Hello everyone! I'm back again, with another, longer chapter.

Dedicated to: heve-chan, my only reviewer! Thank you tons. I think you'll like this chapter. XD

Enjoy!


November 4th (27 Days Left)

"Claire!"

Sophie could hear the scream, though she wasn't sure where it was coming from. It sounded oddly close, though strangely far away, as if it were echoing through her mind.

"Claire, come back!"

Sophie felt her head pound as she tried to open her eyes, feeling groggy and sick at the same time. Her eyes were met with darkness at first, and she gasped, not sure what to do, but after a few seconds light started to appear, melting into a picture.

The picture was small at first, distorted, like it wasn't real, but then it grew bigger, stretching to the edges of her vision as the blurs became less and less prominent. As Sophie blinked the picture came into focus, and she could see trees, winding all around her, stretching out from the paved road she stood on. The picture before her turned grey around the edges, as if it were old, as the sky above her rumbled...

And that's when Sophie noticed it - there wasn't a sky above her.

"Claire, come on! Where are you!"

Sophie blinked, realizing the voice was hers, though not hers, spawning from a small little girl who was in the picture before her, standing on the paved road, looking distressed.

"Come on, Claire! This isn't funny!"

The girl was young, but not so young, maybe nine at the most. She wore a simple pair of jean shorts and a plaid shirt, looking quite the Country hick. Her blonde hair was curly and pulled back from her face, stuffed onto a ponytail with ends hanging out, and her feet were stuck in soggy sneakers that looked like they'd seen better days.

Sophie was about to call out to the girl, ask her what the heck was going on, and how she knew Claire, when the girl suddenly turned around, and Sophie gasped.

It's me. She realized, staring into the girls face, which took all of her Country hick looks away. That girl, it's me.

The face of the girl before her wasn't as old or as pretty as Sophie's, but it was her face none the less. The girl's bright blue eyes were piercing, like frost, and there was a look of raw and cold determination on her face...overshadowed a bit by fear.

"Claire..." The girl said one last time, before turning back the way she'd come, racing off down the paved street.

Sophie watched her go, never losing sight of her, because even though she wasn't moving her feet, she kept pace with the girl, as if her younger self were just a movie that she was watching.

The girl eventually stopped, and Sophie felt a stab run through her heart, seeing the picture now displayed before her.

There was a car, wrecked to bits, sitting on the side of the road. There were police and firemen and a few ambulances, the street so crowded she could barely see as her younger self pushed through the men surrounding the car, still shouting Claire's name. There were paramedics and people - three people, torn open to a bloody mess, barely even alive, being pulled from the car...

And, last but not least, there was one brown haired girl, shaking and crying as she stared at the mess.

"Claire?" Sophie's younger self finally reached her friend, laying a shaking hand on the girl's shoulder, and Sophie could feel the pain and the agony and the sickness her younger self felt. "You..."

But Sophie's younger self lost all of her words as Claire turned towards her, just as young as she was, tears streaming down her lonesome face - the face of an angel, which shouldn't have been crying. She wore clothes similar to Sophie, only they were tattered, like she'd been running through a forest of vines, her ankles bleeding above her shoes. But that didn't compare to the look of despair in her brown eyes, the look that took the breath from Sophie's younger double.

"Their dead." Younger Claire sounded too calm, almost inhuman. "My family, their all...dead."

Younger Sophie staggered back, and older Sophie tried to keep herself from crying, feeling a tremble travel up her spine.

Why was she seeing this? She had never wanted to relive it, so why was she doing so now? It just wasn't fair...

She was about to lose her best friend, why should she be reminded of what her friend had already lost?

"When did it happen?"

Sophie felt herself stiffen as she heard the voice, coming from behind her, before another shiver traveled up her spine, one most unlike the other. She closed her eyes for a moment, steeling herself, before she turned around, knowing exactly who would be there.

Of course, no matter where she went - even in her own mind- he always seemed to be there somehow.

Why was that?

Sophie pursed her lips as her eyes landed on Hiei, who wasn't even looking at her, instead surveying the scene behind her, which was still playing out. Sophie felt another shiver as she realized that everything around them - besides the gruesome picture - was black, like they'd suddenly been sucked up, into a space with no stars.

She didn't answer Hiei's question, but instead asked one of her own.

"What are you doing here?" her voice sounded strangled, tired, and Sophie felt her shoulders slump, weighing in on her.

Hiei didn't answer for a moment. He simply continued to stare at the scene behind her, brows furrowing, before his red eyes flicked over to her, and Sophie had to rebuild her backbone with iron to keep from shivering. "I'm watching," he said, as though it were completely obvious.

And, Sophie supposed, it kind of was.

"Watching..." Sophie digested the word, thinking that it seemed that Hiei was always watching her, a thought which she didn't really appreciate or like. "But how did you -"

Her sentence was cut off as she heard a gasp from behind her, and she half-turned back towards the gruesome picture, knowing exactly what would happen next.

She remembered it. She'd been there, the day that Claire's family had died.

The younger Sophie had stepped away from the nearly-inhuman Claire now, her mouth gaping open at her friend's behavior. She stared at the younger Claire for a moment, looking horrified for once in her young life, before she suddenly lost it, crippling to the ground, much as Sophie had done herself that afternoon...or, whenever that was...

A sentence followed in her wake, as the picture faded, threatening to leave Sophie and Hiei in darkness.

"I'm the one who's supposed to be in pain..." It said to no one. "...not Sophie."

Sophie tried to keep the tears from her eyes as the world around her grew darker and darker, still feeling her younger self's pain and sorrow, but as she turned back to Hiei, she felt nothing but anger.

What was he doing there, anyway? These were her memories, her crosses to bear, why should he see them? He was a demon, for goodness sake! He had killed thousands, maybe even millions of people without a seconds thought! He didn't care anything about what went on in Sophie's life! And if he was just watching her because he found her pain amusing, she was going to - to -

Well, she didn't know what she'd do, but she'd find something!

Sophie met Hiei's gaze as the darkness continued to close in on them, refusing to back down. She was sure he'd heard what she'd been thinking, was sure he knew her complaints about him, but she didn't care. Him and his friends had invaded her life, and she was tired of trying to step around them.

However, as the last flickerings of light faded from the room, Hiei didn't seem fazed. He didn't even move, holding her stare with those intense eyes of his, which Sophie couldn't help but think were eerily beautiful, even if their owner was irritatingly infuriating...

And then, the light was gone, and Sophie was left in darkness, fear and other strange emotions clawing at her stomach, though she tried to fight them.

"Well," Hiei's voice stated, from much-too-close by. "I think it's time you woke up now."


Sophie's eyes shot open immediately, and she felt instantly rigid, the last remainders of her dream flickering before her eyes.

Had that really happened? Had Hiei really invaded her mind while she was sleeping? Or had it been...well, just a dream?

Sophie didn't know, but her heart was pounding in her ears, and as she sat up, her head swimming, she looked around for traces of her oh-so-annoying visitor, who wasn't there for once. She felt herself sigh as she saw an empty room, mostly relieved, though a little let-down, too.

She'd been hoping he was there so she could yell at him, tell him to stay out of her head, even if it was the last thing she did.

"Sophie? Are you up? I missed you, honey!" Sophie felt herself groan as the door to wherever she was staying banged open, and her mother entered, nearly knocking her over in a hug. "You were out for nearly a day, and I was soooo worried!" Sophie noticed her mother had a new handbag slung over her shoulder as the woman drew back, nearly in tears.

Kurama poked his head in through the door. "Sorry," he said, smiling almost sheepishly. "I stepped out for a moment, and, well..." he cast Sophie's nearly-crying mother a glance.

"Were you watching me?" Sophie felt herself frown, annoyed with this development. "Where's Claire?"

Kurama held up his hands in surrender. "We were taking turns watching over you, if you must know," he said, before sighing. "I'll go get Claire..." and then he was gone.

Sophie didn't have time to watch him go, and she didn't really want to, now much too upset.

A day! She'd been out a day! That meant that she only had 27 days left! That was -

Not enough time. Suddenly, Sophie felt panicked, pushing her covers aside and standing to her feet, her mother barely managing to catch her as she wobbled a bit. Not enough time at all.

She couldn't believe she'd wasted a whole stupid day, and all because of that idiot Neil and his cruel jokes! Why had he decided to show up, and ruin her last chance to be with her best friend? Why couldn't he just go away?

Why couldn't they all just go away?

"Sophie?" her mother's voice was confused, sounding higher than normal. "Sophie, dear, what's wrong?" Sophie almost wanted to glare at her, knowing that her concern was all fake, but she just couldn't.

She was much too angry now, the strong emotion transferring over from her dream to reality.

Why couldn't they just leave? Why couldn't her and Claire have peace? Why did everything have to be so complicated? It wasn't supposed to be like this.

They weren't supposed to have interfered. No one was. She was supposed to be able to spend time with her best friend, all alone, until the day she died, and then...

Sophie blinked.

And then...

And then what? What was she going to do once Claire was gone? She hadn't thought of anything, and she almost didn't want to. It seemed like life wouldn't even matter anymore once Claire was dead.

"Sophie," her mother's voice was happy once again, as she let Sophie go, adjusting her new handbag, and Sophie wobbled back to the bed. "Honey, we need to talk about a few things."

Sophie felt her heart sink, knowing this wasn't good. "What?" she asked tiredly, running a hand through her hair, her fury with her Yu Yu Hakusho friends pushed aside for now. "What do you want?"

Her mother, she always wanted something - mostly clothes and jewelry and handbags, but other stuff, too. She never, never stopped asking, even if she had everything she could ever want. Even if it killed those around her. Even if it was killing Sophie.

She didn't care.

"Well, Sophie," her mother smiled sweetly, but there was a fire beneath her gaze, lingering just out of reach. "I know you transfered your college courses to online, what with Claire, but I also know you haven't been keeping up with them..." she trailed off, her smile stretching, and Sophie wanted to gag.

Oh no, college? Not that. Hadn't her mother asked enough of her already?

Sophie had been excited when she'd finished high school, bursting at the seams with her want to go to college, to really get somewhere in life. She'd applied to the best universities in the field that she wanted, and they'd all eagerly awaited her application, practically begging her to attend, even sending out scouts her her house personally, but then...

"Haven't I given you everything, Sophie?" her mother was putting on the sad face. "Haven't I been a good enough mother?"

But then her mother had interfered, wrecking all of Sophie's plans. She'd frowned upon Sophie's choice of major, telling her that she shouldn't go for it, that she should get a business degree instead, help her out at the Inn, though Sophie had practically run the place since she was ten. She'd told her she couldn't do it, that it would be a waste, and eventually, Sophie hadn't cared...

Eventually, nothing had mattered. Claire's death was all she thought about, her life consumed by it, and nothing else mattered anymore - not even her future, not even her dreams.

So she'd opted out, on more than one thing. She'd decided to get a business degree, going to the local college, working at the Inn, date the man she hated more than just about any other. And her mother had been happy, going out on her sprees and staying at hotels and doing all the things she'd been doing for years, since she had Sophie around.

But now...now it obviously wasn't enough. Now she wanted even more.

"You need to get your grades up, study even harder," her mother's words seemed to be coming from far away, and Sophie's vision was starting to look real blurry, turning to clouds at the edges. "You're not trying hard enough. You know, I don't pay those ridiculous college fees for nothing, Sophie," she saw a million of her mothers grimace, her vision like a fly's. "You need to stop being so lazy."

Sophie blinked, feeling a tremor shake through her.

"You need to stop being so lazy."

Lazy? Is that what her mother thought, that she was lazy? How could she think that? Sophie had done everything for her, ever since she was ten! She'd taken care of everything, sacrificed everything, and now she was considered lazy?

"You need to stop being so lazy."

She'd never wanted it - any of it! She'd never wanted to run the stupid Inn. She hated it, keeping track of check-ins and check-outs, making sure everything was clean and stocked and done while her mother was out having fun, abusing her title of "parent". She'd never wanted to date Neil, the abusive ingrate who'd basically used her for a punching bag. She'd never wanted to go to community college. She hated business, as good at it as she was.

"...lazy."

And how...

"...lazy."

...could her mother...

"...lazy."

...think this of her?

LAZY!

"Sophie," her mother's voice, angry now, rang in her mind, and suddenly Sophie felt angry, the world coming together again, her fly vision gone. "How dare you! Are you even lis-"

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" the words erupted from Sophie's mouth, loud enough to shake the walls, and she shrunk back, barring her teeth like a cornered animal. "I HATE YOU! I JUST -" she stopped for a moment, meeting her mother's shocked face. "I HATE YOU!" the words were spat like venom, shuddering through her.

Sophie faintly heard pounding footsteps as her friends rushed up the stairs, all probably thinking she was in danger, all probably having their weapons drawn. She faintly heard someone shout her name in a scared cry, coming up the stairs behind the others, who tried to push them back, but none of that seemed to matter now.

Because all that Sophie cared about was the look on her mother's face.

Her mother looked shocked, her mouth hanging open, her eyes wide as plates. Sophie had never talked back to her before, never told her what she thought, and she was shocked because of it. She was shocked that her daughter would actually yell at her, actually give her the blame that she deserved.

Though Sophie wasn't sorry. Not one bit.

"I...I see..." her mother's voice shook as her friends crowded the door, all looking vicious, until they realized just what had happened. "I'll...go now..." Sophie watched her mother as she went to leave, teeth still barred and eyes blazing, but she didn't see sorrow or regret in the woman's eyes...

Instead she saw fire, malice, revenge.

She knew this wasn't the last she would hear about this, not by a long shot.


"So, what was that all about, anyway?" the question came from Yusuke, who was sitting on the couch in the living room, far away from Sophie. "Why'd you and the hag get in a fight?"

Sophie felt her mask-like coverup crack a little as she smiled, liking his description of her mother. Though she was still kind of upset with Yusuke and his friends, she had pushed it aside for now, especially since they'd saved her from the woman known as her mother.

On her way out, her mother had turned and lunged at Sophie, who hadn't been expecting the attack from the woman who hated to even get dew on her shoes. Yusuke had been the first one to rush forward, ignoring Kuwabara's protests of "you can't attack girls!", wrapping his arms around her mother's waist and hurling her into the hallway. Her mother hadn't been hurt, of course, but she'd stormed out none the less, the door slamming behind her...

It had taken Sophie nearly a half-hour to stop shaking after that, though she hadn't wanted to seem weak in front of her friends, since she was supposed to be the brave, hard one, there to protect Claire. But they hadn't said anything, piling into the room and chatting with her, and, later, going downstairs, where they were now...watching television as it neared nine in the morning (she'd woken up early, apparently).

"So?" Yusuke's voice once again brought her from her thoughts. "What was it?"

Sophie saw Keiko, who she'd nearly forgotten was there, glare at her boyfriend. "Yusuke!" she chided, but Yusuke just grimaced at her.

"What?" he asked, talking back. "It was a good question! I want to know!"

Sophie almost laughed at that, not sure she wanted to tell him. "Well..." she started, but the words wouldn't come, her throat feeling raw from earlier.

She had never expected to yell at her mother like that, spouting everything she had been keeping to herself for so long - well, everything condensed, anyway, since what she'd said wasn't nearly what she actually wanted to tell the woman. But, she'd surprised herself, and she felt almost happy about it...

She'd finally stood up for herself. Maybe now she would get somewhere, get to go to school like she really wanted to, get to...

But it still wouldn't matter, would it? In less than a month, Claire would be gone, and she would be all alone.

Sophie frowned at that, looking down, and it was finally Claire who answered Yusuke.

"Sophie doesn't want to be a business major," she explained, and Yusuke's nose wrinkled, probably at the mention of school. "But her mom, well...she doesn't agree..." she trailed off, frowning, and Sophie picked up the rest.

Her eyes met Yusuke's. "She made me go anyway," she explained, the words tasting sour in her mouth, like she wasn't supposed to say them, like she should have had more to say, like she should have fought her mother harder. "And I guess...I guess I'm just tired of it," the reality of the words hit her, and she sighed.

It was true, she was tired of it: of being used, abused, and treated like a dog, basically. She was so sick of it, just the thought made her want to vomit...or to attack something, either one. But still, it didn't matter, because at the end of the day, she knew -

"So, what did you want to go to school for?" this question came from Keiko, who seemed interested in the school topic. "If not for business, then..."

Sophie felt herself blush, looking down at her lap. Though she wasn't embarrassed by her dream necessarily, she knew it was a little odd, and most people who knew it made fun of her for it, or just gave her those freaky stares. Though she didn't necessarily think that her new friends would do that, she also didn't want to tell them, because -

It was personal, too personal. And she was tired of sharing personal things with people she didn't (really) know.

But, before she could change the subject, Claire ruined it for her, speaking up of her own accord.

"Sophie wants to be a forensic anthropologist," Claire stated, earning several raised eyebrows from the group (and several confused faces, namely Yusuke and Kuwabara). "Just like in the TV show, Bones."

Sophie felt her face turn even redder as she glared at Claire, who shrugged.

Great. Now they knew.

She was a bones freak.

"Bones?" Yusuke blinked, still not getting it. "So, you want to act on TV?" Sophie could have hit him, but she didn't.

Instead, Kurama spoke up, chuckling at his friend. "I believe, Yusuke, that a forensic anthropologist's job is to identify the remains of a murder victim who has increased decomposition."

"What?" neither Yusuke nor Kuwabara got this.

Kurama sighed. "When a human dies, and nothing is left of their body but bones, they need someone to figure out who that person is, how they were murdered."

"Oh..." from both the clowns.

Hiei snorted from the corner, though Sophie couldn't tell if he was disgusted by what she wanted to do, or by his idiot friends, and Yusuke frowned. "So, you want to play with dead people?" he asked, and Sophie glared at him.

How dare he mock her wanted career choice? What did he do for a living? He was a deadbeat who beat up demons. At least she wanted to do something useful with her life.

"Claire," the name was said in a sharp, commanding tone as Sophie's fists balled. She was tired of talking about this. "have you gotten that list done?"

Claire jumped, shocked. "Um...yes..." she said, pulling a slip of paper out of her pocket. "But..." she trailed off, handing the list to Sophie.

Yusuke and Kuwabara sighed, getting the hint that the topic of Sophie's obsession with people's bones was over.

Sophie tried to calm herself down as she unfolded the paper that Claire had given her, trying to forget about everyone's reaction to her wanted career of choice. She couldn't remember the day she had decided that she wanted to become a forensic anthropologist, but she assumed it was probably sometime around the time of Claire's parents death, though she had always been kind of obsessed with bones...

Or maybe it was the reality of her friend's death that had brought it about. Maybe Sophie just didn't want to be around the living, knowing that horrible things could happen if she got attached to people again, and the dead would always be dead.

Sophie pushed that despairing thought aside as she looked at the unfolded paper, Claire's "Bucket List".

She'd asked Claire to write it up a few days ago, knowing that she could no longer escape the facts, though she still hadn't wanted to admit it. Her and Claire had talked about the list for a while, about things that Claire might put on it, things that she might want to do before she died...and Sophie had promised her that she would try her hardest to make them happen.

And here it was, the list, sitting in Sophie's hands, feeling as heavy as the whole world to her.

"The carnival?" Sophie read off the first thing on the list, and heard a groan issue from somewhere in the room, though she wasn't sure where. "You've really never been to the carnival?" Sophie looked up at Claire, who shrugged sheepishly.

Her friend was smiling. "Not really," she admitted, blushing a little. "But I've always wanted to go, and it seemed like an easy sort of thing to do..." she trailed off, looking down. "But maybe...if you guys don't want to..."

Sophie saw her friend nearly jump as their Yu Yu Hakusho buddies nearly attacked the idea, reassuring Claire that they would love to go to a carnival (though Sophie secretly suspected that they wouldn't...if they even knew what it was). The only person who didn't rush to reassure was Hiei, though Sophie couldn't have cared less what he thought at the moment, still angry with him for invading her dream earlier.

Okay, so everyone wanted to go, but where were they going to find...

"The fall carnival," Sophie breathed the words, and everyone stopped, staring up at her. "Of course, that's today! Only a little ways away..." she smiled, remembering the street. "I printed out a sheet a few weeks ago. I still have it. You guys can input the address in the GPS and be on your way. It starts in about an hour, and ends at nine tonight, I think," she smiled, nodding to herself, happy that this first thing on Claire's "Bucket List" would be easy to accomplish.

Of course, Kurama was the one to pick up on her wording. "You're not coming?" he asked, with a feinted shocked look, a set of secret, golden colored steel lurking behind his eyes. "You said 'you guys'..." he trailed off as everyone turned to Sophie, all raising eyebrows in confusion.

Sophie met Claire's eyes and felt her heart sink.

It wasn't that she didn't want to go with her friend, of course. She hated to even leave Claire's side, having already wasted a day, but she knew that she had to, and if that meant that Claire still got to go to the carnival, then fine. Sophie just wanted her to be happy.

She deserved it.

"Someone's got to stay and watch the Inn," Sophie tried to sound nonchalant, but she knew the two demons in her midst didn't buy her words. "I don't mind. I just want to you to go," she kept staring at Claire, trying not to look at Hiei, who she was sure was giving her a glare. "Don't say no, just go. My mom's out right now," she held up Claire's "Bucket List", smiling. "I'll be there for the rest."

Claire opened her mouth, looking like she might protest, but then closed it again. "Alright," she sighed, not looking as happy as before, but then stood, heading towards the stairs. "I'll go get ready," she vanished up them a moment later, and Sophie turned to glare at her other friends.

"Well?" she demanded, giving them a 'you'd better get going, if you know what's good for you' glare.

"You're gonna stay here all by yourself?" the question was Kuwabara's. "You sure you don't want one of us to stay with you?"

Sophie shook her head before they could protest, feeling her insides wrench.

She didn't want them there. Any of them. She just wanted to be alone.

"No," her words were final, and everyone sighed, standing, too. "Go ahead," she said, and then found Hiei's gaze. "All of you."


Sophie checked her watch as she sighed another time, bored out of her mind.

It was five in the afternoon, and she hadn't had one customer yet, which she was both grateful for and annoyed at. She just hoped that Claire and the others were having fun, riding rides, eating cotton candy...

Sophie felt her mind wander as she sat there, going back to the reason she had stayed. She hadn't wanted to burden Claire with the information, knowing her poor friend had enough to deal with, and she hadn't wanted to tell the Yu Yu Hakusho group, not wanting to let them anymore into her life than she had to, but...

She'd gotten a note earlier, from her mother. She'd noticed it on her way down the stairs, before she'd met her friends in the living room.

It was a threat, a warning. It had told her to stay and watch the Inn, reminding her that if she left, she would be kicked out, and her new, strange friends, and Claire, would have nowhere to go...

And so Sophie had stayed, not wanting to put more pressure on Claire - and even on Yusuke and the crew, though she sometimes hated them. It wouldn't have been fair.

And she didn't mind, not really. At least she got to sort out her thoughts, got some time to herself, to cry on the inside...

Sophie was suddenly pulled from her thoughts as the front door opened, admitting a tall, lean man she had never seen before. He was wearing a long coat and hat, his face covered slightly, no real features distinguishable.

Sophie smiled, playing the nice host. "Can I help you?" she asked, straightening herself at the desk.

The man didn't move, probably didn't even blink.

Sophie frowned. "Um...sir?" she asked, confusing, wondering if there was something wrong with him.

The man nodded once, then turned and walked out, as if he'd never wanted anything at all. Sophie frowned as she heard his truck pull away, leaving her alone once again, and then -

A tight hand wound around her waist, and a cloth was thrust in front of her face, and everything turned to darkness all around, blotting out all of the light.


Dun dun dun! Sophie's been kidnapped! Who do you think did it? And what will happen at the carnival? Will Claire manage to have fun without Sophie, will Yusuke and Kuwabara eat too much cotton candy, will Hiei get annoyed and kill everyone (kidding...maybe)? And when will they realize that someone's missing? Well...you'll find out next chapter...maybe...

For those who were concerned, I'm, unfortunately, still sick, though I am getting better. But, as such, I don't know when you'll see another chapter. Hopefully soon. ASAP, anyway.

As always, PLEASE REVIEW! The plot bunnies are hungry as always, and they need something long and juicy.

~Foxgirl Ray