(A/N: Sorry for the delay on this! I had sorority initiation, a midterm, and a pretty nasty cold distracting me from my true calling: writing about these silly fags. Stay tuned for the riveting conclusion in part 4!)

Headspace, pt 3

Get down, Urameshi! cried Kuwabara's mental voice. Now!

Hesitant as he was about more close contact with the swamp mud, the urgency in Kuwabara's mental voice was almost like a physical force, and he flopped onto his stomach hard and fast. No sooner had his head landed level with his feet than a huge swarm of demon crows fluttered through the space where he'd been standing a moment before. They looked bloodthirsty, but stupid, and they missed him entirely where he lay concealed by the almost knee-high swamp grass.

Once they'd passed, Yusuke hauled himself out of the mud with a thick, disgusting slurp sound. Uh, thanks for that, I guess, he told Kuwabara.

What were they? Kuwabara asked.

Just a bunch of creepy birds.

Oh, thought Kuwabara. They seemed more uh...bad than that.

They still probably would have taken my head off, so it's all good, Yusuke assured him.

I just can't see anything over there, so I don't know whether things are nasty or just stupid.

Yusuke thought about this. Maybe we could work it so that you can kinda see what I'm seeing. We'd need to figure out how you could turn it on and off, though, to make sure that like...

Yeah, Kuwabara agreed. Okay, so I'm walking home from your place now, and once I get back to my room, we'll figure this thing out for good.

Good.

And so now that Yusuke had escaped from both the crazed crows and the seriously gross mud, he was able to stop and get a clear look at his surroundings for the first time. He was definitely in a swamp, but it looked to be around the edges of a swamp, and he felt like if he walked back in the direction the birds had come from he would get into gloomy weed fields and creepy forests that weren't swampy at all. Botan hadn't said anything about these demons being swamp creatures, so he decided maybe he'd start walking that way, trying to feel out where these things were.

Not that he could really do that without Kuwabara's help, of course. Botan had said specifically that these things were really sneaky - that was the whole reason he and Kuwabara were linked up with these cockroach pod things anyway. All he knew was he was looking for a twin brother and sister, probably both ugly, with a giant poisonous tooth. And that really wasn't much to go on.

It didn't help that he was still distracted about certain people learning certain pieces of information. Shizuru was one thing - he knew she'd probably keep pretty quiet, especially if it was something so important to her brother. But Botan...well, they still didn't know for sure if Botan knew or not, so he was just gonna keep holding onto the hope that she didn't, and maybe...

What's gettin' so frosty over there, Urameshi? asked Kuwabara, poking faintly at Yusuke's wall.

Nothing, Yusuke insisted, I'm just thinking.

I can tell that much, duh, thought Kuwabara. You seem kinda...uncomfortable.

My pants are covered in mud, of course I'm uncomfortable! thought Yusuke.

Nah, we both know that's not what it is, thought Kuwabara. But I can't really figure it out, so I'm just gonna leave you alone, I guess.

Thanks for that.

I just wish we weren't keepin' so many secrets.

Kuwabara stopped thinking at him, and Yusuke turned his attention back to the task at hand, because he was just approaching the forest line. The trees here were extra-weird, even for trees he'd seen in the demon world before - the branches looked more like giant spider legs, and when the wind blew toward them, they didn't rustle like trees were supposed to. And every set of two leaves could easily have been a little tiny mouth, ready to snap at anything that came near it.

Needless to say, Yusuke didn't go near any of them if he could help it.

Treading carefully, Yusuke walked down the thin, meandering path that someone seemed to have actually carved into the forest pretty recently. The area really didn't look like anyone had set foot in in for a long time.

Anyone but him.

"Kurama!" Yusuke cried, darting toward him. The demon was seated on a tree stump in the very heart of the forested area, a striking spot of red in the middle of the gloom. Extending from him in nearly every direction were wire-thin little vines, with thorns so small that when Yusuke bumped against one at one point it almost felt like sandpaper.

Kurama? thought Kuwabara, confused.

Yeah, I guess this is that demon forest where the bird tooth thing is supposed to be.

"Hello, Yusuke," Kurama said as he crossed to him. Now that Yusuke was closer, he could see how absolutely drained Kurama was. His face looked exhausted and his voice came out weakly.

"What's going on here, Kurama? You look like shit."

"An accurate representation of how I feel, then," said Kurama with a faint smile. "No matter, you're here now, so it ought to be done soon."

"What the hell's going on?"

"Well, I've been keeping this entire forest under control for about two days now," he said. "It wasn't so bad at first, but I'm starting to run out of energy. Those trees are worse than they look."

Yusuke swallowed, and made a face. They looked pretty bad as it was.

"Geez, well then what am I standing here talking to you for? I need to go get that thing!"

"Yes, that would probably be a good idea," Kurama agreed. "The last I knew of Jikou and Kouji, they were headed relatively southwest." He gestured weakly beyond the trees, further away from the swamplands. "There's not a whole lot of tree cover that way, so you should have an easier time catching them...but you'll need to act fast."

"No shit I need to act fast, I don't want you keeling over dead on me," said Yusuke.

"I will be fine, Yusuke, don't worry about me." He chuckled a bit. "And tell Kuwabara I say hello."

Yusuke started, confused, and then reached up to his ear, where the purple device was still hooked on tightly, emitting the faintest heat. "Yeah, I think he hears ya."

With a smile, Yusuke took off in the direction that Kurama had sent him in.

Gosh, he seems pretty beat, thought Kuwabara.

That's why we gotta get on top of this shit right away, thought Yusuke. Let's see if we can figure out this eyes and ears thing.

Actually, I was messin' with it while you were talking to Kurama, thought Kuwabara. I think I've almost got it figured out.

Yusuke blinked, and Kuwabara mentally chuckled at his little spark of surprise. Oh.

Yeah, I guess you better start paying more attention, Urameshi.

Now that Yusuke actually was paying attention, he could definitely feel where Kuwabara's senses were encroaching on his own. When he looked straight ahead, he could barely tell at all, but every time his head turned or his eyes moved, little trails of gold-orange light would follow, the same color as Kuwabara's spirit sword. It was a color Yusuke had come to associate with his energy.

And then suddenly, Yusuke could feel in his mind what he had to do to fine-tune it. He shifted his wall around a little - Kurama's over there, my pants are covered in mud - and then the after-images were reduced significantly, just the faintest, wispiest streaks of gold, and only if he moved too fast.

Ahh, whoa! Kuwabara exclaimed. Now we're talkin'!

I gotta admit, Kuwabara, this is pretty freakin' weird, thought Yusuke.

Don't worry. As soon as we're done trackin' these punks, I know I can pull it back.

You better be able to. Some things you just don't need to see.

Oh yeah, like what? asked Kuwabara. Yusuke's ice wall shifted and cracked a little, and Kuwabara just laughed.

-xxx-

It took an hour to find the trail.

And then Kuwabara lost it again, because he got a phone call from Ookubo.

They found it again in another thirty minutes.

But then Kuwabara got interrupted with a conversation with his sister.

Come on, you retard, thought Yusuke. We're kind of on a time crunch here?!

I'm sorry, Urameshi! thought Kuwabara. It's easy to get distracted when I'm not right there in the heat of it.

Well how do you even know we're going in the right direction at all?

Hey, whaddya mean, of course we are!

You sure? You might be twice as spiritually aware as the next guy, but you're not a freakin' psychic!

Damnit, Urameshi - but his thought ended there, because Kuwabara's sixth sense tingled so hard the chill went down Yusuke's spine. They're here!

Yusuke scanned the area with his eyes and ears. It was a field of dirt with a few scraggly patches of weeds here and there, weeds the red-brown color of dried blood. The sky was overcast, tinting everything greyer, but it was really obvious to Yusuke's senses that the field was empty. Apparently, Kuwabara's senses were indicating otherwise.

Turn back to your left, he instructed. No - shit - I meant right - now they're back behind you - those weeds, there!

Yusuke stopped in his scanning staring dead-on at a clump of tall razor grass about fifteen feet away. He still couldn't see anything.

They must know I'm here, thought Yusuke.

Yeah, I think they do, Kuwabara agreed. Maybe they don't consider you a threat or nothin'.

Hey now.

Kuwabara's curtain rustled a little; he appeared to be strategizing, which was not one of his strong points. How close do you think you can get?

To this very threatening pile of weeds? Gee, I dunno.

They're there, Urameshi. You're kinda blind, you know? The curtain rustled a bit harder, and then a waft of warm air seemed to come from behind it, whisking over to melt a little bit of Yusuke's wall. Here...maybe this'll work.

Yusuke didn't know what Kuwabara was trying to do, but suddenly, there was a bit of a tingle behind his eyeballs, and that tingle seemed to be telling him something. He squinted his eyes narrower, pulling the Kuwabara-colored glow into his line of vision again, and then...

Shit!

The places where he had to look directly through the gold-orange, Yusuke could see them. They were strange-looking like every other demon he'd encountered - dark green skin and pale, pale silver hair and eyes. And Yusuke knew they were supposed to be a girl and a guy, but even at this distance, he couldn't tell them apart. They had the exact same small ponytail set at the backs of their skulls and very similar outfits (or at least what he could see of them, over the waist-high patch of weeds).

Okay, I know they're twins, but this is ridiculous, thought Yusuke, shuddering internally.

No kidding, thought Kuwabara. Which one's the chick?

Hell if I know, Yusuke answered. Can you tell where the freaky tooth thing is?

He felt Kuwabara concentrating on them. Uh, yeah. It's in a little bag thing that the...one on the left has hooked to uh, its belt. I guess that keeps it from infecting the two of them.

Guess so. Yusuke scowled at the creepy twins and cracked his knuckles. All right, let's get this over with.

Yusuke charged straight at them.

The stampeding of his feet seemed to catch their attention when he was about two feet from them. And by then, it was much too late. The one with the pouch at its waist took a hard blow to the jaw with an oof! that was just as much surprise as it was pain. It barely had time to recover and regroup before Yusuke was kicking the other one in the stomach. He bounced back solidly.

"Okay, assholes, give up the swan tooth and we can just call it a day," he told them, grinning at their startled faces.

"Brother, what is this monstrosity?" asked the one without the pouch. So that must be the girl one. It definitely did not look like a chick.

"I don't know, sister," said the other, "but it may be the one they call Spirit Detective..."

"That's right, punks. Look, don't make this harder than it needs to be. The swan tooth. Now."

"Never!" hissed the sister. "We must have our revenge!" She looked at her brother in a creepy way that was almost...loving? And not in the brother-sister way, either.

"Yes, dear sister, that's right," he agreed, returning the look.

Ewewewewew! ran Kuwabara's disgusted thoughts through Yusuke's head. Sorry Urameshi, but you just don't understand how gross that is until you have a sister...

I'll bet, thought Yusuke with a shudder. But he refocused his attention on the creeps. "Then I guess I'll have to take it by force!" His right index finger started charging with energy. He was so done with this already.

The siblings exchanged an eerie grin, and then both stared at him head on.

"Try us."

The words slipped out of their mouths so softly that Yusuke was not prepared for the attack that came next - a rush of ridiculous speed! Then, needle-sharp lacerations down both sides of his body from their long, feline claws. He knew he was bleeding, and that his school jacket was getting even more torn up. He tried to lash out and catch one or the other of them as they danced around him, but although they weren't strong, they were just too fast. Even Hiei and his speediness probably wouldn't quite give these two any competition.

Then, just as quickly as they'd started, they stopped, and Yusuke realized belatedly that Jikou had him in a pretty solid armlock. She called to her brother.

"The tooth's power! The poison! Infect him with it!"

"Yes, sister!" cried Kouji. "We can't let him get in our way now!" Grabbing the pouch at its base, he tugged loose the drawstring with one hand and then tilted the opening toward Yusuke, making sure no part of himself came in contact with what was inside.

Yusuke struggled free of the hold and tried to bolt away, but it was too late. A blast of foggy air, tinted with a green so dark it was almost black, shot out of the pouch and hit him directly in the stomach, seeping into the dozens of tiny slices that the twins' claws had made in his body. It felt like acid. Yusuke screamed in pain.

"You'll not stand in the way of our vengeance, Spirit Detective!" Jikou swore, and then the two of them vanished again.

Yusuke could barely stand up, much less stumble forward. His head was spinning with the pain and the disorientation that came with the poison. What he really needed to do, he decided, was sit down. Just take a nice nap...and when he woke up, it wouldn't hurt any more...

No! insisted a fuzzy little voice in the back of his head. Damnit, Urameshi, if you sit down and go to sleep now, there won't be a waking up!

Shut up, little voice, Yusuke thought groggily. What else'm I supposed to do?

I dunno, I dunno, you idiot, but don't die. The voice sounded panicked, and Yusuke wondered why that was. It was almost like Keiko when she worried real hard about him, but...stupider. And not a girl. Then it cried, in a mental voice a little too loud for Yusuke's blurry state, That's it!

What, what? Yer givin' me a headache.

Kurama, said the voice. You've got to get back to Kurama. He's not that far away. He may look like shit right now, but I just know he'll be able to make you some kinda antidote. The voice got softer, more Keiko-y. He'll have to.

If you say so, Yusuke told the voice. And as much as he wanted to just lie down and sleep, he felt like if he didn't do what the voice said, it'd be upset. And for some reason he really, really didn't want to make the voice upset. So, dragging his feet really hard and stopping six or seven times to clutch at his poisoned stomach in serious pain, Yusuke pulled his dying body back through the fields and into the twisted forest where Kurama sat on his tree stump. For some reason, he looked a lot better than before, but maybe that was just because Yusuke felt a lot worse.

"H-hey, hey Kurama..." And that was it. Yusuke couldn't hold himself up on his feet any more, and he fell onto his face at the demon's feet.

"Oh no, Yusuke," murmured Kurama, anxious. "I was afraid this would happen. Listen, Yusuke? Can you hear me?"

"Mmmm."

"I've got an antidote I can give you," Kurama said, "but it will knock you out for about an hour. When you wake up you'll probably be very disoriented, but all right. Okay?"

"Suuuuure," said Yusuke, his voice fading to a weak crackle. "Do...do whatever you want."

"Swallow this, then." Kurama pressed a tiny parcel to his lips - some foul-tasting powder rolled inside a sweet leaf of some kind. "Hurry!"

It must have started working, because Yusuke was out cold.