Hey, I'm up to 16 reviews now! Thanks so much! Here's chapter five. Sorry you don't get the HieixKurama scene, but you do get a little YokoxHiei to make up for it. Hope you like it!

Yoko lay basking on a flat rock next to the slow moving stream. He had been clean and dry for a while now, but he wasn't ready to leave yet. He knew Hiei would be waiting for him when he got back, and the little fire demon needed time to calm down before Yoko tried to talk sense into him.

No matter what Hiei thought, Yoko knew he was not unreasonable. In fact, reason was what governed all his actions. It was what made him such a legend. While others might be limited by emotions such as guilt and sympathy, Yoko was ready and able to do anything for the right reason. If Hiei put his anger aside and looked at their situation logically, he would see that.

All living things had requirements they had to fulfill for their continued existence. A fish needed water, a bird needed air, a flower needed light. Even the strongest demon alive, Raizen, relied on a diet of human flesh in order to survive. Yoko was no different. He was a spirit of nature, worshiped by many as a god to ensure the fertility of plants and animals, and his powers were dependent on a very specific type of energy. He needed procreative energy, the kind produced during sex, in order to survive. Without it he would weaken and die. It was as simple as that.

Yoko liked Hiei a lot. He hadn't wanted to hurt the little fire demon's feelings, so he had been understanding enough to limit himself to just one lover. He couldn't actually get stronger this way, but he had been all right staying at the same level if it meant keeping Hiei. What he would not stand for was deterioration. He was entirely reliant on Hiei for his needs, and Hiei withholding sex from Yoko was akin to placing delicious food in front of a starving man and saying he couldn't have any.

Hiei had to understand. He could not blame Yoko for taking another lover. He was stubborn at times, but he was able to see reason. That was why Hiei was Yoko's partner. A fiery, stubborn lover was great for a one night stand, but for a demon to last a year with Yoko he had to be smart, a fast learner, and willing to listen. Hiei was all those things.

He'll see reason. Yoko thought as he sat up. I'll make him see.

Yoko stood and collected his white clothes from the tree branch where he left them to dry. After he put his clothes back on he started up the small hill. At the top of the hill was the home he shared with Hiei, a small but comfortable stone cottage covered with tiny vines. He was about ten feet away when the door opened. Hiei emerged, clad in loose dark blue pants and blue shirt, his sword at his side and his head tipped down so his dark hair fell over his eyes. He shut the door quietly behind him as if afraid of making too much noise, then leaned back against the door.

"Hiei." Yoko called, walking up to his small lover.

He stopped in his tracks when Hiei raised his head a tiny bit to look at him. Hiei's eyes had a haunted look in them. Yoko had seen Hiei dismember dozens of demons without blinking, but now the little demon looked truly traumatized. Yoko narrowed his eyes sharply.

"What did you do?" he said coldly, grabbing Hiei's shoulders tight with both hands. There was no response. He shook Hiei violently. "Hiei, damn you, if you hurt him -"

"I didn't."

Yoko paused, and Hiei continued to stare up at him blankly.

"What did you do?" Yoko asked again.

"He wanted it. He wanted...so much." Hiei's head lolled back so he could stare up at the sky, and Yoko suddenly realized that his eyes weren't blank. They were wistful. "The way he looked at me when I first entered him...he was crying. But he said he was happy. He felt so good it hurt." Hiei's brow creased with confusion. "I've never wanted to be taken that badly. Why did he want it so much? Why did he like it so much...?"

"You had sex with him?" Yoko asked, surprised. Hiei blinked, perhaps to replace the nod he was too numb with shock to give. "Why?"

"He wanted it." Hiei repeated. His eyes narrowed a tiny bit, looking almost normal again. "No. I wanted it."

"You were ready to kill him two hours ago."

"I didn't know him two hours ago."

What did that mean? What could have happened in the space of two hours to make Hiei change his mind? From wanting to kill Suichi to fooling around with him. Something big must have happened. Yoko stared at Hiei, trying to figure out what was going on. He could smell Suichi all over his small lover, and he could feel the mingled energy. That meant Hiei had been on top; the one being taken produced the energy while the one on top absorbed it. If Hiei had Suichi's energy inside him, he must have taken the boy.

"So, he let you have him?" Yoko asked. Hiei blinked again, and Yoko smirked. "I underestimated him. Smart kid, offering his body in exchange for his life."

"No. He was lonely." Hiei looked back at Yoko and narrowed his eyes to tiny slits. "You didn't bother talking to him before you fucked him, did you?"

One of Yoko's ears flattened out. Hiei was getting angry again. Better start talking to him before things got out of hand.

"Hiei, what would you have done in my position?" Yoko asked. "I'm a spirit fox. I need to have sex or my energy will weaken. I can die if I don't have it. I've been faithful to you because you were always willing to sleep with me, but if you stop providing for me, am I supposed to just wither away? Sorry, but I won't let myself die just to spare your feelings. I needed a lover and Suichi was available."

"His name is Kurama." Yoko raised an eyebrow, and Hiei set his jaw stubbornly. "You didn't even know that."

"He called himself Kurama at first, but his real name is Suichi."

"It doesn't matter what name he was born with. He goes by Kurama now, he has for a long time. That is his name more than Suichi."

"Hiei, what's gotten in to you?" Yoko asked, starting to get frustrated by Hiei's odd behavior. "First you refuse to sleep with me, then you fuck Suichi, and now you're defending him like he's your partner instead of me."

"He should be." Hiei said determinedly. "He deserves better than you."

Yoko's eyes widened and he took in a slow breath. "Hiei -"

"He does! Kurama is kind and gentle and loyal, he doesn't deserve to be hurt! He deserves someone who will love him as much as he loves them!"

Yoko paused and then blinked, the shock on his face giving way to understanding and mild amusement.

"Oh Hiei...is that what he said to you? He said he loved you?" Hiei continued to glare up at Yoko, but red patches appeared on his cheeks. Yoko smirked. "Hiei, baby, you can't be that naive. He's known you for two hours. He can't love you. He just said that so you'd let your guard down."

Hiei's eyes were shining oddly. "You don't know him."

"And you do?"

"I know what I saw! I know what he said to me, I know how he looked when he said it! Maybe you're incapable of love, but he's not like you! He's nothing like you." Hiei's fists clenched at his sides. "He loves me."

"He's really got you convinced, doesn't he." Yoko scowled a little bit, starting to get very annoyed. Hiei said that Yoko couldn't fall in love, but Yoko had been denying himself just so Hiei would stay with him. That was real love. How could Hiei act like it was nothing? "Hiei, he doesn't love you. I love you."

Hiei laughed harshly. "Sure, that's why you cheated on me."

"Once. I cheated once because I had to." Yoko narrowed his eyes. "If you had just slept with me it wouldn't have been necessary."

Hiei's eyes flashed with fury, and Yoko had to leap backward to avoid a lightning-fast draw of Hiei's sword. The front of Yoko's white shirt sliced open, leaving his pale muscular chest exposed. Gold eyes narrowed dangerously at the little fire demon who stood in front of him.

"That was not wise, Hiei." Yoko said softly.

"I'm not a whore, Yoko." Hiei said in a firm voice. "I'm not going to sleep with you if I don't want to."

"Tell me, Hiei, why do you expect me to love you if you don't love me?" Yoko asked, shaking a white rose from his hair. "Love is sacrifice. I have sacrificed a lot for you. I've been completely faithful to you until now, limited myself to just one lover, all for your sake. What have you sacrificed for me? Nothing." Yoko's eyes glittered darkly as he pushed his energy into the rose and turned it into a whip. "If you loved me, you wouldn't deny me. You'd sleep with me even if you didn't want to."

Hiei was about to rush Yoko, but he couldn't even take one step forward. Yoko smiled as he changed his whip back to a rose and tucked it back into his hair. The rose had just been a distraction. His real weapon had been the vines growing all over the building behind Hiei. While Hiei had kept his eyes on the rose whip, the tendrils behind him had snared his ankles without him even noticing. The fight was over before it began.

"Bastard!" Hiei yelled. He struggled violently but the vines had already wrapped around his entire body. He let out a shriek of fury. "Let me go! Let me go!"

"Oh, now don't be upset." Yoko said silkily. "We can work things out. I'll forgive you for denying me if you show me right now how much you love me."

Hiei's face turned a mottled red. "I'd rather die." he hissed.

Yoko smiled serenely and clicked his fingers. Hiei's eyes snapped down to his own body, his pupils retracted as the vines slid under his clothes. He clenched his teeth tight together, his face burning with humiliation as he realized that he really didn't have a choice in the matter.

It didn't take much to break Hiei. Yoko had been Hiei's lover for a year and knew exactly what got him hot, so it was all too easy. A vine shoving hard into Hiei's mouth, another carefully wrapping around his balls and squeezing them rhythmically, a third mercilessly teasing his entrance but not quite taking him. Yoko's smile widened when he heard Hiei choke back a deep pleasurable moan behind the vine in his mouth. It was so easy, Yoko almost pitied Hiei. His poor little lover didn't have a chance.

"You know, it really hurts to think you'd rather die than sleep with me. I thought you loved me." Yoko said with mock sadness in his voice. He motioned for the vine teasing Hiei's hole to push in and grinned when the fire demon howled. "I love you, you know."

Hiei struggled in defiance of these words, but the vines around his arms were too tight. They pulled his hands behind his back, binding his wrists together, and the vines around his legs pulled him down, forcing him to his knees. Hiei sent a glare up at Yoko, but his eyes were filled with tears.

"Come on, don't make that face." Yoko crouched down and cupped Hiei's cheek with his hand. Hiei turned away from that hand, but he couldn't hide the flinch when the vine inside him touched his sweet spot and started massaging it gently. A pitiful moan escaped from behind the vine in his mouth, and Yoko lovingly nuzzled Hiei's neck just below his ear. "There, that feels good doesn't it?"

A loud sniff accompanied a sudden spill of tears down Hiei's cheeks. Yoko smiled, kissed one damp cheek, and reached down to Hiei's loose pants. He slipped his hand inside and cupped Hiei's aching erection. The little demon bucked forward, starting to cry almost hysterically as Yoko stroked him from root to tip. A few quick strokes and Hiei was shuddering, trembling, impossibly close to completion. Yoko smiled and withdrew his hand to lick the fluid from his fingers. Now came his favorite part, pretending to leave so Hiei was forced to admit what he wanted.

"All right, I understand. You don't want to do this anymore. It's fine, you don't have to." Yoko rose to his feet with a flick of his tail. "I'll just use Suichi to satisfy my needs from now on."

Hiei let out a sharp sound behind the vine, and Yoko looked down at him with a raised eyebrow. Hiei was staring up at him. He looked pathetic—on his knees, eyes wide and teary, bound by vines with Yoko's shadow looming over him. Yoko grinned at the pleading look on Hiei's face.

"What's wrong?" Yoko asked, his voice a low purr. "Something you wanted to say?"

The vine withdrew from Hiei's mouth, and Hiei gasped for breath for a moment. He kept his head lowered.

"I-I'm...sorry, Yoko." Hiei rasped. "I sh...should have been more understanding."

Yoko purred slightly, pleased that he had gotten through to Hiei. He waved his hand and the vines around Hiei swiftly pulled away, leaving him to collapse onto his hands and knees. A second later he dropped onto his side, curling into a fetal position with one hand clutching his stomach. Yoko blinked.

"Hiei?" he asked uncertainly.

Hiei burst into tears, burying his clawed fingernails in his stomach and making deep bloody gashes in the smooth skin. Yoko gasped in horror, dropped to his knees and grabbed Hiei's hands to keep him from hurting himself further. The little demon struggled frantically.

"Let go!" Hiei wailed. "It hurts!"

"Of course it hurts you idiot! What did you want to claw yourself open for!" Yoko demanded, shocked and horrified that his lover had done such a thing.

"I-it's too hot..." Hiei writhed. "Yoko please... Please, I need h-help... I'm in heat..."

Yoko's already wide eyes widened even more. In heat? But how... Now that he knew it seemed so obvious. Hiei had slept with a total stranger, and as far as Yoko knew Hiei had never slept with anyone other than him. He had given in to the torture so easily, even though he was so stubborn and strong-willed. He had even told Yoko what he needed earlier, and Hiei had always been shy about voicing his sexual desires. The young demon struggling beneath Yoko was in heat, there was no question. And Yoko hadn't even noticed.

"Shh." Yoko whispered. He scooped Hiei up in his arms bridal style and felt that small, too-hot body shuddering against him. "It's okay baby. It's okay. I'll have you feeling better in no time..."

The vines on the cottage walls opened the door for him, and he carried his weeping lover into their home.

Let me know what you think!