Author's Note: I heartily apologize for the long wait for this chapter. I was hoping that July was going to be better than June for productivity, but it wasn't. I'm hoping that August and September are better. October is when things are going to get crazy because I'm trying to get a book released in December and I need October and November to finish that up.

Chapter 10 Brave New World

It was not a good night for Touya.

He tried to stay awake as long as possible, but eventually he gave into his body's need for sleep, and found himself drifting off. And that's when the nightmares started. He couldn't remember any specific details afterwards, but that was probably for the best.

He woke in a panic, with cold sweat dripping down the back of his neck. He lay awake in the dark, trying to get his fear under control.

It's okay, he thought. I am okay. I am safe. Risho cannot touch me here. Kurama will protect me.

At last, the panic subsided, but he knew he would not be able to sleep now. He rose from the couch and went to stand at the window. He didn't know why, but he found it soothing to look out the window even if it was too dark right now to see anything.

Gradually, the sky began to lighten. He watched the sunrise with the same awe he had felt the first time had seen a sunrise. It had been after he had been cast out of the Glacial Village; there was no sunrise or sunset there, just an endless winter. He had not been prepared for the sun's brightness nor its warmth. It was harsh and foreign to him, it hurt his eyes and burned his skin, but it awed him, and he found it beautiful. The first time he actually saw a sunrise, which ironically was after he first saw the sun, he was left speechless.

He and Jin had snuck away like a couple of naughty children and climbed onto the roof of the training hall, since Touya had confessed he had never seen a sunrise before, at least not that he could remember. Touya was still weak from his illness at this point so Jin had carried him. It was terrifying, yet exhilarating. And seeing the sun slowly rise over the mountains painting the sky a myriad of colors was well worse the risk of breaking his neck—or worse.

Touya couldn't help smiling at the memory even though thinking of Jin made his chest ache. Perhaps one day, it wouldn't.

.o.O.o.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the final boat back to the mainland will board within the hour. Please complete your checkout and proceed to the dock for departure. I repeat: this is the final trip off the island. We hope you enjoyed your stay."

Touya looked up from his barely touched tea at Kurama, who sat across from him at a small table in the hotel's lobby.

"Are you ready to go?" Kurama asked quietly.

Touya merely nodded. He abandoned his tea which was cold by now and followed Kurama towards the rest of his…their group. It was going to take some getting used to, thinking of those people as part of his group.

As they exited the hotel, Touya heard Kuwabara, who was struggling under the weight of several large backs and other miscellaneous pieces of luggage, mutter about how he wasn't a pack mule. It was a beautiful day as they followed the path down to the dock and yet Touya could sense the sadness that hung over the group.

It's because of Genkai, Touya thought. Fortunately for them, Genkai is all right, that is, if everything has gone according to plan.

He truly hoped so; Genkai was the only hope he had of surviving right now.

As if on cue, an old woman's voice called out, "Well excuse me if I'm a little insulted."

The entire group turned around and cried out in surprise and happiness when they saw the figure of Genkai walking towards them.

"You just gonna leave the old fossil behind?" Genkai said.

Touya hung back as the rest of the group ran forward to greet the old woman; he did not know her and didn't really know how to react in this situation. He frowned worriedly. If he couldn't fit in with this group, what chance did he have of fitting in with the rest of humanity?

He saw Genkai say something and the rest of the group started to head for the dock. Genkai lagged behind, waiting for him, Touya realized. He hastened to catch up to her, though he tried not to look like he was hurrying.

"So you're Touya," Genkai said, giving him an appraising look once he had caught up to her.

"Yes ma'am," Touya said.

Genkai gave a barking laugh. "No need to be formal with me. Just plain old Genkai will do."

"All right," Touya said.

He didn't think it would be hard to do that.

"Koenma has already filled me in on everything," Genkai said. "I'm to take you in and teach you how to fit in with the humans." She gave Touya another look. "Shouldn't be too difficult. You appear to be intelligent enough. But I'll see what you're capable of for myself once we get home and we'll go from there." Touya nodded. "Don't worry." Genkai patted him on the shoulder. "If I can teach that dimwit Yusuke, I can teach you."

And with that, the two of them headed for the dock.

The boat trip back to the mainland was fairly unremarkable, which Touya hoped was a sign of things to come. At least this time, he handled himself with more dignity on the voyage; the trip on the way to Hanging Neck Island had been his first boat ride ever and he had not been prepared for the motion of the boat causing violent bouts of seasickness Jin had laughed at him for clutching the rail for dear life as the boat rode over the waves, but also comforted him when he vomited. This time, he only felt slightly nauseous and his legs wobbled a bit when he stepped back on dry land.

They walked through the forest, taking a different path than the one Touya had taken when he had arrived. They came out to a road, very different than those found in certain parts of Demon World. Most of the roads in Demon World, if they even existed, were made of hard packed dirt or gravel or were more like primitive trails than actual roads. Some of the larger cities were paved, but were still fairly crude. This road was black and smooth, stretching for as far as Touya could see, made of a substance Kurama called asphalt when Touya asked him about it, and painted with lines Touya could only guess the meaning of. He knew enough about the Living World to know he shouldn't crouch and touch the asphalt, though he was curious if it was actually as smooth as it looked and what texture it actually had.

In front of them was what essentially looked like a box on wheels with large windows on either side. Kurama was kind enough to explain in a low voice that this was a bus, used to transport humans places.

The driver of the bus gave Touya a long look as he boarded. Touya wore the navy blue shirt and pants from his Shinobi uniform and items called shoes and socks that humans wore on their feet. Touya had immediately hated them when he had put them on this morning in the hotel room before breakfast; they made his feet feel hot and cramped, but he would wear them with silent dignity. He supposed it was his hair more than his outfit that gave the driver pause, but at least he let Touya on.

He was joined by Kurama, who was going to spend the night at Genkai's before heading back to his human family in the city, Genkai of course, and Yukina, who was to stay with Genkai to improve upon her healing skills as a cover while she searched for her long-lost brother. The others would have to wait for a different bus that would take them directly back to the city with the exception of Botan, whom Touya had met briefly at the party and Hiei. The former had stayed with Koenma because she apparently worked for him in Spirit World and the latter had vanished as soon as they had disembarked from the ship. Touya was not grieved to see Hiei go; he had the distinct impression that Hiei despised him.

The bus ride was much smoother than Touya expected. Except for some tight corners and some close calls with small moving objects called cars that set Touya's stomach on edge, he fared much better than he thought. Still, he was happy when he stepped off the bus back into the fresh air. They followed a path through an ancient forest that gently sloped upwards. Touya would have found the walk relaxing, but his feet were incredibly uncomfortable in his shoes. Then they climbed a long flight of stone steps that led to a massive gate. Genkai, who led the group, pushed the large wooden doors open, revealing a sprawling complex with several wooden buildings of different shapes and sizes. Touya immediately felt at peace within the walls of Genkai's compound, though he couldn't say what made him feel that way.

"Touya, you and Yukina will be staying in the main house with me," Genkai said, leading them across a courtyard to the largest of the buildings. "I assume you'll be staying the night as well, Kurama?"

"If it's not too much trouble, Master Genkai," Kurama said.

"Of course not," Genkai said briskly. "There's plenty of room here. The rooms aren't much, but they should be comfortable enough."

She led them through the main house which was a strange mixture of traditional and modern decoration and showed them the rooms they would be staying in. As she had said, there wasn't much to the rooms; they were small and simply furnished, but Touya found that he liked it. It reminded him of his lodgings with the Shinobi. He thought that it would make him feel sad, but he found it comforting. Strangely, he felt like he belonged here at Genkai's compound.

He felt like he was home.