Disclaimer: Don't own YYH.

Chapter 20: It Might All Come Together

I walk out with Yukina. I have no idea where to go. I have nothing to get. I never really did.

"What did he mean, he'll figure it out? If we're moving tonight, we have no time!"

"Exactly. We have no time. Koenma could attack us at any second."

"Then, what's he thinking?"

"You're underestimating him, Kara. Kurama is quite the genius around here. Give him some thinking time and he'll cook something up easily."

"Ooh, he sounds dreamy." I say sarcastically with a Spanish accent. She gives me a look.

"Anyway, I don't have any stuff to take either. The men are going to take the food. They don't think we should carry any of it. They are so anti-feministic and they won't admit it. It's sickening." I whirl around. It was Shizuru who spoke. She's also with Keiko. She's finally stopped crying. Thank God. But she's still teary-eyed. What a pathetic Konnichiwa girl.

"We should think up some stuff too, to help Kurama. Concerning the plan that looks like Swiss cheese right now, I mean. Keiko here is smart. I'm horrible at thinking and so is Yukina, but maybe Keiko and you can help out Kurama." Says Shizuru. Yukina gives her a look much like the one she gave me.

"I already am thinking about it. And besides, Keiko only speaks Japanese. How could we discuss anything?" I say indignantly. I can't stop thinking about what we can do, really. It's the klepto in me. It wants to break past those bank's defenses again. That's probably why I love so much my plan-that-will-never-work. "Where is passage 13?"

"Right up here." Says Yukina. She walks faster, and on my right, I see this huge gaping hole in the wall, like the entrance to an abandoned mine. It seems to suck up light like a black hole in space.

Yukina summons some more of that icy blue fire in both of her hands, and holds them out in front of her as our way to see. But, as could be expected, the air gets way colder.

We start to descend into a cold, dark hell.

Yukina is emanating so many glows like I can see perfectly two feet in front of her, which is all I need. As long as she's in front, I won't trip. What I'm worried about is her tripping. I have my reasons. "Yukina, don't trip." I say. "If you let that fire go out we'll never get out of here."

"If that happens, just keep going straight. You'll get to the white room that you were once held, solely straight ahead. From there, you make a right angular left and go all the way up until you run into the wall. If you look up, you will see a square bit of light. That's the trapdoor to get out, and it's closest to the Central Bank. Wait there for the others. They'll get you out."

Keiko says something really fast in Japanese to Yukina. She translates this time.

"She said, it's awful to be human. (Japanese response from Yukina). I asked her why."

Keiko blubbers something or other.

"I could have saved Yusuke if I was a demon, she said. (Jap talk). I said, there was nothing you could have done."

I roll my eyes as Keiko says something else. "Yukina, seriously, tell her word-for-word that she should get the stick out of her ass and grow up. Blaming herself won't bring him back."

Yukina tells her. "Only, Kara, I left out the first sentence. Be sensible. She's distraught. You don't go saying that to people undergoing massive trauma."

"Yes, I do. She's being a baby, and I'm sick of it. I didn't say anything before, but now I want to."

"Kara, shut up. You don't know the circumstances." Says Yukina. "You'd want the same thing done if your fiancée had been killed in such an unfair fashion."

I huff, but silently agree. Wait, fiancée? I turn around. In the faint light of Yukina's fire, I can see that she's very upset. Tears streak her round face. Poor thing. "She must have really loved Yusuke." I say softly. Shizuru looks at me as if she understands.

"She did." Says Shizuru. "They were going to get married after Koenma was defeated. Keiko is eighteen, and Yusuke had just turned nineteen when he proposed. It was hilarious to see him blush…never mind. It was just within the Japanese marrying range. Their relationship had really grown since she first found out about his powers, when they were 14."

I inhale sharply. That must be very hard. Man, marriage…I'd hate to be tied down at such a young age. Keiko really did love him to marry so young. Poor thing.

Finally, I see some bright light up ahead. We must be getting near that room. I was partially conscious for some of the time that they were taking me down to my cage, and I remember the square light getting closer and closer.

Finally, we pass it, and I look inside. I want to see the place that held me captive again. I glance inside. There's still the glass cage, which now thankfully holds nothing in it. But on the desk is Keiko's translator. I guess she left it there when they followed me. I dart inside the open door, and retrieve it. I run back and give it to Keiko. She takes it almost listlessly.

I sigh, and shove it on her face, and buckle the strap behind her head. "I want to be able to talk to you." I say clearly.

She looks at me. "Well, at least I can understand you now. Shizuru, could you give us a minute?"

"Sure." Shizuru takes her arm off of Keiko's shoulders and walks forward, engaging Yukina in furiously fast Japanese. I guess even for demons that it's easier for them to talk in their own language.

"Keiko…"

"Don't say anything. I'll talk." She says, almost angrily. "I don't want to take any crap from you or anyone else, since apparently you hate me. I really loved Yusuke, and I miss him a lot. That's all I'll say. You weren't too keen to say anything to me, so I won't give my time to you either. Leave me alone."

She walks forward back to Shizuru, who starts walking with her again. In Yukina's light, I can see Keiko rip off the translator and cast it on the ground back where I am. Feeling stiffed, I pick it up and jam it in a small slit in my robe, where it sits there, an unforgettable blob, rubbing against my thigh. I feel a prickle of anger toward Keiko, but I realize that it is really all justified. I was mean to her and I used her to get what I wanted. She probably saw hell from everyone for being so stupid as to let me out of my cage. She didn't deserve that. She was just naïve.

I sigh. Well, by discarding the translator, she obviously doesn't want to talk to me, so I won't try to talk to her. I screwed her up and she rightfully hates me. Oh well.

I pass Shizuru/Keiko and walk up to Yukina. Her fires slightly burn my eyes.

"I hope you're not up here to complain about what she said to you."

"NO!"

"Good, because I'd shoot you. Here, I had an idea. Did you get the translator?"

"Yeah."

"Well, how about you wear it? We can all speak Japanese because it's our home language, and the only one who can be compromised is the only one who's different. It'll be much easier."

"O-okay." I pull it out of my pocket and mush it on my face, buckling the strap behind my head. Almost at once, I can feel my brain…shift. I can't explain it. But there is a definite difference up there.

"Do you understand me?"

It still somehow sounds like mish-mash, but I understand it perfectly. I remember what Keiko said: "I don't understand you, but I do!" That perfectly describes it right now, I'd say.

"Yeah." At first it sounds like "HI!" Which must be their word for yes, but again, it translates instantly in my mind. "God, this is weird."

"Well, it's a huge load off of our backs. Kuwabara, Shizuru, and Hiei can take their voice patches out." She says this loudly, so Shizuru can hear it. "They were wearing them so you could understand. Only Kurama, Hiei, and myself can speak it fluently. Keiko never even got a voice patch. She considered it a waste of time."

"Well, that's good that they don't need them anymore." I…I'm thinking in Jap. This is so strange. The translator is taking over my brain, I swear. "How much longer?"

"A few minutes. The only reason that it seems longer to you is that we're not running. We're walking."

"Well, can we pick up the pace?"

"No. You forget that the leader is the one wearing the kimono."

I sigh. "Seriously, I don't care if it was your mother's. Stop wearing it and you'll be happier."

She gives a little laugh. "It's not really my mothers. I staged that whole conversation to make you release some power and believe in us. I even faked blowing up at you."

I stand still and blink. She completely fooled me. Then, I catch up to her again. "You don't look it, but you're pretty smart."

"I don't know whether I should take that as a compliment or as an insult."

"You should be louder. People would listen to you more. Maybe you could have even been leader of this team. You're so even-tempered and crafty."

"Oh, no. I'm not a leader. Kurama is all that and more. I really only am here to serve as the doctor. I probably wouldn't have hung around if Hiei hadn't confessed that he was my brother I'd been searching for all my life."

"Yeah, how did that work? I heard you say once that he was your brother. But, he's a fire demon right? And you're an ice demon. And by the way, you're making me cold. How did you get to be related?"

"Tough. And as for the story, well, it was a freak incident in the ice demon world. There was a village where all the ice demons lived. It was not in Antarctica, for your information, but far above the earth where it always snowed. I don't really know how Hiei came to be what he is. But, our matron didn't like him one bit, and really, she was justified. Hiei's unusual power was a danger to us all. So, she pushed him off the edge of our world and I never saw him again for 6 years. That was how he escaped the demon world without a vessel. He was banished."

"That's terrible."

"It was. But then, demons are terrible. They hurt and kill people."

"Why not you, then?"

"Because…because we are the demons that saw the light in time. Another freaky thing. I searched for Hiei forever, to find my brother, and I found him with Yusuke and the others, but I didn't know it then. Later, when he was eighteen, he told me. He was so afraid I would hate him for what he'd become. Overridden with his guilt and rage of banishment, he became a horribly cold murderer. He was just like the rest of the demons. At sixteen, when he joined forced with Yusuke, on and off, he started to heal his soul. I didn't hate him. I forgave him. That was how I got out of the demon world. I was given permission to find him. But I was banished as well as a result. So now, I stay here with the only family I have left."

"That's a sad story. But seriously, how old is everyone here?"

"Keiko and I are 18. Kuwabara, Kurama, and Yusuke are/were 'just turned' 19. Hiei is 20. Shizuru is 21. Genkai (you don't know her yet) is nearing 80."

"So, I'm actually the youngest here?"

"No, you're 15, so that makes you the eldest." She says sarcastically.

"Wow. I seem so much older than you."

She gives me one of those sideways looks with a big purple eye that says exactly the opposite. Then, her bluish light falls on a rocky wall that was once my despair, all those years upon years ago. "Oh! We're here!"

"I don't see a trapdoor above me." Says Shizuru uncertainly.

"It must be closed then." She replies easily. "We just need to wait here for the others."

"What could be taking them so long to pack?" Asks Keiko shakily. I realize that I don't even notice them talking in Jap anymore. I have completely switched to Japanese thought.

"Well, first they have to pack, and then they have to come the same way we did." She says. "Of course it'll take them longer. And they'll have heavier packs, too."

We all accept it, and sit down close to each other. After a few minutes:

Shizuru: "I want a cigarette." (Genuine).

Keiko: "I want Yusuke back." (Crying).

Kara/Me: "I want a pony." (Sarcasm).

Yukina: "I want quiet." (Warning).

Five minutes later:

Shizuru: "My God, I can't believe I was caught unprepared. This is the first time in years. I want my nicotine!" (Addict).

Keiko: "Ooooh, Yusuke…why did you die? (Sob)." (Crybaby).

Kara/Me: "Where the hell are they?" (Frustrated).

Yukina: "Please be quiet." (Begging).

Five minutes later:

Shizuru: "I'M DYING! I NEED MY FIX NOW!" (Drama Queen).

Keiko: "YUSUKE! (Sob)." (Annoying little bitch—)

Kara/Me: "Oh my God, if they don't come soon, I'll personally shoot you, Shizuru." (Annoyed).

Yukina: "I'll personally shoot everyone if you don't shut up!" (End of conversation).

Well, so much for not saying mean things to a person under huge mental trauma. I sigh. "Did something go wrong with the testosterone half of us?"

"I'm not sure. But seriously, we've been waiting about twenty minutes now. What could be taking so long?"

"Is Kurama really a girl in disguise?"

"No, but you wouldn't be the first person who's asked that."

"What is with the hair? And the pink business suit? And the girl face?"

"Well, he doesn't like pockets and he's too lazy to cut his hair, so he sticks his best weapon in it. That's why it's never brushed. Only Kurama can pull out that rose correctly. Anyone else ends up with a huge chunk of hair the size of Texas along with that rose. It's a secret as to how he does it. And don't ask about the pink. Don't do it."

Then, we finally hear the sound of footsteps, and Yukina makes her fireballs brilliant again. Kurama, Kuwabara, and Hiei step out. All three of the men have a heavy pack, as Yukina predicted.

"What took you guys so long?" Asks Shizuru. She walks right up and starts shaking Kuwabara really hard. "I…was…getting…worried!"

I wish I had that kind of confrontational courage. Kuwabara is two heads taller than Shizuru, and twice as wide. She is officially my new role model.

"Mr. Hair? Have you given any more thought to the plan?"

"Some. But I'm still at a loss of how to open it. It is much easier to open it inside the spirit world because we have—wait. What if Hiei opens the spirit portal from the other side?"

Hiei looks at him. "Kitsune, I'm right in front of you. I am not in the spirit world."

"No. No, what if we have you open the portal, and…and let you get in. Or…or we could have you send a messenger to Genkai to open the portal. It'll be much faster with the Spirit World technology than our pathetic imitation of it."

"…"

"Your Dragon of the Darkness Flame. It should be thin enough to fit through a developing portal. The first few minutes of growth show the most difference. You should be able to fit that snake though…and then contact Genkai with it."

"And what? Tape a note on its forehead? 'Open the portal. Yours Truly, Hiei.' It's not a physical being. And I couldn't exactly curve the power into words…"

"You couldn't?"

"No. Once the power is out of my hands, it only does its job as the demon dragon of fire. If I curve it into words, it will act like smoke and melt back into the dragon. It's an attack, not a messenger."

Kurama looks stumped, but all of a sudden, I know what we can do.

"Kurama, I think I know what we can do. But we need to get into the bank first to do it. And I'm not going to tell you what I think. We have a limited time, and we need to get out now. I'll just need you and Hiei to come down with me into the bank. This—this is a dream. I really, truly know what I'm doing."

Kurama eyes me, and then nods. "Well, we have nothing else in mind. We'll go with Operation Kara. Now, we just need to get outside."

"Well, then, open the door!"

"It's never been shut before."

"What does that mean?"

"Someone shut it from the outside."

"So…can we open it from the inside?"

"Oh yes."

"Then do it, damn it!"

"But if someone shut it from the outside, that something may still be there. It may be Koenma, just waiting."

"How can you say that so calmly? How do we get out?" Asks Keiko.

"The back route."

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A/N: I ended it kind of abruptly, but that's okay. Do you like it?