Hey folks! Next chapter here!! Nothing really to report, except my birthday's tomorrow. Sweet Sixteen!! And I did my summer work and turned it in on time!! Yay! But let's continue with the story, shall we?

Disclaimer: Guess what!?!... I don't own anything YYH. The stuff that wasn't in any manga or anime is mine.

"Speech" ; Thoughts; Actions

Hiei, being much faster than Ryann, arrived at the apartment before her and sat on the couch to wait. Yoko better not have done anything... I couldn't live with that.

On the way there Hiei had convinced himself that he was feeling this way because he didn't want to live with someone who'd be fawning all over his friend. This had to be the reason he was so anxious to find out what Yoko had done to Ryann, as he reasoned to himself.

When Ryann burst through the door and interrupted Hiei's thoughts he sprang from the couch and confronted her in the hallway. She stopped in her tracks and looked as though she was caught doing something wrong.

"What did the fox do?"

"...eep!" She stared wide-eyed at him and tried to run around him. No, no, no, damn it!!!Not him! Must get to the sanctuary of my room! Her efforts were thwarted (hehe, funny word) as he grabbed her arms and held her in place.

"Just tell me what he did, onna? Why are you acting so weird?" What did that mean? (AN: referring to what she was thinking.) He looked into her eyes and saw them change to an icy light blue. Suddenly his hands went numb and Ryann had darted around him and ran straight to her room, locking the door behind her.

He glanced down and saw she had frozen his hands. This was easily fixed, being a fire demon and all. The numbness went away and Hiei sighed to himself. Why would she be acting so... afraid of me? Not that he cared, of course. It just made him wonder, seeing as how he was assigned there to protect her.

He walked to her door and prepared to knock on it. His hand seemed frozen again. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. So instead, he sat on the floor against the wall and closed his eyes. His Jagan eye began glowing under the bandanna and his mind flooded with a conversation going on behind the closed door.

Inside Ryann's room, Ookami was trying his best not to laugh as he heard his mistress pacing across the floor, muttering curses to herself. So it's finally happened.

She stopped and glared at him. What are you muttering about?

I could ask you the same thing. To his amusement her cheeks flushed lightly and she quickly turned around to hide it.

Once she had composed herself she turned back around and sat on the end of her bed. I have no idea what you're talking about.

Sure you do. Elsewise you wouldn't be practically having a panic attack. And you wouldn't have locked yourself in here with him out there. He raised a furry eyebrow at her and cocked his head. She glared at him.

Shut your face. With a sigh she let herself fall back and stared up at the ceiling. It and the wall behind her bed had been painted a deep red for accent. Now, though, she wished she hadn't done that because it reminded her of was Hiei's crimson eyes. Ugh, I am so screwed.

Ookami's eyes softened at his mistress' distress. It's not the end of the world, you know. So what if you have a little crush on Hiei? Don't see how, though, he's a prick.

Despite her bad mood, Ryann snorted and began to laugh. Thanks, Ooka. She calmed down and was silent for a moment. But how am I supposed to live with him? He pisses me off and yet I like him, that is not a good combination, you know.

She groaned to herself at her dilemma and stood up, stretching her back until she heard a satisfying crack. Maybe it'll help if I go drown myself in the shower. Keep an eye on things, alright?

Aye aye, Captain! He stood at attention and Ryann just rolled her eyes. She locked herself in the bathroom and Ookami waited until he heard the water running. With a sly smile he got up and trotted to the door. Time to stir it up a bit.

Hiei had been sitting outside of the bedroom and was using his Jagan eye to listen in on the conversation. He was aware that Ookami knew he was listening but Ryann seemed oblivious. After hearing what he had just heard, he just sat there in deep thought. He didn't even notice Ooka inching out of the doorway.

"So, what do you think?"

His head snapped up to Ookami in his full grown wolf form staring at him. He scowled.

"What do I think about what, wolf?"

Ookami snorted. "You've been sitting there for 5 minutes, and you didn't notice me resize right infront of you. I'd say something was distracting you," he commented, his tone taunting.

"Hn."

Ookami sweatdropped. "Quite a talker there, aren't you?"

Hiei glared at him and stood up. He walked into the living room and fell into the couch. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Ookami jump onto the loveseat. He was staring again.

"What, wolf?"

"You heard us talking, correct?"

Hiei rolled his eyes. Ookami sighed. Like he's going to admit it. "Alright, assuming that's right, you heard that she likes you. So what are you going to do about it?"

"Absolutely nothing."

Ookami tilted his head. "Why not? She likes you, and you seem to be attracted to her..."

Hiei sat up and glared vehemently at him. "And where the hell did you get that idea?"

"I recall you yelling to yourself something along the lines of 'Why can't I get her out of my head.' Who else would that 'her' be?" He paused for a moment. "And you have something of hers that you haven't given back yet."

"What are you talking about?" he questioned rudely.

Ookami smirked, as well as a wolf can, and said "Check your pockets."

Hiei scoffed and stood, sticking his hands in his pockets. He froze when he felt a small, smoothe ball in his pocket. He withdrew his hand and looked at it in his palm. It was the tear gem Ryann had shed at Koenma's office. How did he...?

"Why did you take it?"

He was brought out of his thoughts and opened his mouth to respond. Nothing came out. Nothing came to mind.He closed his mouth and glanced back down at the gem. Why did I take it? He thought back to that moment. I was drawn to it. There was something about it that made it seem... special. It's like her. There's just something different...

Hiei continued to consider his actions and sat back down on the couch. Ookami was still siting on the loveseat, and was listening carefully to what Hiei was thinking. The fire demon had been so caught up in his thoughts since he arrived at this apartment that he hadn't put up a mental block at all.

Time passed and neither had moved from their places, both lost in Hiei's thoughts. Ookami had come to find out what he wanted to know in the first place. So Hiei doesn't like my mistress. That's disappointing. I hope Ryann's feelings aren't that strong, he thought sadly to himself. Her first love would be her first heartbreak. That would be awful.

Though Ookami was correct in thinking that Hiei doesn't like Ryann, he missed something. Something very important.

Hiei clenched his fist, the tear gem still inside. He wanted to understand. He wanted to understand Ryann, and he wanted to understand why she felt different from everyone else he'd met. Inside his hand, the blue-white gem began began to glow softly and a foggy image began to take shape. Hiei suddenly felt dizzy and fell back against the couch, unconscious.

Warm water fell onto Ryann's pale skin and she sighed heavily. The shower felt wonderful but it wouldn't soothe her worried thoughts. I can't believe I'm starting to like him. This has never happened before. What am I going to do?

She stood in the shower for a long time, contemplating how this happened. What makes me attracted to him, anyway? Sure, he's good-looking. But he can really be a prick. I don't know anything about him... and yet the mystery is exciting. Sigh I don't know.

She shut the water off when it began getting cold and dried herself off, still pondering herself. There was something she must've been missing because none of this made sense. Taking her time, she got dressed in sleeping clothes and brushed her long brown hair, putting it in a braid.

Upon walking back into her bedroom Ryann realized that Ookami was no longer in there. She felt Ookami in the living room, along with Hiei. "I swear if that wolf says one thing, I'll strangle him alive."

Now, on top of being confused about why she was attracted to Hiei, she was worried about Hiei finding out. That would be horrible. He already thinks little of my now. What would he possibly think if he found out I had a school-girl crush on him. She shuddered slightly at the thought and laid down on her bed. Her alarm clock read 5:15 in bright red numbers. Ugh, it's not even close to late enough to go to bed.

She buried her head underneath of her pillow and groaned. What is wrong with me? The only way to get over this is to pretend I don't like him. Maybe it'll go away. She pulled back the pillow and looked up at her ceiling.

Ryann got up from her bed and walked to her door. Okay, I can do this. Act as if nothing is wrong... She took a deep breath and opened her door, slowly making her way towards the kitchen. She had been right; Hiei and Ookami were both in the living room. Hiei was staring blankly ahead, gripping something in his hand and Ookami was watching him closely.

She tilted her head. Wonder what's going on. Her eyes widened when she realized she may know what they were talking about and darted into the kitchen. She busied herself with looking through the fridge and cabinets for food.

"Mmm, chicken parmesan sounds good. I hope they like it, too. I've never actually cooked it before..."she said to herself. Oddly enough, she had the ingredients she needed, they were just spread out so she never thought about them together.

She smiled to herself as she began to get everything together. This is good. Keeping myself busy is good. Her smile faded slightly. She paused what she was doing and closed her eyes.

I just wish I knew why he feels different... special.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Ookami skidded into the kitchen.

Ryann!! Something's wrong with Hiei!!

"Oh my god!" She quickly dropped everything she was holding and ran as quickly as possible into the living room. He was laying on the couch with his eyes closed. His entire body was limp and he seemed asleep.

Ryann checked his breathing, knowing demons had no heartbeat. He was breathing slowly. Again it seemed as if he was asleep. Then a dim light caught her eye. She opened his balled fist and saw a tear gem in his palm, giving off a soft light. In it, Ryann recognized the image of her parents and herself as a child.

Her lips curved upwards. So that's where it went. Thank god he's alright. She sighed and sat back on her feet. She knew exactly what was going on. He had activated her tear gem.

The conversation when he wakes up will be an interesting one. She turned her head to Ookami.

"He's fine. He should wake up in 5 or 10 minutes. Could you get me a washcloth from my bathroom, please?" She turned back to Hiei and put her head on her knees, watching his face twitch slightly.

Ookami looked on sadly for a moment. He saw her eyes when he told her Hiei passed out. Pure fear. Now they held relief and slight adoration, hidden under the tears that had welled up. She really does care for him. Oh, when she finds out he doesn't feel the same... He shook his head and moved slowly to his mistresses bathroom, feeling very sad for her.

Well, that's the double digit chapter!! Ryann's feelings are developing, but what about Hiei? And what happened with the tear gem? All good questions. Only time will tell. But outside of the story there's something I wanna ask.

I have some really good ideas about a Bleach fic (UraharaxOC) that I've already begun to write, and I want to know what I should do. If I post the new story also, then chapters for this story will only come out once every two weeks, as I will alternate between the two. But if I start the other story, then it'll be fresh and there'll be more for the readers to enjoy. Which should I do? I really have no idea...

Thanks for reading!!!