The streetlamps gave off a bright orange glow along the street and sidewalk where the Reikai Tantei and their friends walked the distance from the park back to Genkai's temple. The normal chatter was subdued, more than one pair of eyes flickering back or forward to the short American girl walking with her head down and loosely holding on to her taller red haired companion.

Her thoughts drifted from one thing to another, doing her best to block out unwanted images as she focused her attention on their distorted shadows. Eris' dulling grey-blue eyes latched onto her own, noticing how it odd it look sticking to the side of Kurama's. His hand found hers and squeezed it lightly, giving her a small smile as she looked up. The corners of her mouth twitched and she cursed herself for not being able to resist it.

"You don't always have to take everything on your shoulders, you know," he spoke quietly, just loud enough for Eris to hear. "It is better to let someone help you once in awhile."

Eris' smile grew a bit wider. "Quatre loves to blame himself for everything if you let him. Sooner or later, he'll start saying there's no air in space because he didn't work on it hard enough."(1)

She waved off Kurama's questioning look. "Never mind. Fangirl moment. What I meant is that I agree with you. I shouldn't be so anal about things I have no control over."

"You shouldn't hide them either," he put an arm around her shoulders in a casual gesture.

She gave him a sidelong glance. "Why not? It's a lot easier when people don't know what you're thinking."

"Agreed, but it shouldn't be a method of escape around your friends."

She sighed quietly, mind whirring as her tired limbs climbed the incline of the sidewalk. "My friends aren't who I escape from. If I do, it's only by accident or stupidity on my part."

Kurama tensed a bit at these words, becoming even more alarmed by the bright smile she turned on him.

"It's strange though, isn't it? I've only known you all for such a short time, yet it seems like years."

"You forget that you've had a head start on familiarizing each of us before acquaintances were made. We know virtually nothing about you, Eris," he pondered out loud and felt Eris detectably curl in on herself. This troubled him further; from what Kurama's mind had gleaned swiftly from her demeanor, this was not a normal reaction to be expected.

"I'm sorry…" Eris whispered softly, eyes back to watching their shadows shifting on the sidewalk before her. "I'm not very good at talking about myself. I guess I took advantage of the trust everyone put in me. For you, trust is dangerous isn't it?"

"If you were one to avoid I wouldn't have chosen you as my host family," Kurama smiled slightly as Eris looked up at him with surprise.

"I knew it!" she pointed at him almost accusingly. "I knew that whole pulling my name out of the hat thing was total bull!"

He shrugged a shoulder, the corners of his mouth twitching up. "And I knew I was drawn to you for more than the reason of your impeccable conversation skills."

"That was so not funny…" Eris grumbled, rubbing her backside at the memory. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you were stalking me that day. Just happened to be outside the girl's bathroom door didn't you?"

Kurama tactfully avoided the question, and Eris' smirk, by pointing out that they'd reached the bottom of the temple staircase. "We should hurry and catch up to the others."

"Fine with me, stalker boy," she snickered to herself. They had not reached the third step up when a sudden shout alarmed them both to something wrong. Giving each other an agreeing glance, they raced up the remaining stairs two, sometimes three at a time to the first landing.

Kurama's quick senses picked up a fast approaching object. With breakneck agility, his Rose Whip was summoned, snapping the black arrow in half before it reached its target.

Eris blinked and took the arrow tip half from Kurama's grasp. "Where'd you get this?" She frowned, holding it up to glint in the light of the moon. Something about it didn't sit right.

"Someone shot this at me, right?"

"Yes," Kurama nodded and took her hand, forcing her to run up the numerous stairs again. "Whomever it was has friends."

A cry from the right directed their attentions to a black mass of ominous figures with Yusuke and Kuwabara stuck in the middle. Angry red slashes decorated their arms and torsos.

Without a second thought, Eris forgot the painful tightness in her calf muscles and quads, sprinting up the remaining stairs. Kurama was not far behind, calling out for Hiei from his mind and figuring out a way to get Eris safely into the temple at the same time.

The final landing gave way to grassy ground and flagstone path to the temple doors. Botan's face appeared in the window, lines of worry only slightly fading at seeing her two missing companions.

Kurama firmly nudged Eris in the direction of the double doors as Botan started pushing a side open. Time seemed to slow as she turned to protest, or hug him, or kiss him one more time before parting; Eris' mind hadn't even decided yet when something alerted her to a demon that would appear and cut them both down. That same 'thing' pinpointed the exact location of a certain koorime swordsman, and suddenly he found himself not in the middle of slicing through a baker's dozen of dark demons, but thrusting his katana into the belly of a similar demon. That same apparition had been in the middle of receiving his orders to murder Hiei's best friend.

"Eris! Eris!! Did you hear me?" she blinked and shook her head, trying to decide of it was Kurama's grip on her shoulder that made it hurt or if there was a completely different reason.

Even from 60 feet away, Eris could still feel the narrow, red-eyed glare watching her every move. She shook her head again and focused on Kurama with a frighteningly serious look.

"Be careful," she didn't bother to hide the waver in her voice. He seemed slightly overtaken by this turn, but nodded and hesitated only a little before tipping her face up by the chin and briefly brushing his lips against her forehead.

"Get out of here already!" Eris pushed against him, trying her damndest not to smile.

A last fleeting look, eyes sending her a secret smile, and Kurama took off. Likewise, Eris flung herself through the doorway of the temple. There was no teasing from Botan who had seen their little exchange, which Eris was greatly thankful for.

She took up a place next to Keiko near the open window with Puu sitting on the sill, giving off a faint blue glow as he held up his shield. Eris scratched him lightly on the head, earning a slightly annoyed, slightly affectionate noise from the little blue spirit beast.

Exchanging a halfhearted grin with Keiko, Eris sighed and leaned her chin on top of her folded arms next to Puu on the sill, squinting into the dark. "So. What now?"

"Now we wait. And pray to Kami they don't do anything stupid," Keiko started chewing on the inside of her lip, blue bursts of Rei Gun light reflecting in her eyes.

The knife-edged thorns on Kurama's Rose Whip pierced the skin of dark demon as it wrapped around its arm. A swift pull and the arm dislocated itself, the thorns digging deeper and ripping through muscle and bone, taking half the arm off before it had the chance to come down and strike Kuwabara dead.

The tallest of the team nodded his thanks, too breathless to talk, and went on fighting. The bright yellow energy of his Spirit Sword crackling, actually scorching the flesh of their enemies as it burned through. The smell was awful, and yet it fuelled the hunger for a fight Hiei had been craving.

It added to the satisfaction of seeing his blade slice through the demon bodies, severing their mismatched limbs. Yusuke's Spirit Gun lit up the night again, silhouetting Hiei as he smirked, skewering and dismembering several opponents cleanly. He laughed as one rolled over on the ground, half his torso missing and watering the grass with his blood.

Hiei's anger still surged, seeming to wield his sword for him. A textbook error; never let your emotions overcome your skill. The mixes of crimson vital fluids running down the glinting blade soaked into the hilt, making his grip slip and causing an impasse with another sword wielding demon that had enough sense to block the attack. He could feel the still warm liquid making his hand slide ever so slightly, the deciding factor on who would walk away from the stalemate.

Kurama! Hiei called out for assistance, pushing his pride back slightly, but the fox demon was having his own troubles trying to fight his way out of a corner.

Caught off guard in those few seconds, Hiei staggered forward to find that the pressure and feel of metal against metal was gone and replaced by another dead body at his feet. Without a word, Kuwabara moved on to leave the scent of burning flesh behind him.

"Hn," Hiei scowled, quickly removing his black robe and tearing a long strip away, wrapping it around the hilt of his sword.

Kurama was allowed a brief feeling of relief at seeing Kuwabara come to Hiei's aide when he himself could not. It was doubtful, but he was hopeful that it would alleviate some of the tension between the two.

I suppose I should count it as a blessing that their dislike for one another was forgotten for at least a moment, Kurama thought, grinding his teeth as an arrow grazed his arm. In retaliation, the fox demon picked a seed from his hair and whipped it at the offender. The small, harmless looking seed evolved into a poison thorn spitting plant, taking root in the very body of the archer that had shot him. The roots drew up blood like water, and taking in the carbon dioxide from the arrow shooting demon's animalistic screams.

Kurama assessed the status of his wound quickly, deciding it not severe enough to worry about and glowered as another onslaught of demons came down upon him.

Even the smallest misuse of concentration could prove fatal, the grim thought passed through his mind. There's too many to take on separately unless we find the Retreat General. He grimaced as a hand of claws slashed at his back, and sent a rose stem straight through the culprits gurgling throat without even looking back to aim. Where do they keep coming from??

Off to the side, a small break in the mass had started to form, bodies just suddenly dropping to the ground and a leafy mass growing an inch per second. Kurama gave a small grin, sprinting through the rift his thorn spitting plant had created.

He swerved to avoid a blast from Yusuke as the Spirit Wave incinerated more than half of the congregation of the demons they fought against. Yusuke crouched over, hands leaning on his knees as he fought to catch his breath.

"So…what d'you think, fox boy?" He coughed and smoothed back the hair that had escaped its gelled prison, watching more demons start to flood out from the forest with a grim look.

"I think we need to find the source of their numbers and as you would say," Kurama grinned. "Take him out."

"My thoughts exactly, there may be hope for you yet Kurama!" Yusuke laughed.

"Any ideas on how to find this 'source' then, Yusuke?" Kurama poised his whip again, ready to take on the onrush.

"Easy, use Hiei's Jagan," he shrugged and gave a powerful punch to the back of a demon's head Kuwabara was having trouble with nearby.

"Excellent, except I need to know what exactly I'm looking for," Hiei growled, appearing next to the group.

"Ugh, thanks Urameshi," Kuwabara covered a large gash going vertically along his arm, trying to stem the amount of blood lost.

"Well that's not helpful," Yusuke glared at the oncoming demons, trying to think about what to do. "I've only got a few shots left, and fighting together won't get rid of them if they keep coming like this."

"AH! Damnit!!" Kuwabara cursed, lashing his Spirit Sword out at a gaggle of demons that had come up from behind. "Uh, guys, I think we're surrounded! I can sense more in the trees too!"

Looking around confirmed their predicament. Not the smallest gap appeared in their ranks and they showed no sign of slowing down as they closed in on the Spirit World fighters.

In a circle, back-to-back, they faced the demons with their weapons out and set faces.

"How many, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked in a low voice, summoning another Spirit Wave.

"You don't wanna know…" his friend answered, gripping the electric hilt of his sword and the muscles in his jaw tightening.

"Figures," Yusuke snorted in disgust. "We beat everything anyone's ever thrown at us and now this."

"I don't know about you detective," Hiei looked at him out of the corner of his eye. "But I do not feel like dying by the hand of an unworthy low class demon with four eyes and horns coming out of his ass."

"Yeah, that would be a shame," Yusuke laughed again, his spirit energy glowing brighter as he grinned gave a side look to Kurama. "I'd miss the interesting images he brings to mind."

Despite the urgency of the moment, Kurama and Yusuke shared a laugh much to Kuwabara's dismay.

"How can you two be laughing at a time like this?!" his right eye twitched.

"Chill out, would ya?" Yusuke spit off to the side. "Luck is my best tactic, remember?"

"Ah, yes. How could we forget?" Kurama laughed again, searching for a certain seed and wrapping his fingers around it tightly.

"Y'know, they run awful slow," Yusuke observed, searching for the best site to launch the Spirit Wave.

Kurama pondered. "A possible tip of the scales in our favor perhaps?"

Hiei snorted. "Not likely."

"Well. Time to get this over with." Yusuke planted his feet firmly in the ground to anchor himself. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, scrounging up every last ounce of spirit energy to put into this one shot. With a great yell, he hurled the crackling mass into the throng of oncoming demons. The heat lurched out, burning many of them up before the wave even touched them.

"That's not going to be enough," Hiei grumbled, starting to tear off the dirty, blood browned bandages around his arm.

"Are you nuts?!" Kuwbara stepped a few paces away from him. "Urameshi's wave thing's got half them evil guys dead already!"

Kurama held out a hand to stop him. "Kuwabara's right. You'll destroy more than you mean to with that."

Hiei looked annoyed, ignored them and relieved his arm of the restriction. He let the wind that seemed to emphasize the danger of this motion take away the bindings on the swell of a sudden gust.

Hiei flexed his muscles, the black dragon inked into his skin shuddered as it started to uncurl and free itself. "I'll destroy exactly what I mean to," he smirked, enjoying the thought of ending the lives of those ahead of him. With a flourish, he released the spirit of the Dragon of the Darkness Flame from his body.

A great screeching roar erupted from the black dragon as it rushed at the demons; Yusuke threw himself to the side to avoid being devoured by it and glared at Hiei.

"HEY! For a guy with three eyes you're pretty blind sometimes!" he yelled, getting to his feet and stomping over to the group, trying to ignore the screams of the fleeing demons and the roars of the dragon. As they stood and watched the unleashed terror, the wind kicked up even more with an ominous air, sending chills that kept in time with the shrieks.

It drew thunder and streaks of blinding purple lightning from the air as it flew, creating deep ruts in the ground and taking down thick trees. Ancient boulders hidden under generations of earth crashed down around them as they were dug up. The force of their connection back with the ground gave the effect of a canon blast, scattering the crowds and destroying anything unfortunate enough to be close by. Smaller pebbles and sticks acted as shrapnel; a fingernail thin sliver of wood embedded itself straight through a demon's heart.

The flame dragon, demolishing what was left of the dark army, finished its rampage and forcefully returned to its host. Hiei ground his teeth together as it once again seared itself into his skin as the harmless looking dragon tattoo spiraling around his forearm.

Fatigued from the exertion, Hiei knelt on the cool grass in midst of the destruction, laughing quietly as he caught his breath. Bodies were trapped under trees, rocks, and piles of debris that littered their torn battlefield. The sudden silence was unsettling.

Kurama's eyes sifted through the shadows, an extreme unease settled over him as he helped his friend to his feet. "This was a battle too easily won…"

"Speak for yourself, fox," Hiei groused, shaking a clump of dirt from his hair. "You're lucky I can't lift my sword; I'd plunge it into your foot."

"That thing gets creepier every time I see it," Kuwabara shuddered, thinking his own discomfort was only a result of Hiei's attack.

"Hey…do you guys hear that?" Yusuke narrowed his eyes, his ears picking up a disquieting sound. A sharp noise penetrated the thickness of death surrounding them in a slow rhythm. It echoed in the gouged earth and off the trees that had survived; an amused laughter filled the darkness and finally a voice accompanied the clapping.

"Very good, Kurama. My master's armies are not so easily defeated even by the strongest attacks one might posses." A lone figure stepped from a shield of trees and cloak of the night. He kicked a dead arm out of his way with a polished boot, walking over corpses and carefully avoiding dark patches in the grass that held a rancid stench.

The dim light from the moon revealed the identity of this apparent army captain, and it was Kurama who first growled out his name as he recognized the man the fox demon had vowed to kill.

"Ieyoshi."
Eris closed her eyes, folding her arms over her head as she crouched underneath the windowsill. Another explosion warmed the wall against her back with the heat; debris blew inside the room, the dust and dirt blurring their vision.

Coughing, Botan grabbed Eris' arm and wrenched her up, "We've got to move to somewhere safer!"

"PUU!! PUUPUUPUU!!!" Puu black beaded eyes widened in fright as he fluttered his ears and flew about the room above their heads. Keiko snatched him out of the air and hugged him to her.

"Something's not right here!" she rubbed dust from her eyes as they began to water.

"What was your first clue?" Genkai sat calmly on her tatami mat, arms crossed and her usual wrinkled frown in place.

Flashes of yellow and blue light flittered over the anxious faces inside the room. The ground shook violently, sending them stumbling around and overturning a small table that upheld a lit candle. They all held their breath as it rolled across the floor, anticipating a fire that would trap them inside.

Yukina picked it up, pinching the flame out with her small fingertips and gave a little hopeful smile to them all. "If their actions are made at the right time, then all will be well."

"Let's hope she's right," Shizuru murmured, more to herself, taking note of the slight sparkle of frost on the extinguished wick with a grin. "I guess that means we hightail it out of here before this place falls on our heads!"

"That won't be necessary."

A deep voice demanded their attention to avert to the doorway. A tall, burly man stood, searching the room calmly face by face as if a momentous battle outside wasn't taking place. The earth shaking explosions, most likely caused by Yusuke, were apparently found rather aggravating to this man as his long, tan colored tail twitched.

Yellow eyes found their mark. "You," he pointed a finger at Yukina, an onyx colored claw shined at the end. "You are to come with me."

They exchanged confused glances. Puu shivered in Keiko's arms. Shizuru stepped in front of the small Koorime, "What's your business here? You with those goons outside?"

"My orders do not include conversation exchanges or released details of my mission to anyone but my superior," His facial expressions didn't change. "Surrender the Koorime girl and you shall not be harmed."

Shizuru narrowed her eyes and pushed Yukina farther behind her. "I'm thinking no."

"Resistance will not earn you a prolonged life span." Eris looked nervously around the room, trying to think of a way past this huge creature. She eyed his feline-like feet warily; he'd more than be capable of catching them if they escaped.

"How about I surrender my fist to you?"

"Your lame attempt at humor is painful to the ears and obstructs me from completing my mission. Step aside or I will have no option other than to kill you as you stand."

"What's your business with her?" Genkai raised herself from her mat and approached the objective driven demon. She was well over 6 feet shorter, but still held him with a steely gaze.

"My orders do not include conversation exchanges or released details of my mission to anyone but my superior," he repeated like a mantra and took a step forward. "Surrender the Koorime Maiden."
"Oh how flattering that you remember me, Kurama." Ieyoshi replied to Kurama's heated glare sarcastically, running a hand through his sandy blonde hair and taking interest in a leaf floating on the wind.

"Especially since it's only been little over an hour. Wonderful memory old boy. Really."

"But your memory seems to be fading, Ieyoshi. Or maybe suicide is on your to do list?"

"On the contrary!" he laughed delightedly at getting a rise out of Kurama. "Your threat was loud and clear; I'm only here on business."

"Who the hell is this clown?" Hiei leaned heavily on Kurama's shoulder, extremely irritable and in no condition to deal with demented rapists who think they're funny.

"Glad you asked young man!" Hiei's eye twitched at the 'young man' part, and instantly started planning how many ways he could cut the guy into 20 equal pieces.

"Ieyoshi Ishihara, at your infiltration and kidnapping services!" he leaned back on his heels, hands deep in his pockets and looking quite smug.

"I get the infiltration part," Yusuke began in a wary voice, "But what's with the kidnapping?"

A scream strung the tension even higher; a giant of a demon smashed through the sidewall of Genkai's temple, nimbly leaping and running towards the perky sadist.

"Ah! Impeccable timing! Real dramatic! Someone deserves a kitty treat for that," Ieyoshi clapped his hands.

The jaguarundi demon's small, low set ears swiveled back in annoyance. "Save it," he grumbled and adjusted the squirming girl on his shoulder. A quick whack to the head shut her up.

"Put her down this instant or find yourself accustomed to life with only one limb," Hiei wielded his katana once again, using most of his energy just holding the point against the feline.

"Yeah! What he said!" Kuwabara held up his fists. "Leave my Yukina-chan alone you mangy cat!"

He calmly flicked the blade away. "The energy pulsations of your aura betray your outward aggressiveness. You can barely hold you sword steady, eliminating my life would require more strength than you possess."

"And who're you calling mangy?" Ieyoshi glared at Kuwabara and petted the articulate demon cat's massive arm. "Jiro here's not mangy, are you Jiro?"

Jiro decidedly sidestepped away, becoming visibly annoyed. "Only when in a radius close enough to be touched by you, sir."

"Careful, do I need to put you on the leash again?" Ieyoshi smiled cheerfully as he were not surrounded by people who wanted to kill him.

Jiro grumbled quietly, clearly not wanting anything that would connect him to the evil man. It was bad enough the weakling was in higher favor with the master than himself.
"Enough with the dominance fest!" Hiei growled, bring back the spotlight on the matter at hand. "What do you want with the girl?"

"Aww, how disappointing. I rather hoped you would have it all figured out by now," Ieyoshi pouted slightly.

"Sorry, the clues must have slipped by while we were fighting off your demon army!" Yusuke was not amused by this man. Not in the least.

"Oh it's not my army per say…" he drummed his fingers on his chin as he smiled innocently at the dark sky.

"It doesn't matter," Kurama interrupted Ieyoshi's plan of stringing the conversation along with his cold tone. "They were a distraction to the Spirit World."

"Very good," Ieyoshi clapped. "It was more a stroke of luck that the famous Reikai Tantei were pulled into their mess. Less work for me."

"Sir," Jiro's tail jerked, not liking the unnecessary relaying of information to their enemies. "Time is of the essence…"

"Keep your fur on, Jiro," Ieyoshi waved a hand flippantly. "Alright, it was fun boys, but play time's over I'm afraid. My master is impatiently waiting for the new addition to his collection. Unfortunately, leaving witnesses is so unprofessional. Security reasons, you understand."

With a snap of his fingers, dark figures untangled themselves from the surrounding trees and shadows. The clicking of claws and metal dragging along the ground made Ieyoshi smile and breath deeply.

"Ahh! I love the sounds of inevitable death just before morning! The smell of fear is also an added plus," he laughed and rocked back on his heels again, enjoying the increasing feel of fury emanating off the fighters. His eyes locked onto Kurama, a sly sneer spreading over his lips. "Perhaps my master will reward me with the fulfillment of unfinished tasks. How is dear Eris, Kurama? I do so regret having lost her; the feisty ones are so hard to come by. Heh, I'll have to leave you on that thought; Buisness before pleasure and all that-"

That was all Kurama could take. It was hard enough controlling himself with the bastard right in front of him. The fact that he commanded Jiro, who possessed Yukina, was a testy situation. But damnit! Every man has his breaking point!

With a sudden flare of white spirit energy Youko Kurama pushed himself to the surface, ripping through any restraints like a flood through a cracked dam and bringing every ounce of wrath with him.

Before Ieyoshi had time to blink, Youko was on him with plenty of hungry plants salivating at the prospect of dinner. Pinned to the ground with the weight of the irate demon fox, Ieyoshi couldn't so much as squeak out in surprise. His eyes darted from the twitching plants, their rows of knife-like teeth gnashing together and swimming in acidic spit, to the blazing gold eyes of his assailant.

"I should have broken free and killed you when I had the chance," Youko almost snarled, trying to keep what restraint was left to him. "My plants are more than capable of disposing of you, but the thought of tearing you apart with my own hands is nearly as appealing…"

"Ehehe…C'mon now! Now aren't you being a bit rash??"

"On the contrary," the light-hearted smile was enough to send an uncomfortable feeling down Hiei's spine. "I've been entertaining these thoughts for some time now. You're just the guinea pig."

"We have no time for this!" Jiro roared, more afraid of what the Master would do to him than what Kurama had planned for Ieyoshi. If this had been any other day, he'd gladly be the one in Kurama's place.

Unfortunately, the wretch is needed… Jiro ground his teeth together with a rumbling growl and prepared to swipe a razor clawed hand through the silver fox's hide.

"Say goodbye, Ieyoshi," Kurama sneered coolly, raking his own claws across his prey's neck.

"Goodbye, Fox!" Jiro jeered, his short laugh finally catching Youko's attention. Amber eyes widened at the mistake their host had made.

Time slowed. Muted horror and shock was the initial reaction from the witnesses there. None of the attempts to save their friend would make it in time.

Unless one of them had seen Jiro raise his arm before he actually did it.

That tan furred arm jerked mid-swipe and came to an abrupt halt. A hissing roar of pain made their ears ring, then nothing. Seeing his chance, Hiei snatched his sister away from Jiro, safely placing her away from anything harmful. The hulk of the beast fell forward, narrowly pinning Youko beneath him in his death if the demon had not hastily jumped to the side.

"What…what just happened here?" Yusuke was dumbstruck, not quite sure what to do.

Kuwabara cautiously kicked the dead feline. "Uh…you think he had a heart attack or something?"

"You idiot," Hiei refrained from mauling him and landed a heel of his foot onto Jiro's back. Leaning down, he extracted a bloody arrow tip from the base of the dead one's neck. "Does this look like a heart attack to you?"

Kuwabara squinted at it and rubbed his chin. "Actually it looks like a broken arrow. Kinda like those ones the demons were shooting at us."

"Heh, I think it depends on what type of heart attack you mean," Yusuke snorted and crossed his arms, nudging his head in the direction of the temple.

Not far off stood the habituated figure of Eris, her own hand scraped and dirty from holding onto the arrow head for so long.

"Nice job, kid," Yusuke grinned. "Didn't know you had such an arm on ya!"

"You mean she took down this guy with a measly pointy rock?!" Kuwabara shrieked. "He's three-no four times her size for cryin' out loud! No way she did that!"

"Anything's possible I suppose…" Youko let out the breath he had been holding, slipping from his crouched position to kneel on the hard ground. He took a much-needed moment to slow his heartbeat and swore that he would never become so careless again, even if it were for the sake of the girl who had just saved his life.

Hiei scoffed, retaining his suspicions as said girl lethargically found her way to the bruised fighters, picking her way through the remains of demons. Each sight of a lifeless limb made something akin to panic rise in her.

It was Yusuke's comment that finally got an outward reaction from her.

"Maybe we should stuff him and mount his head on the wall," he laughed along with Kuwabara.

"Oh my God…" her hand felt cold as she raised it to her mouth. "I-I killed that thing…!"

"That's right," Hiei smirked. "You did."

"Nice and cleanly too," Yusuke complimented.

Eris shook her head, horror stricken. "You don't understand! I killed him!"

"So? Big deal, we've killed hundreds of demons. Not like he was a human or anything," Kuwabara shrugged, sighted a sleeping Yukina, and rushed to her aide. ("Oh my Yukina-chan! You're safe! That rabid cat almost took you away; good thing I was here for you!")

Eris stared at him in disbelief. "You say that like it's nothing…"

Yusuke stared back, stiffening, and crossed his arms. "Are you sure you know everything about us? We've saved the earth more times than we can count, hell; I've died more times than I can count! What do you expect me to say?"

She blinked; the hulk of Jiro burning an image into her mind. He was right, but that didn't make her any less of a murderer.

"I didn't grow up watching you kill, I grew up watching you fight," Eris drew in her arms like she was freezing; indeed, she was trembling violently. "There's a difference!"

Giving an inward sigh, Yusuke uncrossed his arms, turned and went to help Kuwabara move Yukina to the temple. As he passed a silent Youko, standing not far away, watching Eris with an unreadable face, Yusuke rubbed his temples and squinted.

Could this get any more insane?

Her own head was starting to hurt Eris noted distantly as her feet started walking away from the killing site of their own accord. As her wide eyes took in the paths of bodies again, her stomach contracted tightly, almost making her throw up.

"This isn't real!" she hissed through clenched teeth and stumbled on. A hand caught hers and stabled her wobbly legs.

"You can't keep thinking of it this way," Youko held Eris up as her legs threatened to fail her again. "I won't allow it."

"You're angry with me," Eris cringed and nearly doubled over as her stomach had another tight spasm.

"Of course," he didn't bat an eye at her expression and went on. "Killing another demon to save a companion is the highest class of loyalty. You're a fool to feel so much guilt, Eris."

"I can't help it!" Eris nearly yelled. "I have a billion different voices yelling inside my head right now, is there a certain way I'm supposed to react to spontaneously killing someone??"

With that, her legs seemed to find the ground solid again and stalked towards the temple, running up the steps, and almost breaking the door down to get inside.

Youko watched her grimly, silver tail brushing against the backs of his legs pensively.

"Hey, fox boy, your ears are drooping," Yusuke gave a crooked smile as he walked past. "Don't beat yourself up. Keiko or someone will have one of those girl talk things with her. She'll get over it."

Youko turned towards the trees and started walking. "Situations like this don't disappear overnight, Yusuke."

"Hey! Where's he going?" Kuwabara carefully adjusted Yukina in his arms and raised a brow at Youko's back.

"To find things to vent on is my guess," Yusuke shrugged. "C'mon, we better get Yukina inside."
Boton gave a worried look to Keiko who stood next to her. With a nod from Keiko, she knocked softly on the wooden part of the door. "Eris-chan, what's the matter? What happened out there?"

"Nothing."

"I don't believe you."

"You'll want to, trust me."

Keiko sighed and tried to slide the door open. There were loud sounds of someone moving quickly inside the room; the door wouldn't budge.

"Eris, please, let go of the door."

"No!"

"Why can't you tell us what's wrong?"

"Because someone else can. Go ask Yusuke, or Kuwabara, or somebody."

"We'd rather hear it form you."

"That's…nice of you. But could you just leave me alone? Please?"

The two girls exchanged anxious looks again.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Keiko whispered, chewing on her bottom lip.

"Maybe she really does just need some time alone?" Botan wrung her hands. "Alright, Eris-chan. Just call us if you need anything. We'll come check on you in an hour."

Eris forced out a quiet thank you, waiting until their footsteps were well out of earshot before she stepped away from the door and meandered back to her futon. She felt so tired, but couldn't sleep. Bending down, she grabbed up the blanket she'd taken out of the closet earlier and wrapped it around her self.

The minutes passed by slowly; she was grateful there wasn't a clock. The ticking would have driven her mad; even the tiniest sound seemed to echo in her head. Partially in a daze, Eris sat huddled against the wall and stared at the ceiling.

I'm in a mad house. This blanket is my straightjacket, and the floors and walls are padded. My wardens will be back for the routine check up in an hour. There aren't thousands of dismembered demons outside these walls. No psychics with faded pink hair and loud-mouthed apprentices who've died and come back. No such thing as 'spirit foxes' or 'fire demons' with three eyes. The grim reaper does not have pink eyes and a bubblegum personality. There is only one physical world, and one spiritual. A talking toddler with a blue pacifier does not control where my spirit goes after I die. Puu is spelled with two o's…

Sometime during this denying of reality, her body had moved itself through the dark halls, trailing a hand along the wall and staring blankly into open space. Kuwabara had taken one look at her, about faced, and went back the way he came.

"Man, that girl creeps me out…she's walking around in a sheet like a ghost or something!"

Blinking, Eris looked around and frowned. How did I get here?

"Yeah, that's…not normal."

"Well, at least she's out of her room."

She stood just outside the visibility of an open door. Eris could just hear her friends talking inside the room.

"I don't get it, I really don't. I never freaked out like that the first time!"

"No, you only freaked out when someone killed you the first time."

"Maybe you girls shouldn't hang around her too much. I heard crazy was contagious."

Friends… Eris thought sadly, walking away back down the hall. Maybe not…maybe another element I made up…

"Yusuke!"

"Ow! What??"

"You're being an insensitive jerk!"

"I have to agree," Genkai frowned at her pupil. "Not that emotions have ever made it past that thick skull of yours."

"But-"

"Haven't I taught you anything? Listen to a woman when she hits you!" the old psychic suppressed a smirk at the boy's annoyed expression. "Don't give me lip, boy! If anyone around here has the right to bitch it's that girl."

"Alright, granny, I feel an old lady speech coming on. Could you wait 'till I fall asleep before you start? Otherwise I get nightmares."

Genkai pursed her lips and concentrated her spirit energy into her fingertip. "You do that. Don't forget to tell yourself I won't kill you in your sleep while you're at it."

"I don't think she's kidding Urameshi," Kuwabara looked dubious and sidled over to the far wall.

"All right, all right!" he grumbled. "I get the point."

"I don't think you do."

"Fine. I don't. How about you give an explanation," Yusuke was really starting to get angry with his teacher.

"That girl didn't ask to be dropped here. We did not exist until you idiots brought her back with you. There are risks involved by merely knowing each of us by sight. How many times has she nearly died when in contact with one of us? Then count how many times she's complained."

"Oh come on! You knew within 3 seconds we had to bring her back here!"

"Of course I knew!" Genkai scowled. "That girl's got spirit energy all right, but it's not hers."

"Wait, wait, wait…" Keiko waved her hands for a time out. "Since when did Eris-chan have spirit energy?"

"Since never. But something else does," Yusuke dropped into a chair and put his feet up on the low coffee table. "Don't you think it's weird Shizuru ran out of cigarettes and crossed the street at the exact time Eris threw her sandal out of the alley?"

"So she's got some parasitic spirit beast living off of her?" Kuwabara scratched his head. It was staring to hurt thinking about this.

"Possibly," Genkai continued to scowl. "Whatever it is, it can change the outcomes of events."

"I wondered if you'd noticed that," Yusuke yawned and tried to sleep.

"I'm surprised you did," she snapped back. "It's a bit hard not to notice a change in your spirit energy patterns."

Yusuke's eyes snapped open. "You mean like that one?"
I am crazy…why am I running like this? But I'm already lost, why not?

The sheet billowed out behind her as Eris ran. A stick snapped under her foot, sending an unpleasant sting through her sole. The blanket got caught on a tree a few times, jerking her back violently, but she pressed on, running with the ache in her legs growing worse. She didn't stop until her lungs threatened to mutiny.

"Bit late to be taking a run, isn't it?"

Eris cursed and leaned on her knees to get her breath back under control. "Leave me alone, Hiei…"

"I'm curious about something," she could see him standing on a high branch like it was nothing, arms crossed and on the edge of blending into the dark leaves.

"Curiosity killed the cat, y'know," Eris wiped her running nose on the sheet and started limping away. A blink and the demon was blocking her way.

"And I know who the cat is," he sneered. "Or haven't you let yourself out of the bag yet?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Eris wrapped the sheet tighter, furiously chewing the skin off her bottom lip. "You're talking nonsense! A cat can't let itself out of a bag."

"Nonsense isn't a demonic quality I posses," Hiei was becoming impatient, burning mental holes into the girl's head. "Tell me what I want to know and I won't delivr your head to your mother's doorstep."
"I thought honesty wasn't a demonic quality you possessed either? Or did you actually start listening to your sister?"

A half blink this time until he had her up against a tree by the neck. "I'm warning you now not to patronize me!"

She looked back into his vehement red eyes with her own increasingly dark ones in an almost broken manner. "You won't kill me," Eris wheezed slightly.

His grip tightened at the challenge. "You think so? I thought you were smarter than that. For shits and giggles I'll let you tell me why I won't kill you before I do."

"Because you can't!" Eris grit her teeth, blinking to stifle the pressure behind her eyes.

Something changed then. Grabbing onto Hiei's wrist, Eris grimaced as a pulsate of strange energy ran through her before letting loose.

This emission of energy instantly caught the senses of one silver kitsune taking his own pensive run through the woods.

I recognize that energy…

Stopping briefly, Youko sifted through the scents of the forest before finding the one he was looking for. He found the source closer than he expected, and a frightening sight before him.

Before Hiei could acknowledge his friend's presence, he heard the fox's anger precede his actions.

"You're treading on my territory," Youko's low tone was beyond dangerous.

"It's not treading if the boundary breaks and runs into mine," Hiei growled back. "Then what is yours becomes mine and I may deal with it as I wish!"

The fight began before Eris hit the ground in a bruised heap. Taking in a deep breath of air, she looked up in time to dodge a renegade whiplash coming her way.

Peeking out from behind a bark-scarred tree, Eris was horrified to witness Hiei and Youko in a fierce barrage of whip and sword.

"Stop it!" Eris yelled, and yelled again. The fight went on; looking around, Eris broke off a large stick from a fallen tree and threw it at them. It was reduced to splinters between the strokes of Hiei's katana and Youko's vicious thorn whip. It did however distract their attention from one another for a second.

Taking this as her chance, Eris once more. "Would you think about what you're doing and become sensible again?! I won't let you throw away a friendship because of me! Believe me, I'm not worth it!"

"It's more than that!" Youko blocked another onslaught, and proceeded to put forth his own. "No demon lays a hand on my property and lives!"

"Flattering, but I'm not a house!" Eris finished tying a rock into her sheet and threw it as hard as she could. Ripping more than she would have liked, it never the less did its job of momentarily tangling their weapons. Taking advantage of the break, Eris came out from behind the tree. "I didn't tell Yukina you were her brother, Hiei! She figured it out on her own."

Hiei scanned her skeptically. She looked back unflinchingly and sighed before tiredly sitting on the ground. "I'm not lying. You can check me if you want."

"I already did," he warily re-sheathed his sword and licked a cut on his hand.

Acting as if the exchange of blows had never happened, Youko walked away from his partner and placed the tattered sheet around Eris. She was pale and sweating despite the cool of the night. She nodded a thanks and tried to smile as he put a hand to her forehead.

"You're sick," he said and frowned.

"Way to go Einstein," Eris wiped her nose again and felt the earth sway with her desire to lie down.

"Amusing that she dies because of pneumonia after surviving more than one demon attack," Hiei laughed and leaned against a tree, taking great joy in the health state of the girl.

"Not something that I see being the same for you, Hiei," Youko threw over his shoulder in a moderately interested manner and put a rose under Eris' nose to keep her awake.

Smelling the sweet scent, Eris opened her eyes curiously and felt the bud's petals against her nose. Her stomach protested the earnest gesture, making her push his hand away with a face.

Hearing a resonant chuckle, Eris asked the fox what was so funny.

"That's the first time a woman has refused one of my roses," Youko's smile faded as the state of her voice worried him.

Eris snorted, swallowing to ease the scratchiness. "First time for everything, as they say."

Turning abruptly serious, he fixed his amber eyes onto her. "Is he making you sick?"

Eris tried to cover her surprise. "Is who making me sick?"

"Don't play that with me," his voice rumbled in impatience. "You know precisely who."

A silence fell as Eris weighed her options, going over every single way he could have picked up on anything through her mind. She sighed; as much as she wanted to deny everything and conveniently fall asleep in his arms, Eris knew it would be useless. Any way she dodged this, the questions would become more persistent.

"No," she said quietly and rubbed her eye with a defeated hand and shook her head. "Probably due to the alcohol, lack of food, running around like a maniac, almost getting killed twice, and oh yeah, throwing a pointy rock into a demons neck.

"So how'd you figure me out?"

"That's almost insulting," Hiei glared, not moving a muscle from his leaning point.

"These grounds raise the sense of foreign energies, especially that of spirits," Youko reminded her. "The old woman and Yusuke also know. Kuwabara and his sister can feel something around you. None of them, however, know exactly what the entity is."

"How the hell did you know it was a guy?" A twinge of interest struck up in Eris.

Youko grinned. "I was a mere spirit once also."

Eris tittered, feeling utterly exhausted and dumb. "Durr, 'spirit fox'. Possession expert extraordinaire."

"Precisely," he picked her up, not one muscle on her resisting, and set her down gently against a tree near Hiei. Youko gave him a nonverbal warning as he watched the fire demon run up his leaning tree and perch on a high branch.

We'll settle our argument elsewhere, he passed on.

Whatever, just get her talking.

"Aren't you going to ask me how it happened? You know everything else," Eris opened her eyes wide a few times, trying stave the blurriness.

"I must admit he question was burning in me." Strands of Youko's tail swished over her covered legs as he flicked it out of the way to sit down.

Eris' hand unconsciously reached out; the fog of ailment lifted enough for her to realize what she was doing.

"I was a kid," she began, pulling back the paused hand and ignoring the amused look on the fox's face. "Kindergarten possibly. I wasn't much of a social person. I think I used to really worry my parents; I preferred picture books to making the teacher's life a living hell of snot-nosed, screaming kids with random fits of vomiting. He wasn't like that though…he loved to dream with his crayons and talk your ear off at the same time."

Eris smiled faintly and shook with a laugh that didn't quite make it out. "His name was Will. Ducky reminds me of him a lot, sans the girly screams and love of pink. Will never touched the pink crayon. Neither did I.

"I knew him for less than three hours. Maybe if I hadn't been sitting in his line of vision our paths wouldn't have crossed. It wasn't the color I picked up off the floor that led to our instant friendship. Something in him clicked with something in me. Stupid as it sounds, I still believe that.

"It was recess time, and I was actually looking forward to it with Will running by my side. Ahead of the teacher, much to her annoyance of the only quiet kid being corrupted, we raced to be first on the pebbled playground. I tripped and slid a good three feet; the floor must have been waxed only hours before. We made a game of it; I can't remember which one of us it was, but one of us had a pencil buried with the various collections in our pockets and landed on it. I remember looking at it: typical yellow, with a crack right in the middle.

"The front doors to the school opened, only three classrooms away from where we stood. I remember the change in light too, and the way the door creaked."

Eris could see it now: the green and white tiled floor, the teachers voice yelling for them to wait for the rest of the class…

"It was Will, he had the pencil in his hand and was kneeling on the ground. He looked to the door before it opened, like he knew it was going to open. He yelled; I never saw it coming. Why would I? Or anyone, not just a little kid who still thinks bee stings are the worst pains in the world? How could you ever expect something like that to happen at an elementary school? But Will did.

"There was a loud noise, it nearly ruptured my eardrums. I felt something rip through my shoulder and screamed. He shot Will three times as he tried to shield me…I can't…"

Eris squeezed her eyes shut, trying to make the picture clearer. It was getting hotter, so much so she couldn't think straight. Things were happening all at once. Suddenly it felt as though a fist had collided with her head and knocked everything into place.

"We both fell back; I saw this look of shock on his face…. Even as he was dying he his hand tried to cover the hole in my shoulder and stop the bleeding. I was crying then, not due to it hurting so much, but because I knew he was going to leave me. You always hear these stories about how they just knew their mother or someone was dead, that they felt something leave. But he didn't, I didn't feel him leave! He blinked as he stopped breathing, but he wasn't gone…"

Youko was silent for a space. Then: "His soul dispelled into…it was likely he was a human similar to Yusuke; the spirit energy I read off of you proves as much. An unexpected event of death…Spirit World must have lost its tracking on him as he coalesced into you."

"Why though? Why would he do that?" Eris timidly wiped away the silent tears that had accumulated on her cheeks.

He reflected on his own experience. "A young, confused soul? The animalistic instinct to survive, to cling to life."

Eris tensed as a chill ran through her; there was no wind, yet she was freezing now. Youko held his hand to her forehead again. Her skin was alarmingly warm.

"I don't suppose that phantom of yours fights sickness as well as death?"

"If I had the energy, I'd laugh," Eris smiled through her chattering teeth, burrowing deeper into the blanket. "But no, I don't think so."

"Hiei!" Youko called into the leaves. "We're leaving."

"I heard you," came the gruff reply. "How about another demonstration of this talent of your, girl?"

Youko's eyes narrowed. "What are you playing at?"

Hiei laughed bluntly, "I thought you would have noticed the pair of ogres trampling towards us by now."

Swiveling his ears, Youko listened, tuning his senses. He was right. "Can we outrun them?"

Closing the violet jagan eye, Hiei reappeared next to the fox. "It's a 50/50 chance, but the odds are hardly ever in our favor are they?" he gave a wry grin. "One of your favorite people is with them."

Growling under his breath, Youko smelt the scent as he swept Eris into his arms.

"You know," Eris thought out loud in a quiet voice, the warmth from Youko's fuselage stifled her shaking and was making her drowsy.

"What's that? Stay here, don't fall asleep just yet," he took off, Hiei closely following and covering his back.

"You know why he did it?" she said suddenly. "For fun. That bastard put a bullet in my shoulder and killed an innocent little kid just had an urge. That's all it was."

Eris sniffled, the scene of leaves flying by blurred, her throat closing up. "Am I any better than that?" she cried, her voice wobbling.

Youko tilted her head up with his upper arm to make Eris look at him. "I will not allow you to say a foolhardy thought again! I will force Hiei to put a mind tap on you; if you even think--" He cut himself off and turned his blazing eyes away. "You are far too pure of a person to let a justified action taint you so deeply."

Leaping over a sizable rotting tree in their path, Youko pulled her in closer, leaning forward. "Will knew it too." His eyes flitted to hers a few times.

Eris tried to say something back, but a strong tremor accompanied with a loud roar scared the idea right out of her.

The two demons slid to a stop. "How long?" The tremors bristled Youko's tail with solicitude.

A patch of earth exploded in a cloud of dirt clods and wood splinters. There stood a mammoth of a demon apparently pleased that he had found his prey.

Hiei's katana was out. "My guess would be now."

Another pushed his way past its consort, snorting and looking unpleased about the bedraggled burden on his shoulder.

Ieyoshi stood with a savage grin, holding the still bleeding gash in his neck. Youko's claws hadn't gone deep or far enough to sever his jugular vein. He relished in the revelation of this to his enemies, the furious auras made the pain almost worth it.

"Doesn't that bastard ever die?!" Hiei hollered, taking his animosity out on the misshapen minions.

"You can't kill me so easily!" Ieyoshi laughed as Hiei's blade clanged against the demon's claws. For their size, they were surprisingly fast.

"Get out of here," Eris tried to wriggle out of Youko's hold. "Ieyoshi's right. You can't get rid of him like this!"

"Do you honestly believe I would leave you here?"

"Think about it!" she fought him harder. "He's probably got more coming. If you leave now you'll have a chance to get to the others. If I'm with you I'll only slow you down and die anyway!"

"Listen to her, she's actually in possession of a good idea," Hiei threw in between strokes. "Maybe she'll get lucky and that thing will save her ass again!"

Talking distracted Hiei's mind; a miscalculation left him open for the demon to strike. He cursed, the metal-like claw slicing his arm open.

Black, leather-winged creatures slashed through the brush, their white eyes leering at one another. Their snarls and squalls made a deafening racket as they lashed out at anything that touched them.

"Kill them!!" Ieyoshi screamed, pointing to the intended targets.

"Too many," Hiei hissed, the wound deeper than was normally tolerable, hindering his abilities. It would take time they didn't have for it to heal enough to wield a weapon.

They had to run. These weren't the same mediocre, low class demons they'd fought before. The fierceness about them made the very trees shudder. Young saplings bent, threatening to snap as the devils showed off their speed. Eris' observations were legitimate: Youko couldn't fight or run fast enough with her as a handicap.

Of course a fox always knows when to flee, and when to fight.

Youko fought. In a split second decision he tossed Eris to Hiei, who caught her despite all things and an uncomfortable searing in his arm. The fox delivered a vicious onslaught of bloodthirsty thorns, poisonous vines, and carnivorous, acidic plants.

A few assailants had tricks of their own: fool proof body armor, immunity accompanied with their own poisons…

They broke through the foray, their sights set on the other targets as their companions kept the fox busy.

The most fleet of foot in the group of rogues brandished its own short sword, taking a swipe at the black-cloaked Koorime. Sniffing in disgust at the weak attempt, Hiei leapt into the higher foliage; the offending demon's body scattered to the ground in sections of six.

The attempt was not in vain after all.

Something snapped; he felt it slip. They both saw it go. Eris was the one who acted, a glint of blue just out of her reach.

The sudden shift in weight hindered the use of Hiei's arm, a fresh wave blood mixing with the dirt. Eris fell.

Adversary attentions were led to her; like a colony of meerkats, their heads turned on their necks. The fighting stopped as they booked off. The directions were changed.

Youko looked too, heart freezing in anxiety. "NO! Let it go!"

"He needs it!" every cell was set on retrieving the tear gem; the air rushing past and the excited demons clamoring together below didn't even register.

Youko tore through those blocking his way, trying to get to her as a memory of a bat winged friend played through his mind's eye. I won't let this happen again…!

He didn't miss the clawed hand coming his way this time. It wasn't going for him, however.

Black spots blocked Eris' vision as she felt her hand close around the trinket. Unexpectedly it didn't feel like she was falling anymore. The glassy gem was tight in her fist, the broken black cord dangling.

Except for a tightness around her middle, everything seemed to be alright. It was quiet now, and dark. As Eris brought up her eyelids, a thin early morning light filled them as the sun started making its way into the sky.

She saw Youko and smiled, and tried to say not to worry, that she'd gotten it back, that she was fine now. He looked so alarmed, his mannerism almost showing fear. She wondered if something had happened to Hiei. Where had all the demons gone? And why was Youko getting farther away? Sleep was her only answer as exhaustion finally won.
AN: Yes, I am an evil whore. This chapterpain in the butt. Seriously. Hopefully it'll be worth the wait for you and for me.

Moving on; I have two announcements! Firstly, there is now a Live Journal community for RTR!! YAY! Do a user search for erratic(underscore here)petals on the LJ site and check out the spiffyness. Second is that this be the second to last chapter. Not to worry though, after chapter 20, it's on to the second installment!! Plenty more of the gang to come.

Eeps, short AN! Don't forget to check out the community!! I'll be making regular entries in that so don't miss them! They could be important. ;)

Footnotes:
(1) I was on a Gundam Wing kick at the time, you should expect random quotes from now on. Heh.

Review Replies:

NicholasGolden- I actually had that scene planned for awhile before that, weirdly enough. I knew you'd enjoy that too. Tehee

Hikari Yume- I believe your question has been answered. :) I love Yukina!! Hehehe

Wandering dragon- oh geez no! I've yet to stray over that line yet. lol

Ookami Aya- I love doing that to you all, you should be used to it by now!! hehe And don't worry, Ducky-kun shall be back!! Oh yes he shall!!

Nakoudo- ::laughs:: I hope those markers were the smelly kind! Those things are the best!!

Sun Priestess- Oh you have no idea how your review made me happy!! ::squee:: And yes, I'll be going to college for an English major and I hope to be writing books well into my olden days. I believe many of your questions have also been answered in this chappy, if not, ask me again! lol

Foxy-Kitsune55- gotta keep the reader interested. :)

Kitsune Kit- ::basks in the worship:: oh yeah! I rule the world! Kidding! Kurama rocks my socks. Hehehe

Blizzard4526- You don't remember what Youko looks like?! ::gasps:: well get your butt to google!! lol And yes, pointless things ARE fun to write. I know this well. YAY PIE!!

The Fire Youkai Paige- yay! glad it was well liked. :)

RaindropsRteardrops- yeah I know. I really was hoping to get the unexpected reaction. :) I hate the way most fics jump into the relationships too. I like things cute and slow; it ends up making it believable. Ja ne!

Confused person- oh dear no! lol that would be a little…ack. Anyway, I found a site on the net about how to do it.

Firefox- better watch out when The Fox is angry. Bad things happen. Hehehe. And I totally love that song too. I haven't seen the movie yet though!! Grr!!

Koroga- Oh dear. Butter-rum? A few gallons?! I almost feel sorry for him, though I guess he enjoyed it well enough. A thanks to Sesshoumaru! And I do hope Rin is feeling better. :/

Blizzard4526 (again? lol)- ::falls over laughing:: well if my not updating gets me amusing replies…just kidding!