Chapter 9

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a city full of shit-holes. Yeah, sure, you get the history, and center city did have quite a night life. When it came to some underground, hush-hush bases of operation though? It's an effin' trash heap. Or at least that's what Severo D'Ambrosi felt about it. The twenty-something Italian mobster had high aspirations of million dollar mansions so well guarded that people would think him untouchable. Unfortunately for Severo, he was having a bit of a rough start.

He was the youngest of his kind of people starting his criminal resume at a very young age. No, he didn't have a rough childhood, and life had been fairly decent for him. The cause of his life choices was that he was greedy, which he'd freely admit with a smile on his face. Nor did he have any sympathy on those he hurt. I mean, he killed his own parents and siblings just so no one could use them against him. He was a man with nothing to lose.

That included his wealth. In recent years, he hit a dry spell in his income. In order to become the most powerful boss on the east coast, he had to hire some unique muscle that came with a hefty price tag - demons. How he discovered such creatures didn't really matter. What mattered is that he did it, and it got him to the top. They were his trump card, and he was the most feared man in Philly. But a broke one.

So, when one of his pathetic pawns came to him reporting news that there was an angel, a creature so rare that no one believed it existed, was fighting in the Makai Dark Tournament, he couldn't help but celebrate the rest of the day and night with sex, drugs, and booze.

"That angel's gonna make me rich," he would laugh repeatedly.

"And what do you plan on doing when you have to fight her," Hiei asked with a condescending undertone. Kuwabara ducked his chin down while shooting a sharp and slightly embarrassed glare towards the fire apparition's way. The human was contemplating whether he should give his favorable honor speech about how he would never hit a girl or if he should tell the truth. He didn't want to fight Koren because he knew that she was taking a sacrifice for her people, a cause she believed in. He didn't want to be the reason that she would fail if it came down to that. And what if Koren did lose a match and got kicked out of the tournament? Would she be forced to go back to the angel's realm where Kuwabara was certain she'd continue to live a lonely life? He knew that as a fighter he shouldn't possess these thoughts, but he was Kazuma Kuwabara. It was his strength and downfall to care.

Before Hiei's question, Kuwabara was merely commenting on how cool he thought Koren was. She was a strong fighter, and she was compassionate. He was happy that Koren was in Tourin's fortress rather than out in the woods alone. If he had realized how much Hiei and Kurama were actually paying attention, he would of kept his mouth shut. Kuwabara couldn't bring himself to an answer, so Hiei snorted in displeasure at the human's folly before looking back out of the window he was leaning against.

"Like I said, you'll never survive in this tournament," was his next ugly comment. The anger in Kuwabara quickly dissipated the awkward embarrassment, so he opened his mouth ready to shout some insults of his own. Before he could, however, Kurama interceded with a question.

"Did you get her the kitten, Kuwabara?"

Kuwabara's jaw smacked shut at the inquiry that sounded more like an accusation. He made a sideways glance towards Kurama to see that he was giving him a rather somber look. What? He couldn't give a girl from a thought-to-be-extinct-race, who was fighting in a tournament so that race could rule over demon world, a friggin' kitten. Why the hell were they ganging up on him all of a sudden?

"What do you expect, Kurama," Yusuke's voice entered the conversation as he suddenly walked in the room, "He loves the fuzzy things. Probably got her the kitten, so he could play with it without anyone thinking it was his." Snickers followed the comment. Hiei made an amused "hmph", and Kurama sighed shaking his head.

"SO WHAT IF I GAVE HER THE KITTEN," Kuwabara had finally snapped. "I just didn't want her to feel lonely, okay?! And that DOESN'T mean I'm a sissy!"

"Yeah," Yusuke said laughing, "because real men do that sort of thing." Which Kuwabara knew was complete bullshit coming from Yusuke. Despite all his tough talk, he showed more than once how much he cared for Keiko through not-so-tough-guy methods.

"What about the stuff you do for Keiko then," Kuwabara challenged. Yusuke visibly tensed, and his eyes changed from bright and mischievous to clouded regret. Wait, huh?

"It isn't wise to get too attached, Kuwabara," Kurama warned.

"Is that why you fed her the entire evening," Hiei scoffed, "I'm surprised you didn't hang grapes above her mouth." The fox spirit shown within Kurama's dangerous eyes as he cut them in Hiei's direction. The air thickened with heightened aura causing the four to become uneasy within each others presence while hidden beneath stoic expressions.

"It only benefits us to gain her trust," Kurama reiterated in a low threatening voice, "which is different from giving the girl false hopes of friendship."

"What's wrong with being her friends," Kuwabara demanded. Kurama said nothing as he was growing tired of the argument. "So, I get to be the wrong one here," Kuwabara growled in his own frustration. Yusuke said nothing as his face still held its dark expression. Hiei continued to stare out the window with a bored face.

With that, Kuwabara stormed out of the room.

Koren was still gazing down the corridor where Yusuke had made his exit when someone coughed behind her. Surprised by the presence having not felt it at all she whirled around with alarm. She dropped her defensive posture when she saw that it was one of Yusuke's men, one named Hokushin. His eyes were somber, and Koren could sense the distrust. Had he seen what had transpired between Yusuke and her? He must have known her origins by now and was more wary than his master.

"I was told you were need of a bath," he said simply not betraying any emotion. That's when Koren noticed the linens and fresh clothes he was holding. She simply nodded.

He then escorted her to part of the fortress she hadn't seen yet saying nothing on the way there. Finally, they reached a giant wooden door. It was at this point he handed her the tokens of hospitality and bid her goodnight. She bowed graciously as he left then opened the door to enter the baths. The room was thick with a steamy fog making vision rather difficult. She waited for a moment to try and hear if anyone else was occupying any of the pools. She heard no footsteps or splashing of water. Not that it really mattered to her. She wasn't aware of how scandalous it was considered for men and women to be naked and bathing in front of each other if not married. Angels didn't worry about such things.

As she undressed and made her way into one of the pools of water, she could smell a sweet fragrance coming from the it depths. She had no need of any other products with the scented bath. Sinking beneath the surface she allowed herself to relax as the warmth soothed her muscles. She carefully tended to her wings removing all the dried blood and dirt that accumulated over the passed two days. Her blonde hair, which was kept up in a tight bun all this time was finally let loose to float in the water soaking up the pleasant aroma. Koren felt calm and found it interesting how a simple bath could make the world's cares just float away. She leaned back against the wall of the pool and closed her eyes. Suddenly, the door opened and a rush of loud foot steps echoed in the room followed by slew of grumbles.

"Stupid shrimp...thinking he's better than everyone else," she heard Kuwabara's voice, "And Urameshi being a punk... I don't even know why I keep hanging out with those jerks."

Koren turned towards the voice seeking out Kuwabara's frame. The sound of the water moving caused Kuwabara to stop in his tracks.

"Uh, hey, who's there," he demanded uneasily into the fog.

"It's me, Kuwabara," Koren answered happily.

"Koren?! I'm so sorry, huh, I didn't know you were in here! I-I'll leave," Kuwabara stammered, and Koren could hear his footsteps returning the way they came.

"Why?" She asked shocked. Had she done something wrong?

"What do you mean 'why'? It's not right for me to be in here if you're here!"

Koren took a short moment to consider the words. Of course, she thought of the cultural differences first. All she could conclude that there was a certain propriety when it came to human males and females. She wondered if it was considered improper for Kuwabara to behold her in such a open and vulnerable way. It was a rather romantic concept, but a little silly in her opinion.

"Do you mean because I'm naked," she asked. If only she could of seen the shade of red that overtook Kuwabara's face.

"Ishouldleave," he said quickly before hurrying towards the exit.

"Please wait," Koren called out into the fog. Her voice echoed against the stone walls. "How about this...I won't look at you. You don't look at me. Use a pool on the opposite side of the room. I know it sounds strange but...I would really appreciate the company." She was getting spoiled from all the attention she was getting around the Rentai Tentai, and she found she wanted to be around the boys all the time. And yes, she knew she was being selfish. She practically held her breath as she eagerly awaited Kuwabara's response.

"O-kay..." he said slowly after some consideration. "But be real careful not to look, okay?"

Koren smiled as she turned to face the wall rather than into the middle of the room. She listened as his footsteps indicated the direction he went and then suddenly the splash of water as he entered a bath.

"You sounded angry before," she casually mentioned.

"Yeah," Kuwabara grumbled not wanting to relive the confrontation, "You could be the best of pals with someone, but you're still going to have differences, I suppose."

He had meant to, but he gave Koren something to mull over. She had always thought friendship was a force that could never be broken or at least not weakened. Whatever Kuwabara was referring to had to be a fight between him and the others. She had seen them fight before, yes, but she hadn't realized what it meant. Friendship had its downfall. It could break someone. She thought of the brokenness of the human and demon worlds. Trust shattered between people for centuries. It was a daunting task to try and fix.

She thought of Kurama's words back in the forest. Could humans and demons be completely redeemed?

"What keeps a friendship alive," she asked softly.

"I don't know," Kuwabara answered but considered the question, "You know, Urameshi can be a real jackass sometimes, but he always has my back when I need it. Kurama too. Hell, I guess Hiei has even been there for all of us. You just...You just focus on what's important. We disagree, but I can trust them. I mean, we didn't try to get this way...It just happened over time. Any hardships we've faced, we faced together. Like this one time..."

As Kuwabara continued to ramble on, Koren smiled and listened to every word.

The next day was an exciting one. For Koren at least. She enjoyed the trek from Tourin to the tournament grounds alongside the Rentai Tentai. On the way, they met up with some more familiar faces. The angel was so thrilled to see Jin rested and well. The wind master obviously held no ill feelings towards the girl as he greeted her with a giant, toothy grin. With him were Touya, Chu, Rinku (who was recovered as well though looked tired still), Shishiwakamaru, and Suzuka. They were quite the crowd.

"Man, I am so pumped," Kuwabara said cracking his knuckles in anticipation.

"Yes," Koren agreed, "I'm anxious to know who we get to fight."

"Fighting in the rain is going to blow though," Yusuke mumbled eyeing the ominous clouds that were suddenly beginning to form. Kurama noticed the darkening skies as well but was more concerned with suddenness. These don't appear to be normal clouds, he thought slightly alarmed. It wasn't until lightening and thunder start to flash and crack at an unnatural pace as the clouds began to swirl in a concentrated spot did they all realize the storm was something more.

Koren realized what the occurrence actually was, and she suddenly became sick to her stomach. Here, she dreadfully thought, in front of all these people.

A deciding crack of thunder boomed throughout the land as a flash of blinding light came crashing down right in the crowded area. Demons rushed out of the way fearing for their lives. It took a moment for smoke and confusion to clear up. Not to mention everyone's eye sight had to be readjusted. Once that was sorted, curious eyes waited to see what was produced from the sky.

Murmurs filled the air as demons gawked at the spot the lightening had struck. Expecting burnt grass and cracked earth the onlookers were dumbfounded to see a person standing. While everyone else stood in awe at the unharmed newcomer, Koren was horrified. She recognized the angel immediately.

He stood tall and was clothed only in a white toga-styled skirt while his sculpted chest stayed bare. Pale quartz-like skin appeared to glow and in striking contrast he wore wings, two on each side, that consisted of bright red feathers that faded to orange then to yellow before transitioning to brilliant blue. Bright orange hair fell to his shoulders and little tuffs of feathers that matched his wings were in place of ears sticking out from his mane. Dark eyes that were set upon a strong chiseled face with beautifully high cheekbones scanned the crowd until finally resting on Koren. Not bothering to give attention to the demons surrounding him he made his way towards the youngest guardian of his people.

"A friend of yours," Kurama asked. Koren detected a bit of disdain in the question but couldn't linger on it for long. She only nodded in response for her thoughts were focused on as to why he was here.

"He looks creepy," Kuwabara stated eyeing the stranger with distrust.

Once the angel was right before Koren, he got down on one knee and bowed his head in respect.

"Lady Koren, I'm relieved to see you are well," he addressed her as a servant would his master. As Koren's face turned tomato red she could feel her ears get hot with humiliation. Yusuke snickered behind her, and she felt eyes from all directions rest on her. Mortified, she could barely speak.

"T'challa, what are you doing here," she hissed quietly. The handsome angel looked up at her.

"The guardians have sent me to check on your progress and good health. I regret to report that we have witness some questionable things from the great fountain," he replied without missing a beat. The 'great fountain' he spoke of was a giant fountain that was located in the middle of the angel domain and structures that worked as a portal allowing them visionary access to other worlds. It could only be used when one of the guardians was there to power it, so anything of the "questionable" business T'challa was referring to was most definitely seen by at least one of her teachers. Depending on what they saw circumstances would not bode well for Koren.

"Please, stop kneeling," she pleaded still in a hushed whisper. Instantly, he stood revealing how much taller he was compared to the female angel.

"Everything okay," Yusuke asked producing a calculating stare from T'challa. Even though Yusuke found humor in the unwanted formalities between Koren and T'challa, he still didn't appreciate the sir angel's presence. It was obvious that Koren didn't want the strange angel there, and that was enough for Yusuke to feel animosity toward him.

"Yes," Koren lied, "everything's fine." Indigo eyes met her ocean blue ones.

"Lord Sariel is most interested in the acquaintances you have made," he told her. The honorific he used bristled Koren for she believed it against the equality the angels established among one another. Sariel himself didn't require such titles. If that wasn't enough to upset her, she also picked up on the coldness that T'challa tried to conceal as he continued, "He requested that I return with a full report regarding them."

Energy signals spiked behind her as Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and even Hiei heard those words. It wasn't lost on any of them that this was more than just a check up. It was warning.

"They are fighters participating in this tournament. They have shown kindness to me regardless. I will probably be fighting some of them in the near future," she answered breathlessly. She took in a breath knowing what she about to say wouldn't go well. "Now, please. Go home, T'challa."

The sir angel narrowed his eyes in defiance. "My duty is first to Lord Sariel then to you, Lady Koren." The words were not as controlled before, and the two angels stared each other down.

"Dude," Kuwabara whispered behind his hand to Kurama, "what the hell is going on?"

A/N: Eep! What's in store for Koren now that Severo has caught ear of her existence? Not to mention, what trouble is T'challa being there going to cause?

T'challa is pronounced "Cha-Choll-a".

I made an Instagram account to post some pictures of what the angels look like. As of right now, I only have T'challa up. The account is under the name "rezgurnk". Go check it out!

Also, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE vote for a pairing. There is a poll up on my bio or feel free to vote in the reviews. It's really important, guys. We're still tied with Yusuke and Kurama.

Thank yous to kouhas, Rynn, Star Charter, and ElaEnchanted21. Your kind words, thoughts, and criticisms, are SO appreciated. I would like to apologize for not replying back to them. I'm still new to all this attention, so I'm not used to the responding part of it. I will try to do better!

Once again, thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to read this story. Until next chapter!