Chapter Thirty-Two

Come Back

Hiei passed by the front door, wide open to the night air beyond. Voices drifted from the porch as crickets chirped beyond. The night was somber compared to the night prior. Just twenty four hours ago they had all been laughing and joking and drinking around the fire. Now, Koichi and his guard had left and everyone was off in their own corner of the temple, coming to terms with the fact that they would all be rushing into battle in just three short weeks. Ashley was with Yukina somewhere - she'd been trying to make phone calls all day, but the signal had been too spotty to get anything taken care of, she'd said. Whatever that meant. He'd given her space to do what she needed to, which gave him time to come to terms with what they were about to face.

Across from the open doors, Hiei could see through the windows into Genkai's kitchen. The lights were on, and Yukina sat across the table from Ashley. Both had mugs of something, but neither touched them. Light was absent from their eyes, and though Hiei could not hear them from his distance away, just their body language told him that worry, stress, and tension flowed between them. Yukina likely filling Ashley in on what it was like to watch them go off to fight. Making plans. He would suggest that Ashley stay with Yukina day-of, that way if something were to happen, they would have each other. Especially if -

No. He wouldn't think like that. He would come back. Hiei watched Ashley again, through the open door and through the window across from him. He would come back. For her.

The voices on the other side of the door caught his attention.

"Did I make the right choice, though?" Yusuke.

"If Koichi's numbers are correct, we don't have much choice in the matter, do we?" Kurama.

Hiei continued walking as they continued talking. His feet leading himself to the kitchen to join Yukina and Ashley, the latter who perked up as soon as he entered. He took his seat next to her and pulled her close so she could lean against his body.

Ashley and Yukina continued talking, though Hiei didn't pay any mind to what they were saying. He was watching Yukina.

It was rare that he allowed himself to think of Yukina as his sister. For all intents and purposes, they were just friends. She had married his teammate and friend, and she was close with Ashley.

Sitting across from her, watching her talk with Ashley, Hiei wondered if it wasn't time to tell her the truth. Shigure had long since died, relinquishing Hiei from the vow he swore that he would never tell his sister the truth of their relationship.

But was he wondering if he should tell her because they were looking at a battle in less than a month, or because he thought she would actually accept him?

At one point, Hiei had been sure that Yukina would never accept him, especially when she was so pure, herself. He didn't want her to know that she had a killer for a brother. He didn't want the image she had for him to tarnish. But now, things had changed. He didn't kill as he once had - reserving that for when he truly needed to defend himself or those he cared for. And Ashley had grown close to him anyway, even knowing who he was.

But watching Yukina across from him, Hiei couldn't think of a good way to even broach the subject. No. He'd wait until he was certain, and especially once Death wasn't a possibility in the near future.

He stopped those thoughts immediately, squeezing Ashley closer as a reminder of where he was, but it was the truth. He would wait until after the battle was over. If he decided to, at that point.

Ashley and Hiei returned to their little flat the following day. Knox had been staying with a neighbor, and was absolutely overjoyed with their return, dancing in circles at their feet. Neither had expected to be gone for as long as they were. It was supposed to be a quick trip down to Genkai's temple, stay the one night, and back on Saturday. However with the barrier breaking and the attacks on the refugee centers, it had stretched over the entire weekend.

The news was non-stop coverage on the relief efforts, still. For the most part no one else had noticed the barrier breaking down, and those who had were laughed at publicly. It was all of the psychics who could see, or anyone else with the second sight. In regard to the barrier, it was like nothing had happened at all. Though Demon World looming in the sky above them was hard to ignore while the rest of the world was oblivious. They were all ignorant of what was about to take place; going about their business like nothing was wrong.

Ashley, it seemed, was trying very hard not to think of it.

Ashley took her shower first, needing some time to think, which Hiei didn't blame her for at all. She left the bathroom, still drying the ends of her hair, and passing Hiei as he made his way to the bathroom. She'd been abnormally quiet, lost in her head almost. He still hadn't had a chance to ask her about her comments about Hana, or the way they reacted to each other in the war meeting, but he was certain her quietness had something to do with the Devil.

By the time his shower was over and he joined Ashley at the kotatsu, Ashley was on the phone, an notepad beneath her hands. Hiei took a seat across the table from her, against the wall, where he leaned back. There were few days they had simply gotten to enjoy one another's presence in the last few months, so he took full advantage of it. As she spoke on the phone in her native tongue - which Hiei could now recognize and say a few words, but for the most part couldn't understand a thing - he watched her as she worked. His sword leaned against the wall near the door. He could get up to get it and sharpen it, but for the first time in a long time, he just wanted to watch her.

Her hair was still wet, and hung in strands around her face where it wasn't pulled into a messy bun at the nape of her neck. Her skin was still splotchy from the heat of the water, and she wore loose fitting shorts and a long-sleeve t-shirt. She was unapologetically human, sitting there with her pen cap between her teeth as she listened to whatever the person was saying on the other end of the phone. She tapped the ballpoint end on the notepad, her handwriting scrawled across the page.

If she felt his eyes on her, she didn't look up. Her eyes were glazed over, in her concentration, so he was free to look upon the incredible woman in front of him without her starting to feel self-conscious, or asking him to stop.

After what felt like only a few minutes, she leaned back, taking the pen cap out of her mouth, and said in English, which Hiei could understand, "Thank you… We'll talk soon!"

She hung up, and with only a sparse glance toward Hiei, dialed another number. This time, she spoke in Japanese.

"Mako! It's Ashley… Yes, your teacher….I got your number from the records; I hope you don't mind." Hiei could just barely hear Mako answering on the other line. What on earth was she doing calling him?

She answered his question, still speaking to Mako. "Do you remember that day we played together on the piano? You told me you wanted to study music long-term but that your scholarship was going to come to an end here. Is that still something you want to do? Study music long-term?"

Mako stuttered and sputtered on the other line, trying to catch his brain up to what Ashley was telling him.

"I think I have a way you can do that," she announced before he could answer. She didn't pause before continuing, "Back in England, I was part of a music program called the Dean's College. It's not necessarily a college. Not anymore, at least, but it is a prestigious music program. You can join as kind of like a high-end club. They'll put on concerts and performances for their members to showcase their talents, which often help them get hired. But for the younger kids, if they join they can receive a scholarship from the College to attend school to study music.

"Anyway, the College always likes to put on benefits for charities or when tragedies take place." Ashley paused briefly, glancing up at Hiei from under her lashes. "They're going to be putting on a benefit since the tragedy the Guardians caused, with killing all those demons yesterday. I got ahold of my contact at the college, Laurie, and told him of your situation. He wants you to come audition for them."

She paused for Mako to answer. From what Hiei could hear, Mako didn't answer for nearly a minute. When he was done speaking, she answered whatever question he had just asked. "Yes, it's in England. They're headquartered in London, and the benefit is in just a couple of weeks." Another glance up at Hiei. "Friday, October 9."

Hiei's mental math was quick. That was a week prior to the scheduled battle against the Legion.

"I'll come with you. I've asked to also participate in the benefit - I want to help. However I can, you know? Even if it's small. Even if this is all I can do." Another pause. "Well, thanks- … I haven't really thought that far in advance, honestly…. Mako, you know as well as I do I can't write my own music. … I mean, I like the idea, but are you sure?… Alright, then. Let's do it!… Yeah, I can meet you tomorrow between classes. Yeah, just text me." Ashley finished the call with a quick 'bye', and hung up the phone, setting it down on the table, finally, with a quiet, "I'm exhausted."

"What was that?"

A deep sigh from Ashley. "That was me figuring out a way Mako can still play music even after his scholarship ends." But she paused and looked at him. "But that's not what you were wondering, is it?" His eyebrows raised in silent question.

"I need to help, Hiei. I know you said I should focus on learning my new power and to help later, but…" She paused, searching for the right words. "I can't just not do anything, you know? I can help in this way, so I should."

"It's a week before the battle, Ashley!" He tried to keep his voice steady, but still, it rose. He tried again. "It's a week before."

"I know! But Mako and I can go to England and be back by that Sunday. Still five whole days before you leave."

Conviction shone through her eyes, through her voice. There was no point in arguing with her, when in reality, there was something he wanted to discuss with her.

"I want you to stay with Yukina day-of."

She blanched. "Nothing's going to happen, Hiei." She said quietly, like she was afraid she might break. Her voice shook.

"You don't know that," he leaned forward. He would make it back to her, but still. He wanted her to be with Yukina, just in case.

"You've been through countless battles. This won't be any different."

"But it might be." He glanced down to the table, suddenly unable to look at her as he said, "If something happens I want you to be with someone who understands-"

He trailed off, but she didn't try to deny him. She didn't tell him it would be alright again. He glanced up. Wetness shone in her eyes, and she swallowed, looking away. "I hate that we're even discussing this."

After a minute, her head spun back to him. "Why?" She was angry. "Why is this so important to you? Why do you have to fight?"

"This goes beyond-"

"I've never even see you fight, you know. Everyone says you're this crazy-powerful demon, but Hiei, I've never seen it. How am I supposed to put my faith in something I've never seen? It's hard, Hiei. It's so hard. I don't want you to go, but I don't want to tell you to stay because I know that's not who you are." Hiei stayed quiet until he was sure she was finished.

"I need to protect my world. And yours." And you, he didn't say. By now, he figured that should be obvious. "I won't go down easy."

Ashley muttered something, too low to catch, even for his ears. It sounded like, "Come back to me," but he couldn't be sure.

Still, he insisted, "I'll come back. I promise."

Ashley swallowed, tilting her head back and wiping at her tears. "You know, that blonde woman said something to me yesterday. I don't like her, but I'll admit she had a point." She sucked in a deep breath and adjusted herself. "Hiei, what am I to you?"

Should he have said he was going to battle to protect her? The question threw him completely, but she was serious, staring at him, watching his response. Her jaw clenched, but it wasn't in frustration or anger, he realized, but in apprehension.

She was… Ashley was apprehensive about his reply?

After all they had been through, she questioned him now?

But at the same time, her words rang in his head. What was she to him? He didn't want her to disappear, or perish. He couldn't imagine a world without her. Couldn't imagine his world. And she was powerful, even more than she likely knew, and she cared about her friends. She was incredible, and kind, and smart, and selfless, and talented. But what was she to him?

"You're… important to me."

Whatever she found in his words looked like they comforted her in some way. She nodded, and when she caught his gaze, she quickly looked away again, a blush rising to her cheeks.

"What did the Devil say to you?"

That threw her. "Devil?"

"Hana. Koichi's sister. The Devil of the Terasu Forest."

"Oh." But Ashley didn't elaborate. Instead, she suddenly found the hem of her sleeve to be more interesting.

After what felt like eons of deliberation, Hiei finally asked, "What on earth is wrong? You look like you have something you want to say."

That seemed to sober her. "Hiei," she began slowly, shifting in her seat. She half-reached for him, but must have thought better of it. She retracted her hand just as quickly. "Hiei, I need to tell you - I love you."

"And-and," she quickly continued, stumbling over her words, "You don't have to say it back or anything. I just wanted you to know."

Love. She loved him? He was incredulous. Love was always at the tip of every human's tongue, waiting to be announced to any passerby on the street. He was all too familiar with it. It was inescapable, even as little as he paid attention to media. It was whispered after a single night of sharing another's bed, it was pleaded when one person barely knew another. "You humans throw that world around quite a lot."

"No! It's not - I'm not throwing it around!" She replied sharply. She quietened. "I'm not throwing it around. I mean it. I love you." As she said it again, she met his gaze, her own softening, and a breath escaping through her lips, almost in awe.

Hiei shifted, uncomfortable. Love. A word given from mothers to their offspring. Or between partners. Enki would often say it to Kokou when he didn't think anyone was watching. Keiko had said it once or twice to Yusuke in his presence. Kuwabara and Yukina often shared sentiments. It was something he'd never received. Something, in all his blood-soaked history, he should never receive.

"What do you mean, love?" Hiei nearly barked.

"Love is… it's…" she struggled to find the words. "It's like when you hear a song and you just know that you love that song, you know? And you can listen to it whenever you want. Or like, if you've got a room full of people and a cat comes up to only you for pets. It's…" She looked up at him, finding some resolution as she did. Carefully, she moved closer to him. "You're my person. You're the one I feel most comfortable around, who knows me. You're the one I turn to when things turn south. The one I always want to talk to. To hold me. To protect me. To be around." When he didn't look convinced, she continued, her face turning red. "I love your quips. And your wit. And the way you glare at people when they piss you off. You don't let anyone change you, and you let people know when they've crossed a line. You're absolutely no-nonsense. I love your strength, and the way you draw out the strength in me. You believe in me in a way I didn't think was possible. You see me as more than I think I do.

"Love is hard," she continued, finally finding her confidence. "But I want you to know you don't have to love me, too. And I'm not telling you because the battle is coming up. I want you to know how I feel."

It felt like every word she said tore through him, leaving him breathless. I love your strength, was the one that nearly did him in. It took everything in him to keep his expression neutral. It was overwhelming, and as his heart raced, he realized just how uncomfortable he was. "I'm not capable of such a thing-"

"But you are! Even with your tough exterior, you're lovable. It's so easy to be around you. Your friends wouldn't have stuck around if they didn't think so, too."

He was completely uncomfortable, especially with her sitting so close to him. What was he supposed to do with that information? She didn't believe it, obviously, but there was no way he was ever going to be able to feel the same as her. It had always been him. And then it had been him and the detective and his friends. But he was always alone. How did she fit into his life? She was important to him, yes, but love? Love was such a far-fetched notion, he didn't even consider it. Love had never once entered his vocabulary, or anyone else's in reference to him.

And yet, here she was, his human bulldozer.

Not entirely sure how to respond, he merely replied with a quiet, "Okay."

Hiei was gone before the light ever breached the horizon.

He'd muttered into her hair as he left her sleeping in the futon, "I'll be back in three days," and stole into the night.

Crisp autumn air bit at his exposed face and hands, but he sprinted at his incredible speed through Tokyo, and then made his way through the forests and mountains to Genkai's. It took nearly an hour, but still, he was the first to arrive.

Lights were still out inside the temple, and the refugee's fires had all but succumbed to smoldering ash. The refugees that had sought out Genkai's temple had, in the last two days, begun to get nervous and jittery. Frightened that they should leave. But where would they go? Further into the reaches of Human World where most of the humans feared them? Where they might be the victim of some hyped-up human out on a tear? Or should they return to Demon World and face the Legion and the choice to join or die?

All options led to death, so they stayed where they were. Anxious and silent.

"Jaganashi," a deep voice broke through the quiet dawn air. Hiei turned, his Jagan alight, and watched as the demons Koichi had promised him spilled out onto the grassy lawn from the tree line.

"You're late."

"War makes everything late." The leader of the group said. He was a large demon, with light blue and white markings across his body. His head was round, eyes slanted, and his nose and mouth protruded away from his face. Some type of shark demon if Hiei had to guess.

"My name is Nori," the demon said, and gestured to the demons behind him. "This is my clan." He spoke carefully, each word pronounced. "Lord Koichi told us to find you."

"Did he tell you why?" Hiei wasn't going to waste effort on anything they already knew.

"He said you needed help securing the divide between Demon World and this world." Hiei nodded.

"The barrier fell two days ago. Until we can figure out why and how to get it back up, it means that any demon can slip into Human World and harm the inhabitants here. No demon no matter their strength level should enter Human World or leave. If they're part of the detective's team here," he nodded to the temple behind him, "They will use Kuwabara or Bjorn to get to Demon World. If something changes I will alert you. No one else. Is that clear?"

"Why should we protect the humans? They killed our own."

"Only some of them," Hiei replied, crossing his arms. "Not all are bad."

Nori didn't say anything, glaring Hiei down. Hiei met his challenge and didn't dare break eye contact.

"Is that clear?" Hiei asked again, his words sharp and precise.

Nori didn't skip a beat. "Perfectly." His tone matched Hiei's.

Slowly, he turned, and nodded to his clan, who disbursed. "Where are you headed?"

Hiei turned, walking away from the man and back to the temple to wake Bjorn. "I need to have a word with Koichi."

Nori kept up pace. "Then I will accompany you."

"I don't need a babysitter," Hiei spat.

"That's not a request. If you're traveling to visit the lord, I will accompany you."

Hiei turned suddenly, causing Nori to nearly collide with him. The taller demon stood barely an inch away from Hiei, attempting to intimidate him with his height. Too bad for Nori, it didn't work. "You don't trust me, do you?"

"I don't trust any scum that doesn't have the balls to ask me something directly and would rather rummage around in my head."

As much as Hiei wanted to rip the man's arms from his body, he turned away, heading back into the temple to find the Norwegian man. "Stay here. If I'm not back in three minutes you can come find me."

Hiei was back on the grassy slope with seconds to spare, Bjorn in tow. The younger boy looked disheveled from sleep, and was in his boxers. Sex-hair was the term that Ashley had once used to describe Hiei's hair, and at that moment, it looked like Bjorn had attained such hair, but from whom was beyond what Hiei wanted to ponder about at that moment. "Open a portal," he growled instead. "I need to go to the Terasu Forest."

"Good morning to you, too, Hiei." Bjorn yawned. Opening a portal now that the barrier was gone was an easy feat, and took mere seconds. Another two seconds and Hiei and Nori stepped through the opening.

"Much faster than going the direct route," Hiei muttered as Nori tried to re-orient himself. Hiei, however, didn't wait for the shark demon to catch up, and started walking. It seemed as though Bjorn had deposited them just feet from the center of the village. Closer than he ever had been able to before.

"Hiei?"

Koichi's voice - by now it was recognizable - caught Hiei's attention, whipping his head to the approaching Lord. While in Japan the sun was about to come up, where Hiei now stood, the sun was just disappearing beyond the trees that surrounded them. The village was winding down for the evening. "I need to see Amma," He replied shortly.

"Need assurance we'll win?" Koichi joked, eyes alight even as every string of tension that wound through Koichi's body said he was fucking exhausted. He glanced up at Nori behind Hiei. "I'll take it from here. Thank you, Commander."

Hiei didn't bother to turn to see what the shark demon thought of that dismissal, but he could figure out a way back to his post on his own. Hiei began walking through town with Koichi following at his side. Through town to the other side. Where Amma was.

As soon as he was certain Nori wasn't following them, he explained the issue of time and Nobuyuki to Koichi. Leaving out the specific details of Ashley's life before. "I'm hoping she might be able to unlock my memories so that I can find something there that can help us."

The young lord looked amicable to the idea. "It's worth a shot, but you know the old Connection won't help you unless she's sure of you, right?"

Hiei huffed out a breath. "I figured as much."

They were at the tree line by then, and ceased speaking as they made their way together toward the luminescent pools. It was obvious they had arrived when all sound ceased.

"You're ready for answers, then, Hiei Jaganashi?"

Her voice appeared from nowhere, just as it had the first time he'd met the woman, barely a month ago. She stood across from them, near one of the ponds. She hadn't changed in the short time he had been gone, as if it had been minutes instead of weeks. Hands clasped behind her back, she took in the two boys with her grayed eyes.

"I figured out the Event you told me about," Hiei replied, circling the ponds to try to get closer to the woman, but she began walking in the opposite direction. The green light from the pools danced across her face and up the trunks of the trees. "Nobuyuki sent time back. He saved Ashley's life. He created this time line.

Amma nodded. "Very good. But you still have not found the second girl. I told you to find her."

Isla. "The second girl is dead."

Amma, however, chuckled and shook her head. "I told you before: there are many ways to die. You have not tried hard enough."

Hiei seethed and looked back at Koichi, who was watching the exchange a few paces away from the pools, arms crossed over his chest. Even though he was wearing the traditional clothing that a lord of the tribe wore, his hair was disheveled, much like Bjorn's had been. Even though he looked exhausted, more than anything he looked young. Barely a man, yet having to do so much.

Seeing Koichi reminded Hiei that he had not come to merely talk with the old woman.

He clenched his fists, forcing his anger back. "I need to get my memories back. From Before."

She merely cocked her head. "And what if getting your memories doesn't help, but harms?" She didn't even ask why; she likely already knew.

"I'll take the consequences." He replied. Amma started walking again, but this time, Hiei didn't follow her. He stayed rooted where he was and followed her with his eyes.

"You say that like you know what they'll be." Her voice had dropped. A threat. "And what if they're too steep for you?"

"I'll handle it."

She didn't ask again, but watched him as she approached.

Two questions burned in his mind. "How did I find her again?"

"Those who are meant to be in our lives will always find their way back to us. No matter the distance between us. They are forever in our orbit, even if they are only supposed to stay with us for a short time. They will still find us."

Always the riddles with this woman. "You have another question." She had closed the distance between them, gazing up at him like a child waiting for an answer.

He bit back the words, but he had to know. "How is she alive? She died. I was there." The borrowed memory from Nobuyuki came to mind. He remembered seeing himself covered in her blood. In Ashley growing cold. The light fading from her eyes.

"She almost died," Amma said. Hiei was expecting to hear anything but that. "She almost passed through the Veil to Spirit World. But she did not, ultimately, and that is where you will find her true potential.

"Now, do you want your memories back or not? Even if getting them has unintended consequences. Even if what you find is not what you want?"

Hiei clenched his jaw and steeled himself. A curt nod to the woman, and she turned to look at Koichi. "Please bear witness to the Memory Lifting." Turning back to Hiei, she said somberly, "Remove your clothing and step into the pool."

The idea of getting into a glowing green pool was not appealing at all, especially since water was involved, and he'd never been one to like water very much, but the idea of not following her directions and not getting the memories back and possibly a clue that could lead him to defeating the Legion wasn't something he could entertain. He had to do this.

Hiei did as he was told, removing every garment down to his underwear and followed Amma into the pool. The plants that produced the green light were slick beneath his feet, and he nearly fell once, but regained his balance, moving into the water until he was in front of Amma. She stood in the center, the water up to her chest. The water came up to Hiei's waist. "I need you to float on your back."

Again, Hiei did as he was told, uncomfortable as he was, and Amma placed her hands against him. One hand on his chest, thumb against his sternum, and the other hand she placed against his head, thumb on his Jagan.

She paused, though, watching him. He didn't say a word, but met her gaze. Sadness radiated from her. It made her wrinkled skin seem more weathered than it had before, and her eyes were distant. "I hope you're right."

She pushed him beneath the water.

"Tell me about demon marriages."

The question wasn't out of the blue. They had discussed their future together a few weeks prior, but they had carefully skirted the subject of marriage. Did humans and demons even marry? Demons married demons, and humans married humans. There had probably been a human and demon marriage at some point in time; the worlds had been around much too long for a relationship like theirs to never occur, but it was rare, and never spoken of.

They were lying in Ashley's bed, in her room. Photos littered her walls, thrown up haphazardly, but lying there next to her was as normal and natural as anything he'd experienced. He'd long ago grown used to sharing a bed with her. She was his.

"It's bonding," Hiei had replied. His right arm was draped over her waist and she was tucked beneath his chin, tracing the lines of his muscles with her finger. "Some call it mating, but it's the same."

"Do you perform a ceremony or something?"

"Something like that…"

She leaned back, looking him dead in the eye. Her hair was shorter and her cheeks were fuller. "Well I'm asking, so…?"

He fought a smile. "It's a transfer of power. So, both share a piece of the other's power. You power up together, and it's like a mark that the other wears. When you power up to your full power, every demon knows who you belong to."

"So you're marking your territory, then?" Hiei ground to a halt, not expecting that, either. "I'm only joking!" she laughed, and he couldn't help a chuckle, either. "Do you think we will?"

The question of whether a human and demon ever bonding came to mind again. Surely it had been done before. "Do you want to?" He asked instead.

Ashley leaned back so she could meet his gaze again. "What are you suggesting?" She shifted, so that she was sitting up. He followed her lead and sat up with her. "I love you," she said, reaffirming what he already knew, and lighting him with warmth from within. "You know this. And if that's our next step, then yes. I want to. Don't you?"

She was his, and he was hers. She'd told him how she felt months prior, and he had reciprocated. She was his world. He would not let her go. Not for anything.

"Yes."

Hiei had been battling with resurfaced memories for three days now. Trying to decipher what he could actually remember doing, and what seemed foreign, but absolutely real. The ones that he couldn't remember how he came to be in the memory all seemed to have the same fuzzy edge to them. Just like how Sophia's mind had looked to the Jagan. There, but also not.

He had made it back to Ashley's flat what felt like hours ago. He'd slipped inside and leaned against the wall to watch her sleep. Knox had looked up briefly, upon hearing him come in, but had otherwise ignored him and drifted back to sleep.

The memory had been so clear in his mind, but the edges were fuzzy. It was from the first time line.

"Mm," Ashley murmured, half asleep from across the room. "You're back." She'd spotted him, so there was no point in trying to stay away any longer. He stood and crossed the room to settle into the bed with her. "What were you doing all the way over there?"

He didn't know how to answer that. What had he been doing? Remembering something that had never happened in this time? But her body had felt so real in the memory. Had they really bonded? Some demons preferred to call it mating, but he'd never liked the term. Animals mated, and he wasn't an animal.

Hiei took Ashley in next to him, now, just the same as they were in the memory. His arm draped protectively over her waist, and she snuggled into his chest. His head was propped up against his left hand. Their toes touched beneath the blanket.

"You know, I had a thought while you were gone," Ashley continued, probably figuring he wasn't going to answer. "What are you doing for Christmas?"

"Christmas?" The word was unfamiliar on his tongue.

She nodded. "December 25. The day that presents are given. The day that Jesus was born. Do you have plans?" Still, he didn't know how to answer, but she continued anyway, likely half-dazed with sleep. "I always try to spend it with my family. I missed last year because I was finishing up my semester and interviewing for the teaching job, but I'm planning on going back to London over Winter Break, and I was wondering if you would like to come with me? Meet the family?"

"What about the benefit?" Hiei finally broke his silence. "Am I not invited to come? Is Mako only allowed to meet everyone?"

That woke Ashley up, if only briefly. "You're invited! I just thought you wouldn't want to go with the preparations and stuff you probably have to do, right?"

He nuzzled into her hair, breathing in her scent. He'd been joking, but she was too close to sleep to pick up on it. "I'll need to do some things," he replied evenly, "But I can come by. I'm not going to let you go halfway around the world and manage to get yourself killed. I've worked too hard to keep you alive."

"Not… that hard!" Ashley replied, indignant, though her words were coming more slowly. She was fighting sleep. "I've done alright for twenty-four years, thank you!" They quietened. "So… Christmas?"

Hiei fought a smile. She was insistent.

"You know, we probably shouldn't make plans this close to the battle," he replied, tugging her closer to him. The memory of holding her close from before surfaced again.

"But that's the only way to look forward to the future!" She replied. "Promise me?"

The smile won. She snuggled closer, likely sensing she'd won even before he said, "I promise."

A/N: A big thank you to WistfulSin who helped me come up with the cat and song analogies for love!

I've never experienced reciprocated love, or if I have, I didn't know it. My ex, EAB, was the closest I've ever come to love, but ultimately it wasn't a healthy love or a healthy relationship on any level of the word. I have wanted to mention him for awhile. EAB was one of my best friends through college, and we dated on and off for six years. We'd go through periods of not speaking to each other, but still, he and I always seemed to find each other again, no matter how far away we strayed, or what happened between us. It was a theory we'd talk about every so often: we would always find each other, and without the other, life always felt like it was missing a piece, at least to me. We wondered, once, if our atoms had been forged in the same star and that was how we always found each other again. I've written about him through my characters again and again and again, but I think this story comes the closest to what our relationship was. Spoiler: It was not healthy and I'm so glad we've gone our separate ways.

There were a few things I was never allowed to bring up as an unspoken rule, because when I did, I knew he would run, much like how Ashley has those subjects with Hiei. Sometimes he would ghost without a word, and sometimes I would. I didn't handle that relationship responsibly, and he didn't either, but to be fair, we were kids and we were stupid.

But anyway, the relationship between Ashley and Hiei up until now was inspired by EAB, but this is the last chapter where it is. From here on out, I'll be crafting their relationship into something beyond what EAB and I were.

Thank you to destinyswindow, JohnGreenGirl, musicnutftw, LonelyDreamer7, Kykygrly, and one Guest for your reviews since the last chapter! You all are the greatest!

I do not own, in any way, the characters, places, or ideas of the Yu Yu Hakusho universe created by Yoshihiro Togashi. I only own my own characters and plot.