I stayed my distance, trying to regain the ability to breath while Tomosuke approached him. My instincts were screaming for me to get Tomosuke away from Kurama, but my body wouldn't obey.

"Kurama…" I hissed, the sound of my voice barely audible because of my nearly-crushed throat. He didn't look. He was fully concentrated on Tomosuke now.

I dimly was aware that the three other boys had come up to stand beside me. Apparently. The zombies had all be laid out. Hiei's hand hovered above my shoulder, as if asking if I was okay. I didn't reply. I was too scared for Kurama.

As I watched him fight, I realized that I had never before seen Kurama truly fight. He was sensational! But still…

"He's not going to win. Tomosuke's just toying with him." I whispered, hoping the boys had heard the panic in my tone.

They had. They all looked tense. "How could there be a demon stronger than Kurama?"

Hiei scoffed. "Don't be an idiot. There are a lot of demons stronger than him."

I glared angrily at Hiei. "You're really not helping the situation any, sir."

Hiei shrugged. "Whoever said I was going to?" But I could tell. He was worried senseless about Kurama. They all were, in one way or another. Which was something that terrified me. If they were scared for Kurama, even if Kurama was this strong…!

I stood suddenly, shocking the others. "I've got to help," I hissed. I started forward, and was stopped instantly by three pairs of hands holding me back.

"What are you doing?" Yusuke yelled. "You'll be killed!"

"You don't get it!" Hiei snarled. "You don't understand how powerful he is!"

I struggled against their grasp. "No, YOU don't get it!" I hissed back, as loud as I could. My voice (or lack of it) grew shrill. "That's my brother and the boy I love out there!"

That seemed to get my point across. Although none of them loosened their grip.

"Think about what you're doing, Aya!" Kuwabara said desperately.

"I have!" I gasped, "And I will do whatever it takes to protect Kurama!"

They were quiet for a minute, while Kurama and Tomosuke battled on…Then Hiei let me go, pushing the others' hands off me as well. Then he stepped in front of me, looking intensely into my eyes.

"I don't like what you're doing. But if you need it, know that I've got your back."

I nodded, flipping my swords back into my hands. "I'll rip his throat out."

I dashed forward, leaping at Tomosuke. I dodged Kurama's whip as it sliced towards Tomosuke. Kurama looked surprised for a moment, as he saw me. He fell back as I attacked, careful not to get me in the range of his whip. I felt slightly cowardly for ganging up on Tomosuke, but right now, I was a little more worried about Kurama.

Ignoring the fire of pain I felt all over my body, I struck at Tomosuke. His amused look at my attack only infuriated me more. Tomosuke easily avoided my attack, and leapt out of the way of Kurama's as well. I tried to think of all the hours I had spent training with Kurama, trying to think of a good strategy we could use. Nothing came to mind. I continued to lunge at the demon, attacking furiously.

Kurama wasn't doing so well now. He seemed to be trying to protect me and destroy Tomosuke at the same time. I had become a burden for him, and as I saw livid bruises arise on his skin, courtesy of Tomosuke's attacks, I felt like screaming.

Suddenly, Tomosuke leapt back, away from the both of us. "Bored now," he said mockingly. He raised his hand, pointing his flat palm towards Kurama. Although I didn't quite know what was going to happen, I opened my mouth to yell a warning. Kurama tried to jump out of the way, but Tomosuke followed him. A streak of decaying green something-or-other (that smelled like rotting flesh, might I add) flew at Kurama.

"NO!" I shrieked, as it exploded on Kurama's chest. Blood splattered all over me. The expression in his beautiful green eyes was shocked, as his mouth dropped open in an 'o.' The smell of his blood permeated the air, almost stronger than the smell of whatever Tomosuke had thrown at him. He fell to his knees, looking down in surprise at the massive, bleeding wound that covered his torso. A second later, his eyes closed and collapsed.

The three other boys cried his name and ran to him, while I remained where I was, covered in his blood. I felt numb. The only thing I could feel was the lightning beginning to trickle all up and down my arms.

Then, it felt like something in me exploded. Before I knew it, I was screaming, and everyone was looking at me in horror. My aura burst from me so forcefully that it shattered most of the boxes that closed us in. The bodies of the defeated zombies began to disintegrate. My clothes ripped and shred as the power became too much for them to handle. But I barely even noticed any of this. My eyes were fixed on Tomosuke. All I was concentrating on was the look of fear that was spreading over his features.

I was dimly aware of Yusuke and Hiei dragging Kurama away, and Kuwabara leading the way, running for cover. I was trying my hardest to contain my power in fear of killing them, but I wasn't sure how much longer I could hold it in. Then the screaming began.

It wasn't me screaming this time. Five different voices. Yusuke, Kuwabara, and even Hiei were all screaming. And then…Two more voices. The distorted voice of the demon, and the boyish voice of my brother.

Terror and emotional agony washed over me as I regained my senses and desperately tried to control my power. As hard as I fought, a nagging voice in the back of my mind was reminding me that I was fighting a losing battle.

Then, all at once, it released. I felt an unimaginable calm flow over me. Around me, I saw the factory begin to dissolve, as a bright, electrified white light expanded from my body. I couldn't feel any of it. I did feel a small shock when the light finally made contact with Tomosuke. His expression…Complete shock…But I saw the undertone of sorrow…And relief.

I wasn't aware that the power stopped. Not until I felt my knees hit the floor. Across the small circle, I saw Tomosuke mirror my actions. Before I knew it, I had scrambled to my feet and raced across to him, to catch him before he could completely fall.

This was him. Tomosuke. I had eradicated the demon from him fully and totally. He was my little, untainted brother again. I hugged him close to me. Tears began to pour down my cheeks, as I felt his life energy begin to slip away.

"A-Aya?" I heard a faint voice. I pulled Tomosuke enough away from my chest to see his face. He was smiling, even as he failed to fight back the tears from his own eyes.

"I'm here," I promised, trying my hardest to keep my voice steady. "I'll always be here, Tomo."

"I'm glad." He smiled, a happy, genuine smile, and then…His eyes closed and he slipped away.

I don't think I've ever cried so hard in my life. I didn't know how much time passed, only that I couldn't let go of Tomosuke's body.

I barely felt it when Yusuke began to tug on my shoulder. His voiced sounded like it was muted, and I had a hard time making out the words. "Aya, Aya, we have to go!" I suddenly became aware of the shaking, and realized that the warehouse was about to collapse on us.

I struggled to my feet, refusing to let go of Tomosuke. I followed the others out of the warehouse (Kurama had been slung over Kuwabara's back). We sat at a safe distance while we watched the warehouse crumble. Looking at the rubble brought back memories of my own house that I had also demolished. I felt empty.

"Aya," Yusuke was saying, "we need to go."

Hiei laid a hand on the small of my back and pushed me forward. "Everything will be okay," he whispered, as if eager to believe it himself. "Somehow, it will."

(^^) (^^) (^^)

Koenma sat at his desk, sorting through papers as Ayame escorted a soul in. Koenma looked up, and instantly the concerns that the papers voiced were forgotten.

The young boy didn't see scared or sad to be dead, but instead, he looked around the office in pure curiosity. Koenma sighed sadly, absentmindedly straightening up the papers. He wasn't sure how to deal with this one. He set the papers down, and folded his hands on top of them.

"Well," he said, his voice strained, "you've done nothing bad in your life, as the demon's actions were uncontrollable by you. You've earned a full ride to heaven, shall we say."

The boy continued to smile, a smile that seemed to light up the room. "If it's alright, I'd like to stay on earth."

Koenma frowned. "As a ghost? That's not going to be very fun for you, but I am sure we could arrange that…" Before he could finish his sentence, . the boy was already shaking his head.

"Not as a ghost. As a guardian angel."

A guardian angel? Koenma thought about it. It would take some strings, but he was sure it could happen. "Do I even need to ask who you want to be a guardian angel for?"

The boy just smiled. Koenma couldn't resist smiling back, as he stamped the boy's sheet.

"Protect your sister well, Tomosuke."

As he ran back to Ayame so she could put him through the proper procedures and take him back to the human world, Tomosuke grinned.

"I will!"