Apologies for the long wait m(--)m And there are three parts, not two :shamefaced: I hope there won't be a fourth part sneaking up on me. But now you know not to trust me when I tell you things :D Anyway, as usual, feedback is very much appreciated, and do tell me if you like it, don't you::makes Tsuzuki puppy eyes:

Part 2/3

The demon possessed girl was livid. It wasn't her; she was asleep, deeply enclosed in her own mind. Her eyes glowed red and flashed dangerously when Tsuzuki and Hisoka opened the door and stepped into the room. They narrowed into slits and a second later, she burst into shrill laughter, her voice echoing off the barren hospital walls. Hisoka was afraid. His mental shields were up, but they were beginning to crumble at the edges. He could literally see the malice leaking off the girl and seeping into his mind.

Tsuzuki kept his voice low. In a calm, but hurried tone, he asked the demon its name. He kept one hand in the pocket of his trench coat. Hisoka knew his fingers were clasping an ofuda he had written earlier before they had stepped in.

He wondered how in the world Tsuzuki was going to summon one of his shikigami without destroying that portion of the hospital they were in. He had destroyed enough buildings to stay an eternity in the red, without hope of possibly paying off all his debts. Watari had calculated his expenditures, and taking into account his eating habits, and massive destruction habits thus adding to the reimbursement accounts; and managed to conjure up an exponential graph of Tsuzuki's debts. It was only ever going to go up. He pictured Tatsumi's face when he found out that they had destroyed yet another building on one of their cases. It wasn't a pretty sight. Hisoka gulped and shook the thought away.

He wondered if he should tell Tsuzuki to take care not to obliterate the building, when the girl rose off her bed, arching her back in a superhuman move, and leaping gracefully to her feet, her long hair trailing behind her. The IV stand was thrown back, and it fell to the floor, where the liquids inside continued dripping from the syringe where the girl had ripped it away from her hand.

"Go back to where you came from," Tsuzuki said softly, his purple eyes hardening.

"She wants me to have her body," the girl replied, curving her pink lips into a devious smile. She took one step forward, and held out a frail hand towards Tsuzuki.

Tsuzuki stared at her hand. There were scars on it, presumably from cutting herself. They were ugly, crowding up her entire right wrist. Newer scabs were formed on top of older but not faded away scars. If Tsuzuki was affected by them, there were no sign of it on his face. He looked angry, like there was altogether another being in him that was just as dark, and as terrible as the demon itself.

He couldn't read Tsuzuki's eyes. They weren't soft and kind any longer. It was a deeper purple, and his gaze was hardened and slightly narrowed. His mouth was held in a tight, pinched line. His whole shoulder was tense, like a single move would see him spring into action.

Hisoka was afraid. He had never seen Tsuzuki like that before. It was a mix of determination, horrible sadness and a deep anger, like it had been gathered there for centuries and was now letting itself out.

As far as he knew and of what Tatsumi had said before on passing occasion, ghouls and demons fed on unhappiness. If it was so, Tsuzuki was primary prey.

Hisoka stepped forward. He wasn't a shinigami for nothing. If Tsuzuki couldn't summon his shiki, he could try to bind the girl from moving. At least, it would stop her from possessing Tsuzuki if she intended to. It would stop him from doing another stupid thing that he had no qualms thinking twice. He closed his eyes and put his palms together.

Before he could even begin to form the mantra in his mind, he felt something slam into him. He was thrown back, and felt his back crash into the wall, and something tangled in his hands. He opened his eyes dizzily, trying frantically to unknot his hands and touch solid ground to regain his balance, but found himself staring into the blood red eyes of the demon.

"Hisoka!" he could hear Tsuzuki shout, desperate and frantic, from quite far away. He wasn't sure; his ears were ringing.

She snarled, baring her teeth.

He was frozen. Please don't touch me, was all he could think, as he sat to his back against the wall, with the girl hovering over him. Her long hair clouded his vision. He couldn't see past her.

Tsuzuki closed his eyes and started reciting the chants to unleash his shiki.

From the mantra, Hisoka knew who he was going to call. He panicked suddenly, because Tsuzuki can't— he can't call one of them out without at least injuring somebody, and this was a hospital for goodness sake. Hisoka squeezed his eyes shut, took a deep breath and pushed the girl away. He couldn't see what he touched, but he felt hair, and skin and he pushed. The darkness seeped into him, and he couldn't breathe. They were swirling, around him and in him, and in between the dark thoughts, and his own, someone else's emotions were pushing around, wanting to get to him.

The girl, he thought.

"Tsuzuki, no!" he shouted, hoping Tsuzuki would stop. "The hospital!"

It was too late. There was an enormous roar, and Hisoka's stomach sank. Byakko was an otherwise gentle entity in the comfort of Gensoukai and JuohChoh; he was altogether a different being in the lines of battle. The ferocious looking tiger god had an majestic aura; he was fearsome and powerful and wouldn't even think about the hospital, least of all the hundreds of lives in the halls below. Truth be told, Hisoka couldn't care less either.

But Tsuzuki would.

They hadn't done that much damage…yet.

Byakko had ripped apart the walls of the room so far. There was a gaping hole where bricks and plaster and paint should have been. They could see the blackened sky from where they were. Screw the beautiful day Tsuzuki had talked about earlier.

He thought about Tsuzuki's face when he found out the girl was dead.

Time to change tactics. He pulled the girl in and ignored the cold shock that seeped further into him. He ignored Tsuzuki's cries too. He needed to do it. If he could just get to the girl, if he could just make her regain control of her own body…The demon was howling in laughter now. Her long nails dug into his blue shirt, and touched skin. She scratched deep, and he could feel the scars already, carving into his already scarred body. He searched deep, and called out to her.

He could feel Byakko too. He was dangerously close, but he knew he wouldn't touch her if it meant endangering Hisoka. He draw her closer, and tried his best to shield her from the tiger god. He could hear Tsuzuki shouting in frustration at him to let go.

"Miaka…" he called, searching, wading into deeper darker murky depths of the girl's soul. There was nothing to be found. It was an inky blackness, with nothing awaiting him, and nothing changing. He was too deep now, to be thrusted back into his own body. The demon couldn't injure him here, although she could reach him with her thoughts.

Somewhere far away, he could hear Tsuzuki's desperate calls.

He ignored it, and continued on. "Miaka!" he shouted. His voice echoed across the darkness, and faded away with a sad silence.

He was sure he heard her, when he made contact with her body moments earlier. Shrugging back his own desperation, Hisoka waded on. Could it be, that she had already left? And that she had already gave up? "MIAKA!" he screamed, until his voice was hoarse and his throat was scratchy. He waited for a response. Please, please let her say something. His head was spinning; he wasn't sure how long he could stay there any longer. Three souls in one body if the girl was still in there somewhere; that was a bit too much wasn't it? Her body had to be taking a toll due to this.

Then, the influx of thoughts.

It came, so fast, like a raging river, that Hisoka had no time to gather about his senses and prepare himself. The words and feelings swirled around and into him, until he felt like he was drowning in them. The blackness was gone, there was only blinding white, and he couldn't see beyond it. He wasn't wading any longer; his body felt devoid of any gravitational pull, he felt quite like he was hurtling towards the white emptiness, slamming into nothingness and yet utterly horrifying brightness. He tried calling for help, but the words silenced him. Her thoughts mingled with the demons.

Help me, some said. I am going to destroy you, and your partner, the evil thoughts emanated and throbbed.

Hisoka couldn't take it.

He squeezed his eyes shut and screamed.

He was thrown back into his own consciousness, and he sat where he was for a while, in a blur, and unawares of the situation around him. He just sat, and gathered his breath. His mind was foggy; and throbbing slightly. He could feel the scars glow from underneath his shirt.

There was barely time to breathe. He looked up, snapping his head to see where Tsuzuki was, and met with a sight of fur. Then, a slam, and after a few more blinks, he ended up in Tsuzuki's arms. He remembered the feeling afterwards; cold and wet.

"The girl! You can't-" he cried out, reaching out a hand helplessly to stop Byakko, in vain. He pushed Tsuzuki away. "You can't—" he shook his head.

There was an ear-deafening roar, and an even deafening scream. It seemed to fill the room, and the space beyond it. The building seemed to tremble, and Hisoka actually saw plaster crack across the walls that hadn't already crumbled. His hands gripped Tsuzuki's arms tightly. He couldn't believe it. He opened his mouth but whatever that came out was silenced by what he saw next. It was like a silent movie. Byakko's fur was bristling, and his muzzle held back in a snarl so you could see the enormous teeth. His eyes were fierce, and there was only focus and determination in them. This was one tiger god who was not letting his prey out of sight.

Tsuzuki had let go of him at this point, and had the ofuda between the forefingers of both his hands. He closed his eyes, and chanted. Hisoka had to stop him. He had to do something before Tsuzuki regretted this…

It was too late. It was over within a few seconds. When he could hear himself again, there was only ringing silence, an overturned bed, and an empty body on the floor beside the wall. The demon was gone; vanquished by Tsuzuki. Byakko was by Tsuzuki's side again, enormous, and hunched by his master's feet, staring at the destruction he had made. The girl's soul was a fragile, translucent thing. She hovered above her body, seemingly shocked and scared.

Hisoka could only begin to feel the beginning's of a regret from a certain someone. He felt himself get angry, and he decided to act before he could regret what he was doing.

"I'm taking her along," he snapped, breaking the silence.

"Hisoka, I…" Tsuzuki's voice was soft, horrified.

"I'm going back to Meifu."

"Hisoka."

He teleported away, dragging the girl with him, for once, he forgot to console her, forgot to explain the details, just zapped off, dragging her soul with him and leaving Tsuzuki behind.