HOW THEY FIRST MET

One day when he was walking around a small town looking for his next job Kuronue noticed a pregnant Silver Kitsune. Normal he would not have cared however Silver Kitsune were rare and very valuable. Wanting to keep an eye on her he found a place to stay for a little bit and watched her. Believing it maybe worth his time to see if any of the kits were silver because if that was the case the information would be worth a small fortune. And being the thief he was that was good for business. The slave traders were looking for fresh blood and they would give ten percentage to the one that gave them information that made them money. And as far as Kitsune went for an adult that was 100,000 Gods but for a young kit that could be trained to do anything that was 10, 000,000 Gods. However as long as she was with child the mother was useless but after she gave birth she would be a fortune.

As night began to set the female Kitsune soon left the villages to seek shelter for the night. Not wanting to let his prize leave his sight he quickly followed her to where she was hiding before he found himself a tavern and booked a room.

That night enjoyed the company of females of the tavern letting the owner know that he would come into a good amount of money soon and would pay him for the whores then. A few of the Maids of the tavern had to be excused because they were too sore the next day. But the owner has said that he didn't mind so long as he was paid as promised. When morning came Kuronue at once started following the Silver Fox woman around being sure to take care that she didn't catch his sent. This process went on for several days.

At one point he saw an older male Kitsune approach the female and spoke with her. The old fox as it turned out was the father of the female Kitsune. She was less then thrilled to even be near him. He heard her argue with her father a moment before she reluctantly agreed with him that if she had a son he would became heir instead of her. Because of the fact that her father wanted a male heir and if she had one then she would no longer be heir. And he would take her son as his own. She was mad at this fact and showed it on her face. By the look Kuronue could tell that he she birthed a male the kit would not see the first day. Its mother would insure that. If the male was healthy then he could see if he wanted to sell it to the slave traders or keep it for himself.

It took around another week but soon the female went off by herself and Kuronue remembered that most female kitsune would do that right before they gave birth. Because she was not the first female kitsune that he had followed and he knew that she would moved fast. And would set traps to stop anyone from following her this was what all females did to protect themselves and there young when giving birth. So he turned into his bat form and followed her.

She went into the woods at a speed that was hard to follow so that know one could see her or hurt her. Kuronue saw her stop several times and drop some seeds on the ground. And whenever she did that a plant grew fast causing much of the vegetation around the path to seem dense and over grown. It was these plants that would protect her and the young during the birth. She stopped a total of four times and dropped four or five seeds each time. The last time she did that Kuronue almost did not make past the seeds before they grew. When she did stop it was in an open clearing. She was shaking and red birthing liquid poured down her thighs. Painfully while still in labor she lay on the ground with her legs spread open. She moaned in pain as the labor contractions hit full force. It was there that she gave birth to three kits, two females and a male. Kuronue could see the look on her exhausted face that she was not happy that she had a son because if her father found out he would demand it be given to him. Kuronue knew that if the female hadn't just given birth she would have strangled the infant to sure he never fell in his fathers hands. He hoped that she would not kill him because he wanted it. This was because the male was a silver kitsune and the other two were brown. From what Kuronue saw he would have to say that the two females were weak and would mostly not live very long. But however the male was healthy. He guessed that they two female would not live to see the end of their first year. The female was too exhausted to move from where she lay. The protections she put up would have kept many demons who were attracted to the smell of blood from coming near them temporarily. It would be a week before she could move again. Before he knew what he was doing Kuronue had reverted to his demon form and approached her. The female was surprised to learn someone had been watching her.

"Who are you? What do you want?" The female growled though she had little strength to fight let alone defend herself.

"My name is Kuronue. I'm interested in your child." Kuronue explained.

"Leave my daughters alone," The female snarled. "I won't let you hurt them."

"You misunderstand." Said Kuronue as he knelt near the female. Though far enough away for her to know he was not a threat to her or her children. "It's not your daughters I'm interested in. It's your son."

"My son?" Said the Female.

"Yes, back at the market I witnessed you speaking with another Kitsune about letting him raise your male child as his own." Kuronue said, casually omitting that he really had been following her.

"He was my father. He wants an heir to his line but I know why he really wants him." The female said. "He has always had an interested in young boys. And I know that if I hand my child over to him he would endlessly molest my son to get back at me. I can't let the child live if that's what his future will be like. I had hoped I would never see him again but when he approached me in the village I knew he would track me. So you see I can't let the child live."

"Why don't I look after him?" Kuronue said. "I can make sure the boy never encounters his grandfather this way if he does see you, you don't have to live with the guilt of having to kill your own child."

"How can I know you are no different from my father?" The Female kitsune said.

"I have bedded many demons, male and female. I will admit." Kuronue said. "But I don't do so with children. If in time he is of a proper age and would like to be my lover then that is up to him but I swear to you that I would do nothing to harm him."

"And what about the slave traders?" The Female said. "How do I know you wouldn't turn him over to those monsters? I know well the value of those with my fur color."

"I swear to you on my life I would never let that happen." Kuronue said. "It gets cold here at night let me build you a shelter so you and your daughters are safe."

With a nod of thanks from the Female. Kuronue ran off into the woods to look for items that could make a small but temporary shelter. The bark of the Makaian Red Wood was easy to find and made excellent temporary shelters. When he returned he at once started on the wick up. It was finished in minutes before he helped the female and her daughters into the temporary shelter.

"Thank you for all your help." The female said before she fell asleep her little ones curled close to her.

Kuronue then turned back to the small silver Kitsune which had been whining and whimpering for its mother. He then picked up the small silver fox and put him up to his chest. He could tell that if the little one had been left here the kit would be died not long after the sunset. The uterine fluids that were on the infant would have caused it to have become cold causing the little one to freeze to death. Also because its eyes were not yet opened and it was still covered in the birthing liquid. Its mother may have prevented land predators from approaching them but that didn't excuse the predators of the air. The small shelter he made for them however would protect the Mother and daughters from any danger until they left. Knowing he couldn't exit the way he had done he at once spread his leathern wings and took to the air. He was unable to fly very far but he could fly far enough to clear the barriers.

For the first time Kuronue had found himself at a loss of what to do. He couldn't turn this child over to the Slave Traders. He had made a promise and when he gave his word of honor he kept it. But yet he had never fathered any children that he knew of and didn't have the slightest Idea about how to raise a baby. And from the way it was acting the kit was healthy. The little one had stopped squirming and whining no sooner then when Kuronue had picked him up. The child had started to smell him and learn his smell these were so the little one would know his family. Most Fox children did this when they were born to learn their parents so that if they needed to they could found them again. This meant the child had already labeled Kuronue as family. Kuronue had no choice but to raise the infant as his own and make sure he was safe from his grandfather. He also decided to not tell the Slave Traders about the mother and her two daughters. Even though he had made no promise about their safety he still had the females trust, he couldn't just betray her now.

Kuronue then carried the kit to his hideout.

First, he went to a down tree and then used his spirit energy to open the door. Which was hidden and made to look like a fallen tree. Then he walked down the cave that made up the hall that entered to his hideout. Has he walked down the hallway of the cave it was dark because of the fact that there were no lights in this part. This was to make those that managed to break in think that no one lived there. When he walked into his hideout he smiled at what he saw.

He never got tried of seeing his hideout. There was a large cave that had four rooms. One was his and one was for items that he stolen and did not sell for money. There other two rooms were empty for now. There were some vegetation all around the place and a large pool of water that came from a waterfall. It was the perfect place for a thief or a child. And the wards and shields around it made it so that no one could enter this place without Kuronue letting them in and that was the one thing that he would not do.

He took the little one into the cave and put him on a small bed made out of leaves and plants. He had heard that spirit foxes were close to the plant life so they would become stronger and healthier when they were around it. When he did put the kit started to make a keening noise but for some reason stopped making the noise when Kuronue picked him up again. It looked like Kuronue would have to spend a lot of time here until the kit was older. This would be a good thing as it grows up however for now that would mean that it would look towards Kuronue for whatever it need. Kuronue sighed really wondering why he had offered to look after the child. He wasn't capable of nursing a child and he didn't have current mates. But something about the child made him remember how useful the boy would be to him as he got older. He surmised that he was going to need to make a wine skin that could hold deer's milk. It was the best he could do as a replacement for his mother's breasts.

But now was a different matter. The infant was going to need a name. He thought about what name would be suitable as he started to bath the birthing juices off the infant's body. It was rare that a silver spirit fox kit was outside of the birth family so his name would have to be special. At that moment a figure appeared in his mind the figure of his younger brother Kurama who was killed many years ago. In many ways this little one was going to be a younger brother to him. A small smile crossed Kuronue's face as he wrapped the infant in a towel and curled next to him on his bed.

"Kurama." Kuronue said. "That is a name that belonged to someone special in my life. Though that person is no longer with me his memory is. So from this day forward you will be known as Kurama of the Youko. Or Youko Kurama for short."

Kurama gurgled happily as he drifted of to sleep. Kuronue smiled at his new brother and hoped he made the right choice in adopting him. As Kuronue slept he had a dream where he saw Kurama's older self scampering behind him as they escaped from a heist. He was as beautiful as his mother had been though his hair was such a brilliant color of silver it made his mother's looks gray in comparison.

"To think that old bastard was my grandfather." Kurama angrily said.

"Fate is cruel at times Kurama." Kuronue had said.

"At least it was fun seeing the look on his face when he realized he had been robbed." Kurama said with a smirk as the two friends made their way home.

"You have improved since the last heist. You might even surpass me one day." Kuronue said giving his companion impressed smile. Kurama smiled back a Kuronue as the two friends ran off together into the sunset.