Disclaimer: (Sitting in Driver's Ed. Car) Oh my God... AHH! TOO MANY SEMI TRUCKS! (Car crashes) ...Ow... (Coughs) Enjoy the chapter about the show that I don't own, but wish I did...

Chapter 7

(A.N.) I'm so sorry about the wait guys, I was on vacation! And then at Debate Camp, with no access to a computer, at least for writing. So I hope that you all can forgive me for that, and that you enjoy the chapter. Ja-ne!

Kira's P.O.V...

We had arrived in the Human World and headed straight for Yusuke's house. His mom was out, and we all headed over to his room, ready to begin planning. Wehaven't beenhere ten minutes, and I am already irritated beyond belief.

Yusuke and Kuwabara are clearly not the brains of the operation, despite the fact that Yusuke was the supposed leader, which, might I add, almost scared me more than Kuwabara's stupidity. Their plan was to simply find a demon, beat the shit out of him, and see if he knew where to find Mizuru.

Now you understand my irritation.

Thankfully, Kurama stepped in before the two idiots could say anything else. I think he suspected that, if they continued, he would have two dead bodies and one bloody, stillslightly homicidalmage.

"What we need," the kitsune, which, I was informed previously thathe was, "is a fast, quiet way of gathering information. They don't know that Kira is alive, and we can use that to our advantage. They won't be on their guard. We also need to keep our eyes and ears sharp for any news about kidnappings."

"I still say we should just beat the shit out of someone who knows," Kuwabara grumbled.

"And then what, idiot?" Hiei asked. "It would give us away, making our job more difficult than it needs to be."

"What did you call me, shorty!"

I finally stepped in. "Cool it, children."

"What!" the both said, voices raised.

I ignored them.

Turning to Kurama, I offered my assistance, "I might be able to help."

He frowned slightly, thinking. "How so?"

"I could give scrying a try."

That raised some eyebrows.

Botan said, "Scrying is a rare ability. Not many are capable of controlling the element their using."

Shrugging, I responded, "You're forgetting, Botan, I'm good at what I do. Fire is more a part of me than my own blood. Sometimes, all it takes with fire is that you lether guide you, not the other way around."

Yukina looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"

I thought a second, trying to phrase it so that even Kuwabara could understand. "It's..." I stopped, and then tried again. "Fire is temperamental, always changing. Her very nature is fleeting. She provides warmth one moment, and then, in a second, could kill and destroy as easily as a gun or sword. She is...choosy, and only reveals her secrets to a few. She-

"Why do you keep saying 'she'?" Yusuke asked. "You act like it's a person or something."

"Fire, to me at least, isn't a thing, she's a person. I've always thought of fire as alive. It seems wrong somehow to refer to her as an 'it'," I responded quietly.

"Whatever you say," he told me.

Some people just aren't cut out for seeing things differently.

"Can you do it?" Hiei asked.

"I...think I can."

"You think you can?"

"Scrying was never my strongest talent," I informed him tartly. "But, I'm more than willing to give it a shot."

"Well, what are we waiting for then?" Botan inquired. "What do you need?"

"A candle, or a place to start a fire, a mirror might be useful, and salt. And...I think that should be it. I doubt I'll need to do anything more advanced than the normal ritual." I fell silent, wrapped up in my own thoughts.

"I'm on it," she announced, disappearing into the house.

"I get the candle and the mirror, but what's with the salt?" Kuwabara asked me.

"Salt is widely known for its use in purification. Forming a salt circle around one's self can dispel any outside influence. It blocks out foreign energy and magic, allowing the one inside the circle to conduct whatever ritual without excess distractions," I spout out, saying exactly what my grandmother had told me.

"Oh..."

He clearly didn't get it. Yusuke didn't look convinced either. Yukina, Kurama, and Hiei, on the other hand, appeared like they had understood most, if not all, of what I had said.

Botan reentered the room carrying a purple candle, a hand mirror, and a bag of generic salt that could be found in a supermarket. "Will these work?"

"You bet," I answer, taking the items from her.

I cleared a space on the floor. Then, I carefully poured a perfect circle of salt around me, giving myself about six feet of space on all sides when I sat down. I set the candle in front of me, and placed the mirror under it.

"Alright, I'm ready," I informed them, "Don't interrupt me for any reason. Don't break the circle, and don't touch me, no matter what. It could end up locking me permanently in the vision. Everyone understand?" There were nods all the way around. "Good."

I closed my eyes a moment, slipping into the familiar breathing pattern of meditation. Opening them, I reached out with my right hand, lightly touching the wick of the candle. A spark jumped from my fingers to the string, and a small flame arose. I gazed into that flame, and let my eyes become unfocused, encompassing the reflection of the flame, as well. I directed my power into that tiny light, seeking.

'Please', I thought at the fire, 'please help me find what I need. Show me the demon called Mizuru.'

A small whisper answered me. 'Are you ready to know, child?'

'I am ready.'

The flame vanished, leaving me a dark void. I spun around, looking around myself, unsure. Slowly, pictures took shape until I could see Mizuru.

He was standing in the middle of a stone room, his back to me, but I recognized the silvery hair, and I trusted the fire to show me truth. I realized he was not alone as he spoke, "Please master, please, I need more time. Finding the young women is proving more difficult than was predicted."

A cold, cold voice answered his plea. "I will give you one more week, Mizuru, but only one week. If you cannot manage to complete the ceremony, then I will have no more patience with you. I can find another."

Mizuru was shaking visibly. Who...what could make him so terrified?

His voice wavered, "I understand, Master." He bowed low. "I will not fail again; I have already found another girl. She is-

"Wait!" the voice commanded. "We are not alone."

Shit. I tried to break contact, but something grabbed me. And it held on. I thrashed, trying to break its grip.

"Who are you?" the cold voice asked.

I twisted in his grip. He was there, but not there. When I didn't answer, I felt a...power. I hesitated to say power. It wasn't like magic or an elemental talent. It was...emptiness. A complete void and it was trying to suck me in.

I admit it, I panicked. "Help! Somebody help me!" I screamed.

"Your mine, little one. Your mine."

"No!"

I felt it pulling me in, sucking away all the warmth from me. I screamed again, this time wordless.

Then something else wrapped around me. Something warm, and fiery. It gave me a newfound strength. Drawing on it's heat for strenght,I lashed out at the entity, sending a stream of fire swirling at it. The void let me go in surprise, drawing it's self back into shadow.

The new presence pulled me back, back towards the real world.

I snapped back into myself, finding that I was layingflat on my back. A cool hand rested on my forehead, and another hand shook my shoulder. I opened my eyes wide, finding Yukina and Botan leaning over me. I sat up, supported by their hands, and groaned. I have the headache of the century.

I looked at the candle and found that Hiei was sitting next to it, and Kurama had kneeled down next to him. Hiei looked drained.

I think I found who brought me back.

Loudly, Yusuke asked, "What the hell just happened!"

My head pulsed with pain.

"Quiet down, Yusuke. I have a splitting headache," I moaned.

"Shut up, Detective," Hiei growled at the same time.

I looked up at the demon, surprised we were in agreement.

"What happened?" Yusuke asked again, a little quieter.

"It saw me," I said flatly.

"What saw you?"

"I don't have a fucking clue. If I did I wouldn't have referred to it as... 'It'," I told him tiredly. I then turned back to Hiei, "Was it you?"

He looked at me oddly.

"Were you the one that pulled me back?"

"Hn."

I was beginning to hate that. Immensely.

"You started to shake and scream. We didn't touch you, like you instructed, but we did try to reach you. Yukina had finally said that we must try to move you, but she couldn't even touch you. Flames flashed every time one of us tried, blocking us. Then Hiei walked forward and touched the candle. You stopped screaming, and a few minutes later you both were pushed backwards by...something," Kurama informed me.

Looks like I owed Hiei a thank you.

So...credit where credit was due, "Thanks, Hiei."

Another grunt was all I got for being nice.

"Well...did you see anything?" Kuwabara asked me.

"Yeah. I saw a stone room; it was large and was definitely in Demon World. Mizuru was standing in the middle of it, and he wasn't alone. There was something else in that room and it sensed me. That's what grabbed me. It was...emptiness. It felt like a huge black hole or something."

"I felt it too," Hiei confirmed, "It was demonic, even familiar, but I can't seem to be able to recall from where." He frowned slightly.

"What else?" Botan pressed.

"They have a new target. I don't know who. That thing cut Mizuru off before I could find out. A fire user, around my age. Do you think Koenma can track her down?" I asked Botan.

"I don't know, but we can try anyway." She pulled an oar out of nowhere, climbing on. "I'll go and see what I can do." She flew out the window.

I sighed, "It's a start I guess..." My head still throbbed. "Does anyone have an Aspirin? My head is killing me."

"I don't think so... Sorry," Yusuke said.

"It's ok. I think I just need to crash for a bit or something."

"Both you and Hiei should," Kurama remarked. "You two look worn through, and your spirit levels have been seriously depleted."

"Hn."

"I-I guess," I yawned. "I think I c-can manage until b...Botan...comes...ba..."

I fell into sleep.