muie5: bunnydemon sort of helped me with this chapter. I'll give her some credit. See I'm good.

Kurama: You're still not getting back your eggnog. You've had too much already.

muie5: But it's mine!

Yusuke: No! I remember what happened last year.

muie5: Oh, come on. It was just a tiny, itsy, bitsy kitchen fire.

Kurama: You are not getting it back.

muie5: We have a whole other gallon of eggnog. So on with the story. I don't own YuYu Hakusho just Kelly, Heru, Cheyenne, Kitai, Helen, Ken, Sarah and Yumekisu Kageryu.

Chapter 6: The Haunting Past

Heru continued to walk further and further away from the group. He just knew he could not stay with them for too long. It had only been a day and he managed to make enemies of them all.

"So much for making allies. Oh, well," Heru sighed to himself as he continued to walk through the savanna type landscape, "Wonder when Lady Kageryu will send more of her warriors out searching for them."

Heru abruptly stopped and glanced around his surroundings. In the distance he noticed dust being kicked up. As if it were a knee-jerk reaction, he sighed as the cloud of dust came closer and closer.

"I can't believe my wise and noble Lady would send this particular demon. What in all of Makai was she thinking?"

Within seconds the dust cloud whipped by him and was suddenly forced to the ground by the gust of wind. The dust cloud suddenly turned a few yards away from Heru and started back. In a flash, it stopped right in front of him before he was even able to get back on his feet.

When the dust settled a girl with sky blue hair that came down to her shoulder with bangs covering her forehead and the top of her eyes was in front of him. She stared down at him with her dull gray eyes and friendly smile. Despite all the dust her sparkly red dress and blue jeans did not have a speck of dirt on them.

"Hello, Onii-san," she greeted in an innocent teenage voice.

Heru got to his feet less than happy to see this new face. He took the time to brush off the dust that got on his own clothes before deciding to actually pay attention to her. This did not affect the new girl; she just waited patiently for Heru to dust himself off.

"What are you doing here, Cheyenne?" Heru folded his arms in front of himself almost in a disapproval manner.

"What?" Cheyenne walked over to Heru, clung onto his left arm, and placed her head on his shoulder while she turned her eyes up to him, "Can't a little sister come and see her big brother? It's been forever since I've last seen you."

"Give it up, Cheyenne. It's only been ten days."

"Well, when I got back from my mission you were gone. Nary a note or sign as to where you went."

"Why are you really here? I know you didn't come all this way just to see your big brother."

Cheyenne held even tighter onto Heru's arm. She lost her smile to a deep frown. Heru knew she dropped her fake persona.

"Lady Kageryu thought that you would have been on your way back to report by now. She personally ordered me to come and find you."

"So they already know I failed in my mission. I thought we would have had at least a little bit more time," Heru thought with some frustration furrowed in his brows.

"You know, it's very rude to take someone's clothes without their permission," Cheyenne stated with her innocent tone once more.

"What?" Heru snapped his gaze down to Cheyenne with surprise at this abrupt subject change.

Cheyenne pulled on Heru's black tank top with her right hand so she could still hold onto Heru's left arm with her right hand. "My shirt. You took it without even asking me. You even took my pants."

Cheyenne finally let go of Heru's arm and took two steps back so she could look into her brother's eyes. Heru kept his arms crossed and his face neutral. He would not let his front give anything away. Cheyenne kept her frown as she continued to look at her brother straight in the eyes.

"Don't tell me you failed. Please tell me you have not found them yet. I can't go back with the info that you failed and are still alive. She'll punish you severely. Just tell me you are having trouble finding them," Cheyenne pleaded in a rush of saddening words.

Heru continued to look at his sister with his neutral expression. Cheyenne's eyes fell to the ground, something of an old habit of hers. It was a way to try to deny what was obvious.

"You…you did fail, didn't you? Oh, Heru! Lady Kageryu is not going to be very pleased. How could you fail? No…You didn't fail…You gave up! Failure means death! You're not supposed to stop until you die, Heru! You know that!"

Heru never flinched at Cheyenne's outburst. Of course, he knew exactly what it meant to give in. To be tortured or executed were his only options. It no longer fazed him though. He knew exactly what he got into when he joined the Spirit Detective team and he accepted it.

"Just tell me where they are. I'll bring them back with us, and Lady Kageryu will never have to know about this. You won't have to be punished."

"Cheyenne, leave."

"Heru, please. Te…"

"Cheyenne, leave."

Cheyenne turned from Heru. She wanted to cry but knew that a warrior never shows that kind of weakness. Even though this tore her up, she folded her hands together and entangled her fingers. Heru watched his little sister in dismay.

"Heru, I love you. You're my big brother. During our training, you were always there to help me. You protected me in battle and at Lady Kageryu's. For those very reasons it pains me to have to be the one to do this."

"Cheyenne, they are heading for Lady Kageryu's."

Cheyenne immediately turned around, surprise overflowed her expression. "What?"

"They do have four extra people with them: one demon and three humans. The female human is the one who overpowered me. You have to watch out for her."

"A human woman defeated you? No way!"

A cold stare was the only response. Even though he knew there was something different about Kelly, he still did not like being made out as weak.

"So why are you still here? Wait. Don't tell me…You joined their team, didn't you? You lost and that stupid honor code of yours kicked in."

"Cheyenne, I will not lead you to them. I will not help you trap them. I told you basic information that could be easily gathered and that is all you will get. Leave. Go back to the palace."

"Heru," Cheyenne held tightly around her brother's torso and let her head rest on his chest, "once Lady Kageryu hears of your betrayal she'll order your death. Please be careful."

"Cheyenne, you need to leave."

Cheyenne reluctantly let go of her brother, tears streamed down her cheeks. This did not change Heru's neutral appearance. With one last peek at Heru, Cheyenne sprinted off. Heru watched as the dust storm made its way out of sight before he headed back to the others.

Back at camp, Kurama was preparing the instant rice he had brought with them. Botan was still gone. Yusuke and Kuwabara were in the middle of an argument about something senseless. Kuronue was off by himself again, lying down with his hands behind his head and his right leg crossed over his left in the air.

Heru walked over to Kurama with a bit of a confused expression, "Do they always fight like that?"

Kurama ignored Heru's question and continued to cook the rice. A sigh of frustrations escaped Heru. He despised being ignored, but he did not blame the fox demon.

"I think we should go," Heru declared as he looked away from Kurama.

"Kelly has had no time to recover. In fact, she is getting worse. We are not leaving," Kurama bluntly retorted.

"Lady Kageryu has found out I have failed. It won't be long before we are attacked."

Kurama gave a quizzical glance at Heru, "We'll take our chances."

"Don't be stupid. Lady Kageryu's warriors are strong. If you stay here they will kill you."

"We are staying."

"I hope you know what you are getting into," Heru warned exasperated as he walked off.

Heru walked over to Kuronue and sat down without as much as a smile. Kuronue continued to stay laid on his back. He really did not want to put up with Heru at the moment.

"Your friend is quite stubborn," Heru stated without thinking.

"He is just very cautious," Kuronue answered with his eyes still closed and not so much as a nerve twitch.

"He's going to try to get us all killed."

"He evaluates every possible prospect before deciding what the best course of action is. What he does is for the benefit of the whole group."

"Your group had trouble fighting me. When Lady Kageryu sends her warriors you will have blood on your hands. You'll have to fight with her best warriors while protecting that damaged human woman."

"So she found out that you have botched up already?"

"Yes. She will most likely send her strongest warriors after you because of it."

"So how do you know she has this knowledge?"

At that time Botan flew right in between the two. Heru laid back in an attempt to avoid a collision. Kuronue just tilted slightly to his right to let Botan have some room.

"What's with her? She nearly took my head off!" Heru bellowed as he bounced back up.

Kuronue got to his feet and started back towards the others. Heru followed suit with a slight grumble. Botan landed a few feet away from where Kurama and Hiei, mostly Kurama, were conversing. Kurama and Hiei turned their attention to her, along with Yusuke and Kuwabara. Kuronue and Heru came to a stop a yard away from the others.

"What did the little toddler say?" Yusuke inquired less than interested.

"He understands the severity but attaining the Caller of Light staff is the top priority. If Kelly's situation worsens then you can go back to Living World," Botan answered as her oar dissipated.

"Her condition is getting worse right now!" Yusuke exclaimed.

"I'm sorry but those are Koenma's orders."

"So we're supposed to wait till she is at death's door before we do anything?" Kuwabara angrily indicated.

"Seems like someone has a temper. That's no good," came a female voice from nowhere.

Each person swiftly scanned the area. Yet, nothing appeared to be out of order. Kurama glanced over at Kelly to ensure she was safe.

"I'm sick and tired of putting up with freaking dumb toddlers and demons too scared to show their faces!" Yusuke barked in his normal temper.

"Save your breath. The demon is not here," Heru explained calmly.

Time passed with everyone on their toes. Kurama rested by Kelly while Hiei perched on the boulder nearest his companion. The remainder of the party, except Heru, was asleep by this unthinkable time of night. It was close to two when Heru finally decided to lay down and try to get some rest. This left Hiei as the only one awake.

"So Cheyenne has made it back to Lady Kageryu's already. Must not have stopped to rest. It will be within the next two days that she arrives. If they don't leave soon then there is no doubt blood will be shed," Heru enlightened the emptiness of the night.

"You must think low of me. Two days? The wind is faster than that," came the female voice once more.

Heru sat up as the wind turned ferocious. Kuronue was awoken by the sheer force of the wind, as did Botan. Yusuke and Kuwabara, on the other hand, were unaffected. Heru immediately grabbed his weapon as he took a defensive stance. Just as he began to examine the area a tornado developed. Before it even touched down, the tornado headed straight for the band of misfits.

"We need to get out of here!" Botan screamed over the roar of the windstorm.

"It won't matter. We can't make much ground with Kelly. Even if we leave her, we won't get very far. Just get ready to fight," Heru ordered as he stopped by Kurama, Hiei, and Botan.

"So I gather you know what we are up against?" Kurama indicated.

"Yes, and it won't be pretty."

"How rude! Are you insinuating that I am ugly?" accused the same female voice from earlier that day.

All of the sudden the tornado disappeared and the wind died down. Several feet away, where the tornado once stood, was a mid-twenty looking woman with light green hair and bright purple eyes. She wore puffy dark purple pants and a short sleeve, dark purple shirt with brown armor over it. She also wore fishnet arm warmers that went from the middle of the bicep to the wrists.

"So you are Youko?" the woman strolled over to Kurama and held up a lock of his red hair, "Too red for my taste. I thought Youko was a cute, silver-haired fox. Instead, I get this red-headed human. How disappointing."

Kurama quickly brought out his rose whip. The woman dodged the slashes as she lep backward.

"Now is that any way to treat a lady?"

"Didn't take long for them to send you," Heru cursed.

"Actually they didn't send me. I heard talk around the palace that Youko was in Demon World a few days ago. So I took some time off of my current mission because I just had to take the opportunity to get him for my Lady. I did see a certain someone running in the direction of the palace on my way here. Like brother, like sister I guess. Can't even finish a simple job."

The mysterious women continued to hold Kurama's eyes, "Oh well, so you guys are what the buzz is all about. How sad. None of you look that strong. No offense"

"Kitai, if you want to fight then stop flirting," Heru snarled.

Kitai crooked towards Heru with anger ablaze in her eyes. "Heru, back off! You're the one who failed to subdue these misfits in the first place. Even worse is that you joined their little band. So do not insinuate that I am denouncing my duties."

"She's kind of temperamental, isn't she?" Yusuke whispered to Kuwabara.

Kitai twirled to the two even more irate. But just as fast as her anger emerged it dissipated as soon as her eyes fell upon Kuronue who stood in front of Yusuke and Kuwabara.

"I didn't hear anything about you being with them," Kitai lamented as she concentrated on Kuronue completely.

"Kitai, we don't need you to give us a social call. You're wasting our time," Heru declared with crossed arms.

"For a little puppy dog that has only come to the work in the past ten years, you sure think big of yourself. Don't back talk your superior."

Kitai brought her thumb up to her mouth and bit down hard. Blood rushed to the surface. Heru immediately took the yawn from his pocket.

"Get ready," Heru warned the others.

Kitai violently jerked her arm down to her side so the blood would slide down her thumb. Suddenly an emerald green pole with gold knobs on each end appeared.

"Lady Kageryu wishes for the poorly dyed redhead. And since he's here, I'm sure he's part of the mission as well," Kitai ordered with a head nod towards Kuronue.

Heru rushed Kitai with his weapon in hand. Kitai twirled her pole in a circular motion before swiftly hitting Heru square in the head. She seized the two seconds it took for Heru to get his balance back to dart straight for Kuronue. Kuronue blocked Kitai's attack with his scythe instantly.

"Why are you here?" Kitai whined, "I'm not too sure I understand. I saw your body. I saw your lifeless body. How? Why?" Kitai attacked once again.

"You seem to have gotten a backbone in the last – what – three hundred some odd years," Kuronue smugly approved.

"And you still have that loud mouth that got you killed in the first place. The Spirit World must be desperate to use a criminal like you."

"Guess."

Kitai spun on her heels to block Kurama's rose whip. She then jumped to avoid Heru's attack.

"How sweet. Five against one. Oh, well," Kitai remarked with a hit to the back of Kuwabara's head.

Kitai used her pole to launch herself into the air to narrowly miss Hiei's attack. She landed behind Kurama and immediately grabbed his hair. This startled Kurama for a few seconds.

"Your hair really is a cheap hair dye. I was just kidding before, but now I'm sure of it."

Kurama swung his rose whip around, which managed to scrap Kitai's leg as she jumped away.

"What an odd group. You know what, I don't like fighting. So if you could just come with me that would be most helpful," Kitai clarified with a sigh as she brought her pole down to her side.

Kitai looked around at the mismatched group in front of her. It was painfully obvious that there would be a fight. She sighed heavily again. The last thing she wanted was to be forced to spill blood, no matter how much she was trained not to care.

Kurama and Hiei were the first ones to rush at her with their weapons drawn. Kitai brought her pole up and held onto it with both hands.

"Very well," she grimaced as she charged at the duo.

-Kelly's POV-

I started to hear silent whispers from the darkness as I sat there, in the emptiness of the everlasting night. I had my knees pulled up to my chest and my head resting on them. This loneliness I felt was so unbearable. The small whispers that did come were but a short-lived comfort to me.

"Kelly", "Sweetie", "Sweetheart" was what the small whispers would say. Those sweet sounds that were the only light in this desolate place. They were just so warm and welcoming.

As I looked up I saw a small glimmer of light. That very small sliver of light was the only one since I got here. I didn't know how much time had passed nor did I know if it was day or night. But that small light brought me slowly to my feet. It drew me in like a fly to a warm Thanksgiving meal. Slowly the once quiet whispers became more and more clear.

"How much longer did they say she will be like this?" came a worried woman's voice.

"They said it all depends on her," answered a strong, reassuring male.

I wanted to see who was talking. I wanted to know whom the whispers that kept me going were coming from. I just couldn't seem to escape the darkness. But slowly I started to see a bright, almost blinding light. I ran towards it with all the energy I could muster.

There I was, looking up at a white ceiling. At first, it was blurry but soon my vision became clear. Even though I could see I just couldn't move a muscle. It felt like I was frozen in place when a familiar face looked down at me, tears falling from her eyes.

"Kelly! My baby!" she wept as she hugged me tightly.

As she did a shock of pain enveloped my entire body. It was so excruciating, but I couldn't seem to make a sound. All I could do was slightly cringe. But I felt like I had to say something. I just had to muster up the strength to make my voice be heard.

"Mo…th…er…" I whispered quietly.

"Kelly, you really scared us," Helen cried some more.

"Kelly, we weren't sure if you would ever wake up," came the voice of a male.

"What's going on, daddy?" I mumbled in a slightly stronger voice.

"You just collapsed in the middle of the road. Good thing that these teens were there to help you."

I looked over at the door to see Yusuke and Kuwabara seated in the blue padded chairs in the hospital room I was in.

"I collapsed? Yusuke…Kazuma?" I asked still a bit disoriented.

"So you finally decided to wake up. Good. You would not have been a good vegetable," came Ken's voice from out of nowhere.

Ken strolled into the room with Sarah behind him. Between the two, they carried five or so cans of soda. Sarah rushed over to me with tears in her eyes. She instantly embraced me in a hug.

"Sarah, please. It hurts," I whimpered.

Sarah backed off some. "Sorry. You just scared me. I thought you were going to die."

"How long have I been out?"

"Almost two weeks, sweetheart. Doctors said that you might not pull through. You were pretty hurt after all. Good thing that car didn't completely run you over. Once you are better you should thank these nice boys," mother answered.

Then a man with short black hair in a white doctor's coat came into the room. He looked up from his clipboard with a smile towards me. His brown eyes scanned the semi-crowded room with a displeased disposition. His eyes then fell upon me once more. Everyone watched him stop by my bedside.

"Glad to see you regained consciousness. I'm sorry everyone, but we need to run some more tests," the doctor ordered the group of people in the room.

"Oh, yes. Of course. Come on, honey. We'll be right back, sweetheart," mother reassured as she kissed me on my forehead and left with father.

"Okay. We'll come back later, Kelly," Ken stated as he gave the last soda can to Kuwabara.

"Okay. Bye," I answered with a weak voice.

Everyone walked out of the room. As they left a nurse with bright blond, mid-back hair in the traditional white nurses outfit came in. She shut the door before joining the doctor by my bedside.

"How are you feeling, Miss Smort?" the doctor asked as he looked back down at his clipboard.

"A bit dizzy. I also don't remember much from the past few weeks. It's just all a blur," I answered as I watched the doctor write something on the paper.

"That is to be expected. You were in pretty bad condition. You're lucky that car didn't kill you. You're also lucky that those boys found you and treated you the way they did," he stated with a slight smile.

"Okay. Miss Kelly, we're just going to run a few small tests and check your blood pressure," the nurse looked over at the EKG, "You're heart rate looks good."

"Okay," I answered shyly.

-Third Person POV-

As soon as the doctor and nurse left the room Kurama, Yusuke, and Kuwabara walked in. Kelly was laid down on her pillow with her eyes closed. She looked over at them when Yusuke shut the door behind him.

"What happened? I don't remember anything," Kelly inquired as she slowly sat up to lean against the backboard.

"Don't worry about it for now. Just rest," Kurama answered.

"I'm fine. Just a little sore."

"You were badly injured when you fought with Heru."

"I'm sorry but I don't remember anything about that."

"It's alright. Just get some rest," Yusuke reassured her.

"Did you get the staff back?"

"No. We came back after the fight with Kitai. We needed to get you to a hospital as soon as possible," Kuwabara answered.

"Koenma has granted a short break so that you could recover," Kurama added.

"I feel like I should apologize for something I did. I'm not sure what, but I need to so I'm sorry," Kelly apologized at half of her normal strength.

"Let's go. We'll come back later," Yusuke suggested as he turned towards the door.

They said their goodbyes and started to walk out the room. This is when Kelly seemed to notice something she did not before. Just as Kurama put his hand on the doorknob to close the door Kelly spoke up.

"Where are Kuronue and Hiei? Are they okay? Did something happen?"

The three turned around, Kurama's hand still rested on the doorknob.

"They are at Koenma's office waiting for us. Now get some rest. You really do need it, Kelly," Kurama answered with a softened expression before the door closed behind them.

Kuwabara was the first one to stride through the door and into Koenma's office. Yusuke and Kuwabara were in a middle of a rather loud discussion when they entered. Kurama was right behind them and immediately closed the door so as to not disturb the rest of the oni working in the hallway.

Hiei was leaning next to the left side of the door. He now had his head up since what little peace and quiet he had was gone. Kuronue sat cross-legged on the floor by the left wall of the room. Heru, who was a bit surprised at how loud Kuwabara and Yusuke argued in what was supposed to be a professional place, was in front of Koenma's desk.

"How's she doing?" Kuronue asked as soon as Kurama shut the door.

"She has regained consciousness. Apparently, she has a small case of memory loss. That is as far as my knowledge goes at the moment," Kurama answered towards Koenma instead of Kuronue.

"At least she is awake. I didn't think she ever would regain consciousness again. I mean I did hurt her pretty bad. I'm surprised she is even alive. She…" Heru was abruptly cut off.

"Watch what you say. You are, after all, hanging on by a short thread," Kurama explained.

"Should have been here for the past few hours. He hasn't stopped arguing with the toddler since he got here," Kuronue sighed as he spoke to no one in particular.

"You, too, are on a short thread, Kuronue. I suggest you watch what you say as well," Koenma stated to the less than reasonable bat demon.

"You're the one who put her in this situation in the first place. If you had let us take her to the hospital when she was first hurt, she might have been in better condition," Yusuke snapped back.

Heru started to laugh, "You really are a dysfunctional group. So what are you planning to do now, Lord Koenma? Lady Kageryu still has the staff. When she finds out that three of her best warriors failed than she will get very upset."

"How do you know we are after the staff?" Koenma asked less than impressed at his knowledge of the mission.

"Well, when I first met your little band of…what are they called? Spirit detectives? Yes, well, smart mouth over there, Kuronue I believe is his name, told me that they were after a 'ferocious, man-eating, horrendous demon that has been terrorizing' Demon World. I just figured that they were talking about Lady Kageryu, even though that description is completely off. She is a beautiful leader. Oh, yeah the staff. Okay, so I knew they wanted the staff since that is what she mostly used to 'terrorize' the three worlds."

Kuronue started to get to his feet when Kurama broke in. The last thing he wanted was for Kuronue to be punished for what he was about to do. "Heru is right. What are you planning on doing now?"

Koenma folded his hands on his desk and placed his mouth on them as if thinking. "We really have no choice. We will have to explain everything to Kelly. That is the one way we can get her to go back with you to Makai."

"What?! You're sending her back?!" Kuwabara scowled.

"I have no choice. She is essential for getting the Caller of Light staff."

Heru: "Besides I'll be with you this time around. I know almost all of Lady Kageryu's best warriors. I'll be able to help."

Kuwabara: "Oh, yes, cause you helped so much in the fight with Kitai," sarcastically chimed in.

Heru: "She is the third strongest warrior. What do you expect me to do? I'm only the fifth strongest."

Yusuke: "So you won't be of much help."

Kuronue: "Especially, if your little sister shows up again. You couldn't even raise your weapon to her."

Heru: "Back off. I'm sure if your precious Youko was to fight against you, you wouldn't be able to kill him."

Botan: "Okay, knock it off boys. This is serious. We need you all in your best condition so go back to Human World and get some rest for the next few weeks."

Everyone looked at the new member of the group that was in Koenma's office. Kuronue sat back down when Botan entered the room. Koenma nodded in agreement with her suggestion.

"So am I staying in the Spirit World prison?" Heru asked calmly.

"It's best if one of the Spirit Detectives watches over you. I'm sure you would escape the cell with great ease," Koenma answered.

"Okay, then," Heru walked over to Kurama and placed his right arm around his shoulders, "I'll go with him. Batboy can join, too."

"I'm sure Kurama's mother would be a bit freaked out at having you two there," Yusuke spoke up with a laugh as he imaged Ms. Minamino's expression if she saw the two demons.

"Yes, I will have to agree with Yusuke. You two can't stay with Kurama," Koenma agreed with Yusuke. To be honest, he really just did not want Kuronue to stay with the former fox thief.

"We're demons. It will be easy to stay out of sight," Heru turned his head towards Kurama, "Your mommy won't even know we're there. So what do you say?"

"Yusuke can take care of them if they get too out of hand," Botan stated.

"Okay, then I'll allow it just as long as Shiori Minamino does not see you two," Koenma agreed.

"Good…Those two interest me the most. How exciting," Heru thought with a small grin.

Kelly was in the middle of a conversation with her parents when there was a knock on the door. The three of them turned their attention to the sudden noise.

"Come in," called Helen sweetly.

Kurama and Yusuke came walking in. Kelly smiled at them before turning to her parents.

"I'm sorry, mom and dad, but could you leave us alone for a few minutes?" Kelly requested.

"Sure. We'll be in the cafeteria if you need us," Helen answered before she walked passed the two teen boys.

As soon has both of her parents were gone and the door was shut Kelly's smile started to fade. Yusuke pulled up a chair to her bedside, turned the chair around, and sat down so he could rest his arms on the back of the chair. Kurama, on the other hand, continued to stand. Before Kelly could open her mouth another knock was heard. Without an invite in came Heru with Kuronue behind him.

"Who are you?" Kelly asked Heru.

Kuronue shut the door quietly before he took a seat in the corner to the right of Kelly's bed.

"Well, I'm hurt. I can't believe you don't remember me. I am, after all, the one you fought so intimately with," Heru answered over dramatized.

Kurama: "This is Heru. He's the one you fought."

Kelly: "Fought? I'm sorry but I still don't remember anything."

Yusuke: "It's okay."

Kelly: "Kuronue, I'm glad you're okay. I thought they might have hurt you."

Kuronue: "No, I'm just being babysat."

Kelly: "Huh?"

Kurama: "Don't worry. Kelly, Koenma wishes for you to go back to Demon World with us when you are healed. He also told us to explain why."

Kelly: "I don't understand. I was completely useless. Why take me back?"

Kurama: "The reason Kuronue was assigned to you was because you are…unique. Once every few hundred years a…well an Angel of Death is created. Kuronue was to watch over you until the Angel of Death that was to use you was ready. You are the most important person in this mission."

Kelly: "I'll just ignore the waked-out story for now. How am I important? What can I do?"

Kuronue: "Kelly, your power is what is important."

Kelly: "I don't know how to use it."

Yusuke: "Your power will appear when we need it."

Kelly: "You're not telling me something. I want to know everything if I'm to do anything."

Kuronue: "When you release your power your body won't be able to hold up. You'll…"

Kelly: "My body won't hold up? Wait! Do you mean I'm going to die?!"

Kurama: "Yes. By the end of the mission, you'll die."

Kelly: "So you want me to go and kill myself? Forget it! I'm not going!"

Kuronue: "Kelly…"

Kelly: "No! You knew about this the whole time and never told me! I hate you! I'm not going and that's that. Now leave!"

Kurama turned and opened the door. Yusuke followed him while Kuronue slowly got up and looked over at Kelly. Kelly turned her head with her eyes completely closed. But that did not stop Kuronue from noticing a small tear roll down her cheek. Without another word, he walked out of the room with Heru on his tail. As soon as they were out of the room, Kelly lumped forward and started to bawl.

"So what are you planning to do now?" Heru asked as he shut the door.

Kurama and Kuronue continued to walk down the empty white hall of the hospital without so much as a glance at Heru. Heru sighed as he followed them with another peep.

Kurama walked into his house with an "I'm home, Mother."

When no one answered he opened the front door all the way. Kuronue walked in wrapped in a black overcoat that fell to his knees. This was to cover his wings that Koenma happened to forget to disguise. Heru was right behind him.

Kurama walked into the kitchen as Heru shut the front door. He looked around the living room that was attached to the entrance. The black 14" television set was against the left wall placed on an oak wood chest. Across from that was a brown couch.

"You're house looks kind of bleak," Heru blurted out.

Kurama ignored the impolite comment and walked towards the oak staircase that was between the kitchen and living room. Heru looked back at Kuronue who was still looking around. He cleared his throat, which brought Kuronue back to earth. Heru followed Kurama up the carpeted stairs with Kuronue behind him.

Heru looked around Kurama's room. To the right was a bed under the window. Right across the room from the door was a desk with a computer, desk lamp, a few books, and a picture of him and his mother along with a picture of him, his mother, his stepfather, and stepbrother. To the far left of the room was a closet. There were a few articles of clothing strewn around the room but that was the only thing on the floor.

"Wow. Nice pad. Too bad it kind of looks like a mess," Heru stated as he gestured to the articles of clothing on the floor.

Kurama picked up the four shirts and three pairs of pants off the floor. He folded them as he walked over to his desk. He placed them in a pile on the right edge of the desk.

"It's going to be a really boring few weeks if you don't talk to us," Heru explained with one more glance around the room.

Kurama did not answer; all he did was sit in the chair that was at his desk. Heru turned to Kuronue who stood in the doorway, eyes fixed on the pictures on the chest.

"Shuichi, can you come here for a second?" came Shiori's voice from the bottom of the stairs.

Kurama got to his feet and walked passed Kuronue without even a glance. Heru sighed and fell back on Kurama's bed as soon as he heard Kurama walk down the stairs.

"You two have to be the worst best friends there ever was," Heru observed as he gazed at the white ceiling.

"What do you mean?" Kuronue asked, less than interested in what Heru had to say.

"Well, there is always a heavy, almost suffocating, aura around you two. You guys really need to clear up whatever caused this rift."

"Why do you care?"

"I don't really. It's just something do to. So what is going on between you two?"

"It really does not concern you."

Heru sat up at this time. He placed his elbows on his legs and rested his cheeks on his palms. He stared straight into Kuronue's eyes for a few moments, but Kuronue just kept his cool expression.

"Funny. I would never have thought that a…criminal like you would care. He ran, didn't he? He ran and you were left there. Well, I suggest you clear up everything before we get to Lady Kageryu's. If you don't then both of you will die along with your comrades."

"Is that a threat?"

"Nope," Heru smiled, "Just a friendly warning. After all, we are all on the same team. So, Kuronue – that is your name right – Kelly seemed really hurt that you never told her. Makes me wonder if she'll come with us at all."

"We wouldn't be in this situation if you didn't…"

"Didn't what? Didn't try to do a mission? Well, guess what, she would have figured it out for herself. Even if she didn't, would you have let her be oblivious to the fact that she was going to die?"

Kuronue turned his gaze back to the photos on the dresser.

"Sad how she can trust someone like you. Like all of you. Oh, well."

Kurama came back into his room at this time. Heru looked over at him while Kuronue did not.

"So what's there to eat?" Heru asked in a monotone voice.

"Shuichi!" came a childish voice from down the hall that Kurama's room was in.

Kurama turned towards the doorway of his room to see a black haired boy wearing blue jeans and a white T-shirt. Kurama somehow found a smile to surface.

"Yes, Shuichi?" Kurama asked kindly.

"Shuichi, can you help me with my homework later?" Shuichi asked.

"Both of them are named Shuichi? That must get confusing," Heru stated from where Kuronue and himself were crammed into Kurama's closet.

Kuronue covered Heru's mouth, which ticked him off just a bit. Shuichi looked around his brother's room. Kurama knew his younger stepbrother heard Heru's comment.

"Yes. Of course, I will help you," Kurama answered.

Shuichi smiled at his brother before running off down the stairs. Kurama closed his door and turned around in time to see Heru, Kuronue, and sever pairs of shirts fall out of his closet.

"I can already tell this is going to be a nuisance," Kurama stated with a soft, almost inaudible sigh.

"So why did we have to hide anyways? Koenma said for Shiori not to see us, not your brother," Heru pointed out as he got to his feet.

"As soon as we get you into some normal clothes we'll have no problem," came Yusuke's voice.

Kurama turned around to see Yusuke in his doorway. Yusuke held up a pair of baggy black pants and a white t-shirt with a jean jacket. He also had a pair of blue jeans and a red t-shirt.

"Botan brought them over," Yusuke stated.

"What the…There is no way I'm wearing either one of those outfits. There is nothing wrong with what I have on," Heru argued.

"Except for the fact that your shirt is ripped and your pants are not in any better shape."

Heru looked at his outfit. Yusuke was right. His black tank top was cut and torn in several placed and ripped almost right down the middle. His pants were full of holes as well. Yusuke threw the baggy pants and white t-shirt at him and reluctantly Heru caught them.

"So what are you going to do with his wings?" Heru nodded to Kuronue.

"Try to hide them the best we can. There is no way for us to get rid of them," came Botan's answer.

"Did all of you come?" Heru asked as Botan came into the room.

"Nope. Kuwabara went back to the hospital to check up on Kelly."

"So we can't show our faces to your mother but these people can?"

"Shiori knows Yusuke and me just kind of tagged along with him."

Just then there was a knock on Kurama's bedroom door. Kurama walked passed Yusuke and Botan so he could open the door. There stood his mother with a tray of three cups of tea.

"I thought you and your friends could use some tea," Shiori explained with a smile.

"Thank you, Ms. Minamino," Heru greeted politely.

Shiori looked passed her son to see Heru there in his new outfit that looked two sizes too big for him, including the jean jacket. Kuronue stood next to him in the red t-shirt, blue jeans, and black overcoat.

"Oh. I didn't know you had more friends over. I'll go make some more tea," Shiori added as she handed the tray over to her eldest son before walking back down the stairs, which were right in front of Kurama's bedroom.

Yusuke took a cup, walked over to Kurama's desk, and sat down in the oak chair. "So have you thought of a way to explain things to Kelly?