This is Chapter 2 of the YuYuHakusho fanfic "Before & After."  Please feel
free to send me comments and constructive criticisms.  Thank you very much.
There is nothing graphic on this one.  So for those who are sensitive toward
these matter, there is NO NEED to worry on this one.

--Shuuichi Minamino

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BEFORE & AFTER
 CH 2

        Kurama woke up finding himself wrapped with bandages and his tears
still running down his cheeks.  He realized that he had been crying even in his
sleep. Kurama then tried to change to a more comfortable position but instantly
regretted it, the sharp pain inside every parts of his body reminded him
what had happened before he had fainted.  Something he wished he would never
remember.  Looking out from the opened window which was facing him, Kurama
realized that it was evening already.  It didn't really surprise him since
everytime his father had 'punished' him (and there were times when he didn't
do anything wrong), he always ended up in bed for several days. The young
youko felt like crying again.

        Kurama sat there for few more minutes, eyes closed while he waited
for the pain to at least fade away.  Kurama then tried to stand up but
immediated sat down at the edge of the bed as he was almost overwhelmed by
dizziness.  After a quite some time, he finally managed to get on his feet.
Then slowly, with the support of the furnitures along the way, Kurama walked
toward the small dark room located a few steps away from the bed.  It was
dark inside, but one advantages of being a fox was that darkness never
bothered him that much.  Once Kurama's hand touched the edge of the pool, he
slowly sat down while still feeling dizzy.  He then slowly removed the
bandages which his father had managed to wrap around his limbs while he was
unconcious.  Kurama put both of his legs into the hot spring water and
slowly sank himself into the spring pool.  He hissed in pain as the hot
water touched every unhealed wounds on his pale body.

        After a while, the pain gradually had faded away.  Kurama then allowed
himself to relax.  He shut his eyes and leaned halfly against the wall of
the pool.  He was sleepy again....

**************
        "MOTHER! MOTHER!" A child, around 2 to 3 years old, with
shinning silver hair, was crying to a pair of youkos who were fighting a
dark, tall figure few feets away.  "Don't panic, son.  It's all right!" The
male youko yelled to comfort his child as he struggled to block the attacks
of the dark man for himself and his wife.  But suddenly he was struck down
by a blast of yellowish energy.  Blood ran from his mouth and the new wound
on his chest.

        "NO!!!" Screamed the female youko, whose hair and skin were
as white as snow.  She blocked another energy ball and ran toward her lover.
Watching this scene, the dark figure chuckled a little, then threw another
energy ball toward the female youko. This time, the energy was much larger
and stronger than the previous ones.  The ball hit the youko in a split
second.  She looked at her son who were kneeling on
the ground few feet away as she was struck. "Run, Kurama, now..."

        However, before she could even finish her sentence, the dark figure
plunged his hand right into the female youko's chest.

        "No, my beloved Mai, my beautiful Mai...  After what you've done to
me for that lowly youko there.  I vowed that I'll make you feel the same kind of
pain that I have to bear.  As for your son..." He grinned. "Before you are
gone my beloved, think about how I'll cherish him for he has your blood."
He glanced at the little kid's direction, "My! He even look so much like
you.  Perhaps one day he can be as beautiful as his mother."

        "No! Please!  It is I who betrayed you, take my life, but please
don't hurt him.." Her voice slowly faded away as life escaped from her body.
The man kissed her, then slowly ease her down on the ground, "farewell, my
love." A
trace of sadness in his cold voice.  After looking at her for a while, the
man then tilted his head up.  His eyes were glowing.  "If it weren't for
you, she would be my wife!"

        A huge ball of fire landed on the dying male youko, the youko
screamed in pain as he rolled away in a futile attempt to get away from the
fire.  The fire burned on, reducing the dying youko into nothing but black
ashes.  The
man, with a strange expression on his handsome but cold face, looked in the
little youko's direction.

        The little youko ran as his mother had told him, but was caught by
the man who seemed to suddenly appeared in front of him.

        "LET GO!" He struggled.

        The man pressed one hand on the kit's forehead while his another
hand held both of Kurama's wrists.  The little youko fainted.  The man
gently held the unconcious boy in his arms, his face buried in the boy's
small chest. "At last, Mai, you've come back to me."