Disclaimer: I only own the OCs.

Author's Note: I usually don't make notes, but I feel I should warn the reader that there will be OOC moments.

Chapter 1

When Hiei thought about the past few years, he could only think of one word to describe it all: unexpected. Twenty years had passed since he last left the Makai to "visit" his former companions. Since then, he knew they had all moved on from fighting. True they were all still protective over their world, but now they all had started becoming domesticated; the former Spirit Detective and the fool Kuwabara had both gotten married and had children. Yusuke was, of course, married to Keiko while the buffoon had the gall to marry Hiei's sister Yukina. But as long as Yukina was happy, her older brother couldn't care less.

Kurama hadn't settled down with a woman of his own, but he had a career and was still looking after his mother despite her new husband. Every time the fire demon asked the fox why he was still living in Ningenkai, Kurama would say he was only going to stay long enough to make sure his family did not need him. Twenty years later and the well known bandit was still living in that place Hiei had once considered his prison.

But those weren't the reasons why the past years were unexpected; in fact, only the past five years had been. Mukuro had finally stepped down from her throne- or what was left of it after the first Demon World Tournament- and passed it on to Hiei. The fire demon was quick to pick up the reign, negotiating with each new leader of the Makai- only two leaders had ruled so far since he gained control- to moderate the traffic at the portal that linked the two worlds together. Hiei was disgusted by how many demons had made themselves known in Ningenkai, considering them low-levels that craved attention. This still required patrolling the border, but now Hiei's attention could be more focused on keeping the peace in Makai. Or at least making sure the world was not too overly chaotic.

In his second year of power, Hiei had met a woman that he never would have expected to effect him so much. A water demon named Ren. The irony was not lost on him as he began to fall in love with the apparition. Her long, wavy hair shined brighter than gold, her eyes sparkled like amethysts. She was intelligent, impulsive, and criticized his every move. Of course the short demon would fall for such an annoyance.

But their relationship was short, Ren became pregnant and died after giving birth to their love child. Again, Hiei never expected any of this to happen. But what threw him completely off was his child.

Amaya was small for her age. She had long, wavy black hair and her mother's violet eyes. Her skin was pale and soft, a contrast to her dark hair. Her movements were quick and graceful, which worked well since she loved to dance. Amaya was a water apparition like her mother, but she moved quickly and silently like Hiei. When he started training her to fight, Hiei had a hard time keeping up with her.

Her father scanned the forest, trying to pick up her youki. He had discarded his cloak since he was wearing his black sleeveless undershirt. 'She is fast,' he thought with a bit of pride. 'But she still doesn't know how to conceal herself.' With that, Hiei turned his back on the direction he had been facing in order to catch a small fist aimed at his head. He smirked at the little girl in front of him, her eyes alight with energy and frustration. She tried to pull her hand free from his grasp but it was no use, his grip was iron tight. She lifted her free hand to try another hit but he grabbed that too.

The small growl that emerged from Amaya's lips made Hiei chuckle, she sounded like a kitten trying to be intimidating. Hiei took this as an opportunity to teach her a hard lesson. Using his hold on her tiny wrists, Hiei thrust his head forward to hit his daughter in the face. Not too hard, but enough to make her respond with a groan.

"Fists aren't your only weapons," he chided. "Use kicks, your knives, even water when you channel it can be used to your advantage. Don't let your opponent trap you in a corner."

Amaya stared into his crimson glaze, her face held concern but her eyes had determination. His heart swelled as she nodded and began to focus her youki. Without hesitation, Amaya kicked her father as hard as she could in the stomach, causing his grip to loosen. She ripped her hands free and landed on her feet as she prepared to knock one of his legs out from under him. But Hiei saw what she was doing and threw a punch at her, not really expecting it to connect. Amaya jumped back and was about to distance herself, using the trees as cover, when her father leaped forward and tackled her to the ground.

Hiei's back was arched as he tried not to smother his kid. Amaya pushed against his chest without success; he was too heavy for her to budge.

"Dad!" she whined. "Get off me!" He only laughed. She got mad whenever anyone touched her; even Hiei was rarely allowed to hold her. Fighting was the only excuse she thought was acceptable for anyone to touch her.

Hiei wrapped his arms tighter around his daughter, the only other person he could stand to hold besides her mother. Amaya stopped struggling, accepting the embrace and deciding to wait it out. She secretly relished moments with her father because his responsibilities often kept them apart, but she didn't want him to know that. Amaya was only three and a half years old, but she already acted like an adult.

A few more seconds passed before Hiei stood up, still holding Amaya in his arms like she was an infant. He let her wriggle out of his hold, noting the blush on her face. 'Embarrassed to be held even by her father,' he thought with a smirk. 'I'm gonna make her adolescence terrible.'

Amaya heard her dad chuckle but ignored it, flipping her hair over her shoulder and adopting a blank expression. They gathered their equipment and started towards their mobile fortress. Amaya walked in front, her steps short but fast. Hiei noted how she took to wearing slippers like the dancers do. He had no idea where she got the drive to dance, definitely not from him and her mother was too wild to learn any distinct form of dance. Amaya was her own person, that much was obvious.