After trying on the shoes Kuronue had bought her and proving that they fit well, Rirī decided she was more than ready for bed. Youko kissed her forehead and she inwardly pouted he didn't kiss her lips, but she watched as he went to his own room with a loving smile. Kuronue went out to check the perimeter, truthfully still mad Rirī made such spicy food that he couldn't enjoy his meal. But she figured he could get over it if she made him a special breakfast in the morning.

She made her way down the hallway, noticing how dark it was and almost debating asking Youko t escort her to her room, because as childish as it sounded, she had a feeling something was wrong. But a noise from her room caught her attention, and all thoughts of going for help escaped her mind as she moved as quickly and silently as her feet would allow to the door of her room. She opened the door and saw that her door to her garden was open. Standing among her lilies and roses was a shadow she couldn't identify.

She stepped forward to get a better look but the shadow darted into the trees like a frightened deer. Fearing it was one of Yomi's spies, Rirī ran after it, stumbling through the dark, unable to sense if it even had Spirit Energy.

"Hey! Get back here! Tell me who you are!" She ordered.

"You already know me~" The shadow's voice echoed all around her, a strange voice she was sure she heard before but she wasn't sure where.

In a dream? She couldn't recall and she wasn't sure if she wanted to, but the shadow was getting away. She tried to catch up but exhaustion weighed her down heavily from earlier that day and she was unable to continue to pursue the shadow that was in her garden, losing sight of it and coming to a stop. She realized that even if she was able to catch it, she had no weapon to overtake it. She also realized that now she was in the middle of the woods in the dark without any means to protect herself. Her vulnerability made her afraid but she swallowed it back. Thinking quickly, she remembered how easy it was for her to focus on Youko's energy and find him. She closed her eyes and focused hard, striving hard and straining her senses when she found it. However, it was much different than before. Before his energy was strong but inviting, like he was reaching out to her so he could protect her. Now his energy felt angry and on edge, ready to lash out at whatever approached. Rirī made sure not to touch his energy with her's and used his as a beacon to get her back to the temple.

She stumbled through the trees, the Gekko Nikko lilies glowing silver before her and she pulled her energy back so no one else could sense her or seek her out. Once she reached her silver garden she noticed Youko's door was open and her senses screamed at her that someone else had been in the temple besides him and it wasn't Kuronue.

"Youko?" She called in worry, but received no reply.

Her calves and knees were burning but she ignored them as she ran to his open door. Inside she saw him laying face first on the floor, facing the open door, grunting in pain as he tried to push himself up.

"Youko!" She gasped, quickly rushing to his aid.

She knelt beside him and managed to help him sit up. One of his hands clutched his side in pain.

"You've been hurt. What happened?" She asked worriedly.

A growl answered her and she looked up to see his eyes were fully red. Rirī knew immedietly what this meant, for Ana had told her a lot about demons, for she was raised in a wolf demon clan. She had told Rirī that when a demon's eyes turn red, they have reverted to sheer instinct and lose all control and all memory of allies. Demons of animal origin revert to animalistic instincts, especially when wounded or their mates are threatened. Rirī had never seen Youko or Kuronue's eyes turn red in battles before so she assumed they had a good hold on their instinctive sides. She knew that even though that was true, it meant this side of him had not been free in a long time and could be terribly dangerous. She would have to be careful around Youko, and Kuronue if he was hurt this badly as well.

"Youko," She whispered gently.

He growled at her and she waited for him to stop, which took a few minutes.

"Let me see your wound. I can help you." She said gently, reaching out to touch him.

He let out a snarl and his ears pinned back as his lips curled over his fangs, his red eyes blazing at her as he held his hand more firmly over his stomach, where Rirī assumed the wound must be.

'It must be a bullet wound. Only bullets drive demons this far into themselves..' She thought.

"Don't worry, Youko, you have nothing to dear." She cooed softly.

She reached out to touch his shoulder in comfort and suddenly he lunged out and bit into her arm. The pain was terrible but Rirī stifled her cry and maintained her composure, knowing if she showed him fear it would only drive him further. She staid calm, watching as he tightened his jaws around her arm, growling as he glared up at her.

"Nothing to fear, see?" She said gently, reaching her other hand out to stroke his hair.

She felt the pressure of his jaws slacken and he pulled away, his ears drooping and a whine escaping his throat.

"It's okay. I just want to help you, love. Let me see your wound so I can help you." She said, gently caressing his face and he nuzzled her hand and closed his eyes, letting his hand fall from the wound on his stomach so she could see it.

She had been right about it being a bullet wound, but she didn't expect it to be so severe. This bullet wound was larger than she expected, so whoever shot him must've known they were dealing with demons, for the bullet seemed to be larger than Rirī's fist, judging by the circumference of the wound opening and depth.

"Can you move?" She asked.

Of course she already knew the answer was no because she had to help him sit up when she originally found him. Nodding in understanding, as if he had answered her, she moved to lay him down on his back when a gunshot echoed through the trees behind her. Rirī leaped to her feet and stood protectively in front of Youko, whose ears pinned back, a look of panic crossing his features before he snarled towards the woods. Remembering that Kuronue was patrolling around the temple in the woods, she feared the worst and moved to leave when a pale, clawed hand grabbed her wrist. She turned and met Youko's red eyes. Though words were far from him, his eyes told her not to go, that he was scared for her.

"It's alright, I'll be careful." She promised.

Red eyes saddened but he released her hand and she ran from the room into the trees, following the direction the gunshot came from, another one going off, guiding her towards Kuronue's energy. She finally found the bat demon, kneeling on the ground and panting, bullet holes ripped in the membrane of his black wings and a few gashes on his sides and arms. His opponent fled as soon as Rirī crashed into the clearing and the bat demon crashed to the ground.

"Kuronue!'

She ran forward and went to help him but he too reverted to instinct and slashed his claws across her stomach. She ignored the pain, just like with Youko, and knelt beside the bat demon cautiously.

"Kuronue, its okay. I won't hurt you." she said gently.

Red eyes glared up at her and he growled.

"Kuronue, it's alright. There's nothing to fear. You're safe now, alright?"

He growled again, weaker than before and fell forward, unconscious, Rirī quickly catching him. She grunted as she hoisted him onto her back and slowly carried him back to the temple.

'I cant figure this out. Whatever attacked them didn't seem to want me to interfere, or be there at all. Was it after just them then? But if it really wanted to get at them, the best way would have been to go after me, especially with me as weak as I am. Maybe they want something from me and that's why they went after Kuronue and Youko and led me away. Or perhaps they hoped that torturing them enough to drive them to their root instincts would make them forget me and make them kill me.' She sighed in frustration, adjusting Kuronue on her back as the lilies came into view. 'The shadow said I knew who they were, that I had met them before. But try as I might, I can not recall anyone with so much malice and darkness. Not anyone who is still alive. And this doesn't seem to be Yomi's doing. But I have said that before..'

Finally she reached the temple, and to save herself trouble, she put Kuronue in Youko's room as well. She was worried Youko would try to hurt Kuronue but the fox demon saw the bat was in her care and he remembered her from before and left him alone. She noticed he hadn't moved since she had left but it looked like he tried to. She laid Kuronue down next to him and stood, taking one of the lamp weeds from next to Youko's furs, using it's light as she went out into the forest to find herbs. Even though she wasn't supposed to because the village forbade it, Ana taught Rirī which herbs to use on wounded demons for different wounds. Quickly finding what she was looking for, Rirī went back to the temple and took a bowl and a spice grinder from the kitchen, bringing it all back to Youko's room.

She sat facing the back door, grinding the herbs together and meshing them into a strange green paste Ana had showed her how to make. She applied the pasted to Kuronue's wounds first, not sure when he would wake and not wanting to be clawed again. His wings were already healing but the paste would help with the pain. She went to Youko next, allowing him to sniff the medicine before she applied it so he knew it was safe. She was about to get started when she fixed a glare on the wound in his stomach. The ball of iron from the gun was still embedded in his side. It had missed his vitals but she knew the pain of it had to be crippling. She sighed, knowing what she had to do.

"I have to remove it so you can heal properly." She told him.

She knelt in front of him and hugged him, holding him securely and he sniffed her hair curiously.

"I'm sorry, but this will hurt." She whispered.

Locking him in her embrace she pushed her hand into his wound and her fingers immedietly found the ball of iron. Youko roared loudly in pain, biting into Rirī's shoulder, his claws digging into her arms as if trying to rip her apart. She gripped the bullets in her hand and pulled it out carefully, ignoring the pain of Youko's teeth and claws. She let the bullet fall from her hand to the floor and she wrapped her arms around him and held him, comforting him through his pain. He was shaking in agony, a long whine escaping his throat.

"It's okay, I got it. You're going to be alright." She whispered gently, her voice weak from the ordeal and she had to fight wanting to lean against him for support.

He released his grip on her arms and pulled his face away gently from her shoulder so not to hurt her further. He whined again and nuzzled his face into her neck, his pained tears soaking her skin.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, stroking his hair in comfort, her arms screaming at the effort but she needed to comfort him through this.

He purred weakly at her comfort, making her smile a bit. She pulled away and picked up the paste again, applying it to his wounds, humming softly a song from her father's land, one she was sure Youko knew because she hummed it often. He listened intently, his ears pricked forward to catch the sound of her voice, his body becoming less and less tense.

"There, all done. The rest is up to you, so I suggest you sleep." She said, setting the bowl aside.

She helped him lay down and he whined in pain, a small fox-like yelp escaping his throat. He could have lashed out at her again or bitten her but he didn't, seeming to make an effort not to hurt her anymore. He didn't even squeeze her hand when he was in pain. After he was laid down, Rirī covered him and Kuronue with blankets. The bat demon was sound asleep, but Youko remained awake. His red eyes watched Rirī as she placed the furs over him.

"Sleep, Youko. You'll feel better if you do." She said, kissing his forehead then pulling away.

Red eyes turned back into gold as his eyelids drooped, longing to do as she asked. He sleepily took her hand as she moved to leave, pulling her back.

"Rirī." His weak voice said.

She had to lean forward to hear him, her face inches in front of his. His hand came to rest behind her head and he pulling her close until their lips met. Rirī's eyes widened in shock but closed, returning the kiss gently, caressing his face, brushing away his tears of pain. even this was causing him pain. She pulled away and caressed his hair as he met her eyes weakly.

"Thank you." He whispered.

She nodded, brushing the tears from his face and kissing his cheeks as he closed his eyes and laid his head back down.

"I love you." He breathed.

She smiled and pecked his lips gently.

"I love you too." She replied.

He smiled weakly, then fell asleep.

A/N: We finally got a kiss! Of course it's while a lot of weird stuff is going on but hey its RK so of course it will be while a lot of weird stuff is going down. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!

TiaKay: O my goodness I wish I had thought of having them spit fire from their mouths when they tried the pepper that would have been so brilliant!

Anyway mysteries and new foes? Or is Yomi up to his old tricks again? And will they talk about that kiss?

Find out next time!

hehe I made a DBZ reference.

love you guys!

~Galinia