The two top thieves in Makai, Youko Kurama and Kuronue. Youko’s treasures of choice were codes and ancient artifacts. Kuronue was partial to weapons and jewels, especially red jewels. The two were loyal to one another, always looking out for each other; but even friends can quarrel, and this, is were our story begins.

A lonely bamboo forest concealed a bickering pair from enemy eyes. There was no moon to betray them any way, but not all enemies only see in daylight. A silver haired fox stood leaning against a pole of bamboo, watching his friend rave. He was trying to persuade the evil looking fairy to plunder the tomb of a demon samurai lord.

They are notorious criminals, but gentlemen in a sense. They never raped or attacked when ones back is turned. They are honored by other good thieves, for their talents; yet detested by weaker thieves. Never caught, never stopped, never challenged. Countless bounty hunters went missing after them.

“No, no, and a thousand times NO!” a taller figure with black wings and blacker hair end eyes crossed his arms.

“What is so bad about it, Kuronue?” the fox asked.

“That’s creepy, even for me!”

“Its not like they will miss anything!”

“We are thieves who steal from the living, not ghouls who rob the dead! Don’t you know one can invoke ghosts when thieving from the deceased?”

“Ghosts, shmousts. If you want to be haunted by the undead, start digging!”

“I’m not going to get my wings dirty with your revolting sense of kleptomania!”

 Kuronue turned his back to Youko stubbornly. The fox glared at his partner and stuck out his tongue. “I can see that!” Kuronue growled. “See this!!”

Youko jumped on Kuronue’s back and covered his eyes.

“You immature little whelp! Get off me!!”

Youko clung tighter and sent his youki into the roots of a nearby shoot of bamboo. The plant obeyed by lifting one root up a few inches higher. Kuronue tripped over this and fell on his face in the dirt.

Kuronue beat his black wings, “You perverted malicious mutt-of-a-dog, GET OFF MY BACK!!”

“Don’t be such a woman, Kuronue!” Youko said softly.

Kuronue’s wings promptly smacked him in the face. The two stood up and brushed them selves off professionally.

“Will you at least come with me? You wouldn’t want any ghosts to get your best partner ever, would you?” Youko pleaded, he rarely did, only to his friend.

Kuronue, being superstitious and therefore wary of super natural beings and occurrences, would not dither.

Youko made his eyes big and watery. “I do not want to rob a grave all alone, especially one of a great warrior, especially at night, especially if that means all those pretty ruby encrusted weapons are all mine.”

Kuronue’s eyes glittered. “I suppose I cannot let you carry all the goodies by your onesy [1]. Deceitful, spoiled, cowardly-“

“Shh!” the fox shushed his friend. No one was around but Youko was used to being stealthy.

A graveyard stretched out before them, rich peoples tombs dotted the landscape. In the center of the vast valley, a tall thorny wad of bushes loomed over every thing else. It was a labyrinth of bushes almost two stories high, with dagger-like spears nearly four inches long. Blundering about in the dark would not be fun.

The thieves snuck toward it, assured the prize they sought was with in it. Because the plants were enchanted, they would not yield to the fox’s manipulative ability. “I smell something,” he whispered.

Kuronue cocked his head; “I sense a spirit, drawing nearer.” His elfin ears twitched. “You’re being superstitious again.”

“Look!” he pointed to the maze. A pale shape was emitted through the bushes, like a fog; the cloud slowly reformed into a white cloaked figure with no face, it drifted across to another tomb, it stopped as if inspecting the grave, and moved on.

“A Graveyard Guardian,” Youko whispered. “It’s watching to make sure the graves aren’t defiled. Damn.”

“Ghosts, shmosts, huh?” Kuronue elbowed his friend in the ribs.

“Oh, shut up! This changes nothing.” Youko stood up and darted toward the maze.

He pulled a rose from under his hair and ran in. “One must fight fire with fire, thorn with thorn.” Youko let his spirit energy flow into the simple plant; the fibers stretched and thickened, the thorns grew longer, sharper, deadlier. Finally, the petals rained from the top of the stem, releasing a sweet aroma. “Rose Whip!” The weapon cracked. Youko raised it and swung it in a circular pattern, cutting a path through the walls of the maze. His partner walked in behind him casually.

“You’re getting sloppy Youko.” He smirked.

“Do you have a better idea?”

“That’s your department, I just stand around and look pretty.” This made the fox chuckle.

After what seemed like hours, Youko sat down to catch his breath. “How big is this maze?” his arm had begun to ache.

His winged friend chuckled. “You should have been smarter than this. You obviously can’t walk through here the easy way.”

“How do mean?”

“Can’t you sense the energy around us? The maze shifts its self so we will never find the exit, look behind you.” He gestured with his thumb; the gaping path that the fox had made was growing back at an alarming rate.

“What kind of maze is this?!” he cried. “Shh!” his friend clamped a hand over his mouth, “Something is coming.”

Kuronue pulled his friend into a shadowy corner and spread his black wings to camouflage them. No footsteps were heard, but a faint flicker of ki could be felt. Youko peeked over Kuronue’s shoulder. A slim black figure swept past them, disappearing around another corner as soon as it had come.

“It’s the Guardian!” Kuronue rasped.

“Follow it! It may know the way through the maze!” Youko slipped out from under the bat like wings and scurried after the phantom. Kuronue darted to join him; the fluttering cloak in front of them was moving fast, but every now and then, it would stop, as if to listen or look for some thing.

After about twenty minutes, the figure stopped. Kuronue almost plowed into his friend.

They had reached the tomb, a small stone house, with a huge stone door. The phantom looked down at something for a moment, and then put a hand on the door. It did not push, but the door swung out ward of its own accord. It was about to enter when Youko started to laugh, “Thank you for leading us to the tomb, Graveyard Guardian, we will take it from here.”

The phantom spun around with a hiss. A scary growl emitted from it, “The treasures within are not for your hands!”

“Ghosts cannot speak, who are you?” Kuronue twirled a scythe in the air.

“Obviously a stealthier rogue than you are; if you hadn’t made so much noise bumbling around in the dark with out considering to get a map first, I would never have let you follow me.”

“Do you know who we are?” Youko snarled, raising his whip.

The phantom chuckled, “You are impulsive pickpockets, nothing more.”

The phantom backed into the tomb, melting into the shadows.

Youko was about to charge in the tomb when Kuronue held his arm out. “It wants us to follow, it’s a trap.”

Youko brushed away from him. “Come out of there, phantom! How dare you call us lowly pickpockets? We are the best at what we do!”

The phantom drifted out of the tomb. “Get away from this place before the Guardian returns. Thieves never get out of this place alive.”

The phantom held a gleaming ruby studded sword.

“Who are you to tell us what to do? You are no more honorable than we, robbing graves.” Youko sneered.

“Who said I stole this? It was mine long before this samurai died.”

“Likely story. If you don’t mind, well plunder that tomb now.” Youko stepped toward the figure, raising his whip.

“No! Get down, you fools!” the phantom swept to the fox’s side and spread its cloak like wings, as if guarding them. The fox could feel the soft fabric brush his arm. The rogue stood many inches higher than he.

Before them, the Guardian had returned. It turned its non-existent face toward them and snarled dryly. It spread its cloak just as the black rogue did.

The black rogue whispered over its shoulder to the thieves, “You have to leave, it hasn’t seen you yet, if it does, your souls will be eaten. Get on the roof and wait for me. Go!”

Kuronue, superstitious as he is, seized his friend and winged out of sight. Youko slapped his friend’s hands indignantly and peered over the edge of the roof.

The black rogue had dropped its cloak, and to his surprise, lifted its hands in surrender. The white rogue soared to its prey and delved into it, being absorbed into the living form.

Kuronue watched in horror and amazement, their protector allowed a ghost to attack it. His eyes sparkled with admiration, what a guy! The rogue twitched and jerked spasmodically, then stood bolt upright and still as stone. Oh, no.

Youko gasped; but contrary to his assumption about the rogue’s fate, the ghost passed out of the living body just as it had come. It went into the tomb, silently closing the doors behind it. The rogue sprung from the ground to the roof.

“That was amazing! How did you get out of a scrape with a Graveyard Guardian alive?” Kuronue asked in a whisper. Youko scowled and crossed his arms.

“I’m related to the Samurai, but only by marriage, and I came to pay respects. The Guardian would not attack its own kin, especially if I was not here to steal!” the rogue spat the last word. “If you want a token for your toil, take this,” It held out the ruby sword with a gloved hand, “I don’t care for weapons, it’s not my personal style. If you really want to steal tonight, take my sword and go.”

The two were speechless; Kuronue was still amazed, Youko was just feeling angry.

“Why did you help us? If you hate thieves, why did you save us and then offer us charity?” the fox snarled. “Are we not good enough to do things for our selves? Or do you want us to repay you in some way?” Kuronue was far from angry, he had happily accepted the red-jeweled blade, oblivious to his partners’ indignation, and was twirling it in his fingers like a baton.

“Idiot.”

The rogue chuckled softly.

“Snippy, aren’t we? The truth why I did what I did is because I like you. And I do not like to watch people die. I advise you to leave this place and not return. There is a diamond mine to the north if you were looking for gems, I don’t care, just leave the dead alone.”

The rogue turned and dissipated into the shadows.

Youko was shaking with rage, he was so angry he did not notice his friend flying him away from the graveyard until he was dropped to the ground.

“The nerve of that guy!!”

“He wasn’t all that bad, I got a new toy!”

“Idiot. Aren’t you the least bit fazed about any thing that happened? Because I, for one, am insulted!”

“You act like this whole affair was fruitless.”

“The fruits were charity, Kuronue! Some times I think you have no sense of honor!”

“I have priorities! We went into danger, we almost got our souls eaten but we didn’t, we were given a valuable weapon, and even tips on another place to steal from!! We’re still alive, that’s all I care to worry about right now! It’s late and we have a long journey to our hideout tomorrow. If you still feel angry in the morning, I will be happy to argue with you then. Good night.”

The bat-fairy turned on his heel and jumped up a tree.

The fox felt abashed, but still cross. He sat down in the grass below to the tree his friend was in and, growing a bit of moss for a pillow, fell asleep. What is Kuronue?