Ticking Timebomb

Chapter 59 – No Time for Fear

A/N: The last two chapters were posted during a time the site was experiencing a glitch. If you didn't get a notification, you might have missed chapters 57 and 58. If a problem arises with updates in the future, you can always check my tumblr, I post a link to each new update there!

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"Get up." His voice was a growl. Disappointment laced the words, making me cringe.

I didn't move as I was commanded. My arm was hanging from its socket and I was face down on the floor. Some distant part of myself realized this was a memory. But it felt so real...so vivid...it was hard to believe it. And it left me reeling.

I was wrenched up by the same arm he'd so callously ruined a moment before. I knew better than to scream. Knew that it would only make him punish me further.

"You're not putting your all into your training!" He threw me aside and I skidded back on my feet.

I took my stance again, as best I could, but I couldn't lift my left arm. He sneered at this, the bushy mustache beneath his nose bunching up.

It took everything I knew to defend against his latest bout of kicks and punches. But eventually he caught a single unguarded spot on my left side and trapped me in a body drop. I landed hard, trying to grapple with him even while I only had a single working arm. By then it felt like my left shoulder was on fire.

When he'd successfully pinned me and the pain had debilitated me to the point I could no longer move, he rose off me, that angry sneer still in place.

I was picked up again and without any warning he reset my arm with a sharp jerk.

He left me laying on the floor the dojo then, tossing a bottle of water towards me. It rolled across the wood and there it remained, abandoned.

I slept there that night.

No one came for me.

That memory blended into another...and another...and another. Until I had lost count, until I didn't know what was present and what was past.

I watched enviously as my sister spent time with my grandmother. The same grandmother who turned a blind eye to the beatings my grandfather gave me. I trained every day. Every goddamn day.

I suppose it was all I knew of a childhood after my parents.

And it's also why I had taken extra martial arts classes. I needed the release, the chance to train how I wanted and not how I was expected. I might have been his successor but I would never forgive him for the harshness he'd shown me under the guise of preparing me for the future.

Always the future.

Would there ever be a day that I could just live in the moment...and not worry about what was to come?

Each memory filtered into the next. All of them bad.

Until...

It was late. I was walking home after Kendo club and I had spent an hour or two after class thoroughly cleaning the dojo. At this hour most of the other students had gone home. The campus was deserted.

Or so I had thought, until I rounded the corner near the library and heard a shrill scream. It was both angry and afraid, but I dropped my bag and ran towards it anyway. Just ahead I could see two people, a girl wearing the same uniform I currently donned and a man who had her blouse clutched in his fist, other hand ready to strike her down.

The brunette valiantly fought back, beating her would be attacker with her school bag and sending all its contents flying.

I reached them in an instant, grabbing the guy from behind, not even caring about the noticeable height difference. I caught him in a sleeper hold, my arm wrapped around his throat. He struggled as I dragged him to the ground, fingernails gouging into my forearm. But soon enough the lack of oxygen had him passing out and I dropped him to the cement sidewalk like the piece of trash that he was.

The girl I had saved kicked him hard in the shins after, screaming something I had a hard time understanding and the worthless man passed out on the ground couldn't hear.

I stood by, not saying anything, feeling awkward. As she began to collect her things, still grumbling, I stooped to help her. I picked up fallen pens and scattered papers. The text books were all advanced classes that I didn't have the smarts to get into, which explained why I had never seen her before.

I handed the miscellaneous items over and she swiped her mussed up hair out of her face, taking them from me. "Thank you," she said. "Thank you for helping me."

"I just did what anyone would do," I replied.

"No. Not anyone." She took a moment to eye me up and down, brows furrowed, "You're Morimoto Kasumi-san...aren't you?"

She'd heard of me. That was never good.

I cleared my throat, walking a few paces away to retrieve my own bag. When I felt as if I were a safe distance away I answered her, "Yeah. That's me."

She straightened out her clothes, brushing off dust that had gotten kicked up in the struggle. "Want to go out for coffee?" she asked.

By her laugh afterwards I was sure my face had been a sight. I was shocked she'd even ask. So without thinking I just nodded and she came up to me, threading an arm through my own. "I'm Yukimura Keiko, by the way."

The memory faded away as we walked down the sidewalk, arm in arm, chatting about inane things. This day had changed my life, whether Keiko knew it or not. And the memory that came next was just as precious to me...

"Go through the forms again! You've all been slacking!" I yelled.

I was the leader of the Kendo club at school. At first the class had refused to acknowledge my authority. But we had just returned from a regional tournament...and I had won against all my opponents. Before becoming the club's head I hadn't stood out, I avoided being noticed. But when the old head had seen something in me I'd been recommended for the job. And now here I was.

I watched with a critical eye as they went through the forms again. A few of the member's strikes were off.

And then there was that orange haired kid.

He was proficient. Almost too good to be in a high school club. He'd joined at the beginning of the year, eager to learn.

And as the new club head I didn't deny anyone as long as they could prove they could hold a sword.

But today...the idiot was slacking, favoring his right side, his strikes were off and sloppy.

I marched over to him, the traditional hakama swaying around my legs. When he noticed me he shirked away, as if afraid I'd strike him.

I pulled him aside, away from our classmates, and asked, "Are you injured?"

His mouth fell open. "How did you know that?" he whispered like it was some dirty secret.

"You're not usually so sloppy," I replied.

I didn't ask when I lifted the shirt he was wearing and found a massive bruise there. It was as I had expected. "Go home. Rest."

"What? Wait, I'm fine! Let me stay!"

"Your dedication is admirable, but you're in no shape. Come back when you're feeling better."

I began to walk away, back into the school's dojo. "Oi! Morimoto-san!"

I turned with a raised eyebrow and saw him there smiling. He ran up to me, throwing an arm over my shoulder. "You can't get rid of me that easily."

He worked extra hard through the rest of the class. He fought through the pain. And just like he had every day since joining the club he challenged me to a duel at its end.

He lost. As he did every day. Because he held himself back when fighting a woman. But today...I had garnered quite a bit more respect for him than the previous times we'd fought.

And I learned that his name was Kuwabara Kazuma. Sarayashiki Junior High's second biggest delinquent.

And while he held no rank, he was certainly well trained with a sword.

From that day on I gleefully accepted each and every one of his challenges. Looked forward to them even. Until eventually...it became routine and we saw each other even outside of school. We went to lunch. We spent time with our mutual friend Yukimura Keiko.

And suddenly I didn't feel so alone anymore.

Ah. A good memory. Two good memories in fact, out of the mass of bad ones.

I wanted to hold them close, my time with Kazuma and Keiko something precious. But a blackness had begun to creep into the corners of mind. A black so dark it even blotted out the night. It filtered through everything, stealing what remained of the memory and coveting it as its own.

I knew what it was without even having to look.

I had been too lucky in recent months. I should have known better upon entering Mukuro's tank. In my current state I had no way to defend myself. I could not call on my energy and try as I might there was no way to wake myself up. I'd been trying for what felt like weeks already.

So as it formed over the memory, eating it up like a snake that had swallowed a mouse, I backed myself into a corner...and waited.

It formed in a crouch, claiming a corner of my mind as its own, and grinned. Its teeth and eyes were just as white and hollow as I remembered. It leered at me, teeth sharp and glinting even without light. Its body was once again humanoid in shape, visage darker than shadow. It managed to blend in and stick out like a sore thumb at the same time.

But unlike last time I showed no fear in the face of this monster. Powerless or otherwise. I would never give Penance what it wanted.

"Nice to see you again," I said, sarcasm lacing every syllable.

The grin grew, teeth flashing even though there wasn't enough light to cause such a reaction. But as the white eyes roved over me they narrowed to slits and the grin fell away, being replaced by a snarl that had me frozen to the spot.

"Damaged..." it hissed.

And then Penance was standing to its full height, monstrous in size, long legs crossing the divide between us in three easy strides. The monster reached for me, fingers abnormally long, darker than darkness. I reared back but not far enough. Penance caught me, those hands so unbearably cold that it felt as if everywhere it touched was burning.

I should have known, should have sensed it the second I had fallen into this unnatural slumber. When the watery abyss of Mukuro's tank had swallowed me up, I had felt my energy retreat, as if it were being filtered out into the water itself. With it went Chronos', everything I had stolen from her gone and inaccessible.

And this darkness that Penance brought...it blotted out all of her light until it was barely a spark. Blotted out everything other than this cage of blackness.

Chronos could not save me this time. I had taken too much from her. But I could still feel her there, just outside that horrible shroud of darkness, biding her time. If I gave her an opening...

But how? How would I manage that when I couldn't even call on my energy? I was starting to think this was another bout of stupidity on my part – that I should have listened to Hiei once again.

Because now I was trapped inside my own mind. Trapped in here again with this...thing.

I didn't know what depths Penance had drug itself up from...or how it had found me so easily. But its cold stare lingered like a stain on my soul that I couldn't scourge.

Penance kept a firm hold around my throat, unable to choke me because here I wasn't a real body, just a soul. But it kept me in place all the same. Its other hand turned to sharp claws and with a burst of speed it shoved those claws into the center of my soul. I felt none of it, not even when he rooted around in there, twisting and pulling, until something bright caught my eye.

Slow, so slow, Penance removed its hand. Clutched in its palm was a shock of red, so bright and thick that it glittered. And near its middle you could see a frayed piece, as if a small section had been cut off from the rest.

"Frayed...broken...stolen..." Penance mumbled, eyes traveling up and down that rope as if it couldn't believe what it was seeing.

That gaze turned to me then, glaring with enough malice to make the confines of my mind stifling even to me – the one thing that actually belonged here. I did my best not to be afraid, to keep my eyes free of any emotion at all. Penance would use what it could against me and I needed to keep my wits about me if I wanted to come out of this unscathed. Fighting him before had blackened a piece of my soul, tainted part of me that I would never get back.

I wished I could go back to dreaming, even to relive those horrible memories of my childhood, to do anything other than stay trapped here with this creature. I had no idea what it had been before Enma had thrown the twisted soul into Purgatory...but if this is what happened once you crossed through the gate it was all the more reason for me to close it permanently.

Penance's hands snapped away from my throat, dropping me into a heap on the floor. He crouched once again, both hands sliding over that tether that bound my soul to Hiei's. He plucked at the frayed piece, put it back down, picked it up again...and then mumbled something that I was happy I didn't hear.

"What is it you want?" I asked, as I rubbed at the invisible hurt that Penance had left on my throat.

It turned to grin at me, smile turning sinister, eyes crazed. "My master has died," it said, "but the goal should have remained unchanged."

Enma had controlled it. It had been the only act of vengeance the king had attempted on me. And I had hoped with his death that Penance would have gone far, far away. Because the creature did not wish for my death, it wished for a piece of my soul I just wasn't willing to give.

"You said should have, what changed to make it different?"

"I would ask of you the same," it hissed. "Why is the thread damaged? Where is the missing piece?"

I had wondered that myself. It had changed during the time we were in the past, a section had become separated from the rest – frayed just as Penance had said. I hadn't thought to ask Hiei if he'd noticed, figuring he wouldn't care either way, but now it began to worry me. Why was it broken? What could have caused something like that?

I might have assumed it was Penance itself that had stolen a piece...if it wasn't here now angry with me for the fact it was gone.

"I have no idea," I told it. And it was the truth.

Its head cocked to the side, too far for a regular human's neck. And then it moved so fast I didn't have time to escape it. Penance scuttled across the floor on its hands and feet and lunged for me. I was pinned down, its shadow body far heavier than it looked. A long tongue made of pure darkness slipped from between those horrifying teeth. It licked me from chin to temple, leaving a trail of what felt like saliva but couldn't possibly be considering where we were.

Its hands remained clamped on my shoulders, its weight holding me down. The white eyes narrowed to slits. "No lies," it said, not a question. As if he had tasted it on me.

He shoved away from me, standing to its full height, the difference staggering. "It is no use to me now, not without all its power." Penance stared down at me, eyes still narrow, its body even darker than before with its anger. It pointed one jagged finger at me. "You. You will find it. Bring it to me."

"How the hell am I supposed to do that?" I snarled. I didn't have the first clue where something like that could have gone or how it had even been taken in the first place.

It lunged for me again, my chin held in a too tight grasp between its fingers. A dark claw dragged down the side of my face. "It is your payment to make. I will not be shorted. I expect to be paid in full."

I tried to wrench my face away from it, hands wrapping around Penance's wrist. "I've already told you I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"No idea?" it whispered. "No idea, hmm." And then it began to laugh, the sound booming, rattling the very foundations of my mind.

"It was you that placed us all in that never ending darkness so many millennia ago! It was you, daughter of Chronos, that opened that unrelenting hell and poured us all inside!" it howled. "You will pay for what you have done! I will take that happiness you have been seeking for so many lifetimes and I will use it to help a true ruler ascend to the throne of time!"

It's rage festered, the air surrounding Penance filling with the cloying scent of decay and carrion. It had me sliding back on my ass, away from him as fast as my hands and feet could push me. Who the hell could he possibly mean to make the true ruler, if not himself?

But the thought struck me just as his maniacal laughter reached a crescendo, the sound so hideous it hurt to hear.

He meant for Hideki to become the ruler over Purgatory – over time itself. With Enma's death Penance had been able to switch sides, his main goal never having to deviate. He would still get what he wanted, no matter who ruled. But without Enma no one could control him...and I was sure Hideki had planned for this, had seen it coming from a mile away.

What had my ex promised this creature to make it his loyal servant?

My fear abated, being replaced by a fury so blinding I thought it would swallow me whole. Hideki had been silent for so long, I should have realized he would still be scheming, still be finding ways to ruin my life. I had questioned what I thought his main goal had been – to open the doorway to Purgatory outward so the monsters inside would be freed to wreck havoc. I had not considered that this was more than a personal vendetta against Enma and me and anyone else that had been involved with placing him into Purgatory all those years ago. And how had Hideki escaped becoming something akin to Penance? How had he come out of that doorway unscathed?

Or had he, really? Madness still had its claws embedded into his mind. Anyone willing to release the things that resided within Purgatory had to be insane, there was no other explanation.

But to think he wanted to rule over them, like some god! It disgusted me on a level I couldn't comprehend.

I was gearing up to fight my way passed Penance, to put the creature back in its place, but I never had to. A blinding light of the purest white penetrated the empty space around us. It caused Penance to pull up its arms to cover its face, as if that would save him. It screamed in agony as the light burned away the darkness.

It blinded me too, making me cover my own eyes even though all I wanted to do was cover my ears if only to block that bastard's incessant howling.

And then came the voice – soft, just as sweet as I remembered it. But held within was a new strength that hadn't been there before. Something that had come with age and experience. "You are safe now," she spoke, her voice echoing around me.

The light did not belong to Chronos. And neither did the voice.

The feeling that settled within me was one of warmth and light and pleasant things I had not felt in a very long time. The storm of her power ushered me out back into the real world, my eyes snapping open and breaths coming in fast pants that would soon have me hyperventilating if I didn't get them under control.

But I was still in the tank. Just like Hiei had been.

And I panicked.

The mask should breathe for me, I thought. But as I tried to take in great gulps of air there was nothing and the panic only rose. I kicked my legs, moving through the water, pulling at the cords still attached to my back. My fists pounded at the glass, eyes searching wildly for someone – anyone. And there they were, a few feet from the tank, Hiei and Sayuri and Mukuro locked in a battle of wills. A short distance behind them stood the others – Yusuke, Kurama, and Kazuma. And it was my orange haired friend that noticed me first and dashed to the tank.

I stopped pounding at the glass and gestured wildly at Mukuro, who was the only person who knew how to operate the damned thing. But Kazuma's eyes cast them a single glance and his face tightened in fear.

Great. They were about to let me drown because Sayuri had made an untimely appearance.

So I reached out to her, beckoning with my energy, and those burnished gold eyes flickered to me. Her lips curled into a smile just before she turned to Mukuro and then pointed at me. The other woman, much to my shock, obeyed her. And soon I found the tank emptying, the doors opening wide so I could fall forward on my knees and rip the mask from my face. I coughed and sputtered there on the floor for several agonizing minutes, the entire room having fallen silent. The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife. And what I was about to face made me cringe.

I rose from the dais, crossing my arms over my chest to save what little modesty I might have left. Outside of the green tinted water I was able to get a better look at Sayuri. Sayuri, who had moved as if to help me rise but was now being blocked by a blade at her neck. A blade I was surprised hadn't run her through the second Hiei had seen her.

She showed not an ounce of fear. And the staggering difference in the girl before me – the woman – left me breathless. She was massive in height and build, skin dark as midnight and hair of the purest obsidian. It was still cut short, in a boyish style that suited the features of her face well. She wore heavy gold makeup on her eyelids, thick lashes adding to the dramatic effect. One of her ears was covered in small gold hoops from tip to lobe.

She was stunning. And terrifying.

"Why are you here?" I asked, my raspy voice shattering the unnatural quiet that had fallen over the room.

"I've waited a very long time to see you again," she replied. "When I sensed your distress and realized I was near enough to help, I came for you."

My eyes skipped to Hiei, to see what he planned to do. But his face held nothing. His eye was no longer swollen shut and he was dressed in clean clothing – loose black pants, slip on shoes, a long black and red sleeveless tunic. The dragon tattoo on his arm was once again covered with bandages.

"How long...was I in there?" I asked. Water slid down my bare skin, beginning to from a puddle at my feet, and I shivered.

It was Kurama who answered, "Five days. A bit longer than we expected."

It had been too long I realized. I shouldn't have been in there more than a day or two. Three at most.

I swallowed, my throat dry. I took a step forward...and then another. My back...my entire body...it felt...

Whole. Strong. Magnificent.

Like I could conquer the entire world if I put my mind to it.

So when I wrapped my hand around Hiei's blade, I ignored the sting of it slicing through my palm. I drew it away from Sayuri's neck, his eyes watching me with deep hidden curiosity. But it was the anger that was most prominent, the betrayal he felt as I protected the woman beside me.

I needed to tell him of Penance. But this would have to come first.

"She's here to help," I said. I kept my tone calm, voice soft. Dealing with Hiei was sometimes like dealing with a feral animal.

My gaze bored into his own, trying to convey without words that she was not a threat. Not anymore. I could sense it down the bond, through the way her energy zinged across my skin.

It was thanks to me that this woman now lived. She would have perished five hundred years in the past along with her brother. And that alone would sway whatever decisions she made. She would obey me.

Before I could say another word, Mukuro came forward to wrench the blade out of both of our hands. Hiei let it go, offering no resistance, but I was no quick enough. It cut deep, blood spilling to the floor.

"You have a debt to pay," she said, eyes only for me. "Wrap up this nonsense. Quickly."

I pursed my lips. Not liking her phrasing, not so soon after Penance's little visit. I was sick of owing these supposed debts. But considering Mukuro had done as promised and fixed my back, I would do whatever it was she asked—within reason.

So I just nodded. She scanned me with a gaze that gave away nothing and then strode from the room without a backwards glance.

Hiei moved to pick up the abandoned sword, watching as my blood slid down its pristine surface. He wouldn't look at me. I felt my gut clench. But now was not the time to get emotions involved.

"Can you guys give us a minute alone?" I jerked my head towards Sayuri.

Hiei's face tightened with poorly suppressed anger. "Do as you please," he hissed. He sheathed his blade and in the next instant he was gone.

I hadn't been able to get a word in edgewise, to even attempt to explain. It would have to wait. I hated the feeling of festering resentment between us. It always seemed to be that way.

"He was really worried when you didn't wake up right away, you know." Yusuke approached me, all the while pulling the shirt he was wearing up over his head. He handed the garment over to me when he got close enough. "You shouldn't have just dissed him like that."

"How did I diss him?" I said with a roll of my eyes as I tugged the soft cotton t-shirt on, giving Yusuke a nod of thanks.

"I don't know," he replied with a sarcastic shrug, "You kinda just kicked him out so you could spend a moment with your long lost girlfriend."

I glared at him, lips pursed into a tight line. "You know that isn't true."

"Sure I do, but does he?" He waggled his eyebrows at me then cuffed Kuwabara around the neck so he could haul him out before he had a chance to ask any questions. Kurama shook his head at me as he followed, disappointment written across his face.

I stuck my tongue out behind his back just as he slipped through the door.

Bastards. The whole lot of them.

Alone now, I looked up...and up...at Sayuri in disbelief. "How did you even get in here?"

She laughed, the sound like melting chocolate. "I killed several of Lord Mukuro's guards...and when she came out to greet me herself I gave her an offer she couldn't refuse."

"An offer?"

There was a brief flash of pain in her eyes, a sadness that had been buried for so long resurfacing. "I gave her my brother's heart."

"Excuse me?!"

"I had planned on offering it to you, should I ever see you again. But I don't think she would have let me come to you otherwise."

I felt like I was going to be sick. The heart Hiei had left behind hadn't been lost...but it might as well have been considering who had possession of it now. "Does Hiei know?" I asked.

She shook her head. "No. He wasn't with her when she came to find out who was causing such a ruckus. And then she brought me straight to you."

I should thank her, I thought. Thank her for saving me from Penance. But the words didn't come. I was irrationally angry over the fact she'd given away the heart, as if I'd had any right to it to begin with. But we had all suffered so much...and worked so hard to find and obtain the heart. Caius had died in order for us to gain the power his heart would give us.

"She didn't tell him?"

Sayuri's lips quirked in a weird little smile. "No. And I don't think she will until she needs to use it as a bargaining chip."

That's what I'd been afraid of. And I wanted Hiei to have it even less than I wanted Mukuro to. Before I had been brought here, before the missive of summons I'd been sent by Mukuro, Takahiro had told me some things. He was trying to prepare me for the worst, for the future that was a constant weight on my shoulders.

If Hiei ate the heart the cycle my sister had spent years trying to break would only continue. And with all the cards in the deck stacked against me it wouldn't hurt to do the exact opposite. I would eat the heart. Whether my body could handle the shift it would cause or not...it didn't matter. I had no other choice. I wasn't about to let someone else carry that burden. I had never wanted to drag any of them down with me.

"Your emotions are conflicted...and sad." Sayuri reached out a hand and cupped my cheek. It took every ounce of my willpower not to flinch away from her.

Instead I reached up and wrapped my fingers around her own and pulled her palm away from my face. I let her hand go shortly after and so no misunderstandings would ever be between us, I looked her in the eye and said, "I am in love with Hiei."

She looked away from me then, dragging a hand through her short hair until it was buried in it at the nape of her neck. Her eyes stayed trained against the far wall, but I would almost say she looked sheepish. "I realized that as a child. And at first it had made me angry. I wanted to train, become strong, not only to avenge my brother but to perhaps rightfully claim you as my own as you once did with me."

"I never wanted that Sayuri. I did it to save your life."

"I know that now. It's been...many years. Much time for contemplation." Her eyes flicked back to me, the gold I had once thought so similar to Caius' now pierced me to the spot. "I am not so naive anymore. Nor am I so blinded by outright resentment. What is past is past. What is done is done. I had other reasons for seeking you out."

"Other reasons?"

She paused, the hand once buried in her hair straying towards her neck. There, between where shoulder met throat, was a prominent scar. The tissue had healed lighter then the rest of her skin – teeth marks. My teeth marks.

"I...have found someone I wish to become bound to. Do you...understand what that means?"

"I-I uh, probably should," I said with a blush. "But..."

"It's okay," she said with an understanding smile. "I'll leave it up to him to explain."

"Who?"

But she ignored my question, skipping over it as if I hadn't even spoken. "I need you to free me, Kasumi-san."

"Free you?" I asked, my tone incredulous. "I didn't think that was possible."

She opened her mouth, a reply prepared, but was abruptly cut off when the door was thrown open. A man I did not recognize, wearing stone like armor, his face completely covered other than his piercing gaze. His eyes glided across the room until they landed on the two of us.

Even with a benign smile still plastered on her face, Sayuri moved so I was hidden behind her massive form. She took a stance that could not be played off as anything other than aggressive. And the man who had entered laughed.

He made no move to hurt either one of us, but I could sense animosity and blood lust leaking from every one of his pores. The look he cast me spoke volumes on what he thought of humans. "My name is Kirin. By orders of Lord Mukuro I have come to retrieve you. She has grown tired of waiting."

As if we'd been here for hours instead of just minutes. Something was off. I had no doubt Mukruo did not like to be left waiting...but I was certain she would not have called for me so soon.

The man, Kirin, stepped forward, picking his way around the medical equipment. He was not at all intimidated by the growl Sayuri released at his approach. If anything his eyes seemed to alight with some kind of twisted humor.

But when Sayuri opened her mouth to reveal a bed of glowing embers within her throat Kirin paused, thinking twice about coming near us.

"What manner of beast are you?" he breathed, eyes wide.

"One that will pick the flesh from your bones and feast on your entrails, you spineless cretin."

I made a vague noise of disgust at her words. Sayuri just shooed me behind her further, a wariness in the stance she took. Whoever the hell this guy was, he was no joke.

"You little bitch-"

Sayuri cut him off, tone sharp and unyielding, "You smelt human and came to see if you might find your supper. Take yourself elsewhere for your meal."

Kirin's eyes grew wrathful and I thought he would attack Sayuri. But a stern shout from outside the door had him freezing. It was like looking at a child with their hand caught in the cookie jar. Except I was the cookie.

Kirin took a single look at Mukuro and then walked from the room with what little dignity he had left. She eyed him the entire way, even making a point to turn and watch him as he walked down the hall.

When she was certain he was gone, she turned to me, "Come. It is time."

I could not have known what the other woman had in store for me—that it would cause more chaos. I had no time to prepare, no time to contemplate. Not even time to put on proper clothing.

Because Mukuro had brought me to an arena. One where I could see and feel the eyes of my friends on me. Where I could see Hiei, standing on a balcony, arms crossed over his chest.

He made no move to help me.

And I wouldn't have wanted him to.

Even though I was staring at death incarnate.

I wondered if there would ever come a day where I thought back on my choices and did not regret every single goddamn one of them.

. . .

A/N: It took me awhile to get this chapter out, phew. If you guys didn't know I have started a new fic called The Shotgun Approach. It's YYH also and I'm very excited about it. This does not at all mean this story is on hold, so no worries!

Also, please be forewarned, most of the chapter 60 is written and a good portion of it is smutty as hell. So if that kind of thing makes you uncomfortable please don't read it! The plotty bits will be in the first half.

Thanks for reading!