Akumei held me tightly to him as we fell, tumbling through the air as we dropped quickly down towards the earth. Is this what she felt every time? He thought as he flipped around so he was on the bottom. "I'm so sorry…" He whispered in my ear.

I remained in my trance, staring straight ahead with unseeing eyes and he sighed sadly. He pulled my head to his chest, arms wrapped protectively around as we collided with the ground. With a short grunt he hit shoulders and head first and was immediately knocked unconscious, sending a spray of dirt in all directions.

"Kira?" As the dusty sand began to clear, a voice shouted in horrified disbelief. "What happened?" The yelling was joined by more as a group of four crowded around me.

One lurched in front of the others to be the first to scoop me up in his arms from atop of Akumei. "Who's this guy she's with? And what's with her eyes?" I was still in my trance and gave no reactions to being moved.

The others shrugged and muttered as they picked up Akumei between them. Together they all trooped towards a jeep parked just a bit away and somehow squeezed everyone inside, though one had to sit on the back of the car with just their feet dangling in the back seat.

I awoke with a start, letting a small scream of shock escape as I awoke to find myself surrounded by desert. (Actually, I didn't really wake up. My eyes were already open and they just decided to start seeing again. All of my other senses started working instantly as well.) Everyone in the car jumped and turned to look at me as we squealed to a stop. I jerked forward in the seat, causing the unconscious Akumei to fall in behind me. We had been leaning on each other for support. I looked around still in shock to see Hakkai driving, Sanzo in the passenger seat, Gojyo on my other side, and Goku perched on the back of the car. "What…?" I began in bewilderment.

"That's exactly what we were thinking when we saw you fall from the sky with that guy." Gojyo said, pointing a finger at Akumei. "I thought you went home ages ago?"

"I-I did…" My eyes widened in realization. "I must've been attacked again!"

"What, you don't know if you were?" Sanzo asked.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Hakkai added.

"Something… hit me in the back and everything went black." I muttered. "Now I've woken up to see you guys again."

"Lucky us…" Gojyo smirked, leaning towards me. Before I could respond, the others had shoved him away.

I sighed quietly to myself and looked at Akumei, who had been picked up so his head was leaning against my shoulder again. I moved his hair aside and my eyes widened. "Why didn't you guys care for him?" I yelled out. There was a thin trickle of dried blood running down his forehead to his chin.

"Calm down, it's nothing serious." Hakkai reassured me. "He'll survive quite easily. "If I'm not mistaken, he's a demon too, right?"

I paused before replying. "I'm… Not sure." I admitted. "He's always masked his scent from me and he's never shown any demonic powers to me before…"

"Ah, I see." Hakkai murmured. "Oh! He's waking up."

Sure enough, Akumei's eyes started to flicker as he began to stir. Hakkai started driving again as Akumei sat up and looked around in a daze. He winced and placed a hand to his forehead, partially hiding his face. "Ugh… My head…" He groaned and collapsed back against the seat.

"Akumei…?" I asked tentatively, reaching a hand slowly towards him. His own shot out and gripped mine, digging painfully with its nails. "Akumei, that hurts…" I winced, trying to pull away. He growled softly and the hold tightened. "Akumei, stop it. What are you doing?" I asked, trying to keep myself calm.

Without warning, he snarled in my face, lurching forward to grip both my shoulders. Caught off guard I simply yelped as we were pushed over the back of the jeep and landed with a thud in the sand. The vehicle skidded to a stop as everyone leapt out to try and help. Akumei had me pinned and I was calling desperately to him. "Forget it. The minus wave has taken over him!" Sanzo yelled at me. "He's lost his mind!"

I ignored him, trying to get away from Akumei without hurting him. A foot slammed into his face and my arm was grabbed as I was pulled away and to my feet. "You hit him!" I screamed.

Gojyo shrugged. "Well he was gonna kill you!"

Akumei tried charging at Goku who leapt over his head and landed a kick to his back. With a cry Akumei fell to his face in the sand. I bit my lip to keep from crying out as I watched Akumei being abused by the others. I clung to Gojyo's arm to at least keep him from the fight.

Suddenly everyone else cried out in shock as individual force fields appeared around each. From the tops a single bolt of lightening flashed, striking the captives held inside. One by one, Sanzo, Goku and Hakkai sank to the ground in semi consciousness. "Akumei, stop it!" I screamed in horror. He turned to me and Gojyo prepared to attack. "Stop…" I whispered, stepping between them.

"Stop…?" Gojyo echoed in shock. "Didn't you see what he just did to them?"

I nodded and approached Akumei slowly. "Hey, you remember me right? I'm Kira, remember?" He blinked and stared hard at me for a moment. I smiled harmlessly in return. "See? Come here. Stop hurting my friends, alright?" He growled quietly and took as step back as I inched my way forward. We were three feet apart, now two. His hand lashed out and struck my face, leaving four deep gashes on my right cheek but my smile didn't waver. I took another step, blocking out Gojyo's shouts. One foot apart now. I touched his arm with my right hand and got four more slashes on it in return. I kept smiling and leaned forward into him, wordlessly burying my face into his chest. Silent tears began to fall from my closed eyes.

Akumei's widened and his arms slowly closed around me. He was taken over again and dug the claws into my back and sides but I didn't move and instead held him tighter. "Akumei, stop this. It's me, it's just me. You don't have to let it control you." I murmured into his chest. "You don't have to do this."

He paused again and threw his head back, giving off a snarling scream into the dark sky above and taking a single step backwards. "Behind you!" Gojyo shouted. My eyes grew wide as I felt us falling and I lifted my head in time to see Akumei falling backwards over a cliff. His claws were dug into my back so I was pulled with him. "Kira!" Gojyo shouted over my screams as he charged forward. I clamped my eyes shut thinking it was all over. There was nothing to catch hold of and the treetops of a forest were all that waited below. After everything, would I die this way?

I was jerked to a stop as something wound around my arm that I had instinctively extended above my head. I grabbed first and looked later. It was Gojyo's weapon, the chain that extended was wrapped painfully around my arm but I didn't care as long as I didn't fall. I could feet the links biting painfully into my skin but refused to let go. The baggy sleeve had fallen to my shoulder so it offered no extra padding. Glancing down I saw Akumei with eyes glazed over as if in a trance, his claws still dug into my back in a deathly embrace. I gritted my teeth and held him back with my free arm.

I heard Gojyo's grunts and he struggled to pull us upward. "You're too… heavy with him!" He gasped out.

"Well I'm not letting him go!" I forced myself to shout in reply. I tried forming my spirit energy around us to lift us upward but couldn't manage any at all. I must've used it all up during the attack against Hitaru... Damn him! Bringing me trouble even after death!Then I tried to picture the wings emerging from my back again but the pain in my arm kept me from focusing. We jerked down a foot and I screamed as small rocks and dirt fell from above. I glanced up and saw the tip of Gojyo's boot hanging over the top of the cliff. "Release us or you'll fall too!" I screamed.

I heard him laugh. "And what kind of shitty person would that make me if I just let you fall to save myself?" The boot pulled back and we rose a few inches. I dug my clawed feet into the rocks to try and help make it easier.

We were almost halfway back up the cliff side when I began to glow. Am I'm being transported back? I thought at first but then my eyes widened in realization. It is still the night of the new moon! "Gojyo, I'm transforming!" I screamed up at him.

"What?" He shouted back.

'It's the night of the new moon! I'm turning back into a human!"

"Well why'd you have to pick now to change?" He yelled.

"I don't have any say in it! Ah-" I gave a slight groan which trailed off into nothing as my eyes opened wide. The light had fully enveloped me now. My eyes, turned gray from the pain, now switched to a clear crystal blue. The long green speckled black hair changed to shimmering silver. My ears and tail disappeared and my claws and fangs shrank to the length of a human's teeth and nails. With my claws no longer gripping the mountainside to help pull us up, I dropped a couple inches, causing Gojyo to cry out and take on the full load of our weight again. Lastly, the crescent moon and red streaks on my face vanished from the pale skin.

During the entire transformation I had been holding my breath, eyes wide and staring. Now I withdrew and released the air rapidly, my eyes blinking quickly together and apart. For a moment I forgot where I was but the feel of the chain biting into my arm reawakened me. We dropped another foot. "Gojyo!" I screamed, closing my eyes tightly in fear as he gave no response.

Suddenly we started moving swiftly upwards and were jerked up and over. I stood motionless while I attempted to catch my breath. Giving up I looked over and caught Gojyo's eye as we both stared at each other wordlessly until he grunted, tumbling backwards into the sand. Turning my head to the side further, I noticed that Hakkai, Sanzo and Goku were all standing now and must've helped pull us up. Hakkai stepped towards me and gently pulled Akumei's claws from my skin. With an exhausted moan I fell over to lie breathless on the ground, cheek to the sand. Glancing over at Gojyo, I saw both his hands ripped bloody and raw from pulling on the chain. "I… I'm sorry." I whimpered.

"It's alright." He gasped back, noting that my left arm from the fingertips up to the elbow was bloody and torn as well from having the chain wrapped around it. "Why the hell were we so close to a cliff anyway?" We both managed a short, exhausted laugh.

I jumped as a figure leaned over mine, lying partly on my back. It was Akumei, kneeling over me with his arms draped softly over my head. I felt a tear hit my cheek and heard his whispers. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…" He kept repeating it over and over.

I smiled without moving. "It's alright." Then I dropped into unconsciousness.


We were moving again, back in the jeep it felt like. Instead of trying my eyes, I just sniffed the air softly and found myself to be in between Akumei and Gojyo. I took a deep shaky breath and opened my eyes. At first everything was blurry but slowly it cleared. I was in the back, seated in the middle of the two with Goku on the back of the jeep behind me.

"Wow that was fast." Gojyo immediately spoke.

I brought a hand to my cheek, feeling the bandages there. "What was?"

"We haven't been moving for long. You were out just long enough to be wrapped up and set in the jeep."

"Oh…" I murmured, looking myself over. My right hand and lower back and waist were bandaged from the claw marks and my left was wrapped from the fingers to past the elbow from the chain. "Thanks… Are you all ok now?"

Gojyo laughed at my concern. "It's alright, I'll be fine and they're already fully healed." He lifted one of his bandaged hands to my head, letting the silver hair run through his fingers. "You know, your human form is kind of hot too."

I laughed softly, blushing deeply at his words and trying to hide my sadness. Once again I had brought unneeded trouble upon them. What if someone had been killed by Akumei's outburst? I glanced over at him now, staring out the side of the car beside me. He seems to be in control of himself now at least. I sighed and sat staring straight ahead.

We rode in silence for a while longer when suddenly I clamped my hands to my head tightly. "What's-" I cut Akumei off before he could speak and focused.

K-Kira…? A very quiet voice spoke in my head. It sounded like a small girl, very hesitant in her words.

Yes? I thought in reply.

There was a pause and then, I'm really sorry for sending you away! I thought you were a bad person and I'm sorry! I'm trying to bring you back now… The girl seemed to be fighting back tears.

It's alright. I murmured. I forgive you, ok? Just bring us back quickly.

Ok, I will.

The voice vanished from my head and I sat up, looking at the others. The car had stopped and all were watching me. I smiled and spoke. "I'm going to be transported again now. Maybe I'll see you guys again someday? I mean, you never know. I thought my last visit was the final time."

"So did we." Hakkai laughed.

They all wished me goodbye as I gathered my things. The sword and camera bag had been placed along the floorboard out of the way. Akumei helped me from the jeep and we stood in the sand, facing the others. "Bye…" I whispered as I began glowing again. Akumei moved behind me and wrapped his arms gently around me so the light spread to him as well. With a smile and a wave I was gone, taking Akumei with me.

"Well, she's off again…" Hakkai murmured.


"I've done it." The small child announced as she sat back in the tall grass, holding her head in one hand.

"Done what?" Kyoshi asked, clueless.

"Does that mean she's back here?" Hiei demanded.

She shook her head, cringing back as she did so. "No but I'm trying my best!"

Hiei turned away angrily but Kyoshi approached the girl, a warm smile on his face. "That's alright. We know you can do it! I'm sure Kira will be happy to meet you when she returns as well." He still had no idea what she had done.

The girl wiped away a forming tear and smiled back at Kyoshi, nodding once and then closing her eyes in concentration.