Chapter 21: The Crow and the Butterfly

Don't let him know you know he's a fake. Play along with it or he could kill you.

Hiei talking about my death so lightly almost made me give him a sharp retort. However, the tendrils of his thoughts were wispy at best (trying to hide them perhaps?), but I knew them well enough for what they were. Fear. Hiei was scared. But not for anything other than…me?

Nah. Couldn't be. Right?

My eyes stayed focus on 'Jin'. Or whoever he was. He was looking at me so tenderly, it was a little uncomfortable. The more I thought about it, the more plausible him being a fake became. The real Jin would've been hyperactive and bouncing all over the place, or itching to finish his fight.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" I whispered. His ears gave another twitch (another clue, his ears ain't THAT twitchy!) as he smiled. "Why wouldn't I be? Yeh done nothing wrong to meh. And I love yeh Xannah."

.

Remember that's not Jin you moron. I sent a mental picture of me hitting Hiei over the head with a frying pan. "I know that dipshit!"

Uh oh.

Jin blinked at my sudden verbal outburst. And grinned. "See? Yeh do care! Even if it's only an itty bitty bit!" Phew. Oh, good. I seemed to have made a fairly good mistake. Hiei was growling under his breath (mental breath I should add). He was almost here, and I could see bits of the forest around him through his eyes as he jumped from treetop to treetop to get here.

I looked away from Jin, playing it shy. He chuckled…which definitely didn't sound like Jin at all!

"You're so cute," he purred. Purring? When the fuck did Jin purr? Has Jin EVER purred? Dammit Hiei, get here already!

"Step away from the girl. Slowly."

I spun around, eyes lighting up as I saw Hiei, in all his batboy glory. Well, a little nicked from our fall, but a nick to Hiei is less than a papercut, all things considered. His red eyes were fixated solely on Jin. Or whoever this was. They just stared each other down as Hiei's words came out as a low snarl.

"Xannah, come to me."

I didn't get the chance to even take a step.

"I don't think so, pal."

His arm snaked out and wrapped around my middle and yanked me back against his bloody chest. I cried out as his other hand was on my neck. Hiei had his sword half out of his sheath, his thoughts calm. But he was torn. Fixated partially on me and partially on 'Jin'. I gulped, and it hurt with his hand tight around my throat.

I couldn't see what was going on, but I felt like what or who was holding me…didn't feel the same. The hands were colder and softer, less calloused like Jin's were supposed to be. The fingers longer then what I was used to feeling or seeing, for they could easily wrap around my neck like coils. I wanted to bring my hips back and slam them into his crotch, elbow him, anything to get him to get off of me! There was no longer any doubt that whoever was holding me was. Not. Jin!

"Lemme…go!" I wheezed, his fingers starting to clench around my throat which made it hard to breathe. I could feel my heart pounding in my temples. Hiei's eye twitched and mentally he snarled every vile curse, Demonic and Human, that he could think of. But he didn't speak. "Not a chance, dearie," wheezed this strange, alien voice in my ear.

A forked tongue flicked against the dark skin of my scar and I couldn't stop the scream.

That set Hiei off. Big time.

What some people don't take into account is when you share a mind link with someone, you tend to overlook a lot of details of the other person's thoughts. Like some of the more trivial actions they commit (breathing, walking, blinking, sneezing, etc.) and some of the other things they do as well. However, if you focus hard enough, you can tune into these things. It's even easier to do when you both are focusing on the same thoughts or actions.

I am probably one of very few people who can see Hiei when he "teleports". Which isn't anything more then him just going really freakin' fast.

Under any other circumstance, I'd have a better time lifting an elephant then trying to watch him.

But with our minds linked the way they were, I could see every step in slow motion. The graceful arch of his blade as he brought it down and severed the arms that held me in two side swipes, taking no more than a flick of his wrist. I could feel the precision and the self restraint in every flex of his muscles as he worked at freeing me without hurting me. Then, before I had time to gasp, he yanked me against him with his free arm as he used the other to drive the katana forth and pierce the bastard in the heart.

I wasn't afraid to cry. So I did.

Not out of fear or relief. But gratitude and longing.

Gratitude for saving me.

And longing, because I wish he had been there to cut down the ones who hurt me.

"How's your side?"

"Fine."

From treetop to treetop we went, back to the temple. Kurama gave us the all clear when Diego and his allies retreated. No one besides Jin got hurt, and he was already recovering. I leaned my head against Hiei's shoulder, eyes closed. The wind rushing into my face made my eyes water.

I had bruises on my neck already from being grabbed there. I never turned around to see who the fake Jin really was. The only thing I know of the guy is that his fingers were really long and pale, and he felt tall, skinny, and bony. Shape-shifter? Magician? Demon? Human?

I didn't care. I tried not too, anyways.

Hiei got me out of there right as the tears started. He said nothing, but his thoughts went something like "I don't want you to see that".

He could have a heart. When he wanted.

"Oh my baby! My beautiful babygirl!"

Hiei had barely set me down before my mom had enveloped me in one of those smothering, motherly hugs that choke the life right out of you. I couldn't breathe, slowly hugging her back after a pause and after my brain had time to process. Though of course, right afterwards I felt my face heat up because EVERYONE was staring at us.

"Ma…MA! You're embarrassing me." I grumbled against her neck.

"Oh shuttup."

"Yessum."

My grandma was the first to break the slightly awkward silence as I was cuddled by my mother. "It doesn't take a genius to know they're after Xannah. They have a lot of reasons for wanting her dead and have apparently invested a lot of time and manpower into making sure she doesn't get away." Her eyes swept over every one there.

"This is my granddaughter they want dead. I'm going to do anything in my power to keep her alive." Her eyes narrowed, and for the first time I noticed they were beginning to show signs of cataracts. "You can help keep her safe, or get the hell out of my way."

There was a small, collective silence.

"I'm in."

"Yusuke?"

He looked over at me with a grin. "Hey, I haven't had a challenge in a long time. Besides, you're not that bad for an American." Kuwabara was the next to speak, "I'm with Urameshi! Scumbags like that don't deserve to live."

"You have my support Genkai," softly spoke Kurama, arms crossed and hair as red as ever.

One by one everyone gave their own pledge in their own way and fashion. I couldn't help but feel admiration for all of them. Did they have any idea what kind of man they were messing with? What kind of monster he really was-

"Thank you all, but it's not necessary."

I looked up at my mom with widened eyes. "Ma!" I hissed softly.

Her pale blue eyes stayed fixated on my grandmother though. "Xannah is coming home with me back to America." I heard Yusuke snort but he made no comment. For that I was grateful. Hiei stepped forth, slightly behind and to the side of me while my mother still had me wrapped up in her arms.

"You'll be signing her death warrant taking her back to your country."

Karmen raked her eyes over Hiei. She didn't look impressed. "I doubt you could stop me, bat boy."

Hiei's eye twitched.

Oh. Snap.

I had a feeling with this conflict of interest, my mom and Hiei were going to be butting heads the most.

I am stopping here while I get a better feel of how I want things to progress from this point. Enjoy 3