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Chapter 8

Golden eyes looked through the steel cage at the red head who was sitting against a dark wall on the other side. The wards tied into the red hair were strong. The person obviously knew what they were doing when they created them.

'Wake up Kurama.' The spirit yoko hissed, his hands wrapping around the cold metal bars. Though the bars were not technically there, his mind being trapped made them real.

Still not getting a response, Youko growled and pushing off the bars, began to pace the small 4 x 4 foot warded cell. He'd never been claustrophobic, but with not being able to get to Kurama and wondering where they were, not to mention his concern for Hiei, all had him feeling that way.

He growled again, making him barely hear a soft. 'Youko.'

Youko spun at the sound of his name. Looking back over to the red head, he stepped as close as possible when he saw green eyes fluttering.

'Kurama.' He said with concern. Looking the red head over, his eyes landed on his left side. He couldn't tell how bad the wound was, but could feel a dull pain along his own side, not to mention a wicked headache, which was never a good sign. Not hearing a reply, he said louder, putting emphasis on each word. 'Rise- and- shine- little- one.'

He watched as Kurama's eyes opened, this time managing to stay that way. Slowly the green orbs focused before finally landed on him.

'What happened…?' Kurama went to ask, his eyes becoming more alert as they took in the paper wards littering the cage, but they ended up closing as a hiss escaped his lips when he tried to sit up.

Youko cocked a retort. 'I think I should be the one asking that?'

Deciding not to move, Kurama tried to stay calm and asked. 'Where are we?'

'How the hell should I know?' The spirit yoko snarled.

"Are you awake?" They heard.

Kuma had been watching Kurama closely and when he finally saw the green eyes beginning to flutter open, he moved closer. He didn't know how he knew, but he could tell that the red head was talking to himself again.

Feeling pain shoot up his side, Kurama's eyes snapped opened and a gasp escaped his lips.

"Sorry." Kurama heard as his green eyes focused on the dark red hair and yellow/green eyes.

"Kuma." He said with uncertainty.

"It's me." The boy said. "I was just checking your side. I got the bleeding to stop. Are you in much pain?"

Kurama went to shake his head 'no', but let out a yelp instead as the makeshift bandaged was pulled off, taking scab tissue with it.

Kuma tried to stay calm and said. "I'm sorry, but I don't have anything on me for pain. I have a rub though...if you want…it causes numbness."

Green eyes took in the rock texture of the walls around them. They seemed to be in a cave of some sort with an opening, letting in the sun, above them. The place felt familiar, but he couldn't think straight at the moment. "Where are we?" He asked, managing to push his shoulders off the wall and sit up with his left arm supporting his side.

Kuma had moved to get his backpack. Shrugging, he said. "I don't really know. The place looks familiar, but I can't remember the name."

"How…" Kurama went to ask while trying to get to his knees. The question went unasked as he cringed and slumped back against the rock.

"You shouldn't get up." Kuma said, moving back over. Reaching into his backpack, he added. "Let me put the rub on, it should help you feel better."

Kurama didn't say anything as he watched the boy pull out a clay jar and twist off the lid. Something about the boy's fingers on his right hand didn't appear right. They were red, swollen and looked blistered.

"What happened to your hand?" He asked, moving his arm so the boy could see his side.

"It's nothing." Kuma said, using his left hand to expose the side better. Putting a glob of blue pasty stuff on the tips of fingers, he then gently applied a layer to the wound.

The red head closed his eyes, almost sighing out in relief as the medicine went to work dulling the pain in his side. "What?" He said, not realizing the boy had spoken.

Kuma asked again. "Would you like me to put some on your neck?"

Kurama looked at him with some confusion and he noticed a bruise along the young man's face along with some dried blood on his bottom lip.

"You also have a wound of some sort on the back of your neck." Kuma answered.

Kurama's right hand automatically came up to touch the back of his neck and he let out a cross between a groan and a growl at the realization that his hair was up in a high ponytail. Feeling the various wards draping down his neck and back, he now realized what was keeping him separated from Youko and restricting his healing process, not to mention keeping him from the seeds in his hair.

Instincts kicked in when he realized the boy had seen Hiei's mark without permission and he actually snarled. "You had no right to see it."

Seeing a flash of fear in the boy's eyes, he caught himself. The boy was not a threat, he was only showing concern. Forcing calm, he said softly. "Thank you, but there is nothing you can do about that." Now that the pain in his side was lessening, he noted his head was throbbing.

Both turned when they heard a noise coming from the entrance. "Well it seems my guest of honor is finally awake." They heard and Shura finally appeared from the darkness.

Ignoring the pain in his side and head, Kurama managed to sit up straight. "Let the boy go." He demanded.

Shura walked over and squatted down next to the boy, but looked to the red head. "After what he did, you think he'd just up and leave dear old dad?" He said. Looking at boy, he added. "Why don't you go get some water from the stream, it'll give me a chance to talk to my guest."

Kuma shot up and hurried over to a bowl that had been sitting on a crate. Taking it, he looked at Kurama before hurrying out.

In that brief moment Kurama tried to plead with his eyes, trying to tell the boy to leave and run for it, but Kuma just gave a curt nod and left them.

"Tell the guard that I said you may go." Shura yelled.

"What do you want with us?" Kurama said as soon as he thought the boy was out of ear shot.

Shura smiled. "You get to the point don't you?" He said, standing. "I guess it's true what they say about foxes." Moving to stand right in front of the red head, he had to look down as he continued. "I only wanted you, but what a surprise when I realized the boy had tagged along. You should be proud of him. He put up a good fight, trying to stop me from putting the wards on you. I had to smack him around a little until I was done. I even noticed him trying to get them off you when he thought I wasn't looking." He squatted down and leaned in with a smirk. "Like father, like son, I suppose."

'What is he talking about?' Youko asked. Not understanding what Shura was meaning, though he remembered now hearing the statement. 'That was amusing. I didn't think the famous Youko would give a damn about his son.'

Kurama said firmly. "You still have not answered my question." In his mind the spirit yoko growled out his frustration. Kurama always took the long route to get answers. As he had always been straight forward in demanding and doing whatever it took to get the answers he wanted.

Shura seemed to soften as he stood up and walked a few steps away. "I want to get revenge on the fox thief who stole everything from my father." He said.

Kurama couldn't control the cockiness in his voice. "Do I look like a fox to…?"

Shura was on him before the last word was said. Pulling red hair by the tail, he pulled Kurama's head back until it was at a right angle.

Kurama tried not to cry out and bit his bottom lip as Shura yelled right in his face. "I know who you are!" Loosening up on the hair, he hissed. "I've heard the rumors and I even saw you with my own eyes at the tournament."

Kurama managed to swallow before saying. "I do not know what you have heard or what you think you saw, but you know nothing about me."

Pulling Kurama closer to his face, Shura used his other hand to push hard on the red head's chest. Musingly, he said. "Oh, I know more than you think. When you worked as an advisor to my father, I saw and heard things. I even saw you kill Shachi in the hallway that day."

Youko was getting more enraged by the second. After hearing that he was seen killing that worthless, egotistical Shachi. He flared his ki, causing the wards to flare and spark to life. Letting out a deep growl and showing fangs in anger towards Shura, his words were meant to reassure the red head. 'No real concern little one...I will not make that mistake with this one.'

Because of Youko's little outburst, Kurama could smell burnt hair, no doubt his own as the wards crackled. For all he knew his scalp was burning away, but with the throbbing already in his head, to the point he felt like it was going to fall off his shoulders, he couldn't tell the difference. It also wasn't helping that whatever Kuma had put on his side was already starting to wear off.

Shura had pulled his hand back before it could burn and realizing the red head was on the verge of passing out again gave a hard slap to the paling face, saying. "Such weaklings, ningen bodies." Leaning in close to an ear, he whispered. "Rest up while you can, for when you wake, we're going to have a nice little discussion about that mark on the back of your neck."

Hearing the remark, green eyes managed a cold stare and seeing this Shura pulled back with a deep chuckle, saying. "I wasn't surprised to see someone had marked you. You are sort of pretty…for a ningen." Leaning in again, he whispered. "So tell me, do they know what resides in that ningen form."

Not getting any reaction from the red head, Shura pulled hard on the ponytail again. When he heard a hiss, he continued speaking, while his thumb caressed the cheek he'd slapped. "Tell me who your master is."

Getting his mouth to form the word, Kurama was more than a little surprised he actually managed to say it. "No." He couldn't stop himself from immediately thinking of Hiei though and this caused Youko's fury to push to the surface. "You will not touch our mate." The mixed voice wasn't a teasing purr like before, but was dripping with pure hatred and venom.

"There you are." Shura smirked, patting the side of the red head's face as gold flashed in the green orbs. "I knew the wards wouldn't completely hold you."

Kurama lost his battle with consciousness before Youko could retort and he roared with anger as the wards held, preventing him from taking over. With nothing left but to wait the spirit yoko collapsed in exhaustion

"You can come back in." Shura said standing and leaving Kurama where he lay.

Kuma shuffled in carrying the bowl, but this time it was full of water.

Shura let the boy put the bowl down before he backhanded him across the face. Kuma staggered back, but managed to stay on his feet.

Shura then grabbed him by the hair and hissed in his face. "The next time I tell you to leave us alone, I expect you to obey." With that said, he pushed the boy away from him and left.

Kuma didn't waste anytime in going over to check on Kurama, who had fallen on his right side in a crumbled heap. Managing to move him onto his back, he noted the red head was out again and saw a light sheen of sweat on the pale face. Looking around, he found the discarded green tunic and ripped off another piece of the fabric to dip into the water. Placing the cloth on Kurama's forehead, he then moved aside the white shirt to check the wound and he saw, again, the black string around the red head's neck. He'd seen it earlier when he'd removed the pink obi and outer green tunic, but didn't think anything of it. Pulling it out now, his eyes widened as he realized it was an ice maiden's tear gem. A small hand went to his chest, where his usually was, but he had taken his off and hidden it when Shura sent him to get Kurama. With just enough light coming through the hole in the ceiling, he held up the whitish gem to look at it more closely. It had a center flaw, just like his, and was mounted in the same setting.

Hearing Kurama mutter something, he dropped it, letting it rest on the pale chest. When the red head didn't respond, Kuma shuffled back so he was resting against the opposite wall. Hugging his knees to his chest, he slowly rocked and thought about things. Kurama was definitely part ningen, that he knew the moment he saw him. Yet somehow he was a plant manipulator and what was with that other voice he heard. 'And' why did he have a necklace like his which had belonged to his mother years before. 'And', what was that remark about being Youko's son. Wondering aloud, he whispered. "Just who are you?"

a)a)a)a

When green eyes had opened, red ones shot open at the same time. Hiei sat up with a painful cry, his left arm automatically pressing against his side as he felt a sharp pain. Taking in deep shuddering breaths, panicked red eyes scanned his surroundings, not in panic of where he was, but for a certain red head.

"Easy there." He heard. Looking to where the voice came from, Hiei saw the doctor sitting in a chair across the small, stuffy and darkened, room. There was no one else in the room. "Where's Kurama?" He growled, swinging his feet off the bed.

He watched the doctor's face turn grave. "Where is he?" The fire demon asked again, his hand automatically going for his sword that was laying with his cloak on the end of the bed.

His head turned when he saw a red curtain pull back and Mukuro walked in. "You're up." She said. "That's a good sign."

Not liking the fact that he wasn't getting the answer he wanted, Hiei ignored the pounding in his head and stood up to go find his mate. However, his head had other ideas. The room tilted before doing a 180 and he barely managed to get his rump on the bed as he stumbled backwards. Feeling hands on him, he tried to fight them off, not caring if they were trying to help. Just as the world was going dark again, he heard Mukuro say. "Watch him, make sure he doesn't leave. Drug him if you have to."

"But what's wrong with him. He's feeling pain, yet he's not injured…except for that mark on the back of his neck." The doctor said.

"I don't have time to explain." Mukuro said.

Hiei tried to keep his eyes open, but was failing. He barely heard the doctor say something else when he saw the blurry image of Mukuro floating above him.

"I'm already trying to get into contact with the only other person who might have a clue as to what the hell's going on."

End Chapter 8