I sat in front of my laptop, growing irate with the lack of useful information I was getting. I had been searching for hours, yet I could find nothing on any demons in the area, or any of the missing persons. And that was what was strange. Koenma had given me a list of the names of the people, but even when I hacked into the National Government database I couldn't find any official documents on them. Not birth certificates, not dental records, nothing. It was as if they never even existed. Erasing official documents was hardly possible, even for me! There were backup files everywhere, and a system that would automatically repair the document files if it sensed something wrong with them. There was no way…

Leaning back in the chair, I held my hands over my stomach. Kurama, Yusuke, Kuwabara and Hiei were all scouring the city, trying to find out anything they could. Kurama called every hour, to see if I was okay. I was doing just find, but I wasn't too happy being left alone. I didn't dare say anything about it to Kurama, though. I didn't want him to worry, nor did I want to seem selfish.

A soft knock came from the door. I sighed, unwilling to get up. It was becoming a more and more difficult chore as the days went by. I waddled to the door, pausing a moment before opening it.

I was extremely surprised to see the beautiful Yukina standing just outside my door.

Yukina's sweet smile instantly brightened my mood. I invited her in, my mood brightened even more by the fancy gift basket she was carrying. She had probably made it herself. It was hard to believe Yukina was a demon. The way she acted, she could very well be mistaken for an angel.

"I came to keep you company," Yukina said, setting the gift basket down on our kitchen table. "Yusuke told Genkai about the missing people, and mentioned that you were being left alone."

I walked to my comfortable easy chair, settling myself down into it. Yukina sat on the loveseat right next to me. She perched on the edge of the cushion, folding her hands in her lap. I didn't really know what to do. There wasn't much I could do to be a good hostess in my condition.

"How are you, anyway?" Yukina asked in concern.

I sighed. "Well, miss, it's getting annoying that I can't even sit with my legs closed anymore. And that I can't stand up for thirty minutes without being completely exhausted. And that I'm tired all the time, but when I want to go to sleep, the baby won't stop kicking. And that I -" I broke off when Yukina started to laugh her beautiful, silvery laugh. I blushed, thinking she was laughing at me.

"What a joy that must be, to be pregnant."

I blinked in disbelief. After ranting off about my problems with being pregnant, she goes and says that? She was truly a unique girl.

"Someday you'll experience it for yourself, I'm sure." I knew how much Kuwabara liked Yukina, although she had yet to return his feelings. If Kuwabara hadn't spent half an hour teasing me about my condition before leaving, I might have felt sorry for him.

"Of course I will. When I turn one hundred, and have a daughter of my own."

I sighed. "That's not exactly what I meant, miss."

Yukina opened her mouth to reply, but before she could, I held up my hand to silence her. Something felt…Wrong.

Before I could act, the wall to the kitchen exploded. Yukina screamed. I leapt to my feet, knowing that I needed to protect her. I seized my laptop, letting it transform into my two chisakatana. I waited for something to come out of the falling dust…

Great, a demon. Just what I needed. I hadn't been in a fight for five months. That, and since I was now about thirty pounds heavier, this did not bode well for me.

I made sure Yukina was hidden behind me before I readied my weapons. I was scared, I wasn't going to deny it.

The demon moved faster than I thought possible for someone of his size. But I should have known better than to think that large size meant demons moved slowly. I was knocked back. Terror seized me instantly, as I thought about the damage that could do to the baby.

I was weak, weaker than I thought I had ever been, even as a human. I hadn't been hit that hard, yet I could already feel myself losing consciousness. Yukina's screams were becoming dimmer and dimmer as I fought to stay awake…I slumped to the floor, finally giving in to the creeping darkness.

(*o*)( =^_^=)(*o*)

I shot awake, jolting up in a bed. Sitting up fast was hampered by the massive bloated lump on my stomach. I instantly rubbed my belly, feeling for a kick that told me the child was okay. I felt a sharp jab to my kidney, and sighed in relief. It seemed okay.

I recognized where I was. Kurama's mother's house.

"Aya…"

I jumped in surprise, looking over to see Kurama leaning on the bed. I smiled at him, my relief making me giddy. I was so happy to see him. But…He didn't exactly look happy to see me. He looked extremely depressed.

I reached out my hand to touch his cheek. "What's wrong?" Suddenly, I was scared for Yukina. What had happened to her?

Kurama turned away from my fingers, not even looking me in the eyes. When he spoke, his voice was thick. "I…Shouldn't have left you alone. How could I be this stupid?!"

Tears sprang in my eyes as I realized he was blaming himself for this attack.

"No!" I said instantly. "Don't. It's not your fault!" I didn't know what else to say. Kurama wasn't the type to easily forgive himself for something like this. I reached for his hand, pulling it to my stomach. I held it there until we both felt the baby give a good strong kick.

"See? It's okay. And I'm okay. I've suffered worse. You know that. Please, Kurama…" Gosh darn it. These hormones were making me feel like such a crybaby. I decided to change the topic before I exploded into an all-out bawling fit. "So, how's Yukina? And how'd your mission go?"

Kurama sighed, apparently not appreciating the change of topic. "Yukina is fine. The demon didn't even bother with her. It left when we came back. And the mission? Uneventful. It seems bringing you along would have been the right choice after all."

Something clicked in my mind. "Hey!" I said, sitting up so suddenly that I got slightly dizzy. "Get me my laptop, sir. I have an idea."