I actually updated somewhat quickly! (And it's a long chapter too). …this means that somewhere it's raining cats and dogs and hell has frozen over, doesn't it?

Disclaimer: I don't own either Inuyasha or Yu Yu Hakusho.

Lost City

Chapter Seven

Yusuke staggered backward, his back slamming into a tree. A grunt escaped him before he said through gritted teeth, "oh, you're so fucking dead." He pushed off the trunk and sprang forward, throwing a punch that knocked the demon to the ground with an audible snap of its neck. It wouldn't be getting back up, that's for sure.

His eyes did a quick survey of the surrounding, but before he could even do a full check another demon had thrown itself onto his back. With a jab to the ribs, the demon let go of him though two more came to make Yusuke's job more difficult.

The supply of the humanoid demons seemed endless. They just kept coming at the group and no matter how many of them they killed, more seemed to come. They were lucky, however, because they weren't that hard to kill, their long claw-like nails being their only real weapon against the group. Still, they were becoming real nuisances.

The fighters among them had an easier time, but even those who didn't have real weapons did what they could. Botan and Shizuru had found large branches to beat back the demons, though Shizuru had to hunt for a second one after she used too much force, causing the first one to break across of the demon's back. Kagome was having a better time using rather large rocks to throw instead. Her aim was surprisingly good; Miroku had even said so when she'd used one to distract the demon trying to gnaw at his arm.

"For a girl," Kuwabara had added. He quickly took back his words when she'd knocked a demon just about to attack him unconscious with a hard blow to the head.

When no more appeared from the forest's depths, the demons' numbers finally seemed to dwindle, though there were still numerous around that needed to be dealt with. Noticed that Botan and Shizuru had more around them than they could handle, Kagome picked up one of the rocks from her pile, taking aim. She launched it through the air to try and hit the demon in an attempt distract it. The distraction worked only too well. It hit the demon's shoulder and spun him around, giving him a perfect view of his attacker. Snarling, it stalked forward.

Kagome hastily reached for another stone, throwing it as she backed away, trying to keep the distance between them. The demon easily swatted the rock away with its arm as though it were a mere pebble, having seen it coming. She glanced around looking for help from anything or anyone, but no one noticed her peril, being rather perilous themselves.

Seeing another rock she grabbed for it, but when she threw it, aiming deliberately for its head, it was knocked down just like the last one. She turned and hurried backward, letting out a yelp as something snapped out and caught her arm.

It roughly spun her around again, grabbing her other arm just under her shoulder. She struggled though abruptly stopped with a gasp as it imbedded its nail deeper into her the more she squirmed. She felt her back slam hard against a tree trunk, her head snapping back and leaving her stunned. She was brought back to herself with a cry as blood began seeping down her arms. The demon smiled at the sound, revealing a mouth full of fangs, saliva dripping off them.

It opened its mouth wider and bent its head down to her shoulder where she felt a sharp pain. More pain followed when she struggled again, but she couldn't stay still and just let it happened. She did the last thing she could think of.

Kagome rammed her head against the demon's, making it rear back with a loud hiss. Color exploded in her vision and pain overrode her, her head feeling dizzy and her body going momentarily limp, the demon's grip the only thing keeping her up. Her shoulder was on fire as fangs bit into flesh and her mind was too fuzzed to even fight against it. She could fell her shoulder vibrate from the sound as it growled and bit down harder than before, angered by her attempt to harm it.

The dark spots were just clearing from her vision as something suddenly coil around the demon's arm with a audible snap. She only had a moment to register what the object was before the whip was harshly pulled back. With a bloodcurdling cry from the demon, its voice thick with her blood in its mouth, the arm was torn away, deepening the wound in her arm as it was ripped from her. Then all the pressure from the demon was gone and she slumped against the trunk.

She didn't want to look, but for some reason she glanced at the demon in front of her anyway. Its arm was nearly completely taken off, only help together by some skin and muscle. Its other arm that had held her was desperately trying to hold it together as though it would magically make it whole again and it was shrieking its head off, the sound striking Kagome's very core.

As it screamed in agony, the whip was back, wrapped around its neck. Having seen enough, Kagome quickly turned her head to the side, squeezing her eyes tightly shut. She heard an audible crack, followed by a dull thud.

Then there was stillness.

She flinched away when she felt something touch her arm, but the grip held. She opened her eyes slowly to see Kurama in front of her, his hand lightly taking her forearm.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice soft. Or maybe it just seemed soft since all was abruptly silent around them. The fighting was apparently over.

Instead of answering, she nodded slowly and immediately regretted the decisions as jolts of pain ran through her. One hand went to her head, hoping that it would help suppress her massive headache, while Kurama guided her around the demon's body, his hand still holding her arm.

She was grateful for the guidance since she wasn't sure her legs would hold her on her own just yet, though as Kurama helped her she was very careful she didn't look down at the body.

No, she didn't want to do that.

Kagome sat in the middle of camp with her usual night companion, everyone else asleep around them—or they seemed to be. Only two things were different about this night, for one, now they had someone keeping watch at all times (Kurama volunteering to do it first that night) and the absence of their usual fire in the middle of their camp.

After their first encounter with demons two days previous, they had decided having a fire was too risky in that it might attract much unwanted attention, which left Kagome and Kurama in almost entire darkness, sitting not quite side by side, by close enough. Without the fire it was warmer when they were closer together so their closeness was for the body heat, Kagome had assured herself. Right, that was the reason.

The noble smiled softly to herself, remembering the events of the day. Though it had started out unpleasant, getting attacked and whatnot, the day had had its up points. They had stopped for a good amount of time as Botan healed her wounds and she felt more refreshed after the healing than she had before, though her skin was tender and pink where she had been hurt, not to mention her sleeves were a bit torn up.

What really made her smile, however, was the concern she saw in the other's eyes. Botan had scolded her for getting caught, but she'd seen how worried she was, as well as Miroku and Sango. They'd been attacked again, and although it wasn't as bad as before, they kept a closer eye on her, making sure she didn't get hurt. Everyone had showed their concern in their own way. Minus a certain short, spiky-haired person, of course.

Hiei had glared at her disapproving when the others hovered around her, though Sango caught the glance. She'd kept on him all day after that and although Kagome could never hear what they said, she knew they were bickering. After a few minutes of discussion one would always walk away with satisfaction—the winner of the fight no doubt—while the other looked disgruntled. Kagome noticed with some amusement that Sango had a smile of her face more times than she saw Hiei looking smug as the fighter-for-hire stomped away. Though every time she did, she came back not too long after, making a new point in whatever argument they were having.

"I'm surprised he hasn't killed her yet," Miroku had murmured to Kagome, only partially joking. Hiei had been—or rather, was—"Black Death" the infamous assassin, after all.

Kagome, however, stuck with her original assessment. Hiei had to like her in a friendly way or at least respected her fighting skills, enough so that he could tolerate her presence. If he didn't like her, then she might really have been killed as Miroku had said, what with how much she annoyed him.

Kagome came out of her thoughts when she heard someone speaking. She sheepishly looked up and at her companion, Kurama. "I'm sorry, what did you say? I was kind of lost in thought there."

"I was wondering if you had a weapon…?" he asked her.

"No, I don't," she replied regretfully, looking away from him as she replied. Not that she really knew how to use many weapons, having been brought up a "proper" lady—or at least, attempted to since her father would whisk her away and she usually come back half covered in mud, having gone riding (without riding sidesaddle, which the other ladies gaped about) or watched some of the soldiers train.

Still, weapons weren't really her forte. Her father had been trying to teach her how to use a bow—he had said she had a real gift for it, even at a young age—but before he really had a chance… he'd died.

She took herself out of her thoughts and put her focus back on Kurama. He reached behind him to where his cloak lay on the ground. He never wore it at night, though she was never sure why. At first she thought it was because he didn't want to wear it by the fire lest it go up in flames, but even now he kept it by his side. She had given hers to whoever wanted it for the night since she had no need of a cloak and a blanket, Yusuke being its current user.

Kurama's hand came back with a sheathed dagger, taking it from the folds of his cloak. And what a dagger it was. It was exquisite with gems covering its hilt, one particular large one in its center that was an emerald green that almost matched his eyes. There was only one thing that differed. As childish as it sounded, his eyes were more breathtaking, holding such depth that the jewel could never hope to achieve.

"It's beautiful," she breathed, and she meant it. It was remarkable, a priceless treasure, and she knew priceless treasures when she saw them. She'd seen numerous amounts of jewels being as highborn as she was, not to mention seeing all the people that came in and out of the palace. Not much compared to the dagger's beauty. "Where did you get it?"

He glanced up at her for a second. "Do you really want to know?"

Would she be asking if she didn't? Not wanting to seem rude, she instead. replied, "Yes." Maybe he had stolen it? She realized she didn't know what he had done before he joined them… but she did remember the company he had kept. Had he been a thief?

"My father gave it to me when I was five… just before he left on a journey." His voice… it held emotion, deep emotion. For the life of her she couldn't figure out exactly what. She'd have given anything to see his eyes at that moment, but it was too dark for her to be able to read anything in them. Though she doubted she would have been able to anyway. It was impossible to read anything from him unless he wanted someone to see.

"He never came back," he continued. Kurama took the dagger out so that just an inch of blade was showing, looking at his dark reflection in the metal. Kagome felted a sudden surge of sympathy for him. Hadn't she gone through the same thing? Perhaps her father hadn't disappeared like his has… but where he went, she knew he wouldn't be coming back.

"And this…" He snapped the blade shut, the hilt slamming down to meet the sheath. Kagome jumped at the sound. "This was all I had left of him." He presented her with the blade. "I want you to take it. Use it to defend yourself."

What? Even with the darkness, the shock must have been visible on her face. "I—I couldn't! It must be so precious to you…" she began. She moved her hands far away from the blade, not even daring to touch the invaluable item. It was priceless in more ways than one.

"Take it. We all may have our own reason for coming along, but we are mainly here to protect you," he reminded her. When she still didn't take the dagger from him, he gently dropped it into her lap. "It would be more effective if you knew how to use it, but it could be useful in a critical situation."

Kagome smiled at him genuinely. It was all she could do to show her gratitude besides saying a heartfelt, "thank you." With those words lingering in the air between them, she went off to sleep, having no more to say. Kurama watched her as she went and noticed with amusement how she held the dagger close to her as she slept, her hand fisted around the hilt as she held it close to her chest.

He shook his head with a smile before standing up himself, deciding it was time for him to sleep as well. He walked over to Hiei and stopped in front of the assassin, intending to wake him for the next watch. Before he could even part his lips or move to wake him, Hiei spoke.

"You're a fool, fox." He said the words plainly, without even opening his eyes.

Kurama ignored the words as if they had never been spoken. "It's your watch," he told his friend before moving away.

His mind, however, repeated Hiei's words to him over and over again as he attempted to sleep. He looked for a possible threat in the words but they were plain and simple. But Hiei didn't have to tell him.

He already knew.

Crackling was heard above them, causing Sango and a few others to glance upward. It was followed by a low booming sound, rolling in from the distance. A storm was heading their way, no doubt. It might already be there for all the trees let them see, pieces of grayish sky.

"Well that doesn't sound good," Sango stated, glancing upward as she walked.

Yusuke sent her a withering look. "Why thank you, Miss Obvious," he said dryly.

She gave him a salute. "Just doing my job, Captain Sarcasm," she responded, matching his sardonic tone. She heard a soft, condescending sound from her left and looked to the person behind her. "You have a problem with our joking?" she asked Hiei.

"Only with your maturity levels… which seem nonexistent," he commented.

Instead of responding, she just rolled her eyes and kept moving. Botan moved closer to Kurama and said softly to him, "your friend should learn to lighten up."

"Probably," he agreed. "But he means well…" From the look the healer gave him, he continued, "…some of the time."

She laughed shortly, though there was no happiness to it. The idea of him 'meaning well' just amused her. If anything, the assassin was just an intimating presence in their midst. Though she had to admit he was good to have around during a fight, but she didn't know how Kurama or Sango dealt with him otherwise. She'd do her best to just stay out of his way.

The thunder continued to sound, accompanied by flashes of lightning as both got closer, until one time it sounded and suddenly brought with it a shower of raindrops. No, not shower. It was pouring. Yes, pouring was a much better word for it. The tree branches and leaves weren't much help against it, they easily dropped from them onto the travelers below, soaking them in a matter of minutes. The wind picked up as well, freezing them with its cold air.

"…is ridiculous," Shizuru said over the loud rain, her first words being drowned out by thunder. "We have to find some shelter." She stopped walking and the others followed her example.

"But where?" her brother yelled. "There's nothing by trees!" He gestured wildly around at them.

"We could keep going, maybe we'll find something lat—" Botan abruptly cut off and shrieked as lightning struck a nearby tree. Flames erupted and blazing branches fell to the ground, but quickly died out as the pouring rain continued. "…or we could look now."

Sango noticed from the corner of her eye that Kurama and Hiei were turned toward each other, each looking at the other, though neither were talking. For no reason Hiei abruptly shook his head the slightest bit, confusing Sango. She felt uneasy all of the sudden and turned fully toward them. Kurama noticed her first, then Hiei, who had had his back to her, turned to glare at her, a glare that nearly made her shiver. She held his gaze for a few moments before looking away, though wondering what the hell had just happened. Nothing had happened… yet she felt the hairs on the back of her neck raise.

Kuwabara and Yusuke volunteered to go out and search for an area to take shelter. Botan followed, too, wanting to get to safety as soon as humanly possible. The rest stayed where they were, talking little as they tried to get as warm as they could. The ground was too muddy to sit on so they stood and they waited.

And waited… until a good amount of time later, Kuwabara finally came back, alone. He told them that there was cave to the west of where they were, Botan and Yusuke waiting there. He asked if it would work and the others exchanged a few glances and a shrug or two before Sango said, "alright, lead the way."

It was a ten-minute walk, but it was worth it once they were inside the dry cave. It wasn't particularly wide, though it was deep, going so far back they saw no end to it. The group stayed as close to the exit as possible without getting hit by the rain the wind brought into the first few feet of it. The stone they sat on was cool to touch, which was part of the reason why Botan and Yusuke had already brought together what was needed for a fire, but had yet to light it.

"The wood's too damp to light," Botan explained as Yusuke continued to try create a spark. He scratched two stones together furiously, to no prevail until he finally tossed both to the ground. "Screw this, I don't have the patience," he announced, then glanced at the girl to his left. "Why don't you make with the magic?"

Botan turned toward the wood, her eyes trained hard on it. Outstretching one hand, she exclaimed, "ignis!" A small spark suddenly appeared between her fingers, but was gone almost as soon as it appeared. She sighed as her shoulders slumped. "I was never good with fire. I'm really only able to heal and use water, that's it. And only water because it's simply taking water from the atmosphere around me at the time."

Kagome set her heavy bag down on the floor and began digging through it, while Botan chided her about bringing so much stuff she didn't really needed. With a happy exclaim she found the good piece of flint she had brought, handing it to Kuwabara. He tried what Yusuke had, but the wood was too wet from the rain to burn for more than a few seconds before going out. When he gave up, Sango gave it a few tries, only to the same result.

"Hate to bum everyone out, but we're going to either freeze to death in these wet clothing or get really sick," Shizuru commented, watching their failure. "Neither of which sounds very appealing."

Sango let the flint drop to the ground before standing up. "I've done all I can do." She hated the fact that she failed, but the fire would just not light.

Hiei reached down and took the two small rocks Yusuke had discarded in his hands, giving them one smart scratch together. Sparks appeared and ignited in a few pieces of woods as they had before, only this time they didn't go out. In only a few minutes the fire was burning strongly, Miroku and Kurama helping to keep the fire going by putting in more kindle.

Hiei glanced back at the fighter an air of superiority clearly around him. "Now that's just unfair," she said aloud since it was the expected response from her. Meanwhile inside her suspicions grew. How come he so easily lit that fire? Was there something significant there? Or just rotten luck on her part?

Those that wore cloaks shed them, leaving them to lay out by the fire to dry them. Any other articles of clothing that were wet and could be spared were thrown by the fire, such as Yusuke's shirt as well as Kuwabara's and Miroku's. Since they were in mixed company the girls remained fully clothed, much to Miroku's displeasure that he had no problem announcing aloud.

Kagome was only somewhat soaked, her cloak having kept most of the rain from reaching the clothing under, unlike the others, but that probably because her cloak was more expensive and probably better made. The contents of her bag were also thankfully dry and she offered the blanket to Sango, who was entirely drenched through. She gratefully accepted, but before she could put it around her, Miroku came over and stole half of it.

"Hey!" was all she could exclaimed, before he glanced at her and said, "you are not the only one frozen." He draped one side over his shoulder so it covered most of him, while she did the same with her side, though by her pink face it was obvious she wasn't comfortable with the entire situation. "You try any funny business and I'll kick you out of this cave and you can sleep outside in the rain," Sango muttered mostly to herself, though those around her heard.

Kuwabara glared at Miroku from across the cave (and interestingly enough he wasn't the only one glaring), not liking how close he was to his cousin. Their shoulders were practically brushing—no, they were brushing! If the blanket had been bigger, he'd have put himself between them to keep him away, but it was hardly big enough for the two of them. He would have said something to Miroku (or done something if anyone had informed him about his sometimes lecherous acts), but noticed an open spot next to the pretty blue-haired healer. All other thoughts melted away as he went to sit next to her.

Shizuru could have rolled her eyes at her brother's antics, always after some pretty girl or another, but didn't even take the effort to. This was a perfect opportunity for them to relax for once, who knew when they'd get another break from walking? Maybe the storm would last long enough and the demons would stay away… Oh, one can only dream…

The sound of the pouring rain echoed around the cave, the thunder filling it entirely making it hard to even think when it boomed, getting closer. Sango glanced outside before saying, "…we could be stuck here for awhile." She then glanced at the group, scattered around the cave. Hiei was the furthest away, staying close to it's entrance. "So… why don't we do something with this time?"

"What did you have in mind?" Kurama asked her, turning his emerald eyes toward her.

Those eyes unnerved the fighter at times. There was so much intelligence there, yet he was so closed, his thoughts unknown to everyone unless he wished to reveal them. He was so closed and she just knew there were secrets that he was keeping hidden. That's what unnerved her about his eyes. Those secrets were just lurking beneath the surface. Who knew when they would reveal themselves?

Kurama and Hiei… they made quite a conniving pair. It only reminded Sango of the display she'd seen before when they'd just been looking at each other… and yet she felt something more was going on. She didn't like it, not one bit. However, Sango suppressed all those feelings, at least for now as she responded, "to… I guess, talk a bit. Say who we are and why we're here. It'll pass the time." She glanced at Kagome. "Starting with you."

Kagome gulped inwardly, her wet clothes suddenly feeling much heavier on her, the cool metal of her necklace feeling even colder. Despite it all, she shrugged in what she hoped was a nonchalant way. "Well, I've said before that my father was a scholar and my mother raised us." Was it bad that lying became easier the more she did it?

"Us?" Shizuru asked.

"Me and my brother. He's younger than me, should be about, hmm… well, I'm seventeen and there's a seven-year difference so he's ten now. He could be a real brat sometimes, but we did have some good times together," Kagome explained. A soft smile lit her face, though it was a sad one. It had been over a year since she'd last seen her little brother. On the bright side, at least that part was true. That's all she needed to do, stick to the truth unless it was necessary to lie.

"I didn't know you had a brother," Botan commented.

"He never came with us… I mean, me when I first came to the pa—city. …I moved there from Kortale over a year ago," the noble quickly explained. Ah, crap. That was too close. Botan sent her an apologetic look for putting her in such a position, while Miroku shook his head slightly.

"And why do you want to go to the Lost City?" Sango asked her curiously.

"To save my friend. I need the cure the city has to keep him alive," she explained simply. This was new information to some of them since she didn't fully explain to all of them. It had been a long and confusing night, she hardly remember who she told what.

"Alright, Miroku. Your turn," Botan said.

"Me? Why me?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Because you're sitting next to Kagome so you should go next, we'll go in order. Besides, I said so," the healer teased, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Then I must succumb to the beautiful woman's will," he said in a grave tone, making Botan giggle. He went on, "I'm a peasant." Lie, Kagome said to herself, though his lying was much more smooth than hers could ever be. "And an orphan." True. He was cousin to Inuyasha, and the two of them were the only living people left in their entire extended family. The rest had been murdered at an attempt to take the crown. "That's all there is to who I am. The reason I'm here… the person Kagome is trying to save is my cousin. Besides the personal side of wanting to save him, I also wish not to take over the family business. As long as he's around, I won't have to."

Botan's eyes widened. "Your cousin…?" she began, but Kagome nudged her with her foot before she could continue. No one had known that anyone in Inuyasha's family was still alive, not even Inuyasha himself. Kagome had been the first he had told in a long, long time.

"I never knew you had any family," Yusuke informed his old friend. By his tone, it was obvious he was offended, though not very. "Must be a horrible business if you're willing to risk your life out here to avoid it."

"The most horrid you could imagine," he replied. His face was solemn as he just for a moment glanced at the future queen sitting beside him. She didn't see the look, however, as she stared deeply into the flames, though she nodded in agreement.

To live as the monarchy was to not live at all. All day was spent either with the council, making decisions, or listening to the problems of the people. Nights were spent entertaining nobles that came to the palace and they always had something to complain about, and complain loudly they did. Hardly any free time was given to the ruler, always jumping from one issue to the next. Or at least, that was how Kagome saw it all.

There was silence until lightning flashed followed by thunder nearby, causing some of them to jump. "I guess that means it's my turn," Sango said. She took a breath before starting. "I lost my family when I was still young, so I came to live with Shizuru, Kuwabara, and their mother in the city, though my aunt died too. So it was just the three of us… and then the two of us when Kuwabara left as I worked as a fighter-for-hire to earn some money. …And I guess I'm here partly for the adventure and partly because… well, what else is there to do? Things get boring in that city, having the same routine every day."

Sango glanced over to Yusuke beside her, signaling his turn. He shrugged. "For the same reason, I guess. I wanted the adventure, plus the treasure at the Lost City is a sweet deal too. Oh, and I'm a pickpocket. I steal what I need to get by."

The group glanced over to Shizuru. She ran a hand through her hair before inclining her head toward the person next to her, Kuwabara. "I came to find out if he was still alive." It was all she said.

"And I came to find glory and riches—" her brother said.

"You did a wonderful job," Yusuke told him wryly.

"—so we wouldn't have to worry anymore about paying taxes and still having enough money to live. …It didn't work out as planned," he admitted sheepishly.

"That was still very noble of you," Botan said with a smile, which he returned. The whole thing made Shizuru say, "sure, encourage him, why don't you."

Left at Botan's turn, she told the rest, "I'm just a healer and I know Kagome's… friend, and I want to help her, that's why I'm helping you guys."

Everyone had spoken, minus their two most closemouthed companions, Kurama and Hiei. Kurama sat closest to Botan, putting the rest of their attention on him. If he'd been about to say something the rest would never know it because Hiei suddenly interrupted, "don't tell them anything, fox. You have no need to explain yourself to them."

Whether he was heeding Hiei's words or not, Kurama's words were still ambiguous. "I'm here because I chose to be, I have no real reason."

"Everyone has a reason," was Kagome's quiet response, but it was lost to most as Sango said at the same time to Hiei, "why do you call him 'fox'?" She inclined her head toward Kurama, whose unfathomable gaze was on Kagome, having heard her soft words.

"Because of his intelligence and cunning. Far greater than most people," Hiei responded, though wondering why he was even answering her.

"'Far greater than most people'," she repeated, then said dryly, "so he's an animal?" The comment earned her a glare, though she'd been expecting it. Her voice lost its dry, teasing quality when she asked, "so you're not going to tell us even the slightest bit about why you're here?"

"That's my own business," he told her, turning his attention away, instead focusing on the storm outside. It hadn't relented at all. If anything, it had gotten worse.

They waited out the rest of the day, which soon turned into night, the storm only lessening a small amount. A few of them continued to chat as others dozed in and out. Sango wondered why there were no demons around, but someone else mentioned they must have liked the storm about as much as they did, probably taking cover. Though it seemed unlikely to her, she supposed it did make some sort of sense.

Sango didn't even remember dozing off, only realizing she had when she woke with a start as lightening struck nearby. She was lying down with her back pressed against that of a sleeping Miroku, the blanket spread over both of them. Surprisingly, he hadn't tried anything perverted while they shared the cover. He must have heeded her warning about throwing him out into the storm… or might have tried something while she slept. She really hoped it was the former.

A sleeping Yusuke was uncomfortably close on her other side, though there was some space between them. A glance around proved that the rest were asleep as well, though when she glanced at the mouth of the cave, she noticed two crimson eyes looking her way.

She stood silently and with grace that went with years of fighting, while Miroku shivered at the loss of warmth. Carefully avoiding the bodies on the ground, she made her way over Hiei, taking a seat across from him. He watched her expectantly, waiting for whatever comment she wanted to make, knowing that he wouldn't like it.

She kept her voice low and chose her words carefully as she told him, "you may think the reason you're here is your business, but it's our business too if it interferes with what we are trying to do."

Was he amused at her words? Angry? Annoyed? His face betrayed nothing, as per usual. "You don't trust me." He said it so plainly, obviously not caring if she did or didn't.

The wind brought rain in, throwing some at Sango and making her skin hum with the coolness of it. She ignored it and the urge to shiver, though she rather wished she still had the blanket around her. Oh, well.

"You've given me no reason to. The more you keep secrets, the less I do," Sango informed him flatly as she wrapped her arms around herself.. "Your trust scale is at around negative five, right now."

His knees were drawn up, his arms lazily hanging over them. How could someone so small and casual, be so deadly? "I neither asked for nor wanted your trust."

She stood abruptly, wondering why she even bothered to try and converse with him. "Well, then this all worked out perfectly, didn't it?" Turning her back on him, she went back to where she had slept before. Only when she reached it did she turn back. "You're a good fighter and I can't say it's not interesting having you around…" How could she put it? "…you hurt her… any of them and you'll regret it."

He scoffed. It was an empty threat to him. "You couldn't touch me, let alone harm me."

She considered his words. She had seen him while they fought the demons over the past few days, dispatching them ruthlessly and easily. If it came down to it, he clearly had the advantage. "I'd try," she replied and her words rang true.

Hiei turned his attention away from her as she got herself settled, though he knew she did not sleep for a long while. I look forward to it, he thought to himself, smirking merely at the idea.

Botan stretched her arms above her head before bouncing to her feet. "Good morning," she said cheerfully. She spared a glance outside before saying, "it looks like the rains letting up. And I haven't heard any thunder in awhile." She hopped over the sleeping forms of Sango and Kagome, joining those that were awake by the fire.

"Good morning, Botan," Kurama replied. He was crouched by the fire, having put the dry cloaks aside, and was heating something over the flames. "Yes, we'll wait awhile longer and if all looks well, we'll head off."

"In the meantime, breakfast," Yusuke said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "Whatca cooking? It smells good."

Kurama gave a squeeze to his somewhat damp hair, letting the droplets of water fall to the floor. From what Botan could gather from his wet appearance, he'd gone out to find something to eat. And whatever something that was, was now cooking over the fire.

He laughed. "I think you'd rather not know. But it's edible," he assured Yusuke when the pickpocket gave him a skeptical look. "Between the nine of us eating, we don't have much left in reserve. Fortunately, we have Botan, so we don't have to worry about the same thing happening with our water supply."

Botan flushed with pleasure at the small smile he sent her. It was always nice to be appreciated. Then, noticing something odd, she gestured toward Hiei. "So he does sleep. Nice to know," she said, half to herself.

"Unfortunately, the same's true for him," Yusuke said, jerking him thumb at the snoring Kuwabara. "I swear, it was louder than the thunder."

The conversation abruptly ended, however, once Kurama announced that the mystery meat was done and those that were wake began greedily eating their delicious breakfast (although technically it was closer to lunchtime). Yusuke was tempted to ask what it was, but he decided he would rather enjoy the meal than be disgusted by whatever the meat was. Shizuru and Miroku joined them during the meal, though they too wisely kept their mouths shut and didn't ask. They were too hungry to take the chance.

"What's that?" Botan asked unexpectedly, pointing into the deep cave.

Miroku's gaze fell to where she was pointing and squinted his eyes to see. "It seems to be so sort of light—"

He didn't get to continue, however, as the light suddenly rushed toward them, bursting through the entire cave. They threw up their arms to shield themselves from it, but it was no use, the white light had already engulfed the group, blinding them.

Kurama realized only too late what was happening.

Kagome shifted in her sleep, her hand absentmindedly reaching for a blanket that wasn't there. She let out a soft noise of annoyance as she flipped onto her back, throwing an arm over her face.

"What's going on?"

She knew that voice. It was Sango's.

"Don't open your eyes," commanded another roughly. Definitely Hiei's.

What? she thought, her mind still blurred from sleep. Kagome didn't, however, open her eyes.

"Wha—" someone began, voicing Kagome's thoughts. The sound was abruptly cut off and they never finished, causing Hiei to mutter, "fool."

"Kuwabara?" Sango asked, recognizing the voice that hadn't finished the one word. No answer. "Kuwabara?" It was more urgent, but again, nothing. "What's going on? Why isn't he answering? And why can't I open my eyes?"

"What's going on?" Kagome echoed as she sat up. She kept her eyes tightly shut, though she was increasingly tempted to open them. But no, Hiei had said not to. He'd be the last one to joke around. Better to listen to him than not to.

He didn't answer and no one else spoke as well for a long moment, Sango and Kagome waiting in anticipation. Finally, what had to be minutes later (though it felt much longer), Hiei told them curtly, "the rest are paralyzed. There's some kind of light coming from deep in the cave, immobilizing any who see it."

Kagome used the wall to help her stand, turning her face to where she heard Hiei's voice coming from. "So what do we do?"

"Is there a way to reanimate them?" Sango inquired. No answer. They were asking Hiei, but he didn't have the solution. "If we stop the light at its source, will that work?" She took an unintentional step toward him, but her foot bumped into something. Sango reached a hesitant hand down to object, only to touch soft, silky strands of something. Someone's hair.

She instantly jumped back, jerking her hand away. The person, whoever it was, hadn't reacted at all, couldn't have. The stillness of him or her spooked her.

What had done this? Why had the light come now? They had to help the others… but how? If they found the source, whatever it was…

"We could try it," Kagome said.

"Alright, let's do it," Sango decided. She turned Hiei's way. "Hiei?"

"Hn," was all he said, though he was much closer to them than before. He must have moved closer while they talked.

Let's see, Kagome thought, the mouth of the cave was to the right of me when I was sleeping, so that would mean… She turned left, to what she hoped was going deeper into the cave. When she heard their footsteps following her, she figured she must have been correct.

She kept one hand outstretched to the wall, using it to guide her. It was almost like she was walking through darkness, besides the fact that some of the light shined even through her closed lids, like the sun normally did.

Sango tried to be careful in her steps, but she couldn't be sure where she was going and what she was stepping on. It wasn't always solid and she didn't just meant the small pebbles that seemed to be scattered across cave. Sometimes the ground was gooey and thick or spongy, other times things snap underneath her boots, crunching like… bones.

"What do you think did this?" Sango asked aloud.

"What do you mean?" Kagome was the one who responded, though her voice was a little faint. She had started out in front of them, but now was a good deal behind. She picked up her pace.

"The light wasn't shining at all before. Something or someone must have—" she began explaining, but without warning cut off when she tripped over something in front of her. She reached out to grab something to steady her, her hand gripping some kind of material.

Hiei tensed as her hand grabbed his arm and immediately yanked his arm and the material of his cloak out of her grasps. "Watch what you're grabbing," he snapped.

If it had been anyone else, she would have apologized. She didn't even bother with him, especially if he was going to be so rude about it. Well sorry if I was falling, she thought bitterly.

Kagome continued to walk following the sound of their footsteps, though she paused when she realized she couldn't hear them anymore. "What…?" No one answered her. "Sango!" she yelled frantically. The fighter didn't call back.

She quickly retraced her steps, still calling out Sango's name. She finally stopped when she heard a faint reply of her own name, coming from far up ahead. Huh? If she had been ahead of her, why did she just answer her when she called before? It didn't make sense.

"Why'd you stop? I couldn't hear you anymore," the noble informed them, while Sango responded, "what are you talking about? You stopped following." Her voice was clearly puzzled.

"The path splits in two," Hiei stated impatiently, as though it were the obvious answer. Oh. Kagome had gone down one path, the wall guiding her there, while they, since they were by the other wall, had gone down the other. It did make sense.

But now they had a decision to make. Which path to go down? There was no way of telling from which way the light was coming since they couldn't open their eyes to see it. They could take a wild guess, but it would waste time if they were wrong and who knows what would happen to the others if they waited too long? Kagome, however, had thought of a solution (and one that Hiei seemed to agree with, though there was no surprise there), but Sango rejected it instantly.

"No," she told the noble firmly.

"I'd have at least a few seconds…"

"No."

"And that should give me enough time to at least point to—"

"No." Kagome had a real problem with understanding that word, but the girl was being too stubborn to do things any other way but hers.

"Just let the girl do what she wants," Hiei snapped.

She turned in his direction, wishing she could give him a cold glare. "Of course you'd agree with it, but I actually care what happens to her." She felt a hand on her arm, turning her attention toward Kagome.

Kagome gave her arm a squeeze. "I'll be fine. I don't need to be protected all the time and this is just a little thing. And I trust you enough to know that you'll undo whatever's happening." Then she dropped her arm from the fighter.

"Kagome…" she began, but got no response. She said her name once more, uncertainty in it. Reaching out a hand, it touched the girl beside her, but no reaction came from her. Kagome was stiff as a board.

Sango slid her hand along the arm until it reached Kagome's fingers. They were pointing to the left. "Left," she let Hiei know, her voice almost toneless. Then, with more feeling, she continued, "if anything happens…"

"You can't blame it on me," Hiei curtly interrupted. "She made her own decision."

Sango continued on without a word, going in the direction the unmoving Kagome had pointed. She moved quickly, her annoyance with Hiei clear and didn't care if he came or not, though he silently following. She outstretched her hand, but she didn't even have to do that as the path became much narrower, only enough room for two people to walk abreast with some space between them.

When her hand met air instead of the wall, she paused. "The wall ends." She felt around a bit more. "Well, it doesn't end, but it goes to either side…"

"An open room," he concluded for her.

A cackling sound suddenly echoed around them, causing Sango to tense. Still, she took a step into the room and then another aside, in case Hiei wanted to move around. She heard him move a bit farther into the room than she was.

"The little man is smart," the thing cackled. The sound came from above them, making both glance up. Funny how they still looked toward the sound, even if they couldn't see. The temptation to open their eyes was great, but they were smarter than that.

The air above them began making a whooshing noise… a noise that sounded like flapping wings. Wings? So they were dealing with some flying creature, probably a demon. Great. At least the demon was as blind as they were. That was a small comfort.

"More food for my dinner. Live prey, yes. Agile, young," it prattled on in its annoying, high-pitched voice.

At her command, her daggers slid out of their wrist sheaths and into her hands after the smallest flex of her muscle. She heard the ringing of metal as Hiei withdrew his sword, and to distract the demon from it, she said, "sorry to burst your bubble, but it's not dinner time yet. The sun hasn't set." Well, she wasn't entirely sure about that fact, but she was pretty sure it hadn't. She had no notion of what time she had awaken, however.

"An early dinner then. Have much more for dinner, more prey at the mouth." Its voice was closer than before and she had a mental picture of the demon, hovering not too far away from them.

The mouth? What mou—, she thought, before realizing. The mouth of the cave. Exactly where the rest of her companions were, unmoving. And it wanted to eat them. Eat them as they were aware of what was going on, only paralyzed, unable to stop the demon from devouring them. Being frozen, knowing you're being eaten alive?

She felt a quick surge pity for any creature who'd fallen into the demon's grasps previously, but quickly chased it away and concentrated on her own problem. This demon must have been the user of the light in the first place, capturing prey so it couldn't move and then killing it.

"That's not," she began, before abruptly lunging at the demon, "happening!"

It tittered at her attempt, flying higher above her before she could strike. "Foolish girl," it laughed. Its voice was far away again, a soft echo around the large room they seemed to be in. She tried to follow it, her knives held ready, but she had no idea where it was.

She felt a sudden rush of wind behind her and quickly tumbled to the ground, missing the attack. She then listened as Hiei struggled to fight the demon blindly not too far away, his sword clang again the stone walls as he missed and the demon laughed. Then all was quiet again, the demon stopping its attack.

It knew where they were, knew how to avoid their attacks. "I don't get it, how can it see?" Sango asked aloud, hoping she'd find the answer.

"Don't need eyes, don't need sight. Listen," the demon said in a singsong voice.

"A bat," Hiei said.

A bat demon. Great, just great. While they were left in the dark, it could navigate the cave by just hearing the way sound bounced off the walls and them. This was clearly very unfair. But then, who said things had to be fair?

"Smart little man. Make a tasty treat," it said as it swooped down to attack Hiei. He listened as best he could, using that to help him know where the demon was and counter the attack. He managed to deflect the blows, but did not manage to get any in himself.

It disappeared once again. "Hmm, power in the little one. Devour, yes. I must have it."

It was close to her, she could hear it. She spun around and attacked… but there was only air. Then without warning, claws suddenly imbedded themselves into her shoulder, the bat demon perched on top of her. And it was heavy. She was forced down onto her knees with a surprised cry.

She gritted her teeth against the pain and tried to attack it, but the way it held her shoulder, she couldn't move her arms much. When she tried anyway, it only deepened his hold, causing her to drop both knives from her hands. She screamed in anguish and in anger.

"A foolish girl, I've caught," it tittered, but it wasn't directing its comment to her. No, it seemed more interested in Hiei. "A deal, yes? Little man opens eyes and girl is free."

Her heart jumped into her throat, pounding much faster than usually. He wouldn't do it, he doesn't care about anyone else but himself. He wouldn't.

She froze when his voice was carried to her. "…why should I care what her fate is?"

That was Hiei… never failing to disappoint her expectations.

She struggled and yelled, managing to throw her weight back so the demon slammed into the floor, but even then it didn't let go. It screeched in protest and managed to turn her onto her stomach and then lift both of them up, her kicking feet dangling a few feet off the ground.

"If little man has power, light won't effect," it reasoned, luring Hiei into its web.

He didn't answer right away and that's when she knew he was considering it.

And he called her the idiot.

He thought he could conquer it, that the light wouldn't effect him. My, my, someone had a high opinion of themselves. She had known Hiei was hiding something, that there was something… not entirely human about him, but no matter what, she knew that it wasn't enough to withstand whatever power the light held.

"Don't be an idiot!" she yelled across the room, causing the demon to squeeze her. She didn't even care.

Hiei then did the stupidest thing she would ever see him do. Or rather, not see him do.

He opened his eyes.