Yusuke and his team agreed that it would be better if they spilt up- Hiei and Kuwabara went one way, with Botan along as referee, and he and Kurama went the other.

"You think she'll be all right?" Yusuke looked at Kurama- the old youko had learned love and compassion from his life as a human and his human mother, but Yusuke doubted he'd been able to learn about the kind of love he felt for me. "She looked so scared," Kurama continued. "She said she couldn't hold out much longer..." Yusuke put a hand on his shoulder.

"She was lying, you know." Kurama to gave him a questioning look.

"Lying?" Yusuke nodded.

"Kay said she wasn't as strong as I am," he said. "If she puts her mind to it, she has my strength and more. She'll make it through this, Kurama- I know she will."

A few moments later, Kurama froze in his tracks.

"Yusuke, what is that?" Kurama was focused towards the end of a dark alleyway , pointing at what looked like a pile of laundry. Yusuke shook his head and cautiously walked towards the 'laundry.' Seconds later, he let out a gasp.

"Kaira!" He rushed over to and took the figure in his arms. "Kay? Kay, are you all right? Speak to me, please!" As the body lay dormant, Yusuke took a good look at it and came to one conclusion- the person in his arms wasn't Kaira Urameshi.

"Wake up, Kaira- you wouldn't want to miss this." My eyes slowly opened and I noticed that my position had changed. Instead of being up against the wall, I was laying flat on my back... looking up into my own eyes and hearing my own laugh. "Oh, didn't your friend Botan tell you?" asked my voice. "About my being a shape shifter?"

"She told me," I replied. "I just never thought you'd stoop that low." I looked at 'her' and shook my head. "They'll never believe you're me." My mirror image transformed- it was once again Hitukeri Batosei. He looked down at me and scowled.

"What makes you think that, Kaira?" he asked, angrily. "Is there some sort of special bond between you and your friends that allows them to know?" I smiled.

"Yeah, actually there is. I'd explain it to you, but I doubt you'd understand. I know you wouldn't." I neglected to tell him that there were two very important things he was missing, two things that I was never without. Batosei let out a chuckle before shifting back to my shape and starting towards the door.

"We shall see Kaira- we shall see." With that he walked out the door, leaving me alone... with a dozen or so hungry vampires...

By this time, "Kaira" Batosei had "woken up" and was crying in Yusuke's arms.

"Yusuke," he cried pitifully. "I was so scared! All those vampires and, and Batosei... I didn't know what he was going to do." He continued to cry and Yusuke continued to make him believe that he believed him. Kurama knew this. Yusuke knew he knew this, but Kurama made believe he didn't know and Yusuke made believe to believe he didn't knew, but knew that he knew. Everyone knew... except for Batosei, who believed his plan was working perfectly. These two would soon be food for his troops, but not until they had witnessed their beloved Kaira perish. Kurama then let out a 'keh' and looked at Yusuke.

"How long are we going to buy this?" Suddenly, Yusuke sent Batosei flying. The vampire changed to his demon form as he slammed into a wall. He looked at Yusuke and Kurama, a scowl covering his face.

"How?" he asked. "How did you know?" Yusuke let out a laugh and shook his head.

"You shouldn't have given me time to look you over," he said. "That allowed me to see the mistakes you made: you're not wearing Kay's necklace or her tattoo. Now take us to her..." He nodded towards Kurama, who held up a wooden stake. "Or else my friend here will send you to meet your girlfriend earlier than you expected." Batosei smiled.

"You leave me no choice- I shall take you to her."

"Kay!" I struggled to open my eyes- Batosei's followers, including Tim, had a little snack while we was gone. None of them bit me, all used either a needle or a knife. Most likely they had been threatened- bite me and die. They too had left me alone a while ago, but I was still weak. I felt the cuffs on my hands and feet loosen as my eyes fully opened. Things were still blurry, but there was no disguising that bright, sly smile... or was there?

"Yusuke," I said softly. "Yusuke is that really you?" He nodded.

"It's me, Kay."

"When was I born, Yusuke?" My cousin smiled and leaned over to my ear.

"October 17th, 1986," he whispered. "9:27 am." I let out a sigh and allowed him to help me up off the table- this was really Yusuke.

"Wha-where's Kurama?"

"He's right here," said a voice. I looked over Yusuke's shoulder to see Batosei- he had one arm around Kurama's neck and the other was holding a knife to his throat. "And unless you want him to join my little army, you'll get back on that table."

"Don't do it, Kaira," Kurama demanded. "Don't do it!" I bit my lip. I couldn't let him get hurt, not because of me. "Kaira!" I looked at Yusuke and gave a sly smile.

"Family by Fate," I said. He gave me a confused look, but then understood exactly what I was getting at.

"Friends by Choice." With that, Yusuke dashed to the left and sprinted out the same door he had came in as I hopped back up on the table as I had been told. I flashed Batosei a sly smile.

"I'm on the table- let him go."

Meanwhile, as Yusuke ran out of the caves to find Kuwabara and Hiei, he thought about the last message I had sent: Yusuke and I were cousins by a stroke of fate. A similar stroke of fate had brought me together with Kurama and it was my choice to continue to risk my life for him.

"You're a crazy girl, Kay," he thought. "Even crazier since you fell in love."

"You heard me," I said angrily. "Let Kurama go." Batosei nodded his head, then shoved Kurama to the side... into the arms of some of his little friends. "I said let him go!"

"I did let him go," Batosei told me. "Your argument is now with them." He gestured towards the group of pale faced, blood sucking, mother fucking vampires that now held Kurama prisoner.

"Damn it, Kaira!" I thought. "How could you have been so stupid? My only hope now is that Yusuke finds Kuwabara and Hiei and they'll..." I suddenly realized that my life depended on a guy who pretty much hated my guts- I was toast.

**Hey everyone, Yusuke here. So I didn't exactly get captured like Botan said I would- sue me. Anyhow, Batosei has Kaira and Kurama, so there's no question that he's gonna use that to his advantage. And as for Kaira saying she's not as strong as me... well, she doesn't know her own strength. What do I mean? Find out next time on Yu-Yu Hakusho!***