Our Days Together

by BaePuppyCat

A rare insect from the Makai has emerged in the human world that literally drains the life energy from their victims. When the YYH gang become involved, Hiei is cornered and rather than having his life energy taken, his demonic ki is stolen instead. In the chaos of it at all, he even ends up physically bounded to a naïve human girl. What else could go wrong? HieiOC

4. Dangerous Song

Hey guys! Spending the last couple of days watching and getting obsessed with Naruto and then madly going in search for fanfiction filled with SasuNaru, NaruHina, ShikaTemari, and all that good stuff, I became in desperate need to keep writing about tsundere! XD I got a sudden spurt of motivation while reading some good ones, and I hope you guys like this chappy, most specifically dedicated to all my lovely reviewers and alerters!

stacikate16 : I hope you enjoy this one! Thanks for reviewing! :3

MyLifeInWhole: XD Of course, Hiei is master of grouchiness! :D

Kshepps27: ^^ Ah, that was one of my favorite back stories to make up for this story, I can't wait to reveal it later :) Hope you stay tuned!

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH! T-T

Chapter 4 Dangerous Song

When I woke up the next morning, Hiei was missing.

Before I let myself run away with alarm, I made myself calm down. I checked all the rooms, the kitchen, the bathroom, the spare, even the closet as a last resort. Nothing.

I massaged my temples. Was this stress really worth my memory? After all, it would be just a measly two days that I'd forget. Of course, later -much later- I would realize how I could never imagine forgetting those first two days or any of the other days that would follow them. But it hadn't been much later yet.

Slumping back to my room, I noticed an unusual breeze and a flutter caught my eye. Confused, I realized that my window was open.

Weird. I don't remember ever opening it. I stopped at the edge in surprise. There'd always been a large tree that rested right next to the apartment complex, by my window. Looking under the green canopy, I could see Hiei, in all his glory, lounging on the branch with his eyes shut. His chest expanded and retracted slowly and his face was missing all of the lines and creases made when he would frown or look at me angrily.

He's sleeping in a tree? Doesn't he know how dangerous that is? I leaned further out the window to try and get a better look at him.

How does he manage to look so serene asleep, while when awake he's so unbearable? I laughed a little, enjoying the morning breeze.

My stomach growled and I, reinvigorated with cheer, withdrew and headed for the kitchen. I was even thinking about making a full breakfast for us, Hiei and I. It'd been a while since I'd cooked for two. A little excited, I opened the fridge, but my smile drooped because nothing really looked edible. I'd given the rest of food to Hiei a couple of days ago and I vaguely remember dropping the groceries I'd bought yesterday when I'd met the others.

Bzz. Bzzzz.

I was surprised when I recognized the door bell. Who would be here so early in the morning? I went to the door and checked the small built-in hole.

Botan's normally wide smile looked distortedly even wider in the small glass and her eyes grew huge when she moved to stare directly into it.

"Ren? It's us! Are you there?"

"Yes, I'm here." I said and opened the door. Surprised, Botan stumbled backwards, looking playful, and revealed that she'd brought company. Behind her were Yusuke and two other girls I didn't recognize.

"Why hello there, dear, and good morning! I thought we'd just pop in for a visit! Mind if we come in?"

"No, not at all. Please," I moved aside to let them come in, and I couldn't help but curiously stare at the two girls. They were very pretty, I noted. The one that reached about my height, the taller one of the two, had short brown hair and warm brown eyes; the shorter one reminded me of a little bird, with turquoise hair and red eyes... again? Other than the lack of coldness and the desire to hurt me, they looked exactly like Hiei's. I quickly realized she must've been another demon and I tensed slightly.

"Oh, where are our manners?" Botan wiggled over to my side and presented each girl, "Ren, these are two very good friends of ours, Keiko and Yukina. I thought it would be nice to have everyone get to meet each other since you've already been admitted to our circle of trust! We girls have to stick together you know."

I noticed how Yusuke snorted and rolled his eyes, but I squeaked in surprise and fear when Keiko suddenly whipped her arm back and slugged Yusuke right in the mouth. Yusuke landed flat on his back, stars twinkling in his eyes. She's a demon too?

Keiko abruptly turned back to us and smiled brightly, as if she hadn't just knocked Yusuke down like a beast, and extended her hand.

"Hi, I hope we're not disturbing you since it was a surprise visit and all."

Beside her, Yukina smiled sweetly and bowed, "Yes, it's very nice to meet you."

Flushing lightly, I scrambled to grab Keiko's hand (albeit being a little cautious) and return Yukina's bow, "Oh, the pleasure is mine. But actually, I was just about to go out and buy groceries since I kind of lost the ones I had yesterday." I scratched my nose embarrassedly.

"Oh goodness, I completely forgot! I'll make it up to you then, so let us come with you!" Botan chirped.

"I suppose that would be ok, but," I drawled, "Hiei is actually asleep so I wouldn't want to just leave him here alone."

"Aw, aren't you an absolute dear!" Botan cooed and Keiko turned to Yusuke who'd sat up on the floor.

"You wouldn't mind staying, would you Yusuke?" she said cheerfully. Yusuke rubbed his head in pain and grunted.

"What, why do I have to-" it was like an ominous aura engulfed Keiko and I shivered. She stared steadily at Yusuke, still smiling, who began to shrink under her gaze.

"You're going to watch Hiei." Keiko muttered each word pleasantly, but her voice and eyes were cold, "Ok?"

"Yes, ma'am." Yusuke squeaked and Keiko's aura vanished.

"Good, then we'll be back later. Ready?" Keiko walked out the door happily, while the rest of us were left behind, trembling in fear. I swore to myself right then and there to take future notice about getting Keiko upset or on her bad side. I dared to even say that she might have been scarier than Hiei.

And that was saying something!

~.~.~.~.~.~.

I was surprised to find that I was actually enjoying myself with the girls. Honestly, I was a home-body and was really too lazy to really enjoy going anywhere while I could be at home relaxing or reading a good book, or whatnot, but I was having fun.

We'd already reached the market but all we did was walk around and the time was filled with stories of dangerous adventures. Botan assured me that they were all true, but I couldn't help but feel at least a little skeptical. I got that demons and other worlds now existed and all, but some of the things she told me just couldn't be real. I mean, the one story about Kuwabara trapping green beasts made from pieces of hair and the Spirit Sword Monster Beast Donut? Even Kuwabara couldn't be that lame.

I also discovered that Keiko was human after all, while Yukina actually was a demon. It confused me to no end; based on what I'd seen, I'm surprised it wasn't the other way around. I wasn't the only one who thought so either. Botan told me all about how powerful Yusuke was, but that out of all his enemies, Keiko was the one who got him every time. Keiko blushed pretty ferociously when she said that.

Yukina was something called an ice apparition and it threw me for another loop. Typically when someone mentioned the word 'demon,' images of red, grotesque monsters with horns and pitch forks always came to mind. But Yukina was one of the sweetest, kindest girls I'd ever met, and it seemed almost impossible that she could ever be marked under that picture.

It was nice to have things slow down and just go shopping as if everything was normal. It was a relieving breather from the last fast-paced couple days. We ended up in a small shop later and while Botan and Keiko browsed, I lingered in the back with Yukina when a thought occurred to me.

I don't think Hiei had any other clothes to wear and I wasn't about to leave him to just hang shirtless around the house for the rest of the time he was staying, more for my sake than for his.

I called Yukina over and she smiled.

"Did you find something you like?"'

I shook my head, "No, I was thinking that I should get Hiei some things, what do you think?"

At first she looked surprised, but then touched, as if I had just said I was giving her something instead. Then to my surprise, a sad smile crossed her face.

"For Hiei? That sounds like a wonderful idea!"

~.~.~.~.~.~.

When we finally made it back to the apartment, I stopped dead in my tracks and almost dropped my bags. Wrappers and trash littered the floor and there was even a cat strolling through the havoc. Pieces of furniture were scattered and an unknown substance dripped from the walls. Hiei was resting on a cabinet, watching Yusuke and Kuwabara- who had definitely not been there before- wrestle on the ground.

Only when we'd all filed into the disaster area did the boys notice us.

Yusuke quickly stood up, "Oh hey, we were wondering when you guys would come back-" In a flash, Yusuke was on the floor, foaming at the mouth. We stared at Keiko's evil face in downright horror.

"Yusuke, you idiot! You were supposed to watch the house, not destroy it!" She stole the words right out of my mouth. I could only stare, speechless. While Keiko was dealing with Yusuke, Botan fetched the kitten and went over to Kuwabara and Yukina.

"Yukina! I was wondering when you were going to get here!" Kuwabara cried happily and Botan held out the cat.

"I believe this belongs to you?" she asked.

"Yeah, she's mine. I was just walking with her and I thought I'd come over when I heard that Yukina was going to be here, but it was just Urameshi and the runt instead." While he played with his cat, I found myself slowly gravitating towards Hiei who looked at me with indifference.

"What?"

"What?" I repeated, my blood quickly coming to a boil.

"That's what I just said." he said in boredom.

"Don't be smart! Look at this mess. You live here too now, so don't just sit there and let them do this. Get off your lazy butt! You seem healed enough to move around and help clean this up!"

I turned to look at Yusuke and Kuwabara and they both froze in the chilly room, "This place isn't going to clean itself."

I began to pick things up and on the request of the other girls (ahem, threat from Keiko) the boys began to help too, primarily against their will.

When I went to fetch the broom I saw that Hiei still hadn't moved, "Well, are you going to help us?"

"No."

I'd actually been prepared for this answer and was about to shoot out a clever comeback (as clever as responding to the word 'no' could get) when Yukina came over to me, placing a hand on my arm.

"It's alright, Ren. I'll help out too, so Hiei doesn't have to."

She reached out for the broom in my hand, until it was swiped from me before she could grab it. Hiei had taken it himself. Without another word, he moved away to start cleaning.

Stupefied, I looked at Yukina who just flashed my a know smile and went off. I'd have to ask her what kind of spell she'd just cast later, and then learn it for myself.

It took us quite a while to fix everything back up, and even longer to rub out the gooey stains on the wall. I wiped my brow in relief when we were finally done.

"Thank for helping guys." I said, to no one in particular.

"I wouldn't have if you hadn't forced me to." Yusuke muttered, but I ignored him.

Hiei entered the room from the kitchen, dusting his hands, and said glumly, "That was all the wrappers."

Keiko stretched, "I think we should be going soon seeing that it's a school night and all." Yusuke disagreed.

"That's why you should skip like Hiei and I and not worry about it." Keiko rolled her eyes. Botan and Yukina agreed with her though, and Kuwabara was just going to follow Yukina, so he was leaving too.

"Well then, today was fun. We'll see you soon Ren!" Botan said and after several goodbyes, the room was silent once more.

Hiei and I didn't exchange any words and I stood awkwardly at the door, not sure what to do. Then I spotted the bags I'd so quickly forgotten earlier. I grabbed them and peered inside: the clothes I'd gotten for Hiei.

I glance over my shoulder at him, only to find him staring at my back curiously, probably wondering what I was doing. At the time, getting him the clothes had seemed like a good choice, smart in fact, but now it suddenly seemed stupid. Flushing, I turned away.

But what could I do with them now? I'd already purchased them after all, and there was a distinct no-return policy. I might as well give them to him since I'd already went through all the trouble to get them in the first place.

"Hiei," I said firmly and he stared at me. Quickly losing my nerve, I almost sprinted over to him and avoided eye contact. Without allowing him to say or do anything, I threw the bag in his arms and I could tell that I had completely startled him.

"They're clothes, so go put on a shirt or something," I tried speaking normally, but the words came out rapidly and softly and with each one, my face felt like it was a little more on fire each time, "I figured you didn't have any, so now you don't have to walk around like that. Now, if you'll excuse me, " Looking down the whole time, I spun around and fled to my room, only remembering to breathe after I'd closed the door behind me.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

Hiei stared at the closed door for several moments and then pulled out the first thing he touched from the bag: a simple black shirt. He slipped it over his head and was content when it fit fine.

Gently setting the bag down, he strolled over to the next room and pulled the window open. He carefully stepped up to the edge, trying not to lose his balance. Losing his demonic energy, had seemed to not only have made him weaker but less coordinated as well.

How could humans stand to be as they were? They totally lacked even simple things like good balance and vision, along with other senses like smell. They were such stupid, useless creatures. If he'd actually been born human... he didn't want to think about it.

It was as if he was trapped in a nightmare: as weak as a human and not able to do anything. It ticked him off.

He leapt up to the branch stretching closest and almost lost his grip. Luckily, he hadn't lost all of his strength so he was able to struggle on top of it and settled into the nook as he'd always done.

The sun set glowed a vibrant orange, giving everything a soft, hazy color. He closed his eyes, waiting for the sun to disappear behind the horizon. When he opened his eyes again, the moon was already glowing brightly.

In the dark, a yellow light was made obvious to him on his left. Ren's window was still opened from earlier; she must've forgotten to close it.

"Stupid girl, " he chided to himself. He readjusted himself at an angle to where he could see inside her room. She was sitting at a desk in the corner, and she wasn't moving except for the rise and fall of her back. She'd fallen asleep over her desk, and it looked like she was drooling as well.

"Hn, moron."

~.~.~.~.~.

A small drop of morning dew gently bounced on a leaf. It slid down the waxy texture and dripped onto the eyelid of a sleeping Hiei. Startled, he abruptly sat up, hand instinctively reaching for his katana. Cursing, he realized for the hundredth time that it just wasn't there.

It was still dim out and a thin layer of fog covered the ground; the sun was just beginning to rise. He yawned and leaned back, relishing the quiet morning. If only moments like this could last, he'd feel somewhat at peace with this place.

Ren's window was still open and he twitched when he saw her towel wrapped torso stick out. He didn't make a sound.

~.~.~.~.~.

I took a deep breath of the morning air and sighed, ringing out my hair outside the window. Grabbing a small brush, I began to absentmindedly stroke it as I looked towards the horizon, waiting for the sun to come up. It was typical routine. After I'd shower, I came here to gaze at dawn. I looked over the roofs of small houses and the awakening city and gazed up at the tree. It shook timidly in the slight wind. I paused mid-stroke.

A red flash- blinking. My eyes focused on the abnormal anomaly. It felt as if the waking, morning sun's heat had been quenched as Hiei only stared at me blankly, unmoving.

My brush took flight. Sailing through the air, it harshly hit my unsuspecting target in the eye and I watched in wicked satisfaction as Hiei struggled to regain any lost balance and fell from the branch. There was a loud thud and grunt, followed by an intense string of cursing. I could practically feel Hiei's menacing glare, but I only tightened my towel, my face beat red. (As soon as I saw him drop, there was a slight spike of panic because of his wound, but it instantly vanished when I realized he seemed perfectly ok.)

"What the hell was that for?" Hiei yelled angrily.

"Don't play stupid with me you pervert! I saw you on your little peeping perch! If I ever catch you again-" I bit my tongue, stopping myself from uttering another word and slammed the window shut, in a mix of anger and chagrin.

What an asshole! I pressed my back against the wall and carefully peered out the window, spying on him. Hiei had propped himself against the trunk, annoyance dominating his face. I escaped from the window and quickly got dressed, pulling my hair up quickly.

Collecting my bag, I marched into the kitchen and angrily fetched an apple. I chewed thoughtfully and found myself frowning. Maybe I'd been too harsh on him. It probably had hurt a lot when he'd landed on the ground like that, and he was still recovering from his wounds, no matter how ok he seemed.

Guilt churned the apple in my stomach and I set it down, having lost my appetite. How could I have done that? What if he was in pain and was just being stubborn and not saying anything?

I rushed downstairs, jumping down the stairs two at a time. Making it around the corner, I halted in surprise. Hiei wasn't alone anymore. Kurama was leaning against the tree next to him. They seemed to be having a conversation although Hiei wasn't responding.

I felt relieved when it didn't seem like he was in any pain and there wasn't any red spots that I could see. Kurama looked up as I approached them, smiling.

"An, Ren. Good morning." he said.

"Good morning," I said, avoiding eye contact with Hiei whose eyes were boring holes into the side of my head.

"I've heard that there was a slight ruckus a little earlier." Kurama chuckled, handing me my brush which I accepted with a flushed face. Hiei must've told him what happened.

"Yes... actually that's one of the reasons I came out here unfortunately," I muttered that last part under my breath, but then forced myself to look down directly at Hiei.

"Regarding what you might've or might've not seen, I wanted to apologi-" I was abruptly cut off.

"Trust me, there was nothing to see."

I clenched my fist and gritted my teeth, taking a menacing step forward, "Wait just a second-"

"Excuse me?" I paused to see Kurama grinning in amusement, "If you'll allow me to finish my business, I'll be able to leave quicker and you'll be free to continue. This for you, Hiei," From a bag I hadn't noticed earlier, he pulled out a neatly folded pile of clothes and dropped it in Hiei's lap. In response to Hiei's look, Kurama pointed at himself and then at me.

"It's a another uniform to replace the one you practically ripped apart on your first day. Don't you remember? You still have to attend school."

Hiei's mood seemed to darken drastically, "I must have conveniently forgotten."

Kurama chuckled, "Well, I'll now leave you two to this fine morning." he raised a hand in farewell and walked away.

"I guess we'll see him later then..." I muttered and felt a light breeze swish past me. Hiei was already leaving. Sighing, I followed him, still fuming a bit on the inside.

I saw him disappear into my room and once inside, I glanced at the clock on the wall. It was almost 8 and we were already fighting.

Joy.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

We barely made it on time when we finally arrived. I'm surprised we got here at all. Unfortunately, the only empty seats in the entire room were the ones around mind. Hiei did nothing to hide his displeasure from being here and I watch how some kids tried to go up to him only to be chased off by his glare; he'd practically set up an impenetrable wall around him.

By the time the teacher got in, the class began to settle, but not even he could stop the whispers circulating around the room. From what I could make out, it was only rude gossip about Hiei. I peered at Hiei's back, wondering what could be going through his head.

"Class, we were supposed to have a new student yesterday, but due to certain circumstances, he was absent. But he's here today. Hiei Sukisho, is it?" Everyone's head turned in unison at Hiei expectantly. I was surprised when he actually stood up, and without a word, pocketed hands, and grimace on his face, he sauntered to the front. He faced the class with a bored expression.

Mr. Renji tapped his knuckles, waiting for Hiei to say something, but he didn't say a word. I almost wanted to laugh. Growing impatient, Mr. Renji cleared his throat.

"Well Mr. Sukisho, will you introduce yourself to the class and tell us something about yourself so we can make it easier for us to get along?"

Hiei glared at him and the man flinched under his gaze and then Hiei turned towards the student body again. No student dared look at him straight on.

Hiei kept his introduction short and sweet, "It's Hiei and I don't want to get along with any of you." He walked back to his seat while everyone just stared at him in disbelief. I found it incredibly difficult keep a straight face.

After an awkward silence, Mr. Renji tried to get things back to normal, "Er, well good to know. I hope we all get along. Anyways, we had an update from the girl who collapsed yesterday and they say that she's to see a full recovery, it's quite remarkable really. But now to it, today..."

~.~.~.~.~.~.

"Could that day have been any longer?" I said, more to myself than anything with Hiei silently traveling behind me, "But it's great that that girl will be ok, don't you think?"

"Hn."

So much for any chance of small talk, but I continued to chat with him, trying to fill the quiet air and awkward silence.

I was thankful when we finally reached the apartment because frankly, I'd run out of topics, but I was surprised by the unexpected trio at my door.

"Why hello there!" greeted Botan, beaming and laughing; I noticed Hiei's glance of distaste

"Hi Botan. And Keiko and Yukina too. What brings you all here? Have you been waiting for a long time?"

Keiko shook her head, "No, we actually just got here."

Yukina smiled, "We just thought to visit." She turned to Hiei and bowed kindly, "Good afternoon to you too Hiei."

And then the strangest thing happened. A smile crossed his face. It was small but very real. My head was reeling. Ok, there was definitely something going on here...

"Hello, Earth to Ren? Are you alright?" Keiko was shaking my shoulders.

"Oh! Sorry, my mind must've slipped off. Hold on," I quickly unlocked the door, missing their exchanged bewildered looks.

"Please come in." I ushered them in and escaped to make tea.

"Say Ren," I heard Botan call from the other room. I looked up from the tea pot.

"Yes?"

"I hadn't thought about it before, but every time we've come here, it's only been you, disregarding Hiei of course. Don't you have any parents? Don't tell me you live by yourself!"

She didn't really hold back, did she? Clicking the spoon against the last cup, I was silent, unconsciously stroking my ribbon once again.

"Ren?" I heard a timid call.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm coming." I lifted the tray and headed for the living room, shaking my head.

"I don't live by myself, but I'm usually alone."

As I served the drinks, Yukina said, "Who lives with you?"

"My uncle. But he's always away due to work and is usually gone for several weeks at a time. Good thing to, or I don't think he would've been ok with all this demon and Spirit World business." I chuckled humorlessly and I hoped that my tone made my message clear: I don't want to talk about it.

Botan took the hint and looked guilty, resolving to drinking her tea after uttering a small, "Oh."

Hiei quietly stared at me and quickly looked away when I caught him. Hiei had deep and intense eyes and having them trained on me made me scared, not from him but what he might be seeing; it was as if he could see inside me.

Shaking off the feeling and avoiding anymore eye contact with him, I stood up and addressed the girls politely.

"I don't mean to be ruse you guys, but I actually have to get to work n half an hour, and I should get going."

"We didn't know you worked!" Keiko exclaimed.

"Yes, we practically invited ourselves over. We're sorry," Yukina bowed in apology and I quickly calmed her down, responding to the hate Hiei was glaring at me with.

"No it's ok, really! It's always nice to have guests." I said, smiling.

"Where do you work?" Botan asked.

"It's this small little pub called My Pleasure. It's a couple of blocks away but I don't get off till 9. You guys can stay if you want, but if you do, would you mind keeping the place fairly neat just in case anybody else comes over? I don't want to come back to another mess."

Botan and the others nodded while Hiei just "Hn'd."

~.~.~.~.~.~

"Thank you for waiting ma'am, it was my pleasure!" I slipped to the back of the room where a girl was waiting for me.

"Hey Hashi, I'm here to relieve you." She chirped. I sighed in relief and happily handed over the platter I was holding.

"This is for table 5, and thank you!" I whizzed to the staff room, making a beeline for my locker around the other people. I changed out of my uniform and into some sweats and a t-shirt. I was excited to get home. Or not necessarily excited ,but just happy.

The manager had scolded me pretty well for missing work without any notice a couple of days ago, but she'd let me off easy. All I wanted to do was get home and relax a little.

As I shuffled out the back door, I squawked when I saw a small figure come out from the shadows.

"Hiei! Jeez, don't scare me like that..." I rested my hand over my beating heart, "What are you doing here? And was it really safe to be out by yourself?"

He glanced at me with his blank eyes, "I didn't come to be patronized." he said bitterly, "And I didn't choose to come here. The others asked me to come pick you up."

I blinked. Since when did Hiei do favors for anyone?

"Oh, did Yukina ask you?" the question just slipped out.

"Hn." snorting, Hiei whirled without another word. Sighing, I went after him.

~.~.~ A couple of days later ~.~.~.~

"Just get out!" I shoved Hiei out the door and into the dim light of the evening. I threw the door shut, catching a glimpse of the hatred-filled face a he turned to snarl. I immediately locket it. I knew I was acting juvenile, but at the moment I was to pissed off to really care.

I saw the knob jiggle and heard a muffled, but aggravated yell. The door frame began to vibrate and there was a large thok! I felt myself tremble in anger- he didn't have to kick the freaking door down. I held my breath for a few moments, waiting, and trying to settle my speeding heart. Several moments passed.

Thok!

I sighed heavily and forced myself to walk away. Halting at my bedroom door, I noticed the wide-open window, the curtains gently fluttering in the breeze. I'd gotten in the habit of just constantly keeping open for Hiei's convenient enter and exit habits regardless of the fact that there was actually a door, but I quickly shut it, pulling the curtains across the night sky.

I wasn't intending to let him in anytime soon. I didn't even know when he'd come back. Or maybe he wouldn't come back.

Koenma might get me for this...

...

Hm. Oh well.

Collapsing on my bed, I enjoyed the sinking feeling while my body released its pent up tension from being so angry. I felt a twitching nerve in my head start to settle.

I never realized how much quieter it had always been without Hiei here. it was almost too quiet. But only almost, especially since I didn't get enough of it anymore.

Honestly, how were we supposed to stay together another day when we couldn't even be peaceful in each other's presence for an hour? I closed my eyes and pressed the cool part of my hand against my heated head.

I thought it over, refusing to admit that I might've been a little more immature than necessary. And the "slamming-the-door-in-his-face" thing probably didn't help much either, although it did add a nice touch. But still, for the moment, I wanted to care less about where Hiei had gone and not waste any more time thinking about it.

Which I was doing anyways.

I yelled out loud, the mix between a groan and random pitched tones; I had to admit, although it didn't solve anything, it was nice to get my problem out into the open, regardless of the fact that it had come out as incoherent sounds. Allowing the quiet to settle back down, my thoughts drifted to the previous days and the twitching nerve came back. I reached up to physically smooth out my angry wrinkles.

I was trying to relax, I told myself. I need to relax.

After Hiei had picked me up, it'd been an incredibly awkward trip home. At least, for me it was. He was like a silent brick with an aura that I didn't even want to try and penetrate. And even for his size, since he was at least a couple of inches shorter than me, he had a long and very quick stride so that I almost had to jog to keep up with him. By the time we had arrived home, I was pink in the face with sweat coating the back of my neck. When we'd gotten inside, he disappeared somewhere and I didn't see him for the rest of the night.

The next morning, I remember looking for Hiei to wake him, in the dining room (although Hiei always slept in the tree, I tried insisting that he have an "official" living quarters just in case it rained or anything, so I rolled out a futon) but when I'd opened the door, I'd remembered panicking at the sight or rather not the sight, of any empty room. There was no futon, not even our table, and there was no Hiei.

Questions that needed answering flew through my head: Did he sneak out? How did he? Where did all the stuff go? What am I going to do? Will Koenma really come and erase my memories? How much would he erase without getting rid of anything important? What happened to Hiei? What happened to the futon? What happened to the table?

I'd frantically searched for an hour, when I'd finally noticed that the door was unlocked. Almost right after, I found the table pushed up right by the door, the futon folded neatly on top of it. But I didn't find the main culprit.

I deduced that he must've actually left. I didn't know what else could have happened, but if he wasn't at school I don't know what I'd do.

However, when I got there, I didn't find him in class, but on the roof, squishing a bug. Besides that, I'd cracked a twisted smile and muttered a "good morning " although I really wanted to add and for moving all my furniture and for practically dropping off the face of the Earth without even saying anything. Smashing the dead insect, he only "Hn'd."

That night, I made dinner for two. I ate in the hallway, which was uncomfortable, but Hiei didn't look like he was about to help me put the table back and he'd gone straight to the dining room. I didn't see him for the rest of that night either. So I just left his food by the doorway, tapping the screen to let him know, although I didn't receive an answer. I was hoping that maybe he'd take it when I wasn't looking like he normally did when I wasn't looking. I don't think he'd eaten for a while, so I made sure to load the plate with a few extras.

The next morning, he'd been gone again, but his plate was spotless. I remember smiling.

The following days had been something of this nature: Wake up. No Hiei. School. Home. No Hiei. Work. Sleep. And repeat. But I got smart and started leaving wrapped foods by his door in the morning, so he'd have at least a little breakfast to last him the day. I began experimenting, leaving some type of food one day and when I'd notice that maybe he'd eaten more of on than the other, I'd swap, discerning his tastes indirectly. I concluded that among his favorites were sweet tamagoyaki, flavored onigiri, and tsukemono. But I never mentioned anything about it at school because I'd doubt he'd admit anything anyways.

But today being a Saturday changed things. There was no school for Hiei to escape to this morning and it was strange seeing him; I'd already gotten so used to our daily routine. When I was walking out of my room, I was stunned to find him walking out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist, his usual spiky hair sagging with the weight of the water. Tomato red, I stuttered an apology and I ran back into my room.

Couldn't he have stood to be a little more considerate? He was still a guest here, but he was acting like he owned the place! Walking around with just a towel was totally inappropriate, especially since there was a lady in the house! I made sure to wait a good half hour before daring to venture out again.

The morning passed by slowly and silently. Hiei was just as unapproachable as ever and although there were things I wanted to discuss, I felt too intimidated. Where had my backbone run off to? It was easier to talk, or rather yell at him, when we were fighting, which I realized we hadn't done recently. I hadn't seen him enough in the past couple of days long enough to actually start something, which surprised me.

I thanked Kami when there was a knock on the door. The cavalry had arrived, or it had at least sounded like that. I almost wanted to laugh when I saw the pure annoyance on Hiei's face. The entire party consisted of Keiko, Botan, and Yukina, then Yusuke (who'd actually had the nerve to bring alcohol, which was quickly thrown out) and Kuwabara who were comparing muscle size and then Kurama and Koenma. It was a full house!

The guys spent the time discussing things in hushed and serious discussions and I almost felt like we were being left out in something important, but I had no time to pay attention because the girls kept me busy. It was nice, but I have to admit that I wasn't really used to the noise and chaos and by late afternoon, I was more than a little glad to be saying goodbye.

I was a little more sad to see Yukina go though. We'd been having a very good conversation and I felt like we were getting closer. And she was good at getting Hiei to do things. And that's where things kind of started. To the throwing him out ordeal, I mean.

I'd ended up making dinner for the both of us and before, Hiei had been able to escape to the safety of the dining room, but this time I caught him by the shoulder, telling him that I wanted to have dinner together for a change. For the majority, I don't know why I did it, but I knew a small part of me was curious to see Hiei actually eat. Plus I'd made a new plate so it would be another experiment. At first, he refused to eat with me, but I didn't take it sitting down.

After that skirmish, which I might say was completely ridiculous, he actually did sit down with me, but only long enough to make sure I wasn't looking when he took the first bite of soup- a personal special of mine- and spray it all over the table, including me. The salty soup smelled all over.

It got a little messy.

...

I lied. It got a lot messy. It's almost funny how the first time we really interact in days and we're at each other's throats.

I looked through the think curtains and noticed the sky had turned considerably darker. To myself, I mimicked Hiei's common remark, "I can take care of myself, moron" (he'd started calling me a moron quite frequently) I checked the window again. No Hiei.

I shook my head. No! I wasn't going to worry about him! I'm not worried. Definitely not. Yup...

I wandered out into the hall, peering down at the mess we'd made together. There was no way I was going to clean that up myself. Plus, I suppose it would spoil soon, so that decided it! I better find Hiei quickly, to clean this up! Or at least, that's what I told myself. I wasn't anxious or anything.

I grabbed a jacket and left, taking the stairs down two at a time, trying to hurry. On the last step, i felt my foot catch on a hitch in the framework of the metal railing and I gasped. The ground came rushing up fast and I whipped my arms forward blindly.

I quickly righted myself, wiping dirt and stones from my hands on my jeans, grimacing. My hand felt slightly damp.

However, a fresh breeze flew past me and I relaxed, feeling my mind go slightly hazy, and I quickly forgot about my hand.

A soft tune was permeating my mind, and I let the sweet and pleasant melody to overflow. It was a high soprano pitch, like the jingle of a small bell. It echoed in my head like the never ending sound of a wind chime.

I was losing focus on things, but the breeze and the song felt so nice and I submitted, figuring the wind would lead me where it may. I felt my eyes droop and I was barely able to make out a small sliver.

My mind elsewhere, it was like waking in a dream, onward and onward, and all there was, was the soft ringing, the hypnotic repetition of the crunch under my feet, and the force that seemed to be pulling me along.

~.~.~.~.~.

The melody dissolved; I blinked, disoriented and dazed. I struggle to get out of my groggy state. Looking around, no houses or buildings were in sight. I was beginning to feel an ache in my feet. That must've been a really good walk for me to practically fall asleep during it!

I was on a gravelly path of multicolored pebbles, surrounded by trees and a couple of mildly faded wooden benches. A small playground was placed a little towards the back of the clearing. Street lamps littered the side of the path which spun and twisted throughout the area like a snake. A light above me flickered slightly, making a clicking sound. How did I end up at the park?

Walking over to the playground, I maneuvered around a slide to sit on a swing. Grabbing the chain, I sat down and gently rocked. The metal felt icy beneath my fingers.

I'm still not sure how I ended up here of all places, but I knew I should be headed back soon. I wonder if Hiei had found his way home...

Suddenly there was a loud shuffle in the trees. I froze, sticking my feet out and kicking wooden chips up. But the sound didn't stop; it just seemed to get louder and even more insistent. Nerves were getting the better of me. It's got to just be an owl or something. I was probably just a little spooked because it was dark and I was alone.

...

Why did I come out here alone again?

The hairs on the back of my neck prickled sharply and I peeped in fright. Jumping from the swing, I clutched the chain as if it could protect me. My head swiveled around, checking for any signs of others in the area.

A twig snapped and I swallowed a breath, feeling completely exposed. I bit my lip and tried to distract myself with the pain.

Stop it! Nothing's out there right now. I'm just being paranoid because it's a little dark and creepy. I gazed amongst the surrounding trees. A wind blew and they began waving at me. I shivered and clenched my hand. A sudden pain gripped me and I cried out, startling myself.

I opened my fist and peered at it in shock: there were several gashes running jaggedly against my hand. There were 3 main incisions and they looked slightly wet, while the majority of my hand was covered in dry blood. How had I not felt this before?

Without warning, there was flash of green light and something was flying towards my. I didn't have the time to think. Shrieking, I dived to the left, landing hard on the ground in a flurry of dust.

What the heck just happened?

Coughing up dirt, my eyes darted to the spot I'd been standing on just seconds before, now a small crater about five feet wide and just as deep. I squeaked. That could have been me! I tried to find the source of the blow, from the top of the tree. A figure lounged on a branch, but my eyes swam with dirt and I couldn't focus.

"If you had just stayed still, it would have ended quickly, you know." the voice was male, serious, and even a little sympathetic. Shaking, I struggled to pull myself onto my knees, until I saw the silhouette raise an arm and a green glow began to form on his hand. I stared, half in fear and half in amazement, as the glow manifested into an orb. My stomach felt like a roller coaster.

I stuttered, "Who- who are you?"

He stood up and peered down at me, "Tatsuya, but you don't have to worry about that for long."

I saw Tatsuya smile under the flicker of the street lamp and the orb stopped glowing. Run you freaking idiot! I yelled at myself and I would have gladly obliged but my legs felt numb underneath me. My whole body felt frozen and I couldn't move, to scared to even blink. He stepped forward.

Then my brain reactivated.

Crying out, I forced myself up and moved just as I felt a huge blow of power surge behind me. My feet lifted off the floor and I screamed as I tumbled through the air for a few eternal seconds. I crashed on my side and my breath was squashed out of me, leaving my rasping. I struggled to get back up, my body pumping with adrenaline from fear.

"You should really just give up." I could hear the frown in his voice. He sounded frustrated, like someone would be trying to squish a bug that you just couldn't get a solid shot at.

"It'd make life easier for the both of us."

I started to run again, trying to focus on putting one foot in front of the other, trying to get away from here as quickly as I could. Then I did the worst think I possibly could do.

I looked back.

I should've known better. This happened only like a week ago!

In an instant, my legs submerged into a sudden depression. The crater! I was filled with sick realization as I processed the situation. Id' basically finished myself off.

It's all over!

I cried out as I tumbled awkwardly and hard into the large hole and a loud crack snapped through the air. A string of fire shot up my leg from my ankle and several tears fell from the incredible pain. Brilliant. Of course, I'd be on to break my ankle, disabling all chances of escape. Not that I really had any chances in the first place.

There was really nothing I could do and my heart slowly dropped, coming to terms with my inevitable fate. Tatsuya was going to kill me while I stayed put like a sitting duck.

"Are you done running? Was that really all you had to offer? Asami must've been wrong about you," Tatsuya peered down at me from the edge of the hold and I trembled like a leaf.

"For some reason, Asami thought there was something special about you, some specific reason why you , a mere human girl, would be hanging around with Koenma and his gang." As he said this, my eyes widened. Tatsuya must've been working with that guy who attacked Hiei.

"Plus you were hanging with that fire demon Hiei before Minoru got him. So I was ordered to finish you off, but you look pitiful down there. It actually makes me feel bad to finish you." he paused, "There's nothing unique about you. Any spirit energy that you have is practically nothing and luring you here must have been the easiest thing I've ever done. You didn't even realize when I put you under my song charm." He lifted his other hand and I caught a glint of silver. A flute! So that music earlier...

"Also, the strong smell of you blood led me right to you."

A sour taste filled my mouth as me hand began to sting, reminding me of my early accident. I might as well have served myself up, complete with toppings, on a silver platter.

But I'd noticed another thing: they must not have realized that Hiei was still alive! A small part inside of me felt relieved. Tatsuya sighed.

"Don't worry- I promise to make it quick." I snapped my gaze to his glowing hand and I could feel the heat waving around my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, my heart hammering in my ears. I couldn't believe I was about to die. I don't want to die!

A small tear escaped and, at the moment, I couldn't remember ever feeling as pathetic as I did now. Then there was suddenly a choking anger churning inside me and I began to tremble, whether still from fear or fury, I didn't know.

If only I had never met Hiei! I'd never have ended up in this situation if only I'd never helped him! Some kind of force began to rip its way up my throat and I gritted my teeth. My mouth was forced open and I began screaming.

"Hiei you GOD DAMN-"

"Ren!"

I couldn't think anymore. Great, now I was hearing things.

"Move!" Wait that was- ! But then there was a sharp lashing and Tatsuya's fist flared. I screamed and there was silence.

~.~.~.~.~.

The silence must've lasted only a few seconds, but they'd felt like an eternity. I realized I could still feel the fast pace of my heart continuing to race. I slowly opened one eye. Tatsuya wasn't in sight.

For a moment, I was confused until I felt something rustle beside me, sliding down to my side. A pair of arms began reaching out to me and I flinched back, reactively clawing out. The figure grabbed my arms, but I tried to pull myself away.

"Stay away from me!" My voice was raspy and choked. The brief joy of realizing I was still alive evaporated.

"Hn, fine with me. I don't care if you live or not."

I stopped struggling, as the voice instantly clicked in my head. I allowed myself to readjust my sight and Hiei was there, staring at me. I could only stare back.

"H-Hiei!" Although Hiei only glared at me, I couldn't feel happier to see him.

"Hn. What was that about 'god damn'?"

"Er..."

"Ren are you alright?" I looked up to see Kurama looking down at us, his green eyes shining with concern. Hiei stood up and looked over the edge of the hole and I followed suit, having to grab onto Hiei's arm to pull myself up. Leaning heavily on my uninjured side, I saw Tatsuya a distance away, his face twisted; he was slouching and gripping onto his arm.

Hiei eyed him coldly. While looking at Tatsuya, I gasped. By his finger tips, I saw a red liquid dripping down. Following the flow, it led to a deep and nasty gash on his arm.

But how did that happen? for the first time, I noticed Kurama wielding some sort of green vine by his side. It was covered in vicious thorns and I flinched away when I noticed glistening, dark red stains.

Kurama glowered at Tatsuya, "If you hadn't moved, it could have ended quickly. Can't you follow your own advice?" Tatsuya made a low guttural sound, but straightened up.

"I can deal with a small cut like this. It's too bad though. If you hadn't shown up, my work here would've been done and I could have gone home early. And it looks like someone's come back from the grave," Tatsuya shifted his eyes on Hiei, his voice dripping with anger.

Hiei chuckled, "What? Are you talking about that pathetic excuse of a demon, Minoru, who thought he could finish me? Like I'd let such a lowly demon place a scratch on me."

I gaped in raw astonishment. What was he talking about? Last I checked, it was a little more than a scratch! Minoru had practically tossed him down on his death bed!

Kurama's eyes flashed, "Now, don't mind them. Your opponent right now will be me." He cast a sidelong look at Hiei and I, "Hiei, take Ren and escape from here. Even as you are, you should be able to get out fairly quickly. I will handle him."

Hiei glowered at him, "Kurama don't be ridiculous. Like hell am I going to back away from a fight-"

Kurama smirked, "Be wise Hiei. We both know you'd be no help to me. You would only slow me down. And it wouldn't help if we got Ren killed in the process." I silently agreed.

Hiei's expression darkened and he clenched his fists, "Tch, whatever. This guy doesn't look worth it anyways." Kurama only chuckled.

"Wait," cried Tatsuya, looking downright villainous, "Don't think I'm just going to let you go so easily. None of you are getting away." I gasped in fear when his fists began to glow again.

Kurama crouched, "Hiei!"

Hiei hn'd, muttering, "Right."

Suddenly, my world spun as I felt an arm grab my waist and I was pulled from the hole. I hissed in agony when my ankle twisted. Hiei looked at me.

"What is it?" he asked. I clenched my teeth, wishing the pain away.

"I think I broke my ankle." I muttered weakly.

Hiei scoffed, "Hn, moron. You think?" he pointed at my foot and I looked. Not only was it twisted in the wrong direction and was purple, but a huge gash ran diagonally from my heel to the main swelling. Blood dribbled down, soaking my sock. I forced myself to look away.

"I was blindly running for my life Hiei! What would I- Kyaa!" I screamed as Hiei, without warning, scooped me onto his back, hooking his arms around my legs. Although I could tell he was trying to be gentle with my ankle, I still whimpered when it thumped gently against his thigh.

"Would you mind watching it?"

"Would you mind shutting up?"

"Actually-" I was cut off though when Hiei leapt and landed a few feet back. I felt a surge of power fly past us. Next thing I know, there's a very similar hold dented where we'd just been standing. Steam licked up around the edges.

Unconsciously, I tightened my grip on Hiei. I saw Tatsuya smirking against us from afar, but then a line of green sailed at him. Tatsuya quickly flipped backwards, twisting on his good arm, and as Kurama lashed forward again, he pushed himself up to the side. Kurama yelled at us again.

"Hiei, leave already. You're being a hindrance."

Hiei growled beneath me, "I don't take orders Kurama." But he readjusted his grip on me and turned to start running. While we weren't flying over buildings like before, Hiei's speed was still a lot faster than a normal person's. But I struggled.

"Wa-wait Hiei! We can't just leave Kurama there!" I knew I was yelling, but I didn't seem to have control of my voice. But Hiei didn't stop and only laughed dryly.

"We can and we will. You don't know Kurama; he can take care of himself."

"But-" I stopped talking. There was no point in arguing. I tried to look back, the sounds of explosions and Kurama's whip cracking fading behind us. Settling into Hiei's back, I realized I'd still been trembling the entire time.

We were on a side road by now. The wind whistled in my ears. My arms were secure around Hiei's neck and I buried my head into the crook of his neck.

He grunted, "Stop holding so tight." I ignored him.

...

"I-" Hiei tilted his head in acknowledgement.

"I- I was so scared." The last word came out broken and cracked. Hiei faced back forward.

"Hn, like I said: moron."

[End]

Well, how'd I do for this chappy? Good, bad? Please feel free to tell me how horrible or not horrible of a writer I am! Or to actually comment on the story or something crazy like that. Please let me know what you're thinking! :D Please review! ^^