Title:Keiko's Revenge

Author:Bradybunch4529

Summary: Keiko overhears a conversation between the gang that causes her to leave everything behind.

Disclaimers: Yu Yu Hakusho and everything related is not mine.

Rating: PG-13

Pairings: Keiko/Yusuke Botan/Koenma Kurama/OC

A/N: I am changing things to suit me of course. So slightly AU. At this point Yusuke is not on his way to Makai.

Reviewers:

Spede: I know that her reactions are over the top, but I wanted a coming of age story. So I decided to go extreme with Keiko's doubts. Chapter two was a bit odd, but I wanted something that showed the changes she was going through. Thanks so much for reviewing.

Danamare: Bird form happens in the Chapter Black saga that was just releashed on DVD. Lots of changes going on there, especially with Yusuke!! We all know that Puu would do anything for Keiko and she manages to convince him to keep it small. And you are right; it's going to be hard for Yusuke to convince her. You're great for taking the time to review.

Escptheshdw835: Thanks for the vote of confidence. You're reviews always make me smile. Keiko doesn't realize she's changing; she's too busy trying to hide her feelings. This chapter showcases that change, so tell me what you think. Thanks loads.

Chapter 4: Conversations

What am I supposed to do, Hiei wondered as he stared down at Uremeshi's girlfriend. It had only taken him a couple moments to catch up to her and now he found himself unsure what to do. I should just walk away, Hiei thought as he watched her exit another store. Why should I care if Uremeshi is having problems, he reflected darkly as Keiko dogged around a group of people standing on the sidewalk and continued on her way.

Deep down Hiei knew that he could not leave Keiko unguarded. Yusuke had accepted him despite being a demon and Keiko had done the same. An unkind word had never passed her lips about Hiei. More than that, Keiko had accepted his sister and had been Yukina's first friend. So still grumbling to himself, Hiei continued to shadow Keiko as the sun disappeared and she continued on her errands.

As Hiei watched, Keiko dodged another group of guys on a street corner and made her way slowly back to her house. Hiei's eyes narrowed on the group as several of the guys nudged each other and then started after her. He caught a flash of silver in the streetlight and bit back a curse as he spotted the blade that one of the men was carrying. He shook his head and moved to intercept them. Hiei really didn't want to deal with Keiko but he couldn't let her get hurt while he watched. Even as Hiei began to move, one of the guys had caught Keiko's arm and was pulling her around to face him.

Keiko let the bags swing against her legs as she continued down the street. She had finished most of the shopping she had wanted to accomplish tonight. Her brown eyes were pensive as she dodged around a group of people. She couldn't believe that Yusuke was still trying to control her. Not so long ago, the thought that Yusuke was that possesive would have warmed her. Now it just made her wonder if it was habit or Yusuke pretending to care.

She stifled a snort and fought back tears. It was obvious that he didn't care; he hadn't even bothered to come after her. Normally he would be dogging her heels and trying to explain. It had been almost two hours and there wasn't even a glimpse of him. Keiko tried to convince herself that she didn't care, but as Puu hooted softly into her ear, she knew that she lied. She took comfort in the way Puu nuzzled her cheek with his beak. A smile warmed her features and she rubbed her cheek against Puu's, basking in the knowledge that Puu loved her. Keiko's steps quickened as she realized she was almost home. As she was turning onto her street, she felt her arm grabbed and she was pulled around roughly.

Without thinking Keiko brought her bag up and hit the person holding onto her, using the momentum of the pull against him. It connected with a resounding smack and the guy was sent flying. Keiko's breath caught in her throat when she realized that there were at least 10 guys surrounding her. The guy she had knocked into the wall was being helped to his feet and the rest of the guys were glaring at her.

"Now that wasn't nice little lady," a voice drawled.

Keiko stared at the man walking towards her. Puu was hissing slightly from his position on her shoulder with every step the man took, his wings outstretched and his neck craning forward. Her eyes widened slightly at the scar running from his left eye across to his right cheek. His hair was unkempt and straggling around his face, the knife in his hand caused her breath to catch in her throat. Keiko was tempted to run screaming in the opposite direction but knew that if she took a step they would be on her. So she took a deep breath and kept her brown eyes locked on his.

"You shouldn't be doing that to a guy," he told her as he bent down to look into her eyes. "A pretty thing like you should be gentle and waiting for the right guy to come along." He brought the knife up and ran it along her cheek.

"You shouldn't grab ladies," Keiko replied as she stared into his eyes, his breath warming her face, as he came closer. She refused to back down or flinch from the blade still tracing her cheek. This punk was no different than the ones Yusuke beat down on a regular basis and she wasn't about to give them the satisfaction of knowing she was scared. "Last time I checked, a real man would protect a lady and make sure that she was never in this position." Her voice was cold and insulting and her gaze unflinching.

"Why you little," the man started as he grabbed Keiko's arm with one hand and drew the other back to hit her.

Keiko didn't even think about it as she brought her foot up and kicked him between the legs. As she did that Puu struck at the man's face with his beak. The man screamed as Puu's beak sank deep into the flesh on the bridge of his nose. He jerked backwards and blood gushed down his face and Keiko took a step back, dropping her bags and preparing to fight. The men were closing in on her and from their expressions she knew they weren't going to be satisfied with just slapping her around.

Keiko reacted as one of the guys struck out at her. She ducked, her brown hair brushing against the man's fist, and swept her foot against his legs. In a second he had crashed into the two guys coming up from behind her. As she straightened Puu screeched a challenge at the group and pushed himself off of her shoulder and flew at them. Several members of the group ducked and shielded their faces with their arms. Keiko felt an arm wrap around her neck and was pulled back against one of the guys, her air blocked as the arm pressed against her windpipe.

Her hands wrapped around the arm chocking her and slammed her heel down on the guys' foot. He yelped and she found herself free, she spun around and slammed her fist into his face. He went down like a ton of bricks, his nose spewing blood down his chin. Keiko flinched at the thought of what she was doing and tried to ignore the fact that she had blood spattered on her clothes and fist.

Keiko was starting to get worried. She hadn't been a brawl since elementary school when those boys had jumped Yusuke. As she ducked another punch and took a boot to the stomach, she knew that she was outclassed. Her knees buckled and she collapsed to the ground, trying to drag air into lungs that were stunned. One arm wrapped around her stomach as she tried to push the pain out of her mind, the other was braced on the ground and she lifted her head.

Even as she struggled to do that, another fist caught her in the face and her head snapped around. As the blow knocked her sideways, a boot slammed into her ribs. Keiko's breath caught and she bit her lips to bite back a scream. She wasn't going to give them the satisfaction. She managed to make it to her knees, her head hanging limply down. The laughter and the taunting was a distant echo in her ears as she forced her head up.

Her brown eyes met dark brown eyes glinting in satisfaction. Blood was still dripping down his face and Keiko couldn't help but laugh at the sight. His eyes darkened with rage and his hand buried itself in her hair and yanked her head backwards. Keiko's laughter died as pain ripped through her head, her neck was yanked backwards and the man stared down at her. Keiko felt a frisson of unease trickle down her spine as he smiled at her. There was nothing warm about that smile; it was the smile of a predator about to kill his prey.

Keiko's breath caught in her throat as his other hand came into view. The blade glinted wickedly in the street lamp and Keiko's eyes were fixed on it as it made its way slowly upward. In that instant, Keiko realized that she was going to die. There would be no Yusuke to sweep in and save her. Keiko had managed to hold on and fight because she had believed that Yusuke would come. As she stared up at the knife, Keiko knew that she had hoped in vain.

For an instant the knife hung in the air and Keiko could do nothing more than watch. The sounds the gang was making faded to the background. Everything seemed to slow as the knife began its downward trek. And then it was stopped. A hand had come out of nowhere and wrapped around the guy's wrist.

Keiko's breath rushed out of her and her eyes closed in relief. Yusuke had come after all. The grip on her hair was gone and she collapsed forward, holding herself upright with her hands. The sound of the fight was a distant memory and she couldn't pay attention to it. Distantly, as if at the end of a long tunnel, she heard screams and the sound of bodies hitting the ground around her. Puu screamed and shrieked in the air above them, his voce shrill in the silence of dusk. Keiko finally managed to get to her face and turned to face her rescuer.

"Yusuke…" she stared only to trail off as she caught sight of her rescuer. The black hair spiked with white and the small figure in the middle of the fight wasn't Yusuke. "Hiei?" Her voice was incredulous as she stared at the fire demon. As Hiei dodged another blow and knocked the guy into the building, Keiko couldn't believe her eyes. Of everyone she had believed would come to her rescue Hiei hadn't even made the list. Keiko couldn't help but stare as one by one the gang fell before him. Keiko caught a flash of light and cried out a warning. Even as Hiei spun away from the blade, he was drawing his sword.

For a moment everything was suspended as Hiei brought his blade around, determined to kill the human who had dared to try and cut him. The blade came to a halt suddenly; Hiei stared at the hands holding the blade. Even as he watched, blood began to well up and drip steadily to the ground. Hiei slowly raised his eye from the hands and met Keiko's brown eye. There were tears shimmering in the brown depths and a sympathy so deep it almost brought Hiei too his knees. His eyes narrowed in confusion as Keiko slowly shook her head at him, never letting go of the blade.

"No Hiei," Keiko told him gently. "You can not throw everything away for a punk."

"What?" Hiei's eyes narrowed as he tried to come to grips with what she was saying.

"You've come to far and done too much to redeem yourself, to commit a murder."

"You know nothing," Hiei hissed as he pulled the blade away.

"I know that you love your sister," Keiko told him as she watched him wipe the blade and sheath the sword. "And if you don't want Yukina to know, think of how she would feel when it came out."

Hiei's head snapped up and he glared at Keiko. His fingers tightened into fists as he contemplated this new complication. He didn't like the feelings that were rushing through him as she continued to ignore her wounds and met his gaze. The caring and acceptance he could see in her eyes was battering against his walls. "I don't know what you are talking about."

Keiko sighed and finally glanced away from Hiei. She was too tired to try and deal with Hiei. He wasn't Yusuke and he wasn't the type who would welcome her interference. Instead, she looked down at her hands and took in the deep gashes across both palms. Keiko continued to watch unconcernedly as the blood ran down her arms and onto the ground. She couldn't bring herself to care and wondered distantly why she wasn't feeling any pain. Perhaps she should just bleed to death and then she wouldn't have to wonder what she should do now.

A hand wrapped itself around her wrists and a gently tugged at them. Her head came up and looked at Hiei's bent head. He tucked her hand under his arm and wrapped up her palm with a piece of his coat.

"Don't move," Hiei instructed as he pulled the flesh together and began to wrap the strip of cloth around her hand.

Keiko could only stare in disbelief as he did the same to her other hand. Then he was tugging her over to a stoop and urging her to sit down. He ripped another strip from his coat and used it to blot at the blood running down her cheek. She stared up at him in confusion, trying to understand why he would help her. She couldn't see his eyes with his head down and the light behind him. He was all in shadows and for a moment Keiko could do nothing more than watch him.

When he was finished he eased onto the stoop with her and Keiko let her head drop to his shoulder. He tensed under he but made no comment as he stared out into the darkness. Silence stretched between them as Keiko let her eyes close. She sighed and snuggled into his shoulder feeling safe. Normally she didn't feel safe unless Yusuke was with her, and now she had found someone else she could be safe with. With another sigh, Keiko's eyes closed and she fell asleep.

Hiei continued to stare across the street, trying to ignore the girl with her head on his shoulder. He had never let anyone so close before and now he was starting to wonder what it would be like to have someone trust him so much. He was beginning to understand why Yusuke fought so hard to protect her. There was something comforting in the way she immediately accepted everything about you. Is this why Uremeshi tries so hard to keep you away from the fight? Hiei wondered as he felt her fall into sleep.

He knew that he should move away. After all Puu had gone after Uremeshi and she would be fine until he got there. Yet, Hiei couldn't bring himself to move as her breath warmed his neck and her hand rested on his arm. A feeling was welling up inside him and it took Hiei a minute to figure out what it was.

Peace.

A/N: Well that's another chapter. No Yusuke in this one. Don't worry he'll make an appearance soon. I did leave it hanging a bit, didn't I? And we got to see Keiko fight! I hope to have the next chapter out next week.