Hey! I'm really really sorry about not updating sooner. I got this really bad case of writer's block that I'm not entirely sure I'm out of. Another thing-I still have a minor case of god's-cursed writer's block, so forgive me if the characters are OOC. And this is not the best chapter in the world.

Madame Arrow Foxfire- Yeah, I think Kuro did die before he got to the pendant. But, where's Kuronue without the pendant? Just go with the flow. Say he was able to grab it before they took him to jail. (remember, in this fic, Kuronue never died, he was taken to prison and healed.)

Dragon Scythe-Yeah, I know, it's pathetic. But Shazagen and I know what's going on here.

The last thing Hiei could remember was being force-fed water that smelled like it had sleeping potion in it. Within moments, he had passed out, his head hanging limply over his chest. Shazagen smiled. When Hiei woke up, they would all be gone, tearing apart Yukina's defenses. No doubt, Hiei would dash to the Ningenkai in an attempt to save his sister. When he got there, Shazagen would have Yukina in his grasp, and kill the koorime right in front of Hiei's eyes. It was perfect.

"Shall we move out, Shazagen-sama?" a small youkai appeared at Shazagen's elbow.

"Yes, remember what I told you all to do," he whispered. The small youkai bowed and vanished.

"Here is where I get my revenge," he whispered. He watched Hiei for a few moments. A large youkai came bumbling up to him.

"The portal to the Ningenkai is open," he said. "Follow me." Shazagen followed the youkai outside and then through trees until he found what seemed to be a glowing hole in the middle of the air. He smiled and motioned to his youkai army, and then walked through the portal.


"It is cold in here."

"I know. The fire went out."

"WE'RE ALL GONNA FREEZE TO DEATH!!!"

"Calm down, Jeroun. No one's gonna freeze."

"Let's be logical here. What could we do to warm this place up?"

"Stove?"

"Broken."

" . . . I could blow something up."

"NO!!"

"You guys are no fun," Karasu whimpered, playing with a small string he found. He smiled when it ignited with a pop!, sending a small waft of smoke into the room. "See? It can make a fire." Kurama shook his head as Kuronue leaned in closer to Karasu, peering at what used to be the string.

"You know what? He may just have an idea there," Kuronue said. "We could put a bunch of logs in the fireplace, have him blow one up . . . . "

BOOM.

"What was that?" Kurama asked as everyone jumped to their feet. There was another loud boom.

"It's not a bomb," Karasu said. What he meant was "It wasn't me." There was silence. "Guys, I don't like this."

"Neither do I," Kuronue said.

"'Kassan, you and Yukina hide somewhere safe," Kurama said, trying to work out a plan in his head. "Kuronue, Karasu, Jeroun, and I will go check it out." Shiori nodded and ushered Yukina into the kitchen.

"What about me?" Kuwabara asked once the girls were gone. Kurama paused and thought a moment, while Kuronue, Karasu and Jeroun proceeded outside, despite the ice storm. Kurama grabbed the phone and tossed it to Kuwabara.

"Call Yusuke," he said. "We may need him. Then you can go with Shiori and Yukina, just in case something happens.

"Why are we making such a big deal?" Yukina asked, reappearing in the kitchen doorway to see what was wrong. "There's no proof that it's anything more than a tree branch falling or something."

"I sense something," Kurama said. "Something big, and evil. Just not good." Kurama looked Yukina straight in the eye. "Listen, you may be right, but until I'm sure, I don't want to take any chances."

"All right," Yukina whispered, and rejoined Shiori. Kuwabara began dialing Yusuke's number just as Jeroun rushed up behind Kurama.

"Kurama, it's not good," he gasped. "There's an army of youkai out there, I'd say there's more than a thousand, easy." Kurama cursed under his breath at his bad luck. "Kuronue and Karasu are going to meet them head-on."

"WHAT??" Kurama yelled, whirling to face Jeroun. Jeroun flinched, and repeated what he had said again. Kurama grabbed Jeroun by the collar and began to drag him outside. "Kuwabara! Tell Yusuke we need him down here as soon as possible." Kuwabara repeated the message into the phone as Kurama and Jeroun walked out the door. Once outside, Kurama cursed loudly as he saw what was going on. "There's too many for just us."

"Come on! We can take 'em!" Jeroun yelled. "There's no reason why not!!" Jeroun jumped away as Kurama's hair suddenly grew longer and went silver. The next moment, Youko Kurama smirked and looked Jeroun in the eye.

"You know what? You may be right," Kurama said. "Come on, and don't screw this up." Kurama jumped into the mess of youkai where Karasu and Kuronue were already fighting. Jeroun watched Karasu blow up a few youkai then frowned.

"Why does he seem so much different when he's Youko?" Jeroun whined as he joined the battle, decapitating a youkai with his bare hands.

Sorry it's so short. The next chapter will be longer, I promise. Oh, and don't expect another update too soon, I've got alot of other things to work on right now. Er, review?