Lunesca: So…having realized that I'm still getting followers and favs for my other stories that I have sadly been neglecting over the last year or so (mostly due to writer's block on some of them) I've decided that I'm going to start putting some time to work on my other stories, though I think a couple of them I may have to rewrite chapters thanks to things some reviewers have noticed that I have over looked. Unfortunately when I write and post my chapters it's usually at night so I tend to write when I'm tired and don't always catch that I'm missing details.

As always if anyone notices that I do miss details please let me know on that chapter so that I can go back and re-write what I need to so the chapter makes more sense, usually it won't affect the rest of the story. With that said, sorry for taking so long on this chapter but school and housework have been interfering. So please enjoy!

Legend:

"Talking"

'Telepathic Speak'

Thinking to oneself

Dream/Memories

YYH = Pagebreak/Scene Change/Etc

Chapter 6: Defenses Breached

The next morning found the two sisters awake and heading down the hall to get some breakfast. "So," Hawk began, a little leery about breaking the silence. "I heard that we're supposed to train with Kurama and Hiei today."

Raven gave her an amused smirk. "Sounds interesting, the other two were so easy to defeat that it didn't really seem worth it."

"Who do you think we'll be fighting first?" Hawk asked as they took the stairs down to the common room. Smells from the kitchen were teasing their taste buds. "I hope I'm against Kurama first. I might actually stand a chance. Hiei is just so fast it just doesn't seem like it would be a long battle."

Raven just nodded to her, she felt the need to prove herself to the fire demon so she was more than okay with fighting him first. The conversation stopped as they reached the kitchen/dining area. Kurama was there finishing up the final touches for breakfast.

"Oh, good morning." Kurama said putting the last plate on the table. "Breakfast is ready, so go ahead and eat. Once everyone is up and fed we'll continue with training."

The girls thanked him and started filling their plates. Seconds after both plates were full and Kurama had joined them everyone else had started arriving. Yukina came in from out in the garden area with a basket full of vegetables and herbs, she set them on the counter and filled her own plate. Hiei seemed to appear from nowhere and had a full plate in seconds before disappearing to his window seat.

Just before everyone had finished, a disgusted look crossed Hiei's face, Kurama glanced at the door and resumed eating. Raven and her sister shared a confused look. A moment later a noise could be heard that sounded like someone falling down the stairs. Hiei finished his food and had the plate washed and on the drying rack just as Yusuke and Kuwabara came through the door. At the sight of the food on the table they sat down and started shoveling food to their mouths. Breakfast barely reached their plates before they were shoving it in their mouths.

This seemed to be a normal occurrence as Kurama and Yukina finished their meal. He took the ice maiden's dishes and washed them along with his. Raven and Hawk followed their example, finishing their plates and deciding it wasn't worth fighting over for more food, they washed their dishes and left the boys to finish off the remains of breakfast.

Heading out to the common room they found Hiei in his window seat, Yukina was doing some light cleaning and Kurama was browsing the books on the bookcase over on the far side of the room. "So, I take it that their lack of table manners is a common occurrence?" Hawk asked. Raven could hear the disgust in her voice and silently agreed with her. The boy's lack of manners weren't the worst they had seen but the fighting over food and barely taking a breath between bites was enough to convince anyone to lose their appetite.

Hiei just gave an affirmative grunt, Yukina nodded as she continued cleaning and Kurama gave a slight chuckle. "Yes those two do seem to eat as if it is their last meal. Though, to be honest there have been a couple times it has come close." He finally selected a book and took it to the arm chair next to the coffee table.

"Idiots." Raven mumbled and went to go sit on the balcony around the porch outside. She sat there just absorbing the natural beauty around the temple. It was a few minutes later that Kurama and Hawk had made their way out to find her.

"The morons are finally done devouring the kitchen. Kurama says it's time to continue training." Hawk told her sister, leaning on the balcony rail next to her, as Kurama walked over to the training area on the side of the house. She frowned and Raven sent her an identical look. "We're fighting Hiei and Kurama today."

"What are you so nervous about?" Raven asked wanting to cheer her sister up. It was bad enough that she was so cynical and realistic, she didn't want her happy go-lucky sister to fall into her ways. The only thing keeping her sane was making sure Hawk was safe and happy. Without her Raven knew that there wouldn't be any reason to really keep going and would probably find herself on a very self-destructive path. "These two are a good challenge and we could use a challenge. Besides, it's not life or death so who cares if you get beat right?"

Hawk looked at her sister and smiled. "You're right, there's no reason to worry about failing. It is just training after all." Raven smiled and watched as Hawk bounded off to join Kurama. With one last look at the view she sighed and got up to follow.

Raven arrived to see the others had all gathered and were split up. Hawk and Kurama were discussing something with Hiei next to them watching as Yusuke and Kuwabara got into one of their many arguments. The two of them seemed as if they were ready to go at it before the girls even got their training session in. Seeing Raven join them seemed to get them back on track.

A few minutes later Kurama and Raven had taken to one side of the area; Hiei and Hawk were having their own sparring session and from the sound of things Kuwabara and Yusuke had gone off into the forest to work out their latest fight.

YYH Raven's Training

Kurama waited patiently for Raven to make the first move. "So, since you're a fox demon…" Raven started as she tried to look for any week points Kurama could have. She knew a little of his history but not enough to know the best way to attack. "…doesn't that mean that you use plants to fight?" She was hoping that he would let his guard down.

Kurama smiled at her picking up on her tactic immediately. "Yes," He said as he reached a hand into his red hair. He pulled out a red rose as he spoke. "I do use plants as a matter of fact. Rose Whip!" He yelled. With a flick of his wrist the rose that had been in his hand had extended into its whip form.

Raven took slight note that the stem still had sharp thorns on it and decided it was best to avoid the weapon at all cost. Me and my big mouth. She thought to herself as she drew her sword. It wasn't the best weapon to use in this fight but she hadn't planned on mid-range fighting. It would be difficult to get in close and land a hit with him being able to attack her from a distance.

"The goal of this exercise is for you to dodge my attacks." Kurama said and his wrist flicked again, sending the whip in Raven's direction. She dodged and moved to attack. "The idea is to see how well you can maneuver without being able to attack."

Raven let out a muttered curse as she dodged a second attack, sending her farther away from Kurama than when she had started. "Good," Kurama complimented her. "Now keep it up!" He said and continued to attack, forcing her to dodge rather than attack or defend herself.

His attacks were coming at her so fast that there was little time to do more than get out of the way before they landed. This training continued for nearly half an hour before Raven slipped and was unable to move in time. The whip came down across her back and shoulder and she cried out at the contact.

"Raven, are you alright?" Kurama asked as he returned his whip to its original seed form and placing it back in his hair. He hurried over and tried to examine the injury but she just brushed him off and stood up, turning to face him so he couldn't see the damage.

"I'm fine." She said when she saw the look of concern on his face. Brushing away an apology from him she shrugged. "its fine I just slipped was all. It's just a scratch anyways."

She could tell Kurama didn't believe her but was too much of a gentleman to call her a liar. She threw him a flippant smile and grabbed a water bottle by the tree where they had set them in an ice chest for the day. "I'll get you next time." She said and drank half the bottle before sitting down and resting against the tree.

"Alright, if you're sure you're fine." Kurama said and turned to the battle with Hiei and Hawk. "Rest for a bit, it looks like those two have finished but we'll take a short break so you and Hawk can rest before your next session."

Raven nodded and put a little more pressure on her back using the tree. It wasn't the best way to stop the bleeding but it would do until she could clean herself up later. She closed her eyes and relaxed for a few minutes, wondering what Hiei's training would be like.

YYH Hawk's Training (Hiei's P.O.V.)

I walked over to the other side of the clearing with the younger sister. I would have preferred to watch Raven's battle with Kurama but the fox insisted that I assist in training the other girl as well as Raven.

"So what are kind of training are we doing today, oh Great and Powerful Hiei of the Jagan Eye?" The girl said. I could tell she was teasing but it still grated on my nerves. I had to greatly resist the urge to cut that tongue out of her mouth. She was just like the ferry girl, too chipper all the time and it got on his nerves. He assumed that she got it from her mother because Shade had a bit more somber but playful personality.

"We are not doing anything. You are going to block my attacks." I told her as I tossed her an extra sword that I had brought out from the training room and pulled out my own sword. The damn fox wanted to test their defensive abilities which included speed, defense and reflexes. He being best suited for reflexes; it made since for me to test their overall defensive abilities.

I watched as the girl gulped and got nervous. I wasn't so stupid as to actually cause any damage to her other than maybe a few bruises. I would have used a bokken sword but they break so easily that it would have merely been a waste of time and effort.

She didn't look entirely uncomfortable holding a sword so I decided to attack rather than correct her form. As I got close for the first strike I noticed that her scent was similar to her father's but more crisp and clean like the dew on the leaves in the early morning.

She failed to block the first strike effectively and I pulled back on my hit enough to just give her a small nick on the arm rather than the deep cut it would have been. She moved away and sent me a glare, muttering something under her breath. I wanted to roll my eyes at her but I wasn't going to take my eyes off her in case she decided to attack.

"The goal of the exercise is to either dodge or block my attacks." I told her. It was a bit vindictive of me but I gave her a smug smirk. "If you can't manage then you will obviously be hit; any questions?" I asked. Before she could say anything I attacked again.

We continued on with this training for a short while until I heard Kurama's whip hit against flesh and Raven give a short cry. I jumped away from the girl and looked over to where the other two were fighting. My charge was on the ground, blood running down her back and shoulder, and the fox was rushing to her side.

That damn fox. I thought to myself. If she's seriously hurt I will be taking it out of his flesh and lock that damn girl up in her room while she heals.

"Hiei," I had forgotten that I was training the other girl. I snapped back to what I was doing, satisfied that Kurama had called their training on account of injury. "Are you done with training?" I looked at the girl; she was sweating and panting a bit. Not being highly skilled in swordsmanship, she had several areas that were bleeding slightly from small cuts.

"No." I told her and leapt towards her. I wasn't quite as controlled this time and she continuously lost sight of me as I attacked from different directions. I only let this go for a few minutes before calling it quits. She chuckled slightly, causing me to frown. I was worried I had knocked her senseless.

"What's wrong with you girl?" I demanded. I didn't care for one of the fox's lectures on holding back during training. She just shook her head at me with another laugh.

"Ouch." She muttered before falling backwards onto the field and stared up at the sky as she tried to regain the breath she had lost fighting me.

I shook my head and went over to check on Raven who appeared to be sleeping upright against the tree. I pretended I was after some water, even drinking most of the bottle, while I silently contacted the girl I was supposed to be protecting.

'Are you alright?' I asked her as I jumped into a nearby tree branch. I could smell the blood on her but that didn't tell me much.

'I'm fine Hiei.' She said and I got the image of teeth snapping at me like a dog warning a stranger away. 'I'm just resting up for our fight. I still plan on taking you down.'

I smirked to myself at this. I was pleased that even though she was injured she was still stubborn enough to challenge me. Stupid girl. I thought to myself. Shade may be dead but that doesn't mean that she should be so eager to follow in his footsteps.

'I've got a better idea.' I said thinking quickly. If I fought her now it wouldn't be worth the effort anyways but I still had to make her do something. Hopefully something that would wear her out enough to keep her down for a few days.

'Follow me.' I told her and jumped down next to her. A quick glance over my shoulder showed Kurama applying some kind of salve to the cuts and bruises on the younger girl. Without a second glance to Raven I walked into the forest.

I waited long enough inside the tree line to see her sigh and then force herself up tenderly before following me. I sent an inquiring thought, hoping to sneak in under her radar but she still sensed my presence. 'I'm fine Hiei, it's just a little scratch and a few bruises, nothing to concern yourself over.'

Irritated at her downplaying the damage I picked up my pace. Kurama's whip could cut through solid rock and though he's improved on it, he still hasn't found a way to downplay its effects enough to keep from tearing through flesh if not kept under tight control.

"Hn, your training will be to keep up with me, if you can, until I tell you you can stop." I told her over my shoulder and began walking around the temple's lands. I knew I had ruffled her feathers but it was the best I could think of under the circumstances. She readily kept pace with me, trailing no more than a couple steps behind me.

I continuously increased the pace in which we moved until we were both running at top speeds. Admittedly she had impressed me by keeping up. She only started to fall behind twice and both times forced herself to increase her speed until she was back to her original position behind me.

Trying to keep the path unnoticed I forced her to circle around the outer edge of the temples lands three times before she began to stagger a bit. I took us back towards the clearing and allowed her to stop. She nearly collapsed under the tree she had been against earlier.

We had arrived just in time to see the last moments of the training session. I was impressed at the grace and speed in which the girl was able to dodge Kurama's attacks, though I did suspect that the fox was being even more cautious with this battle than his previous one.

YYH Hawk's Training (Third Person P.O.V.)

I wonder where those two are going. Hawk thought to herself as she watched her sister and the fire demon walk off into the forest. Brushing off the distraction she turned back to Kurama and smiled. He was nice enough to have put a salve on her injuries to speed up healing and allow for her to continue training. "So, I'm just supposed to dodge your attacks right?"

"Yes," Kurama said as he pulled his rose out again and turned it into a whip. "The idea is to avoid my attacks without getting hit. Are you ready?"

Hawk nodded and took a defensive stance. "Alright then, go!" Kurama said and began his attack. Hawk stumbled as she dodged the first attack, barely missing her. Quickly regaining her control she moved with a bit more speed than Raven did, encouraging Kurama to attack faster to keep up with the increase.

"You're much faster than Raven." Kurama commented as he snapped the whip next to her foot. She was doing a great job of staying just out of range of his attacks. He pulled back a bit when he noticed her getting worn out after a while.

"Yeah, I've always been faster than Raven but she's always been stronger." Hawk panted. Kurama called the training to a halt and Hawk noticed that Raven and Hiei had returned from whatever they had been doing.

After a bit of a rest Kurama cleared his throat to explain the next step of their training. It was barely noon so a small break for lunch was a reasonable idea. "After lunch I would like to see the two of you spar against each other." He told the two of them.

"Why do you want us to fight each other?" Hawk asked a bit confused. Before Kurama could respond a high pitched shriek came from the temple and the four of them were up and racing for the building as fast as they could. All of them were thinking the same thing as they ran, Yukina. They knew the ice maiden was caring for the temple alone that day.

Two low "C" class demons stood at the doorway trying to block their entrance but with a growl Hiei had his sword out and destroyed the two of them instantly. Before the bodies could hit the ground they burst through the doors, weapons ready.

Yusuke and Kuwabara were on the ground next to the other door, it appeared they had been jumped after gaining entrance, and nearly two dozen demons surrounded Keiko and Yukina. Everyone was surprised to see Keiko. She wasn't supposed to be there until later that day so no one had even known she was in danger until they came through the doors.

"Get the Hell away from them!" Raven roared and took a step towards the group.

Kurama put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from being reckless. She glanced at him and he silently indicated the two demons nearest the girls. They each had a crossbow aimed at the girls in case of resistance. Raven backed down for a moment but Hawk still glanced at her sister worried. It wasn't often that Raven yelled and when she did you either listened or suffered her wrath.

"Let them go?" One demon questioned. Hawk and Kurama noticed the same thing that all the demons seemed to be watching him. Kurama signaled to Hiei to take that one out, as well as the two with the crossbows, first. "And what makes you think that I'm going to release such succulent morsels?" He asked licking his lips.

'Raven, distract them for a moment.' Hiei said mentally, including Hawk and Kurama in on the conversation. It was a bit more work to keep all four of their minds linked but he knew it was doable. 'I'm going to take out their leader but I need to get the two with the crossbows first.'

'Got it.' Raven replied, feeling the connection stay open. It took a bit of work but she managed to ignore it and focus on the demon leader. "Maybe I didn't make myself clear." She growled dangerously. "I said leave them alone."

"And if I don't?" He laughed ignoring her threat. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Hiei use his after-image ability to appear next to the bowmen and slice them and their weapons to pieces in a matter of seconds.

"Or you will become just like your men." Raven smirked, dark pleasure dancing in her eyes giving them a dangerous glow. Hiei moved to keep the two girls behind him as his after-image faded and the leader turned to see the two bowmen drop to the ground in pieces.

The leader croaked out a small noise as he backed away trying to piece together what had happened. "I suggest you call off your men or else." Hawk said in a sing song voice, sounding a little psychotic. It was a tactic she and Raven had used before to unnerve large groups of demons, to a very pleasing outcome.

The leader regained his composure and seethed with anger. Apparently their attempt to remove the demons from the temple wasn't going to work. Kurama and Raven drew their weapons while Hawk grabbed the girls and moved them away from the battle.

"Get them!" the leader yelled and his troops attacked with loud cries. The three fighters began attacking and within a minute all the demons were dead on the floor. The only one remaining was the leader who Hiei took great pleasure in scaring before he killed him.

Keeping in mind that Yukina was watching he held back on his desire to make the demon suffer, instead he instantly appeared in front of the demon with his sword in the leader's gut and slowly pulled it out. The demon dropped to the ground, fear still in his eyes, and Hiei used a clean part of the demon's tunic to wipe off his blade before returning it to its sheath.

As soon as he put his his sword away, Yukina had her arms wrapped around him, crying softly and muttering about how the leader said he was going to take them away and keep them in his harem. Hiei's hands clenched but he released them and awkwardly patted Yukina's back until she stopped crying.

She backed up, wiping her eyes, and her face flushed a light pink in embarrassment. "Oh, please forgive me Mr. Hiei. That was wrong of me to put you in such a position. I know you like your space." She apologized and bowed.

Hiei, a bit unsure about how to deal with the situation brushed her apology off. "Hn, there's nothing to forgive." He muttered and started on cleaning up the remains of their intruders.

Yukina approached the others and asked if they were alright. Raven told her they were fine and placed a hand on her head before helping to clean up the mess. Kurama placed a hand on Yukina's shoulder and after exchanging a few words between the other girls he followed their example.

Hawk took Keiko and Yukina in the kitchen to stand guard over them while they made some tea. It was shortly later that Yusuke and Kuwabara woke up. Apparantly they had been surprised when they entered the common room and didn't sense the two demons waiting behind the door. A good hit to the back of the head knocked the two out.

About that time the girls returned with tea and snacks. "We called Shizuru and Botan and told them not to come over tonight, that we'd have to reschedule." Keiko said after they ate and after a few words they had some tea before finishing the room. Koenma's men arrived a short time later to remove the bodies and clean up what mess had remained.

"So," Hawk said as they settled down for a few minutes while deciding what to do, it was now too late to do anything, so their original plans had been canceled.

"Apparently Keiko decided to show up a bit early to see how things were going and to see if we wanted to go shopping." She said and finished with a yawn. Keiko blushed before smacking Yusuke to the floor for yelling at her over how stupid it was to come to the temple alone.

Everyone stayed around to chat and make sure it was safe for the night. After dinner, and once everyone was convinced it was safe to once again go about their business, they decided that it would be best to stay inside and relax for a while. Raven and Hiei retired to their rooms and the girls forced the men into watching a sappy love movie.

It didn't take long for Raven to get cleaned up and pass out on her bed for the rest of the afternoon.

Chapter 6 End!

Lune: wow that was a bit of a long chapter. Sorry it's taken me so long to write it. I hope everyone enjoyed the fight scenes. If you think something could have been different please let me know because I've been working on this for a bit and most of that time was late at night while I was tired. So if it doesn't make sense please don't be afraid to kindly say something. Thanks and please Read and Review. Until next time….