Hiei was in a disastrous mood, his crimson eyes narrowed upon the youko washing himself by the edge of the pond. He sat within the higher branches of a tree nearby, supposedly keeping an eye on the whole Reikai Tantrei should they need his sword - but in truth, only so he could watch his fox. He was disoriented and confused, in pain and disgruntled - which had a definite hand in turning his normally dark mood into a down-right sour and dangerous one. No matter how many times he forced himself to look away - no matter how many times he turned his thoughts to other things - every other moment his gaze drifted back to watch the silver youko bathe and brush water along his arms and in his mane, sometimes shaking the droplets away before going right back to cleaning himself. Hiei had always accused the youko of being vain and he still held true to that accusation; Kurama was vain. But he also had every right to be, for he was absolute perfection of itself.

Frowning, Hiei narrowed his blood-red gaze upon the silver creature of myths, his thumb caressing the hilt of his katana absent-mindedly. That beauty had taken advantage of Hiei when the fire-demon had been wounded. He had used the fire-demon. He had -

With a grimace, Hiei tasted his own thoughts with disgust. The thought that he may have been violated - that he may now be tainted - was one that repulsed even himself. No matter what he tried to convince himself to think, Kurama had not taken him against his will. Hiei could have shoved him off - could have lashed out - at any time. He could have pushed the youko a sufficient distance away and gotten free if he had truly wanted to, without harming Kurama in the process. If he had truly wanted to.

The fact was, he hadn't wanted to.

His irritation at the youko's insistence to bandage his wound had been genuine; his attitude had been just as sour as it was now, if not worse from being laced with such pain. He had been angry at his inability to use his full powers in the battle. He had been angry at Shenjin for not paying attention. He had been furious at Kurama for jumping in the way and accepting a blow that the younger youko rightfully deserved. And above all that he had been angry at his own inability to dodge the blade that had so easily pinned him. Having to deal with the silver youko's taunting flirtations was not exactly on his most-desired wish for things to occur in the next hour.

He had struggled when Kurama attacked him to divest him of his pants, yet his mind had been more upon trying to think of a way to slip free of the youko's grasp without either hurting Kurama himself or making his wound worse. Just when he had thought he'd found a way out -

Hiei frowned deeply at the unfamiliar surge of heat and fluttering weakness that came with the remembrance of how soft Kurama's tail was, brushing against his thighs and teasing his...

He shook himself forcefully, baring his fangs at the silver youko now currently wringing water from his mane. He should have known the creature wasn't serious. He should have known that the damned youko was just as hentai and teasing as his past proclaimed him to be. He should have known that Kurama wasn't serious...

But the look in his golden eyes... that soft, warm glow to his features and the gentle touch of his fingers brushing across Hiei's lips...

With a growl, Hiei shifted upon his perch, his gaze narrowing again as Shenjin approached Kurama and crouched behind him. After a few moments the two began to talk; Hiei cared nothing for their conversation and so didn't bother to try and listen in. He was too concerned with his own memories, and battling the emotions that surged up to take precedence within him. The remembrance of Kurama's weight first settled upon his hip and then stretched out comfortably along his length brought forth alternating rushes of warmth and slight, trembling shivers of anticipation; his chest felt both heavy and light in the same moment, accompanied then by the strangest feeling he had ever been witness to. Something in him wanted to flee, to run away from these strange feelings and this warmth that he was so unaccustomed to, even as something else within him cursed Shenjin's presence and made him wish fervently that Kurama was alone within the pond so Hiei could go down and -...

Suddenly a flash burst behind his sight and the world blinked out - darkness, cold, hands grabbing, brief pain, tears, screaming, crying, lost, lost, I'm so sorry, I tried, I could not, I lost - for one all-too brief, split-second in time. His hand clenched around his sword; within seconds he had run to the end of the long branch, his katana out and at the ready as he glared across to the horizon and the dark castle-lands resting there.

Kurama grimaced as he shoved his hands in the water, ripping at his tail and rubbing the long locks of silver fur against one another to clean them. A small cloud was gathering in the water by his hip but he ignored it irritably - as he ignored the loud, raucous sound of Yuusuke and Kuwabara creating a ruckus at the other end of the pond; as he ignored - more specifically - the dark, enigmatic feel of Hiei's ki perched in a tree across the way. He wasn't really mad - not particularly - although he forced himself to radiate the minor waves of irritation that made his golden eyes narrow and his ears to flicker. In truth he was disappointed and was wallowing in an elusive sort of misery that always managed to accompany such things as rejection. Never had the youko felt such a keen pain borne of something as simple as rejection before - always, he had simply shrugged it away and moved on to another subject. This time he didn't want another subject. He wanted Hiei, dammit!

With a quiet snarl he continued to whip his tail beneath the water, his ears flickering at the sense of Shenjin's ki approaching him from behind. He didn't want to deal with the brat right now; it was hard enough trying to keep the flushing embarrassment from his features - he didn't need to be reminded of the incident by some worthless little dog-cur that claimed itself to be his brother. I don't have a little brother. He thought fiercely - ignoring the faint twinge in his heart that told him his thoughts lied just as easily as he ignored everything else. "What do you want?"

He felt Shenjin kneel at his back; Kurama didn't bother to turn and face the pearl-green youko. He himself was situated in the pond water up to his chest with his silver hair flowing over his shoulder; Shenjin, however, remained upon the land and came no closer to the water than he had to in order to speak and be heard.

"I wanted... to thank you."

The anger, irritation, disappointment - all disappeared from his face and his thoughts. Kurama looked down, his features easing as beneath the water his hands gentled upon his own tail, stroking the long strands thoughtfully. "For what?"

A warm, slim hand barely touched the unbound claw-wound embedded in his flesh from his shoulder to his middle-back. "For this."

"It was nothing." Kurama shrugged it off and went back to his business, yet his ears swiveled to catch Shenjin's softly spoken words all the same.

"If you hadn't been there, I could have died. I would have died." Silence for a few moments, and then... "And again with the half-breed. He saved me."

"Don't call him that!" Kurama snarled, his claw abruptly clenching around his own tail with such ferocity that he had to bite back against a yip of pain; silently he cursed himself for his own stupidity and glared at the water as if it had been the true culprit, and not his own strength.

Shenjin laughed - softly, timidly - and Kurama was so stunned - so startled at the sound - that he whirled around to face the young youko. He had never really heard the boy laugh - had never, in truth, even seen the creature smile. Shenjin was sitting cross-legged upon the ground a half-pace from him, his head slightly bowed, his ears at a shy half-back, an all-too faint turn to his lips that could - if one had an excellent, vivid imagination - have been a smile. Gentle, sheer silver eyes lifted to meet his gaze so timidly that Kurama was forced to wonder if Shenjin feared he would be hit. He looked like a puppy expectant of such a blow, although there was still that faint sense of humor about him; such a strange combination of the two were intertwined upon the youko's form, it was hard to tell where one ended and the other began.

"Sumimasen, 'niichan." Shenjin murmured so softly his voice was nearly lost, nearly drowned within the background sounds of rushing water and two very loud - and currently very annoying - humans. There were equal amounts of dread and mirth lingering within his eyes as he continued on in the same tone, "I meant Hiei."

Kurama's ear twitched and swiveled forward; that almost gentle ease to his features remained as he set one hand upon the grassy shore. Very, very quietly he whispered, "What did you just call me?"

Shenjin flushed, his eyes flickering down before lifting once more - almost as if he feared to meet the silver youko's gaze, yet could not help returning it. He paled, then flushed again, his fingers absent-mindedly kneading through the pearl-green fur of his tail, which lay draped across his thighs. "I called you 'niichan. It's - what Leina calls you." His eyes dropped to the ground. "She calls me oniisan, and you 'niichan."

Okay. Kurama nodded mutely to himself, neither angry nor disgruntled by the boy's terminology. In truth, he didn't really want to face the feelings that were provoked and arose within him at the sound of being called 'big brother' in such a familiar - however faint and timid - manner. Okay. He settled back a little, noting how much Shenjin relaxed in light of his ease, his silence, and his - however non-vocal - acceptance. "You should be more careful." He said, a slight frown crossing his features as he thought back to the battle with the bandits, distaste arising to mingle with annoyance at the memory. "You're the reason Hiei was hurt." His tone and his gaze solidified the fact that he was not pleased at that detail at all. "Next time pay attention to what's going on around you."

A strange look came into Shenjin's eyes - a shimmer almost of yearning, pain, fear in one - before quickly disappearing. "I'm sorry. I would have. But she called me and Kaidei had been hurt and I didn't know -" He halted, flushed, and looked away.

Kurama stared hard at him, one eyebrow quirking up slightly in wary curiosity. "Who called you?"

The pearl-green youko opened his mouth to speak - yet didn't have a chance to as his body gave a violent, awkward jerk. His ears snapped back, his features grew slack, his hands clenched into fists and his eyes widened - looking for all the world as if he had been slapped hard enough to sufficiently stun him. Suddenly he leapt to his feet, only one word passing his lips in a quick, gasping breath - "Leina!" - just as a tree nearby rustled ominously. Hiei appeared with an abruptness that rivaled time itself; he had run to the end of the thick branch he had been sitting upon and now stood with his katana drawn, leaning out, holding himself steady by gripping one long vine with his other hand as his eyes scanned the horizon. His mouth was in a mute, grim line; his gaze was narrow and nearly black with the intensity for which they lay upon the skyline.

"Hiei? What -" Yuusuke and Kuwabara - for the first time since jumping into the pond - stopped their reckless play, sensing something may be amiss. It didn't bode well, from the growing scowl of sheer, unveiled fury and hatred that had begun emanating from the diminutive fire-demon's form; the air shimmered black and crimson around him as the vine within his hand withered and thickened in its last throws of death, shading a deep black and crisping from the waves of heat Hiei was giving off.

"No." Shenjin whispered brokenly, cradling his head within his hands and shaking it violently. "No!"

"Shenjin -" Kurama reached out to touch him, yet the pearl-green youko jerked back, stumbling away. He wrapped his arms around himself, tears trailing their way down his cheeks as he continued shaking his head.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm coming! I swear I am! I'm trying!" he began screaming, his words slurring together as he frantically began moving, pacing back and forth, stumbling, hugging himself, clutching his head, staring at the ground. "Leina, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to kill you! Please don't hate me! I didn't know! It wasn't my fault! I was hungry! Please don't hate me! I'm coming! I won't ever let him hurt you again! I hate him! He hurt you and I hate him and I'll kill him! For you, Leina, I will! For me, for what he has and what we don't! For what he did! Oh, god, Leina, I'm so sorry! I couldn't stop them this time! I'm coming! I swear I am!"

Kurama frowned, his ears snapping back at the onslaught and onrush of words; the boy before him looked as if he had gone completely mad and continued to pace, muttering to himself, the words sometimes getting deathly quiet before rising to a frantic pitch as he howled his words to the sky. The silver youko made as if to get out of the water, yet a flicker of black and a faint displacement of air pronounced Hiei's appearance, and his action upon the scene was unnecessary. Without a word, without a sound, Hiei slapped Shenjin hard enough to knock him to the ground; the pearl-green youko lay where he landed for a moment, sprawled within the grass, deathly still.

It was then that something awkward happened, something none of them were likely to forget any time soon. For as both Hiei and Kurama whirled to face the horizon, a force like nothing they had ever felt before - nothing so solid and yet so intangible - rolled across the land with a silent echoing of - of something - and hit them all full-force. It didn't so much as ruffle their fur, for it was their souls that under-went the brunt of the blow; Kurama felt the very essence of himself slip and almost separate itself from his body before it returned with a sickening lurch that nauseated both his stomach as well as his mind.

"Kaidei..." Shenjin appeared at Kurama's shoulder, settled in a feral crouch upon the ground, his short hair ruffled and disordered, his eyes wild, his pupils dilated until the silver was only a thin shimmering circle lining two abysmal spheres of darkness. "Leina..." The tear-gems around his arm and throat blazed in struck out, thin tendrils of black lightning lashing forth to strike Kurama, who snarled a curse and leapt away. "I am coming."

And then, before any could catch or stop him, a lean, pearl-green fox darted around the pond and disappeared into the brush of the woods, heading toward the castle silently awaiting his arrival.

"Mmm... very impressive." The Master gave a slow, malicious smile of pure delight, his pale blue eyes shifting to roam about the once immaculately stunning ballroom. Each window, post, statue, picture, curtain, and thrown-chair had been completely and utterly destroyed. The floor had broken into huge, gaping clunks of marble and stone; even the ceiling was cracked, although it showed promise of remaining at its duty for a little while longer. Almost casually he glanced at the devastating brilliance of the object hovering within the exact center of the room, his gaze caressing the sword as his hands had not been able to, before he looked back to the thief.

Kaidei had not moved an inch, his crimson-violet eyes riveted upon the sword, the black strands of his hair still nearly concealing the look upon his face. The exact same borealis light which surrounded the sword glowed faintly about his person, yet was dim somehow, either muffled or - as the legends would have it - only a fraction of the whole. His small body was poised in the strangest manned upon the balls of his feet - appearing both as if he were leaning forward as well as straining back - as if he were as likely to leap into the air and fly as he was to sink into the ground and disappear.

The Master had anticipated something of the reaction that had come of the thief encountering the sword; he smiled again and approached the Chimera. His soft leather boots stepped over the jagged crumbles of stone upon the floor, walking upon shadows as they solidified themselves beneath his feet to created a second ground for him to moved across. As he drew closer he halted by the thief's side, ducking his head a little to catch a glimpse of the creature's face. It looked as if the soul had fled the body and left no more than a shell behind, the features pale and unemotional, the eyes deep - so deep one could drown within them and go mad if they were not careful to catch themselves - and blank. A pity. He had hoped the Chimera would have presented more of a challenge, considering what he was... but...

What's this? His gaze alighted upon a sticky spread of darkness gathering at the dip of the thief's left shoulder; a thick, clear liquid began oozing free of the black leather vest and trailed down his arm, clinging to his fingers before dripping slowly - one drop, two, three - to the ground. The Master's gaze narrowed as he frowned, then scowled and turned to glance at the sword. Sure enough, there upon the blade a clear liquid was smeared across the engraved silver and was slowly dripping to the broken floor beneath it. When the Master returned his gaze to the thief, he gaped, a tiny sound of shock and fear lodging itself within his throat as he took an involuntary step back.

Kaidei was smiling.

And it was not a very nice smile.

With the lethargic, deliberate grace of a natural born killer and predator - that same lethargic casualness that promised death while setting the other in a pit of terror before the eyes had even settled upon their mark - Kaidei's crimson gaze settled upon him. His fangs sharpened as his smiled widened. "You're not a very smart one, are you?"

The Master took a faltering step back - he stumbled as his concentration slipped and so did his feet. "But - y-you -"

"What?" Kaidei's gaze turned innocent and mocking. "I was supposed to be incapacitated? Lost? Sucked in by the Force of the sword - my soul forever held captive within its grip? Come now." Disdain colored those eyes, those words, that tone as the Force began to hum around them. "Don't you know better than to think that?"

"Silence!" The Master hissed, gathering his cloak - and his wounded pride - about himself with sharp, furious motions. "You will submit to me, I swear it! Whether by one tactic or another! That Power will be mine!"

Kaidei's violet-red eyes narrowed; he smirked. "I don't think so. It will never belong to the likes of you."

With a visible effort the Master calmed himself, his shock as well as his rage, and thought the happenstance over; the clear liquid was still flowing from the thief's shoulder by some invisible wound hidden upon the flesh beneath the black leather of his vest - the Master gathered his shadows about himself and retained his cruel, grim smile once more. "Oh, yes, my darling Chimera - it will belong to the likes of me. For if it doesn't - and very, very soon - I shall have to take extreme measures to ensure that it is so."

Wariness entered that dark crimson gaze; no fear, but wariness was a very good sign, for it dampened the imminent threat of eternal death. "What extreme measures?"

"Oh..." The Master looked toward the sword, murmuring nonchalantly in the silence, "Just the little kistune girl."

"You wouldn't dare." The words were spoken hard, short, clipped and like ice - yet still, the thief could not cover the tremor of concern and dismay beneath.

"I wouldn't?"

For the second time in his life Kaidei felt the chilling touched of fear. As the Master's laughter rang out and echoed within the antechamber, he clenched his teeth in a silent, useless rage, his hands clenching by his sides. Almost as if summoned the huge, lumbering youkai appeared at his side; the Master's laughter faded into a nasty smile once more.

"Take him back to the dungeons, Guhra. Let him see the kitsune girl for a moment, and then bring her to me."

Kaidei fought and cursed in a low, garbled tongue that singed the air with its ferocity and the sheer evil power within the words - the Master turned his back quickly to hide a flinch as he felt thin needles of pain strike his body. It wasn't so much a spell that the Chimera spoke, but simply the effect of the language itself - where when Hiei had spoken it, it had rung like thunder within the Reikai Tantrei's flesh and bones - when Kaidei spoke it, it produced that exact same effect and more. It was his native language, after all, and one can always create more damage when speaking in their native tongue.

Despite his struggles and fluent curses, the thief was ripped from his feet and dutifully taken back to the dungeons; where the skittering youkai appeared to re-clasp his shackles to the chains only seconds before the lumbering youkai dropped him in a crumbled heap against the stone floor. He pushed himself up to sit, his arms catching and wrapping around the pale, ice-violent youko that dove into his lap and buried her face in the side of his neck.

"Shh, Leina, it's okay. It's alright now..."

"Kura-kun, I tried..." she wept freely, clutching at his vest as she grimaced in pain. "It was so b-beautiful and I tried to s-stop them but I couldn't and -" Her tail, the fur once long and shimmering from where he had used his power, curled up along her hip, once again chopped raggedly short and thin; the only difference was the fact that now there were thin patches of blood interlaced within the strands, where the demons who had cut the fur had been less than careful. "I didn't want them to take it b-because you had given it to me - but I c- I couldn't s-stop them!"

Kaidei pulled her closer within his lap and hugged her, petting the back of her head and running his fingers through her short hair, trying to calm her weeping. Barely had she begun to settle into sleep before the two youkai returned to claim her, per orders. They dragged the small, terrified foxlet back out from the cell and into the darkness beyond; Kaidei strained and yanked against the shackles, choking himself and chaffing his wrists until they bled as he yelled thick, foreign curses and howled fire, brimstone, and damnation at their backs every step of the way.

Like two flashes of starlight the foxes raced across the forested floor - one bushy and silver and sleek with grace, the other slim and pearl-green, practically flying above the ground, his tiny paws barely touching. It had taken Kurama some time to catch upon to him, but he had and together they raced against time, Shenjin driven by some silent, unspoken urgency only he was witness to, Kurama spurred by Shenjin's need. Faster and faster they moved, trailed every once in a while by the flickering of a black shadow darting in and out of sight within the trees, only touching the ground every dozen leaps.

Yuusuke and Kuwabara were slower, but the plan had been a simple one. As Kurama had leapt from the pond and grabbed up his clothes he had hastily yelled that Hiei and he would create a distraction within the castle in wait for the two humans to arrive; without another word he had shifted and leapt after his little brother. He had known Hiei would come with him - never had that doubt even entered his mind. And so he was right; the fire-demon took his place at Kurama's side. Hiei remained there, sometimes a bit faster, sometimes a bit slower than the fox - but always there. His wound was a definite hindrance and slowed him down but did not stop him - very little could stop a fire-demon, and even fewer were the creatures or wounds that could stop Hiei himself. He was too stubborn, to full of pride and fierce anger. Perhaps that was one of the reasons Kurama loved him so very much.

Not a word was spoken between them as they ran, yet the youko could feel the connection burning between them. He had always wondered at it before, for it only revealed itself to be strongest amidst a fight or when - as now - they were approaching such a battle. That connection was the one thing that held them together, that urged them to fight side by side and synced their fighting graces to fit as one. And because of that connection, because of the feel of Hiei's ki so very near, Kurama felt his heart soar.

Then they had come upon Shenjin, and the feelings changed - although remained the same. The fire-demon leapt up and transitioned his flight from the ground to the trees as they neared his path; the shadow was thus replaced by the pearl-green fox, who barely acknowledged Kurama's presence with a single side-glance and a flickering of his ear. Kurama accepted this and lay his ears back, doubling his efforts at speed with Shenjin close at his side. By all rights he should have been angered at the kitsune for running away - for leaving them back in the clearing - yet he found that all anger diminished the moment it began. What was prevalent alone was the sense of completion - with Hiei flicking in and out of sight above him and Shenjin at his side - and slow, faint tremors of worry. Shenjin had cried out Leina's name, which meant she could be hurt, or in danger...

Upon arrival the castle was huge - larger than the youko had suspected it to be, and much more elaborate. Kurama had not had so much as a breath of warning before the forest abruptly fell away and a huge, solid black wall arose before him; with a yip he frantically struggled to halt his leap, his paws skidding ineffectively across the ground. Clumps of grass and dirt and pebbles flew as his tiny claws sank into the soil, to no avail; he stiffened his spine and flinched, turning his head away as the wall came within inches of striking his kitsune form. Yet... no strike came. No muffled burst of pain or agony connected with his side or shoulder, for he was suddenly plucked from his feet and lifted, an arm curling beneath him and cradling him firmly against black-clad muscle. Only Hiei's grip - darting out to take him from the ground a mere few seconds before impact - prevented his collision; the fire-demon himself took the blow instead, letting out a low grunt as his shoulder slammed into the black marble. Kurama hung dazed for a moment before twisting himself around, setting his paw upon Hiei's chest and shoving his nose beneath the fire-demon's chin. He wriggled around some more until he could leap free and immediately shifted back into his youko form. Grabbing the black garment beneath his palms, he pulled Hiei away from the wall none-too-gently in his hurry to make sure he was okay as the half-koorime growled a muttered curse and irritably tried to shake him off.

Kurama's ears swiveled, setting at a tight, half-back as he frowned. "Hiei -"

"I'm fine, fox!" Hiei brushed off the youko's hands again, his crimson gaze lifting to glare - at first - into a pair of golden just as hard. Then that golden wavered and a shimmer of hurt was revealed masked beneath, which caused tiny, little claws to dig into the fire-demon's chest and constrict his breathing. Damn youko... He looked away, a faint - extremely faint, but there none-the-less - warmth coming to his cheeks. "Kurama... I'm alright."

Kurama hesitated, then settled back, touched in some silent, aching way at the gruffly gentle tone in Hiei's voice. He opened his mouth to reply, yet was distracted as Shenjin appeared from out of the forest. The boy had hauled up short by faint memories alone, and was the only one so obviously unscathed by the abrupt show of the black fortress. He tilted his head back, staring at the scale of the wall.

"I know where Leina will be." He panted softly, looking to his brother.

Kurama glanced at the wall as well, frowning at the incredible height. "Then you will find her. Hiei and I - Yuusuke and Kuwabara will distract the guards and demons inside. Once you have her, take her somewhere safe. In and out." His golden eyes narrowed. "We'll deal with this Master later. We need to ensure her safety first."

Shenjin nodded. "I'll wait for the distraction before I enter the cell. It's lined with wards - the second I cross into the room, the Master will know I'm there." He took a single step back, then another, and another - then threw himself forward, at the wall. He scrambled up the smooth side and hung there for one breathless second before his arm reached straight through; he used the over-hanging shadow of a tree to transport himself from one side of the wall to the courtyard beyond.

He leapt back and plastered himself against the cool black marble as two youkai guards continued about upon their patrol; his silver eyes widened and set upon them, warily staring as they moved on. He was trembling - partially in anticipation, but mostly in fear - as he gathered the shadow spell within his mind and slipped back, falling through the black stone wall a second time to appear farther down the way. His ears swiveled and flickered to catch any sound remaining as he slipped from one corner to another, dodging the multitude of demons wandering aimlessly throughout the domain. He knew where the dungeon lay and head there immediately; barely had he made his way into the thick dampness of the chambers before the guards rang up a shout, and the sounds of battle commenced behind him. Some twenty to fifty guards rushed past him as he pressed himself into the shadows; once they had dispersed he leapt away and broke into a full all-out run, weaving his way through the dungeons to the singular one which he and his sister had lived within for the longest years of their lives. His mind continuously replayed the burst of fear and pain she had projected to him, making him stumble as he lost his footing.

He shoved the curtain of teargems aside and burst into the dungeon room - only to see the chains that had held his sister unclasped, and empty. His eyes darted around the room frantically - nothing, only darkness and shadows remained - as panic burst within his mind. Where was she?

He whirled upon his heel to run back the way he had come - yet a fierce stab of pain grabbed his heart and yanked him back. He felt it then, stronger even than he had felt Leina's cry. Kaidei. Not so much a calling this time, as an extra-perceptive sense that caused his mind to reel. He was here - somewhere. Shenjin halted and stood breathing heavily, torn between trying to find the thief - and going to rescue his sister. With a grimace of regret he moved to leave - yet his tail flickered and he found himself running farther into the dungeon room, guided by that sense of which had no name. He stumbled - his hands slapped the rough, stone wall that appeared before him from out of the shadows as they abruptly drew back. He stood there for a moment, lost, confused, disconcerted - before his gaze fell to the floor below his feet, where a soft, faint rustling movement had begun. Slowly something stood from beneath him, the proximity of the distance between himself and the wall creating very little space for the figure to stand within. Dark, crimson-violet eyes lifted to his and he stood transfixed in their gaze as Kaidei pushed himself to his feet.

They stood like that for a moment, Kaidei pinned between the warmth of Shenjin's body and the cool, rough being of the stone at his back; so close - and yet so lost... The thief held the youko's eyes as the silence and shadows gathered around them... and time stood still for one long, aching moment...

Shenjin lost his breath at the look within Kaidei's gaze, so soft and so very gentle, yet so very strong, deep, deep within. Something had changed the thief; there was no smile or carefree laughter in those eyes, no teasing mirth or jovial words formed by those lips. For a moment he feared the thief - feared he would drown within that gaze that held so much and showed so very little - but then two small hands touched his back, applying just enough pressure to bring him half a pace closer, thus by dissolving any last distance between the two of them. And before he could utter a word, a sound, a cry - anything - the thief slowly lay his head upon Shenjin's shoulder.

Shenjin closed his eyes and began to tremble. "Kaidei..."

Shh. A voice whispered within his mind, a voice he had never heard before in the silence, yet knew as well as his own. Don't say anything. No words. And then, aloud; "He took her to the thrown room." Gently Kaidei disentangled himself from the other and stood looking upon Shenjin as if he expected the youko to turn and leave as quickly as he had come.

Shenjin, however, had no such plans. He glanced at the chains holding the thief captive in dismay before grabbing one in his fist and tugging on it uselessly, trying to rip it from the wall. He snarled, jerking harder and harder - to absolutely no avail. The chains were firmly attached to the stone, and the thief was firmly attached to them. Still... he set one of his feet against the wall and yanked roughly, popping his shoulder and sending a burning ache radiating through his hands and through his back with the motion. A broken sob caught itself within his throat and hung there as he squeezed his eyes shut against the tears that once again threatened to come. He couldn't -... he couldn't just leave -...

Kaidei watched him for a time, silent and impassive as the youko struggled. His gaze softened; he reached out, laying his hand upon Shenjin's arm and effectively stilling the boy's frantic actions. Pressing his palm against the youko's chest he moved Shenjin back a pace before taking one shackle in his own hand. A brief, shimmering sense of ki and the shackle melted, molding away from his wrist to clank to the floor. He turned to one ankle and then another, to the last shackle around his other wrist and then, finally, to the cold circlet of iron around his throat. Each was the same; each melted away, the chain shouting a loud, reverberating protest as it hit the stone and ground. Shaking his head a little, Kaidei fluttered his wings, grabbed Shenjin's hand within his own, and fled the dungeons. It was a practical maze of cells and hallways and darkness of which the thief neither had the time nor the patience to find his way out of. Interlacing his fingers with Shenjin's, he called upon the youko's ability with the Shadow Spell and pressed his free hand flat the wall, transporting them clear out of the dungeon and into the courtyard.

And there - he blinked and fell back, instinctively shoving the pearl-green youko behind him and flaring his wings as a youkai came stumbling toward them. His jaw flexed and he bristled, a low, rumbling hiss inflating within his chest as his hands formed into claws; the fluff of orange and yellow at his shoulder morphed about two sizes as the tips of a multitude of needles revealed themselves in sight. The youkai didn't seem to notice the threat in Kaidei's stance - nor the invisible ripples of ki slowly gathering around him. In fact, the youkai didn't seem to be noticing much at all - his eyes were wide and glassy as he tripped, falling to the cobbled stones at their feet. Kaidei shoved Shenjin back farther to avoid becoming tangled in such a fall, his violet-red eyes narrowing upon the katana imbedded in the demon's back, black flames licking up and down its blade. Hiei appeared in a flash, ripped the blade from the youkai corpse, chanced the two a short glare and a grunt, before he was off again, his diminutive form swallowed by the huge body of fighting youkai moving en mass within the courtyard. Barely seen above the concoction of horns, tentacles, tendrils, hair, ears and - goodness knows whatever that was; Kaidei thought vaguely, mentally shaking himself - the thief could just barely make out a few flashes of light, a glowing orange sword, and - darting in and out of the throng here and there - a flowing wave of silver hair.

"Jin-chan," Kaidei reached behind him and gently tugged the startled youko to the fore. He had to snap his fingers in front of Shenjin's silver eyes before the kitsune focused upon him, and even then his attention was some-what wavering back to the battle. "There." He pointed across the courtyard where - just barely seen - a pair of huge, decorative doors awaited them. Unfortunately, the battle was situated between them and the door... Shenjin stared at it, his gaze one of fear and despair.

"There's so many." He murmured, shaking his head, his ears flipping back. He looked extremely troubled, his right hand nervously fidgeting with the wrap of tear-gems around his left. "I thought we could go through with a simple distraction, but to try and make it through this..."

"Don't give up before it's begun." Kaidei advised, taking Shenjin's hand again and leading him around the outskirts of the battle in hopes of making it clear without incident. Unfortunately, the outskirts themselves were rather unclear, and the two had been ushered into the thrall within moments of starting out. The normally light-hearted thief became more and more somber, a shadowed frown darkening his features and teasing around his shoulders. His wings fluttered in both anticipation as well as irritation. He guarded his own hide as well as that of Shenjin's as well as he could; - any youkai that dared step too close by purpose or accident met up with the thief's black dagger before even a cry or shout could be uttered. It was no use, though. One little dagger wasn't enough to break the see of stumbling, shouting, howling youkai, and - with a sly, half-malicious smirk of glee - the thief realized that he had to resort to other means. He pulled Shenjin closer, incidentally yanking him out of the way of an arrow as he did so - although it didn't appear to have been his intention - and Shenjin stared down at him, oblivious to the offending object which just narrowly missed his temple. Kaidei grinned up at him. "Wow, Jin-shan, isn't this fun?"

Shenjin looked confused - then disbelieving - then affronted. He shook the thief's grip off of his arm and bristled. "Kaidei, this is not a game!" he shouted above the ruckus swarming around them. "Leina's in trouble!"

Kaidei laughed and ruffled Shenjin's short, ragged hair, just barely managing to duck out of the pearl-green youko's reach as a fist came flying his way. "No worries, Jin-chan." He gave the boy an over-exaggerated, some-what cheeky grin. "Watch this."

Small, leather-booted feet practically flowed across the ground; tiny black wings flexed and moved in impossible positions of grace as the thief quickly did a twisting flip, his hands balancing upon the ground a brief flicker of a second before he flipped and twisted again. With each turn, with each movement, a flash of yellow-orange could be seen in the myriadic illusions of black, and still the thief continued, the flips settling themselves and fading away as he Danced. Shenjin watched in confused awe - then abruptly found himself ducking and slipped beneath some non-threat that his body had sensed and easily flowed to avoid. The step he took brought him closer to Kaidei and away from his original place; his silver eyes registered the horrific scream of a youkai before in a flash of yellow and orange it's face shredded and began gushing blood. Almost immediately a ragged nine-foot circle opened in the battle around them as other demons gave similar cries and dodged the near-invisible assailant that took each and every one down. Shenjin ducked - again on a shear, calm sort of instinct he had never felt before - as yet another creature was felled.

The thief laughed, and continued his strange Dance, leaping up in the air, his wings flapping just enough to keep him hovering for a split second above the cobbled stones before he dropped back and leapt again.

Shenjin bared his teeth in a feral grin, a rush of battle-fed adrenaline flooding into his mind and through his muscles. Never had he felt such a feeling of - of freedom and willingness to fight. Not to kill, mind you - just to fight, although he knew within his mind that he had all the power in the universe at his fingertips in which to kill, should he so wish.

Abruptly Shenjin balked from that thought and stood still, rising from the crouch he had fallen into. As if sensing his sudden unease, the thief let free a snarl and gave one last cat-like twist in the air before he landed, the strange whip that had been curled around his chest - no, tail, Shenjin corrected himself dazedly - now wrapped around his right arm, the fluff of yellow and orange fur dripping with multi-hued colors of blood. Kaidei snarled, bared a pair of long, sharp fangs and let out a string of foreign curses.

No! I will NOT! Kaidei growled thickly and released the length of his tail quickly, grabbing Shenjin's arm to drag him through the opening his Dance had created. Shenjin's reaction to his proximately and his Dance - not to mention the way the pearl-green youko practically Danced with him in avoiding his tail, claws, and dagger - had settled in some deep place within the thief's chest and let free both secret feelings of pleasure as well as foreboding. They belonged together - Shenjin and he - for they both adapted and accepted each other so well - consciously as well as unconsciously. Shenjin had, in point of fact, even felt the rush of adrenaline and superiority he had in the midst of the Dance. Kaidei glowered and pulled the youko closer by his side, as if he could protect the boy by that action alone.

Both the fact that Shenjin had shared his consciousness in that split-second, as well as the fact that he himself had been subject to such a despicable feeling of superiority did not bode well with him, and created a nauseous feeling within the depths of his gut. He felt weak all of a sudden, drained, and stumbled, accepting Shenjin's help without a word as the youko caught him. His growl turned thick and stubborn as he shook the borealis tendrils of Power from his mind to the best of his ability. He would not give in!

Suddenly Kaidei jerked and lashed out, throwing Shenjin back and slamming him against the wall. He coiled and let out a shrieking roar of rage and pain as he whirled to face the sight of a demon some seven feet behind him. The demon was pre-occupied with fighting off one of Yuusuke's rei-blasts and shifted, his large, clothed foot set firmly upon a very frazzled looking fluff of orange and yellow. A fast, abrupt flicker of motion and the youkai stopped, its gaze dropping like stone to the mutilated, bloody mass of the remains of his foot - now barely seen amongst the porcupine-like flowering of needles, which had erupted from the tuft of fur. The demon stared dumbly for a moment more - too long, for Kaidei let out another pain-filled shriek and attacked it, his wings flaring as his claws dug simultaneously in the demon's throat and temple; with a quick twist of his elbow he had divested the creature of its head and tossed the latter across the clearing - where it just narrowly missed Kuwabara, and caught a demon sneaking up on him instead. The thief landed primly back on the ground and grimaced, gathering his tail and wrapping it around his arm again.

With such a long length, its hide was thick and nearly impenetrable - and had very few nerves, such that Kaidei rarely felt pain within it. He also had almost little to no muscle control of it for its however-thin bulk, and so was forced to use it more as a slinging-whip when attacking. All the muscle and nerve mass that should have been evenly distributed from the base to the tip of his tail was instead clumped in the last half-foot of it, centered mainly in the orange and yellow fluff - which the demon had just thoroughly crushed and bruised. He blinked away tears of pain and gingerly fingered the tuft of fur as Shenjin ran back to his side, the youko reaching out to grab him.

"Daijoubou?!" Shenjin's pale eyes darted over his black-clad form, taking in the tender cradling of the orange and yellow fluff as well as the grimace of pain - which was quickly smothered and replaced by a weak, if forced, smile.

"Aa." Kaidei panted slightly, patting Shenjin's hand. "It doesn't hurt that bad." A lie, but... The thief shook his head and urged the youko to start for the door once more. Barely had they made it another few feet before Yuusuke shouted Kurama's name. Shenjin reacted to the sound as if his own name had been called and whirled to see the silver youko held aloft, one particularly nasty-looking demon with its claw around his throat. Kaidei blinked at the sight, somewhat confused. Kurama had powers of manipulating plants, didn't he? Why wasn't the youko using them?... And then it hit him, and he felt like slapping himself at his own negligence. Of course! The spell Shenjin had cast! It inhibited Kurama's ki while he was in youko form, and the only time he would be able to use them once again was if - when - he became the ningen once more. Of course, that would only happen if he was terribly wounded, and by that time he wouldn't have much strength to use it...

Kaidei chanced a glance at Shenjin's utterly devastated look of terror and guilt, and felt a pang to his heart. Gods above... that young youko would be the death of him, for just a look - and one not even directed at him - could shatter every promise of non-intervention he had once sworn to himself.

With a simple wave of Kaidei's hand and a whispered Word of ki Kurama began to glow a pale, crimson-violet shade - just as the youkai in hold of him lost its head to Hiei's sword. The silver youko fell to the ground coughing, yet stilled, his golden eyes blinking in confusion as the stone ground beneath him began blossoming with thousands of tiny plants and flowers. He shoved himself to his feet and stumbled back; the blossoming of grasses and flowers followed him, the others slowly curling in upon themselves and disappearing as he moved away. A rush of ki - his own ki, boosted by some strange, non-power essence - flowed through his veins and renewed his energy. With a grin he reached back in his mane and summoned a seed, watching with pleasure as it blossomed into a demon-eating plant. This was soon tossed across the courtyard, where it set to its motives of eating the youkai with a vigor unmatched.

The thief nodded to himself, pleased with his work as the glow around Kurama faded, and Shenjin sighed in relief. Kurama called forth his rose whip and leapt back into the battle; the thief turned a technical eye to the doors that he and the pearl-green youko still had yet to reach. At the rate this was going they'd never get there. Resignedly he set his jaw, and looked to Shenjin. Well, if he was breaking so many of his own promises, might as well break one more. He reached out to the youko, his hand burying itself in the soft, dark-blue of his cotton shirt as he nearly ripping the boy from his feet.

"Shenjin, come here!" Shenjin started and yet obeyed curiously; the thief grabbed his left wrist, brought it to his mouth, and made short work of one length of teargems. His teeth clicked together around a single gem, effectively slicing the twine of youko fur that held each laced to another. With a soft, crystalline sound the ward length fell to the stone beneath their feet, some of the gems plinking and rolling away, unnoticed, uncared for. Shenjin stared as Kaidei gently unwound another length and untangled a bit of it, his silver eyes wide in disbelief. None of the others had even been able to get near the ward, but Kaidei...

The thief lifted his hand and released the teargem resting upon his tongue to drop into his palm. Swiftly he slipped this into a tiny black pouch at his hip before he began to briskly rub Shenjin's arm, trying to awaken the ki bases within it. "Do you think you can use your power?"

The pearl-green youko shook his head, confusion evident within his features as he stared down at the work of Kaidei's. "I don't know..."

Kaidei offered him a gentle, apologetic smile. "Try, Jin-chan. Quickly."

Shenjin set his lips and nodded; he pulled his wrist free and held his arm out before him, closing his eyes and concentrating. For many long, long moments nothing truly noticeable happened - until an abrupt darkness took the place of broad daylight, throwing the courtyard's already mix-motched chaos into a sea of greyish shadows. Thunder rocked across the sky in the roaring voices of a thousand dead; the air began crackling with the imperceptible scent of ozone as tiny flickers of green and blue light blinked around them. A flash of lightning, another bellow of thunder, and the rain came down, immediately drenching all within reach. Few of the youkai noticed in their melee, but a slow smile of delight was gathering upon Shenjin's lips as for the first time in a many, many years his ki and power grew within him without the accompaniment of the ward's chastising agony. His eyes flickered open and he grinned at the thief, his heart singing. Kaidei returned the smile, even as Shenjin gathered himself, a small sphere of lightning gathering in his palm. This he threw into the mass of youkai, where it immediately attached itself to one unlucky demon and scorched him in a matter of seconds. Kaidei looked on, pleased with the sight.

He caught Shenjin's attention again and motioned to the ground, where huge puddles of water were gathering at an alarming rate. The youko caught on quickly and nodded, his gaze turning hard and serious. Kaidei nodded back and stepped away, doing another - and much shorter - flip and flap of his wings to settle the long length of his tail around his chest once more. He ran through the battle to the nearest tree and scampered up the trunk before shifting from it to the fortress wall.

The inner wall was unlike the outer in the fact that it was made up of huge, jutting stones - making it laughably easy to scale. The thief crawled up about half-way before shifting to dangle from one stone, his black-gloved hand holding it in a firm grip. "Yuusuke!" He called, waving his free hand and catching not only the human's attention - but also that of his tall, ningen companion. Kaidei motioned to Shenjin - who was standing in approximately the middle of the courtyard, anxiously dodging the attack of a demon, a small sphere of lightning being tossed back and forth between his hands as he evaded the youkai and waited for the thief's signal.

Yuusuke's eyes widened in comprehension and he nodded, grabbing Kuwabara's shirt and dragging him over to a pile of stones. Kaidei waited only a moment to see them scrambling up to safety before his gaze flickered up to catch sight of Hiei - who had slowed down considerably as a mini-rush of weariness caused his efforts to drag. The thief stared hard at him and was rewarded when Hiei leapt atop a battlement and paused to glance his way; Kaidei cast his glance to Shenjin once more, and then to where Kurama still fought within the thrall, the silver of his mane flashing like shadow-light amongst the chaos. He could sense more than feel the fire-demon's grunt, yet Hiei easily slid his katana in its sheath and prepared himself for flight once more.

Kaidei riveted his gaze to Shenjin and nodded one last time, mindful as the pearl-green youko took a quick stock of everyone's positions. Kurama was fighting only a leap away from him - yet the readiness in Hiei's stance guaranteed the silver youko's safety. Shenjin took a deep breath and gathered his ki, urging the crackling sphere of lightning in his palms to grow and become stronger. It did so, flickering wisps reaching up his arms and encircling his whole body, crackling only inches from his flesh. "Kurama!" he shouted, catching his brother's attention, his ears swiveling to lie at a stiff half-back as still the lightning in his palms pulsed and doubled in strength. "Jump!"

Kurama's golden eyes alighted upon the crackling power and widened; his disappeared in the crowd. Shenjin held his breath, sent a quick, fumbling prayer to Inari, and kneeled, slamming his palms flat against the ground. They sank up to his wrists in puddle-water, causing the lightning to shiver and burst free from his grip, traveling across the liquid faster than thought to reach up and engulf every single demon with a stray foot, tail or tentacle on the ground. A split-second before the wave of lightning reached him, a silver fox jumped up and used a demon as a springboard to leap into the air, sure in his belief that hands would catch him -

As they did. Hiei landed upon another battlement, the fox comfortable in his arms, his crimson eyes narrowing to watch the mass-destruction of the youkai force below them. A thousand screams rent the air and mixed distastefully with the scent of scorching flesh and burning ozone, the strikes of lightning centered upon one pathetically small and fragile-looking pearl-green youko, kneeling on the stone.

Shenjin released the flow of lightning and stood, his eyes opening and searching for the thief. He shifted into his fox form and dodged a few demon corpses as they fell before he gathered himself to run. He pulled Kurama's trick and used another youkai as a spring-board - yet instead of Hiei, the hand that reached out and caught him was that of Kaidei, who quickly brought him closer and tucked him in the curve of his grip. The thief, with one arm cradling the shivering fox against his chest, scampered up the rest of the way to the top of the battlement wall, lugging himself over the edge. Carefully he set Shenjin upon his feet; once back in his youko form, both turned to look down at the destruction the latter had wrought. Kaidei let out a low, appreciative whistle and grinned. "Nice work, fox."

Shenjin didn't look pleased - but then again, he didn't look disappointed, either - only troubled. He checked to make sure Yuusuke and Kuwabara were alright - which they must have been, for they were running into a side-door of the castle, powers charged and ready for more action. Hiei was still standing at the battlement, Kurama's tall, silvery youko form standing behind him, his long tail and mane of hair whipping at the force of the storm winds wrapping around them. Shenjin met his brother's gaze, biting the inside of his lip in dread as he did so. Yet those golden eyes didn't hold condemnation, nor anger. Only a silent shimmer of solemnity and... pride?

He shook himself as Kaidei grinned and elbowed him in the side, drawing his attention. "Oi... later, ne? For now... we have a master to take down, and a pretty little lady to save."

Shenjin glanced back at the battlements across the way - both Hiei and Kurama were gone. He smirked and turned to the thief. "Hai." Together the two ran across the top of the wall, leaping down alternate roof-tops until they once again hit the ground and made their way into the fortress of the Master.