Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho is not mine. But I am having a cookie fundraiser to change that! Buy a cookie for a good cause! ;)

To Declare

To say Keiko was furious at seeing Yuusuke come back with a demon would be a large understatement. Add that to the fact that said demon has once tried to turn her into a demon also and control her, as well as dispatch Yuusuke, and, it would suffice to say that she looked ready to kill the detective- again.

"Yuusuke," she hissed, "would you come over here for a second?" She indicated an area a bit off the road they were standing on, out of Hiei's earshot.

The demon in question gulped fearfully, but a quick glance at the jaganshi by his side steadied him somewhat. "Why can't we talk here?"

Somehow, the girl managed to look even more murderous. Hiei allowed himself a small smirk: it seemed this was the first time the detective had stood up to her when she was like this, and it felt good to be at least partially the cause of it.

At the hint of the fire demon's amusement, something in Keiko seemed to snap, and she flew at Yuusuke, apparently determined to beat him into submission, if the hand flying toward his cheek was any indication. But the detective, after another quick glance at the solid presence beside him, simply caught her wrist mid-flight. The girl froze in shock and Hiei smirked again. He had never approved of her maltreatment of the detective, and he felt very smug over having helped the other demon to put her in place.

"Keiko," Yuusuke said softly, but firmly, "not all demons are bad. Despite what he may have done in the past, Hiei is my friend now." Here the fire demon's eyes widened- he hadn't though the detective considered him anything more than an acquaintance, and he was amazed at the speed that his previous actions were discarded. However, he stayed silent and Yuusuke went on: "And Keiko, you keep forgetting that I'm a demon. Looking and acting like a human won't change that. Taking away the demon world would entail taking away my friends, and it would feel like a part of me was ripped out. I can't do that, Keiko."

With that, Yuusuke let go of her hand. It fell limply to her side as the girl just stared at him, stunned. It was only when the detective glanced at Hiei worriedly that she returned to reality, then promptly burst into tears. "I- I can't believe you would choose that- that abomination over me!" She turned to storm off, but stopped abruptly when the detective materialized in front of her, incensed.

"When I said he was my friend, I meant it!" He thundered. "No one insults my friends. Apologize."

Hiei walked unconcernedly around the girl to retake his place at the detective's side. He took the short time to wonder at the detective's actions. It was a novel experience for him to have what was left of his honor defended by someone other than himself. Although he'd just heard Yuusuke declare him his friend, the fire demon was still surprised by the other demon's actions, though he realized belatedly that he should have expected it, considering the other outrageous acts of loyalty he'd seen from the detective. Still, he felt that funny warm feeling in his chest again, though he quickly dismissed it in lieu of observing the situation in front of him.

The girl's eyes darted from side to side, evaluating the situation developing. Upon finding no escape, she reluctantly looked at the demons in front of her. "Sorry," she choked out, before turning and running in the opposite direction, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Hiei turned to study the detective, wondering if he would have a lost look, similar to the one he'd worn when he'd though Kuwabara died, or when he'd come into the forest earlier. Surprisingly, Yuusuke looked satisfied, and a little relieved, like a weight had been taken off his chest.

"Well," the taller demon said after a few seconds, "that was liberating. But now its dinnertime! C'mon!"

Again, the jaganshi was surprised at Yuusuke's actions. He'd just helped the guy chase away his childhood friend and he's invited to dinner? Nevermind that he's a silent, vaguely hostile, and generally not nice demon… weird. Nonetheless, he followed the detective home.

A/N: Another chapter- yay! Only one person reviewed the first one (thanks kit-kit) so I'm not really sure if anyone will appreciate another one, but I'll put it up anyway. Sorry, it's a bit short, but oh well. Hope you enjoy!