ME: Heh…heh…heh!

Hiei: (eyes narrow on the authoress) This is not going to end well…

Ghost: (sweating slightly) That's definitely not how she was acting before…

ME: You guys brought it on, NOW YOU SUFFER FOR IT! Whatever happens after this point is all on you two. I don't care! If you've got a problem with it, stop giving me so many blasted scenes!

Hiei: Damn…I shouldn't have given her those ideas.

Ghost: I'm beginning to question my own decisions now…is insanity contagious?

ME: (Grinning with devious glee) Oh you two have no idea. I'm going to get a little more creative, a little more brutal and a little more…detailed. Honestly, some things might be a little darker than I have written before so I want everyone to be ready for all of that.

Hiei: So long as you keep up the story in the process.

ME: Yeah, yeah I get it. The fights are going to get a little more…graphic so I just want people to know things are getting better. It'll be a few chapters I think before it gets there but, heads up! By the way, I only own my characters and my own insanity. Chapter start!

-Chapter Start-

Chapter 52: Getting Settled…Or Not

"There," Ghost said bringing me right out of my thoughts. I blinked and looked up to see just what this fabled cabin of his would turn out to me.

I whistled, "This is nice…I'm impressed."

It was a decent sized cabin…looking more like a house than anything else. The outside was simple looking, but there was a powerful aura around it that no doubt kept the lower level demons far away from it. I blinked in surprise and noticed that it was…beautiful to say the least. The plants around it were well managed and there was a large variety of the blooming foliage draped all about the structure. The flowers were gorgeous and I got distracted by the different colors that decorated the building. It wasn't overly ostentatious and if one wasn't paying attention, it sort of blended in to the nature that surrounded it. The cabin was reasonably sized for what I assumed was one person living in it and I slowly continued to approach it, carefully adjusting Ghost as he leaned against me. Yet, being within such close proximity to his home seemed to revive him and he pushed away from me to stagger toward his door. I simply re-gripped the cloak holding the fruit and looked over the plants, distantly thinking over how elegant they were. There were a few beautiful red ones in particular that caught my eyes and I was faintly aware of my friend leaning against the door of his cabin for support. It wasn't long before Ghost opened the door and stood aside gesturing me in.

"It isn't much but it serves a purpose. This is neutral ground and generally far enough from any activity that when I'm here, I don't see any demons around. Not to mention my aura trap usually keeps them away," Ghost muttered wearily as I slowly walked past him. I ran my free hand through my hair and tried with all of my might to ignore the fact that his eyes went to my chest…again. Even the torn and shredded shirt I had before would've covered up more than what I was wearing now…why the hell had I let him pull me away from that river before I grabbed it? I stepped into the entry way and whistled once again. The inside was just as amazing as the outside.

"Ghost, you and I need to talk about your definition of the word "much". This is amazing…its better than the apartment the Reikai gave me," I sighed shaking my head. I walked in a ways further and noticed that for the most part it was all one big room. The cooking area, the living room area and the table that served as the eating place all were a part of the same room, but it was…relaxing…almost homey. Near the far side I noticed a hallway shooting off the side and imagined there was a room that Ghost most likely slept in. On top of that, the bookworm in me was squealing loudly and obnoxiously upon seeing three large bookcases absolutely full of books and even seeing a few books lain across the simple but comfortable looking furniture. I was instantly reminded of the rooms I liked to perch myself in back home, armed with a good book to read. I was famous for sitting in some of the strangest positions and places when I got into a good story. Whenever that happened, there was very little that could pull me out of it. Many of my family considered it dangerous to disturb me when I got like that. It was amazing and as far as I was concerned, it was as much as I would've needed. A sanctuary didn't need to be luxurious or glamorous to serve a purpose. It was clear that though Ghost put effort into taking care of this place and making it comfortable for himself. Frankly that made it all the more appealing to me. In fact, I was at peace and comforted by how…human it seemed. I smirked as I placed the cloak on the table and looked around saying, "You know, Ghost…how many demons have a place like this and then how many of those demons make it so…sophisticated."

He grunted in response as he kicked the door shut behind him, "Why don't you just say human and quit beating around the bush."

"I don't think comfort is an exclusively human idea. Besides, not every human reads or takes pleasure in plants. In fact, not every human would be content here because there's a natural sense to it. It's too calming and some humans…only want to make trouble…I figure humans and demons are a lot more alike than either side is willing to admit. As for me…I am itching to delve into those books of yours and seeing what all you have hidden in this place," I replied gleefully. I spun around and looked at him with an energetic smile. At first, he seemed frozen in the doorway and just stared at me with a slightly bemused look on his face. The faint color he usually had was returning to his face and I could sense his energy starting to restore itself. Yet, there was something else I couldn't exactly make out in his eyes. He was looking over me carefully and I self consciously crossed my arms over my chest. Ghost stood there numbly for a few moments and didn't seem like he was going to snap out of it. So without turning around, I slipped my hand into the cloak and pulled out two more of the fruits. I tossed one over toward Ghost who surprisingly enough snatched it out of mid air, while I brought the other up to bite into it. The flavor was sweet…and tart all at once. It reminded me of a mixture between an orange, apple, and maybe even a pear. The flavor rushed over my taste buds, lingering on my tongue for a while after I swallowed the bite and I looked over him to see that he too was eating the fruit. Already, I could feel some of my strength returning and even though I felt rejuvenated, I couldn't stop feeling absolutely exhausted as well. Then again, with everything that had happened, I wasn't exactly surprised. I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind and finished the fruit before looking back to see Ghost had shaken himself from his daze and was walking past me. I leaned my back against the table and braced myself with my hands as I asked, "Where are you going?"

"To grab some of my spare clothes. I'm sure they'll be ill-fitting for you, but anything is better than seeing you as you are now. It's far too distracting, regardless of how small your assets seem to be," Ghost growled in response and immediately my face shot the darkest shade of red that was humanly possible…and even then I think it still went darker. I tightly wrapped my arms over my breasts while Ghost moved past me and I bit down on my lip so hard that it bled…profusely. I was never the most endowed girl back home…in fact I was fairly small chest-ed and when I lost most of my weight…I looked like a boy from all the hoodies and jeans I wore, but I didn't need Ghost commenting on that!

"Y-You asshole!" I stammered thoroughly insulted. He didn't even react and disappeared into the hallway leaving me to stand there fuming in my own disgruntled fury. I tapped my foot against the ground and could feel static radiating through the air around me. My hair crackled as I shifted and ran my tongue over the cut on my lip, trying to get rid of the blood dripping down from it. All the while I crossed my arms so tightly around my breasts that I was smashing them as close to me as was possible without hurting myself. How dare that bastard comment on my breasts…It's not like they were there to impress him anyway…Actually, they weren't there for him in anyway shape or form as far as I was concerned! Which burned my temper even further and I growled in the back of my throat. Just as I was reaching the point where I was debating on causing some destruction at his expense, Ghost reappeared around the corner of the hallway with a bundle under his arm.

Upon seeing me, he paused in the middle of the living area and held out the clothes in front of him saying, "These will work for you until I can find something a little more appropriate. That's something I can look into after you and I have both had a decent night's rest."

"Fine," I answered curtly as I walked away from the table I had been standing against and slowly advanced on Ghost. My aggravation needed an outlet and I had already thought of the perfect thing to do. So, just as I came within reach of him, I extended my hand out to take the clothes and then promptly swung my other arm around after having taken the clothes from him to catch him square in the middle of the chest. The force behind my blow worked well with his already weary form to swiftly knock him clean off his feet and I watched in amusement as Ghost flipped back over one of the chairs. He landed softly enough upon the chair that was nearest to him as to not cause any more damage to him, but with enough force to temporarily knock the wind out of him. I grinned wolfishly and growled, "My assets may not be much to look at, but at least my muscles can make up for it."

Satisfied that my point was cleanly made, I walked past Ghost and continued until I made the turn through the hallway. There was an unimpressive door to which I gently shoved open and stepped into a very simple room. Yet, for all its simplicity, it was perfect. There was another bookcase full of books and two rather decent size windows on either side of a large bed. The bed was nice looking and I felt tired just looking over the pillows on it and the blankets. I sighed and gently placed the clothes on the bed before looking over them as I did. It didn't take a genius to realize that they were just some spare fighting clothes that Ghost had lying around and wouldn't be anything that flattered me, but then again, Ghost had already ruined any thoughts of flattery at this point as far as I was concerned. I reached out and quickly pulled the shirt over my head before unbuttoning my jeans and slipping out of them. I kicked the old clothes across the floor and quickly pulled on the pair of pants he had provided for me. It turned out that the pants were a little bigger than I initially thought and I was going to have to make a belt out of the holsters for my chakram. I sat down on the side of the bed and set to work, grumbling as I did so. It wasn't long before I had made it work and got to my feet.

It was then that I caught sight of a simple mirror off in the corner of the room and I took a quick glance at my appearance. I blanched in surprise. It was definitely different than the person I remember looking back at me before I stepped foot into Swarm City…even the reflection from the water didn't do it true justice. I was about to take another step forward for a closer look when I heard Ghost call from the other room, "How long does it take a woman to get dressed?"

"Long enough to leave men like you wanting more! Remember that!" I shouted in response. This effectively distracted me from the reflection in the mirror and I turned around to walk out the door calmly. I went about adjusting myself as much as I could in the current circumstances and came around the corner to still see Ghost sitting in the same chair I had dropped him into. He was slightly amused and I could already see that his power was starting to return to him. It was a relief to know that he wasn't going to die and I had made the right decision…as reckless as it was at the time. I mean, there was no guarantee that Kurama's plant would be able to cure him, but in all honesty, I didn't think Kano would've actually given up the antidote. Instead, I would've had to kill him anyway and watch helplessly as Ghost died before my very eyes. That wouldn't have been something I could've handled. I smirked, feeling my prior annoyance starting to fade and made the smartass remark, "I dunno, Ghost…these clothes are…kind of large on me, ya know?"

"Rin…look at my face. Do I look like I give a damn that they're big? No? Then shut the hell up and wear the damn clothes until I get you something else," Ghost snapped in annoyance. I only grinned wider and walked over to one of the chairs and plopped down with my arms crossed. However, my good mood slipped away as I thought over the incident and realized…that Ghost's job may very well be hanging in the balance.

"Uh…Ghost…what Kano did…are you going to be able to go back to your organization? Or…did you effectively lose all of that because of…well me?" I inquired tilting my head to the side. He looked up at me from where he was sitting and arched his brow thoughtfully. It seemed to me as though he was surprised by my question but he kept his incredulous thoughts from reaching his tone when he spoke again.

"Something you have to understand, Rin, is that the part of the organization you saw was just a very small section. There are thousands more demons that are a part of it and those who followed Kano don't even make a dent in the numbers. Considering we killed them all it shouldn't pose too much of a problem. Hideo will ask me as to what happened, I will give him what little he needs to know, and it will all be glossed over. This time, I won't be held financially responsible so it all works out. I'm not concerned about it," Ghost replied calmly waving off my concern like it was nothing. A devious smirk started to curl at his mouth and he continued, "After all, there were plenty of other people that wanted Kano dead…more so than those who wanted me dead. It makes things easier for me in the long run."

I could only laugh, "Well, I am glad to be of service. Now how about some hospitality?"

"Food it is. Then you should go to bed before I knock you out…I mean… yeah knock you out," Ghost said as he swiftly got to his feet and did his usual glide/walk over to the cooking area. Meanwhile I continued sitting where I was and looked at the bookcase in front of me…well more like through the bookcase. While I was sitting there, my mind was far away. So many things were racing through my mind…the fight in the clearing being the reoccurring one that wouldn't stay away. However, I was thinking about Hiei and Ghost as well…and how I wasn't quite sure if it would be a smart idea for Hiei to find out about the current situation the next time I would encounter him. Though nothing was completely official between the two of us, it was true that Hiei had sort of…claimed me…and did get jealous whenever he thought Ghost was encroaching on his territory…but at the same time, Hiei didn't exactly overwhelm me with attention of his own. Although, I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that he wouldn't be happy to learn that Ghost had seen me just wearing a bra only. In fact… I could imagine Hiei wanting to rip Ghost into shreds in the most painful way possible. I brought my hand up to my mouth and absent mindedly chewed on my pointer finger knuckle thoughtfully.

What was I doing? This whole thing was supposed to be my chance to go out on my own and do things. Yet, here I was sitting in Ghost's house while he was making us something to eat. I was relying on him to give me a place to sleep, things to eat, and at the moment, I was even relying on him for clothes as well. Despite it being comfortable and all that, the little voice in the back of my head was saying that this was not what it had in mind. I wrinkled my nose and bit down on the knuckle a little harder. I had planned on fighting through this hell alone. I had planned on sleeping in trees and scrounging up food. Hell, I was even anticipating going without food at times and struggling to get by. Now, it would seem that…I was going to be living rather luxuriously for the Makai. Now, most would consider me a complete idiot to complain about this, but the whole reason I stayed behind was to prove I could handle it to not only the guys, but myself as well…So what the hell was I going to do? Not to mention, Ghost stuck his neck out for me and possibly put himself in danger for me. So, I would be one hell of a bitch to just up and leave without doing what I could to show that I was appreciative.

Then again…it was strange to be in such close proximity to Ghost. He wasn't exactly acting the way he did in the Dark Tournament. I couldn't put my finger on it fully, but he was acting like he was paying me a little more attention than he was before. Perhaps that is just because none of my friends were around to keep me out of trouble and he felt the need to be that one, but it was strange for me. Not to mention, I was getting tired of people having to keep me out of trouble. Maybe it was time I fended for myself and did things my way. Which meant…I was gonna have to get away from Ghost…but I felt like it would be terrible of me to do that after everything he had done for me.

I was brought out of my thoughts by Ghost reappearing in front of me holding out a mug. I mechanically reached out to take it out of his hands and sit up a little straighter. I looked into the steaming liquid of the cup and heard Ghost saying, "The food won't be much longer but this will keep you until then. I will warn you though. This tea is a little stronger than stuff you've had in the human world. The leaves we use pack a little more punch."

"Hm…ok," I replied with a smirk. Ghost walked away and I slowly brought the cup up to my lips and blew on it carefully so I wouldn't burn my mouth in the process. Once I was content, I started to sip on the tea and…holy shit he wasn't kidding! As soon as my taste buds came into contact with the tea it felt like I was taking a punch straight to the mouth. Then as it went down my esophagus, it felt like I was drinking fire…or whisky, one or the other. When it finally went to my stomach, I moved the cup away from my mouth and gasped in surprise. Almost instantly, I felt like I had been kicked in the chest. Although despite the initial unpleasantness, I could already feel quite a bit of energy coming back into my body. I coughed a few times and shook my head saying, "A little punch? Are you kidding me? This stuff makes the strongest coffee I had taste like its fruit juice or something. Good lord what the hell?! Did you think this was funny or what?" I heard him chuckle but he didn't say anything else and this caused me to growl dangerous, "Bastard."

I went back to nursing the "tea" Ghost had made for me and waited for the food to be finished up. It didn't take much longer and soon we were eating quietly. It was a little different than what I was used to, but I took solace in the fact that there wasn't any meat. At least I didn't have to worry about that dilemma and was glad that Ghost didn't approach it. The last thing I wanted to worry about was…exactly what kind of meat I was eating. The meal was consumed in silence and then Ghost went to cleaning it up. I was amused just how civilized he was, but then again, Ghost spent quite a bit of time in the human world as well. I wasn't surprised that his habits reflected that and it made even more sense as to why he picked to live in the manner he did. When it was all finished, we sat in the living area and relaxed a bit. Ghost was looking stronger than he had been when we arrived and I was officially satisfied that the fruits I had from Kurama had done its job. In fact, he placed those fruits on a platter that rested on the table where anyone could get to it. Yet, while Ghost looked like he was regaining his energy…I felt exhaustion beginning to nip at my limbs.

"So, Ghost…how did you come to live here in the neutral zone? How'd you manage to get this house?" I asked tilting my head to the side. Ghost looked up with an amused smirk on his face and he shook his head.

"I didn't get the house. I built it," was his simple reply.

"You…built this? By…by yourself?" I asked in shock.

"It took some time and quite a bit of work on my part, but yes. I did this by myself. As for living in the neutral zone, it was better for my own ways. I didn't wish to be taken in by the three Demon Lords. None of them were of much concern to me and in my employment it worked better for me to be neutral. That way I could take missions from any of them and it wouldn't be a conflict of interest. In fact, I could take one mission for one side, and immediately turn around and take another mission that went against it. Those were amusing to say the least considering I had inside information on it. Although…it seems as though one of the Demon Lords noticed this and has in fact used it quite a bit since my employment…Mukuro," Ghost replied looking at me calmly. Despite his calm voice though, I tensed at the mere mention of Mukuro's name. Easily, she was my main concern of all the demons I would possibly face and a big reason for it was… well Hiei. I had no realistic thoughts of coming face-to-face with Raizen; not in his current condition anyway. Yomi…he was a little more realistic and the fact that his hearing was so acute concerned me. So long as I was within a certain distance of him, he could literally hear anything I said and that would work against me if I didn't watch what I said. Considering I had an annoying tendency to talk in my sleep didn't help matters either. Yomi was calculating and wouldn't strike me down unless it proved the most beneficial to him and considering that he wanted information about Kurama…I could use that to live longer. Mukuro on the other hand, was a completely different story.

Mukuro wouldn't need to have me around. As far as I knew, there was nothing I had to offer her that would make me a valuable asset. In fact, my relationship with Hiei would actually prove to be a challenge for her…not to mention that I knew all too well about her feelings for Hiei. She may be a demon, but she was a woman, no matter how hard she may have tried to ignore it. The competition for Hiei's attention might not set well with her and it would be fairly easy for her to strike me down and what was worse, she didn't need a reason to do it either. No one would second guess her or question it. Frankly, when I was being honest with myself… Mukuro terrified me far more than Azra and Morte did together. I couldn't hold a candle to her as it was and…damn it all to hell, the chance of meeting her on the battlefield was a lot higher than I was ready for it to be. In fact…I felt like I was going to have a mini panic attack just thinking about it. I shook my head vigorously and quickly got to my feet. All this thinking about meeting Mukuro had gotten me feeling sick and I needed to sleep it off… Not to mention the injuries I had endured from Azra were healing, but the cut to the side was being particularly annoying and itching me.

"Ahem…So, I'm thinking it's about time I got some real rest and recovery. Where… can I sleep?" I asked clearing my throat and bringing up my balled fist in front of my mouth as I looked away from him innocently. Ghost laughed in response and stood as well. He motioned for me to follow him and went off toward the bedroom where I had changed clothes. I arched my eyebrow in response, and couldn't shake the feeling that he had something absolutely devious planned up his sleeves. More than anything, the good sense in my head was telling me not to fall for it, but I was reaching the point of total exhaustion that I didn't know how much longer I could remain standing on my feet. So taking a deep breath, I quietly followed after him and stopped in the threshold of the doorway leading into the room. He stood halfway in the middle of the room and looked back at me curiously. I wrinkled my nose thoughtfully and said, "This is a nice room Ghost, but I assumed that it was yours. Do you have a guest room hidden somewhere around or am I going to be settling on the couch?"

"This is the only bedroom in the cabin and I am more than happy to allow you to sleep here while you are my guest. It doesn't seem particularly fair of me to make a lady such as yourself sleep on a couch," Ghost answered causing me to smirk. He stepped off to the side and looked back at me with a neutral little smile. I scanned his eyes and I couldn't see any more devious gleams or glitters that might indicate that he was up to no good. Then again, I still kept my guard up, but knowing Ghost he was still going to do something that I wasn't expecting.

"I thought chivalry died a long time ago. Who thought that it could be found by a demon in the middle of the Makai no less," I replied with a rueful smile. I shook my head and ran my hand through my hair as I looked over the bed for a second…that really looked a lot better than I remember any bed looking before. I brought my hand down slowly and took a deep breath.

"Indeed. I also figured that you wouldn't mind sharing it with me."

"Wait. What?"

Before I could fully process what he had said, Ghost's hand shot out and his fingers gently curled around my wrist. There was a swift tug on my arm and considering I was already partially exhausted, I stumbled forward nearly tripping over my own two feet. With some fancy maneuvering, I felt my back connecting with the softness of the bed and my head landing on the pillows gently. I blinked and in the fraction of a second it took for me to close my eyes and open them again, I felt another body land on the mattress as well. When I looked up again, I found Ghost hovering over me with one hand on the bed near my head and his legs very close to mine. One of his knees rested just outside of my left leg and his other knee was resting between both of my legs. His other hand was still holding my wrist and drawing that arm up over my head with my hand touching the wooden headboard of the bed. The wood was smooth beneath the tips of my fingers and at first the cold was a shock to the senses before the heat of the situation took over. My breath caught in my chest and Ghost brought his face closer to mine. All I could see were his deep dark red eyes and his scent was so clear it was all I could think of. His body heat radiated off of him and when I breathed, my chest rose just barely coming short of touching his. There was no doubt that this was the closest I had ever been to Ghost and…it was a little… God I couldn't think of the words. Actually, it was practically impossible for me to form a true coherent thought. Aside from the fact that I was vividly aware that the clothes I was wearing were extremely large and the shirt had fallen enough to the side that my shoulder was completely exposed and…it was just barely short of showing a little more.

"See, I didn't think this would be too uncomfortable. In fact, this bed is perfectly sized for two and it wouldn't be too tight a fit if we were in such close proximity as this. It has been a long time since I've been this close to a female and I am not exactly one to entertain guests so this is all we have to work with," Ghost whispered in a soothing voice that nearly sent chills racing down my spine. Never before had I been in such a situation as this…back home it was like males were afraid to touch me, let alone even send a fond glance my way. So this… experience was beyond my understanding completely. Ghost leaned forward just a bit more and placed his forehead against mine as he said, "Don't you agree? Besides…haven't you thought about it…even for the briefest moment?"

My mind went blank…had I thought of it? To my knowledge…it had all been about Hiei…but he wasn't here right then and there… I had left the group with him… Had there ever been any thoughts about Ghost? For a few seconds I opened and closed my mouth wordlessly. My brain couldn't keep up and the fog he had called into it wasn't helping in the slightest. Yet…there was something stirring in the midst of it all… The more I focused on it, the more I realized that it was…a mixture of exasperation and being flustered all at once. My nails on the hand that Ghost was holding flexed in response to this. I wanted him off.

"I…don't…I can't…breathe…Ghost stop this. You wouldn't…do anything anyway," I choked on the air that was stuck in the middle of my chest. There was a small sound in the back of his throat that turned into laughter. In one swift movement, he was off the bed and standing at the foot of the bed. My brain was slow in kicking through the fog that Ghost had called into being. Once I had regained enough of my senses to move I sat up on my elbows and look at him with an aggravated stare.

"It was all in good fun. Don't get fussy. For as long as you are here, I expect you to have this room to yourself and don't worry about me. I already have plans for my own sleeping arrangements. Do try not to get into anymore trouble at least until we've both fully recovered eh? Oh and one last thing…you're actually the first to ever step foot in this place aside from myself and considering I have so few dealings with women…its all the more fun for me to mess with you…and who are you to say what I would and wouldn't do?" Ghost said with a sly wink before disappearing in the time it took me to blink. I blanched in surprise and looked wildly around the room expecting to see him hiding somewhere close by. Yet as I searched for his presence, I found that he was back in the living room area of the cabin…that…rat…bastard.

"I swear to god…the next time he does that I'm going to punch him right in the middle of his jaw," I grumbled darkly. I rolled off the bed and bounced to my feet as I walked over to the door. I kicked it closed and leaned against it. I let my head fall back and smack into the wood as I cleared my mind. Aside from the hell Ghost had just caused, I was already struggling with other things as well… Now that I didn't have Ghost around to distract me, my thoughts kept going back to the clearing and the demons I had fought… Specifically, the demons I had killed.

Sighing heavily, I moved away from the door and walked over to the window that was slightly open. The wind was bringing in the scent of the flowers and plants immediately around the cabin and I felt calmed by it all. How weird was it that I would think that in the demon plane of all places? I gingerly sat down on the windowsill, feeling the aches and pains in my body a little more clearly than I had before and looked into the calm night sky. It was hard to believe that such serenity could be found in the world of the Makai, but then again humans and demons shared quite a bit more in common than either side was willing to admit. In truth, the similarities were somewhat unnerving. They both had the same capacity for compassion as they did for destruction. The main difference was that it was socially acceptable for demons to be demented and depraved. Humans, on the other hand, looked poorly on such behavior and I thanked the stars above for that. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I was dancing a very thin line. I was still very much human. There was no denying that. I still valued my memories of home and I still valued my emotions as well. My ability to connect with others and have sympathy and empathy for their pain was important to me. I routinely checked the picture in my locket before going to bed. This act grounded me and reminded me on a more constant basis of where I had come from and where I still had ties to. There were so many traits I exhibited that came from my human upbringing, but at the same time I had done things here that I never would've been capable of in the past.

I had become a killer.

While it was true that the lives I had taken were mostly in self defense and I didn't actively go out looking for death matches, it was disturbing for me to think of just how cold I killer I could be. Sure, I was prone to rages back home and had gotten into maybe a few scuffles, but I never had it in me to drop someone the way I could now. Not as bold and ruthless as I just recently had either. Before, my mind would've shut down from the brutality and I would've recoiled before being able to do any real damage. I closed my eyes and leaned back on my peach as I thought over the fight in the clearing with Ghost and the other demons. I could still taste that demon's blood in my mouth despite the food Ghost had made for us, and I couldn't shake the thought of his bones crunching under my jaws. I could feel Kano's eye splitting as my nails tore through it…and I realized that these demons weren't my first actual kills. They were just the first that I had allowed myself to acknowledge.

My first kill, the very first life I had ever taken – and oddly enough I didn't really count the small minions I had taken out in the Saint Beast's Castle – had been back in the first round of the Dark Tournament. My first kill had been Siren. I replayed the final moments of the confrontation back in my mind's eye and allowed it to flow in slow motions. She had just withdrawn both of her hands back toward her and my ears quickly picked up on the strange screeching sound that was beginning to come into being. My body was aching and my skin was screaming in agony from the various puncture wounds I had gained. My flesh was irritated and I couldn't wait until the demonic healing kicked in for it to go away. It turned out that as badass as I may have become in the time I had spent with my friends, becoming a living pin cushion was not much to my liking. Before she launched her attack my way, I managed to catch her eyes and I felt sweat bead at the side of my face. There wasn't a scrap of mercy to be seen reflecting in the depths of her eyes and there was no doubt in my mind that the only thing she intended to do was to deliver the final killing blow. It was not long after that she sent the attack flying at me and as soon as it connected, I was thrown back with dozens of new cuts ripping through my body. I slammed into the ground with enough force to knock the wind out of me, but I was able to get back up on my knees.

When I looked up again, Siren was standing there in front of me. There was the darkest of smirks creeping over her face and I felt my heart skip a beat. What the hell was I going to do now? She raised one of the knives in her hand and from where I was and her trajectory…she was going to plant that weapon in middle of my neck which would effectively end my life easily. Severing a vital artery or something similar would be far too simple at this point in the battle. At the very last second, I noticed something glinting just next to my right hand and the millisecond it took me to get a closer look barely gave me enough time to snatch it up in order to swat her attack aside. I was acting on instinct now and using the speed I had gained from training with Hiei, I countered her attack by throwing my own straight toward her chest. Blood was pounding furiously in my ears and for a moment I forgot how to breathe. Then again it didn't help that she had slammed into me and the momentum of it took both of us out of the ring. I crashed into the ground with her on top of me with my arm awkwardly twisted in between the two of us, still holding the knife that was buried into her body. Slowly, realization dawned on me that the blade had pierced the part of her chest where her heart rested and…had gone more than deep enough to puncture it. As I laid there in shock, I could feel her blood oozing between my fingers and it was then that I felt her take her final shuddering breath. I had to push her body off of mine and released the knife so as not to rip it out of her chest. At the time, I had ignored it and pushed the truth to the back of my mind, but I knew all too well that as I climbed back into the ring, she was dead.

The next life I had taken was the unnamed wind demon from Dr. Ichigaki's team who had attacked me outside of the ring and tried to kill me by throwing me off a cliff. It was unfortunate for him that Chu and Rinku had found me and got me to where I could fight him. I hadn't thought much about him and truthfully his death was the simplest of them all. After beating the crap out of him for making a fool of me, I just threw him into the stadium and proceeded to burn him alive with my fire. Then again, the smell of his charred flash came to my mind and I shuddered as no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't remember if he even cried out in pain or not. Thinking back on it now, I couldn't decide if it was more disturbing that I hadn't really thought or cared about it than anything else…

Then, there was Tenchi.

Thinking back on this, his death was probably the first that I took pride in. That bastard has so much more coming to him than I had delivered and my stomach twinged in pain just thinking about those vicious claws of his. Tenchi had no qualms tearing me to shreds and he forced me to stand against the darkest of shadows and claw my way out of them. I tapped into my stored energy reserves in order to defeat him and used a fiery rage that I hadn't used before and truthfully, haven't used since. The final attack that had done him in, the Hell's Rings, is one that I didn't plan on using and honestly haven't felt such a fury to do it again. Then again, no one made me want to rip them to shreds quite like he did.

I flashed back to that moment just before I delivered the final blow and stood against the shadow attacks he was throwing at me. Comparing it to the multiple stab wounds I had received from Siren and the injury he inflicted to my abdomen, these attacks felt little more than pinpricks. I focused on the power that was building up inside of me and it felt like flames could burst right out of my very being. I adjusted my grips on the chakram and tensed my muscles for one fantastic throw. A small grin was threatening to curl at the corner of my mouth.

"Actually, I do! Hell's Rings!" I howled furiously as I launched both of my weapons toward his head. They were moving faster than ever before and there was no possible way Tenchi would be able to dodge. I could hear the blades whistling through the air and in an instant burst into flames. They bore down on him far more fiercely than I had and at the last possible moment and in one fell swoop sliced through both of his arms, right at the shoulders. The weapons continued to crackle and whistle through the air as they changed direction at my slightest indication and swung back around to attack him once again. Before his arms even had a chance to separate from his shoulders, the chakram sliced through his entire torso making an 'x' that marked the middle of his chest. Flames lingered on his skin where the chakram had cut through him and the chakram swung around yet another time, slicing through his legs just around the hip area. This time around, I took a breath and redirected the weapons for one final time.

It was at this point in my past that I had blocked from memory and forced myself to forget about. When it happened I had glossed over it and refused to focus on it, but I sent one chakram flying straight toward the middle of his chest and the second…was flying straight toward his neck. They struck at the same moment, but where the chakram that struck his chest just sent a shockwave out that caused the parts of his body to disengage from each other, the other one cut straight through his neck like it was nothing more than butter. Blood spurt from the wound and just as the weapons returned to my hands, his body started to fall apart. I hooked the weapons back on to my hips and I stared at the blood splattering all around the ground before focusing on his head as it rolled across the ground. It had enough momentum behind it that in fact, it rolled right off the side of the ring. I don't know what had caused me to watch it the entire time, but I did take notice that his eyes never once closed. Tenchi had watched his death and watched me as I cut him down. He watched me make a complete and utter fool of him after everything he had done to me in the middle of the fight.

However, I had pushed it all to the back of my mind and forgotten about it. Now however, I was pulling everything from the back of my mind and acknowledging it. Admitting to what I had done and accepting it. No longer was I hiding that from myself and in one go both my demonic side and my human side clashed. I doubled over on the window sill and scrunched my eyes tightly together as I brought my hands up and dug my nails into the sides of my head. I flashed back to the clearing…specifically the demon I had…actually killed in my wolf form. As soon as my teeth had punctured his skin, blood had sprayed all over my mouth. The roof of my mouth was immediately coated in the thick liquid and I felt my teeth sink even deeper into his flesh. It was a jolt of surprise to me when I connected with the bone of his neck and I even noticed that I had felt my teeth cutting through the muscles in his neck and shoulder. It only proceeded to get worse when he thrashed around and I responded with simply biting down harder and twisting my head as I did so. I could feel the tendons and muscles snapping and tearing beneath my jaws. I could feel the bones starting to fracture and break under my teeth and just kept on going. At this point, blood was pouring out of my mouth from the various points in his body where I had bit into him and I had planted my paws into the ground to keep him from getting away from me. It wasn't much longer before I bit down just hard enough that I felt the bones in his neck snap at the base of his spine and finally kill him.

Then…Kano…I hadn't looked at him when I killed him…but I felt it well enough to imagine what it looked like…I jammed my pointer and middle fingers into the center of his eye and tore straight through his eyeball with my sharpened nails. I could feel the soft membranes ripping apart and felt blood dripping between my fingers before sending the electric current straight through his body. I could envision his convulsing body jerking from where I held him there and the blood pouring out of the gouging I had done to his eye. Since the electricity was going straight to his brain, I imagined that it was all shutting down fairly quickly, but it was probably the equivalent of a person who had been sitting on death row being executed by the electric chair…it wasn't a good death either. All the while, there was the internal struggle of turning my head and taking a look at my handy work. I would've been lying if I had said that I wasn't at least curious as to what it looked like. I almost started to turn my head, but stopped… Something had crossed my mind and it kept me from making that choice…

A roaring boom broke through my concentration and I jumped away from the window expecting some sort of attack. As my eyes flew open and I reached for my weapon, I noticed that it had started to rain and I looked back up into the sky to see that some clouds had rolled in over the clear night while I had been so lost in my thoughts. I relaxed upon realizing that the boom I had heard was nothing more than thunder and I walked over to the window to close it so none of the rain would be able to get into the room. Then I walked back over to the bed, taking off the belt that held my chakram as I did so and dropped them on the end of the bed within arms reach before plopping onto the bed. My head was spinning…my eyes slipped in and out of focus…just as I moved to lean back… everything went back.

-Sometime Later-

I opened my eyes to find myself standing in the middle of a field. I looked around the rolling hills in front of me and found that there was nothing but fields as far as the eyes could see. I was completely alone and as far as I could sense…there was nothing living around me other than the plants. I looked up at the clear blue sky overhead and raised my hand up to shield my eyes from the blazing sun overhead. I didn't know exactly where I was but…I felt relaxed and absolutely at ease. I looked down to see that I was standing barefoot in the rich dirt and took in a deep breath to take in the beautiful nature all around me. How long had it been since I had experienced a true peace like this? Hell… I couldn't remember a time even before I arrived in this world that I had felt this way. It was…amazing and I felt like I could finally relax. I slowly sat down and laid back in the grass bringing my hands up behind my head. It was too good to be true, but instead of waiting for the other shoe to drop, I closed my eyes and decided that I was going to enjoy this for a long as I possibly could.

I don't know how long I was laying there but I felt the wind change. I quickly opened my eyes and noticed that…the sky above me had turned very dark. I slowly got to my feet and looked around, watching the wind tear across the tops of the grass. I tensed slightly and looked around expecting something dangerous to come out of nowhere at me. However I didn't see anything or sense anything. So I started walking down the field I had been standing in and went in some random direction. As I walked, I felt the wind getting so strong it was almost able to move me from the way I was walking. I kept on until…I smelled fire and it was coming from directly behind me. I spun around and caught sight of it…a raging inferno was racing straight toward me and there was nowhere for me to go in order to escape. Reacting on instincts, I threw my arms up to protect me and closed my eyes.

I didn't feel it connect, but I heard the roar of flames as it burst around me and I heard the crackling embers as they set the ground alight. Through all of it though, I wasn't burned in the slightest. Slowly I opened my eyes and raised my head to look around. Everything had been reduced to ash. There wasn't a single blade of grass left and instead there were still fiery embers all along the dirt. Still barefoot, I moved through the remains of the field and faintly wondered what had happened. It was like everything had changed all at once. The sky was black overhead with grey clouds and the once beautiful field was…barren with flicking flames still licking at various points on the ground. I looked ahead of where I had been going before and saw a forest in front of me. Strangely enough it hadn't been touched by the burst of flames that had ravaged the field at all. That immediately told me that it definitely had to be checked out and I set off toward it. It didn't take long for me to cross into the threshold of the forest and kept moving forward. It reminded me more of the Makai than the Ningenkai. The trees looked like they were made of a black bark with a sickly green hue. The leaves were a dark purple and though stuck to the trees without any trouble, they looked closer to dead than living.

There were dark ominous sounds coming from just around the corners as I moved deeper into the trees and every time I tried to focus on them they would disappear just beyond my ability. It was unnerving to say the least, but I had witnessed worse things since arriving in this world. This was nothing I couldn't handle and I didn't let it deter me. I wanted to know…what exactly rested deeper inside the confines of this place. The plant life grew far denser and I found myself climbing over roots and things similar to the ones Ghost had helped me navigate to get to that damned fortress. I wasn't sure how long I had been struggling through it when I finally caught something that was out of the ordinary. There was the smell of blood. I froze in the very spot I stood and crouched closer to the ground. I couldn't be sure what was around the corner and if I could I wanted to get the better of it. I stealthily moved about the shadows and noticed that just a little ways ahead there was a clearing. I slowed my movements and regulated my breathing. I made sure that I didn't make a sound as I walked and pressed my palms against the tree that was just at the edge of the clearing. I came to a stop and struggled to see what was in the clearing but…found nothing. Arching my brow in confusion, I stepped further into the clearing and placed my hand on the trunk of the tree to brace myself…and almost fell as my hand slipped across the bark. I spun around to look at it and immediately saw a sickly stain of liquid sticking to the bark on the trunk. It seemed relatively fresh considering I saw a little of it still dripping down. I slowly brought my hand up to where I could see it and wrinkled my nose upon realizing that it was blood. I stepped back a ways from the tree and followed the blood that was dripping toward the bas of the tree and upon seeing what it was nearly let out a scream of shock.

To keep myself quiet, I clamped my clean hand tightly over my mouth and stepped away from the scene. Although I knew all too well what it was about. I knew all too well who it was and I knew all too well who had been the cause of it. As I took in the scene, I saw a body lying at the base of the tree and immediately recognized who it was. It was Kano…one eye socket was bloody and destroyed completely with burns around the eyes itself from the lightning to top it off. I could see inside of his head where some of the ripped eye still remained and the eye next to it, though still intact was still as disturbing as the other. It was wide open and swollen; bulging out of its rightful place, no doubt from the currents of electricity I had sent coursing through his body. His face was swollen and so chalk pale that it looked as though touching it would cause it all to peel off to reveal the deteriorating muscle beneath it. The sight caused me to keep stepping back in shock at my own handiwork and the back of my heels smacked into something. It moved slightly but it was so shocking to me that I fell back and tumbled straight to the ground. Growling in annoyance, I quickly pushed myself up on my elbows and looked to see what was on the ground that I had tripped over. Once again, I felt my stomach roll upon seeing the dead body of Siren just laying there like I had killed her back at the Dark Tournament. I blinked in shock and jumped up to my feet and staggered away. Yet as I looked around I was immediately assaulted with the sight of every demon I had killed up to this point. Their bodies filled the clearing around me and I slowly turned in a circle looking over it all.

I…had killed a lot more demons than I had thought.

There was a small sense of pride. I had taken these fighters down on my own and a few of them had even been stronger than I was at the time. Though I knew all too well my body count was nothing compared to that of Ghost's or Kurama's or…most of all Hiei's, but nonetheless, I had done this by myself. It wasn't so much that I was proud that I had killed them, or at least I didn't think that's what it was about. I felt pride in the fact that these challenges had come against me and of my own strength, of my own power, and of my own cunning I had taken them down myself. These were the fights that I didn't have to have any of my friends fight the battle for me. I had become sufficient enough in battle that…I could stand on my own. While it was true that I wasn't quite on the same level as they were…damn it I was pretty powerful in my own right… I don't know why it had taken so long for me to realize that, but now that I had, I felt…different.

I spun on my heels and wiped the blood off my hand on my leg. After that I quickly ran out of the clearing as fast as my legs could take me and didn't stop running until I was a decent ways out of the clearing. Finally I came to a stop and leaned against a tree. I wasn't exactly sure what the hell was going on at this point, but something told me that…the situation was going to deteriorate from this point on and I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to deal with that. I pushed away from the tree and started walking down the barely visible path that was there. I was quiet as I walked and crossed my arms trying to keep my mind from straying. As I walked, I tried to focus on the world around me and only found one thing. I smelled more blood. What made it worse was that I smelled quite a few other scents that were strangely familiar to me. At the current point in time, I couldn't exactly pinpoint how I knew the other scents, but the curiosity was driving me to keep walking toward it. All the while my stomach was churning and my heart was pounding. Something was eating away at me and there was a voice in the back of my head telling me to stop. It was saying that I wasn't going to like what I was going to see next.

I noticed another clearing in front of me…and I could already see bodies lying on the ground. I slowed to a stop just at the edge and looked through the trees…before nearly panicking. I couldn't get any sound to leave my throat, but I skid into the clearing on my knees beside a body and turned it over. I was instantly met with the dead eyes of Yukina. Her expression was frozen in shock and pain and her eyes were devoid of all light. There was blood seeping from a wound in her back and it didn't take much to figure it had been the killing blow. My best guess was she was trying to get away and they had struck her down at that moment. I could feel anger and despair swelling in my chest all at once and I looked around to see…the other girls. I saw Botan…Shizuru…Keiko…even Atsuko all lying on the ground…dead. There was more blood along the ground than there had been in the other clearing and all of their eyes were open; frozen in the moment that they died. I was shaking…why…who…how dare they… my brain was firing off a thousand different thoughts. I couldn't keep them all straight, but as I gently laid Yukina's body on the ground and closed her eyes, I swore that whoever did this…was going to die a slow, agonizing death. I would show them what it was like to experience pain before death. I went about closing the eyes of all the girls and paid one last respect before looking toward the rest of the path. I could see foot prints…and blood trails. I knew that's where my target would be. Yet just as I started to walk toward it, I saw two trees on either side of the path with pools of blood just on the other side of them. I dashed over and turned to look at them and felt another two stabs to my heart…there was Genkai and Kuwabara. No doubt they had been struck down trying to keep the other girls safe. Genkai's fatal wound was a blow to the side of her head and for Kuwabara…it was to the neck. Just like the others their eyes too were open until I closed them.

The images I saw reflected back in all of their eyes were ones of fear…pain…and anger. My heart was breaking…I couldn't even process the despair I felt…they were my family…but I could smell whoever did this was still close. I had to take the chance I could to take them down. I said my grace to their souls and tore off down the path, feeling a dangerous fury swelling in my chest. I was going to rip someone apart and I was going to do it in the most agonizing way possible. Not much longer…there was another clearing and when I stepped into it, there were three bodies lying on the ground. This time I choked and was able to produce some sort of sound, "Yusuke…Kurama…Ghost…no…"

The three of them were lying on the ground on their backs. There was only point of injury on them. As I drew closer and knelt beside my dead friends, I inspected the injuries. Each of them was struck down with a single blow to the heart. The thing was…there were slightly strange singings around the sides of the holes in the shirts they were wearing…it almost seemed like burns at first but there was a different smell that I caught. While I closed their eyes out of respect and logged the images I saw reflected in them, I realized that it wasn't ordinary burns from fire that had caused those markings. It was caused by…lightning. My mind was quickly trying to think of who possibly could do such a thing when I heard fighting not far off. My heart leapt in my chest. There was only one more fighter who hadn't been among the dead…and I was praying to any divine being that I would make it in time to make sure that he wouldn't meet the same fate as the rest of my friends…I don't think I could stay sane if that were to happen. I was on my feet in a matter of milliseconds and tore off through the trees, pushing my legs as fast as they would possibly go. The sounds of fighting grew even louder and I pressed on. I could hear the familiar sound of Hiei's sword clanging against metal and the tone of it gave me hope. Though I was nearly broken over the death of everyone else and I could feel tears subconsciously already spilling down the sides of my face…I wanted to at least keep Hiei from such a fate…

I broke through the clearing and saw the swordsman stumbling back with his weapon crashing into the ground. The world went silent. I couldn't even hear my own scream as Hiei turned around…and I saw one of my very own chakram buried so deeply into the middle of his chest that…half of the weapon couldn't be seen. His wide eyes met mine and I saw…nothing but betrayal reflected back at me. I felt as though I had been stabbed through the heart and I watched his body slam into the ground. I looked to where the weapon had been thrown…and saw myself.

It didn't make sense. I was standing here…and over there too. The me that was standing in front of me, the one that had struck down Hiei…and apparently everyone else, was drenched in blood…her long brown hair was actually clumped together with dried patches of blood. Her clothes were stained nothing but dark red and red-ish brown from the wet and dried blood mixing together. She looked at me with wildly vicious glee in her eyes and pointed a blood stained nail at me. A bolt of electricity fired straight at me like Yusuke's Reigun attack.

The second it made contact with my heart, everything went back.

-Later-

I was aware of myself screaming. Sweat covered my body and the sheets clung to me as I bolted straight up into a sitting position. My hand immediately shot out and grabbed onto the chakram at the foot of my bed. I launched it forward before I was even able to open my eyes and when I did, I saw it buried as deeply into the wall across of me as it had been in Hiei's chest. I couldn't breathe…I was choking. I was crying. I shook my head vigorously and brought one hand up to my forehead and pushed the hair back that was sticking to my forehead.

"What…the hell…was that?!" I whined and shook my head trying to shake the images from my mind. I struggled to rationalize it. Maybe I was just worn out…plus I had seen Genkai die before my very eyes…and I had watched Yusuke get killed protecting me…maybe my mind was just trying to cope…and failed…miserably. I couldn't stop my body from shaking and I couldn't get my breathing under control.

"I would ask if you had money to pay for that…but it seems like you have other things to focus on…" a smooth voice whispered from the doorway and I looked up wildly to see Ghost standing there. I flashed back to seeing him dead on the ground. I closed my eyes and shook my head. He wasn't dead. He was right there in front of me. Ghost wasn't dead. I faintly heard him move and felt his hand on my shoulder. I opened my eyes and looked to see him holding out a small vial to me. Before I could even ask, he went on to say, "This is a mild sedative that will get you to stop hyperventilating. It won't knock you out, but it should regulate your system…and you're taking it whether I have to shove it down your throat or not."

"G-got it," I stammered quietly and took it from him in one quick swipe. I didn't hesitate to drink the concoction and wait until it started to take effect. For a few minutes, I still couldn't breathe, but it wasn't long until I felt like my lungs were able to take in air and I brought my knees up to my chest and hugged them tightly to me. I pressed my forehead against my kneecaps and calmed my racing thoughts…it had been a dream…nothing more. Ghost wasn't dead. That meant none of the others were dead either. They were alright…and it wasn't real. When I finally swallowed a majority of my emotions and locked them back, I looked back up to Ghost and said, "I could get away with telling you that it was just a bad dream right?"

"Not likely…you called out quite a bit in your sleep…it seems like you have quite a bit bottled up that hasn't been worked out and…" Ghost glanced over to my chakram in the wall and arched his brow. He looked back to me and said, "If that had been anything living instead of a wall, there would've been some serious damage done…I think it would be best if you told me what was going on before we do anything else, eh?"

I sighed and hung my head, "I guess that would be best…how about you make some of that tea and we can talk over that?"

"I suppose…but don't count on it giving you a heart attack before you explain what happened because I will revive you to find out," Ghost stated getting up and walking toward the door. He paused for a minute before looking over his shoulder and saying, "Get yourself composed and meet me out in the living area. Take what time you need."

"Thanks Ghost," I replied as he left. I waited until I heard him rattling around in the kitchen before throwing myself back on the pillows to stare up at the ceiling. Was I losing my mind? Or was it just me trying to cope with what I had seen? Or maybe…my human side was rejecting my demon side…which wouldn't end well considering I was purposefully trying to get it stronger. Not to mention now I was going to have to tell Ghost what happened in the fight with Sensui too…this wasn't going to be very fun. I slowly sat up once again and looked at the chakram in the wall. Leave it to me to destroy a really nice home.

"I'm a terrible house guest."

-Chapter End-

ME: There we go…hehe…oh dear I'm having far too much fun with this.

Hiei: (remains quiet and stares at Ghost)

Ghost: (doesn't say a word and looks back at him blankly)

ME: I don't know how to take that reaction… Can't tell if they approve or are mentally plotting my downfall…or plotting ways to take each other down. One way or another things are gonna start getting better so I hope everyone enjoyed. Drop a review and let me know what you think! I am trying to get chapters out quickly but I am in the process of getting a new job so it's taking a little extra time. On a side note, the funny thing about these chapters is that I'm actually ending them sooner than I want to because if I let them go as long as I originally planned to…good lord each chapter would be over twenty pages each and I think it's somewhat excessive. But on the plus side, action is gonna start picking back up in the next chapter!

Kurama: (makes the scene since the other two are quiet) So long as you don't disappear for a year again, I think it'll be alright. Just continue to keep up the good work alright?

ME: (gives him a thumbs up) You betcha! I'll keep on kicking ass and taking names. Let me know what you think guys! Drop a review and see ya next chapter!