I suppose, the quality of your reviews has once again over ridden my want for quantity. 4 Reviews? 4? You're all slacking, each and every one of you. Well, except for those 4 who did review. Let's try to get a bit more this time, yes? I mean, there's only 3 chapters left after that! And then (unless you all shuffle over to my my Hiei/Kurama one shots--I think there are two--I don't pay attention) I'll never see you guys again! The pure horror!

Quote of the Day! "Believe me, death will come long before surrender." --Hiei. You know I was at first aiming for funny quotes, and then I realized how many quotes these two have that can fit so well. It's kind of scary. This quote will fit in quite nicely as you shall soon see.

Warnings: For starters, we're in Flashback mode. From here on out, except for clearly marked interruptions, its all about what the hell Hiei was doing. Right off the bat we get a bit of some..er..gruesome imagery as well as some mention of rape (I don't go into details, it just happens and well, we move on with life) Slave trading, er...and Hiei's "torture" begins, though you really don't see it much. More OC, and Hiei and I are the same when it comes to Youko Kurama, wtf is he? An outcast? What? How do other Youko's view him? We've both just assumed, eh, he's an outcast, if he wasn't before, he was when he joined up with Yusuke.

Rating: We've moved back up to an M rating, just for safety.

Hiei growled as he tried to look down at the large gathering through the pouring rain. The demon next to him seemed to have no trouble in seeing, but than again, he wasn't that interested in looking at the large Slave Trade.

"Damn, it's been raining ever since I got here!" he growled out. The guide turned to look at him.

"You have been out of Makai for a long time haven't you?" Hiei glared at him.

"Why does that matter to you?"

"Everybody else has been preparing for this monsoon for months…" Hiei snorted.

"Even if you are prepared, I'm sure it's still annoying as hell…" The other nodded.

"The water demons are enjoying it though. Come on, we can't go down today, let's set up camp and get some well deserved sleep tonight…" he said turning around. Hiei scrunched his nose.

"We can get down there in no time at all, why wait?" he questioned turning around as his companion set up camp.

"There are things about the man you're seeking that you need to know about before we go down there. He's crazy I tell you. The one time I met him, I found my self wishing for death not even five seconds after looking into his eyes." Hiei looked up.

"You've met him?" The demon nodded.

"Yeah. He was just a slave when I did, but he had that power of making you feel like you had to die right than."

"A slave? He's a slave?" he asked suddenly.

"Was a slave. Than he was an owner. I think he's a trader now, or was a trader…Like I said the man is crazy. He once took an outcast half breed Youko as his mate. She was found at a trading zone one day, her head on a stake, her limbs tied together in a bundle off to one side, and his sword inside of her sex. He admitted to doing it to her with a sadistic smile gracing his face. It was a shame. Most Youko's despise him now a day." Hiei nodded slowly.

"Well I guess I'll just have to see what he's like tomorrow than…"

Hiei grumbled as he pulled the old rags to him closer and looked around, trying to spot that head of black with a red star burst that would symbolize his father. A sudden upheaval of cheers burst out of the crowd around him and he inched closer to his companion.

"What's going on?" he asked looking around.

"The trading has begun." Hiei looked up and watched as a human female was dragged upon stage screaming. He gasped as they tied her up and started beating her.

"Humans?"

"Welcome to the underworld. This is where all those little kids on the milk cartons that have been missing for 10, 15 years end up." Hiei glared.

"And how would you know about the milk cartons?"

"Everyone has their secrets…"

"Hn…"

He tried desperately to ignore the sobs of the girl and went back to scanning the crowd. Soon the girl was hauled off stage and a young man about Kurama's age was pulled on to stage crying. Hiei heard his scream and glanced over at the stage. He saw the whips going down on the boy. He bit his lip as he thought about the Ningenkai. The boy should've been in school, or at work. He should've been living a happy normal life, with a girlfriend, or boyfriend. He watched as a few demons were allowed on the stage and stripped the boy of his clothes. He didn't scream or cry though; he hung his head in shame and took it as the demons began raping him. His hand twitched towards his sword. The other put his hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

"It won't help him. What will he do? Wander around Makai until he is captured again? Say he did get back to the human world? What than? With no identity, no life, and a crazy story of demons…how would he survive? What's it matter to you anyways?" Hiei scowled.

"My mate…his human form is about that age, they could've been friends…"

"Could've, but aren't. Don't think that way…just think of completing your mission." Hiei nodded and averted his eyes from the slave trading. Suddenly a hand was clamped around his shoulder.

"First time at a Slave Trade my boy?" Hiei glanced up at his captor. Black hair with the red starburst. His eyes were blood red, almost black and he was maybe a foot taller than Hiei. He shook his head.

"No, I've been to slave trades before…" he stated. The man laughed and hit him on the back.

"Ah, I bet they were those wimpy ones, with only the small suckers, all demons, in the higher levels, eh? Did you like to watch? Or maybe…you had no choice." Hiei glanced down as those eyes bore holes through him. He tried to think of a happy thought, of Kurama smiling, but it seemed as if all his purpose, all his happiness had been drained out of him the second he heard that voice.

"What's it matter to you?"

"Because, my boy, we're related…" Hiei's eyes snapped up. The man smirked.

"Welcome back to Makai Hiei, my son…" Hiei swallowed hard when suddenly he heard a scream.

"My Brother! My Brother! Save me!" he glanced up to see a young and beautiful Roan Youko reaching towards him.

"In the name of your mate save me!" she cried out again staring deeply into his eyes. Hiei swallowed again as something sparked inside him.

"Yes, save your sister…you're brethren now. With your Youko mate…" Hiei growled and pushed the arm off of him and rushed forward. No time to worry about the whereabouts of his companion now, he had to save the girl. He drew his sword and cut down her restraints. She leapt up.

"I thank you my brother!"

"Get out of here!"

"But what about you?" Hiei scowled.

"I have some unfinished business to attend to…"

"But…"

"GO!" Hiei cried stabbing his sword through a demon behind her. She suddenly screamed and he could feel a plant bursting out of nowhere from behind him. He glanced back and saw the blood of several demons running to the floor.

"I must help you by the name of your mate!" she cried. Hiei growled.

"My mate is the Silver Youko Kurama…do you wish to help me now? GET!" he screamed quickly turning around to stab some one else. Suddenly something large hit his head and he started falling back. As he fell to the ground and his vision blurred he reached forward to the disappearing roan shadow.

"Y—Youko…" he whispered before everything went black.

Hiei woke up and groaned. His head pounded and his whole body hurt. He tried to quickly lift his hands to his head, when he realized they were being weighed down by heavy metal restraints. Instantaneously he was up and alert. He took in his surroundings, a small dirt room, with narrow stairs across from him and a small dish in the corner. He was chained to a wall, hands and feet, but had a lot of movement around the room. Except for up the stairs, he could stand on the first two, and than his chains tightened and he was not allowed to go any farther. Growling Hiei started screaming, punching at the walls where the chains were attached, and searching for anything that could help him get loose.

"It won't help my boy…" the deep sultry voice whispered from the darkness of the stairwell. The red starburst was the first thing Hiei saw as he crouched down ready to attack as his father walked in smirking.

"And neither will that…" Hiei yelped as he was suddenly thrown back to the wall, his chains quickly yanking him back as his father watched laughing.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Hiei growled glaring at his father who paced back and forth as if inspecting the room.

"Don't you just love this place? It's so…what's the word you humans would use for it? Natural?" He laughed heartily as Hiei growled.

"Answer me damn it!" Hiei was slammed into the wall again as his father glared.

"You will learn to answer when I ask, talk when I command, and keep silent at all other times, do you understand me?" Hiei glared.

"I asked a question!"

"Sorry, I was practicing that last one, what was it? Keep silent?" Hiei quickly found cold metal pressing against his neck.

"So you're a smart ass eh? Well, I soon break you out of that too…" Laughing his father backed away and sheathed his sword.

"Well my son, it's good to have you on board, and no worries…you have all of your effects, except for your sword. That ring though…I don't think you'll have that much longer either…" Hiei growled as he clutched his engagement band through his shirt and forced his energy through it.

"We'll see about that…" he hissed. His father snorted and headed to the stairs.

"Well, maybe we'll see about you getting some kind of food eventually too..." he laughed and disappeared up the stairs. Hiei shouted and pulled at his chains to follow him. He landed on his knees on the second stair and stared at the shut door with his sword hanging from it, taunting him.

Kurama held Hiei as he shuddered from breath to explain something to him. He stroked the koorime's hair as he ran through the events that had just run through his mind. He had looked through Hiei's eyes, heard his thoughts, saw what he saw, and it was amazing. He kissed next to the uncovered Jagan.

"Don't push yourself baby…" he whispered. Hiei shifted so he was more comfortable and played with a string on Kurama's shirt while wiping his eyes quickly.

"I had no food or sleep for days. No sleep simply because I didn't want them touching me while I slept. I knew they would do it too. They tried to get me to use the pan in the corner to relieve myself, but that would also expose me, so I refused profusely, unless they had just left the room, than I would take the chance. So most of the time I held it until my bowels felt like bursting, not like that happened much, I wasn't getting enough of anything to need to relieve myself.

Occasionally some of his cronies would enter and try to take me, but just letting my energy flow with the Youko intertwined scared them enough. But he, he was crazy just like I had been warned. Only the Black Dragon or my Jagan could scare him, and that sucked too much energy. It was a miracle I never passed out." Kurama held Hiei closer as Hiei took a deep breath. The kitsune could feel the koorime's anger starting to build, the pain of remembrance growing, and above all his fear. He held the small demon closer and kissed his forehead again.

"Don't rush yourself love…"

"No, I have to get this off of my chest…" Hiei growled. Kurama nodded in understanding and let Hiei continue showing him through the Jagan.

You know, we're like, on our final stretch here. 3 more chapters and I'm done. One of those chapters is an epilogue that technically doesn't need to be posted--but because I had to think it up, and it was a first for me, it's getting posted! Anyway! Review! Next chapter--more flashback! wheee!

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