Now she was trembling, fear and pain coursing through her veins like a burning venom, turning her insides to mush. The youma seemed amused as the shaking fire mage gained her feet and raised her sword again, trying hard to mask her terror, to not show how each step hurt more than the last. Ayano glared at the beast, eyes blazing, as flames danced along Enraiha's blade. She would not give up. She did not need Kazuma's help. Not now, not ever. Her grip on Enraiha tightened and, with a determined cry, she rushed the youma once more. Her flames seemed to burn right through the beast at first, appearing to easily destroy it. Then, in an unseen turn of events, massive claws sliced trough the air. Before the attack could even register with the red-haired mage, the wickedly sharp claws tore into her, and sent her flying off the top of the building they had chosen as a battle ground. Seeing the ground rushing towards her, Ayano began to wonder why she had taken on this youma without Kazuma.
A mile or more away, Kazuma sensed his partner's danger. In mere seconds he was by her side, his strong arms and gentle wind wrapping tenderly around her beaten body, stopping her fall. The sight of her was almost too much for Kazuma to bear. Her school uniform was bloody and torn nearly to shreds, her hair tangled in the bright red liquid, and bruises had already began to form on her legs and arms. Her face was untouched, but dirty, and the usual firey glare, the one that Kazuma loved so much,had vanished from her features. She looked tired, she looked hurt, and for the first time ever, she looked defeated.
"K-kazuma..." She looked up at him with surprise, then a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Now she closed her eyes, and let herself sink into unconciousness. The contractor's eyes turned sky blue in a milisecond, something he had never accomplished before. The youma didn't even have a chance to scream in pain as the whirling winds of Kazuma's protective rage tore it to bloody pieces. The battle was over before it began. Without a second glance at the youma's lifeless carcass, Kazuma turned and carried the unconcious girl back to his apartment.
Setting out a blanket, Kazuma laid Ayano down on the couch before setting off in search of bandages and something to replace her torn clothing. He returned moments later with several roles of gauze and a black bath robe. Oh, man. Kazuma thought to himself as he unbuttoned Ayano's top to give himself access to all of her wounds. Ayano'll kill me for this... Despite this rather obvious fact, Kazuma bathed and bandaged Ayano's wounds to the best of his ability, and hoped to God that she would be sensible enough to understand that he was not being perverted.
When her wounds were clean and bandaged, Kazuma dressed Ayano, all the while trying hard not to notice her perfect body or tempting porcelein skin. After lying her down in his bed and pulling the covers up to her chin, Kazuma realized it was about time he called Jugo and informed him of what had hapened. Rather than being angry at Kazuma for not protecting Ayano, or insisting she come home or be sent to a hospital, Jugo thanked Kazuma for taking care of her and insisted it would be best not to move or disturb the red head until she had fully healed. Kazuma sighed as he watched his young partner sleeping. This was probably just another of Jugo's plans to push them into a relationship. Not that he'd mind. But Ayano...the stubborn woman would probably never accept his feelings willingly.
Ayano stirred in her sleep, rolled over and let out a few wimpers. Kazuma began to wonder if she was having a bad dream, and worried slightly that she'd wake up just enough to realize her situation and make things worse for the both of them. But she simply burrowed further into the covers and slept on, and Kazuma blew out a sigh of relief. At least the explosion would wait until morning.
Somewhere in the night Kazuma must have fallen asleep. When morning rolled around, he cracked an eye to find his head inches from Ayano's. She was still peacefully asleep, and Kazuma could not help but smile. From this angle, and with such a tranquil expression on her face, she was actually really cute. Feeling rather content, he let himself wake up slowly and regretfully. This has to be one of the best mornings I've had in a while. Kazuma thought as he finally sat up and looked at the clock. Then he did a quick double take as he realized that this "morning" was actually closer to one in the afternoon. He was rather surprised that Ayano hadn't woken up and tried to kill him yet. With a sigh he gave her a gentle pat on the head and padded into the kitchen.
"She'll probably be hungry when she wakes up." He muttered to himself, pulling bacon and eggs out of the fridge. "She's Ayano, she's always hungry." He made quick work of putting on bacon, mixing pancake batter and frying some eggs for the two of them. Just as he was finishing he heard quiet muttering from the bedroom. She was finally up was she? Without thinking he went to stand in the doorway of the bedroom. In retrospect he realized how lucky he was not to have been attacked on sight. Ayano had just sat up, her red hair tumbled down her back and one shoulder of the bathrobe Kazuma had put her in was slipping down one shoulder to reveal a bit of her collarbone. As she yawned and rubbed her eyes, Kazuma thought that there could be no sight more beautiful. Then, her sleepy eyes fixated on his.
"Kazuma? What happened? Why am I in your apartment?" Ayano fingered the bath robe, "And WHY am I wearing this."
"Urm...don't you remember?" Kazuma was rather unsure how to handle this situation without being burnt to a crisp.
"KAZUMAAAAAAA!" Ayano leapt out of bed, only to suck in a sharp breath and topple over onto the floor in pain.
"Ayano!" Kazuma moved only half a second after she did, and knelt at her side, worriedly. "You OK?"
"I think it's coming back to me..." Ayano said, still clutching her side. She then sat up and turned her head to meat his gaze, her eyes full of shock and wonder. "You came for me...but, how did you know I was in trouble?"
"I always know when you need me." Kazuma still knelt at Ayano's side. "By the way, why didn't you call me before you attacked that youma. Why did you insist on doing this on your own. Will you tell me that, princess?" Normally, Ayano would have throttled him at the use of the endearment, but he said it so lovingly she decided to let him get away with it, just this once.
"I...I" Ayano stuttered.
"Out with it." Kazuma said quietly.
"I wanted to prove to you that I was strong on my own to. That I'm not just a burden, or someone you need to protect. It didn't work out so well though..." She looked down, face ablaze, unable to meet his gaze.
"Stupid." Kazuma accused, and Ayano's eyes leapt up again, ablaze with fury. Without warning, Kazuma leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her, pressing her face lightly into his chest, and resting his head on her shoulder. Ayano's body reacted without her permission as she melted into his embrace, and her fingers curled into his shirt. "I already knew you were strong." Ayano's eyes widened in shock as he said this, and by now her cheeks must have been even redder than her hair.
Kazuma pulled away then, and Ayano felt oddly dissapointed. He smiled at her, and stood up.
"Well, breakfast is ready, princess. It's into the dining room with you." Before she could protest, Kazuma scooped up Ayano, bridal style, and toted her off to the kitchen. Again, Ayano's body reacted on its own as she wound her thin arms around his neck and rested her cheek on his shoulder with a sigh. Maybe, just maybe, having a bodyguard like Kazuma wasn't so bad after all.