Chapter Five-

"Youko?" During their time together, Ai had gradually stopped calling him 'Youko Kurama' and settled for merely 'Youko.' She knew that they only had a little time left to be together, but it seemed that daily he chose to play hide-and-seek with her at the temple. Today he had left clues for her, that led her to the stream behind the temple. She was now looking around for him cautiously, only slightly amused at his childish game. He certainly was a sly little fox, her Kurama. "Youko, this isn't funny right now. Where are you?"

"I've been standing behind you for quite some time, Ai-chan."

Jumping in surprise, Ai turned her wide blue eyes to meet two golden ones that had myrrh dancing like fire behind them. She frowned and furrowed her brow at him. "You scared me! Don't do that again! I was worried," she scolded.

His ears pinned back, and the golden pools grew wide and misty as he pouted, looking like a kit who'd just gotten reprimanded. "I'm sorry," he said sincerely, his voice perfectly matching his face.

Ai sighed, and palmed her forehead, then rubbed her eyes, "No, I am sorry, Youko...I should not have yelled. But..."

"But what, Ai-chan?" he asked, his playful tone coming back as he perked up. He'd gotten so much like a kit since he'd come into her temple. He didn't seem to realize that their time together was limited, by only a few more weeks...she would die soon. Though she had known it for some time, it still seemed to sadden her that she only could spend these past few months with him; they were all she had.

She visibly shook away the thoughts, and smiled lightly, "It is nothing. Never mind. Why did you bring me here, Youko?" Youko frowned when she side-stepped the question. He'd known that she was keeping something from him for some time, and he'd forgotten her promise that they'd only be together for a little while; his past few months were heaven. He truly, deeply loved this priestess. Of course, he'd never let any of the other thieves, especially Koronue, know that...and whenever they questioned his long absences when he left Ai's temple to return to his thieving ways, he'd merely throw a growl of, "It's none of your business," their way.

He smiled then, thinking to himself, I will figure you out soon enough, my priestess. Just you wait, and speaking aloud, "I thought we could go swimming!"

"Swimming?" she repeated, raising an eyebrow, her face falling and paling a bit. He nodded his head eagerly, again taking on the little kit appearance. "Uh...Youko, you know I'm not much for swimming..."

He'd only ever seen her wade in shallow waters, he'd remembered about a week before, and when he'd inquired about it, she'd merely replied that she didn't 'swim'. He'd been asking her about it all week. She should have known better than to trust him and follow him to a stream. Curses. "Not yet, anyway," Youko finally smirked, sweeping her up into his arms. She yipped in protest when he walked to the edge of the stream, and dropped her into the deeper waters.

He grew slightly worried when she didn't surface after a moment. "Ai?" He kneeled to get a closer look into the water. Nothing. "Ai!" He dove in after her, berating himself for now listening to her in the first place. It didn't take long for him to find her, nearly unconscious and sinking toward the bottom of the stream. He grabbed her around the waist, pulling her upward then hoisting her past him so she surfaced a moment before he did. When he broke through the water's surface, gasping for air, he half-expected her to hit him. But, he was surprised. Very surprised.

Ai had thrown her head back and was giggling madly in his arms, holding her mouth with both hands to try and stifle her chortles, but unable to. He held her close, pulling her with him onto the shore, but still, she didn't stop giggling. "Ai, daijobu?" he asked, shaking her shoulders gently to make her look at him. She smiled at him, wiping laughter tears from her eyes. He urgently repeated, "Daijobu?"

"Hai, I am fine, Youko," she nodded affirmatively, still panting from her laughter. He held her protectively, muttering more apologies than she could count into the crown of her head. She chuckled, turning her face upward and planting a kiss on his lips to silence him. "I am fine...thank you," she said sincerely. "I've never had that much fun in my life."

"That is hard to believe," he said, raising an eyebrow. But her eyes never lied to him. And they didn't then, either.

-

Kurama awoke before the others. Hiei had even allowed himself to drift off, but looking at him would reveal his Jigan eye was free from the headband he often wore and wide awake, taking in his surroundings. Taking a deep breath, he blinked upon remembering his dream of Ai's first swimming adventure. Youko must have really cared for the woman. Kurama couldn't really remember a time when he'd uttered so many apologies to anyone...

"It's almost midnight."

Kurama looked up, surprised to see Yusuke sitting up as if he had never been asleep at all. Kuwabara then sat up, with an affirmative nod. Hiei turned his head to look at them, and Kurama almost smirked as he stood up and watched the humans stretch before they joined him.

They all filed past him toward the door, Hiei pausing to turn to look at him. Smirking, the Jiganshi said, "You mumble in your sleep." Kurama blushed, wondering if they'd heard everything he'd said. "Don't worry; no one did...you just do."

"Arigato, Hiei," Kurama nodded with a smile. Yusuke fiddled with the keys, cursing in the darkness, until he found the one that unlocked their cell, and with a small huff of amusement and a click of the key hitting the lock, they were free to roam throughout the castle. They knew only that they were going to look around until they found where Asa was. It was so quiet that they could almost hear every drip-drop of water coming through from the upper floors, every step of their foot, and unfortunately, Kuwabara's rather heavy breathing.

Finally, Yusuke hissed, "Kuwabara, what the hell's wrong?! You got influenza or somethin'?!"

"I'm getting the cold, creepy feeling," Kuwabara shuddered, rubbing his arms. "I don't have a good feeling about this..."

"You only have a creepy feeling because we have been walking up here for some time, no baka." The whisper from above their heads made them all look upward, to see Kasumi and Natsumi---standing upside down from the ceiling.

"Whoa...okay, you learn something new every day. Where'd you two get the ability to defy gravity?!" Yusuke demanded, watching as the twins let themselves fall, and flipped to land on their feet. They eyed him curiously, their expressions clearly stating, "Is something odd about that?"

"They're Class B demons, they can do whatever they wish," Hiei stated, then, almost as an instinct, added an annoyed, "Hn."

Kasumi gave them both a smile and shook her head, as her sister said, "Lady Akira told us to take you to her, and to guide you to your portal. She spoke some strange things...said that she hoped we would make it all right. Do you know what she was talking about?"

The four of them exchanged a knowing glance. It was Akira's discreet goodbye, she was trying not to let them know that she was sending them away. The twins both raised their eyebrows, as Kurama said, "We are unaware...maybe you should hurry and take us to Asa...midnight is almost upon us."

"Hai," they agreed in unison. They took the lead, cautiously checking around every corner before they turned them, and after a few moments, they found themselves outside Asa's door. "Here it is. Go on, we will wait for you at the top of the stairs there," Kasumi said, pointing down the hallway where the staircase was. She and Natsumi walked down the hallway, and Kurama was beside the door almost instantaneously, eyeing Yusuke pointedly and spurring the detective to take the keys and rush to the door. Yusuke's hands fumbled with the keys, until finally, with an aggravated sigh, Kurama held out his hand, palm upward, and Yusuke, smirking, thrust the keys toward the fox, whose own hands were surprisingly calm.

He got the key easily into the keyhole, turned it, and shoved the door open with a little more force than he'd meant to, then stepped inside in a cursory, eyes darting over the room for Asa. When he spotted her, his heart sank to his feet.

She was still underneath the thin material of Akira's cloak, but she was sitting upright in the corner, with her head on one arm that was folded over the top of her knees that she'd pulled to her chest. Her face was covered in bruises, and her other arm hung limply at an odd angle at her side. Her eyes were half-open though she seemed to be asleep, and they were dull, lifeless, more gray than their more usual color of a lively ice blue. He took a sharp intake of breath as he eyed the blood that was trailed all over the floor and stained over her skin and clothes, then took a step toward her, and another. The others came in behind him, looking over his shoulder, and their reactions were similar.

Kurama finally made it so that she was within his arm's reach. He slowly kneeled to one knee, reaching for her and holding her half-open eyes in his as if she were a wild animal. When she saw him, she gasped, her head moving upright, and shifted back further against the wall, until she could wriggle away no further. She was whimpering, and he recoiled as if he'd been slapped, closing his eyes for a moment to squeeze back the tears there, then muttering as he returned his gaze to hers, "Asa...it's me, Shuuichi..."

She sniffled, eyes welling up with jewel-bright tears that looked strange against the lifeless foggy orbs. He started to reach for her again, more slowly, and she buried her head into the cloak, whimpering, "No...leave me be..."

He looked over his shoulder at Yusuke and Kuwabara, then to Hiei, whose face was uncharacteristically soft. "What do we do?" he questioned in a quiet voice. Hiei moved forth, reaching a hand out quickly enough so that Asa didn't see and raising his index finger to point at her forehead. A small orb of light formed at his fingertip, and went into Asa's forehead. Her eyes closed immediately, and she slumped forward, but Kurama caught her.

At the others' questioning glances, Hiei explained, "I used some of my power to put her into a semi-conscious state. She'll be fine until we get her to Genkai's."

"Then let's get her out of this hellhole," Yusuke muttered, his eyes never leaving Asa as Kurama gingerly lifted her up into his arms. "Poor squirt..."

"Come on, let's go," Kuwabara was the one who finally started leading them out of the dungeon, forcing the others to rip their eyes away from the injured girl in their care. They walked slowly down the hall and up the stairs, where Natsumi and Kasumi waited, the first leaning against the wall with one foot resting against it, her arms crossed across her chest, the other sitting with her back against the wall, one knee pulled to her chest, her other leg coiled underneath of the first, her hands wrapped around her ankle.

When they heard the boys approaching, they both looked up, and their eyes went wide when they saw Asa's condition. Kasumi opened her mouth and tried to speak, but her throat refused to send air over her vocal cords to let any of the sound out. Natsumi, the strongest sister, was the one to speak, "Is she...all right?"

"She will be fine, once we get her to our friend's," Kurama supplied as tersely as he could, face almost as pale as the girl's he was carrying. It didn't go unnoticed that, now that she was asleep, her head rested against his shoulder comfortably, and she was snuggled against him as if letting him have any more space than she was would kill her. And, seeing her condition, it probably would.

Natsumi nodded in reply, holding a hand down to her sister, who took it with her good arm, the other still being minorly injured due to Yusuke's Spirit Gun attack, and lifted herself up onto her feet. They led the boys out of the castle, no one noticing that they had gone. Kurama glanced back at the onyx palace only once, vowing silently to return once Asa was well again, and kill Sakai himself. It wasn't often that the gentleness Kurama had acquired in his years as Shuuichi slipped enough to let Youko's brutality through, but this wasn't even a question of being gentle---Sakai had hurt Asa. The Shadow Master in question would have to pay dearly. ((A/N: I PROMISE you all, Kurama will exact his revenge...trust me.))

The moonlight showered them as they exited the invisible wall around the castle, and Kasumi and Natsumi crept along as stealthily as Hiei would have, stopping at the edge of the forest to see that moonlight bathed one of the paths in front of them so that it almost glowed. "Where is your friend?" Kasumi asked, looking at Hiei, who glanced around the forest, then went in a blur off to the right. When he returned, he brought a half-dazed Botan with him in his arms, setting her down on her feet so that she could stretch her limbs and yawn---she'd been asleep---but then, when her eyes fell upon Asa, she gasped, and was immediately at Kurama's side, assessing the damage done to her young friend.

"What did that monster do to her?" Botan breathed, her eyes flooding over with tears. "Poor Asa..."

Hiei, surprising everyone with his actions, took her hand, pulling her gently away from Asa and petting the hand of hers he held in a consoling manner. No one had the heart to even tease as he did. Botan's tears were calmed after a few moments, and she returned Hiei's grip on her hand, offering him a small smile. "Let's get her home," Yusuke finally muttered to Kurama, nodding at the twin demons to lead the way. Natsumi and Kasumi, to say the least, were shocked at the humans' reactions---they, being demons raised by the heartless Sakai (who, as I promised before, WILL get his), had never had many friends outside the other servants, Lady Akira, and one another, and didn't really relate to many human emotions. ((If you can't tell who I'm pairing THESE two with, let me just give you a hint: they're both some of our buddy demons from the Dark Tournament. One has a funny accent while the other has AWESOME hair. Take a guess. Go on. (mischievous smirk) ))

They led the group silently, and in almost no time at all, they found themselves in front of the portal. "We will accompany you through the portal, to make sure you arrive safely, but then we are coming back," Natsumi told them, eyeing the area where the onyx castle should have been cautiously. The four boys exchanged a glance. They now knew what Akira's plan was---she would know when they walked through the portal, it would close, leaving the twin girls trapped in the human world. They had a feeling that, even if they did find a way back to her, Akira would no longer be around to greet them. This stunt was definitely enough to earn her her death.

They went through the portal, finding themselves in front of Genkai's temple. The twins didn't seem to notice the portal disappearing as Genkai rushed forth from the shadows of her doorway, her movements stealthy and somewhat surprising considering her age, but her face as calm as it always was. "Yukina told me what happened," she said, eyeing the limp form of Asa that was huddled in Kurama's arms. "Bring her inside quickly. Botan, I may need your help. The rest of you, go get the girls from Koenma's. Kurama, you can stay here...as can you two, Kasumi, Natsumi."

Surprised that Genkai knew them, both the girls exchanged glances, and Natsumi protested, "But we must get home---!"

"You're not going home. Look behind you." They did, and both their faces were of pure shock and dismay when they saw that the portal had closed. "Your foster mother, Akira, wished for you to stay in the human world, away from Sakai's clutches. You would be wise to respect her wishes," Genkai said in a raspy voice. "Now, you four," she nodded at the twins, Botan, and Kurama, "Follow me. Dimwit, I trust you can get to Koenma's on your own?"

"Hai, old hag, we're cool. Just take care of Asa-chan, onegai?" Yusuke asked, taking Hiei and Kuwabara with him as they left the temple to get Shizuru and Keiko. Kurama carried Asa into the temple after Genkai and Botan, trailed by Natsumi and Kasumi, who seemed highly saddened by their new loss of a home. Yukina was already waiting for them when Genkai entered one of the many rooms at her temple, and Kurama saw that she had prepared several ointments and salves that were in bowls around the futon he had to kneel to lay Asa on.

Genkai gave him a sympathetic look as he continued kneeling beside the girl, his hand in hers, then said, "Kurama, you'll have to leave while I do this. Take Kasumi and Natsumi with you, please. I promise, I'll do the best I can for her." She laid a hand on Kurama's shoulder, then removed it to turn away as he stood up to lead the twins out of the room, turning to gently push the rice paper door closed behind him. He only paused when it was a crack open, stealing one more glance of Asa's face before he shut it firmly, with a heavy sigh.

"Onegai...onegai let her be all right..." he whispered under his breath, inclining his head forward and resting his forehead against his hand, that was still on the door. The twins exchanged a knowing glance as he took a slow, deep breath, to control his sudden burst of emotions, then eyed him patiently, as he straightened, turned to them, and sighed, "I'll show you two around...I doubt you'll be able to find your way through the 'Labyrinth' on your own..." He forced a gentle smile, but they both knew he was trying to busy himself until he knew Asa was all right. A wave of understanding passed over the three of them as Kurama led them through Genkai's temple, and neither of the twins said much even when they heard him mumble prayers for Asa's well being.

- - - - -

(Kurama, Meka, Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei are sitting on a couch, watching a television that has the story on it like an actual episode. Loud sniffles can be heard, but you can't tell which one they're coming from.)

((sniff))

((sniffle sniff))

((sob sniffle))

Meka- Oh, for crying out loud, Hiei! ((shoves a box of tissues into Hiei's hands))

Hiei- I'm not...((sniffle))...crying. Shut up, baka onna.

Kurama- Hiei, if you're not crying, what do you call the watery substance that is being produced by your eyes?

Hiei- ...Die slowly, Fox.

Kuwabara- Since everyone hates me, I'm going to hold up the disclaimer sign! ((holds up the disclaimer sign, that says, "Asa doesn't own nothing ..anything..."))

Hiei- I want to answer Sazuka-chan's review. Just because.

Meka- NO, you want to answer it because she hates Kuwabara, too, and you love her for it.

Hiei- Hn...so? ((Meka shrugs)) Anyway, Sazuka-chan, thank you for reviewing...I can personally promise you that the baka will never, EVER answer any of your reviews.

Meka- ((raises an eyebrow and crosses her arms)) Well, you're on a roll...go on...

Hiei- Um...okay, AzureDragoness, your name is still cool...and arigato for continuing to review. And I was NOT being civil...just like I wasn't crying...

Yusuke- My turn?

Meka- ((nods, sitting back and glaring at him))

Yusuke- YAAAY! ((holds up sign that says, "I'm only being nice because Meka said if I am she won't kill me for being a ja-ku earlier!")) Akeisha, we thank you for continuing to read the story...despite the scythe threat. And tell Beast that he sounds really cool, and that if he ever needs help escaping his authoress' clutches like I need help with---!

Meka- ((growls))

Yusuke- ((yelps)) Uh, ...just tell him...to...call...Keiko, yeah... ((runs and hides))

Meka- And last, but not least, Kurama-kun...do yer stuff.

Kurama- ((eyes her curiously)) You made me look like a cry baby in this chapter.

Meka- No, that was Hiei being a cry baby. You're just being nice and fluffy kawaii, as always.

Kurama- ((glowers)) Well, anyway... ((brightens)) Melanie-chan, we utmostly thank you for being our #1 Fan and we hope you will keep reviewing and writing your awesome fic!

Meka- ((claps)) Yay! Good job, you all! Okay, gotta go...more torture to plan! ((evil grin)) Byes!