"Sixteen hours?" I had plopped my tired butt into one of the dining chairs opposite Yusuke and next to Kurama, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Yukina was buzzing around the kitchen, humming quietly as she cleaned up from the midday meal. "How did you let me sleep for sixteen hours?"

Yusuke, all but sprawled over the chair he occupied, sniggered at me. "Kurama said you were pretty beat – you used up a lot of energy."

Kurama nodded, his hands folded gently on the table as he smiled softly. Every action he made was graceful, more so than I could ever hope to be. Each move seemed deliberate, and I was suddenly reminded of his former self. While this human body of his retained the measured movements, they lacked the intensity and danger that had emanated from the fox demon with the twitch of his muscles.

"When we expend so much energy, sleeping generally replenishes what you've used up. Depending on your stamina, the strength of your energy, and your physical strength, the sixteen hours you rested is not surprising."

I turned my head side to side, stretching out my muscles and "popping" my neck, wincing at the soreness I felt. "That wasn't resting, that was a coma."

Both Yusuke and Kurama chuckled at my comment before turning back to the conversation I had interrupted with my presence – discussion pertaining to the political situation in the Makai, involving people and places whose names went in one ear and out the other. I attempted to pay attention to their conversation, but my poor brain was still addled from my energy exercises from the day before.

Sighing heavily, I leaned back in my chair and watched Yukina flutter around as she cleaned. I'd offered my help the moment I'd entered the kitchen but she had shooed me into a chair and made excuses of how she was more than capable of handling it on her own. I had scrunched my nose and made a face at her before settling down, all too aware of her attempts to give me more time to rest, as if sixteen hours wasn't enough. For such a quiet and gentle girl, she was more than able to make me sit my ass down and continue to take it easy.

Yusuke and Kurama's voices droned on, nothing more than background noise as I completed a mental self-evaluation. My muscles were sore in ways I hadn't been with any kind of work out or physical sport (not that I'd participated in any in school), and I felt lethargic. Yukina touched my shoulder gently as she excused herself from the kitchen and I smiled up at her. Her hands were cold, even through the clean shirt I'd changed into, but it was a pleasant chill. I watched as she left, wondering if she'd gone to fetch Genkai.

Something Yusuke said had my brain throwing up flags like no other – my entire body tensed as my head snapped in his direction. My hand came down to slam on the table, interrupting their conversation. Kurama frowned at me immediately for my impoliteness, but I ignored him as I locked eyes with the dark haired male. "What did you say?"

Brown eyes narrowed at me, confused. "What the hell, Ria?"

I shook my head quickly to rid myself of the sudden rush of adrenaline, attempting to calm myself. This was irrational. "I'm sorry, but… just tell me what you said?"

Yusuke glanced over to Kurama, who also looked at me as though I'd grown an extra head. Slowly, Kurama gave a slight nod of his own head and the two turned back to me. "I was just talking about the old kings of demon world and how they used to do business."

Shooting an incredulous look his way, I frowned. "What exactly did you say? A… a name, a place?" Was I just imagining it? Had my brains become mush from the energy exercise yesterday and completely unraveled what little sanity I had left?

The intensity of Kurama's gaze was making my skin crawl – of course this would make him more suspicious of me. What good was it attempting to be civil with the man if all I could do was make him distrustful towards me… again?

"Please…?" My voice cracked. I was panicking – I had imagined it, hadn't I? I was losing my shit, my marbles, my mind, whatever you wanted to call it. If he would just spit it out, we could all decided if I was really going crazy or not. Although, I was fairly positive at the moment I had already passed that point.

Yusuke sighed and crossed his arms. "I said, 'Yomi and Mukuro never liked the old man, but he kept the balance.'" Oh, no… There was nothing there I recognized… I noted the names, but they held no significance. There was no flare of memory, nothing! Oh gods, Kurama was going to think I was losing my mind and Yusuke would take his side. I was acting crazy, if nothing else – "Of course, I doubt Raizen would have entered a tournament –"

"Raizen!" My anxiety released almost instantly and a wide grin stretched across my face. I knew that name! I knew him… Raizen. My fingers twitched as the knowledge of the battle god flashed though my memories. "Big guy, lots of muscles, long white hair – tribal markings? General disdain for shirts?"

Yusuke's jaw had gone slack as my elation grew. I was nearly bouncing in my chair as I bit at my lip excitedly. "You… you knew Raizen?"

My body grew still at the tension in the young man's voice. Suddenly, my mind was a whirlwind of memories and I could no longer focus on the physical world in front of me. My recollections had shoved forward, showing what I could remember of Raizen's deterioration due to his refusal to eat humans, the political issues it caused, and the few conversations I'd had with the Mazoku. If I was interpreting my memories correctly, I had once called Raizen 'friend.'

"Ria!" Yusuke's loud voice shook me back to the moment at hand. I jumped in my seat from surprise and met his gaze. He was on edge, his entire body taut with nervous energy. My brow wrinkled as I looked at him worriedly. "How… the hell do you know my old man?"

A few silent moments passed as I had to remind myself to breathe again. I blinked once, very slowly before realizing my mouth had dropped open at this revelation. "But, you can't… You- you're Raizen's son?!" I'm sure I looked like a damn fool with my mouth hanging open, but I couldn't real the shock back.

From what I could remember, not only had Raizen stopped consuming humans – he had also given up his additional carnal desires. The woman – the human woman had plagued his thoughts for centuries… Her temporary presence in his life had changed the battle god drastically. I had only met him once before their encounter, but she had influenced him far more than any of his kin, friends, or enemies. To learn that this boy who sat in front of me was the son of the Mazoku did not compute.

Yusuke winced slightly before glancing over at Kurama, who let out an audible sigh of frustration. My gaze darted between the two as they seemed to come to an unspoken understanding and Kurama nodded his head. Yusuke's shoulders slumped and he reached up to rub the back of his neck. "Well… not exactly."

Slumping back in the chair, I rubbed my eyes at the tears that stung them. Yusuke's explanation of his ancestral heritage and Raizen's eventual death had set a pang of grief in my chest when I'd learned the Mazoku's body had succumbed to starvation. "Goddamn stubborn ass demon." I signed and shook myself mentally. "I knew he was persistent, but…"

Yusuke had folded his arms and leaned back in his chair as well. His head bobbed as he nodded. "Yup, the old man stuck it out to the very end – kept his promise he'd never eat a human again."

I raised an eyebrow in his direction. "Oh, I was talking about his sperm." Yusuke's torso lurched forward as he gagged in disgust. Kurama's fist came up to cover his own mouth to hide the chuckle that had escaped him. I glanced over at the kitsune and winked quickly. He had relaxed when he realized I was just excited to have discovered memories of my past. "I'm serious, though. His DNA waited generations to be activated in a viable heir, even after being diluted by human blood of his descendants – but here you are." My voice trailed off as I became thoughtful. My sense of time was skewed. I remembered Raizen giving up eating humans, but it hadn't been too long ago in my mind. He had only recently died, too. A powerful demon like him… it would have taken centuries for his body to give up. How long had I been alive?

The more I dwelt on my own past, the more I wished for someone to question on what exactly happened. Unfortunately, I could only think of one person who would have some semblance of answers.

"Aw, shucks, Ria – you sure know how to make a guy feel special and gross all at the same time." Yusuke was grinning widely. I smiled openly back.

Kurama was still chuckling to himself, shaking his head all the while. "Of course, Yusuke – it only took you dying twice to achieve it." Yusuke sent a half-hearted glare in Kurama's direction. My brow furrowed as I looked confusingly between the two.

"Hey, I only heard about the one time! What's this about twice?"

Yusuke flapped a hand at me. "We'll tell you later, it's not important."

"You died twice and it's not important? Bullshit." Still, I grinned at him and let the subject matter drop. Yusuke and Kurama picked back up their previous conversation, although this time I was able to glean more after realizing Raizen's influence on the political situation. Occasionally, I had them stop to explain exactly who or what a name indicated, but they patiently complied.

When this particular conversation came to a close, I contemplated the new information I'd been given – the political situation in Demon World seemed to be at a delicate stage. Although Yusuke's Tournament had declared a demon named Enki as King, there were still several factions of who refused to heed his commands concerning humans. It was the collaboration of the former rulers of Demon World and Spirit World that kept the balance of the portals between Demon World and the Human World.

"Actually, that's where Hiei is today." I looked over at Kurama, my expression conveying my confusion. "He is asking for a temporary leave of duties. The former Lord Mukuro has him on rotations of border duty to make sure no humans stay too long after accidentally crossing into Demon World."

I sniggered at the thought of Hiei patrolling and escorting humans back home. "Oh, I bet he loves that."

Yusuke snorted. "At least he has a schedule. I'm randomly asked to do things at Koenma's whim." The look on the young man's face reminded me so severely of a small child pouting, I couldn't help but laugh at him. He stuck his tongue out at me and I scrunched my nose in response. Speaking of Koenma, though…

"Has anyone actually talked to Koenma lately?" Although I was aware of Genkai's plan to speak to the deity, I didn't want anyone to know I'd been eavesdropping on their conversations. "I mean, Genkai sort of thinks I'm innocent… I think. So, is she going to tell Koenma? Or, something… else…" I trailed off, unsure what Genkai could really do for me. I doubt I would be allowed to resume my old life, and I wasn't entirely sure I would want to now I'd learned of my previous life as a freakin' dragon.

Yusuke was nodding. "I talked to Botan yesterday – we're hoping Binky Breath with be here sometime today." He placed a finger on his chin. "Actually, come to think of it – Botan never gave a straight answer of when. Let me see if they're still coming." He rose from the table, stretching slightly, and made his way around to my side.

"Thanks, Yusuke."

He grinned widely and reached out to ruffle my hair, which I had left loose after a quick shower. I flailed my arms to smack his hands away and gave him a sharp glare. "Anything for our little murderer."

"Alleged!" I yelled at his back as he made his way out of the kitchen, though I couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my lips. As I turned back to the table, I found Kurama also had a small smile playing on his face. "Oh, hey, I forgot to ask you… Has, uh, has my… scent changed recently?"

His head tilted to the side and I watched as his nostrils flared subtly. He blinked a few times before nodding. "Yes, your human scent has significantly diminished in the past few days – you are becoming more of your old self in body. Although, I am surprised you were able to sense it yourself."

I shifted in my chair. "I didn't, really. Hiei mentioned it yesterday when he carri – uh, took me back to my room yesterday." I was unsure if Hiei would care if Kurama knew that he was carrying me around when I was exhausted. My face heated – I was practically a rag doll the past few days!

Kurama's lips quirked in a small smirk. "It seems Hiei has taken a liking to you."

"If by taking a liking to me you mean he hasn't tried to kill me recently…"

The light-hearted chuckle from the red head had me smiling at him, though he responded with a short shrug. "He will be back this afternoon, since I can sense your curiosity in the matter."

A frown tugged at my lips as my nose wrinkled. I actually hadn't yet wondered if or when the fire demon would be back, although I did notice the lack of bickering in the past few hours I'd been awake. My life was in such a current state of disarray, I'd only barely noticed he wasn't around. Kurama, though, had other thoughts for me.

"Whatever you say, fox." I stretched and began to feel increasingly bored. There was very little to do in another person's home in comparison to what I'd done in my own home previously, so my legs began to bounce for want of activity. "So… what is there to do around here?"

"We could focus more time on your energy. Since I am aware of your limit, we can work more carefully on your abilities rather than the basic control." He tilted his head again and smiled. "Have you been attempting to reign in your energy or has it already become reflex?"

Truthfully, I'd been working on it since I woke from my brief coma, although I was far more aware of its actions than I'd been previously. It took less than half of my attention except for the moments my emotions escaped me. When I'd realized I knew Raizen, my energy had flared. I was able to keep it under control, but it had distracted me from my memories for an instant. I told Kurama as much and he hummed thoughtfully.

"Well, let's fetch Yusuke and we can begin another session momentarily."

"I hate you." I was collapsed on the ground this time. We'd gone behind Genkai's temple to the edge of the forest. Kurama had used his own energy to manipulate the plants around us, which I initially fawned over for a solid five minutes before focusing, into targets for me to concentrate my energy attacks on. Due to the scorches my energy had caused on the wood the day before, Kurama had decided it would be more beneficial to teach an offensive move before the defensive move.

I say Kurama decided when in all actuality it was Yusuke. He made the point that his own fighting style was centralized around his attacks and it had yet to fail him (except for the two times he'd died and the defeat at the Demon World Tournament… but I digress). Kurama did not necessarily agree with the tactic, but he allowed Yusuke to step in to offer advice.

Unfortunately, it had ended with me using up far too much of my energy at once. While it was not depleted completely this time, I had gone light headed and lost my balance. Frankly, I'd already gained it back but I had little desire to get back on my feet and try again. I'd destroyed several of Kurama's plants with the sharp attacks of my energy.

The bright lines of energy reminded me of the plasma globes I'd played with in high school and hobby shops, although it was more jagged in shape. It escaped through the skin of my arms, lashing out to the points I focused on… Well, it landed at least within a 5 feet of where I aimed. I had to shove both arms out in front of me in the direction I was aiming to get the lashings close at all.

Closing my eyes, I threw an arm over my face and planned to ignore the two young men off to the side for the next several minutes. How embarrassing to basically swoon after using too much energy – ridiculous! Obviously, I was not comfortable with reading my own energy levels properly. I had a feeling there was a lot of personal meditation in my future…

"Ria, get up." Yusuke's voice was low and demanding. Was he angry at me? I wanted to tell him off, to go jump off a cliff or something similar for rebuking my issues. Instead I just let out an angry groan, refusing to use my words.

"Ria." I sat up quickly, Kurama's quiet voice sending a trickle of fear up my spine. His tone had dropped and I could tell he was facing away from me. Black spots formed in my vision momentarily, but when it cleared I looked expectantly up at the two men. They faced away from me towards the temple and I followed their gaze.

Genkai had guests.

I disliked Koenma. His little beady eyes narrowed and staring at me made me extremely uncomfortable – as though he was judging me with every passing second. It also didn't help he couldn't decide which form to take – the toddler or the handsome young man (not that I found him handsome). While Yusuke was quick to assure me it was the same Koenma, it made my unease about him only stronger to have the deity who'd accused me of murder only days before suddenly looking closer to my age, still with a pacifier clenched between his teeth. I almost preferred the talking toddler.

Alright, I may have been biased against him. And he may or may not have been looking at me with a completely blank expression, but all I saw from him was judgement.

Genkai had led us back into the temple to a sitting room similar to the one I'd relayed my story in several days earlier. This one was bigger and accommodated the ruler we had in our presence with a high quality table and plush seats. Genkai had me sit next to her, opposite Koenma, as she began to relay what had gone on at the temple since my arrival. While she spared a few details, including my depressive state, she was still very blunt about her interpretation of my behavior.

When she had finished, Koenma folded his arms and stared thoughtfully at the table. "Genkai, I generally trust your judgement. From what I can tell, you support this… dragon and, at least in part, believe what she has told you. Kurama, you vouched for her initially." The ruler turned towards the red head. I tried to catch his eyes, but Kurama's gaze stayed trained on Koenma. "Would you still support her after spending this time in her presence?"

The fox's nod came far too slow for my liking, but it did come. I released the breath I had been holding and Kurama's lips twitched momentarily. "She is not entirely the same Great Dragon I met in my previous life, but I trust she would not cause harm willingly."

Koenma gave a short 'hm' before turning back and meeting my gaze full on. His brow was furrowed and a frown tugged at his lips. With Kurama's support, I felt a surge of confidence. I lifted my chin in defiance and refused to turn away.

Suddenly, Koenma reached into a fold of his robes and pulled out a scroll, snapping it open so it spread before our small group on the table. Genaki leaned forward to look it over, but by a quick glance I could tell it was in a language I did not understand.

"Rihama." Glancing up, I found Koenma's dark eyes trained on me. Suddenly, I felt like the center of this deity's attention was a very bad place to be. "You are accused of the murder of the Great Red Dragon Kotomaru."

A grimace tore across my face and I shook my head quickly, shudders running up my back. "No. No! I didn't do it –"

He ignored me. "You are accused of supplying the Demon World's Black Market with bones, scales, blood, and fangs of the Great Red Dragon."

My hands slapped over my face as I felt the tears well up in my eyes. How could he be doing this to me?! Genkai believed me! Kurama believed me! Why wasn't he listening? His stupid father was the one who gave me a contract in the first place – I shouldn't have to prove my innocence all over again!

"You are accused of escaping to the Human World under false pretenses. You are accused of betraying your kin –"

"Listen!" I could not hold back my anger any longer. My eyes flew open as I bared my fangs at Koenma. The shout that escaped me filled the space of the room, vibrating the rice paper with the roar. Koenma's face reflected his shock, as well as the other occupants of the room. "You need to review your father's contracts – Rihama is in there. A deal was struck."

A brief moment of silence followed my outburst, and as my anger faded, the more my embarrassment grew. I was not typically prone to such angry outbursts and from the looks Koenma and Genaki were giving me, I was reminded of exactly why I didn't allow myself to be so distraught. When I glanced over at Yusuke, however, I was pleasantly surprised to find him grinning. I shrugged sheepishly before turning back to Koenma.

His head slowly bobbed as he nodded. "Yes, I know. I was coming to tell you about it… Don't yell at me. That was rude."

"So, King Enma truly did decide a dragon hiding in the human world was like a land mine – just waiting to be activated at the signs of trouble." Genkai was nodding. Her assumptions had been correct. The scroll Koenma had placed in front of us was apparently the contract I'd signed with Koenma's father, detailing only that I had sought refuge in the Human World and King Enma could call on me for a single favor at any time of his choosing.

I didn't remember fully signing the contract or making the deal with King Enma. While the consciousness of Rihama had only showed during the one particular instance, I had no other indication I'd even sought refuge through Spirit World's ruler.

"I am truly sorry, Ria. My father never let me in on his dealings with demons. We obviously know why now, but it never occurred to me that you were a casualty in his reign." Although I still didn't trust the man, I had to admit it was gratifying to know he was sorry for the way he'd treated me.

"Are you still going to arrest me?" My eyes were narrowed at him. He'd already tried once – maybe he'd do it just to make a point.

Yusuke guffawed and even Kurama let out a chuckle; I thought my question was justified. Koenma smiled softly."No, but since your case is still officially on the books, I have to complete the investigation. Care to give an official statement?"

"Yeah, sure. Why the hell not?" I paused, an idea flashing through my mind. Perhaps I could get this to work in my favor to sort out questions I still had. "…On one condition."

An eyebrow raised in my direction. "I'm afraid to ask."

"I want to see Clayton."

A/N: ...don't hate me. I know I'm super late with this chapter. Unfortunately, a lot has been going on in my personal and work life. Namely, I'm going through the process of getting a Certificate of Professional Ethics through a graduate school. It's been a little tedious, especially since I'm asking my employer to help pay for this education. Fun times.

Chapter 11 will be out on time, though. I promise. As always, review, favorite, and follow if you enjoy the story! Thank you so much to lilnightmare17, MissLini, Why4What, Ground-Cinnamon, S, pourquoibella, and Lestatsgirl15 for reviewing! Big squishy hugs to you all!