Recap: Koenma dismissed Yusuke and the gang, insisting the SDF would take over handling the invasion of spirit world, Keiko and Botan discovered Yukina has/had a secret crush on Kurama, Kurama thinks Hiei has changed because he is preparing to fight him, Jin confirmed the antidote for the virus has not been perfected yet, Puu chilled out, Botan flirted with Hiei and told Kurama about Yukina's crush and finally Hiei confronted Kurama about the evidence found in her bedroom.

Chapter 9: Talking Naturally

"Huh, you say that, but these clearly show that she has harboured feelings for you for some time."

"She never made those feelings known to me, or anyone else, as far as I am aware."

"And if she had?"

"I would of course have refused her."

"You're a marginally better option than Kuwabara to be her lover."

"Do you really hate Kuwabara that much?"

"I don't hate him. I just don't understand him."

"Well, that's true..."

"And don't think I'm so naive that I don't know about the history between your kin and mine."

"What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean. Fox demons have a taste for ice maidens, don't they?"

Kurama stumbled into the door, almost taking it from its hinges. He cleared his throat awkwardly and tried to pretend that he had meant to collide with the door, taking hold of it and carefully sliding it closed.

"What makes you say that?" he asked, hiding his apprehension with the ease of a practised dissembler.

"I saw it, once," Hiei quietly replied. "A fox demon – a young one, his hair still dark grey, like that fellow Fumio we met in spirit world – capturing an ice maiden who had strayed from her party during a visit to Arbeinia for supplies. He did... Unspeakable things to her."

Hiei sat down a little abruptly onto the edge of Yukina's bed, his face paling to almost deathly extremes again.

"Yes, that is something many fox demons do," Kurama admitted.

"You never did that," Hiei replied, his eyes lowered and his tone mildly anxious.

"You're wrong, because I did do that," Kurama said.

Hiei's head snapped up and his pupils contracted fearfully as his eyes met Kurama's.

"It's not something I'm proud of, but it is the truth," Kurama continued.

"That fox, he... He was hurting her," Hiei said quietly.

"I would have done the same, had I ever managed to catch an ice maiden for myself."

Hiei frowned, a little of the tension easing from his face.

"Don't get me wrong, I may never have violated one of your people, but it was not for the want of trying," Kurama explained.

"You think that sort of behaviour is just?" Hiei asked.

"Of course not," Kurama softly replied. "Not now, anyway. Do you think it's just?"

"I don't know," Hiei replied, lowering his head again. "I don't know what to think."

Kurama slowly crossed the room, watching Hiei carefully as he did so. When Hiei kept his head down and maintained his tormented and slightly childlike expression, Kurama dared to sit down next to him. Due to the position of the nightstand, Kurama was forced to sit very close to Hiei, their hips touching slightly: but Hiei did not respond to the contact made as Kurama joined him.

"You said you witnessed a fox demon catching an ice maiden," Kurama said quietly. "You've never mentioned that before."

"I try not to think about it," Hiei replied, clutching his hands into fists over his knees, bunching up the fabric of his pants.

"Perhaps you feel guilty," Kurama suggested. "When the ice maidens cast you out, you felt angry and you wanted them to suffer pain as you had, but perhaps when you saw them suffer you realised what you did when you finally found the ice village for yourself: they are hollow, unfeeling creatures, and worthy of nothing more than your pity."

"She was crying. She was begging him to stop. He said he wouldn't silence her because he wanted to listen to her scream. He did terrible things to her, and her death was slow and perverse."

"Most fox demons only seek ice maidens for sex. Most walk away after that, very few actually kill."

"I watched most of it. I did nothing."

"How did that make you feel?"

"Evil. Those women, they made me feel dirty and evil and corrupt and displaced and unwelcome, and when I saw the fox catch one of them, I thought she was getting what she deserved. I could have helped her. I could have done something, but I didn't, I just stood there and watched. And once he had torn her apart completely and no longer had a use for any part of her, I fled."

"You could have helped. But the ice maidens could have helped you before that. They chose to cast you out of their clan, and as such, you owe them nothing."

"I didn't flee because I thought she deserved it, I fled because I was scared. I didn't even want to watch, but I was so scared, I couldn't move. I was paralysed by fear. I hate that more than anything else."

Kurama carefully rested a hand on Hiei's shoulder, but again Hiei did not respond.

"I know you're not a coward," he said.

"But isn't that the absolute measure of bravery? If someone is confronted with a conflict, isn't it how they react that determines the integrity and courage of that soul? Some will fight, some will try to bring peace and some will just run away. I chose to run away: doesn't that make me a coward?"

"Only if you think it does. Let's be honest: you could never have hoped to prevail in a battle against an adult fox demon, young or otherwise. That fox would have been significantly stronger and wiser than you, and he would have killed you. Surely picking battles wisely is just as much a sign of a soul's integrity?"

"But if we really believe something, shouldn't we fight for it regardless? Picking and choosing how and when we fight for it seems cowardly to me."

"I think you're being too hard on yourself."

Kurama paused, suddenly aware that his hand had slid across Hiei's shoulders, and he now had his arm around his friend. Hiei was still leaning forwards, his hands gripping at his knees and his head down, and so Kurama decided just to remain as he was.

"Botan found those things under Yukina's bed, didn't she?" Hiei asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I believe so, yes," Kurama replied.

"I don't like that," Hiei said, his voice no louder but his tone slightly harsher. "Yukina left the ice village to be free of tyranny, I don't like it that she is subjected to it here."

"This can hardly be described as tyranny," Kurama said. "Botan found some poetry and sketches your sister made: why is that a problem?"

"The ice maidens controlled everything in Yukina's life, if the interfering women in living world are going to do the exact same thing by scouring through her belongings and mocking her when she isn't around to defend herself, how is this life any different for her?"

"Yukina is much better off here, you know that."

"But she's still being controlled. It's still a form of tyranny."

"Botan was acting out of kindness and concern."

"Whether the motivations are good or bad, isn't any form of control just tyranny and oppression? Whether it's done with fear and violence or jokes and pleasantness, it amounts to the same thing."

Kurama tilted his head slightly in the hope of catching a glimpse of Hiei's face, but failing to see his expression through his hair and shoulder hunched over by the side of his head.

"I had no idea you cared about such matters so extensively," he said. "Clearly you've given this a lot of thought."

"Some days it's all I think about," Hiei quietly replied.

"I think you might be over-thinking it," Kurama said. "I think you worry too much about your sister, and you shouldn't. She's well looked after here, and her friends are just supporting her, not controlling her. It's difficult for you to understand it because you prize your freedom and independence so greatly, and to you it probably seems like Yukina is restricted here. You should remember though that she doesn't feel as you do, she isn't capable of such passion."

"Passion?"

"I mean intensity of feeling. Your anger – and any other emotions you ever have – is all-consuming. Ice maidens aren't like that. They feel nothing."

Hiei's hands slowly opened out, his bandaged fingers spreading outwards. He sighed quietly and then stood abruptly, Kurama's arm falling from his shoulders. Kurama thought his friend was about to say something else or to argue further about the welfare of his sister, but instead he crossed the room, slid open the door, and walked out into the hallway beyond.

"Hiei?" Kurama called after him.

Hiei paused long enough to give Kurama a listless look over one shoulder before continuing on his way. Kurama watched him disappear from view, his eyes lingering on the open doorway for some time afterwards, partially expecting to see Hiei return there. Once he was sure that Hiei had left completely, Kurama picked up the pages Hiei had discarded, looking at each one carefully. It seemed that Yukina had been studying him quite carefully from afar for some time, and he felt a little silly for having never noticed it before: but more than that, he was shocked that Hiei was not more angered about it. Perhaps once he recovered from the virus Hiei might react differently.

"I'm telling you Yusuke, that bird tried to kill me!" Botan insisted.

"This little guy?" Yusuke asked, pointing a finger at Puu, who was resting his head on Yusuke's shoulder lovingly.

"He's not little, and yes, he did try to kill me!" Botan retorted indignantly.

"But Puu's never tried to hurt anyone," Yusuke pointed out. "What is it Shizuru calls him? The fudge-ball?"

"He used to be a fudge-ball, but then he grew into a super-sized vulture of doom!"

"Calm down, Botan!"

"He threw me from the sky several times! You didn't see his eyes; they were glowing with furious wrath!"

"Now I know you're exaggerating…"

"Keiko saw it too!"

"Nobody's been feeding the poor guy. Even spirit beasts gotta eat."

"Why are you not even remotely concerned about any of this?"

"Because I don't believe it."

"Not even when Keiko tells you?"

"I think you made her believe Puu was possessed and I think you scared her so much with your exaggerated stories that she thought you were right."

"Now you're the one being ridiculous!"

"I also think you need to get a hobby or something…"

Botan glared at Yusuke, but he merely shrugged in response, one hand still casually stroking Puu's neck as the spirit beast cuddled onto his shoulder. Botan moved her eyes to Puu, who had his eyes closed, his ears drooped loosely at the sides of his head, and he was even making small, contented purring noises.

"You're making me look like a liar, Puu!" she yelled.

Puu ignored her completely and Yusuke merely raised an eyebrow at her. Frustrated to the point of rage, Botan turned from them both and stomped away, moving in no particular direction other than away from Yusuke and Puu. She kept going until she had entered the forest, slowing once she got there because she had inadvertently taken herself to the steep slope on one side of the temple steps. After losing a sandal to Puu, she was wearing brand new sandals that had not quite been comfortably worn in yet, and that, combined with the uneven ground and steep drop, meant that she shortly lost her balance, stumbling a few steps down the slope before gravity took over and she began to fall.

Botan grunted as her weight caught against her armpits, her body sagging downwards from that point. She lifted her head curiously, finding that someone had hooked their arms under hers, saving her before she had hit the ground. She quickly found her footing again and straightened up, pulling her arms back from her rescuer.

"Oh," she said as she saw just who had come to her aid. "What are you doing out here?"

"I came out here to be alone," Hiei answered her.

"Oh."

Hiei ran his eyes over her, his face as devoid of emotion as ever.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Um, yes, thank you," she slowly replied. "I mean thank you for catching me and thank you for asking if I was alright."

"That's fine," he said. "You shouldn't come this way, it's dangerous. Use the steps next time."

"Right, that's good advice," Botan agreed.

Hiei eyed her over again, his face still relatively blank.

"I'll walk you to the steps," he concluded.

"Oh, that would be lovely!" Botan replied.

She turned towards the steps and almost fell over again when she felt Hiei take hold of her hand. Too confused to argue, she moved along with him as he guided her around the trees and along the most solid and secure parts of the forest floor. Once they had reached the steps he promptly released her hand, holding his hand out in front of himself towards the forest path far below them.

"There you go," he said, looking down the steps as he spoke. "Don't stray from this route again. I might not be there to catch you next time."

Botan smiled and bumped her hip playfully against Hiei's side, earning herself a surprised and disgusted look from the fire demon.

"Oh, you!" she said, rolling her eyes. "Mister tough guy who doesn't want anyone to know that he's really a big softy!"

"Don't ever assume to understand what I'm thinking, how I feel or what my motivations are," Hiei warned her in a low voice.

"Must you always talk like that?" she asked. "Like you're so dark and dangerous."

"I am more dark and dangerous than you could ever know," he replied.

"Oh really?"

"Absolutely."

"You're a real bad boy, aren't you?"

Hiei adopted a lop-sided smile, a sparkle of amusement passing over his eyes.

"I'm a very bad boy," he replied. "Very, very bad."

Botan licked her lips and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Why did you say that?" she asked.

"Because it's true," he replied.

"Don't you know how badly that makes me want you?"

"…What?"

"Oh Hiei, ravish me!"

"What the–?"

Botan threw herself at Hiei, cutting him off mid-sentence. He was tensed and stiff in her forced embrace, and she could clearly feel his hands and elbows pushing into her stomach in an attempt to block her affections; but she was unfazed by his attempts, and persevered, squeezing him in a hug that threatened to suffocate him, holding him as close as she possibly could and leaning over him. He squirmed in her hold and tried to shirk away from her, turning his head as she tried to kiss him, but again she overlooked his rejection, and instead of letting go, she decided to try something else she had read in "The Beast Whisperer" – since offering to let him watch her shave her legs had not worked.

Hiei yelped out and stopped all movement as the tip of Botan's tongue managed to reach his ear. She dragged her tongue up and around, tracing the outer edge of his ear, and for a brief moment during the contact she clearly heard him give a small, soft moan and tilt his head slightly towards her. She smiled as she withdrew her tongue, finding Hiei looking uncharacteristically large-eyed in her arms.

"I'm yours," she whispered into his ear. "You can do whatever you want with me."

"Get away from me!" he yelled, pushing her off and leaping up three steps to put some distance between them.

"Nobody has to know," she said, turning to face him.

He looked like a scalded cat – drenched (in sweat), tense, wide-eyed, fearful of another attack and ready to pounce or flee at any moment.

"Let's be lovers," she added.

"What?" Hiei echoed.

Botan tugged at the ties of her obi and Hiei's eyes almost popped out of his head.

"What are you doing?" he yelped. "No! Stop! Don't do that!"

"I thought you'd like it if I was bold," she replied, smiling suggestively.

"No!" he insisted. "No, no, no! You can't! I can't! We can't! What about Kurama?"

"What about Kurama?"

Hiei faltered slightly, his eyes wandering from Botan's. He pressed shaking fingers to his hairline, pushing away the sweat forming there and his mouth twitched several times before he managed to respond.

"He has feelings for you," he said.

"Oh no, that's just a rumour Keiko started," Botan replied. "Don't worry, I'm not interested in Kurama. I know he's your friend, and I promise, I would never do anything to come between you."

"You're coming between us right now!" Hiei snapped. "Fickle, frivolous, flighty feline!"

"No, I'm not, I promise! I'm not interested in Kurama, and he's not interested in me – and even if he was, he's not my type."

"This is very midsummer madness…"

"…What?"

Hiei tugged at his scarf awkwardly, exposing each side of his neck in turn to the air.

"Botan, you need to think about this sensibly," he said. "Kurama longs for you the way you long for… You licked my ear!"

Hiei pressed a hand to his ear and glowered at Botan accusingly.

"You enjoyed it, didn't you?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows at him.

"Yes, but that's not the point!" he snapped.

He gasped then, his free hand covering his mouth.

"No, wait, that is the point!" he corrected himself. "That's exactly the point!"

"I've been studying the arts of pleasuring a demon lover," Botan said, moving up a step towards Hiei.

"Why would you study that?" he asked, backing up a step.

"So that I could seduce you of course," she replied, moving up another step.

"You don't want to do that, Botan."

"Why not?"

"Because you're not going to like what you find if you try to put your hands on me again."

"I love it when you talk dirty."

Hiei yelped and scurried out of Botan's reach as she lurched at him, trying to once more grab him into her arms.

"Botan, you need to stop what you're doing!" he warned her, stumbling backwards away from her as he spoke.

"But why?" she asked, starting after him.

"Because… Kurama likes you, and it would ruin our friendship if you and I became romantically involved!"

Botan paused, something about the wording of Hiei's response seeming slightly suspicious, and Hiei capitalised on her moment of distraction by turning and running away. She only noticed his hasty retreat at the moment he reached the front porch of the temple, and by the time she had called out his name, he had already disappeared from sight inside the temple. She sighed and let her shoulders slouch forwards in defeat.

"First Lord Koenma won't tell me what's going on in spirit world, then the boys won't let me go on an adventure with them, then Puu tries to kill me only to turn all sweet and innocent again in front of Yusuke to make me look like a neurotic liar and now Hiei's being all difficult…" she grumbled as she stomped across the lawn. "I'll find a way to your heart, Hiei…"

"What are you glaring at?"

"I can't breathe, Hiei!"

"It's a manly smell, you have no reason to dispute it."

Yusuke bared his teeth and angrily skewered a piece of omelette with his chopsticks. Kuwabara joined them, looking confused and mildly disgusted.

"Hey, did somebody pour my aftershave down the kitchen sink?" he asked, shaking an empty glass bottle in the air. "I'm sure it was half-full before we went to demon world, but now there's none left, and I can smell it in here!"

"Hime borrowed some for his hot date tonight," Yusuke sarcastically replied, frowning at Hiei as he spoke. "But just like with everything else, he needs to learn portion control."

Kuwabara stopped by the table Yusuke and Hiei were sitting at.

"Why did you want to smell like me?" he asked, eying Hiei over suspiciously.

"Damn it, and I was hungry, too," Yusuke muttered, throwing down his chopsticks and pushing out his chair.

"Where are you going?" Hiei asked him.

"I'm going to throw up," Yusuke flatly replied. "You wanna watch?"

"You cooked this yourself, if it's not to your liking, you only have yourself to blame," Hiei said, waving a hand at the food on the table.

Yusuke groaned and moved away from the table. Kuwabara watched him go before turning back to Hiei, who by then had started eating again.

"Shouldn't you be tree surfing in demon world right about now?" Kuwabara asked.

"I intend to go to demon world," Hiei replied.

"Good. And don't ever touch my stuff again. That was expensive, and I need it for when Yukina gets back!"

Kuwabara sat down and began helping himself to food, ignoring the way Hiei was watching him from across the table. The two sat together in awkward silence for several minutes until they were joined by Botan, who nodded a greeting at Kuwabara before doing a distinct double-take at Hiei. She smiled as she eyed him over, moving around the table and sitting down into the seat Yusuke had not long vacated.

"Did everyone sleep well last night?" she asked.

"Not really," Kuwabara replied. "I tried looking for Yukina again, and I can't find her anywhere."

"That's nice," Botan said disinterestedly.

"No it's not! It's horrible!" Kuwabara said.

Hiei lurched in his seat before fixing his eyes onto Botan. He looked angry, and she was almost certain the look he was giving her was a non-verbal death-threat, but she persevered and pressed the ball of her foot more firmly against his shin beneath the table.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm okay, I suppose," she said through a sigh, sliding her foot up towards his knee. "How are you doing?"

"I asked what, not how," he corrected her.

"I hope you don't have to go back to demon world too soon," she said.

"You're not even listening to me."

"You should stay. At least until Yukina comes back. She likes to cook for us all, and she is a wonderful cook, you should stay and dine with us."

"Huh, what makes you think Yukina will be back here today?"

"If she's not back until tomorrow, you could always spend another night here…"

Hiei dropped his chopsticks and his eyes doubled in size as Botan's foot began gliding up the inside of his thigh.

"So Yukina's coming back today?" Kuwabara asked Botan.

"Probably," she replied, her eyes never leaving Hiei as she continued to work her foot up his leg.

"Good," Kuwabara said. "I hope she makes beef teriyaki. Did you know she cooks it differently for everyone? She cooks mine until it's soft and flaky. What about you Botan? How do you like yours?"

"Tender and juicy…" Botan purred, thrusting her foot forwards.

Hiei grunted and flinched as Botan dragged her toes up and down his crotch.

"And surprisingly firm…" she added under her breath.

"I have to go," Hiei said suddenly, scraping his chair back until he was beyond the reach of Botan's foot.

He stood up, glanced at Kuwabara, who was looking at him as though he was insane, and Botan, who was playing her fingers over her lips provocatively as she watched him, and then he turned and dashed out of the room. Hiei kept running until he heard Kurama call his name, at which point he skidded to a halt and turned around, finding Kurama moving towards him.

"Wait, I want to accompany you back," Kurama said.

"Alright," Hiei agreed.

"Please don't be so offensive, it's not that I think you're incapable of finding your own way home, it's really only because I want to find out if a cure has been found for the virus yet, and to understand just how hectic things are at Mukuro's headquarters."

"Okay."

"Really, I just… Wait, what?"

"Okay, I'll wait."

Kurama frowned slightly and made to ask Hiei something, but was cut off by Botan joining them.

"Oh, are you leaving already?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid we must Botan," Kurama answered her. "I need to take Hiei back to be cured, but as soon as I know that he is safe and healing sufficiently, I will return here, and–"

"I want to do something for you before you go," she cut him off.

"That's not necessary," he assured her. "I'll be back shortly, and we can–"

"I want to heal you."

Hiei leapt back as Botan reached out for him.

"What are you talking about?" Kurama asked her.

"Hiei hurt himself earlier this morning, and he was having trouble stopping the bleeding," Botan explained. "I thought maybe I should heal it for him."

Kurama moved his eyes to Hiei, who shrugged and shook his head.

"I have no idea what she's talking about," he said.

"This morning, at sunrise," Botan said. "I saw you! You were out on the edge of the lawn. Your finger was bleeding and you were trying to wipe it off onto a piece of cloth."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Hiei snapped.

"I saw you, Hiei," Botan said gently. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. Just let me heal it for you."

"I don't need your healing powers, Botan."

"Maybe you should let Botan take a look, at least," Kurama suggested.

Hiei glanced back and forth between Botan and Kurama before growling in annoyance.

"Alright," he said. "I'll show you my finger, if only to prove to you that you're making this up!"

He angrily unpicked the bandaging around the tip of his right index finger, exposing it entirely before holding it up and showing Kurama and Botan both sides.

"Oh, how strange…" Botan muttered. "It looked like you had cut it very deeply earlier…"

"Well now you can see that you were wrong, so please leave us be," Hiei replied, wrapping up his finger again.

"Wait," Kurama said, grabbing Hiei's wrist.

Hiei stopped, his eyes lifting to Kurama questioningly. Kurama's face remained solemn and he pulled Hiei's hand forwards, the bandaging falling loose again around his finger.

"You say Botan lied about seeing your finger bleeding?" Kurama asked.

"Obviously, yes," Hiei replied, curling and uncurling his finger to demonstrate his point.

"If she was lying, how did you know which finger she was referring to?"

Hiei faltered slightly, his eyes falling to his finger.

"You can't have read her mind if your jagan is failing you," Kurama added.

"That is the finger I saw bleeding," Botan said, pointing at Hiei's bared finger.

"It was a lucky guess," Hiei said, yanking his hand out of Kurama's grip. "If it had been the wrong finger, she would have corrected me, but she didn't, so I continued, assuming I had guessed correctly the first time around."

"That seems a little too convenient," Kurama said. "I think maybe–"

"You'll come back to see us soon, won't you Hiei?" Botan interrupted.

"Yes," he replied, his eyes on his finger as he meticulously wound the bandaging around it again.

"To see Yukina, of course," Botan said.

"We have to get Hiei treated first," Kurama reminded her.

"Of course, I understand," Botan agreed.

"Let's go," Hiei said to Kurama.

"How about a kiss before you go?" Botan said. "Just for, you know, luck."

"I don't have a problem with that," Kurama said, smiling at her.

"Kurama says it's alright," she said to Hiei.

"I'm not alright with it," Hiei nervously answered.

"So close your eyes," Kurama snapped at him.

"I don't think that will help," Hiei said.

"It's more fun if you close your eyes during a kiss," Botan said.

"Oh, I see," Kurama said.

Hiei's eyes widened as Kurama and Botan both closed their eyes and leaned forwards, Kurama moving towards Botan and Botan moving towards Hiei. Hiei shirked away from Botan, keeping himself out of her reach until both she and Kurama seemed to reach the point where they realised something was amiss, and both opened their eyes again, Kurama frowning curiously at the back of Botan's head and Botan pouting dejectedly at Hiei.

"We have to go now," Hiei insisted. "So long Botan."

He spun on his heels and hurriedly moved towards the front door. Kurama turned to Botan, who shrugged.

"I'll be back," he said.

"Okay," she said.

"But I have to go for now," he said.

"Okay."

"Well, goodbye then."

Kurama hesitated, waiting for Botan to say something, but instead she simply looked back at him blankly. He eventually sighed and moved on, exiting the temple with the expectation of finding Hiei waiting on the porch for him: but apparently his impatience had once again gotten the better of him, because Hiei was nowhere to be seen. Kurama began crossing the lawn towards the temple gate, believing that Hiei had gone in that direction, starting his journey back to demon world; but when he reached the gate, peering down the temple steps, he saw no sign of Hiei. He paused, silently wondering if Hiei had decided to run and was already too far away to be seen, or if he had even come that way at all. He began looking about himself for any indication that Hiei may have taken a different path, shortly sighting Hiei jogging across the lawn towards him.

"Where were you?" Kurama asked as Hiei neared him.

"I had to do something over there," Hiei replied, wiping the heel of his hand over the sweating strip of skin at his hairline.

"You're still bothered by your fever?" Kurama asked him.

"It's just so hot," Hiei replied. "It's stifling being like this all the time."

"I can imagine. Let's just get you back to Mukuro."

"Yes, I should really go there."

Hiei and Kurama looked at each other, both looking slightly confused.

"Right, so let's go," Kurama said, pointing down the steps.

"Of course," Hiei agreed, stepping closer to his side.

They looked at each other a little longer before both starting their descent towards the lower part of the forest.

"I suppose after this you will return to your human life in the city," Hiei said as they walked.

"Yes, that's right," Kurama replied. "Did you expect me to do anything else?"

"No, I just wondered how you excuse yourself for escapades like this one," Hiei said. "Surely the humans around you in your life in the city notice your absence."

"Are you asking me what I tell my mother, step-father, step-brother and school when I have to take time away to tend to demon world related matters?"

"Yes."

"Do you care?"

"Yes."

"You never have before. You hate that I continue to live as a human."

"I don't hate it, I just… Don't understand it."

"No, you don't."

"I'm just curious."

"Well, if that's true, then I shall oblige: I told my family I was spending some time at another university in another part of the country as part of a project, and I told my school I had family matters to attend to."

"Do you ever worry that they might find out you lied?"

"No."

"Oh… Do you ever get lonely?"

Kurama stumbled slightly, almost losing his balance and falling down the remainder of the steps but for Hiei grabbing his arm to steady him.

"That's a very strange question for you to ask," he said as he allowed Hiei to help him find his balance again.

"I just wondered," Hiei replied. "Sometimes I get lonely. I thought you might too."

"I have friends who understand my circumstances, which makes it much easier," Kurama said. "Though before that, when my human body was still maturing, I often felt quite isolated. My human mother was the only soul I felt close to, and even then only after I saw her injure herself to save me. I'm surprised that you feel lonely though. I thought you liked being alone."

"I thought I did too."

Kurama nodded slowly before walking on again. Hiei moved along in pace with him, and for a short while both remained silent.

"Companionship is sometimes a difficult thing to find," Kurama eventually said. "But I have good friends, and I think there is one person in particular I would like to call more than just my friend."

"Me too," Hiei replied.

"You admit that you have friends now?"

"…It's not that I really feel close to any of them. It's not like how it is between you and Yusuke and Kuwabara. But… I appreciate their presence."

"And you're considering forming a partnership with someone in your acquaintance?"

"We're not acquaintances. Acquaintance is not the right word to describe our current relationship."

"That's no fun."

Hiei turned to Kurama, screwing up his face when he saw that the fox demon was smiling at him.

"I had hoped it was someone we both knew," he explained. "But if it's not one of your current acquaintances, how can I even begin to guess who it is?"

"How indeed."

Kurama's smile vanished but Hiei turned from him and began to walk faster, moving ahead of him. Kurama jogged a few steps to catch up to Hiei again.

"I was just making a joke," he said as he rejoined his friend. "I thought that could be our game to pass the time on the journey back: I could try to guess who might have made you open up enough to call others "friends"."

Hiei said nothing and Kurama took his silence to mean that he was no longer angry about having possibly let some feeling other than hate show: but, he thought, if Hiei did not want to talk, the remainder of the journey was going to be quite long and trying.

"I'm going back to that hospital bus, are you coming with me?"

Kuwabara paused, his mouth open and his hand hovering in the air in front of him supporting part of his breakfast.

"Those doctors aren't working fast enough," Yusuke added. "I'm going back there to give them some motivation."

He cracked his knuckles and wiggled his eyebrows, and Kuwabara slowly closed his mouth and lowered his hand again.

"Back to demon world?" he asked.

"No, back to Disney World," Yusuke sarcastically replied. "Of course back to demon world! Now are you coming with me or not?"

"Do you need me to come with you?" Kuwabara asked.

"If you don't wanna go, just say so," Yusuke said. "I'm leaving now, either get up or shut-up."

"Well, if you don't actually need me, if there's really nothing to be done, I'd like to stay here."

"Okay fine!"

"It's not that I'm being unhelpful, it's just that Botan said Yukina is coming back today, so I was gonna wait here for her."

"Whatever. Tell Yukina to keep my dinner warm, I might be late."

"Sure."

Yusuke turned around to leave the room, almost walking straight into Botan, who was standing unreasonably close behind him.

"I could come with you!" she offered, smiling radiantly.

"Don't you have roadkill to abduct right about now?" Yusuke muttered, trying to move around her.

"I could help you!" she insisted, stepping from side to side to stop him from passing her.

"I don't think so," he replied.

"Well I could! I could be really useful and helpful and maybe I could make a difference, if you would just give me a chance!"

Yusuke stopped trying to step past Botan and instead stood still before her, studying the eager and almost obnoxiously optimistic look on her face.

"There is one thing you could do to help me," he said quietly.

"Whatever it is, I'll do it just as good as Kuwabara could!" Botan assured him.

"Move!" he yelled.

She yelped in fright and he capitalised on her confusion to slip past her and out of the room.

"That's not fair, Yusuke!" she shrieked, running after him.

"Seriously Botan, like Koenma said, demon world problems and spirit world problems are two different things," he said as he marched towards the front door with Botan skipping along at his side.

"But not this time!" she pointed out. "Aren't the two worlds both having problems at the same time and probably because of the same thing?"

Yusuke stopped, his hand on the front door.

"You could go to spirit world and find out if the SDF are handling the problem there," he said, casting Botan a sideward glance.

"I can do that!" she cheerfully replied. "I can absolutely do that!"

"Good," he said. "So do it already."

"Right!"

Yusuke slid open the door and stepped outside.

"What is the problem in spirit world?"

He stopped, looking back over his shoulder.

"You don't know?" he asked.

She shook her head.

"Some demons broke in and built a really crappy little castle with mazes and some guy named Fabio is guarding it," Yusuke explained. "Koenma told us to just find the breach the demons were using to access spirit world, and when we found it, he made us leave. The SDF came and closed the breach in demon world, and they thought they could handle the demons in spirit world."

"Demons created a direct link from demon world to spirit world?" Botan asked.

"Yes."

"But that could have been catastrophic!"

"It was, it created a super virus in demon world. That's why Hiei is sick."

"Oh no! But… What if you get sick too?"

"I'm immune to the virus, and so are Kurama and Kuwabara. We don't know why. Some doctors in demon world took blood from me and Kurama to make a cure for the virus, and I'm going back there to make sure they've finished it and started giving it out."

"That's terrible!"

"Yeah, the virus is bad, but I still think what's in spirit world is worse. If you really wanna help me, go to spirit world and spy on the SDF. If it looks like they can't handle it, call me."

Yusuke pulled a communication mirror from his pocket and Botan nodded.

"Since I'm the only one going back, I'm taking Puu," he added.

"Oh good!" Botan said, laughing nervously.

"Damn it Botan, stop acting like Puu's crazy!"

Yusuke shook his head and moved on, exiting the temple and crossing the lawn towards Puu's barn. As he got closer to his destination he began calling for his spirit beast, expecting the bird to meet him halfway: but he did not catch sight of Puu until he reached the barn.

"What are you doing down there?" Yusuke asked, stopping in front of Puu, who was lying a little awkwardly on the ground just outside of the barn doors, "Come on, I need your help."

Puu looked up at him with that same, sulky look he had been wearing when Koenma had first asked Yusuke and the others for assistance earlier that week.

"Puu?" Yusuke said. "Come on, let's go already!"

Puu lifted his head slightly and opened his beak.

"Stop yawning, and let's go!" Yusuke scolded him.

Puu opened his beak soundlessly again and Yusuke began to lose his patience.

"Are you still sulking because Yukina isn't here to fluff your feathers every five minutes?" he snapped. "You're supposed to be a reflection of me, and you're making me look bad acting like this! This is your last chance Puu: are you coming with me or not?"

Puu opened his beak so wide his eyes were forced shut and Yusuke could see every detail of his oesophagus.

"Fine, I'll go by myself," Yusuke groaned. "Stupid bird…"

He turned and stomped off again, crossing the lawn again until he reached the temple gate, where Botan was waiting for him.

"Is everything okay?" she asked as he joined her.

"Puu's sulking again," he replied. "I guess he's still pissed off that Yukina isn't here right now."

"I hope he doesn't start trying to kill me again…" she said warily.

"Puu wouldn't kill anyone Botan, stop exaggerating!"

"I'm not exaggerating! You didn't see the murderous glint in his eyes when he was forcing me out of the sky!"

"Puu never forced you out of the sky, Botan!"

"How do you know, were you there?"

"I don't need to be, he – oh, looks like he's changed his mind."

Botan turned around to look in the direction Yusuke was, and both watched as Puu flew low across the lawn towards them.

"Hey buddy, let's go!" Yusuke said, waving a hand at him.

When Puu did not slow down, Yusuke's hand started to wilt in the air. When he took on a distinctly angered look, Botan summoned her oar and Yusuke tensed, but before either could act, Puu's wing clipped Botan's shoulder and knocked her over, and his beak bit into Yusuke's shirt, lifting him from the ground.

"Hey!" Yusuke yelled in protest. "When I said I needed your help, this wasn't what I had in mind, Puu!"

Puu carried him into the trees a short distance before dropping him and landing beside him. Yusuke rolled to his feet and began dusting himself off, scowling at the spirit beast as he did so.

"You see, he's started being evil Puu again!" Botan said, hurrying over to Yusuke's side.

Yusuke started to tell her she was being ridiculous, but stopped short when Puu jabbed his beak into a pile of dirt and leaves and then threw his head back up into the air, spraying debris all around him.

"Why is he more cuckoo and less eagle?" he asked instead.

"I don't know, but there's no reasoning with him when he gets like this!" Botan replied.

"Hey! Puu!" Yusuke yelled, making Botan flinch at his side. "Get over here and let's go!"

Puu looked over at him, his face and beak layered with a dusting of mud, pine needles and dead leaves. Yusuke waved a hand at him and he seemed to come to his senses, moving away from the mess he had created and joining Yusuke.

"We're going to demon world," Yusuke told him. "And we need to get there fast."

He climbed up onto Puu's back and waved to Botan, ignoring her hysterical warnings she was trying to shout up to him. Puu took to the air, rising upwards almost too steeply, forcing Yusuke to grab at his feathers to hold on.

"Okay, that's high enough now, I don't think anyone will see us up here," Yusuke shouted to him as they passed through the clouds. "Now just turn right a bit, and let's go."

Puu started to turn right, but did not stop at the point he ought to have, and again Yusuke had to grab on to stop himself from falling as Puu arced around in the air and began to nosedive towards the point he had just flown up from. Yusuke saw Botan mount her oar and flee the scene, and he cursed her for not coming up to rescue him.

Next Chapter: Yeah, in the next chapter this story turns into a sprawling epping epic… Hiei and Kurama's journey to Mukuro's is interrupted and find themselves lumbered with an unexpected burden that means they have to change their plans. Yusuke tries to figure out what's wrong with Puu, and finds out that a cure to the virus has finally been found – but unfortunately it's a rather controversial one. And then Hiei becomes a babysitter and Kurama attends a very disturbing auction in a street market. Seriously. Chapter 10 – Tightening Noose