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(I finally got more cookies! Now… --eyes audience suspiciously-- I just have to figure out who stole them from the cookie jar in the first place… )

Kuranga108 asked why Syunsuke stole Kurama's memory. It seemed rather pointless unless he wanted a child as his lover. Syunsuke does not want a ten-year-old Kurama. That is definitely not the purpose; he isn't a pedophile (last time I checked, anyways.)

Syunsuke is toying with him and the rest of the group. Messing with their heads, making them angry. That sort of thing. Beyond that, you'll find out; Hiei is still figuring it out himself.

-o-o-o-

Memories of the Lost

Chapter 6

Memories Forgotten

-o-o-o-

Yusuke leaned against the hard wood of the temple wall, this legs and arms crossed in his impatient stance. Giving a huff, the raven-haired teen turned to look at his companion, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground beside him.

Chocolate brown eyes could easily interpret the random twitches and movements as a sign of similar boredom. Said orange-haired companion was currently blowing huffs of breath into his pompadour hairstyle, watching the few short strands sway in effect.

Kuwabara gave a loud, annoyed sigh.

Yusuke turned to his left, where the brown-haired, junior god stood. Koenma looked much less impatient and more worried than the other two. However, this was most likely because the two previous members spoken of were impatient due to their worry.

That, though, is not the point. Koenma stood to the side, leaning on no wall and crossing no limb. His sparkling, amber eyes were staring tirelessly on the floor of the hall. Although he was as impatient as the others were worried (and the others were as worried as he was impatient) he stood silently by, waiting until Hiei gave word to do otherwise.

Across from Koenma stood the beautiful Yukina, her arms clasped in worry as she glanced from the others in the hall to the Japanese styled doorway. Her crimson eyes that so painfully reminded everyone of her relations were worried near the point of tearing, but she made sure to hold them back, as none of the others were having the same problem.

Beside the young koorime was an even shorter woman, her fading pink hair hanging down in waves. Her deep brown eyes were closed, her head bowed as if asleep as she stood with her arms crossed, passing the time.

And sitting on the ground, legs partially brought to her chest, Botan twiddled her thumbs worriedly, glancing every so often at the door. She gave a sigh and leaned her head back, bumping it loudly against the wall.

"How much longer is that damn shrimp going to be?" Kuwabara growled as he took after Botan and began bumping his head against the wall repeatedly. Yusuke uncrossed his legs as his left began to go numb from putting his whole weight against it at an angle.

"Well, there is a lot for Hiei to go over," Botan reasoned as she glanced over at Kuwabara, who did not seem satisfied with that answer.

"Believe it or not, Kuwabara," Koenma began, stopping whatever comment Yusuke might have said, knowing it would have done nothing but provoke an argument, "Kurama was actually rather shy when he was ten. It came about with his mother's sickness and the growing battle against Youko."

"…Huh?" Kuwabara asked, clearly missing the last bit. "What do you mean, battle? I thought he was Youko! How can he have a fight with himself?"

Koenma gave a nod only to confuse the orange-haired man more as Genkai cracked an eye open to glance at the god. "Yes," he continued, "Kurama is Youko. However, the two had been raging a silent war up to that point. It had been subtle until then, and Youko had mostly been winning.

"You see, until Shiori's fatal sickness, Shuichi and Youko mostly lived in a sort of co-existent state in which Shuichi followed Youko's instruction with no resistance," Koenma explained, his voice carrying over the hallway as he had captured the others' attention.

"But when Shiori fell ill and Youko began feeling guilty, he buried himself within Shuichi, no longer sure of his morals or his future. At that point, Shuichi no longer had the strong, confident youko within him to tell him what to do.

"And, to worsen matters, Shuichi learnt of Youko's plan to abandon him to the demon realm, and the fox spirit's guilt doubled, as his human host began to grow on him. The human part of Kurama grew shy and unsure of himself until shortly before stealing the artifacts of darkness," Koenma shifted slightly as he drew his little mini history lesson to an end.

"Anyways, the point is that Kurama's shyness was repressed after meeting Hiei. Although his true self was still far hidden until he reached the age of fifteen, his most vulnerable point in his human life was at the age of ten, when Youko first left him to his own decisions."

"And that was currently four months, two weeks, and six days ago." Everyone turned to see Hiei, leaning in the doorframe. No one had heard him slide open the door, all too distracted in the god's speech.

"Hiei!" Botan shouted as she stood up, Kuwabara doing the same. Yusuke pushed off the wall and approached the fire demon first, being the closest. "How is he, Hiei?"

The fire demon glanced up at him before turning back to the room and closing the door, muttering something to its occupant. He turned back to the others, his hands behind him on the handle of the door.

"He's up to speed, if that's what you mean," the fire demon said, answering Yusuke. The teen gave an aggravated sigh.

"You know what I meant, Hiei!" Yusuke growled and the fire demon just gave him a blank glare and blinked.

"He's terrified, shocked, and completely unsure of himself. Just as every ten year old would be if he'd just been told that he's in a nine-teen-year-old body, able to switch into Youko, known as a traitor by hundreds of demons and wanted for such, heir to one third of the Makai, chased by a psychotic demon who's out for revenge, and keeping several good friends that he doesn't even know very worried."

Yusuke didn't seem to have an immediate reply to that, but Botan's mouth dropped some inches and Koenma's eyes bulged and his pacifier dropped from his mouth.

"You told him all that!" he asked in a shocked tone that was undoubtedly meant to be angry. Hiei turned his crimson eyes towards the young god and he tilted his head ever so slightly.

"No." The answer seemed to take several long seconds to sink in and when it did most of the people in the hall gave a relieved sigh. Hiei continued in an oddly attached voice, "But that's how scared he is, even when he only knows the first and the last two of that list."

No one really seemed to know how to respond to the weird changes in the fire demon until Yukina stepped forward, her innocent face saddened. "Hiei-san, may we go see him?"

His matching crimson eyes met hers and softened as he gave a small nod. He turned back and slipped inside the door, beckoning the others to follow. As they slipped into the room, they finally caught the first glimpse of Kurama that most had seen in the last half hour, every since Yusuke had come shouting into the tearoom that he was awake.

Kurama was sitting cross-legged on the bed, sitting with a slight slouch in his posture.

His deep green eyes were focused on the ground and reminded the others of a timid child just yelled at for stealing his sister's toy. His thin frame was rigid, even in his slouching, as if he was trying to keep himself from shaking.

And he probably was. Koenma knew that the Kurama before him was going to be unlike any they had before imagined. He was going to be a scared child trying to force himself into acting like the brave Youko he had always had beside him.

While the others gathered into the room, not drawing near to the fox, Hiei strode right over and sat down next to him. Kurama fidgeted and looked like he wanted to move closer to the fire demon, but didn't.

Yukina was actually the first to approach, and she stepped closer to the fox spirit. Kurama looked up, his green eyes widened slightly more than normal and, for all the ways he tried to hide them, the essence of a scared little boy was still locked deep in their depths.

"Kurama-san, I met you earlier when you first awoke," Yukina began softly as she bowed politely to him. "My name is Yukina."

Kurama blinked before smiling softly, seemingly glad that Hiei's sister was as friendly as Hiei had been when he had awoken. Yusuke gladly chose to be the next to try and make the fox more comfortable.

"Hey, I'm Urameshi Yusuke, but you can just call me Yusuke," he said with a cheerful ring in his voice as he grinned at Kurama. Although the child in him seemed a bit nervous by the abruptness, the fox eventually gave the same nervous but appreciative smile.

"I…" Kurama began after the others had eventually named off what he used to call them, which was mostly just the norm, as Kurama had never been one to knick-name. Although he seemed nervous, a quick glance at Hiei, who nodded, seemed to help him a long enough to speak to his newly found (or was it old?) friends.

"I am sorry, but…I don't remember any of you," he spoke quietly and in a soft voice. Koenma smiled gently as he gave the fox demon a nod.

"Nor would we expect you too," he walked forward slightly and crouched down before him so that he was basically at the same height as the fox. When he spoke, it was much as he would had he been addressing a child … which he technically was.

"Kurama, the fact that you can not remember us, or the last nine years is not your fault. I am sure Hiei already told you this, but we will get your memory back," Koenma gently lifted Kurama's chin as he had begun to focus his eyes back on the ground. "We're your friends, Kurama-kun, we only want to help you, and we will get back everything the demon took. All that I ask is that you trust us."

The fox seemed hesitant for a long time before he glanced briefly to Hiei, but Koenma shook his head. "Kurama-kun, I need your answer. I understand that you feel lost and alone, and that you do not know me. But I need you to answer me, not Hiei. I already know what his answer will be."

Kurama stared into the young god's amber eyes for another long moment of uncertainty before he finally nodded. "Okay," he answered in a small voice. "I trust you."

Koenma smiled and released his gently hold on the fox's chin, giving it a soft, but playful bump with his knuckle. Yusuke smiled at his koi as the god backed off, having played his uncle-job and given Kurama a little more security.

As Koenma stepped back into his place next to the raven-haired detective, Yusuke gently gripped his hand, entwining his fingers with the god's. "You'd make a good father, Koi."

Koenma blinked before blushing a very dark shade of red, making the detective chuckle slightly. That was before he realized that Kurama was staring at them with curious eyes.

It was Yusuke's turn to blush.

But Kurama's childish innocent didn't seem to push anything or even make the connection that was right before him, so Yusuke just broke eye contact and chose to stair at the wall.

Yukina stepped up next to Hiei and bowed again to Kurama, a friendly smile on her face. "May I get you something to eat, Kurama-san?"

Kurama started to glance at Hiei before he stopped, and changed his gaze over to Koenma, who raised an eyebrow at the fox. Breaking the eye lock first, Kurama turned back to Yukina and nodded slowly.

"That…would be very nice, Yukina-san."

Beaming, Yukina merrily left to go prepare some delicious form of food for the fox. Genkai turned her eyes over to the fox, strode forward and plopped down on the ground beside the bed, the kitsune to her left.

Kurama blinked for a second, very taken back by the abrupt old master. Hiei barely held back a snort of derisive laughter at Kurama's reaction. Yusuke glanced at Koenma, who shrugged.

And out of nowhere, Kuwabara strode forward and copied Genkai, sitting opposite her with the bed on his right. She nodded approvingly as she began talking to the group as a whole.

"We need to devise a plan to defeat Syunsuke once and for all. We no longer have the leisure of time. Soon, if the demon gets another shot at Kurama, we will run out of human memories and explaining all this to Youko will be a very different experience altogether. One we would like to avoid."

Yusuke was the last to sit down, forming a sort of circle as Kurama slipped off the bed and sat on the ground next to Genkai, surprising Hiei who followed suit after a brief consideration. He preferred windows and doorways with quick exits.

"Well, it's obvious that Syunsuke is going to use Kurama's disposition against us, and for his advantage," Koenma reasoned (pointlessly as it was obvious) and Botan nodded.

"Yes, and he'll most likely do so by putting us in a position in which we can't get to Kurama…" she continued and Yusuke frowned.

"But to do that we'd have to leave him alone…" Yusuke replied as he looked at the others, glancing at Kurama also. "Which mean's he'll be expecting us to come looking for him, leaving Kurama."

"…Where he would be safe and far away from Syunsuke," Kuwabara put in as he managed to keep up. Kurama's eyes continuously seemed to be lowering farther to the ground as the ones around them continued to speak as if he wasn't there.

But was he really there? It all seemed like such a dream. Just last week he had been attacked by an angry fire demon looking for his sister, only to team up with him in the end.

Only last week he had taken home a collapsed fire demon and healed him within the confines of his bedroom, hidden away from his mother. Only seven days ago had he whispered his true name for the first time in ten years.

And now…now he was sitting in a foreign temple in the midst of half a dozen people he didn't know (and who claimed to be his friends) in a nine-teen-year-old body of himself. Hiei had said that he and Youko now coexisted, that they could even jump between forms freely.

But…if that was true, then where was Youko's voice, now? He would have been happy to hear the fox's voice, as it had disappeared behind a wall of guilt and depression.

Shuichi missed that confident guide that used to be by his side, leading his life and keeping him safe. He missed the voice, despite its harsh coldness and mocking way of ningen life.

He just missed Youko.

"And since he'll be expecting that, it will be exactly what we won't do," Genkai interrupted Kurama's thoughts and his eyes glanced up to the wizened master. "So let's switch it around and figure out how to bring him to us, and keep Kurama away from him."

"Let's get to it," Koenma said as they began giving different suggestions. Kurama glanced at Hiei as he watched on silently, hearing every word.

-o-o-o-

"Hiei?"

The fire demon turned his head at the sound of his name, taking in Kurama's figure beside him. As the fire demon shifted the light plastic bag in his arms, he raised one eyebrow.

"…Wh…where is Youko?"

Hiei frowned at the question but continued walking though the thick cover of the woods. They were nearing the temple stairs.

There wasn't much time left.

"He and you are one, Kurama," the fire demon answered in a subdued, but still firm voice as he turned his gaze back to the trees ahead of them. "When Syunsuke took your memory, his was lost as well. He remembers nothing more than you do."

Kurama's green eyes lowered to the forest floor. He hugged the small grocery back to his chest in a feeble attempt to wrap himself in some semblance of comfort. "So…I won't hear his voice again, will I?"

Hiei looked back over his shoulder at the fox. "What makes you think that?"

"He hates me," came Kurama's quiet and sorrowful answer. "I know you said that we co-exist in the fut- … erm…In this body…but he hates me so much."

Hiei actually snorted at this, causing Kurama's head to snap up and his green eyes to focus on the fire demon. But the youkai had returned to observing the trees.

"He doesn't hate you. He's ashamed…" Hiei trailed off as he realized that he was delving deep into the information that he had only inferred from watching Kurama for so many years.

"Ashamed?" The young human did not seem to pick up on Hiei's hesitation. The fire demon frowned and gave a shrug.

"Never mind. Forget I said anything." And that was the end of the conversation. Kurama might not have known Hiei long, but he had long thought of how the fire demon acted and had been prepared for such an answer.

And so the conversation was not continued.

But after a long pause as the two demons continued walking towards the temple, Kurama could not keep his questions back any longer. "Hiei…what am I like?"

The fire demon once more sighed; déjà vu seemed to make itself a permanent theme for the day. He looked over to see Kurama's innocent and curious eyes.

He gave in and supplied an answer, though vague and avoiding as it was. "Fox, you shouldn't worry yourself so much. But…" Hiei glanced away, once more scanning the trees before he continued, "you are different."

Kurama was about to ask for more, perhaps a bit more detail to help in answering his question. Or, at least more helpful than "different" but before he could, Hiei cut him off.

"We should keep moving, Fox. We have to get back before they add the last ward."

The fox frowned slightly but he nodded and started walking a little faster to keep up with the fire demon.

Hiei glanced once more into the woods around them, his crimson eyes scrutinizing over every tree. With a frown, he turned back and started up the stairs.

'We're running out of time.'

As Kurama followed Hiei in ascending the steps, he failed to notice the pair of lustful eyes watching after them.

-o-o-o-

Chapter 6

End

-o-o-o-

Not my favorite chapter by far - I feel it's a drab of a chapter and poorly written at that. Please forgive me for the lack of comparability to my other chapters.

However, please still review and tell me what you thought.