Alice Alive

By, KKYOKO

Chapter Twenty-four: Mad World

Children waiting for the day they feel good

Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday

And I feel the way that every child should

Sit and listen, sit and listen

Went to school and I was very nervous

No one knew me, no one knew me

Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson

Look right through me, look right through me

And I find it kinda funny

I find it kinda sad

The dreams in which I'm dying

Are the best I've ever had

I find it hard to tell you

I find it hard to take

When people run in circles

It's a very, very mad world ... mad world

A bug flew into my face as I left the bright convenience store. I screamed and swatted it away from me, making the other people walking on the street give me startled glances. The plastic bag crinkled in my hand as shifted my weight to cover my embarrassed face. "For fuck's sake," I muttered, trying to calm down. "It's just a bug."

I looked around for it, because it seemed pretty big, and I saw it crawling on the sidewalk with a bent wing. It was the size of my hand, and a bright acid green. "Oh, Jesus," I said with a cringe. Then I noticed something odd about it. It had a demon's energy. What did Botan call it? A Makai insect? What was it doing in the human world? Wait – wait a minute.

Wasn't the Makai insect a precursor to the opening of the kekkai barrier?

I frowned at the bug. I knew that Sensui would be moving soon, but I guess I sort of forgot about it, what with finals and entrance exam prep. I focused and flexed a tendril of viridian energy around the insect. With a small pop, it died. I would have to tell Kurama about this as soon as I got home.

Someone made a noise beside me, an interested hm. I looked up and saw a vaguely familiar looking guy. He was a tall, older teenager, with dark brown hair and lavender eyes. He wore a red jacket and grey fingerless gloves. He was kinda cute, actually. His smile was touched with irony as he eyed the spot where the Makai insect was. "You can see them too, huh? Nice trick. Does that work on bigger things?" he asked, bringing those purple eyes to meet mine.

You know when you know something, but you just can't put your finger on what it is? That's how I felt. I knew I knew this guy. I felt my nose scrunch as I tried to place him in my memory. "Do I know you?" I finally asked, giving up.

He looked me over, examining me with interest. "Doubt it. Got a name?"

I hesitated, wondering if I should be honest. He gave me an uneasy feeling. I didn't want him to look me up or anything in case he was an axe murderer. "Alice," I answered after a moment. "What about you?"

"Well, since we're avoiding family names, I guess you can call me Kaname," he said, raising his eyebrows. "Do you have enemies or something?"

"Ah!" I exclaimed in recognition, and quickly clamped my hands over my mouth. Sniper gave me a funny look, and I forced myself not to back away. I brought my hands down and forced a smile. "Sorry, I just realized that I don't know you, it's just that you look like my friend's new boyfriend. She showed me a purikura the other day." I find that it's best to mix truth in with your lies. It's easier to look less guilty that way. My hand tightened around my grocery bag defensively, waiting to see if he bought it. I couldn't fight him off with my psychic abilities, but I could damn sure smack him with my bag of canned azuki beans and run like hell.

"Oh," he said blandly, "well, I guess that makes sense. So," he trailed off, eyes going back to the spot on the sidewalk, "does your power work on bigger things?"

I frowned at him. "I guess," I replied vaguely, wishing Kurama or Hiei was with me. They could be much more threatening than little ol' me. "Never had much of the chance to try it out."

Kaname gave me a knowing look, like he knew I was lying. But he smiled after a moment, one corner of his mouth higher than the other. "Maybe you'll get a chance soon. I wouldn't worry too much if I had your power though, and you seem like the type of girl that can handle anything."

"Thanks," I said, hoping I could get away now. "I've got to go. Nice meeting you."

His lavender eyes followed me as I backed away and turned down the street. I decided to go in the opposite direction of my house, towards the park, and then double back to go home. He didn't seem like the stalking type, but you never really know about that sort of thing. After all, being too casual with strangers was what got me killed last time.

I made it home without feeling like I was being followed, but I was later than Shiori expected me. She met me in at the genken with a worried expression, but I only smiled and told her that the store had been really busy.

She sighed and took the bag from me, looking inside. "Oh, you bought pears, dear?"

"I saw they were on sale, and they looked all right. I thought they would make a nice snack later," I told her, wondering if she were annoyed with me. She rarely got angry, and she was a very gentle woman. Actually, I don't think I'd ever made her angry, come to think of it. "I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner. I didn't mean to make you wait for important ingredients for dinner."

Shiori smiled. "Don't be silly, Alice-chan. There wouldn't have been much time for an elaborate meal anyway, and that's why I asked for canned beans. Thank you, sweetheart. All I have to do now is heat them up and dinner will be ready. Will you go and tell Shuichi-kun for me?"

I nodded, taking off my shoes and shrugging off my jacket. I smiled as I passed her and went up the stairs as quickly as possible. Getting to the landing, I gave a quick knock on Kurama's door and swung it open and shut it behind me in a rush.

He was reading a book on his bed, hand holding the book above his face, but he set it down and sat up as soon as he saw my expression. "What's wrong?" he asked, green eyes concerned.

"I saw a Makai insect," I told him, "it flew right in my face, and then I killed it, and then there was this weird guy there who was kind of cute, but definitely onto me or something, and he was asking me about my powers and being really, really curious, and then he gave me this weird "maybe you'll get a chance to use your powers on something bigger soon" line that was oddly foreshadowing, and naturally I lied to him about my powers because let's face it, you really can't trust anyone these days –"

"Alice, I sort of get the gist of what you're saying, but you should slow down before you begin to hyperventilate," Kurama interrupted, holding one of his hands up. He patted the space on the edge of the bed beside him, and I sat down. "Now, tell me everything again – preferably with a beginning, middle, and end."

I took a breath and told him what happened properly, omitting the fact that I already knew who Kaname was, and that he was in league with a guy trying to rip a hole in the kekkai barrier to bring about the apocalypse. Kurama listened patiently, frown growing more and more with every word out of my mouth. "Something odd is going on," I finished.

"I agree. Actually, earlier today I saw a Makai insect myself," he said, eyes hardening at a spot on the floor. "It was on the shoulder of one of the girls at school, but naturally she didn't notice it. I wondered if it was just a fluke, or a stray, but now I'm inclined to think otherwise. Something big is moving. I imagine it will make itself known soon enough, but in the meantime, be on guard."

"Right," I said firmly.

"Shuichi! Alice! Dinner!" Shiori called from downstairs.

Sunday, two days later, I woke up to a text message from Kurama, telling me to meet him at the Mushiori train station at seven in the morning. I had woken up just in time, I realized, since it was six o'clock. I pulled on a pair of skinny jeans, a black Dir En Grey t-shirt, and seized a pair of black, high-heeled boots. Throwing on some makeup and a jacket, I grabbed my bag and my metro card, and hurried downstairs to the kitchen.

Shiori was there, making coffee, and she gave me a smile. "Where are you off to so early in the morning, dear?"

It was still early for me, and my brain broke. "Um, just meeting someone – Shizuru –"

Shiori chuckled. "Oh, honey, are you going on a date? You don't have to make anything up, you know. I don't mind, so long as he's a nice boy."

Hiei's face flashed in my mind, and I fought the urge to laugh. "Erm, okay. I have to hurry though..." I eyed the coffee on the stove longingly, but I didn't have time for it. Instead I found Shiori passing me a generous slice of bread and I thanked her, biting into it. "See you later," I said thickly, giving her a wave with the hand holding my boots.

"Bye, dear, have a lovely time!" she called as I left the kitchen to go to the genken. I pulled on my boots then, and dashed out the door. Later I might have to correct Shiori about my imaginary boyfriend, but I could always tell her that we had a bad time and didn't get along, so I wouldn't see him again.

I sped down the street, devouring my bread in a few bites, and headed to the train station about a mile and a half away. Mushiori was only one stop away from Asaka, but I still needed to hurry. I knew that Kurama and the others might need my help against Sensui and his lackeys, and I knew that they would be impatient to get started with their reconnaissance. I pulled out my cell phone as soon as I got to the station, and dialed Kurama's number.

"I'm on my way," I tell him when he answered, scanning my card. "Did you not come home last night?"

"No," he replied, sounding tense. "There is a lot going on, remember when we talked the other day about something big moving? Well, it's begun."

I looked up at the schedule board for a train to Mushiori. Spotting one, I said, "There's a train leaving in five minutes. I'll be there in about fifteen. Platform three is where it's stopping, so meet me there, okay?"

"We're already here," he replied. "See you soon, Alice." And then he hung up on me, and I found the train and stepped inside as the doors closed behind me.

The train wasn't very crowded, being Sunday morning, but I stood by the door and hung on to a rail as the train began moving. I watched suburban houses go by, with some patches of playing fields. I yawned behind my hand and wished I had gotten some coffee to go. At least the ride passed quickly, and I found the train slowing soon enough.

There was a ding, and a robotic "Thank you for riding the Greater Tokyo Metro. We have arrived in Mushiori. Please be careful while exiting the train."

I could see Kurama and the others through the window and I waved at them as the doors opened. Hopping onto the platform, I blinked at two unfamiliar faces and Kaito Yuu. Botan embraced me and Yusuke and Kuwabara waved, and Genkai gave me a slight smile. Kurama handed me a hot cup of coffee from a nearby Starbucks, made just the way I liked it.

"There is a God," I said reverently, taking it from him with a smile. "Thank you, Kurama. All right, now tell me what's going on."

Genkai began explaining the situation, telling me about all the new psychics in Mushiori, the portal to the Makai, and how they intended to find out more about the enemy before the hole opened up. It was a quick explanation, and left me with the impression that Genkai was not dicking around and was in a major hurry to get this mystery solved. I didn't blame her. Even just in the train station I could feel a foreboding darkness in the air.

"So how long before the portal to hell opens?" I ask, sipping on my hot coffee. I winced, burning my tongue. Ow.

"Three weeks," Yusuke said, looking sort of angry.

"Oh, that's not bad then," I replied, cheerfully. "It could be tomorrow, if we were really unlucky."

"Don't even joke, Alice!" Kuwabara demanded, looking frantic. "I don't even have my powers right now!"

"What fun is the apocalypse if you can't joke about it?" I said, shooting him a teasing grin. Then I frowned. "What do you mean you don't have your powers?" I didn't remember that part at all. I felt gypped. "And where's Hiei?"

Kuwabara immediately glowered, not at me, necessarily, but in my direction. "He got hacked off because Koenma only rated him as a B-class demon or something, and my powers have been gone since the Tournament."

"Hmm," I said thoughtfully. I looked at the strangers, a guy with a really weird hairstyle that screamed 1987, and relatively normal-looking blond guy. They sized me up too.

"So, who's this girl?" the blond guy asked.

Kaito answered for me, pushing his glasses higher up the bridge of his nose. "Minamino Alice, sixteen years old, adopted into the Minamino family at the age of eight. A relatively well-rounded student, who excels at history and science, and she can run a mile in five minutes. Background: a mystery. Psychic abilities: unknown. Anything to add?" he asked me.

I stared at him, feeling my mouth tug into an uncertain frown. I glanced at Kurama, but he didn't seem entirely surprised that Kaito knew so much about me. I really didn't know that he knew so much about me – I mean, I've barely said more than three sentences to the guy since I met him in the beginning of middle school. "That's creepy," I finally said, matter-of-factly.

"You forgot to mention her ferocious temper," Kurama said, giving me a teasing smile.

Kaito blinked. "Oh, that's right. Last year you fought five girls in one of the locker rooms, and won. I suppose that can be attributed to your rather legendary short fuse."

"Legendary?" I asked.

"Well, when you get in shouting matches with Tasaka every day, people tend to form opinions," Kurama said lightly.

"Did you just get me coffee so you could tease me all morning?"

The guy with the '80s hair cleared his throat. "So, do you have some sort of psychic ability, er, Alice?" His pronunciation of my name was almost perfect.

I gave him a suspicious look.

"I'm Yanagasawa," he said quickly. "Call me Yana, if you want."

"I'm Kido," the blond guy added.

"Actually," Genkai said, "aside from me, and with Kuwabara missing his powers, Alice is probably the most powerful psychic in this group."

I felt a little surprised that she even knew that I was gifted, let alone any sort of level of my abilities. I smiled a little, feeling pleased that she praised me.

"Of course, she's completely untrained," Genkai added, brown eyes roving over me doubtfully.

"But," Kurama added kindly, setting a hand on my shoulder, "she's certainly not inexperienced. Alice has many years of fighting and killing demons under her belt. She's really quite capable."

"Well, I suppose that experience and the nature of her powers are the reasons why you have never done anything with her, is that right, Kurama?" Genkai asked, or rather said, giving him a knowing look.

"Huh?" I asked, confused. Was she talking about Kurama training me or something?

"Actually, the fact is that Alice and I would not have a compatible student/teacher relationship. She has almost no respect for me," Kurama said simply, not sounding angry at all. "And it's true; the nature of her powers does deter me from teaching her, Genkai-shishou."

Genkai gave an amused hah.

"So what can she do, shishou?" Kaito asked curiously.

She glanced at me. "What was it you called yourself? An exorcist?"

I nodded, turning to Kaito, Yana, and Kido. "I can purify a demon until he's powerless or dead."

"Interesting," Kaito said, eyeing Kurama.

Yusuke shifted is weight impatiently. "So, grandma, how are we gonna do this?"

Genkai looked us all over. After a moment, she said, "Botan, Kuwabara, Kaito, and Alice, you go with Kurama to investigate the epicenter of the portal. The rest of you are with me. We're going to find the ones responsible for this."

"All right," we agreed, and then we split up with nods at each other. Genkai took Yusuke, Yana, and Kido through the station, heading towards the middle of Mushiori, while Kurama and the rest of us headed in the opposite direction, toward a more suburban area outside of the station.

"So," I began eyeing the houses we passed as we walked down the street, "where is this portal anyway?"

Botan answered me. "Oh, the Reikai has pinpointed it in a vacant field about a mile away. I'm not sure what we'll come up against, however. It doesn't seem like we'll find a dangerous psychic sitting there, but you never know, I suppose."

"I guess you're right," I agreed.

Botan's hand went around my elbow and she sort of pulled me to the back of the group with her. "You'll have to tell me, Alice, has Shizuru been well? I haven't talked to her or seen her since we had our karaoke night a couple of weeks ago."

I sighed, taking a sip of my quickly cooling coffee. I was really beginning to get sick of this fucking cold weather. "She's doing better, but I think she's still sad. I hope she meets someone new, you know, to help keep her mind off things." I glanced at the back of Kuwabara's head, wondering if he could tell that Shizuru had been upset lately. Kaito was walking next to Kurama, talking to him in a low tone. "By the way, what about you, Botan? Do you have anyone you're interested in?"

She giggled. "Oh, don't be silly! I haven't got the time for that sort of thing! I'm very busy, as you know!"

Hm, I guess Koenma would be pretty disappointed to hear that. I could see them doing well together, actually. And it would be a pretty interesting story, discovering that you and your boss suddenly developed feelings for each other.

Botan pressed closer to my side and murmured in my ear, "What about you and Kurama?"

I watched Kurama's shoulders stiffen, amused. I knew that he could hear us. "Old news," I told her under my breath, "I've got someone else now."

Botan's expression was bright and interested. "Ooohhh! Do tell! Who is he? What's he like?" She dropped her voice again. "Does you-know-who know?" She gave a pointed glance at Kurama.

"Yes," I answer quietly. I gave her an uncertain look. "It's Hiei."

Botan opened her mouth in shock, as though she were about to scream, and then somehow stuffed it all back inside her. She grabbed my shoulder and gave it a shake. "Really?" she asked, dumbfounded. "I mean, thinking about it, yes, you two would be very good together. But, I mean, it is Hiei..."

I shrugged. "He treats me well, if you ignore insulting my intelligence in about every third sentence he says to me. He's not a bad sort, you know. I've been with way worse," I said, thinking of my lying, cheating, scumbag, son of a bitch ex.

"Well, I suppose you do challenge him, and he would be attracted to someone who does that," Botan said thoughtfully. "But you know, you don't sound too terribly excited about him. Are you sure about him?"

"I didn't say I was going to marry the guy, and anyway, I'm kind of pissed off at him for flaking out on everyone," I explained, finishing my coffee. I dropped the empty cup in a convenient trash bin along the road and looked back at Botan. Her fuchsia eyes were confused. "I'm not in love with him, if that's what you're wondering."

Her eyes saddened a little then, and she looked at Kurama's back. "I see."

"Oh my God, Botan, cheer up," I demanded, nudging her. "I told you that so you wouldn't worry about me, and now you look even more worried."

She sighed. "Well, it's just...don't you think you deserve more than that? Don't you deserve to be in love?"

I shoved my hands in the pockets of my jacket and gave her a square look. "Life isn't fair, and we don't always get what we deserve."

"Oh, Alice, you're so jaded! Honestly, you're the one who needs the most cheering up! When this case is over, what do you say we go out with the girls again, hm?" she grinned. "We could go to the amusement park this time!"

Kuwabara caught Botan's words and whipped around with a bright look. "Amusement park? I wanna go! When is this happening?"

"I think it probably would be more fun to bring the boys too," I said, glancing at Kuwabara with a smile.

"That sounds great!" Botan exclaimed. "We'll go when this case is closed!"

Kurama finally turned around and looked back at us, green eyes resting on me for a moment too long before turning to Botan. "An amusement park certainly sounds fun, but let's focus on the case, shall we? We're almost there."

"Right!" Botan and Kuwabara said together, looking ahead.

We came to a low stone wall, whitewashed, fencing in a small, unkempt playing field. I thought it might belong to one of the surrounding schools, but it was hard to tell which one. I could feel the malignant energy coming off of it in waves, hitting me like a tsunami, and saw a red haze hovering over it in the sky.

"Here," I said, stopping automatically.

Botan gave an, "Mmhm" of agreement, and we stepped through the gate and onto the grass.

Kuwabara looks around carefully and then relaxes. "This is dumb. It's just a field. Are you sure it's the center of that distortion...thing?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure," I said, giving a shudder.

Botan held her hand against her forehead like a visor, looking. "I don't see any big tunnel," she said doubtfully.

"Yeah," Kuwabara agreed, "and unless he's invisible or looks like grass, the psychic's not here either."

"No," Kurama said, explaining, green eyes narrowed in a dark expression. "The distortion zone always takes the form of a circle around its creator. Right now, we're standing on the circle's center – the psychic has to be here." He looked back at us over his shoulder. "We just have to think, if the man's not here on the surface..."

"Then obviously he must be below it," Kaito said, adjusting his glasses and looking down.

Kuwabara gave the grass a suspicious look. "Underground?"

I had the sudden feeling of being watched, and by Kurama's stiffening shoulders, I know he did too. He suddenly whipped around and dashed off, probably hearing or smelling the person who was there.

"Hey, what's up?!" Kuwabara demanded. "You see something?"

I followed close on Kurama's heels, and we went around a small storage building. Kurama stopped short, looking around with a dangerous expression on his face. His hands were held tensely at his sides, like he was ready to strike at whatever was watching us. I didn't sense a demon, so I assumed our spy was a human.

The others ran up and stopped behind us.

Kurama answered Kuwabara. "The question is, what saw us?"

Botan blinked her pink eyes. "What?"

"You mean someone was watching us?" Kaito asked. "So they already know we're looking for them..."

"They're quick," I said, closing my eyes and trying to feel out the spy. There was something at the edge of my senses, but he must have been just out of range or retreating, because I could only feel him from a second. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to give me a direction.

"You sure you're not being jumpy?" Kuwabara asked doubtfully. "I didn't notice anything."

Botan gave him a pointed look. "Well, what on earth does that prove? You've lost your spirit awareness."

"There was definitely someone," I told Kuwabara. "It felt young...male, and kind of...lost?" I thought out loud to myself. "I think whoever the mastermind is, he's recruiting vulnerable people. I don't get the feeling that he actually cares about any of them."

Kaito adjusted his glasses. "That makes sense. Genkai was right about you, Minamino Alice. You're quite strong. I couldn't even feel that we were being watched."

I felt a strange sort of annoyance come over me. "Kaito, this is going to sound kind of bitchy, but you've only been psychic for a month. I've been psychic my whole life. There is a very wide gap between you and me." Seriously, what right did he have to be surprised that I was a stronger psychic? I wish people would stop doubting and underestimating me. Now I understand more clearly why Hiei had stormed off after Koenma only rated him as a B class.

Kaito blinked, seeming to realize that he offended me somehow, but before he could say anything, Kurama interrupted.

"In any case, we should play it safe and reconvene with Yusuke's group immediately," he said, turning around and pressing his palm against the center of my back. "Botan, that briefcase is connected to the Reikai, isn't it? Let's inform Koenma." His hand dropped back to his side. There was a warning in that calming hand, telling me not to lose my temper.

"Oh, of course," she replied, quickly setting it on an eye-level crate next to the tin storage building. She popped the latch and swung it open, facing it out to Kurama. The screen was snowy for a moment, and then Koenma's baby face appeared.

"Koenma," Kurama said with a serious look on his face.

"Yes, Kurama, report," said the princeling, looking expectant and just as serious.

"The center point was barren, but I think it may be possible that they've encamped underground," Kurama informed him, eyes narrowing ever so slightly as he watched Koenma's reaction.

"Hm. Very clever," was Koenma's reply, serious expression unchanging.

"In addition, Alice believes whoever is in charge has recruited predominately young and vulnerable people, and that they are mostly cannon fodder for this so-called mastermind's plan," Kurama said, sending a glance my way. "It almost sounds like some sort of religious extremist's cause, doesn't it?"

I could see Koenma tense on the screen. "Why does she think it's something like that?"

"Well," Kurama said, seeming like he was pushing something just a bit further, "it appears we're being followed, and she got a reading off the spy."

"What?" Koenma said, surprised.

Kurama's expression didn't shift, but I got the feeling that he had just figured something out. "I'm not sure, but I'm rejoining the teams to be safe."

"Understood," Koenma said, and then Botan closed the suitcase.

"Let's go find the others," Kurama said, turning to leave the field and go back to the road.

We followed.

"This is weird," I commented, staring in front of us.

We stopped in front of the hospital, after tracing Yusuke's spirit gun. The normally bustling building was oddly quiet, and I didn't see anyone moving around inside. I remembered something about one of Sensui's psychics being a doctor, and I assumed that he had something to do with the silence.

"All right, let's go!" Kuwabara announced, not seeming to notice anything out of the ordinary.

Kurama stopped him, holding his arm out in front of Kuwabara. "Wait."

"What? I'm ready..." Kuwabara said, looking confused.

Kurama turned to face the hospital, a hard, calculating expression twisting his features. His normally warm green eyes were cold. "Just listen. It's too quiet."

Botan seemed just as confused as Kuwabara. "Well...I'll give you that..."

"Quiet is perfect," Kuwabara insisted. "It's a hospital, not a racetrack!"

Kaito looked at the building thoughtfully. "It's the cause without the effect."

"What do you mean?" Kuwabara asked, annoyed. I knew he was just impatient and itching to get inside and kick some ass, and he was frustrated because he was blind, so to speak.

"We saw Yusuke's spirit gun blast through a window in the middle of the day, yet there are no doctors, nurses, or guards taking a look at it?" Kaito said.

Kuwabara yanked him up from the ground by his collar, which probably shouldn't have been that easy, since Kaito was quite tall and rather chubby. "So what?!" Kuwabara demanded loudly, choking Kaito. He dropped him after a moment though.

"So," Kurama explained, "curiosity is one of man's most predictable forces. If people don't come to see, it's because they are not able. We assume the worst for everyone in that hospital – they're either detained, hurt, or dead, and that is why we are not being followed."

"Well that does make sense," Botan agreed. "They wouldn't walk into their own trap."

"It's too dangerous for us all – especially with Kuwabara's condition," Kurama said, thinking aloud for our benefit.

Kuwabara's face turned upset. "Jeez...condition makes me sound like I'm rabid."

"You four stay back and watch for developments," Kurama ordered, eyeing the hospital. "I'll go take a look around." Then he flew across the ground toward the quiet building, faster than I could ever dream of being.

"Hey! That's not a team decision!" Kuwabara shouted after him angrily.

"Please be careful," Botan said to herself.

I watched Kurama with rapt fascination as his rose whip appeared in his hand and latched its end onto the chain-link fence on the roof. He scaled the building then, like a superhero, and disappeared at the top.

"Ergh! That guy!" Kuwabara complained, kicking the ground. "Doesn't he get that we're a team?!"

I sighed, glancing at Kuwabara. "Look, while it's true that we're a team, right now the one who is the most capable and has the most experience among us is Kurama. That's what makes him the taichou. Let's just watch his back, Kuwabara, okay?"

Kuwabara huffed, folding his arms, irritated. "This sucks."

"Oh, stop complaining, would you?"

"Oh, what, are you second in command or something, Alice? Because you're the strongest psychic on this team right now?" he said, almost sneering but not quite. Honestly, I knew that he was just angry because his powers were gone, but shit. My patience was wearing thin.

"Kuwabara, you're starting to piss me off."

"Well good!" He yelled, waving an arm through the air. "At least I won't be the only one angry now! Look at all of you, all smug because you got your powers and I don't – ow!"

Kuwabara hopped around, holding his shin where I kicked him hard. He gave pained noises and winced at me. There are only two ways to stop one of Kuwabara's tantrums – hit him until he shuts up, or be Yukina and talk to him like you're very disappointed in him. Since I'm not the love of his life, I kicked him in the shin.

"That was mean!" he complained, finally letting his leg go. But it looked like he forgot his anger at least.

"Alice, you're quite the tyrant, aren't you?" Kaito said, adjusting his glasses in amusement. "And you wondered about your so-called legendary temper."

"My boots are still on my feet, Kaito," I told him, giving him a warning look.

"And they hurt," Kuwabara advised him.

Botan sighed. "Oh, honestly, you three, can't you see that our team is at stake? Kurama's off on a solo mission, and we're just standing here bickering at each other. It's not even like we're on a mission at all! It's completely unprofessional!"

I twitched at the feeling of being watched again. "Shh!" I said, closing my eyes, feeling my shoulders tense. Where were they this time? I felt them out with my senses, but they felt further away then last time, and it was a different sort of presence too. However, it was vaguely familiar...wait...if I felt like I was being watched from a distance, then the most likely culprit would be Sniper, wouldn't it? Yes, definitely him. I could see the red of his jacket in my mind, the flash of his dark violet eyes, a sardonic smile. I felt an intention to attack, but something was holding him back. Maybe Sensui didn't think it was a good time yet.

I opened my eyes to find everyone looking at me intently. I didn't answer their looks right away, but instead gave the hospital a once over with a critical gaze. It was probably safer than staying out in the open, even if Kurama wouldn't like it.

Suddenly, a man went sailing out of a first story window, skidding in the dirt like a ragdoll under the force of his momentum. The window wasn't far from a door, so I waved the others and ran for it. "Look's like Yusuke's found the psychic – let's get in there and out of the open! We're being watched again!"

"What?" Kuwabara demanded, quickly following me. Kaito and Botan were slower, but still on our heels. We cleared the courtyard in under a half-minute and burst through the hospital doors to find ourselves in a long corridor. I felt the flash of the Doctor's territory, but it quickly died away with him.

"The territory disappeared," Kaito remarked. "Yusuke must have knocked the psychic out."

We ran up the corridor, toward the broken window, and found Yusuke and Yana looking pleased. There was another guy there too, wearing a red sweatshirt, but I didn't know him. Yana was in a nurse's uniform with a huge, bleeding slice across his stomach, which confused the hell out of Botan.

"Hey! Urameshi!" Kuwabara yelled, waving.

"Should I even ask why Yana is in a nurse's outfit?" Botan said.

Yusuke laughed, setting his hands on his hips. "Hah, you know, playing doctor, and then one thing led to another."

Genkai came up beside him and looked us over. "Botan, he could use your healing powers."

"Right!" Botan agreed, and immediately saw to Yana, who gave her a grateful smile.

Puu squeaked as he flew above Yusuke's head, and Kurama, Keiko, and Shizuru appeared in the corridor with us.

"Well," Kurama said, "this certainly is a reunion."

Kuwabara noticed his sister and set his hands on his hips. "Hey, sis, what are you doing here? You sick?"

"Yeah, bro, sick of tracking you down," she retorted, giving him an annoyed look. "What kind of trouble are you in?"

"Well, uh, that's a pretty long story actually you know. Tunnels and stuff," Kuwabara answered vaguely.

Keiko popped her head around Shizuru, who had mostly kept the smaller girl hidden behind her height. Yusuke nearly crapped himself.

"Keiko?" he asked, dumbfounded. He knocked Puu, who was flying in his face, on the head. "Damn it, Puu, you're like the get-into-danger tour guide!"

Keiko caught Yusuke's spirit beast. "Don't you blame this on him Yusuke. We only came because we were worried about you."

We stood in the hallway for a bit, telling each other what happened. I learned Kido had his spine cut by the Doctor, and we told them about being watched and followed. I let them know what I sensed outside of the hospital, and informed Genkai about my feelings on the type of people we were dealing with.

Then I could hear sirens heading toward the hospital at top speed. We all tensed went to the door we came through, seeing lights flashing in the distance.

Genkai looked back at us. "We'd better move it. This is a crime scene we don't want to be part of."

Kaito stopped. "I'll stay here and make sure Kido receives good treatment."

"Yeah, well, hope he can actually walk again," Yusuke said, and then sped off and the rest of us quickly followed. We dashed out of sight from the hospital at exactly the same time the police stopped in front of it.

After we escaped, we stopped at the train station and Yana waved us onto the train to take us back to Asaka. Genkai told him to watch his back, and she'd be in contact soon. We boarded the rather crowded train, and squished ourselves together. Thankfully, it wasn't summer, so it wasn't overly warm or anything. Although, I did spend most of the ride with Keiko's elbow digging into my stomach. Kurama was standing behind me, so I couldn't move out of the way without squishing uncomfortably against him.

"What time is it?" I asked, feeling annoyed.

Botan glanced at her watch. "Oh! It's five o'clock already! We were out all day – no wonder I'm hungry!"

Yeah, that explained the emptiness in my stomach. After all, the only thing I had to eat today was a piece of bread and a cup of coffee. I wondered what Shiori was making for dinner tonight. Whatever it was though, I hoped it would be ready by the time we got home. She usually had dinner by about five-thirty, so maybe our timing would be good after all.

The train slowed, and we got off at the station and split up with everyone with a wave. Yusuke left with Keiko, hands shoved in his pockets, intending to walk her home. Botan took off for the Reikai almost immediately on her oar, and Kuwabara and Shizuru headed home too, leaving in same direction as Yusuke and Keiko. However, I knew that they would have to turn down a different street later. And Genkai just disappeared.

Kurama and I walked home side by side, and I knew that he was thinking by his calculative silence. I looped my arm through his, drawing him out of his thoughts, and gave him a slight smile.

"We only know so much, you know. We don't need a brain like yours breaking," I teased.

Kurama sighed. "I'm just going over what we can expect from the enemy."

"Cheap shots, cruelty, and desperation," I answered instinctively, automatically. "I'm serious, whoever the brains behind this is probably some sort of fanatic having an existential crisis and he's got his cult members brainwashed and drinking Kool-aid. I mean, look at the Doctor – he was the trap for Yusuke for a reason. This mastermind wanted Yusuke to kill him, and I bet it won't be the last time we may be forced to kill a human on this case."

"Yes," Kurama agreed knowingly, "and that's what worries me. It truly seems that whoever this mastermind is, he hates humans very much, and he wants to bring out humanity's darkest side to prove a point. Whoever this is believes that humans are inherently evil, and that's why Kamiya was the trap for Yusuke."

"Well," I said, "we already know that he'll end the world to save us all, so I guess it can't get much worse." I passed a wooden gate and knocked on it.

Kurama blinked and cracked a smile at my hand.

"Better safe than sorry," I explained.

Kurama walked me to school the next morning and then left almost immediately. He told me to let everyone know that he wasn't feeling well, and went home with a stomachache. In actuality, he told me, he was going to the Reikai to talk to Koenma and get a little more information out of him. Kurama had suspicions that Koenma wasn't telling us everything, and I felt a little sorry for the princeling. Kurama's interrogation tactics were ranged from pleasant conversation, to downright terrifying, to incredibly painful. Changed or not, I still thought he was quite a sadist.

He asked me not to tell anyone his suspicions yet. He wanted to confront Koenma first.

"All right," I agreed, standing at the school's gate with him. He was wearing his uniform for appearance's sake, and it was perfectly crisp and ironed. He should have at least pretended to look a little queasy, but I guess no one would question the great Minamino Shuichi, who had never been sick a day in his life – a fact that Shiori was always boasting about.

"Also," he added, narrowing his green eyes at me, "don't you dare leave this school alone. You said it yourself – our enemy is a band of desperate misfits – don't go tempting fate."

"Oh, for God's sake, would you just leave already?" I complained. "Fine, I know. I won't leave this school without Kaito, and if something happens, I'll hide under my desk and pretend I'm invisible. Happy?"

"Hardly," he retorted, "but it'll do. If something happens, do find a better hiding place than under your desk, please. Or if you have the opportunity, take the chance and run to Sarayashiki. Yusuke can certainly keep you safe."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Fine," I agreed more irritably than I felt. Kurama's mother-henning did annoy me, but I knew he meant well. I just really liked to give him a hard time in retaliation. And he knew it.

He gave an exasperated sigh. "I'm leaving now. Stay out of trouble, and I mean it." He turned and walked away, heading back the way we came. He tossed a glance back at me when he was halfway down the street, and made a motion for me to get inside the school now, with a rather threatening look in his eyes. I obeyed, and turned and dashed up the steps. Kaito was there, blinking at me.

"Shuichi isn't with you?" he asked, confused.

"Not today," I answered, glancing over my shoulder. Kurama was out of sight now, probably already halfway to the Reikai. I sighed in relief. He got annoyed with me occasionally, yes, but I very rarely saw that look in his eyes directed toward me. That look that brought hard, icy gold into his green eyes, a look that said, Youko is here, and getting angry. It made my heart skip a beat in fear. Part of me knew Kurama would never hurt me, but another part of me knew that there was more than one way to hurt someone, and Youko Kurama knew them all. While annoying him was a hobby of mine, even I knew when to stop.

Kaito and I walked inside together, exchanging our shoes, and headed up to the third years' section on the top floor. Our classes were beside each other and we stopped in the hallway, between doors.

"About yesterday," he began, adjusting his glasses. "I think I made you angry with something I said, and I wanted to apologize to you. I honestly didn't mean to make you sound incompetent or weak. You were right – there really is no comparison between a person who's been psychic a month, and one who's been psychic her whole life."

"Well, what I said was pretty harsh and cold," I told him, feeling a little bad. "I'm sorry too. I have the tendency to be...not nice. Especially around new people."

"Well, you strike me as a hard person, but it's not necessarily a bad thing. I see it in older people all the time, but it can only mean that you're wise. Living makes people see all sorts of things, and perhaps you've just had your fair share of suffering already," Kaito said, kindly.

"Yeah," I agreed, and then the bell rang. "Kurama wanted us to walk home together, so I'll see you later."

Kaito nodded and we went into our classrooms.

School was a drag that day, and I wanted nothing more than for it to be over. I barely listened to any lectures, hardly took any notes, half-heartedly did my worksheets, and grudgingly wrote down my homework assignments. There was too much going on in the universe for stupid homework. Like, we all could be out right now, saving the world – but no, I gotta be stuck in this motherfucker here, doing some goddamned algebra.

I plopped my face on my desk and watched the clock tick closer to lunch. I contemplated screaming. The day wasn't even half over yet.

"Minamino, pick your head up and pay attention," Tanaka-sensei said, rapping her hand on the corner of my desk. "It isn't nap time."

I heard Tasaka cackle somewhere behind me, as I picked up my head and offered my math teacher a sweet smile. "Sorry, sensei, I got a little dizzy."

Her mouth pulled into an uncertain frown, as she looked me over critically. "I know you said Minamino-kun wasn't feeling well...are you sure you're not sick too? It's okay if you want to go to the infirmary."

I needed to stay close to Kaito, so I shook my head. "I'll be all right." And I pulled my math book closer to me, and she nodded and turned back to the chalkboard, continuing her lecture. The page blurred as I drifted off into my thoughts.

Eventually, we were going to face another attack from Sensui's team. Eventually, I was going to run into Hagiri Kaname again. I wondered how he would react. When I met him on the street, he didn't seem very intent on attacking me then, but yesterday, outside of the hospital, he seemed more willing. Chomping at the bit, more like. I wondered if he really knew what he was involved with. I wondered why. He didn't seem like the type of guy to be unpopular. Maybe he was disenchanted with the world around him?

I knew we were going to meet Mitarai soon too. He was an interesting character. He was a real sensitive kid, easy pickings for bullies, unconfident, and rather weak-willed – at least at first. It seemed like he started to grow a pair as he hung around the group, from what I remember about the series. I had a feeling that I wouldn't like him very much, if only because he was too emotional.

My thoughts turned to Hiei. I hadn't seen him in days again. I knew he was the type of man to come and go as he pleased, but even so, I sort of missed him. Some nights he would climb through my window and sleep beside me in my bed, keeping me warm in the late winter nights. He hadn't done that in days though. I think he was avoiding Kurama, and any chance for Kurama to manipulate him into helping to save the world. Kurama would know the instant that Hiei came within a mile of the house, which is why he avoided it, probably.

I sighed. We still hadn't made it to a love hotel. It seemed like the universe didn't want me to have a sex life at all. I was going to grow old, become a cat lady, and die alone.

The bell rang for lunch.

Finally, three and a half hours later, I was free. I met Kaito in the hallway and we walked downstairs together, and of course Tasaka had something to say about that.

"Ooh! Minamino, are you dating that ugly glasses-wearing nerd?" he sneered, as he dropped down beside me on the stairway. I really didn't understand his obsession with attempting to bully me. He knew I was his crush's friend, and a smart guy would be trying to get on my good side so that I could talk him up to Kitajima. However, like Kurama, she wasn't in school today either. I don't think she was sick though, actually, it seemed like she mentioned something about visiting a grandparent in Sapporo over the weekend. Probably it had just turned into a longer visit than expected.

"Are you fucking five?" I asked Tasaka, giving him an incredulous look.

There was a flash of anger in his eyes, and his hand went around my wrist with bruising force as we stopped on a landing. "Shuichi isn't here to defend you today," he said darkly.

The other students had mostly gone downstairs by now and left, leaving Kaito, Tasaka, and me on the landing alone. Glad for that, because I didn't really need to be caught fighting again, I used his hold on my wrist against him. I dragged him toward me, forcing him to bend over, and drove my bent knee into his stomach.

"Gak!" he coughed, letting me go immediately.

"Let's go, Kaito," I said, moving toward the steps, but Tasaka recovered faster than I expected him to. Fingers bit into my shoulders as he dragged me back and shoved me into a wall. He got into my face, but I was focused on Kaito standing behind him. He was frozen, wide-eyed, but he looked like he was coming back to himself. "Don't," I told him, ignoring Tasaka. "Not your territory – it'll complicate things."

"But –"

"Oh my God, Kaito, are you a genius or not? Get a teacher, you nimrod!"

Kaito blinked, tossed me a worried look, but ran up the stairs in search of some authority figure.

"You know, I really can't stand you," Tasaka snapped, hands tightening around my arms. I just stared at him, knowing that the moment I moved to strike him, some teacher would see me and call me out for fighting – defending myself or not. "You think you're so smart, so above everyone, and you walk around with your nose stuck in the air like you're a goddamned princess. Well, I got news for you, bitch, you ain't nothin' without that stupid Shuichi around you."

"Oh!" I exclaimed, finally understanding. "I see now why you try and push me around now – you can't get away with bullying Shuichi-kun, so you take out all your feelings on the person closest to him. Your hate for him outweighs your love for Kitajima, doesn't it? See, I knew you weren't good for her. You can't even treat her friends properly because of some guy you hate." I gave him a cold smile. "How pathetic."

He dropped his hold on me, stepping back, stormy expression on his face. His hand flew before I could stop it or duck out of the way, slapping me with enough force to turn my head. Pain blossomed in my cheek, but I forced any reaction to it down, feeling a disturbing laugh bubble up instead, spilling out of my mouth.

Tasaka looked at me, infuriated, and I could see the telltale violent red in his aura. "How dare you laugh at me! You should be scared of me, I just hit you!"

"Oh, is that what you want?" I said through my laughter, turning my face towards him. "A little brat like you can never scare me. Come back in thirty years, why don't you?"

"I'll do it! I'll absolutely terrify you!" he shouted, grabbing me up again, shaking me hard. I could only giggle at him some more, because his attempts at making me fear him were pitiable at best.

I heard a loud gasp above us. "Tasaka Kenta! Let Minamino-chan go this instant!" I heard the familiar sound of Tanaka-sensei's voice shout.

Tasaka let me go immediately and stepped away as Tanaka-sensei stormed down the stairway. Kaito followed her, worriedly looking me over.

"How dare you manhandle a girl like that! Detention! Get upstairs to the staff room immediately, or I'll have you expelled faster than you can say ruined for life."

He dashed upstairs, not even sparing a moment to shoot an angry glance at Kaito, and disappeared out of sight. Tanaka-sensei noticed my reddened cheek straightaway, and her scowl deepened. "Oh, I'll give him hell for this. Are you okay, Minamino-chan?"

I took a breath and nodded. "He doesn't usually bother me when Shuichi-kun is around, but since he's out today, I guess Tasaka thought he had a chance to bully me."

She shook her head. "I can't believe what I walked in on. You'd better stick with Minamino-kun as much as possible until graduation. I'll let the other staff know about what happened, so they can keep an eye out too. Go on home and put some ice on your cheek. I hope it doesn't bruise...girls shouldn't have marks on their faces."

"Thank you, sensei," I said, holding my stinging cheek and giving a slight smile.

"Kaito-kun, be sure to walk her home, okay?" she said, turning to face him with a firm look.

"Of course," he answered promptly, "let's go, Alice." He took my elbow and led me down the stairs with a nod to Tanaka-sensei. We changed our shoes and left the school quickly, and found Yusuke and Botan at the end of the path, looking like they were waiting for us.

"Hey, you two! Where's Kurama?" Yusuke asked, glancing at us. His brown eyes zeroed in on my cheek immediately. "What happened to you? Looks like someone hit you in the face."

"Someone did," Kaito answered as Yusuke leaned closer, tipping my chin up to get a better look at me.

He frowned and set his hand on my cheek carefully, and his brown eyes narrowed. "Either a guy or a girl with really big hands hit you. So tell me, you got an abusive boyfriend in there or something?"

"No, just some stupid boy who takes his hatred of Kurama out on me. He's a twat," I explained. "Don't bother going in after him. He got caught, thanks to Kaito, and I'll set him to rights later. He's not even worth your time."

"Well, I can guarantee that Kurama will be pissed once he sees your face," Yusuke said, dropping his hand.

Botan stepped forward, looking at me critically with her pink eyes. "I think I can heal some of the swelling, if you want," she offered, raising her hand. I could sense her energy swirling around. I nodded and she placed her hand on the side of my face, and a cool feeling soothed the ache. "It's still a little red, but it'll clear up in an hour or so," she said, letting her hand fall back to her side.

"All right, let's go get Yana," Yusuke said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"I already have him meeting me at the train station," Kaito said. "He should be on his way to Asaka right now. His school is really close to the station, so it's likely he went right over."

"Oh, yeah," Yusuke said as we began walking, "any news on Kido?"

"He's stable," Kaito replied. "They don't know if he'll walk again or not. He hasn't woken up yet."

"Hey Botan, maybe you can use some of your fancy healing powers on Kido, huh?" Yusuke suggested, glancing at her.

She frowned. "Well, I could try, but I think Genkai would be able to do more good than me."

"Yeah, maybe, she did bring that doctor back to life."

We went to the station and picked up Yana, who smiled at all of us, and went back to Yusuke's apartment. His mom was gone, but Genkai and Keiko were inside waiting for us. They had helped themselves to some tea and were patiently drinking it together.

We all sat down, and Botan quickly explained to everyone about the miscalculation since Reikai did a depth analysis of the tunnel. She informed us that we had a week at the most, and told us about being able to get to it underground by the way of Demon's Door Cave.

"Nice name," Kaito said.

"Where's Kuwabara?" I asked, looking around.

"Ah, he went to some dumb concert," Yusuke answered, plopping down at the sitting table with Keiko and Genkai. "Oh, yeah, where's Kurama?"

"He's missing," Kaito answered vaguely, tossing a glance at me.

"What? What do you mean he's missing?" Yusuke demanded, jumping to his feet in rage.

"Well, he wasn't at school today," Kaito said.

I opened my mouth to explain, but Yusuke wanted to rage instead. "Hiei, then Kuwabara, and now Kurama? You can't count on anybody! Am I just gonna have to do this all alone?!"

Genkai threw the half-full teapot at his head. "Shut up."

"Ack!"

I cleared my throat. "Kurama went to talk to Koenma in the Reikai. I'm sure he'll be back soon, so don't worry."

"Oh," Yusuke said, sitting back down, rubbing his forehead. "What'd he want to talk about?"

"He didn't say," I lied.

"Hmm," Genkai said. I think she knew I was lying but didn't care enough to call me out on it. "Well, now that we know where these psychics are hiding, we'll be able to mount an attack. But it must be carefully planned."

"I've heard of Demon's Door," Yana said thoughtfully. "It's like an urban legend."

Kaito contributed. "It's said that scorned lovers go there to die, which shows our enemies like irony. If we go unprepared, it'll be suicide as well."

"Hey!" Yusuke snapped, "I don't need a lesson from you too, rookie." He turned away to leave, angrily muttering, "Stupid freckles."

"Hold on, Yusuke," Keiko said, watching his retreating back with trepidation.

He tensed. "Damn it! Everyone just leave me alone! I'm going to the arcade!" He slammed the door behind him as he left into the rainy night.

Keiko sighed, holding Puu, and sat back down. "I don't know what's gotten into him. He shouldn't be going out alone, should he?"

Genkai glanced at her. "Give him space. If he's that dumb, he deserves to die." She sighed. "But I suspect he's worried about Kuwabara."

"I wouldn't take it personally, Keiko," I said, even though I felt a bit annoyed at Yusuke's outburst for her. He really should've treated the girl he loved more gently. "He was just blowing off steam."

Keiko sighed and held Puu closer to her, pressing her cheek against his head.

A few hours later, after Yusuke came back from the arcade and went back out with Botan to find Kuwabara, they came back dragging a soaking pile of Kuwabara and all his friends into the apartment. Mitarai was with them, too. All were unconscious and injured, forcing Genkai and Botan to call upon their healing powers and the rest of us to bandage everyone up as best we could. Mitarai never woke up, apparently having expended all of his spirit energy and suffering from a stomach wound, but Kuwabara and all of his friends came around for a moment or two.

Yusuke demanded to know why Kuwabara had saved Mitarai, and Kuwabara's reply was more or less that he just needed saving, and then he passed out again.

The other guys, Kuwabara's friends, were completely freaked out, and really stunned by Mitarai's attack on them. Kurama had appeared by then, luckily, and was able to calm them down with some dreamflower pollen after he got the story out of them. He made them forget about what happened, and sent them home.

Kurama, Keiko, Kaito, Yana, and I went home next. Kaito and Yana headed to the train station to head back to Mushiori, and Kurama and I took Keiko home on the way to our house. The rain had mostly died down on our way to Keiko's, but she lent us an umbrella, tossing a wink at me.

"Keiko's adorable," I said, opening the umbrella and holding it up for us. The umbrella was definitely only meant for one, but I didn't mind sharing. "Yusuke snapped at her earlier today, and she didn't really deserve it."

"I'm sure he didn't mean anything by it," Kurama said, glancing down at me. "Here, I'll hold the umbrella. You're not holding it high enough."

I passed it to him as thunder rumbled in the distance. "Is it going to rain again?"

He inhaled, using his nose to determine his answer. "We have time to make it home before it does again. It'll clear up by the morning. By the way, I think we might as well skip school tomorrow. I would like to interrogate Mitarai, and since things are beginning to escalate, I'm not comfortable having you away from me for so long."

My heart skipped a beat, and I felt my mouth twist as I forced my surprise down. If we were anyone else that might as well have been a love confession, but because we were Kurama and Alice, I knew better. "Of course," was all I said, sounding surprisingly neutral.

Kurama and I went to back to Yusuke's apartment after Shiori had left for work. He was wearing his uniform, even though he was ditching, but I didn't even bother with mine. Shiori had left early and seen Kurama in his ironed, fuchsia horror show, and that was enough. I put on a pair of acid green skinny jeans, a white graphic tee, and a slouchy light jacket.

"You're shorter than usual," Yusuke said when he opened his door and saw me.

I stuck out my foot to show him my flat boots. "I may have to run for my life today. I can't be Charlie's Angels-ing shit all the time; I'll get tendonitis."

Yusuke laughed and let me and Kurama in. "This guy, Seaman, Grandma says he's about to wake up. Something about how his energy is fluctuating or something."

"So, Genkai explained it to you, and you didn't really pay attention, right?" Kurama teased, following Yusuke down the hall.

"You're the brains, Kurama, not me," he retorted, opening his bedroom door. Genkai, Shizuru, Botan, and Keiko were all in there, waiting. Yusuke grabbed a chair from the corner of the room and turned it around, sitting backwards on it so he was facing Mitarai. I noticed Kuwabara lying in another corner of the room, propped up on pillows and bandaged up.

Mitarai was still asleep as far as I could see, but his aura was starting to fizzle a bit, a sign that he was close to waking. Then suddenly, his eyes flew open and he sat up too fast for his stomach wound, and winced.

"Welcome back," Yusuke said, a hard look in his brown eyes.

"You're Yusuke," Mitarai murmured, blinking at him.

"That's right, Goldie, and that's my bed you're sleeping in, thanks to the human freight train there," Yusuke pointed at Kuwabara, "dragging you in so we could stitch you back up."

Mitarai glanced at the sleeping Kuwabara, a strange look in his blue eyes.

Shizuru smiled around her cigarette. "Bro finally did something useful without his girl being around," she said proudly.

"His companions, your victims," Kurama said, with a hard glint in his eyes, "have survived as well. They informed us all of the encounter with you, and then we erased their memories of last night so they wouldn't be burdened by the darker truths."

"Like another human fighting for the wrong side," Yusuke added.

Mitarai looked down at his hands clutching Yusuke's duvet. He was tense, probably scared. I didn't blame him – Yusuke and Kurama must have looked very intimidating. The white t-shirt Yusuke wore was actually a bit tight, showing off his wiry, hard muscles, and the look in his eyes was very take-no-prisoners. Meanwhile, Kurama towered over Mitarai, drawing up to his full height of five-eleven, and he wasn't hiding Youko at all.

"Kuwabara saved your life after you tried to kill him – you think your psychic pals would have done that?" Yusuke asked. "You owe him big...so start talking."

"Yeah! Guh...clean..." Kuwabara grumbled, eyes closed, startling Mitarai. "Gotta clean my socks..."

Keiko blinked, staring at him and sent a questioning glance at Shizuru. "He what?"

"Sleep talking," she answered, exhaling smoke from a cigarette. "Sleep walking without the bruises."

We looked at Mitarai expectantly, and then he started to crack. "You don't understand," he said with a flash of anger, "you haven't seen what I have. We should all die."

"Clarify 'all'," Kurama requested. "Do you mean your fellow psychics?"

"No, I mean all of us. Humans," he answered, darkly. He turned his face to look back at Kurama, blue eyes wide. "You'd all think so too if you saw the video tape!"

"What video?" asked Botan.

"Yeah, and say it with more feeling," Yusuke jeered. I was on the same wavelength as him. This kid had too many emotions.

Mitarai ignored him, withdrawing into himself. "It's the video they labeled Chapter Black," he responded.

Kurama was shocked. "You've seen it?"

"Yes, I have. Every single minute of it."

"Chapter Black...amazing," Kurama muttered, incredulously.

Yusuke glanced at him. "I'm guessing you've heard of it."

"It's legendary," Kurama answered. "Hiei's been wanting to get his hands on that tape for years."

"That good of a flick, huh?"

Kurama's green eyes turned to Yusuke. "It is a piece of intelligence, supposedly kept in the deepest bowels of Spirit World's records department." His eyes darkened. "Over its millennia of existence, the human race has committed various heinous crimes against others, and their own. This videotape is a compilation. It documents the most unspeakable acts of all – it is said to run thousands of hours." Kurama continued, still not quite over his shock. "I knew well of the tape, but never imagined it could be of importance to this case."

"So many horrifying things marching across that giant screen," Mitarai said, like he was reliving watching the tape. "You don't know how we really are! What we're capable of... I saw it all. If you saw it, you'd think differently too. You'd understand we're doomed. And, so...we have to –"

Yusuke's chair crashed into the wall as he kicked it away. "Have to what, Sir Judge? Have to get us all eaten the hell up by some bloodthirsty monster?!"

Mitarai didn't cower. "That's right! You're defensive because you don't know the truth! Humanity only seems good to you because you were born in a peaceful time! But war's our nature – it'll always come back," he explained, trembling. "Have you ever seen hundreds of frightened people standing in line waiting to be killed in a camp? Have you seen horsemen raid and destroy a village, dancing on the bodies of their victims, crushing them as they celebrate their victory – merrily singing happy songs?! Have you ever seen a gigantic bomb wipe away millions who had never picked up a weapon?!" he yelled. "A civil war where a mother is hacked down in front of her child, or a child in front of his mom...and the soldier, breaking up a family who loves each other, leading them into a fire. And his eyes enjoying the torture..."

Behind me, Keiko started crying, and Shizuru led her out of the room. "Come on, kid. I think you've passed your sympathy limit."

My thoughts on what Mitarai was describing was yes, it was sad, but it had already happened. I have watched loads of documentaries encompassing a wide range of history, and found them all rather enjoyable, actually. I loved learning about history, even the dark parts. But, what Mitarai was describing was more of an unending horror movie, and watching something like that for so long was really a form of torture in itself. I felt a little bad for him.

"And you think you're better then those people on the tape?" Yusuke accused, eyes flashing angrily.

"Well, I know I'm not! Neither are you! No human can be," he answered.

"What about Kuwabara? He saved you, right?" Yusuke said, relaxing his fists. "And you know last night when he came to for a minute, I asked him, 'Stupid, why the hell'd you save that jerk'? And he said, 'Because, Urameshi, in his eyes, he was crying for help'."

Mitarai's eyes were wide and he was silent.

"I thought it was a pretty stupid thing to say at the time, but now I see how scared you are, and I kinda follow. A big oaf like Kuwabara – he's got that bully look you must hate, but he cared about you," Yusuke said. "Bet you weren't expecting that."

Mitarai burst into tears. Big, sobbing, ugly, crying-like-a-little-baby tears. "Every night I see them, the victims on that tape! I've always seen myself like them, but in my nightmares, I'm the one holding the weapons."

I had to leave the room at that point. It's not that I was empathetic to the point where I started taking on his sadness like Keiko did, but in actuality, the crying bothered me. I hate when people cry – especially somewhat grown up people like Mitarai. It makes me angry. Partly because I want to protect people from whatever is hurting them, but mostly because I can't stand seeing weakness and fear in others. I never understood weakness.

I guess Kaito was right. I am a hard woman.

I went down the hallway and through the living room, sliding open the glass door and stepping out onto the balcony. I closed the door behind me and watched the people on the street go by, propping my elbow on the railing.

The door slid open behind me a few moments later, and Yusuke and Kurama came out onto the balcony.

"Hey," Yusuke said, looking at me closely. "You okay? You're not gonna cry too, are you?" They came and stood on either side of me, and Kurama gave me a critical look.

"No," I answered, glancing up at them before turning back to look at a girl on the street I had been watching. She had this really fantastic black wide-brimmed hat that looked like it came out of the 1920s. "I wondered though, while he was watching the tape, if he ever thought to himself, 'This is just TV'. Isn't it just basically a long, long, long documentary slash horror film? Yes, these things happened, but it's not happening anymore. Those people are not in pain anymore. They're dead. No one can help them." I leaned back and looked at the sky. "I don't get it. I can't even sympathize with him. If you hate everything so much, why not try to make the world a better place instead of trying to destroy it?"

"I think you're looking at this too clinically, Alice," Kurama said, giving me a wry smile. "You have the ability to compartmentalize your emotions, unlike Seaman. In my many years on this earth, I have noticed that being controlled by their emotions is humanity's most tragic flaw. Most people haven't lived what you've...somewhat...lived through, and thus, you cannot share a majority of humanity's perspective on things."

"Hm, I guess you're right."

"Well, I can feel bad for the poor kid. I mean, I see stuff on the stupid six o'clock news all the time that pisses me off about people," Yusuke said, frowning. "And that video has our all time worsts. That's gotta be a pretty rough experience."

"I would imagine so," Kurama agreed. "It is said that it will turn an average man against his own kind within the first five minutes of viewing."

"Hell, that's cheery," said Yusuke. "You may turn me just talking about it."

Kurama gave a small chuckle. "Don't worry, Yusuke. The capacity for evil is but one ingredient in the human soul."

"Yeah, I hope so," he said.

"Still," Kurama continued, "the greatest concern in my mind is that the Chapter Black video is in the enemy's possession. It clearly has the ability to turn anybody to their side. The footage must be provocative. I confess there was even a time when I wanted to see it."

Yusuke gave him a glower, and Kurama held up a placating hand and a smile.

"Was, was," he said with a laugh. "Anyway, a more pressing matter – you never asked me where I went yesterday."

I kept silent, since I lied last night about not knowing anything.

"Oh, yeah, Alice said you went to talk to Koenma," Yusuke said, blinking. "Why'd you go all the way to Spirit World? You could have just used my briefcase thing, you know."

"I needed to confront him face to face," Kurama said, expression growing hard. "He could never put my suspicions to rest, and speaking with Seaman has now made me certain – Koenma knows the exact identity of our foe."

"He what?!"

"I've planned a formal meeting to..." Kurama turned and saw only me, pointing in the direction Yusuke had gone. He was sitting in front of his briefcase communication mirror, back tense with rage.

"EARTH TO TODDLER-BITCH! You'd better speak now before I forever put that pacifier ten inches down your throat!"

Botan and Genkai came out into the living room at Yusuke outburst, curious, and we all stood behind Yusuke to see Koenma sitting at his desk. He looked completely unperturbed at Yusuke's threats or shouting.

"Ah, Yusuke, I'm glad to see you've regained some enthusiasm," Koenma said serenely. "It's good in small doses."

"Kurama says you knew who was behind this from the very start! Why the hell haven't you told me?" Yusuke demanded in a slightly quieter scream. I wondered how his neighbors put up with him.

Koenma's brow furrowed. "I wasn't positive until the video tape. Only one man has a copy of that – I just didn't want to believe it."

"Cut to the meat, pal!"

Koenma looked down at his folded hands seriously. "As you wish, Yusuke. The name of the mastermind...Sensui Shinobu. He was the spirit detective of Earth before you came along."

Everyone tensed in shock.

Koenma turned in his chair, and pulled out a collapsible pointer as a picture of a young teenager, about Yusuke's age, appeared on a screen above his head. "This is a picture of him from high school – when he began working for me as spirit detective."

"That face," Yusuke said in recognition, looking at the dark hair, the tanned skin, and the birthmark over his third eye chakra center. "The one who confronted us in the fairway – but he looks a lot older now."

"He was gifted with an incredibly strong sense of right and wrong – perhaps too strong," Koenma said. "It was about ten years ago that he simply disappeared. In the weeks leading up to that, I remember he always asked me the same question: are we even worth protecting? Then the Chapter Black video vanished from the vault, and so did he. We tried to track him down but it was no use. I'd hoped he'd gone into seclusion, content never to be bothered...but why would he resurface now?" Koenma asked himself. "You have to be careful, Yusuke, he's incredibly lethal! I'm leaving for the Ningenkai now." And the mirror turned black and empty.

"A detective," Yusuke muttered thoughtfully. He stood up. "Well, I'm sure as hell not gonna let some idiot just like me be the end of the world!" he shouted.

Koenma came over a little while later, in his teenage form, and he, Genkai, Kurama, the now awakened Kuwabara, and Yusuke sat around the table. Koenma told them about Sensui, and I hovered at the edge of the conversation, half-listening to them, and half-paying attention to Shizuru changing Mitarai's bandages. Then the girls realized that we would need more bandages, and Keiko offered to go to the drugstore.

She saw me hovering between rooms, bored. "Do you want to come with me and Puu, Alice?"

"Sure," I said, glad to have something to do. I kind of wanted some candy anyway.

We told the boys where we were going, put on our shoes, and headed out the door. The drugstore wasn't that far away – only a couple of blocks, and we got there pretty quickly. Keiko and I scanned the shelves, not in any particular hurry, looking at various cheap nail polishes and eyeshadow palettes.

"Oh, I really like this color," Keiko said, holding up a matte pastel green nail polish.

"That's really cute," I agreed. "You know that pink cardigan you wore when we did karaoke a couple weeks ago? I think that color would go well with it."

"Oooh, you're right!" she exclaimed. "I'm buying this. It's definitely happening." She put it in the basket I held over my arm that had all the bandages we could ever need. Her expression turned somber as her eyes landed on them. "Hey, Alice...what do you think of Mitarai? Do you think he's a bad guy?"

"I think he's weak," I answered bluntly. "I think he has a lot to make up for. But as for being bad...no, I don't think so." I gave her a steady look. "I know you feel really sorry for him, but you can't take on his problems for him. He'll never grow stronger if you do that."

"Right," she nodded, resigned. "Do you...do you think Yusuke will be okay?" she asked, worried. "We know who the guy behind everything is now, and I feel like Yusuke is going to have to fight him, like he did Toguro. Do you think he can take the this one?"

I knew Keiko knew that I (supposedly) didn't know anything about Sensui. She was just looking for reassurance.

"I have the utmost confidence in Yusuke," I replied, picking up a package of a chewy candy I liked. It was basically a Twizzlers knockoff, but it was just as tasty. "I don't see Yusuke losing to him."

She nodded again, and inhaled. Smile morphing into a grin, she hugged Puu tightly. "Let's head back," she said.

We checked out and walked back. I ate half the package of candy, and Keiko refused when I offered her some, saying she didn't like that kind. Well, not everyone likes cherry licorice, I guess.

"Oh," Keiko said, stopping.

Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, Koenma, and Genkai were standing in the middle of the street, looking tense and dangerous. I wondered what they were doing, but Keiko ran off ahead of me, before I could stop her. I dashed after her and we halted in between the side of a building, and the group of our friends, in plain sight of Sensui.

I noticed Kaname right away, but he didn't look surprised to see me. "Alice," he greeted.

Everyone jumped at my name on his tongue. Kurama's eyes were narrowed dangerously, Genkai made a strange raspy noise in her throat, Kuwabara and Koenma nearly fell over, and Yusuke grew vividly angry.

"What the hell, Alice? You know this creep?" he demanded, swinging his brown glare at me. "Keiko, get back. Against the wall."

Keiko obeyed, knowing that she walked into something that she shouldn't have, clutching Puu. She gave me a worried glance.

"I met him on the street a few days ago," I answered, moving closer to Kuwabara, who was flanking the group. "He saw me use my powers against a Makai insect, and told me that I might get a chance to use my powers on something bigger soon." I shot him an icy smile. "I see what you meant now."

"This was the man you ran into the other day, Alice? This is the one you told me about? Sniper?" Kurama questioned.

Kaname's lavender eyes went between me and Kurama with a bored sort of interest.

"Yes," I answered, not missing the way Sensui looked at me with an unreadable expression, and then just as easily dismissed me. "Naturally, he never told me what his powers were, but –"

"Oh, believe me, Alice," Kuwabara said, angrily. "We got an idea."

"As for Sensui," Genkai said, "that's still a mystery. You'd better get back there with Keiko to be safe, kid."

"Yes, ma'am," I agreed willingly. Kurama shot me a slightly amused look, knowing that if he told me to get back I would fight him. Keiko grasped my wrist when I stood next to her, moving over so that I could squeeze between her and the street against the wall. I could feel her worry in her touch, but I gave her a reassuring smile. "You've been facing a lot of danger lately, haven't you, Keiko?"

"Yeah...did Shizuru tell you about the hospital yesterday?"

I nodded. "You're like a magnet for danger," I joked.

Keiko peeked around me. "Yusuke's doing something..."

I peered around the building we were standing against, and saw Yusuke and Sensui running down the street together. Then he suddenly launched himself at Sensui and swung a right hook at the older man's face. But Sensui, with years of experience, brushed aside Yusuke's punch, and swung one of his long Jack Skellington legs into Yusuke's head.

Keiko gasped as Yusuke was sent flying backwards, but he caught himself like a fucking boss, sneakers skidding on the street as his momentum slowed. Sensui had knocked him all the way to the end of the street, and nearly into an intersection. I noticed that Kaname had disappeared. Yusuke gave a cocky smirk and ran at Sensui again.

I'm not sure what the older man did exactly, but Yusuke went flying into a pole this time and landed face-first into the sidewalk. The others ran toward him to check on him, but they couldn't get too close, and they ended up in my line of sight. I did manage to see Yusuke hop to his feet though, like Sensui didn't hurt him at all. Keiko saw it too and gave a relieved sigh.

I saw blue movement in my peripheral vision and looked up to see Botan standing on the balcony of Yusuke's apartment. She looked down, apparently trying to get the attention of the group, but then saw that they had moved too far away to see her. "Hey!" she called, trying to get their attention, waving her arm.

She dropped behind the wall of the balcony all of the sudden, and at first I wondered if she had just tripped, but then I heard the clinking of breaking class. Kaname must have been firing at her, I realized, and my heart leapt into my mouth. I pulled away from Keiko just a bit, wandering away from the protection of the wall, trying to see inside of the apartment from the street below. I saw that she had pressed herself against a wall inside of the bedroom, out of Kaname's range.

"Alice!" Keiko hissed, waving me back to her. She grasped my wrist again when I stepped back behind the wall. "It's dangerous!"

"I just wanted to check on Botan," I said. "Sniper was shooting at her."

Keiko turned pale, but then she blinked. "I didn't hear a gun."

"No, I think it's his psychic powers – like telekinesis, basically," I told her thoughtfully, taking my eyes off the standoff and pressing my back against the wall. "Yana told me Sniper nailed a guy in the head with a pencil eraser and sent him to the hospital. I was just worried, but they're out of his range, so he can't hit them."

Keiko's hand tightened around my arm nervously. I looked around again, but this time they had moved too far away for me to see them anymore. There was a house with a wide wall blocking my view. I stood back in place and sighed.

Then the world exploded.

The loud BOOM rang through my body, and I found myself trying to shut it out of my ears, urgently, feeling as if I didn't whatever just happened would consume me. I could feel Keiko's body knock into mine as we stumbled, eyes shut against the blinding light that came with the bright explosion. Remnants of psychic energy fizzled around me, belonging to someone I couldn't identify, someone powerful – my guess was Sensui.

The world stilled after a few moments of panic-induced shaking, and Keiko and I clutched at each other, squishing Puu between us. We squinted, eyes adjusting, and saw Yusuke's apartment up in black, billowing smoke.

I didn't think, I just acted – I tore away from Keiko and raced to the steps that would lead up. Keiko was hot on my heels, calling for me to slow down, but I didn't listen to her.

I spotted Shizuru coming down the open stairwell, clutching her shoulder and wincing. She was covered in dust from the building.

"Shizuru! Shizuru, are you all right?" Keiko asked, stopping beside me.

"I-I'm okay," she replied, giving a slight smile. "But unfortunately, I can't say the same for my kid brother, who once again, has gotten himself in some serious danger. Those freaks want to kidnap him, which isn't such a bad deal for me, but they're gonna use him to open the plastic wrap to hell, so you might want to tell Yusuke to keep him out of sight." She turned to me and gave a tilt of her chin that meant she wanted me to go with Keiko.

I glared at her.

She glared back. "It's dangerous, so Alice should go with you, Keiko."

"Okay," Keiko answered, giving me an expectant look.

"I'll be there in a minute," Shizuru reassured us.

I wanted to glare at her some more, or point out her bleeding arm, but that would have made Keiko worry, and we didn't have time for that. Kuwabara was a little more important at the moment. I gave a defeated sigh and threw her an uncertain glance over my shoulder as we ran off.

Shizuru had looked like she was about to fall over.

Keiko gave a frustrated noise as we sprinted down the street. "I don't even know where they went! I just know that whatever they're going to be doing will be really obvious, and they'll probably attract crowds. You're kind of psychic, right, Alice? Can you sense anyone or something?"

"There are too many people around," I told her. "We'll just have to listen for the sound of yelling, breaking stuff, and bright flashy explosions."

"Not helping!" she complained, sending her brown gaze every which way. "Wait! I see something!" She turned right, cutting across a courtyard between several tall office buildings. "Look, Alice! Glass!"

I saw it immediately. Big chunks of paned glass from the parking garage across the courtyard glinted in the sunlight. I saw the misshapen man-sized opening, and wondered who went through the window.

In the distance, I heard the roaring of a motorcycle and the screams of civilians. "This way," I said, darting towards the sound of mayhem. Keiko quickly followed, and we came around the corner of one of the buildings to see Kurama's vibrant redhead standing above us on a skywalk. There was a crowd surrounding him, but someone moved and I could see that he was facing off with Kaname, who was straddling his motorcycle. His hands were held out, as if he were about to sniper something at Kurama.

Keiko ran ahead of me, up the steps of the skywalk.

"Gah! Keiko, wait!" I yelled, darting up the steps after her.

"Kurama!" she shouted, reaching the platform. "It's Kuwabara! We have to find Yusuke and warn –"

"Stay back!" Kurama ordered, tossing a glance at us.

I grabbed Keiko's arm to pull her back down the steps, but it was too late, Kaname launched a marble at her head. I reached my arm out instinctively, trying to protect her face, but Puu wriggled out of her grasp and caught the flying marble in his forehead – protecting both of us from injury.

Kaname revved his motorcycle and swung it around, narrowly missing the lash of Kurama's rose whip. I'm not sure exactly how he jumped the railing of the skywalk, because there wasn't a ramp or anything (telekinesis?), but the next thing I knew Kaname was soaring through the air.

"You asshole!" I yelled after him, grasping the railing and leaning over it. I watched him land perfectly on the street, nearly causing three car accidents, and race off. I was furious.

Kurama crouched next to Keiko, who was holding Puu and making sure he was okay. "Keiko, are you injured?"

"No," she answered quickly, "but we absolutely have to get to Kuwabara before they do!"

"Why?" he asked.

I approached them, bending over and rubbing Puu's belly. "Apparently Kuwabara's new power is breaking through barriers, which is why they need him to open the one between Human and Demon World."

"I see," Kurama said. "In that case, we need to get to Yusuke and Kuwabara right away. Come on, let's hurry!"

Keiko picked herself up and we quickly followed Kurama across the skywalk, down the steps and down and around another parking garage. Kurama paused for a moment on the sidewalk, looking around, probably trying to scent Yusuke and Kuwabara out or pick up their spirit energy.

I heard the squeal of tires about two yards away from us, as a green truck whipped around the corner of the parking garage. I noticed Kuwabara tied up on the bed immediately, and Sensui standing straight up on the bed as if he couldn't be concerned about bad driving.

"Kuwabara!" I yelled.

"Oh, no! We're too late!" Keiko exclaimed.

Kurama's eyes narrowed in calculation.

"LOOK OUT BELOOOW!" Yusuke screamed, dropping from the sky and into the middle of the street. He picked up his right hand, forming that familiar stance. "You're car's about to be impounded! SPIRIT GUN!"

And then he shot of a humongous blast of blazing blue spirit energy, headed straight for Kuwabara and Sensui's truck.

"Gyaaahhh! Oh crap, I forgot about Kuwabara!" he panicked, eyes huge.

"Yusuke, you idiot!" I shouted angrily at him, grabbing his shoulder and shaking it roughly.

"Really Yusuke! How could you shoot a blast like that without thinking it would kill everyone on board, including him!" Kurama demanded, looking anxiously at the truck and its impending doom.

Yusuke made a strangled noise deep in his throat and clutched his head. "I was mad!" he explained.

I saw the truck swerve, as if the driver was trying to avoid the blast, but it was too big. Kuwabara flailed on the truck, struggling against his bonds, and I saw something appear in Sensui's hand. It was a purple sphere of energy, and then he kicked it toward us.

All of the sudden, Yusuke spirit gun blast blew up, popping like hot air balloon. Yusuke's energy whooshed outward, sizzling against my skin, leaving an obnoxiously bright light in my eyeballs. Sensui picked his arm up in a wave as the truck sped away.

"On the bright side, at least Kuwabara survived," Kurama said in a resigned tone.

Yusuke looked livid. He whirled around, seeing a bike rack and went to it. "Yeah! And they got away!" He began examining the bikes, looking for the one least locked up.

"Yusuke!" Keiko yelled as Yusuke found a bike and began yanking on it. "What are you doing? That's not even yours!"

He pulled an orange bicycle free, lifting it above his head. "It is now!" He set it down and straddled it, giving Keiko a serious look. "Keiko, you know I can't let them hurt Kuwabara! Tch – stupid bike lock," he muttered, bending down to pull it loose. I crept closer, examining the bike. "Now don't tell me not to save him! It's what he would do!"

While Keiko was giving him a wide doe-eyed look, I noticed spokes sticking out of the back wheel, and there was a flat wire rack over it too, where someone could attach a large basket if they wanted. I tossed a glance at Kurama, but he wasn't watching me. I moved closer and mounted the bike behind Yusuke, standing on the spokes and grabbing his shoulders.

He jumped, tossing a weird look back at me, seeing me sitting on the wheel behind him. "What the – Alice, what the hell are you doing?"

I gave him a bright smile. "I'm going with you!"

"No frickin' way!"

"Alice, get down from there," Kurama commanded, giving me a dark look – his Youko look, but I ignored it.

"Let's go, Yusuke," I told him, giving his shoulder a shake. "They're getting away."

At that, he realized he really needed to hurry, and cursed at me. His legs pumped the pedals and he picked himself up from the seat. We shot down the street, leaving Keiko and Kurama behind, zooming past moving cars and pedestrians. I changed my grip from the awkward reach of Yusuke's shoulders to the underside of the bike seat. Even with me on the bike, Yusuke still managed to go really fast.

"You're really annoying, you know that?" he called back to me, swerving to miss an oncoming car. "I ain't got time to lug your fat ass around!"

I cackled at him. "Then this is good training, isn't it?"

He gave an annoyed growl.

I looked around him, leaning slightly, and saw the chaos Sensui's chauffeur left behind. There were at least seven separate car accidents – one car had t-boned another, one head-on collision, one had flipped and skidded into another vehicle, another car had veered off the street and crashed into the railing that kept the sidewalk and street separate – these were only the ones I could see around Yusuke. There were people gawking, screaming, and yelling at others for help. I heard the sirens of ambulances in the distance already.

"HEY YOU STUPID RUBBER NECKERS! GET OUTTA THE WAY!" Yusuke roared, dodging around the accidents. People scurried to the sidewalk at the sight of us.

We came to the end of the street to an intersection, and I saw that a delivery truck had rear-ended a car and exploded, engulfing both vehicles in flames, before Yusuke wrenched the bike right and put the line of accidents at our backs.

"This is really serious," I couldn't help saying.

"You think?" Yusuke spat.

I rolled my eyes at his back, clutching the seat tighter. I could catch glimpses of the green truck ahead of us now, but it was still too far away. They were leading us out of Asaka though, toward a more rural area between here and Mushiori. I thought about why they were letting us follow them as we finally left the city, and as we made our way up a narrow mountain road. A guy in a red BMW was ahead of us, probably going the speed limit or a little over it. I watched the truck swerve around the car, pulling ahead, even though the car had sped up.

Yusuke passed the BMW soon after, and I turned and flashed a smile at the startled couple inside. We were probably going about forty-five miles an hour at this point, and we were creeping closer to the truck. Kuwabara yelled something at us, but I didn't catch it.

I heard a motorcycle behind me, and finally realized why they were letting us follow them.

Because it was a fucking trap, of course.

Yusuke gave a yell as he peddled harder, and I almost felt bad for jumping on...but I knew he could handle the extra burden. A guy like Yusuke was unstoppable and incredibly stubborn when he put his mind to it. We started going downhill and quickly closed the gap between the truck and bicycle, pulling alongside the bed.

"WHAT YOU COULDN'T FIND A LITTLE GIRL'S SCOOTER?" Kuwabara yelled at Yusuke as he pulled up,

"I DON'T KNOW, YOU COULDN'T GO A WEEK WITHOUT GETTING SNAGGED BY THE FORCES OF EVIL?" Yusuke shot back. I cracked up as he pulled ahead to the cab, taking a breath. "Consider this your first and only chance to get out of this alive, now pull this thing over, or I'm gonna run your asses off the road!" he shouted into the cab.

For the first time, I noticed that there was a little boy driving the truck.

This was madness.

Behind us, the sound of the motorcycle got louder, and I risked a look back and glanced over my shoulder. Kaname was behind us, gaining speed. His lavender eyes met mine, and I gave him a hard scowl. I turned back to Yusuke. "Sniper's behind us!"

"Damn iiiitttt," Yusuke growled.

He suddenly reached and grabbed my wrist as the bike shattered. I felt the wheel wobble underneath me dangerously before disappearing, and then I was soaring through the air, and over the railing of the road. It took me a second to realize that Yusuke had literally thrown me off the disintegrating bicycle, and that Kaname had shot it apart with his powers.

I had enough sense to twist in the air to sort of land on the balls of my feet, and tuck and roll down the grassy hill Yusuke had thrown me toward. I rolled to a stop on my back, breathing heavily, as the sky spun dizzily in my eyes.

I was going to kill Hagiri Kaname.

Boom.

As I edited this, I realized that this chapter is super-long and jam-packed. It's also annoyingly busy. Like, there's too much action, and it doesn't really give your brain a rest. I like some parts of it, but let me know if you were sucked into this chapter at all. Do ya'll like a lot of action? Or do you like a certain kind of balance between action and introspection? Tell me! I NEED TO KNOW.

Also, I've heard Kaname's family name as Hagari AND Hagiri. I think it's supposed to be Hagiri, but if it isn't, like send me some proof or something.

So:

1. Alice messes up in front of Keiko when she talks about Kaname's powers, even though she told the group that she didn't know anything about them. Will Keiko have noticed? Probably not.

2. Kurama's Youko face is scary as hell.

3. Tasaka is a bully, but I don't think he'll bother Alice in school again. He'll probably disappear from the story shortly after graduation. Also, I looked up his name on the web, trying to figure out if it were a first or last name, but it turns out that it's not even really Japanese. It's just some sort of obscure name thing that doesn't really exist. Togashi-sensei, did you just make it up?

4. Alice can fly.

5. Yusuke's a Lance Armstrong without steroids. I've heard of pro cyclists getting up to 30mph, so I don't think 40-45mph is completely impossible for the Dark Tournament champion, even if he's got a scrawny girl weighing him down.

6. I love Kuwabara and Yusuke's banter. In the best of times, and the worst of times, humor shall be prevalent.

7. Kaname's butt is sexy.

8. I want fingerless gloves.

9. I actually have tendonitis in my left wrist at the moment, so typing is super fanfuckingtastic. It's getting better though.

10. Someone mentioned in a review for the last chapter that my tumblr wasn't current in the past chapters and that's true. I changed it when I changed my pen name. There is a link to my tumblr/blog on my profile, or you can go to www dot kkyokowrites dot tumblr dot com

11. Hiei will be in the next chapter, and Alice will do something not-so-surprising, and something that can be considered a felony here in the US.

12. FELONS 4 LYFE

ONCE AGAIN: www dot kkyokowrites dot tumblr dot com

REVIEW AND TELL ME STUFF YOU GAIS. ALSO, SOMEONE SHOULD MAKE ME A FAN ART OF ALICE AND YUSUKE RIDING THE BIKE. Because that would be awesome. :D