Okay then... recap: Yoko Kurama emerged and kicked the Mushiyori Butcher's ass... the origin of the Death Tree was explained (even if it the explanationwas invented by me )... and the Yoko is unsure whether or not the transformation had an affect on the twins at all... Will the twins survive? ... Uh, you're going to have to wait until next chapter to find out (dodges flying debris). But wait! You'll have to wait until next chapter to find out because... this chapter is Hiei-centric! Yes, there, the people want more of Hiei; here's more of Hiei. Do enjoy, and please review- who knows? It may hasten the coming of the next chapter, and the revelation of the fate of the twins...

Hiei stared, unmoving, at the Lake's surface. He couldn't believe it. What that, that abomination tried doing to Kurama…

"Are we playing 'Statue'?" Kuronue asked. Hiei didn't answer. "Greek myth tells of a man named Narcissus. There are several variations of the tale, but one tells of how he fell in love with the Nymph, Echo. After she disappears into a river, he looks into the water and is entranced by what he sees. He remains there, staring at the surface, until finally the gods turn him into the flower bearing his name."

"I'm not Narcissus," Hiei said softly. "That Butcher attacked Kurama, and I was powerless to protect him."

"May I point out that you ended up here because you protected him? Look, he made out fine."

"If he hadn't-"

"But he did. He can look after himself, he managed to long before you were even born." Hiei didn't comment. "You miss him?" He nodded.

"You're not alone. But keep in mind he's still alive. We're dead."

"I wish I were still alive."

Kuronue shrugged. "I don't miss life. Rather, I miss the things life is composed of. Real, actual sensation. This," he gestured around them, "is nice, but it's fake. It's merely a shadow of the living world."

"What?" Hiei snapped his head back to stare at the Bat. "What do you mean, 'a shadow'? Isn't this the land of the Dead?"

The Chimera stared for a moment, then smirked. "Hm. I thought you already knew. Well, as you haven't come to realize that fact yet, I suppose I should keep quiet."

No sooner were the words out of his mouth than Hiei had lunged at him and pinned him to the ground, the Koorime on top of him. "Keep quiet over what?" he asked in a low growl.

He surveyed his current position and quirked an eyebrow. "I'm not sure if Kurama would approve of this; he always was the jealous type. I was in the doghouse constantly if I became too intoxicated and said the wrong thing to someone other than him. Besides, I'm not even sure if we can have sex after death- well, aside from necrophilia, which requires a body, and Incubuses, of which neither of us are. It hadn't come to my attention until recently, but in all the years I've been living impaired not once have I felt any urges. 'Course, that's not surprising, as that'd be a physical characteristic, physical requiring a body, of which I am sadly lacking. On the other hand, I suppose I should say I never felt any urges until seeing our Fox in the shower. Yes, that did a good job of arousing me, which completely contradicts the 'no urge due to lack of a body' theory, so that is definitely something to think about-"

"Shut up!" Hiei bellowed,way past the end of his short fuse by now. "You have an entire afterlife to debate that! But right now discard your philosophy and tell me what it is I don't know!"

"Get off me first," Kuronue replied. Hiei glared, but stood up. "Now, what do you want me to tell you?"

Hiei grit his teeth. "Is this the land of the Dead?" he asked impatiently.

"No," the Bat answered bluntly, "it is not. As I said, it's merely a shadow of the living world. A form of Limbo, if you will. An in-between."

"Hn." Hiei wasn't impressed. "So why am I in this 'in-between', and not the land of the Dead?"

"An in-between is where the soul is between the realms of the Living and Dead. Your body has expired, so you may no longer stay in the living world. However, the in-between may overlap with the living world, allowing interaction with mortals. Souls may enter the in-between for this and similar purposes, which is why you hear of ghost sightings. However, if you're unable to move on, you're barred entrance to the Hereafter. You," he pointed to Hiei, "are chained to the living world. And that," he pointed to the Lake, "that, friend, is your chain."

"What?"

"That lake is your one link to the living world, to everyone you left behind, to Kurama. Once you quit obsessing over life lost, you'll be granted entry into your Final Destination. But until then…." he trailed off.

Hiei blinked. "What? You mean forget about my life? Everyone? Kurama? I can't do that."

"Not forget. Quit obsessing over Kurama, and be able to move on with your life-or death, in this case. Look," he said when Hiei glared at him, "you can still check in on him and stuff, like I do, but at the same time you have to know that you'll see him again. Until then, you just have to trust him to take care of himself." The Bat shrugged and walked away.

He watched Kuronue for a second or two, then turned away and stared at the Lake. No way would he abandon Kurama. Paradise wasn't worth it.