Baka Hanyou Rahvin - Let me ask you this: If for most of your life you were abused, physically and mentally, would you be open...to anybody? I know I wouldn't.

Icefire2 - Thanks! But, no, Nanashi won't really ever forgive Hiei. Perhaps one day, but not for a long while.

Rahenne - One can only hope.

Chapt. 8

Stupid Demon

I race through the woods behind the house. The summer heat makes sweat drip down my face. I'm tired, but I can't stop.

"You can't outrun me," a voice laughs. "Boo!"

I slide to a stop and turn from the shadowy figure. He appears before me again. No matter where I run, he appears. As I turn again, I pull out my dagger. When the man appears before me again, I stab. But I only hit cloak.

"Damn," I hiss, sitting. Three years ago I turned ten and got a dagger. The same day, Hiei made me a proposition.

-Flashback-

"What?" I asked, turning.

"You're a fighter, I can see that. But you could be stronger," Hiei said, sitting on his bed. "You would like that, wouldn't you?"

"Yes, I would like to be stronger. But I can do it by myself."

"No, you can't. You can only do so much alone. But with help…who knows." He gave me this I-know-all-your-secrets smirk and held out a scabbard.

I stepped back in the room and took the case. Sheathing the dagger, I stared into Hiei's eyes. Captivating.

"What do you say? Let me help you?"

"Fine. But I still hate you," I smiled, shaking his hand. And he smiled back. Genuine.

-End Flashback-

"Smart tactics, but I know what you're up to," the voice says, sitting beside me.

"Shut up, Hiei. It isn't fair. You read my thoughts."

"Learn to act on impulse."

"Just…stay outta my head. It makes me dizzy." I get up and run off towards the house. I hear the scraping of metal behind me as I run. Turning, I side-step, narrowly missing being chopped in two.

"That's impulse," Hiei, my attacker, smirks.

"You stupid bastard! You coulda killed me!" I scream. Suddenly a large brown dog leaps out between me and Hiei. It snarls fiercely at Hiei, its jaws snapping.

Hiei stares curiously at it, as if looking at someone he knew but couldn't remember.

The dog barks at him threateningly.

"Fine, boy, I won't do it again," he says, disappearing. The dog relaxes and bounds away.

"Wait!" I call after its fleeting tail. But it doesn't wait and disappears in the trees. "Damn, I didn't get to thank it."

"Him," Hiei corrects, appearing beside me. "That dog was a boy. A male." He doesn't look at me as he speaks, but instead stares at the spot where the dog disappeared.

I look over at Hiei; I was nearly as tall as him. Something was there, but I couldn't tell what it was. But I knew it was something that I wanted. Something that I had always longed for.

"Why did you attack me like that?" I ask.

He turns his gaze to me and answers plainly, "If you didn't dodge, you didn't deserve to live."

I'm dumbfounded by his answer. It was so…direct and heartless.

"You're a monster," I blurt, angry. "You're a demon."

"Yes, I am! I am a demon! You're right, you've always been right. I'm not an angel, I'm a heartless demon! A murderer and a thief! Yet you believe in me. Why?" He was so desperate to understand me. So…sad, hurt.

"Why?" That was a good question. But one I had an idea on how to answer."I believe in you because I have no one else to believe in. I've never had anyone else to believe in.

"You rescued me when no one else cared. You protected me when no one else could. Why do I believe in you, Hiei? Because you're the only angel who ever answered my prayers." I try my hardest not to cry, but a tear begins to slip down my cheek. When I turn away, silk wipes away my tear.

His hand. I remember the first time I touched his skin. The first time I felt that silk. That was what I didn't want to leave. That silky skin he had is what I longed for. What I needed to get by.

I turn my face back to his. Those orbs of frozen blood hold me once again. Cradle me to a secure place.

"So, which is it? Am I a demon or an angel?"

"Hiei, you're my demon angel." I hug his neck tightly, pulling myself to him. I didn't want the feeling to leave me. I didn't want to feel insecure again. And then I feel his arms wrap cautiously around my waist. Never again would I feel lonely.

'Don't you ever leave me; I'd die without you.'

"I'll always be there, even when you can't see me."

"Hiei?" a man questions. Hiei releases me and we turn to see Kurama with a worried look across his face.

"Yes?"

"Have you seen Shuuto-kun?"

My heart skips a beat. 'Shuuto!'

"Have you seen a large brown dog hanging around?" Hiei asks, gripping my shoulder.

"A little while ago, but what has that got to do with anything?"

Hiei says nothing and takes my hand. For a second, I stand in shock. The next, I'm being whisked away at speeds too fast to comprehend. Everything passes by in a blur.

Except a dog.

"Hiei! There!" I shout, trying to point. Suddenly, we stop and I trip to the ground. Because Hiei was still holding my hand, it was quite an uncomfortable position. When I stand, I look off with Hiei at the dog.

Hiei whistles to the dog. The dog looks over and growls when he sees Hiei. As he races at us, I see his silver eyes.

'I've never seen a dog with silver eyes… In fact, the only person I know with silver eyes is…Shuuto.'

"That's my guess."

"But Shuuto can't be that dog! Shuuto's a little boy. Only human!" I shout, staring at Hiei.

"He's a demon and just now realized it when you were in danger. But he doesn't know how to change back. He's special, Nanashi. Will you turn from him now?" His eyes turn to mine, almost daring me. I turn away and look at the dog racing, gaining ground every passing moment.

It leaps at Hiei, but I stand in front of the demon angel and catch the dog. We roll to the ground.

"Shuuto!" I call, hugging the dog tightly. "Come back to me!" The dog shifts somewhat and I'm no longer holding a fuzzy beast. Instead, a naked boy.

I turn bright red and scoot away as fast as I can, my eyes shut tight.

"No one told me that would happen!" I scream, hiding my scarlet face in my shirt. There was a bit of ruffling and a small laugh before a finger taps my head.

"You can look now," a deep voice says, and I know it was Hiei. Slowly, I peak out and see Shuuto wearing Hiei's cloak. It was really big on him. I look over at Hiei and hide my ruby face from his bare chest.

"What's wrong with boys!"

Shuuto laughs and Hiei snorts.

"What's wrong with you?" he asks. "Haven't you ever seen a man without a shirt before?"

I gasp slightly and try not to remember. But the memory comes anyway.

"Yea, I have," I whisper, tears slipping from my eyes as my head leaves my shirt.

-Flashback-

"Leave me alone!" I shouted, trying to free myself from his grasp.

"You're prettier than the others," he said, touching my hair.

"Stop!" I screamed, scratching him with my free hand.

He looked at the small rivers of blood and smirked. Roughly, he wiped the blood on my face. With the same hand, he took hold of my free hand and pressed it to his bare chest.

"It won't hurt if you stop struggling," the man whispered, licking the blood from my face.

"Lemme go, you pug ugly!" I clawed at his chest and managed to get free. But it didn't matter how fast I ran, because he caught up to me. He shoved me to the ground and laid on top of me. Carelessly, he pulled my clothes off.

-End Flashback-

'How old were you?' Hiei asks in my head.

I look up at him and glare through my tears. 'I was only seven, if you must know.' Still crying and angry, I run from them and back towards the house, my knife left behind.

But I wasn't running in the direction I thought I was.

"I'm lost," I mumble, slumping to the ground. "Damn it." I scoot around and face the direction I came from. "Hiei, you stupid, nosy bastard, come find me!" I yell, cupping my hands around my mouth.

My tears had dried and my face was no longer red. But I was still hurting inside. And talking to Hiei only seemed to make it worse.