a/n – Sadly, I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho or Fruits Basket.

The Dragon Wielder's Denpa

Her black cloak swirled around her as she aimlessly strolled down the isolated forest path. Above her a little bird flitted here and there chirping to her friends. A dim smile graced the pale girl's lips. 'So enthusiastic and chipper.... just like Tohru.'

Rapidly struck by an atypical electrical signal she paused and swung her head around. Those waves didn't come from that little bird; they were too fiery and prideful. She wondered at the chilled feeling that ran through her the moment the waves passed out of her perception. It was like she had been standing in front of a blazing bonfire on a cold night. She could feel the heat soaking into her very being, so hot that she knew she was too close, knew she should pull away, yet it was the kind of addicting warmth that she wanted to cling to. And then it was gone and she felt cold.

Strange, normally she preferred the cold. It always felt so refreshing against her warm skin. It just suited her. It possessed a certain hard, emotionless quality the same quality that she often disguised herself in. But the cold she felt now reflected a part of her that she hoped others did not notice, a part of her that she thought was dead.

Loneliness.

She could still feel the endless nervous stares that her peers gave her after the 'incident', after they found out about her 'talents'. She had tried to pretend like they didn't affect her, like she enjoyed solitude. That's when she started wearing black and only black. To show them she didn't care if they stared at her.

She was lonely though, and it ate at her. That's when her very worried parents transferred her to another school thinking a fresh start would be good for her. There was no hiding who she really was though, she was a scary girl, and she knew it. She could see it in people's eyes - the fear of a demon who'd taken the form of a girl.

That's when she met Tohru Honda and found unconditional acceptance. Over the next few years she and Tohru and Uo became the closest of friends, and she learned to accept herself. She even liked being herself. She got a certain sadistic thrill from confusing the heck out of the Sohma boys, beating some sucker at rich man poor man (psychic abilities do come handy when your playing cards) and of course her personal favorite, scaring the crap out of those territorial fan club girls.

It was good to be Hana. So where did that lonely feeling come from all of a sudden? Odd, it made her curious; she would definitely have to investigate further. But right now she was late for an engagement at Tohru's; if she didn't hurry she might miss the snacks.

Meanwhile up in a tree a short distance away lurked a wee little man. Whoops, I mean.... Meanwhile perched on a lofty branch only a short distance away, a compact but powerful looking young demon considered the girl as she faded out of view. 'Well she certainly is dark.' He thought back to this morning's meeting with the spirit detective's team.

"Why do I have to do it? Surely one of the others is better suited for this sort of mission." Hiei looked sternly at the toddler from whom he and the rest of the team took their orders. '...as if this job could get anymore humiliating.'

"Hiei I realize your social skills are seriously lacking but..." Koenma was interrupted by Yusuke, "That's the understatement of the year!" Kuwabara snickered, and Kurama piped in. "Come on now boys. It's not Hiei's fault that he comes off as an arrogant, cold hearted bastard. He just lacks experience."

"This is exactly why you should send someone else." Hiei pointed out in an eerily calm tone.

"As I was saying, you're the only option we have right now if Yusuke and Kuwabara miss any more school they'll be expelled, which would reflect poorly on me! As for Kurama, he has personal problems to attend to that might put the subject in danger." Yusuke and Kuwabara were snickering twice as loudly now as Kurama began to blush rose red. Hiei smirked, 'so fox boy is in heat.' He made a mental note to make fun of him later, but right now he had to find a way out of this.

"What about that blue-haired bimbo? The ningen seem to like her." Yusuke grinned. "Yeah until they find out she's the grim reaper, then they can't get away fast enough! Hey Kuwabara, we're humans, why do we hang out with her?" Yusuke never could keep his mouth shut.

From the corner of his eyes, Kuwabara stole a glance at the blue haired ferry girl. "Hey your right, she is kind of creeeeeepy when you think about it!" CRACKBOOMCRASH! Botan pulled out her oar and pummeled them both. "OOo, where does she hide that thing anyway?"

As Hiei smirked as he thought of possible hiding places, Koenma answered the question. No not that one! "This is a very busy time of year in the spirit world; I'll need Boton's services here."

"Well I'm obviously not going to get out of this one," Hiei grudgingly admitted, "So get on with it."

"I'm glad you understand. Now as you know our new enemy is more powerful than anything we've ever faced. Not only is he an unimaginably strong fighter, he is also a deadly psychic. We'll be forced to battle him both physically and mentally at once. When the time comes Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama, will fight him the old fashioned way. It will be a difficult battle, but I think we stand at least some chance of holding our own."

"How reassuring, we might come back alive from this one." Kurama chimed in.

"Now I didn't say that!! Don't put words into my mouth! As I was saying, you three will take him in physical combat while Hiei and Miss Hanajima Saki attack him mentally. This will be impossible for Hiei's jagan eye alone, he will need backup. That's why it is essential to convince Hanajima to help us."

"As you can tell from looking at Kuwabara's family, heightened spiritual awareness in humans is a genetic trait, and the Hanajima clan of Japan is one of the most aware in the world. Their family is very old and they know much about the spirit world. Even in this day and age when most humans have forgotten that there are worlds besides their own, they teach their children about the supernatural. Believe it or not, they are a force to be reckoned with. Hiei don't screw it up."

"You don't have enough faith in me. All I have to do is grab this psychic and lug her back. It's simple enough. Where do I find her and what does she look like?"

Kurama scratched the back of his head. "Um, Hiei? I don't think 'grab' and 'lug' are the appropriate verbs here."

"He's right." Koenma hopped down from the chair he'd been standing on. "We need an ally, not a prisoner. Remember, if she doesn't come willingly it won't work, so you must convince her and the sooner the better."

"Fine." A reddish glow radiated from under Hiei's headband. "I'll convince her quickly." And with that he was gone.

"There he goes flashing that third eye of his again, you don't think he's gonna try and use it on her do you? What kind of jerk would want to control the mind of an innocent girl?" Eight eyes incredulously bored into Kuwabara's skull. "Oh yeah, forgot."

-

'This is the place.' Hiei studied the denpa as she leisurely walked down shaded path. 'Hn, lots of black clothes, lots of black hair, and deep gray eyes. That's her. She seems young. There's no way a girl like her could have any battle experience. She's probably like Keiko, all sugar and teddy bears, unless she's angry. Can that pale, wispy little thing really be of any use to us? We'll see.' He removed the white band of cloth from his forehead revealing a blue eye as it opened wide. As he prepared himself, he thought back to the last time he'd tried to enter and take control of a human mind.

It seemed like a lifetime ago. That was before he met those bleeding hearts that he now called allies. He had enslaved thousands of weak human minds, turning them into zombie-like slaves to be used for his destructive purposes. 'I enjoyed that.' He thought. Then that moronic thug of a spirit detective butted in and turned Kurama against him. It's not like he cared, back then he never really trusted the spirit fox anyway, only respected his strength and cunning. Strength had always been about the only thing he respected. But respect in his red-headed teammate or not, the spirit detective was a threat to be dealt with. Humans are weak when their pathetic hearts are on the line. So he kidnapped the person the detective cared about most. Keiko.

It was Keiko's mind that he last tried to enslave. He still didn't really understand how Yusuke could turn a weakness like devotion into such amazing strength, but he did. And he didn't understand why he now called that one time enemy "friend", when nobody was around to hear it, but he did. His goal had been to annihilate mankind, and now here he was helping to save it. Most self-respecting demons would be ashamed of what he had become, but then again, most self-respecting demons could kiss his ass.

The humans think he's too ruthless and the demons think he's too soft, until they're all swallowed whole by his dragon. He didn't really care either way what others thought about him, as long as they stayed out of his way. If that meant that he got to spend more time alone, it was fine by him. He was used to being alone.

He snapped back to his objective as a pair of house sparrows flitted past him down towards the girl. His jagan illuminated as the hair around his face flew back away from his eyes. He paused though, as he watched her consider the playful birds. It wasn't obvious but he could see the shadow of a small smile trickle over her features. He was reminded of his sister Yukina, she loved gentle birds. 'I wonder what she would say if she knew that her brother was a demon who enslaved the minds of innocent .......Wait a minute.' Hiei instantly moved three or four branches higher and examined the girl. Wavy black hair fluttered in the breeze as she swung her head around in the direction of his perch. 'So, she does have a bit of skill.' Hiei thought to himself as he tied the bandana back around his head.

As a shiver ran over her body, she seemed to ponder for a few moments, and then took off with a renewed sense of purpose.

A short while later Hana neared the end of her passage. Shigure's house where Tohru lived was up the path, just around the next bend. Hana paused here and spoke sternly to the open forest. "If you're so interested in me then show yourself, otherwise leave. Tohru has enough weirdoes hanging around without adding a stalker to the list."

The little bird that had been playing nearby idly thought to itself how strange the girl seemed as she scolded the wind in the trees, but Hana knew that the breeze wasn't the only thing blowing through the branches. She sense could that someone was following her. She could feel the electrical waves as they maintained a constant distance from her even as she moved. It may have slipped past the innocent little sparrow, but for Hana to not notice that bonfire of signal would be like missing a mac truck speed by her close enough to spray mud all over her favorite black veil. She couldn't miss it.

"I'm no stalker." Hana gasped as a figure landed lightly in front of her. She was secretly hoping that he wouldn't leave, something about the way he felt just ....excited her. And as she stared at him she see could see that something about the way he looked excited her as well. He was about her height, if you counted the hair, and looked to be about her age, 17 or so. Only he felt much older, as if he had experienced many things in his life, and that experience had been converted into wisdom and maturity. His right hand was bandaged with what she could tell was some sort of seal, which she thought ran up his whole arm. She couldn't tell for sure though because of his long sleeved cloak. That cloak. It appealed to her. Maybe it was the color, her favorite, or maybe it was the way it hung on his body showing off his trim muscular build.

Her gaze trailed up his body to meet his eyes. They were intense red brown orbs that seemed to flicker with hidden emotion. If there were emotions in there though, nothing else about him hinted to what they could be. "I know it's difficult to resist, but if you're finished ogling me now, we can get on with this." His voice grated out with barely concealed spite.

'So much for maturity' she thought. 'He doesn't even know me and he's already trying to embarrass me.' If he thought she was going to divert her eyes and blush, like Tohru might, or go ballistic and smack him like Uo would, then he hadn't been stalking her for long. She wasn't a normal girl and she refused to play his game. Hana's face contorted into a look of mock horror as she dramatically fell to her knees. "What has the world come to when a sweet innocent little girl can't even 'ogle' her attacker?" Her voice oozed with self pity. Then just as quickly as she had turned it on she turned it off, rising again to look at him blankly.

'Hmm, this might be more fun than I thought' Hiei mentally smirked, though his outer countenance revealed nothing of the sort. They remained like that for a long moment, both expressionlessly staring at the other.

The wheels in Hana's mind began to turn as she considered the enigma posted with his arms crossed before her. 'He's not normal. The waves I get from him don't feel human, but their not like that of an animal either.'

Hana dug back through her brain to her childhood studies. She knew she'd learned about this as part of her mother's curriculum. 'Hmm, some sort of demon from the Makai, I think, but which kind? There were so many.' Studying had never been Hana's forte. 'Wait a minute finding a Demon on earth is rare. They've put up barriers to keep them out. Only the strongest can get here.'

Hana suddenly felt nervous as Hiei's eyes bored into her. One thing she learned a long time ago was to trust her instincts, and her gut was telling her to get out of there. She couldn't just run away though.

'So, she's finally starting to put it together that I'm not what she considers normal. Took her long enough, I thought she was supposed to be some sort of spiritual whiz kid. I wonder what she'll do now.'

Hana broke the silence first. Her cool voice was like obsidian, smooth and dark with a slight edge, but her words betrayed her inner state. "Stand there if you like, but I'm leaving. It would be a sin to miss out on Tohru's rice balls." With that she walked by him mustering all of her control to keep from sprinting the rest of the way.

"Fine then we'll just have to talk later. We are, after all, going to be spending a lot of time together." Hiei couldn't help but feel a little satisfaction as saw her step falter just a bit as she walked away. Still, he was mildly surprised that she didn't turn and run the moment she realized that he wasn't human.

'I can't believe that I almost fell back there. At least he didn't see the look on my face.' Willing the butterflies in her stomach to settle down, Hana took a deep breath and focused on her situation. She could tell that he was still up in the trees following her, but honestly didn't know what to do about it. She focused on his electrical waves for a moment, and now that her mind was clear it was obvious to her that those burning signals could only belong to a fire demon. She combed through her meager knowledge of the beings. 'I think they were generally short tempered or impatient, and quick thinkers and movers.' Both seemed to apply to the creature who was watching her from the trees. 'So why do I feel like he can see right through me?'

As Hana continued down the path, questions about this demon plagued her mind. 'He's here for me? He said we'd be spending a lot of time together. What did he mean by that, and why do I get butterflies in my stomach when I think about it? And where did he buy that cloak?!!'

'Okay Saki, calm down. What's with the randomness all of a sudden?' Hana was a bit concerned over her reaction to this fiery spirit. Nothing ever broke Hana's cool, at least not since the end of elementary school when she learned to suppress her psychic abilities. This was not good. The last time Hana lost control, someone ended up in the hospital. She had to calm down, but without answers it just wouldn't happen.

Slowing her pace, Hana walked with her head bowed, her dark tresses shading her eyes. As the static cracked around her she came to a decision. A single lock of hair which was much shorter than the rest stood straight up on the top of her head. It resembled an antenna and seemed to blink with energy.

For a moment, all sound and light phased with that blinking energy and culminated in a single bolt aimed at the trees to the right of her.

Hiei threw is guard up an instant to late as he was sent crashing to the ground. Standing up with a little effort he narrowed his gaze on the girl still walking in her carefully measured pace.

In a flash he was in front of her again, fists clenched as he reigned in his temper. "That tickled. If I didn't know better I'd say you were trying to attack me."

"No, I held back. I was only trying to get your attention. An attack would have done much more that bring you down out of that tree."

A low chuckle emanated from him as he gave her a dark smirk. "You talk awfully big for a little human who won't even look me in the eye."

Hana slowly raised her head, a slight blush peppering her cheeks. "I want to talk, I have questions."

"So ask, and depending on the relevancy and my patience, I might give you answers."

Lifting her gaze to meet his she queried, "Who are you?"

"My name is Hiei." He started to walk in a leisurely manner nodding his head for her to follow. "I'm a member of spirit world's spirit detective team. Do know what that is?" He glanced at her as she nodded her head.

"Mmm Hmm. It's the team stationed to earth by Koenma to police demon activity"

"Good, this will be easier if I don't have to explain every little detail."

"I don't understand though, aren't you a demon?"

"Demons aren't all evil tyrannical monsters bent on destruction. A few of us are above that, though I won't claim to be one of the more noble ones. I had my reasons for being to earth."

"What kind of reasons?" Most of her apprehension had been replaced with curiosity, but she still regarded him with caution.

"The private kind." He stated looking straight ahead.

'I guess we all have things we'd like to hide.' Hana thought to herself, as she focused on the same little sparrow hopping around on the ground. There was silence for a bit before she voiced her next question. "Why are you here?"

"To collect you." It was a simple answer.

Startled, Hana jerked her head up to meet his gaze. "..But why?" This conversation wasn't making her any less confused.

"You're the one with psychic abilities right? You tell me."

Her brow furrowed as she tried to sort out where this was headed. "I can't read minds, if that's what you're implying."

Now it was Hiei's turn to be confused. "You can't or you won't? Is this some sort of honor code thing?"

"I don't have that ability."

"But you do have abilities, don't you, and more than just that zappy trick you pulled on me earlier." He held his step turning to face her.

Hana hesitated. She had never hidden the fact that she was different, but neither was it her practice to openly discuss herself with complete strangers who just happen to be demons with something to hide. Sent by Koenma or not, she wasn't ready to show her trump card just yet.

"Why are you so interested?"

Crimson eyes boring into hers, the demon took another step toward her. It was a ploy he'd often used to intimidate less experienced fighters, but this time he added a finisher. Taking his hands from his pockets, he lightly ran his index finger along her jawbone up the side of her face.

"I was asking you nicely because we're going to be working together, but I could just spare myself the headache and simply read your mind." That being said, a dull glow emanated from behind his headband just for emphasis. "And you know I'm not bluffing, you can sense it."

She only vaguely registered that his touch was warmer than average, like that of someone who has a high fever. What she did notice was how close the demon was to her now. This was definitely an invasion of her personal space, but she didn't back away. She wouldn't back down. Not even if her body had been responding properly, which it wasn't.

Her knees were shaking, though an onlooker wouldn't be able to notice through all her layers of clothing, and she was praying that he couldn't hear her heart pounding in the tops of her ears. By sheer force of will alone she held her composure. A short quick gasp was the first thing out of her mouth and it was the only hint she gave that he was affecting her in anyway.

"I haven't agreed to work with you yet." Her eyes were steady as she smoothly swatted his hand away from her face. "You haven't even told me what this 'job' for me is."

He answered with a small hint of disgust in his voice. "Prevent suffering, save lives. What else? Save the world. It's what spirit detectives do." His eyes narrowed and she could tell that recent memories were invading his consciousness. "Well, that and brawl that is." That last remark left a smirk on his face and Hana wondered if maybe despite himself he really didn't mind being part of the team.

"It's the same this time, only the enemy is significantly more talented than the usual thugs and psychopaths we face. He's an S-class demon who hates humans, apparitions, spirits and every other being in the three realms. He's a consumer named Uzgoth."

Upon hearing that last sentence, Hana's face paled considerably, contrasting starkly with her turbulent dark eyes. "Con..sum...er" The word caught in her throat as if her subconscious was trying to forbid her from speaking it out loud.

"So you've heard of them."

She tipped her head down slightly in an affirmative. Consumers, yeah she'd heard of them alright. They were the stuff of nightmares. Monsters that were fodder for horror stories around the camp fire at the family reunion. Evil entities that literally consumed other beings absorbing not just their bodies and physical powers, but also their souls along with any spiritual abilities the victim may possess. She'd always sort of thought that her elders made that one up. She hoped that it was a tactic to scare kids into studying the family business diligently. Wishful thinking.

"A consumer? It's not possible. I thought....I mean weren't they all locked away in King Enma's dungeon?"

"Yes," Hiei spoke matter of factly, "they were locked behind miles of walls lined with a makai barrier among other nasty things. They were such detestable creatures that once the Spiritual Defense Force finally got them on the ropes Enma hastily threw them all in and then destroyed the only key."

He shoved his hands back into his pockets. "Typical of those cocky SDF bastards they shoved 'em all in together and promptly forgot about them. No guards, no surveillance, no rations nothing."

The wheels in Hana's brain began to turn. "That must have been a thousand years ago. Without rations, how is it possible for any to be left alive?"

"Well, maybe 'no rations' wasn't exactly accurate when you consider what they eat, which is anything or anyone I should say. So it is possible for there to be survivors, well at least one at any rate. What's worse is the one left would be substantially stronger than when he went in. It would be the united power of the entire race."

Suddenly snacks didn't sound so appealing anymore as she could feel her lunch rising in her throat. Hana had never had a weak stomach and could handle a lot of things, from curses, to gang fights with lead pipes, to Yuki's horrible cooking, but there was just something about cannibalism that triggered her upchuck reflex. With a swallow she asked the only question on her mind, "Do you honestly believe that I can be of any use to you against something like that?"

Hiei took a long moment, deliberately sizing her up. 'Inexperienced, no overtly obvious physical prowess,' he mentally ticked off what he saw. Her face was covered in sweat 'weak stomach,' he added to the list. "Honestly, from what I can see, the answer is no. I wouldn't think you could make a dent in that kind of power."

It was exactly what she thought he would say. Hana wasn't sure whether she should feel relieved or disappointed, so she felt both. Her breathing became less labored as she took solace in the knowledge that she wouldn't be letting anybody down. No one expected her to be a "save the day superhero." At the same time though, she was dissatisfied with the idea that he hadn't even given her a chance to prove herself before deciding that she was weak.

He watched the female before him as the emotions played through her eyes. First she dropped her gaze to the ground, then lifting it up to the horizon without making eye contact, she spoke. "It was nice to meet you, Hiei." Now, summoning the courage to look the demon in the eyes she allowed a brief smile and walked away.