The demon's eyes glowed a pale shade of red as he clenched his fists. “What did you say?” he asked, his voice low and menacing.
“Uhh... Kurama's... Taking the wolf to the animal shelter to be... killed?” Yusuke asked uncertainly, backing away from the angered Hiei.
A low growl came from Hiei's throat as his fists clenched tighter. A small amount of blood dripped onto the carpet, a result of his nails digging into his calloused palms. The red glow of his eyes brightened and his teeth clenched. “I'm going to kill that fox.” Then, he disappeared.
After rummaging through the trunk of his car to find something to put the pup in, Kurama sat in the driver's seat and put the keys in the ignition. He looked in the cardboard fruit box at the whining bundle of silver, he sighed. I'm doing what's best for her, he thought, So... Why do I feel so terrible about all of this? He looked at the pup again and saw her cowering in the corner of the box farthest away from him. He sighed again and turned the keys to start the car. As he turned around and began to drive down the long driveway that separated the team's house from the main road, BANG!
The car began to rumble uncontrollably. The pup yelped from the loud sound and began whining and scratching to be let out of the box. Kurama slammed on the brakes, causing the box to tumble forward onto the floor, and turned the car off. What happened?! He unbuckled his seat belt and quickly opened the door. As soon as his feet hit the ground, his back and head soon joined them. The fox frantically sat up and looked around, eventually to lock his gaze into the crimson eyes of the Fire Apparition. “Hiei? What's the meaning of this?!” he asked, standing up. He looked at his car and saw a silver katana sticking out of his driver side tire. “Do you have any idea how much it costs to have a tire replaced?!”
“I don't care.” The demon didn't break his cold gaze. “It's not alive, is it? Does it really matter?”
“Why did you do it?”
“Why are you taking the wolf to be killed? What did she do that was so wrong?”
“Hiei, you don't understand. She is a wild animal. She has no place in a house being raised like a dog. Her instincts will kick in, and she can bite someone or an animal of theirs, or worse. She is a danger to us and to everyone who comes near her. This is the best thing for her.”
“You're not even giving her a chance. What happened to you always saying not to judge a book by its cover? As far as I'm concerned, this is the same situation you kept describing to me. She does look like a wild animal, but who knows? She might not end up acting like one.”
The fox sighed. “I understand what you're getting at. But owning a purebred wolf is illegal.”
“We can say she's a dog and wolf mix. She's small for her age.”
As Kurama was about to reply, another car came up the driveway. It parked in front of the house, and Shizuru, Keiko, Yukina, and Botan climbed out.
“Hey,” Botan yelled, waving and running over. She stopped when she saw the sword in the car tire and looked at Hiei. She sighed. “You know, Hiei, this isn't going to help Koenma pardon you any sooner.”
“I needed to do it.”
“Why?” Keiko asked as she and the other two girls joined the group.
Hiei opened his mouth to reply and then closed it when he heard a high pitched sound. He turned around to see the pup jump out of the car and run over to him. He picked her up and three of the girls began petting her head and ears while fussing over her as if she were a human baby while the fourth casually lit her cigarette and looked on.
“It's so cute!” Botan exclaimed, rubbing a tiny pointed ear in between her index finger and thumb.
“Is it yours? Why was it in Kurama's car?” Keiko asked.
“He was taking her to a shelter to be killed because she's a 'wild animal',” he said, looking down at the pup a little sadly.
“Why can't she stay with you?” Yukina asked. “Why does she have to be killed?”
Kurama sighed. “Fine. You win. Don't say I didn't warn you if she decides to bite somebody,” he said, heading for the house. “And I expect you to at least find a way to pay for my new tire.” Before the demon could reply, the redhead was already in the house.
Hiei sighed and looked at the pup. She wriggled around and managed to lick his chin, causing a corner of his mouth to lift very slightly into a half-smirk. We won, he thought.
“Hiei, what's her name?” Yukina asked.
“Name?”
“Yeah. You're supposed to name pets, like how my little brother named his cat Eikichi, remember?” Shizuru asked, throwing her cigarette butt on the ground and stomping on it.
“Oh.” He looked around and saw something shiny sticking out of Kurama's car tire. The very object that had saved her live three times. Once, the small blade taking too long to make a decent-sized grave, preventing her from being buried alive and suffocating in the earth. The second time, he had given himself a wound, making the “training accident” a believable excuse for a missing first aid kit. And the third time, getting thrown into the tire of a car.
“Katana.”
