I'm sorry guys! I think chapter lengths are going to be seriously cut from here on out! School... :'( But senior year on the bright side! *woot!* If I ever miss my update times from now on, please understand that I'll be trying to update as fast as possible but it would have definitely been for a legitimate reason!

Anyways, enjoy! sorry it's super short ._.

Chapter 13 Into the Mountains

The rumble and hiss of the bus pulling away vanished, abandoning us on the side of the road by a lonely bench that looked like it hadn't been sat on in ages. Nobody spoke for a few moments to take a moment and let the natural, clean air refresh us.

I breathed deeply, gazing at the stretch of mountains and never ending roll of green. The air was cool and the sun was busy peeking out from under the clouds making it the perfect temperature for a hike through the woods. A narrow, feeble stretch of discolored dirt- A path? I wondered skeptically- stretched down and slithered between and under the canopy of trees until it disappeared. I whistled lightly and I turned to the others with a worried chuckle.

"She doesn't really live out here in the middle of nowhere by herself right?"

Yusuke readjusted his backpack while shooting me a cocky grin, "Sure does. The old hag's delusional."

Botan rolled her eyes, "Come on, Yusuke. Must you insult Genkai all the time? She deserves much more respect than that."

Kurama said, "Besides, she doesn't live alone. At least not anymore."

"Yukina's with her." Hiei said.

"Oh, that's right. I forgot." I said in surprise. It was strange, but now that I was thinking about it, actually some time had passed since I'd seen her. I smiled, excited that I'd get to see her soon.

Kuwabara startled me when he suddenly charged down the side of the hill and straight into the woods, a manic grin on his face, "What are we waiting for? Yukina's waiting for me! I'm coming my love!"

I couldn't help but laugh lightly even though Hiei's face had gone completely sour and he'd taken to glaring daggers at Kuwabara's back. Even though I realized I might never understand Hiei's animosity towards him whenever Yukina was involved, I figured it must have been something personal so I tried to squish my grin by pressing my lips together into a straight line when he looked at me even though it didn't work so well.

"Is it far?" I asked out loud as we started to make our way down into the thick growth.

"It only takes about an hour if we cut straight through, maybe a little more depending on how fast we go." Kurama smiled, "As long as you know where you're going. Stay close- we wouldn't want you straying and having some stray demon find you instead."

I darted behind Hiei with a squeak, but Hiei just scowled, "Don't mind Kurama. Any demons in this forest would probably leave you be regardless."

"Probably?" I repeated in alarm.

Botan wagged her finger, "There's nothing to worry about dear. All of Genkai's land," Botan stretched out her arms, "was meant for all demons and humans in the chance that they could co-exist one day. Any demon, if any, you'd run into here wouldn't want to hurt you."

"Hn. Regardless, you shouldn't stray." Hiei glanced at me over his shoulder and I nodded feebly, avoiding his gaze.

"M'kay."

As we traveled deeper into the forest, the tree tops grew thicker and denser and only the occasional spot allowed thick sunlight to flow through. I rubbed my arms, the absent of sunlight making the air cool, as we trekked deeper into the forest. Personally, I had lost my sense of direction as soon as the barren road had disappeared from sight. From what I could tell, all of them were confidently moving in the right direction from apparently having done it many times before, but to me, there was no path or marker that they seemed to be following at all.

I was almost tempted to ask if they were sure that this was the right way, but afraid of sounding dumb I remained silent. As if sensing my uneasiness, Hiei looked around at me.

"Relax." he commanded, and I looked down in embarrassment.

"Sorry."

"Hn." We walked on in silence. I stared at Hiei's back glumly, feeling a warm blush tint my cheeks.

There was a good reason why I'd never gone hiking before. It was obviously not meant for me. As the brush grew thicker, the others seemed to find clear spots to slide through easily while I was left scrambling in the back like an awkward duck, small twigs and branches hooking and ripping into my clothes and skin. I stumbled over thick roots that were hidden in leaves and wrestled with vines that wrapped around my face. I had my share of more than a couple of flexible branches flung into my face- I'm sure I looked like I'd just been attacked by a rabid raccoon or something.

I felt like we'd been walking through this forest for an eternity while it must've been about twenty minutes. Although he didn't say anything, I kept seeing Kurama look at the sun with a frown every time I'd become snagged and every time, the sun would have shifted down a bit more than before. With how much I was keeping up the group with my struggling, we wouldn't be getting there for a while.

"Enough of this!" Hiei barked after I'd fallen onto my face for the third time from having missed another root that was sticking out of the ground. I swiped some stray leaves off of my face as I looked up in bewilderment to see Hiei ominously looming over me.

Feeling as though I should be getting used to it by now, I still couldn't help but be completely taken by surprise when I was free-falling in the air for a split second and then flung onto Hiei's back like a sack of potatoes. Botan's face had gone slightly pink and she was wearing that mischievous grin on her face again, Kurama simply arched a perfect eyebrow, and from what I could make out, Kuwabara was grumbling while handing a cackling Yusuke... money?

Botan was beaming, "Good idea Hiei! It probably wasn't a good idea to have Ren walk such a long distance with her ankle anyways."

I squirmed, blushing madly and trying to get out of his grip, "It's perfectly fine! Put me down, Hiei!"

One look from Hiei made me zip my lips. Botan giggled and winked at me while I just glared back at her through slit eyes. What was she always trying to pull?

Yusuke grinned knowingly and clapped Kuwabara sympathetically on the back, "Easiest five bucks I've ever made." My blush grew hotter. They were betting? But the better question was, on what?

"Shut up Urameshi!"

"Well then, shall we continue?" Kurama chuckled and started walking again.

I grumbled in defeat, refusing to meet Hiei's eye. I had to admit though, we seemed to be moving a lot faster. After a while though, my body began to ache from the uncomfortable position of having my chest dig in to Hiei's shoulder blade.

"Erm, Hiei?" I began in embarrassment, "You don't have to put me down, but would you mind if I got on your back instead? I mean, you can just put me down if I'm heavy." I quickly justified, realizing how stupid I sounded, but Hiei merely obliged and shifted me down so that I was riding his back instead. Hiei's arms locked my legs to his side and my hands clutched his shoulders so I wouldn't fall back.

"Thank you." I mumbled, red in the face.

"Hn."

I was tense at first, but gradually found myself relaxing into Hiei. I nervously rested my head against the base of his neck too- he still didn't protest, only readjusted me.

Ever since the night of the fire, our conversations (if you could even call them that) had been short and to the point as required. It almost felt awkward, but I don't think that was it. My cheeks burned slightly. Only after the excitement of the night had reached its peak and things had begun to settle down did I have time to let things process.

That night... it'd only been a full day since then, but it almost felt like it'd been an eternity.

~.~.~.~.~

One moment I'd been watching my house turn to ashes, the next I was waking up in a hospital bed. I'd breathed in too much smoke, but other than an annoying cough that might bother me for a couple of hours I was alright.

Koenma and Hiei were there with me. The other boys were posted outside the hospital to watch for anything else. It'd been made clear that Asami knew where Hiei and I were, that much was sure, and the last thing we wanted was for her to suddenly burn down a hospital because that's what I knew had happened to my own home.

But even though I was ok, Mako was a different story.

Koenma gave it to me bluntly. His legs were crushed, he'd sustained a bad head concussion when he fell, and he'd sucked in much more smoke than I did. Koenma had told me with a straight face that there wasn't a good chance that he'd survive the night.

Right before I was about to fall into shock though, he told me that although he typically wasn't allowed to meddle with human affairs, he felt partly responsible and I watched him proceed to rest his hands over Mako's chest. A blue light had spilled from Koenma's fingers and dissolved over Mako's entire body.

Before he'd been touched, Mako had been barely breathing, but his face had regained a bit of color and he was breathing more regularly. It looked like he was just sleeping.

"While I can't guarantee a quick recovery, I have relieved most of his pain and helped with the healing. But I should also have you know that I took the liberty to placing him under a coma." Koenma said.

"Why a coma?" I'd asked through tear-filled eyes.

"The less he knows, the better and safer off he'll be. Plus, if he stays asleep, his body will heal even quicker."

"When will he wake up?"

Koenma had turned away, "There's no real way of saying."

I looked over Mako's sleeping face and swiped the tears away roughly, "… As long as he's safe." I took a deep breath. "What happens now?"

Koenma closed his eyes, "I'm assuming you understand the gravity of the situation then."

Unfortunately, I did. I studied Mako's peaceful face carefully, trying to soak in as much of it as possible because I didn't know when I'd be able to see it again.

"It's nearing dawn. By the time the sun fully rises, we should be on our way. You, Hiei, Kurama, Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Botan will be going to see Genkai. I'm sorry, but you don't have a choice this time."

I nodded, "Ok. How long will we be there?"

"I'm not sure." Koenma answered honestly.

After a pregnant pause, I tried to force a laugh, "Well, I guess I don't have to worry about packing at least."

They didn't respond. I'm glad they didn't. I could feel Hiei's hardened eyes staring straight at me, but he had yet to speak. Koenma turned to leave.

"The others are waiting for you downstairs. "

"Will you meet us there?" I asked.

Koenma hesitated and then when he looked at me I was startled by the look in his eyes. Uncertainty, apprehension, and… fear?

"No, I'm afraid I have to take care of some business elsewhere."

"Elsewhere?" I repeated softly, but he'd already vanished. The rhythmic beeping of Mako's heart machine punctured the silence.

I wasn't surprised when I suddenly felt Hiei right behind me. In a way, I'd been expecting him to. My tears were pushing past the barriers now. After all, it was only Hiei and I- no one else would see.

So I whirled around and thrust myself against him and just cried. I cried and cried until the sun started to rise, and all the while Hiei only held me. He didn't move or say anything, but just held me until my sobs had dwindled into hiccups.

"Sorry," I mumbled pitifully wiping my nose and eyes across my sleeve. When I looked up, Hiei refused to meet my eyes. He looked uncomfortable and I knew that was my fault. So much had happened in the past few hours, we really hadn't the chance to talk about any of it ever since…

I burned bright red and sprinted by Mako's side, my heart racing, "Um Hiei, you can go ahead. I'll be right behind you."

After an unsure moment, Hiei nodded, "Right. Don't keep us waiting."

Thankfully, he left right after that and I took the small time I had left to grasp Mako's unresponsive hand and rested it against my forehead.

"I'm glad you're safe Mako. I'm sorry about leaving you like this- there's no telling how long I'll actually be gone. Just be here when I get back, okay?" Knowing that he probably couldn't hear me anyways, I smiled sadly at him, my warm cheeks burning. "Ugh… I wish you didn't have a problem with Hiei because I could sure use the help right now." I laughed at myself. After giving his hand a final squeeze, I left him there without turning back.

After I had reunited with the group and brief fretting from Botan, we were on the next train to the country.

~.~.~.~.~

"Are you alright?"

I was snapped out of my thoughts by Hiei's question, "Huh?"

"…Nothing."

I frowned, "Ok."

I looked ahead and noticed with surprise that Hiei and I were lagging behind. I shook his shoulder to catch his attention and pointed at the distant backs of the group.

"You've been carrying me for a while Hiei, and I know I must be heavy. Are you tired? We might be left behind."

"Hn, I'm fine." Hiei smirked, "Besides, I know where we're going."

"If you say so," I replied nervously, "Hey, Hiei."

Hiei tilted his head in my direction and my head sunk down to hide the red. I tried to hide my nervousness with a small laugh, "Well, I wanted to talk to you."

"You're talking right now."

I grimaced, "Yes, but it's about," I forced the lump that had appeared in my throat down, "yesterday."

I felt Hiei tense underneath he and me coughed, "Yesterday wasn't-"

"I just wanted to let you know that I was sorry about Mako throwing you out." Steam must have been coming out of my ears because I wasn't about to address the elephant in the room. To my surprise, Hiei didn't just leave it at that though.

"Is that it?" Hiei said.

I sputtered, "O-of course that's it! What else did you expect me to say?" I knew perfectly well what he expected me to say, but I was not going there. If I even dared think about what happened, my head might just explode from a mixture of anger and embarrassment.

"Oh! What happened yesterday?" Botan chirped happily.

I almost fell of Hiei's back. Botan had seemed to come from nowhere and was trotting beside us merrily.

"Botan!" I cried out, my cheeks red.

"Oh come on, it's not good to tell secrets in front of other people." She cooed sneakily, but I just burned brighter. "Sharing is caring!"

Hiei growled darkly, but Botan only laughed and ran ahead to rejoin the others, making sure to wink at me first. I knocked my forehead against Hiei's back. I wanted to go die in a hole.

"Ugh, I have a headache."

"Hn."

Blinking, I lifted my head, but Hiei's face was hidden from me, but my eyes widened when I noticed the tips of his ears had become pink. I guess that was the end of discussion then. The only comfort that I took from any of it though was that it obviously didn't mean just nothing like it usually seemed to with Hiei. He was actually flustered.

The memory was still hot on my mind as much as I tried to swat it away. Getting ourselves into such a compromising position... how did it even happen again? I couldn't even remember. All I did was Hiei's body against mine, and his lips pressed against my own.

My head was going to explode. Maybe I was working myself up too much about this though- over-thinking things like I normally did. It wasn't like a real kiss or anything, no of course not, it was an accident, just gravity being gravity. Somewhere in the back of my mind a small voice was saying, Ok then, how many times can you have 'non-kisses' before they become real ones?

I hated that small voice. I sighed. Then I sighed again because I'd been sighing so much lately. I squeezed my eyes to try and alleviate some of the pain in my head.

"Ren,"

"Hm?" I barely mumbled.

"You should get some rest. We still have half an hour till we get there."

"What, we still have that long?" I picked my head up and looked at Hiei uncertainly, "Are you sure? You know I can just walk now."

Hiei smirked, "If I did, it would take twice as long to get there. Besides, I can feel how tired you are. It'd be best if you slept at least a little."

Now that he said it, I was exhausted. I hadn't realized it before, but I hadn't any proper sleep for two days, and Hiei's back was becoming more comfortable as time went on.

"Fine," I murmured, "Just wake me up when we get close or something."

"Hn."

"Or wake me up when you don't want to hold me anymore."

Hiei shot me an incredulous glance. I glared back half-heartedly, and he turned away with a glare, "Whatever."

With a frown, I resettled myself into as comfortable a position as I could manage, and I closed my eyes, welcoming the obscurity of sleep that began to settle over me, beckoning me into deep slumber. However, as I felt my consciousness being gently enshrouded in darkness, it was as if something fuzzy and vague brushed against it, but I was too tired to startle. I drifted into unconsciousness and into the forgotten, but familiar past.

~.~.~.~.~

Kuri was sitting on a porch that overlooked a large garden. It was filled with all kinds of flowers, neatly designed and a path swiveled throughout it, leading to an arched wooden bridge placed directly in the center. Cherry blossom trees were bursting with their ripe blooms giving the entire scene a magical feel. Kuri was twirling a branch in between her white fingers, her black hair spilling down her shoulders.

She was wrapped in layers of a pink and yellow kimono and she looked like she was just enjoying the scenery, waving a paper fan in her face lazily.

I sat beside her (I was used to the fact that I couldn't be seen at this point) and just marveled at the beauty of it all, absentmindedly wishing I could live in a place like this. A sliding door behind us made us turn.

Riku looked around, then spotting Kuri, a relieved smile crossed his face. He looked a lot different now, I observed with surprise. He was dressed in a rich blue kimono and he looked much more neater. When he came out, Kuri immediately whirled back around and pressed her face up to her fan. Startled, I stared at her and noticed the bright red that had illuminated her face.

Riku sighed and kneeled down behind her, "Don't tell me you're still angry with me."

Kuri squeaked, turning brighter and mumbled something under her breath, refusing to acknowledge him. To my surprise, Riku rolled his eyes and started poking the back of her head. The longer she ignored him, the faster and harder he poked her.

Soon enough, Kuri snapped the fan closed and whirled on him, her face red, but mostly from annoyance and yelled, "This is no way to treat a princess!"

Riku grinned, "You're right, and I shouldn't have to do this. But I wouldn't have to treat you this way if you only acknowledged me the first time."

Kuri flushed and pursed her lips. Riku stared at her for another moment.

"You really are mad."

"No, I'm not. Why would I be mad about something like that? It's not like it's any of my business what you do with yourself." Kuri replied casually, avoiding his eyes. I arched an eyebrow. I had no idea what was happening, but if I was to take a guess, this memory must have taken place a while after Riku had come under her servitude. Otherwise, she wouldn't be acting this casual with him. It was also obvious that he'd done something to upset her. I listened closely, very curious.

Riku stood back up, "Ok, whatever you say princess." I flinched at the sarcastic remark he'd placed on the last word, " I was going to explain, but since it obviously means nothing and you're not mad, I guess I don't have to." His expression was blank, but something flickered in his eyes. Disappointment maybe? Hurt? He started to leave.

Kuri was obviously surprised he'd given up so suddenly. Was he really just going to walk away? She opened her mouth as if to try and stop him, but he paused by the door and glanced back at her, making her go stiff again.

"Oh right, the reason I came here in the first place," he said and I was alarmed by how flat his voice had gone, "Lady Asami was asking for you."

Kuri frowned, "My mother? Oh wait- Riku!" she tried calling to him, lifting a hand, but he'd already closed the sliding door. She gazed sadly at the spot he'd just been standing at, and returned to gazing at the garden, her face a mix of sadness and pouting.

I was seriously confused. Wondering if maybe I could follow Riku and find out what was wrong, I stood up, but I paused as I was overcome with a familiar, but foreign presence. It was a strange feeling, but familiar nonetheless, and I knew why. How can that be?

Unbelieving, I turned around to face the foreign presence and gasped. Hiei was standing a few feet away from me with slightly wide eyes.

"Hiei?" I said out loud, my mind racing. Why was Hiei in my dream? But I thought I had figured out these were memories... unless Hiei had been here as well! He hadn't answered me yet. Maybe he really was just part of the dream!

But as soon as I took a step towards him, he started in surprise and then disappeared. What on Earth...? Then it hit me. He'd been looking straight at me, even reacted when I called his name though he didn't say anything. He'd seen me!

~.~.~.~.~

"Hiei?" I shot upwards, reaching out a hand. But Hiei wasn't there. No one was. I looked around in alarm. For a second, I thought I was dreaming and I was back in Kuri's body because I was in a fairly similar room that she'd been in when she woke up by Riku, but when I lifted my hands, I was relieved to find that they were mine. On closer inspection, I noticed the modern decor of the room like the small, old fashioned television in the corner and the electric lighting.

"Where am I?" I murmured lightly and almost had a heart attack when I was actually answered.

"It's about time you woke up. You sleep like the dead." A raspy, but firm voice said behind me. I turned around to come face to face with an old lady. She was tiny, at least half my size, and was withered and wrinkled from a long life, but something about the way that she just held herself gave me the strong impression that she was not to be treated lightly. Like, when I normally thought of the elderly, I imagined kindly women who spent their days baking cookies. Just with one glimpse, it just seemed absolutely ridiculous to imagine her ever doing something like baking cookies.

"You're Genkai?" I said in surprise.

She smirked and grinned cockily, "Yes, and you look like a fish with your mouth open. Any more questions?"

Okay, now this is the time that I beg for reviews! Tee hee!

Please leave a review :)

Ok, I admit. This chapter was a very filler, but what I was aiming for in this one was kind of a shift. Although I didn't say anything, the last chapter was kind of like an end to 'Part 1' and this one is the introduction to 'Part 2.' Does that make sense? I hope so :)

P.s- I totally didn't know how to end it. Lame ending is very lame ._. I'm sorry, I know it's dull as heck

And are there any Adventure Time fans in my pool of readers? Ever since I watched the most recent episode, I've been so excited! :D

TallyYoungblood: I wish I could have a Hiei for myself...

DemonMiko Jenna: LOL~! I love puns XD So much c: But, you're just going to have to stick around and find out ;D

Kagome141414: HAHA! That made me lol :) Thanks for the review!

Guest: No, he didn't :) In my head, I just pictured that he'd been awake (for some reason or other) and taking a shower, then after he got out and got dressed, he smelled the smoke. Or something like that xD Sorry c: I guess I'm bad at thinking of too many details...

Heve-chan: xD Haha! I'm so happy you're enjoying it! Hope you enjoy this one c:

dragoscilvio: Thanks for the review! Hm... I'll consider that :D But Hiei IS a complicated guy... who knows what could be going through his head o.o

FireStorm1991: Asami IS a meanie -_- Yeah, Mako was almost a goner :0 poor Ren would've been left all alone! But thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy this one!

Tay: Haha! Well, you're not as wrong as you think... ;D Hope you like this chapter! Thanks for always reviewing! :3

middlekertz: I know o.o

BeyondWindows: yeah, but it was necessary for story progression! thanks for the review :)

RedInk: Hiei is amazing x3

nekoneko: That's what I was going for! *brofist*

plooperc: Yeah, I'm getting that vibe! xD

insertrandomname: cool name! Haha :) thank you!

nonameprincess: Thank you! :)