Chapter Two

Darkness. God, it was so dark. And cold. The thin blanket she had been given wasn't enough to keep her warm. At least during the day she had the heat off of the lights.

Her entire forearm, from her fingertips to her elbow, was in pain. The illusion plant was gone, but she had lost more blood having it extracted than having it put inside of her body. But what else was she supposed to do? He had hurt her, after all. She didn't want to hurt anymore. Nothing was worth the pain.

The aura of this room drained her youki, so she barely had control of any of the plants living inside of her. There were too many of them. Why hadn't they just let her die? It was the only honorable thing that she had left in her life.

Meeting this redheaded Kurama hadn't been part of her plan, either. Hell, being found by the Reikai wasn't part of her plan at all. It was a huge step away from her goal.

After four hundred years, she'd been so close to death, finally. And then this young fox had to come and ruin it all.

"I'm telling you, Hiei, something is wrong with that girl."

He and his best friend were at his mother's old house, sitting on the roof and drinking a few beers. It was now late at night, and the city was lit by the light of the stars and the moon.

"Hn. She doesn't talk, doesn't eat, and she has flowers blooming out of her skin like it's nothing. Let's not forget that she was in the Chapter Black tape and the only known person to be left alive after its events. I'd say something was wrong with her, too."

Kurama rolled his eye. "I'm serious, Hiei. The way she stared at me… it was like looking at an empty shell."

"Again, Chapter Black. No one can be normal after something like that."

"You aren't helping, but I'm so glad you're such an expert of the mind."

"Hn."

Kurama finished his fifth beer and sighed. "She knew, though," he continued. "She knew that I was Yoko Kurama before I even told her. I know she could tell. She didn't try to attack me at all."

"Until you began the extraction of that flower."

"Well, I guess it was because of the pain." He paused for a moment, thinking that hour over. "That isn't the weirdest part, though. She shed tears, and she attacked me, but didn't make a sound the entire time."

"Maybe she's a mute." Hiei finished off his third beer. "Have you thought of that one?"

"No, because I'd never think of that." He was feeling a little buzzed. This was a stronger beer than he was used to. Hiei had brought it, as that was the kind of beer he and Tamaran (A/N: The girl from my fic "Silent Hill.) would drink when they could. "According to Koenma, she screamed loudly in the tape. That means she must have vocal chords."

"Maybe they got cut out." The fire demon stood, then, and brushed off his black cloak. "I need to head home. Tamara is probably wondering where I am."

"How are the girls doing, by the way?"

"Ch', the usual. Growing taller and more obnoxious every day. I'm glad this next one's a boy."

Kurama chuckled. "C'mon, Hiei. You know you love your two little 'princesses,' as you called them when they were infants."

Hiei smirked at the comment, a rueful look in his eyes. "I do, very much. That doesn't make them any less like their mother."

"We all think that they're just like you, really. At least, your oldest is."

"If you say so. Anyway, let me know how the girl thing goes."

He jumped away then, at his usual blinding speed. Kurama laid back to look at the stars. He'd stay up for just a bit longer. Tomorrow was the weekend, after all.

Oh, wait, not really. He still had to go take care of that demon girl.

She didn't stop her tears until the lights came back on.

The soup still sat on the tray on the table, but the fruit and the water was gone. She'd found the bread to be stale, and the broth in the soup had smelled strange. Not to mention it had meat in it. But they didn't know that she didn't eat meat.

The ruler of Reikai came in first, a new tray in his hand. More food? And it seemed like there were two glasses on this one.

"Good morning," the young man said cheerfully. "I'm glad that you ate yesterday, at least a little. Maybe you'll like this better." When he set the tray down, he reached into his pocket. She immediately sat up to defend herself.

"Relax," he said, rolling his eyes. He pulled out a small bottle. "I know you're still hurting from yesterday. I was going to leave you an herb tablet for the pain."

Maybe that wasn't such a bad idea. None of her plants were pain relievers. He nodded slowly at her, like some sort of confirmation and set a tablet on the table. "Just make sure you eat first. They're strong." He turned to leave. "Kurama will be here today as well. I think you'll grow to trust him."

Trust? She could trust no one. Not even herself. Because no matter what, the darkness always came back, and with it her tears.

And if she slept, she would have nightmares. Horrible dreams of gore and pain. Her life wasn't even worth sleep anymore.

She was lying down when the redhead returned. The plate on the table was empty, save for the bacon. She'd drank both the orange juice and the milk. Eventually they would get the hint.

"Is your arm still in pain?" the boy asked. "Koenma told me he'd given you medicine, but I honestly wasn't sure whether or not it would work."

Actually, the pain was gone. But instead of responding, she rolled over and blinked. She might as well get this over with. She'd be out soon enough and then could jump off a cliff. Should've done that from the beginning.

"I'll find something less painful today," he continued. "I didn't mean for that to happen."

He was only making room for the others. She simply didn't want them extracted. The pain was nothing. "Although, I admit you're strong," he said. "That attack really had me going. I was actually wounded."

Oh, come on, a guilt trip? There really was no need for that. She'd already felt bad. But causing her pain wasn't an option. Not after everything she'd already gone through.

"Would you like more medicine before I begin?" he asked. "Lunch is going to be ready soon. I'll bring another chair and eat with you, if you like."

Did he really just offer to eat with her? What kind of person was he? Surely eating wasn't a part of his job description. What was he even trying to do?

An ogre came in, then, with two trays in his hands. She couldn't help but scowl. Such vile, low-class creatures ogres were. Four hundred years ago she wouldn't have let herself be surrounded by such trash. But that's changed, hasn't it? Yes, everything has changed.

The ogre looked frightened, but did his job, taking the old tray after placing a new one on the table. Ugh, that smell. What were they feeding her now?

Another one brought an extra chair for the redhead, and both scurried from the room quickly. They really were afraid. And normally, it would be with good reason.

She sat up slowly, and looked the redhead in the eyes. They were a decent color, she supposed. Green wasn't her favorite.

"Do you need help standing?" he asked, and stepped forward with a hand outstretched.

She wasn't sure what happened, but by instinct she cringed away. A rose was somehow in her hand, and she was ready to begin her attack. He still wasn't too close. But could she stand to sit and eat with him?

The redhead sighed, and retracted his hand. Wordlessly he turned and walked to the table, sitting opposite from the chair she'd taken earlier. At least he knew her territory. That was smart.

She supposed it couldn't hurt. Well, even though it would hurt later anyway. But he had said he would find something different, something less agonizing. She was almost worried that the slightest sting would set her off again.

Why was she cooperating, anyway? It had nothing to do with the boy's supposed identity. Yoko was not someone she would want to be around, but somehow this boy was different than the one she had known. He had a kind air about him, like he actually didn't want to harm her.

But she'd met kind people before. Not everything was as it seemed.

Kurama wasn't sure this was the most clever idea Koenma had ever come up with. It was only day two, and the King of the Spirit World was already wanting him to join her for a meal? This was ridiculous.

"Come, please, and eat," he said to her. She was staring from the cot. "I promise it won't hurt. There's actually some good stuff here."

Well, it was food that he personally liked. A toasted sandwich with melted cheese and ham, with lettuce and mayonnaise. There was a pile of baked chips on the side, and a small brownie. In a saucer, there was another bowl of mixed fruit. Waiter in a glass. At least the food was getting better, in his opinion. Koenma had explained that at first she was served something equivalent to prison food.

She was very cautious while walking toward him, and sat down carefully. Silent as always, but at least she wasn't scowling anymore. She almost wasn't pretty when she scowled.

Wait… had he just called her pretty?

She observed the food, scowling once more at the sandwich and picking the meat out. He raised an eyebrow. What the hell was she doing, anyway? She wasn't going to get any protein if she didn't eat meat.

"Koenma told me to ask if you needed anything," he said quietly, reaching for a grape. "You know, stuff to make you more comfortable."

She looked up from the bread at his statement. He held eye contact. Maybe he could get her to talk with that question. She was, after all, a woman. She had needs that Kurama couldn't comprehend.

The girl's eyes flitted downward and then she took a bite of what was left of the sandwich. "Nothing? Nothing at all?" he asked. She couldn't be serious.

She looked to him again, moving her long blue-silver hair behind her shoulder. Her eyes glanced down again.

Kurama couldn't help but look down at her breasts. They were small and round, and had the perfect perk to them. Her nipples were pink and somehow made him think of candy. He could only imagine how embarrassed she was, knowing that all of her porcelain skin was exposed…

"Clothes?" he asked, eyes snapping back to her face. "Would y-you like some clothes?"

She didn't respond, but stared instead. A small red-violet flower was blooming out of her collarbone. She was chewing slowly.

He looked to his food, then. Had he just stuttered? Shit, a sign of weakness. "I can have Koenma bring some to you this evening, if you like."

Still, nothing, but she did use her hair to re-cover her breasts. So he had been right. But he didn't understand why she hadn't just told him. Surely it would be easier.

They continued to eat in silence until it was time to begin the next extraction. This one hadn't even surfaced, which means she hadn't bothered to activate it long enough to let it come to the outside.

"I can get much done today." He was standing behind her. "A cluster of the plants is here, at the base of your neck. I know they haven't rooted, so it will be less painful."

She didn't even twitch a response. "I can't imagine anyone who would do this to you," he said. "Someone must have really wanted you hurt. There's no way one person would do this to themselves."

For a moment, he thought he felt her demon energy. He shook it off. The pain hadn't begun. She had no reason to attack.

He focused. Maybe he wouldn't have to break the skin this time...

Sorry that I make Kurama out to be a pervert. But people like him always have an inner freak that no one knows about, right?