"It is simple. All that you need to do is what naturally comes to you, Shizuru. Think of it as if you have become something similar to a reaper." Masanori explained casually, "Anything beyond that purpose is wasteful detail, trappings of a tiny mortal soul that no longer binds you."

She looked down on the larger demon from her seat on top of a boulder beside him, her chin resting on the heel of her hand.

The longer she was in his presence the more she was certain Masanori lacked much of anything she might need. While there was a steady pull from within her towards him, that sensation did not increase with time. Being near him only eased her nerves on a level more comparable to being on her own.

This is why I came? What a waste…

Close your eyes.

She shifted her gaze to take in the surrounding canyon walls. The so called "better" place to fight with those who were coming was the obvious death trap made obvious. It was a large expanse of open area but considering the strength of energies that would be involved easily turned against all of them.

Why?

Just do it, damn you're a pain in the ass.

She sighed heavily as she complied, more out of boredom then because she was interested. The other had spoken to her enough to figure out Masanori had no idea Shizuru Kuwabara had surfaced. It was a strange realization considering how much he seemed to know about her past, the intimate way he spoke to her came across as if he thought of them as long time friends. It was not a feeling she shared.

Now, what?

The surge of disbelief followed swiftly by amusement almost made her stop the conversation completely.

Them being dumb asses is the usual. Stop making me think you're on the same level. Or are you really going to just believe you and the dime store villian next to you are the same?

What are you talking about now?

There's a reason you just feel more complete next to him, stupid.

The same?

No, she had not thought of them as the same yet it hadn't occurred to her there was much difference either. Masanori commanded more power just as the type of demon he was without the addition of Fate's extra boost. Him becoming the Chimera Soul just enhanced those abilities to ones that had more far reaching consequences.

Besides she didn't think to question the idea of Fate's energies. They did what they did through her so their presence within her was just a fact. She was shockingly less interested in the subject then before she had met up with Masanori.

It just made the time she had spent traveling with Hiei and Kurama even more of a joke. All the emotional turmoil meeting them had put her through only for it to fade swiftly back to the indifference of before. The only change was those flares of emotion only came from the other, even anger was dulled in her now.

"Your thoughts dwell on that troublesome fire demon." Masanori asserted.

She cracked her eyes, "I didn't ask your opinion."

Masonori smiled slightly, "I will deal with him if he manages to survive. You need not worry about your revenge."

"Who says I'm even thinking about it?" She demanded, annoyed.

"I know your mind better then even he could." Masanori replied, tilting his head to look up at her, "Perhaps even better then you."

It would have offended her a few days prior, the assured way Masanori spoke of her thoughts and motivations. He clearly did not have any special method of knowing those things about her. The more he talked the more that fact became apparent.

"Odd way of caring." She responded with a shrug, "Obviously I'm not interested…"

"You delude yourself with that nonsense." Masanori interrupted, a smile lifting his lips, "Your interest is something you cannot help, a side effect of your birth one could say."

"Why are you so obsessed with him?" She countered without thinking, "You've literally never met him."

How absurd it was being lectured about anything by this demon.

Be careful...he pays more attention then he lets on.

The warning came with a sense of the other stepping farther away from her internally. The purposeful way it was done by the outspoken personality brought with it a true sense of danger. She shifted to study Masanori more carefully. If someone like Shizuru Kuwabara was having that type of reaction she was probably better off being just as cautious.

She could see it now, the carefulness of the smile that graced that face. It was something far more stone like then she had first percieved it. Her words had made Masanori angry, touched on something the demon did not want discussed.

Still she could feel there was something important in that anger, a tangible weapon within those emotions that ruled Masanori far more then they could rule her.

"I have, though you were unconcious at the time." Masanori finally said, his tone full of false lightness, "Granted it was through a puppet created specifically to determine his overall dedication to you...even then it defied any sense of logic. I doubt he grasped how close he came to ending both his and your life in his recklessness."

Her eyebrow lifted with some surprise, "You...don't understand him at all do you?"

Masanori's attention snapped towards her, "Do I require understanding to kill him?"

There was not just anger in those eyes, it was a fury that almost reached out to her. One that consumed readily with a greed that encompassed everything.

Why did that fury exist for a perfect stranger?

He isn't one to that guy. Then again...sometimes I didn't get Hiei either so how can he?

Did she understand Hiei?

"Do we have to be enemies?"

Hiei had looked at her strangely then, his eyes pools of both shadow and light warring with one another. For a brief moment she had anticipated a lie, some reasoning that forced them into only the roles they had been assigned. She had expected him to give into the uselessness of fighting against something more powerful then them as individuals.

How soft his eyes had become, thoughtful and magnetic within only a few moments. At the time she had known it was a Hiei that only came out during times of absolute relaxation, something only attained when his naturally defenses were seen as needless.

Could you not…

She controlled the outward reaction of shock as the tendril of jealousy drifted through her. While she wanted to question the awkwardness of the other there was a danger sitting right beside her.

"If you think you can kill him go for it." She offered with a lift of one shoulder, "as for me I'm not about to fight in this place."

She shifted to rise, only to be stalled by Masanori grabbing her wrist. The touch illicited two different reactions within her, one to escape immediately and the other to freeze as if a predator had caught sight of her.

Masanori's eyes burned into her own, "I could easily take what is mine from you…"

His tone held the quality of someone who knew her intimately, soft and cajoling yet with such animosity it left her numb within it's abrasive embrace. It made her nauseaous to be spoken to in that way, a part of her instantly rejecting it with such undeniable fierceness it immediately stalled the fear that had slipped through her.

She controlled her reactions, "Remove your hand."

It came out far steadier then she thought it would. Her voice strangely lower then she was accustomed to pitching it when threatening someone else. It almost frightened her as she searched herself for Fate having taken her over but the only thing she felt was the other indistinctly bolstering her.

She tilted her head, "Do I need to say it louder?"

The rage in Masanori's had been replaced with an odd sort of shock though it was hidden quickly as he silently removed his hand from her arm.

"You have surprising self awareness for one so in tune with Fate." He murmured quietly.

She stood fully, a spark of anger drifting through her.

What did Masanori know about her when all he knew was Shizuru Kuwabara?

Not much, then again the loser only knows a few things about me to begin with. Sharing a memory or two doesn't tell you everything about someone.

Are you kidding me? Isn't that what started things with you and...him?

Why was there hesitation in her question?

Didn't she want to know the answers to her own inability to cast the fire demon out of her thoughts?

Yes...and no. There's more to it, there always is more. Think about something other then him for two damn seconds!

She shook her head to clear the questions that made her want to ask, the tendrils of regret twining within steadfast devotion was oddly hypnotic in intensity.

"I intend to kill the others." She asserted both for herown sake as well as Masanori's ambigious need to hear her state her intentions, "What happens after I really don't care about. You think I'm intune with Fate...maybe I am now. I don't see any alternative besides killing them because it means all this ends. If you could do what you want, you would've when you found me. Don't threaten me when you have nothing to back it up, Masanori."

"We do both crave the same thing, Shizuru." Masanori assured her.

"No," She denied, "You care too much about stuff I just want to disappear."

She jumped down from the boulder with minimal effort and strode away from the demon knowing he had wanted to deny what she said but couldn't without lying outright to her. All of it was of a personal nature for Masanori, something twisted him beyond what Fate intended.

If she were more in tune with those paths then why did he say it with such resentment?

For that matter why did that remind her of what the other had allowed past it's defenses earlier?

The canyon Masanori had picked was not so large that she could not emerge from it within a few minutes of walking. She studied the surroundings with a distracted eye. It would do better than the canyon for her to be able to gain distance when she wanted to instead of leaving it to chance. She easily recalled the fight Hiei had initiated in a similar situation. She was not about to be trapped in a cascade of rocks due to a burst of wild energy.

And Yusuke seems like the type to gamble…

He is.

So much wistful pride in such a simple statement. She had to wonder at it, the ease in it being expressed. Not as a personal accomplishment but real investment in someone else's abilities.

You do that with all of them.

And?

If any of them mattered why was it so easy to leave them behind?

You don't know me either.

The fading that followed was obviously the other shying away from something profoundly defining, the steely resolve left in it's wake left her shivering slightly with unknowm apprehension. She could understand avoiding a painful subject but not the certainty that above all else Shizuru Kuwabara was the most dangerous being she had come across in Demon World.


"She could be a little less obvious." Yusuke half growled beside him.

He refrained from responding, his gaze centered on the lone figure below them at the end of the canyon. He could not fault Shizuru avoiding the basic trappings of the canyon walls, he would have opted for the same lack of limitations if given the choice.

The concern was that Masanori was being just as obvious, his energies drifted from deeper within said trap. They were all but announcing their presence, boastful almost in the way they vibrated with hidden potential.

"I must admit even though this is not ideal I am relieved." He said out loud.

All manner of things had raced through his mind as they had traveled. He was pleased to find his largest concerns had been only a matter of imagination. He had braced himself for the worst possible outcomes concerning Shizuru and Masanori meeting, though there were still many unknown variables to contend with at the moment.

Beside him Kuwabara gazed down at the figure of his sister, an indeterminate scowl on his face.

He had expected the larger man to immediately rush to Shizuru's side, been prepared to halt that type of reckless behavior. Instead Kuwabara had warned them away from that approach himself, studying the lone figure just as he might have.

He was far closer to understanding the intentions of all they had been forced to endure throughout their involvement with Fate, yet fully grasping it still taunted him relentlessly. There was meaning in all of it, of that he was certain. A desired outcome that had yet to be determined danced just shy of his reach.

"Yusuke, do you still intend to face her alone?" He asked, quietly.

"What?" Kuwabara snapped, turning to the other youth, "When…"

"Look, she'd just kick your ass." Yusuke stated confidently, facing Kuwabara, "I'd be all for it but you being dead isn't going to do much for us. I figure you're better off seeing if that ghosty garbage in your head helps Kurama out with Masanori. We still don't know much about that guy. One thing I do know is usually the bad guys are stronger then we think they are."

"Doesn't that mean Shizuru is too?" Botan asked, frowning, "Underestimating her…"

"I'm not." Yusuke interrupted forcefully, "When I go down there she's going to do her best to kill me, Botan. I know that just like all the rest of you do. She won't hold back this time. We can pretend that isn't going to be the truth or we can just accept it. Shinya said she's a Witness, that means she wants to die, right? The other side of it is she's not a push over, dying isn't going to be easy for her to just do."

"So you plan on just taking her out?" Kuwabara demanded tightly, "You going to pretend she doesn't matter anymore?!"

"Kuwabara, I doubt her intentions extend to our lives being important." He stated firmly, meeting the haunted eyes of his team mate, "Her need for our deaths may be all that she is capable of thinking at this point. In the end this is not just a simple gamble for her life on the off chance that our Shizuru is hidden within her. The outcome of this will determine if the Human and the rest of the Demon World survive the incursion of the Chimera Soul."

He felt soiled to turn his focus to the broader threat but there was more at stake then just the implied reality of Shizuru Kuwabara still existing within the Shizuru they had come to know. Koenma had tasked him and Hiei with assuring the survival of two different worlds. Without question he had to keep that as a priority which was why he could allow Yusuke to face Shizuru alone. Masanori had to be stopped, the devastation of his passing through only a few layers of Demon World could not be allowed to continue.

He was mildly surprised that Yusuke had put so much thought behind his decision to take Shizuru on alone. It would have been easy to forget the truth behind what every Witness they had come across continuously proved was their sole obsession.

"I hate this." Kuwabara hissed, turning away from Yusuke.

"Me too." Yusuke admitted, then shrugged, "But I figure Shizuru would want a good fight to go out in."

He eyed Yusuke for a moment, the lie in those words not escaping his notice.

Yusuke was hopeful for a different outcome though he had no idea how that was going to come about if Shizuru's intentions was to bring about all of their deaths. Of that he had no question, Fate desired that outcome most of all.

The one who's death was not so assured was Hiei who was not amoung them to counteract that possible fate.

They had come to the crossroads of personal interest and basic survival beyond that small scope. Before they had fought for a greater good than themselves which was far easier than the situation they now faced.

He had to place his faith in Yusuke, move beyond the trappings of what might come to pass in the private arena of their hearts.

"Botan…" He prompted, turning his attention to the silent reaper.

"I'll stay with Yusuke." Botan asserted in a whisper.

He nodded, "It may be the wiser choice considering Masanori's energies appear to have more reach then Shizuru's. I would not want to risk your life by having you closer to him."

The quick look Botan gave him spoke eloquently of her lack of concern in the loss of her life. There was something more to why the reaper was choosing to stay near Shizuru, the reasoning unclear to him. He did not have the time to dwell on it.

"Be careful, Yusuke." He warned as he began to move away.

He was surprised when Kuwabara fell in step with him without a word. He had expected the man to continue to argue with Yusuke, to allow him to engage Masanori alone for the sake of his sister. There was a distinct menace to the presence of Kuwabara.

They continued in silence for a few moments, his own mind turning over what little they did know of Masanori's abilities. It would not be wise to underestimate a demon backed by energies that could rip their souls apart if they were to engage him in close combat.

"I doubt Yusuke intends…" He began to assure Kuwabara.

"I know." Kuwabara growled, "He just wants me out of the way. I'm better but looks like you get the raw end of this deal."

It was unusual for Kuwabara to admit to not being at full strength. While he had managed to keep up with their faster pace this time there was a definitive lack to energies surrounding him. They were far closer to his full strength but it was not something he could ignore.

"Do you feel anything that might assist us?" He asked as he stopped to survey for a place to reach the canyon floor with little effort.

"I don't know…" Kuwabara grumbled, "Everything around here feels sick or something. I don't know if that helps."

"It does," He assured his friend, "it tells me your spiritual powers are still more attuned to your surroundings. It also warns me that my typical efforts may not be suitable though testing it out would only alert Masanori to our presence."

An enemy who could disturb nature to the degree Kuwabara spoke of could mean his demonic energies would not have the full desired effect he would normally rely on.

"He knows we're here, Kurama." Kuwabara said almost flippantly.

The lightness of his companion's voice alerted him to another reality that perhaps Kuwabara was not aware of himself.

Somehow he's retained a closer connection to Fate then he probably should have though Shinya claimed to have shut down those ties. Why is that?

That could become an asset if he was careful in how he took advantage of the light connection. It was most likely surfacing due to Kuwabara's attention being on what might come to pass between Yusuke and Shizuru. An understandable distraction considering the duality of concern for those involved.

"Do you know where he is?" He prompted, busying himself with casting a minute amount of energy into one of his seeds.

"Down there", Kuwabara answered, pointing off to the far side of the canyon, "but there's parts of him all over the place."

"Parts of him?" He repeated as if distracted.

"Probably those things that aren't real things...guess they feel more like ghosts so I can tell where they are." Kuwabara answered uncertainly.

It made more sense when explained in the terms of Kuwabara's typical spiritual awareness. If Masanori had immersed more energies into these puppets that were nearby then it could translate as if Kuwabara was sensing aspects of his soul.

That in itself did give them a type of advantage he could make use of to a certain degree.

He closed his hand around the seed, lowering it to touch the ground. There was an abrupt lessening of the energies he had imbued it with, not one that would negate it's use.

He stood swiftly, "Warn me of the puppets if we near them. It would be best if we avoid confrontations that would drain us before we find Masanori."

Kuwabara nodded though there was definite worry in his expression. He wanted to ease that concern but there was little he could do. Their best chance was to fully concentrate on the threat infront of them instead of losing focus in what could be occuring with the others.

He motioned for Kuwabara to follow him as he manuvered to decend into the canyon with as little noise as possible.

He had to assume Masanori was being deliberate in his actions. The demon may come from a level much deeper than ones he tended to routinuely visit during his travels but that did not mean he was unaware of him completely.

There is also his knowledge of Shizuru's past, the intimate details could only be known through shared memories of her. Those memories though limited would gain him knowledge about the rest of us. Incomplete ones considering how separate she kept herself but Shizuru knew all of us on levels a typical bystander would not…

Adjustments for that would be difficult since he was not certain exactly what Shizuru's knowledge encompassed. She was far too adept at gathering information from what seemed to be thin air.

Still he could not help the sense of building anticipation in him. The varibles to tactics he would need to employ in this instance was opening within his mind's eye like a mature flower opening beneath the sun's rays.

A slight smile graced his lips as he proceeded downward, one that would have been appreciated by Hiei had he been there.


"Hey there!"

She shifted her head so she could see Yusuke without fully turning towards him.

Something had slowly changed within her as she had waited for him to arrive. The other had quieted to the smallest ghosting as if it had been lessened by the growing need that clawed at her. She was hard pressed to understand it since it was so outside her typical mindset, this insatible curiosity. It was almost painful, complex and vibrant enough to create a shining nimbus around the human turned demon.

She could only contribute it to Fate itself, a side effect of the previous spikes of interest that had interfered with herown thoughts from time to time. None of those brief spats had compared to this invasive driving force marrying itself to the need of death for someone that she had been forced to act against.

Different, she and Masanori were different in this.

Somehow she was absolutely certain the other demon was not subjected to those spikes of interest. That the aspect of Fate he had stolen was driven by some other ceaseless necessity she did not have within her.

So...what is it that is different in us?

Yusuke stood silently, a cocky smirk on his face as he waited for her to respond.

"You didn't come alone." She stated, quietly.

"Botan is lurking somewhere." Yusuke offered with a shrug, "But you know that."

She nodded noncommitally, the reaper's energies were so different from the typical ones it was easy to single her out from amoung the bombardment of her surroundings. Reapers were watchers by instinct alone. She had always found it odd Botan took physical form to travel along side them in their travels instead of simply disappearing after having given vital information.

"Do you think it's smart for just you to be here?" She asked, shifting a little more towards him.

Yusuke tilted his head, "Smart? If you wanted smart you would've been sneaky so Kurama showed up. That's his gig, the whole smart thing. I just like to fight and you were pretty much begging for me to be the one."

"Funny, like it's not obvious you sent her brother off with Kurama so you could kill her." She returned, gratified by the slight darkening of Yusuke's expression.

It was easy to be cruel to Yusuke, perhaps even easier then to anyone else. She had to wonder why she almost instinctly went after him, the ease in which she was tempted to cause him harm. He was not even who she would understandably go after.

"So what if I did?" Yusuke replied, surprising her a little with the way his voice dipped, "It's not what I want to do, you know. Thing is...it's better that it's me. I can handle him hating me."

She raised an eyebrow, "Hiei too? You're willing to lose that much?"

"Hiei might be dead by now." Yusuke state firmly, "I don't have time to worry about shortfry, but yeah. I can deal with that. He hated me before anyway, not much would change. He would try to kill me again and I would fight him again. Hiei would be easier though, knowing he hates you gives you an edge with him."

She was mildly shocked by the truth in his eyes. There was a diffinative sense of loss to those words yet she couldn't detect any lie to what he was saying. Yusuke Urameshi was determined to see things to their end despite what he might lose due to his actions. He was dedicated to a degree that canceled out that loss entirely.

She ignored the dark tendril that had shifted through her at his first remark. She had noted the razor like energies had abruptly ended before Yusuke had shown up.

She had wanted the death of the fire demon, hoped his consumption a cruel and agonizing one. Yet that abrupt loss of sensing the Dragon's energies had created a hollow pit within her, bottomless and threatening.

She would not know, Hiei had stepped beyond her ability to be aware of him once she was no longer in his company. What had once been something she could not ignore had become something she could not be aware of even when she attempted to. Coming to terms with the reality of what being a broken link within the intentions of Fate entailed had been a relaxing if momentary transition.

She should care, shouldn't she?

Or had she simply become accostumed to the rapid changes within her that had stopped causing concern in her?

"So...we gonna do this?" Yusuke prompted, motioning towards her with his hand, "I've been really aching for a good…"

"Why?" She asked without thinking.

Yusuke's eyes widened with some surprise, "That's a dumb question. You asking me that is pretty funny though. Because I like to fight, duh."

"Moron," She censured impatiently, "that part I know. I want to know why it was so easy for her."

"Am I suppose to get what the hell you're talking about? Give a guy a bone here if you're going to get chatty." Yusuke said, relaxing.

It was not so much that Yusuke had been visibly tense but the aura of his presence had shifted into a sense of preparation. That sense fell away with his smart remark though she could tell by the way his eyes remained focused on her that he viewed her as a threat without question.

She should not have been content with his attention remaining wary, yet it was satisfying all the same. He should not view her as a potential one, no more than she viewed him as anything less than one. There was a vibrancy to Urameshi, a singularity of power he exuded though he always seemed unaware of it.

She would enjoy their coming confrontation, delve within the cruelty of ripping his soul apart piece by piece while he fooled himself into thinking anything else could have been the outcome.

What exactly was she searching for with that question?

Why did it vibrate so continously through her?

"I keep trying to understand it. None of it makes sense. I know you mattered to her, all of you. How did it come to this? How could you mean everything and nothing at all? How can any of you be loyal to someone like that?" She almost hissed.


He blinked, surprised by the vehement way Shizuru was talking.

She had to mean the real Shizuru, right?

Why would it come across like she specifically hated her?

He looked away from the cold eyes scrutinizing him as if he held the singular key to those questions.

He wasn't so sure he did.

The person he knew was comfortingly wild, subject to change at a moments whim. She was hot and cold, someone who could make a rainy day reassuring or threatening depending on just a few words.

"Next! Hurry it up! I got lunch to get to!"

He was nervous as he sat down in the chair which was weird to begin with, he hadn't been this nervous on the way back from the Dark Tournament.

"Bout time you came in for a trim, bullet boy"

He looked up into the mirror across from him at the hair salon as Shizuru settled the drape around his neck. She glanced at him then began to move her hands through his hair as she checked it over.

"Something up?" She prompted meeting his eyes in the mirror again.

Why was he so damn nervous?!

It was just Shizuru, Kuwabara's older sister. The one who he had traded banter with a few times at the Dark Tournament. The ship ride back she had withdrew though, rarely stepping out of her cabin and when she did her whole vibe had changed to one that shut down all attempts at talking to her. Kuwabara had warned even Genkai away from trying, his face so serious it had unnerved even him.

For some reason he had never connected Kuwabara's sister with the one everyone talked about in whispered conversations. It hadn't exactly mattered though, the terrifying Shizuru of the streets didn't travel in the same circles.

How was he suppose to know she was that Shizuru?!

He had first met her as someone who brought drinks and snacks up to Kuwabara's room!

When he had decided to come here it had been for a reason. He had never thanked her for watching out for Keiko the way she had on the island. The details of how much had only come out after they were home. He was glad he hadn't been paying attention to anything other then the fights, Keiko's details had been hard to hear. Another thing he failed to do because he became so focused on himself and the fight.

If it had been anyone else he wouldn't have bothered with saying anything, just counted it as a good thing and moved along.

Except this was that Shizuru and ignoring what she had done felt like more of a risk now that he had dealt with Tugoro.

"You still aren't over it, are you?" Shizuru asked as she began clipping the ends of his hair.

"What?!" He squeaked, unintentionally jumping.

"Watch it!" Shizuru snapped, "If you want to go bald I can just shave it all off! Stay still, idiot!"

He swallowed hard, not questioning for a second if she would actually follow through with the threat. There was something about the way she spoke that erased any idleness in it. She would do it, shave him bald if he moved too much.

"Sorry…" he grumbled, sitting as still as he could.

Shizuru clipped away in silence.

What was wrong with him?!

It was just saying thanks. She had put him off with the question, sent his thoughts flying into other places he didn't want to think too much about. He wanted to ignore what he had automatically thought about. Genkai's death. He wanted to ignore it since it held no real meaning with her being alive now. He wanted to but it was impossible to just shrug away those memories.

"It's okay, you know. To not be over it." Shizuru said, almost as if she were talking to him as a friend, "Stuff like that doesn't just go away. You get to feel your way out of it the way you want to. Just don't get trapped in it."

He stared at his lap, more out of shock then anything else. Her words lodging themselves into the cracks he kept hidden, into that painful ball that unwrapped itself when he least expected it to.

He should be over it but…

Shizuru chuckled then sighed, "Yusuke Urameshi, the pride of the dumbest thugs around. Never thought I'd be cutting your hair…"

"I never thought the Shizuru would be." He offered, shaking some of the darkness that threatened off determinedly, "Weird job."

Shizuru shrugged in the mirror, "My baby bro has been flapping his lips again. Guess I need to have a talk with him."

He smirked, "I'd like to see that. Shizuru…"

"Don't," Shizuru interrupted him, "Everything I did then was because it would've ended up bad for me. You don't owe me anything, Urameshi and neither does your girl. Besides you don't want to owe someone like me anything. Besides coming in more so I can at least try to save your hair from that bullet proofing you do to it."

The warm smile that crossed her face with those words made him respond with one of hisown.

How did she do that?!

Send him tumbling down and then yank him back up without missing a beat?!

He couldn't help but feel that smile wasn't something just anyone got from her. It was special because it would only show up when she meant to feel closer to someone, an offer very few received from her in the first place.

He wasn't going to try thanking her again but somehow he knew this was only the beginning of being around her. He had been hooked into herown sort of trap with that expression, with that strange sense she understood the things he didn't voice in a way noone else could.

He was going to come back to this place, to that odd way she spoke to him as if she had always known him.

It was a good place to be, under the umbrella of Shizuru.

He could see it now.

Why he had ended up slipping so easily into the little brother role she had all but forced on him.

He didn't even question it when it had happened, somewhere along the way it just had and he went along because how could he say no to Shizuru Kuwabara of all people?

Yeah...but why does it sound so personal to this one?

This Shizuru wasn't what he would call friendly, if anything she tended to come off as bored almost immediately with the small details of dealing with any of them. They didn't really have any connection to her except the regular type of loyaltiess you would have with someone traveling with you. She most definitely wasn't on their side even when she did things that protected them.

He could answer a little of those questions this Shizuru seemed desparate to get ahold of, couldn't he? Desparate enough to postpone trying to kill him, that much was obvious.

If she's asking this stuff….doesn't that mean…

"Be useful detective, tell me about her."

"Funny story," He murmured bring his eyes back to met the snapping topaz ones, "Hiei asked me something like that once upon a time. Same look to him that you have right now. Like answering it was all he could think about and Hiei didn't think too much about humans back then. We pissed him off for just breathing the same air most of the time."

The same look, one of begrudging interest with a decent amount of resentment to fill in the cracks. Hiei had it then, something forced on him because Shizuru hadn't minded herown business back on that beach.

"I don't…" Shizuru began, her expression darkening.

He held up a hand, "Just listen, okay. You asked about her so I'm going to answer. It's just sort of weird don't you think?"

Those angry eyes narrowed considerably and he understood the warning within them. She was curious but not beyond discarding it for her other plans. He was pushing farther then he probably should but the problem was the questions.

"See, it's not that easy to explain." He offered with a sigh, "Shizuru was...like two entirely different people at the same time. Half the time she just ended up in the middle of everything. She'd just pop up out of nowhere exactly when you needed her to be. You could just be having a bad day then wham she took a seat beside you. It was always out of nowhere with her, some stupid accident but somehow it was like she did it on purpose. She'd laugh at you or give you a good shake and everything was great. The other half we didn't even know what she was doing. She was a ghost on the other side of the world. I don't think she was ashamed of it but it was something we weren't allowed into. Even when we were completely in the middle of it she still...she kept it far enough away from us to protect us as much as she could."

He was getting angry, the more he talked the more that black ball of injustice welled up within him threatening to unbalance him. He could see it, every single step of what had ripped Shizuru away from all of them. That starkness on Hiei's face when he had come out of Shizuru's room that last day. That horrible resolve he had just seen on Kuwabara's face as his friend just let him have the choice of whether or not to kill Shizuru.

It was all awful.

It was all the most horrible situation he had ever found himself in.

He was disgusted with himself just because there was no one else who could do what he needed to do and the stakes were terrifyingly high.

"You don't even know why." Shizuru scoffed.

"I do!" He snapped, angrily, "But you want me to tell you about someone you just don't like! She was amazing and a seriously messed up person! She did things how she wanted to do them and if you were lucky enough you got to be someone she gave a damn about! She was selfish, scary, and sometimes just the way she looked at you made you freeze like a damn deer in headlights! Stop talking about her like she doesn't deserve people caring about her!"

It was all jumbled up when only a minute before he had been totally centered on the fight that was coming.

"She doesn't," Shizuru asserted calmly, "not the way all of you speak of her. Her last act was to leave you all behind. She replaced the person you talk about with someone who's entire focus is to kill you one by one. She knew that was what would happen to you before she left it all in my hands."

He felt the breath leave him momentarily, a vague sense of irony sweeping through him.

How could this person ever hope to understand anything about their Shizuru?

Was she actually trying to shake his faith in the person he saw as an older sister with that type of approach?

He couldn't help the breathless chuckle that escaped him, "That's the most Shizuru thing I've ever heard."

The look of surprise that crossed Shizuru's face settled the onslaught of vicious emotions into a much more managable frame he could work within. The same look, that surprise mixed with an instant of respect.

"How far would she take such a thought?"

"You're kidding, right? That far and probably farther if she had to."

He couldn't explain to this one why Shizuru would do something like that. How it was more a compliment then it ever could be an insult considering the source of that action.

The actions Shizuru took that protected them were always expressions of her priorities. Hiei had been astonished by the act because the fire demon thought he was outside that protection. The thing was Shizuru's protection depended almost exclusively by her dedication to ignoring you until it mattered. If Shizuru removed that protection it meant she trusted you to be able to deal with it by yourself.

Guess I know...our Shizuru is still in there. She has to be if this one is so pissed off at her.

It was a talent of Shizuru, setting things offbalance to balance herown intentions. He had been put through that particular ringer more times then he liked to admit. He was really good at it himself but Shizuru Kuwabara was a level he was still trying to reach. Where he had to use words, Shizuru could do it with a look or a gesture. You wouldn't think about it at the time but you could always trace it back to some simple small thing that wrecked everything else.

She was such a pain in the ass when it came down to it but it was also why she was a part of what made them all more like family.

"No...I don't like her." Shizuru agreed, this time she looked away.

"If it helps she probably doesn't like you either." He replied daringly.

The sharp way her eyes shifted to him and then away gave him a brief instance of pure gratification. It wasn't often he could coax a secret from his opponents, he really never tried to. Another thing he usually left in the hands of the quicker thinking of their group, even Hiei tended to be better at it. He wasn't exactly sure how it was going to help in the end with his plans but it definitely gave him a sense of true purpose.

That small slip meant his end goal was real and not just a figment of his imagination. It wasn't just something he wanted to be true like Kuwabara and Botan did.

Shizuru Kuwabara had survived, she was real and giving this Shizuru infront of him a bad time somehow.

It almost made him slip himself, that burst of relief paired so perfectly with an adrenaline rush that surged through him as if she had started a real fight with him in that moment.

I'm going to get her back damn it! Please let me be able to do this right!

"Tell me one more thing." Shizuru said, oddly distractedly.

"What? I don't know why Botan wears those kimonos so much. I mean she looks okay but it's sort of stupid for a reaper to play dress up." He returned casually, "She should at least wear one of the veils the older ones do. Those guys are creepy like reapers should be."

The look he was given made him shiver internally.

He was going to pay for that, no question about it in his mind.

The promise of pain in those eyes was definitely on par with their Shizuru's.

"Why do you think she would do that? Put your death in my hands?" Shizuru asked, her eyes darkening in a way that made that shiver go through him again.

He knew this answer without thinking.

"If she was going to die, she would want it to be because someone else she trusted wanted to live. Not because of revenge or some other stupid thing, just basic survival. If I had to guess in the end she would want me to do it. I don't have the baggage the others do. I can look at you and not see her." He answered, shifting his position.

He was lying of course, he did see their Shizuru beyond the almost dead expression in those eyes that were beginning to fill with the ominious shifting energies of Fate.

He could see her in the shifting of weight as this other prepared to come at him with everything she had with the intention to end his life.

They were so similar in those Shizuru things as to blur the between seemlessly.

"Let's do this." He encouraged the other, smirking cockily, "I have been dying for this fight. Show me what you got!"


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