Kriiiing!
        "uhmm . ."
        Kriiing!

         " Oi, Yusuke, why don’t you wake up and answer the phone!", Atsuko yelled, pounding her fist on the door.
        I raised one sleepy eye and cursed to no one in particular. Who would ever thought of calling at this early in the morning? I peeked at the dawn sky through the window beside my bed. It’s not even morning!
        Kriiing!
         " Yeah, yeah, yeah, can’t you wait?" I lifted the handset from the bedside table and asked sluggishly, " Hello?!"
         " Yusuke?", a soft, female voice emanated from the dark green receiver.
        I immediately straightened up at the sound of that voice. " Keiko!"
        " Sorry to wake you up at this time but I had to check up on you in case you forgot our date.", she said.
        " Huh? Yeah, uh, what date?", I asked, my mind still foggy.
         " Don’t you remember?", she asked impatiently. " We were supposed to go to Genkai’s place and see how Yukina’s doing."
         Relief washed over me. " Oh yeah." Thought it was some romantic date that somehow slipped my mind. " Um, don’t worry I haven’t forgotten."
         " Well, you’d better not.", she sounded unconvinced. " At what time are you going to pick me up? Or do you want to meet at the train station?"
         " Oh, no, I’ll pick you up around seven. ", I said, glancing at the clock on my desk.
         " I’ll be ready then. And don’t be late! ", she said.
        " Yup, I promise. Okay see you"
         " Bye"

        " Bye, love"
        I set down the phone and smiled. Now that’s my idea of a wake-up call. What a way to start the morning.
        I opened the window and stepped out into the terrace. The first signs of sunrise, peeking from behind the dark clouds, cast a fantastic view of reddish panorama before my eyes. I stared down the road and saw a bunch of kids crossing the street. An incident slipped back into my memory. An incident so vivid I could actually feel it.
        The cute little boy playing with his ball. A few thumps. A loud screech. And a sickening thud. I closed my eyes and contemplated about how my life changed since that day.
        I died, lived and became a spirit detective. And it came with a bonus! A short lecture on family background. Boy! Who would ever thought I was a demon, too?
        It has been a couple of years since I went back from Makai after the demon world tournament which I organized. A cool morning breeze brushed my face as I remembered the Urameshi team. I smiled as I thought of all the battles we’ve gone through. We didn’t hit it off well at first but we became friends, then became one of the most unbeatable team. But as they say, all good things must come to an end.
        We were separated by our destinies and different goals in life and now brought together again after learning that a friend of ours is suffering a still uncertain illness.
        A shoe rack placed carelessly on the corner caught my eye. I noticed an old and worn shoe. The other half must’ve been buried beneath that cave. The cave where I fought one of my fiercest enemies, Sensui. The cave where I lost my life ---- the second time.
        There were times when I almost have to fight the urge of going to battle again. To defend the human race or something. For the past few days, I’ve been restless as if we still have a lot of work to do. I want a peaceful life, that’s true. An image of a brown-haired young woman flashed in my mind. But I felt as if we had left something unfinished. Like this peaceful-coexistence-with-the-demons-kinda-thing isn’t established yet. Like everything right now is temporary and we must do something to make it otherwise.
        I found myself staring at the trees in the nearby woods as I remembered one of my teammates, Kurama. The even-tempered, refined and intelligent red-haired young man who has the power to use plants in creative and deadly ways. That guy has always been the one for girls, always drawing admiring glances wherever he goes, I thought enviously. Wonder how would they react once they found out that he’s actually a cold, hard youko thief, I thought smiling. Like a wolf under a sheepskin ----- or a fox for that matter.
        I blinked as I caught a wisp of black passed by a row of oak trees. It was followed by another. Hiei. And company. Whoever that is. He must have decided to go as early as possible. That diminutive fire youkai sure has its mellow side towards his sister despite his impertinence and brusque attitude. I don’t know for how long does he intend to keep his identity from her.
        Those two. I haven’t seen much of them lately. Even my best friend Kazuma has been busy these days with his studies. His sister, Shizuru must’ve been kicking his butt to make him study harder. I chuckled at the thought of that burly guy poring over his books with black and blue marks all over his ugly face.
        And me? Keiko and I postponed our marriage until such time that both of us would be financially stable enough to support a family. There’s no need to hurry anyway. We have all the time.
        After we’re through with college, we could have our own business. I laughed inwardly. I couldn’t believe I was actually planning for the future. Yusuke wasn’t known for his strategy, he’s known for his impulsiveness, I told myself. I mean it works for me. I do hold my future.
         Do I hold my future? Of course I do, I thought with all determination. I went back in and started to prepare for the trip.

        " No Yusuke. You don’t hold it. " , a soft voice hissed. " Not if I can help it."
        With that, a thin mist slowly dissipated, leaving a promise of horror in the near future.

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        As the landscape changed from dark red to orange, a small black figure perched itself on top of an oak tree. It cast its reddish-brown eyes upon the roads, observing some early birds trudging their way to work or school .
        Hn! Stupid humans living stupid lives in an equally stupid world! How pathetic! I wonder how the others could stand it. I looked at the sky. It’s almost dawn. I have to get to Genkai’s place before anybody arrives. Especially ahead of that stupid Kuwabara. I gritted my teeth at the thought of that burly birdbrain. There were times, out of pure irritation, when I would restrain myself from slashing his head off in front of her. In front of my sister. My sister Yukina. What happened to her? Some incurable disease? Or some creature has played a mean trick on her?, I pondered as I passed by for what I recall as Yusuke’s house.
        I passed by a garden of flowers. My thoughts reverted back to my conversation with Kurama. For some reason I felt that the usually calm and composed youkai has turned into his old self. The cunning youko.
         " Some secrets tucked away somewhere? Want to talk about it?" , I asked. He stared at me. Warning. If looks could kill. I got the picture. Oh, what the hell, who cares about his damned lovelife anyway? But that deep look in his eyes made me feel like I was staring at a different person. Like he wasn’t the same Kurama who had befriended me.
        A soft breeze blew my spiky jet black hair. Suddenly I remembered the strange feeling inside Kurama’s room. For the first time since I got a third eye with the help of Shigure, the presence wasn’t clear enough for me to identify. Foggy. A silhouette. Or two? Who cares? We don’t really need to make it show itself to us. It doesn’t have to. Its chilling presence. So strong. So . . . demonic. I laughed inwardly. I’m a demon myself, why would I be afraid of another?

        Swish!
        I tensed.
        There it is again. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something. A fleeting figure. A shadow. It had been following me since I left Kurama’s house.
        I picked up my pace. Trees and tall buildings passed swiftly. A few minutes later, I raised my eyes, inspecting the view ahead of me.
        The cold passed reluctantly from the earth, and the retiring fogs revealed a traditional Japanese house. This secluded place has been my sister’s home. I felt at ease that she now lives here. Genkai would be a perfect companion for her. I opened the window and slipped inside. I didn’t bother to take the front door or even called in to announce my arrival. What’s the use of that anyway? As if I’m gonna rip off everybody’s throats in here.
        My feet seemed to pace impatiently, my thoughts fogged with worry.
         " Hiei? ", a soft voice called as I stopped by her door.
        I started. How did she knew that I’m here?
         " Hiei, is that you?"
        I opened the door and saw my ailing sister, her small frail body lying on a mattress. She had lost a lot of weight paired with dark circles ‘round her eyes.
        " Hiei!", Her big red eyes lit up, looking very excited. " I’m glad you came, my brother!"

         " Huuhumm . . ."
        Genkai frowned the moment she opened the door to let in the orange-headed guy inside. His tonsils showing, almost sticking out as he let out a big yawn.
        Shizuru cleared her throat and poked him in the ribs. " Good Morning!", she greeted the old woman. " Sorry. Sometimes, I felt like disowning him. I apologize."
        " Oh you don’t have to. He’s always been like that anyway.", the old woman gazed at Kuwabara disapprovingly.
        The rest were already there.
        It’s been a while since they gathered together in this quaint home of Genkai.
        But this isn’t a typical reunion. Usually one could hear loud voices. Laughing. Joking. Bantering.
        Today, though, everybody’s awfully quiet. Almost eerily quiet. Even the loudest people were now unusually tightlipped. Each has his or her own set of thoughts to ponder. But there's a common concern, a huge problem which appears more like a strange puzzle. For once, this illness issue couldn't be solved within the capacity of their powers. It was evident in their faces, they all looked stumped and helpless.
        Shizuru hurried to the nearest corner and sat down with Keiko and Botan. Usually they would chat about new trends and stuff or probably plan some shopping. Now she could hear hush tones.
        Kuwabara, on the other hand hurried to Yukina’s room to check up on her but the old woman motioned him to go back.
         " I guess everybody’s here.", Genkai said. " Koenma has some message for us." She nodded in Botan’s direction.
        The pretty blue-haired girl didn’t stand up. Nor did she flashed her brilliant smile at her friends. " Koenma decided that we should bring Yukina to Reikai. We have some healers who are very good at treating rare diseases. We might find a cure there."
         " We might?!", Hiei snarled.
        Botan appeared shocked.
         " Why do we have to bring her there. Why not send them here?", Kuwabara asked.
         " Yukina might get tired if she travel. Would it be worth the trip?", remarked Shizuru.
        Confused as to why she was being interrogated, Botan replied, " Most of our healers are not allowed to leave Reikai and . . ."
         " Can’t YOU do anything about it?", Kuwabara cut her off.
         " I-I . . . was o-only given orders . . .", Botan stammered, tears brimming in her eyes. She stood up and went outside.
         " I know everybody’s on the edge here. But I think it’s highly improper to blame her!", Kurama butt in. " For God sakes, she has nothing to do with this!" With that, he jumped to his feet and followed Botan.
         " Hn! You haven’t done anything yourself, kitsune.", Hiei muttered.
         " And have YOU?!", Yusuke spoke. " Shouldn’t YOU of all people blame yourself?"
        Both Kuwabara and Keiko shot Yusuke an inquisitive look.
        Hiei glared at the spirit detective.
        Yusuke, however, ignored him. " The truth is, none of us had done anything anyway." , he pointed out, looking at the others evenly. For some reason, he’s the only one who’s taking the situation calmly.
         " I agree to that." Genkai said. " I think we should quit this nonsense and proceed with Koenma’s plan right now. And if anybody in this room has a better idea then speak up."
        All fell into uneasy silence.
         " Very well.", Genkai said.

        It was late in the morning when Yukina was finally brought to Reikai while Shizuru and Keiko were left at the dojo. The ice maiden was still asleep when they arrived at the sprawling mansion where Koenma immediately ushered them in. He, along with Genkai and Botan brought Yukina in a guest room while the others stayed at his office.
        The Reikai Tantei waited patiently as hours flew by.
        Yusuke sat on the plush chair, looking bored. " Do you think they knew already what’s bothering Yukina?", he asked, reaching out to take a black case sitting on top of the mahogany desk.
        Kurama shook his head. " It’s taking too long. I think they haven’t found a cure yet."
         " I knew this is all bogus!", Kuwabara cried out, eyeing an ornate ring Yusuke has been playing with his finger. " If only I could do something for her, I would!"
         " Why don’t you kill yourself then, it’ll probably save her from ass-holes like you.", Hiei muttered.
        Kuwabara shot him with dagger looks, his fist tightened and was about to lunge at Hiei when the door burst open.
        Koenma’s teenaged form entered the room. " I think you should be there. Help me observe the process."
        If he was glad of the interruption or was anticipating a good news, Kuwabara just walked outside and dashed to Yukina’s room.
        Hiei, however, refused to budge from his post, his usually smug face tinged with worry.
         "Hiei.", Kurama called.
        The red-haired teenager glanced at Koenma. The latter shrugged his shoulders. They thought he may wanted to be left alone.
        Yusuke glanced at the koorime sitting at the windowsill. The ring warmed on his finger. On impulse, he dropped it inside the case and closed the lid shut.
        Koenma saw it, too. " You shouldn’t be playing with anything here y’know."
        Yusuke smiled sheepishly. He stood up and followed the others.

        Yukina was laid onto a queen sized bed in one of the most spacious rooms. Her eyes were closed and an old man was checking up on her. " I don’t understand it. She seems perfectly fine." He shook his head, stood up and bowed to Koenma. " Sorry, my prince."
        Koenma nodded and sighed. That was the hundredth healer. All of them had diagnosed nothing. He gazed at the others. Their patience seems to be wearing out, too.
         " Koenma . . .", Botan was at the door, an old woman with long gray hair tied in a bun, wearing an old-fashioned kimono stood beside her.
         " Ise !", Koenma exclaimed.
         " She’s the best healer here in Reikai.", he explained to the others. " She’s my family’s former personal healer."
        Ise quickly paid respects to the prince and promptly approached the bed. She placed her gnarled fingers over Yukina’s forehead, reciting an incantation. Her eyes closed. Her brow wrinkled in concentration.
        For some strange reason, she suddenly felt extremely chilled. Like a winter breeze suddenly enveloped her body, wafting through her skin. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead, wondering where did it came from.
        Within seconds, her arms shook as blisters started popping on her hands. With a huge gasp, eyes and mouth wide open in horror, Ise withdrew.
        The others, on the other hand, looked on in shock.
         " Ise!", Koenma rushed to the side of the trembling woman. " What happened?"
        Ise just stared back at Koenma, her eyes wide with fright. " Be careful." She jumped to her feet and hurriedly gathered her things.
         " Have you seen anything? Do you know what’s her illness?", Yusuke asked.
         " I-I can’tdoanythingaboutit.Sorry.", Ise replied in a rush. Her feet seemed to drag her towards the door. The old woman felt that safety lies outside the four corners of the room.
        She barely made a few steps when a glistening sword blocked her path.
         " You didn’t answer the question.", Hiei spoke harshly, intimidating the old healer.
        Ise seemed to calm a bit. " Her illness is spiritual. No one could heal her but herself." She paused. " I think YOU could help her out.", she whispered. " Now if you’ll excuse me."

         " Hn!", Hiei snarled at the old woman. How in the world could I help her? I’m no healer! Stupid woman, he thought.

        Ise went out the door without a backward glance.
         " You saw it?", an old man in a white and red habit standing just outside the door asked her.
        Ise looked at him briefly. Then walked away, quickening her pace.
        The old man puckered his lips. Her troubled expression was enough to verify his fears. He peeked at Yukina and shook his head.
         " Friar Mari, you’re service’s about to start.", a young voice said over his shoulder.
         " I’ll be there.", the friar took one last look at the ailing ice maiden.
         " It has begun.", he murmured, following his assistant. His bony fingers clasping a cross pendant in his chest.

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        Koenma shrank back in his seat after escorting his friends out of Reikai. I was wrong to lead my friends in here, he silently chided himself. Only to find out that the best healers in this world cannot do anything about Yukina’s condition.
        He rubbed his forehead. It was so frustrating. He was also a bit bothered by Ise’s experience. They all saw what happened to her hand and how she was deeply disturbed by it. Disturbed was an understatement. She looked horrified.
         He started arranging the papers in his desk. No matter how many problems he has, he must continue this dumb and absolutely boring job of stamping documents which appears to him as death certificates or movie passes to the spirit world.
        He sighed as he organized his desk. He placed scattered pens and pencils back into the holder. Stacked blank white sheets into the drawers. Picked up candy wrappers , an empty soda can, a golden book, the black ornate case . . .
         " Huh?!", he wrinkled his forehead, holding the golden book on one hand and the case on the other. " Just when did I took the book out of the case?"
        He then he remembered that Yusuke was playing with them a while ago.
        He peeked at the slightly opened book. There’s a new writing.
        THEY WILL HAVE THE POWERS, it said. Plain English yet it sounds vague. But that doesn’t bother him. He weighed the case in his hand. He had never held it with one hand, and without difficulty too. The case’s unusually ----- light.
        He carefully lifted the lid and gasped. " Gone! The relics are gone!"

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        Kurama felt dejected as he watched Yukina. She’s showing no signs of improvement since he attempted to cure her last week. In fact, with dark circles around her eyes and limp body, she’s getting worst. He cast a quick glance at the apprehensive fire demon sitting on the stone steps of the front porch. The rest of the group, on the other hand, retreated to either the garden or in the rooms with gloomy faces. He turned his head and saw Botan making her way out through the front door.
        Kurama decided to follow the deity of Death to the lawn. She looked really cute in that cream colored jumpsuit she’s wearing. He shook his head. He never really paid too much attention to her before. True that he had always found her attractive but the thought of dating her doesn’t sound like a solid idea. Probably because they were good friends and that they have far more important things to do. Plus the fact that the two of them are so different from each other.
        Sensing him, Botan turned around and smiled. Her pink-purple eyes almost danced as sunlight captured her pretty face and long, sky-blue hair.
        Kurama smiled back. Despite her preppy mood, she couldn’t disguise her worry over Yukina’s condition but he liked the way she maintains her composure even when Koenma didn’t manage to find a cure for the ice maiden in Reikai.
         " Wait a minute . . . Why do I see her differently these past few days? She’s becoming so . . . enticing. Like I just wanted to grab her by the waist and kiss those soft lips of hers.", he thought.
        She’s not as sweet as you think, you know?
        Kurama turned around. " Who said that? "
         " Kurama.", Botan called. " Is there something wrong?"
         " Uh." , he turned back to her. " No. No, I thought I heard something. Probably the trees."
        The red head stood next to her. Looking for something to talk about other than Yukina. He wanted to talk about something that’s more . . . hopeful. This whole situation has gotten to all of them. Sometimes, he felt responsible, having been unable to find a cure for her. It’s even making me hearing things, too, he thought dryly.
         " Oh. Um. Kurama, Can I ask you something?", she asked, breaking the silence.
         " Sure anything.", he replied.
         " Have you ever felt, sometimes, that you don’t know who you are.", she asked, a bit hesitant. " Is that what they call identity crisis?"
        Kurama chuckled. Who could be more confused than him having two extremely different personalities. " Yeah. Sometimes. Being the all too human, Suuichi has always questioned me being a merciless youko. And vice versa." He was surprised to have spoken up so quickly.
        Kurama tilted his head and eyed her carefully. She doesn’t seem to mind, in fact, she looked like she was on a trance of her own, he observed. What’s bothering her?
         " Is something the matter, Botan?"
        She didn’t answer his question. Instead . .
         " Have you seen a purple rose, Kurama? A light purple one?", she asked. " It has white and red shades at the base."
        Kurama blinked. P-Purple rose? With white and red streaks?
        He caught his breath and tried to steady his voice. " Um, t-there are . .a lot of purple roses in Makai."
         " Really? Do you know where can I find them?", she asked, her eyes still fixed ahead of her.
         " Usually the shade could determine where . . or . . from whom did it came from.", Kurama replied. Why is she asking these questions? How did she knew that purple roses exist? Those roses are found on the hidden valleys. Botan hasn’t traveled enough in Makai understandably because she originated from Reikai.
        She pulled something from that golden pouch she’s been carrying and asked. " Have you seen this rose, Kurama?"
        His emerald eyes widen as she handed him the rose. How did she got hold of one? How did she got hold of THIS one? He repeatedly asked himself. The rose. Its petals the shade of true lavender. Its been a while since he accidentally produced a rose of that color. He made it once, just once and have never produced it since then. He had never given it to anyone. Except for . . . he frowned.
         " Impossible!", he whispered. But as he stared at the flower in his hands, there’s no mistaken that that was the same one he gave to . . . Kurama stared at Botan as if seeing her for the first time. Couldn’t be that . . .?
        Bingo!
        Kurama almost jumped at the sound of that voice.
        I told you!
        He turned around. There’s no one.
         " Kurama, are you alright?", Botan asked, eyeing him carefully.
         " Uh, I’m hearing . . . things.", he replied. " Maybe I . ."
         " Maybe, you should have a rest.", she finished.
         " Yeah, I think so.", Kurama said, silently thankful for her suggestion. He was about to step inside the dojo, when he remembered something. " And . . um . . Would you mind if I keep this for a while so that I could . . study it . . for you?"
         " Oh, no, by all means.", she said. " I should be thankful for your help, actually."
        Kurama leaned over and kissed her forehead, ignoring her shocked expression. He seemed to have surprised himself as well. A small smile slowly formed on his lips as he turned. But then again, he had always fought back the urge of kissing her. That short, rather sudden gesture could very well be a proof that he has become more human in some ways. " So much for my so-called self restriction.", he murmured.
        Nice one, redhead!
        Kurama closed my eyes. Trying to shut the voice out as he opened the door to his room.
        Let’s just say that it would be our initial deposit.
        He jumped on his bed, still ignoring the voice.
        We could take our profit later on.
        Kurama saw his reflection on the full-length mirror facing the bed and noted restlessness in his own green eyes. He tried to think of all possible ways the rose ended up in Botan's possession, but none seemed to shed light as much as what he saw a while ago. That of the confused blue-haired deity holding up the flower. " Shit, Kurama!", he cursed himself. " You have to make up your mind. You have to find out about the rose and how did Botan found it."
        He stood up and check himself on the mirror. He straighten his hair and as he was doing so, his features started to shift. Became lighter. Bushy red hair turned silky. His eyes narrowing into slits. Green and red shades turned gold and silver.
         " Have you forgotten me, Kurama? Have you forgotten your true self?", his reflection spoke.
        Kurama touched his hair and brought it in front of him. It is still red. He stared back at the reflection. There, he stood in a white garb, clutching a lock of silver hair.
         " How?!" He cautiously touched the cold surface of the mirror and caught the youko’s lips, his own lips curving into a devilish grin.
        He blinked. Once. Twice.
        He looked at his reflection once more and saw red mane flowing over his face.
        Boy, I must’ve been really exhausted and delirious, he thought. Seeing things. Hearing things.
        Kurama jumped back on the bed and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
        Oblivious to what was happening around him, he turned on the side. Revealing a shiny object he had accidentally laid on. It ejected a silent hiss and disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

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        A burst of cold air rushed through the small window into the dimly lit room. A small figure sat stiffly on the mattress, eyes closed. The room seemed to stand still as a tiny slit appeared on her forehead. Her long green hair was blown from her serene face, giving way to the blinding light emerging from the opening. The opening widened revealing another eye. A third eye!
        She shifted her gaze to the door and heard light footsteps approaching. " There’s no use hiding now.", she thought. " She would be able to sense it. Even see it."
        Genkai pushed open the door, carrying a tray of hot soup and lukewarm orange juice. " Yukina." She called in gently, seeing the ice maiden standing next to the window, her back to her.
        Yukina turned slowly. Her third eye flashing crazily.
         " What the . . .?!", Genkai uttered in surprise, dropping the tray and posing herself in a stance. She knew that this isn’t Yukina anymore. She could clearly sense that whatever being’s residing on her body, she’s certain that it would do no good. " Who are you? What do you want from her?"
        Yukina sneered at the old woman. " You’re really good. You could sense me like no one else does."
        Her red eyes glazed brilliantly. " Too bad. I won’t be able to use you." She stretched out her hands and released a rush of cold water towards Genkai.
        The old woman tried to shield herself but the water penetrated her body. She felt her veins hardening. " Aaaggghhhh." She uttered helplessly as she dropped to the ground.
        Yukina looked at her calmly. It was too easy to beat the Master Genkai. She froze her blood inside her body. She won’t be able to move. She won’t be able to breathe.
        Until she said so. " Or until I was beaten.", Yukina added.
        Which is of course, impossible, she thought proudly. Pretty soon, I’m gonna freeze their hearts and make them hard and cold as ice.
         " Just like me." Yukina said in a hoarse whisper. " Just like me."