Disclaimer: I do not own YYH. Awwww...

SIDE NOTE: I GOT A HIEI PLUSHIE!!!!! PRAISE ALL THAT IS GOOD AND WONDERFUL IN THE WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I HAVE A HIEI PLUSHIE!!!!!!! Sorry, I'm excited! I mean, really, A HIEI PLUSHIE!!! It's with me now as I write this. So...I thank everyone who reviewed for reviewing, and read on!!

"Yo, Lord Hiei, wake up!" Hiei curled up into a ball as soon as the covers left his form. He glanced up at Hebidoshi, grumbling to himself.

"Again with the 'Lord Hiei' crap?" He sat up, stretching and yawning. "I thought you lost that several days ago."

Hebidoshi shrugged. "I feel like it. Now, get up, lazy-ass. My sister wants to see you today."

Hiei rolled his eyes. "What now?"

Again, the girl shrugged. "She didn't tell me that, but she did say you were to go alone. She looked serious, for once in her life." She started to leave the room. "I thought I'd make breakfast today...so when you're done, please tell me how it is...okay?" She left. Hiei stared after her with a searching look in his eyes.

Bizarre girl...she's been acting different ever since she told me she was a vampire... Ah, yes. That had been the uncanny thing about her, but of course it wasn't that she was a vampire. Hiei had seen many; it wasn't hard to grow accustomed to a demon vampire. It was the fact that she'd told him, and without hesitation. She said to him straightforward that she was a demon vampire, told him how it happened, and why she had been keeping a secret. Hiei was not used to being trusted with so much information from anyone.

Trying to brush these thoughts aside, Hiei slipped on his cloak, being careful around his black dragon arm. It was still paining him often, and it had become more and more frequent as days went by, so he tried not to strain it too much. He stretched it slightly, cringing as a stab of pain struck his wrist. It was hurting again. The fire demon sighed and entered the dining room, where he did find breakfast waiting for him. Slowly, he sat down, not taking his eyes off the food. Then he started poking at it. Hebidoshi caught him at it while entering from the next room.

"Oh, for crying out loud! What is it with men and food? Think it's poison if a girl cooks it...yeesh!" The cat-girl stormed over to Hiei, picked up the fork, which was currently full of sausage, and thrust it between his surprised lips. Then she set the fork down, and returned to the next room. Hiei could hear her mumbling to herself about men and cooking as he chewed the food. In truth, it wasn't that bad. Could've probably used work, but...it would do for his tastes.

"Women..." he muttered as he swallowed his food.

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Hiei entered the castle, his footsteps echoing on the marble tile. He walked slowly until he came upon the throne room, where he had first knelt in front of the queen, awaiting his punishment.

It was also the first he had laid eyes on Hebidoshi.

His thoughts kept traveling back to that day and the cat-girl's gaze upon him, her tail twitching underneath her kimono. The moment he'd seen her he knew she had to be more than one of the queen's lackeys.

"Ah, Sir Hiei," the queen smiled at him from her throne, petting the dragon on her lap. "So glad you could come."

"Why did you send for me? Why did you not send for your sister as well?"

"It's a complicated matter..." the queen sighed and released the dragon, which instantly scrambled under her chair. "This is something I need to talk to you about, and only you."

"I told you, onna, I'll leave as soon as I can find out how," Hiei said through clenched teeth.

"Oh, for the love of kami!" the queen slapped her forehead. "That's not what I meant! Take me seriously for once, will you?"

"A little hard, isn't it?" Hiei folded his arms across his chest and smirked at her contemptuously. "After all, you don't even rule like a queen...your sister's been ruling the whole realm in the sidelines."

"Exactly my point!" the blonde woman said seriously. "Hiei, I'm not as stupid as I act in front of everyone, but I don't know how to rule a realm! And I hate taking all the credit when it's Hebidoshi who deserves it. I want her to take over my reign as queen."

"Well, why don't you just say so?"

"I'm not allowed to step down," Kanne explained. "I have to be overthrown; that's the only way it works. So I've been trying to make Hebidoshi angry and motivated enough to overthrow me."

"Can't you tell her that?"

"I've tried..." the queen sighed, rubbing her forehead in exasperation. "But she wouldn't... 'people like you,' she says, 'you're popular!' she says, 'everybody will like to have you as a queen!' she says. I'm hoping to get her angry enough to make her not care about that anymore." She sighed. "But she's always been so shy...she doesn't like to speak out against people or tell them what to do. I was hoping to change that."

Hiei raised an eyebrow. Shy? Doesn't like to speak out? Doesn't like to tell people what to do? That certainly didn't sound like the Hebidoshi he'd gotten to know. Since he'd met her, not only had she flirted constantly, displaying exactly how shy she wasn't; Hebidoshi had bossed him around, yelled at him, bit him, and argued with her sister. The person Kanne was describing sounded like a complete stranger.

"You've got to be joking," he said flatly. "That does not sound like her."

"Before you came along, it was her," replied the queen. "I could boss her around and put her down and she'd say nothing about it; she'd just go along with it like it was normal. And get this: the day you came was the first time she'd ever spoken to a complete stranger. Do you know how long I've been trying to get her to do something like that? Over a hundred years!" Hiei looked at her skeptically when she said this. "I'm serious! You're having some strange affect on her. I want that affect to continue, so I don't want you to leave. The longer you stay, the closer she gets to the throne. Do you understand, Sir Hiei?"

"I suppose..."

"Good," the queen knelt slightly to pick up her dragon again. "And there is one more thing, Hiei."

"Yes?"

"Be kind to her. And just...try to like her."

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

What an odd request... Hiei thought, sitting at the windowsill of the kitchen window. Try to like her? I can tolerate her...she's not as bad as most onnas, after all. And exactly what affect do I have on her? It must be important if she's acting differently. The fire demon sighed and rubbed his temples. He'd had a headache for a while, and his dragon had started to pain him again as well. This just wasn't his day...

Hiei...Hiei, are you there?

"What in the...oh wonderful, now I'm hearing voices in my head," the fire demon began to massage his scalp, hoping the voice would go away.

Stop being such a baby! You're not hearing things, dimwit, it's me.

Hiei sat up. "Genkai? What the hell are you doing in my head?"

Held a séance, long story. But that's not important. The important thing is, you need to get out of that realm, now.

Hiei glanced around the room once, trying to locate anyone inside the house. When he found no one, he continued speaking out loud. "How the hell did you find me here, and why should I leave?"

Give me a break, when you went missing I knew you had to be in the Dragon Realm. All it took was a few people and some concentration and I was able to contact you. Now, moron, you need to leave or you'll be putting yourself or everyone there in danger.

"Why is that?"

Haven't you noticed your right arm throbbing in pain at any moment? Have you noticed the bandages ripping?

"Well, it has pained me, but the bandages aren't ripping. How would you know about that?"

Well, stage two isn't in motion. That's good. Hiei, your dragon is becoming much more powerful. Soon it will break free of its bonds and kill everyone and everything in sight. It will also be able to cross over to our realm and destroy everything here. You will not be able to control it any longer. That is why it pains you. You are losing control. That is why you have to leave that realm and regain complete control of it.

Hiei pondered this for a moment. He was losing his black dragon? He had to leave or it would be unstoppable. I can't leave...

You must leave, you idiot!

Hiei blinked in surprise for a moment, not having been aware that Genkai could hear his thoughts. But he still couldn't leave. The queen had requested he stay with Hebidoshi...and for some reason, he wanted to comply. He didn't want to leave Hebidoshi.

Who is this girl...this girl you're thinking of?

Hiei blushed. Again, his thoughts betrayed him. "No one, Genkai...just someone I met here. And I can't leave her. She...needs me...and I just can't come back. I still have time before the dragon releases itself; I can help her and be out of here by then."

You fool! You're taking too many chances! You need to come back now before it becomes too hard to regain control of the black dragon!

"I'm not leaving yet, Genkai," Hiei said stubbornly. "I'll take as many chances as I can...I just don't want to leave her...not yet."

You're a fool, Hiei. But I think I can understand why you don't want to leave. Alright, then, stay. But you'd better be out of there before the dragon gets loose, and I mean it!

Hiei nodded. "Of course, Genkai. Thank you for understanding."

And in the Reikai, Genkai finally opened her eyes.

"Did you get through to him?" Yukina asked hopefully.

"I did," the old woman stood up, dusting herself off. "He's not coming back yet."

"Why not?!" Yusuke leapt up. "Doesn't he realize that he could kill everybody in the whole world?!"

"He said he's going to take his chances," replied the woman. "And I will respect that. The rest of you should, too."

"I'm not respecting that he wants to get us all killed!" shouted Kuwabara.

"He knows what he's doing, Kuwabara," Genkai said quietly. "Give it time."

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

"Oh, Hiei, you're back." Hiei looked over as the front door opened. Hebidoshi entered, smiling.

"You look tired," Hiei noted.

"Oh, just went out for a blood-hunt," the cat-girl sighed and sat at the kitchen counter. "Didn't really find much...so I'm a little worn-out." Hiei paused. Then he cut an opening in his skin on the back of his hand and presented it to the girl. She looked up in surprise.

"Here. Go ahead. I don't mind."

She took his hand. Then she smiled and drank the blood away from the cut.

SIDE NOTE: Um...what a...sweet ending...? I mean, when I started writing this chapter, I thought I'd having a really sweet and romantic-ish ending. Well, uh...it turned out sort of...sweet...yeah, really! "Awww, she's drinking his blood, how sweet!" I know, sounds, stupid, huh? Well, I guess it could be a sweet ending to the chapter...depending on how Hiei's blood tastes. ((smirks)) Well, plz review!!