Hey guys. The world is crazy right now, and we need to remember that we are in this together. Wash your hands, stay home unless necessary, and help the elderly out without contact. We will get through this. I hope this story helps you relax, even if just for a little bit.


Hiei awoke with a gasp, sitting upright. Yukina, startled by his sudden movement, scooted back.
He found her with eyes that were both angry and confused. His energy was much lower than it usually was, but it was no longer going haywire.
"What happened?" He demanded.
"There… There was an attack…" Yukina started.
"Are you hurt?" his question surprised her.
"No, thanks to you… But you got hurt because you saved me again…" She watched him with a questioning stare.
He seemed nervous. He quickly averted his eyes, noticing the ice wall Yukina had built around them.
"Thank you for saving me, but I have to ask… Why? You also saved me from that crumbling wall as the Dark Tournament Stadium collapsed…"
He looked even more nervous and didn't answer. Suddenly his eyes widened.
"Where's the girl?" He turned to Yukina, a touch of panic in his face.
Yukina looked down in shame.
"She was taken."
Hiei froze, his fists clenched tight. His face was shadowed.
"Kazuma and Yusuke ran after them. I haven't heard any news yet."
Hiei flashed to his feet.
"Open the ice." He commanded. Yukina still couldn't see his face, but his energy felt… murderous. She did as he asked, letting the walls fall. He was about to dash off when a familiar voice called out.
"Oi! You lot still runnin' with Urameshi?"
Hiei and Yukina looked up. A red-haired man dressed in white pants and shirt was floating leisurely to them. Yukina thought he looked familiar, but she couldn't place his name.
"Jin?" Hiei murmured. Ah! That was it!
Hiei and Yukina started as they realized that he was carrying Hikari!
"Hikari!" Yukina cried out in happiness. She began to run closer to the floating couple. She had been so worried she'd never see her friend again. She knew that Kazuma and Yusuke were strong, but the attacking enemies had been fast, and both of the guys had been injured when they gave chase.
Hikari smiled happily as she saw the two of them. The cloak she was wrapped in was stained with blood. Oh no, had she been hurt again?
Hiei zipped past Yukina, staring at the floating pair. His face flickered from relief to irritation.
"Ye 'aven't answered me question!" Jin said teasingly, flashing his sharpened canines in a smile.
"Yes, we're Yusuke's friends. And Hikari's." Yukina was grateful to the wind apparition, but wait, where were Kazuma and Yusuke?
As if reading her mind, Jin smiled his easy smile. "De big wan isn't far behind us, an' Urameshi ran aff spoutin' sum sort 'av craic… Somethin' aboyt 'is doll, oi tink?"
Yukina didn't really understand a word of that, but it sounded like her friends were ok.
Hiei suddenly drew his sword, startling Yukina, and the wind master.
"Hiei?" She asked questioningly.
"Why should we trust you?" The fire apparition growled, pointing his sword upwards into the air.
"Ah nigh, why wud oi fib ter yer? Ah've broot sweet 'ikari back safe an' soun.'"
Hiei twitched when Jin said Hikari's name.
"For all we know, you could have killed the Detective and the oaf and taken her by force. She is only human, perhaps you have manipulated her mind to make her docile."
Jin blinked, as did Yukina.
The girl, however, reddened in rage.
"Hey! Hiei! Quit being an asshole!" She snarled, and Hiei surprisingly flinched at her harsh tone. "Jin saved Kuwabara and me, and he's a friend of Yusuke's! He's been nothing but kind, so stop being a suspicious douchebag!"
The three of them were shocked by the outburst, none more so than Hiei, judging by his expression. After a moment, Jin began laughing heartily.
"If yer tink Ah've messed wi' 'er mind ye must not nu de lass pure well! She ain't naw weak-willed flower. She's a fiery doll!"
Hiei scoffed but lowered his sword. Yukina and Hiei both knew Jin was correct. Weak-willed humans were the easiest to manipulate, and it would be a complicated task to control someone with Hikari's independent nature.
"Fine, I suppose we'll trust you for now…" Hiei glared at the imp. "Now, if you don't mind, give the girl back." Hiei had not sheathed his sword but held out an upturned palm.
Jin's eyes narrowed.
"Oi 'ill once ye put yer sword away."
"Not going to happen. Now give her here." Hiei demanded.
Yukina felt the tension build, and Jin raised an eyebrow.
"Oi'm findin' oi'm quite enjoyin' the lass' company. Perhaps oil 'old on ter 'er for a wee while longer. Besides, Oi'm sure ter be more craic than yisser grumpy arse." Jin winked at the girl, who blushed a little.
Hiei's energy crackled with anger.
"This is the last time I will ask before I just kill you. Give. Girl." He meant it too, Yukina could tell. This could be very bad. Yukina looked between them. Both now were staring at each other, daring for the other to make a move. The girl seemed frozen. Even as a human, she must sense the bloodlust coming from both the male apparitions. Definitely not good.
Just as Yukina felt she might suffocate from the tension, a voice came on the wind.
"YUUUUUUUUKKKKKKKKKIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNAAAAAAA!"
They all turned to see a young man with blue hair sliding through the snow on a path of ice that formed in front of him, towing a sled of ice. Kuwabara sat on the sled, waving wildly as they approached.
"Yukina! My love, are you hurt?" Kazuma called.
Yukina smiled, glad the goofy human was alright, and that the tension had been broken without bloodshed.
"No, I'm not injured." She replied as the new boy and Kuwabara came to a rest in front of them.
"I'm glad! I was worried about you, honey bunches." Sweat drops appeared on everyone's head.
Then Yukina noticed his clothes were covered in blood.
"Kazuma! You're bleeding!"
"Ah, it's nothing but a flesh wound!" Kuwabara tried to act tough, but Toya flicked a point on his back, and blood spurted fresh from his wounds.
"Guh!" Kuwabara collapsed in the snow with a strange sound.
"Ah, Kazuma, let me help!"


Hiei watched as Yukina fussed over the oaf, keeping an eye on the damn imp in the sky. He was still irritated, but his rising bloodlust had quelled for now. He didn't entirely trust the sudden appearance of the demon shinobi.
Hiei was angry at himself. He had been too weak to do much of anything as the girl was taken. It was pathetic.
Hiei had no regrets about saving Yukina, as he would always protect her, but he was angry that he had been knocked down with such a measly explosion.
He clenched his fist tightly, trying to soothe his erratic energy. It wasn't as spazzing as much as before, but it was much more volatile than usual.
Well, at least it looked like the oaf, and the detective had managed to retrieve the girl. Now, if the damn wind master would give her back, he could breathe a little easier.
"H-hey, Jin, y-you c-c-could put me d-d-down you know-w."
At the sound of her voice, Hiei looked up at the hovering pair. The girl was trembling, probably from cold and the loss of adrenaline. Though she was wrapped in a cloak that appeared to belong to the wind master, Jin's power likely wasn't helping much as it called upon the powers of the freezing wind in the climate.
"Are ye sure lass? Yer hurt yerself." Jin looked slightly concerned. At the girl's nod, Jin began lowering himself down to earth.
Hmph, so the Detective and Oaf hadn't managed to get her back in one piece after all. Hiei found himself irritated that the two buffoons had allowed the girl to be hurt further. For all they knew, injuring her might cause another release of her power.
Jin landed lightly, but he didn't put the girl down just yet. Hiei tried not to show his rising irritation. After spending so much time shadowing her, it made him uneasy to not have her within arm's reach. Then he noticed that there was something encased in the ice sled Toya had brought along. He stepped closer to examine it, momentarily distracted from his annoyance.
One of the attackers, particularly the one Hiei had crossed swords with, was trapped inside the sled. Heh, looks like today wouldn't be a total loss after all…
"Yukina?" The girl asked with concern, drawing Hiei's attention to his sister.
The ice maiden was breathing heavily, sweat running down her face as she healed Kuwabara's wounds. The idiot had been too busy yapping his drivel to notice that Yukina was struggling.
"Yukina? What's wrong?" Kuwabara finally saw the look on her face. Yukina lowered her arms, having healed the most severe of Kuwabara's injuries.
"I'm sorry Kazuma, I don't have much energy left…" The female apparition looked ashamed. Hiei flinched as he realized why she had such little energy. How foolish of him! She had spent a good portion of her power between healing him and maintaining the icy barrier to protect them while he was unconscious. Now, she had treated Kuwabara's most serious injuries. Not to mention she had been using her power a lot the last few days to heal Hikari… She must have been completely drained.
"Don't worry about me, Yukina, I'll be just fine! You relax and leave the rest to me! I'm sturdy, I'll heal up quick on my own..." Kuwabara's arms were flailing in a panic. Hmph. He might be a clumsy idiot, but he really did care for Hiei's sister.
"Hikari, do you have any serious wounds? I think I have enough energy if you need attention." Yukina was panting slightly as she spoke. The girl was shaking her head before she had even finished her sentence.
"No! I'm fine, Yukina, just tired with my adrenaline finally going down." Hiei noticed that she shifted to hide one of her legs. Was she hiding some sort of injury so Yukina wouldn't worry?
"But, you're bleeding…"
"Just some cuts! They will be fine healing the natural way."
"But Hikari, maybe you should at least take care of your-" the girl silenced the oblivious Kuwabara with a glare that rivaled Hiei's own.
"No, I think Yukina ought to get some rest. Is there any undamaged part of the inn?" The girl said through gritted teeth, obviously willing Kuwabara to take the hint and let the female apparition rest and rebuild her strength.
"Ah, yeah, I've got this! My room should be fine!" Kuwabara scooped up Yukina.
"Hold up!" The girl grabbed Kuwabara's ear as he began to dash away with Yukina. Heh, good thing she had, Hiei was about to pierce his sword through his fat head.
"I think the lobby might be a better spot until Kurama gets back."
"Hey! I'm a gentleman, I would never do anything terrible to a woman!" The girl was giving Kuwabara the side-eye.
"Shizuru and Keiko warned me that you and Yusuke are still perverts, though."
The two began to argue, which was kind of an amusing sight as the damn imp was still holding Hikari, who was still gripping Kuwabara's ear. Jin was laughing. Toya just looked embarrassed.
Finally, she let go, seeming to be satisfied by his sincerity. Hiei was not. Kuwabara didn't make a move to run off yet, though, so he could spend a few more moments alive.
"Oh! Jin, you really can let me down." The imp still looked concerned but did as the girl asked. She gingerly stepped down, and Hiei noticed she was placing all her weight on one foot. She wrapped the borrowed cloak loosely around her shoulders. Jin silently offered the girl his arm to lean on, giving her a roguish, knowing smile. She blushed and accepted the offer with a small smile of her own. Hiei's eye twitched.
Hiei stepped closer to the pair. She was still on Jin's other side. He didn't like that the wind master stood between them. He had a feeling that the imp had done that on purpose. Still, his anxiety was easing a bit now that she was no longer in the arms of someone he didn't trust. Hiei had lived through too much to trust easily.
Kuwabara was set to again dash off with Yukina to Hiei's chagrin when he stopped suddenly.
"Something's wrong…" He murmured. He had stopped next to the girl.
"Wasn't… Wasn't there someone else Urameshi was fighting?"
Hiei and Jin gasped with the realization.
The snow next to Kuwabara exploded, the forgotten enemy with the Gatling gun leaping up.
Dammit, Detective! Why hadn't he just killed the bastard?
The attacker managed to get a grip on the girl's arm, yanking her from Jin's grasp by pushing off Jin's stomach with his foot. Jin crashed into Hiei, the powerful kick sending them both flying several feet away. Time moved slowly as he pointed the gun at Yukina and Kuwabara.
Hiei wasn't close enough.
Nooooo! His scream was silent as the enemy pulled the trigger. Kuwabara tried to turn, tried to shield Yukina, but it wouldn't be enough.
Hiei reached for Yukina in desperation. He managed to get out from under the much taller wind master, but even with his speed, the bullet would reach her before he could.