My eyes shot open as I realized that whoever it was that was holding me wasn't my moody friend. I pushed against this new guy's chest, while he struggled to hold on to me.

"Hey! Hey! Take it easy! I want to help you, you know!" He cried. He sounded quite young. Finally, he lost his grip, and I tumbled out of his arms.

"Hiei!" I shrieked when I hit the floor. A moment later, the white door burst open, and Hiei jumped out, burning with fury.

He pointed his sword right at the man that had started to carry me. "Get away from her now, and I might not kill you."

The young man held up his hands in surrender. "Hey! Easy! I wasn't trying to hurt her! Just…Just put the sword down…"

Hiei didn't obey. His eyes narrowed in anger. "If you aren't here to capture us, then why are you here?"

"I work here!"

Hiei's eyes were just furious slits now, and he took one step closer, which narrowed the distance between the guy and the tip of the sword. The man swallowed nervously.

"Again, I ask, why are you here if not to capture us?" Hiei hissed. I had to admit, even I was scared of Hiei at this point.

"Hiei!" I jumped to my feet, almost falling back down as the weariness hit me. I ignored it, and instead touched my fingers to the dull side of Hiei's sword. I pushed it down, and he glared at me. "He might be more encouraged to talk if you aren't about to kill him."

The guy looked grateful to me, and I slid down to the ground again. Hiei positioned himself protectively in front of me.

"Talk," he commanded.

The guy exhaled. "My name is Tao. I don't remember anything else really about me. I lost my memory ten years ago and this corporation took me in. I've been working for them ever since, but I don't really enjoy it…"

Hiei scoffed. "You're lying."

I didn't try to get up this time, but I reached my hand out to take hold of Hiei's. He flinched slightly when I touched him. "Look, let me see if he is. Maybe he can be of some use to us."

I gestured to Tao to get him to bend down to me. I wasn't used to forcing premonitions, and this certainly wasn't going to be kind to my already weakened body. I pressed my whole hand against Tao's forehead, and closed my eyes.

A pretty little girl smiled at me. She was quite lovely, and only about ten years old. I felt love and adoration when I saw her, and could not resist ruffling her hair. She squealed in protest, before laughing and hugging me. I folded my arms around her, vowing to protect her no matter what.

I blinked, withdrawing my hand from Tao's forehead before I could see any more. What I had seen was enough to convince me that he wasn't the same type of human scum that inhabited the rest of this facility.

"Tell me…" I said slyly. "Do you remember a little girl, with black hair?"

"Nope," Tao shook his head with hardly a moment's thought.

"Well, apparently she's quite important to you," I said. "And she might have something to do with why you lost your memory." I saw something glint on his finger. It was a silver ring, quite small and girly, and with a gleaming red stone, the color of blood. Curious, I reached out and touched it. Instantly, I received a jolt of pure spirit energy. I felt rejuvenated, but at the same time, it hurt. Just like I had stuck my finger into an electrical socket.

"Tera?" Hiei said uncertainly when I gasped. "What's wrong?"

"The ring," I gasped, finding my voice hoarse.

Not needing another word, Hiei seized Tao's hand, yanking the ring off. He must've felt the power in it as well, but it didn't hurt him like it had me. He turned it around in his fingers, examining it. He shoved it in a pocket of his cloak.

"It's mine now," he told Tao. Tao didn't look angry, only a little sad. I assumed Hiei would give it to Genkai to analyze or something. But something was drawing me to the ring…It almost felt like it belonged to me.

A loud alarm began to sound, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Hiei swore violently, using words I had never heard before, and did not want to imagine their meaning. He roughly grabbed my hand, and pulled me to my feet.

"You're coming with," he snarled in Tao's face. Tao didn't argue, but instead began to follow us as Hiei jerked me down the hall, towards the exit.

"Look out!" I yelled, once I saw what was waiting for us around the next corner. I shoved Hiei roughly out of the way, earning a slash across my shoulder as a bullet grazed my skin. Hiei flew past me, deftly slicing the shooter into little bits, then jumped back to me.

"Are you hurt?" He demanded to know.

"Yeah," I said, showing him my wound. "It's just a graze, though."

Hiei took my wrist and began to pull me again. "I'll clean it for you when we get out of here." Then, it was his turn to rescue me, as a sword blade flashed through the air. He spun away from the sword to protect me, and in turn, received a nasty gash across his back. While not even letting go of me, he cut the attacker in two, and began to run down the hall, as fast as he could while holding on to me. Neither of us noticed (nor cared) whether Tao was still following.

We dashed out into the courtyard, and Hiei didn't even bother retaliating as men shot at us. He only dodged the bullets, making sure I was unharmed as well. We bolted out the gate, and I learned that yes, Tao was still with us. We ran until we were sure no one was following us. Then, Hiei finally slowed his pace, allowing us to rest. I collapsed to my knees, having difficulty breathing.

Hiei knelt in front of me, his red eyes penetrating mine. I immediately felt calmer. But his eyes reminded me…

"Oh! Did you get what we came for?" How stupid of me not to ask this sooner.

Hiei reached inside his cloak and pulled out a small bottle of shimmering white liquid. "Yes. This should cure Yukina."

I sighed in relief. "Good." I wished more than anything that I could pass out on the ground right here, but I didn't think Hiei would be very happy if I did that. Still, he seemed to notice my exhaustion. He reached over and pulled me closer to him, so that I could lean against his should. I smiled gratefully, closing my eyes and soaking in the warmth of his body.

"So….What now?"

My eyes shot open in alarm. I had completely forgotten about Tao. And apparently, Hiei had too.

"Oh, you're still here?" Hiei snapped rudely.

"Of course I am." He crouched down so he could he eye level with the two of us. "You should really get those injuries tended to."

Oh yeah. I had forgotten about them. It kind of irked me that Tao had escaped the building without even a scratch. Idiots like him always had that kind of luck.

"As much as I hate to say it, he's right." Hiei commented. He gently pushed me off of him, then stood, looking down at me. "Can you walk?"

I got cautiously to my feet, but I couldn't even feel my legs. I fell, right into Hiei. He gently lowered me to the ground again.

"I guess that's a no."

"I'll carry her." Tao said cheerfully, trotting forward. Hiei growled.

"Don't you touch her!"

Tao's smile melted into an expression of mock disappointment. "Why not? I'm on your side."

"I don't care," Hiei replied casually. "I just don't want you touching her." His words made me blush. Hiei bent down to pick me up, but I pushed him away. His eyes widened in surprise and hurt.

"You're injured, worse than me!" I snapped. "There's no way I'm letting you carry me."

Hiei glared at me. "Well, you can't even stand. I'd say I'm in better condition than you are." He leaned close to me, so that Tao wouldn't be able to hear. "You don't really want him to carry you instead, do you?" I almost giggled at the sound of worry in his voice.

"Of course not," I replied, hoping to put a rest to his fears. I made a show of laying down on the ground, like I was getting ready to sleep. "Maybe I'll just sleep here."

"Not a chance," Hiei growled. He yanked me brutally to my feet, and I almost fell again. But he wound an arm around my waist, and took one of my arms to wrap around his body. I felt secure, but my heart was beating way too fast.