Author's Note: Hey everybody! Well, this is my third story, and I'm so excited! I just got back from a vacation in Payson, AZ. Man, was it beautiful! There was so much green! Ok, I have a favor. Does anyone know the name of the Yu Yu Hakusho episode where the gang tries to get Hiei to play cards? I want to see it, but I can't find the title.

K'Ray is pronounced Key-ray, like a key in a lock.

Alright, here's the story!

Everything was black. Even the starlight that slipped through the high, barred window was dimmed, as if by a translucent veil. The weak light reflected off the stone floor and walls, throwing the mottled lichen that clung everywhere into a sick relief. On one side of the cell kneeled a girl. Her face was obscured by a fringe of midnight bangs. Her bare arms, pale in the wan glow, were seared with a thousand bruises and cuts. She moved slightly, the rasp of chains grating through the night. Leaning back, she gazed out the window, her eyes finally revealed.

They flashed a gorgeous violet as a single tear slid down her cheek.

Kurama sat bolt upright in bed, cold sweat running down his neck. He sat there for a moment, trying to get his bearings. One word echoed in his head, over and over:

K'Ray.

Her name was K'Ray. Kurama had met her years before, when he was still the infamous Yoko Kurama. She had been just a child then, not even twelve years old. The memory played before the fox's eyes as he walked down the street towards school.

Yoko was pleased. The once-proud town lay in smoldering ruins, a pitiful shadow of what it had been only hours before. As the silver kitsune picked his way among the wreckage, a muffled sob caught his attention. Looking back, he saw a young girl kneeling beside two dead forms.

I really must learn to clean up better, Yoko thought. He nimbly ran toward the girl, fully prepared to strike her down. As he came up behind her, she looked up at him. Her brilliant violet eyes showed no fear, only sadness.

"Are you going to kill me?" she asked. Her voice was soft, honest. Yoko hesitated, curious.

"Yes," he replied. The girl looked away, nodding.

"Good," she said quietly. "It would be better if I was dead." Fully intrigued, Yoko sat down beside the girl. Her raven-black hair fell just below her shoulders.

"Do you want to die?" he asked.

"No," the girl answered. "But I am a Ryokun, and the Makai would be a better place if I wasn't in it."

Yoko nodded, thinking. The Ryokun, or night demons, were a cold, merciless race. They tortured and killed anyone who crossed their path, never ending their insatiable bloodlust. They did things that even Yoko Kurama thought was heartless.

"Are you like them?" Yoko asked the girl, motioning toward her dead parents. "Do you enjoy killing?"

"No," the girl said firmly. She clenched her fists, anger shadowing her face. "I never accepted their horrible ways. No one has the right to take a life for no reason! It sickens me to think about it."

Now, Yoko's thoughts raced down a whole new path. A Ryokun who despised killing? That was something you almost never saw.

"What if I said I would let you live?" he asked. "What if you were able to become part of my band? Not to steal, of course, but to live. Would you choose death even then?"

The girl's eyes lit up with hope. Hesitantly, as if she was afraid the kitsune was joking, she replied, "I would be honored to serve you."

Yoko smiled in his feral way, extending a hand to the girl. She took it, standing up.

"It's a hard way to live," he warned. The girl shrugged.

"Not harder than it was here," she said. Yoko nodded, respecting the girl's determination.

"What's your name, girl?"

"K'Ray."

K'Ray had come and lived with Yoko's band. She was thoughtful, stubborn, and could hold her own against the King of Thieves. Whenever their rare shouting matches came to blows, the girl wasn't the only one who had gone to sleep with bruises. Kurama smiled as he recalled the many memories he had of her. She had been his councilor, his healer, but above all, his friend.

Kurama grimaced as he thought of that fateful night, so many years before. The night when everything had fallen to pieces.

"I love you, Yoko."

Yoko turned slowly to regard K'Ray, who was now sixteen. She had grown into a beautiful, lithe, intelligent girl. Her violet eyes pinned him down as he struggled to answer.

"K'Ray," he managed to choke out. What was he supposed to say? He honestly, truly, loved her back, but it would be so dangerous to tell her. What if an enemy learned of her? No, K'Ray wouldn't die on his behalf.

"Oh," K'Ray said quietly. "I see." She stood up from where she had been sitting on a broad, flat rock that overlooked a deep lake, pinpricked with the reflection of the stars. The girl turned to leave, but Yoko couldn't stand to see her go. He grabbed her wrist, his amber eyes pleading.

"Don't go, K'Ray," he said. "Please, just stay." The girl hesitated, but finally relented, sitting down again beside the fox.

"When I first met you, I thought you would be nothing more than a useful servant to keep around," Yoko said. K'Ray studied him thoughtfully, waiting. "But, after a while, I realized you were so much more. You made me stop and think before I made a decision. You taught me how to care for someone else, someone other than me. I didn't kill unless I had to, because you helped me see the error of my ways." Yoko turned to the girl. "I love you, K'Ray, but nothing can happen between us. If someone finds out, you could die."

K'Ray nodded. She peered reflectively at the water, unshed tears sparkling in her eyes. "So, you do love me?" she finally asked. Yoko smiled.

"Yes." He leaned forward, kissing the girl lightly. She kissed him back, hugging him tightly.

"You don't know how much that means to me," she said. Standing up, she veritably skipped down the rock. "Dinner will be waiting for you, my Yoko."

Yoko heard the girl humming as she pranced back to the band's den, spirited as a young foal. Yoko leaned back, resting his head on folded arms as he stared at the sky. He was in love, but because of his position, he and K'Ray could never hope to be truly together.

At least, he mused, we had that one kiss.

Suddenly, a scream tore through the night. Yoko sprang up, panic tightening around his heart.

"K'Ray!" he cried. The kitsune ran full tilt towards the forest path that led to the band's den. He stopped just inside the trees, frantically searching.

There, on the ground, were K'Ray's footprints. A struggle had ensued, confusing the other marks. Splattered on the trunks around the area was blood.

K'Ray's blood.

Kurama closed his eyes. He had never been able to find K'Ray after that. He had turned the Makai upside down, but to no avail. His love was gone, and his heart with her. He wasn't even sure she had lived.

"Fox. Fox!"

Kurama's eyes snapped open. He had still been walking, but in the middle of his reverie, he hadn't been aware of where he was going. He managed to halt just before smacking head-first into a tree.

"Man, Fox. What's with you?" Hiei jumped down from the offending tree. Kurama looked at him blankly for a few moments before pulling himself together.

"Nothing. Why are you here?"

Hiei folded his arms, glowering. "Why do you care?" he asked.

"I don't," Kurama shot back. He pushed past his friend, still in a bad mood from his memories. Hiei watched his friend stalk off down the street. He shrugged. If Kurama wants to tell me, he will later, he thought. Still, an annoying bit of concern had settled in his heart. With a snarl, he took off, flitting from rooftop to rooftop as he followed his friend.

Kurama was aware of Hiei's ki, but he ignored it. This was the third time that week he had had a dream of K'Ray, and each time it was exactly the same. With a sigh, Kurama ran a hand through his hair, stopping to consider a strand that had pulled away with his fingers.

"It's silver," he thought aloud. The implications of that silver strand hit him almost immediately. He ducked into the nearest building, slipping to the restroom.

With a sense of foreboding, Kurama studied himself in the mirror. Silver strands of hair were sprinkled throughout his normal fire red. Upon closer inspection, he also saw that his green eyes were rimmed with gold.

"That's just great," he told his reflection. "The stress of the last few nights is making me revert back to my original form. If I don't get sleep soon, I may become full demon."

With a frustrated sigh, Kurama left the building, continuing on his way to school. Logic told him to ignore the dreams. K'Ray was dead, right? He had never found her. He shouldn't dwell on unnecessary drama.

K'Ray was dead, right? It was just a dream.

Or was it?

To Be Continued…

Author's Note: Well, there you have it. The first chapter. What could these dreams mean? Is K'Ray really alive? Please, please review. I want to know how you liked the beginning. I'll update as soon as possible. Promise! 'Till next time, see ya!