::17::Flashes Gone By::
"Hn. And what the hell are dementors?" Hiei demanded.
"Do you remember the Fugaki, Hiei?" Kurama asked, feeling a shiver run up his spine as the temperature dropped even lower, "Dementors are similar creatures. They reside in the human realm and feed off of souls."
"If they're anything as weak as the Fugaki even the fool could taken them down," Hiei scoffed. He flipped his bloodstained katana and sheathed it as Kuwabara opened his mouth to protest. Harry, however, cut in.
"You can only take them down with a Patronus charm!" he said forcefully, "And you need a wand to work the spell."
Before anyone could back up this statement or retort, the temperature plummeted to an all-time low without warning. A loud rattling sound was echoing ominously all around the detectives and the wizards, who now hurried to join said detectives in the middle of the clearing. The wind that usually rattled the trees had suddenly stopped; the forest was silent now, as though any matter of creatures unfazed by the previous battle had disappeared…
Harry, Ron, Hermione, Kurama and Yusuke raised their wands. Suddenly, black-cloaked figures slowly emerged from the trees, silent as the grave. They were encircling their prey to avoid any escapes, their rattling, gasping breaths getting even louder, as though they were excited at the emotional feast before them.
Hiei's Jagan eye suddenly began to glow a bright, violent purple. A painful throbbing was developing over the unnatural third eye, making Hiei stumble back a few steps, snarling.
"What…the hell…" he growled. He was vaguely aware of various shouts of "Expecto Patronum!" and Kuwabara's useless swinging of his spirit sword.
Suddenly, images of falling snow, delicate, pale and miserable-looking women, a shining icy blue Hirui stone, and many large, ugly demons flashed in his mind, like a video tape that refused to stop playing. His Jagan gave another painful throb, as the purple glow grew brighter. He had a sudden feeling of an impending frost, as though he was standing on the very edge of a frozen pond but something invisible was refusing to let him take another step.
He wasn't aware of the dementors trying to close in around him. Intense despair, hatred, anger and a myriad of other emotions swirled around in this soul, and the dementors were quite keen on taking it for themselves. However, the Jagan was a powerful weapon and refused to let the creatures play with Hiei's mind, creating a psychic barrier that the dementors could not cross.
Hiei's vision was fuzzy with the pain in his head, this was almost as painful as getting the Jagan implanted.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
Suddenly the Jagan stopped throbbing, and the icy feeling vanished. Hiei's vision began to clear, and what he saw wasn't exactly pleasant.
Kurama and Yusuke were on their knees, panting hard, fighting to stay conscious as their bodies shook violently. Harry was leaning against a tree, his wand held up threateningly, Ron lie unconscious on the ground, Hermione was standing upright but her knees looked ready to give out any second.
"Hiei…are you…all right?" Kurama half-choked, half-gasped, as he stubbornly fought against his swimming head and forced himself to his feet, though he swayed dangerously on the spot.
Hiei snorted coldly and nodded, folding his arms across his chest in an almost defensive manner.
Suddenly there was another rustling in the trees lining the clearing; everyone whipped around to face it, their weapons and wands drawn, ready to start up another fight if need be.
But it wasn't demons or dementors who emerged from the trees, but Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall. McGonagall looked, horrified, at everyone, either on their knees already or ready to collapse. Even Hiei was shaking from the immense energy loss he just suffered, repelling the dementors. The bloodstained trees and soaked, maroon colored ground also didn't help her mood.
"What has gone on here?" Dumbledore asked calmly.
"Nothing much, just about a million friggin' dementors!" Yusuke snapped, struggling as he managed to get to his feet.
Kurama sighed lightly. His breathing had slowed to a more normal pace but he was still shaking and swaying where he stood. "It was a wave of dementors and demons, meant to weaken us for the real army Voldemort has yet to send," he said flatly.
Dumbledore's eyebrows shot up, but he didn't say anything.
"Let's…get them to the hospital wing, Albus…" McGonagall said finally, sounding vaguely stunned.
"No need," Kurama said, attempting the smile he always wore when he was hurt and didn't want to admit how bad it was.
McGonagall, however, was not impressed by his act, and narrowed her eyes at all of them.
"Nonsense, Professor, you and your friends need medical attention," she said sharply.
Even Yusuke didn't dare argue with her. Everyone knew how formidable she could be, and even though the Tantei could easily overpower her, Kurama and Yusuke knew better than to cross the severe woman.
Eventually, what ended up happening was Kuwabara - whose past really wasn't all that fraught with enough horror for the dementors to have effected him as much as the others – helped Kurama and Yusuke walk with one arm thrown under each of their arms. Hiei refused help and walked on his own, and McGonagall conjured up crutches for Harry and Hermione to use. The unconscious Ron was being carried on a stretcher Dumbledore created. It floated in the middle of the group in mid-air.
………
"Damn…"
Her whole body ached and burned, like millions of sharp little knives were stabbing her flesh with every breath she took.
"That runt's ass is MINE…" she snarled to no one in particular.
Shizuru attempted to sit upright, but suddenly the pain worsened and she fell back onto her futon with a yell she barely was able to catch in her throat.
"Yeh alright there?" a gruff voice asked from somewhere beyond Shizuru's field of vision (which wasn't all that great considering she was lying flat on her back).
Shizuru snorted lightly, recognizing Hagrid's voice, and managed to grunt out a stubborn "Yeah", even though she was nowhere near "alright". At least one rib – if not several – were broken or fractured, she was covered in cuts, her back stung like the seven hells and her chest felt ready to burst. Every breath was like fire cutting at her throat, it was obvious something was also wrong with her lungs.
Oh yeah. Just fine…
"Are you kiddin'? You're in a right state, I'll get Madam Pomfrey down here," Hagrid said. Shizuru was in no state to protest, she could only glare defiantly (followed by a grimace) as he grabbed his huge black coat and headed out. Obviously, Shizuru couldn't be carried to the hospital wing or she just might snap in half.
Twenty minutes later, Shizuru, who hadn't moved an inch, heard the loud creaking and banging of Hagrid's huge wooden door being open and shut. Immediately, Madam Pomfrey was at her side, muttering darkly.
"I thought the dragons two years ago were bad…now they've got these sadistic teenage guards in the castle!" she was saying, "Now take this."
Madam Pomfrey shoved a small glass vile of some deep violet liquid into Shizuru's hands. Shizuru raised an eyebrow at it, but managed to down it despite her awkward position. It actually didn't taste too bad, more mild than anything, almost like fruity water.
Immediately the burning, stinging, aching pain in Shizuru's body seemed to vanish. Slightly startled by the sudden healing, Shizuru twitched her fingers as if making sure everything was still in its place.
"Well, goodbye, I need to get back up to the hospital wing, several new patients…"
Madam Pomfrey swiftly exited the hut, and her hurried footsteps, crunching the thick white snow outside, could be heard for several seconds before dying away.
………
"Where did the little one go?" Madam Pomfrey demanded, merely seconds after she entered the hospital wing.
Everyone just shrugged. In truth, Hiei had jumped out the window and was probably in the Forbidden Forest someplace, but no one was about to tell Madam Pomfrey that. They knew Hiei was more than capable of healing after the dementor attack – it had been more emotional than anything, and in times like these Hiei demanded seclusion.
Dumbledore, who was sitting in a chair against the wall, calmly reminded Madam Pomfrey that Hiei was no mere human and didn't really require medical treatment. He had been forced to tell the nurse about her patient's true race, though nothing of their pasts. Not even Kurama protested this. She wasn't allowed to tell anyone, and it just meant she'd back off a bit.
"Well, let's get you all fixed up…"
::End::Chapter::
Oh dear. The SHORTNESS, it BURNS! –twitches madly-