Disclaimer: I do not own YYH or it's characters. I do own Angela, Star, and the twins. I own the Darkness, the shadow creatures, and the zombie queen.

AN: I'm saying Botan has the ability to go through objects because she is a Spirit being, if she can fly through roofs and such I'd call that as an ability.

Legend:

-Thought-

-Telepathy-

/Flashbacks/

/Dream/Visions/

Noise

Empathy/feelings

Chapter Eight

"So where's this place?" Jin asked Angela as they hovered over the forest.

Angela didn't answer him as she scanned the forest. After awhile she sighed. "Not here obviously. I don't recognize the plateaus," she said as she pulled her coat closer, a hand over her belly to protect it from the cold.

Jin noticed. He flew closer, startling his passenger, Yusuke, with the sudden movement. "Hey!" Yusuke cried.

"Are you pregnant?" Jin asked. He had noticed her tummy getting bigger but hadn't really commented on it.

Angela nodded. "Three months."

Jin saw the hard look in her eyes. "I'm sorry about Hiei..." he began but Angela shook her head.

"Let's fly around some more," she said, changing the subject.

They flew around for several minutes before Angela spotted the area the meteorite had fallen. She didn't need to point it out. The small crater and the dead trees around it were like a target.

"Everyone ready?" Mukuro asked.

Yusuke turned to Angela. "Stay here," he said firmly.

Mukuro, who was being carried by Soketsu near by, nodded. "Yes, Angela. Stay here. Don't argue with us on this one. You need to stay safe." Mukuro looked around at everyone. "Well? Is everyone ready?" she asked again.

"Yes!" they all shouted in unison.

Mukuro nodded, "Then lets go."

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When they landed they found the area devoid of life, not just demons but all animals, plants and trees. The crater was extremely small and shallow for the size of the meteorite standing ominously in the center.

"My, this is a place for nightmares," Yusuke said softly. All around them the ground had become blood-red glass that spread in layers from the center of the crater, the trees that surrounded them were twisted brown and red skeletons, and a red fog floated on the ground.

"Keep your guards up," Mukuro warned the others. "Flyers, stay with your partners."

"Aye," Jin said standing with Yusuke as the dark haired young man stared at the meteorite.

"Hey Kurama? Is a meteorite supposed to look like that?" Yusuke asked, pointing at the man-height oblong red object.

Kurama walked closer to inspect it. "No," his eyes narrowed. "It usually would look like a pitted rock or some other similar object. And not only is it a perfect oblong and smooth as glass but it shows no sign of having passed through the atmosphere. Normally that would leave char marks and imperfections." He walked around it to the other side and stopped. "Come look at this Mukuro. I believe I've found something," he said, an odd sound in his voice.

Mukuro walked over to him and looked at what he was pointing at. On that side of the 'meteorite' was a perfect rectangular opening, showing that it was hollow inside. Mukuro looked at Kurama. "I would take a wild guess and say that several hundred people's wishes have been answered. We have visitors from outer space," she said, straight faced and serious. She turned back to the opening. "Should we take a look?" she asked the kitsune.

Kurama nodded. "Be careful," he warned.

Mukuro stepped inside. After a few seconds she stepped out. "Odd, there's nothing in there. I thought we would have found some sort of device to control it if it really is a 'space ship'," she said.

Kurama looked thoughtfully at it. "Maybe-!" He was interrupted by several loud shrieks around them and one from above. All around them demons started to pour out of the tree line.

"Flyers!" Mukuro yelled. "We're one step ahead of you," Soketsu said as he grabbed Mukuro and lifted into the air with the other flyers and their partners.

Angela, watching closely from above, saw the demons burst from the tree line. "Guys!" she screamed, trying to get their attention. She wanted to go down there to them but some other part of her told her to stay safe. She figured it was the budding mother instincts. She flitted back and forth, watching the others down below her. Even though it was merely a second before the others lifted into the air it felt to Angela like it was happening slowly.

Finally the others flew to where she was. "I'm so glad you're safe," she sighed, wanting to hug Yusuke and Kurama, but thinking better of it. "What did you find out?" she asked as they flew away.

Mukuro shook her head. "Not much. Only that the meteorite was no meteorite. It was some sort of space ship," she said.

Angela looked at her questioningly. "Was?" she asked.

Kurama answered her. "Whatever it held is no longer there, and we saw no sign of it."

Angela nodded. She wanted to go back and do another search but she knew the others would be against it. -It's too dangerous. That's what they always say,- she thought sourly. Then she put her hand on her stomach. -But they're right.-

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Angela, Yusuke and Kurama arrived back at the shrine a few days later. Yukina was waiting for them. "Oh Angela!" she cried as she ran towards them and hugged Angela tightly.

Angela froze, reminded of the last time Yukina had run towards them and hugged her. -Hiei...- she thought as she stiffly hugged Yukina back.

Yukina noticed her stiffness and looked at her sister. She then realized what she was thinking. "Oh Angela..." she said softly as she hugged her again. Angela leaned on the blue haired woman and started to cry.

Kurama and Yusuke looked on helplessly. Star called from inside the shrine. "Are Angela and the others back, Yukina?"

Yusuke ran around the two women and into the shrine. Soon they heard giggling from the shrine. Angela looked up when she heared her adopted sister's laughter. -Hiei...I'll never get to laugh with you or do anything with you ever again,- she thought as she cried more.

Kurama patted Angela's shoulder, knowing what she was thinking. Angela saw the sad look in Yukina's and Kurama's eyes. -They fear that I might begrudge their happiness with their spouses. I envy them but I don't begrudge them,- she thought, feeling with her empathy. She hugged Yukina again, saying, "I miss him terribly and I wish it was me in there with Hiei, but I'm happy for Star and I hope she won't ever experience what I did."

Yukina nodded. "Remember, he's still with us. You are carrying his and your child. A peice of him will always be with us," she said softly.

Angela nodded, tears running down her face. She looked up at the sky. "I know, I know." -Hiei...Please say you're up there with my family. Please say you're watching over me...- she pleaded to the sky, remembering her belief that all she had to do to know her family, alive or dead, was with her was to look at the sky and stars.

Yukina turned to Kurama. "Botan is resting in your room."

Kurama nodded and hurried to his wife. He found his blue haired and pink eyed wife laying on the bed reading some novel. She looked up at the person that had entered their room. Seeing who it was she bounced up and into Kurama's arms. "Oh Kurama! I've missed you so much!" she said as she nearly strangled him as she latched her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. Kurama laughed and hugged her almost as tightly, not wanting to squeeze the breath out of her. "I got your note I must have just missed you, because I came over to the shrine to wait for you and Yukina said you had just left. I'd been constantly going to the apartment, hoping to find you there. Every now and then I had to redo the sticky note because it would fall off. I was begining to wonder if the tournament would ever end because you had been gone so long. Tell me what all happened," she said practically in one breath.

Kurama laughed again, though the laughter never quite reached his eyes, "Why don't we sit down first..." he said.

They sat down on the bed. He was silent for awhile. "I...I really don't know what to tell you." He sighed.

"Well...why not at the begining," she said helpfully.

Kurama nodded. "Well...to start with, Enki didn't die, he was murdered..." He then proceeded to tell her about the events at the tournament, up to the fire and explosion. "We found out about this later but the fire starter and the bomber had disappeared shortly before the tournament. Let me explain about this..." He then told her about how fighters had disappeared and then reappeared at the tournament, acting oddly. "Mukuro then decided to send two people to investigate where the bomber and fire starter had disappeared. They came back a few days later nearly dead, saying that the fire starter and the bomber had both disappeared into the Forest of Fools. They went to check it out but were ambushed by several D-class demons." He paused. Botan stared at him, urging him to go on. "Contrary to their class they fought with the energy of S-class demons. Mukuro decided that she needed somebody to check out the forest, somebody with strength and the speed to escape danger. She asked Hiei to go..."

"By the way, where is Hiei?" Botan asked.

Kurama looked at her. -She doesn't know...I guess Spirit world has been busy...Or did she just come straight here and not to Koenma. It wouldn't be the first time that she's done that...How do I tell her?- he thought. "Let me finish first..." he said finally. "Hiei agreed to go on the mission...A few days later, about the time that Hiei was supposed to arrive at the forest, Angela had a terrible vision that something had happened to him. She didn't tell us until later. A day later explosions ripped through the stadium, totally destroying it and canceling the tournament. It turns out that the ones responsible had been some of the fighters that disappeared." He paused for a second. "Angela...sensed something that Mukuro wasn't telling her. She sought her out and got the truth from her. She came to us and told us about the disappearences, the fire starter and bomber, the Forest of Fools, Hiei's mission and something else...The same night that Angela had had the nightmare, Mukuro had felt Hiei's energy disappear." He put up his hands to stall anything Botan was about to say. "Let me finish. Angela then decided that she, I and Yusuke were going to go find him. I asked Mukuro to let Chu and Jin come with us. The night before we left Angela had another vision about something calling her to the forest. I didn't want her to go but she was adamant about going. When we arrived at the forest I ordered her to call to Hiei from a distance if he was there. To make a long story short, she found him and guided him out of the forest using telepathy. When he ran out of the forest he was followed by zombies." Again he stalled her by raising his hand. "I, Yusuke, Chu and Hiei fought them off while Jin and Angela were in the air. I...noticed Hiei acting oddly and was reminded of what Mukuro had told Angela about the ones that had disappeared. I was suspicious but really wasn't given the time to find out." He paused again. "When we got home I had every intention to talk to Hiei alone the next day, but that night I was called to the hospital. It was Star. Yusuke had come home to see her laying face down in the overflowing tub." Botan gasped but again was forestalled from any comments or questions. "I, Angela, and Hiei were the ones to arrive at the hospital. Yukina and Kuwabara had stayed with the twins and would switch places with Angela and Hiei through out the night. Angela and Hiei didn't stay long though. They left shortly after they came, allowing Yukina and Kuwabara to come to the hospital earlier than scheduled. Yukina and Kuwabara stayed for close to twenty minutes before they left to switch places with Angela and Hiei." He fell silent.

"Kurama?" Botan asked carefully. "What happened?"

Kurama sighed. "I was sitting in the waiting room, waiting for Angela and Hiei, wondering why they weren't there yet, it had been about an hour an a half, time enough for them to have caught the train, when Yusuke came out of Star's room. We were talking when Kuwabara called me..." Again he fell silent for a long time before he went on. "Shortly after Yukina and Kuwabara left to come here, Hiei attacked Angela, trying to kill her...Angela managed to get Hiei's sword away from him and grabbed it before he could get it. Hiei then rushed her, ready to kill her with his hands. She reacted instantly and brought the sword up..."

Botan started to cry. "Hiei's dead, isn't he?" she asked unnecessarily.

Kurama nodded and pulled her to him, holding her as she cried. "Shhh. Shhh," he said, soothingly.

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Angela was sitting on the porch, looking at the pond, when Botan sat beside her and hugged her. "Oh Angela! I'm so sorry!" she cried. Angela hugged her back, not sure what to say. "How are you doing dear?" Botan asked, concern in her voice.

"I really don't know. I'm still sort of in shock and numb," Angela lied.

Botan ran her hand through Angela's hair, then she patted her shoulder gently. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked. Angela shook her head. Botan hugged her again then got up. "Just tell me, Kurama or any of us if you need anything. You know I'll be a shoulder for you to cry on if you need it." Angela nodded. Botan left, heading towards the house addition where she kept a room with Kurama.

Angela stared at the pond for a long time, thinking. Something came to her as she thought. -I should go talk to him about it...- she thought, getting up and following Botan's footsteps several minutes later.

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Botan entered their room, a smile on her face. "Dear? Doing paper work?" she asked.

Kurama turned from the desk in the corner of the room with a small stack of papers. "Yes," he said, eyes tired.

"Why don't you get some rest, you have all summer to get ready for next term," she said, going to their bed to ready it.

Kurama shook his head and turned back to his work. "I wish, but this isn't for college. Koenma just contacted Yusuke, saying he wanted a full report by tomorrow," he said, sighing.

Botan smiled, fluffing a pillow. "Trust Yusuke to leave you with the paper work," she said, tucking the blankets under the matress, her smile getting bigger when Kurama replied.

"Yes, well...I don't think Koenma would get the type of report he wants. Yusuke would mainly focus on the fighting and probably forget important details."

Botan turned to Kurama, her hands behind her back. "You look like you need a shoulder rub, dear," she said, starting to walk towards him.

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Angela was about to knock on Kurama's and Botan's door when a sick feeling came over her. She concentrated hard on identifying the feeling and why it felt so familiar. Murder. Death. Angela's eyes widened. That was the same feeling she had gotten from Hiei. She concentrated hard on the source.

-Botan!- she thought frantically as she burst into the room. "Kurama!" she cried, flying between Kurama and the murderous Botan as the blue haired girl brought down the knife she had taken from under the matress. Searing pain lashed through Angela.

Kurama cried, having turned around at Angela's scream only to see her fly between him and his wife and be stabbed in the chest. Botan laughed maniacally as she jerked the butcher knife out of Angela's chest. "Angela!" he cried, catching her as she slid to the floor.

She stared at him in pain from more than the wound. -Not Botan too!- she cried inside.

Botan continued to laugh as she started to come at Kurama. Kurama stood up and doged his wife. "Botan!" he yelled. "Why are you doing this?" She ignored him and continued trying to stab him. Kurama dodged behind her and grabbed her, locking her arms to her sides, his hand clenching her wrist to make her drop the knife. "Listen to me!" he yelled as her laughing got louder. Suddenly he wasn't holding her anymore, she had used her ability to go through solid objects to escape his arms. She laughed as she materialized her oar and flew threw the ceiling to disappear. "Botan!" Kurama screamed. A pained sound brought his attention to the heavily bleeding Angela. He kneeled next to her. "Angela!"

She looked at him weakly. "I'm sorry about Botan..." she whispered through the pain.

Kurama shook his head, taking his shirt off to staunch the wound. "Don't talk," he said sternly.

"It's bad, isn't it?" she asked softly.

Kurama couldn't look her in the eye. "No, you'll be just fine," he lied in a soothing voice, though worry and panic showed in his face and Angela could feel his feelings through her empathy.

She smiled. -...Kurama...always the caring one...He'd say...anything...to...keep...me...- Her eyes drifted closed.

Kurama saw and started to shake her. "Angela! Angela! Don't fall asleep! Angela!" he cried, worry and panic now in his voice as well. She didn't respond.