Chapter Nine: Discussions

*Serena sat on a blanket on floor next to a warm fire. Beside her sat two bowls from the soup Hiiro had heated for their dinner, and behind her sat Hiiro himself. Actually, he was kneeling behind her, brushing out her long damp tresses.

"Why do you keep it so long?" He asked.

"My father said that it was the only way he would be able to pick his daughter out from the other hired hands at the end of the day." She half smiled while thinking of the memory.

"That was probably true."

"It was very true Hiiro Yui, and don't you go forgetting it." She giggled. She liked the feeling of having someone brush her hair. It was a very personal experience, she realized. No one but Hiiro had ever seen her hair down. No one. "And anyway Hiiro, why don't you comb your hair?"

"I do."

"I don't believe you." She accused. He smirked behind her.

"That's too bad." He mussed.

"Then why is it always so messy?"

"I'm a bounty hunter, beauty don't do much for me in my line of work." She laughed.

"In that case, I feel I should tell you, I like your hair messy."

"Do you?"

"Yes. But don't ask me why, heaven only knows." He put the brush down and moved to sit beside her.

"Then maybe I should ask heaven."

"I thought you weren't a God-fearing man?"

"People change."

"You've changed." She told him quietly, laying her head on his arm. He shifted, and then she found her head was on his shoulder, and his arm around her waist. She should have pulled away. She knew she should have. But she couldn't bring herself to leave his warm embrace. So she settled into it and relaxed instead.

"I noticed."

"Yes. You smile and laugh; you never did that when you first came here. You joke something horrible as well. And you're more helpful."

"You're more impaired than when I first arrived, I have to be more helpful."

"There goes your dry sense of humor." She pointed out. He smirked.

"Hnn."

"And another thing, we really should work on that grunt of yours."

"Hnn." She sighed.

"Hiiro?"

"Yes?"

"Tell me who you are? What made you a bounty hunter? Why are you after Wild Shields and who is he?"

"Some things are better kept a secret. You know that."

"Yes, but some things, like your past, aren't."

"Alright then. I was raised by an old man. I don't know who my parents were, but the old man, James, took decent care of me. When he died, I didn't have much to go on. No farm like you. So I took up the only line of work that didn't cost much- bounty hunting. I'm more than dead accurate with my shots, and you've seen me with knives and the ax."

"So then you're a good hunter?" She frowned deeply.

"I've never not caught a man I've hunted."

"What about Wild Shields? What exactly does he do?" She pressed, thirsty to know more.

"He's a major bandit who's killed more people than I have. That's saying something."

"Is he a terrible man?"

"He steals, kills, cheats, and backstabs. Sins, am I correct?"

"You've killed."

"Justice needs to be served one way or another." Serena frowned even more. She didn't believe he was right. Justice could only be served in a person's heart and mind when their conscience caught up with them. Killing them wouldn't allow them to recognize their mistakes and feel guilt, feel sorrow, for what they had done.

"Why do you care about my work?" Hiiro asked.

"I was only wondering."

"Harm comes to many who just wonder. You'd do well to remember to keep your mouth shut and questions to yourself."

"How dare you!" Serena gasped. She strained to lift her head from Hiiro's shoulder. "Just you hold your own tongue Hiiro Yui!" It wasn't that what he had said bothered her so much… wait, yes it was. But not because of the implication it held, it was because of the words he had chosen. He had once spoken nearly the exact same words to her… her mind clouded with the memory.

"You just keep your hands to yourself pig!" She had screamed. Of course she should have known better, her insults only enticed him more.

"Now, now, is that any way to treat me Sere dear?" She could almost feel his hands roaming over her stomach and continuing up…she had shuddered in revulsion and moved to slap him. But he had held her hands pinned above her.

"It is the only way to treat you! Do you even care about the child you just murdered?" She had yelled.

"Curiosity killed the cat Serena," his eyes had darkened. "Just you keep that pretty little mouth of yours quiet and those questions of yours to yourself." And he had moved in to kiss her. Luckily just as he did so the dinner triangle had sounded, and he immediately dropped her. "Maybe next time kitten." He had smiled darkly and then walked away, leaving her ready to cry.

And now how dare Hiiro think he can say the same thing? She shivered voluntarily and closed her eyes in rage. Was Hiiro so much like him that they even spoke the same words to her? Would he be the same? Perhaps questions did present problems, but if she didn't ask, she would be left behind in the dust.

Hiiro heard her words and felt the warmth of her body leave his side as she struggled to pull away from him. He could make out the goose bumps on her arms and watched as she shuddered and closed her eyes. Had his words affected her that much? He was right to advise her as he did, but he didn't see why she had become so emotional over such a small thing.

"Time for sleep." He finally broke their heavy silence. Serena looked at him, and her eyes he could see cloudy frustration and anger. And fear… he had never seen fear in her before. It chilled him to his core, to see her vibrant blue eyes misted with the new emotion. She feared him… what had he done?

"Very well." She choked out quietly. She shuddered as Hiiro touched her to pick her up, but said nothing. He reminded her too much of him… the only difference was that Hiiro was there, with her, not hundreds of miles away.

Hiiro quietly carried Serena to her room and laid her on her bed. He pulled her covers up, but this time he retreated quickly; not nearly brave enough to kiss her brow once more. If she was afraid of him now, he would have to earn her trust again before he tried such a move again.

"Goodnight." He managed to whisper. Then he slipped out of her room and gently shut the door behind him. Serena lay awake on the bed for a long time afterwards. This was going too far, she knew. It had hurt her that he hadn't apologized for his actions. But what had hurt her still more was that he had made no move to kiss her goodnight as he had the night before. She knew that because it ached so that he had not acted she was getting attached. She had to put an end to this foolish nonsense before something came of it.

With the new resolution firmly planted in her mind, Serena closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep. But still her dreams were haunted by an ache she did not fully comprehend, and so she remained restless and tormented the rest of the lonely night.

)(

For the next few days, the entire farm seemed as if it were falling apart. Serena was unable to stand, much less do her chores, so they fell behind in the schedule that she had set for them to follow. The corral was only half way complete, and though Hiiro spent a good portion of his afternoons working on it, he still had to deal with all of the horses, the chickens, the three hogs, and the cow.

But what truly began to split them apart was not the workload, but their sheer stubbornness when it came to each other. Since the night they had returned, Serena avoided Hiiro as much as possible. This proved to be quite a feat because she needed him to get around, and he need her to tell him what she needed done.

Hiiro didn't completely understand what he had done wrong. It wasn't just his words, he knew. He had said far crueler things to her in the past and she had bounced back. He didn't even think she was capable of holding a grudge. But he was proved sorely wrong. It ached in his very bones to think that she feared him and that was the reason that she avoided him. Was it his past? Did she not approve of the killing? Or was it his lack of parentage? No. Somehow he didn't believe she would hold either of those things against him. He must have subconsciously done something else. But what, he still did not know.

He should have been happy that she was avoiding him. He should have been glad that their ties had been damaged- it would make his leaving much easier. But he was more depressed at heart than anything else. He preformed his chores only half as efficiently as usual, and his nights he lay awake, unable to sleep knowing she was in the next room over angered with him.

The argument was taking its toll on Serena as well. She watched Hiiro outside all day, breaking his back and pouring his sweat into her home, her dear home, knowing that when he came in at night she would once again have to act cold towards him. Since the argument, she had realized something. Hiiro was not him. There were a great many differences between them, differences she felt terrible for not noticing in the first place.

Hiiro truly cared for her home. When he worked, though he had only been working half-heartedly she could tell, he still put forth his best effort. He had never cared enough to put sweat and blood into the land she was so fond of. Hiiro was gentle with her, even when he was angry or in a poor mood. He had never screamed at her for anything; never hit her. Never. However he had had a violent temper. When he was angry, things tended to be broken or thrown around, including her. And another thing: Hiiro never touched her. Of course he had to lift her to move her, but besides that, he never whistled, felt her up, or made a crude remark about such things. Those things had been everyday occurrences when he was around. She had been so foolish to ever think that they could be alike.

And their motives for killing? Hiiro's was to administer justice, not to become more powerful or wealthier. Serena did not like the thought of taking life in the least, but if it came to pass that someone had to do so, for self-defense or to protect others, then she would support them. To her, Hiiro's motives more closely matched than his ever would.

But Serena didn't have the choice. As guilty as she felt for misjudging him, she could still not bring herself to apologize to Hiiro. If she did, she would be signing his death warrant, she knew. He had claimed her for his own, and now she was forever bound to him. If she forgave Hiiro, she knew what would ultimately happen. She would let things go too far with him, and then he would be killed…murdered. She would rather them both suffer and allow him to live than kill him.

So the days passed slowly, the two hardly speaking. Awkward silence filled their meals, and a feeling of finality hung in the air that neither liked. *

~~~PLEASE REVIEW! I don't want this fic to be trapped in the shadows of Though All Was Quiet or Shangri-La, so please remind me that you do care! –Vixen ~~~