Disclaimer: Refer to prior chapters.

Japanese Words: I have not found a word suitable for shadow demon energy. Right now, it will remain as Youki, though I'm not thrilled about that.

Delay Note: I apologize for not having this out sooner. I hit the same confidence issues I did last time, only this time I couldn't back out so it resulted in not wanting to write. And then finals week hit and I didn't basically sleep for five days straight. XD Good times. Good times.

So I've given you an extra-long chapter to make up for it! And thank you to everyone who reviewed last chapter - especially those who sent me PMs when they couldn't because of ff . net!

-o-o-o-o-

Keeping Quiet

Chapter 10

Fires Burns the Dark to Rubble (Pt. II)

-o-o-o-o-

Hermione and Ron had just returned from their annual Prefect train duties, plopping down next to and across from Harry, when it happened. For the second time in his attendance of Hogwarts, the lights of the train flickered before shutting off completely.

The Boy Who Lived was immediately on his feet, ignoring the surprised calls of his friends and pressing his face to the window, searching for the dark shapes that would be against the cold night sky. They couldn't be here – not again.

"Dementors?" Ron asked shakily, voicing Harry's own thoughts. It couldn't be. There was no reason for them to be-

Voldemort.

"Again?" Hermione was standing too. He could see her silhouette in the bluish light filtering in from the cloudy night outside their window.

"The train's not s-stopping," Neville whispered, holding his plant close as nervous eyes darted back and forth. "The train stopped l-last time."

Hermione glanced at Harry even as her body swayed with the movement of the car rounding a curve. Could Dementors get on a moving train? They had a sort of gliding or…er…floating ability, so that wasn't to say it was impossible…

"No." The soft refusal, more like a knowledgeable secret finally being imparted to its audience, came from the ever-calm Luna Lovegood. Her hair was luminescent in the light and gave an eerie, almost ethereal feeling as she went from her distant, doe-like staring to focusing on Harry. "These are something different."

Before Ron could mutter anything about loony rubbish or Hermione could look to Harry, both confirming that glazed look in Luna's eyes that always seemed to bode ill for the group, what light was in the compartment suddenly vanished.

A collective intake of breath – the subtle, quiet gasp that prayed they had no reason to be as afraid as they were – was accompanied by each member taking a staggered step away from the door.

The hallway beyond had become so shrouded in darkness it appeared not to be there at all.

Wands were pulled as the handle of the door creaked, shaking as if by its own accord before whoever dared open it found its secrets and it released with a metallic pop. The door slid open, slower than any dramatic horror film Harry had ever seen when he'd been dragged to the theatres by Dudley on those rare occasions when his cousin demanded his company.

Darkness, to an extent that none present had ever seen before, was flowing just beyond their door. As if alive and a river of black, the liquid darkness that had consumed the hallway moved, pulsing as it seemed to weave – towards them and then away, forward and then back.

Harry looked down at the tendrils of it sweeping slowly across the floor, every once in a while hooking themselves into their compartment before being swept off by the invisible force that continued to move the nothingness.

"What is this?" Hermione whispered – the sound clueing Harry and Ron in on how very screwed they were.

Hermione knew everything.

Ron, now pale from head to toe and looking very much like he'd just seen the second biggest spider of his lifetime, turned to her. He opened his mouth to question her lack of knowledge.

Only a scream – no, a screech unlike anything Harry had ever heard before – erupted through the compartment. He turned towards the door in time to be shoved back by the blackness that suddenly lurched forward into the compartment.

He cried out as he stumbled, tripping over someone behind him and falling backwards. He heard something connect with the window – a heavy thud that rattled the glass. But he couldn't be concerned with the details of who had hit what.

Green eyes were locked on the darkness, for it wasn't just a bulge of solid black connected to the lost hallway beyond. No, there were two glowing yellow eyes – that's all he could describe of the almond spheres piercing through his own.

And teeth.

Open wide in a disorienting location on what he could only assume as the face of darkness itself, was a mouth full of several rows of very sharp teeth. Beyond the calcium and enamel death was more darkness, waiting to swallow their flesh.

And it was screeching. The scream that echoed in their ears had not decreased, pulsing with the very movement of that which created it. He could feel it entering his head, expanding until his brain and skull could hold no more, and throbbing like the beginnings of a migraine. Harry struggled to keep his grip on his wand. From the corner of his eye he could see Neville covering his ears, weapon abandoned on the floor.

And then it was gone.

Harry, wand arm extended yet no spell on his tongue, stared shakily at the empty compartment door – blackness slithering outside. He scrambled to his feet in the sudden silence, discovering that he was lying in the tangled mass of limbs and body parts that was Hermione and Ron.

The redhead, nursing his pounding skull (courtesy of the window), sat up as Hermione managed to clamber back onto the seats. Rubbing his head and feeding his fingers through his hair in a search for blood, he looked back to the door. "Wh-what the bloody hell was that thing!"

His exclamation, loud enough to qualify as a shout, was met by Neville slamming the door shut, his hands shaking so badly that he couldn't make it lock. Calm, pale fingers covered his and he looked over to Luna as she slowly slid the lock shut.

Harry kept his wand at the ready, not willing to believe that a door could keep out…well, whatever that thing was. He looked back at Hermione, who was helping Ron to his feet with unsteady hands.

"We've got to do something – those things might be all over the tra-" Harry's heroics were interrupted as Hermione looked towards him, ready to offer any ideas, and screamed.

Though nowhere near the level of the creature previously making all the noise, it was enough to draw their attention and follow her wide, terrified gaze. Harry spun, looking over his shoulder at the very thing that had prompted Hermione to express such fear.

And froze as well.

His shadow, stretched across the wall behind him from the barely visible light of the windows, was definitely moving on its own. And said movements included peeling off the wall and reaching towards him.

Once more he fell back in a scramble to flee the dark claw coming at him. Everything blurred as Neville's frightened yelp combined with Hermione's scream, the crashing of a potted plant, and Luna's distant voice.

A flash of light filled the compartment as he hit the ground of the train. He shut his eyes against the blinding change and slammed his hands over his ears as the screech returned in tones of withering pain.

The light faded even as his mind caught up with the events around him and Luna's call of "Lumos!" echoed into nothingness. The darkness, previously reaching towards him had lost all form of shape once more and was writhing in movement. Flickers of what appeared to be a human form grabbing at its skull pulsed in and out of view, quickly lost again to the constant changing darkness.

Harry fought to sit up even as the black thing let out a final, deafening screech that crumpled Hermione and Ron, and darted towards the door. The Boy Who Lived cried out to Neville, standing between the locked exit and the darkness, but the lithe boy heard nothing over the shriek.

His eyes widened as the shadow launched itself at him and before he knew what had truly happened, he found himself shoved to the side with a cry and a flash of pain surging up his arm. The compartment door whipped open as Neville hit the bench.

Orange light flashed from the hallway beyond, the darkness gone and replaced with the filtering moonlight from outside. The shriek of the monster suddenly rose an octave, becoming a death cry, before it silenced altogether. The black mass rapidly withered away, like smoke in a vacuum-sealed room, leaving only the occasional glint of orange and a huffing Kuwabara in their doorway.

"Stay in there!" the Japanese boy demanded before any of the young wizards could fully catch hold of the situation. "Turn on as many lights as you can – the brighter the better. It hurts them!"

Their door was slammed shut again – bouncing as it hit the frame and sliding closed once more. Luna grabbed hold of the handle and pulled, but there was no locking click.

The door was broken.

"Lumos." Light filled their compartment again, steady and continuous, from Hermione's wand. Harry, brain furiously working to make sense of events started not a full five minutes ago, turned to take stock of his friends and their injuries.

Hermione climbed off of the seat she had been standing on as she whispered in a hush, "Oh, Neville!" and moved over to the boy. He was curled around his arm, huddled on the compartment seat.

Harry moved over as well, casting a glance to Luna as she continued to hold the door shut even though there was no more darkness beyond the glass. Her watchful eyes never left the moonlit hallway outside.

Hermione's shushing caught his attention once more as she tried to comfort their whimpering friend. She managed to pry Neville's arm away from his own clutches. He was squinting, his watery eyes focused on the wounded limb.

"It's hurts."

Hermione smiled sympathetically as she looked down at the injured limb. Three long gashes ran up most of the length of his forearm and oozed a sickeningly black liquid mixed with the boy's blood. Harry, feeling useless as his friend began trying to heal the wound with magic, looked back towards Ron.

The redhead, still mumbling to himself and sitting below the window of the compartment, was rubbing his sore head and trying desperately to recover and hide the pale shaking that had overtaken him.

"You all right?" Harry asked as he extended a hand to his best friend. The redhead just nodded, not trusting his mouth with words at the moment, and took the offered help. Although the scarred wizard felt the need for humor – anything to try and shake off whatever just happened – he found himself turning back towards the Luna-held door. "What were those things?"

Looking much like he had when he had been spitting up slugs almost three years ago, Ron just shook his head and sat down on a seat.

"It's not healing." Hermione gave a frustrated cry as she turned away from Neville, wand waving with every angry gesture of her hand. "I can't find a spell to heal the cut."

Harry followed the moving wand until it pointed towards the oozing wound and grimaced. The black…stuff gave the fresh scratches an already infected appearance. "Calm down, Hermione. It's not going to kill him."

As he spoke, he moved over to Luna and glanced out the window as well.

"They're lighting the way." His head turned at her words, but her glazed eyes were far from anything in the hallway. Confused, he tried to follow but could see nothing more than the moonlit train beyond their door.

"We should go help Kuwabara. If there's more of those things, he might need our help," Harry decided firmly, reaching for the handle of the door, still covered by Luna's hand.

"He told us to stay here, Harry." The interjection by the ever-wise Hermione sounded less than convincing. "I…I think he killed that thing."

"Didn't you hear it?" Ron replied, voicing his own thoughts. His words sounded as pale as his face. "That thing definitely died."

Still. Harry looked back into the hallway. He tried to recall if others had screamed when the lights went out – when the black nothingness opened their door. But he had been busy handling their situation (and not very well, he berated himself) and couldn't remember hearing anything.

Maybe the darkness had just attacked them.

Hermione cast an uncertain glance to Harry, as if he might suddenly throw open the door and vanish, before she turned back to Neville. The boy was hissing quietly, grabbing his arm as the black liquid seeped out of his wound with his own pulsing veins.

As Harry watched through the glass, debating on whether to venture out of not, Hermione returned to trying to heal the cuts on Neville's arm.

-o-o-o-

"What the hell?" Yusuke literally leapt up from his seat as their world was suddenly consumed in dim, moonlit darkness. He glanced towards the compartment door even as Kuwabara stood beside him.

Hiei, quickly taking into account the situation, kept his attention almost solely on the shivering fox gripped in his arms.

"D-Death." Kurama had been repeating that word and only that word for several minutes, his voice always hushed and full of fear. Curled around himself, he could feel Bikou purring and rubbing against his stomach, tucked warmly inside his clothing.

It was the only warmth he could manage to secure, apart from the distant heat of Hiei's energy.

Yusuke and Kuwabara moved towards the door, both pressing their faces to the glass. The latter let out a yelp, jumping back after several seconds as the world outside their compartment vanished. Joining his friend in the short retreat, Yusuke immediately clenched his hand, forefinger and thumb held loosely out and ready to channel his spirit energy.

"No way," the raven-haired detective murmured in disbelief, words filtered through clenched teeth. "There's no way in fucking hell!"

Even he couldn't complain with the angry translation the charm gave him. Kuwabara drew his rei-ken, orange light flickering through the compartment. Neither boys' eyes ever left the door or the pulsing blackness beyond.

Hiei glanced up as the two, in seconds, were tense and ready for an obvious battle. Red irises darted to the door shrouded in black but said nothing. He stood, releasing the fox who whimpered as the warmth he provided faded.

The metal handle jerked and clicked before the door slid open.

Kuwabara let out a cry as he jumped forward without hesitation, sword slashing. The hallway erupted in shrill, demonic cries and Yusuke's finger pulsed blue.

"Shadow demons," Yusuke swore, lifting his hand as Kuwabara lit the darkness, revealing several pairs of glowing eyes and more teeth than he felt the need to count. At point-blank range, Yusuke had no trouble taking several of them out with a single shot.

"Hey!" Kuwabara yelped as a couple of the hairs dangling from his pompadour fashion (which he prided himself on, mind you) singed away. "Watch where you're aimiiiiing!"

His complaint turned into a strangled cry as he barely dodged the claws that swept for him. The sword he held thickened, producing more light and the shadows seemed to retreat from it, scrambling over one another to escape.

"Less complaining, more ass-kicking." Yusuke was in the hallway by then, his back almost to Kuwabara's as he shot repeated bursts of energy down the length of the train, burning shadow demons into nothing but wisps of black smoke.

Within the compartment, Hiei stood beside the curled form of the fox, his hands by his side. His two teammates outside, once the shadows had fled from fighting distance, followed after with battle cries, each taking an end of the train.

"Idiots," he muttered, red eyes darting back and forth across the threshold of the room he stood in. He could hear the screams of students up and down the train. His wrist twitched and a flame flickered into creation within his curled grasp.

Light fluttered around the two forms, casting a yellow and orange glow throughout the compartment and into the empty hallway beyond. Yusuke and Kuwabara might be chasing shadows down the train – obviously helping the students along the way, considering their human sentimentality – but Hiei had enough experience with the creatures to know they wouldn't stay cornered.

Shadow demons flocked to anywhere that held food and darkness. And right now, Hiei and Kurama were the best source of both.

He increased the size of the flame held at his side until it grew into a healthy sized fireball. The flickering heat wrapping around it flowed rhythmically with an unseen wind and he held it up, brightening the compartment.

The problem with fire versus either of Yusuke's or Kuwabara's weapons was that while shadow demons disliked any form of light, they needed it to thrive. One could not have a shadow with the absence of light.

And Hiei was well aware of the fact that it took far more fire to kill a shadow demon than it did reiki: the damned creatures' ultimate weakness.

Red eyes glanced back at the fox, whose shaking was slowly subsiding and mutterings already gone. Though he seemed to be recovering, Hiei couldn't count on Kurama in this fight. Thinking it over, it wasn't all that much of a loss.

The Reikai Tentei had learned quickly that against the native population of the Maekai, Kurama had been the one with the weakest offense. None of his plants did any harm to the shadow demons – slicing through nothing but a semi-corporeal form made of darkness alone.

Youki, usually taking the form of manipulation rather than pure energy, was far less efficient in killing the creatures. Kurama had never trained himself in combat using pure energy because it ate at his overall supply far quicker than the plant manipulation that came so naturally. And Reiki, the most effective offense one could have against shadow demons, was barely present in the demon-turned-human's stores.

He'd managed, of course, as the fox always did. But Hiei had stayed close to him (much to Kurama's joy and mutual annoyance) whenever they engaged in a fight as his youki usage drained him far quicker than any of his teammates.

Staring at the door now, with darkness just beginning to creep back around its edges, Hiei had to rethink his original conclusion. Having Kurama in the fight might not be as helpful as having Yusuke or (heaven forbid) the Oaf, but at least he wouldn't be a liability to protect.

With that regret in mind, Hiei raised his fire-lit hand in time for one of the lingering demons to lunge, releasing its unforgettable screech.

-o-o-o-

Kuwabara slid the door shut to another compartment, shocked students still staring at him. Luckily, none of them had been injured. He'd have to go back through the train when this was finished and purify any wounds.

Hopefully, all injuries would be limited to scratches alone.

Spurred at the thought of any of the students being bitten, Kuwabara charged down the train once more, the shadows having retreated from his rather fierce attack. Yes, they ran in fear under the threatening sword of Kazuma Kuwabara!

With gleeful pride and the knowledge that he was, indeed, a man of honor, the orange-haired tentei waved his mighty rei-ken, taking down shadow demons as he went.

Yusuke, having similar success with far less manly thoughts, skidded to a halt as his last spirit bullet pierced through two shadow demons, slamming their already deteriorating forms into the back wall of the train.

Silence reigned for a moment as Yusuke glanced around with a childishly expectant expression, as if challenging more demons to suddenly surround him in an ambush.

When no such thing happened, he glanced back at the wall of the train and gave a smirk. The wooden panels were burnt with the effects of his last gun blast. Briefly wondering if the school would try to charge them for that damage (and gleefully thinking of how he'd send the bill to Koenma if they did) he turned back towards the rest of the train.

Several students were watching him from their compartment doors – though few seemed to have the legs to do so. He supposed an attack of shadow demons would rightly scare them.

It had freaked him out the first time, too.

Wondering in amusement how Kuwabara must be faring and trying to ignore the memories of tediously hunting down every shadow demon that had escaped from the opened Netherworld the last time, he started heading back down the length of the train.

Sneezing in the middle of his attack (throwing him off a bit), Kuwabara took out another shadow demon as he rubbed his nose. Somebody had to be talking about him.

'Oh, I bet it's my beautiful Yukina!' The thought danced across his mind as he raised his sword, a now love-struck man of honor spurred on by his will to return to his true love. His arm, swinging in an arc to bring his rei-ken down upon the screeching demons, faltered as a chill suddenly ran up his spine.

Letting out a strangled gasp, and barely dodging the shadow demon that leapt towards him in his moment of disconcertion, he stumbled back into the cleared hallway. With widened eyes, Kuwabara spun around, ignoring the demons still left to destroy, and started running back the way he had come, a cold and distantly familiar energy raising goose bumps along his arms.

-o-o-o-

Hiei was growing frustrated. With every demon he took down, desperately trying not to burn everything in the compartment, another took its place. His arms were actually growing tired of chucking fireballs and channeling an extremely controlled flame.

Kurama, who seemed to be quite warm now (taking in the sweat dripping from his brow) was still curled in the seat, hands slammed down over his sensitive ears. The fire demon was glad to say, however, that the fox had recovered enough to be aware of the situation around him.

"Hang on, fox," Hiei growled out, having tolerated the limitless attacks of these demons for far too long already. "I'm ending this."

The redhead merely nodded, clamping down tighter on his ears as Hiei summoned yet another ball of swirling fire. With a battle cry worthy of the diminutive demon, the ball burst into a wave of orange light and heat as it shot towards the remaining shadows.

Their dying shrieks were enough to give even Hiei a minor headache as he pulled his flame back, extinguishing the burning curtain over the door's window and the other minor details set aflame in his fight. Kurama slowly lowered his hands, looking exasperatedly up at Hiei.

"I'm sorry," he began, though his voice still gave hint to the shakiness he had displayed earlier. He stood, arms crossing over themselves in a well-hidden gesture of comfort. "I'm better no-"

The softly spoken words halted mid-sentence as emerald eyes widened and hands flew to his throat. Hiei, having felt the same energy waver in and out of existence seconds before Kurama abruptly ended the conversation, spun around and this time drew his sword.

Pale hands wrapped around the fox's slender neck: Kurama's hands gripping at the fingers. Violet eyes peered from behind red locks and the darkness beyond Kurama's body moved and shimmered with effects only created by firelight dancing off of raven strands of hair.

Hiei ground his teeth, perplexed annoyance at the presence of shadow demons long since forgotten, at this newest impossibility and darker threat.

-o-o-o-

Yusuke was almost back to the compartment, delayed by several purifications and the checking of more compartments then he thought a train should possess, when he felt the heat. Flames, too far away to cause injury, sent waves over his face and he covered his eyes from the light that momentarily filled the dark hallway.

"Hiei." He started forward, this time with a little more speed in his movements. As the flames died, sucked back into the compartment he was heading for, he saw another figure running towards him.

Kuwabara was high-tailing it, rei-ken flashing back and forth as he ran. Yusuke, wondering why he hadn't extinguished the weapon, looked behind him to the shadow demons following at an equal pace, though the sly creatures were crawling along the walls and ceiling as well.

Trying not to laugh at the image of Kuwabara running for his life from a mere dozen Maekai demons, Yusuke raised his fist and loaded his shotgun. "Kuwabara, duck!"

The teen, having not been at all focused on the creatures following him nor the raven-haired figure he was quickly approaching, fell to the floor. He was used to following the commands of his teammates without question, but with observation.

Of course, having tripped over his feet and smashed into the floor of the train at just the right time merely gave the impression that he had heeded Yusuke's order.

With a shout from his teammate, darts of blue lit the entire train as they flashed overhead, hitting the demons that jumped at him in his fallen position. As they faded with their dying cries, he scrambled back up, recalling the sword that had vanished as he tripped.

Yusuke's smirk died as his friend leapt up and sprinted the last distance towards the compartment. Now realizing he hadn't been running from any demons, he ran forward as well, having no idea what to expect when he rounded into the compartment just after Kuwabara, but ready for a battle as always.

What he saw, however, killed any thoughts of an immediate fight.

Kurama stood by the window, grasping at hands that wrapped around his throat and a…pulsing Karasu stood behind him. From where he was, Yusuke couldn't hear what the fox was saying; neither could he read lips, but he had a fair idea what the redhead was muttering.

"You're dead. You're dead. I know you're dead, I killed you. You're dead." The mantra seemed to repeat itself as Kurama stood, green eyes closed against the nightmare that seemed to have come back to life behind him.

"And you're as beautiful as ever, my love." Kurama shuddered at the hot breath on his neck and the frosted words that flowed over his ears. His mouth clamped shut; he should never have been saying anything that could be used as a weakness in the first place.

Hiei's hand twitched, the flame residing in his palm flickering and increasing in strength. Karasu retreated somewhat back behind Kurama's form, eyes narrowing against the light, his hands tightening around the fox's neck.

"Don't even think about it, fire demon," he hissed quietly, violet eyes glaring from behind red locks. "Get rid of it."

Glancing at the kitsune, who was regaining his calm exterior, Hiei extinguished the flame with a growl. The compartment was cast in darkness once more, lit only by the moon filtering in over Karasu's shoulder and the orange flickering of Kuwabara's sword.

With the flame gone, the demon stood straighter, no longer hiding behind the form which he held within his hands. Kurama could feel the smirk growing on the crow's face and opened cold, angry eyes.

"Do not think me harmless, Karasu!" Red hair whipped around in a sudden wind as vines grew from the tangled tresses and lashed out at the violet-eyed demon.

A chilling, almost humorless laugh echoed through the room. Kuwabara raised his sword, taking a step forward. Waking from his trance, Yusuke raised his arm, gun poised and ready, in the same offensive stance.

The three tentei had watched as those vines passed harmlessly through the crow demon and though they did not understand it, they all knew what it meant.

"Shadow demon," Hiei hissed out. His grip on his sword, raised before his defensive crouch, was no longer any use in this situation, but he refused to sheath it. Without being able to summon his flame, he would not stand before the threatened fox weaponless.

Kurama's eyes widened at the fire demon's words, comprehension but not true understanding flashing over his features. It vanished, however, to be replaced by a pained grimace as a hand entwined in his hair and ripped the vines from their clutching grasps.

Red strands fell to the floor.

Karasu, one hand still clenching a pale throat, wrapped his free hand around Kurama's waist, delighting in the anger that flared on the faces of the tentei before him. Especially the little fire demon.

"Release him, crow!" Said fire demon, sword shifting ever so slightly into a far more offensive stance, was glaring with enough anger and heat that Karasu was truly surprised he wasn't burning into a pile of ash.

"You've got nowhere to run!" Kuwabara added (Hiei ignoring the annoyance of such), his own sword glinting in the dark room. Yusuke, still having no clue what was going on, could only keep his guard up, ready to fire if the opportunity presented itself.

"Now there's a point," Karasu replied, voice dripping with sarcasm but eyes never once abandoning the cold glare. "But I've got a little fox to help me with that."

"Fuck off."

Karasu merely laughed at the rather desperate words that fought to contain the anger and fear consuming his kitsune. He could feel it coming off of him in waves. Leaning in, he let his semi-corporeal lips brush against Kurama's ear. "All in good time, my love."

"Get off of me; I am not yours to have!" Kurama strained against the hands that held him, his constraints only tightening.

Violet eyes filled with a mixture of amusement and disgust, leaving an ugly expression lingering on his features. "No, you'd rather belong to the little fi-"

Karasu ducked the elbow aimed for his face.

Hiei took a step forward until nails dug into Kurama's neck, droplets of blood summoned to the surface. Cold eyes were once more glaring at the hiyoukai, daring him to come closer.

"I may not have my original body, but I assure you I can still blow a hole through his pretty little throat." The threat forced Hiei's movements to cease. Behind him, Yusuke and Kuwabara equally tensed, expressions mirroring their rage.

Karasu grinned again as he brushed his lips against Kurama's shoulder, moving towards his neck. Violet eyes never left Hiei as the fox tried not to tense but failed as every demonic instinct within him screamed.

The crow was far too close to a vulnerable spot. And it wasn't his throat.

Hiei's eyes, alight with flames and fury, tightened his grip on his sword until the hilt creaked under his whitened knuckles. Behind him, Yusuke's eyes widened at Karasu's positioning, lips parted against the soft flesh where neck met shoulder.

His demon blood immediately identifying all the threats of the crow's intended actions, Yusuke's finger glowed blue, lighting the room with reiki. "Don't you fucking da-"

Time slowed as everything happened at once. The door to the compartment was slammed open. Violet eyes rose to the new intrusion, narrowing at the new threat. Hiei lunged, sword poised. Kurama shouted out. Yusuke ran forward.

Teeth sunk into flesh.

The fox tore himself away from Karasu, ripping sharp canines through tender skin. A black fur-ball pounced from the back of Kurama's shirt, claws outstretched and teeth bared. The kitsune stumbled into Yusuke who wrapped his arms protectively around him and turned away from the crow. Hiei's sword sunk into a shadowy torso. Curses echoed through the room as Bikou was shoved off of a newly clawed-up face and the shadow demon wearing Karasu's features wisped around the katana as smoke around a blade.

"Kill him!" Yusuke shouted even as Hiei summoned a flame in his hand. Karasu's eyes lit with the thrill of a fight and shadowy, writhing fingers clamped down on the wrist that held the flickering fire.

"Shrimp!" Kuwabara started forward even as an explosion ripped through the compartment. Hiei gritted his teeth, falling to one knee as he brought his sword up once more, slicing through the ethereal arm.

"Lumos!" The compartment was lit by a blinding light and Hiei had to shield his eyes, flame vanquished. Yusuke covered Kurama as shrieks filled the compartment.

When the light faded, the four tentei remained – Hiei crouched by the window, sword still poised for attack: Yusuke holding Kurama, back pressed to the edge of the seat: Kuwabara standing, sword flickering as he stared in horror at the lack of Karasu.

Harry, wand out and tip still glowing with the spell, stood in the doorway with Ron and Luna beside him. Yusuke glanced at them before searching the place where Karasu should have been. He cursed loudly – vividly. The translator didn't capture half of it.

"He's gone." Kuwabara's words, seemingly hollow, drew the attention of the newly arrived wizards.

"You said light hurts them. Of course he's gone," Ron stated, looking back to where the creepy, dark haired thing had been. It had moved like the other monsters, but this one had the features of a pale, violet-eyed man with more cruelty in his eyes than Luscious Malfoy on a bad day.

"Light hurts them, it doesn't kill them," Kuwabara reiterated, still speaking as if he was numb. "Fuck, he's still out there."

"What's going on?" Harry asked, looking between them. "At least that thing is gone."

Hiei sheathed his sword with the "Hn" to which Harry had become accustomed. Blood flowed down his left forearm from the gory wound blasted into his skin. Turning back around to face them, he walked over to Yusuke and prodded him aside, bending down before Kurama.

Yusuke, knowing the fire demon would be of far more help to the fox than he could be, relinquished his hold. Kurama was sitting on the floor, one arm across his bent knees, the other clamping down on the junction of his neck and shoulder. Blood ran between his fingers and down his chest, soaked up by his shirt.

Hiei, eyes focused only on the fox before him, reached out to pull his hand away. Kurama hissed – something feral and nearly demonic – as he scrambled back from the fire demon's outstretched fingers.

"Don't touch it!"

Harry took a step back, bumping into Ron, at the venomous words spat from such a previously gentle guy. Ron gripped his arm, fingers digging into the skin and the scarred wizard didn't have to see his best friend's face to know the expression there.

Shock. Fear. Incomprehension. He was wearing the same expression, after all.

Hiei remained unfazed by the animalistic defense to which Kurama had resorted. This was very much a bestial matter most easily dealt with using defense mechanisms. And Kurama's was known as Youko.

Knowing that an injured animal is most uncomfortable when surrounded, Hiei turned to the others. "Return to your seats," he said rather politically, keeping a neutral expression over his features. He pointed to Harry. "You, go tell the driver of this thing what's happened."

"There isn't a conductor," Luna cut in airily. Of all of them, including the tentei, she seemed the least shaken up by the events. But then again, she never was.

Hiei growled, the first signs of his so-called calm breaking in lieu of frustration. "Then go and tell whoever's in charge."

Harry glanced to Ron. "The Prefects are. Er…" He thumbed to a pale redhead who was realizing the responsibility he was about to handle. "Him."

Even in Harry's words, the shortest boy's expression at this newest development could be called nothing but deadpan.

"You've got to be kidding me." A thin eyebrow twitched above red eyes growing more impatient by the second. "Detective, go with one of them and explain."

Yusuke, surprised at the sudden attention brought to him, stumbled. "Explain what?"

"That there was a demonic attack." The soft voice, having regained its calm exterior and expressionless quality, drew their attention back to the injured redhead sitting against the edge of the compartment seat. "Tell the students it was merely preliminary and should not repeat."

"Demons?" Harry and Ron shared a worried look. It couldn't mean that Voldemort had actually…

Yusuke stared at Kurama, not exactly sure what to say to that. Weren't they supposed to be forgetting stuff like this? And besides, there were more important things to deal with right now than a cover and clean up. "But…Kurama."

The redhead, always perceptive even in times of pain or stress, seemed to know what he was thinking. Green eyes locked with his, a certain human aspect back in them and Yusuke knew that the act was once more on and so he should play along. "You remember demons, don't you Yusuke?"

With all eyes trained on him now, save for a red pair still observing a certain fox, Yusuke could only nod and rub the back of his neck in confusion, self-consciousness, and complete and utter uncertainty for where this whole thing was going.

"Well…I mean…it's kind of hard not to."

Kurama nodded at his successful reply. Their cover was still in place now with one traumatic event and a whole lot more memory.

"Please go and keep any of the students from becoming frightened or chaotic," he continued, internally glad that Hermione was not present. He didn't have the patience or the strength to further detail the newest aspect to their cover-up.

Yusuke was still staring at him with that pitying look of uncertainty. Kurama tried not to grind his teeth. He didn't need pity. He didn't need them around him right now.

Hiei, sensing all of it, turned to Yusuke with a glare that demanded obedience. With a slow nod, the detective stood. He understood that Kurama needed space – time – and that the best thing he could do was get everyone else out of the way.

"I'll go with you," Kuwabara offered, not stupid enough to miss the waves of 'leave us the hell alone' that Hiei was projecting. "You know…in case any more…uh…demons are left."

Yusuke absently nodded, turning towards the three wizards and starting to usher them out of the compartment. Ron and Luna moved into the hall but Harry didn't budge.

"Come on, Potter, let's get you back to your seat," Yusuke tried somewhat reasonably to request rather than order.

Harry still didn't move. "But Kurama is-"

Hiei's harsh words cut him off. "Thank you for your help, now GO!"

Ron grabbed his friend by the elbow and pulled him away from the door. "Come on, mate. I think we should go check up on Neville and 'Mione."

Harry reluctantly let himself be pulled away as Kuwabara followed. Yusuke paused at the door. "We'll be back."

"No." Hiei's single word caused Yusuke to turn once more, eyebrows raised. "Go with them and stay with them."

Kuwabara frowned. "But the compartments don't hold seven," he whined.

Yusuke winced as Hiei gnashed his teeth; he could almost hear them grating back and forth. The fire demon practically spat fire with his reply, "Make it work."

It was the raven-haired detective's turn to pull his best friend away from a potentially deadly situation. "Come on, let's get these guys back to their seats and then we'll split up with these Prefit people."

He slid the door shut behind him, leaving Hiei and Kurama alone in the compartment filled with the scents of charcoaled decorations and dripping blood. At the very glance of red eyes to his new wound, Kurama's hand tightened its already white-knuckled clamp.

The fire demon sighed, sitting down beside him and leaning against the edge of the bench, noting just how uncomfortable it was. "Fox, we've got to clean it."

"Like that will help." The words were curt – harsh. After a moment of silence, the fox gave a relenting sigh, knowing he had no right to speak to Hiei in such a way. "I will clean it myself."

An exasperated eyebrow rose at such a suggestion. "You and I both know doing so is asking for an infection."

Still, Kurama remained stubborn and repeated his words through clenched teeth, "I will do it myself."

Another round of silence kept the nearly empty room company as the two companions sat side by side on the floor, unmoving. After what he deemed to be a good amount of time, Hiei sat up, returning to his kneeling position beside the fox.

"Kurama," he began, catching the kitsune's gaze by the use of his name alone. Red eyes softened as much as they knew how and he put his hand atop Kurama's, the blood flow slowing but still tainting small, pale fingers with the red liquid. "I am not one to judge."

Green eyes darted back and forth, searching red depths for something for which neither could find words. Whatever it was, Kurama eventually found it or acquiesced to the knowledge that it was there, even if he couldn't see it. Slowly, his hand pulled away from the torn flesh.

Without another word, Hiei set to cleaning the wound, knowing he would need Yusuke or Kuwabara later to purify it with reiki. For now, however, he could stop the bleeding and bind it, at least giving the fox some sort of peace of mind.

As the minutes passed while Hiei tore his cloak into strips of cloth suitable for bandages, he kept a careful gaze on Kurama. The fox's eyes remained downcast and never once did he lift them. The submissive form was unheard of from the proud fox and Hiei's worry increased.

He left the kitsune's side to dig through Yusuke's bag for the bottle of water he knew he kept there even as he instructed Kurama to strip off his shirt. When he returned to the fox's side, pouring water over the wounded area, the redhead's eyes were still on the floor.

Growing tired of waiting for him to speak first, he prompted the kitsune. "Kurama?"

The questioning tone, laced with impatience towards the fox's actions, was clear enough in Kurama's mind. Though emotionless in response, his features betrayed his own pain and loathing. "Don't pretend you aren't disgusted."

At Hiei's slightly widened eyes – a further prompt to explain himself, Kurama let out a bitter snort. However, it faded away into nothing more than a quietly whispered response, "I no longer belong to myself."

Anger flared in Hiei's eyes and when his glare was not seen by a lowered green gaze he resorted to a more catching tactic. Kurama yelped in pain when fingers dug into the torn flesh of his shoulder, causing the stemmed flow of blood to begin anew.

Wide, surprised eyes once more darted back and forth between the fierce and clearly furious irises so close to him.

"Do not patronize me, Kurama." Those eyes only widened further, entranced by the anger Hiei was radiating. "We are allies – more than allies, fox. I owe you for many things and am not so callous as to turn away when you are in need. Not for something so trivial. Marks fade."

The fox could only stare at him. Just as Hiei was beginning to grow uncomfortable with the silent, unreadable gaze, Kurama suddenly lunged forward, wrapping his arms around the surprised (and quickly tensing) fire demon.

After the brief delay it took to figure out just what the fox was doing, Hiei slowly relaxed and awkwardly returned the hug. Ten seconds later, he decided it was far too awkward. "All right, get off me already, fox."

His gruff, annoyed demand only made Kurama laugh lightly. He pulled back and leaned once more against the bench, exposing the wound for Hiei's healing. His eyes traced the ceiling, no longer lingering on the floor.

The rest of the wrapping happened in contented silence, leaving a bandaged fox to pick his shirt back up off the floor and slide it over his head. Hiei sat against the opposite bench, wiping his blood-covered hands on his pants.

As he watched Kurama's fingers slide over the black bandages he had procured, his eyes grew serious. "It will scar, Kurama. There's nothing I can do about it."

The bitter, humorless laugh that followed caused that swirling worry to return to Hiei's stomach. "I never expected you to be able to heal it. If it didn't scar, it wouldn't serve its purpose."

His voice very nearly broke at the end of his sentence and he turned away, staring out the window and seeing nothing but passing stars and dim clouds. Kurama's pride was taking a heavy beating by the turn of events and it took all of his self-control to keep from breaking everything in the compartment.

Youko's rage, indescribable beyond the word ferocity, filled all of the kitsune. Nothing of his human aspect could calm the demon within him at the knowledge of being claimed.

And being claimed by not only someone who wasn't Hiei, but by that damned crow. Who was supposed to be DEAD.

The very thought of being owned by…that had his demonic side shaking in anger and his human side shaking in fear. Part of him, the very human part, wanted to request Hiei's protection – even go so far as to bind them in a contract. But the other part, the part that was screaming its rage and banging against every internal wall he had erected, would not allow it. He knew how weak it would make him appear in front of the fire demon, and he would be damned before he allowed himself to be lowered any further.

Hiei mistook half of the fox's internal dilemma as being wholly about the deceased bird recently revisited. "The crow is dead, Kurama."

When he replied, the fox's voice had deepened, leaking out some of Youko's rage. "Obviously he isn't or this," the hand had clamped back onto the now-bandaged wound, "would be nothing more than a healing scratch!"

The fire demon was, again, unfazed by Kurama's heated words, though he did not like the slowly rising volume. "That was not Karasu. His body was a shadow demon."

Green eyes closed and for the first time that evening, Kurama looked like the tired, worn fox he was. "Impossible. Shadow demons can't shape shift." His head turned to the side, once more taking in the night sky beyond glass confines as he opened his eyes. "Besides, even if they could…I know that energy. I remember that energy."

Hiei knew the fox before him well enough to translate what his words had meant. I could never forget that energy.

The silence that followed was broken by a small, wheezing sound far to close to a meow for comfort. Kurama looked down as Bikou landed in his lap. He glanced around the compartment, wondering where the shadow demon had been.

He vaguely remembered Karasu clawing at the little guy after he'd become attached to his face.

"Good boy," Kurama murmured, running his fingers down the odd body of the shadow demon.

Hiei, watching the thing with distrust, decided it was time for a tactical change in subject, considering he was getting nowhere with the current one and possibly aggravating the fox further. He closed his eyes and leaned his head against the bench.

"Why did the shadow demons show up here? They shouldn't be out of the Netherworld."

Kurama had no response to his inquiry for several moments, indicating that he had given it thought but had no solution to speak of at present. "We sealed them away," was his only reply and one that gave no answers.

Another bout of silence filled the room, not awkward per se but not comfortable either. Kurama tilted his head to the side, taking Hiei in as if he were solving a question asked about the fire demon rather than the kage youkai that had flooded the train not so long ago.

"Could someone have broken the seal?" He knew the answer before he asked it, but the fox felt the need for their conversation to continue. There had to be something they were missing.

Hiei snorted. "Even with all my doubts about the pacifier-sucking toddler we report to, I doubt anyone could break his seal."

Kurama smiled, holding back the laugh at the mixture of praise and insult delivered in one breath. "Agreed. And I do not know of any wizard capable of summoning Netherworld guards."

Hiei, with his head tilted back, looked down his nose at Kurama and the pur-wheezing pet in his arms. "Even if they could, why did they come here?"

A wry smile was his only reply and it took a snort and the lifting of his head to look levelly at the fox before he finally answered, "We did kill their lord and three gods."

Hiei frowned. He didn't like that answer at all.

-o-o-o-

Yusuke knelt down in front of Neville, trying to give his most comforting smile (which really was a smirk). "Longbottom, was it?" The boy nodded, chewing on his bottom lip and never once looking away from the oozing set of cuts.

Yusuke couldn't blame him. "Give me your arm – Yeah, the scratched one. Relax, I'm not going to do anything."

Kuwabara, standing behind him and looking at the same cut from over his shoulder, shook his head slightly. "You're going to have to if that's a shadow scratch."

The detective tried not to get angry as his attempts to calm the boy were relatively smashed by the idiot behind him. Still, he ignored the questioning looks of the others, and Neville's newfound uncertainty, and looked to the cut instead.

"Fuck…" He hardly needed to observe the wound at all to say it was given by a kage youkai. Yusuke looked up into the frightened eyes of the human boy. "Neville, I have to purify your arm."

"Wh-What's that mean?" he asked, positively shaking from head to toe but trying to swallow that fear.

Kuwabara, leaning over them now, stared down at the cut. "He'll infuse reiki into the cut to cancel out the spreading youki."

Somehow, Yusuke was really glad those words hadn't translated properly, leaving a fuzzy, almost static-radio sound to Kuwabara's voice as he spoke.

"What?" Ron, ever the elegant one with words, broke the confused silence.

Hermione wrung her hands slightly: annoyed she couldn't help, irritated at not knowing what was going on, and worried about Neville's seemingly serious condition. "Your words didn't translat-"

Yusuke waved her off, much to her indignation. "Yes, yes, we know." He looked back to Neville, waiting until he had caught the boy's eyes with his own before continuing slowly. "It won't hurt or anything – might feel a tingle and maybe that pins and needles sensation. More than anything it's like…cleaning a cut with alcohol."

Those muggle-born in the compartment clearly understood his reference. Neville, however, did not.

"Alcohol?" he repeated vaguely, getting a bad feeling about all of this.

"He's just gonna' clean it, Neville," Harry cut in, trying to be helpful and calm their very nervous friend. The boy understood that part; he just didn't understand what it entailed.

"You're still not explaining what you were talking about," Hermione pushed, crossing her arms in all her knowledgeable glory. "I highly doubt those words meant rubbing alcohol."

Yusuke laughed, recalling the earlier conversation they had had involving Tourny fights. "No, only Chuu's reiki means alcohol. But he's a wicked match when he's drunk." Lifting up Neville's hand, he placed his own over the cuts, hovering above the broken skin.

"Anyways, reiki," he continued, pronouncing the word slowly, "has to be used because this isn't a normal cut."

"It was made by a shadow demon," Kuwabara continued.

"A demon?" Hermione echoed, eyes widening. Harry and Ron hadn't had a chance to clue her in on everything that had happened in the other compartment, including the newest development in Voldemort's apparent plan.

"Of course," she muttered, pacing slightly in the very cramped space. "It all makes perfect sense – the descriptions in books and that thing that attacked us-"

Yusuke coughed lightly, causing the girl to blush and apologize quickly. Neville, clearly not being calmed by any of this, was trying to subtly pull his arm back.

He was failing miserably.

"It's not just any demon," Kuwabara corrected Hermione's simplification of what they had said. "It's a shadow demon. They….well…they uh…"

His friend and leader took over, not resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "A scratch from a shadow demon will kill the surrounding area of that scratch." Having never forgotten Koenma's words from so long ago, Yusuke let them flow from his mind without much thought. "Then it'll spread until your body can't handle the amount of dead material or limbs and your body will die…or the infected area is amputated."

Neville turned a lovely shade green.

"Which," Kuwabara continued immediately, seeing that all-too-familiar color on Neville's face (his had taken on the same appearance when Koenma informed a very scratched up Reikai Tentei of these circumstances), "is why Yusuke is going to purify your arm so that doesn't happen."

"Blimey," a pale Ron interjected, numbly sitting on one of the compartment seats. "And…he'll be alright after this?"

Yusuke nodded, spirit energy gathering into his palm. "Perfectly fine with not so much as a scratch. We just don't want the infection to spread so we're going to fix it. Hold still, Longbottom."

The others watched as a soft, almost imperceptible light filled the room. Kuwabara, with a much more acute sixth sense and trained eyes, saw the bright blue energy clearly. What he missed, however, was Luna's now clear eyes focused solely on Yusuke's lit palm and the bright blue reflected in her glazed pupils.

The light slowly faded and Yusuke pulled back his hand, releasing Neville's arm. The skin was healed, as if no cut had ever marred it in the first place. "All good."

Fascinated, the boy stared at his own arm, wiggling his fingers even as a smile broke out over his face. "That didn't even hurt!"

"Told you it wouldn't." Yusuke stood up, a smirk on his features. It died however, as Luna's voice rose over Hermione and Ron immediately moving in to question Neville.

"What about the redhead?"

Silence filled the compartment at the question and both Yusuke and Kuwabara turned to the blonde girl.

"What?" Kuwabara asked, a defensiveness in his voice that wasn't there before.

"Your friend," the girl reiterated, glancing between the two with her glossy look back in her eyes. "The one that was bitten."

Hermione cast Harry and Ron incredulous, almost angry looks at being left out of the loop. Ron just rolled his eyes, not exactly thrilled at what he called the frizzy-haired girl's 'obsession.'

Yusuke and Kuwabara shared a frown before the former turned back to Luna. "We don't really know if that was a shadow demon."

The golden witch of their generation chewed on the inside of her lip in apprehension. "And if it was?"

Harry tried to ignore Ron's sputtered indignation.

Yusuke frowned further and the three got the impression that he didn't like the idea at all. "Hiei will do what he can for Kurama." Wincing as he realized how final those words sounded, he quickly added, "He'll do what we did for Neville."

"Hmm…" the blonde girl, now starting to get on Yusuke's nerves, let her gaze drift. "I would have thought a bite would be worse."

The lead detective paled, unable to keep his eyes on the girl any longer when she was so spot on. Memories of fights long since passed fluttered across his mind.

He punched the ground, sending wood chips flying as he broke through the tatami mat and the wooden panels beneath. "Why isn't it working!"

Kuwabara, gripping the bleeding wound on his arm, hissed as the skin around the teeth marks began paling, fading to an ashen grey.

Both boys turned as a pop sounded through the air and Koenma stood before them, amber eyes serious. "Because a bite isn't like a scratch, Yusuke."

"And…why would you think that?" Kuwabara's words pulled Yusuke back from the realm of memory. The orange-haired boy glanced at his friend.

Luna's eyes slid back over to them, strangely focused even as she blinked owlishly. "Biting is territorial in all species, is it not?"

-o-o-o-

Chapter 10

End

-o-o-o-

Bet you guys weren't expecting that one! ;D I'm happy to see that many of you thought Dementors were going to attack the train. I was hoping I was successful in leading everyone on a bit.

Hope it was good and any confusion can be answered with an e-mail, a PM, or in following chapters (hopefully!)

Author's Notes:

Shadow demons flocked to…food and darkness… Hiei and Kurama were the best source of both… Shadow demons feed on flesh but are drawn to energy, which is why they would sooner go after Hiei and Kurama than any of the other filled compartments. Plus they're quick learners: they'd figure out that neither had sticks to hurt them with blinding light.

Yusuke was really glad those words hadn't translated properly…The translation charm is a weak substitute for the translation devices I should have had the tentei get removed/put on before the whole train fight since writing Yusuke and Kuwabara out of their normal speech patterns is annoying and difficult to catch.

Anyways (there's my little blooper rant for you) the spells weren't able to catch multi-word meaning. As Kuwabara thought energy from a demon world demon and energy from a netherworld demon, the translation charm wasn't able to pick apart the Japanese word he used and just skipped over the translation (technical malfunction). The spells obviously aren't perfect.

Karasu's Appearance: And now you all know my confidence issue! I worried about putting in this aspect of the story (an aspect thought up and written down more than three years ago, now) as an amazing amount of HP stories have Karasu coming back (which really doesn't make sense to me, since the HP world is specifically a No-Dead-Coming-Back zone).

So obviously, this isn't your typical Karasu's back story. Please hang with me (he won't make many appearances, anyways) because this has to do with an intricate plot that simply starts with him.

Cover-Up: Ah-ha! As SlashnYaoi pointed out in a review (good job – kudos to you and Bonus Points!) there's their traumatic event. Not what Kurama was planning, I'm sure, but it worked all the same. Their memories are 'back.'

End Author Notes:

And thanks to KyoHana for again not only beta-ing but building my confidence back up.

Thanks for reading, have a great day (night?) and please review!