Disclaimer: YuYu Hakusho belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi

Imbalance

"Do you love him?"

The sudden question startled Yukina, and she dropped the wet shirt on the porch. She picked it up and inspected the cloth; Genkai-shihan had forced a visitor to train by washing the floor just yesterday, so the material was clean enough to be hung to dry. She pulled it taut and snapped the clothespins in place before glancing around the other clothes on the drying line.

Hiei stood in the yard, watching her. She suspected he had been there for a while, suppressing his ki so she would not notice. She smiled welcomingly despite her surprise, because it really was sweet of him to look after her, and she enjoyed his company. And, perhaps, for once he might admit that he truly did have news of her brother.

But he had asked her a question, not brought her news, and she was rudely ignoring him.

"What do you mean?"

Even from the porch Yukina could see Hiei stiffen up, his face flushing. The demon mentally weighed the pros and cons, prepared to flee with what remained of his dignity, before forging ahead. Awkwardly he clarified, "Do you… love the human. That oaf."

"Kazuma-san?" she inquired innocently, and immediately regretted tormenting Hiei by drawing his embarrassment out. She hadn't meant to—of course she knew what the other was trying to ask her. But what she did not understand was why.

"Do you?" He had long had his suspicions, and would not be deterred now. "You neither encourage his affections nor stop him from pursuing you. I know you aren't cold enough to be toying with his emotions just because you like to watch the fool make an idiot of himself. So which is it?"

That the matter was delicate must have shown in her face, because Hiei perched on the edge of the porch and made no comment as she returned to the laundry. Yukina pulled one of her damp kimono from the basket and pinned it to the line while she thought.

"Kazuma-san says he loves me," she murmured carefully.

Hiei did not deign to grace the understatement with anything more than a snort. Any idiot with ears would know within five minutes of being in the fool's presence that he was madly infatuated with the koorime.

Yukina bit her lip, brushing her hair from her eyes as she reached into the basket for another shirt. "But Kazuma-san… doesn't show it in his actions, that he loves me."

Hiei's foot dangled slackly, brushing against the grass. How many times had he jealously glared at the oaf for daring to show Yukina such open affection? How many times had Kurama caught his glowers and teased him for it?

"Are koorime hearts so icy that they are incapable of love?"

She had never been bothered by the fire demon's caustic tones, but the words still stung sharply. Steady hands pinched the clothespins around the fabric; harsh taunts had no effect on her composure, as Tarukane had quickly learned.

"It isn't like that, Hiei-san. I can feel his love very strongly—it's so warm and sincere. It isn't at all like the koorime… but that's why I can feel it, because it's so different. And I'm not really like the other koorime myself."

She smoothed the wrinkles from the clothing articles stuck at the bottom of the basket. "But.. it's very puzzling. Kazuma-san loves me, I know he does. And he says he does. But he doesn't show it in his actions. It's very strange and confusing, and I… I don't know what to do, Hiei-san."

Her shoulders sagged as she admitted it, lost and defeated.

Hiei had long had his suspicions. He lay back against the wood porch, stretching his fingers to brush gently against the back of Yukina's hand.

"Hiei-san?" She turned from the laundry basket, glancing at him inquiringly.

He shook his head. Watching her return to work, he reached out his arm to test his growing hypothesis, and delivered a sharp, stinging slap to the back of her hand.

Exactly as before, she turned curiously from the wet clothes. "Hiei-san?"

"Nothing." And as he leaped off the porch and back into the woods, he pondered the implications.

He had known it, but he had never given it a second thought. After suffering five years of torture at Tarukane's hands, Yukina had long since stopped responding to pain.

But feelings came in paired sets. In the same way a lack of darkness rendered light meaningless, Yukina only felt love because she shared in the experience of Hiei's abandonment and neglect by the koorime. Kuwabara certainly did love the koorime, and he showed it every possible chance he could, but…

If Yukina no longer registered the sensation of pain, then it was impossible for her to recognize the gentleness and love in the fool's touches.

…
Owari
…

-Windswift