A/N: Hiya. I know it's been awhile, but I got a good chapter for you. I am going to take 'fluff' out of my description. I honestly don't know how it got there. I am very sorry about that. There's about 3 more chapters to go. Oh yes, and there's a kiss in this chapter!

Rearders: Good. Otherwise we'd tell you to take "romance" out of the description too!

Thank you again. I am unworthy of your loyalty to this fic! I love you!!

"Speech"

-thoughts.-

Chapter IV

Bloody Kisses

The spiders were the first to attack, twin tentacles of spun thread launched out of their mouths like spitting cobras. Hiei and Kurama performed naturally choreographed dodges and the spiders missed, their wet dream catchers plastered to the cavern wall. Hiei traversed through the poles of hairy legs to reach the beast's underside. Eight fully sheathed stabs to the abdomen sent the arachnid wild. The spider hissed enraged and tromped to squash its elusive enemy. The life juices spilled out of the holes in its thorax, weakening it untilthe spider teetered and finally collapsed with a quake. Hiei would've been buried under the beast's weight if not for his god-like speed and sleekness.

Hiei stood before the spider's eight glassy red eyes. The spider's fangs protracted to gargle out an insect-like choke.

"Shut up." Hiei said.

And with that the spider died. He turned to Kurama. The Youko was still parrying the spearing legs of his spider, conscious that Hiei's battle had already concluded.

- Sorry to make you wait Hiei but not all of us can be as efficient as you. If only I could find someway to penetrate his offense and reach the backside then this battle would end quicker.-

Hiei's form suddenly blurred into focus atop the spider's backside unnoticed.

- Looks like I don't have to worry. -

With a cry, Hiei drove his sword down into the beast's thorax. The spider roared and bucked Hiei into the air. The fire demon back flipped and landed safely, but alas his trusty sword lay wedged inside the spider.

"Damn it. My sword wasn't long enough to hit is vital spot. I couldn't have been far off."

The spider swiveled around to shoot Hiei with sticky thread; neglecting its fight with Kurama.

"Don't turn your back on me." Kumara chastised.

The kitsune dashed, whipping half the spider's legs out from under it with his lengthy thorny whip. The beast leaned awkwardly, struggling to recover from its retarded state. The spider didn't break from its personal vandetta against Hiei, busying him with flying spider webs.

"Finish him Kurama!" Hiei yelled.

Kurama lashed his rose whip along the center of the spider, thorax to head, splitting it into two symmetrical pieces. Yellowish-green liquid spewed out from the incision and showered Kurama's uniform and Hiei's cloak with sickening plasma. The spider's legs twitched before it slackened into death.

Hiei eyed the dirty sleeve of his cloak and directed an inquisitive glare at his partner. "Was that really necessary?" Hiei asked.

"Better to be safe then sorry." Kurama tossed him a sheepish smile.

Hiei shrugged the incident off and cleaned his sword before sheathing it. He shoved his hands in his pockets as he strode off to the next tunnel. "We're done here."

"Yes, of course." Kurama picked up on Hiei's hint to leave and Kruama retrogressed his whip into a seed that he put into his satchel of hair. One of the twin giant spiders still radiated danger and Kurama kept a sharp eye on it. Kurama laughed, mocking himself.

-Perhaps Hiei is right, I am just being overly cautious.-

When Kurama looked up from massaging his forehead, the spider was among the undead. It stealthily stalked behind the fire demon. The spider raised one of its frontal legs to assassinate Hiei. Hiei continued to lead, oblivious to the spider's presence.

-Even if I warn him there's no guarantee he'll dodge it in time.-

Kurama selected a seed from his hair and morphed into a fine floral tipped dart.

"Rose dart!" Kurama's stuck the spider's leg.

Hiei turned to see the commotion.

"Hiei! It came ba—--!"

Kurama was interjected by the spider leg impaled in his shoulder. The spider raised Kurama above its curling mouth, venom dripping from its fangs.

-Damn it! I didn't think the other one would be resurrected too!-

"Kurama!"

Hiei drew his sword. "This time you'll stay down!" Hiei vowed to the spider.

Hiei rushed over to butcher Kurama's attacker. The fire demon infused his right palm with fire. He rolled the fire into an orb and jumped into the air. He pitched his fiery orb into the spider's eyes. The spider screeched and backed into the cavern wall. The whole cavern shook.

With the spider distracted, Hiei freed Kurama by hacking off the spider's leg. The toe of the spider leg remained embedded in the kitsune's shoulder. Hiei caught the fox and held him fast to his hip. A fair distance away, Hiei set him down.

"Stay here."

Hiei returned to the spider and cut off each of its legs. The spider could only hiss helplessly as Hiei finished him off for good with a stab to the head. History wouldn't repeat itself.

Finished, Hiei returned to Kurama's side.

"You idiot why did you go and do that?!" He animadverted.

Kurama's nose tensed before more regurgitated blood ran out his mouth, "I … figured you would sense the attack, but I just … couldn't let it hit you … when I could've done something to stop it."

Hiei was speechless. His shoulders quivered.

"We have to remove this." Kurama spoke, gripping the girth of the hairy leg in his shoulder.

"If we do that now you'll bleed to death! Where's your brain fox?!" He scolded.

"Its alright I've been thorough worse. I can make it."

Hiei growled, "Don't give me that shit!"

It was Kurama's turn to yell. "Hiei what are you sitting around and lecturing me for?! Your sister is waiting! Leave before it's too late to rescue her!"

Hiei's face blanked in astonishment. Kurama's eyes seethed. "Go already. You're wasting time just standing here."

"But Kurama . . ."

Hiei trailed off not sure what his side of the argument was. The fox was telling him what he already knew, but he was hesitant to leave Kurama alone.

"Hiei, go." Kurama said with an undertone of sternness.

Hiei looked into the fox's eyes incredulously.

Kurama smiled with a mischievous grin, face growing sly. "You need her, Hiei."

- I am just a reliance. I am expendable, but she's your family. -

Hiei placed a hand on Kurama's chest and used his other hand to grip the spider leg.

Kurama's eyes widened in wonder. "Hiei?"

"I am pulling it out. You're going to feel pain. 1, 2 …"

Kurama winched in preparation of the pain and squeezed Hiei's hand on his chest.

Hiei skipped '3' and pulled. Kurama screamed and sagged in Hiei's grip, feeling awkwardly empty. Fresh blood super saturated Kurama's uniform. Hiei's hands erupted with a dark flame that was both deaden and mysterious. He burned Kurama's skin and clotted the blood with just a touch. Hiei's calloused, bloody hands cupped Kurama's cheek. The fox was sweating, and shaking from the treatment, panting and nearly crying.

"The poison's still inside you, I only diluted it. You should—" Hiei began.

"Wait … poison? What do you mean? … Just the leg … struck me."

"There's a retractable fang inside the toe that secretes poison. You should be alright until we finish up here. If you start to feel tingly or loose feeling you need to get out of here as fast you can. If you'd actually listen to me I'd tell you to leave now, but I know you better, fox. Just remember that once the poison takes a serious affect you WILL be useless."

"I told you I don't need—!"

Hiei pulled Kurama down by the back of his head and forcefully pressed his lips to the kitsune's. It was a hard, almost painful kiss that lingered for only a few seconds. Kurama stared, confused and utterly perplexed.

"I need you alive, Kurama." Hiei whispered.

Hiei was gone with the next rush of air.

Kuwabara was dying of boredom. They had been walking down tunnels for what seemed like days and still no action. He decided to start up conversation to keep himself entertained.

"So Uramesshi how have you and Kieko been?"

"Oh, you know the routine, a night full of hot, passionate sex, and then, in the morning she throws whatever she can find at me." Yusuke said.

"Good 'ol Keiko." Kuwbara laughed.

"And then she starts crying and accusing me of never being around! It's not like I have a damn choice! I can't help it if Koenma orders me into one bogus assignment after another without pay or a vacation! And then says 'just tell your boss you quit.' Ha! That's a laugh!" Yusuke ranted.

Kuwabara rolled his eyes and blocked Yusuke's complaints out.

- Sorry I asked. GEEZ! What is he, 'PMS'ing? Kami-sama I can't wait until I rescue Yukina and get the hell out of this shitty place! My darling ice maiden will probably throw herself at me, overcome with gratitude, and look at me those teary wide eyes of hers. -

"… Am I right, or am I right? … Hey Kuwabara don't tell me your siding with women?"

When the carrot top didn't answer, Yusuke's looked over his shoulder. Kuwabara held his face in his hands, drooling and muttering squeaky nothings to himself.

It was too much. Yusuke busted up laughing.

"Huh?!" Kuwabara awakened from his daydream by his friend's mirth.

"Kuwabara were you even listening? And what's with the grin? Fantasizing about Yukina?" Yusuke prompted. He spared Kuwabara some dignity and didn't address his love-struck dopiness.

Kuwabara blushed all the way to his ears. "Uhhhh … no, no! You got it all wrong! You see I was uh…, um………., lost in … in meditative thought. Yeah. That's it!"

Yusuke sniggered. "Yeah, yeah sure and Koenma is promoting me."

"Hey listen Urameshi! I was NOT,—HEY!! What are you stopping for?!" Kuwabara asked, bumping into Yusuke.

"It looks like a jungle up ahead." Yusuke said.

He pointed to the spider webs cross-hatching the rest of the tunnel.

"Try cutting it with your spirit sword." Yusuke suggested.

"No problem! Spirit Sword!" Kuwabara held his wrist and yellow light bloomed from his palm.

Grinning widely Kuwabara pushed Yusuke aside, "Alright Urameshi watch out! Kuwabara's comin' through."

Yusuke muttered a 'whatever' and reclined against the wall and folded his arms.

"Try not to hurt yourself big guy.", Yusuke insulted.

"What's that?"

"Nothing."

Kuwabara hacked and slashed with all his might, determined to tear down all the spider webs in a few swings. His hair and clothes were covered in the sticky thread. Spent within moments, Kuwabara took a breather, wiping his brow to examine his progress. Several layers of spider webs still blocked the path ahead.

"Wow this stuff is a lot harder to cut through than I thought. Its nothing like the spider webs back home." Kuwabara said.

"Just shut up and cut faster." Yusuke ordered.

"I don't see you doing anything!" Kuwabara shot back.

"That's because you said you could handle it on your own, but if you NEED my help …" Yusuke offered.

"Nevermind, I'll do it!" Kuwabara grumbled.

Yusuke smirked over his small victory of wits. He looked down the way they came and was curious by all the little holes lining the walls.

-Were those holes always there? I don't remember seeing them.-

Something that looked like a crab claw was suddenly coming out of one of the holes.

"What is that?" Yusuke said.

Yusuke trained his eyes on the thing, interested to see what creature it belonged to. The 'thing' turned out to be a spider the size of a dog. Not the wussy chiwawa sized dogs, but the Saint Bernard kind! It spied Yusuke and then cackled in insect language. Before long more spiders emerged from the shadows to join the first. The spiders slowly advanced on the two boys.

Yusuke patted Kuwabara's shoulder. "Uh… Kuwabara …now would be a good time to HURRY. THE. HELL. UP!"

Kuwabara paused in his work, "What, why?"

Yusuke grabbed Kuwabara by the collar and spun him around. He pointed to the herd of arachnids pouring out of the burrows. "That's why!" Yusuke yelled.

"Uh… right." Panic-stricken and an arachnophobic, Kuwabara hauled ass.

The spiders were crouching, ready to fling themselves at the teenagers in a swarm.

"MOVE FASTER IDIOT!"

"I AM GOING AS FAST AS I CAN!"

"DAMN IT, KUWABARA!" Yusuke faced the spiders head on. "Alright you asked for it! …. SHOTGUN!"

The spider's front lines where taken out by Yusuke's powerful spray blast. The spiders beyond reared like horses, eyes light-sensitive. The spiders screeched and retreated back a few steps. They resumed defensive postures while their ranks regrouped.

"Come on you dumbass! WE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE!" Yusuke hollered.

So what do you think? Has my writing improved at all?

Chapter Completed: Monday, January 01, 2007