AbhorsenSabriel87: Oh, my effing gods, people still like this fic!
Ser: --looks at review list-- I would say so, my lady.
Sabriel: --grins-- Well, best not keep you waiting for another chapter, then! Onto the fic!
Ser: --sighs-- She owns nothing.

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A human being is part of a whole, called by us the 'Universe,' a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest--a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.

--Albert Einstein

---Finally, the pain had removed itself from him, leaving him with only a strong and throbbing ache in his left temple. He felt as if he were rising from a dream, gradually noticing the warmth and softness of the blanket over his shoulders and the firmness of the mattress beneath him.

---Wait a minute. I'm supposed to be dead. Snapping his eyes open and jerking upright, Hiei scanned the room around him in an instant.

---It was his room where he stayed during his time in Ningenkai; dark wood hiding soundproof walls, a mahogany door with a brass knob, all the same down to where he had last tossed the dark trenchcoat he wore in the Human World. The dark blanket he clutched in his bandaged arm was the same cotton it always had been, the bed the same dark wooden hue. Relaxing, he realized someone must have figured out where he resided and brought him back here to heal. Slipping out of the bed silently, he noticed the floor was rather cold, but he shrugged it off. With his high body temperature, if the floor was on fire,he probably wouldn't notice. Casually, and without any worries (other than the headache he still had), he opened the door. What he saw next truly surprised him.

---He saw Yukina walking past him to another room.

---He was too shocked at this to speak immediately, but the crimson eyed girl noticed the disturbance of the door and turned about. Her eyes grew wide and her hands clasped over her mouth in what seemed like amazement and joy.

---"Onii-san, you're awake!" she exclaimed, instantly running the three steps to her now bewildered brother and pulling him into a gentle hug that showed both her relief and love. "Mother was so worried that you wouldn't wake up, but I just knew you wouldn't leave us alone like that!"

---Hiei, to say the very least, was shocked and confused. Who had told Yukina that he was her brother? And wasn't his mother dead? Actually, why wasn't he? Even better, why wasn't he in a hospital in Reikai? All these questions made his head spin and the dull ache turn into a throbbing annoyance.

---Yukina stepped away, confusion on her own beautiful face. "What is it, Onii-san?" she asked worriedly. "Is something the matter?"

---Hiei looked back at her, forcing his thoughts from his mind to alleviate the pain. It didn't help much, but the dull pulsation was better than a pounding headache. "What happened?" he asked calmly. "Why am I here?"

---"Mother wanted to bring you home to rest," Yukina explained, relieved that her brother started acting normal again. "She couldn't stand seeing you lying in that hospital all alone, so we brought you back home until you woke up."

---"Woke up from what?" he asked gently, trying to be patient. "What put me in the hospital in the first place?"

---"…You… don't remember?" Yukina's face had gone into a look of shock and worry instantly, and her tone was filled almost with dread.

---Hiei waited for her to continue, though when she turned away with a worried expression on her face, he found himself growing impatient. Grasping her arm firmly but gently, he turned her back to face him. "What put me in the hospital, Yukina?" he repeated.

---"…You and… and Shuichi-san," she started, looking about to burst into tears, "you followed my friends and me home from school three nights ago when we'd stayed late for our sport's medicine training. When we started to walk the shortcuts like always, three men jumped out at us and attacked. You and Shuichi-san protected us, but one of them hit you with a bat and knocked you unconscious. You've been out for three days, Onii-san." She paused, then looked up at him with teary eyes. "I'm so sorry, Hiei!" she cried, burying her face in his shoulder and hugging him tightly.

---Though comforting people was not exactly his strong suit, Hiei returned the embrace this time, if a little awkwardly. This was a new predicament; he could really remember that building, those demons, and being shot rather clearly. He also remembered that doctor's face, and his conversation with Hina in Purgatory. Did that mean… this was a dream?

---When Yukina's sobs finally died down and she pulled away, Hiei let her go and stared at her curiously. She looked exactly the same as she had before that mission, though dressed in a powder blue blouse and light colored jeans. She still held that Old Japan air to her, but looked much more modern than she usually did. Her eyes were still the vibrant crimson that they'd shared since birth, her hair still minty green and long. As far as he could see, there was almost no difference between the last time he saw her and now. Hearing someone behind him walk into the hall, he spun about and received the second heart-attack of the day.

---Hina had just walked into the hall from the living room, reading a set of papers as she walked. Her red eyes were trained solely on the documents in her hand, her short brown hair tucked behind her ears. Dressed in a white T-shirt and light blue jeans, she looked rather strange to Hiei, but still familiar.

---"Yukina, it's almost time for you to go to your tennis session," she said without looking up.

---"Um, Mother," Yukina said, slightly nervous and amused. The woman looked up at her daughter, about to ask what she wanted, when she saw her son standing there and watching her carefully. With a gasp almost identical to Yukina's, Hina dropped the papers and threw her hands up to her face in surprise.

---"Hiei! You're awake!" she exclaimed, smiling in relief. "Thank God. Are you feeling better? Do you need anything? Oh, wait, I'd imagine you have a massive headache. I'll get you something for that!" Before Hiei could speak, Hina left the hall quickly. Yukina giggled innocently at her mother's actions before turning her loving gaze on Hiei.

---"It's good to have you back in the land of the living, Hiei," she said warmly, placing her hand on her brother's shoulder. "Come; let's find out what Mother's doing." Walking past him down the hall, Yukina's hand slid off his shoulder but left a gentle coolness that calmed him into attempting to think clearly.

---This is very strange, he mused while following his sister into the kitchen. Why are Yukina and…Hina…living with me? Why is my mother even alive? No, stop asking questions. Just think about what you know; Yukina and Hina are alive and know of my true existence. Apparently, I was injured in a fight protecting Yukina and have been unconscious for three days. That would make today Monday the 8th of September. What else has changed? Shaking his head in bewilderment, Hiei entered the kitchen in time to have his mother hand him a mildly warm cup of tea.

---"Drink this," she said quickly. "But be careful; it's very bitter." Hiei smiled coolly and drank the tea without making a face. A willow's bark infusion, he thought absently. At least she knows her herbal remedies. Though why wouldn't she or Yukina just heal it?

---"Do you need anything else?" Hiei looked back to his mother and shook his head as Yukina looked to her mother in concern. "There's something wrong, Mother," she said carefully. "The doctor was right; he's got amnesia. I don't think he remembers much that has happened." Hina looked at her daughter, then her son, a worried expression on her face.

---"Is this true?" Hiei nodded. He didn't want to tell them right then that he still had memories, just not one that fit their description of what happened. "Then we need to take you back to the hospital for a check-up by the doctor," she sighed, finishing up on the lunch she made Yukina and handing it to her.

---"I'm perfectly fine," Hiei answered, almost defensively. Like most demons, he really didn't like human hospitals; too many opportunities to catch something. "It's just my memory. Everything else is fine." Hina looked skeptical, but after noticing the look on her son's face, she shook her head, smiling slightly.

---"You remind me so much of your father," she murmured sadly. "So stubborn… all right. Take Yukina down to her tennis practice and bring her home afterwards, but nothing else. I'll make an appointment with the doctor for tonight." Yukina grinned at her brother, who smirked slightly in return, but he didn't quite feel it like he should have. Leaving the kitchen to walk into the living room of the condominium, he stood at the window and stared out at the city, still the same as ever.

---Something strange was going on here. Was this the trial that Hina said he'd have to pass? If so, this may not be as bad as he thought.

---"Come on, Onii-san!" Yukina called from the door. "I want to get there early so I can practice with you!"

---Smirking again, he turned away from the window and caught up with his sister, walking down to the street with her and happier than he'd been in a while.

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---"He's in a coma. I'm sorry to tell you that, Yukina, but we can't do anything about it." The ice maiden tried to keep her unshed tears from falling as she looked Koenma in the eyes. She couldn't believe it; her brother was in a coma, and there was nothing she could do. She knew she should be grateful that he was alive, but for some reason the feeling wouldn't come. All that she felt was anger at herself that she could do nothing and a strange sort of anger at the godling that he hadn't called her in to help him.

---Koenma noticed her strong face and set his expression to be more gentle. "If you would like to visit him," he added kindly, "he's at the same hospital Kurama's mother was admitted to a few years ago. Intensive Care Unit, his attending physician is Dr. Nakia Kenjutsushi. Visiting hours start at eight a.m."

---Yukina nodded and forced a smile onto her face. "Thank you, Koenma," she muttered quietly. "I'll be sure to visit him. Good night, and sorry for disturbing you."

---"It's nothing, I was up anyway," he sighed, glaring off at something distantly. "Good night, Yukina." The screen went dark then, and Yukina closed the communicator, holding it tightly for a moment before putting it away again. Walking over to the window, she gazed out at the night sky, sadness tugging at her heartstrings. She stood there for a while, remembering when she could sense the fire demon outside as he stood watch over her, before slowly turning away and returning to her room.

---She would visit him in the morning. It was the least she could do after all he'd done for her.

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Sabriel: Okay, here you are! Tell me what you think!
Ser: I think it was rather… unexciting.
Sabriel: Aw, who asked ya, ya muse…