Hey guys! Sorry for the slow update! I've just been really busy this summer, and now I have Band and Drama rehearsal every night. Don't worry, updates won't be as slow as they have been. Anyway, you don't know how much I appreciate the reviews! When I started this fanfic I thought I would get like 0 reviews every chapter, but you fans just keep amazing me! Thanks for being there! Thanks to Jesanae Tekani, Kuzima Kuwabara, Jesscheaux, Angelfire3, purplechoas04, LinkinPark fan 1, Catgirl-13, Foss (Thanks for the correction!), SamBev, Wicked-Wytch, DarkDragon, Nightwalker, and jessZdragon! I hope you like this chapter!

Oh, and I don't have the slightest idea who the bad guy should be. I have a lot of people in mind, but can't decide. E-mail me at PrinceVegeta5044@aol.com if you have an idea! ;D

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Chapter Four

Damn it! What the hell was he thinking?!

Yusuke slammed his fists into his mattress, causing all of his pillows to fall to the floor. Why the hell didn't he talk to Kuwabara? Why did his pride have to take over all the time? He knew something was wrong with his best friend... so why didn't he try and find out what it was? Grimacing silently to himself, Yusuke let out a sigh of depression and collapsed on his bed.

Re-playing the events of the day in his head, Yusuke felt anger beyond anything he'd ever felt in the last few weeks. He was such an idiot! Hatred was swelling up inside of him, and a helpless guilt consumed him. Now he'd have to wait all night just so he could talk to Kuwabara again... and the idiot would probably still be mad at Yusuke so their chances of talking in the near future was slim to none. Yusuke winced in frustration, hating the fact that there was absolutely nothing he could do to make the situation any better.

RING!

His heart skipped a beat and he instinctively looked at the time on his alarm clock.

3:00 am

What the hell is this about?, Yusuke thought in wonder, who would be calling me this early in the morning?

Trying to ignore the excitement that was welling up with every beat of his heart, the young Spirit Detective picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

There was a slight pause and very heavy breathing on the other line.

"Who the hell is this?"

Instead of a voice answering back as Yusuke had expected, there was more heavy breathing and silence was buzzing in his ears.

"Look, if you've got nothin' to say then you're just wasting my time. Oh, and the next time you go on one of your dumb ass prank calls again, make sure you call at a better time than 3 o'clock in the morning, asshole---"

"Damn it Urameshi, it's me! Kuwabara!"

Yusuke's eyebrows raised in disbelief and a smile was set on his face.

"Hey Kuwabara!..."

Yusuke almost stopped talking as soon as he started. Having the amazing pride that he had, he could not forgive and forget about their last argument so quickly. Almost as if he was reading his mind, Kuwabara did not interrupt the silence that their conversation had given into. Yusuke shifted around in discomfort, wiping away the sweat that was beginning to form in his brow. Having an urge to hang up, he was about to press down on the dial when a voice stopped him.

"Urameshi, this is not the time to be stupid. I... really have to talk to you about something."

Yusuke noticed the intensity of his best friends' voice and threw his hand away from the phone.

"... Okay Kuwabara, this better be important."

"Listen Urameshi; I need to talk to you in person. Meet me in the park on that big blue bench."

Yusuke rubbed his temple in annoyance and gritted his teeth.

"Damn it Kuwabara, can't this wait? It's three o' clock in the morning for crying out loud!"

"Do you want to find out what's wrong with me or not?"

Yusuke immediately stopped talking and cleared all of his doubts. So there was something wrong with Kuwabara after all. With a determined fire in his eyes, Yusuke nodded and answered the question.

"Okay, okay. See you in five."

"Bye."

***

The invisible wind was like a ghost among the trees. Its voice rang loud in the silent night, warning any bystanders of the dangers that was forthcoming. The moon was full as the stars glittered malevolently. In the park, leaves scattered across the benches and scratched the concrete quietly, as if it had a life of it's own. The darkness was like a stalker, always there to remind you that you weren't alone. The temperatures had dropped sufficiently, more than the weather castor had predicted it would. If anybody were to breathe, his or her breath would be shone like a mystifying mist that would disappear ever so mysteriously. The trees stood tall and proud, as if a fatherly figure to all that surrounded it.

On the trees, that were high above anything, was a shadow.

A flying shadow.

***

Yusuke stuffed his hands into his pockets and muttered silently to himself. He yawned in fatigue and wished he were anywhere else but there. His shoes scuffed along the concrete, making very loud, annoying noises. To add more infuriation to the situation, the soft quiet night was giving Yusuke the creeps. Goosebumps were now forming on his legs and arms. He wasn't sure if it was because he was anxious, or if it was because the night was so damn cold. He walked only a few more feet when he had forgotten where the bench was.

"Urameshi, over here!"

Kuwabara's bright blue school uniform glowed radiantly in the dark night. So much, in fact, that Yusuke had no difficulty in finding his friend. The wind brushed against his clothes and the wind let out a howl.

"Well, this is the most cheerful night I've ever seen."

Yusuke was about to say another sarcastic comment, but when he saw the seriousness of his best friends' face, he closed his mouth instantaneously. More of the obscure silence surrounded the two boys, and the quiet was really grating Yusuke's nerves. Damn it! When the hell would Kuwabara speak up and say something? Raising his hands from his pockets, Yusuke crossed them and let out a sigh of impatience.

"Well, it was nice having this little talk Kuwabara, but I have to go on another date with Keiko tomorrow, and I have to get some sleep. Bye."

A determined smile on his face, Yusuke started to walk away and once again, out of habit, stuffed his hands into his pant pockets. Elated and happy that he finally got out of that annoying situation, Yusuke started whistling a made up tune and began imagining all the torture he would have to endure in his date tomorrow---

"I had a nightmare."

As soon as the words tumbled off Kuwabara's lips, Yusuke stopped walking and turned around. A numbing chill ran through his veins, and an icy poison devoured his soul. His eyes met his companions', and Yusuke didn't like the look in Kuwabara's eyes. He didn't like it at all. Confusion and discomfort squirmed around in the pit of his stomach, and he hated the situation he found himself in.

"... What do you mean, a 'nightmare'?"

An annoyed and anguished expression filled every line of Kuwabara's features. He took a deep breath, and let it out of his lungs in a slow motion. Damn it! How the hell was he going to say this? How could he explain the pain, anguish and paranoia he had felt everyday for the past couple of weeks? How could he describe the cold voice that plagued his dreams and haunted his life? How could he tell Urameshi about the mysterious phone calls? He didn't want Yusuke living in fear like their previous cases had done to him. Now, for the first time in his life, Yusuke seemed happy and relaxed. But Kuwabara knew, as soon as he looked at that anxious look in Yusuke's eyes, that no matter if Kuwabara told him what was wrong or not, Yusuke would live in a haze of agony. Taking another deep breath, he looked at Yusuke straight in the eye, and got ready to explain the twisted story.

***

The darkness. How he loved the black midnight color that was a reflection of his own heart. And this Kazuma Kuwabara... he was a complete opposite. His heart was a blazing sun of pure innocence that could never be stained with the blood of despair. What an interesting human... one of the only humans he ever found interesting. That Yusuke Urameshi was a wonder; a mystery that no one could figure out. But there was something about this Kuwabara. Something he found that intrigued him beyond his sanity. Over the past couple of months, Kazuma had become his obsession. To the point that he memorized every one of his signature moves, his fighting style, his technique. Everything. And that amazing Spirit Sword...

Now that was something that really fascinated him.

Among everything else, even his in tune Spirit Awareness, it was Kuwabara's Spirit Sword that made him almost long for his blood. He wanted to know every secret of his materialization. He counted down the seconds until he could grasp hold of his white, pale neck and strangle it until his last breath left his broken body. Soon... so very soon.

He would have his blood.

***

"I know this is going to sound weird and freaky, but just listen, okay Urameshi?"

"Yeah yeah. I will. Just tell me what's wrong Kuwabara. I don't have all night ya know."

"Okay. Well... it all started a couple of nights ago. I kept having these weird dreams. The first dream I was running away from somethin'. Somethin' really scary. I just don't know what it was. Then I saw the shrimp---"

"Whoa, time out. You mean Hiei? You saw Hiei in your dream?"

"Yea. Isn't that weird? But that's not the worst part. The next dream, had you and Kurama as well as the shrimp. You guys were talking behind my back, about how I was a weak addition to the team and stuff. On top of all that, there's this voice that was in my nightmares, telling me it wants my blood. Whatever it is. Then last night, it actually called me! I thought I was over exaggerating... maybe I was just thinking the whole thing up, but...---"

"... But what?"

Every muscle in Kuwabara's body tensed, and he dreaded with what he was going to say.

"I had another nightmare. You were in it. You were running away from something too. It was the... Toguro Brothers. I tried to help you, but I was dead. Then they killed you..."

Silence. Whatever assumptions Yusuke had before about how quiet it was, was thrown out the window. This silence was the quietest thing either had both heard. It was a deadly silence, a kind that not even buzzing was heard. The two best friends, who had been through so much together, locked eyes and kept their stillness. After several moments of the stilling absence of noise, Yusuke decided to take the conversation up again.

"Man... I had no idea any of this was happening. You're such an idiot! You should've told me sooner! How could you keep something like to yourself?! Are you crazy or something?"

"I didn't want you to be caught up in this! You were actually happy for once, and I didn't want to take that away!"

Yusuke's eyes softened and so did the tone of his voice. Feeling an impending feeling of doom and a fellowship to Kuwabara, Yusuke sat on the bench and put his hand on Kuwabara's shoulder.

"Hey... we'll get through this. We always do. C'mon, we've been through worse shit than this. And somehow, we always make it out alive. Don't worry about it."

Kuwabara pushed Yusuke's hand away, and a tormented look burst into his eyes.

"No Urameshi. You're wrong. Something's different this time. I can't explain it, but... something tells me this isn't going to be easy like every other case we've been on."

As if a light bulb lighted on top of Yusuke's head, he sat upright suddenly and scratched his head in confusion.

"Hey, speaking about our cases. Why hasn't Koenma told us about this? Or Botan? I mean, I'd expect at least Botan would come and nag me about this case, but she hasn't even done that. Do you think something's wrong?"

"Maybe."

Yusuke sat back in thought, putting his hand on his chin and thinking of possible variables. Was something wrong in Spirit World? Damn it! Yusuke hated being in the dark in all of this. He never thought he'd actually miss hearing Botan's annoyingly cheery voice or Koenma's bossy and rude manner when he was describing a case. Thinking more about the subject, he lost himself in thought.

In a split second, without much time to react, a figure appeared in front of the two boys. Kuwabara stared in awe, but then quickly he immediately recognized the figure.

"Hiei?!"

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MWHAHA! What a cliffy! So Kuwabara finally told Yusuke about what was wrong. FINALLY! Jeez, Kuwabara's too stubborn for his own good. The main question remains. Who is the bad guy? Why and what does he want with Kuwabara? Why hasn't Yusuke heard of Koenma or Botan lately? And another twist... why did Hiei suddenly appear? Has he been the one keeping close surveillance on them? But for what purpose? You'll find out, next time on Dame Yume! ^__^

Oh, and don't forget, if you have an idea of who the bad guy is, e-mail me at PrinceVegeta5044@aol.com!

Until next time!