FCL64: Well, here we are. Chapter fourteen. I stayed up until twelve-forty last night writing it. It's a bit long.

Kiyoshi: A bit? We only own Ayaka, Kaien, and Kyo, the bounty hunter.

FCL64: And despite what it looks like, this chapter is actually finished. It ends where it ends on purpose. I did not forget to type anything.

Kurama pov

2008 A.D.

What is he doing here? This is not what I need right now. Shiori is sick, and since the doctors can do nothing for it—since I can do nothing for it—I'm fairly certain it's at least partially my fault. Another demon lurking around my mother is something that is unwelcome. But I must try to be civil.

"Hiei," I say, mimicking surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I need your help." His eyes are cold, steely. Strange that he does not flinch or look down when saying those words. Most demons, particularly prideful ones as he seems to be, would have, if they had even asked at all. He doesn't mumble, either. His voice rings clearly through the hospital room.

"Don't wake her," I say more sharply than I intend to. I quickly add, "What is it you need my help with?"

"The demon fox Kurama disappeared fifteen years ago," he states flatly.

So that's his angle and why he wasn't ashamed of asking for help. He doesn't need help getting out of something; he needs help getting into it. "Tell me something I don't know," I suggest mildly, giving him no hints of my suspicions.

"That human body has fifteen years. You introduced yourself as Kurama. I do not believe in coincidences." Hiei enunciates each of his words completely. There is no way I can pretend I do not understand.

"All true," I say. "How does it pertain to this conversation?"

Hiei glares at me for half a second. He does not appreciate my playing dumb. But he says nothing about it. He evidently wants my help more than he is letting on. "You are the fox demon Kurama. You are the notorious thief. You are capable of getting through any lock, past any security system, into any vault."

I pause a moment, blinking slowly. "So I am," I finally reply. "Why does that mean you need my help? I need a reason before I agree."

"Along with a demon called Goki, I have decided to steal three treasures from the Underworld. But very few people are capable of breaking the codes guarding them. You are the best at what you do."

I can see that it is not flattery; just a statement of the facts as he sees them. And it is what I did, not what I do. But all the same, I am intrigued by what he says. I want to know his plans. Not that I will participate; I must stay here with Shiori. "What treasures?"

"The Conjuring Blade, the Rapacious Orb and the Mirror of Darkness."

He wants my help—my skills—far more than I imagined, to be willing to reveal that. "Interesting choices." When he doesn't respond, I continue, "I cannot say I particularly want to help…" But the mirror. It could save Shiori. I glance at her. I must do this. I finish my sentence, "But I suppose I can. First, however, we must discuss payment."

"Payment?" His voice is dead.

"I do not break into vaults for free, Hiei," I say. "Especially not those in the Underworld."

"What is it you want?" He doesn't like the turn our conversation has taken, that much is clear.

"I want the mirror." At these words his eyes flash, then narrow. I continue as though I haven't noticed, "At least until the first full moon after the theft."

I see in his eyes that he does not like my terms. Apparently, the young, arrogant demon before me doesn't know the sacrifice required. He is going to give it to me and allow me to use it. But he will be monitoring me and, the moment I've finished with it, he will kill me and take it back. I wish everyone were this easy to read. Not that it matters. I will be dead long before he has a chance to kill me. Rather reluctantly he agrees to my terms, "Deal."

I nod. "The sooner, the better. The Underworld vaults haven't changed in centuries; as tricky as they are, I already know how to break into them, so long as you have a plan to reach them." Lies, certainly. But the breaking and entering is never a problem. It's the getting out that always seems to cause a fuss.

He seems momentarily suspicious of my statement, as he should be. But then he lets it pass. "Good. Meet up with me and Goki in the copse of trees on the far side of the park across the street. Tomorrow night at ten." Then he leaves.

I do not like him in the slightest. But that matters little. He has provided me with a way to save my mother's life.

I slowly approach the thicket Hiei described. From within it, I feel Hiei's all-too-familiar aura and another's spirit energy as well. They are waiting for me.

I step into view calmly, showing none of the unease I feel at the idea of returning to my old profession. But such is life.

Hiei's companion, Goki, is immense. And the way he smells…he is a soul-eating ogre. It is obvious why he is here. He is the muscle, if it should come down to that. I say nothing.

Goki does not respect my desire for silence. "This is Kurama?" he asks quite skeptically. More mockingly he adds, "Heh…not much to ya, is there." So he is here solely for the muscle. At least I hope that's his only purpose because his intelligence leaves much to be desired.

When I don't respond to his insult, he continues, "I heard Kurama had long silver hair, a razor-sharp aura, and was cold and ruthless to the core! So you evaded the hunters by possessing some pencil-necked human, eh? Show your true self, unless you aren't that Kurama." His threat is not well thought out, but I am still uneasy. He is itching for a fight. Not good. You must be calm at the start of a raid, or things invariably go downhill. And fast.

"That's not possible. There was…fusion. I'm indivisibly Kurama and Shuichi Minamino." True enough. I could conceivably manifest my powers to their full extent. But that would most likely kill the human body I'm in and wreak havoc on myself. Not to mention Shiori.

"Yeah?" he asks. He doesn't believe me. So he snaps, "We're out to steal the treasures of the Underworld!" He is definitely looking for a fight. He turns away from me and asks, "Hiei, you sure this guy's up to tackling that?"

Hiei doesn't seem at all disturbed by the fact that this idiot is questioning his judgment. He remains calm. He seems almost amused, as if he knew this would be Goki's response. Hiei is much smarter than I initially gave him credit for. "Why don't you check him out, Goki?" Hiei suggests, the hint of a smile playing at his lips. "I'll join up with whoever's left standing."

"Good idea," Goki replies, confidence dripping from every word. "I could use a bit of exercise."

Exercise? Is that what he thinks it will be to fight me? He is sadly mistaken. Unfortunately, I need to preserve my aura. My eyes are narrowed, and when he turns around, he flinches. How pathetic. Hiei could have done so much better than this. Except for the fact that he needs someone he is able to kill. He only chose me because very few people have my skill, and it is quite likely that, right now, I am the weakest of those few.

"My aura level is not what it was but that's fine with me. There's more than myself to consider." Not my most subtle threat, perhaps, but it seems to do its job. Goki seems to remember that the intelligent fighter often wins, even if he is weaker. I then continue, "This fusion, you see, holds back what I was…but that doesn't mean I can't be worse!" True, at least in Goki's eyes. Perhaps not more powerful, but it is often the weak who are most cruel. I could very well try my hand at that, and he knows it. I add, "Care to test that?"

His face is all the answer I need. "Hey, it's cool. You're in, okay?"

I do not answer, and a silence surrounds us. Once again, it is Goki who breaks it. He is truly getting on my nerves. "I'm going to get a snack real quick. Is midnight okay?" Hiei nods curtly, and Goki walks away. Watching him leave, I know that, as little love as I have for Hiei, I like Goki even less.

After he vanishes, Hiei says, "He's a moron, I know. But he's simply here to serve as a distraction, should we get caught."

Clever, if not entirely reliable. I just nod.

We stand silently for nearly a quarter of an hour before Hiei speaks again. "What is on the chain around your neck? You've been wearing it every time I've seen you. You haven't done the best job at concealment, but it's completely safe, given that it's on your person."

I force a blankness to cover my face. I've found that I can't manage much more than that when on this subject. "Just a pendant."

"Its purpose?" He wants to know if it's worth taking once he has killed me.

"It was a close friend's."

"But what does it do?"

That I definitely cannot tell him. He would surely take the pendant if I did. I draw it by its chain from my shirt, pressing my thumb on its surface, just as he used to do. Somehow, it seems to give me strength. "…I don't know."

"Then why carry it?" Hiei wants it already, no matter what it is capable of. But I must keep it safe. That was his last wish.

I respond slowly, carefully choosing my words.

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animegrlsteph: here is the chapter.