A/N: Thank you all for waiting. I know you have been patient with me. This chapter is almost twice the length of my normal chapters, running 2700 words. Enjoy. No one has yet guessed what happened to Lorin. She did not get a Jagan, though that was a good guess.

Ok, here's the plan, we go into school and find Suichi.

Oh, yeah, great plan… how did I not come up with that on my own.

Hey! I wasn't done yet. We find him and tell him we got his letter. Then say that there are parts of the letter we'd like to talk about. He's smart, he'll understand.

Wow! We are geniuses this morning. I think all the pain has addled your brains.

Lorin realized that it wasn't very smart to argue with one's self and try to walk down a crowded school hall. In fact, it wasn't a good idea to argue with herself, period, but none of her friends were around to argue with instead. It was still painful to walk among lots of people, but there were times when she managed to shut them out enough. It wasn't her normal reiki that she used in those moments, but something else, something very different. She still didn't know what had happened to her reiki. She could feel it was around somewhere, but it was doing something, protecting her maybe. It was being used as fast as she generated it.

Lorin turned the last corner before homeroom. Suichi always beat her there, if they didn't walk to school together. A wave of loneliness washed over her. She hadn't walked with Suichi to school since before the House of Four Dimensions. Entering the room, she frowned. His seat was empty. She glanced around the class. He was no where to be seen. Where was SK?

-- Of course he's not here. He's a youkai after all, and youkai look out for themselves first. Did you really think he'd be here when you needed him the most? --

Now that was a crazy thought. Of course SK would help her. He had said so. Maybe he was sick or his mom was. Lorin hoped not, and took her own seat. Class was about to start and she would have to find Suichi later.

What's the worst he could do?

He could hate us.

No, he won't. He's our best friend. He said so in the letter. He's always stood by us.

Yeah, but we've never done anything like this.

True, but he stood by us after Hiei was burned by his dragon and after we killed Risho.

I can't stand to lose him. If I do, I'll lose Hiei too! I can't.

We won't lose either one. SK will probably just smile gently like he does and tell us that while we didn't need to do what we did, he'll still help us, of course.

sigh I can see that. He'd chuckle and then give me a hug and I can cry and…and….

Get control of everything.

EXACTLY! We have to find Kurama now.

The phone's over there, baka.

Lorin stopped pacing her room and rushed to the desk. She tripped over her feet and knocked the phone off the hook. Help was so close now and she couldn't stand up!

Let's see, 555-5957. It's ringing!

"Hello? Mrs. Minamino! Hi, it's Lorin…. Yes, I'm fine. How are you?… Good, good. Listen I need to talk to Suichi. Is he there?… He wasn't in school today…. I see. Mushiyori City?… Staying with friends…. Do you have the address? Hold on, I'll get some paper…. Ok…uh-huh, Slaster Ave, got it. Thanks, Mrs. M…. Yeah, I'll tell him you said hi. Bye."

Lorin closed her eyes as she hung up the phone and sighed. This wasn't going to be as easy as she'd thought. At least today was Friday. She just had to think of something to convince her parents to let her go to Mushiyori City and she could find Kurama….

Lorin jerked up her head and glared at herself in the mirror. How stupid could she be? Just tell them she was going with SK. They trusted her and him to go on a weekend trip to visit "friends" and if she threw the "we have as school project" line in there, they would have to say yes! It was foolproof.

She made for the stairs.

Twenty minutes later found Lorin back in her room packing a backpack for her trip. She had the essentials: clothes, money, pain killers and enough seeds to plant several large gardens. All she needed now was her katana, in its glove form of course, the pendent Hiei had given her (she rarely took it off, but she triple checked that she had it) and last but not least, the train ticket that she'd printed off the Net.

Putting the backpack over one shoulder and the black glove on her left hand, Lorin marched down the stairs and out the front door, determined not to come back without some answers.

Hiei hurt. He hated to hurt, but despite all his attempts to avoid it, it had happened anyway. Most of the people he had interacted with were stupid and weak. He didn't care if they lived or died. Since his banishment from the Ice World, Hiei had vowed to never be hurt again. A baby was born with a need to care about its mother. The little hi youkai was not exception. She was the last person, except his sister, to matter to him…until now.

Within a years time, he had let not only one, but three people inside all the walls he had built. All of them were more cunning than they let on. Though, only Kurama had any clue he was cunning. Yusuke obvious had no clue, but then again, Yusuke didn't have a clue about much. He went on instincts. Lorin….

Lorin was a different story in everyway. From the first two dates when she refused to be scared of the otherworldly things that happened to fighting in the Dark Tournament. She had gotten in deeper behind his walls than anyone. He was still confused as to how she'd managed it.

Hiei shifted slightly as the wind changed directions. He was sitting in damp clothes on a tree branch outside Lorin's room. That was why he hurt, not the clothes, wet from last night's rain, but the weeping that had come to him from that room. Since she had left in anger, Hiei had been watching her. She had disappeared completely for two days right after she'd yelled at him. Lorin had come back, but something was very wrong. He couldn't tell what was wrong. She was very sick, more so than she ever told her parents.

Lorin didn't scream out loud when the pain took her, or muffled the screams in a pillow, but her mind yelled to the heavens. His Jagan let him hear every ounce of her agony. Hiei was no healer. He couldn't figure out what was making her hurt, but he could at least live her pain with her.

He didn't go to her or even let her know he was near. She had made it clear that she would come back when she wanted to and Hiei didn't want to risk losing her for good, no matter how much it hurt him to be away from her now. At least it appeared she was going to find Kurama and ask for help. He owed the kitsune for writing that letter.

When she cried after that, he almost broke down and went to her. Hiei fingered a red and black gem hanging around his neck. That night, when she got the letter, her heart-wrenching sobs had overwhelmed him and he'd released a tear, the only one he had ever cried. This gem belonged to her. He'd keep it safe until she came back to him.

Hiei stirred as Lorin walked out her front door and down the sidewalk. She had her backpack and her katana. Sunlight caught something around her neck. Flitting to a closer branch, Hiei made out the fire pendent he had given her. A flicker of hope sprang to life. Surely if she still wore it, she didn't hate him forever.

He followed her to the center of the city, to the train station. Good, it looked like she was heading in Kurama's direction. That was to where the fighting was, and Hiei knew that Lorin would not be left out it, no matter what pain she was in. He would have to join in as well, to keep her safe. He had seen her burn that rose attempting to summon a Rose Whip. Her powers weren't working.

The fire demon was still angry at Koenma's labeling his strength, but it wasn't worth hurting. There were things he needed to take care of first here. Kurama would keep her safe until he came. He knew that the kitsune cared for Lorin as much as he did, but Yoko respected Suichi and Lorin's ningen beliefs of one partner at a time. Youkai weren't so limited in their thinking, yet another way they were superior to ningen.

Hiei watched as Lorin boarded the train for Mushiyori City. She moved much slower than usual. She must be hurting again. The hi youkai settled himself on his perch and opened his Jagan. It took him less and less time to find her mind each time he sought it. Yes, she was in pain. It was not as bad as some, but still more than could be ignored. This time, however, one thought stood firm in the maelstrom.

I'm sorry, Hiei

The train ride was mostly uneventful. Lorin rode almost the whole way with her eyes closed, her focus turned inward. Blue warred with red, she fought with the demons, she was the demons, her body was being dissolved by the blue, by her reiki. The pain ebbed and flowed, it bit and throbbed.

And through it all, Hiei was with her. She didn't know how such a thing could be; she'd left him behind. He was so far away, but his face was always in the background of the train ride. It helped, even if she was just imagining it.

I'm sorry, Hiei. I'm sorry.

Lorin decided when she got back home the first thing she would do was find Hiei and hug him, even though he didn't like it, and cry, even though she would look weak, and beg him to take her back. Maybe, just maybe, he would take her back.

"Next stop, Mushiyori City."

Lorin opened her eyes. Oddly enough, the chaos of her mind had settled her power and dulled the pain. She joined the people getting off the train. A family ahead of her brought a smile to her face. That was the reason Yusuke and the others did what they did. Well, they also liked to beat things senseless. She had to grin at that thought. She missed the boys and their idiocy.

Stepping off the train, Lorin was stunned. Everyone was just going about their business, apparently completely oblivious to the strange, creepy sight around them. Bugs, lots and lots of creepy, icky bugs. They were everywhere – on people, on the walls, flying through the air. The buzzing was a deep background tone, but it didn't seem to bother anyone but her.

"Are you alright, miss?" The conductor came over to her. "You look pale." He looked concerned for her but didn't seem to care about the six-legged bug crawling on his face. Lorin forced herself not to stare.

"I'm fine, sir. I have never been to Mushiyori City." She gave him a smile and he nodded.

"We have a beautiful city. If you're sure you're okay, I will get back to work." The sentence was half question, half statement. Lorin nodded and waved as she walked out of the train station.

Outside was even worse. The clouds of bugs were thicker and Lorin had to suppress a look of disgust. She hated anything smaller than her hand with multiple legs, and wings made it ten times worse. But Kurama was out there and she had come all this way to get to him. She wasn't going to let any bugs stop her. She had faced demons; bugs shouldn't faze her.

Lorin took a deep breath and headed into the crowd of people and insects.

The sun was setting as she approached the hospital. She was exhausted, going non-stop since she had left the train station. Lorin had followed the reiki and youki traces left behind by her friends. Those bakas had led her on a wild goose chase that had gone all over the city. And when the teams had split up, she had to follow both sets for a while. The dull ache at the base of her neck had started about lunch time and had spread from there. By the time she reached the hospital, Lorin was frustrated, in pain and ready to beat the boys into the wall, then make them help her.

It did have her slightly worried that she was searching a hospital for them, but knew that they could handle a lot. Faint traces of reiki were still all over the lower floors, fading even more as she rode the elevator higher. Finally, on the sixth floor, she felt a concentration of energy. It was extremely weird. She seemed to step into an area saturated with one energy signature.

Lorin made her way down the hall, testing for energy. One door, about halfway down, seemed to be the focal point for the area of energy.

Maybe this is a Territory, like SK told me about.

Carefully, Lorin opened the door and stopped halfway in surprise. Intent eyes stared at her before recognition hit and the person mirrored her surprise.

"Lorin Nichols? What are you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing, Kaitou. You're the last person I expected to find here." Lorin was baffled as to why a classmate of hers and SK's was sitting in the middle of a strange reiki field in a hospital.

He motioned to the three sleeping forms behind him. "My friends were hurt. I'm here to make sure they're alright," he explained, resuming his seat and picking up the newspaper he had been reading.

Lorin glanced at the sleeping boys. They did look beat up. She returned her gaze back to Kaitou and a few pieces clicked in her over-tired brain. "So when did you realize your gift?" she asked leaning against the wall. There was another chair in the room, but Lorin was worried about getting back up later if she sat down.

Kaitou pushed his glasses up with one finger. "I was wondering if you knew. I've had mine for a few months. I have the power of Taboo."

Lorin nodded, understanding flooding. "So you were in the House of Four Dimensions. You were the one who took Hiei's soul." Her eyes glinted darkly.

"I did, but don't worry. Master Genkai was near by to put them back, should they have failed. There was no danger." Kaitou seemed to realize that he had found a touchy subject, so he decided to change it. "How long have you had your powers?"

Lorin considered, deciding to come back to the Hiei subject later. "It's been about eleven or twelve months, though it feels like longer. Do you know about the Dark Tournament?" she asked, then continued at his nod. "I fought with the boys in that."

Silence fell and Lorin sighed. "They aren't here, are they?"

Kaitou shook his head. "If you mean Urameshi and Suichi, no. They went back home a few hours ago."

Lorin paled and sunk to the floor. "Of course they did," she said quietly. She looked up when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you alright?" Kaitou asked.

"No. There's something wrong with me and I need SK's help. I've been chasing him all day. I'm exhausted."

"As a side note, why do you call him SK? I've always wondered."

"Suichi Kurama. That's what I call him when we're alone. SK is a version I can use in public." Lorin smiled briefly at the thought of her friend.

"Come on. I'll walk you to the train station. These guys will be alright for a few minutes." Kaitou held out a hand which Lorin took. He escorted her downstairs. "Suichi will be home tomorrow, most likely," he commented. "Why don't you go home and sleep. I'll make sure he knows you were looking for him when I see him."

Lorin nodded, realizing how tired she was. It was a silent walk back to the train station. Lorin fell asleep on the train, only the thought of Hiei being close waking her enough to get off and home.

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