He was cold.
Not just cold but freezing, perhaps even beyond that to someplace dark that could be only be imagined in nightmares.
The depths of the chill that had entered him caused his entire body to curl in on itself. His muscles cramping painfully under the assault.
He could not think past the icy intrusion.
He wanted to do so.
He wanted to lift his head, to pay attention to what was happening around him.
He needed to see the outcome but that freezing attack to his entire being held him hostage.
It increased pulling gasps from his already straining lungs that fought against even the smallest attempts at working properly.
He needed to escape it.
He needed to leave but how could he when he was trapped inside his own body, curled forward almost into a ball trying desperately to stop the lancing agony that pulsed through him in torturous waves.
The only thing he could do was close his eyes, wrap his arms tightly around himself, and try to concentrate on surviving the assault.
It made him feel utterly helpless in a place he knew it was dangerous to be so.
He could only hope the others were unaffected. That they would not require his attention because to him there was nothing else but the glacial fists pounding into his muscles and bones.
'Hurry up', he thought to the one he knew was the cause though it was impossible for that person to hear him, 'Just fucking hurry up...'
His eyes snapped open, his mind automatically shifting to orient him to the here and now though a phantom touch of cold caressed his skin from the memory.
It had been some time since he had experienced something from her. There had been no sense of time in that memory. It had been as overwhelming with sensation as the memory of her near drowning.
He had not meant to relax enough even for the semi state of sleep but the sound of the others discussing their situation had lulled him. He had nothing to add to what they were saying. The farther they continued along their route the no closer they were coming to any actual signs of Tsuneo besides his followers.
He knew that was no indication that the leader was nearby. None of those that attacked held even the hint of Tsuneo's scent on them. It was frustrating but useless to continue to point out.
Kuwabara continued to voice his opinion that they were heading in the wrong direction. He did have a tendency to ignore the giant idiot's spiritual awareness but it was beginning to plague him. There had been many times the oaf had been correct he could not deny that fact.
"Which way do you think we should be going then?!" Yusuke exclaimed throwing his hands up.
Apparently they were still in the midst of settling which direction they should travel. He had tired of it early on, absenting himself from the three until they sorted out their thoughts on the matter.
Kuwabara stood up from his seat on a fallen tree and considered the options as if he were capable of a full thought.
He had his doubts in that area as well.
"Umm...that way." Kuwabara finally answered pointing to the east.
He glanced in the direction indicated with only a modicum of interest.
They were still in familiar territory to him. The only thing he could think of in that particular direction was a range of mountains which could be used as some type of hiding place for a large group.
Then again that could describe a vast amount of Demon World.
Any direction held those possibilities.
"It is more then we've had to go on." Kurama commented folding his arms as he considered the forest, "If nothing else changing our direction should reduce the attacks. Tsuneo has no way of knowing. Hiei?"
"Continuing in this manner is accomplishing nothing." he responded to the prompt from his position against a tree, "The worst that can happen following the moron is more of the same."
"Did he just agree?" Yusuke asked Kurama appearing confused.
"Yes...are you feeling well Hiei?" Kurama questioned raising an eyebrow.
He snorted, "I said nothing about him being right."
"See that's better," Yusuke grinned, "I thought the universe was about to implode for a second there."
"Heh me too." Kuwabara laughed uneasily.
He declined to respond based on the fact that it only encouraged the other three when they were goading him. It was a familiar tactic, one that did not bother him as much as it had when they had first begun to employ it.
His brow furrowed as the wind changed direction, the faintest hint of blood floated on it. There was something familiar in the scent that pulled him slowly to his feet to face towards it.
He took a deeper breath, his mind filtering rapidly through those scents well known to him. This scent was such, one he had been exposed to only once. His body tensed in reaction to another scent joining the first. That hint that reminded him of almonds.
Something coiled tightly inside his chest stealing thought from his mind.
"Hiei!" he heard Kurama call out a heartbeat before he was gone after that scent.
"What the...?!" Kuwabara exclaimed as Hiei literally disappeared.
"Follow me!" Kurama snapped already running after the speeding fire demon.
"What's going on?" Yusuke demanded beside him.
It was impossible of course. There should have been no chance of this happening, of that all to familiar scent to be in the air. He could not deny that it was. He had noted Hiei rising with interest but his own facilities for scents had been slightly deadened by the human body he had chosen to occupy.
The delay was enough to only try to stop Hiei not to be able to restrain the fire demon from taking off.
He mentally chastised himself as he followed the trail of Hiei and the blood.
He should have realized before this how strong Hiei's attachment had become.
If it had been less the reaction would not have been so immediate regardless of who the blood belonged to. Hiei would have been inclined to at least make them aware of what he scented in the air before taking off.
It appeared Hiei had felt no such compulsion.
And therein lay the proof that he had miscalculated.
Hiei had no experience in these matters.
Though he had encouraged the pairing he had thought due to Hiei's normal tendencies toward isolation that it would take much more time for him to accept what he was feeling. That he might have enough time to subtly introduce the things demons could find themselves subjected to in this area.
It was not that demons became mindless animals due to romantic attachments. It was that for certain pairings, the ones that delved deeper then surface levels there were instinctual reactions that could not be denied.
One of those reactions was protective in much the same way a human would be if witnessing a threat to someone they cared for.
In a demon that immensely strong emotion was enhanced when it came to the scent of that being's blood. For Hiei whose responses to emotional stimulus could be an even greater exaggeration it could overwhelm the fire demon's reason easily.
It was that response that had sent Hiei flying after the scent in the air.
In anyone else that reaction would not have caused him such intense alarm.
But Hiei was not just anyone.
He's going to get himself killed...
"Kurama!" Yusuke yelled at him.
There were times even his considerable patience was worn thin.
"You are at least half demon Yusuke!" he growled, "Use your nose! That is not perfume in the air!"
"Yeah so it's blood..."
"It's Shizuru's blood." he informed the former detective.
"What is she doing way out here?!" Kuwabara demanded between labored breaths as he did his best to keep up with them, "She's supposed to be with Mukuro!"
"I don't know." was the only reply he could give.
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