Its me again people.

Hiei: Well, duh, who else would it be?

Random: Shut up.

Hiei: The baka writer forgot the disclaimer 1st time so here it is; she does not own Yu Yu Hakusho because seh does not own me! She owns nothing!!

Random: You're so mean.....................

Hiei: Hn.

Last Time:

" Fist...of the...Mortal...Flame!!" it shouted, saying the words in gasps. It aimed the punch at the nearest assasins. The human/demon was obliterated. One attacker charged at the dark shadowy figure. The other slid behind Mariko and knocked the back of her head with the butt of his knife. The last things she saw before she sank into unconciousness was a pair of deep crimson eyes coming toward her as the last attackers were blown to pieces.

Chap.1

Hiei's POV

' Kurama, the stray demons have cornered a girl.' I said telepathically to Kurama's mind.

' I am too far away to help. Can you get to them and save the girl?' he replied.

" Baka ningen onna," I muttered to myself, "At least I get some fighting out of it."

Normal POV

Hiei sped around the corner, bursting into the alley. He drew his katana, slicing the arm of a demon. The other two were focusing on Mariko. Hiei's eyes widened a he acknowledged the girl.

" She is using a katana," he thought, as one demon turned toward him, " And her spirit energy is unusually strong for a human her age. Actually it stronger than any normal human's spirit energy."

He dodged the demon charging him. Smirking, he powered up quickly.

" Fist… of the… Mortal… Flame!!" he yelled, obliterating the demon. The last two attackers split up.

Mariko groaned as her assaulter hit her in the back of her head with the butt end of his knife. She fell to her knees, figures swirling before her. Hiei turned, watching her fall. He quickly obliterated the two remaining demons. Mariko's eyes with locked Hiei's crimson red ones before she slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Hiei's POV

I ran to the girl, bending down to check for injuries. She had a gash in her stomach and a lump on her head.

" Hn. She put up quite a fight for a ningen," I said quietly.

" I see you have things under control," commented Kurama as he rounded the corner.

I turned away, mumbling "Hn." Kurama rolled his eyes, I could tell. He bent to pick he up, not noticing the wound in her stomach. Her arms covered it. I trailed him from the tops of the buildings as her carried her to Yusuke's house.

" She is kinda pretty, in a dark way… wait! No! What am I thinking!? Baka onna! Gonna get in to trouble. But still…" I mumbled, cursing myself for thinking such things.

Normal POV

Kurama picked up Mariko and carried her to Yusuke's house where they all lived. He noticed Hiei flicking from roof to roof, following them home.

"Hiei, why don't you come down and help?" Kurama yelled in an aggravated manner. "Hn," was his only answer. Kurama sighed and started to push open the door. Hiei beat him to it, glaring at Kurama.

"Happy?" he growled.

Kurama walked past him and laid Mariko on the couch. Her arms slid down and Kurama finally noticed her wound. Mariko's breathing was shallow and she was turning deathly pale. Kurama turned and ran to get to his medicine plants. Half an hour later, Mariko lay on Keiko's bed with Kurama and Yukina desperately trying to heal her.

" Baka! Idiot!" Kurama yelled at Hiei, who stood watching, " Why didn't you tell me she was hurt?!"

Hiei mumbled something, turning red with embarrassment and anger.

"What?" growled Kurama.

" Stupid ningen. Stupid fox. I didn't think it was that bad."

" You idiot!" Kurama yelled again, " She is dying!"

" Both of you calm down," Yukina interrupted quietly, "Hiei, you should have told someone. Kurama, he didn't know." Both of them calmed. Yusuke, Keiko, Kuwabara, and Botan entered the room.

" Hey guys! What is up?" shouted Yusuke.

" Be silent, you fool. You might wake her," hissed Hiei, his katana at Yusuke's neck.

"What?" sputteredYusuke, " Who is 'her'?"

" 'Her' is the girl on Keiko's bed. We are not sure who she is, but she was being chased by youkai. She received quite a gash in her stomach while she was fighting back," Kurama replied, eying Mariko to make sure she was still asleep.

He picked up the bandages on the end of the bed. Yukina, Keiko, and Botan hurried over to bandage up Mariko as the boys exited. Yusuke was very reluctant to leave until Keiko smacked him soundly across the face. " Pervert," she muttered.

The next morning, Mariko awoke to find herself in a soft bed. Her midsection was bandaged tightly. She shifted in bed, the happenings of the day before coming back.

" Ow," she mumbled, inspecting her stomach, "Stupid ambush. Baka men. Where in Kami's name am I?"

She glanced around the room. Her katana was propped up in a corner. A boy with spiky black hair with a white starburst in it was asleep in a chair next to the door. His feet were stretched out in front of him and his arms were crossed. Mariko swung her legs over the side of the bed. Her bare feet smacked the hardwood floor. The boy awoke with a start. He focused on Mariko and frowned.

" Get back in bed."

" I don't want to," Mariko snapped. She started to walk towards the door. Seconds later, she was back in the bed. The boy glared at her. She struggled to get up but every time she did, the boy deposited her back into bed. She sat u p and stared at him. The boy left the room in a flash after her sixth try to get up. A few minutes later, he returned with a groggy, red haired boy in tow.

" What is it, Hiei?" he mumbled, still half asleep. He looked up, startled, "Oh, hello. You're awake."

Mariko nodded, still not sure what was going on. The redhead smiled.

" My name is Kurama. And this," he indicated to the black haired boy, " is Hiei. You should really be resting … um… I'm sorry, I don't know your name."

"Mariko. Mariko Utarishi. Where am I?"

"You are in Yusuke Urameshi's and our house. Hiei here rescued you yesterday. You were ambushed. Do you remember?"

"Yeah. That sucked. I could not defend myself against four of them. I need to grow stronger. Four normally would not be a problem, but there was something different about them. But… was he the blur" she pointed at Hiei, " I really couldn't tell."

" Hn. Yes, I was the 'blur,'" he growled, not appreciating being talked about when he was standing right there.

" If you are not going to sleep, then you might as well come have some breakfast," Kurama said softly.

Mariko got out of bed. She glanced at her black attire. It was pretty ripped up. She frowned, trying to decide what to do. Kurama noticed her discomfort.

" I will have Botan and Hiei take you shopping after breakfast.'

" Take her shopping! Are you crazy?" Hiei choked out.

" No, Hiei. You will go because she needs protection. Go it?" Kurama glared.

" Grrrrr… fine. But you owe me one, stupid fox,"

They thudded downstairs and sat in the kitchen. Keiko and Yukina were making eggs and bacon. A boy with gelled black hair was beating an orange haired boy into the ground. A blue haired girl sat at the table looking bored and somewhat disgusted at them.

" Everyone," Kurama announced, "this is Mariko. Mariko this is Keiko, Yukina, Botan, Yusuke and Kuwabara.:" He pointed to them as he said their names.

" I, the great Kazuma Kuwabara, will protect you and proclaim my undying love for you! You have nothing to fear!" he crowed as he scurried over and grabbed Mariko's hand.

"Are you touching me?" hissed Mariko, her eyes flashing.

Everyone took a step back from her, except Kuwa. He continued to hold on to he hand and blabber on about protecting her.

" How dare you even think about touching me!!!" she screamed as she flipped him into a wall. He landed on his head, eyes rolling, and then slumped unconscious to the floor. Everyone stared at her in disbelief, even Hiei. He and Yusuke were the first to start laughing.

" Baka," Yusuke finally gasped between peals of laughter.

Mariko winced, dropping to her knees. The pain in her stomach was excruciating. Hiei grabbed her before she completely collapsed on the floor. He briskly carried her to the couch and gently lay her down upon it. Yukina placed her hands carefully on Mariko's stomach. She concentrated all her energy into healing. After10 minutes, Mariko sat up, examining her stomach. It was completely healed. Yukina sat, exhausted. Hiei rushed to help her.

"Come, Yukina. Time for rest."

"Yes, brother," she murmured. Hiei lifted her with ease and carried her upstairs.

He returned only seconds later. Mariko stood, confused.

"What are you people? And is she going to be okay?" she asked tentatively.

" She will be fine," said Hiei coldly.

Mariko frowned, knowing she would not get an answer to her first question and said, "Um, okay. Should we go shopping now?"

" Yay!" shouted Botan as she dragged Mariko and Hiei toward the door. Hiei looked back at Kurama wit a death glare. Kurama just waved and smiled, turning away.