"It's cute," Asako commented, looking around the small cabin.

Hiei shrugged and crossed the singular room to drop his pack by the nightstand. "There's a bathroom out back and a stream nearby to wash in."

"Thanks. Is the area safe?"

"Yeah, pretty safe I guess."

"Safe enough to go to the steam alone?"

Hiei frowned. He answered honestly, "It would be safe in that you probably wouldn't be attacked, but a lot of soldiers pass through the area. Aleric's army is comprised largely of male apparitions."

"Oh," she said with a frown.

Crimson eyes studied her face for a moment. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she replied, just a bit too quickly. She looked away briefly, then lowered her eyes to the floor. "A stream… so probably not very deep waters?"

"Waist high," he estimated.

"Okay," she nodded slowly.

"Asako, what's up?"

"Nothing," she repeated. "I'm going to go there now."

He watched her pull the required items from her backpack and stride toward the back door. She froze and turned back to him. "Hiei?"

"Hm?"

"Could you come with me, please? To keep watch?"

He lifted a brow in confusion. "I was already planning to. Why are you asking?"

Asako faltered and replied slowly, "Well, you said it was safe to go alone."

"Yeah, but I also said that there's always the chance that soldiers pass through."

"Well, I figured since there was no threat of physical harm, your time would be better spent elsewhere…"

Hiei frowned again. "You think I'd be alright with a bunch of Alaric soldiers running into you like that?"

Asako didn't meet his gaze. The fire apparition had to admit that his feelings were hurt. He hated the idea of any man seeing her when he couldn't. Though he wouldn't admit that to her, the bottom line was that he wasn't alright with the prospect of a bunch of apparitions happening upon her bathing.

"I hadn't thought about it like that," Asako interrupted his thoughts.

"I have your back," he asserted firmly.

"I know. Thank you, Hiei," she replied with a small but genuine smile. "I have yours, too."

"Where are you going?" asked Asako.

Hiei continued to cross the room, answering, "You can have the bed. I'll take the couch."

"That can't be as comfortable for you."

"I'm fine. It's better than the cave we slept in last night."

Asako frowned. "Still, I'd feel bad. If you prefer sleeping alone, you can take the bed and I will take the couch. Up until Genkai's, I had slept on the floor for years, so a couch-"

Hiei sighed and moved over to the bed as she spoke. He cut her off, "Move over."

"What?"

"To avoid arguing, we'll just share tonight and figure it out in the morning. I'm tired."

The silver haired woman slid over and Hiei joined her in the bed, leaving her between him and the wall. Sounding slightly pleased, she said, "Good night, Hiei."

He merely grunted in response, caught between being annoyed with her picking such a stupid fight and pleased that he could fall asleep surrounded by her familiar scent.

"I'll be back shortly."

Asako hummed her understanding, but Hiei thought he could hear a tinge of annoyance in her voice. He didn't want to get into anything with her yet, though; the faster he got through his meeting with Mukuro, the faster he would get his next assignment and he could head out.

Asako had hardly spoken to him since he finished his business with Mukuro. As they set up camp for the night, he began to wonder what had brought on her silence. Thinking perhaps she was just not in the best mood, he continued on as usual. When it came time to sleep, however, he knew there was a bigger problem at hand when she lay down as far from him as their small enclosure would allow.

"Asako, what's bothering you?" he asked, not happy to be dealing with strife.

"Nothing at all," came her stiff reply.

He rolled his eyes and said, "You've been off since we returned to Mukuro's."

"Since you returned to Mukuro's," she corrected.

"What're you talking about?"

The silver haired woman turned on her side to glare at him. "I've never been to Mukuro's, just to the forest near where she parks that god awful bug."

"Is that why you're mad at me? Because you've never been to Mukuro's?" he snapped, temper rising at the childishness of the situation.

"No, I'm mad at you because I'm sick of you being embarrassed of me or whatever reason I always have to wait behind."

Hiei's anger turned to confusion. "I'm not embarrassed of you."

"Well, you won't tell me why you can't be seen with me around any of the people you know in Aleric. What conclusions should I have drawn?"

The fire demon could see her logic when she phrased it like that. Still, he was annoyed that she thought he would be embarrassed of her. "Well, that's not it. It's just better that you don't meet Mukuro."

"Very convincing," she huffed, turning around so her back was facing him.

Hiei held back a groan. "Listen, Mukuro had a difficult past and she knows about mine. It would just be troublesome for me if she knew I was keeping the company of an ice maiden."

"I don't follow."

He searched for the right words for a while before responding, "To her, that would be a big deal. She would see me with you as I would see you becoming chummy with Minato's men."

"I'm not one of the ones who rejected you."

"No, but she views all ice maidens as being cold and cruel. I can't blame her for that, since that is how I once felt, too."

"So what would happen if she knew?"

Hiei couldn't suppress the groan that rose in his throat that time. "I'd never hear the end of it. She'd probably lecture me on being weak and naive."

"So you just don't want her to nag you because of me?"

"Basically," he confirmed.

Asako was quiet for a moment before saying, "Why didn't you just tell me that?"

"You told me that my story changed a lot for you, that the elders hurt you when you asked about me and that you are conflicted about returning to your people. I didn't think it would have helped the way you feel to know that someone of Mukuro's reputation would likely hate you because of what your people did to me."

Silence fell over them for a long stretch before the silver haired woman turned to face him once again. "In order to solve my problem, I need all the variables. Knowing how the ways of my people have affected others is really important."

Hiei gave a single nod of understanding. From her even tone of voice, he could tell she wasn't angry anymore, for which he was relieved. Relief was overshadowed by surprise when Asako slid in closer, stopping only when she was nestled in his side. Her arm rose hesitantly before she committed to awkwardly wrapping it around his torso. Heat bloomed on his cheeks and he was grateful that he was laying on his back and that she had hidden her face against his bicep.

"I apologize for being annoyed with you," she muttered against his arm. "And thanks for trying to make it easier to sort out things with the Domain and the other ice maidens."

He couldn't find his voice, still stunned by the ice maiden's sudden physical contact, but raised a hand to pat her forearm which lay across his ribs. She snuggled in just a hair closer, and within a few minutes her deep, even breaths indicated sleep. Once the shock wore off, Hiei had to admit to himself that there was something nice about her tucked into him and that the weight of her arm draped across his torso was somehow more comfortable than constricting.

"Hey," Hiei greeted. "You're back late."

"Sorry," Asako said hastily. "I was out looking for some medicinal plants and sort of lost track of time and how far away from camp I'd gone. How-"

She froze and he heard her sniff at the air. Crossing to the couch immediately, she asked, "What happened? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he said gruffly. "It's a minor injury. I tried healing it myself, but wasn't able to."

He could hear the frustration in his own voice. She gently explained, "It is hardest to heal yourself because it requires manipulating a portion of your own energy outside of your body back into yourself. It's even harder when you still need to make physical contact."

"Let's continue working on this stuff; it's obnoxious having some skills but enough to be useful."

"We will," she promised. "Show me where you're injured."

The fire apparition shed his cloak, revealing bare skin beneath. He turned, offering her his back. There was a shallow gash cutting from the top of his left shoulder diagonally down toward his spine. He could only assume it was still bleeding, since her behavior indicated she had smelled out the injury. Her light touch feathered over the skin near the wound before her hand retreated. The warmth of her healing energy spread across the smarting skin, and he felt the tingle of rapid cell growth.

"What happened?" she asked quietly.

"An incompetent border guardsman tried taking on a malicious B level apparition and almost let him through. A B class wouldn't have been a problem for me, but I couldn't risk losing him in the Ningenkai, so I dove in at a less opportune time than I would have liked," Hiei explained, still annoyed at the entire ordeal. "But the demon was detained, so I guess that's what matters."

"What matters is that this isn't serious," she muttered, sounding irritated.

Hiei lifted a brow and asked, "What're you upset about?"

"You're strong, Hiei, but someone else's hubris… I don't like seeing you hurt."

His chest tightened at her sincere words. Few people had really cared about his well-being before. The warmth of her healing faded and he was surprised when her palm rested on the freshly healed skin. He wasn't sure what it was, but something about her touch felt different than the way she had ever touched him in the past.

"It's really not a big deal," he said quietly. "I've had much worse."

"I hadn't thought about this job as being dangerous," she muttered.

He felt her shift closer to him on the couch. "There isn't really any part of my life that isn't at least somewhat dangerous."

Hiei felt her breath on the back of his neck before her forehead came to press against his nape. A shiver passed through him when a lock of her long silver hair fell over her shoulder and tickled his back. He hadn't considered that she would be upset about his injury, but she clearly was and didn't like the idea that there were inherent risks in his life.

"I'm fine, Asako," he reassured as gently as he could. He wince when, even to his own ears, there was a harsh edge to his voice. "I've been through a lot and I'm still here. It would take something much bigger to take me down."

"Let's hope that doesn't happen," she mumbled.

Something about her warm presence behind him, her gentle touch and genuine care and concern pleased the fire demon. Nobody had ever touched him in the way she was then. Her thumb swept back and forth over the previously injured skin with a foreign tenderness. There was something intimate about their position, but it was different than any other intimate position he had ever found himself in. She was probably the first woman he'd ever bear his back to, but he was also content to remain like that with her rather than shy away. Even with the women he had bedded, as soon as the deed was done, he had no desire for more physical contact. It was strange and confusing, but Hiei decided not to think too much about it just then. It was nicer to just enjoy the newfound closeness.

"I'll head to the stream to catch some fish for dinner," Asako offered cheerfully.

"Alright," Hiei agreed. "Thanks for helping me train."

His eyes trailed her form for any injury as he spoke. He detected none on the skin exposed by her loose fitting white t-shirt or black athletic shorts. Satisfied, he turned away and began clearing the ash from their fire pit. He heard the ice maiden leave the camp, so he continued doing campsite maintenance while he awaited her return.

A long time passed however, and Hiei had been done and waiting for longer than he thought reasonable. Worried thoughts nagged him, so he set out quickly toward the stream. When he arrived, his anger flared.

Asako was encircled by five men he recognized from the Aleric army. Her expression was livid and her body language showed him she was on the defensive. Her left wrist was held captive by the clawed hand of one apparition. She looked unharmed, much to his relief, but he stormed forward regardless. One of the soldiers sensed him, turning and breaking into a lewd grin.

"Hey, Hiei! Look at what we found!"

Alerted to his presence, the other four whooped in greeting and excitement. Hiei opened his mouth to give them hell, but froze, absolutely enraged when the demon with a hold on Asako's arm jerked on her suddenly, his other hand flying to the top of her hand and shoving her down into the water. She was taken by surprise, but soon recovered enough to focus her energy to her skin, turning the areas he was touching painfully cold. He yelped and pulled away, allowing the ice maiden to stand back up and take in a deep breath of air.

"Just as nice as we thought that body would be under there!" jeered another apparition, laughing at the fact that Asako's white shirt was now transparent and her grey sports bra and slim torso were now visible. He reached out with his eyes glued to her chest.

How dare they touch my woman?

Hiei flitted to stand in front of her, shoving the two nearest soldiers back. She wouldn't meet his gaze, staring at the water blankly.

"Ah, boss wants his piece first!"

The fire demon slipped of his cloak, wrapping it around the ice maiden carefully. She clutched at the fabric, but made no other move. His action had silence the soldiers, and he turned a fierce glare on them.

"What the fuck were you doing?" he barked.

"Just having some fun, boss. You know how it is; lonely travels of a soldier are made a whole lot better when ya meet a pretty girl."

"Trips are made better when you meet a willing woman," he snapped. "You represent Mukuro and the Demon King; do you think this is how you should conduct yourselves?"

The five exchanged wary glances.

Hiei continued, "If you ever harass a woman again, I will make sure you are dishonorably discharged. For now, I will report this to Mukuro and you can expect some unpleasant assignments for the foreseeable future."

"Sir," they confirmed, nodding.

"And," he snarled, "if you ever come near this woman again, I will not hesitate to end you."

They each paled at the threat and shakily confirmed their understanding, "Sir!"

"Get the fuck out of my sight," spat the fire demon.

They scrambled over each other for a moment before dashing away. Hiei turned back to Asako and his body moved to automatically pull her safely against him. In a gentler tone, he asked, "You okay?"

She nodded and said, "I don't know what happened. I should have fought, defended myself sooner. But I shut down. It was back to square one, reverting to my shell."

"Old habits die hard. Your body has a defense mechanism that has always worked, so it's natural that it still turns to that," he comforted her. "And you weren't your old self; you looked mad as hell and I'm sure the lowlife that grabbed you has frostbite."

"I suppose," she sighed.

"You're too hard on yourself," he frowned.

"Perhaps. Anyway, thank you, Hiei."

He nodded. Now that his anger had subsided and he was sure she was alright, he could think on a very pressing problem he had just discovered; since when did he start thinking of Asako as his woman?

Thank you all for your continued interest in this story. I truly appreciate all of the follows, favorites, and reviews. If you have the time, please consider leaving some feedback.

Jessica - Things are finally clicking for Hiei! Thank you for sticking around long enough for to see it, and for your continued support.