I stared at the endless gravel path stretched out before me. The sunshine massaged my sore body with its golden warmth, reflecting on the white pebbles so brightly that my eyes hurt a bit. The black posts lined innocently by the path, yet I could not help but shuddered. Nothing is simple in this universe anymore. The girl cried out that the show was to begin. Show? What show? My nipples felt unbearably hot and heavy, the bells jingled shamefully every time I tried to take in a deep breath to calm my nerves. The sound combined with the heightened sensitivity cause my face to flush, partly in embarrassment, partly in excitement. The uncontrollable piece of flesh took an exceptional interest in everything, especially about the way Hiei peered at me in lust. It raised its head, trying to see more, blatantly ignoring my frantic mental signals to bide it to fall asleep. It had received far too much attention already, and the day was not over yet. Somehow, I felt that this day would never end in my satisfaction. In my reverie, I failed to notice Hiei's presence by my side. I started when he patted me on my rump.

"Run, Kurama." He commanded in feigned mildness. I stared at him bewilderedly.

"What... run? Ah!" Before I could understand what was going on, Hiei's paddle already swung down hard to spank my tender derriere. Carried by the momentum, I ran a few steps, only to find Hiei waiting for me on the first post, in his evilest grin. The horror of the situation completely descended upon me. Hiei was going to spank me with that cruel paddle, and my only chance to have some respite is to outrun him! That was the purpose of those posts! So that he could reach me more easily! Sweet Inari, there was no way I could outrun 'Hiei'!!! I tried to protest at the injustice, but the second stroke again landed right on target, the reddest spot on my thighs. Tears threatened to overflow my eyelids in pain and humiliation, yet an undercurrent of dark excitement took hold of me, so I was firmly bound in helpless desire and fear. I had no choice but to run. So I ran.

I ran like mad at first, my only thought was to escape the sheer ferocity of the strikes. No matter how I seek to evade, however, Hiei was always there before me. When I contemplated about veering to the other side of the path, Hiei was standing on the next pole, paddle high, ready to swing. When I was ready to break free from the gravel path to run on the green pasture, Hiei blocked my path with a quick series of blows, infallibly aimed straight at my tender inner thighs and nipples. That did hurt!! All the while, the tiny bells on my nipples and braids almost jingled in cheer, a mocking light rhythm to my tears and suffering. My eyes were blinded by my tears, all were seen through a hazy curtain, till I could only run straight ahead, so frightened was I by Hiei's blows. Yet he was almost gentle with me, for he did not punish me for my lax in grace until five minutes later.

"Knees high! Chin up!" Hiei barked, dealing three blows in quick succession to the back of my thighs and back for emphasis. I was covered in shame when I saw in my mind's eye how I had to have looked. Rather than a gazelle in flight, I had been a clumsy elephant, crushing about here and there! Cursing myself for the mindless bumbling, I concentrated my effort on maintaining a graceful form rather than evading the blows. It was at this moment, a strange peace descended upon me. Suddenly, I felt everything was all right, as it should been. Though I still sobbed and cried in fear and panic, my whole being seemed to welcome the blows as a sign of my submission and obedience. Yes, punish me hard, Hiei. My mind whispered. I am sorry about my fumbling movements and attempts to escape. Let me prove to you that I can do better. I raised my chin, lifted up my knees, and attempted to stretch out my body in an arch with each step I ran. My elbows steadied, so they no longer flapped like gawky wings on my back, and they helped me to bend back my back even further, and it made my form more pleasing. At least I hoped that it was so in the eyes of my lover and master.

Hiei seemed to feel the capitulation of my spirit, for his blows were no longer punishing. Oh, they were just as painful and stinging, but he would tease the edges of old welts and spread the blows evenly over my body, causing warmth that no amount of sunlight can invoke. Sometimes he would flex the paddle a little to deliver that wicked double-tap, two quick blows over the same spot to draw out a deeper gasp from me. The paddle became a huge, hard hand that molded my buttocks as it willed, gathering the two moon-shaped halves to crush together or to split them apart in a strong little flick, directed at the crack of my rump. The sensitive underside of my buttocks burnt like flaming bonfires, a bit more scalded whenever Hiei returned to find his favorite spot. On top of all these, the bells tugged my nipples to jiggle up and down heavily, each jerk an electronic shock through me. The bells on my braids tapped my back in rhyme, sometimes danced forward mischievously to add further torment on my so-very-tender nipples by its maddening pats. The most excruciating torture of them all, however, was my bulging member. I recalled distinctly that having something hard like a tail at the back was a great idea to keep the balance when running quickly, but a tail in front was definitely not a good idea. Though not as long as my tail, my swollen manhood caused as much trouble. The apparent problem was my balance, which I solved by lifting up my knees and thighs as high as possible to lengthen the strides and reduce the landing impact so that it would not bounce around so much. The other problem was not really a problem, because there was nothing I could do about it. By trying to stay in air for as long as I could, I provided Hiei an excellent position to paddle. Soon, he would aim for the moment when my knee was most raised, hind-leg most stretched, in all, the most defenseless posture, then swing the paddle from underneath so that it would connect flatly with the ultra-sensitive area - my inner thighs, between my thighs, and a good part of my balls and penis. Strong as he was, he could toss me up in the air for the extra second that it took to flip his paddle out of the way so that I would not stumble upon it when I land. The force was never strong enough to actually hurt these fragile members, but it was enough to shock and pump one or two liters of extra blood into my penis. There was no way for me to evade his attentions, and my tears could not move him to pity. I lost all sense of time and space; my body was one huge aching arousal that demanded for the denied satisfaction. I no longer tried to see the end of the path; I concentrate completely upon maintaining a graceful posture and my balance. Soon, I did not even have the strength to cry out in pain. It cost too much energy. All I could manage was weak whimpers and moans, which seemed to excite Hiei infinitely. He would double his pace and force my forward with quicker and harsher strokes.

When my boots finally struck cobblestones, I did not even notice it. I kept on running, only stopped when something solid blocked my path.

"It's over, Kurama. You did very well, my fox." Hiei's low and deep voice caressed my skin. I immediately sank on my knees, so tired I was. Moondance-san slipped a cushion beneath my knees so that I could kneel in comfort. I laid my head against my lover's abdomen, while he murmured praises for me under his breath.

"Lovely, Kurama. I am so proud of you." The girl named Elanor kissed me lightly on the cheek, and I melted slightly at the tenderness. Tzigane-san smiled at me in approval, and I could feel Moondance-san patting my hair gently. I basked in their lovingness for what seemed like a century, until Moondance-san pulled me up on my feet gently.

"Come on, time to groom, Kurama. The day is not over yet." She chuckled, a throaty, deep sound that promised ecstasy and hell to come.