Disclaimer: Right, right, don't own them.

Notes: -sigh- don't kill me yet. I know, I know, this is yet another new story and I am SO sorry but I have to do what the muses tell me to do, and they are insistent upon new stories at the moment. Especially this one and Tomorrow Was Lost Yesterday.

I'll have you know, on the latter of those two, I took the plot I had (which was actually a comedy (don't ask how that happened with a story about a WAR))) and threw out the entire outline. I though nonstop about if for exactly two hours and fifty seven minutes before the most wicked plot came to mind and NOW I'm going to start writing it!

MWAHAHAHA!

Oh, and this story shouldn't take long to update either (I hope)

I am three fourths done with Cold Rescue 4, so it will also be out soon. I'm one fourth done with Memories Lost 10. When I get those two our (or at least Cold Rescue and Tomorrow was Lost Yesterday (such a freakin' long name!) I'll go back to Embrace the Winter Snow.

So bear with me. I know I'm asking a lot, because I have…continuation issues, but bear with me please, I have a lot of stress going on (no lie, no excuse) so just lend me time, that's all I ask for.

Also, sorry for this being a short chapter. I don't know if future chapters will be long, or continue with the same page count.

-o-o-o-o-

Silent Calling Black on White

1. Silence Falling

-o-o-o-o-

Hiei set down his cloak on the back of the chair within Koenma's office. The room had changed since he had last been in it. First, and most obvious, was the more modern, adult feeling it held.

The three chairs in the office, two before the desk and another one person sofa in the corner made the room seem a little more comfortable and, somehow, more business like. Various objects of furniture and knick-knacks gave a little bit more homely feel. A small change in color had darkened the room slightly, though not enough to make a huge change.

Even Koenma himself was different. He sat behind the desk in his adult form, the pacifier, most unfortunately, still in his mouth. He seemed slightly older, though only due to his slightly longer hair, bangs pulled away from his deep, amber eyes. Those shining orbs appeared to know more than they had when he had left, or so Hiei had thought.

Bright red eyes flashed over to the doors, ignoring the silent, fidgeting lord behind the desk. Those yellow doors slid open to reveal two newcomers. Hiei's eyes flashed open slightly, his only sign of an emotional change.

Urameshi Yusuke walked in, his lengthened hair pulled behind him to form abut a half inch long ponytail that looked more like a feather duster than a ponytail. His bangs still fell in front of his eyes, but he no longer had the seven and a half pounds of gel that had went into his hair the four years Hiei had known him.

His dark brown eyes seemed to gleam with a maturity that his former self had not yet obtained, despite all they had gone through. They still drew you into their depths as a friend, no matter who you were, but just pulled you straight in. Except now, they showed you pain that had never been imagined, and the truth of the world learned through it, and the lessons taught by it.

The man's, for he was now a man, no longer in his teenage youth, but the man's posture remained somewhat of a punk's. His shoulders were held back in a sign of discipline, but a certain angle to them gave the slouch of nonchalance, and his walk was one of pure confidence and knowledge.

Beside Yusuke stood Kuwabara Kazuama, his frame tall and thin, his body less "lanky" as it was seven years ago. His posture held the same pride, but it seemed acknowledged somehow, mature in a manner in which he had finally achieved the recognition his abilities truly deserved. Beady black eyes contained a sorrow that puzzled Hiei, never having known the oaf to be one for sadness. But that grief had been transformed and twisted with time into something that gave him strength beyond years.

Beyond that, nothing had changed with his looks. His hair was still up in that ridiculous pompadour due, two or three bangs dangling from the end.

Hiei stared at them with moral content and nothing more before he turned back to the Reikai Junior Lord. He could feel, and actually reveled in, the tension that increased the second those two saw the third occupant of the room. A small smirk crossed his lips.

It served them right.

Lord Koenma cleared his throat slightly, folding his hands atop his clean desk. "Gentlemen…I've called you here today because the Spirit World is facing a mystery that we are at a loss for solving."

Hiei snorted, drawing Koenma's gaze and Yusuke and Kuwabara's glare. "What's so special about the fox that he doesn't need to be here, exactly?"

His voice was harsh and unforgiving, speaking with anger and disgust as he uttered the nickname he had not spoken, nor allowed others to speak, in seven years. The fire demon's red orbs had turned to a similar dislike and had hardened to a gaze of annoyance.

Even though he was the fire demon, he could almost feel the heat radiating throughout the room at his statement, emanating off of the two men standing to the side and slightly behind him.

"You bastard!" Hiei turned to face Kuwabara, the latter man's face contorted in anger and red with rage. His fists were clenched at his sides and his beady eyes were scrunched in fury.

"You idiot." The fire demon's counter was calm and he blinked slowly as he replied with it. This only caused his companion's face to twist in absolute rage, his hands actually beginning to shake

"Hiei…" Yusuke's tone was one of warning, his eyes flaring in an anger that passed beyond that of rage and into the levels of angered sorrow, a level of fury that the fire demon had seen only once before. And that was when Kuwabara had faked his death at the Ankoku Na Bujusukai.

"What, Detective?" he daunted his reply, his voice taunting in its own self confident anger. "Protecting the little yariman?"

Yusuke looked like he was about to loose it, and he raised his fist, the tightly clenched hand charged with spirit energy. One foot had left the ground in a charge towards the diminutive fire demon when a sudden hand was pressed against his chest.

The chocolate brown eyes of the ex-Spirit detective moved over to look at Koenma, who was staring him straight in the eye. There was no talk for several moments, as Hiei refused to loose his nonchalant, unconcerned posture, Kuwabara sat on the sidelines fuming, and Yusuke and Koenma raged a silent battle of stares.

"He doesn't know, Yusuke." Amber eyes sparkled in demanded submission that would not easily be awarded.

"He has no right to call him a slut!" Yusuke shouted out in pure resentment. Koenma retracted his hand from the man's chest, knowing he would no longer attack. Amber eyes seemed to soften slightly against the piercing gaze of his once-employee.

"He has no right…" Yusuke repeated, even as Hiei's eyes narrowed behind Koenma. "No matter what Kurama did."

"But he doesn't know," Koenma repeated as he took a step back, standing on the sidelines of the three of them. "And therefore he has the right to be unaware."

Hiei frowned, annoyed with all the talk about him, as if he wasn't there. He shifted slightly on his feet, glaring at the three others before him. "Unaware of what?" he hissed out. "Where is the damn fox, if you all think it's so important that I remained 'unaware.'"

There was an uncongenial silence that followed his demand and Hiei frowned, suddenly feeling most uncomfortable, being not only the cause, but the main focus of the prolonged stillness.

"What?" he asked in a rude, almost obnoxious tone that covered the sudden dread and an near-panic feeling that overwhelmed his senses with a hazy cloud of genuine worry, though he repeated to himself in a firm, commanding tone, that it was not worry for the fox.

It never would be. Never. Not again, not ever.

"Hiei…" The fire demon's crystal gaze shifted to Kuwabara, who was restlessly moving his weight from one foot to the other. Fidgeting meant that there was something not meant to be shared.

Hesitance, as gathered by the prolonged silence.

"What?" he repeated, his tone no longer covered for worry but for impatience. The lord before him turned his head to the side, eyes narrowing in a guilty shame and drawing his gaze to the floor.

Hiei hated being kept in the dark about things. Especially when someone felt guilty about doing so later, because that meant it was something that he would care to know.

Not that he could imagine what about Kurama he could possibly care to know about anymore.

"It's…" Koenma couldn't seem to get the right words together, and his throat parched with dryness and a lump he could not swallow. "Kurama…"

Yusuke was finally the one to get it all out, and his voice when he did was pained but contained within the parameters of his ability to hold pack the never ending grief. Hiei's eyes narrowed just as he opened his mouth, his chocolate eyes telling the tale before he could form it into words.

And the truth that he saw in those eyes sent Hiei on a spiral towards disbelief, only worsened by the confirmation of Yusuke's speech.

"Kurama's dead."

-o-o-o-o-

DUN DUN DUN!

I am so cruel.

You know, if you haven't noticed, the person I always kill off is Kurama, if I kill someone off. And if I don't, the one who always suffers physically is Kurama, while I make Hiei suffer mentally.

One day, I will succeed in making a story where that is reversed. One day…One day far from now, considering that I've already promised you chapters of other stories and here I am writing yet ANOTHER story.

I AM SO SORRY!

-bowing profusely- please accept my apologies!

And please review, though I can understand if you all are just so annoyed with my inability to post on a normal schedule. I'm sorry!

Author's Notes (almost forgot)

…his hair pulled behind him to form abut a half inch long ponytail that looked more like a feather duster than a ponytail… I don't know where this came from. I think it's because I just watched InuYasha. Don't ask, he won't have it up most of the time, and it looks better down, anyways.

…"Protecting the little yariman?"… Dictionary 101 says that "Yariman" is Japanese for "Slut" though I can not actually be sure. I apologize if this is wrong, and please correct me if it is.

Don't worry, you all know me well enough by now, and the manner in which I like to write, twisting your guys' perception and hints around until who knows what's up and down.

So yes, eventually, (sooner in this story, as the actual twist doesn't come until you get the background) you'll find out why Hiei hates Kurama, why Kurama's dead, and why Yusuke and Kuwabara are so angry at Hiei.

And the world goes around full circle!

Unless…Columbus was right and it's FLAT!

Wait…wasn't Columbus the guy who thought it was round?

Oh who cares, he as a stupid merchant who got LOST exploring. How in Hell's Heavenly name do you get LOST EXPLORING?

And then he misnames an entire indigenous species and instigates the world's largest mass genocide in human history.

Don't you just love Columbus Day, now? We should just celebrate an Adolf Hitler Day!

Sorry, now I'm rambling and quoting my history teacher.

-Bows profusely- please forgive me if the above comments offend: They are meant to make a point, not to encourage what Hitler did at all. He was a contradicting fool of an intelligent man.

…speaking of contradictions.

Alright, now that I've gone completely off topic ((how the hell did we go from YYH to Hitler!)) Please review, and I hope you enjoyed, however cruel it was.