Author's Note: After some consideration, I have decided to change Amber's name. It is now "Kohaku", which means (because I looked it up in three different places) "amber". Yeah, sorry about all the "K" names floating around, but it just made the story flow better to have all the names in the same language. Next chapter should be up next week.

Chapter 6

The infinite darkness seemed to shift and twist as Kohaku walked through it, keeping a tight grip on her staff. She thought about creating a small fireball to see, but then reasoned that it was a waste of her power to do so. Already she could feel the pressure on her energy shield, as if she was walking through water. It began pressing in more, and she saw her shield visibly bow under the strain. She went to her knees, fighting to maintain control of her energy. But the darkness swirled in faster, until she couldn't even see herself. 'I can't keep this up much longer. And I can't even move to get out this darkness. What am I going to do?' And then she fixed her mind on Kurama's face, and how happy he'd seemed when he saw her. She could not give up when a cure was just on the other side of this void. And if Yusuke and Kuwabara had made it, she could do. She was a demon after all, Kohaku of the Shadow Warriors, her mother, Kougyoku's Pride; daughter of Itsuki the fire demon. She would not give up to a void that did not even wield a weapon. Gathering her remaining strength, she staggered to her knees and took a shaky step forward, and then another. Using the staff to lean her weight on, Kohaku felt the pressure on her shield lessening, and she started to see faint shadows at the edge of her sight. A bandaged hand suddenly appeared in front of her, and she grabbed onto it, letting it pull her into the light.

"You okay?" Yusuke asked, looking slightly worried. Kuwabara was sitting on a flat stone, arms wrapped around his body as shivers racked him.

"I'm fine," she replied, straightening up and looking towards her brother. Hiei was staring at her, and then at his hand holding hers. He quickly dropped it and turned away, staring up the hill they were next to. Everyone followed his gaze to the top, where a large temple stood, its black stone walls starting to crumble from age. A path was carved into the hillside, and it veered into two paths halfway to the temple. One led to the building, and the other was lost in a sea of black flowers that swayed in a wind only they felt. "Is that-"

"The Black Dragon's Blood. We need to get those plants," Hiei said.

"I'm not going anywhere near those things. This whole place is making my skin crawl," Kuwabara protested.

"Suit yourself," the fire demon replied, starting up the trail.

"We'd better follow him just in case," Yusuke told Kohaku, who nodded. They fell into step behind Hiei, whose eyes kept shifting between the flowers and the temple.

"By the way, thank you," Kohaku said softly.

"For what?"

"Pulling me out of the darkness. I might not have made it those last few steps without your help."

"Youko Kurama would never have forgiven me if I let you die before we'd begun." The siblings were silent for a few minutes, and then Kohaku spoke again:

"I didn't think you cared what anyone thought of you."

"Kurama and his counterpart are a different story. I wouldn't want to give him a reason to be mad at me. As I told Yusuke, I don't want either as my enemy."

"Which I still don't understand," the human joined in. "Kurama doesn't seem to be able to get mad. Karasu was the only one who seemed to get a reaction out him."

"And how quick was his death?" That drove the point home, and Yusuke closed his mouth and kept his eyes open for any sign of trouble. The fact that he hadn't seen any so far made him nervous. A tingling sensation began at the base of his spine and started working its way up, but Yusuke tried to ignore it. However, the closer he got to the flowers, the stronger the tingling became. Kohaku stopped mid-stride, her tail swinging madly behind her.

"Something's wrong," she whispered. Hiei stopped and looked at the two with him, a little confused. He didn't sense anything, and his Jagan eye was not reacting to any strange energy signatures nearby.

"You two are wasting time."

"You can't feel that?"

"Feel what, Detective? There's nothing here."

"My skin feels like it's on fire," Kohaku whispered, dropping her staff and wrapping her arms around herself. She had never felt heat this intense before, as if her body was trying to contain a small sun. And now her head was throbbing, like she'd been hit too many times. From Yusuke's kneeling posture, she was sure that he felt something too. But Hiei seemed unaffected, and he watched in confusion. And then Yusuke tipped his head back and screamed, a primal sound that touched off something in Kohaku's soul.

"Hiei, what's going on up there?" Kuwabara called up. The black-haired demon was about to give a sharp retort, when he saw Kohaku leap at Yusuke, claws and fangs bared. He met her attack head-on, his energy flaring out around him.

"What's happening?" And then Hiei felt a shiver race up his spine and nestle at the back of his skull, where it became a dense throb. Memories of his time at the temple came back, and he fought to control the urge to kill.

'The flowers that grow at the base of this shrine are a trap unto themselves. Only a master of the darkness within his own soul can even hope to overcome the darkness that the flowers produce. It is a maddening heat that drives all demons to kill each other, thus paving the way for the true masters to take their place at the shrine.'

"But why can't I fight it? I have mastered the Dragon of Darkness. I should be immune to these plants." And then, as he went to his knees and clenched his fists at his side, his Jagan eye opened, showing Hiei that although his outer energy shields were functioning, his inner walls had been torn down. The walls that he'd spent years building to protect himself from being branded as weak. But how- Hashi, of course. He'd torn them down to get at Hiei's defenses, to see what could make him weak. And with Kurama's injury and the emergence of a sister, Hiei had not taken the time to take a mental stock of himself. He'd wandered into the shrine's territory completely unprepared for the danger it now presented him. "I won't let it win. I am a master of the darkness." He retreated to his inner mind, using his energy to erect new walls around himself. These barriers were strengthened with the darkness that controlled the Dark Dragon, mixing both into a potent mental shield. "I won't be so easy to read next time." And once the last wall was in place, the throbbing stopped, and the Jagan closed once more. Hiei emerged from his mind to see Kohaku and Yusuke fiercely battling one another, and Kuwabara screaming at all of them.

"Hiei, you jerk, get the flowers and knock some sense into them!"

"I don't take orders from humans, Kuwabara. These two can exhaust themselves for all I care." He disappeared from the human's view, and raced to where the flowers grew. Quickly grabbing a handful and stuffing it into a bag he'd brought along, Hiei found their strange scent to be quite intoxicating. No wonder demons would fight each other near the plants. The scent made him lightheaded, and he felt for a moment that no one would be able to defeat him. But the feeling passed quickly as the new barriers filtered out the deceiving feelings, leaving the fire demon to stare at the scene before him. Yusuke was now preparing to fire a Spirit Gun directly at Kohaku, who was creating a large fireball as a counterattack. Neither would have much spirit energy left after the fight, and they still needed to get back through the barrier. "This is ridiculous." Just as he was about to draw his katana, a familiar pulsing in his arm caused him to glance down. This close to the shrine, the marking of the Dragon was glowing with a dark light that was visible even beneath the layers of bandages. It seemed to writhe along his arm even as he watched, begging to be released. But what would happen to it, with this much dark energy for it to feed off of, would he be able to control it?

"Hiei, do something!" Kuwabara screamed, his Spirit Sword out in defense. Yes, there was something the demon could do. Something that would definitely end the fight between Kohaku and Yusuke. All he needed to do was maintain control. And he was a master of the Dark Dragon, he knew how much control it took, and how much energy it needed. The bindings seemed to unwrap themselves, and the Dragon was already flowing down Hiei's arm, searching for the energy that would unleash it.

"Kuwabara, get down!" he warned as his Jagan opened to give him the added energy boost. Power seemed to charge the air around him, and the temple was glowing with a strange dark light. Yusuke somehow managed to regain enough mental control to see the Dragon starting to form. His Spirit Gun was nearly complete, and Kohaku's fireball seemed almost as big. He couldn't quite remember what he'd been doing a moment ago, but now he had bigger problems to worry about.

"Hiei, don't!" he managed to yell before the urge to fight took over again, clouding his mind as he stared at his opponent. Kohaku didn't seem to see anything but him, and her eyes were a fierce red that burned with the energy of a very angry fire demon. He had to be faster than her on the attack.

"Spirit-"

"Dragon of the Darkness Flame!" Hiei shouted as his ultimate attack roared to life and twisted around everything. The Dragon grew larger, feeding off the energy of its temple as well as Hiei. Kuwabara's sword shrank as he dove for cover, but even that couldn't protect him from the black mass that seemed to be everywhere at once. It surrounded the two fighters, and their attacks were blown away by its power. Yusuke managed to shield himself from the onslaught of spirit energy, but Kohaku was caught off-guard, and the darkness enveloped her. She screamed, fighting against a power she had only heard of in legends, desperately hoping she could survive it. And then a distant spark of power answered her call, flowing along her outer energy shield and creating a barrier against the darkness. It infused her with its own fire energy, allowing her to relax for a moment in its peaceful warmth. The next thing she knew, Kohaku opened her eyes to see Hiei recalling the Dragon, satisfied that it had done its work.

"You all right?" Yusuke asked, walking over to her.

"I think so. What happened?"

"These flowers create a scent that makes demons want to fight each other," Hiei explained as he came up. "Though I'm not sure about you, Detective." Yusuke put one hand behind his head and laughed.

"Who knows? Maybe I've just died too many times to be considered human."

"Hey, can we go now?" Kuwabara wondered, peeking around a battered boulder. "I really don't think this a good place to be."

"For once, I have to agree with Kuwabara," Yusuke added. "Let's go." They turned back to the dark void, the two humans going through first this time. Hiei took a last look at the temple, winding the bandages quickly around the Dragon. Strange, but he didn't feel tired after using it, like he had at the Dark Tournament. Perhaps this area also served to recharge him after the use of the energy. If so, this might be a good place to train in the coming months, once Hashi had been dealt with.

"You aren't going to yell at me?" he suddenly asked Kohaku, who was staring absent-mindedly at the void.

"Why would I?"

"I could've killed you."

"But you didn't." She stretched then, claws extending as she felt her joints realign themselves after being in fighting mode. The trip here had done her some good after all.

"That wasn't my doing. How did you resist the Dragon?" He stared at her in slight confusion. She didn't have a great deal of spirit energy, at least compared to himself and the other boys. Even Kuwabara had a greater energy store. But how had she fought off the Dragon, when it had vaporized demons at the Tournament?

"I suppose you'll just have to wait and find out," she replied with a smile.

"Hn. I suppose you were just lucky." Kohaku started to go back through the dark void, when she turned around and met his eyes.

"When you see our Uncle, ask him about his bad arm. I'm sure the reaction you get from him will be worth it." She disappeared a moment later, and Hiei frowned.

"This is getting aggravating. For once, even I want answers." He made sure the bag with the flowers was secured around his shoulders, and then he dashed into the void, leaving the Black Dragon Shrine in silence once more.

Once they were safely out of the cave, Kuwabara lost what little composure he had left. "Are you all crazy?" he yelled. "Urameshi, I can't believe you'd attack a girl! And speaking of that, Kohaku, what got into you?"

"As I told Yusuke, the flowers I collected release a scent that drives people into a battle frenzy," Hiei explained as he kept walking.

"Like you should talk, shorty. You could've killed us with that dragon of yours." The fire demon spun around and glared at the tall human.

"But I didn't." While Yusuke attempted to explain things to his friend, Kohaku caught up to her brother.

"I think you have a soft spot for the human." Once again, Hiei turned but kept walking, red eyes narrowing.

"Don't mistake professional courtesy for being soft. Kuwabara is a teammate with some useful abilities. Besides, humans like him aren't worth my time."

"That, and Yukina would be upset if something happened to him." It had not taken long to figure out that the red-haired human was head-over-heels for the young Koorime. And the little sister Kohaku had not known about seemed to relish the attention and comfort she received from Kuwabara. They were quite an adorable couple, but she could sense that Hiei did not wholly approve.

"You make it sound like she's the only person who matters to me."

"Isn't she? Your reputation as a ruthless killer precedes you, Hiei. Yet you're calmer, and- dare I say it- gentle with your sister." That was another thing that hadn't taken long to figure out. Though gruff and standoffish with everyone else, around Yukina it seemed that Hiei could let his guard down for a little bit.

"She isn't the only one," Hiei said, but his voice was softer. He knew he was still trying to keep up his emotional shields, but right now he just didn't care enough. What did it matter if this demon who called herself his sister knew personal things about him? She'd already been around his teammates, Yukina, Genkai, and she had been involved with Youko Kurama. What did it matter if she knew things about him? He could always deny it later.

"Kurama's human body?" Though phrased like a question, it was clear that Kohaku knew their history. Had she really studied up on him, like she'd first said? If so, then mostly likely she knew what she needed to anyway, and was simply looking to confirm her thoughts.

"He is my partner, and probably the one who knows and understands the most about me. Certainly you felt that way regarding his demon form?"

"Youko was harsher than what he is now, but I see the same aspects in both. I can't fault your choice in partners."

"After we help both of them, what will you do?" Kohaku had to think for a moment, glancing back at the two humans, who were following them once again. She couldn't stay here, that was certain. She needed to return to Makai and help her father and siblings make sure her uncle and the telepath were no more of a threat. Then she'd return to her mother's Pride and take up her rightful place as a warrior there. Or, if she convinced him, Youko would return and they would form a new gang of thieves.

"I'm not sure yet," she answered.

"And what if Genkai can't separate them?" She meant to answer that she was uncertain about that as well, but Hiei stopped dead and met her gaze. And behind the anger, frustration, and emotional barriers, Kohaku saw it. A spark so small that she would've missed it had she not felt the same once before: Hiei was scared. He stood a chance of losing someone so close to him and it frightened him. The warrior was gone for an instant, to be replaced by a regular teenager, who was unsure of the world.

"As I told Genkai, I will not break the bonds Kurama has forged here. You are my brother, Hiei. I could never hurt you like that." They walked on in silence, until Yusuke heard a familiar beep! Pulling a communication mirror from his pocket, he flipped it open with a loud sigh.

"This better be important, Botan."

"Yusuke, get back to the Temple immediately!" the ferry-girl screamed loud enough that everyone stopped and stared.

"Why, what's the big emergency?" And then a horrible idea hit him. "Is Kurama all right? Did his condition change?"

"I wouldn't know, because he's not here!"

"WHAT?" Now the others crowded around, and the fire siblings were fearing the worst. "Tell me what happened."

"Hashi Akiwara led a team of demons to the Temple, Yusuke," Genkai said as she appeared next to Botan in the mirror. "They overwhelmed us, and took prisoners to make sure I did nothing. Kurama, Yukina, and Keiko are gone."

"Keiko? What was she doing there?"

"Coming to make sure you were all right. The demons looked as though they followed her here."

"Where did they take them?" Kuwabara demanded, leaning over his friend's shoulder and shaking his fist.

"Back to their fortress, is my guess. Genkai and I will meet you there," Botan said. "You're going to need a lot of backup on this."

"And bring those flowers!" Genkai advised. "If it comes down to it, we will need to do the ceremony either after or during the fight. I don't know how much longer Kurama has."

"Hiei has the- Hiei!" Yusuke yelled, but in vain. Hiei and Kohaku were already moving, making their way back to the castle of their uncle as fast as they could. "Damnit, I gotta go, Botan! Kuwabara, we need to catch them."

"Um, I'd rather just follow them. They looked really mad." Both boys nodded and took off running, hoping they weren't too late to help their friends.