. They were a combination of disgust and annoyance at what the mission entailed, precisely, and a lack of caring about whatever problem the humans faced at this point in time; he was far past caring about the issues of the human populace.

In all honesty, Kurama would have preferred to go on this mission alone, because it was more about subtlety than Yusuke understood, and because a lone guy would stand out less than two guys together. It might have made things less conspicuous if they had had dates, but Yusuke would have flat-out refused to bring Keiko somewhere dangerous, and Kurama couldn't think of a female that he would happily endanger, either.

He tried explaining it to Yusuke before they actually went on the mission, but there wasn't truly a human equivalent to the place or goings on, except those involving dangerous gangs who talked to themselves in corners on a regular basis. He'd given the word—gurentai—hoping that Yusuke might pick it up, but Yusuke picked up nothing that didn't have neon signs pointing at it. So, Kurama had to work with what he was given, and that was not much.

At least he could explain to Yusuke why this was necessary. "Demons have bad habits when it comes to the human world, but they rarely focus on organized crime," Kurama said as they walked to the portal in their city.

"Why?" Yusuke asked, having almost no idea why demons did anything the way they did. Kurama smiled mysteriously.

"Probably because they are too foolish to put together a syndicate. However, once in a great while, something of the sort shows up, and has to be dealt with accordingly."

"So, we're going in to break up a demon mafia."

"Essentially," Kurama said, turning a corner. His eyes had been on the moon as they'd walked, but shifted to the gloomy streets when it left his field of vision. "These demons have been known to meet in one place specifically, and we are going to try and outwit them."

"What have they been doing wrong?" Yusuke asked, leading slightly. He had been to this portal many times before, but Kurama hadn't.

"Thievery, kidnapping, drug peddling; the usual sorts of crimes that demons commit where the human world is involved. These demons are especially known to kidnap human females for bartering or slavery." Yusuke did not want to think about that in particular, so he turned his mind to another matter; how they were going to "outwit" demons. He asked Kurama, who chuckled.

"Some fights are better won with the tongue than the fist, Yusuke." The detective, at the time, had honestly believed that Kurama meant talking. Later, he would be proven half wrong.

They crossed to the Makai, far from most places that they had been. This part of the Makai was strangely urban, compared to the rest—where Yusuke had always imagined fields of strangely colored foliage and wide deserts was a growing metropolis of demons.

Granted, it wasn't quite like a human city, given that it was governed by nothing but strength; however, it still screamed of oddities that he had seen in his own world. The buildings were little more than shacks and shanties, true, but their arrangement and mostly the noises and sounds of at least a few hundred demons were indicative of much action and mayhem. Kurama led the way through the semi-bustling city; it was already ten at night, and Yusuke, despite himself, felt sleepy. He'd had quite a week.

And he was not used to this sort of strange mission. Usually, it was punch demons first, ask questions later. But this...this was just weird. Kurama had told him to dress in street clothes, but had given a slightly modified message to Keiko, who had helped him pick out his clothes to give off just the right impression. Yusuke didn't understand why it was important that he was dressed in pale jeans and a tighter-than-usual muscle shirt; Kurama himself had on black pants and a green button-up. It was all very conspicuous, and not practical for demon-fighting.

They walked down a "street"—without cars, calling them streets seemed slightly over compensatory to Yusuke. "Roads" was closer. Nearby was a larger building, large and sturdy enough that Yusuke didn't dare call it a shack. There was loud music coming from inside—human; something with a strong beat and a synthesized melody. Yusuke assumed that a demon must have found his way to a dump and found some CDs worth taking. There were a few windows in this building, and colored lights flashed from them brightly. So, apparently the demons had taken strobe lights, too. Curiouser and curiouser.

There was a long line of demons at this building, and with the way they were dressed, Yusuke was starting to think that Kurama had dragged him all this way to bring him to a nightclub. A damn nightclub! How the demons were powering it was quite another matter. He assumed that they were hijacking power from humans, but anything aside from batteries was preposterous. They jumped the line to many protesters, but the large demon at the door nodded them in.

"With human appearances, we look as though we are very powerful," Kurama explained as they walked in. Yusuke was glad that they were powerful enough to handle most demons, but even he was nearly floored when they passed into the room. They were hit with a blast of heat and energy so thick that Kurama's hair fluttered back from his face. It seemed to be coming from nearly all of the male demons in the place, emanating as though they were miniature heaters instead of living creatures.

The room was large, with a small dance floor on their left and a bar on their right. In the back was a series of Western-style couches and booths, which were nearly full. There were demons on the dance floor, but they were the weaker, less human type, and they smelled a bit; mostly like sweat, but Yusuke was reluctant to get any closer. The bartender was serving almost exclusively demon drinks, which Yusuke had a mind to try. Kurama subtly directed him away by inclining his head toward the back of the room.

More demons came in behind them, and jostled them out of the way. Yusuke lost Kurama momentarily, and received the cruel eye from the bartender. When the crowd of demons had passed, Kurama was looking around the room with a curiosity which Yusuke had come to be familiar with. He sidled up to his friend, looking around as well.

"Let's go over here," Kurama said, leading through a crowd of demons to the far side of the room, halfway between the couches and dance floor. There, they could talk without seeming conspicuous, and, Kurama thought, possibly listen in on anything said at the couches. The music was probably too loud for Yusuke's ears, but his were much more sensitive.

They leaned against the wall, Yusuke watching the dancers. They moved in rhythm, and looked considerably more graceful than humans might have; perhaps it was the fact that demons had to fight to survive, but they had excellent control of their bodies as a general population. They moved like waves and serpents in the crowd, and he found himself watching them with heightened interest.

"Yusuke, the demon we came to see is on the largest sofa. Do you see him?" Kurama asked pointedly, turning to the couches that were set up in an ovular shape. Yusuke turned his head; the largest couch was perhaps six feet long, and covered in people. There was no doubt who their quarry was—he was the tallest, handsomest, and loudest of the entire group.

"I see him," Yusuke said, his thoughts narrowing to a focus. The demon had his back to them, but he could see pale flesh beneath long, curly white hair. He wore a pair of tight black jeans and a strange, demon-made top. Yusuke thought it was something like a black leather tank top with strategically made holes and rips—or this demon had just gotten into a fight with the wrong adversary. The demon laughed loudly; it was a booming, unpleasant sound, and louder than the music by far.

"His name is Jericho, and he is the head of the syndicate which we are trying to destroy," Kurama said, watching Yusuke's face for his reaction. The younger boy merely looked at the back of Jericho's head, wondering why Kurama had brought him here, of all places, instead of waiting for Jericho to leave or travel, where he would be more vulnerable.

"Oh, Jericho, tell the story again!" A female demon's voice sang. She was sitting on Jericho's left, her arms wrapped around him and her head on his shoulder. She looked over it at the dancers, but her eyes, large and sky-blue, seemed to miss Kurama and Yusuke. She had pretty blond hair and a nice face, though it looked slightly used and tired under the lights. She was smiling and kissed Jericho's ear with gusto.

"Yes, again!" Clamored the girl on Jericho's right. She had long black hair, but they could not see her face because she was facing the same direction as Jericho. Neither girl was wearing much in the way of clothing, and both hung on Jericho like flies from a spider's web. He laughed again, over the hip-hop music. Yusuke looked at the demons surrounding him for some time. None of them looked to be anything new; they were all in human form, and most of them had relatively normal features (except for oddly-colored hair and eyes.)

He noted that there seemed to be a sort of coupling system within the demons' group, but could hardly figure it out for himself. Skimpy-dressed women lay over the male demons, who weren't dressed any finer; some men were holding three or four women, while others sat alone. All were focused on Jericho, some with awe and respect, and others with disgust or dislike, but they were all looking at him.

"Well, you see, the other day I was talking to a friend—" Jericho began his long and uninteresting story; Yusuke tuned it out in favor of Kurama's whispered information.

"How exactly are you planning on getting rid of him?" Yusuke asked, keeping his eyes on the demons but constantly moving. Kurama's vision switched from target to target, as if he wasn't paying attention to anything in particular.

"It is quite simple. Jericho has only been the leader of his gang for some weeks; before him, it was another demon with similar attributes, and before that one, yet another."

"Why so many different leaders?"

"Because it is a hierarchy, with the top member's spot being most coveted. Look at the demons around him—the females pay utter attention to him and look longingly at him, while the weaker-appearing males flock to him like sheep, and the stronger ones dislike him in his position of power. They fight amongst themselves for the role of leader."

"Well, if that's true, we should just let them duke it out until there's only one left, and then kill him," Yusuke said, unable to keep a note of incredulousness out of his voice. He was tired, and it was loud and hot in here—the sooner they made it out, the better.

Kurama laughed quietly. "If they were physically fighting each other, Yusuke, then I would have to agree."

"How do they decide the leader of the gang, then?" Yusuke asked, looking over Jericho. He could see no discernible reason that Jericho would be the leader, other than the way the others reacted to him; he had no special power or item that Yusuke could see, and he looked mostly no different from the others.

"It is a complex game of domination. In the demon world, whoever is the strongest in any given field deserves the crown of that field. Jericho won his seat by dominating the competition, and he will lose it when someone else dominates him."

"But how is that going to help us overthrow the whole group?" Yusuke asked, turning to face Kurama.

The fox looked at Yusuke with stunning green eyes that were full of mystery as he said, "by winning the game."

And with that, he walked over to the group of demons as though he belonged there more than anywhere else in the world.

Yo check it out, I've got a plan.
Here's my intention:
The frat boys in the club are lame;
Let's start an altercation.

Yusuke followed suit, trying to act as though he knew what he was doing. Kurama's words had only piqued his interest, and he had no real idea of what would transpire throughout the night. As he watched, Kurama took a seat next to a male demon who gave him a curious glance. Yusuke went and sat next to Kurama, across from a female demon who was looking extremely excited to see them.

"Looks like we've got ourselves some newcomers," said Jericho, smirking at them in the middle of his story. Yusuke smirked back, but Kurama kept his face dead serious. "And who might you be?" Jericho asked, eyes flicking back and forth between them. He was fairly good-looking, Yusuke thought, at least as far as he could tell. The female demons were catching his attention much more.

In response to Jericho's question, Kurama leaned over to the demon next to him. What happened after that, Yusuke would never have believed until he saw it—and even then he questioned his own sanity and whether it was actually real. The demon next to Kurama was a tanned one with long, spiky black hair and burgundy eyes. Kurama, looking directly at Jericho, reached out a frail hand, and gripped the demon's hair. With a yank, he brought the demon's head back to expose his throat where his Adam's apple bobbed nervously. Kurama leaned forward, almost climbing into the lap of this demon, and kissed him aggressively and rudely.

There were cat-calls and whistles while Kurama fought for control of the other demon. Yusuke could only watch with a dropping jaw as they battled it out with their tongues; Kurama was clearly enjoying himself, though, and the other demon began to pull away, outmatched. Kurama gripped his chin and forced a last kiss out of the demon before moving aside. The demon glared at him furiously, wiped his mouth, and walked off. Yusuke watched him go as Kurama took his seat next to a female demon who was suddenly ten times more interested in him.

"Hey, handsome," said another demoness. This one was blonde, with big gray eyes and large hips. She went to Yusuke's side, and, taking his subtle cue from Kurama, he kissed her. She went willingly into it, practically melting into his arms. She tasted like some sort of spice—basil, he thought, or thyme. She sat on his lap and commenced kissing him, which he was able to ignore with some success in favor of how Kurama was moving on up the ranks of demons.

It's just what I'm used to.
Just want to fuck shit up.
I got my whole damn crew.
Come on—whatcha gonna do?

He moved from one to the next, though it was a slow and gradual process which took careful patience to execute. Yusuke understood, as Kurama left a line of dizzy and love-struck females in his wake, why he had been the only other one to accompany Kurama here. Hiei would never have gone for such a dive; the demon kept to himself in nearly every aspect, and Yusuke doubted that he'd ever had a dream about some beautiful woman losing her kimono. Kuwabara, he knew, would have freaked out about fifty times more than he himself had, and wouldn't have understood it.

As he was joined by a second female demon, Yusuke thought he kind of got it. They didn't fight because it would destroy their ranks, and demons, he realized, were more ambiguous than humans. He didn't specifically think Kurama was gay any more than he was stupid; the boy just knew where to put his mouth (so to speak.) The girls on Yusuke's lap even kissed each other, which was probably more for his benefit. He was starting to find this mildly exciting, though he didn't know precisely how far this thing went—wouldn't it just be his luck if demons were fans of mass orgies?

I kissed a boy and they liked it;
Got all the honeys in the club excited.
I kissed a boy just to start shit
And homeboy was not about it.

There were, Kurama counted, exactly nine demons in front of Jericho on this scale of lust. He had gotten through the first rank obviously in tact, though that demon could have used a breath mint. The females were easy; they melted at his expert touch, swooned at the very sight of him, and gladly got out of his way. They were boring, in their sad ways—not that he minded them, but they presented no challenge and therefore little fun. They enjoyed the males' interactions, though, which made them a good audience.

He scanned the other demons for reactions through half-closed eyes, keeping his mind and body in two separate places entirely. His hands moved without him needing to think; his tongue moved almost as deftly, and his eyes constantly searched. The demons here were on the borderline of body-builder's physique. They were strong, probably stronger than him, but the tongue is the strongest muscle in the body, and his had been put through many a workout.

Jericho himself would be the hardest battle, and the worst part? He would probably be tired by the time he got there, especially since he'd had to give up the weapon of surprise on the first demon. As he cast aside the last woman, who joined Yusuke's quickly-forming harem, he moved to the second male demon. They dominated the females with obvious ease, and the real challenge was each other. He supposed that they were not constantly battling because of some rule—most likely they only had their matches every once in a while, or when new members joined. He was seeing to it that he and Yusuke were two new members tonight.

Yusuke, he realized, would probably take better to this than he had originally thought. The boy was enjoying himself with the women, and would not like it when he came face to face with the next demon on the totem pole (currently Kurama himself), but if he wanted to help Kurama with the mission, the most he had to do was stay quiet and pretend as though they weren't here to disband the whole thing.

I know it's wrong, but I don't mind.
I'm gonna start shit tonight.
I kissed a boy just to start shit...
Bitches loved it.

The second demon had fuchsia skin and brown eyes; he saw Kurama coming and met him with full force. Their tongues battled; Kurama nipped at the demon's lip, scraped the back of his throat, and generally used any dirty tactics necessary to get the demon to give up.

He found pain to be quite a useful factor in these wars as he squeezed the demon's upper arms so tight that he was sure he would leave bruises. In shame, the demon broke it off and turned to Yusuke, throwing females aside. Yusuke parted with one reluctantly to meet the larger demon, and did well for his youth, Kurama noted. Yusuke managed to win it by putting a knee between himself and the demon, squishing the demon's torso. When the fuchsia demon went off to join his other fallen comrade, Yusuke was surrounded by giggling girls awaiting a turn. Intense, he thought, not having enjoyed the kiss but at least having understood it. He could sympathize with Kurama.

The third demon was sweeter, and welcomed Kurama. He of the blonde hair and bright blue eyes opened his arms, probably trying to throw the smaller boy off. Kurama did not relinquish his hold on the demon even when it was his hips that were being squeezed in a way that would certainly leave bruises; he pushed forward more forcefully, putting both hands around the demon's face and giving neither of them time to breathe. After a few tense seconds, Kurama beat the demon, who moved down the couch and grabbed himself one of Yusuke's girls to reassert his place in life.

Now you don't even know my name;
It doesn't matter.
Don't even front, you've got no game—
You're just a sucker.

The only girls that had not moved were the two on Jericho's arms, and as he watched them (and as he received kisses from all the others), he saw that they were sisters. They had the same nose and shape of face, and while they were polar opposites (the blonde with blue eyes was friendly, while the girl with black hair and red eyes seemed fierce) they had a nearly creepy telepathy between them. Jericho would turn to Kurama, and one would drag his attention back to the pair of them. Then he would look over at Yusuke, and the other would strike. Their motions were synchronized, and they moved with a grace that he hadn't previously noticed.

Jericho watched with some amusement as Kurama decimated his first three warriors in mere minutes. He was extremely impressed by the slight red-head, whom he would have mistake for a girl if not for the obviously masculine physique. The other, he knew, was probably of no consequence—he had beaten Caligula, but Cal was a sore loser and weak.

The red-head moved onto the fourth demon, Nero. Nero, Jericho knew, would not be easy to push over—he had only been beaten by the fifth one because of a cold sore. Kurama did get an upper hand on the black demon (Nero) by swinging from the blonde almost immediately into Nero. The dark demon was thrown back against the sofa, laughter dying on his face as Kurama utterly destroyed his self-preservation. Sensing that he was being watched, Kurama put more force here, noting Nero's strong arms and legs with some wariness. The larger demon pushed Kurama away, which technically ended the kiss on his own terms.

"You lose," Kurama said, turning away from him to scout his next victim. They were closer in proximity to Jericho the higher up the ranks he got, he realized. Nero growled from behind him.

"I'm not finished with you yet," he hissed, and reached for Kurama. He managed to snag the back of the boy's shirt and yanked, causing the buttons on the front to pop off and fly into the crowd of demons. Kurama moved his arms back effortlessly and let the shirt come off without the slightest resistance. Nero was left holding Kurama's shirt as he bent over a weaker demon nearby and kissed him almost gently. This one smelled of demon's ale, and was tipsy—plus, he was softer than Nero had been and Kurama welcomed the opportunity to relax for a moment and regain his strength. Losing clothing this far in had not been in his plans.

So what now? I clowned you
And I'm stealing your girl, too.
She wants a secure dude
And that's just not you.

He moved on to the sixth, a tall demon with his manhood slightly erect as he saw the fox coming. This one Kurama straddled, using the suggestiveness to provoke a particular reaction in the entire group, Yusuke included. The younger boy was suddenly aware of how hot it was in here, and how close all the bodies around him seemed to be. The girls were content to kiss him and each other, so long as he seemed interested, and he was glad for that—Keiko would probably not understand this situation.

The tall demon fought ferociously. He moved his body in weird, unpredictable ways to try and throw Kurama off, and his mouth was unskilled but fierce. His fangs pierced Kurama's lips at least twice, but the pain did not make him want to stop—when he became as determined as he was then, little could. After a long time of flailing around and refusing to accept his fate, the tall demon gave up and pulled his own females over. Unfortunately for him, they wanted absolutely nothing to do with him.

Kurama sat down to take a break, his breath coming in small gasps. He licked the inside of his lips where the tall demon had bitten him, tasting the blood and wondering if he could use it to his advantage on numbers seven, eight, and nine. Jericho looked at the pale, frail, shirtless boy and smiled widely.

"Had about enough yet?" He asked, cupping the blonde's chin in one hand and rubbing his face against her own. His hair framed his face so that he almost looked angelic, except for the expression. Kurama smiled and leaned forward, still breathing harder than he would have liked.

"Not until I beat you," he said, and moved with a speed not unlike Hiei's to the seventh demon. He was a brown-skinned demon with pale peach hair and wide, silver eyes. Kurama was almost thrown off by his innocent baby face and yet thought better of it. He was right to; the demon's hands traveled to his bottom as Kurama found a grip in his hair. Completely unprovoked, Kurama kept control of the demon's eyes as they kissed—he was not one to look away or close his eyes unless necessary.

The brown demon bucked under him suggestively, causing those on his couch to bounce slightly and Yusuke to look over, almost frantic. Kurama turned his face so that he was still keeping control of the demon's mouth with his own, but gave Yusuke a reassuring glance with his eyes—I know what I'm doing, it said plainly, and Yusuke was distracted by hands at his shirt's bottom. He tried almost successfully to keep it on before someone ripped it and the entire thing went to hell.

I kissed a boy and they liked it;
Got all the honeys in the club excited.
I kissed a boy just to start shit
And homeboy was not about it.

The brown demon tried one last maneuver to get Kurama to pull away from him—namely, squeezing what he held in his hands. Kurama did not so much as flinch, and Jericho began to respect him for that. The brown demon gave up, gasping, as Kurama smirked and wiped a string of spit from one cheek. The blood was returning in his lips, brought forth by the intense action going on in his mouth. The next one, he thought, would receive a full dose of it.

As he turned to scope, he saw that five remained on this side of the group of sofas—Jericho, numbers eight and nine, and the two girls that sat by Jericho's side. He could tell from the docile, meek way they looked upon him that they were only Jericho's property—not competitors by any means. It was a bit too bad, since the dark-haired one actually looked appealing to him.

He was quite surprised to find that number eight was a female as well. At least six feet tall, she had a large bust, larger hips, and a long neck. She was mostly thin, but there was something decidedly masculine about the set of her jaw and the way she smirked at him. Her hair was a cropped blue to rival Botan's, and she wore a skirt that was about five inches too short for decency. She waited, looking up at him, before standing up to meet his embrace.

Kurama was only slightly fazed by the height difference; her standing gave her a leg up, so he would have to be smarter. The head that was tipped back was usually the first to give out, he'd known for some time, so he would need to bring hers back to assert himself. They met with a crash, wrapping each other up tightly in a dangerous embrace as Kurama's lips went to work yet again.

He released the blood in a rush, practically spitting it into her mouth, and she began to weaken. Possibly she disliked the taste of blood or found his blood intoxicating—either way, it was hard work but much more simple to push her back toward the couch, where she tripped and fell back on her bottom. He followed through, kneeling on her knees and crushing them purposefully, his teeth biting her bottom lip hard enough to draw her own blood. When she tasted the two intermingling, she fell onto her side, clutching her chest and shaking. She appeared to be wracked with lust; apparently, actual intercourse was against the rules here. He almost pitied her as he turned to number nine.

I know it's wrong, but I don't mind.
I'm gonna start shit tonight.
I kissed a boy just to start shit...
Bitches loved it.

Nine was the biggest demon of the lot. He looked startlingly like Toguro, with a massive body and great emphasis on the arm and pectoral muscles. He had an eight pack hiding behind an unbuttoned vest, and his mouth was large and intimidating. A dribble of blood ran from the corner of Kurama's mouth as he surveyed his next-to-last victim.

The demon stood up and approached Kurama before he had much of a chance to react. Moving deftly, the insanely large demon threw Kurama onto the emptiest couch and came jumping after, knees landing on the outsides of Kurama's hips. The fox had no time to move before that wicked-looking mouth was upon him; it consumed him almost fully, taking control of his tongue and pressing him into the springs of the couch. He took this with a pang of regret—now he had dragged Yusuke here for nothing, and had jeopardized the mission so that it probably wouldn't be solved, and for his trouble he would be kissed by this foul-smelling demon who was crushing him at the same time.

Kurama was aware of the bass of techno music pumping into his ears as he nearly suffocated under the large demon's lips. The large demon had an erection which was uncomfortably making itself known to Kurama; he would need to be careful when leaving the club or he might be attacked by this demon. He had little doubt that on a one-on-one situation against him, he could kill this demon, but there was Yusuke to think about.

And then, the weight was gone. Sitting up and blinking, Kurama was horrified to see Yusuke lip-locked with the demon who had been beating Kurama beforehand. Yusuke had apparently dove at the demon to get him off of Kurama; they had both gone on the floor, and now Yusuke was straddling the demon, fists around his head as he bent the demon's back onto the ground. The demon finally gave up and Yusuke sat up, satisfied, wiping his mouth and grinning at Kurama.

"Looks like you've got competition for the highest seat," Jericho laughed, as Kurama stared at Yusuke with trepidation. It was clear on the boy's face that he had no idea what he had set in motion. Yusuke looked from Jericho to Kurama, and finally pieced it together.

"Me? No, I don't want any trouble," he said, getting off of the larger demon and backing away. Kurama could have eagerly hit him, while Jericho laughed heartily, quickly joined by the females on his arms.

"It doesn't matter what you want," he said, standing up. Yusuke was still backing off, catching the attention of basically everyone in the room. "You're next in line for my throne, and I have to deal with you accordingly."

Yusuke looked at Kurama, panicked. Only one thing for it, Kurama thought, and got to Yusuke first. Knowing how awkward this would be, knowing how strange it would seem, and knowing how necessary it was for Yusuke's sake, he grabbed Yusuke's face with soft hands and kissed him full on the mouth. It was a delicate one, preserved for the type of people that he genuinely cared about; perhaps a handful of others had received it from him before. Yusuke reciprocated in kind, his hands weaving into Kurama's hair. They told themselves that it was all for Jericho's amusement, so that Kurama could take Yusuke's place in the line—and that was more the truth than anything.

They broke apart roughly, Yusuke falling onto the couch with a thump. Kurama gave him an extremely grim and chagrined nod before turning to face Jericho. The females around Yusuke went into near spasms and began to shriek with glee, bringing his mind away from the incredible thing that he'd just shared with Kurama—his teammate, for Enma's sake! His straight teammate!

Me and my bros, that's how we roll—
You never know how far we'll go.
I'll grab some chump that I don't know
And plant one right on him.
You're only here for our amusement.

As he had reserved the gentle kiss for Yusuke, Kurama reserved the cruelest and coldest glare that he could muster for Jericho. The demon was slightly upset by it; he had not expected such fury from a small, weakly boy who had hardly any energy to speak of. Nevertheless, he had to keep his seat, and part of that would be taking down this pretty little redhead.

Kurama was glaring at Jericho with decidedly little effect, so set his sights on how to defeat the demon. They were not too outmatched in size, and the large one that Yusuke had defeated for him probably would have beaten Jericho in a reasonable universe—so Jericho had either powers or tactics that could beat pure strength. Kurama was betting on the latter.

They met in the center of the couches, blocking each other's arms from their own bodies. Kurama grabbed Jericho's forearms with surprising strength, and he pushed them toward Kurama's body to protect himself. Their faces met with a quick crash that caused Kurama's lips to go nearly numb. Jericho had a height advantage, so Kurama was leaning up to meet him and didn't feel comfortable that way; it would be too easy for Jericho to push him down. He began to walk forward, pushing Jericho back to the couch that he'd been sitting on. The other demon put up quite a fight, pushing Kurama any direction that he could—they were surrounded by couches on all sides.

Yusuke and the females watched with anxious eyes as Kurama was pushed back again, and then again. Finally, Jericho got him to the couch, and put his foot behind Kurama's so that the fox tripped and went down. He landed roughly on the couch, still with Jericho's tongue battling against his own. He put his hands in Jericho's white hair which fell around them like a curtain; Yusuke could see the white hair mingling with the red, looking, with shocking contrast, like blood on snow. Kurama yanked on Jericho's hair hard enough to pull some out without moving his face from Jericho's own—to pull away would claim defeat.

Jericho, not to be outdone and yet to reveal his secret weapon, placed one hand on Kurama's chest and found his crotch with his other. Before Kurama could much blink, Jericho had him in a rather compromising position, and let him this know by squeezing him quite painfully. Kurama did not skip a beat. He moved his mouth into high gear, no longer thinking about what he was doing so much as intuitively countering Jericho's moves. The hand on his most sensitive parts was squeezing with a regularity now, causing Kurama to wince about every second or so; that he could not help. He had been fairly confident up until now, but when the squeezing came on constant and strong, feeling as though he was about to lose an important body part or two, Kurama could control himself no longer.

And then, when he was about to lose, he did the worst thing he could do—he threw up.

Jericho screeched, breaking the kiss and spewing Kurama's vomit all over the other patrons. Kurama spat, trying to rid himself of Jericho's taste more than anything, and was infinitely glad to find Jericho's hand falling away from his body, though his entire crotch was throbbing and sore. As Yusuke examined his friend, pushing past all the girls to go to him, he noted Kurama's pale face and the way he was shaking—either with fear, pain, or relief; Yusuke did not know which. "You pulled away," Kurama said to Jericho, who was close to throwing up himself. "I win."

I kissed a boy and they liked it;
Got all the honeys in the club excited.
I kissed a boy just to start shit
And homeboy was not about it.

"That was foul!" Jericho screamed, voice sounding thick. Kurama smirked.

"No more so than your own tactics, which, ironically, directly caused mine. I believe you would have won if you had kept that hand to yourself."

Jericho screamed in anger before getting up to find himself a bathroom. If there was soap, he'd use it on his mouth. Yusuke gave Kurama a concerned look, so the fox sat up, his crotch protesting with a sore jab of pain. Jericho had really done a number on him; in the heat of the battle, he hadn't realized how tight the demon had been squeezing.

"You're the leader now," said the blonde girl that had been on Jericho's arm. She seemed positively amazed.

"Yes. My first rule of business: no one is allowed into the human world as long as I'm leader," Kurama said shortly. The others frowned, but said nothing—their own rules stated that they had to follow whatever commands he gave. Yusuke stood, and offered Kurama a hand up. He took it slowly, standing up with his face away from Yusuke so that the detective would not see how much it pained him. Actually, it wasn't so bad, he realized. The pain had receded to a dull throb that would probably be gone by morning. He would have a hard time explaining why he wore no shirt, but let him worry about that later.

"Let's go," Yusuke said, and began to lead the way out, ignoring the female demons with a sense of urgency. It was late, he was tired, and he needed to know that Kurama was all right. He had been able to see Jericho's tricks, and he knew how much that had to hurt.

The music was loud as ever as they made their way past the couches and out past the line of demons, which had not dulled. It was one of the best sensations of his life when Kurama left that hot, sweaty building for the cool and fresh air outside; it blew through his hair like a wave of chilled water, cooling the sweat on his brow and making him close his eyes. His over-used tongue tested his lips, and he wasn't much surprised to find them chapped as all hell.

"You know that Jericho's going to try and beat you again next time you come," Yusuke said, and Kurama looked at him and smiled that mysterious smile.

Kurama wasn't worried—he had a handle on it.

I know it's wrong, but I don't mind.
I'm gonna start shit tonight.
I kissed a boy just to start shit...
Bitches loved it.

They walked back to the portal considerably slower than they had come, due to Kurama's injuries, which weren't so bad, and which he tried to hide from Yusuke to almost no avail. The detective catered to him on the walk, offering to take his arm and half-carry him or to drag him if need be.

"No, Yusuke. It does not even hurt anymore," he lied. Yusuke looked at him warily. Kurama thought he knew what was on the boy's mind, and was proven right when Yusuke spoke again. By then it was nearly sun-up, and the view as they walked east was beautiful.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. Kurama looked at him, surprised.

"Why?" Though he could guess.

"I interfered when you were trying to beat the big one. Also, if I had taken on Jericho instead..."

"You would have lost," Kurama informed him. "And you helped me beat the large demon. There's no need to apologize," Kurama assured him, and smiled weakly to punctuate it. Yusuke looked at him for a long moment before smiling again; his eyes were wide and innocent, an expression that Kurama had grown so found of seeing.

"So, that was not the type of mission I'm used to," Yusuke laughed as they came to the top of the hill, which was also the edge of the city. Kurama chuckled.

"The same goes for me," he confessed. They paused there, as the sun rose steadily on the horizon, filling everything with its red light. Yusuke looked at Kurama and saw him as he had once seen him—on the roof of the hospital the night they'd used the Forlorn Hope, with the red of the sun staining his face and clothes so that it was all one deep bloody color to match his hair.

"About what happened in there...you know, with..."

"The kiss?" Kurama offered, looking at Yusuke fondly. The younger boy nodded sheepishly. "Do you want to keep it a secret?" Kurama asked, guessing at Yusuke's intentions correctly.

The boy with the slicked-back hair smiled widely, and it lit up his entire face. For that moment, Kurama was glad that they were friends, and he knew that he needed nothing more from Yusuke than those comforts. "I won't tell if you won't," Yusuke grinned, and ran off toward the portal.

Those comforts, indeed.