Song choice: Low Roar~ I'll Keep Coming

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Ceum Air adhart (Step Forward)

Hiei slowly swung the door to his room open, a pot of wild rice portage in one hand. He was met with an empty room. Panic rippled through him as he furiously searched the room, his eyes scanning for any sign of struggle. He roughly sat down the portage by the door, quickly turning his heel and ripping off his bandana.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Mukuro's fortress, Abhaya struggled to walk. She kept herself upright by her upper body strength, which was pushing it because of her wounds. She was just starting to regain feeling in her legs. She knew that it was because she was forcing the blood in her body to pump faster, which in turn was helping get the anesthesia out of her system. Kirin's words rang in her ears, making her sick with guilt and anger. She wouldn't bring Hiei down, she wouldn't be the reason why his own people turned their back on him.

Abhaya made her way to Mukuro's control room, where the great commander was sitting at a table splayed with maps. "You don't waste much time," She murmured, barely looking up at Abhaya as she came closer to her.

Abhaya, with wobbly knees, made her way to the center of the room. She ignored the eyes on her, hoping for dear life that she didn't fall. She didn't, much to her relief. "I couldn't stand to lay around anymore." (A/n: The pun was not intended.)

Mukuro gave a nod and shifted her eyes to the small mage. "Have a seat. I would like to speak with you for a bit."

Abhaya gave a nod, sitting down in a big spine like chair that was twice her size. The two sat in silence, staring at one another. "Leave. All of you," She commanded.

Her subordinates left, leaving only Abhaya and Mukuro. "That technique you used to defeat Kirin, who taught you that?"

"No one. I have been tampering with fusion magick for a while."

Mukuro nodded, her eyes still pinning Abhaya's. "Are you aware of how strong that attack was?"

Abhaya shook her head, feeling herself grow nervous.

"It was about the same as a mid- S class demon."

Abhaya paled, her shoulders slumping as she processed what she was being told. "No wonder… King Enki and Yomi…" Abhaya trailed off, her brow furrowing.

"Indeed. To be honest, it was quite a surprise for me as well. At the very least you feel like an A-class, but that was unexpected."

Abhaya stared blankly at the table in front of her. "This is why I should have kept the seals on. I'm a danger to too many."

Mukuro watched as conflicting emotions crossed over the mage's face. She rested her head on a closed fist, her eyes narrowing in curiosity. "If you were such a danger, you would have killed every one of my men without a second thought. You wouldn't have stopped Hiei from intervening. You most certainly would try to kill me right now."

Abhaya scoffed numbly. "I couldn't take you even if I was up to full health."

"That's beside the point and you know it."

"Then what is the point of this whole talk?"

"I've always had a fascination with the homo ex luto."

A chill wracked down Abhaya's spine, her eyes widening with confusion. "How do you know our real name?"

"Your kind are far more entertaining than that of the Homo sapiens. Though, it does surprise me that you look so different from the rest of your kind. You look more like a normal human. I wonder if it is an evolutionary adaptation."

Abhaya shrugged, folding her hands in her lap. "Perhaps. My sister looks different like me as well. But not enough to stand out as I do."

"How fascinating. Is she tall?"

"She's about Hiei's height, maybe a wee taller."

"A child's height. What is her gift?"

"My sister is an Animist. She developed her gift at a very young age."

"Ah, Anoushka Sinclair, The White Mage of the South. She really is your polar opposite. Though, Hiei does have an interesting view of her."

Abhaya nodded, averting her eyes.

"He also told me that she is half the reason why you are so tortured."

"I don't~"

"A mage shunned by every person she has tried to identify with. No wonder you went on a killing spree."

"What do you want from me? Do you like making me feel worse about myself? Because I assure you, I have had enough of that to last numerous lives."

"I realize that humans are very social and emotional creatures but you must grow thicker skin and stop wallowing in your own pity. It will get you nowhere, especially in demon world."

"You still didn't tell me what you want," Abhaya glowered, keeping her eyes on the demoness.

Mukuro stood, holding a hand out to Abhaya. "Come."

Abhaya stared at her out stretched hand for a few moments, her brow furrowed in confusion. "You still shouldn't touch me," Abhaya whispered, pushing herself up from her chair without Mukuro's help.

Mukuro scoffed, her eyes narrowing with amusement. She turned a heel and made her way to the door; Abhaya slowly trailed behind. Slowly they walked through the halls, Abhaya bracing herself against the walls. "Homo Sapiens are fickle creatures. Tell me, are your kind the same?"

"I think it depends on the mage."

Mukuro gave a small nod, stopping in front of a doorway and pushing it open. Abhaya scrambled behind her, noticing that the room was very warm and humid. However, the smell of it was what was making her stomach turn. Pools of deep magenta water broke up the gray cobblestone floor. Abhaya's stomach dipped as she realized that there were demons naked and bathing in the boiling hot water. "These bathes are for my warriors. The blood of the kiruki beetle is a powerful healer. It should help you move faster and regain your strength sooner."

Heat radiated off of Abhaya's face like a furnace, her brow tightly knit. "There are other's bathing," She said meekly, trying to keep her eyes on her feet.

Mukuro scoffed. "Your point?"

"Some of them are men."

"When have men ever scared you?"
"They don't… but I would prefer not to see them naked."

Mukuro smirked, her eyes narrowing haughtily. "I forget that you are a virgin," Twelve pairs of eyes whipped around to look at the two then. "Would you prefer if I bathed with you?"

Abhaya's blush deepened. She was now wishing that she had stayed in bed. "Are you certain that this will help me heal faster?" She murmured, peering up at the demoness from behind the fringe of her curls.

"Yes."

Abhaya pressed her eyes closed and gave a nod.

"Do you want me to stay?" Mukuro reiterated.

Abhaya frowned, her mind torn at what to say. Finally after a long pause, she gave a curt nod. "What a meek thing you are. Not at all how the stories portray you."

Abhaya tried to ignore the eyes on her, hearing off beside her as Mukuro disrobed. She gently tugged off the bandages wrapped around her chest, allowing them to fall to the floor. "Stories are not always true. Especially mine."

"I am aware of that," Mukuro slipped into the ugly pink water with a small hiss. "It is just amusing to see that you are the very opposite of the stories."

Abhaya slipped into the hot water, letting it come up to her neck. She didn't care that her hair was floating in the water or that there were demons watching her all around the room. She just relaxed into the numbing hot water. For the first time in nearly a week, Abhaya gave a genuine smile, feeling her aching bones and healing skin throb in pleasure underneath the weight of the hot bath. "I told you that it would be good for you, didn't I?"

Abhaya gave a nod, lifting her eyes up to Mukuro's. "Thank you."

Mukuro nodded curtly, watching the mage intently. Silence came over the two as they relaxed in the water. It was strange, but Abhaya felt like she could trust the demoness. "Mukuro? May I ask you something?"

"I suppose."

"What is a claim?"

Silence swallowed the room, instantly causing Abhaya to regret her words. She peered up at Mukuro with aversion, hoping that she hadn't said the wrong thing. "Where did you learn that?"

"Kirin mentioned it."

"Pertaining to whom?"

Abhaya became flustered, her eyes fixed on her hands. "He said that Hiei had staked a claim on me. I didn't fully understand what he meant by that or why he thought that."

Mukuro sighed, leaning back against the wall of the bath and resting her elbows on the floor. "It's a demon term for when we scout out a potential mate. To stake a claim is to say that one has a preemptive declaration on the person that they wish to mate with."

Abhaya's brow furrowed further. "But why would he think that? Hiei has made it clear that he finds me disgusting."

"If he found you disgusting, he wouldn't have helped you get better. Besides, he is scouring high and low for you right now."

"What do you~"

The door behind Abhaya slowly opened, causing her to stop speaking and peer over her shoulder. Hiei glared at her from the door way, all three of his eyes narrowing as she sunk into the water deeper. She watched as his nose flared and he straightened up, shoving his hands deep into his pockets. "So this is where you drug her off to," he grumbled.

"Mukuro thought that this might help me heal faster," Abhaya said, tucking her chin under the water as Hiei shot her a heated glare.

"Staying put would have helped you heal faster," Hiei snapped, his eyes narrowing sharply at his mage.

"I couldn't just sit there anymore. I hate~"

"You're a human, what did you expect?"

Abhaya ground her teeth together, standing up from the pool and crossing her arms over her chest as she sized Hiei up. Said demon visibly tensed, his eyes widening ever so slightly. "I expected to pick myself up, as I always do. That is what I am attempting to do right now so, why don't you run along so I can finish my bath? I need to get those barriers done and lying around won't do anything of value."

Abhaya watched as Hiei puffed up, anger burning in his eyes. "Put some clothes on, woman, you~"

Abhaya turned her cheek and smacked her ass at him, descending down into the water once more. "Kiss my arse."

Hiei glared holes into the back of her head, feeling multiple eyes on him. However, more than the eyes, he felt the effects of seeing his mage unclothed. 'Why does she tempt me so?' Hiei scoffed, turning a heel and leaving the two.

As he closed the door behind him, he restrained himself from going back in the room and swooping up Abhaya. He fantasized caressing her wet bare skin, of tracing the dips and curves of her battle worn skin. He walked away, trying to ignore his arousal for his mage.

Abhaya sunk in the water, feeling a blush prickle over her cheeks, she couldn't believe what she had just done. She hadn't even realized that she was manipulating the water until Mukuro said something. "The elements change around you when you are upset," She said, watching her as she blushed a little harder.

Abhaya sighed, trying to get herself to relax. The waves in the water calmed as Abhaya spoke. "I have issues controlling my emotions… So sometimes the elements do shift when I am in the wrong state of mind."

"Is it like that with most elemental mages?"

"I'm not sure, I haven't met too many mages to be honest."

Mukuro stared at the mage, understanding a little more of her. "Isolation could also be a good reason why you have such a difficulty with emotions."

Abhaya shrugged, her embarrassment wearing off. "Perhaps."

"Do you know of your people's customs?"

"Of course, I had been taught them at a young age by my father. However, he kind of… kept me from the others."

"Because of your appearance?"

"Probably. It didn't help that I had the temper of a boar either."

Abhaya chuckled at herself. "I used to get so angry that he would take Anoushka to gatherings and not me."

"So you've never gone to any of the mage gatherings?"

Abhaya shook her head, staring at the translucent magenta water. "This year will be my first and last if I can help it. I realized as I got older that there was no point in trying to fit in with my people, so there is no point in playing their games either. I would be happy if they just left me alone for the rest of my existence, we shall see though. We are a terribly curious species."

"Similar to your brethren."

"Indeed."

Hiei sat perched in his room on a small beam that connected a few walls. He replayed the image of Abhaya over and over in his head. 'I haven't seen her that brash in a while…but to show herself to me like that…' Hiei had to stop himself from going to find her.

He replayed the look of her thick, strong legs and the supple curves in his mind. He was going insane just sitting around inhaling her scent and imagining her splayed out before him over the pelts on his bed. Hiei hopped down from the beam and stormed out of his own room, needing something to take his mind of his arousal and hunger for his mage.

Hiei stormed out into the hall, in search for anything that could take her off of his mind. "Lord Hiei," A voice came from behind him, causing him to freeze.

Hiei turned, raising an eyebrow at the demoness who had come up behind him. He recognized it to be Yuriko, a small siren demon. Her skin was a pale, translucent blue. She was fragile and light; the very opposite of Abhaya, Hiei observed. "You seem stressed. Is there anything I can help with?"

"I'm fine," Hiei gruffly barked.

"Are you sure? You haven't seemed yourself since you came back with the Slay~"

"Don't call her that."

Yuriko's eyes grew wide in surprise. She watched as Hiei sighed through clenched teeth and turned away from her. "So the rumors are true, you have staked a claim?"
"Nonsense."

Hiei needed to fight, to do something physical or else he was going to do something that he regretted. He sharply turned away from Yuriko, swiftly walking away in order to find Yusuke. He would spar with him without hesitation. He would no doubt be bored out of his mind.

Hiei hunted for the ex-spirit detective, only to find him with the one person that reminded him of his mage. "Yusuke, spar with me," Hiei demanded, a scowl on his face.

"Jesus Hiei! Where the fuck have you been? We can't find~"

"She's with Mukuro. They're… bonding."

Silence came over the three as they processed what Hiei had said.

"Ya wanna tell us how that happened?"

Hiei shrugged, still bristled from his blue balls.

Elias's brow furrowed as he noticed how odd Hiei was acting towards the situation. He decided against asking however as Hiei seemed very shaken. "Dude, why are you acting so damn weird? Did she piss you off or somethin'?" Yusuke said, none to gently.

Hiei scowled, giving a small growl to Yusuke's questions. "Just spar with me, detective."

Yusuke rolled his eyes. "Back to that stupid nickname huh? Fine, don't get your freakin' panties in a bunch."

"May I practice too?" Elias murmured.

The two demons looked down at the small child and then to each other. "Your mother would kill us if we injured you," Yusuke said, paling a little.

Elias shook his head. "That's not all true. She encourages me to train with others to learn how to predict movements and attacks. I should also get used to manipulating the energy in demon world."

Hiei scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't care what you do."

Elias smiled hopefully, turning to Yusuke who was still wavering. "I guess…but don't whine if you get hurt."

Elias grinned, shaking his head and trailing behind the two as they made their way to the practice arena. He could see other demons sparing and working on attacks. A nervous bubble boiled in his belly as he surveyed the other demons. A good portion of them were stronger then him, if not more than half. However, he was certain that his small size and quick wit would help him in the sparring process.

Elias ripped off his boots and gently placed them against the wall with his socks. Yusuke watched with confusion as Elias put Abhaya's medicine pack beside his things. "Elias, what are you doing?"

"I wanna practice what Abhaya taught me about feeling the earth and movements through my feet."

Yusuke crinkled his nose. "I thought that was only a mage thing."

"It is but she has been teaching me since I was a kid to feel them. Ever since she found out I had an affinity to the element earth."

"I thought Hounds were a type of fire demon."

Elias growled, remembering that voice with distain. He shot a hot glare at Rinku, who watched the little hound back. "Don't you have someone else to mess with?" Elias said, scowling at the demon.

"Nah, you just look too easy to pick on," Rinku retorted, sneering happily.

Elias scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Oh blow it out your bloody ass." He then flipped him the bird.

Rinku bristled up, about to size Elias up only to be pulled back by Chu who had snuck up behind him. "Whoa there mate, calm down. There's no use pickin' a fight with the bastard."

Rinku have a small irritable growl. "Why? He's a puny little bitch."

Hiei watched the scene, amusement flickering in his eyes. However, his conscience drifted off as a small figure watched the scene from above. He could smell the smoke of her herbs from yards away. Glancing up at Abhaya, he examined her new attire. It was a clearly demon-like rendition of her normal attire. She wore ash gray harem pants with a long ocher panel and a burnt umber tank top, showing crisp white bandages underneath. Her hair still had braids running through it, but this time feathers from demon birds had been added to her damp mass of hair. Her pipe stuck out from behind her lips, her face void of expression as she watched.

Hiei was positive that no one had noticed her besides him. He shifted his eyes to Mukuro who watched him with a curious smirk. He let out a gruff snort and tuned back into what was going on.

Elias was now growling at Rinku, the dark circles under his eyes seeming to grow even darker against his pale skin. The small hound snapped his teeth at Rinku, causing the demon to growl back. "My height is the least of your worries, Rinku."

Rinku scoffed, his eyes narrowing into thin slits as he flashed the small hound a wolfish grin. "I bet you can't even fight since your mom seems to have become a softie."

Hiei smirked at Rinku's comment, watching as the hair on Elias's head started to stick up straighter with his rage rising. Abhaya was soft… in a certain way but to say that she hadn't taught Elias how to fight was a ludicrous idea. She was too protective of him not to at least teach him how to use his own energy. Hiei folded his arms over his chest as he watched the now heaving hound start to lose control of his own form. Black fur speckled over pale, lightly toned arms; his snout elongating ever so slightly.

Abhaya still watched from above, her eyes examining every emotion that could readily be seen by just watching the two. Elias was just about to blow, she was certain of that. 'He rarely loses control of his form like this. Let's just see how his technique will fare under heavy emotions,' she thought, taking a deep drag from her pipe. Her eyes never left the two as Elias slowly sunk into a defensive position. "He's the son of a mage, bloke. I doubt that she didn't teach him how to at least throw a punch."

"Abhaya puts him through a lot of training to be honest. Some of the stuff she has him do still baffles me," Yusuke said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

Chu nodded, patting Rinku on the shoulder. "Don't be so eager to upset the poor bastard."

"Then he needs to learn his place," Rinku snapped, causing Chu to drop his hand from his shoulder.

Elias gained control of his form once more, but still kept his body in a defensive position. "My place? I have a place."

"Oh yeah? So then why do you dress and act like a human but you're a demon?"

Elias ground his teeth together. "Maybe so I don't stick out like a bloody barmpot in human world!"

"That's just a stupid excuse! That mage warped you! She took you away from your own kind!"

"And I will gladly thank her for that! She saved me from my so called "own kind", gave me food and brought me to her own sister who by the way hates her; just to nurse me back to health! Don't even fucking presume that you know anything about me."

Both boys were now heaving with anger, but the reason why Rinku didn't care for the hound was clear; Elias was raised a mage, not a demon. "Doesn't it bother you that she's a demon killer? Doesn't it bother ANYONE?"

"If a demon had done it, no one would have batted an eye lash about it. In fact, you probably would have congratulated her on her achievements. Maybe even made her a general. But just because she is a mage, you treat her as if she is a leper or a monster," Elias snarled out. "You disgust me."

Rinku lunged for Elias, causing the spectators to ready themselves to pull them apart if need be. Elias quickly dashed to the side, causing Rinku to just grab air. "I consider my mother the best thing that could have happened to me," Elias growled.

Quickly, the young hound pressed the palms of his hands together and then made a pushing motion towards the ground. The ground then gave out underneath Rinku, becoming a large pit in which the demon then fell into. However, he quickly rose again from the pit as he used his yo-yos like grappling hooks. "Wrong move."

Elias squatted lower to the ground, readying himself for whatever Rinku threw at him. He could feel all eyes on him now, noticing how still everything was around him. It unnerved him that everyone was watching the fight so intently. However, he had no time to dwell on the eyes on him. A Yo-yo snapped at him, aiming right for his throat. Elias tucked and rolled to the side, now feeling like an idiot as he ran from Rinku. He was taught to hold his own, so why was he afraid to hurt Rinku? There was one thing he was sure of however, he was faster and more agile than Rinku.

Elias stopped blocking Rinku's Yo-yo's, however one dug into his side. This caused Rinku to chuckle a little, making Elias angrier. Elias wound up to punch Rinku only to be stopped as a calloused hand wrapped around his fist. "That's enough boys."

Smoke swallowed up Elias as two lilac colored eyes peered over at his opponent. Rinku was frozen, his eyes wide with horror. Slowly Abhaya's eyes released Rinku's and trailed down to her son's. "You weren't low enough," she said, her face solemn as she examined him.

Abhaya then turned her attention back to Rinku as she released her son, who started to look at his wound. "You have yourself completely open to him as well Rinku. If Elias had really wanted to harm you, you would have been on the ground within the first two minutes."

Rinku bristled, grinding his teeth and leaving his fear in the dust. "He couldn't have gotten past my serpent yo-yo's!"

Abhaya scoffed. "You wanna bet lad? Then try that on me."

"No way! You're~"

"Still injured. You have a higher chance of beating me now than at full strength. Why not take a shot? Besides, you've never fought a mage before. It will be good practice."

Chu was shaking his head in protest, but said nothing. "I am about at Elias's strength at the moment, keep that in mind. Nonetheless, I will respect whatever you decide and I will not inflict real damage on you if you do choose to take me on."

Hiei could see past her calm façade. Though Abhaya had good intentions to help Rinku with his stance and blocks, she also wanted to scare him a little. He was half tempted on pulling her away from the kids, however something told him not to. Still, he stood ready to jump in, if the need arose.

Rinku shook his head, his lower lip quivering just a little. "I don't believe you."

Abhaya took a deep sigh through her nose and then nodded. She gave a wary crooked smile and folded her arms over her chest. "I will respect your decision. May I at least give you a pointer on your posture?"

"Why?"

Abhaya rose an eye brow at him, the edges of her lips quirking down into a slight frown. "It's better to have a small trick or tip in your back pocket than have a need for it and be empty pocketed."

Rinku scowled, just a smattering of a blush gracing his pale cheeks. "She's right bloke. You might as well have her teach you somethin'," Chu chimed in.

Abhaya nodded, flashing a warm smile at Chu. "Thank you for agreeing."

"You're welcome, witch."

Abhaya gave a weak shrug, paying mind to her healing wounds. "I've still been called worse lad."

Chu smirked, chuckling to himself as he shifted his eyes from Rinku to Abhaya. Rinku scoffed, wrinkling his nose and finally giving in. "Fine."

"Even if you are attacking, keep your knees slightly bent. This way it's faster to move if you are on the other end of an attack suddenly. For instance, Hiei hurdle something at me."

Hiei wrinkled his nose. "Do I look like your subordinate?"

Abhaya grinned, her eyes narrowing into slits. "Oh come on, lad. Haven't I been a real pain in your arse lately?" She then started to wriggle her eyebrows at him.

"You're always a pain in the ass and stop with the weird looks."

Abhaya continued to wriggle her eyebrows as she spoke. "You know you wanna."

"Skewer your head on my sword? Yes, I would love to."

"Oh, you know you would miss me."

"Cheh. Hardly. I'd miss you like I'd miss a knife in my spleen."

"That much huh? I mean, I knew you were a masochist but I~"

"Do you have a death wish?"

"But you're a masochist not a sadist~"

Hiei gave a warning growl, his eyes narrowing into thin slits. "I dare you to continue."

Abhaya gave a mischievous grin, her knees now slightly bending as she opened her mouth to give a quick retort. She had succeeded however. Hiei was too angry to let her continue. He was lunging at her before she could even form her first word. Quickly, Abhaya dodged Hiei's fist. She forced her legs to move faster, deliberately toying with the fire demon. She would dodge and then purposely poke him where his spleen was.

After three pokes, he had enough. He caught her by the front of her shirt, pulling her close to him so that they were nose to nose. "Enough."

"Oh alright, kill joy. It wouldn't kill ya though to maybe grow a bloody funny bone."
"It wouldn't kill you to grow up either, mage."

Hiei pushed her away from him, glaring at her as he walked away. Abhaya then turned her attention to the bewildered Rinku. "Did ya see how my knees were bent just slightly throughout that whole spat, lad? You need to be wary of your posture at all times during battle and have your guard up at all times. It could eventually mean life or death."

Hiei glared over his shoulder at her. "You did all that just to demonstrate posture?"

Abhaya flashed a 100 kilowatt smile at him. "And you played right into my hand."

"I hate you," he snarled, his eyes now daggers.

"And here I was becoming fond of you," she said, sarcasm thick on her tongue.

Hiei shot at odd look at her, causing her heart to jump into her throat and her smile to be whipped to a puzzled frown. He quickly tugged the now crying Yusuke out of his bent over position and took him away from the others. Everyone else around Abhaya was amused, however she stood watching him walk away from her. Her face was twisted in confusion as she tried to decipher that look.

With a deep sigh, she smiled and turned her attention to her son. "How's the wound?"

"Superficial. It's really just a nice friction burn."

Abhaya nodded. "I figured as much. That was a good block that you did."

"You think so?"

"Yes, I am happy to see that this world's energy is easy for you to tap into as well."

Elias gave a nod, smiling smugly to himself. "It feels weird but in a good way. I wasn't expecting to be able to make a hole like that though."

"I wasn't expecting you to either, but I am proud that you could. That reminds me to fix it however."

Abhaya formed her two hands into fist and placed her left on her right wrist. She then tugged her left hand up, allowing her fists to become flat palms. The hole caved in on itself becoming a part of the arena once more. "There. All better."

A/N: Wow I suck ass. I'm so terribly sorry that this took me forever to write. These few past months have been hell. I had some inspiration and time this week and just got around to it. I hope this was enjoyable however if it did suck. Go ahead and tell me! If you loved it, go ahead and lemme know why. Either way, I'm glad that I can get this out. I'm hoping to post again in the next week or so. However, I am going to leave it here today. I hope you enjoyed it, please favorite/follow/comment. Have a great day!~Ela