Sorry for the wait! My beta and I both just got new jobs, so we've been very busy. I do plan to continue updating, but I'm not sure how quickly I can get these out anymore. My schedule will not be stable for a few weeks, so updates will be sporadic. I imagine I can something out at least weekly, so please stick with me through this busy time. :)

Chapter Fourteen

Anise awoke that morning and stretched, scratching her arms where the snake markings were. The skin was much rougher than usual, and the worse areas were flaking. She sat up slowly, realizing that she had been shedding throughout the night.

A low thunk sounded beside her, and she looked to see Hiei placing a white bottle on her night stand. Anise flinched, quickly scrambling to the other side of the bed and keeping her eyes trained on him.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Hiei ground out, but his tone suggested otherwise. His body was tense and his eyes were watching her carefully, scrutinizing. He looked like a predator about to pounce.

She inspected him as he stood with his arms crossed, waiting for her to respond. After a few moments, she decided to chance a response. "Um… Ok."

"It's from Koenma." He pointed to the bottle he brought in. "It contains a salve that snake demons use when they start shedding."

Nodding, she reached for the bottle, never taking her eyes off of him. Cautiously, she removed the lid. The smell reminded her of grass and salt. She looked down and dabbed a little on her left hand, the salve instantly sinking in and soothing the dry skin. Looking back at him, she saw him relax slightly. His eyes, normally blazing and passionate, were dull. Even his spiky hair looked limp in places. "I… I'm sorry…" she offered, not sure what she could say to ease his pain, just wishing to try.

His shoulders stiffened again. "I don't have time for your useless words right now. We have training to do." He glared at her.

Anise nodded slowly, unsure of what else to do.

"Be outside in 5 minutes," he ordered, then ran for the window, hopping out.

Anise's hands shook as she quickly worked the salve into both hands and rubbed her arms and legs. She sniffled, wondering if she should blame herself for what happened to Hiei's sister. The only piece of Yukina that was left rested within her, trapped inside. And if her ice powers came from Yukina, where did her other powers come from? Was she responsible for seven other deaths as well? More than anything, Anise wished she could reach inside of herself and pull out every bit of demonic energy and give it back.

Anise wore black shorts and a shirt to the battlefield, an attempt to respect what Hiei must still be feeling after yesterday's discovery while still being able to move about and train. The wind was weak and the yellow sky was cloudless. Hiei stood in the middle of the arena in only his black pants, the rest of his clothing in a pile at his feet with the sword resting on top. When he turned around, Anise couldn't help but admire the toned muscles on his chest and stomach.

"Tell me what you know about fire, human," he demanded, holding up a hand and producing a small black flame.

Anise snapped out of her stare, her gaze instantly attracted to the glowing black in his hands. "Well, where I come from, it doesn't look like that."

He smirked. "And what is required to make fire where you come from?"

Anise quickly held up three fingers, trying her hardest to please him. "Oxygen, fuel, and heat."

Hiei nodded. "When a fire demon produces fire, the requirements are very different. The fire that you will produce will be fueled by your own energy. That energy is, by nature, very hot. Oxygen is unnecessary, since demonic fire will burn as long as you will it to. However, if you wish to set something else on fire, the usual requirements must be met." He raised his arms and they were suddenly surrounded by a wall of black flames.

The heat from the fire rushed to her body, and she felt herself shiver in pleasure. "Oh!" she gasped at the sudden onslaught of warmth that radiated straight to her core.

Hiei raised an eyebrow. "You like the heat?"

She nodded, her eyes dropping closed. Her body absorbed the heat from the air rapidly as if it had been starved. Her muscles relaxed and all of the stress from the prior day began to melt away, leaving her lethargic.

Hiei watched her absorb the energy from his flames, watching them die around him. He fed them more of his energy and she shivered in response. He didn't understand her reaction at all. As much fun as it was to play with fire, no fire demons felt this kind of pleasure from the heat. His mind picked up traces of her ecstasy, and his own reaction was swift. His pants tightened, and he growled low. He quickly extinguished the flames around them and opened his Jagan eye, focusing on calming himself before she noticed.

Anise sighed, rubbing her arms to cling to the remaining warmth. "Wow…" Her voice was low and alluring.

"That's enough for today," Hiei growled out harshly, almost spitting the words at her. He stomped off toward to castle, picking up his clothes and quickly donning them. He flashed away, leaving a very confused Anise behind.

Hiei barged into Kurama's room without warning. The fox demon didn't flinch, having felt Hiei's overwhelming frustration moments before he arrived. Kurama's eyes were red from lack of sleep. "I thought you were training."

"Shut up." Hiei responded. He paced, looking for the right words to describe his… predicament.

Kurama turned around in his desk chair and crossed his legs, his eyes focused on the frustrated fire demon. "And what can I help you with this time?"

"It's that… girl."

Kurama yawned, looking toward the window. "Uh huh."

"I was trying to train her, but I think there is something wrong with her. The way she reacts to my fire is very… strange…"

Kurama nodded. "And why should I care?"

Hiei stopped pacing, taken aback. He focused wide eyes on Kurama, finally noticing how ragged and tired the redhead looked. "Excuse me?"

Kurama sighed. "I asked why I should care."

He didn't have an answer at first, and struggled to form a sentence. "Aren't we—I don't know… friends, or something?"

"Friends…" Kurama sounded out, testing it. "Do you even know what that word means?" Hiei was silent in response. "You disappeared last night without telling anyone where you were going. You were such an emotional wreck, I wasn't sure you were ever going to come back. I thought that you were going to kill yourself…"

Hiei scoffed. "You are overreacting."

Kurama stood up and walked over to the fire demon with a challenging glare in his eyes. "Fuck you."

Hiei backed off, nervous.

Kurama never cursed, and the word felt disgusting coming from his mouth. "I couldn't sleep last night from worrying about you. And here you are, inviting yourself into my room without even caring. You're a fucking mind reader, so don't tell me you didn't know."

Hiei swallowed, not wanting to admit that the scene with Anise had distracted him so badly that his mind was scattered. The Jagan was still working on focusing him, but it was taking longer than he expected.

"Get out, Hiei. I don't have time to deal with you right now." Kurama returned to his chair and turned his back to Hiei. When he couldn't feel the fire demon's energy in his room, he let out a long breath.