A/N: Glad you like-ee! Here's ch 6!

The toddler was watching every little stunt on his big screen from behind his paper crowded desk, looking the least bit surprised. "I knew that once I put that device into Yusuke's hands, something was going to go wrong. Oh yes, something HORRIBLY WRONG." The Reikai Prince sighed heavily and picked up his azure colored telephone. If there was someone who could bring those bunch of idiots back in one piece and undiscovered, it would be… "Hello? Minamino residence, who am I speaking with?" Came a VERY tired voice on the other end of the line. "Oh good, Kurama it's you…" Koenma said desperately. "Err…yes…Koenma?" "Kurama, we have a favor to ask of you," he said slowly. The redhead raised an eyebrow in skepticallity. "Not to be rude or anything, Koenma…but are we in the same time zone still? You DO realize that it is 2:45 in the morning…don't you?" The toddler glanced at his wristwatch. "Fancy that! But HARDLY the point. You are aware that Yusuke and the 'posse' as you might like to call them, are trapped in a city mall, correct?" Kurama rolled his flashing emerald eyes. Man, why'd he always have to deal with cleanup? "Yes, Koenma, I will do my best to 'rescue' them from this little charade." The fifteen-year-old heard very giddy squeaks come from the other line. "You're welcome, sir…" Kurama said in a half-moan and then hung up. Great. Now HE was the one off a'questin'.

Meanwhile, off with our not-so-happy troupe of...well...freaks, patience was running low and tempers were running high. Yusuke was frustrated, Botan's headache had returned, and Youko was suffering from severe sleep deprivation. Fortunately for all their sanity (and LIVES), Hiei...was still out like a light. Which was definitely a good thing, considering that he was probably sleeping off his hangover at this point. "Yusuke, there is no way in the three freakin' worlds that I will let you keep that tape!" Botan shrieked. After all, it had as much on her as it did Hiei, almost. Well, maybe not, but it was nevertheless blackmail. Over to the side, Youko was leaning against a wall, the video camera hidden inconspicuously behind his back. The poor boy was busy wondering if there was any way he could get out of the mall before he went entirely insane, and what exactly he had done to deserve being trapped here with a bunch of supernatural psychopaths in the first place. He was tired to the point that it really didn't surprise him when Botan suddenly summoned an oar from thin air and began whacking him in the head with it. "Amusing, aren't they?" came a wry voice from the right of him. Youko jumped. "Do you people have anything better to do then just pop out of thin air?!" he yelped. Kurama rolled his eyes. "Yes, actually I could be SLEEPING right now." The kitsune was rightfully annoyed at having been dragged out of bed for this. He looked over at the bench. "Well, at least Hiei's asleep," he muttered. Youko laughed nervously. "Heh heh, yeah, ASLEEP," he agreed. Kurama raised an eyebrow. "...Okay... Yusuke! Botan!" "HI KURAMA!!!!" they both yelled, then immediately went back to fighting. "They're insane," Youko observed, chewing absently on something. "Man, this is a really hard bagel," he added. Kurama just blinked. '...Why me...'

"WAITAMINNIT!" Yusuke screamed, trying to perform the Heimlich maneuver on Youko when he finally realized what he was eating. "Spit it out idiot!" Yusuke screamed again at Youko, performing the technique quite well. "Yusuke what in the REIKAI are you doing to him? Leave that poor boy alone!" Botan harped. Yusuke ignored her and instead announced to the troupe, "Youko DIDN'T eat a bagel just now! He ATE the saving contraption!" Kurama's eyes went wide. "BREATHE MAN, BREATHE!" Yusuke said as he pushed in Youko's stomach once more. Suddenly, part of the transmitter flew out of his trachea and mouth and obviously smacked right into Kurama's face. Everything suddenly went silent, Kurama standing there, holding his nose. "Sorry, man. I mean, I can't control the way I spit out stuff…If I could, then I would want it to hit flame boy over here," Youko said rather honestly. He had NO more energy to speak of and if there was in fact energy to spare, he sure as hell wouldn't waste it by lying. "A rather charming boy. It's no wonder that you're called Youko…" Kurama said, now rubbing the red mark on his nose.

Yusuke clapped his hands together. "Oh, that's RIGHT! Youko, meet Youko," he said, indicating first the teen and then the kitsune. Kurama smacked himself in the head. "Yusuke...I got two hours of sleep and I am NOT in a good mood right now," he sighed. "Consider that your two minute warning." Youko looked confused. "I thought your name was...hey, wait...I get it." He shook his head. "Great, first pyro dude, then miss death, and now fox-boy." Kurama looked momentarily surprised, turned suspiciously toward a certain guilty-looking Tantei. Yusuke glared. "Why does everyone immediately suspect me?!" "Because not only is it usually your fault, but your face is like an open book, Yusuke." The fourteen-year-old sighed dejectedly. "Gotta get that fixed...meh, maybe I'll ask Hiei to give me lessons. In a few hundred years." Youko looked over at him. "Figure of speech or am I the only human here?" "Fifty-fifty. Technically I'm a hanyou, I guess. Not even. Damn generation skips, but hey look, I just won the genetic lotto! Wahoo!" Youko blinked. "How am I even still sane," he muttered. "I don't know, but when you find an answer, please inform me," Kurama groaned. Botan looked up and held out a small bottle. "Aspirin, anyone?"

Kurama snatched the bottle of aspirin and pulled out a water bottle from the depths of his long red hair. "Uhh, other Youko…how did you just do that?" Youko said in awe, looking at Kurama who was now taking his pill. "Call me Kurama, Youko. It will help avoid confusion…" "TOO LATE!" Screamed the Tantei. "Okay then, KURAMA…How did you just um…what's the word…? MAGICALLY pull out something like that?" Kurama put on a sly grin. Apparently, he wasn't too tired to show off. "Err...Youko-kun, Kurama's just special that way and let's leave it at that!" Botan interjected suddenly. "Agreed," Kurama replied. "Wait…" Youko started up again. "Why don't you just pull out a KEY out of your bright…unique…PINK colored hair?" Yusuke started cracking up and fell over. True, the kitsune had pink hair, no ifs ands or buts about it. "I don't know if I can…" Kurama started. "TO HELL WITH IT! I'LL DO IT THEN!" Youko and Yusuke attacked the kitsune's precious PINK head of hair and started to look through it. "You find it yet, bud?" "Nope." Botan shrugged and came over to help with the search. "Could this be it," she inquired as she held up a pink object. Of course…like a needle in a haystack. "YES! Botan you're a genius!" Youko said as he gave her a friendly half-hug. "Err…forget I did that!"

Kurama groaned, rubbing his sore scalp, and then glared pointedly at Botan and Yusuke. "Did it ever occur to you," he asked slowly, "that being Youko Kurama, one of THE most infamous thieves in all of Makai, I could have just, y'know, PICKED the lock for you?" Youko's camera was out again, per usual to the most amusing moments. Botan and Yusuke exchanged a nervous glance. "Uhhh, it's really late?" Botan offered, smiling sheepishly. "Yes, Botan, I realize that," Kurama responded through gritted teeth. "I realize that to the utmost degree." Yusuke looked back and forth between the two. "Screw this! I'm seeing if the blasted thing actually WORKS!" He rushed to the nearest door and inserted the key. It fit, and turned. All four conscious people stared incredulously. "Yes!" proclaimed Youko, punching a fist into the air. "FREEDOM!!!!!!!!" Yusuke grinned, turned the knob, and pulled. And pulled. And pulled some more. "And just when our resident fire demon was asleep," Botan muttered under her breath. "And NO, Yusuke, you CAN'T blast the door down."

In a matter of seconds, Kurama, Botan, Yusuke, and Youko were smacking Hiei with all of their might in hopes of waking the little fire demon. They all had the theory: pain equals waking up a deranged fire demon who could hopefully save their lives from a raging blizzard. "THE THEORY ISN'T WORKING, GUYS!" Youko screamed, now in a panic. "Kurama, take out the rose whip and give him 40 lashes!" "Why 40, Youko?" The kitsune wondered. Yusuke stopped beating the poor youkai for a moment and turned to Kurama, looking vaguely disappointed. "You don't know that 40 is THE traditional whipping number?! Man you are DEPRIVED, fox!" Botan raised an eyebrow and pulled the aspirin out of her pocket. "This is foolish…" She muttered under her breath. "Doesn't ANYONE know how to wake up a bloodthirsty Jaganshi?" Everyone paused and thought for a moment. Surprisingly enough, Yusuke was the first to have an answer. He grinned the trademark grin and took a deep breath while everyone shut their ears. It was going to be loud. VERY loud. "HIEI! THERE'S A WHOLE MANSLAUGHTERING FIESTA GOING ON AND YOU'RE MISSING IT!" The Jaganshi's beady red eyes opened and he jumped to his feet with a start. "Where? Where?! Inquiring minds want to KNOW!" Hiei hollered. "Tres bien, Yusuke," Kurama said happily.

Hiei turned his eyes, still a bit hazy from sleep, toward Kurama. "What. The. Hell," he stated rather coolly. "Kami-sama, where are you people COMING FROM?!" "Oh, out of the walls and through the sewers systems, dontcha know," Yusuke babbled. "They got the place sprayed last week, but we just keep coming back." Youko had lost all of his patience. "Hey PYRO! I have an equation for you! Sub-zero temperatures plus manic fire demon equals we get the hell out of here!! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!!!!" Hiei stared at the now vaguely deranged boy and smirked slightly. "Well, someone's finally lost their temper," he sneered. Then he frowned deeply. A chill settled over the hearts of the other four. Botan put on a puppy-dog pout. "Hiei...door...pretty, pretty please????" He stared blandly at her. "For once, ferry girl, I wish I could do what you request. Unfortunately, Reikai is finally growing a spine and this is my second strike." Kurama smacked himself in the forehead. "Oh, you have GOT to be kidding me." Yusuke and Youko both looked at him questioningly, but it was Botan who forlornly sighed, "They didn't let you keep any of your youki this time, did they?" The fire demon shook his head. Yusuke fell over. "This cannot be happening... KOENMA, YOU ARE SO DEAD WHEN WE GET OUT OF HERE!!!!!"

"Well I wish I had a rose whip that was extremely flammable but sadly, I do not," Kurama said. He was still wondering why he himself even AGREED to get up from his nice and comfortable bed, drag his lazy body all the way to the mall, and get STUCK with all of his idiot friends. Yep, that's probably the 8th wonder of the world. "How about…we go to a convenience store and…uh, get a household appliance that could CREATE heat?" Youko suggested while simultaneously pointing to a store called 'What's For Dinner?' Everyone paused for a moment and then suddenly showered the teen with compliments. "That's the BEST idea I heard all night!" Botan squeaked. "I thought that cross dressing was your favorite idea?" Youko remarked. "THAT WAS YOUR IDEA, BAKA!" She screamed as a response. "Remember? You didn't actually go through with it because you were afraid that Hiei would express himself as a transvestite!" Hiei growled and looked at the eighteen-year-old with a death glare. "Er, right…glad I wasn't here for that," Yusuke and Kurama said in unison, starting to head for the kitchen appliance store. Hopefully, things would tip in their favor…but with their luck? Hell no.

Kurama, being the authority on cooking between the two of them (Youko was still at the mercy of Hiei), immediately located the stove and flipped it on. A pungent smell of gas came from the appliance, but no fire was lit. "Hey, don't you need to add like, a flame just to light it up?" he heard Yusuke ask, his voice echoing oddly. "Ah hah! A match!" the Tantei suddenly proclaimed. The sound of striking a match sounded throughout the restaurant. "HOLY F--" FWOOM Kurama instantly whipped around and took in the scene. Botan and Youko staring with wide eyes, Hiei smirking, Yusuke a crispy black...and the oven had become a very impressive inferno. Hiei clapped mockingly. "Nice job." Kurama shot up and began searching for a fire extinguisher. "PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!" Yusuke yelped, smacking various parts of his body that were still aflame.

"There's one up on the next floor," Hiei informed as he used his 'useless' Jagan eye to scope out the entire mall plan. Botan nodded and whipped out her oar to get there fast while Youko's eyes widened even more. Girl. On oar. Sober? Yes. But wait…he didn't see wrong. "Botan, how'd you get that…thing that you're riding on?" Youko called out, abandoning his fajita flamebroiling friend. Yusuke was still trying to get the flames out of his white tee shirt but even though he was able to survive, the fire had burned his shirt anyway so he NOW looked like a homeless bum who was incredibly tired. Old news. "Okay Yusuke…we should try this again…" Botan said as she started hosing him down with the white stuff in the fire extinguisher. "BUT THIS TIME…DON'T LIGHT THE MATCH! Haven't you ever gone to home ec before?" Botan said as she threw the extinguisher on the ground and eyed Yusuke. "Oh that's right…NO you haven't because I forgot…You don't GO to class! Youko, can YOU make this stove work? Either you or Kurama because seriously, I wouldn't trust Hiei to do it…hell, he'd make the SAME mistake as Yusuke just did!" Hiei snorted. "Onna, I'm warning you…"

"Well, not the SAME mistake," Kurama said sarcastically. "After all, fire demons are somewhat more FLAME RESISTANT than the REST of us." Youko raised an eyebrow. "Dude, it is WAY too late for you and your temper." "Is that your FINAL answer?" the kitsune snorted cynically. Botan and Yusuke exchanged a glance and sweatdropped. Hiei didn't care. Actually, it would make for a good moment to get back at the baka kitsune for always taunting him... "Hey, Kurama, maybe YOU could use a little liquor," Yusuke suggested innocently. The irate thief only glared at him. "Not funny, Yusuke. Plus, you would find that alcohol has a VERY different effect on me than it does Hiei..." Youko's eyes suddenly lit up at the mention of alcohol. "I know!" he cried. "I'll show you my wonderful, award-winning video!" "THE HELL YOU WILL!!!!!!" screamed Hiei and Botan at the same time. Kurama looked over at the pair. An evil, Youko-worthy grin spread across his face. "All right. Yeah, actually, that seems like just the thing I need right now," he agreed. It WAS just what he needed. After all, what better way to cheer him up than to learn the woes of the dastardly pair that had dragged him there in the first place? Youko got a similar smile, and, both taking a quick glance at Hiei and Botan as they did, the duo shot out of the room into unknown depths to watch...the Tape.

"You don't really think that he'll actually…um…show Kurama the tape, right?" Botan inquired as she worriedly looked from left to right. Hiei folded his arms and said nothing. It was obvious, however, that he was just as worried as Botan about the kitsune actually finding out about his kiss with the fickle ferry girl. "Cool your jets, Hiei, Kurama wouldn't make fun of you no matter what he saw…" Yusuke said in a form of consolation. Nevertheless, the now sober Jaganshi sighed and rolled his ruby orbs ever nonchalantly. "Yusuke's right, Hiei! You shouldn't be so down on yourself! I mean, Kurama is the most loyal guy there is and let's not forget that he's completely understanding, too. Don't worry about him finding out anything that was rather…err…unnecessary." Yusuke looked at her and exchanged a forlorn glance. "Either you're really nervous about it, or you're on Prozac and trying to forget about it…" Botan sighed. "You know me too well…"

They were all interrupted by the sounds of hysterical laughter. Yusuke sweatdropped. "And apparently, the loyalty of a fox only goes so far." Hiei winced inwardly. "Hn. Obviously not far enough, I'd say." Botan curled up in a corner, rocking back and forth. "I hate blackmail, I hate blackmail," she chanted over and over, clamping her hands over her ears. Yusuke cocked an eyebrow. "Well. It's official. She's lost it." "I never realized she HAD it in the first place…" Hiei muttered to himself. Yusuke looked over at him in surprise. "Oooh, new equation: Hiei plus former alcoholic state plus blackmail plus lack of sleep equals vague sense of humor." "Hn. You wish." "I wish I'd set you loose the LAST time you had alcohol!" came an amused voice from the depths of the hallway left of them. "That was indeed priceless." Hiei's eyes widened in horror. Botan remained in a fetal position, dead to the world. "Screw Reikai. The shounen is MINE," the (now humiliated) hi-youkai growled dangerously. Yusuke leapt up. "Don't think so! Youko's under the sound protection of Urameshi Yusuke!" "I don't plan on allowing you to hurt him either, Hiei," Kurama added coolly. "YES!" yelled the aforementioned teen triumphantly from behind Kurama. "I got both the freaky fox AND the half-human delinquent on my side!"

But still, that might not have been enough protection from the rather intimidating fire youkai. "Hiei, I didn't realize that your feelings for Botan shone through your intoxicated state," Kurama mentioned cunningly as he ran a hand through his long red hair. Yusuke tried his level best not to laugh but couldn't resist. He laughed. No wait. Guffawed. Screamed so unbelievably loud that Botan winced. "OH MAN! That was the best Kurama! And you're probably right too. Hiei wuves Botan…aww, how cute!" The chestnut-haired boy rose to the challenge and added his two cents. "I knew he liked her all along," he cried, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I even asked them when we first ran into each other near the video game store. But of course, I knew the little flame boy was going to deny it." Kurama chuckled and shut his eyes. "Botan, do you like Hiei?" Youko added, his eyes quite wide and eager with anticipation. The look in his eyes could not fool Hiei. Oh no. He wanted answers and he wanted them lickety split.

"I'M NOT LISTENING!!!!! I'M NOT LISTENING!!!!" Botan screamed in retaliation, still plugging her ears. "YES YOU ARE!!!!" Yusuke shouted back, hurrying over and tearing her hands away from her head. Kurama tackled Hiei to the ground before he could do anything to prevent the matter, and Youko got a flashlight to shine in Botan's eyes for…dramatic effect. Yusuke looked over at his fellow teen of mischief. "Too many cop shows?" "You bet," Youko agreed. Both of them turned back to Botan. "Well, Botan? Answer the question," Yusuke ordered. Botan feigned ignorance. "I'm sorry. What question?" "Do ya like the flame-haired midget or not?!" Youko demanded. The stubborn ferry girl turned her head to the side and clamped her mouth shut. "Answer the question or Youko'll keep shining the light in your eyes," Kurama threatened half-heartedly, still struggling to keep Hiei in check long enough for them to get their answer. Yusuke opened his mouth to agree, when Kurama's eyes suddenly lit up with so much evil that even Hiei stopped moving to try to shrink away from him. "Or better yet…if you don't answer, we'll show the others the Tape." "Oooooh," Yusuke and Youko chorused appreciatively in wonder of the kitsune's evil genius. "C'mon, Botan," a certain Tantei coaxed with a smirk. "You HAVE to tell us now."

"And what in the blazes happened to all of you being tired? I thought that you were so out of it Kurama!" Botan snapped, her eyes still averted. "Well," Kurama said, holding up an idex finger, about to make some sort of point. "Once we got to a multimedia store, Youko cleverly had in hand a…um…cup of…" "Starbucks," Youko said, finishing his sentence so that his newfound kitsune partner would not have to strain his brain trying to remember a ningen coffee hut. "Yes, well anyway, once I drank the coffee that he so generously…took without paying, I began to feel much better and as a result, I'm all ready to torment…" Everyone arched an eyebrow. "Oh, did I say torment? I meant confront…yes, that sounds about right…" Kurama concluded with a nervous snicker. And all of a sudden, no one really felt save with Kurama nearby anymore…in fact, they felt…very frightened and scared.

"Of all the times, he has to choose NOW to revert to a youko state of mind," grumbled Hiei on the floor. "The FOX, not YOU, baka!" he snapped at Youko, who was giving him a weird look. The teen shook his head. "I'm never gonna get used to this…" "Come ON, Botan!" Yusuke was still saying. "If you don't, I'll sic psycho Kurama on you!" "I don't enjoy being used for threatening purposes if I'm not in on the deal, Yusuke," said kitsune warned his friend. Yusuke stared at him. "I thought this whole mood was brought on because you ARE in on the deal, Kurama." Kurama blinked as thoug this had just occurred to him. "Yes…well…" There were a few moments of awkward-induced silence. "Kurama…" hissed Hiei suddenly. "I can't feel my legs." "Not my problem," shot back the caffeine-high youko. "Tell your girlfriend to get a move on and answer the damn question." "You people have a one-track mind, don't you?" sighed Botan, already partially blind thanks to Youko.

Botan rubbed her head and heaved a small sigh. Great. How was she supposed to get out of this one alive and unscathed? How? Um…that really wasn't an option. "Well, guys…" Botan said as she tried her very best to blink a few times. Maybe the dots that she saw would go away. Nope. Still there. "I think that this is completely pointless! Aren't we supposed to be finding a way out instead of embarrassing two innocent people!!!!" Yusuke raised an eyebrow. "Or, at least one innocent person. The other one is a raging lunatic," Botan added, Hiei giving her a malevolent look. "It's NOT pointless!" Yusuke screamed. "Look, the tape was made HERE, some of us witnessed it HERE and some of us watched it HERE so the only way that I can feel complete is finding out if you like our fire friend…where? I'll tell you where…HERE!" Everyone stayed silent for a few seconds. "Yusuke, that made NO sense just now…" Youko said sadly. "Look, nothing made sense tonight. This mall is a freak show!" "And we're the freaks!" Kurama added giddily, still holding down the rambunctious youkai. "Um, is his face supposed to be turning blue?" Youko intelligently brought up. Hiei shook his head rather slowly as he managed to get out two words: not breathing.

Kurama blinked. "I'm sorry, what was that?" he said with mock innocence. Yusuke glanced over, his eyes widening slightly as he did so. "Uhh, Kurama? Maybe you SHOULD let him go…I mean, you wouldn't want him dyin' on us now, would you?" "He has disrupted my sleep, therefore that question is debatable," the kitsune replied in an oddly logical tone of voice. …Air… Hiei begged his FORMER partner via telepathy, now lacking the oxygen supply to ask him verbally. Kurama didn't move. Youko was beginning to look a little nervous about the situation as well. "Umm…" "Don't worry, I'm just going to wait until he passes out," Kurama informed them pleasantly. Yusuke stared. "Wow…that is so…not reassuring." Botan, COMPLETELY DISREGARDING HIEI'S STATE OF WELL-BEING, decided to take advantage of the situation. "LOOK! A distraction!" she proclaimed, jabbing a finger in some random direction. Yusuke, being Yusuke, actually fell for it. Youko was too busy worrying about whether or not he could be sent to jail for being guilty by association to a bunch of psychopaths. And as for Kurama…well, Hiei was still semi-conscious. Because of this, Botan was able to escape the boys' clutches and run like hell toward the one place where even the mightiest man would fear to tread: the girl's bathroom.

"KUSO! Someone let Botan get away!!!" Yusuke cried out, pointing at her running away. "That's because you actually fell for her ploy. You were the one who wasn't busy at the time." Yusuke folded his arms and thought for a moment. "Well someone has to go and get her. Who cares if it's the girl's bathroom? She's the only one in there right now so it doesn't really matter!!" Youko shrugged. "Care to tell us who you're volunteering for this little charade, Yusuke?" the teen inquired, hoping and praying to Buddha that he wasn't the one 'randomly' selected. "Um, I think I'm going to go with…Kurama…" The bishounen's green eyes went wide in awe. "Why me?" "Do I have to give you my reasons?" Yusuke napped. Serves…you…right…you damned kitsune. Hiei spoke up telepathically. And everyone knows that he would have laughed hysterically at that moment…that is, if he had the oxygen to do it. But telepathy would have to do and Kurama was embarrassed all the same. "Fine," the kitsune said dryly as he got off of Hiei (finally). "I'll go check, but you wait here…" Everyone nodded and watched as the redhead climbed onto an escalator and casually made his way into the girl's bathroom. "AAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!"

"What is it?!" Youko and Yusuke asked simultaneously, hurrying up the escalator. They found Kurama on the ground, wincing and putting a hand to a rather large bump on his head. "Well, that didn't work out," he announced through gritted teeth in a dangerously calm voice. Despite the situation, Yusuke just had to point and laugh. "HA! Now YOU know what it feels like!" Kurama rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I'm getting an ice pack." He disappeared into the shadows. Youko and Yusuke exchanged a glance. "I call guarding the bathroom door!" Youko said instantly. "…What?" Yusuke asked blankly. Then it clicked. "Sure, land ME with the cranky, oxygen-deprived fire demon," he grumbled, heading back down the stairs. He soon found, however, that this task wouldn't be particularly difficult. Hiei had very conveniently decided to pass out during their absence. How…thoughtful of him.

A/N: R&R!