Chapter 2 _Flame of Jealousy_

Chapter 2 "Flame of Jealousy"

Kyoko gritted her teeth, the tension between them was almost tangible and it was really starting to unnerve her. Toya sat on a branch in the tree near the fire and Kyoko sat at the fire by herself. They still hadn’t said a single word to each other and now he wouldn’t even look at her.

She frowned feeling slightly insulted. Was kissing her really so bad?

Toya sat in the tree sulking. He’d seen her frown. Had him kissing her been so bad? She hadn’t said a word to him about what he had done. He’d rather her yell at him or something but he didn’t know what to think about her not saying anything. Was she that mad at him? Should he apologize?

His lips thinned in denial. He wouldn’t apologize for something he hadn’t meant to do. Should he just ignore it and act like it didn’t happen? At this point, he just wished everything would go back to the way it was, although he himself would not forget the kiss. Toya glanced back down at her wondering what she was thinking.

Kyoko watched the sky as it started to get dark. She wished Kamui was here but knew he wouldn’t be back until morning. The company would’ve been welcome. Right now, she would even settle for Shinbe and Suki starting a fight between themselves. She grinned... now that was always amusing.

She played with the idea of going home, but it was already late and it would take hours to get back to the Heart of Time, unless Toya took her. Remembering the way he acted every time she wanted to go home kept her from asking him to take her. He seemed to think it was a sin to leave this world even for one day. The last thing she wanted to do was start a fight with him right now.

She reached into her duffle bag and pulled out her thin cover, not knowing what else to do. Maybe if she hurried and went to sleep, when she woke up, someone would be there… someone besides him. He acted like he’d already forgotten about kissing her and that annoyed her. He didn’t say he liked it. And he didn’t say sorry. He just didn’t say anything, like it never happened.

Kyoko tossed the sleeping blanket and stretched out on it, deciding to just stare up at the stars that were slowly starting to appear. She couldn’t help it, but she’d been kissed twice in the last twenty-four hours, and after never being kissed before, that was all she could think about. She began to compare the two kisses.

Kyou’s kiss was powerful and exciting, although it kind of scared her because of who he was. Still, his lips were warm, where she thought they’d be cold. His hands on her body were hot, instead of the chilling touch she’d assumed he would have. She groaned as the memory sent a wave of heat through her body.

Toya twitched as he heard a faint groan come from Kyoko. Looking down at her, he noticed she seemed lost in thought. His eyes darkened to a molten gold. Her scent was changing and it was drawing him to her. He inhaled the sweet smell. Was she thinking about him?

His thoughts flashed back to when he’d gotten his senses back, after changing from his cursed form. Her lips were soft and she wasn’t fighting him. He could still taste her. Nothing had ever affected him like that. Kyoko was a different story. When she wasn’t yelling at him, she was one of the happiest people he’d ever known. Not that he’d known many humans but still, she was like his light in the darkness.

He secretly loved protecting her and keeping her close. It almost made shattering the Guardian Heart Crystal worth it… almost. Now he had to protect her from Hyakuhei and every demon around. He glanced back down at her sensing she’d fallen asleep. He knew if they didn’t stay focused on gathering the talisman, than things could become very deadly… too deadly for her to be in the middle of it all. That’s why he constantly pushed the group to keep searching.

Toya lightly jumped from the tree and landed quietly near her. He stalked within reaching distance of her and sat down. He often did this after she went to sleep so he could be near her if anything happened, that and the fact that he just simply liked being close to her. He relaxed into a light doze. The slightest sound would wake him and he would be ready.

Kyoko tossed in her sleep… dreaming. Toya had just killed Hyakuhei and was smiling as he walked up to her, crushing her to him. He looked larger than life. Gazing deep into her eyes, his lips came closer to hers as his eyes softened. She could see the love shining in them. She hesitated, suddenly unsure of what was happening.

"What about the time portal… don’t I need to take the Guardian Heart Crystal back to my world?" she whispered worriedly.

Toya just smiled at her and shook his head. "Don’t you know that I love you and would never let you leave?" He lowered his lips to hers and the kiss took her breath away. It was deep and passionate. It felt so real. She closed her eyes and the kiss changed.

The kiss was hungry and sensual, all at the same time. Realizing the difference, she opened her eyes and gazed into the golden eyes of Kyou. She could feel his hands on her body, slowly moving and tempting her to respond. She gave in to the feel and closed her eyes once more.

That’s when it all changed and Kyoko felt a chill crawl up her spine. The warm lips turned scalding and she sensed evil radiating from them. The hands caressing her body were like fire and the claws drew thin streaks of blood everywhere they touched. Her eyes flew open to look into eyes of midnight… Hyakuhei.

She heard him whisper in a soft, seductive voice tainted with evil, "no one can save you."

Kyoko started to struggle and could hear herself screaming but he was too strong. He was holding her down with a death grip. She screamed again, trying to fight him off. The hands holding her down disappeared and she felt herself being raised up and pressed against something solid.

"Kyoko, wake up… Kyoko.” Wait… that wasn’t Hyakuhei… her struggles slowed. She felt a hand sliding through her hair, cradling her and making her feel safe.

Slowly, she opened her eyes and could see the dark hair with silver highlights. She was pressed against Toya’s chest and he was holding her… slowly rocking her back and forth. Thinking she was still dreaming, Kyoko snuggled into him and closed her eyes again not wanting the dream to end.

As long as Toya was holding her then Hyakuhei wouldn’t come back to her dreams to haunt her. She was almost in his lap and she could hear him. "It’s alright, Kyoko. I’ve got you. It’s all right now. Shhh…” She could feel her body still shaking from the dream but she calmed at Toya's soft voice. The sound of his heartbeat lulled her safely into a dreamless sleep.

Toya could feel that she was slowly calming down. She’d nearly scared him to death, thrashing and screaming in her sleep like that. Whatever it was had scared the hell out of her and she had scared the hell out of him. He pulled on her until she was all the way in his lap. He held her tight as her trembling slowly subsided. Her cheek was pressed against his chest and he was cradling her body in his arms. She was light as a feather to him and Toya loved the feel of her cradled again him.

"Shhh… I’ve got you. Nothing is gonna hurt you. I won’t let it. Now go back to sleep, Kyoko." He gently rocked her as his fingertips brushed her hair from her face. She was flushed from the dream and had her eyes closed… but he could sense that she knew he was the one who held her. His heart skipped a beat thinking Kyoko knew he was holding her and still she didn’t object.

She was already falling back to sleep as he lightly touched her cheek, tracing the outline, feeling her silky skin. In her sleep, she looked like an angel in his arms… his angel. This was what he wanted. He’d never let anyone take her from him, not the demons and especially not his brothers.

Slowly, so as not to wake her, Toya leaned back on the blanket and laid them both down, pulling the top up over them. He kept a hold on her, keeping her body against his and curled around her in a protective embrace. It was the most comfortable he’d ever been in his life and it only took a minute for him to fall into the first deep sleep he’d had since… forever.

It was several hours later that Kyoko felt warmth and reached for it. She froze. Slowly, as if afraid to know the truth, she turned her head to the side just as Toya sat up.

Feeling her stirring he frowned, knowing he should’ve gotten up and away from her hours ago.

Kyoko gazed at him curiously, trying to see his eyes but his head lowered and his hair fell across them, shielding their expression. He stood up without saying anything and walked into the foliage surrounding their camp.

Kyoko’s brows lowered in confusion. He slept here with her last night? Then a memory came back to her. She remembered dreaming and Toya… She gasped. It wasn’t a dream. He’d held her last night. She looked down at the blanket that still had his imprint on it. He must’ve fallen asleep beside her. She smiled her secret smile, reaching over and tracing her fingers over the imprint he’d left behind.

She glanced up as Kamui came into the clearing, "Hi, Kamui. Glad your back." His tussled hair glinted with purple highlights in the morning sun and his eyes shown the most beautiful colors. Those who were close enough to see knew they held multihued glitter within the shining orbs but to Kyoko, it was his smile that made him irresistible.

Kamui glanced around seeing she was alone and wondered why. "Where is everyone? Are Suki and Shinbe not back yet? And where’s Toya?” Kamui pulled a sack from his shoulder and placed it in front of Kyoko with raised eyebrows.

"Nope, not yet, but Toya should be back in a few minutes. What do you have here?" Kyoko watched as Kamui started lifting food from the bag.

"Sennin sent this with me and said to enjoy it since we hardly ever get a really good meal unless you bring it back from your time.” Kamui looked up at her with his big eyes sparkling with an array of colors and beamed at her expression when she spotted the sweets that came with the small feast. "Come on, let’s dig in.” Kamui announced.

"Well, you’re back early this morning, Kamui,” Toya said lazily as he walked back into the clearing. He glanced at Kyoko with some unreadable emotions reflecting in his golden eyes then quickly looked away.

Kamui glanced up at Toya. They fought a lot but in truth, Kamui looked up to Toya. He’d changed a lot since spending so much time around Kyoko. In Kamui’s opinion, Kyoko made Toya a better person.

"Sennin said that the forest to the east has had an uprising of demons terrorizing the area within the last week. There might be talismans involved so we should check it out." The last was said as Kamui stuffed his mouth with a flavorful piece of bread.

“Hey, you’re gonna save me some of that, right Kamui?" Toya sat down beside them and started grabbing some of the food for himself.

Kyoko grinned as she watched them fight over a strawberry rice ball Sennin had sent. The normalness of it didn’t last long though.

Toya tensed up, catching a scent riding the breeze. "Damn it!" He jumped to his feet as his eyes narrowed. "What the hell does he want?"

Before Kyoko could ask who, a rush of air blew across the clearing and stopped less than a foot in front of her, knocking Toya off balance. Kyoko found herself staring into the ice blue eyes of Kotaro, one of the five guardians. Much like Kyou, he hunted the talisman alone, searching for clues to where Hyakuhei was hiding.

He was perfection, with lean muscles and windblown ebony hair that hung down longer in the back and ice blue eyes. He was wearing all black with a purple undershirt showing through. He and Toya couldn’t stand each other but it was mostly because Kotaro had told everyone that Kyoko belonged to him.

"Good morning, Kyoko," Kotaro said in a soft, masculine voice, taking her hands in his and raising them up in front of him. "How is my future mate this morning?" He gazed deep into her eyes making her blush.

No matter how many times Kyoko had told him she wasn’t his or anybody else’s, he still called her his future mate with such confidence and charm.

"Kotaro, damn it! Let go of Kyoko and why don’t you ever watch what you’re doing?” Toya growled at him as he pushed himself off the tree he practically had been shoved into by Kotaro’s guardian winds.

Kotaro wrinkled his nose not even bothering to look at Toya and just glared in the general direction of his sibling. "I knew I smelled you somewhere," He said insultingly.

Kamui watched in amazement as Toya bristled and could tell he was getting more pissed off by the second. He slid closer to Kyoko whispering. "Ah, Kyoko, you might want to stop this before it starts." Knowing that Kyoko was the only thing keeping them from tearing each other apart, Kamui took a safe step back from the trio.

Kyoko knew Kotaro was harmless… well, to her anyway. She took her hands from his… still blushing from the way he was looking at her. She could actually see the love and devotion shining in his ice blue eyes.

"Kotaro, what brings you this way?" She asked to get his attention off of Toya.

Kotaro smiled, forgetting Toya at once and answering her question. "I heard there’s trouble in the east area near the forest. I was hoping to find Hyakuhei and kill him for you so you could hurry up and become my mate, my sweet Kyoko." Oh, he did love Kyoko but he also loved rattling Toya's cage.

Kyoko turned a couple of shades pinker at hearing his words. Her lips parted to say something, but losing her train of thought she simply gave up.

Toya had heard enough nonsense from the stupid blowhard. Stepping in front of Kyoko to shield her from Kotaro’s view he growled low in his throat, “Back off!” He narrowed his golden eyes and scowled. "We don’t need your help to get rid of Hyakuhei. So why don’t you just try to stay out of our way and leave Kyoko the hell alone?"

Kotaro acted as if Toya wasn’t even there. In a blur, he moved around Toya to lay a chaste kiss on Kyoko’s cheek. With a wink, he was gone just as fast as he’d appeared.

Toya balled his fists up at his sides. He was so mad it felt like he was going to explode. Why did everyone all of a sudden want to kiss Kyoko? She was his damn it!

“Kotaro, get back here and fight you bastard!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.

Kyoko turned to Kamui as if nothing had happened. "So, I guess Sennin's information was right."

Toya gave up and turned around. "Come on, let’s get our stuff together. We can collect Suki and Shinbe on the way. We have to pass by where they are to get to the east forest anyway," He ground out still mad at his lecherous brother for spouting lies about Kyoko. He’d never let Kotaro have her and he couldn’t wait to run into him and beat the crap out of him to let him know it.

Kyoko knew Toya was jealous of Kotaro. However, the way she saw it, at least Kotaro could tell her his true feelings, where Toya just kept her confused. She bent down and started gathering up the remaining food that they would later share with the others.

Toya stooped down in front of her waiting on her to climb up on his back. They’d make better time that way and it was the only time he could get away with holding her without anyone raising an eyebrow.

Kyoko held her breath for a second then let it out slowly not wanting to make it any different from the other times she’d done this… but it was. She wrapped her arms around his chest as his hands when under her knees to hold her tightly against his back. She glanced up at the sky wondering if the fates were having fun yet.

Kamui silently laughed to himself at Toya’s actions every time someone else tried to get Kyoko’s attention. Picking up the sack of food after they’d disappeared, translucent wings shimmered into existence, sending a shower of multihued stardust across the campsite that magically erased all evidence that anyone had ever been there.

Feeling Kaen’s presence behind him he commented, “It looks like it’s going to be an interesting day. Shall we join them?” His feet left the ground as he glided along behind them unseen.

Secretly, Kyoko loved riding on Toya’s back when they were in a hurry. She could feel the muscles tighten and stretch under her. She laid her cheek on his strong shoulder and held on as his long hair flowed around her, tickling her face. He acted as if she didn’t weigh a thing as he bounded from limb to limb, sometimes landing on the ground, only to shoot back up into the trees again. He seemed to have a thing for heights.

Toya loved it when Kyoko rode on his back but he would never tell her that. It made him feel good when she clung to him in an effort to hold on. Sometimes he would go even faster just so she would have to hold tighter, with her legs bracing against him and her arms around him. He’d never shown his wings around her for this reason.

Sometimes, she would lay her cheek against his back and he could sense that she also enjoyed it as much as he did. His mind turned back to the forest in the east. The Guardian Heart Crystal was already half collected and Hyakuhei had most of it at this point. Things were getting very dangerous and he would have to stay on guard.

He felt he had to protect Kyoko with his life, especially when there was danger everywhere they went. The demon he’d fought yesterday had been a wakeup call. Toya sped up, hoping to run into Suki and Shinbe on their way back to camp, so they could hurry and get to the east before Kotaro and Kyou did.

High above them, Kyou flew across the sky without expression, as if an apparition of a deity. His clothing floated around him as he scanned the east in the distance. So the eastern forest is where the presence of Hyakuhei had disappeared. This is also where Toya and the priestess were headed. His lips curved upwards in the barest hint of a smile.

"Yo!” Toya called out when he caught a flash of movement in the distance. Leaping down from tree to tree and branch to branch, he landed gracefully in front of Shinbe and Suki.

Kyoko slid off Toya’s back and quickly walked to them, smiling at her friends. "We just got word that the east forest is where we should be heading,” Kyoko informed them.

Shinbe’s head snapped up looking over at Toya. "Oh, yeah? What’s happening in that area?" He asked moving closer to Toya to discuss the matter. Kamui stepped from the edge of the forest to join the guardians with the planning, nodding when Kaen showed up from nowhere, as he often did just when the time was right.

Kyoko whispered to Suki, pulling her to the side and away from the others, “But anyway, how was your visit?" She cocked her head to the side, grinning.

Suki rolled her eyes in the direction of Shinbe. "Can you believe that idiot tried to kiss me?" She crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared daggers at the wayward amethyst guardian.

Toya twitched with his exceptional hearing. He’d heard Suki's remark and when Kyoko heard it she had looked directly at him, locking eyes with him. She turned her face away to hide the blush that was creeping across her cheeks but not before Suki and Shinbe both took note of it.

Shinbe leaned toward his brother keeping his voice low. "What happened between you two while we were gone, Toya?” he felt a bolt of jealousy shoot threw him but tried to ignore it knowing it was a lost cause. Kamui also took a step closer waiting to hear the answer.

Toya's eyes widened and the small fine hair stood up on the back of his neck, making him back up from them with a guilty look. “Heh, nothing happened," He crossed his arms and glared at them, daring them to call his bluff.

Suki grabbed Kyoko's arm and pulled her a good distance away from the guys this time. "Okay, spill it. What’d I miss?" She asked with her lip twitching with barely hidden mirth. For as long as Suki had known Kyoko, she felt like she had known her forever. She loved her like a sister, and right now she could tell something was up.

Kyoko wouldn’t meet Suki's eyes, and her face was still high in color.

"Kyoko, give,” Suki pleaded.

Kyoko looked up at her best friend who was at least a couple inches taller and shrugged. "Okay, I have now been kissed, that’s all,” she quickly rolled her eyes trying to play it off as no big deal.

Suki glanced at Toya. "So, he finally kissed you, did he?” Turning back to Kyoko, she smiled a knowing smile until she saw the shake of Kyoko's head. Suki frowned. "It was Toya that kissed you? Wasn’t it, Kyoko?" she cocked an eyebrow in confusion.

Kyoko groaned. "It’s a long story, so I’ll make it very short. Three different guys have now kissed me and all within the time that you were gone. And no, I didn’t ask a single one of them to kiss me. So again, it’s No Big Deal!" She put emphasis on the last three words.

Suki's lips parted as she stared at her friend. Meanwhile, Toya had tensed up hearing Kyoko say it was no big deal. ‘Well, now I know what she thinks,’ Toya thought to himself with a frown as he turned back to his brothers and concentrated on telling them what he knew about the area of the east forest.

Suki finally found her voice but kept it low, "Kyoko, who kissed you?" Seeing Kyoko's lips press together, Suki sighed. "Okay, I want to know who kissed you first."

Kyoko squeezed her eyes shut. "Kyou was the first."

"Kyou!” Suki yelled then snapped her hand over her mouth cringing.

Toya's hand curled into a fist at his side in an effort to restrain his anger. He turned and gave an evil look in Kyoko's direction before quickly closing the distance between them, not liking the turn of the conversation. "We don’t have time for this shit!" He huffed, glaring at the girls. "We need to go find the talismans before the enemy gets his hands on all of them."

Kamui nodded, "Yeah, Kotaro came to the camp and said he was on his way to the same area right before he kissed Kyoko on the cheek and took off."

Toya cuffed Kamui in the back of his head with a quick growl.

"Oww, what’d you do that for? I didn’t do nothing,” Kamui rubbed the knot that had formed on his head, his big, stardust eyes watering. It was a show obviously, because inside he was in the middle of laughing his ass off at the look that had crossed Toya's face.

Suki's eyes rounded. "Kotaro, too!" she jerked her head in Kyoko’s direction wondering what in the world was going on.

Shinbe slid toward Toya. "So what’s the big deal?"

Toya just glared at him as if daring him to say another word.

Suki grabbed Shinbe’s arm and pulled him away from Toya before he wound up like Kamui, with a lump on his head.

Toya turned his glare on Kyoko.

She bristled and glared back. "What’s your problem? And don’t hit Kamui!" She yelled, stepping in front of the guardian as if to protect him. She didn’t have a clue that Kamui now stood behind her, smirking at Toya as if he had just gotten one over on him.

Suki knew there was going to be a fight. Grabbing Kyoko's hand, she started dragging her up the path. "Come on Kyoko, walk with me for a while,” Suki didn’t give her time to argue as she pulled her along.

Not feeling so safe being left there within Toya’s reach, Kamui took off with the girls, leaving Toya staring at their retreating backs.

Once far enough away from Toya, Suki turned to Kyoko. "Now, would you please tell me what the hell happened? Why did Kyou kiss you?” Suki nearly shouted, eyeing her friend with concern. The thought of Kyou kissing anyone was just… disturbing.

Kyoko shrugged. "I haven’t the foggiest idea why he did it. I was swimming. He floated down and scared the hell out of me. Before I knew what he was doing, he was kissing me, then he left without saying a word."

Kamui felt like someone had just punched him in the stomach. He quickly stepped behind Kyoko, placing a firm hand on her shoulder. “Kyoko, did he mark you?" He asked in a strained voice.

Kyoko frowned. Spinning around, she pinned Kamui with a confused look. "Toya asked the same thing. What does that mean? Mark me? How?"

Kamui's lips thinned. "For Kyou to kiss you out of the blue like that, it means that he’s thinking about making you his life mate."

"What!” Kyoko yelled putting her hands on her hips. “You have got to be joking.”

"No joke… with that kiss, Kyou has already started laying his claim on you.” Shadows entered Kamui's eyes as if lending affect, “Now he will stalk you, little by little, ‘til he marks you and makes you his.” He let is hand fall from her shoulder. “I guess you would think of it as dating."

Suddenly understanding more then he wanted to, Kamui whistled through his teeth. "That’s why Toya is so upset, and then Kotaro comes blowing in and kisses your cheek. That’s the same thing. He’s dating you, too."

Kyoko didn’t know what to say. She just stood there for a minute. Then looking over Kamui’s shoulder, she noticed Toya and Shinbe trailing behind them, still lost in planning their next move as they headed east.

Suki pulled Kyoko's attention back. "Okay, you said three, Kyoko. So, Toya kissed you too, right?"

She nodded then shook her head. "But Toya didn’t really want to kiss me. It was kind of… an accident.”

Kyoko glanced over her shoulder again, noticing the others were catching up. "We got into a fight with a demon and Toya lost his daggers and his demon blood took over. He killed the demon and I ran for one of the daggers but he caught me just as I reached it. I thought he was gonna kill me, but instead… he kissed me. Then the contact with the daggers sealing spell changed him back."

Suki looked over her shoulder at Toya, then back to Kyoko. "Wait, you mean he changed back while he was kissing you?" she cocked an eyebrow when Kyoko nodded.

Kamui smiled, "I knew it! He really does like you. That’s why in his other form he kissed you instead of killing you. He did it because it felt right to him.” Kamui stepped back from them knowing Toya was now within hearing range.

"Well, let’s keep them company." Suki decided to follow Kamui's example and let it drop for now… to bad Shinbe wasn’t that smart.

Shinbe turned to Kyoko, hearing Kamui’s last statement. "So that’s why he’s so testy!" He grinned wondering if he should add his kiss to Kyoko’s dating line before it got to long.

Toya turned on them, scratching his neck. "Will you guys quit talking shit about me, damn it!"

His neck was already red and Kyoko giggled. She knew when Toya’s neck started itching like that, he thought someone was talking about him behind his back and it irritated him to no end.

Toya's fingers twitched as he heard Kyoko giggle. It sent a jolt of pleasure through his body and made him wish she’d do it more often. He glanced around noticing everyone had finally stopped chatting. Satisfied no one was talking about him anymore, he dropped his hand.

"Come on. We don’t have time to play around. We have to stop Hyakuhei and collect the talismans before he does." Toya leaned down in front of Kyoko. "Come on, let them find their own way and you ride with me. It’ll be faster." He waited for Kyoko to climb on. At least this way he wouldn’t have to hear about his rivals.

Kyoko smiled and climbed on. Then she put her arms around him and gave him a gentle squeeze to let him know she was ready.

Facing away from everyone so no one could see, Toya closed his eyes as he savored the hug he’d just gotten. Opening his eyes back up, silver lights glittered within his golden irises and he took off at a speed that would rival his wind brother Kotaro.